CHAPTER FOUR: Life

"My dear sir, it haunted me for the rest of my life. – Peter O'Toole"

Special Quote: "We are all like Scheherazade's husband, in that we all want to know what happens next. E.M. Forster"

JJ was exhausted by the time they arrived too her parents house in North Versailles, Pennsylvania; the five-hour drive had taken its toll on her physically and literally. She yawned as Spencer made the last turn into the disheveled driveway to the two-story brick structure she had called home for years on end.

"JJ," the friendly young genius said gaining her attention, a bashful look upon his face.

"Yes Spence?" she asked. She noticed that he had paled, and his hands were shaking. Unceremoniously, she held the palm of her hand to his forehead, and breathed slowly when she noticed that he didn't have a fever. "What's wrong?"

"Can you explain the protocol for this situation, please? It's been my unequivocal experience that most social situations dictate certain parameters be met when engaging in social niceties, however I must unabashedly admit I am far outside of my comfort zone."

She eyed him for a moment, mentally converting her friend's question. It was something she'd noticed about the young genius. Whenever he was nervous, he tended to stammer wildly, and return to the personality of the Special Agent he had been when she first started with the Behavioral Analysis Unit.

"It's simple, Spence," she said placing her hand on his arm, rubbing lightly too calm her friend, "You come in and shake my dad's hand, making sure to introduce yourself as Doctor Spencer Reid. It will immediately give my dad the correct impression, that you're a man of learning and respect. Then you introduce yourself to my mom, indicating that they can both call you Spencer, or Reid, whichever you prefer.

After that, you're a profiler, so I guess you just pick up their cues."

Spencer nodded, and she watched him take a deep breath and opened his door. She unclipped her seatbelt, and started to open the door, when it jerked open, and Spencer smiled shakily at her.

They approached the house, and she said, "Whatever you do, Spence, be honest. My dad likes to intimidate any man I bring home, to get a feel for them, I guess."

"He's a typical alpha male," Spencer said, indicating that it was a question. She nodded, "If my understanding of the term is what you use in our cases, yes. He's a typical alpha male."

She looked at her friend, who was fidgeting uncomfortably the closer too the door they moved. "It is going to be alright, Spence. My dad might take a little longer to warm up too you, but you helped me while I was in the hospital, so you're starting off on a good standing."

He nodded, and took a deep breath again, and she rang the doorbell. The door opened with a swift motion, and she smiled when her mom's arms wrapped around her almost instantaneously.

"Jennifer, you're home," her mom said. JJ smiled, leaning into the hug as her dad walked up to the open door. She could almost feel Spence tense beside her, but held in her surprise when he reached his arm forward, and said, "Hello sir, I'm D-doctor Spencer Reid. I work with JJ at the FBI."

Her dad took her friend's hand, and she could almost feel the palpable tension in the room. For almost five seconds she watched her dad eye her friend, and could almost envision the genius crumbling under her dad's gaze.

Then, to her relief, her dad released Spencer's hand and said, "I'm James Jareau, welcome to our home. This is my wife, Jessica. I understand you stayed with our daughter when she was in the hospital, and kept us in contact with her. I'd like to thank you for your dedication to her."

She smiled, glad that her dad was trying to come across as a friend instead of the overprotective ex-cop he really is. Then, she watched her friend as he took her mom's hand and said, "thank you both for welcoming me into your home. You may call me Spencer, if you'd like. And, it was nothing sir, JJ is my best friend."

She smiled again, happily acknowledging that the conversation was going a lot better than it would have even a year ago.

"So," her mom said as she released his hand, and pulled him into a hug. She saw Spencer's shoulders tense almost immediately, and almost winced when her mom pulled back and shot her an obvious look before asking, "What kind of Doctor are you, Spencer? You seem too young to have a medical degree."

Spencer Reid, who could stare down UNSUB's the like of Adrian Bale without flinching, blushed to the roots of his hair. JJ couldn't believe what she was seeing, but was glad that she was able to see him at his level best.

"I have three PhD's in Engineering, Mathematics and Chemistry, and two BA's in Psychology and Sociology. I've been working with the Behavioral Analysis Unit since I was twenty-one, just over two years now. I'll be twenty-four on October ninth."

"Multiple degrees," her mom asked, astonished. Her dad, who had been watching the entire time, sighed and said, "let the poor boy get settled in, Jess, I'm pretty sure they're both exhausted. Spencer, if you like reading, we have a library that you can use while you're here. Jenny will show you where it is later, all right. Jenny," her dad said, "why don't you head to the living room, and sit down while your friend and I grab your bags. Lunch will be at our regular time," he said before turning too Spencer and said, "That's one in the afternoon. We try to eat meals together around here."

