Staying Together
Disclaimer: I do not own any of characters in this story that you recognize, the ones that you don't I'll take credit for!
Notes: Sorry it's been so long. It's been hectic around here and I've just not had time to sit and upload to be honest. Thanks for all the reviews and I hope you keep them coming! (Funny side sstory, when I was oploading this chapter I almost uploaded a literacy profile I was working on for one of my graduate classes, how dissapointing would that have been!)
Warning: Slash. Reid reminds me so much of a friend of mine who is gay that I can't ever see him as straight, even though the show has had him stumbling around two or three girls.
Summary: SLASH. Part 2 in the Together Series. As Reid journeys on his road to recovery with Morgan they are bound to hit some speed bumps along the way. (Reid/Morgan est. couple)
Reid's leg bounced up and down rapidly as he sat next to Morgan in the waiting room. He wished he could just hold Morgan's hand but since they were at the bureau they didn't want to take the chance that someone might see them. As irrational as it may seem (to think that someone might catch them at the doctor's office) they knew their careers would be over if Strauss was told that two male team members were holding hands.
"Dr. Spencer Reid?" his name was called; he let out a breath he didn't know he was holding and stood. He wished Morgan could go with him but that would raise questions, he was a full grown man that shouldn't need someone to hold his hand in a routine post-wound check-up.
"I'll be right here, waiting," Morgan said, trying to calm Reid down. He knew Reid was nervous and he knew why because they had talked about it, Reid was afraid that he wouldn't be able to go back to work anytime soon, that he would be left behind and that the team would replace him. No matter how many times Morgan told him that he was irreplaceable, he had a hard time believing it. As Reid disappeared with the doctor Morgan could only hope for good news and a speedy recovery.
Reid walked behind the doctor, feeling each step weighing on him heavily. Eventually they arrived at an examination room and Reid was told to sit on the table. The doctor helped him unhook the sling and began to lift his shirt. Reid froze, he wasn't prepared for the doctor to undress him, he hadn't even thought about it.
"Dr. Reid I need to remove your shirt to get the cast off, then we'll go for an x-ray and I'll check the stitches," the doctor said, seeing how uncomfortable Reid was becoming. Reid didn't answer, just nodded. The doctor continued to remove his shirt and Reid sucked in a large gulp of air as his chest was exposed, his eyes looking anywhere but the doctor. The doctor was used to this behavior, having been Reid's bureau doctor for a while now, and continued with his work.
After the x-ray was taken the doctor removed the bandages. "This looks slightly less healed then I anticipated, did something happen that would hinder your recovery?" the doctor asked, poking and prodding along the stitches to gauge the pain level.
"I did fall once, it hurt but Agent Morgan checked to make sure that there was no bleeding, why?" Reid asked, his fear spiking at the thought that he was hurt worse than he thought last night.
"It shouldn't become too much of a problem, I'm just wary to take the stitches out today because they were pulled recently, the skin isn't healed enough for me to feel comfortable enough to take the stitches out because it would most likely lead to bleeding and me putting them back in within a few days," the doctor said carefully.
"And the x-ray, what did that show?" Reid asked, hoping for at least some good news today.
"Well the bones are fusing together well; I don't think you'll lose any range of motion when you're fully healed. Of course complications could arise during physical therapy but from the scans alone I'd say it looks good," the doctor said, making Reid smile for the first time since arriving at the office.
"How long before I can fly again?" Reid asked, thinking about the trip that Morgan had planned and wondering if he would be up for it, Morgan was really excited to go home and he didn't want to ruin everything by not being allowed to fly.
"Dr. Reid I'm not about to clear you to go back to work, you still have some healing to do physically and we both know that there is a mandatory psych evaluation that you need to go through. Then, and only then, will you be cleared to return to work," the doctor said, sounding disappointed.
"I was actually asking because I was going to go visit my mom with my time off, she lives in Vegas and I can't exactly drive," Reid said, not telling the whole truth about Morgan's plan.
"Well as long as you don't feel too strained by it I don't see any medical reason you can't fly for pleasure," the doctor said with a smile. He helped Reid re-dress and secure the sling before walking him out to the waiting room where Morgan had been waiting with baited breath.
He was immediately concerned when Reid didn't seem happy by whatever news he had been told but knew this was neither the time nor the place to question it.
