A/N: I'm sorry I'm late. I have no excuse, but procrastination. Won't happen again, promise.

Chapter 4: Just friends?

"Maxim 31:
Only cheaters prosper."
― Howard Tayler

About a mile and a half from the makeshift torture chamber, Spencer was at home. He had finally gotten his hands on the Imperial Affliction and decided to read. And by read, he meant attempting to. His husband was a constant distraction.
"Derek! Can you stop walking in my peripheral vision for one second?!" Spencer yelled. Derek Morgan stopped in his tracks. Spencer was never this snappy with him.
"Tell me what's wrong."
"Nothing's wrong, Derek." Spencer saw Derek's eyes scanning him, "Don't profile me."
"Come on, Spencer. I don't need to profile you to know when you're lying." Derek said matter-of-factly.
"I'm fine."
"Who isn't?" Spencer wrinkled his nose at Derek's question.
"You know Mike, right? The one I told you about? We met in high school…"
"Yeah…" Morgan silently urged him to continue.
"His boyfriend's abusing him. There are bruises on his wrists. He's not himself anymore…he's quiet, submissive…Paul calls him every two seconds."
"Paul…?"
"I didn't get a last name." Spencer said quietly, "I should've, but I didn't. God…"
"Mike will be fine. When's the last time you saw him?"
"Breakfast…"
"What does Mike do?"
"He's, um, a teacher." Spencer lied, "Spanish teacher. He has my number, so-"
"If Mike needs help, he'll call. He's probably fine."
"Yeah…" Spencer breathed, hoping for the best, "I'm sure he is." Spencer hugged Morgan, "Thank you."
"For what?" Morgan asked. Spencer smiled.
"Just being you. And being there for me." Spencer kissed Morgan, which Morgan eagerly returned. Their fingers interlocked, Spencer's book long forgotten.

Meanwhile, in a safe house across town, James and various other criminals - though James would often protest that he wasn't a criminal, he was a businessman (that killed people for a living) – sat around, drinking beer and talking. Seeing his 'employer' walk through the door, James excused himself. He shook hands with Paul, who handed him 3 packets of white powder: Heroin. It was their currency, worth more than money.
"You got another job for me?"
"No, but I'll need to see you later." Paul paused, and gestured to the criminals in the other room, "Away from these morons." James smirked, and ran a hand through his blond hair, before Paul spoke again, "Think of it as a reward."
"I look forward to it." James eyes had grown dark with lust.

"Cheats prosper until there are enough who bear grudges against them to make sure they do not prosper."
― Peter Singer

Morgan got up from the couch, kissing Spencer's forehead before untangling himself from Spencer's limp grasp. He walked over to where his pants had been strewn on the floor during that afternoon's endeavors. Putting them back on, he felt his phone vibrate. Morgan jammed his hand into his pocket and took out his phone. It was a text, from a private number, containing two pictures and 5 words.
'Still think they're just friends?' The first picture was of Spencer, his hand on some man's chest; Morgan guessed it was Mike, whispering in his ear. The second was of 'Mike', his hand around Spencer's waist, kissing Spencer's cheek.
Morgan glanced over at his husband's sleeping form. He wanted to shake Spencer awake and demand answers, but resisted the urge. The pictures could be fakes, a ploy to drive a wedge between then. He knew what to do.
"Hey Babygirl."
"Hey Sugar. I love you, but do you know what time it is? It's my day off, this better be important."
"It is. I need you to find out the last number that texted my cell. And I sent you two pictures; I need you to tell me if they're photoshopped." Keystrokes were heard as Morgan tapped his foot impatiently. Garcia's laptop beeped in irritation.
"Sorry my coffee-colored god, it can't be done. It's a burn phone and who – where'd you get these?"
"They were sent to me. Are they shopped?"
"I'm afraid not." Garcia paused, and Morgan could almost hear her nervously chewing at a pencil, "Tell me you still trust the Boy Wonder, or is there trouble in paradise?"
"No need to worry," Morgan gritted his teeth, "they're probably taken out of context. I'll ask Spencer about it."
"Derek? Don't go crazy, okay?"
"I won't." Derek hung up. He stood silently, glaring at the photos, feeling his blood boil. Pictures don't lie. They'd been married for what, three, almost four years? And Spencer decided to cheat… and lie about it right to Morgan's face? Spencer wasn't wearing his ring…maybe he should calm down. Not jump to conclusions – maybe it really was taken out of context.
No. Morgan chuckled silently; Spencer wouldn't betray him like that. He couldn't believe he had actually entertained the possibility.
"Derek?" Spencer said groggily. He squinted as the sunlight struck him, "Do you mind closing the blinds?" Morgan shuffled over, and closed the blinds. He turned around and stared at Reid, "What? Have I got something on my face?"
"Spence…" Morgan exhaled, "Someone – I got these a few minutes ago, they were sent from a burn phone. Now, before I show you, I just wanna ask: why don't you wear your ring?"
"I thought we went over this al-"
"Let's go over it again." Morgan said firmly, interrupting Spencer, "Why don't you wear it?"
"I don't like the feeling of being interrogated, Derek."
"I'm not interrogating you. Just answer the question."
"I don't wear it," Spencer begrudgingly answered, "because it's not anyone's business. It's personal. The team knows, our families know. I wanted to keep it close to heart, keep it sacred, not tell everyone you see, y'know?"
"Right." Morgan felt rather foolish, but hid his embarrassment. He turned the device's screen to face Spencer, "Can you explain this?" Spencer glanced up from the phone, and stared at Morgan suspiciously before answering.
"Pushy guy was flirting with me. James. Mike inserted himself, pretending to be my boyfriend. We had to sell it." Morgan raised an eyebrow, "That one, I was telling Mike about you…Wait. How'd you get that picture, from that angle?"
"I told you, someone…" Then it clicked, "Did you see anyone around? Following you? Watching you too closely?"
"James…but he left straight after Mike came… I wasn't looking, really." Spencer sat up, "What if they followed me here?"
"We don't even know who they is. Did you make a heat run back here?"
"Yeah, but if they are following me, they could be following Mike too." Spencer searched for his phone, picking it up off the floor, "I have to see if he's okay." He dialed Mike's number and waited.

A/N: I'm sorry this is mostly just filler. The real stuff happens in the next chapter. Next chapter will be longer as well. Feedback is always welcome, thank you for reading, and I hope you enjoyed it.