Title: Don't Let Me Stay Out Late
By: psychokid
Pairing: Reid/Morgan
Rating: AO
Disclaimer: I do not own Criminal Minds
A/N: This idea came from one of those funky idea generator things…please don't take it seriously at all…This is, if I have the terminology correct, a crack!fic…and horrible. Absolutely, positively, horrid. Don't take this too seriously. Please forgive me, I don't know what's wrong with me…
WARNINGS: Really, truly, screwed up. OOC. Angst. Bad humor. My bad writing. SLASH SLASH SLASH (eventually). Mentions of drug use and prostitution. Reading this might give you a brain aneurysm. Seriously, you probably shouldn't read this. I'm rating the M just in case. Nothing too bad in this chapter, but I'm not entirely sure about the next one(s).
Summary: Morgan learns something unexpected about Reid, and tries to help him. crack!fic Forgive me for writing this.

***

"Hey, Reid, want to go out for a drink?" Morgan asked, pulling his jacket on. Reid didn't answer, still staring at his computer screen with a sort of determined focus that Morgan couldn't help but envy. He walked over to Reid's desk, snapping his fingers in front of Reid's face. This managed to get his attention. Reid blinked, and then looked up at Morgan, seeming mildly annoyed.

"What is it?" Reid snapped, frowning as he looked back to his computer screen. Morgan raised his eyebrows, but grinned down at the young genius before restating his proposition.

"Careful, Pretty Boy. You're face might freeze like that," Morgan joked, playfully messing up Reid's hair. Reid grunted in irritation, still staring at his computer.

"Actually, studies have shown-"

"Reid, I was just kidding. Come on, hurry up and finish whatever you're doing on there, I want to go get a beer." Reid let out a long sigh, shaking his head.

"Morgan, I know you're not the brightest crayon in the box, but I think you can manage to get a beer by yourself."

Morgan stared at Reid, dumbfounded. It was not like Reid to insult the intelligence of others, under any circumstances, and it was also very un-Reid-like for him to make a joke, especially a joke like that. Instead of being mad at having his intelligence brought to question, Morgan felt a splash of worry fall over him. Something was terribly wrong if Reid was acting like this.

"Hey, man, is something wrong? You know you can talk to me about it," Morgan said gently. Reid let out a huff that was almost a laugh, and began to log off his computer as he spoke.

"Nothing is wrong, I just have stuff to do, okay? Sorry I snapped, but I'm really not in the mood." Reid then stood, grabbing his jacket from the back of his chair, and putting it on over the black sweater-vest and red button-up he was wearing. He paused as he picked up his satchel, tilting is head at Morgan. "Really…I didn't mean that…I'm just a little stressed."

Morgan gave him an understanding smile. "It's okay, kid." Reid returned the smile, and they both walked out together, going their separate ways as Morgan went to his car, and Reid walked towards the street, probably to take the VRE home.

Morgan didn't think about Reid's odd behavior for another week. They had had a hard case, and Morgan had noticed that the dark circles under Reid's eyes had grown darker, and he'd begun to consume even more coffee, if that were even possible. Also, he looked thinner. Not alarmingly so, but enough to get Morgan's attention. Hoping to get Reid to talk, or at least relax, he walked over to Reid's desk, putting his hand down on the thin shoulder to get Reid's attention.

"Hey kid, you about done?" Morgan asked once Reid had looked up at him. Reid frowned, pursing his lips together.

"Yeah, why?" Reid asked, looking back down at his case file. Morgan watched as Reid scribbled down some more notes, before shutting the file.

"Well, I was wondering if you wanted to get a beer, or go to a movie. You know, get out, unwind."

Reid's eyebrows quirked up, and he glanced at Morgan before he began to put the things on his desk away. "Actually, I've got stuff to do tonight." Morgan frowned at this, glancing at the clock. Alright, he could understand if Reid was busy after work one Friday night, but two in a row? It was no secret that Reid didn't have much of a social life.

"Really? What are you up to tonight?" Morgan kept his tone friendly. Reid glared before standing up, glancing at the clock.

"Just…uhm…stuff, okay? It's really none of your business…" Reid started to walk away, and Morgan followed him. Instead of going to his car, he began following Reid, ignoring the odd glances his friend kept throwing at him. Once they were most of the way out of the parking lot, Reid swirled around, glaring angrily at Morgan.

"What do you think you are doing?" Reid snapped, folding his arms across his chest. Morgan noted the tensing of his shoulder, and the way he seemed to be using his arms to shield himself. He was definitely hiding something.

"Reid, it is more than obvious that something's wrong, and I'm going to find out what it is, even if I have to follow you home."

Reid's eyes narrowed, and he looked away, staring angrily at his feet. "Nothing's wrong, I just don't feel comfortable with you following me, okay?" Morgan shook his head in negation, taking a few steps closer to Reid, almost invading his personal space.

"Reid, you're a horrible liar, okay? Something's up, and I'm not going to let you let it eat you up. You either talk to me, or I'm going to follow you home, and irritate the hell out of you all weekend, until you tell me what's going on." Reid glanced up at Morgan, not quite meeting his eyes.

"Morgan…I really can't do this right now…maybe we can talk tomorrow, but…I've got somewhere to be, and I'm going to be late…please…can we talk tomorrow?"

"Fine," said Morgan. Reid looked infinitely relieved, but Morgan held up a finger, and continued. "But only if you tell me where you're going." Morgan knew as little as he liked the sound of the 'somewhere' Reid had to be, he couldn't just bully Reid into doing what he wanted. Reid let out a sigh, raking his fingers nervously through his hair.

"My friend's house…well, kind of…I guess we're more acquaintances than friends…I'm helping him write up a syllabus for the college calculus class he teaches."

"Where's this 'friend' live?"

"Morgan, you can't be serious…."

"I am."

"Fine. 1230 East Clarke."

"Alright, you take care. I'm going to be at your apartment tomorrow. Sometime around noon, okay?" Reid nodded, and then turned to go. Morgan watched him go as a strange, nervousness began settling over his stomach. Why was he so worried? He knew part of it was because of how tired and unwell Reid looked, but there was something in Reid's tone of voice that was setting off Morgan's internal 'Reid's-in-some-sort-of-trouble' alarm.

Whatever it was, it would have to wait until tomorrow.

Morgan got up early the next day, despite the fact he didn't have work. He showered, got dressed, fed Clooney, and then pattered around the house for the next few hours. Unable to get rid of the feeling that something was very wrong with Reid, he couldn't wait until noon…at eight he left the house, stopping by a coffee shop. He got himself a coffee, and then ordered one for Reid. On his way to Reid's he stopped by Reid's 'friend's' address, and was not at all surprised that Reid had given the address to a convenience store.

By the time he pulled up to Reid's apartment, it was only nine. He walked up the three flights of stairs to Reid's apartment, carefully carrying his and Reid's coffee. He knocked on the door once, and waited for a minute, and when Reid didn't answer, he knocked a little louder. Reid answered, looking at Morgan like he'd fallen from the sky. A quick glance at him said he was definitely not okay. Besides the messy hair, and the pajamas, he looked far too tired to have spent the night going over a syllabus.

"Morgan….what the hell?" Reid mumbled, rubbing his eyes sleepily. He glanced at his watch, and frowned. "It's only nine…what happened to coming around at noon?" He didn't protest any further though, moving aside to let Morgan in. Morgan walked in, and sat on the sofa. Reid followed him, looking unfathomably grumpy as he flopped down on the couch. Morgan held the coffee out, as if it were some sort of peace offering, and Reid took it, taking a long drink.

"Mmmm…thanks," he muttered before taking another drink.

"No problem. You going to tell me why you look like shit?" Morgan asked casually, finishing off the rest of his own coffee, before setting down the empty cup on the coffee table. Reid glared at him out of the corner of his eyes as he took another drink. He took his time swallowing, and then examined the coffee cup for awhile before setting it down on the table.

"Well, I was up late, for one, and you got me up early, instead of coming when you said you would."

"You stayed up late formulating a syllabus for a college class in a convenience store?" Morgan kept the sarcasm out of his voice, mainly to let Reid know that he was worried, and that he wasn't judging him. Reid let out a loud sigh, leaning forward and putting his face in his hands.

"Yes…no. Okay, I gave you the wrong address…I guess that was a bad idea…I just didn't…it would have been really bad if you had…um…shown up…"

Morgan put his arm around Reid's shoulders, still trying to convey his support, desperate to know what was going on. "Listen, kid, whatever it is, you can tell me, but I know you are lying to me."

"You don't…you won't understand. God…you're going to be so mad at me…"

"Reid, man, I care about you. So unless you're hurting yourself-"

"You could say that." Reid's voice was a little higher pitched, and strained, as if he were fighting back tears. Morgan immediately tensed, holding Reid a little tighter. His mind was flying through the possibilities at light speed. Was Reid back on Dilaudid?

"Reid…I'm not going to be mad…please tell me what's going on." Morgan tried not to sound as desperate as he felt, but his voice betrayed him. Reid let out a little sniffle, shaking his head.

"You can't…Morgan…you can't tell anyone…I'll lose my job…I-you can't tell anyone, even if you're mad."

"Sure, kid, you can trust me…just tell me what's going on and we'll get through whatever it is."

Reid took a few deep, steadying breaths, before answering in a small, ashamed voice, "I'm a hooker…"

Wait…what? Morgan felt his mind go blank for a minute. Did Reid just say hooker? Furthermore, did he just use the term hooker in reference to himself? That just didn't make any sense. "Uh…this is a joke, right?" Morgan asked, loosening his grip on Reid. Reid turned his back to Morgan, bringing his hands up to rub at his eyes. Morgan heard a distinct sob, quickly followed by a hoarse, humorless laugh.

"Y-yeah…just a joke, Morgan…b-because I j-joke about that kind of stuff."

"Sorry…it's just…that was the last thing I expected, to be completely honest." Morgan paused, completely unsure of how to deal with the situation. After Reid let out a chocked sob, he instinctively pulled Reid close again, using one hand to rub Reid's back soothingly. "You wanna tell me why?" he asked, his voice resuming its gentle tone.

"I-I don't…I don't know…I shouldn't have told you…I'm sorry…It's just….I need the money. My rent went up, and Bennington's really expensive, and I can't send my mom somewhere else…it's bad enough I hardly ever go to see her…I've tried making money in other ways, but I can't get another normal job, because we're always flying out, unexpectedly, and I've already written a dozen papers on every subject possible…" Reid's voice trailed off into silence, but he was relaxed now, leaning into Morgan's touch.

"How long, kid?"

"Not long…hmmmmm…" he suddenly seemed distracted, humming a low, pleased noise before he continued. "Like….a month."

"How'd this all start?" Morgan asked.

***

"How'd this all start?" Morgan asked. He didn't want to push Reid too far, but the younger man seemed relaxed now, and hadn't minded the last few questions. However, Reid flinched, almost pulling away from Morgan, and he shook his head. When he spoke his voice was flat, but Morgan could still feel the painful emotions Reid was trying to hide.

"I don't want to talk about it…"

"Oh no. If you don't tell me, I'm going to go crazy thinking about it, and I'm going to be making guesses, and any guesses I make are probably worse than the truth." Morgan kept his tone light, despite the situation. Reid was a prostitute. There were so many different things wrong with that statement, and it tore Morgan apart to think that Reid would let strangers touch and use him for their own sexual gratification. It just wasn't right. He had to know what had brought such a paradoxical thing about.

"I really don't want to talk about it…just forget it, I shouldn't have told you," Reid muttered, his hands dropping to his knees, leaving his head to drop to his chest.

"Well, you did tell me, so now we have to talk about it." Morgan used a stern, almost Hotch-like voice that left no room for argument. Reid tilted his head up slightly to glance at Morgan through his bangs, his eyes wide and red-rimmed, his lips slightly parted.

