five. the first visit

SPENCER REID WAS ABOUT TO KNOCK ON THE DOOR WHEN RHEA WAVED FOR HIM TO STOP. He awkwardly pulled away from the glass with a slacked jaw and wide eyes, clearly surprised by her reaction in seeing him for the first time in a month. Upon peering into the classroom, however, he quickly realised why she had acted so strangely - her students were sprawled on the floor with their eyes closed...meditating, perhaps? 

The casually dressed teacher clambered over the kids, tapping one of them on the shoulder to tell them that they were in charge while she was gone. Said child was quite happy to receive this knowledge, jumping to their feet and rushing towards the desk chair. Rhea quietly stepped outside and shut the door, a sheepish grin on her face. She lifted her hand in a wave, before adjusting her loose aloha shirt. "Spencer, hey! I'm glad you made it!"

"Hello," Spencer couldn't mask the amusement on his face. He was confused, of course, as he'd never experienced this kind of teaching. But, he was nonetheless intrigued. "So uh...what subject is this?"

Rhea leaned against one of the poles outside so that she could keep an eye on both the children and the doctor. "The kids find it easier to get back into the lesson when they've had some quiet time. Their brains are going at a hundred miles a minute, so it's good to give them some time to gather themselves. The ones at the back are listening to music, since it helps them concentrate."

Spencer went to make a comment about meditation, but he quickly became distracted by a yell from inside. His thin lips sealed once more as the fact vanished, his thoughts instead concerned by the chaos in the class. 

Rhea didn't waste a moment in reacting - she didn't even flinch. Instead, she flashed Spencer a smile and swung the door open. There was no sign of panic on her face, as if she'd been expecting the disruption all along. "Done already, Alice?"

After taking one step inside, Spencer came to the conclusion that the ginger girl covered in dried earth was Alice. In her defence, she'd tried to scrub herself clean with water from the school bathrooms after she got back from lunch, but the grass clippings in her hair said otherwise. "Yeah, I'm finished."

"Alright," Rhea started walking over to her desk. "But what's the most important rule of quiet time?"

"But Miss Reeves-" she began to object, though at Rhea's raised eyebrow, the excuse dissipated into thin air. Her shoulders sagged a little, guilt now replacing the defiance. "Some people need time to think more than I do."

Rhea smiled softly before she looked around. "Does anyone need a minute to finish thinking?"

Spencer held back a chuckle as the hands of all the other students raised. Some kept their eyes closed, dangling their limb lazily, while others were sitting up, slightly dazed. Alice groaned at the outcome, hanging her head. 

Prepared for the young girl, Rhea picked a stack of flyers that were neatly placed on her desk. "Here, why don't you run to Mr. Creed's class and give him the permission slips for the museum trip?"

Alice's face brightened considerably at the offer. She bounded over the bodies of her peers, making sure not to accidentally land on any of them. It was a peculiar skill which she had managed to perfect, her small feet finding the gaps on the floor without tripping or hurting others. The sprightly redhead took the paper and didn't waste a moment in running out the door with a quick wave at Spencer, who managed to lift his hand in response just as she turned the corner. 

He looked back at Rhea, who had already diverted her attention elsewhere. Clearly, this wasn't an uncommon occurrence. 

He watched as the short woman picked up a marker from the baskets at the front of the room and started writing on the board. CAREER DAY, PART TWO. She capped the lid back on and turned around with an excited smile. Spencer suddenly felt a little nervous, even if he was just presenting in front of thirty seven-year-olds. "Okie dokie. Sit back up if you've finished, if not, take a few more minutes."

There were three kids still lying down when she finished - Spencer was sure one was asleep. Rhea suspected it too, but she left him to rest. He was towards the back, curled into the class bean bag, the dark circles under his eyes prominent despite his young age. The two adults exchanged a glance, and she tapped her nose. It was nearing the end of the school day and the boy was having problems at home. He could sleep a while longer. 

Once the children were settled in the centre of the room, Rhea pushed a pop-up outdoor table in front of the board. She gestured for Spencer to set up, and he happily obliged, reaching into his bag and pulling out the things he'd brought along. 

"Is that your boyfriend, Miss Reeves?" Carlos inquired, leaning against the palm of his hand as he watched the strange man figure his demonstration out. 

Spencer blushed a deep red and started to splutter, but Rhea just laughed. She had a beautiful laugh, one that bounced off the walls and made everyone smile. It was slightly raspy and not as loud as it could have been - the kind of laugh one would give when they wanted to fill silence or be polite. "No, Carlos. Doctor Reid is actually a friend of mine! He couldn't make it to career day, but he promised he'd find some time to show us what he does, so he's here now!"

