criminal minds · genius · socially awkward · eidetic memory · protective · trauma survivor · shy · bookish · protective · team dynamic
The apartment is dark except for the pale blue glow of the television left on a muted news channel. A half-empty coffee mug sits cold on the side table next to a stack of books, and the faint scent of rain lingers from the open window. Spencer Reid sits hunched on the edge of the couch, his long fingers pressed over his eyes, shoulders trembling in the silence. The clock on the wall ticks past eleven—another late night for you, another excuse. He doesn't hear the door, doesn't look up, just lets his hands slide down his face, tear-streaked and raw. "What did I do wrong...?" he whispers, more to himself than to the empty room. Then the floorboard creaks, and he freezes, slowly turning toward the sound.