"You're pissed aren't you?"

"Stop trying to change the subject. How did this start." Morgan pulled Reid's thin form closer, and resumed rubbing soothing circles across his shoulders and back. Reid paused. He seemed to lose himself in his own thoughts for a moment, as if calculating his answer and finding the right way to phrase it. Morgan waited, letting Reid take his time.

"I was…he slipped something into my drink…I don't really remember much, but when I woke up he gave me some money…so I wouldn't…you know….." Reid's voice trailed off into a harsh whisper, and he tensed as his body began to tremble.

"Reid…you realize that that is-"

"I know."

Morgan took a deep breath, letting it out slowly to calm himself. He knew he had to do something, he couldn't let this continue. It only took him a couple of seconds to make his decision over what he was going to do about the situation. "You're moving in with me."

"W-what! No, no, no, no, no…I can't…" Reid squirmed, breaking free from Morgan's arms, and scooted over to the opposite side of the couch, staring incredulously at Morgan. The terrified expression Reid wore almost broke Morgan's heart, but his mind was set on what he had to do, and Reid's stubborn disposition wasn't going to stop him.

"So you would rather sell yourself than live with me? Kid, I gotta say, I'm offended." Reid's jaw dropped, and for a moment he could only stare at Morgan, gaping at him like a fish out of water. Finally he swallowed, and took a deep, calming breath.

"That's not…that's not the point…It's just not a very good idea, that's all."

"It'll be fine. If anyone asks, we'll just tell them you're renting the top floor. It's a studio apartment with a separate address, so no one at the Bureau will know you're living with me. But, I'm using it as a shop right now, so you'll have to take the guest bedroom."

"Morgan, I really don't want to-"

"Too bad. You're giving your thirty day notice today. If you need any money for rent, I'll lend you some, and you can pay me back later, but under no circumstances will you be…doing that anymore. We've got the day off, so we'll start moving your stuff today. Don't look at me like that, Reid, I'm trying to help you." Reid's pout grew, but he turned his puppy-dog eyes to the floor, picking nervously at the edge of his shirt.

"You don't have to do this…" Reid muttered, his voice cracking. He shifted uncomfortably in his seat, swallowing as if he had more to say, but he didn't continue. Morgan shook his head, and stood up, mussing up Reid's hair.

"Yes, I do have to." Morgan hoped Reid would understand why he had to without him actually saying it. Sometimes it was hard to get Reid to understand how much he meant to the team; how much he meant to Morgan. And if he was selling himself on the street, he obviously thought a lot less of himself than Morgan had originally thought. However, he would have time to make Reid realize how important he was later. "I'm going to go get some boxes for your stuff; you get your notice ready." Morgan didn't wait for Reid to respond. He left the apartment, and got into his car to go get boxes.

Two Weeks Later

The team quieted as Hotch walked up to the front of the room, stepping onto the raised platform, and standing in front of the microphone. Reid folded his arms across his chest tensely as he watched his boss grab the microphone. He glanced at his other team mates, wondering how they could let Hotch do this. He was more than their boss, he was their friend, and he was in dire need of help. Why wasn't anyone stopping him? The same reason he himself wasn't going to stop him: the chance to see Hotch sing karaoke was worth more than preserving Hotch's dignity.

Morgan had suggested that the team to the karaoke bar, to let off some steam. The last two cases had been hard. Not to mention the stress from moving Reid's things while they weren't out on a case. The two of them had fought every step of the way, throwing insults and accusations, and getting on one another's nerves. Morgan had said quite a few things he regretted, snapping at Reid and calling him rather inappropriate names. Morgan had hoped going out with the team and having a few drink wwould relieve the tension. However, Morgan hadn't expected Hotch to get so drunk, and now, all he could do was watch as Hotch swayed slightly as the music began. Even Garcia was quiet as she watched open-mouthed as the beat to Justin Timberlake's Sexy Back started to play.

When Hotch started singing, everyone sat still and silent, unable to react properly to the shock of watching their boss singing karaoke, and slurring the lyrics as he did so. However, by the time he came off the stage, most of them had come out of their stupor, and had begun to howl with laughter. Reid sat with his mouth shut tightly, his eyes wide. He glanced down at his soda, and then over at the various odd colored alcoholic drinks that his co-workers were drinking.

"Maybe we should head home…before he gets any worse," Reid muttered to Morgan, keeping an eye on Hotch, who was leaning against the bar table, grinning drunkenly at Prentiss and Rossi.

"You really want to miss this?" Morgan asked skeptically, raising an eyebrow. Reid nodded and stood up, looking at Morgan expectantly.

"I've seen enough to seriously alter my previously held perceptions of the world. I want to get out of here before the laws of physics change." Morgan laughed at this, but nodded, checking his watch.

"Okay, maybe you're right Pretty Boy. I don't want planets to start falling out of their orbits because Hotch starts ballet dancing, or something like that." Morgan stood, slinging an arm around Reid's shoulders. Reid stumbled slightly, and then led Morgan out, subtly reaching into Morgan's pocket and grabbing his car keys as he did so. Morgan wasn't necessarily drunk, but Reid wasn't going to chance letting him drive. Morgan didn't complain as he was steered into the passenger seat, nor when Reid got into the driver's seat.

"Think they'll all get home alright?" Morgan asked as Reid began to drive.

"Yeah, I made sure Rossi had list of phone numbers for cab drivers, and I asked him to make sure everyone got a ride home. Want to grab something to eat on the way home?"

"No, we'll just eat when we get there."

They remained silent for the rest of the ride, and Morgan felt the tension that had been hanging between them for the last two weeks return. Reid said nothing as he pulled into the driveway, and then stepped out of the car. Morgan let out a sigh of frustration, and then got out, following Reid to his house. Once they had walked inside, Reid frowned, wrinkling his nose.

"Morgan, I think someone broke into your house and used your kitchen while we were out…" Morgan couldn't help but grin at the confused, quizzical expression on Reid's face as he walked towards the kitchen. Morgan folded his arms across his chest, and followed Reid, still grinning. He leaned against the wall once he'd entered the kitchen, watching as Reid examined the kitchen. While they had been out, Morgan had asked his neighbor to get the table ready, and start an oven roast, which was currently still in the oven. Reid examined the kitchen table, and the vase of flowers, his brows knitting together in concentration, and then he stood in front of the oven, staring at it as if it were a bomb.

"Something's in the oven…" Reid muttered while tilting his head from side to side.

"Really?"

"Yeah…and someone set the table."

"I see that." Something must have clicked, because Reid suddenly turned to Morgan, his eyebrows raised.

"You're playing a joke on me, aren't you?"

"I didn't mean it as a joke…maybe a little. But I really wasn't expecting you to be so suspicious of a nice dinner."

"For a moment I considered the possibility of an Unsub who breaks into houses and cooks poisoned dinners, or puts bombs into the homeowner's oven." Reid was fighting to look serious now, but a smile was tugging at his lips, ruining the grim expression he had been trying to maintain. Morgan laughed, and checked the timer on the microwave.

"It's still got a couple minutes…you seriously thought there was a bomb in the oven?"

"We've seen weirder things."

Morgan nodded in agreement. "True." He leaned against the counter again, grinning at Reid. "So, are you going to stop being mad at me?" Reid rolled his eyes, sitting down at the table.

"I don't know what you are talking about. I was never mad at you. Why would I be mad at you? You've...helped me a lot these past few weeks..."

"Yeah, and you've been pissed as hell about it. I didn't know the exact meanings to most of the words you shouted at me last weekend, but I'm pretty sure an 'insensate officious lout' isn't a complement..." Morgan paused as the timer on the microwave began to beep. "Foods done." Reid stood and grabbed the oven mitts, grabbing the roast, while Morgan got the salad out of the fridge. They ate, mostly making small talk. Once the meal was finished, Morgan took out some wine, and they sat at the table across from one another, each taking their time with their drinks. Reid was staring absent-mindedly at the white lilies in the center of the table, a haunted look starting to cloud his features. Morgan was the first to break the silence.

"Everything okay, kid?" Reid's head jerked up. Even though he smiled at Morgan, he didn't look any happier.

"Yeah...I'm fine. Do you know what white lilies symbolize?" Morgan's eyebrows shot up.

"No, I don't."

Reid was quiet for a moment, his smile slipping away. "Purity, and...look I'm sorry I've been so obnoxious and rude to you."

"It's okay..."

"No, it's not okay. You've been so nice to me...way nicer than you should be, and I really don't deserve it, I-" Reid stopped short when Morgan held up his hand, signaling him to stop. He pursed his lips together, looking down at the table. "I don't..." he muttered under his breath, taking a sip of wine. Morgan watched as Reid stared down into his cup, his expression taking up that dark, haunted look again.

"Reid, I don't mind helping you, not one bit, man. And you do deserve help-"

"No I don't!" Reid sounded frustrated now, setting his drink down on the table and running his fingers through his hair in obvious agitation. His hands were trembling, and he couldn't quite bring himself to look Morgan in the eyes. "I knew what I was getting myself into, and I did it anyway."

"You made a mistake..."

"It's more than that, and you know it!" Reid snapped. Morgan slammed his fist down on the table, causing Reid to jump slightly. Seeing the grim, angry expression on Morgan's face made Reid's own anger dissapate. His shoulders hunched, and he looked guiltily at the floor, clasping his hands together in his lap. "I-I'm sorry...I didn't mean to yell at you." He glanced up, and Morgan's jaw was clenched, his fingers so tight around his wine glass Reid was afraid the glass would shatter. Morgan finished off his glass, and then stood, shaking his head.

"I don't see why you have to keep giving me this attitude, Reid. If this is how you react everytime some tries to help you, then I guess I understand why you haven't had a lot of people help you." Reid looked up, feeling a pain in his chest as if he had been punched. He wrapped his arms around himself, as if he could ward off the pain in his chest by holding himself together in one piece. He watched as Morgan rinsed his glass, setting it on the kitchen counter. Morgan put both hands down on the counter, leaning against it and letting his head drop to his chest. He then stood and walked out of the kitchen, heading down to his bedroom. Reid was left in the kitchen, staring blankly at the lilies as Morgan's footsteps faded away down the hallway.

***

Reid mumbled sleepily as he was lifted into the air from the chair he had been slouching in. He let out a groan of protest as he felt himself being carried down the hallway. "Doooooonn't…" He felt, rather than heard Morgan let out a slow sigh.

"I'm not going to let you sleep in the kitchen chair." Reid squirmed slightly, pushing at Morgan's chest with his hands in an attempt to make Morgan let him down. Morgan let out another sigh, and before Reid could comprehend the fact that he was falling, he landed heavily on the floor, letting out a yelp of surprise. He rubbed the sleep from his eyes, and then glared at Morgan groggily as he sat up. Morgan simply folded his arms across his chest, and raised his eyebrows. Reid was annoyed to find Morgan's gaze wasn't in the least bit guilty.

"Why'd you do that?" Reid whined, giving Morgan his best set of sad puppy-dog eyes. Morgan shook his head, and lifted Reid once more, carrying him into the guest room, which currently belonged to Reid. He gently set him on the bed. Reid mumbled under his breath, staring down at the comforter.

"Stop whining, kid. Here, get in bed, and try to get some sleep." Reid crawled under the bed covers hesitantly, glaring at Morgan the entire time. "Don't glare at me, Reid. I tried being nice, and all I got was an attitude." Reid curled up, and was almost instantly asleep. Morgan rubbed his hand over his face, staring down at Reid while he slept for a moment, before going to his own room and going to sleep.

Sunday morning came, and they went about their schedules as usual, except that neither of them spoke to one another. However, by late-afternoon the tension had eased enough that Morgan dared to talk to Reid.

"Hey kid, want to go grab a drink?"

