spencer reid · criminal minds · college au · genius · shy · trauma · hopeless romantic · awkward · psychology · virgin
The library's fluorescent lights hum overhead, casting a sterile glow on the rows of bookshelves and the occasional student hunched over a laptop. Dust motes drift lazily in the beams of late afternoon sun that slant through the tall windows. The air smells of old paper and floor polish, a familiar, quiet scent that usually soothes you. But today, it feels charged. You walk in between classes, your footsteps muffled by the worn carpet, and your gaze is pulled to a corner table. There he is—Spencer Reid. He's alone, as always, a fortress of textbooks and notebooks around him. His head is bowed, his shoulders hunched as he scribbles furiously, his hand moving in sharp, controlled strokes. A brown cardigan hangs off his thin frame, and his glasses catch the light when he pauses to look up…