Title: The Not-So-Lost Hour
Rating: Teen
Warnings: No Warnings Apply
Fandom: Criminal Minds
Relationships: Aaron Hotchner/Spencer Reid
Tags: Alternate Universe, Getting Together, Fluff
Summary: Aaron didn't like being forced outside of the house by his therapist, but she always knew when he lied. So now he was going to spend an hour outside that he could be used doing anything else but just sitting in the world.
Word Count: 1,348
Beta: Grammarly



Aaron picked up the drink that he was forced to buy. He didn't mind the coffee as much as he resented being forced into the world. There was any number of things he could be doing that wasn't just sitting in a coffee shop. He would be working on cases in his home office; he could be cleaning the house. There was even working on drills and plans for the next season of Jack's soccer team. Which was fast approaching, but his newest therapist didn't consider doing anything he did in his daily life as something he should be doing today. Of course, drinking coffee was something he did in his daily life all the time. He figured it was an allowed action since he was in a coffee shop instead of his kitchen or the office.

"You look like that coffee did something horrible to you," a man said as he stepped up to Aaron's table.

Aaron looked at the man. He was tall and thin, but not like he was trying and just that his body didn't know how to put on weight and keep it.

"It's good coffee, so I do feel a little mean being this upset while drinking it."

"Do you mind if I join you? I won't talk to you much, I promise. There are just no other open tables."

Aaron looked around to see that the ones that had started to empty after he sat down were now full again. He had chosen a coffee shop hell and gone from any location that he thought he would see any of his team at for the reason of not having to see them.

"Sure. I hadn't realized that it had gotten full again. If I had known that, I would have moved to a two-person table."

"It worked for me as I can feel less guilty." The man laid a briefcase down on the table and pulled out a massive stack of papers.

"A teacher?"

"Professor. I was given a low-level class this time around, a little lower than I normally teach, and I'm at my wit's end. So any time I work on their papers, I come here as I need something to make it all worth my while, not just marking them all as failing."

"What class?"

"Introduction to serial killers, which is a gateway class to dealing with criminal psychology."

Aaron wasn't sure what was going on, but he looked around to see if anyone from his team was around. His luck wasn't that good at meeting someone that he could actually talk to.

"You didn't run screaming," the man said.

"No, no, I didn't. Aaron Hotchner." Aaron held out his hand and waited for the man the shake it.

When it didn't come after a few seconds, Aaron looked at his face at the same time he set down his coffee.

"Oh, sorry. You shocked me. I don't shake hands."

"I shocked you by offering to shake your hand?" Aaron was trying not to freak out about this, but this man was just confusing.

"I read the news more than anything, but there are times that I have my computer read it to me while I'm doing other things during office hours. I guess I've not seen your face since I worked on my last degree that would have serial killers go through it. I'm sorry I didn't recognize you. Doctor Spencer Reid."

Aaron laughed a little, and he picked up the first paper. He knew the name. There were a lot of articles that Dave had been making him read that was written by the man when it came to the least studied paraphilias and their implementation in serial killers or serial abusers. Especially when it came to successfully working on getting a treatment plan that made sure that some offenders didn't actually offend when it came to certain sexual disorders.

"I have never seen an image of you. David Rossi always just sends me printed-out versions since I read them better that way, but I do know of you, Doctor Reid."

"Please, Spencer."

"Aaron, then." Aaron had never thought that Doctor Reid would be this young.

"Of course. I've gotten many emails from Dave, and he's been interested in other things I am working on when it comes to helping with his books and the deeper side of things. I was always very happy to answer his questions."

"That answers how he found you. He never said that."

"So you were looking at your coffee like it was the bane of your existence, Aaron. If you want to talk about that, we can, or I can pick up my papers and just ignore that you are over here acting like that."

Aaron actually laughed, and he set down his coffee again before he relaxed in his chair. "I'm sure you know a lot about what has gone on with my team from the news." Aaron watched how open Spencer was to the conversation they were having. His profiling was hard to ignore when it came to his personal life. He did it all the time with everyone. Part of it was the still lingering PTSD from George Foyet and his killing Haley two years before.

"I do follow the BAU, not just your team but the other teams as well. It's a good way to keep on top of things that are current that would pertain to my research that I do."

"After the Boston Reaper and the fallout, I've been in therapy, and my therapist has been pushing me to go out for an hour and do something I don't normally do. I was sitting here thinking about how I would rather just be at home doing anything other than this until you sat down."

"And yet, you are probably going to end up talking work with me."

"That is one way of looking at it. This is my life, and it's something I refuse to back down on. I learned that while I loved my wife, she couldn't accept this was part of me. She didn't like to talk about the cases or how I felt when I was on them. I had to leave work at home even when that hurt me. My therapist is trying to get me to open up to new things, and while I agree that it's needed. She's not letting me do the things that make me feel safe."

"Sounds like you need a new therapist."

"I do, and I'm working on that, but the one that I think would work the best with me is not one that the FBI would probably accept or pay for unless I prove this is hurting me. After today, I think that I'll have enough for Strauss to move in and deal with it."

"I see. Well, I'm glad you will try and fight for the help you know that you need, and glad that we met as well. I've been intrigued by how Dave has spoken of you."

"Dave made me think you were one of the academics that didn't do well in public."

"This is one on one and vastly different. I'm still very shy most of the time, but I feel like I know you enough to not feel that way."

Aaron had thought that dating would be one of the last things he did as he still felt like it was like cheating on Haley, even if they had been divorced when she died. Yet, sitting here looking at Spencer as they talked, it felt like it was the right thing. He wasn't sure that this was anything close to what Spencer wanted, but in the end, it was a good step forward.

Spencer shifted in his seat, and he crossed one leg over the other, his foot going to brush Aaron's leg before just pressing there at the bend of his knee. It was enough to make Aaron turn to Spencer and open himself up in more than one way to the younger man.

The End