Reid glanced down at the cup of coffee in his hand (it was his day off from work, did he really need caffeine at five pm?). He stared blankly at the coffee in his hand, before looking up at Morgan. "I already have something to drink." Morgan rolled his eyes.

"You know what I meant. Let's get out, you know, grab a beer or something."

"Fine. But let's go somewhere with something other than just beer. I hate going to sports bars."

Morgan nodded in agreement, and they called a cab, figuring they would be needing a cab home anyway. Walking into the mostly empty bar, they went up to the counter, Morgan ordering a beer, Reid a glass of wine.

"You're really drinking wine at a bar?" Morgan asked as they walked to a table. Reid shrugged slightly, sitting down.

"It's better than beer," Reid argued, taking a small sip. Morgan couldn't help but roll his eyes. A young man approached them, his shoulders hunched, but a small smile on his face.

"Sorry, are you Dr. Reid?" Reid turned to face the young man.

"Yeah…" The young man's smile grew, and his shoulder's relaxed slightly.

"My names Jeremy, I went to one of your lectures awhile back. You're a real genius." Reid smiled slightly, looking down at his knees, and tucking his hair behind his ear nervously.

"Ummm…yeah, I guess so." Morgan laughed slightly, slapping Reid on the shoulder.

"You 'guess so'?" Morgan chuckled. Reid blushed, still staring at the floor. Morgan glanced at Jeremy before clapping Reid on the shoulder. "I'll be at the bar if you need me, kid." Leaving no room for argument, Morgan stood and walked off to the bar. Jeremy smiled at him as he walked away, and took his seat across from Reid. Morgan walked to the bar, and sat at a stool facing the two of them, so he could keep an eye on Reid. Though slightly jealous of the attention Jeremy was getting, Morgan couldn't help but smile as he watched Reid explaining something to Jeremy excitedly, using his hands to articulate what he was saying.

A man, who could pass for a body-builder, sat next to Morgan, beer in hand. Morgan ignored him, still watching Reid, till the man tapped him on the shoulder. Morgan turned, raising his eyebrows.

"I'm sorry, can I help you?" he asked. The man tilted his head towards Reid, smiling slightly.

"I see you got your eyes on that kid." Morgan didn't answer, but a frown edged its way onto his face. The man's smile grew into a devious grin. "Don't bother buying him a drink, or anything. Just give the kid fifty bucks and he'll spread those pretty legs for you." Morgan felt his stomach clench unpleasantly, and he was too shocked to speak or move. The man continued, leaning back in his seat. "You don't even need to take him somewhere private, he's so damn quiet. Doesn't even matter how hard you-" Morgan had finally gained control of his limbs, and used this regained control to grab the large man by the collar of his shirt. Morgan shoved him against the wall, his knuckles white as he gripped the shirt fabric.

It was as if the bar had faded away, the music and background noise suddenly ceasing. All Morgan could hear was the sound of his own blood pounding in his ears, and the man's harsh breathing. "You stay the hell away from him, you hear me?" Morgan didn't wait for a response, he simply let go, shoving the man against the wall once more. The bar seemed to swim back into existence, sound returning to normal. He downed his drink, and then stomped over to where Reid was explaining astrophysics to Jeremy. Not bothering to explain, he simply grabbed Reid by the arm, dragging him out of his seat and out of the bar. Reid tried to pull himself from Morgan's grip, but couldn't break free no matter how hard he tried. Once outside, Morgan let go of his arm, signaling for a cab. Reid stared at him incredulously.

"Morgan, what the hell?" Morgan didn't answer, anger still boiling inside of him, and he wasn't even sure why he was mad at Reid, but he was. Once a cab pulled up, Morgan got in, pulling Reid with him. Reid, unsure of what was going on, sat down, biting his lip nervously. The cab driver looked at them through his rearview mirror as they buckled up.

"Everything okay?" the driver asked. Reid glanced nervously at Morgan before nodding and giving the driver the address. Although clearly concerned, the driver took them to Morgan's. Once arriving at the house, Morgan got out of the cab, and stormed inside. Reid paid the driver, his hands trembling as he passed him the bills.

"You sure everything's okay, kid?" the driver asked. Reid simply nodded, and turned, walking nervously into the house.

"Morgan?" Reid called out cautiously. He walked into the living room, and found Morgan staring at the window, anger radiating off of him. "Morgan…what the hell is going on?" Before he knew exactly what was happening, Morgan had turned and grabbed him by the shoulders, shoving him against the wall.

"You little whore…" Morgan hissed, his fingers tightening around Reid's shoulders.

"Wh-what? Morgan…"

"I met one of your 'clients'. He told me what a great time you gave him."

Reid felt his face heat up, and for a long time, all he could do was stare blankly at Morgan. All he could feel coming from the older man was anger and hate. He was sure he was going to have small, round bruises where Morgan's fingertips were digging into his shoulders.

"Morgan…I don't know what you want me to say…I-you already knew what I…what I did."

"You are a whore." Morgan wasn't sure where he had gotten the sudden urge to hurt Reid, but it was there, burning him up. And the stricken, pained look that crossed Reid's face only helped to fuel the flames. "That man was disgusting Reid, and you let him touch you. You let him fuck you." Morgan's voice was cracking, his whole body shaking.

"I told you, I was a hooker." Reid didn't know why, but the sound of his own, timid, terrified voice frightened him more than anything right now. Since when did he need to be afraid of Morgan? Morgan suddenly turned him around, using one hand to hold Reid's arms behind his back.

"So what? You would just turn a trick for anyone?" Morgan wasn't quite yelling, but Reid couldn't help but flinch at his words. His body went stiff when he felt a Morgan's free hand moving down his body, along the curve of his spine.

"Morgan, please stop, please, I'm sorry…d-don't…"

"You did it for them, why not me?" Reid closed his eyes tight, pressing his cheek against the cold wall, trying to slow his thoughts so he could make sense of the situation. This wasn't Morgan, Morgan wouldn't do this to him…a shudder ran through him as Morgan's hand made its way lower, squeezing slightly. Suddenly both hands were gone. Reid turned around, vaguely aware that he was trembling. Morgan was glaring at him, his eyes dark and angry. Reid felt his fear dissipate, replaced by a cold emptiness. He'd trusted Morgan. Morgan had been his closest friend. Morgan didn't have much time to think before Reid grabbed him, pushing him against the wall so their places were switched. Morgan's anger suddenly vanished, turning into guilt, but Reid was already on his knees, undoing Morgan's zipper.

"Reid, wait-" Suddenly Reid's mouth was around him, and coherent sentences abandoned him. He grabbed Reid's hair, with the sole intent of pulling him off, but then a talented tongue was working him, and all he could do was let his hand ride on top of Reid's bobbing head, getting closer, and closer to his climax. Morgan felt the tension in his body slowly increasing, and couldn't stop the low moans from escaping his lips. Reid's pace increased, and Morgan suddenly fell upon his orgasm, letting out a long groan. He felt Reid swallow, and then pull away. Morgan was still hazy from his orgasm, but already felt his guilt returning with a vengeance. Panting, he forced his eyes open, and looked down at Reid, who was still kneeling in front of him, wiping his mouth on the back of his hand. Reid stood, and looked Morgan straight in the eye, seemingly unashamed of the tears rolling down his cheeks.

"Was that good enough for you? Or do I need to get down on all fours so you can fuck me?" Reid's voice was oddly steady, turning Morgan's blood into ice water, forcing him to look down, unable to maintain eye contact.

"Reid, I'm so sor-"

"Just answer my question."

"I'm so sorry…."

Reid stood for a moment, but then turned around, heading down the hallway. Morgan stood stock still, his back to the wall. He couldn't quite wrap his brain around what had just happened. It seemed simple enough, on an intellectual level; he'd hurt Reid, and ended up receiving a mind-blowing, guilt-inducing blowjob for his trouble. But he couldn't bring himself to believe it had happened. Zipping up his pants, he walked down the hall, slowly, taking his time. He knew he had to do something, say something. But he had no idea what to say. Standing outside Reid's room, he took a deep breath, and then opened the door. The door creaked in protest, and underneath the sound of the door, Morgan could hear Reid's breathing; slow, shuddering breaths. He walked in, catching sight of Reid: a large lump curled up on the bed, under the blankets. When Morgan sat down on the bed, he gently laid his hand on Reid's shoulder. Reid jolted, his entire body tensing. Before Morgan could try to think of what he could say to amend the situation, Reid spoke.

"You must have a short recovery time." Morgan forced himself not to squeeze down on the thin shoulder beneath his fingers in response to the bitter tone Reid used.

"Reid…I'm really sorry this happened…I had no right to say what I said."

"It's not what you said, it's what you did." Reid's voice cracked, and his body shook violently. Morgan waited until the tremors had subsided to speak.

"I know…I was wrong…I shouldn't have done that."

"It's okay…."

"Yeah?"

"Yeah. You just wanted what everyone else was getting, right?"

"Damn it, Reid! I'm trying to apologize, don't you get that?" Reid's body began to tremble again, chocked sobs forcing their way from his throat.

"Please…please go away, Morgan…"

Morgan felt himself forced to comply to the soft, whispered request. He stood slowly, hesitant to leave Reid, still determined to apologize, to somehow make things right, even though he couldn't think of a single thing to say or do that could amend the situation. He stood and left, knowing full well that they would have to go to work tomorrow, but not knowing what to expect in terms of their ability to work with one another.

***

After a night of fitful, interrupted sleep, Morgan woke to the sound of his alarm clock screeching. He groaned, and switched the alarm off, sitting up in his bed, a headache already forming. He just knew this day couldn't go well. With the exception of the drive to work, he wouldn't have any time to speak with Reid to sort out what had happened. He showered, and then went into the kitchen, where he found Reid. Reid was sitting at the table, ready to go to work, sipping his coffee while staring at the dying white lilacs Morgan's neighbor had left for their dinner Saturday.

Morgan stood and stared at Reid for a moment, still unsure of how to act around him, even after spending most of the night contemplating what he would say. He shifted slightly, and Reid jumped slightly, tearing his gaze from the dead flowers to look at Morgan. Instead of the pain or bitterness Morgan had expected, he found absolutely nothing in Reid's expression. Morgan looked away, and went about getting his breakfast. Knowing Reid hadn't eaten anything, he put on two eggs and some bacon, full well knowing it wasn't a great peace-offering. However, getting Reid to eat was just as important as making up with him.

As Morgan set down his and Reid's plate, he became aware of Reid watching his every movement with that same blank expression. He sat down, and stared at his food for a moment, trying to ignore the fact that Reid was staring at him, but he finally looked up, meeting Reid's gaze. He knew the lack of visible emotion was Reid's way of hiding an intense storm of pain and hurt, that he didn't want others seeing his emotions, as if it would make him weaker somehow. It was painful for Morgan to see Reid staring at him like that now.

"Look, Reid, I said I was sorry, okay?" Reid nodded, looking down at his plate while pushing his eggs around absent-mindedly before taking a few bites. Morgan expected him to say something, but Reid remained silent as he ate his food. Morgan sighed, and then began with his own breakfast. He finished getting ready, and then the two of them got in the car wordlessly. The tense silence that engulfed them during the drive seemed to slow down time, and Morgan had to check himself while driving every now and then to keep from speeding.

Walking into the bullpen, Reid immediately made a bee-line for the coffee maker to fill his already-empty coffee cup. Morgan sat at his desk, and started in on his paperwork more dutifully than he had in all of his years working at the BAU. He forced himself not to look up as Reid sat down at his desk, giving Prentiss a friendly greeting. It was easy to lose himself in the paperwork, after a little while. He was so deep in concentration, he didn't hear JJ announce that they had a new case, and was only torn from his work when a long, thin finger poked him in the back of the head.

"Earth to Morgan, we have a case." Reid's voice had forced humor, and when Morgan looked up, Reid wasn't smiling. He let out a sigh, and then stood, following Reid to the briefing room.

