**A/N: Hey everyone, just a quick note to say thank you to everyone who reviews my story!

It's so nice to hear what people think and I hope everyone is really enjoying the story!**

Chapter Ten

"In the beginning, people think vulnerability will make you weak, but it does the opposite. It shows you're strong enough to care."
Victoria Pratt

"Finally." Lauren huffed as they pulled into the parking lot. "I bet everyone got here hours ago." Spencer followed her and got out, shutting the door behind him. As they walked she glanced up at him, he hadn't been what she was expecting. Hotch had told her about the clever Dr Reid and she'd assumed he would be arrogant and annoying as most smart people were, including Hotch at times. But Dr Reid was quite the opposite. A smile slyly turned her lips up at the corners but then quickly turned into a frown. What was she doing? Lauren did her best not to look at him again, but almost against her will she glanced at him occasionally, a small flutter in her stomach occurring every time she did.

Walking into the office the team were all of a buzz.

"You might want to see this, Lauren." Emily said, gesturing to the laptop as soon as she entered, Spencer and Lauren walked to the table together.

"Has there been another murder already?" Spencer asked, the team simply stayed silent. Looking at the screen, Lauren clenched her fists in anger. Another photo had been uploaded; this time of a victim with brunette hair, a hibiscus flower blooming from it.

"How can this have happened?" She fumed. "We were just with Tina Mayson!"

"It's likely meeting you flared her need for another piece to add to her collection." Rossi said. "Do we know where the victim is?" The team examined the photo carefully, but even Lauren couldn't tell and she knew New York like the back of her hand.

"Has anyone reported it yet?" Hotch asked.

"No." Sergeant Fortrye's voice said from the doorway. "I've tripled patrols in search of the body, but nothin' yet."

"Dammit!" Lauren cursed slamming her hand down on the table in frustration. "Do we have a real name for her yet?"

"Garcia's working on it." Morgan said, but this didn't help. They needed a name now. Lauren couldn't help but think of the poor girl out there. Nobody should be displayed like that after death. Like some kind of spectator's amusement. It was hard to keep her cool and Lauren was slowly losing it. The heat in the stuffy office and the amount of people talking were making her head spin and her throat tighten. She had to get out, she could barely breathe.

"I need to get out." She choked as a wave of nausea hit her.

Quickly she moved through the team and headed for the doors outside where she hoped the fresh air would still her stomach and head.

Spencer was quick to follow Lauren outside, his worry for her even superseded helping with the case. After swinging open the double doors he had hoped a waft of cool air would pass over him. But it didn't. The air was stale, humid and was heavy with the smell of exhaust fumes. Yet his gaze flicked over the scene outside. Crowds hurried past looking at the ground but still managing to avoid bashing into one another but there was only one slim figure that wasn't moving.

Lauren was leant against the white stone wall of the NYPD Police Department. Her head was lowered and a hand placed on her forehead, Spencer had come to recognize this as a sign stress, just from the short time he had known her.

"Lauren?" Spencer asked tentatively, worried by her stillness.

"This is my fault, Spencer." She said still looking down. "If only we had kept talking to her for a moment longer… this might not have happened."

"With an unsub like this, it's likely she would have done it whatever time you had finished the conversation." He was trying his best. He had little experience with distressed women, even less with ones he felt so strongly for.

"It's so wrong! Why do people want to hurt each other?" Lauren asked, looking up at him. Her brow was furrowed in anger though her eyes gleamed with un-spilt tears and Spencer's heart felt like it was being crushed. He couldn't bear to see her like this, her distress was affecting him more than anyone else's, and he wasn't sure how to deal with it. He so desperately wanted to make her happier, but he just didn't know how. It was at times like these he wished for Morgan's cool head or Garcia's outgoing nature, the only thing he could think of to say was another fact.

"Like you said, she probably doesn't kill for the sake of murder. This type of unsub is fuelled by collecting what she thinks is beauty. She probably needs to 'collect' her previous target before she can move onto the next." He burbled quickly.

There was a silence between them.

"And the next would be me?" Lauren sighed heavily.

"She won't harm you." Spencer said seriously. Another silence passed. Spencer took the time to look at Lauren closely as she smacked the white wall in frustration. Her fists were clenched and her expression strong with anger. But on closer inspection she looked so fragile: her hair draped around her pale face, her eyes misted with a barrage of tears she wouldn't let through. It was only then Spencer remembered how young she was, 24 at the most he had deducted. A Detective at so young must have seen so much, but even at her age she can't have gained the experience to deal with all she had seen. He knew this from personal experience, not just from knowledge of psychology.

Without hesitation this time, Spencer reached out his hand and placed it on Lauren's arm. He thought it would feel awkward or embarrassing to do so but her skin was warm and soft and as soon as he placed it there, she looked at him.

"I'm sorry." She apologised and wiped a stray tear from her cheek.

"For what?" He asked, genuinely confused.

"I'm not normally like this." She explained. "I am a good Detective. I just sometimes get so involved. It's a bad habit." She smiled weakly up at him. "Hotch says it will pass in time and I will learn to distance myself more."

"I think it's admirable that you feel so strongly for the victims." Spencer said. Lauren turned to face him. He shuffled his feet, anticipation coursing through him at how close they now were. He cleared his throat. "Not many in law enforcement still feel like that, they see it as a job only and most are so closed off in themselves just so they are able to cope." He was referring more to himself than others.

"I don't want the others to think I am weak." She said frowning. "…I don't want you to think that."

"Me?" He asked, his voice rising slightly higher than he meant to due to surprise. She nodded at him. "Why?" He couldn't help but ask. He felt a slight thrill pass through him at the thought she valued his opinion so highly.

"Because," She began and took a step closer to him, almost closing the gap between them. He could feel her warm breath on his neck as she raised her face to look him in the eyes. His throat was dry and his limbs weak. He'd heard of moments like this. When one person could evoke such responses, making a person feel weak and unfocused. He didn't want it to stop.