Family Matters (S.R.)

CheckMate

"So, how did you guys meet?" Asked her uncle Ernie. The man had dark hair and really dark brown eyes. He was wearing a very unflattering pair of golf shorts and a tight golf shirt. It was not a sight for sore eyes.

"Uh, well, you know, at work." She responded, avoiding at all costs telling them of their first interaction. It wasn't like she hadn't embarrassed herself enough in front of these people, so what was one more story in the great scheme of things, but her job and friends within it seemed like something she wanted to shield from the nosy people she was related to.

"Come on cousin! Tell us how you met, not where. How did you know you were in love?" It was rather clear her cousin always had to make sure to put her in a position like this. How could she think of a moment that she didn't embarrass herself in front of the man or that they weren't in imminent danger? They weren't really friends until a couple of weeks ago! How do you create a love story out of a relationship that wasn't even solid enough to be considered anything more than cordial?

"I don't know how it was for her, but I have the moment I fell in love with her engraved in my brain," Reid spoke, once again saving her from disaster. For someone who opposed lying so much, he sure was good at it. "It was one year, two months, and three days ago. I was working at my desk, reviewing some old case files for a consultation I had been tasked with when I saw her. She was the most beautiful girl I had ever seen, and to this day, with all due respect to all the ladies present, I can't find a single woman as beautiful and amazing as my girlfriend." Anna did not seem very happy about the comment, but nonetheless, he continued. "She was wearing this white dress shirt that honestly made her look like an angel, she wore her FBI badge, black dress pants, and flat shoes, which I thought was the smartest thing anyone could do, knowing what our job consisted of. I don't think she noticed me, and I wasn't surprised. How could someone as beautiful and amazing as her, ever look at someone like me?" There was a collective 'aww' heard around the campfire and she smiled at him, truly thankful for this story that made her seem like so much more than she felt. "Then it happened. We were getting ready for our next assignment and she spoke to me for the first time. Hearing her voice, and later her laugh, I knew I was done for. There was no way I could go on working with her every single day without ever trying my absolute best to get her to look at me, to laugh with me. So I tried to make her notice me, but nothing seemed to work. She was so concentrated on her work and helping people. Until one day, about a year ago, she finally noticed me, and I was lucky enough to get to take her to dinner. And the rest is history." He concluded the story by placing a soft kiss on her hand, which he had been holding on to since they sat at the campfire.

"That is such a beautiful story!" Her mom spoke, though there was something about the look she gave them that made her nervous. "Honey, why don't you tell us your side? How did you know you wanted to be with him?"

"Uh, well, you see," She laughed, trying to give herself time. Spencer had done such a good job even she was entranced with the story, seeing it play in her head, completely forgetting that she would probably be asked the same thing. Not to fear, as her brain pulled something from her conversation with him earlier, and although she didn't want to share this moment with the people in front of her, there was no other time that would work better in her favor, and she was running out of ideas. "We were in a sticky situation about a year ago, and though Spencer didn't know this at the time, I had definitely noticed him. The way he smiled and the way he concentrated so intently on every single task given to him, besides look at his face and tell me you wouldn't notice this man." There were grunts and agreements all around. "Anyway, during this situation, that I can't really talk much about, I was faced with the possibility of losing him, and I just couldn't bear the thought. I couldn't imagine a world where I couldn't hear his voice, see him at the desk right across from mine, or hear him laugh at something our coworkers said. It was unbearable. I couldn't live with myself knowing how I felt and that I had never told him before I lost him. Once the assignment ended and we were both safe, he asked if I wanted to go out with him, and I couldn't say no. So here we are, a year later."