The next four days seemed like a blur. Had they even solved the case? Morgan knew they had, but he couldn't remember the details. He sat on the jet, his head back and his eyes closed as he listened to music. He heard a small grunt, and tilted his head down to look at Rossi, who was looking at him with a sort of annoyed severity.

"What?" Morgan asked, maybe a little too defensively. Rossi's eyebrows shot up, and he slouched in his seat with his trademark 'we're-going-to-talk-whether-you-like-it-or-not' look.

"You want to tell me why you can't seem to concentrate? Everyone has their off days, and, quite frankly, the last few days have been yours." Well, wasn't that blunt. Typical Rossi. "So what's eating you up?"

"Nothing, man. Just…stuff at home." There was no way he was going to tell Rossi what he'd done to Reid, no matter how guilty he felt about it.

"Family stuff?" Rossi sounded calm, amicable and concerned, but for some, undetermined reason, Morgan felt like he was being interrogated.

"No. Not really any of your business."

"Well, you'd better get it sorted out. We need you on this team, but if you can't concentrate…" Rossi simply left it at that, standing up and going to sit next to Hotch. Morgan resisted the urge to bang his head against the table, and waited for the plane to land. However, he soon drifted off to sleep, and when he woke, it was to Prentiss shaking him awake. He jumped slightly, looking around the now empty jet. Prentiss was the only one there now, beside himself. Before she could say anything, Morgan quickly got up, mumbling a quick word of thanks before hurrying out of the jet. He went to his car, and found Reid waiting with his go-bag, looking sleepy.

"Hey, sorry about that, I fell asleep," Morgan mumbled as he unlocked the car doors. Reid yawned loudly in answer.

"I thought you were just listening to music," Reid muttered, throwing his go-bag into the trunk before collapsing in the passenger's seat. Morgan got in, and began to drive home. As the house comes into view, Morgan hears Reid clear his throat loudly.

"Morgan…I'm really sorry about what happened. I shouldn't have reacted the way I did."

Wait, Reid's not supposed to apologize. Morgan pulled in the driveway, unable to respond. In a daze, he silently got out of the car and went in the house. He didn't even bother changing or setting his alarm clock before simply falling into his bed, and drifting off to sleep. It wasn't too much of a surprise when Reid woke him up the next morning, shoving a cup of coffee at him.

Morgan got out of bed, and went through his morning routine in the same daze that had consumed him for the past week. He tried to ignore the way Reid was still staring at him with that blank expression as they got into the car and headed off to work. Paperwork filled the majority of his day, followed by a quick hand-to-hand combat lesson. By the time he got out of the showers and had walked to the bullpen, Reid was demonstrating a card trick to Prentiss and Garcia, most obviously done with all of his work. Once he caught sight of Morgan, he quickly finished with the trick, and then said goodbye to the girls, telling them to have a good weekend. Was it really the weekend? The days had gone by so slowly, yet it seemed impossible to Morgan that it was already Friday. Morgan walked out of the bullpen with Reid, staring at the ground. As they got in the elevator, he looked up, feeling Reid's hand on his shoulder.

"When are you going to start talking to me again?" Reid sounded slightly frustrated, but mostly desperate, and Morgan almost couldn't answer. However, after swallowing thickly, he found his voice.

"None of this is your fault…"

"Yes, it is. I overreacted, and made things worse." Reid lowered his voice as the elevator doors opened, and they walked out into the lobby, and then outside to the parking lot. Morgan rubbed a hand over his face, shaking his head.

"You weren't overreacting, Reid…hell, I wouldn't have blamed you if you had called the police."

"I wasn't going to call the police on you," Reid scoffed, his eyebrows knitting together. Morgan walked up to his car, shoving the key into the lock with a little more force than needed.

"Fuck, kid, why can't you just be mad at me? God knows you should be."

"Well…I'm not mad…maybe a little, but I don't want it to keep affecting our relationship at work." Reid opened the car door and slid into his seat.

"Is that really all you can think about? Work?"

"My job…my job is important to me, okay Morgan. And I know it's important to you, too."

"I shoved you against a wall!"

"Yeah, I remember that."

"How can you be so calm about this!"

"Why do you insist on yelling at me?" Reid's voice was hushed, and full of hurt.

Morgan gritted his teeth to get himself under control, and then noticing that he hadn't started driving, put the key in the ignition and turned the car on. Reid was silent as Morgan took a few calming breaths, closing his eyes before opening them and backing out of the parking lot.

"You're really pissing me off, Reid." Morgan kept his voice down, his tone calm. He existed the parking lot, and began driving on the main road.

"I'm sorry…" Reid looked, and sounded heart-breakingly defeated as he hunched over in his seat, hugging himself.

"Don't be sorry, Reid. This would be so much easier if you would just get pissed off like a normal person, and hate me. God knows I hate myself." Reid was quiet for a moment, and in the silence, Morgan could swear he could hear the gears in Reid's mind clicking.

"I don't want…could we just pretend nothing happened?"

"Is that what you did before?" Morgan said it before he could stop himself, and immediately regretted it. He was starting to wonder what was wrong with him. Before he could apologize, however, Reid answered without hesitation.

"Yes. Do you really blame me?"

"No…I'm sorry, Reid, I didn't mean to say that…"

"Then you must have some underlying need to hurt me."

"What? God no…I don't…I would never want to hurt you, man. I care about you; I care about you a lot. You know that, right?"

"Uh, Morgan...You missed the turn…"

"What? Oh, shit…" Morgan let out a sigh, and went around the block, till he was back on track, and then pulling into the driveway. Morgan looks over at Reid, who is staring at his hands in his lap. "Let's go inside," Morgan suggests, getting out of the car. Reid follows him out, walking up to the house with him. Once the door was open, Clooney came bounding to the door, barking excitedly. Reid gave him a quick scratch behind the ear before going into the living room, and simply collapsing onto the couch, throwing an arm over his face. Morgan hung up his jacket, and checked Clooney's food and water dish before going into the living room, lifting Reid's feet from the end of the couch before sitting down, letting Reid's feet rest in his lap.

"You know, Reid, you never answered my question," Morgan said, gently. Reid shifted, moving his arm off of his face to prop himself up on his elbows with a tired, but quizzical expression.

"Hmmm? What quest- Oh…right. Yeah, I know you care…" Reid muttered, looking over the side of the couch at the floor. Morgan let out a sigh, frustrated at how unsure Reid sounded.

"Come on, kid…I know all of this is bugging you. Tell me what I can do to show I care. Tell me how to make this right." Morgan knew he sounded desperate, and he knew he didn't deserve Reid's forgiveness, but he needed it. And the fact that he had purposefully hurt Reid was eating him up, from the inside out with guilt. Reid sat up, wrapping his arms around his midsection while hunching forward.

"It is bugging me. You're…you're the closest friend I've ever had. I don't want you to be mad at me…"

Morgan scooted over to Reid, pulling the young man into his arms and holding him close to his chest. "I'm not mad at you, Pretty Boy, I'm sure you can see that with that big brain of yours." Reid just curled up against him, burying his face in Morgan's chest.

"Then why did you try to hurt me?" Reid whispered harshly, bringing his hands up and curling his fingers in the fabric of Morgan's shirt, burying his face into Morgan's shoulder.

***

Morgan couldn't answer that question, since he wasn't entirely sure himself. In truth, he didn't want to hurt Reid, but he had, and he still couldn't reason why. Therefore, all he could do was hold Reid, rubbing his back soothingly, despite the fact the contact brought back his guilt, as if simply touching Reid to comfort him was too much of an invasion on Reid's personal space. Reid slowly relaxed, but didn't relinquish his hold on Morgan's shirt. Morgan suddenly realized he was blubbering apologies and words of comfort to Reid, telling him how beautiful and perfect he was, and how he wished he had treated him better. The stream of unconsciously uttered words slowed to a stop once he realized he was talking.

"Feel better?" Reid muttered, pulling back and smiling slightly. Morgan blinked, and stared at him for a minute. He couldn't remember half of what he had said, but he did feel as if he had had a huge weight lifted from his shoulders. He took a deep breath before he answered.

"Yeah, I do."

Reid's smile grew, and he buried his face in Morgan's shoulder again, humming contentedly. He spoke softly, his voice muffled by Morgan's shoulder. "Me too." Reid brought his legs up onto the couch, so they were on the other side of Morgan's lap, and then he shifted so he was comfortably curled up against Morgan's chest. For a moment, Morgan simply marveled upon Reid's ability to comfortably arrange all of his long limbs into such a small area. Morgan was brought out of his thoughts when Reid spoke up again, turning his head slightly so his voice was no longer muffled by Morgan's shoulder. "Maybe we should talk about…things, so we don't have another misunderstanding."

"Yeah, you're probably right," Morgan admitted, not at all excited to have this conversation, even though he knew it was for the best. He promised himself that if he ever hurt Reid again, he'd quit the BAU and move to Alaska and begin hunting moose.

"Okay…well, I guess as long as you don't get mad, I'll answer any…any questions you have." Reid was unconsciously twisting at the fabric of Morgan's shirt, his fingers twitching nervously, keeping his head down. Morgan ran a hand over Reid's hair, taking a deep breath.

"I guess the first thing I want to know is if you're even attracted to men." The thought hadn't even occurred to him until after the night at the bar.

Reid simply nodded, tensing slightly, as if afraid of Morgan's reaction. Morgan just hugged him tighter, hoping to give him a sense of acceptance.

"Was it just men…or women too?"

"Just men," Reid muttered.

"Okay, then what…how far did things go?"

Reid moved away. He shifted nervously, tucking his hair behind his hair and biting his lip before pulling his knees to his chest and wrapping his arms around them. "I-I pretty much let them do whatever they wanted, as long as they wore protection, and didn't mark me up where people would see…It usually wasn't too…too rough."

"You let them hurt you?" Morgan tried to keep calm, but his tone was sharper than he'd meant it to be, and he could tell from the way Reid's shoulders hunched that he'd come off slightly too aggressive.

"Y-yeah…sometimes. I got used to it after awhile..."

"Is that why you didn't call the cops on me?" Morgan asked, more gently now. Reid shook his head, unconsciously moving his fingertips to his own forearms. Morgan felt guilt settle heavily in his stomach, making him cringe slightly. Morgan turned to Reid, and gently pulled back his shirt sleeve, revealing dark, week-old bruises. As the fabric was pushed over the purpled skin, Reid flinched slightly, but settled down once Morgan had pushed his sleeve all the way to his elbow. Morgan must have stared for too long, because Reid took a slow, shuddering breath, pulling his sleeves back down. He then began talking, looking at the ground as he went into 'lecture mode'.

"After thinking about it a little, I figured you had just had what is referred to as an 'amygdala hijack'. You were presented with material that was emotionally disturbing or threatening, so your amygdala probably took over your neocortex, which is the thinking center of the brain, which would have made-"

"Whoa, Reid, I get it...but that isn't an excuse for what I did."

"Well…no, but it is a way to logically explain your actions…but I think we're digressing. I'm sure you still have more questions." Reid spoke slowly, staring vacantly at his knees.

Morgan nodded, rubbing a hand over his face. "Yeah, I do…I just…I don't know how bad they hurt you." Reid frowned slightly, looking at Morgan and biting his lips together while he thought before answering.

"I never ended up in the hospital. At worst they would tie me up and hit me, but it usually wasn't…usually it was just intercourse." Morgan noticed that Reid had started shaking, his arms going tighter around his knees. Morgan knew it was hard for Reid to talk about these things, but he still had questions, and he wanted to get this conversation done with, as soon as possible.

"Reid, had you been sexually active, before all of this?" Reid let out a funny laugh, looking over at Morgan.

