A/N: Yay, Reid is back! Please review guys, I'm getting antsy over here!
The lying started before I even got in the door and it continued all through the night. I needed a place to stay, not therapy.
"Alex?" Dr. Reid asked. I offered a weak smile. "Yeah." He stood there with his mouth open for too long. I stared at my shoes instead of his questioning face.
"What are you doing here? Is everything alright?" He asked when he got a handle on himself. I scratched my head. God, this was a really dumb idea. I spoke up before I could loose my nerve. "I wanted to say thank you for everything you did for me last week." My voice came out confident and strong. I almost didn't recognize myself because I was still shaking on the inside.
He furrowed his eye brows like he didn't recognize me either. The girl he had met last week would barely speak out loud, never mind show up at his house to volunteer for a 'thanks so much, I owe you one' speech. He tapped the door frame with his long fingers in a rippling motion. The moment was painfully awkward.
"Ok. You're welcome." He said bluntly though not unkindly. I could have just called to tell him that and he knew it. I struggled to think of an excuse for him to let me come in.
"I also was wondering if you wanted to pick up where we left off with our poker game." I said finally.
"Are you sure?" He said. I was taken aback. At this point I would rather take my chances on the streets than continue this conversation.
"Because I was winning." He finished. I stared at him blankly, not feeling the humor. A grin tugged at the corner of his mouth but he quickly stopped it. He gestured for me to enter and this time I didn't hesitate. I was in.
He offered me tea and I took it. It wasn't until we sat down on a comfy old sofa and chair and he began to deal the cards did I notice the time. The clock face on the wall displayed 11:30 pm. I didn't even feel tired. I was still reeling from the night's prior events.
"I'm sorry," I said at my discovery of the time. "I didn't realize how late it was." I noticed that instead of wearing his corduroy suit the way he did when I saw him at the bureau, he wore a t-shirt and plaid pants. Judging by the large pile of open books he had pushed aside to make room for us though, he hadn't been about to go to sleep.
"That's alright. I do most of my best thinking at night anyway." That made me feel worse but I didn't say so. I picked up my cards. It was a crappy hand.
"Did your foster parents drop you off?" He said in a way that suggested he was trying to pry without being too obvious. Perhaps subtly wasn't his strong suit.
"Yes." I said immediately, figuring it was the best answer. Wait, what would they be doing driving around the city in the middle of the night? "No." I said, sounding equally as sure as I had the first time.
"Which is it?"
"No. I was at a café with a friend for a few hours and I thought I'd stop by." The lies were mounting.
"You like your foster parents?" He asked carefully. I nodded without hesitation. "Do you miss your parents?" He asked a little more quietly. I shrugged. "I guess."
He pulled a few paper poker chips into his own pile. I threw down my cards. "I forfeit." I said, anxious to change the subject. He leaned back and stretched.
"Maybe you should get home. I'm sure they're worried about you." I shook my head. "They won't be. Deal another hand." I knew I was being pushy but I didn't care.
I felt Dr. Reid staring at me as I lowered my head. He sighed after a moment and dealt the cards.
I glanced around the room in search of a topic other than me. "You have a lot of books." I said and I meant it. Bookcases lined the wall and books were stacked in various other odd locations. He nodded. "I guess. So you're going to therapy and everything, right?" He asked, undeterred.
"Yeah. Tuesdays." I said. "Is that enough? You have some serious issues that I think you need to talk through."
"Serious issues?" I asked expressionlessly. It was incredible how utterly unconnected I could be with reality when I was with him. Thoughts of all bad things were forgotten. Almost. Dr. Reid looked up at my lack of acknowledgment of what had happened with parents.
"Yeah. Your dad molested you and then pimped you out." He said incredulously. I flinched at his words of choice. "That doesn't just go away overnight." My knee started to bounce up and down and a seed of anger grew in my throat. "You have no right to bring that up. I'm doing fine and it's really none of your business."
Dr. Reid set his cards face down and looked at his hands. "I'm sorry." He said and it sounded like he really meant it. "If you say you're fine, then you're fine." It felt like a little piece of my heart just stopped working and died. I kept my face blank. I knew I could never tell him what had happened just a few hours earlier with my foster dad but a part of me had hoped that the profiler in him would pick up on it anyway.
"That's right." I said. So what if he couldn't get Angie and I out of the house for good? I might as well utilize him by visiting now.
I looked at the clock. It was 12:15. I yawned pointedly. "Do you think I could crash here tonight? I don't think I want to go home so late." At this point, I didn't know if I could handle going back there. Dr. Reid hesitated. "I don't know." He said. "Please?" I begged. I curled over my lower lip and did my best pouting impression, something I hadn't done since I was 6. He rippled the cards unconsciously.
"Fine." He said at last. I grinned and my bouncing knee finally got a rest.