ELEVEN. SHE DOESN'T REALLY KNOW WHAT TO DO WITH HERSELF

MANY HAD BEEN SURPRISED WHEN IT WAS REVEALED THAT KATIE WAS MOVING TO NEW YORK WITH ADOPTEES WHO WEREN'T RHEA. Timing wise, it was perfect for the kid, as spring break was just about to begin. She'd be able to settle into her new home and familiarize herself with the neighborhood, meaning she wouldn't be so overwhelmed.

Regardless, that didn't mean there wouldn't be be tears on her last day. Rhea held her a little tighter and told her to write about her new school and new teachers. Katie had assured her that none of them would be the same. Louis had promised he'd call everyday, and Katie believed him.

The new parents, a young couple called Stacey and Maya, were absolutely overjoyed to be adopting the girl. They'd thanked Rhea for all she'd done, givinv her a bouquet of flowers and a box of chocolates as a small gift before the send off.

The class had all said their goodbyes to the quietest student in the class, with Alice attempting to sing You've Got A Friend In Me from Toy Story (keyword: attempted). There was candy and party poppers and a brand new box set of A Series of Unfortunate Events that Spencer and Rhea had gotten for Katie.

The doctor had been heartbroken he couldn't make it, but he made sure to call during the day and talk to her. He barely spoke to Rhea, he was still sorting through his emotions regarding her recent actions.

In all honesty, she thought about him more often than she'd care to admit. Samuel was on her ass about it, so she'd stopped telling him about her concerns. She wanted to check up on the genius, see how he was doing, but it seemed they always missed each other. The BAU had been racking up more cases than usual, and he was throwing himself into his work to cope with the newest loss in his life.

He'd been furious when she initially didn't tell him about Katie's adoption. She knew he coped with his grief by shutting everyone else out, and this time she didn't know if she had the strength to discard her own emotions for his. So, she didn't.

"How could you not tell me something as important as this?!" he'd exclaimed into the phone. He'd removed himself from the Police Department, not noticing Daisy and Hotch's sympathetic glances as he stepped outside. "Rhea, y-you don't know how selfish that is!"

She hadn't told Samuel about that either.

Now, two weeks later, she was nervously accepting a visitor's pass to the FBI headquarters with a takeaway McDonald's bag in her grip. She smiled at the security guard, who recognised her as Daisy's friend, and after the formalities of identification and signing in, she made her way up to the sixth floor in an awkward silence with other elevator users. 

"Rhea?!" Penelope Garcia did her best to run over in her six-inch heels with a half-full cup of coffee in her hand. "Oh my God, you beauty!"

"Hey, Penelope," Rhea accepted the taller woman's one-armed embrace, a soft smile on her face. It was nice to see the brightly coloured woman again; she always seemed to be radiating contagious happiness.

"How are you doing?" the blonde woman inquired after peppering kisses across Rhea's face. When she pulled back, Rhea saw the pitiful expression. Of course she knew. She'd been one of the first to visit when she heard the news, bearing gifts and pure love. "You look a lot better then when I saw you last."

"I'm okay, actually," Rhea's lie slipped through her lips with ease. "Katie's been calling a few times a week, and I got my first letter from her on Tuesday."

"You should think about scrapbooking them!" Penelope grinned, linking their arms together as they walked towards the large glass doors. "I have so many cute stickers you can use - maybe we can make a day out of it!"

★☆

Spencer heard Rhea before he saw her. Daisy looked over from her desk, watching as he unconsciously fixed his hair in the reflection of his computer screen and straightened his tie. He then picked up his pen and began pouring over his case file, though he seemed to be reading quite a bit slower than usual.

It was obvious that something was up with him, and it wasn't that hard to pinpoint what it was. She'd known about Katie the day after the news, so it was difficult to watch the doctor's heart break all over again. It had been around four months since Maeve's passing now, and the crutch he found in Rhea and Katie has been ripped from under him.

But, that didn't excuse how he'd spoken to their mutual friend. She'd overheard their conversation when she'd followed him out the police department, and scolded him for his inconsiderate words. It wasn't Rhea's fault; the woman had never been good at dealing with grief. He, of all people should have understood.

The woman averted her eyes and sighed happily at the sight of her best friend, moving to push herself to her feet but quickly giving up. "Ugh, Rhea, you beautiful piece of ass. Is that McDonalds?"