"'Active' is not the word I would use. I hadn't…" Reid blushed, looking away again before continuing in a shaky voice. "I hadn't actually been…penetrated, but I had had sexual experiences before." There was a moment of tense silence before Morgan stood up.

"I think…I think I've heard enough. It's kind of late, so I'll make a quick supper, okay kid?" Reid nodded, so Morgan went into the kitchen, and cooked some TV dinners before bringing them out to the living room. After they had eaten, Reid went to take a shower, leaving Morgan to wander around the house, too keyed up to sleep. He ended up leaning against the outside of the bathroom door, listening to the sound of running water mixing with soft sniffles. Hearing the water turn off, Morgan quickly walked away from the door, going into his bedroom, taking off his shirt, and changing into a pair of sweatpants before lying down in bed, staring at the ceiling.

It was only a couple minutes later that he heard soft footsteps in the hall way, followed by Reid appearing in his doorway, wearing a pair of blue plaid pajama pants, and a mismatched, orange button down pajama top that was a couple sizes too big for him. Morgan sat up, and noticed in the dim light coming in from his window that Reid's eyes were red and puffy.

"Everything okay, kid?" Morgan asked gently. Reid looked down at the floor, twisting his hands together nervously for a few moments before answering in a small, choked voice.

"No."

Morgan felt his heart twist painfully. He scooted over on the bed, pulling the covers back. "Why don't you come over here and talk to me about it," he suggested. Reid hesitated for a moment before walking forward, crawling on the bed next to Morgan, lying down so he was facing him. Gently, Morgan draped the covers over Reid's shoulder, and then pulled him close, stroking his still-damp hair. Reid whimpered slightly, closing his eyes tightly and biting his lip before letting out a small dry sob, trying to hide his face in the pillow.

"Come on Spencer, talk to me…" Morgan whispered, cupping Reid's chin in his hand, and tilting his head upward. Reid opened his eyes and looked at Morgan, swallowing thickly.

"I didn't want to do it, Morgan…I didn't want to do any of it…and now I just can't stop thinking about all the things that happened…please…I just want to forget." The sound of Reid's voice, hoarse and broken, tore at Morgan's heart in all of the wrong places. Morgan pulled Reid's too-thin body close, hugging him tightly.

"I'm so sorry, Reid…I'm sorry you felt like you had to go through that alone…I wish I would've known sooner, I wish I could've stopped it all, Pretty Boy…but it's over now, and I won't ever let anyone else hurt you, not even me, I fucking swear, Spencer, I won't let anyone hurt you again, not if I can help it." Morgan was babbling again, but he didn't care, all he wanted to do was help. Reid buried his face in Morgan's chest as Morgan talked, pressing his cheek against Morgan's skin. After a little while, Morgan felt warm tears falling onto his skin, and he stopped talking, simply running his hand over Reid's hair soothingly. When Reid spoke, he could feel Reid's lips moving against his chest.

"Thank you for saying that," Reid whispered, his voice so quiet Morgan almost didn't hear him.

"I mean it, Reid, every word." Morgan felt his heart stop when Reid's tongue flicked out to wet his lips, a whisper against his skin.

"What about what you said earlier, in the living room?" Reid sounded hesitant to ask, and Morgan couldn't really remember everything he had said earlier, but he didn't hesitate before answering.

"I meant it."

Reid pulled back, smiling slightly, his face blotchy, and his eyes still bright with tears, but he looked genuinely happy. "I don't believe you, but it is still sweet that you said all that." Morgan frowned, trying to remember exactly what he had said that Reid would doubt, but Reid shook his head slightly, still smiling. "You don't remember a word of what you said, do you?" Reid asked, sounding amused.

"I remember….parts."

Reid chuckled, and then closed his eyes, making a sleepy sound. "Okay," he muttered, his body relaxing.

"Hey, wait a minute! What did I say?" Morgan asked, praying he hadn't said anything too revealing.

"Shhh…I'm sleeping," Reid muttered, rolling over so his back was to Morgan. Letting out a frustrated sight, Morgan wrapped an arm around Reid's waist, pulling him closer so his chest was against Reid's back.

"No, you're not sleeping. Tell me what I said."

"Mmmnnn…You told me I'm the most beautiful man on earth, for one. Now be quiet, I'm trying to get to sleep before you kick me out of your bed."

Morgan felt his face heat up, and he started to remove his arm from Reid's waist, but then Reid grabbed his wrist gently, and pulled Morgan's arm back around his waist before asking, in a hushed voice, "Did you mean it?"

"I thought you wanted me to be quiet," Morgan murmured, nuzzling Reid's damp hair at the base of his neck. Reid went momentarily stiff before relaxing again.

"I changed my mind. I want to know if you meant it, and…that other stuff you said."

"What else did I say?"

"You said you loved me, that you didn't want anyone else to ever touch me."

Morgan sucked in a breath. God, had he really said that? For a moment he considered lying to Reid, and telling him it had been some sort of an 'amygdala hijack' or whatever the hell that was, he didn't know. After a moment, however, he nodded against Reid's neck.

"Yeah, I meant it."

Reid shifted, and Morgan loosened his hold around Reid's waist, which had tightened with his admission. Reid rolled over to face him again, looking curious.

"Are you lying to me?" Reid whispered, sounding confused.

"Why would I lie about something like that?" Morgan asked. Reid bit his lip, looking away.

"I can think of a couple reasons," Reid muttered, refusing to look Morgan in the eye.

"Hey, I'm not asking for anything, really I'm not…it's just the truth, Pretty Boy. I care about you, and I love you, and I'm so, so sorry that I hurt you, but I'll never hurt you again, I promise." Morgan spoke slowly, running his fingers through Reid's hair, over the side of his face, and then down along the edge of his jaw. Reid closed his eyes, and was silent, except for the slow, shuddering breaths he took. Finally, after what seemed like an eternity, he opened his eyes again.

"Okay…" Reid said shakily.

"Okay, what?" Morgan asked gently, trying not to sound as nervous as he was, even though he fully expected Reid to reject him. Reid simply closed his eyes again, but this time he leaned towards Morgan, giving him a quick peck on the lips before pulling back, opening his eyes. Morgan felt as if the simple contact had sent a current of electricity throughout his entire body, leaving him feeling warm, and tingly. He was staring wide-eyed at Reid, and Reid suddenly blushed, and looked away.

"I honestly don't know what I'm supposed to do now…" Reid admitted softly.

"Now, you go to sleep. We'll talk about things more in the morning," Morgan murmured affectionately.

***

Morgan woke the next morning, tangled in Reid's long limbs with Reid's head on his shoulder. The blankets were twisted and tangled around them, most of them pulled up around Reid's shoulders and torso, leaving Morgan with one solitary blanket, and Reid's feet uncovered. He briefly considered extracting himself from Reid's embrace and the entangling sheets, but decided against it, a strange urge to be there when Reid woke up possessing him.

Running his fingers through Reid's tousled hair, Morgan took his time studying Reid's face, so relaxed and innocent in the early morning light, his lips slightly parted as he took in slow, steady breaths. His eyes eventually fluttered open, and he blinked several times before his eyes adjusted. Morgan continued to stare, finding Reid's slow climb to consciousness just as beautiful as his slumber. After several moments of staring sleepily up at Morgan, Reid finally seemed to realize he was being stared at, and he looked away shyly.

"Do we have work today?" Reid asked awkwardly, skittishly moving away, untangling his limbs from Morgan, and taking his head off of Morgan's chest. He was about to get out of bed, but seemed to lose motivation to do so, curling up once there was a little space between him and Morgan, blankets tangled even more around his slim body.

"No, not unless Hotch calls us in." Morgan wanted to reach out and pull Reid back to him, but knew better than to push Reid. Morgan fights off a grin as Reid begins to try to untangle himself from the mess of blankets, his sleepy attempts doing little except making the matter worse.

"Morgan, I'm stuck…" Reid complained, stilling his movements and closing his eyes. Morgan couldn't help but laugh, but he stood up and walked to the other side of the bed, and began to disentangle Reid from the blankets. Reid kept his eyes closed, making soft sleepy noises and staying limp as Morgan moved him around. Once freed, Reid simply laid there, a slight smile on his lips. "You should make coffee," he suggested.

"Oh, I see how it is," Morgan chuckled. Unable to resist the urge, Morgan straightened Reid's horrendous orange pajama top, and then leaned down to kiss Reid on the forehead. "Okay, I'll go get some coffee. Try not to fall back asleep." Reid murmured unintelligibly in response before yawning. Morgan left the bed room, went to the bathroom, and then fed and watered Clooney before going into the kitchen. He started the coffee maker, and then sat to wait for the coffee to brew. As he sat, he began to think, replaying the previous night over in his head. He still felt guilty for what he'd done to Reid, and he honestly couldn't understand why Reid would forgive him like that. Morgan wondered if Reid was simply desperate for friendship and companionship; desperate for someone to comfort him after what he had been through.

Morgan was brought out of his inner thoughts when the coffee maker beeped, signaling the coffee was done. Pouring it into two mugs, he left one black, and mixed inordinate amounts of creamer and sugar in the other. He went back to the bedroom, and sure enough, found Reid sprawled out on his stomach, fast asleep. Chuckling, Morgan set Reid's coffee down on the bedside table, and then sat down at the bottom of the bed. Reid rolled over, and sat up, rubbing his eyes with one hand while blindly reaching out for his coffee with the other. Sitting with his back against the headboard, Reid began to drink his coffee, looking at Morgan over the rim of his cup, before closing his eyes to enjoy his coffee.

They finished their coffee in silence, and then Reid took both of the empty mugs to the kitchen, leaving Morgan alone in the bedroom for several minutes. He heard water running for a little while, and then the bathroom door open, followed by the sound of Clooney barking insistently at Reid. The barking soon stopped, and Reid came back into the bedroom, dressed in the usual button down, sweater-vest and slacks. Reid flopped down on the bed, lying across it so his feet were hanging off the side near the pillows, his head on the other side, his face buried in a pillow.

"Reid, you just got out of bed," Morgan said, laughing as he shook his head.

"We don't have work today, so I see no good reason to leave bed for superfluous amounts of time," Reid mumbled into the pillow.

"You're the only person who can make being lazy sound reasonable."

Reid just huffed a laugh, and then yawning loudly before burying his face back into the pillow. "It's been a long week; I vote that, barring the possibility of a case, we relax all weekend."

"I second that. So, do tell me, what does genius Doctor Reid do to relax?" Morgan asked, grinning slightly as he stood and walked over to Reid's feet.

"Sleep, read, and drink coffee," Reid muttered into the pillow. Morgan laughed slightly, and knelt down next to the bed. Reid twitched, and then rolled over onto his back, almost kicking Morgan in the face. He frowned slightly, looking down at Morgan with a quizzical expression. "What are you doing?" he asked, propping himself up on his elbows.

"I'm going to help you relax," Morgan answered. He gently took up one of Reid's feet, and began to massage it slowly. Reid seemed surprised at first, but then smiled and relaxed onto his back as Morgan continued the massage. Morgan was only half a minute into the massage, and quite pleased with the way he had Reid whimpering and softly moaning his approval, when Reid's cell went off. Reid made an angry noise, digging into his pockets. Morgan laughed, slightly amused that Reid had been too tired to get out of bed, but not too tired to grab his cell. He continued rubbing Reid's feet as Reid listened quietly to the other person on the line before replying and hanging up.

"It was Hotch, we have a case," Reid groaned. "He said not to bring our go-bags, so it must be local." Just then, Morgan's phone rang. Reluctantly, he answered it, thanking Hotch once he'd finished.

"Alright, Pretty Boy, time to go to work."

