Posted originally on the Archive_of_Our_Own at https://archiveofourown.org/ works/11808978. Rating: Explicit Archive Warning: Graphic_Depictions_Of_Violence, Major_Character_Death, Rape/Non-Con, Underage Category: F/M, M/M Fandom: Criminal_Minds_(US_TV), Criminal_Minds:_Suspect_Behavior Relationship: Aaron_Hotchner/Spencer_Reid, past_Aaron_Hotchner/Haley_Hotchner, Maeve Donovan/Spencer_Reid, Brief_Maeve_Donovan/Spencer_Reid, Derek_Morgan/ Spencer_Reid_but_in_a_brotherly_kinda_way, Jennifer_"JJ"_Jareau/William LaMontagne_Jr., Penelope_Garcia/Kevin_Lynch, Spencer_Reid/David_Rossi_but brief_im_sorry_im_a_fag_for_them, Gosvintha_Tourist/Abraham_Dunham, David Rossi/Original_Male_Character(s), because_im_a_fag_for_david_weeps Character: Aaron_Hotchner, Spencer_Reid, Derek_Morgan, Penelope_Garcia, Emily Prentiss, Maeve_Donovan, Jennifer_"JJ"_Jareau, David_Rossi, Kevin_Lynch, William_LaMontagne_Jr., Jack_Hotchner, Eren_Strauss, Sam_Cooper, Mick Rawson, John_"Prophet"_Sims, Gina_LaSalle, Gosvintha_Tourist, Abraham Dunham, Original_Female_Character(s), Original_Male_Character(s), Pignuklif Additional Tags: I_DON'T_WANT_TO_TAG_TOO_MUCH_TO_GIVE_ANYTHING_AWAY, Alternate_Universe_- Coffee_Shops_&_Cafés, Aaron_is_still_an_FBI_agent, Spencer_is_a professor, They're_kinda_OOC_at_times, Aaron_is_sweet, sweet_like Spencer's_coffee, Plot_Twist, Spence_thinks_too_much, powerful_ending, this_fic_is_gonna_be_long, AND_I_SUCK_AT_UPDATING, but_it'll_be_longer than_all_my_other_ones, also_like, ill_actually_update_this_one, Maybe_- Freeform, uh, This_is_a_work_of_fiction, AND_A_WORK_OF_BOY_ON_BOY_LOVE, dont_like_dont_comment, be_sure_to_hit_that_subscribe_button_and_comment down_below, naw_im_just_kidding, also_PSA_david_rossi_is_my_italian daddy, No_Homo, also_Spencer_has_a_cane, i_relate, uUUuhhhUHuhhhUHHHHHH idk, Tags_In_Each_Chapter Stats: Published: 2017-08-15 Updated: 2017-08-22 Chapters: 4/? Words: 15819 ****** Just Another Coffee Shop AU ****** by pignuklif Summary Aaron and Spencer meet at a coffee shop SPARKS FLY and so do other things. I'm so sorry. Forgive me, father, for I have sinned. Heed the tags in the beginning of each chapter, please. Notes HEY, I am PIGNUKLIF and I hate myself. So you may know me as the fag who NEVER FINISHES HIS FANFICS and yeah, whatever, so what ? This one I may actually finish. MY FRIEND dared me to make this fanfic and at first I was like mEhEHeh this is weird BECAUSE I honestly hate COFFEE SHOP AND CAFE AUs so then I put a twist to it BAM,, then I fell in love with it. A FEW NOTES: I walk with a cane in real life and when Spencer walked with a cane (what was it, season 4 ? 5 ?) I wanted to incorporate that into the fanfic and did and it helps me feel as if I am Spencer Reid and it helps with like. Writing him in the fic and what not. I hope this doesn't bother anybody. If it does fuck you, don't read my dang fic. I LOVE constructive criticism if given properly so if you see any areas where you're like "ok thE FUCK no" please tell me and I'll try to fix it or if I don't feel like it I will at least acknowledge your, uh. Um. YOUR CRITICISM. also if something if like also if you see something that you think I should have warned everybody in the summary or notes or tags be like "hey DUDE what the FUCK is this I didn't sign up foR this" SO yeah. SPENCE AND AY AY RON ARE KINDA UH. OOC SOMETIMES; SORRY> SPENCER IS SASSY AND AARON IS OBLIVIOUS I'M JUST GONNA THROW THAT OUT THERE. See the end of the work for more notes ***** Do You Believe in Love at First Sight ? ***** Across the coffee shop, he noticed a man. Tall, sharp, brooding and clean. The man was almost too clean. Most people around here are either junkies or hippies; or both. He looked down at his book when the man looked over and felt his cheeks grow warm. He wasn't into men. He looked up to the man and looked back down almost immediately after. Okay, never mind, he was into men. More specifically that man. “Doctor ?” Came a chilling voice from the woman in front of him. Shit. He forgot all about Maeve. “Sorry, pardon ?” She giggled and he clenched his teeth. “Are you okay ? You seem… Out of it.” “I'm alright, really. Sorry.” A nod. “Your profile said you graduated high school at the age of twelve,” she said, agonizingly slow. “Yeah.” He waited for an elaboration. “And ?” “Oh. That's just impressive. To me. I guess.” He nodded and looked away, feeling guilty. He and Maeve Donovan were set up by their friend and neither of them seemed to click yet. They liked the same books and she got almost all of his historical references, but there was something missing. The electric touch, the magnifying gaze, the most obvious signs from deep within both of their guts… Or maybe he just read too many sci-fi/fantasy books. “I'm sorry this isn't going that well,” he sighed, mostly sarcastically but she didn't seem to catch on. “Oh, it isn't a big deal… Most of these kinds of setups don't work out with me.” Again, he waited for an elaboration, but she just avoided his gaze and took a sip of her coffee. Her plain, black, dull coffee. He looked to his own and watched a few fizzy bubbles disperse into nothing at the edge of his mug. Seven spoons of sugar and a load of creamer. He never liked anything short of a sugar-induced morning via self-made coffee. Good thing this coffee shop was like a subway for coffee. You could make it from scratch from whatever beans, fill it with whatever creamer, and add any toppings or flavors you wanted. He looked back to Maeve’s coffee and frowned, noticeably. What a sad cup of coffee. “Doctor ?” He shook his head and looked back up at Maeve, noticing her face turning sour. He laughed inwardly but shook his head, exasperatedly. “You'll have to forgive me for my bluntness, but I don't think anything will work out here.” Maeve blinked and he continued. “Call me crude, but I need to go. I'm bored.” He started to get up, packing his book and taking one last sip of his coffee. “I hope the rest of your morning is productive and rewarding. Goodbye, Ms. Donovan.” “Goodbye, Doctor Reid…” He was about to leave out the door when he tripped on somebody’s foot and backed into a very good smelling man. He turned around to look down—due to his lithe and tall form, Spencer has been prone to look down at people at first glance—only to look back up and bore his eyes into the familiar face of the brooding man from earlier. The clean man. He noticed the man’s vanilla and honey scented suit and his stomach did a U-turn trying to drive itself out of his mouth. The man before him was truly a beautiful work of art. High cheekbones, lightly stubbled beard on a jawline that could cut glass, short ravenette hair that he so desperately wanted to reach out and touch. He blinked a few times before blushing and finally backing away from the other man’s heat. “I’m so sorry,” he barely managed to whisper, he feared the man would have to strain in order to hear his light tone. Curse him for being such a socially awkward genius. “It's fine. Were you headed out ?” He looked up at the man and raised an eyebrow. He'd love to comment on the man’s sharp, low, smoky voice but he was too concentrated on the aspects of the question. The man must have realized this and the corners of his mouth twitched into an ever so barely noticeable smile. You'd have to be as close as he was to this man to see the smile—Spencer guessed the man didn't smile much—. “Sorry, I was aiming for holding the door open for you. I didn't mean for it to come off sounding creepy.” “You didn't sound creepy,” he said a little too quickly. He cleared his throat and averted the man’s piercing gaze. He almost felt as if the man was trying to… Profile him. “And, yes. I was just heading out; that's very thoughtful of you.” The man only hummed gruffly in response and walked ahead of Spencer to open the door. His heart seemed to turn to glitter and hum with affection as he walked past the man holding the door so graciously and patiently for him. What a gentleman. What a f– Hang on. Wait, no, where's he going. He's– “H-Hey, wait !” Spencer practically squealed, watching the clean man’s back saunter off into the goddamn unknown. The man turned around looking confused and he felt his face flush under his gaze. That was stupid of him to do. He should have just let them both go their separate ways. “Wh–… What's your name ?” The man smiled—a little more noticeable this time—and started walking back towards Spencer. He felt small when he was around the man. Frail, even. The man’s gaze was so strong and enticing; his frame so much more masculine than Spencer’s own. Sure, he wasn't The Rock, but he wasn't overweight or skinny, either. He was… Perfect. “And yours ?” Fuck, what. What, oh fuck. Did he just doze off again ?? Okay. Play it cool. He swallowed what seemed to be a baseball down his throat and shrugged. “Doctor Spencer Reid and yours ?” The man only chuckled and began to ask about him being a doctor. Damn it. It didn't work. “A medical doctor ?” The man asked. He scoffed. “No, I finished my undergraduate degree at sixteen and received my first doctorate in Mathematics the following year. Between the ages of seventeen and twenty-one, I completed two more doctorates in Chemistry and Engineering and two more Bachelor's degrees in psychology and sociology. People call me doctor but that doesn't necessarily mean I'm in the medical field.” The man only stared in awe at Spencer. “So, uh. Eherm. What's your title ? Full title, if you will ?” The man seemed to ignore his question and just began to throw praise after praise at him. “You are a superhuman genius, Doctor. What is your IQ ? If that isn't too rude to ask.” He wouldn't see why it would be but answered it nonetheless. “187. I can read 20,000 words per minute. This is all mainly due to my eidetic memory. Now, back to–” “That is truly something, Doctor Reid. I envy you.” He said it as enthusiastically as he could, but there was still a seriousness to his voice, not to mention his ever-so stoic poker-face. “Oh, stop it, you… Enough about me. Tell me about yourself… Sir…” “Please, just call me Hotch. All of my friends do.” Why on Earth would anybody give anyone such a disgusting nickname ? What did Hotch even stand for ? Hotch. Hootch. Honch. What a peculiar little name. “I work in the FBI’s Behavioral Analysis Unit; BAU for short.” “Oh, how thrilling.” The man shrugged. “What's your status there ?” “I'm the unit chief.” Spencer’s eyes started to blur Hotch out and the veins in his arms felt like currents of electricity. Hotch was so dominant and fierce and cunning and kind and brooding and holy fuck Spencer needed to get laid. He was going boy-crazy over a guy he just met. He didn't even know his name—Spencer’s overactive brain’s processors and imagination tended to get him a little carried away and caused him to leave certain conversations… A lot—and curses he did it again because once he focuses back in, Hotch is staring at him like he's waiting for an answer. “C-Come again ?” The man smiled. “I asked where you were working now. If anywhere.” He nodded and Hotch unconsciously nodded, too. “I'm a professor at a high school. I teach Chemistry and Physics. I also tutor via online, but that's only to get some extra cash. It's not something I necessarily enjoy.” Hotch seemed to walk even closer, barely touching Spencer’s ‘safety bubble’ and his breath caught in his throat. He inhaled and tried not to whimper at the musky smell Hotch was giving off next to the vanilla and honey. It was humid and he could smell everything, even his sweat. It wasn't even gross, it was almost enticing. “What do you enjoy, then, Doctor ?” He thought for a moment and pondered Hotch’s question. What did Spencer Reid enjoy ? He enjoyed… Coffee… Nikola Tesla… his mother… Reading… He enjoyed a lot of things, but his one true and final answer was talking to Hotch. Of course, he'd never want to say it out loud. He just shrugged in the end and tried to sound as nonchalant as possible. “I'm a simple genius. I like to read and this, that and another thing. Whatever.” Hotch chuckled, lowly and Spencer’s stomach hummed at the sound. “What happened to your leg ?” Hotch gestured to Spencer's leg and Spencer cursed lightly. He looked to his own leg and squeezed the cane he was holding. “I, uh. I was shot.” “Shot ?? Are you– I mean. What happened ?” “I was walking on the wrong side of the neighborhood,” he answered honestly. He forgot where he parked his Amazon wagon and got lost in a sketchy block. “That must have been awful.” “It– It was,” Spencer noted how genuinely concerned Hotch seemed. His heart nearly fluttered out of his throat. “Hey, uh… One of my friends is hosting a barbecue at his house tonight. It's supposed to be a work thing, but he offered everybody a plus one. Would you like to go, Doctor ?” Spencer didn't know which thought to carry out words with. ‘Please, call me Spencer’, ‘I'd love to go !’, ‘Like a date ?’, ‘Who is this friend ?’, ‘What time ?’ Unfortunately, he said only one, pretty dumb question. “What do I wear,,” He mentally grimaced at himself and outwardly cringed. “I mean, um. Do you ? What– The– Where's his ? House ?” Spencer was just mumbling things incoherently and worried Hotch would realize how weird he was and change his mind. Why was his brain bigger than his entire fucking existence ? Surprisingly enough, Hotch just chuckled again and tried to slow Spencer down. “I'll give you my number and give you the details. It's a barbecue, so just dress in whatever you feel comfortable in. Keep it casual. The fantasy is yours to do with.” Spencer exhaled and nodded, shyly. They sat in a comfortable silence not saying anything for a bit before Spencer yawned. “I need to grade some papers from yesterday. Fridays are when I usually plan big tests so Saturdays kind of suck ahah.” Hotch nodded and Spencer could feel that he knew what that was like. Being a unit chief, you'd think they did a lot of paperwork, too, huh ? “Sure, I can write down my number if you’d like and–” “Just say it.” Hotch looked a bit confused so he elaborated. “Eidetic memory. Remember ?” Hotch registered it and smiled before reciting his number. It was such a pretty number. “See you at six, Doctor.” Spencer nodded in confirmation and turned around to start heading towards his car, smiling like a lovesick idiot !   “What ? Spence– Spence, wait, slow down ahah ! I thought-- Spence, I thought you and Maeve were hitting it off ?” “Well… No. No, that’s not– We weren’t doing too well. So I left her and that’s when I ran into him.” “And who is this him, Doctor ditcher.” “One, I didn’t ditch her, and two, his name is… Well, I didn’t get anything other than Hotch.” “Hotch ?” “Yeah, Gosvintha, Hotch. He said ‘that’s what all my friends call me’ like is that a joke ? An inside joke ?” “Maybe it’s short for his real name ?” “Some name.” A pause. “I'm scared, Gos.” She just hummed in acknowledgment. “Why ?” He shrugged even though she couldn't see him. “I don't want to get emotionally attached to somebody I have no chance with.” “So don't think big of it, Spence. Besides, whoever would turn down you are idiots. You're a brilliant and handsome young man, okay ? You barely even know the guy.” “I also have Aspergers and I don't deal well with socializing. I'm used to being in my cave; reading and occasionally going with you and Abraham to the drive-in movie theatre. What if he realized how weird I am and…” “What ? Loses interest ? Spence, it would be dumb if you stayed with him and weren't yourself. This is going to sound really fuckin’ cliche, but Spence ! Just be yourself !” He heard her mumble something else but decided not to press, thinking she was talking to herself. “Listen, Spence. If he doesn't like you for you, fuck him ! He isn't the only handsome guy out there, you know. Plus, again, you don't know anything about him. Anyways, I need to get going. I'll talk to you later, babe.” With that, he dropped his phone from his ear and reluctantly hit the end call button. It was true. He did hardly know the man; what does he really have to lose ? Nothing ! This man didn't own him. He was just a really good, really handsome looking man who happens to have an extremely important role in the FBI who happened to hold the door open for a walking twig like Spencer… Oh and don't get him started on Hotch’s eyes. Dear God, Spence could get lost in them and not even bother to find his way out. And that jawline; Spence isn't a masochist but he's never wanted somebody to cut him before like Hotch’s jawline did. A purple button up—steam-pressed—, a brown vest with green and black diamond stitches, khaki pants rolled up to reveal one striped and one polka dotted socks covered at the bottom by brown dress shoes. The perfect attire for a casual barbeque full of people he didn't even know.   ‘Just walk through the back gate,’ Hotch had texted once Spencer announced he had arrived at said destination. His phone shook in his trembling hands and his legs refused to move from their current position within his Volvo Amazon. He stared at the large house and focussed on the light music, slight smoke and soft laughs coming from behind it. Finally, he decided to just go for it and bare through with whatever came his way. Through the big brown wooden gate, Spencer felt himself fall through a rabbit hole, awkwardly gaping at the size and beauty of the land in front of him. The grass waves like people in a stadium, catching the light in a way that shows it isn't one green but many. A walkway path made of smooth stones and pebbles lead their way to a second gate covered in vines and ivy revealing a garden full of vegetables and various flowers. Around the yard are wooden, hand-carved benches and pots of cacti and small bushes next to them. By the patio was an older man cooking what seemed to be hamburgers and hot dogs on a large silver grill. An expensive one at that. As Spencer was marveling at the sheer beauty of the yard, he didn't notice all of the unfamiliar eyes trained on him. He suddenly felt his cheeks grow warm. “Hi,” he said softly, voice cracking like a branch being stepped on in the dead of the forest night. As if things couldn't get any more awkward. One of the females in the area was the first to smile and wave him over to the rest of the party. She had long, blonde hair, bangs hanging just above piercing blue eyes. She was dressed in a tight, long-sleeve shirt with black slacks and black flats. She looked like she just walked out of a courthouse. “Hi. I'm Jennifer, but most of my friends call me JJ.” She stuck out her hand but Spencer didn't take it. He just smiled. “It's nice to meet you. Sorry, I don't shake hands. Don't take it personally.” JJ retracted her hand, still smiling and she nodded. “No worries. So, uh… Who are you ?” Spencer suddenly felt out of place. He could be a crazy hobo who just waltzed into some random person’s backyard, acting like he was supposed to be there. “Sorry ! I, uh. I'm Spencer Reid. I'm Hotch’s… Plus one ?” The people surrounding JJ suddenly looked relieved and one in particular even laughed. “That makes so much more sense. Hotch told us he was bringing someone we haven't met; we were expecting some chick.” JJ said it in a teasing tone, but Spence knew she was serious. “Well, I'm David, David Rossi. You can call me Dave. I'm your host for the evening.” Spencer felt himself blush as he slightly nodded towards the man working the grill. He was definitely older than the rest of the party, with graying hair and a graying beard. His eyes screamed Italian, but Spencer wasn't about to guesstimate out loud. “Don't be modest; make yourself comfortable. A friend to Hotch is a friend to all of us.” Spencer nodded feeling a bit less stressed and turned his attention to two young ladies sitting on two white lawn chairs by the patio door. They waved and got up to greet Spencer. “Hi there. I'm Emily Prentiss and this is Penelope Garcia.” Spencer noticed how they all spoke so formally. The black haired woman with cozy brown eyes who addressed herself as Emily pointed to the woman tagged as Penelope and Spencer nearly guffawed at how ridiculous she looked. In a strangely good way. She had orange hair, like JJ’s but a bit shorter, with crazy little pins and flowers scattered across her locks. She wore a necklace made with feathers from various different birds and her blue dress also matched her attire; patterns of flowers, birds, and other colorful designs. She had blue eye shadow and orange lipstick that matched some of the feathers on her necklace and flowers in her hair. She pushed her glasses up her nose and waved; Spencer waved back. “Hotch said he just met you.” Penelope pointed out. Spencer nodded. “Uh, we actually just met today,” he added, feeling himself shrink a bit. “Weird. I wonder why he invited you then.” Emily nudged Penelope and Spencer felt a bit confused but wasn't allowed to comment before being spun around by a very handsome man. He definitely sized Spencer up but stood just a tad shorter than him. He was very built and had bronze skin that seemed to appear inhumanly smooth in the harsh sunlight. He had no hair anywhere but his arms, chin and upper lip. He had sunglasses on but Spencer felt the man’s eyes bore into him, similar to how Hotch did when he first met him. “I'm Morgan. Derek Morgan. I'm guessin’ Hotch told you he was FBI ?” Spencer nodded and looked around. Oh. Oh, he was surrounded by federal agents. Oh, this was so weird. He felt so out of place ! His hand started sweating on the tip of his wolf-adorned cane and he opened his mouth slightly to keep himself calm and steady. Derek seemed to catch onto his distress and started to laugh. “Relax, kid. We aren't gonna jump you and start stalking your records.” “Is it bad that I already kinda did ?” Spencer turned towards the woman donned Penelope and started moving his mouth to mimic a fish. “What do you mean, babygirl ?” Babygirl ? Was Derek and Penelope in a… A relationship ? Or are those just the norm nicknames floating around like god damn ‘HOTCH’. “Well, when Hotch told us about bringing a mysterious Spencer Reid, I started doing a background check.” “Ooh, what'd you find ?” Emily asked. Spencer not only felt genuinely confused but also a bit anxious to see what she had dug up. “Aside from graduating high school at age 12 and already having three doctorates and two bachelors, he works as a slammin’ professor for chemistry. Yum to the E.” Spencer felt himself blush at the silent praise everybody gave out to him. “That's some impressive shit, kid.” Dave pointed out. “It's nothing really.” “No need to be humble, Spence,” Derek commented. Spencer inwardly cringed at the nickname but whispered a silent ‘thank you’ nonetheless. Spencer got to chatting with Dave mainly about his garden and his ethnicity as two more guests showed up. Kevin Lynch and Will LaMontagne. After a few more minutes of chatting, David pointed to the gate and let out an exaggerated sigh. “Took you long enough,” he said. Spencer turned around and felt his stomach turn to glitter when his eyes laid upon a very handsome and a very warm Hotch. Spencer gaped openly as he observed his sharp jaw, chin, and cheekbones. On either side of his straight nose were two glassy dark eyes. Spiked, warm brown fringed with gold speckles. His dark brows were actually graceful but currently furrowed in a frown. Spencer awkwardly limped to Hotch and stuck to him like a child and his parent. He stood by his side and kept quiet while Hotch greeted all of his friends and explained why he was so late while sitting down with Spencer on one of the benches. “Jack got incredibly sick so I had to take him from