"Dr. Reid, I think we can take those stitches out next weekend if you are around, let us set a tentative appointment for 1pm on Saturday okay?" the doctor asked, finishing up writing in Reid's chart.
"That sounds fine, thank you," Reid said, standing by Morgan, waiting for him to get up so they could leave. They discussed what the doctor had said briefly as Reid filled out paperwork and set up his next appointment. Morgan could tell Reid was disappointed when he was told he couldn't get his stitches out and Morgan felt guilty because he knew if he had stopped the guy two nights ago this might not have been an issue. When they left the doctor's office Morgan paused.
"While we are here do you want to see about an appointment for your psych eval, maybe start the preliminary appointments?" Morgan asked, all the bureau doctors were in the same building so this would be the perfect time to set an appointment instead of calling later. Reid didn't answer verbally; he just nodded and followed Morgan into the elevator.
As it turned out, the psychologist that Reid had seen last time he was shot was available due to a cancellation and agreed to see him right away if he had the time. Reid had automatically wanted to decline, stating that he wasn't quite ready to talk to her yet, but Morgan reminded him that the sooner he started the sooner he would be cleared to come back into the office so he relented.
"Spencer, how have you been?" Dr. Clay asked as they took their usual seats, Reid in the comfortable desk chair that normally sat behind the desk and Dr. Clay in her high-backed leather chair.
"Actually good," He replied honestly. He knew he wouldn't be able to get away with profiling his way out of here, that was why Hotch had insisted on this particular psychologist the first time he was injured and needed an evaluation.
"That's good. Let's jump right in and talk about your injury. I know you saw a doctor before coming up here, what was the prognosis?" she asked.
"He said I would have to wait to get the stitches out, something I was hoping for today, but that the bone was fusing together well and he didn't see any complications arising with that," Reid answered clinically.
"You know what I'm going to ask," she replied, catching the change in pitch when he talked about his stitches.
"Of course I'm disappointed about the stitches. I mean, we both know that I won't be let near the office if I still have stitches in my arm," Reid answered, avoiding having her ask the overused feeling question.
"That is understandable Spencer, we both know how much you love your job and enjoy the work you do. I sense that there is something more about you wanting to return to work, something beyond just getting back into routine and helping people. What's going on there?" Dr. Clay asked.
Knowing that there was doctor patient confidentiality and knowing he wouldn't be able to get away with lying Reid opted to tell her the truth, "I've recently started seeing someone in the office."
She let her guard down and actually looked slightly shocked at his statement. They had never spoken about romantic interests in the office before. "And you want to be near this person and spend more time with them and in order to do that you have to come back to work soon. Are they not visiting you while you are on sick leave?" she asked.
"Not exactly," Reid said, his eyes wandering towards the door. He wondered if Morgan would be angry if Reid spilled their secret, it was their secret after all, not just Reid's. Fortunately Dr. Clay didn't push it, having a good idea who the person was by his actions.
"I see, so it's more than just wanting to be near this person, you worry about their well-being as well," she deducted.
"I know I will be left out of the loop while I'm on leave, but if I'm in the office, helping Garcia or something, I will know when things happen, if something happens," Reid admitted.
"All of this is understandable. Let's switch focus for a moment and discuss the shooting itself," she carefully switched topics.
"What about it?" Reid asked, last time he was discussing a shooting with her it was because he had pushed someone out of the way and was shot in the process, this time he was actually shot at, he was the intended target.
"From what I read in the report you had a connection with the shooter at the time, you even went to his funeral," Dr. Clay said, knowing this is where she was going to meet the most resistance. She knew Reid was going to make the talk before look like a walk in the park compared to teeth pulling she was going to have to do here.
"He wasn't a bad kid, he didn't mean it…" Reid said, trying to explain but stopping because he knew what he was saying was a lie, Mikey had shot him on purpose after all, it wasn't like the gun fired on its own.
"You know he meant it. You know that he willingly pulled the trigger while the gun was pointed at you. You know that he might have meant to kill you; to him you would have been just another casualty during his mission. The problem doesn't lie in the fact that he didn't mean it, it lies in the fact that you trusted him not to do it. You didn't see it coming; you thought he wouldn't shoot you. Why is that Spencer?" Dr. Clay asked, knowing that Spencer saw the shooting as a betrayal, now she just had to figure out why he felt so betrayed by it.