"Does that mean we don't have to do spelling?" 

"Yes, it looks like your lucky day, Sid," she assured one of the scrawnier boys, who wore a faded Captain Underpants t-shirt. 

"What do you do, Mister Doctor Reid?" Chelsea piped up, bringing the attention back to Spencer. 

He smiled awkwardly, his teeth showing for a split second. "D-Doctor Reid is fine. Or Spencer."

"I have an Uncle Spencer!" Toby announced proudly. Sid nudged him to be quiet. The boy covered his mouth and muttered a soft apology. 

Spencer looked over at Rhea, as if for permission to begin. She nodded eagerly, sitting back in her chair with her water bottle in her grip. She was just as interested in the presentation as the kids, and it showed. 

Reaching for his badge, Spencer showed the class. "I, uh, work for the Behaviour Analysis Unit at the Federal Bureau of Investigation...or the FBI. D-Does anyone know what the FBI is?" 

Most of the kids stared at him, bewildered by all the mumbo-jumbo he'd just thrown their way. Jordan raised his hand, and Spencer pointed at him to answer. "The police?"

"Not quite," his fingers curved as he started to explain. "But, we do help the police catch the really bad guys."

"I don't get it," Carlos mumbled. "Are you like Captain America?"

"Not exactly," Spencer's lips twitched. He scratched the back of his head, trying to word what he wanted to say without confusing the kids even further. It was proving to be slightly difficult, as the only children he spoke to were his godson, Henry, and Aaron's son, Jack. "I study the things people do and catch the bad guys based on how the fit the crime."

Silence. Rhea straightened up a little bit. "You know how I can always tell when one of you are lying to me? Or when you need some quiet time?" 

A sea of nods rippled through the class. Spencer picked up on where the teacher was going and continued. "That's because Rhea...Miss Reeves has learned your behaviour and knows what makes you happy, sad, or angry. I do the same thing, just with bad guys."

"Do you get to fight people?"

"Sometimes," he nodded, tucking his hands in his pockets. "But, science and maths are just as important."

Rhea noticed how Katie perked up from the back of the room. Spencer seemed to pick up on it too, and he cleared his throat. 

"What I do is called profiling," he continued. "Can I have a volunteer?"

Several hands shot up, but Rhea knew she should include the one kid that was always left out. "Katie? Why don't you come and help Doctor Reid?"

Katie froze in her seat. She hadn't lifted her hand, but she was clearly interested in what the visitor had to say. She usually got away with being quiet in class, as there were other kids who liked the attention more. But now, she didn't really have a choice. She slowly got to her feet and wove through her peers, standing uncomfortably in front of Spencer. 

The doctor squatted down so he was at her level and held out his hand. "Hi, Katie. I'm Spencer."

Katie shook the outstretched limb, trying her best not to be intimidated by the tall man. She knew he wasn't someone to be scared of, as Rhea seemed to trust him. "Hi."

"Nice to meet you," Spencer smiled. He looked back at the class, trying not to focus on Rhea in the corner of his eye. She was trying to hide her excited grin (which was quite flattering, he had to admit). "Okay, guys. Katie and I are going to go outside while Miss Reeves picks one of you to hide something."

"Then what?" asked Toby. 

"Then, Katie and I are gonna use our new profiling skills to guess who's got the object."

He finally looked at Rhea, who gave him a thumbs up. He and Katie left the room and stood in the hallway, where they began talking. The teacher watched for a moment, a warm feeling soaking in her chest as she saw a smile reach Katie's lips at the doctor's words. 

Then, she turned back to the rest of her students and clapped her hands together. "Hmmm, who here can keep a secret?"

Sid and Chelsea seemed to be clambering over each other, the most eager to participate. Rhea smirked, picking up two whiteboard markers and handing them over. Sid's eyes widened. "I thought he meant one thing to hide?"

The woman winked sneakily. "Who says we can't trick him?"

The kids giggled as she walked back to the door to let them back in. She knew Spencer would figure it out, he was a genius for crying out loud. He took one look around the room and noticed the two pens that were missing, a small smirk creeping onto his face. He leaned down and whispered to Katie, who nodded quickly and led him to the front of the class. 

"Okay Doctor Reid, Agent Larson," Rhea sat down and crossed her arms. "You may begin."

★☆

i'm just tryna get through all the intro stuff so we can finally get going!!!!! need get thru the maeve storyline so we can establish ~sexual tension~ cause you KNOW that's what we like to see