his friends’ house to my house. Jessica, thank God, agreed to look after him tonight so I could come here.” “Bless her soul.” David murmured. Hotch nodded and looked to a very confused yet content Spencer. “Hi,” he greeted warmly. Spencer’s stoic face turned into a gushing puppy dog face within millisecond as he waved a bit. “Hi,” he returned, awkwardly. Hotch smiled and turned his attention to Dave who turned off the grill and set two large plates full of hot dogs and hamburgers on the picnic table near the garden. Next to the plates were assorted condiments such as ketchup, mustard, relish, etc. There was also a stack of chips with various sides of dips and pastry dishes for most likely after the main course. “Alright, you guys… Pick whatever you want out, I'll get the hamburger and hot dog buns in just a second. Paper plates are on the far end; go nuts.” And nuts they went. Everybody got up at once aside from Hotch and Spencer who just watched in bewilderment as the whole party scrambled to the picnic table. “Sorry if this is weird for you,” Hotch said suddenly, making Spencer jump a little bit. “Oh, no it's fine. It's actually been quite some time since I've gone out to a gathering or a party.” “How long ?” “Not since my tenth birthday party when my sixteen and seventeen-year-old friends invited me to do weed with them by the lake.” Spencer snorted to himself as he reminisced in the past. “That was when I did have friends and they weren't just using me to get answers for a homework assignment or a group project.” “Were you bullied a lot in school ?” Spencer sighed and nodded a bit, watching Hotch take a sip out an alcoholic beverage bottle. Strongbow Apple Cider. “Oh yeah. You know that cliche nerd-jock bullying scenario ?” “Yeah.” “I'm the nerd in the stereotype. It was awful in high school, but when I finally got out I started doing some great thing.” “I'll bet. You're very peculiar.” “Peculiar.” Spencer hummed rather than asked. “I've never met anybody like you, I mean. Was that too forward or offensive ?” Spencer shook his head. “Of course not. It's flattering, Hotch.” Hotch smiled and finished off his beer before getting up. Spencer didn't mean to and probably would have seemed incredibly creepy if Hotch noticed, but he took a whiff of Hotch as he passed by and felt his lungs turn to mush; vanilla and honey and old pots and wood filled his nasal cavity, making Spencer swoon slightly. He watched as Hotch got his food and felt his skin prickle when his gaze met Hotch’s. “Are you going to eat anything ?” He asked loud enough so Spence could hear. Spencer shook his head slightly and noticed how even when Hotch furrowed his eyebrows and deepened his frown he looked like a sex-god. He came over with a plate content with two hot dogs with mustard spread appropriately with ketchup and mustard, wavy potato chips and a white dip next to them, and a few brownie bites just barely touching the hot dog buns. Spencer squirmed in his seat as his OCD kicked in. He hates it when food touched on a plate. He also hated mustard but that didn't bother him as much. Hotch set his plate down on the glass coffee table in front of the bench and grabbed Spencer’s hand, lightly. Despite being a highly germaphobic nutcase, he allowed Hotch to take his hand and even felt his cheeks and ear flush as he did. “You need to eat,” Hotch commented bluntly. Spencer hummed, smiling willingly like a lovesick six-year-old. “I'm skinny,” he stated. Hotch nodded and Spencer rolled his eyes. “You think I need to eat more.” “I do.” “How do you know that I don't have an eating disorder ?” “I believe you met my tech analysis, Penelope Garcia ?” Spencer nodded before grimly remembering what she had done. “You know, that's a violation of my privacy.” “You're right. I already scolded her on it. Don't worry, nothing gets past this circle. We are built on trust and honesty.” Spencer nodded as he made his hot dog and piled on a load of cookies and brownies, ignoring the awe-struck Hotch next to him. “Your ‘team’ seems nice and well-rounded.” Hotch nodded. “They're the best.” “And you're their leader.” “And I'm proud of them. I'm proud of all of us.” “Even yourself ?” “Even myself.” They sat back down on the bench and began to eat before being pulled away from the party and sat in front of a fire where everybody else sat. Spencer hadn't even noticed how dark it was getting. The circle was mainly quiet aside from Kevin and Penelope kissing from time to time and Emily praising David on his cooking skills. It was so comfortable and Spencer felt as if he's known these people his whole life. He groaned out loud when his phone began to ring from his pocket. He excused himself and headed towards David’s garden, opening the gate and walking in between all of the different plants and crops. “Yeah, hello ?” “Spence ? Are you still at the party ?” Spencer nodded, realizing it was his friend, Gosvintha. Gosvintha has been his friend since he started teaching chemistry. She taught next to him in forensics and physiology. “Yeah… What's wrong ?” “Nothing. I'm just worried. You're usually not out this late.” “Thanks for checking up on me, mom.” A scoff was heard from the other side. “I just wanna know that you're okay. I went to your apartment and you weren't home.” “Yeah. Well, I'm surrounded by FBI agents so I think I'll be okay.” “What ?” “I'll explain later. I won't be home until late so could you just feed Nikola before you leave ?” “Do I have to ? He's so creepy.” “Have fun. Don't stay up too late, Gos.” “Whatever. Have fun with Mr. No Name.” Spencer chuckled as he hung up and jumped when he turned to find Hotch leaning on one of the wooden pillars. “I wasn't eavesdropping,” he stated calmly. Spencer just nodded. “I just wanted to see if everything was okay.” “That's sweet.” Spencer smiled and looked at his feet, digging a weak hole in the soft soil, listening to the soft voiced by the fire. It was dark but Spencer could still see the rugged features on Hotch's face and still found them as breathtaking as ever. Spencer then blinked and noticed Hotch staring at him as if waiting for a reply. Crud, he did it again. “Sorry ?” Hotch smiled. “You space out a lot.” Spencer nodded meekly. “I asked who Nikola was.” “Oh ! He's my Venus Flytrap. I named him after one of my favorite historical figures, Nikola Tesla” “Yeah, I got that much. That's neat. I used to have a cactus named Bill but my dad threw him out after he found out I even had one.” “That's sad.” Hotch shrugged. “He wasn't very good company anyways.” He smiled and Spencer mimicked his smile. “It's so strange,” Hotch began, moving closer to Spencer. “I feel like I've known you my whole life yet we only met a few hours ago.” Spencer nodded. “Maybe in a different lifetime, or a different dimension.” “Do you believe in that kind of stuff ?” Spencer shrugged. “Do you ?” Hotch just smiled. “Not really. Maybe there are infinite dimensions with infinite universes with endless possibilities where we had met before this day. Hell, with your smarts I'm surprised you aren't working for the FBI.” “I was actually planning on going into that type of field but um… My mother died before I got to choose and I just couldn't even leave the house for months. She told me before she died that she didn't want me going into such a dangerous field and I just kind of listened.” Spencer jumped a bit when feeling the warmth of another hand squeeze his freezing one. He unconsciously leaned into Hotch’s shoulder and they began walking towards the gate, stalled in a comfortable silence.   “But when we found the body the blood spatter didn't match the wound or the place of the body. We concluded that the unsub had– had made his own blood spatter on the wall and floor just so it looked better, in his opinion.” David took a sip of his whiskey and laughed, Spencer sat next to him a bit uncomfortable by a number of gory details he shoved into his stories like stuffing in a Thanksgiving turkey. “Dave, this is a telling story and I'm sure that anybody would be lucky to hear it at any kind of housewarming,” Dave grimaced at Hotch’s sarcastic tone while everyone else laughed quietly. “but I think Spencer would prefer a story with a lighter tone.” “Okay, okay. How about the time we caught Penelope and Kevin getting it on in the BAU’s locker room.” “‘Getting it on’, Emily ? Jesus, you sound like Derek.” Derek looked over to David and scoffed. Spencer couldn't help but laugh a little bit and look over to Penelope and Kevin who just sat and blushed. Hotch was smiling, too and Spencer marveled at how handsome he was, even if the only lighting was the fire in front of them. Somewhere after a few more anecdotes, Spencer found himself yawning and checking his watch. 10:47pm. He couldn't believe time slipped so quickly. Hotch must have noticed this for he was looking at Spencer with a twinkle of suspicion in his ravishing dark eyes. Spencer met his gaze and blushed a little. “It's getting a bit late,” he stated a matter-of-factly. Hotch nodded and got up, extending a hand to help Spencer up. Spencer took it gingerly and they started walking towards Dave’s back gate. “Did you drive here ?” “Yeah.” “Okay.” They walked to Spencer's car in silence. Sweet, blissful silence. It was crisp out, but Spencer felt as if a fireplace was trailing right beside him. A sweet-smelling fireplace. Spencer hesitated when he got to his car before turning on his heel to properly face Hotch. “Do you… Maybe want to go out for coffee tomorrow ? It's Sunday and I like to go to this uh. It's like a buffet but for coffee and hot cocoa. You were– Oh yeah, that's where… That's where we met… Oh. You probably don't want to go two days in a row. Oh, I didn't even ask if you– if you even liked the place… You know what, never mind it was a longshot I just–” Spencer’s words were cut off by a finger and a low chuckle from the finger’s owner. “You're cute, Doctor. I'd love to go to coffee with you.” Spencer smiled against Hotch’s touch and practically beamed. “Great ! Say, uh… Ten ?” “Ten ? Not an early bird ?” “On the weekends. I hate mornings.” “Night owl ?” “Sort of ahah.” Hotch’s face was stern and focused. He had a natural stoic face but his voice always seemed interested in the topic and concerned with everything Spencer says. It made Spencer feel welcomed and calm. He also liked how Hotch touched him. Weary and gentle. Not firm or forced. He knew his boundaries and respected Spencer’s space but around Hotch, he didn't want any space. He wanted to touch him and be touched by him. It was the strangest feeling. “Spencer ?” Spence snapped out of his dazed expression and blinked. “Huh ? I'm sorry…” “It's fine. I, uh. I said I'll see you tomorrow.” Spencer nodded and felt himself flush at the thought of a goodbye kiss. He quickly thought that was absurd but then again, everything he's done today was absurd for Spencer. “I'll see you then.” Without hesitation, Spencer leaned forward and placed his lips on Hotch’s cheek, smirking as his action clearly affected Hotch. His cheeks were pink and his eyes had widened slightly, making Spencer feel powerful and a little bit aroused. Spencer unconsciously bit his lower lip and turned around to open the driver’s side door to his Amazon. As he drove off, him waving to Hotch and Hotch waving back, he thought about how badly Gosvintha was going to freak the fuck out.   “AND THEN YOU FUCKING WHAT !!?” “Shh !! I kissed him on the cheek. It was just a friendly gesture.” “‘Friendly’ is giving him a hug good bye; TOTALLY INTERESTED IS KISSING HIM !!” “It's not like I made out with him, Gos !!” “Still !! When I met Abraham, I didn't kiss him on the ANYTHING until our, like, second date. You did this on the FIRST DAY you MET the guy.” Spencer bit his lip. “Is that bad ?” “No ! Especially if he didn't pull away or say anything negative.” “He didn't say anything period.” “He was love-struck.” “Don't be dramatic.” “Don't be oblivious. You're totally gonna fall head over heels for this dude.” “I'm scared.” “Why ?” “Because I think I already have.” ***** The Beginning of the End ***** Chapter Summary Tags; Blood, Gore, Zombies, THE APOCALYPSE, yeah this was the plot twist So, uh, I'm a chemist and a forensic scientist so comin' up with how the zombie apocalypse started was actually inspired by some of my own experimentations and it's a 100% plausible and probable explanation for how the zombie apocalypse may ensue. I also study Theology so my knowledge of religion and ancient religious scripture should be spot-on. That's not 'til later, though. Anyways, enjoy eheh. Chapter Notes See the end of the chapter for notes The next morning Spencer woke up at around nine thirty and his first thought was caffeine. His second thought was Oh fuck ! I forgot all about Hotch and our coffee date ! Scrambling to find a clean pair of clothes, he finally got dressed and left his apartment without thinking twice about combing his matted hair or matching his socks—not that Spencer ever did match his socks. The coffee house wasn't packed but it definitely had more people than Spencer anticipated. It wasn't hard to spot Hotch, however. Dark hair, brooding eyes with bushy narrowed eyes, suit and tie, very handsome… He stuck out like a sore thumb in Spencer’s eyes. “Hey, sorry I'm late.” “It's exactly 10, you aren't late.” “Yeah, but I would have been if I even remotely tried to look good.” “I think you look perfect.” Spencer blushed and looked down at his own attire, wincing about how badly he buttoned up his vest and how twisted his cream colored collared blouse was. At least he smelled decent. Or so he hoped. After they went up to make their coffee, Spencer snorted at how bad Hotch was staring at him. “Take a picture, it lasts longer.” “Sorry, I was just concerned.” “About what ?” “You having a sugar rush and me having to rush you to the hospital because your heart stopped working.” “Aw, you're too kind to do that for me.” Spencer smiled menacingly while Hotch just smirked. Once they sat down, they embraced a warm silence as they took the first few sips of their coffee. “My team was sad they didn't get a chance to say bye last night.” Hotch looked up from his coffee at Spencer who blushed slightly. “Oh. Oh right. I have a bad habit about saying goodbye to people.” “Is it because you somehow knew you'd see them again.” “There's a probable chance that I could but I don't think that's the sole reason.” Hotch just hummed in acknowledgment. “I saw you with, uh. A girl yesterday. Is there a girlfriend I should know about before I make any moves ?” “Well, no, I just–” Spencer paused and registered everything Hotch had said. ‘Before I make any moves’... Spencer suddenly felt his face grow cold and he cleared his throat. “N-no… She was supposed to be my date but it didn't go so well. She wasn’t really doing anything for me…” Hotch only hummed again and Spencer felt his eyes bore through his skin. “So uh… Did you have any girlfriends or boyfriends or,,” “I was married.” “Oh ?” “We… Separated and she… Passed away.” Spencer felt his heart still beneath his chest before shattering into a million pieces. “I'm so sorry…” He said honestly. Hotch only nodded. “It's fine.” “So who was the person you brought up earlier ? Jack ? He's your son ?” Hotch smiled and looked down. “Yes. He's my son.” Spencer smiled. “He’s a good kid ?” “Very. Well behaved and classy.” “I've never heard anybody call their child classy.” “I'll be your first.” Spencer smiled and nodded. They drank more of their coffee in silence before hearing a buzzing sound in Hotch’s pocket. “I'm sorry,” he muttered looking at the caller ID. “I'll just be a moment.” Spencer watched as Hotch left their table to go stand outside. He looked pretty mad on the phone but then again he always looked a little angry. A few minutes later Hotch came in and grabbed his coat from the back of his chair. “Leaving so soon ?” Spencer half-teased. He’s always wanted to say that but never thought he'd mean it. “I'm so sorry, Spencer. Something came up at the BAU and it's urgent.” “It's Sunday !” “In some professions, Sundays mean nothing. I'll call you later, alright ?” Spencer only nodded and got up to bid Hotch a farewell via a hug. He never usually hugged but he wasn't bold enough to kiss Hotch yet. Though he was warm. Shortly after Hotch left, Spencer did as well and decided to walk around. It was a cold day but not cold enough to not go for a little walk.   CUT — AARON’s POV “Hotchner.” “Hotch ? Yeah, you need to come in ASAP. We have a big and disgusting case.” “Can't it wait ? I'm kind of in the middle of something, JJ.” “I really don't think it can. It's big. Everybody is on the case, including Cooper’s team.” “Cooper is working it ?” “Yeah. They're thinking of bringing in NCIS, Hotch.” “Why ?” “That's how bad it is ! Get over here right now.” Aaron sighed and hung up. He was devastated when he had to break the news to Spencer and his heart crumbled to dust when Spencer's face fell. It was the most awful picture. Aaron turned around one last time to see Spencer looking into his coffee mug solemnly. This had better be a damn important case.   The office was packed. Once Aaron arrived at Quantico, he couldn't even find his team in the bullpen. The entire place was packed with agents and forensics he's never seen before. He looked up at his office and saw Emily turned around in the window. So they're all in there. “Oh, thank God you're here, Hotch.” JJ exclaimed upon Aaron entering the room. “What do we have ?” “Uhh… Cannibals.” She didn't sound sure of her own words and that worried Aaron a bit. “Cannibals ?” “There have been 1,000 reported deaths in two days starting in Maryland.” “Two days ?? How is that possible ?” “They're scattered everywhere. They sometimes attack in groups but the thing that got us the most was… Was that the murderers started in the White House.” “What ?” “I had Garcia pull up cameras from around the Pentagon and it shows ten to fifteen people coming out with blood all over their clothing and chunks of meat hanging from their hair and mouth. The president is dead.” “Who were the people ?” “We don't know, yet. They were all wearing suits or lab coats so we think…” JJ paused and sat down next to Emily. Emily spoke up instead. “The living dead.” Aaron almost choked on his own spit. “You're telling me you think zombies emerged from the White House and are running amuck attacking everybody they see ?” “SWAT is everywhere right now, keeping people out of the roads. Crashes are increasing and so are deaths. The hoard of… The living dead is… They're coming to Virginia.” “They're heading our way ?” Emily nodded and Aaron felt his head pounding. He sat down and they sat in silence, the only noise coming from outside of the office from the people crowding the BAU. “What did Strauss say about this ?” Aaron asked, quieter than intended. JJ cleared her throat. “She… She's in denial. Most are. Most can't believe that zombies are– are… Are !” Aaron nodded, understanding exactly what she was saying. Zombies. It's so surreal. You see all of these movies and T.V. shows and you don't really think of what you would do during a zombie apocalypse. Only what not to do. You learn from the character’s mistakes but how long before you get yourself caught in a situation where you don't know what to do ? “How did it start.” “We don't know, yet. We haven't found a scientist that can conjure up a reliable and realistic theory about what could have happened. We would need an expert for that.” JJ sighed and nobody spoke up until David lit up. Aaron saw this and quirked an eyebrow. “Hotch. Your boy-toy, Spencer…” Aaron cringed at the term. “He's a, uh. Super genius, right ? A real smart guy who has all these PhDs, right ?” Aaron saw where he was getting at. “Absolutely not. We can't risk anything. I don't want the public to turn AWOL because they think a zombie outbreak just began.” “You don't trust him ?” “No, I do, but–” “We don't have that much of a choice, Hotch. We need all the help we can get so that the public doesn't find out about any of this.” Aaron thought for a moment. They really didn't have anything to go off of and if by the off-chance Spencer did know what to do, he could possibly save the world from a zombie outbreak. “I'll get Spence; Morgan, Rossi, get the SWAT to round up the zombies in one spot so they don't separate and scatter among the healthy. Have a team keep the healthy off the street and into a building. JJ, don't tell the press anything but make sure you convince the public that keeping off the streets is vital to their safety. Make it seem realistic and make sure they don't see anything. Prentiss, you get Garcia and tell her to track down Spencer and tell me where he is once she finds him. If the zombies are coming here, I don't want him to get hurt. He's our only hope right now.”   CUT — Spence’s point of view. “I'm really worried about them. They haven't called me in days.” Spencer let go of his phone and let it sit between his shoulder and cheek before picking up a dusty book from the back of the thrift store. “Don't worry, Gos, I'm sure they're just having a lot of fun and forgot to check their phones.” “That's not like them, though.” “Washington DC is a very popular tourist spot and–” Spencer heard Gosvintha sigh and he cleared his throat. “You know what, they're fine. They're adults, they can handle themselves.” “My dad's like sixty and can barely get out of his love seat without breaking his back.” “If you're worried about them being murdered or mugged, don't be. I'll spare you the statistics but it's very unheard of for elderly couples like your mom and dad to be mugged in Washington DC.” “‘elderly couples like your mom and dad’ ? What's that supposed to mean.” Spencer shrugged even though Gosvintha couldn't see. “Is it because they're poor ?” Spencer smiled, ignoring her clear tone of disgust. “Muggers tend to go for flashy elders who look like they have a lot of valuables on them. Take this as good news, Gos.” Gosvintha sighed and laughed a little. “Yeah, no, you're right, Spence. I shouldn't worry. So how was the date with Mr. FBI ?” Spencer switched ears for the phone and used his other hand to look at all the different books on the shelf by the back door. “He's uh… It was good. It was really good. He's very sweet and he actually seems interested in what I have to say. Granted I haven't really freaked him out with my vast knowledge yet.” “Don't scare him away !” “Funny.” “Oh, I have another call. It might be my parents. I'll call you later, okay ?” Spencer muttered a goodbye and slipped his phone in his pocket. “Can I help you ?” Spencer turned to see a tall man with a mullet and a goatee. Spencer smiled and shook his head. “Just browsing. I've read just about all these books…” “Wow. You read a lot, then ?” Spencer nodded. “You have no idea.” “Well, you j–” Spencer turned towards the man to see why he stopped mid sentence and saw the man with his back towards Spencer, still as a board. “Sir ?” Spencer inched towards the man and reached out to tap his shoulder. “Are you okay ?” The man turned around and Spencer’s heart stilled and his eyes widened. Blood gushed with sickening determination from the man’s neck as if his own heart sought to pump it from his body. His fingers clamped over the wound, two pale starfish growing paler by the second. The scarlet blood lashed over Spencer and the floor below then, painting the scene in which he would be found dead unless he did something very smart very fast. He wheezed before turning to point towards a man; the cause of the neck wound. The man fell in front of Spencer and Spencer was found face to face