jupiter aria reid

as i sit at my desk, going over the employee files for potential temporary replacements, my phone rings out.

"dr. reid." i sigh.

"afternoon, dr. reid. we have a dr. pensacola requesting an office visit?"

i furrow my eyebrows, flipping through the pages and catching the file.

"uh, yeah, i must've forgotten to put his name down. sorry bout that, roger."

"no problem, mrs.reid. i'll send him up."

"thank you. i owe you one!"

"have a good day ma'am." he chuckles, hanging up the phone.

i look through his thin file, chuckling as i read through the resume.

"another duke alum, huh?"

i push myself out of the chair and wobble my way across the bullpen.

"where you headin', mama?" morgan shouts out at me, making spen's head turn.

"i have another interview." i sigh, shift my weight onto my other leg.

"i thought you were done with those already?" spencer asks, leaning back into his chair and furrowing his eyebrows.

"i thought that too. their file got stuck to somebody else's and it's so thin that i guess i just missed it." i shrugged.

"is she here yet?" morgan asks, smirking.

"i'm actually on my way to meet them, so i gotta go. see you in a few." i wave, turning back around to meet the interviewee.

as soon as i step in front of the elevators, the doors open to reveal a tall, very chiseled, young man. i notice the visitors pass attached to his belt and i furrow my eyebrows. he steps out and as soon as he sees me and a large smile fills his face.

"dr. reid, right? it's nice to meet you, ma'am." he chuckles, holding his hand out to me.

i take it, shaking it firmly.

"don't call me ma'am, it makes me feel old. i saw that you graduated from duke?" i ask, pulling my hand from his.

"oh yeah, i'm a huge fan by the way. i mean...not fan. but i've read your dissertation on the science behind serial killers and may i just say, it was absolutely fascinating." he gushes.

a light blush fills my face and i rest my hands on top of my stomach.

"well thank you. come on, let's head to my office." i say, motioning towards the bullpen when i notice everyone staring through the glass walls and open doors.

my eyes roll and i begin to lead him through.

"not to sound rude, but you're a little...young?" i ask, looking up at him.

"oh. yeah i'm fresh out of the academy."

"fresh out the academy, huh? and you're just...going for the gold? that's brave." i chuckle.

"i guess so. i've always heard that i'm a little too ambitious for my own good." he shrugs.

"i've heard that too. but look at me now." i smile, stepping through the doors.

"alright, so this is the bullpen, unless you plan on bother the agents, you won't be spending much time around here." i wave off, and he nods.

i notice morgan and spencer eyeing us skeptically, and when i turn back to morgan, he raises his eyebrow. he points his finger in our direction before cupping his mouth.

"a child." he mouths, making me roll my eyes.

"so i totally forgot, to ask, what's your name?" i quickly ask, turning back to him.

"oh! drew. drew pensacola."

"pensacola like...the city?"

"yeah. and i've never even been to florida." he chuckles, making me smile.

"well, lucky you."

"so i've heard."

we stop in front of the doors of my office and i step inside, holding the door open for him before closing the door behind us. i open the blinds to see everyone, once again, staring. this time, jj and garcia were out of their offices, standing by derek. i glare slightly, before slamming the blinds shut and taking a seat at my desk.

"sorry it's so dark in here. all the lights have been giving me migraines recently."

"oh no, that's okay!" he reassures quickly as he fidgets in his seat, quickly adjusting his tie.

i raise my eyebrow and notice the edge of his mouth twitch slightly.

"you don't have to be nervous, you know? you being fresh out the academy means nothing to me." i chuckle, grabbing my cup of lemon tea.

he pauses, his mouth slightly open.

"how did you..."

"it's my job. now, tell me about you. you're fresh out the academy. you got your doctorate from duke. tell me more." i smile, sipping on my tea.

"well, ummm. i don't necessarily have much experience in the law enforcement field, but i was in the hostage negotiations unit back home and-"

"no no. i don't wanna know about your experience. i want to know about you. your likes, your dislikes. where are you from? let me inside your head." i smile.

he pauses again, pursing his lips and letting out a low breath.

"well...i grew up in the valley, salinas, california, to be specific. a small town based mostly on agriculture. but we had a big gang problem. my parents didn't really have a lot of money, so i guess you could say i grew up on the wrong side of the tracks. i was always that really nerdy kid who never really fit in or had many friends. and as soon as i graduated high school, i got the hell out of there- excuse my language- my freshman year at duke, you published your dissertation and that helped me decide what i wanted to do. and during college i worked with the local law enforcement under the hostage negotiations unit-"

"with detective harmon, right?" i smile.

he furrowed his eyebrows before nodding his head.

"you got his name from what i was just telling you?"

"nope. i grew up in charlotte. and i remember dt. harmon, my brother was captain beauliu."

he opens his mouth slightly, nodding his head.

"ah. okay. but ummm. yeah. that's pretty much it. i studied my butt off and got my doctorate, then went to the academy....i heard about what happened to you, by the way. you're really brave." he said, giving me a soft smile.

bingo.

"you didn't say i was lucky."

"huh?"

"you didn't tell me that i got lucky. or how blessed i was that nothing worse happened."

"well...no. if you were lucky or blessed, none of those things would've happened. instead, you persevered and you got yourself out of that situation. i don't know if i would've had the strength to do what you did. i don't think i'd even have the intelligence to think of a way to get myself out of a situation like that as flawlessly as you did."

a smirk falls onto my face and i straighten my posture, scooting closer to my desk.

