Spencer stood still on front of Maeve's grave. Everyone was leaving now, but the team and I stayed for him. I walked up to him and pet his arm.
"You want us to leave you, sweetie?" I asked him.
"Yeah, I'd like that" he agreed.
I nodded the guys and we started walking towards the cars. Derek walked up to me and put a hand around my shoulders.
"How are you holding up, Nic?"he asked.
"I've been better..." I said and shot a look at Spencer. He was now on his knees and looking at Maeve's casket.
"Everything will be alright, kiddo" Rossi said with a reassuring smile.
"I hope so" I said.
*5 months later*
We were in Chicago on a case. Someone raped young children and dumped them dead in different parks accross the city. We had just found the bastard's house and we were about to go in.
Spencer and I had come even closer the past few months. He had done a lot of progress and was finally able to go on with his life. At least that's what I think...Hotch's signal brought me back to reality. Derek was in front of me, shutting the front door down with a kick. Spencer and JJ were behind me. As soon as we got in, we decided to split. Derek went to the first floor, JJ on the top floor and Reid and I headed for the basement. I walked through the door first, but Spencer grabbed my arm.
"I'll go first" he said. I frowned at him but let him get in front of me anyway. As soon as we reached the basement after descending an endless staircase, someone grabbed Spencer from behind, holding a gun against his head. I gasped at the sight and held my gun up straight.
"Let go of him. Now" I said to our Unsub, who we had earlier identified as Mark Johnson.
"I'm afraid I can't do that, agent" Mark said through gritted teeth. "You see, you come into my house uninvited and excpect to save the day, huh? Well, let me tell you how it works: I love what I do. I love little children so much! Especially young girls... And I won't allow you to take the fun away from me". At this point, I noticed a half naked little girl in the corner of the room. She was crying quietly, trying not to make a sound. Her name was Lilly Esseker, she had been missing for 2 days.
"Mark, you know we can't leave. But if you surrender, I can promise you that you'll get a reduced sentence" I said calmly.
"I don't want a reduced sentence, you idiot! I just want my life back, before the FBI started haunting me down!" Mark yelled. I knew I had to shoot him. His hold on Spencer was really tight, I could see him gagging for air and his face getting a dark shade of red. I didn't think about it much, I just pulled the trigger and shot the bastard straight in the head. He fell on the floor with a thud and let go of Spencer. I quickly ran up to him and gave him the tightest of hugs.
"Are you okay?" I asked as I held his face in my hands and petted his hair.
"I'm good Nicole, calm down" he said and that's when I understood that I was crying. He was looking at me with concern.
"I'll be fine, go to Lilly" I said and nodded towards the little human ball in the corner. Spencer went to comfort her and I ran outside, desperate for air.
"Nicole? Nicole!" I heard Hotch calling me. "What happened? Is everyone okay?" he asked concerned.
"Everything's fine, it's just...Mark almost chocked Spencer" I said, trying to breathe normally.
His serious expression changed to a softer one. And then, out of the blue, he hugged me. "It's all good Nic. You saved him and Lilly. You should be proud of yourself" he said.
"Thank you, Aaron" I said and smiled at him. He shot me another smile and left after saying "Good job".
On the plane I sat next to Spencer. After everyone else was asleep, he turned to me.
"We need to talk" he said seriously.
"Okay" I said with a sigh.
"What happened today?" he asked.
"Ugh, Spencer, it was nothing,okay?!" I replied a bit angry. What else had to happen so that he could understand that I was in love with him?! Write it on my forehead?!
"But you were crying and shaking, Nic! It's not that simple!" he insisted.
"It is simple, I got scared! I saw my best friend being chocked with a gun in his head! And I thought about Maeve..." I said. It was true though, I really thought about the night of her death. I thought that I wouldn't have time to shoot the unsub just as I didn't shoot Diane that night...
"Really?" he asked.
"Really, Spence" I replied, suddenly feeling really tired. "Can we sleep now?" I asked him.
"Yeah, sure. Come here" he said and let me use his lap as a pillow.