with a man who had done this to the poor thrift shop employee. The man approaching Spencer was detestable to look at. Its dirty yellow eyes staring at him looked so empty and void of life. The man’s skin was like old crinkled paper and his lips the color of rusted iron. Its jaw which was open too wide displayed a set of rotting yellow and red teeth, blood pouring from it—Spencer guessed it was from the victim that bled around his feet. The veins were about to burst from the man’s bald head and blood was splattered like red paint all over his face and hands. His hands were like sticks with their flesh almost falling off but the disgusting rotting nails were what crept Spencer the most. Torn off from the fingers hanging on the edge they seemed like a drowning man holding onto a stick, about to drown anytime. Spencer was brought back into the real world when he heard a crowd of screams coming from outside. The ghoulish man turned and Spencer looked where he did. A hoard of people were running away from blood-stained men and woman, running as if their limbs were about to fall off. Spencer took this time to run away from the man in front of him and leave through the back door. The alleyway was partly empty except for a woman lying next to her—what looked like—dead child. Spencer approached the woman and heard a few choked sobs from her. “H-Hello ? Ma’am ?” For being such a genius, he sure was clueless. The woman’s head snapped up and Spencer saw her mouth and hands covered in the poor child’s intestines. Spencer backed away slowly and chuckled. “Never mind… Don't mind me… I'm just gonna…” The woman looked back down to the child and groaned before digging more into his body. Spender turned around to run and almost ran into a tall man with the same look as the man in the thrift shop. He avoided contact with him and kept running. The main road was more hectic and scary than the alleyway and Spencer almost turned back. There weren't that many cars scattered around compared to a number of bodies that were left dotting the road and sidewalks. Clumped blood sat around the bodies like jam and green and red skinned heaps of meat shambled around the streets moaning and swatting at thin air. Spencer's stomach knotted when he realized what was happening. He could feel bile and denial rising up his throat and he struggled to keep it all down. He almost didn't notice the black SUV pull up to where Spencer was standing. “Hey ! Hey, Spencer ! Get in ! Hurry !” Spencer blinked and turned to see Hotch holding a door to the black SUV open for Spencer. Spencer hobbled over to the SUV and sat down before looking to Hotch, bewildered. “Drive back to Quantico,” Hotch said, but not to Spencer. The chauffeur nodded and the car started moving, fast at that. “Wh– H-Hotch… What's g-going on ?” Spencer’s words tripped over his tongue as he tried to collect his thoughts along with his breath. “Exactly your first guess.” So he was right. “Are– I mean zombies ? There can only be one explanation for this happening but even with it, it's still so highly… Improbable…” “But not impossible ?” “Obviously…” “Wait to tell me what's on your mind until we get back to Quantico.” Spencer looked away from Hotch and out the window. The car swerved around… Zombies and other humans. “How'd you know where I was ?” Hotch gave Spencer a nervous glance. “We are the FBI… We have the best tech analyst in the country and she's under intense zombie apocalypse pressure. You want to rethink your question ?” Spencer felt dumb for the first time in a long time. “Why'd you… Come and get me, I guess.” Hotch didn't say anything for a long time. “Rossi– David thought you might know something about how this happened and why.” Spencer nodded. “What are we going to do ?” Spencer almost whispered. Hotch seemed to hear it and sighed. “I don't know.”     “Toxoplasmosis. Toxoplasmosis is a parasitic disease caused by Toxoplasma gondii which is an obligate intracellular parasitic alveolate that forms within cats or, in asexual terms, any and all warm-blooded animals such as humans, cats and birds. Toxoplasmosis gondii in cats are typically caused by the feline consuming an infected rodent carrying the parasite’s tissue cysts. The parasite survives passage through the stomach, eventually infecting epithelial cells of the cat’s small intestine. Inside these intestinal cells, the parasites undergo sexual development and reproduction, producing millions of thick-walled, zygote-containing cysts known as oocysts.” Spencer paused to look around the room and rolled his eyes as seeing that nobody knew what the fuck he was talking about. “Okay. Let me put it in simpler terms.” Spencer grabbed a dry erase marker off of the board behind him and drew a cat. “Infected epithelial cells eventually rupture and release oocysts into the intestinal lumen, whereupon they are shed in the cat's feces.” Spencer drew a litter box and a few squiggles to represent cat poop. “Oocysts can then spread to soil, water, food, or anything potentially contaminated with the feces. Highly resilient, oocysts can survive and remain infective for many months in cold and dry climates.” He then drew a human next to the litter box and cleared his throat. “Ingestion of oocysts by humans or other warm-blooded animals is one of the common routes of infection. Humans can be exposed to oocysts by, for example, consuming unwashed vegetables or contaminated water, or by handling the feces via cleaning the litter box of an infected cat. So let's say…” Spencer drew a woman kneeling next to a cat box, cleaning it out. “One of the white house maids were cleaning the cat box. They forget to wash their hands and they start to cook for the president and his pregnant wife and the rest of the white house.” He then drew a woman holding a plate next to what looked like the president, his wife and random guys in suits. “Yeah, but how does it turn humans into cannibalistic monsters ?” Derek asked. Spencer smiled. “I'm glad you asked, Agent Morgan,” Spencer said before licking his lips, preparing himself for another long speech. “There are two ways that the Toxoplasma gondii can affect a human being, the latter being much worse.” Spencer put down the dry erase marker and clasped his hands together. “Toxoplasma gondii is considered to have three stages of infection; the tachyzoite stage of rapid division, the bradyzoite stage of slow division within tissue cysts, and the oocyst environmental stage.” Spencer picked the marker back up and drew a woman eating something off of a fork. “When an oocyst or tissue cyst is ingested by a human or other warm-blooded animal, the resilient cyst wall is dissolved by proteolytic enzymes in the stomach and small intestine, freeing sporozoites from within the oocyst.” He circled the woman’s stomach. “The parasites first invade cells in and surrounding the intestinal epithelium, and inside these cells, the parasites differentiate into tachyzoites, the motile and quickly multiplying cellular stage of Toxoplasma gondii.” He drew a germ next to the woman’s stomach and drew an angry face on it. “Tissue cysts in tissues such as brain and muscle tissue, form about 7–10 days after initial infection… Now…” Spencer erased the whole board and drew a woman with a sickly face. “That was the initial infection of the intermediate host. Like the cat or the woman. The asexual reproduction in the intermediate host is where the good stuff is.” Spencer circled the woman’s stomach and branched it into a bigger circle. He drew in the bigger circle instead. “Inside host cells, the tachyzoites replicate inside specialized vacuoles, called the parasitophorous vacuoles, created during parasitic entry into the cell.” He drew a circle inside the stomach with a clear nucleus pointing to a random spot onto the cell. “Tachyzoites multiply inside this vacuole until the host cell dies and ruptures, releasing and spreading the tachyzoites via the bloodstream to all organs and tissues of the body, including the brain.” Spencer drew a bunch of dots and lead them down the line connecting the big circle to the stomach circle and then drew the dots up into the woman’s brain. “There are three types of toxoplasmosis that Toxoplasma gondii can create within a human. Two of which could possibly lead to the zombie apocalypse if experimented on.” Spencer cleared his throat and erased the board once more. “To save a load of time I will skip the unrelated symptoms and toxoplasmosis and skip to what matters–” Before Spencer could continue, one of the agents raised his hand. Spencer pointed to him. “Sir ?” “Agent Cooper, please. Uh, how do the rodents get the parasite ? Where did it come from ?” Spencer went pale and he looked up at the ceiling. “All I know is that the parasite infects the rodent’s brain and can manipulate the rodent’s behavior to make it fearless around cats—where the parasite is hoping to end up. The parasite has the ability to make the rodent head towards a cat where it will be eaten. What worries most scientists about this is how similar rats and humans are which is why they are used for testing drugs and medical breakthroughs… They think that… The parasite is learning our methods of medicine and are preparing themselves– They're trying to make themselves become immune to all of our treatments.” Spender inwardly shivered at the thought. The very thought that a parasite knows more about our brains than we do and is trying to destroy the entire human race through simple rodents is terrifying. “Back to… The initial outbreak. I believe that Toxoplasma gondii has done a phenomenal yet devastating job of figuring out mammalian brains in order to enhance its transmission through a complicated life cycle; hence the rat through cat through feces to the human brain. A lot of scientists claim that rabies will– did evolve and conquered the world. Rabies completely changes the way a dog behaves. It's transmitted by bites, leads to madness, convulsions, sometimes branches into schizophrenia and eventually, if not treated, death.” Spencer turned back to the board and licked his lips. “Reviews of serological studies have estimated that 30–50% of the global population has been exposed to and may be chronically infected with latent toxoplasmosis, although infection rates differ significantly from country to country.” Spencer drew a circle and colored in half of it. “This latent state of infection has recently been associated with numerous disease burdens, neural alterations, and subtle gender-dependent behavioral changes in immunocompetent humans. So to put it simply, they calculated all of the random outbursts of schizophrenia, harsh fevers and vast behavioral disorders such as gender dysphoria and multiple personality disorder.” Spencer sighed. “They said that Toxoplasma gondii is the cause for a lot of congenital malformations and neurological disorders, but… Not that many are linked to direct cannibalism or violence. That is, unless, the person who did the cat box also got rabies right after…” Spencer half-heartedly laughed and then frowned. That wasn't a necessarily close-fetched probability but it was highly probable. He shook his head. “There aren't any treatments that I can think of other than to stay safe.” Some of the room looked impressed but drained of any life and the other looked scared or mad at Spencer. As if he knew the exact cure to the zombie apocalypse. Yeah, right. He was a genius but he wasn't a miracle worker. “So now what ?” One of the agents asked. “We kill the remaining zombies and hope they don't spread to any more humans. Remember, shoot them in the brain. Shoot anybody that may appear dead on the ground, too. From my knowledge in any zombie movie ever, they come back from the dead.” Hotch commanded. The office was soon left blank aside from Spencer and Hotch. Spencer sat down and