"let me ask you something. let's say you've got an agent coming in here and they've just come back from medical leave. let's say that they've just been shot and watched their partner die. he's coming in for his psych eval and he's looking to get cleared so he can keep working his case and find the unsub that killed his partner. what do you look for?"

he stops for a moment, thinking back at all the information i just gave him.

"can...can i have more information?" he asks timidly.

a giddy feeling arises in my chest and i nod my head.

"he's got two children, one boy and one girl, and a wife at home. he's...38? no, we'll say 39. his partner had become his best friend they've been partners for the last three years, and he's worked in the behavioral science department for 10. he was shot in the shoulder and he's never showed any signs of any sort of mental impairment."

he nods his head, mouthing some things before looking up at me.

"during the interview, am i allowed to ask questions other than the ones recorded on the official paperwork?"

a smirk falls on my face and i stand up.

"ready to start your training, pen?"

a wide smile falls on his face and he shoots out of the chair.

"yes, ma- jupiter. agent reid. dr. reid?" he says, making a face at me.

i laugh and hold out my hand.

"just call me aria. my husband is the original reid around here and it gets confusing when people call us other things. speaking of, let's introduce you to the team." i smile, opening the door and walking out.

morgan elbows reid and hits emily's arm. everyone then turns to watch us as drew exits the office. i lead him out towards the team and smile as we approach.

"guys, this is dr. drew pensacola, my temp while i'm on maternity leave." i say, looking over at drew who waves shyly.

"hey man, i'm morgan." morgan says, reaching forward to shake his hand.

"drew, nice to meet you."

he begins shaking other people's hands and introducing himself when spen wraps his arm tightly around my waist.

"you feel okay?" he whispers in my ear, making me blush.

i look up at him, nodding my head and he smiles gently.

"but can we stop by the store on our way home? i need more stuff for dinner."

he nods his head, before turning his attention back to drew.

"drew, this is my husband dr. spencer reid." i smile, placing my hand on spencer's chest.

drew smiles, looking him up and down before putting his hand back down.

"nice to meet you, i'm drew."

spencer furrows his eyebrows slightly at the boy.

"why'd you put your hand away?"

drew pauses for a moment, stammering slightly.

"uh, well your free hand is in your pocket, and aside from dr. aria, you're standing about 18 inches away from anyone else and you kinda grimaced when morgan grabbed your arm. so i just assumed you had either a bit of a germ thing, or a severe personal space thing. i'm sorry if-"

"no...no you're right." spen smiles, making me giggle.

"you two are cute. okay, i have to go take drew to meet my regulars, as for the rest of you, i will see you all at dinner?"

"you got it, mama." morgan points.

"ooh, what're you making?" garcia gasps, leaning in towards me.

"nothing too crazy-"

"the last time you said nothing too crazy, there were three courses." emily chuckles, making me pout.

"well i'm eight months pregnant so there definitely won't be anything crazy."

"right. okay." jj laughs, making me glare.

"i'll uninvite all of you and only bring drew and garcia home."

"wh- me?" drew asks, looking frantically between me and the rest of the team.

"did you have other plans?" i ask, raising my eyebrow.

"n-no. but you just met me. why would you invite me to dinner at your home?"

"because now you're apart of this team. so you should get to know this team."

"i thought you were just the building psychologist?"

i gently pat his back, bringing my lips into a fine line before dragging him off.

"i'll teach it all to you. don't you worry."

"you never told me what you were making!" garcia shouts.

"ask spencer!"

"don't ask me. i don't know." he mutters, making me smile.

as we walk down the hall, i turn to drew.

"you don't have any food allergies, do you?"

"i'm allergic to brussel sprouts."

"well lucky for you, i too have chosen to be allergic to brussel sprouts."

"i didn't choose t-"

"i did. i hate them. so if anyone ever asks, i'm allergic."

"even your husband?"

"especially my husband."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

i was pulling the chicken out of the pan when the doorbell first rang.

"spen!?" i shout as i begin plating the food.

"yeah i got it." he says, kissing me cheek as he runs past me.

i hear the door open and greetings begin to exchange themselves. i hear the footsteps against the hallway floor and i turn to smile at our friends who have just walked in.

"morgan, garica! hey."i smile walking over to give them awkwardly placed hugs.

garcia leans down, pressing a soft kiss to the top of my belly before handing over a tin of cookies.

"for you. need any help?"

"actually yes. wanna help me bring these to the table? everyone's just gonna serve themselves. i've no time or energy to plate things for everyone."

"you just sit down. let us handle the rest." spen says, placing his hands on my waist and guiding me to the dining room.

"if you say so." i sigh dramatically, seating myself towards the edge of the table.

as i'm sitting down, the doorbell rings again so i get up out of the seat and wobble my way towards the front door.

"evening, aria." hotch smiles with emily by his side.

"i brought wine. which i know you can't have, but i figured we'd need it." emily chuckles, holding up the bottle of white.

"i loathe you, prentiss." i sigh, moving out of the way as my two team members make their way into my home.

as we're walking away, there's another knock at my door and i sigh, telling them that everyone was mingling in the kitchen. when i open the door, drew is stood there awkwardly.

"oh, thank goodness, i was afraid i would've shown up at the wrong place." he breathes out, making me giggle.

"does that happen often?"

"surprisingly yes." he laughs.

"well, you're here. come in. everyone's in the dining room. we're just waiting on jj and rossi."

he steps in and i guide him into the dining room, making small conversation as we walk.

"you guys are all really close, aren't you?"

i look up at him, a soft smile on my face.

"they're my family. and now, so are you. i know you're just a temp, but something tells me that you'll be sticking around quantico a lot longer than you think you'll be."