The Case of You and Me

Chapter 16 - All About Family

A/n i cant believe this story has 1.9k views thank u for investing in my take in a Spencer Reid fic I hope you've liked it so far 

Aria's POV

I don't know how long Spencer will treat me like I'm on death's doorstep, but I do know that I've been scolded every time I've tried doing something for myself. I'd be annoyed and fight him on more of it if he wasn't so cute about it. Which is a problem in itself because I'm determined to not push—we're in a weird space, or at least it's weird to me. So, we basically hooked up (but we clarified beforehand that it wasn't a relationship thing), he kissed me before I was kidnapped, and we kissed after. The two unclear moments had been during panic. And also he tried negotiating with Michael in an attempt to trade his life for mine.

I'd talked to Liz about it over the phone while Spencer was at work so he couldn't scold me and explain the dangers of overusing technology following a slight brain injury, and so he couldn't here. She told me to chill, and that not everything needs to be labeled, especially right away. She had put things into perspective for me like always, explaining that in reality I'd known him for a few days because I'd spent weeks away from him. She also told me to take this time as an opportunity to really get to know him.

It made a lot of sense. We were so ahead in some ways and beyond behind in others. I could do that, take time to figure out if friends were all we were meant to be. It's not like I'm in a hurry to rush into a relationship and Spencer doesn't really seem like he dates around a lot. 

And right now I'm either dizzy, nauseous, or I have a headache. My symptoms aren't as bad as they were in the beginning, but I can see more concern in Spencer's eyes than I should when he checks my vitals or asks how I'm feeling. 

Speaking of Spencer, he'd be home soon and he'd kill me if he found out I had been reading again. Turns out when you have a concussion, you're supposed to avoid things that involve thinking and light. Most things involve both. If I had been staying with Liz, I could've pushed her around more and won myself some privileges but Spencer knows how to shut me down. If I tried to argue for reading rights, he'd just convince me he liked reading to me better. If I told him I wanted to use my laptop to write, he'd push for me to use paper because it became more personal, and if I wanted to turn on the lights he'd reference how much fun could be had in the dark teasingly, making me too flustered to argue. Stupid, attractive, smart, tentative Spencer. I never stood a chance.

Speaking of Spencer, he'd be home soon. Since there's so much I can't do, I've taken to becoming a 'house wife'. I've taken up cooking simple food, because anything complicated would give Spencer a heart attack, and strategically cleaning his apartment day by day. Yesterday I dusted all of Spencer's books, which took up almost an entire day. The day before I had cleaned his bathroom and kitchen. I really wanted to clean his room, but something told me that'd be pushing boundaries a little. Even though Spencer is the kindest person ever, it's clear that he isn't comfortable with being open. That's okay. With all the bad he's seen, he has a right to be slow to open up. 

Instead of cleaning his room and breaking an unspoken rule, I had cleaned the living room and made pasta in a way that reminded me of my childhood. My mom, gone, looking for an audition, my elderly neighbor asleep while watching Wheel, and me making food for Lana. I was older by seventeen minutes, as a child I thought that meant I'd always be protecting her. Lana had taken that a little too literally. She also hasn't texted in awhile, and I'm glad. I guess Spencer was right, if I stopped texting back she'd stop texting.