Emily really hated mornings like this. It was bad enough that they were called in early on a Monday morning for a case but the case didn't even require this sort of urgency and her favourite coffee shop wasn't even open this early. The traitors. She rubbed her eyes and resisted the urge to smack her head off her steering wheel. She was not going through this morning caffeine-free. She didn't think Hotch would approve of her ripping the heads off obnoxious LEOs and knowing this particular town, she would. Damn office politics and Strauss, Emily knew the woman didn't like Hotch but did that mean the rest of them had to suffer? Apparently so. And Hotch wondered why she hated politics. She was starting to get suspicious looks from pedestrians. Making weird gestures and talking to no one in an empty car park would do that she supposed. This was going to be one of those days where everything went wrong, wasn't it? It was freezing cold too, Damn east coast winter weather. What she wouldn't do to be in the Middle East right now.

Checking her watch, Emily decided that she could make a quick detour to that little place Reid showed her the other week. It catered to his weird sleeping habits so it was bound to be open now. That and it made good coffee. Better than her favourite place but she'd never admit that to Reid. He got far too smug about that sort of thing.

"The dork," she thought fondly.

A few taps and a quick Google search showed it was open. Success! Emily didn't go as far as doing a fist pump but it was a close thing. Coffee!

Before she pulled out of the car park, Emily decided to phone Reid. Might as well offer him a lift if he hadn't left yet. He was currently relying on the subway as his car decided that vital parts didn't want to work. She had blanked the explanation when he very enthusiastically went deep into the Physics behind it all and nodded when he got excited. She shook her head with a smile in remembrance. Only Reid would get excited about why his car wasn't working. Sometimes she wondered why he bothered with a car at all, he actually enjoyed taking the subway two thirds of the time. Even with the stupid frost on the ground.

'This is Dr Spencer Reid; sorry I couldn't come to the phone right now. Please leave your name, a contactable number and -'

Emily hung up and frowned at her phone. Reid never let his phone go to voicemail when they were on a case or, well, ever. He would have got the text message Garcia sent out, he literally shot out of bed when he heard her text tone. Emily had seen it; it was hilarious and slightly freaky how quickly he could open her eyes.

Not that she was one to talk, she once fell out of bed and cut the side of her face in her haste to answer a case call.

She tried again.

'This is Dr Spencer Re-"

Still no answer. Now she was worried. Sure, someone not answering their phone at seven am on a Monday was definitely not out of the ordinary for an ordinary person but this was Reid. The excellent three Doctor Spencer Reid who has managed to get himself into more trouble than the rest of the team put together with little effort on his part. Emily frowned and bit her lip. She knew she was being ridiculous, but-. Shaking her head, she made the easy decision. Looked like she wasn't getting that coffee after all. She was about to pull out of the car park and was mentally preparing the quickest route to get to her absent co-worker's flat when her cell rang. Reid's face filled the screen.

"Reid? Hello?" She spoke anxiously into the phone.

Something croaked back at her. She assumed it was a greeting and not some weird alien creature inhabiting her friend.

"What was that?" Emily asked, turning the volume up on her cell (She would have to remember to lower that later or she'd be deafened by Garcia). "Reid, is that you?"

"Hi -cough- Emily," came Reid's extremely pathetic sounding voice. "I was just about to call Ho-"

He trailed off into an alarmingly violent coughing fit. That was not good.

"Don't talk, Spencer," she instructing him, because she was concerned and because she did not want her ears assaulted by that noise again. "Your voice sounds like rocks scraping across sandpaper."

Actually, rocks scraping across sandpaper would sound less painful that her friend at the moment

"Well, yes. I'm ill," came the hoarse and irritable reply. Yep, definitely didn't deal well with being sick. "Can you tell Hotch that-"

"You're not coming in?" Emily interrupted, fumbling with her keys and starting her car. "Already on it and I'll be over in ten."

"That's not -cough, cough-, ow, not what I was going to -cough- say and Emily you can't-"

"Oh look, there's an opening! See you soon," Emily said brightly over his spluttering and hung up so he didn't go on about not needing to check up on him.

Honestly, you'd think he'd know by now that they looked out for each other. That and it was either her or Garcia. Emily was definitely the least smothering option. Emily's lips curved into a smirk. Well, if he did as he was told she was. Hopefully, he wasn't too ill or miserable. Reid really didn't deal well with being ill (who did?). He got all mopey that he couldn't think straight and anything but weak meds messed with his head. He also normally had an impressive bed head look going on. It was adorable. Just, don't tell Garcia she ever thought that, Emily would never hear the end of it. That woman would see romance between rocks.

She quickly drove through a gap in the traffic, probably cutting someone off but she really didn't care. Thank God for her knowledge of these backstreets and detours. Emily didn't want to put Garcia through the moral dilemma of hiding her speeding.

'HOOOONK!'

It was amazing how giving bad drivers a series of rude gestures cheered her up.

Well, it was time to go rescue a genius from himself. Maybe he had coffee.