inhaled, putting the dry erase marker away. “Are you okay, Spence ?” Spencer looked up from the conference table and looked up at Hotch. This probably wasn't the best time to comment on his handsome good looks but damn did Spencer's stomach knot every time Hotch looked at him. “I don't know if I'm being completely honest… I mean, who knew this would happen ?” Hotch sat down next to Spencer and only hummed in response. “Oh, and poor Gosvintha…” “Who ?” “My friend. Her parents were vacationing in Washington DC… I hope they're okay.” Hotch nodded. Spencer then looked to Hotch wide-eyed. “Where's your son ? Jack ?” “Jessica and he came here. They're with Penelope and Emily.” “Oh. That's good.” “Do you have anybody you want here ? It's a bit crowded but it's safe.” Spencer almost shook his head but then reached out to grab Hotch’s sleeve. “Gosvintha and her boyfriend, Abraham.” Hotch raised his eyebrow. “Spencer, I meant fam–” “They are my family, Hotch ! When my mom died, they were the only people I had… I– I can't imagine being without them…” Hotch grabbed Spencer's hand from his arm and squeezed it. “Okay, okay. We will get them, okay ? I'll–” “I want to go.” Hotch’s face fell. “I don't think that's a good idea, Spence.” “Please ? I-I know where they live and where they might be if they're not in their house.” Hotch looked away from Spencer and Spencer felt his fingers go numb. He brought his other hand over Hotch’s face and brought it so they were looking at each other in the eyes. “Please…” Hotch inhaled and nodded. “Okay,” he whispered. “we'll go…” Spencer smiled and unconsciously brushed Hotch’s cheek with his thumb. “Thank you.” Chapter End Notes soRRY,, ***** Stranded ***** Chapter Summary One of the agents turns on the team while scouting for survivors. Chapter Notes tAGS; blood kinda, trAITOR, death, zombiEs, poor Spencer, Aaron is a sud, protective Aaron, jealous Aaron, no action yet :,)) See the end of the chapter for more notes “Agents Morgan, Prentiss, Albuquerque, Hue and I will assist Doctor Reid in locating our friends and family. If you have anybody within the area you'd like here talk to any of us.” Hotch then walked over to JJ and whispered something to her while Spencer stood awkwardly next to Derek. “Who are we getting for you ?” Spencer turned towards Derek and inhaled. “Uh… My friend, Gosvintha…” Spencer expected a noise of disapproval or a frown, but Derek stayed unfaltering. He just nodded. “What about you ?” “My mama. She's old and I'm pretty sure she won't be able to defend herself if she gets herself into trouble.” “You doubt her.” “Don't get me wrong, my mama is a straight savage when dealing with people emotionally and verbally, but when it comes to physical contact the only lethal thing she can do to a person is scratch their eyes out with her inhumanly long nails.” Derek chuckled and Spencer smiled and hummed. “So is Gosvintha a girlfriend orrrr…” Spencer laughed at the thought before realizing Derek was serious. “No, God no. Uh, she's like a sister to me. Her and her boyfriend were there for me through my mother's death and whatnot.” “They sound like good people.” Spencer hummed in response, locking his gaze with his feet. They were. When Spencer lost his mother, he had felt more alone than he had ever been in his life. He devoted the weekends exclusively to visit her. He found himself sitting in his apartment, unsure of what to do and when he went to school, he got progressively more depressed. His kids noticed and wanted to help him—some more than others. That's when he met Gosvintha. She heard what his kids had been saying and decided to talk to Spencer one on one. They clicked instantly but it wasn't a romantic kind of click. A few months had gone by and Spencer found it harder and harder to stay sad when he knew he had a new friend who actually cared about his well-being. “Wheels up in 20,” Hotch called from where him and JJ were standing. Spencer inhaled and looked behind him to see a lot of sad and scared faces. It all made Spencer so ill.     CUT— AARON’S POV “JJ,” Aaron whispered peeling her from Emily’s side. “We found Will and Henry; they're with Jack and Penelope in her office.” JJ let out a breath of relief and Aaron could see her eyes water a bit. “I was so worried,” she practically whispered. Aaron nodded and gripped her shoulder. “You and Rossi are in charge while we are out finding our loved ones. Can you handle that ?” JJ nodded. “We shouldn't be gone too long. Try and wait it out. We'll pick up some snacks along the way but the vending machine and kitchenette in the lobby should suffice for now.” JJ nodded again. “Good luck, Hotch.” Aaron smiled and turned around to see Derek and Spencer looking at him bright eyed and ready to go. “Wheels up in 20,” he called out.   The streets were aligned with dead bodies and cars. Traffic lights blinked red and Aaron winced at the zombies that feasted on the corpses. He thought he saw Spencer gag a little. Spencer still carried his satchel around his chest and clutched on tightly to his cane. He didn't look much, but damn was this kid smart. Aaron trailed his eyes up to Spencer's mop-like hair and watched as he bit his inner cheek. Aaron blushed and looked away when Spencer met his gaze. In his peripheral vision, Aaron saw Spender tuck a lock of his hair behind his ear and Aaron's stomach fluttered. Fuck, not only is the doctor a genius, he's a cute one, too. A crush is nothing more than a lust for someone. That's does change anything in his eyes. Spencer is still always there in his mind. From the moment he called out for Aaron after he innocently held the door open to now, that boyish grin and those droopy-puppy eyes have been etched in Aaron’s mind. He went to sleep the night of the barbeque with his stomach sinking into a bed of rose petals and he didn't know why. He didn't know why he was so engrossed with this man not even three days after meeting him. Maybe it was the way he smiled. His dimples reacting to something Aaron said. His pearly white teeth emerging from those sharp, chapped, slightly pink lips. Maybe it was his eyes, the way they dilated when their gazes locked or the way his eyelashes seemed to slow the process of blinking—fluttering almost. Maybe it was his crazy hair. How soft it looked despite not being brushed ever, at all. The way Aaron wanted to just stuff his nose in his hair and take him in at once. These were almost pathetic thoughts. Aaron was almost fifty whereas Spencer was barely thirty. Spencer probably didn't see him the same way, anyways. And there was no time to dwell on it all now, what with zombies running amuck. “Turn down here,” Spencer spoke up after a few minutes. The chauffeur driving, Agent Hue, obliged and they ended up in a more inner-city ghetto kinda road. Graffiti ran across the brick fences and buildings along the side of the road and gunshots were heard in the corner markets. Everybody ignored them and continued on to the housing area. “The house number is 1336,” Spencer said, gently but quick. Aaron spotted a house with those exact numbers and saw that both the gate and the front door were open. “Hue, stay in the car. Call if you see anything suspicious, got it ?” Hue only nodded and stayed put while everybody else scrambled to get out of the car. Aaron slowed his pace so Spencer could catch up and looked at his expression. Spencer was a cross between worried and driven. Aaron could tell that Spencer cared about whoever was beyond those doors. The house reeked of iron and decay. Mostly mold. The sink was on and flooded the dirty floor. Aaron winced as some of the water got on his slacks. “Spread out,” he commanded. Everybody did minus Spencer who clung to his side, looking around frantically. “Gos ??” Aaron winced at how loud Spencer shouted. However, there was something pulling him back when wanting to hush him. Guilt ? No… It was the same feeling that washed over him when he realized Haley was really gone—really really gone. Grief. Feels like emptiness in your heart, a shear of nothingness that somehow takes over and holds your soul and threatens to kill you entirely. It gives you this heavy feeling that’s like the weight of the world is resting on your shoulders and there is nothing you can do to get out from under it. It's like this hole in your heart that is the shape of the one you lost and that makes you feel the need to wipe away any non-existent tears that you want to form but can’t. When Haley died, Aaron wishes he could have saved her sooner– been there sooner. Been with her when she was dying. He can hope Spencer's friend is okay, but if not he would want Spencer to see her in her dying light. Aaron put his gun away when realizing nothing was down in the living area or kitchen. Prentiss, Morgan, and Albuquerque came into Aaron’s view after yelling clear in each of the rooms and he could feel Spencer's emotions filling his hands. He wanted to comfort Spencer and tell him that his friends were fine, but he couldn't lie. “Don't sugarcoat anything,” Spencer whispered. “If they're dead I want to know.” Emily looked to Aaron and Aaron looked to Derek. “We found… A body upstairs in the study, but… It wasn't a female.” Spencer rush-hobbled passed Emily and headed upstairs. Aaron could see Spencer's hand trembling on the railing and decided to follow him. “Watch our backs,” he commanded before heading up the small steps. Once up there he already saw Spencer kneeling before a man on the floor. Aaron crouched next to Spencer and put his hand on his shoulder. “I'm sorry,” he whispered. Spencer shook his head and got up. “Don't be; I don't know him.” Well, that was a bit anti-climactic. Aaron followed Spencer down the stairs and paused. He then rushed to the window and cursed. Hue and the car were nowhere to be found. “Son of a Bitch !” He hissed. “Felix Goddamn Hue took our vehicle !” Emily and Derek ran to the window and Aaron could hear them both curse. “But why ?” Emily pondered aloud. “To save his own ass, probably.” Derek retorted in a sneer. Aaron looked back to Spencer and saw him looking pained. “Hey, you okay, kid ?” Derek asked. Aaron watched as he went over to Spencer and put a hand on his shoulder. Aaron felt his heart twitch but brushed it off. Spencer only nodded and went to sit down on the dusty couch. Derek sat next to him and raised an eyebrow. “Talk. What’s goin’ through your big ol’ head ?” Spencer’s mouth twitched into a slight smile but it was quickly diminished when he looked to the window. “I’m… Scared.” “It’s okay to be scared, but guess what, Pretty Boy,” Spencer looked to Derek and hummed. “We are gonna be okay. We’re gonna get outta here alive and we are going to find your friend, okay ? You just have to promise me you’ll be with us the whole time.” Spencer nodded and looked to his feet. Derek got up and went over to Aaron. “What’s the plan, Hotch ?” Aaron shook his head. He pulled out his phone and grimaced at the letters reading ‘NO SERVICE’ on his phone screen. They could walk it, but it was dangerous and they didn’t have many weapons. Only the small handguns on their person and the weapons that were in their SUV. Aaron looked to Spencer and felt a wad of fear clot his throat. All he knew in that moment, was that he wanted to protect his new love interest. At all costs. Chapter End Notes sorry this chapter was short my job has been fuckin' hectic lately ill update as quickly as i can also sorry if aaron was super OOC im not good with his mind-set lmao i may just stick to spencer's POV for a while ***** The Name Game ***** Chapter Summary The group tries to find a name for the zombies and Spencer finally finds out what Hotch's real name is, in probably the worst way possible. Chapter Notes TAGS; blood, zombies, Derek and Emily are dorks, partial nudity, blowjobs, dry humping, Spencer's a dumb