"I don't know, I just don't understand it," Reid admitted, sounding defeated. It was rare he didn't understand something and this was clearly bothering him, now they were getting somewhere.
**Outside in the waiting room**
When Reid went with the psychologist Morgan decided to call Hotch and update him, he just hoped he wasn't interrupting any of Hotch's time with his son.
"Hotchner," he answered on the forth ring, sounding slightly out of breath.
"Hotch, it's Morgan, is everything alright?" Morgan asked, worried about how tired Hotch sounded on the other end.
"I'm fine, Jack was using my phone when you called and then decided to play a game of keep away with it," Hotch said, sounding happy.
"Glad you bested your five year old. I'm just calling to give you a quick update on Reid while I'm waiting in Dr. Clay's office," Morgan said, smiling at the image in his head of Jack running around the Hotchner household with a cell in his hand.
"Dr. Clay? He's in with the psychologist already?" Hotch asked.
"She had an opening and he was feeling a little down by the other doctor's decision so he opted to talk to her for a while," Morgan admitted.
"What did the doctor say that had him so down?" Hotch asked, concern clearly coming through in his voice.
"Well he still has stitches in his arm, the doctor said he had pulled them slightly and he wasn't comfortable with taking them out just yet. If only I had stopped that guy," Morgan mumbled.
"Now is not the time to feel guilty, I'm positive Reid doesn't blame you so you shouldn't blame yourself. Listen, thanks for the update but Jack is currently trying to water our flower wallpaper so I have to go. Have Reid call me later if he's up to it and also have him call JJ, she's been wanting to visit but will probably settle with a phone call," Hotch said, waiting for Morgan's response before hanging up.
Morgan chuckled as he put his phone back in his pocket imagining the clean-up his boss was going to have. Sighing and knowing he had a while to wait before Reid would re-emerge he picked up a magazine and busied himself with celebrity gossip.
About forty minutes later the door opened and Morgan all but leapt to his feet. He had finished thumbing through magazines a while ago and was starting to become antsy. He was relieved to see that Reid looked much more at ease coming out of the room than he did coming in. As soon as he had seen Morgan sitting he smiled and walked over to him slowly. Morgan stood and stepped in to meet Reid; as soon as he was close enough Reid grabbed him around the middle and hugged him tightly. Shocking but not unwelcomed Morgan gently wrapped his arms around the slight body against him, placing his head in Reid's neck and breathing deeply his unique smell.
As soon as it began it seemed to end and Reid stepped back, still smiling. He took the initiative and gently grabbed Morgan's hand.
Morgan was still shocked from the hug when the hand-holding came. He felt as if someone took his pretty boy and switched him out for some touching-maniac. He dared a look up at Dr. Clay who was watching silently by the doorway and she flashed him a smile as well. Figuring that the session had really gone that well he turned to Reid before saying, "ready to go home?"
"Yeah," Reid replied.
Dr. Clay couldn't help but smile as she watched the two walk out of her office. Through her sessions with Reid she grew to love him in a sisterly way, he had a kindness to him that she rarely saw in men, it would figure he was gay. She knew they had a tough road ahead of them, especially because she knew of the trust issues Reid now had after being shot by someone he identified with and connected to. She hoped their sessions helped and he learned to open himself up to Agent Morgan.
Reid held Morgan's hand until they were out of the elevator; they both weren't ready to be outed to the whole bureau. When they entered the car Morgan made sure to reach over and grab his hand once more.
"Do I get to know what put you in such a good mood? I'd personally like to replicate it as often as possible," Morgan said, turning towards Reid during a red light.
Reid just shrugged, he would have to do a little more research to be sure but he was fairly certain it had to do with the fact that he felt lighter because he told Dr. Clay about things he had been hiding for a while. She had encouraged him to talk to Morgan about it and Reid was seriously considering doing just that if he felt like this afterwards.
"Well, as soon as you figure it out be sure to share Pretty Boy," Morgan laughed.
When they arrived back at Morgan's place Morgan threw the home phone at Reid and said, "call JJ, she's worried and wants to visit, and then call Hotch because he wants to be kept up to date on everything." Reid nodded and went off to the bedroom to make the calls while Morgan opened up his laptop and got to work, he had tickets to order.
So the doctor appointments are over, a little Reid healing, and the next chapter includes a flight somewhere! Review and let me know how you feel about it!
PS: Anyone else sad that CM is not new next week?