The Life and Times of Spencer Reid Hotchner

I would love to hear your opinions and look to working further on the story. This is a follow-up to Going Home and Who's the Victim Here. How does Spencer live his life under the guardianship of his adoptive mommy and daddy?

I do not own or have connection with the "Criminal Minds" program or its characters.

Fun in the Mud

Two weeks after the wedding, Angie and Aaron are still on their honeymoon. It is Friday after a slow week and Rossi gets off the phone with Sean, who had asked him to pick up a bottle of wine on the way home with Reid. It's a few minutes before six that night but he decides it is time to go and packs up the office and heads to the bull pen to pick up his nephew. Walking around the pen to the stair he notices that the man is once again performing a magic trick for his colleagues. He wonders where he gets all his energy and does he enjoy being the center of attention.

"Reid, get yourself ready it is time to go home."

"Good, I wonder what Sean has made for dinner."

"I don't know but he wants me to pick up a bottle of wine to go with it. So we have to make a stop before going home."

The men get into Rossi's car and stop by at a liquor store not far from the apartment and across the street from the play ground.

Rossi says, "You stay in the car while I am in the store."

"Why can't I come in with you?"

"Because I want to get in and out fast and not worry about getting anything else that you might want." Spencer sticks his tongue out at him as he scrunches down further into his seat. He looks out the window at the playground across the street while David is in the store.

David comes out of the store and sees an empty car.

"Shit, where did he get to now." He gets the adult child locator device to find where his nephew had run off too. It pings to across the street where he sees a playground of mud. It had been raining for three days and the ground was as soft as cotton balls. David walks across the street to the grounds and sees Spencer on the swing set looking as innocent as a babe but far from being that.

"Spencer what are you doing over here? You were supposed to be in the car waiting for me."

"I got bored and wanted to go on the swings."

"How did you get over there? All I see is mud."

"There is a sidewalk over there." He points to his right and David sees a pavement under water.

"Did you walk through the water?"

"Yeah, my shoes got wet." All the while Spencer has been swinging back and forth and smiling at David's irritated looking face.

"Spencer, get off the swing and let's go home. I thought you were hungry."

"I am hungry." He jumps off the swing and falls in the mud. As he tries to stand up, he falls again and then starts to cry because this time he hit his knee on a stone in the dirt. He keeps trying to get up and falls down several more times. He finally stops and just sits in the mud and looks forlornly at David who has started to smile and then gave out a good chuckle.

"Do you need some help there boy?"

"Please Rossi."

"What do you call me when we are off duty Spencer?"

"Please Uncle David." He looks at him with the sweetest puppy dog's eyes begging for a treat. David looks around to see if he can get over there without stepping in water or mud. He sees a dry spot and walks over it to get close to Spencer. He sees no dry spots around him so gingerly steps into the mud to get close and when he gets there, he reaches down to lift the man-boy out of the mud. Once Spencer is on his feet, the two men walk out of the mud and onto the pavement. Spencer is dripping in wet mud and David is a little muddy but not too bad. They walk to the car and David looks in the trunk for something for Spencer to sit on in the car because he didn't want mud all over his seats. If they were near a place that had a public restroom David would take him and change his clothes since there is a spare outfit for him in his diaper bag but no place was around.

David just wanted to go home and so found some large plastic trash bags for Spencer to cover up in and sit on.

He calls Sean and says, "Sean, I've got the wine and we are on our way home but we had a small mishap."

"A small mishap, what do you mean David?"

"While I was in the liquor store, Spencer went to the playground across the street and fell in the mud."

"Fell in the mud? How badly?"

"Badly."

Spencer yells from the back seat, "I need a bath Uncle Sean."

"Did you hear that Sean? He needs a bath."

Sean groans and says, "I'll have it prepared when he gets here. You know David; I expect that from a little boy but not from a grown man."

"Well, we know that he is a little boy in a grown man's body, so I guess we should expect it from him." Both men chuckle at what they expect the future is going to hold for them and what they will be dealing with from their boy-man nephew.

"When do his parents return?"

"Not for another two weeks." Another groan.

David drives into the garage and the boys go to the apartment, Sean is there to assess Spencer's clothes, who smiles sweetly at him. Sean grabs his ear and drags him to the bathroom all the while ignoring the ows coming from Spencer's mouth. David takes the wine to the kitchen and goes to the other bathroom to clean up and change clothes as well.

Thirty minutes later, Sean and Spencer come out of the nursery with Spencer dressed in a purple sleeper ready to eat dinner. Sean goes to finish dinner and the men finally eat, the wine was actually used in the cooking of the meal not for drinking afterwards. That disappointed David who was looking forward to drinking a good wine, instead he is eating it.

After dinner, the men do the dishes and then Sean takes Spencer into his room to discuss what he did to get all muddy while David goes to the living room.

In the bedroom, Sean asks, "What were you doing in a muddy playground instead of waiting patiently for David to get back in to the car?"

"We haven't gone to the playground for a while and I wanted to go on the swings. We used to go every weekend and now we don't go at all."

"It has been raining for the past weekends and that's why haven't gone. I know how much you enjoy going and I like taking you but not when it is muddy."

"I am sorry Sean. I acted like a spoiled brat, didn't I."

"No, not a spoiled brat but you did act like a little boy who needs to not do that. I should spank you for your actions, but I am not going to do that tonight. I do have to punish you. I was going to allow you to see Dr. Somerset tomorrow night. But I think tomorrow night you can stand in the corner instead.

"No, please don't do that, I want to see Karen. I haven't seen her since the wedding. Please let me see her Sean."

"No. The corner will be your friend tomorrow night. It is time for bed Spencer. Go say good night to Uncle David."

Spencer gets up sad and forlorn when he says, "Sometimes you are mean Uncle Sean." He goes to the living room and says good night to David.

"Good night Spencer, sleep well."

Sean puts Spencer in his crib and puts out the light out, but leaves the door slightly ajar in case he wants something.