"Nooooooo…" Reid groaned, staying on the bed wriggling his toes at Morgan. It was so uncharacteristic of how he would normally act that Morgan couldn't help but laugh. "It's not funny..." Reid muttered, sitting up, and getting off the bed. Reid left the room, grumbling under his breath. Morgan finished getting ready, changing into clean clothes, and putting on socks and shoes. Once he was ready, he went into the kitchen and found Reid with a second cup of coffee, and some toast. Reid handed him a piece of toast, and then they walked out the door to head to work.

Once they stepped off the elevator, they headed straight to the conference room, and found Rossi, Hotch and JJ. Morgan and Reid both sat down at the table, just as Prentiss came in. JJ began to pass out the case files, just as Hotch stood up and walked to the front of the room to give the briefing.

"I'm sorry for bringing you in on your day off, but we need to get started on this case as soon as possible." There was the sound of pages rustling as the team went through the files. "There have been seven reported rape victims in the last two months. Most taken from bars around Quantico, along the Potomac River, or nearby. I wouldn't have called you in, but four of the victim's had been reported missing within the last week, and last night a burial site was found at Fuller Heights Park, with three bodies. Preliminary reports from the cops who unearthed the bodies suggest that the three died within days of each other, the last victim probably died yesterday morning, or the night before. However, we won't be sure until the final autopsy."

"The seven victims names were Joe Clarculus, Damien French, Steven Cameron, Jacob Fredericks, Sam Fletcher, Ricky Cods, and Eric McMury. All of them described the same suspect, and tested positive for GHB, but their individual experiences differed. French, Cameron and Fredericks reported that they lost consciousness after talking with the suspect at the bar, and woke up with bruises in an ally way the next morning. The others all reported being escorted out by the suspect after feeling explicitly intoxicated, and then being raped after losing the ability to move. The three that cops believe are in the grave are Clarculus, French, and Cameron, who were the first three to report the incidents to the cops. Fredericks is currently missing."

"What do the victim's have in common?" Rossi asked, fingering through the victim's photos in his file. "Besides their age, 23 to 29, and their physical characteristics?"

"Nothing so far, only two of them were taken from the same bar." Hotch paused, before adding, "Also, the unsub gave the victims cash and told them not to report the incident, so there are probably way more victims out there."

There was a sense of familiarity to the case that Morgan couldn't quite pick up on, until he heard Reid speak.

"It is estimated that only one in fifty raped women report the crime to the police, and the rates for under-reporting among men are even higher, especially if the male victims are over twelve."

Reid didn't sound any different than he normally did when he blurted facts, but his voice broke through Morgan's thoughts, bringing him back to something Reid had told him almost a month ago. For a moment Morgan was only half-aware that the rest of the team were throwing ideas back and forth, lost in his own thoughts. He forced himself to pay attention to what they were saying, knowing he'd get to talk to Reid later.

***

Several hours after they had arrived, the evidence board was already filled, pictures of victims tacked to every square inch of it. Reid was in his own corner of the conference room, working on the geographical profile. Morgan tried to stay concentrated on the white board he was staring at, words like 'rape' and 'GHB' standing out at him. JJ and Hotch had both left to interview Fletcher, Cods, and McMury and check out the dump site, while Emily and Rossi had gone to talk to family members of the deceased and missing victims. Reid had been left to work on the geographic profile. Morgan was waiting for the cops on the case to show up.

"Why does he drug them?" Morgan asked, not bothering to voice his current concerns. He could still hear Reid's voice, a harsh whisper in his head, repeating what he'd said almost a month ago, over and over, 'he slipped something into my drink…I don't really remember much, but when I woke up he gave me some money…so I wouldn't…you know…..' There was no way it was just a coincidence.

"Were you even listening to Rossi when he gave the victims description of their assailant?" Reid snapped, sounding annoyed. When Morgan didn't answer, Reid let out a frustrated sigh. "All of the victim's were of light build, but they described a very frail man, with some sort of back problem." Reid paused to take a breath, turning back to his map.

"He walked with a cane, but the victims said his leg didn't appear to be injured. Once he got them to go to his car with him, he had them sit in the passenger seat. Once they were immobile, he blindfolded them, and drove them for anywhere from an hour, to three hours before stopping, and taking the blindfold off. The victims who stayed conscious, Clarculus, Cods, Fletcher and McMury, described a garage with a bed in it, right next to the car. He bound their arms, resulting in the same pattern of bruising in all of the victims, and used a system of pulley's to hoist them in the air over the bed, so he wouldn't have to strain his back lifting them. And then he raped them."

Morgan nodded, bits and pieces of what Rossi had said floating back to him as Reid reiterated the details. He noticed the obvious lack of details for the actual rape, but didn't call him on it. Just then two cops came in, looking a little frazzled, probably from spending the last two months trying to find a rapist, and then finding the bodies of the victims.

"Agent Morgan?" One asked, walking up to Morgan. He was a middle-aged, dark haired man, wearing a black suit and tie, with a tan overcoat. Morgan nodded at him. "I'm Detective Norris, and this officer Barry." Norris pointed at his colleague, a slightly older blonde woman. Morgan shook each of their hands. "Sorry we have to meet under these circumstances," Norris added, glancing at the team's evidence board.

"Yeah, well hopefully we can help you catch these guys pretty quick." Norris nodded in agreement, and then Barry stepped forward, handing Morgan a file. Morgan opened it, and found the autopsy reports for the three dead men.

"Carculus, French, and Cameron were all positively identified," said Barry, nodding at the folder. Morgan flipped through the pictures, his brows drawing together.

"What led you to believe it was them in the grave in the first place?" Morgan asked, glancing up. Norris and Barry glanced at one another, and then Barry handed Morgan the other file, this one containing crime scene photos. Reid had turned from his map, and walked over to them, giving Norris and Barry a quick nod before standing next to Morgan. Folding his arms across his chest, he looked at the file in Morgan's hand. Morgan opened it, and began flipping through the crime scene photos.

"The dump site wasn't too far from the abduction site, so we suspected it right off the bat, especially because the victims were missing. We were fairly certain once we got there. They weren't very well hidden. All three must have been dumped at the same time, because they weren't necessarily buried. They had some trash thrown over them, and that was about it. Also, there were plenty of houses nearby, so he wasn't concerned about the bodies being found. Also, he wrote 'Whore' on a piece of cardboard and threw it over the trash that was on top of the bodies." Reid winced slightly, but otherwise showed no emotion as he gently took the file from Morgan and began skimming through the photos.

"They were dumped there, like trash. Not only does he show aggression during the actual attack, but he doesn't feel remorse afterwards. What was the cause of death?" Reid asked, glancing up from the file.

"The stab wounds, along the victim's backs. They died of blood loss. They had been beaten, previous to their death, and sexually assaulted." answered Barry. Reid nodded, taking out a picture of one of the victim's backs, six stab wounds along the spine, three on each side. He showed it to Morgan before putting it back into the file. Just then Hotch and JJ returned, looking understandably grim.

"Hotch, this is Detective Norris and officer Barry," Morgan gestured to the two, and Hotch nodded solemnly.

"Thank you for coming. Have you notified the press?" Hotch asked.

"No, we figured we'd leave that up to you," answered Norris.

"Good. I don't want any of this getting out. The unsub feels that he is punishing these men, and has no remorse. Any coverage from the press will only make him feel more glorified in his killing. Since there haven't been any other sites like this, we can assume that he hasn't killed anyone else, so, thus far, he's only murdered his victim's who went to the police, which means he has some way of knowing if they report the attack." At this, Norris' eyebrow went up.

"I hope you're not suggesting this is a cop."

"Not at all, Detective. He wouldn't be physically well enough for duty. I need to discuss the profile with my team further so-"

"Got it, Agent Hotchner. We'll tell you if anything else comes up. I'll have everybody available waiting at the station when you're ready to give the profile." Hotch nodded, and gave a curt reply.

"Thank you."

Norris and Barry left. Immediately, Hotch turned to Reid, who handed him the crime scene photos. As Hotch thumbed through the photos, Rossi and Prentiss returned. Reid gave them a brief review of what they had learned, Hotch nodding as he listened, showing the photos to Rossi and Prentiss as Reid explained. Morgan wasn't sure if he was imagining it, but when Reid talked about the unsub, he seemed to avoid using pronouns such as 'he' or 'him', only referring to him as 'the unsub'.

"We talked to the surviving victims. All of them had been conscious, but immobile during the actual sexual assault. They described the unsub as a sadist, and said that he not only yelled obscenities at them, but forced them to ejaculate during the encounter," said Hotch. "All of them said that they visited the bar they had been taken from once every month or so, but didn't make it a habit, so he's probably not a stalker."

"He obviously has a type though; tall, skinny, brown hair. Hey Reid-"

"Shut up, Rossi," Reid snapped, glaring at the older man. Rossi immediately stopped, his mouth shutting with an audible click. Well, if Morgan had known before, he sure knew now. There was no longer a doubt in his mind that this was the guy who had drugged Reid. Morgan wasn't sure whether or not he was relieved to see that the rest of his team members didn't seem to take much notice; Reid had been grumpy lately (thanks to a certain asshole named Morgan). It was quiet too long for Morgan, he could already feel another wave of guilt for what he'd done to Reid last week washing over him, so he spoke up, mainly to get himself back in the game.

"What about the bars? Were they similar in any way?" Hotch shook his head.

"No, you had one that was similar to an Irish pub, a bar and grill, a couple sports bars…nothing in common except the general location."

"I think we'll need to figure out more about how he could know whether or not the victim's reported the crime if we want to get anywhere on this," said Prentiss. Reid nodded in agreement, walking over to the white board.

"It shouldn't be too hard to find a disabled unsub who frequently scouts bars looking for a specific type of target, and has access to information on specific rape victims." Morgan could practically hear the sarcasm saturating Reid's voice. Hotch didn't seem to notice.

"I'll get Garcia to look for handicapped men fitting the unsub's description, working in the hospital or police building where the men went after being assaulted." With that, Hotch turned and left, heading for Garcia's lair. Rossi frowned, sitting down in a chair to look at the white board.

"He was in some way injured, and now stabs his victim's in the back when they break his rules and go to the cops. He also associates the victim's with prostitutes, even though none of them had a background in prostitution…" Rossi had a sort of far-off tone to his voice, as if he were simply thinking aloud. He was about to continue speaking, when Reid cut in, sounding rushed as he spoke.

"So he blames a hooker, who most likely fits the victim's profiles, for his injury."

Rossi raised an eyebrow, looking quizzically at Reid.

"Did you have too much sugar in your coffee or something?" Morgan closed his eyes, and prayed that Rossi would stop before he hit a nerve with Reid.

"No. You just talk too slow. Fredericks is still missing, but probably still alive, so I'm not really in the mood to listen to you go off, stating the obvious." Reid was writing 'projection' on the board. Rossi looked like he was about to snap back at Reid, but then Prentiss spoke up, sounding nervous, and worried.

"Reid, are you okay?"

"I'm fine, now can we please work the case?" Reid wasn't yelling, but he sounded like he was on the brink of cracking with frustration.

***

Rossi frowned, and stood up, walking over to Reid and placing a hand on his shoulder. Reid just about jumped out of his skin, spinning around to face Rossi.

"Kid, I don't know what you're problem has been lately, but you need to get your head in the game, and stop snapping at your team mates." Rossi didn't sound overly angry, but his voice had a steely tone to it, that really left no room for arguing. Reid's eyes narrowed and Morgan was almost afraid that Reid would hit Rossi, right then and there in the conference room. Instead, he turned back to the white board, calmly folding his arms across his chest.

"There were at least two stressors. One made the unsub start raping men, around two to three months ago." Rossi nodded, seemingly appeased.

"Right. The first stressor was probably his injury, and most likely had something to do with a prostitute resembling the men." Prentiss, feeling the tension in the room ease, chose this time to join in.

"The second stressor made him start kidnapping and killing, a week ago. He threatened to kill them if they went to the cops, but he waited a whole month and a half before he actually kidnapped anyone."