Spencer nodded, committing the time to memory. JJ looked at her dad and said, "Okay dad. Spence, I'll show you to the library, only if you promise not to read all of the books in there while we're here."

As the two males stepped out, she couldn't help but worry about what her dad had planned. She turned to her mom, who was looking at her in apparent amusement and said, "What?"

"Don't take that tone with me, young lady. It isn't like you to let anyone to drive your car, even when you're exhausted. Just what does that young man mean to you?"

"He's my best friend," JJ said adamantly, "And I trust him with my life, mom. As a part of our job, we see things that would give you and dad nightmares. On a daily basis, we have to seep through the worst of humanity. Moreover, at the end of the day, we can go home, and forget about it.

But," she paused. "But that doesn't really answer your question. He means a lot to me. When I was first assigned to the BAU, the media liaison position had just been created, and our Unit Chief, Jason Gideon, did not appreciate being told that the team would be required to take an extra person on every assignment.

It only became worse when Gideon introduced me to the rest of the team. I thought I was going to be ostracized from the beginning. However …this quirky, innocent genius walks into the room, takes one look at me, and says, 'You must be Jennifer. I'm Spence… Doctor Spencer Reid and it's very good to meet you. I look forward to working with you.' He was stuttering the entire time.

Like a sieve, the rest of the team accepted me. Later that day, our friend Derek told me that Spencer was so socially awkward that it wasn't my presence on the team they protested, but what effect the presence of an unknown would have on him. Spencer knew this, he later admitted to me," she said smiling, "but also knew the team better than many would like to admit and decided to mitigate their reactions by curbing his own.

Ever since then," JJ said, "Spence has always had my back; even going so far as to teach me the basics of profiling so I'm not just an outsider, but a true member of the team."

"We're more than just a team, JJ," Spence said. She jumped, turning a glare on her mom who was suppressing a laugh of amusement, "We're a family, all of us. And you're my best friend too."

She smiled at him, and motioned for him to sit beside her.

"So Spencer," her mom asked her friend, a cheeky grin on her face, "What does my daughter mean to you?"

"You don't have to answer that, Spence," JJ told him immediately, seeing the uncomfortable look on his face. She cursed under her breath, for forgetting to mention that her family was very close.

"It's okay JJ," he said, "to be totally and completely honest, ma'am, to adequately describe my feelings for your daughter; she's my best friend. Before I met JJ," he said before pausing again to gather his thoughts. Her heart froze in her chest, and her breath caught in her throat, as she waited to listen to him, "I was awkward at best. I never integrated with the team, since our teammates…" here she heard his voice hitch and tears came to her eyes, as they remembered their fallen comrades, "Since most of our teammates came from backgrounds similar to yours, sir."

Her dad nodded, studying them with steady eyes.

"Meeting JJ was like a burst of fragrance. She swept in, and immediately had everyone wrapped around her finger with her grace and style. It was impossible to segregate her, even if I hadn't stepped in, Derek admitted to me that he was about too."

Her heart clinched. Derek had never told her that.

"I found myself longing to see her, though the days haunted me, they were worth all the heartache and pain because JJ holds me together."

She couldn't help it, JJ would later reflect. Her arms came up, and wrapped around the taller agent, as she leaned into his neck and said, "thank you, Spence."

Spencer froze, and she was about to move back, feeling immediately guilty for invading his personal space, but slowly they came up and wrapped around her.

"That's why I came when JJ invited me, and why I've asked her to join me when I go home next week. The last two weeks have been hectic, and I can honestly say that as much as I didn't want to be alone, I despised the thought of leaving JJ alone even more. Our family is broken," she tensed around him, and could feel him clench her even tighter, "but we'll only break if we're apart. Together, we can mend. It will take time, and it will take a lot of work, but we'll be stronger for it."

She wanted to hate him, just then, for bringing it all back to her, but felt secure in his arms. She wanted to rage at him for using the serenity of her embrace as a dam, but felt the selfsame serenity overcome her.

When he released her, JJ felt immediately alone. She felt like they were tethered, now, intricately formed together.

Her mom replaced him almost immediately, and the first of many tears fell. The dam she'd placed around her heart had broken.

No one noticed as Spencer left the room.

An hour later, her tears subsided, JJ looked around for her friend, and companion for the next two weeks, noticing almost immediately that he wasn't in the room. She frowned, wondering where he'd going too in the last however long he'd been gone. She looked at her mom, who shrugged and her dad, who shook his head and said, "He just told me that he didn't want to intrude on what he thought was going to be a family situation."

She nodded and pulled her phone, dialing his number almost immediately. "Hey JJ," Spence said hurriedly, "I'm sure you're wondering where I am. I had a look around the ground level of your home; it's wonderful by the way. I've about finished lunch, if you'll check your watch you'll find that it is coming upon thirteen hundred hours."

