Open To Suggestion

!!A/N: I support the 2007 WGA STRIKE!!

A/N: Totally AU to anything else I have written except maybe for a oneshot I did a little while ago. This is an experiment. Please read and review Thank you !!

N.B: this takes place after Gideon leaves and before Rossi arrives.

With Gideon now gone it was time to bring in a new member to make up the numbers in the team. They knew very little about the new comer. He was an expert in sexual sadistic crimes, but his background was foggy. They were sure that the powers who be knew all they needed to know, but Derek and Emily needed to know more and it frustrated them that they didn't.

Garcia had a snoop too, but came up with nothing other than a name and date of birth and country of origin. At this stage they didn't even know what he looked like.

There was a case though, so meeting the new guy would have to wait for now. There had been a couple of murders and a bit of arson involved and now they had to go out to an apartment block where the unsub had a hostage and was going to throw him and her both off the roof into the parking lot below.

Hotch was going to attempt to talk the unsub off the roof and took Reid and Prentiss with him. JJ was going out to assist with the media side of stuff, and Morgan was looking into why he had chosen this particular person on this cold foggy afternoon.

"Hey Spence." JJ said as she walked by Reid and ran her hand down his arm.

Damnit – why was she so touchy feely with him? He hated it. She really should keep her hands to herself. He liked her and everything but please JJ hands off. She felt him pull away from her and she smiled. So cute the way he did that. Always hiding his feelings. She knew he more than liked her. The way he flushed when she was too close. The way he had asked her to the game that time, and then too shy to ask her out again. Too shy even to hold her hand. Kept his eyes fixed on the players so he didn't have to see her looking at him. So cute, and it just made her more determined to get more than a 'hello' from the resident genius.

Hotch watched the little exchange between the two of them and smiled. JJ for all her smarts was sometimes a bit dense. He walked over on the way to the elevators and touched Spencer on the shoulder.

"Ready?" Reid looked at him and smiled and nodded.

He picked up his messenger bag and chucked it over his shoulder and Aaron watched him walk his walk to the elevators smiling inside, and then followed.

It was one of those times where everyone went to press the same button at the same time. Reid got to it first, followed by Hotch, followed by JJ. She snapped her hand quickly away from Hotch who's hand lingered slightly longer than maybe it should have over Spencer's – who gave a nervous little smile and then stuffed his hands in his pockets.

…………..

Hotch managed well and the bloke came down off the roof and everyone was happy – except the bloke who then got arrested for murder and arson and for taking a hostage – apart from him everyone was happy. They all walked chattering back into the office and dumped down folders and bags onto desks and over the backs of chairs.

Reid had already read all he needed to whilst in the elevator on the way up, so took the time to quickly go to the men's room to freshen up and sort out his hair which was all over the place today.

His eyes were stinging a bit. It had been a tad windy which was probably why his hair was trying to stand on end. He pulled a comb out of his pocket and carefully tried to ease it back into some kind of normality. Then he leaned forward and inspected his eyes in the mirror. Red rimmed and ick. He looked very tired. He felt tired. Nightmares keeping him awake again. He stared into the depths of his eyes as if he could see what the nightmare had been about. He couldn't remember now. But it was a smell and there was pain, and there was a lot of fear. He had started to have a small drink of something before bed to try to get them to stop, but it wasn't working.

"Hey." The voice came from behind him and was so close it made him jump. He spun around to be almost nose to nose with an equally tall dark haired man. "Didn't mean to make you jump." And he smiled and there was something weirdly familiar about it.

"Y y you d didn't." and Reid tried to slide past him.

"I saw you do a talk. Interesting presentation." And he was still smiling at Reid. "I could maybe help you out there a bit."

"Out - out where?" Fiddling with something in his pocket.

"With your presentations. Do I make you nervous?" He stepped back a bit from the young profiler and looked him up and down. "I could help you out with a lot I think."

"I I think y y you have m m mistaken me for – for s s someone else." His hands now twisting in front of him.

The stranger took a half bow and stepped right back away from Spencer. "I am so sorry I didn't mean to alarm you. You are Dr Reid though aren't you?"

"Y you haven't alarmed m m me." Backing away towards the door. "I am Dr Reid, yes." And he was out of the door letting it slam behind him. The stranger followed him out and the two of them looked up at Hotch who smiled at them both.

"Good." He said. "You have met Dr Reid?"

"Ah yes I have."

Hotch looked at Reid. "We are going to the bar for a quick drink," gesturing to the dark haired guy, "Want to join us?"

"The – the b b bar?"

……………..

He liked the look of this young Dr. There was definitely something about him. When Aaron had first told him about this lad he thought it too good to be true – working with someone like that was awesome, but now he had seen him too. Well he wasn't what he had expected. He had made a point of going to see him do a talk at the local uni, but even then he didn't notice the full impact of this man. He just seemed very young and very inexperienced, and odd.

He still seemed odd, but the inexperience now intrigued him. The odd mannerisms, they way he walked, the way he stood, the way he wore his watch, his odd socks. Yes he had taken it all in and devoured it. Now it was time to see how open to suggestion this young man was.

"So you are dating JJ?" he suddenly asked Spencer.

"What? Who – who told you th th that?!" He looked genuinely horrified. "No – no I am not dating JJ." He was shaking his head and twisting his fingers together.

"Oh – I just had the feeling you were. You know two young good looking people working together; it seemed obvious that you would be dating her. Emily then?"

"Oh – did Hotch put you up to this?" and Reid glared at his boss.

"Absolutely not – just assumed – wrongly – twice in the same day; though I have my suspicions that my first guess was the correct one."

Reid stared at him. "You were hitting on me in the men's room?"

Hotch suddenly stood up. "Right I'm off, I will see you two in the morning." And he started to walk off

"Hotch! Aaron, wait." Reid was on his feet too. "Where are you going?"

"Home to my wife Spencer. You stay and have a chat."

"But.."

And Hotch was gone.

He turned back to look at his companion for the night.

"So Spence – you don't mind me calling you Spence do you?"

"Erm – no – no I don't mind." He sat down again and smiled and then smirked. "You were hitting on me weren't you?"

"Just testing the water Spence."

"So your interest is sexual sadists?" Reid said – not being able to think of anything else to say.

"I have an enormous interest in sexual sadists and predators, Spence. I also specialise in masochism. Though that is more personal than work based." He was grinning broadly at Spencer.

………….

!!A/N: I support the 2007 WGA STRIKE!!

Please show them your support and stop Criminal Minds getting cancelled this season !!!!