Morgan walked over to the evidence board, looking at a note card that had been left with one of the victim's who had been unconscious for the assault. "I have paid you more than you're worth, don't bother going to the cops, or I'll kill you. He's pretty straightforward in the note." Reid walked over to Morgan, frowning as he looked at the note.

"A left slant, the unsub is probably cold, and indifferent to others, but the baseline is wavy, and the markings are dark, suggesting that he also has intense, uncontrollable moods. He doesn't concentrate on the upper zones of the letters, so he's probably of low intelligence. Maybe the unsub was a janitor or security guard at the hospital, or the police station, and was fired due to his injury."

"It would make sense. Losing his job could be the second stressor, the one that made him start killing," said Morgan, but then he frowned slightly. "Still, that doesn't explain how he knew where to find these guys once he figured out they reported the crime. They lived in different parts of town, one lives in DC, and they didn't work close to one another. I'm guessing he wasn't just roaming around town for a month and a half, and then happened to find them all in one week. He must have gotten personal information about them somehow." At this, Morgan noticed Reid tense considerably, his eyes going wide.

"He asked them where they lived before getting them in their cars, right?" Reid asked, turning to them. JJ, who had been silent thus far. JJ blinked, and stared at him blankly for a moment.

"Yeah. He told them he was going to drive them home," JJ answered. Reid nodded, his eyebrows knitting together as he looked back at the board.

"But that implies that he planned on killing them if they went to the cops before the stressor…" Reid trailed off as Hotch walked in.

"Garcia's still looking. Morgan, I think you and Reid should go and try to talk to some prostitutes, and see if any of them knew the unsub. He probably had plenty of contact with them before his injury." Morgan glanced at Reid, unsure of how he would react to being sent to talk to prostitutes. Reid just nodded calmly.

"His injury might have been caused by a prostitute who fits the victim's descriptions." said Reid, almost as if he were talking to himself. Pulling on his jacket, Reid left the conference room, and Morgan followed him. Once they had made it to the black SUV, Morgan got in the driver's side, taking a deep breath and waiting until Reid got in to start the vehicle.

"Are you going to tell them?" Morgan asked gently. Reid frowned deeply, shaking his head as he pulled on his seat belt.

"I don't know what you're talking about."

"Reid, please don't make this hard. This unsub is the same guy who raped you." Reid fidgeted, staring out of his window to avoid eye contact with Morgan.

"I don't remember enough for it to matter," Reid snapped.

"What do you remember?"

"I was with a friend, and he took off. I started feeling dizzy, even though I had only had one drink. The unsub walked up to me and offered me a ride home. I told him I'd just get a cab, but I was so...unsteady because of the drug, and I couldn't think straight...when he grabbed my arm and pulled me out to his car, I just went with him. I didn't tell him my address, but he kept asking me. He blindfolded me, and we drove for about two hours, but we couldn't have gotten far. He turned a lot, and I'm pretty sure he never crossed the interstate. He probably lives within a six to ten mile radius of the bar he took me from, which was on Potomac Avenue. Once he stopped, he pulled off the blindfold, and tied up my arms, tying them so most of my weight would be on the insides of my elbows and biceps…" Reid stopped, shaking his head. "We should stop here and walk up to the prostitutes. I don't think they'll want to talk to us if we drive up in a big, black SUV."

Morgan nodded and pulled over. They got out and walked up to the strip where the prostitutes worked. It was only about five pm, so there weren't many prostitutes on the streets yet. Reid walked up to a younger woman. Reid looked tired, but not nervous. Morgan decided to hang back a little, not wanting to crowd her.

"Hey, Stephen, haven't seen you in awhile," said the woman, smiling pleasantly at Reid. Well, of course Reid would've known other prostitutes, and wouldn't have used his real name...still, it was hard for Morgan to see Reid's former profession thrown in his face.

"Uh, yeah…I know…listen, have you heard any stories from the guys about a client who hurt his back while he was with them?" Reid asked.

The woman raised her eyebrows, but nodded. "Oh, sure. A couple months ago Brit had a guy throw out his back during the exchange."

"Uh, Brit?"

"Oh, right, you don't know him. Well, he doesn't work nights, only mornings. God knows why. He'll probably be up here tomorrow morning, around four or five. Tall, lanky guy, brown hair, red jacket. Hard to miss." Reid nodded and thanked her, and then turned back to Morgan.

"We'll have to wait to talk to him until tomorrow," Reid muttered as they walked away, sounding rather frustrated. And with good reason too; all of the victims had been killed between twenty and thirty hours of their abduction, and Fredericks had gone missing seven hours ago. Reid took out his phone as they reached the SUV. "I'm putting it on speaker," Reid said as he jumped into the vehicle. Morgan nodded, and began driving as they listened to the phone ring.

"Hotchner."

"Hi, Hotch. We know who the prostitute who threw out the unsub's back is, but we can't talk to him until tomorrow morning." On the other end of the line, Morgan heard Hotch let out a sigh of frustration.

"Okay, Reid. I wish I could say we have something, but we don't. Garcia can't find anything and Fredericks doesn't have a lot of time left. The unsub is not going to be taking another victim until he kills Fredericks, so we can't send people to the bars to look for him…"

"Me and Reid could go to the bars, see if somebody working there saw him."

"No, I don't think that would do much good. Let's meet at the police precinct to give the profile."

By the time they had given the profile of the unsub, along with several police sketches, it was about eight pm. They returned to the Bureau, frustration filling the air. They had made sure that the surviving victims had police stationed around their houses, along with other precautions. Hotch, JJ, and Prentiss were on one side of the conference room, still trying to figure out how the unsub knew which victims had gone to the police, while Rossi, Morgan and Reid were on the other side of the room, scrutinizing Reid's geographic profile. Lines, circles, and tacks were placed across the map. One area was circled and highlighted as the most likely area that the unsub resided in. Rossi frowned slightly, leaning closer to the map.

"Reid, what's this circle here?" Rossi asked, pointing at a smaller circle, with a radius of about ten miles. Reid raised his eyebrow.

"Although he never took them from the same bar, three out of the seven were taken from bars near Quantico, so he probably lives in the area, since he's most comfortable here, but he would want to distance himself from the kidnapping, at least a little, so the unsub must live somewhere in here," said Reid, tracing the highlighted circle around Dumfries.

"Alright," said Rossi. Just then, Garcia came rushing in.

"Well, hello, my darlings. Guess what the gorgeous tech-goddess dug up for you." Heads turned to Garcia.

"What have you got, Garcia?" Hotch asked calmly.

"Well, after finding no trace of the guy in records, or the cyber world, I called the hospital that all of the victims went to, and talked to some of the staff. It turns out that a guy with a bum back was constantly in and out of the hospital, not for medical reasons, but to pick up his 'friend' from work. However, the staff say that they never saw him leaving with anyone, and it turns out he was always in just after the rapes occurred. They don't have any of his medical records on file, so he's not a patient at that hospital. He would have known that they would all go to that hospital though, since it's the nearest one to the alley he dumped them in. Also, it's closer to where he left them than the precinct."

"Good work, Garcia. See if you can get anything more." Garcia nodded at Hotch, and then hurried away.

"Well, at least now we know how he knew which victims reported the assault," said Rossi.

Hotch just shook his head, and pulled out his cell, calling Detective Norris to give him an update. While Hotch was on the phone, Morgan went to swap ideas with Prentiss. He didn't notice Reid and Rossi arguing until they started raising their voices.

"I wouldn't have a problem doing my job if you weren't always questioning every little thing I do!" Reid practically yelled. Rossi stepped up close into Reid's personal space, crowding him back against the wall. Morgan could only look on in horror, unsure of how to help Reid without drawing suspicion.

"Don't exaggerate Reid! I just wanted you to explain why you think the unsub is impotent! It just doesn't fit the profile, and not to mention, all of the victims descriptions of their assault suggest anything but impotence." By this time, Hotch had finished his phone call, and was looking at the two profilers with something like horrified disbelief.

"Just drop it, okay Rossi! It doesn't even matter!"

"Just explain it to me, Reid!"

"There are…they were all drugged, and all said that he was behind them, and if he put a condom on it, they wouldn't have known if he were using a…." Reid simply trailed off, looking away. "Whatever, it doesn't matter anyway."

"Just explain to me why you think that?" Rossi asked, crowding Reid even more. Reid went tense, and punched Rossi square in the chest, hard enough to knock the wind out of the older profiler. Rossi grabbed his chest, backing away from a very pissed off Reid.

"Reid, if you have a personal connection with this case, I suggest you tell us now." Hotch's voice was stern and sharp, but not altogether cold. Reid's eyes went wide, and his body went completely rigid. Morgan felt like he'd been punched in the gut when Reid glanced over at him, his eyes practically screaming, 'help me!' Reid then took his eyes off Morgan, staring at Hotch, seeming almost terrified. It was, for Morgan, heart-wrenching, and he personally wanted nothing more than to punch Hotch in the face for bringing this up. There was a long, tense moment of silence, in which Hotch and Reid simply stared at one another, and then Reid hunched his shoulders, looking at the ground.

"Yes…" he muttered, sounding almost like a kid who had gotten caught stealing out of his mother's purse. Hotch blinked, and Morgan could tell he was shocked at the admission, no matter what his suspicions had been. "But…there's nothing I can add to the profile that would be useful." Suddenly Reid turned, and hurried out of the room. Hotch let him go, sitting down and closing his eyes, pinching the bridge of his nose.

Morgan glanced around, feeling an odd sense of surrealism. Rossi stood where he had been arguing with Reid, his usually unreadable mask pulled back, revealing shock, guilt…it made him look older, almost frailer than usual. Looking at JJ, he was reminded of how she had looked in Georgia after they had found out Tobias Hankel had kidnapped Reid. Emily put her arm around JJ shoulders, and was gently escorting her out of the room. Hotch spoke up, but didn't move.

"Morgan...you knew…you knew, didn't you?" Morgan sucked in a breath and hesitated before answering.

"Yes, sir."

"Is there anything else I should know?" Morgan didn't hesitate before answering this time.

"No."

"Alright…go see if he's okay…take him home. If you see JJ and Prentiss, tell them they can go home too, but they need to be here tomorrow morning. I would still like you and Reid to talk to 'Brit' tomorrow, but if he needs to sit it out in the SUV, please encourage him to do so. We still have to work this case." Morgan nodded, and then, as though in a daze, left the room, at first unsure of where to look for Reid. He passed JJ and Prentiss, and told them what Hotch had said, and then wandered off to find Reid. He turned and went into the men's room. Morgan was greeted by the sound of Reid emptying his stomach contents in one of the stalls, and he had to stop momentarily to gather himself.

Feeling slightly unsteady, Morgan walked over to the open stall at the far end, and knelt down behind Reid, holding his hair back with one hand, and rubbing soothing circles on his back with the other while Reid continued to throw-up, despite the fact he'd only had toast that morning, and chips out of the vending machine for lunch. Finally, after a minute or two, the dry heaves ceased. Reid tore off a couple squares of toilet paper, wiping his mouth, leaning back and flushing.

"I'm okay," Reid muttered, leaning back against Morgan slightly. Morgan could feel Reid trembling.

"Here, let me help you up. We got to get home, we have an early morning tomorrow." Reid nodded, and Morgan helped him carefully to his feet, and they walked out of the restroom, Reid pushing Morgan away when he tried to help him walk.

As they got into Morgan's car, Reid took a deep breath, closing his eyes. Once Morgan had started driving, Reid spoke up, sounding devastated.

"I…I shouldn't be on the team."

"What? No, Reid, god, don't say that…we need you, kid…"

"I keep messing up! I know you knew about the Dilaudid, and then there's this whole thing…I was moonlighting as a hooker, Morgan! I do not belong in the FBI. I punched David Rossi. God…Hotch is going to fire me, isn't he?" Reid hunched over in his seat, burying his face in his hands.

