Coffee, Tea // Spencer Reid

Chapter 19 - Questions

Spencer

The doctor went down the stairs, and walked up to Lilith's door. He hesitated for a few seconds, before ringing the bell.

The two friends had been hanging out for a while now. Spencer would invite her over whenever he wasn't on a case, and they'd talk about books or watch some movies while eating take-out. As he stood there, he realised that in the two months where she was his neighbour, he had never actually seen the inside of her apartment.

The medical examiner opened the door. "Hey, Spencer! What are you doing here?" She asked.

"Hey, Lilith. Garcia is having a party tonight, at Romney's bar, and we can bring a plus one. Since we're like, friends and all, I was wondering if you, um..." The doctor stumbled upon his words.

"I'd love to come." She smiled sweetly.

"Ok. Alright. Cool." He said quickly. "It's at 7pm, by the way."

"I'll be there."

Spencer waved goodbye, and she closed the door with a "See ya!". As he walked back up the stairs, he realised that Lilith was acting a little strange, and wondered what could have happened.

***

"Hey, you look nice." Spencer said as he met her in front of the bar. She was wearing a purple dress under her black coat, a colour he hadn't seen her wear before.

"Thanks, you too. I like the bowtie." She smiled as she pointed at his neck.

"T-thanks." It was a little cold outside, so he rubbed his hands as she buried her face in her huge scarf. "So, should we get going?" The doctor asked. Lilith nodded, and they walked through the door.

"Oh my! I'm so glad you could make it, Spence. And look, you even brought your friend!" She smirked at the young agent as she took him into an embrace. Spencer was a little awkward, but he returned his friend's hug. Penelope let go of him, and gave another warm hug to Lilith.

"It's nice to see you again!" Lilith said, as she returned the embrace.

"Oh my god, you too! You look SO pretty! No wonder Spenc-"

"Okay, Garcia, that's enough."

"Jeez, alright... Come here, the both of you."

The two were dragged inside by Penelope, and were soon greeted by the rest of Spencer's team.

"Hi Spencer, hi Lilith!" A black haired woman said, a smile on her face.

"Hi, Emily. Where should I put this?" The young doctor asked, holding up his coat.

"Oh, there are coat hangers in that corridor there." She replied.

Spencer nodded, and left them together.

"So, how long have you guys known each other?"

"I'd say three or four months?"

"Wow, you've won him over pretty quickly..."

Lilith chuckled.

"Erm, I think you're mistaken. Spencer and I aren't dating."

A silence fell.

"What?!" Garcia exclaimed. "So he wasn't saying that so we'd let him off the hook?"

The girl nodded.

"Why were you in a towel at his place, then?" Derek followed.

"We had a Star Trek marathon, and it was too late for me to go back at my place, so he let me stay."

"That is so anticlimactic. Typical Spencer." Prentiss sighed.

"Ahem, guys. I can hear you, you know." Spencer said, as he was back at the table.

The team chuckled, and Lilith joined in. Spencer's grumpy expression changed into a smile.

"So, Lilith. Tell us a bit about you." Rossi said, pouring and handing her over a glass of wine.

***
A few hours later, the team had split up between two groups: the men and the women.

On one side of the room, the men talked as they sipped on their beers. Apple juice, for Spencer.

"I like her. She's a nice girl." Rossi said, looking over at the doctor's friend.

"Yeah, she's special..." Spencer answered, thoughtful and a little worried for her. He realised she was pouring herself a bit too much alcohol, and her words were becoming increasingly slurred.

Lilith rose from her seat.

"I'm gonna go to the toilet!" She announced to the girls.

"I'll follow you, I need to go too." JJ sat up and made her way to the bathroom with Lilith.

As the door closed, JJ said,

"I'm glad Spencer found you. He's gone through a lot, but it feels like he's become happier since you guys became friends."

"I should probably the one thanking Spencer. He's just such a good person, I feel so happy around him." She smiled. "You know, he sends me gifts every time he's out of the state on a case. I got this, from when you guys were in Georgia!" She said, holding up a dragonfly keychain, a huge smile on her face.

"That's adorable. I haven't seen him act this way since Maeve." JJ gave a sad smile.

"Who's Maeve?" Lilith asked.

"I don't think I should be the one to tell you, really..." JJ regretted having let the name slip.

"Oh, that's alright."

"But seriously, thank you for everything you've done for Spencer."

She smiled at the blonde woman, before feeling a sharp pain.

"Oh fu-" Lilith brought her hand to her forehead.

"A-Are you okay?" Jennifer asked, worried.

"Yeah, yeah... it's just, I'm not feeling...super well... I feel dizzy..." Lilith sat down on the bathroom tiles, the throbbing pain amplifying.

"Wait, I'll call the guys..."

The team rushed to the bathroom as soon as they heard the news.

"Lilith? Are you okay?" Spencer asked, panicked. He crouched to be on eye level with her. She shook her head.

"Could somebody drive her back to her place?" The doctor asked, turning to the team.

"Yeah, I c-" Aaron started.

"NO! No car. Please, no car." Lilith protested, almost shouting.

"O-okay, Lilith." Spencer said, confused. "I'll take the subway with you, then."

"Yes, please."

***

The doctor fumbled with Lilith's keys, as he tried to open her door. After trying a couple of them, the door finally clicked, and he walked inside the flat.

The flat was a bit like what he'd expected it to be. A nice scent floating around, pastel blue walls, warm rugs, an abundance of house plants and pictures hung up.

Lilith was drunk. Very drunk. She held onto Spencer's shoulder, half awake. He brought her into her room, and placed her under the covers. The young woman was fast asleep, crushed by exhaustion. Spencer smiled, as he saw her peaceful sleeping expression. His gaze wandered around, and fell onto her bedside table. A small picture frames, with three smiling figures. Three girls, two of which he recognised: one was Lilith, the other was Ezra, the clinic's receptionist. The third one, however, was unknown to him.

That night, Spencer fell asleep, a million questions running through his head.