"You bet it is," Rhea grinned, focusing on keeping her attention off Spencer. She handed the bag of grease to the heavily pregnant agent, bending over to hug her. She returned the sea of greetings that flew her way with a kind smile. "I still think you should be at home, Daisy."

"You and me both," Aaron piped up as he walked by with a fresh cup of coffee in one hand and his mobile phone in the other. He sent Daisy a disapproving look as he entered his office, and she lifted her middle finger in response.

Chuckling, Rhea reached down to touch Daisy's stomach, eager to feel the baby kicking. Daisy didn't mind whatsoever, instead focusing her attention to the burger in the paper bag. Indulging herself while trying not to spill the sauce on her paperwork, Daisy started muttering about her day, leaving Rhea to try her best to make sense through the food in her mouth.

Daisy couldn't help but notice Spencer out the corner of her eye, and how he was sneaking glances at her best friend. He probably didn't notice he was doing it, but he wasn't exactly being subtle. She recognised his behaviour - he wasn't satisfied with a single gaze. His cheeks were tinged pink; he looked like he was about to burst if he didn't say something.

Guilt; he knew he'd hurt the person who'd taken care of him at his lowest.

"Pregnancy freaks me out," Rhea hummed as she felt the movement of Daisy's stomach from the kick. She let her friend feed her a fry as she pushed herself back up, her brows deeply furrowed in thought.  "I feel like no one talks enough about all the shit your body goes through afterwards."

"Don't start," Daisy whined, using a napkin to wipe her mouth. Rhea sent her a knowing smile. She looked utterly exhausted, both from the job and the foetus growing inside her. "What if I can never pee again?"

"I'm sure it'll be better than having to go every two minutes," Rhea chuckled, and Daisy huffed, before nodding in agreement. Rhea patted her shoulder, as if she knew her friend's personal clock. "Speaking of which, how about a little wander to the bathroom? It might do you some good to stretch those legs."

"You're right and I hate it," Daisy grumbled as she finished her burger. She handed the fries to JJ (who eagerly accepted the offer of free food), before letting Rhea help her up. Her hands fell to her tummy, and she frowned. "Remind me to never have sex again. Trust me, I'm gonna love this kid til the day I die, but you'd have to shoot me in the face before I'd do this again. God, it's like they're stepping on my insides constantly."

"A tad dramatic, don't you think?" Rhea laughed as she looped their arms together. She spared a glance at Spencer, who quickly looked away to focus on his work. She then noticed JJ mouth 'I'll talk to him', and she managed a small nod, trying not to let her mood crack. 

★☆

"Rhea, wait up!" Spencer caught up with Rhea just as she stepped inside the elevator. Her head shot up from her phone, eyes wide as she saw the tall man try to stop the doors from closing. Without thinking, she reached and stuck her hand out so that the entrance would remain open, allowing him to join her in the confined space. 

He stood there for a few seconds, trying to find the right thing to say. He looked like a blubbering mess, but she could tell he was trying. 

"Hi, Spencer," she managed a polite smile, though her attention was directed at the scuffed linoleum floor below her. You'd think that for an FBI building, there'd be more attention paid to the little things. 

"Hey," he responded quickly. "H-How are you?"

"You don't need to-" she began, but was cut off by the man shaking his head. 

"No, I do."

She finally looked up at him, seeing his tired face. Granted, he'd always look better than when he first opened his door to her, but she could tell he'd been having sleepless nights. "Spencer..."

"Look, I'm sorry for how I acted about Katie's adoption," his voice was soft, careful. It was a change of roles for the two friends. He didn't reach out, however. He maintained a safe distance, his hands deep in his trouser pockets. "It wasn't your fault, and I just...I didn't consider how you might have been feeling about the whole thing."

Rhea swallowed, shifting her eyes back to her feet. "I'm sorry, too. I should've told you."

"Rhea," he trailed off. "You've been my rock for the last few months, and when you were hurting I just made you feel even worse. That's not...that's not what I want our friendship to be like. I want to be there for you too."

"It's okay-"

"It's not," Spencer reached out to grab her arm but she flinched in surprise, her eyes widening a little. He backed away instantly, slightly shocked at her reaction. "I-I'm sorry."

The doors opened, and Rhea quickly got out, turning to Spencer and forcing a smile. "I'll see you later, Spencer, alright? Call me if you need anything."

Spencer gave a wordless nod as the doors shut on him once again. 

★☆

ugh fuck idk where i'm going with this i just wanna skip to SUPER angsty reid so that there can be some spicy sexual tension 

but, season eight is almost done which means part one is almost done!!