FREAKING OUT ² ➢ spencer reid

XXIV

The sound of footsteps coming down the stairs woke me up. Lazily, I lifted my torso, leaning my elbow against the mattress as I pushed back some loose hair and rubbed my eyes. I yawned loudly and scrunched up my nose.

"Hey," Reid's voice was quiet. He dropped his stuff on the floor and walked briskly to meet me, instantly throwing his arms around my neck and pushing me downwards. As he fell on top of me I opened my eyes, a small smile creeping across my lips. At that moment it was like all the negative feelings I had were gone. I nuzzled my face into his chest, breathing in his scent, which was a mixture of coffee and sweat, and let out a happy moan.

"I missed you," I mumbled. I gripped the back of his shirt, pulling him closer.

He planted a quick kiss on the side of my face, running his fingers through my roots as he scanned me and smiled. As the corner's of his lips turned up I felt my stomach churn both out of fear and excitement. "I missed you, too."

I let out a heavy sigh and closed my eyes. His warm embrace somehow settled the majority of my nerves, leaving only a speck of anxiety. With a groan, he rolled off, his back hitting the space next to me lightly as he ran his fingers through his hair and sighed. I turned to face him, raising my brow curiously as he covered his eyes and groaned.

"Rough week?"

"You have no idea," he grumbled. He pulled his hands down his face, the bags underneath his eyes moving with them. He let out another groan, the sound echoing strangely into his hands as they trailed down to cup his mouth. He looked dead, like someone had just threw him into a room with little to no sustenance. His skin looked almost translucent, the veins along his hands popping out against his dull tone, while his eyes appeared bloodshot and puffy. He probably hadn't slept in days, which wasn't necessarily uncommon of him. Reid didn't sleep a lot, especially when he was stressed.

"You want to talk about it?" I moved closer to him. I brought my hand to his face, stroking his cheek with the edge of my thumb. It was obvious that something was bothering him. His sad eyes glanced around the room, avoiding mine as I inched closer. He hated admitting when he needed help; a habit I couldn't be mad at, because I did it too.

He shook his head and grabbed my wrist, moving my hand to his mouth. He kissed my palm a couple of times before placing it down on the bed and sighing.

"You sure?"

He rolled onto his side so that we were facing each other. "I was worried about you."

I bit the inside of my cheek, suddenly feeling guilty. The whole reason I didn't tell him in the first place was because I didn't want him to worry, yet here he was, doing it regardless. "Why?"

He shrugged his shoulders, signifying that he didn't necessarily want to talk about it. On any other day I probably would've pushed to get some answers, but today was obviously different.

"Can we, uh..." I swallowed hard and closed my eyes, the nerves inside my stomach rattled through my entire body, causing a shiver to run up my spine. All of a sudden it felt like I was dying. My chest tightened aggressively, while my hands started to sweat with anticipation. When I opened my eyes I saw Reid staring, his brows knitted together in concern as he moved his body upright and leaned against the wall. Without hesitation he reached out to me, softly rubbing my head as his flashed me a confused look.

"You okay?"

I took a couple more deep breaths, trying to muster up the courage to talk. Now that he was here the whole thing felt real again; sending me into a panic. I moved away from his hand and sat on the edge of the bed, gripping my stomach tightly. Even though I knew there wasn't a full sized baby in there, it sure felt like there was. My insides danced uncomfortably throughout my torso, causing me to stand up abruptly in fear.