She looked radiant, and he couldn't help but smile as he took in her appearance. Classic and elegant were the first two words to come to mind, and he knew in that moment that his life was changing. He had never felt about anyone what he felt about her…and he had only known her for a day. She was unlike any woman he had ever encountered. Spencer Reid was falling for Emmy James, headfirst and with no reservations.

He looked dashing in gray dress pants, a black button down dress shirt, a black wool coat, and a black and grey scarf. The very sight of him rendered her speechless. He was beautiful, everything she had ever dreamed of in a man. His eyes captivated her, pulling her in, and she was finding that, even though they had only known each other for a day, she wanted to be with him. She wanted him to want her. He was unlike any man she had ever known, and it was undeniable – Emmy James was falling for Spencer Reid.

"Hey." Her heart melted again, and she smiled.

When she smiled, as if her smile could have gotten any bigger, he felt himself wanting to kiss her. It was completely uncalled for, and would have gotten him a slap in the face, he was sure of it, but there was something so irresistible about her.

"Hey." It was as if he was the only thing that mattered at that moment. God, he was intoxicating.

"Oh my God. Emmy James is standing right in front of me…" It was that sentence that brought Emmy out of her trance. She now noticed the woman and man Spencer had brought with him. The woman was short, blonde, and extraordinarily bright. Emmy had no doubt the two would swiftly become good friends if the opportunity arose. The man was tall, dark, chiseled like a statue, and had a smile that could power all of Texas. The two made a quirky but cute couple, Emmy silently thought, and she couldn't help but wonder if that was what people would think about her and Spencer.

"I'm Emmy. You must be Spencer's coworkers." She extended her hand to both of them. The blonde was the first to speak.

"I'm Penelope Garcia, technical analyst. But you can call me Penelope…or Garcia…or you there…" Emmy laughed, and it melted Spencer's heart how carefree the girl was. "I think I'll stick with Penelope. And you are?" She turned her attention to the man.

"Derek Morgan. You can call me Morgan, everyone else does. It's really nice to meet you, Ms. James."

"Oh, please, call me Emmy! So, Penelope, I hear that you are the one who introduced Spencer to my music." As she said this, she took the flowers and coffee from Spencer, the gratitude evident in her bright eyes.

"It wasn't just Spencer she introduced. All of us have her to thank," Morgan stated.

"Well, I'm glad that you guys enjoy my music, and I'm glad you guys could make it to the show tonight. I know things are probably crazy with that psycho roaming campus…" The air shifted as her words landed. The FBI agents were once again reminded that this wasn't a night off, but rather they had a job to do. Spencer couldn't help but notice how Emmy played with the fabric of her dress with her free hand as the thought of the unsub potentially coming after her played in her mind. She absently took a sip of the coffee and smiled.

"Did you get this from Java?"

"Yeah…I figured you might like a little piece of pre-show heaven…"

"You have no idea," she laughed. "Today was one of the longest days of my life. All of my professors are, like, hounding me about making sure I am attending auditions for Broadway shows. I know they care and they just want me to succeed and all, but I'm wondering if Broadway is what I'm supposed to do, or if I am supposed to just sing, or if television might be the right direction…there are just so many options open and really, I just want to finish school." And like that, the air was back to one of lightheartedness.

"Girl, you should totally audition for Broadway. You would own everyone who even tried to go up against you." Penelope's words lifted Emmy's spirit. "Thank you so much! I really appreciate that." She took another sip of her coffee while looking toward Spencer, who she had caught staring at her.

He simply couldn't take his eyes off of her. It was as if he were afraid if he looked away she would disappear, like a dream you don't want to wake up from. The ease in which she communicated with his friends just further emphasized to him that she was someone special, someone worth pursuing. He knew Derek was watching him, and Penelope and Emmy were chatting about their favorite Broadway shows at this point. He caught pieces of the conversation, names that the girls were throwing out, and he made a mental note to look them up. It helped to have an eidetic memory, especially when it came to remembering what a girl liked and didn't like. It had certainly helped when he had returned to Java to grab her cup of coffee, having remembered she had taken her coffee black the day before. His attention was pulled away from her as he noticed Morgan stand, phone up to his ear, motioning Spencer to join him. The two made their way outside the dressing room as he excused the both of them. The girls didn't seem to mind, too wrapped up in their own conversation to worry about the sudden departure of the men.