genius, non-graphic gORE but it will get graphic later in the chapters can i just say you readers are the bomb.com ? like you guys motivate me to write with your kind words. also i write out of spite so if yall tell me shit like 'oH YOU WONT FINISH THIS BUT WHATEVER' ill make like three long chapters in one day just you watch but anyways, yeah thanks !! See the end of the chapter for more notes “Roamers.” “Taken.” “Um. Rotters.” “Taken.” “The walkin’ dead.” “Isn't that the name of the famous show ?” “Oh ! Creepers.” “Taken.” Spencer rolled his eyes while Derek laughed. It had been a little bit over an hour since Hotch tried calling for backup and Spencer was starting to worry. Him, Derek and Emily had been sitting on Gosvintha’s couch, naming off what they could call the zombies. “Why can't we just call them zombies ?” Hotch asked. “That ruins the fun,” Derek noted. Spencer hummed. “The fun ? We are in the middle of the zombie apocalypse.” “Zombie sounds so plain, though.” Emily chimed in. “Cannibal Corpses.” “Too long.” “Lame Brains.” Spencer laughed. “Too dumb.” Derek frowned. “Okay then, Pretty Boy. What do you have in mind ?” Spencer looked to the ceiling and shrugged. “Necrotics.” Derek clicked his tongue. “Ain't nobody gonna remember that.” “Infected,” Hotch spoke up. Everybody looked at him and nodded a bit. “Maybe.” Derek teased. Spencer got up and walked over to Hotch before resting a hand on his shoulder. “Hey, are you okay ?” He asked because he was genuinely concerned. Hotch seemed to be under a lot of stress. And he could tell it wasn't just because they were stranded in an unguarded house with enough ammo to take x-amount of zombies– infected. Hotch shrugged and then nodded. “Yeah, I guess. I think we might need to move out, soon. They'll come looking for us if we aren't back before sundown.” Spencer nodded and looked to the other who weren't talking to each other. Albuquerque was in the bathroom; Emily played with her hair and looked to the ground, concentrated on it; and Derek walked around the house, eyeing each one of Gosvintha’s paintings. She loved to paint. Spencer's stomach churned and he tried to rub away the feeling that she was dead… Or—in this case—worse. “I understand,” Spencer said finally before journeying back to the couch and sitting next to Emily. She smiled, meekly and looked to Hotch. “How's he doing ?” She asked, quietly. Spencer shrugged and felt his heart pinch, not being able to clearly know what was up with Hotch and looked to his feet. “He said we need to go soon.” Emily nodded and got up to inform Derek and Albuquerque when he emerged from the restroom. The sidewalk matched the sky in emitting an orange radiance; shadows cast red. They walked fast but slow enough to watch out for any zombies. “Meat puppets,” Derek whispered. They kept walking but Spencer turned and smiled. “What ?” “Meat puppets.” “That's a highly absurd name.” “More absurd than Necro… What did you say ?” Spencer rolled his eyes and heard Emily giggle. “What about a Wiht ?” Spencer asked “What the fuck does that mean ?” Derek asked. “A Wiht is a term from Old English to describe a minion of a Necromancer—or to put it more simply, it's another word for the reanimated dead.” “Catchy,” Derek joked. “I like it,” Emily noted, making Spencer beam. “What ab–” Spencer was then cut off by Hotch’s hand over his mouth. “Shh,” he commanded in a low voice. Spencer looked to Hotch and followed his eyes to two zombies. One of them was a woman and had a missing jaw and missing fingers. Her clothes were intact but her skin was a corpse gray and blood was splattered here and there. She didn't seem to notice the group, but the zombie next to her did. He looked like her except he had a giant hole in his stomach and his insides were pouring out. Spencer grimaced a bit but didn't dare move a muscle. Hotch slowly pulled out his gun and that seemed to have triggered the male zombie. It moved, albeit extremely slowly to Hotch and reached out to him. Hotch winked, shot, and opened both eyes to smile at his work. Spencer did, too. Headshot. At a fairly far distance, too. The female zombie saw and turned towards Hotch, matte green eyes shuttering. Hotch winked again, but quickly reopened his eye and stared at the woman wide-eyed. She started to… To run at Hotch. Spencer has never seen such a fast moving zombie; not yet, anyway. All of the ones he has seen thus far had been slow moving or at walking pace. She was fast, yes but when she came closer they all realized she wasn't agile whatsoever. She swayed and flailed her arms about, trying to grab at anything. Hotch moved back and distracted her while Derek waited for the perfect shot to her head. Spencer and Emily stood behind the giant wall that was Agent Albuquerque and waited until she was dead on the floor. Er. Dead for real.     “Stalkers,” Emily added, tiredness in every letter. The whole team had been walking for around thirty minutes and the sky had turned into a dastardly dark color. “Stalkers ?” Spencer quirked an eyebrow at Emily. “Really ?” Emily shrugged. “Whatever. I’m tired.” “I second that,” Derek commented. A flood of coincidence hit the group like a tidal wave and they suddenly saw a black SUV swerve around the corner and abruptly stop in front of them. Without any lick of reluctance, the group scrambled into the car and it drove off. David was in the driver’s seat and almost looked annoyed. “Why the hell–” Before David could finish, Hotch spoke up and cut him off. “Hue took the car, we were stranded at the house where Gosvintha should have been.” “Let me guess, she wasn't there ?” He looked to Spencer when he said that and Spencer shook his head, solemnly. “Don't worry, kid. We'll find her.” And for some reason, Spencer believed him.   Another team went out shortly after Hotch’s team did and retrieved a bunch of agents’ family members including Derek’s mom. Spencer sat in the bureau’s briefing room and stared at the white board. “We’re gonna be fine,” a voice stated from behind Spencer. Spencer turned around and saw Hotch. “you know.” Spencer nodded and watched as the other man sat next to him. “I just can't help but think if we had gotten there earlier…” Spencer hung his head down and flinched when he felt Hotch grip his arm. “I know. I know. I understand. But, hey. She could very much still be alive, Spencer.” Spencer nodded and took Hotch’s words into consideration. He looked up into Hotch’s eyes and saw honesty and condolence. Hotch smiled and Spencer did as well. He hadn't had the time—what with the world ending and all—to reminisce about the time he's spent with Hotch. It had only been two days and yet it felt longer. He felt so safe and comfortable around Hotch. He wasn't like the men or women Spencer has dated before. He was mature, earnest and a complete gentleman. Spencer's heart felt slightly lighter and he could feel his cheeks flush. Hotch seemed to have noticed and chuckled. “You're red.” “I was just thinking.” “About ?” “You…” Spencer looked away from Hotch sheepishly and felt Hotch’s hand retreat from his arm. “That's cute.” Spencer looked back to Hotch and could see pink tint his cheeks. Ahh, requited love is the best. Spencer and Hotch sat in each other's company for a few more minutes before Hotch reached over to tilt Spencer’s head up and towards his own face. Spencer blushed and couldn't help but smile. Hotch did, also and leaned in to kiss Spencer. He hovered over Spence’s lips for a bit, making sure that Spencer wanted this, too. Eventually, Spencer was the one who pushed his lips onto Hotch’s. Spencer felt his hands shaking on Hotch’s shoulders but once the kiss deepened, Spencer lost himself in his thoughts and stopped shaking. Hotch breached his own mouth to lick at Spencer’s bottom lip. Spencer opened his mouth and let his tongue in, exploring and prodding at every crevice. Spencer didn't care about spit or drool at this time. In fact, he almost found it endearing. He felt himself wanting to be closer to Hotch, to be one with Hotch. When they pulled apart to gasp for air, Spencer winced and swallowed all of the spit that gathered into his mouth. He didn't mind as much as he should have, though, since it tasted like Hotch. He looked over to Hotch and saw the clean and mature man in such an erotic state of exhaustion. Spencer cursed himself as he felt himself get hard. Spencer got up without his cane and wobbled over to where Hotch was sitting before sitting on his lap, feeling that Hotch was in the same state as himself. This was crazy, he knew it. But he didn't care. He shifted a bit and smiled when Hotch groaned before wrapping his arms around Hotch and rutting against him. Hotch quickly gripped onto Spencer’s hips and moaned his name. Spencer gasped and pressed his mouth against Hotch’s red ones. Spencer ground deep and lustfully on Hotch’s lap and he felt Hotch’s hands leave Spencer’s hips and down to his pants buckle. Leaving Hotch’s mouth, he rested his forehead on Hotch’s own and helped with his buckle. Before he could realize it, both of their pants were off and they were dry humping each other like nothing else in the world mattered. “Sp… Spencer…” Hotch moaned between thrusts. “H-Hotch…” Spencer returned. “Aaron…” Spencer stopped. He moved his face away from Hotch’s and knitted his eyebrows. Did Hotch just call him by another man’s name ? “Ex-... Excuse me ?” Hotch licked his lips and tilted his head. “What ? Wo-Would you rather call me Hotch ? I mean, I don't mind it's just that Aaron sounded a little more appropriate for the moment.” Then it hit him. Aaron was his first name. As if Spencer couldn't get any redder, he did. “Oh. Oh no. Sorry, Aaron. I thought you said something else… I thought you said… Marion… I was just–” “Wait.” Hotch gripped Spencer’s hips to keep him in place before sitting up straight and looking him in the eye. “You never knew my real name ?” Spencer looked away and bit his lip. “Y… Yeah… It's–! But, it's only because I spaced out and only heard you say the Hotch part and I tried asking again but making it seem like I, like. Wasn't NOT listening but before I knew it you were asking me to Agent Rossi’s and they all called you Hotch and I–” Spencer’s rambling was cut off by a pair of familiar lips. Spencer looked down once Hotch pulled away. “Sorry…” “No, no. Don't be.” Hotch chuckled. “God, you're so adorable.” That seemed to trigger Spencer and soon enough he was back on Hotch’s lips, moaning into them. He felt Hotch’s– Aaron’s fingers dig into Spencer’s hips and they were back to rutting against each other. “Aaron…” Spencer whispered, wantonly. Aaron smiled against the opened mouthed kiss. “God, you're so hot when you say my real name.” Spencer let out a gross moan and started picking up his pace. Little moans escaped from Spencer's mouth as Aaron began to move his kissed towards the nape of Spencer’s neck. Spencer thought he was safe before Aaron began to move up and nibble on Spencer’s ear. Spencer's body shuttered and he let out a relatively loud moan before coming. Aaron pulled back and stared into Spencer’s glossy eyes. Spencer looked away in embarrassment. “M-My ears are sen-sensitive,” he mumbled, slightly out of breath. He then looked down and smirked. Aaron tilted his head and let out a sigh when Spencer moved away and kneeled on the floor. “It’s cold without you straddling my lap,” Aaron said matter-of-factly. Spencer only nodded before pulling down Aaron’s boxers and discarding them by both of their pants. “Spencer, you don't–” “Shh. I-... I want to.” Aaron stayed silent and shuttered when Spencer touched his pulsing cock. Spencer looked up to Aaron with the most seductive face he could muster and traced a line from the bottom of Aaron’s cock to the dripping head. The entire time, neither of their eyes left each other’s presence. Spencer wrapped one hand