Strange Encounter - a Criminal Minds fic

Chapter 28

Spencer paced back and forth on the platform, trying to calm his nerves. He could hunt down serial killers no problem, so why was he so nervous for Amelia to step off of that train?

He was glad he held the flowers in one hand and coffee in another. Otherwise he would've been anxiously tapping his fingers, and you didn't have to be a profiler to know that was one of his nervous tells. Hearing the train pull in behind him, his nerves were suddenly replaced with nothing but excitement. He couldn't wait to see her. 

He watched people file off, all removing the masks over their mouths the second they stepped off to breathe in the fresh air. After a moment, he saw her. 

She removed the tan mask from her face and nervously ran a hand through her curls, looking around the station for Spencer. He watched her for a moment, taking in her appearance. It had only been a week but he felt as if it'd been a lifetime. Any trace of a broken nose was gone, her skin clear of any bruising. She walked smoothly and held herself up straight. She wore light jeans and what looked to be an oversized old men's sweater, brown and orange stripes. That, paired with the converse she wore, made him smile.

"Lee! Amelia!"

Her head whipped around at the sound of his voice. He watched her break into a wide smile and run toward him, coming to a halt in front of him. She wanted to hug him, but having his hands full made it difficult. She looked at him for a second but didn't care, wrapping her arms around his middle and knocking herself in the face with the flowers. Spencer laughed, wrapping his arms around her as best as he could.

He planted a kiss on her forehead as she looked up at him smiling.

"Hey, Lee" he said softly.

"Hi there, Doc" she giggled. She felt like a school girl, but didn't care at all. She finally felt comfortable enough with Spencer to not doubt her actions and emotions, something that had become second nature for her.

"These" he held out the coffee and flowers, "are for you."

She snatched them out of his hands, immediately taking a long sip of the iced drink while admiring the flowers.

"Spence, they're beautiful. Thank you. And holy shit, this macchiato is amazing." He watched her inhale half of the drink and laughed.

"I'm glad you like it. It's my favorite coffee shop, near my office. Thought you'd like it."

"I love it." She grinned up at him. 

He took the suitcase from her hand and looped his arm through hers as he guided her toward the car. 

"How are you feeling?" He asked casually, wanting to be able to gauge how she was processing what had happened but also not wanting to pry.

"So much better. I sometimes take like, a quarter of one of the pain killers before I go to sleep, just to be more comfortable. My stomach still hurts when I lay a certain way, or if I stretch weirdly. But otherwise, I'm good as new!"

He glanced at her from the corner of his eye, reading her. He saw tension in her jaw as she spoke, realizing she wasn't being completely honest. He made a mental note to bring it up with her again later.

"I'm really glad, Lee. You look.. great" he said, giving her a look up and down as he closed his trunk with her things inside. She raised an eyebrow at him. 

"You don't look too bad yourself, doc." She was used to work attire Spencer, and had seen him in his pajamas, but hadn't yet seen him in day to day clothes. They were still pretty fancy for casual attire, but she certainly didn't mind. He wore straight legged khaki pants with a brown leather belt around his hips. A sage green button up was tucked into his pants, the first few buttons open. She had to admit, he looked hot. 

Looking down she giggled, nudging his foot with her toe. 

"Nice shoes." They both wore white converse sneakers, his certainly more beat up than hers. He grinned at her and pulled up his pant legs, showing off mismatched socks. One had green frogs all over it, the other a more traditional argyle pattern. 

Amelia set her coffee and flowers down in the car and pulled up her jeans to show him her socks, a pair of white crew socks covered in black outlined ghosts. 

"Oof, I don't know whose socks are better" he laughed.

"Mine, obviously" she replied as she sat down in his car. He started it and pulled into the street, heading toward his apartment. 

"So, I'm not sure how tired you are or anything, but Penelope, our tech analyst, is having a last minute get-together tonight. She wants you to come, but obviously if you're too tired or-"

"Will JJ be there?!" Amelia couldn't help but get excited at the thought of seeing her and the rest of the team. Besides that, with COVID she hadn't gotten to hang out with a group in some time. Thinking of hanging out with people, even if they were Spencer's friends and not hers, sounded amazing. 

Spencer grinned while looking forward at the road. "She will. No one knows you're here except Garcia, so it'll be a surprise."

"Oh my gosh, that sounds great honestly. Do you mind if we go?" She had been looking forward to staying in and catching up with him, curled up on the couch, and could tell he had had the same thought with the way he brought it up to her.

"Not at all. It'll be fun."

The rest of the ride went quickly, Amelia grateful he had gotten her a coffee to keep her going. Spencer unlocked his door and stood awkwardly to the side as Amelia walked in and stood in the doorway.

"Well, uh, welcome. Sorry, I tried to clean up a bit."

Amelia looked around the apartment, taking it in. The walls were deep green, mahogany book shelves lining the wall to the left. In between them she saw a wide doorway, and saw a mirror in the corner of the next room. Peeking around the corner she saw his bedroom, a queen sized bed with grey linens in the middle of an exposed brick wall. To the right, four tall windows stood, orange light from the sunset filtering in. To the left she saw an old wooden wardrobe next to a closet, sneakers and books spilling out onto the floor.

Turning back around she saw his kitchen and living room, open to one another. Books were scattered on the coffee table and couch, a knit blanket balled up on one end. The apartment was tidy, and cozy, and Amelia loved it. 

She glanced at a desk in the corner of the living room, where Spencer was setting a vase with water.

He gestured at it with one hand, the other rubbing the back of his neck. Amelia chuckled to herself, knowing he was nervous. 

"I, uh, cleaned this desk off for you to work on. I mean, only if you want. You could sit on the couch or-"

She walked up to him and placed a finger over his lips. "This is perfect, and so thoughtful. Thank you." She didn't have a desk at home, so she thought it was so nice for him to make a little space for her. He watched as he picked up the flowers and put them in the vase. She set her backpack on the chair, setting her laptop and notebook on the desk. Spencer felt proud of the space he had created, noticing Amelia smile as she set her things up. 

"So yeah, you saw my bedroom. You can set your stuff in in there if you want, the door to the bathroom is next to the closet. I think Penelope told everyone to show up around 8. Does that give you enough time to get ready?" Amelia nodded. "Great, I'll put your bag in there and leave you to it."

She closed the door behind him, looking around his room. It suited him, the level of tidiness with just a hint of organized chaos. Books were stacked in small piles throughout the room, under his night stands, along the windows. She noticed he had no curtains, which she thought was odd, but loved the huge windows. 

She gathered her things and headed into the bathroom to get ready for a night with Spencer and his friends.