"What do you mean, that showcase is cancelled?" Morgan asked. Reid could tell that it was their boss on the other end of the line. Hotch, Rossi, and JJ had gone to the dance showcase, apparently to find that it had been cancelled. As Reid listened to his boss return an answer anxiety made its residence in his stomach. That meant that if the unsub stuck with his typical pattern, he would be at this showcase…it meant that Emmy was in danger. The very thought made him a little nauseous, but he was determined to stay strong, if for no one else then for her. She could not know about this new development.

"Alright, Hotch, we'll keep you guys posted. What? Oh, okay, yeah he's here with me. Hang on," and, then, to Reid, "JJ wants to speak to you." The look on Reid's face caused his partner to chuckle slightly. "Hey JJ, what's up?"

"How's your date going, hot stuff?"

"JJ, it is not a date. This is work."

"Yeah, yeah. Keep telling yourself that."

"Goodbye, JJ…" As he started to pull the phone away from his ear he heard her yell, "Wait, Spence!"

"Yeah?"

"Just…be careful, okay?" The concern that laced her voice set Spencer on edge. He knew that his team thought of him as the kid brother, but to hear them vocalize their concern for his safety always unnerved him a bit.

"I will, Jayje." He passed the phone back to Morgan and made his way back into the dressing room. The profiler in him read the worry in Emmy's eyes, and it steeled him. He would do whatever it took to protect her. Penelope looked towards him, questioning him with her eyes, and he answered aloud, "Hotch just called to wish Emmy luck on the show. He's sorry that he and the rest of the team couldn't be here, but there was an update on the case."

"Spencer, I don't want to be the one keeping you guys from work. God, that is incredibly selfish of me, expecting you guys to just drop everything…"

"Sweetheart, there is nowhere we would rather be," Morgan exclaimed as he entered the room again, comforting Emmy while quietly reminding the others that they were there for a job. Spencer nodded, and Emmy shot him a thankful smile. "Well, the show starts in, like, ten minutes, so you guys might want to go and grab a seat…"

"Yeah, we'll do that," Morgan extended his hand to her. "It was nice to meet you, Emmy."

"You too, Morgan." She then turned to the analyst, who hugged her. This made Emmy's smile brighten all the more. "Oh, before I forget," Garcia burst, "I made this for you." Emmy laughed with joy as Penelope presented a friendship bracelet. It was lime, turquoise, black, and silver, all of Emmy's favorite colors. As Penelope tied it on her wrist Emmy noticed the matching one Garcia wore. "Best friends forever now," she proclaimed, and Garcia's smile lit up the room. "You really like it?"

"Oh my goodness, I love it! Those are seriously my favorite colors."

"Awesome! Okay, my god," she addressed Morgan, "let's go grab seats." She winked toward Spencer as she and Morgan left the room.

He was finally alone with her, and it took everything in him to not just tell her how he felt. He didn't want to make it awkward, though, so he settled for, "Break a leg."

"There's something you're not telling me…" Her eyes examined his, begging for answers. She didn't know what she was expecting him to say, and it obviously was not what he was expecting to hear because as he stood wide eyed she instantly regretted letting the words leave her mouth. "I'm sorry. I'm just really nervous…"

"About the show?" He knew that wasn't what she was nervous about, but he prayed that he would be able to spare her from the fact that she was the unsub's only target for the night.

"No, about the potential that I could be targeted tonight." Her voice trailed off and her eyes were cast downward. As gently as he could, and with as much courage as he could muster, Spencer tilted her head up so that her eyes met his. "I'm not going to let anything happen to you. I promise you that." Then, with a smile, "It's your senior showcase. Enjoy the moment, Emmy."

He gave her one last reassuring look and then left the room, leaving her to her thoughts. When he said that he wouldn't let anything happen to her, she genuinely believed him, with everything in her. It didn't matter that just days prior he had been a complete stranger. There was something about Dr. Spencer Reid that kept her calm. Jesse rapped on the door and said, "Three minutes, Ms. James."

"Thank you, Jesse." She once again looked at herself in the mirror, knowing that just as tonight marked an end to her career at NYU it also marked the beginning of a new page of life, one that involved Spencer Reid, and she prayed he would be a central character in this chapter and the ones to come.