around the base of Hotch’s cock before taking in the tip of Aaron’s cock into his mouth. Aaron gasped and Spencer could see his knuckles turn white from gripping the chair so hard. Spencer started slowly at first, bobbing his head at a leisurely pace. “M… More…” Aaron gasped. Spencer smiled against his dick and began at a faster pace. Aaron gripped Spencer’s hair and tilted his own head back. Spencer continued, ignoring the small bucks Aaron gave. Spencer made sure not to involve his teeth and to involve his tongue a lot. He smiled and realized how great he was making Aaron feel. That blushing, mumbling, moaning man was because of Spencer. Aaron suddenly jerked himself more into Spencer’s mouth and stammered out an apology. Spencer stopped and looked up to Aaron. “You can do that… If you want…” “Do you have a gag reflex ?” “A small one, but I'll be fine.” Spencer smiled before lowering his mouth back onto Aaron’s dick. He tasted Aaron’s pre-come and began at a much faster pace. Aaron’s grip on Spencer’s hair tightened, but it felt good to Spencer so he let it be. Spencer began to moan and gag against Aaron’s cock and that's what sent Aaron over the edge the most. Aaron ripped Spencer away from his cock before coming in hot, thick spurts. Spencer closed his eyes as he felt cum coat his eyelashes and tongue. He swallowed most of it before feeling something wipe the cum from his eye. He looked up to see Aaron had wiped it off with his thumb. Spencer smirked before grabbing Aaron’s wrist and leading it to his face before licking the cum off of his hand. He looked up to Aaron who sat awestruck. Spencer laughed and began to gather his and Aaron’s clothing. “Where did you learn to do that ?” Aaron asked as he pulled his pants up. Spencer pushed all of his weight onto his good leg while buttoning his pants and shrugged. “One of my exes. He, uh. Taught me.” He looked up to see Aaron making a painful face but brushed it off. "So what does 'Hotch' stand for ?" Aaron chuckled. "My full name is Aaron Hotchner." "Oh, God, that makes so much sense." Aaron laughed even harder and pecked Spencer on the nose. They both sat down—in their own seats, mind you—and held each other’s hands, basking in the comfortable silence. Well, that was until David walked in. Spencer had to admit, it was weird seeing David without an apron and slippers on. The ‘first appearances are the strongest’ phenomenon really did the trick on Spencer. “The Bureau has been breached.” Spencer’s smile fell and his face tensed. He swallowed down what felt like a tennis ball and stood up, cane shaking in his hand. “What ?” Aaron practically breathed. “The horde has come to Quantico and we are surrounded; we need to go… Now.” David left the room, expecting Spencer and Aaron to follow, which they didn’t. Aaron sat and Spencer had stood, frozen in their places, trying to process everything. “They’re quick,” Aaron mumbled. Spencer only nodded despite Aaron being turned around. Aaron turned to face Spencer and stood up before grabbing Spencer’s free hand. “We’re going to be okay, though. Okay ?” Spencer looked away from Aaron. “You don’t have to do that,” He breathed. “I’m not a child.” Aaron let go of Spencer’s hand and nodded. “Sorry. Habit.” Spencer nodded and headed towards the door. He could hear muffled yelling and screams of panic. Absolutely splendid. Agents and forensics ran around scattered paper, phoning people and debating to others what they should do. Spencer spotted Aaron’s team by a long and dark hallway and went over to join them. They saw Spencer and Aaron and smiled. Emily frowned. “What happened with you guys ?” She asked. Spencer and Aaron looked at each other before Spencer noticed Aaron’s messy hair, red lips, and poorly done belt. Aaron smirked at him and shook his head. “Spencer doesn't like to brush his hair.” Spencer suddenly felt his face go red as he tried to comb his hair down with his fingers. “What happened ?” “The building is surrounded. We sent a group out with weapons but two came back saying that the zombies were quick.” Emily stated. “Quick ?” Spencer tilted his head. David nodded. “‘Cat like reflexes’ they said.” David scratched the back of his neck. “They said the groups of zombies were divided by the quick and slow.” “Their movements range ??” Spencer heard Derek scoff. “Unfortunately for us.” Spencer looked at his feet for a moment before looking back up. “What will we do if they come in ? Can they open doors ?” “Not if we lock them, but even then we don't have enough food to last forever.” Derek started walking down the hallway and everybody followed. The last door was Penelope’s and Spencer watched as she and two children exited the room along with her boyfriend, Kevin. The darker haired child ran to Aaron and whispered something to him that Spencer couldn't quite catch. “How are we looking, Garcia ?” Hotch asked. Spencer saw Penelope’s face turn white and she twiddled with her pearl necklace. “The cameras are all damaged.” “What ?” “Well, I was watching them and… Just come and see for yourselves.” Penelope leaded Aaron, Spencer and David in the office while JJ, Emily, and Derek stayed out with Kevin and the kids. “See these two ?” Penelope re-winded the tapes and pointed to two specific zombies out of a group of at least fourteen. One was a tall woman and the other was a man, slouched, letting his arms fall in front of him. “These two are smart.” “Smart ?” Spencer quaked. Penelope nodded. “They found a way to open the doors. They also looked directly at the cameras and had one of the stronger, dumber, zombies lift them up and break the cameras. All but the ones on the ceiling but even then nothing really happened. I think they did it just to mess with us but I don't know.” Everybody was silent for a few minutes. “Anything else ?” David asked, quietly. Penelope hesitated before nodding and rewinding the tape. “You can kind of see but a lot of zombies are different. These are slow,” She pointed to, obviously, a small group of sluggish zombies. “these are quick and agile,” she pointed to a smaller group of zombies who were jumping over obstacles and running around chasing after pedestrians. “these are the smart ones,” she pointed to the zombies from earlier who were walking normally and not really chasing after any humans but scaring them. That was the oddest about this all. Those two zombies saw humans and didn't go bonkers. They obviously looked like zombies but to not act like them ? That wasn't right. “and these last ones… The scariest to me… They track people.” Spencer, David, and Aaron all moved closer to the monitor and Spencer swore he felt the room temperature drop and the silence turn to static. Right then and there, everybody watched as a Zombie lifted its nose in the air and began sniffing. It made its way towards a bush before pouncing on it, making a woman panic and begin to run. The zombie was too quick and got her before eating her. Another did the same thing and herded a group of kids hiding behind a garbage can. They were stealthy, patient as all Hell, and quick. Back in the hallway, Spencer noticed that everybody was gone and that there wasn't as much noise in the bullpen as there was before. Spencer followed behind Aaron and David who were whispering to each other and when they got to the bullpens they froze. Spencer caught up with them and felt tense. Behind one of the desks was a zombie eating what looked like a blonde forensic. It looked up and saw the three men but didn't stop from eating the woman. Almost as if they were taunting them. ‘You were too late’ it seemed to simper. Aaron pulled out his gun and approached the zombie. He was about to open his mouth but before words came out, something landed on his back and pushed him to the ground. “AARON !” Spencer practically screamed. A zombie had jumped out of absolutely nowhere and was trying to dig itself in Aaron. David pulled his gun out and shot it in the head, sending it tumbling towards the other zombie. The other zombie got up and started moving towards Aaron but Aaron managed to shoot it twice. Once in the chest and the other in the head. Spencer hobble-ran over to Aaron and kneeled. “A-Are you okay ?” “Yeah. It didn't bite me.” That relieved Spencer. He got up and David extended an arm to help pull Aaron up. David then walked over to the dead lady and shot her in the head. “What happened; I heard yelling and gunshots !!” Spencer turned towards Penelope and smiled, weakly. “Nothing we couldn't handle," He practically whispered. She breathed. “Well, we are completely offline and the cell towers are out. I-I can't call or track anybody.” Spencer winced and looked to Aaron who starred at the elevators. “They… Know how to use elevators…” He breathed. Spencer knitted his eyebrows and nodded. “I think we should find the rest. They're no doubt downstairs.” Everybody nodded at David’s proposal. “Why would they bring the kids ?” Aaron asked, suddenly. “Maybe they thought it wasn't safe here anymore.” David theorized. “Why didn't they come and warn us then ?” David and Spencer both shrugged. Penelope went back into her office before coming out with her purse. They all took the elevator down and saw a horde of bodies lying in front of them. They made their way to the door and opened it, all of them wincing slightly at the smell. “Dear God,” Penelope sobbed out. Spencer stuffed his elbow in his nose and looked around. Dead bodies were scattered everywhere and the waft of blood and guts flew stranded in the wind towards everybody's nose and eyes. Spencer looked around and spotted two groups talking to each other and started walking towards them. Emily was the first to turn around and smiled, putting down the boy she had in her arms. He ran to Aaron and Aaron picked him up, smiling. “I’m glad you’re safe,” He whispered to the boy. As David and Penelope went ahead to join the group, Spencer stayed behind with Aaron and smiled, meekly, removing his elbow from his nose. “Spencer, this is Jack. My son. Jack, this is Doctor Spencer Reid.” Spencer’s eyes widened a little and he mentally cursed himself for not realizing that that was his son. “H-Hi, Jack,” He sputtered. The child smiled and waved. “Hi Spender,” The little boy greeted, quietly. Aaron and Spencer walked over to the group and listened in on the conversation. “Oh ! Spencer,” Emily came over to Spencer with Derek following. “We figured out names for the zombies.” “We have a few different names for the different types,” Derek added. Spencer tilted his head. “We were thinking for the slow ones, we’ll call them Sludgers, since. Well. For one, they ooze blood and green liquid every time they take a step and they also move… Sludgingly.” Spencer nodded. “I like it.” “The fast ones,” Emily started. “I was thinking of calling Berserkers. That hasn’t been taken, right ?” Everybody shook their head. “The smart ones, we were also thinking to call Umnayas. Umnaya means clever or smart in Russian. I think that’s better than, like. Cannies, or cleverers or ‘the intellectual ones’, you know ?” Spencer smiled. “I like that.” “And lastly,” Derek began. “The trackers. We--” “Well, that’s a name in itself, right ? Trackers.” Derek smacked his mouth. “Aww, I had a cool one.” “Okay, okay, go.” “Trappers.” Spencer oohed and Emily giggled. “We’ll have to battle on that one,” Spencer stated. Everybody smiled minus Aaron who looked a little uncomfortable. “Come on,” he called. Everybody looked to him and Spencer could feel the air thicken. “Let’s get somewhere safe.” Chapter End Notes if you guys have better names, recommend them to me TRY to refrain from using ones that are already in other zombie shows/movies. ALSO, there will be other types of zombies stay tuned ;) End Notes comment blease Please drop_by_the_archive_and_comment to let the author know if you enjoyed their work!