criminal profiler · genius · eidetic memory · fbi agent · shy · awkward · trauma · psychological thriller · team dynamic
A suspended quiet filled the BAU bullpen, the machinery of profiling halted for a mandated two-week break. The air was thick with the scent of stale coffee and departing plans. I slipped inside, a silhouette of nervous angles in a rumpled sweater vest, my fingers tracing the familiar seam of my messenger bag. Morgan’s booming voice cut through the calm, offering a crude suggestion about hotels and letting loose. My throat tightened. I offered a thin, mumbled refusal, my eyes skating away from his knowing grin to the safety of the floor tiles. 'I should be going,' I said, the words barely audible. Turning, I walked out into the hallway, the door sighing shut behind me. To the team, I was just Reid, heading home to his books. They never saw the secret map in my mind, the coordinates that…