"You're cooking," JJ, asked incredulously, "Can you cook, Spence?"

She heard him scoff, and laughed when he said, "it's just like Chemistry, follow the directions and you can make anything. Actually, I did take a home economics course at Caltech, my counselor wanted to make sure I was self-sufficient since I was fourteen." Spencer said, over the phone as she walked into the kitchen.

Her mom came in behind her, and gasped at the mess around them.

"Did I forget to mention that for all his degrees, my best friend is a klutz?"

Her dad's bellows echoed around them, as Spence reached into the oven, where he pulled out something wrapped in tin foil. She could smell the garlic on it from here, and almost salivated.

"Oh," he turned at her voice, almost dropping the food in his hand before he set it off to the side, "don't worry about the mess, Mrs. Jareau, I'll make sure everything is put back into its proper place."

"Don't bother arguing mom," JJ said, "He really will."

Her mom nodded saying, "Thank you for doing this, Spencer."

"It was my pleasure," he said happily, "It isn't often I can cook for people. I'm sorry for the mess; I am a bit of a klutz."

Mom, JJ noticed, was giving him the benefit of the doubt.

"So, how's Jeff and Mel," JJ asked a few minutes later as they were sitting at the table. Her mom and dad were at their usual places, her dad at the head of the table, and her mom sitting opposite him. She was sitting in her normal spot, to the left of dad and right of mom, with Spence sitting beside her, to her right.

"Melissa is pregnant, and Jeffrey is running ragged making sure everything is ready for the baby. They've already redecorated the study of their house into a baby's room, and painted it white, instead of the sea green it was before. When they find out the sex, they're going to repaint the room and bring us over to see."

JJ smiled, "How far along is she?"

"Eleven weeks," her dad said happily.

"Your daughter-in-law should find out the gender of her child within the next two weeks," Spencer said. "The minimum is usually around week thirteen, but it all depends on the position of the fetus in the womb."

Her parents looked at him, confusion on their faces. JJ laughed, and said, "Its fine, he does that all the time."

"Sorry," the young genius said embarrassed.

Lunch was a happy affair, save for a few miscues that JJ was already used too from her friend, but that her parents didn't understand. Afterwards, she shooed her parents from the dining room, and the duo cleaned the kitchen. As promised, she noted amusedly, Spencer had everything back the way he found it, exactly.

After lunch, she gave Spencer a tour of her childhood home, telling him stories of her childhood as she came upon every room. He'd seen most of the downstairs already, though she explained the history each room contained when she passed them.

"This room is always locked," she said as she came to the last downstairs room. "It was my sister's room, Spence, and my parents and I really don't like talking about it. I'm telling you so you'll know to avoid mentioning it too them, okay?"

He nodded, somberly. She was thankful that he didn't press her to explain why the room was locked, though he probably had a good idea.

Then, they moved to the staircase, and she said, "Upstairs contains my room, and the guest bedroom, where you'll be sleeping. It also contains," she said stopping at the first door they came too. She pushed the door open, and she could feel her friend's glee as he ran forward, and into the room. "The library," she finished unnecessarily.

"JJ, your library has all of David Rossi's books in here; I didn't even realize he'd written more than Deviance: the Secret Desires of Sadistic Serial Killers."

She groaned, and said, "Dad also had all of Jason's written works, and I'm sure somewhere in here are Max Ryan's books. Just remember, you can't read them all while you're here."

"JJ, there are almost a thousand books here, I'd need at least a month to get through them all."

She sighed, and said, "Spence, I'm hoping that we'll be back here eventually, so please try to limit how many books you read from the library here. If you're that interested, there's an antique bookstore in town that we can hit tomorrow, alright?"

Spencer nodded, and she smiled again, happier than she'd been since Boston.

He grabbed four books and said, "I'll read these today, and get four more tomorrow, okay? That way, I'll only read twenty-eight while we're here."

She sighed and said, "Alright, but before that I want to show you around town tomorrow okay. We're both too exhausted to do anything like that today. Anyway, grab what you want to read from here, and I'll show you too your room. There is a bathroom up here, too, that we'll share while mom and dad use the master bathroom downstairs."

Spencer nodded again, grabbing the Rossi books he hadn't read; Frenzy: America's Worst Spree Killers and Eyes of a Predator, along with Gideon's newly released book, Sadism: the Worst of Humanity that she noticed almost immediately.

"Spence, we're supposed to get away from work for our vacation."

"I know," he said absently. She grumbled, watching as his hand sped down the page, almost like a computer scanner. She wished, for a moment that she could read and retain like her friend.

A few minutes later, he closed the book he was reading, and said, "Alright, I'll read the others later. Thanks for showing me this, JJ."

She smiled, and held her hand to him. He took it awkwardly, and she smiled and said, "Alright, as I said this is your room while you're here."