"He isn't going to fire you, Reid! He's worried, more than anything. Everybody cares about you. If you need some time off, I'm sure Hotch will give it to you." Morgan continued to try to reassure Reid that his spot on the team was not being questioned in any way, but Reid didn't seem to hear him, curled up in the passenger seat. Once they made it to Morgan's house, Reid practically jumped in the car, and ran into the house. Morgan got inside, and heard the shower running. He let out a sigh, and went to his room, taking out the case file.

After a minute of trying, unsuccessfully, to piece things together, Morgan simply tossed the folder across the room, and then ran a hand over his scalp. God, he just wanted to punch a wall, or scream…probably not a good idea. No need to freak Reid out by throwing things at the walls and whatnot. Once he heard the water shut off, Morgan left his room, passing Reid in the hallway. Morgan took a quick shower, and then went back into the bedroom, noticing with little surprise that Reid had gone to his own room. Collapsing onto the bed, Morgan closed his eyes and, still feeling the stress from the day, fell asleep.

***

When Morgan wakes up, he's only had a couple hours of sleep. A quick glance at the alarm clock on the bedside table revealed the time to be two-thirty in the morning. Morgan groaned, and sat up, rubbing his eyes. He was aware that Reid was still standing there, watching him, but he was a little too tired to care at that particular moment. Getting up, Morgan picked out a clean set of clothes, and went to the bathroom, getting cleaned up and changed. When he went down to the kitchen, Reid had eggs, and toast done, and was drinking coffee while waiting for Morgan. Wondering exactly when Reid had gotten up to already be ready and have made breakfast, Morgan sat down, and began eating.

"So, you think this guy Brit will be able to help us find the unsub?" Morgan asked. Reid shrugged, finishing the last of his own breakfast.

"I don't know, but I hope so. Jacob Fredericks has been missing almost seventeen hours now. He's running out of time," said Reid, glancing at his watch. He let out a sigh, and then took a slow drink of his coffee. "We don't even know if Brit will be there, let alone if he'll want to talk to us."

"But if he does talk, he'll probably be able to remember where the unsub lives, right?" Morgan asked, trying to sound hopeful. Reid scoffed, shaking his head.

"Most prostitutes don't let clients choose the place. Women are more strict about that than men are though, so there's still a chance that Brit was at the unsub's house. There's also the chance he'll remember the unsub's car." Morgan nodded, and finished his toast, and then stood up.

"Well, we should get going to meet Brit then."

Reid stood up, and walked into the living room, grabbing his bag off the couch before meeting Morgan in the entryway. They walked out to the car together, and set off. While driving, Morgan cleared his throat.

"Listen, if you just want to sit this out-" he began, but Reid cut in.

"I can handle this, Morgan. I came to work two days after it happened, and did my job just like any other day, I can still do my job now. And as long as Hotch doesn't fire me, I fully plan on staying with the Bureau. "

"Alright, I just wanted to make sure you were comfortable doing this, okay?" Morgan didn't want to voice how uncomfortable he felt about the whole situation. All he wanted to do was drive Reid back home, and lock him in his room, and refuse to let him out until this case was over.

Reid took a deep breath before answer. "I know…Sorry for snapping at you…I just wish the rest of the team hadn't found out."

"You don't need to worry about the team, kid. They care about you, Hotch included. Nobody's going to think less of you because of this. You'll always be ten times smarter than all of us combined. Just let me know if you need to sit things out." Reid nodded, so Morgan let it go, praying that Reid wouldn't push himself, especially on this case. Minutes ticked by as they drove on in silence, and then Morgan pulled over where they had stopped the previous day, and they both left the vehicle. It was still dark out as they walked over to the strip, Morgan hanging back slightly. After about a minute of looking around, Reid started walking towards a young man leaning against a dumpster, smoking out of a tin foil pipe, and wearing the red jacket the prostitute had described the previous day. He fit the physical description of the victim's; long brown hair, tall, lanky.

"Uh…hey, Brit," Reid said awkwardly. Brit looked up, and Morgan noticed that he was smoking coffee grounds. A quick glance at the dumpster verified where he had gotten them.

"That's me. Can I help you?"

"Uh, yeah, actually, you can. I'm looking for someone…you probably haven't seen him recently, but he threw out his back a couple months ago…"

"Oh, right, that guy. What about him?"

"I need to talk to him, so if have any way of contacting him, it would be a big help." Brit shook his head, tossing his pipe to the side.

"I don't have his phone number or nothing. I remember his house though. Up in Dumfries, on Dominion Drive. Small green house. Can't miss it." Reid blinked, as if momentarily stunned, but then nodded, coming out of his shock.

"Thank you, Brit, you've been a big help," said Reid, he began to turn away, but then Brit put his hand on Reid's shoulder, stopping him.

"Yeah?" Reid asked, turning back to him.

"Wanna make out?" Brit asked, grinning. Morgan felt his face heat up, and he began to step forward, with the intent of beating the living shit out of Brit, but Reid just stepped back, putting up his hands.

"No thank you," Reid said calmly. Brit just shrugged, and let his hand fall.

"Okay, suit yourself. Good luck finding that guy."

Reid just nodded, and turned around again, and began walking away, tugging on Morgan's arm when Morgan didn't immediately follow. Reid kept one hand on Morgan's arm to make sure he kept following, and used his free hand to bring out his phone.

"Hi, Hotch, I know it's early, but we have something. Brit gave us a street name, and description of the house. Okay, see you there." With that, Reid snapped the phone shut as they approached the car. He jumped into the passenger seat, and waited for Morgan to get in before he started talking. "Hotch wants to meet us at the Bureau. We're going to head straight to the unsub's house from there. He's going to get some back-up from the cops, and have Garcia look up the houses owner." Morgan nodded, and turned the car so they could drive back to the Bureau. As he was driving, a thought suddenly hit him.

"Hotch isn't going to let you come with us on the raid, right?"

"Well, he didn't say I couldn't go."

"Reid, I really think you should sit this one out…"

"If Hotch says I can go, then I'm going." Morgan's fingers tightened on the steering wheel, and he took a couple deep breaths to calm down.

"Reid, please, you don't need to go on this raid."

"Fine."

Reid sounded pissed, but Morgan was just too relieved that he had agreed not to go to care. He pulled into the Bureau parking lot, and they both got out. Hotch was already there, with Rossi and Emily. They were all putting on bullet-proof vests, standing next to the Bureau SUV's. Morgan and Reid walked over to them, just as Hotch looked up.

"Good, you're here. Garcia found some info on our unsub. His name is Vincent Green, and he was fired from his janitorial job at a bank a week and a half ago. He shut off his cell phone, so Garcia can't gdt a trace. We've got a warrant for his house and car." Hotch paused, looking at Reid. "I want you to stay here, and go over what we have with Garcia." Reid simply nodded, and turned to go into the building. Once he was gone, Hotch turned to Morgan. "Is he okay?" Hotch asked, sounding concerned. Rossi glanced at Morgan, still looking as haunted as he had when Morgan left the previous day. Morgan began putting on his own bullet-proof vest, looking away from Hotch.

"Yeah. He's still…well, he's still pissed that you guys found out. He really didn't want you all knowing," Morgan muttered, trying to keep the accusation out of his voice. He couldn't help but think that Reid would be better off if the team hadn't found out. He could imagine how Reid felt…hell, he knew. He remembered how he'd felt, after they'd found out about Carl Buford. Angry, betrayed, exposed. Ignoring the looks he got from the rest of the team, he got into one of the SUV's, sitting in the driver's spot. Since it was just the four of them, the rest of the team got into the SUV with him, and then he started driving, heading for Dominion Drive in Dumfries. During the drive, Hotch called Detective Norris to make sure their back-up was on the way.

As Morgan pulled into Green's house, he could hear police sirens coming down the street. The doors of the SUV flew open, and the team jumped out, running up to the house. Doors were broken down, guns were drawn, and the team searched the house, starting with the garage. Of course, there was a bed there, along with ropes, chains, and various paraphernalia. However, after a full search of the house, they found no sign of Miles, or Fredericks. Running a hand over his scalp, Morgan pulled out his phone and dialed Reid's number.

"Morgan?" Reid asked on the other line, sounding nervous.

"Hey kid…Miles isn't here, and neither is Fredericks…there's no doubt this is the place though," said Morgan, glancing back into the garage. CSIs were gathering evidence, centering around a curtained off area, where they had found a bathtub and bloodstains.

"He's injured…he wouldn't move Fredericks unless he absolutely had to…"

"I know…" Just then, a CSI walked up to Morgan, shaking his head. "Just a second," Morgan said to Reid, before turning to the CSI. "What've you got?"

"Well, hair, fibers, blood, you name it…but all of the blood in the tub is rather old…I don't think the latest victim was killed, at least not here." Morgan nodded, and the CSI walked away to continue with the crime scene.

"Reid, Fredericks wasn't killed here, so he might still be alive, but we don't know where he is. You and Garcia got anything?"

"I'll have Garcia check." There was a pause on the other end of the line, and muffled voices. "Nothing."

Morgan punched the nearest wall, and resisted the urge to start screaming. Just then Hotch came in, and motioned for Morgan that they were going. Morgan nodded and followed him out to the SUV. "Well, we're heading back to the Bureau until we can find anything. We'll see you in a few minutes."

"Okay…"

When Morgan heard the dial tone, he hung up his phone, shoving it into his pocket. The quick drive to the Bureau only left Morgan feeling more edgy, and when he got out, he practically ran into the building, not bothering to wait for the others. He made it into the bullpen after shoving only a few people out of his way, and walked into Garcia's bunker. Reid was walking back and forth, running his hands through his hair, while Garcia sat at her computer, frantically typing. JJ was also there, scrutinizing Garcia's computer monitors.

Seeing Morgan enter, Reid turned to him. "He hasn't used his credit card, or made phone calls, or anything…" Reid glanced over Morgan's shoulder as the rest of the team came in.

"Anything?" Hotch asked as he came in. Reid simply shook his head, and began pacing once more, staring avidly at the floor.

"We could go and talk to his doctors, see if they know anything," Reid suggested. Hotch nodded.

"Alright, you, Morgan and Rossi go ahead."

The three head out the door, Rossi telling Hotch to keep them updated as they left. Rossi got into the driver's seat, with Reid in the front passenger's seat. Although Morgan knew Rossi posed no threat to Reid, he felt uncomfortable having Reid sitting next to Rossi, after the way Rossi had crowded him the other day. As they drove, Rossi's phone rang, and he immediately picked it up, putting it on speaker phone.

"Rossi, we've got a lead. Garcia found out that he owns another property, under his dead father's name. We're going there now, but I want the three of you to head over to Miles' doctor's office, just in case."

"Sounds like a plan. Let us know if you get the bastard."

Rossi snapped his phone shut, and turned into the doctor's office. The three got out, and walked into the building. Approaching the counter, Morgan took out his FBI badge, and flashed it at the receptionist to get her attention.

"Well, hello, can I help you?" she asked nervously. Morgan nodded, putting away his badge.

"We're here to talk to Vincent Miles' personal doctor."

The receptionist nodded, and then turned to get the doctor. She returned a moment later with the doctor, who came out from behind the desk, putting his hands in his pockets.

"Well, hello there. I hope I haven't done anything to gain unwanted attention from the FBI," he said, sounding pleasant.

"No, actually, this is about one of your patients," said Rossi.

"Oh, really?"

"Yeah. We need to know if there's any way you can help us find Vincent Miles."

The doctor looked slightly shocked, and confused, frowning at them. "Well, he just left with that kid that was standing behind you."

Both Rossi and Morgan swung around, only to find that Reid was no long behind them.

***

Next part of Don't Let Me Stay Out Late.

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