She pushed the door open, noticing that his ready bag was sitting on the center of the bed. "You can use the chest of drawers, and closet to unpack if you want. I'm right across the hall if you want to talk, too. I'll," she paused, "I'll leave you go get unpacked."

He nodded and turned to leave the room, when he whispered, "Thank you for letting me in, JJ."

She smiled and said, "Ditto."

When she moved to her own room, she wasn't surprised to see that it had gone through a change while she'd been gone. Her walls were no longer the violet they were when she was younger, now they were a solid white. The posters she'd left behind as a girl were all gone, and the minor holes she'd left were patched. The bed was new too, no longer was it the old twin she'd slept in since she'd gotten her 'big girl bed' at six, but a soft, new queen.

Her old desk was still there, polished and organized, with one of her old diaries sitting in the center. She smiled, and took a deep breath.

It still smelled the same.

An old, historic smell had guided her through her childhood.

She opened her closet, and gasped.

It was gone. She moved frantically, almost jumping out of her skin when she noticed the old, loose board that she'd used to hide things in her childhood was gone. Near anxiety, she went over to the desk and pulled the drawer open, hoping that it was in here.

She sighed, pulling out the warn envelope, and smiled as she felt the weight of the gift her dad had given her on her graduation from college.

The envelope, she noted, was opened.

"JJ," her mom's familiar handwriting met her as she pulled out the second letter, "I didn't read very far into the letter inside and I made sure that your dad didn't see it. I did notice that the Silver Eagle he passed onto you when you graduated was in there, and I just wanted to tell you that I'm proud of you."

She smiled again, not stopping the tear that slipped from her eye as she folded the letter again. She stood, and opened her ready bag, slipping the letter and diary inside.

Then, she fell onto the bed, her eyes closed seconds later.

When she woke, it was dark outside. For a second, fear overwhelmed her before she remembered where she was, the smell bringing her senses to life.

She could hear music coming from across the hall, an unknown, soul-piercing tune echoing from the speakers. It spoke too her on a level she'd never before known, the elegant violin rippling through her.

She got out of bed as quietly as she could; listening to the symphonic orchestra that almost told her a story. She crept across the hall, and knocked quietly on the door, hoping that Spence was up.

He came to the door almost instantly, a soft smile playing across his face. It was a look of contentment, utter contentment, which she'd never seen before on the almost constantly nervous genius.

"Hey JJ," he said turning the music down. "Did the music wake you?"

"No," she told him, "I think I was waking up anyways, I just heard it when I did. What is it?"

"It's a ballad called Scheherazade. It's the story of a young woman, a vizier's daughter named Scheherazade, and a Sultan who has forsworn love after being betrayed by his first Sultana. He swore after her betrayal that he'd never again live two days married to the same woman. For a thousand days, he killed each new Virgin bride on her wedding night, and married anew the next day.

Then one day, the Vizier's daughter Scheherazade, volunteers to marry the Sultan. Only, she has a plan. On the night of her wedding, Scheherazade begs the Sultan to allow her to say goodbye to her sister, Dinazade. The Sultan agrees, thinking he's granting her a last request. Upon arrival, her sister begs Scheherazade to tell her a story. Scheherazade, who had grown up educated had read so many stories and could recite them by heart, does so. The story she told was so gripping, the Sultan, whom they had ignored, was eagerly awaiting the ending.

Only, Scheherazade stopped the story at sunrise, saying that such stories are for nighttime. The Sultan, in an attempt to finish the tale, allows her to live so that the next night he'd get to hear the rest.

The second night, when she finishes the story, Scheherazade starts a second story, and the next day, the Sultan puts off her death for one more night.

A thousand and one nights," Spencer said, taking a breath, "a thousand and one nights she did this, until finally the stories were over, she had none left. By this time, though, the Sultan was thoroughly in love with her, and reneged on his eternal vengeance."

JJ sat on his bed, leaning against him, as she said, "He fell in love with her?"

"Yes," Spencer said, "it's ironic, though. He foreswore love, and ended up falling for this woman because she captured his attention."

"That's amazing," JJ, agreed, "It's kind of sad, though, isn't it. I mean, we catch these kinds of people every day, but this music makes it sound so romantic."

"I think the difference," Spencer said to her, "is that this is fictional. It's meant to inspire the belief that love conquers all."

JJ nodded and said, "Thank you for sharing this with me, Spence."

"My pleasure, JJ," he said to her softly, his hand running down her back as he said, "I usually listen to this while I'm going to sleep. It helps keep my mind clear, and it's so melodic that it's hard to not listen."

She nodded.

Neither of them noticed as they drifted off to sleep to the sounds of Korsakov's Scheherazade.

"Music is moonlight in the gloomy night of life. - Jean Paul"

End Chapter