A Particular Needle

The next morning, Spencer came home. He texted me before he left, saying to meet him at the headquarters around eleven. I brought Taylor along with me. Mostly because she slept over, since I knew when I got home my mother would yell at me, but she wouldn't if Taylor was there. We made it home long after everyone had gone. My dad had covered it with Taylor's parents.

We sat on the trunk of my dad's car, drinking the usual from Starbucks.

"Are you sure I should be here?" Taylor asked.

I shrugged. "I don't know."

"Maybe Spencer wanted to talk to you alone."

"I don't think he'll care if you're here," I admitted. "He probably knows I tell you everything after anyway."

"Are you going to tell him about Philadelphia?"

I looked at Taylor, because she wasn't supposed to know about Philadelphia.

"Who told you that? Was it my mother?"

Taylor shook her head. "At breakfast, when I went to get a drink, I saw it on your counter. I wouldn't have looked, because you know I'm not like that, but it said School of Fine Arts and I was just...I don't know...excited for you."

"I was going to tell you anyways, so don't worry about it," I sighed. "Do you think Spencer will understand?"

"What choice does he have?" Taylor reminded me. "He's not going to love the idea of you going away, but if he really likes you, he'll love the fact you're doing what you want. You'd be an idiot to stay in Quantico for Spencer, and you know he wouldn't want you to."

"But I just can't help but feel like this is wrong for me," I protested.

"I think we both know that's not you talking," Taylor stated. "This doesn't mean things are over with you and Spencer."

"Ugh, we don't even really have anything! We've known each other for not even a month!" I exclaimed as I jumped off the trunk.

"Aw," Taylor cooed. "You guys are like Nicholas Sparks' movie!"

I laughed and shook my head. "I don't know what it is, but I've never felt so much for one person in such a short time."

"Speaking of said person."

I turned around to see Spencer walking towards us. He had a white dress shirt on, tucked in, and a black tie. He was wearing his RayBans, too. As soon as he came over, before he said anything, he kissed me. I wasn't against the idea, I was just surprised. But I liked it.

"I missed you," he told me. "And I'm so sorry I couldn't go yesterday."

"It's fine, Taylor and I didn't even stay there that long anyway," I assured him. "So is there anything you wanted to talk about?"

Taylor got in the backseat of the car almost robotically. I laughed lightly to myself.

"No, I just wanted to see you," he admitted, shyly.

"I, um, I have something to tell you."

His smile erased and he looked concerned and curious.

"Are you okay?"

"Yeah, yes, I'm fine. It's about..." I stopped myself, because I realized I couldn't look at him while I told him. I turned my head slightly. "I'm leaving Quantico. Hell, I'm leaving Virginia. There's a school in Philadelphia that accepted me and I need to go. The school I went to last year was just a waste of time, this is a school for the fine arts, it's perfect for me. I just...I don't know, I really like you, Spence."

Spencer took in all my words. I could see he was at a bit of a loss for words. I had thrown a huge problem at him and he clearly wasn't prepared to catch it.

"That's great, I'm really proud of you. Don't worry about us, okay? I don't want to get in your way," he said. "W-we can make this work, Philadelphia is only a five hour drive, at the most. You'll be down here for Christmas, right? And whenever I get time off, I can come visit you."

"Spencer, we barely spend time together now and I live less than an hour away, how do you expect it to work? Your job...it consumes you. It's hard enough here to deal with you chasing after serial killers, and here I have friends and family to comfort me. In Philadelphia, I'm going to be all alone, worried sick. I'm not sure I can do that to myself."

"You're right. I shouldn't ask you to," he agreed. "When do you head out?"

"August fourteenth, we have--"

"A week," Spencer finished. "All we have left is a week, and then goodbye."

"Spence, don't say that, other people make stuff like this work."

Before I was willing to give this all up in a week, but when he says goodbye, it feels different. It feels like this is really going to happen, and I'm not even closed to being ready to just end this all like that.

"I'm not a normal person, Venus," Spencer reminded me quietly.

There wasn't anything else to be said, because the facts were laid out on the table clearly. We take it or we leave it, both choices aren't going to be easy. I ran into this relationship blinded. I never really knew the actual complexity of being in a relationship with an FBI Agent. As if relationships weren't hard enough.

We got into the car and drove to my house. I told him he didn't have to meet my parents today if he didn't want to, but he insisted. I think he just felt bad from yesterday, but I tried to tell him it wasn't a big deal. I was glad he didn't come, actually. If he had, we would of had to stay, and he would have gotten the pleasure of meeting Blake.

Complete sarcasm, meeting Blake was about as enjoyable as meeting Hitler.

I parked the car and we went inside. Taylor was ahead of us, she acted like my home was her home, which was just how close we are.

"They're outside," Taylor told me before she headed out there.

"Are you sure you want to meet them?" I turned to Spencer and asked for about the millionth time.

"I'm sure, Venus, can we just go outside?" he begged.

"Yeah," I laughed. "If you want to."

We headed into the backyard, where my mom and dad were sitting in lawn chairs. They hadn't cleaned up much form yesterday, so all the chairs were out there, so was the card table.

"Mom, Dad, this is Spencer," I introduced him.

My mom glared, her expression staying the same as she shook his hand. My dad stood up and started actually talking to him. The first thing he brought up was about Spencer's job, obviously.

Taylor and I went inside to mix some more pink lemonade. That's the only kind my mom bought.

"Put it in the microwave, stupid," I told Taylor. I watched her try to squeeze the block of frozen juice out of the container.

"I'm sorry I've never made frozen juice," Taylor laughed as she pushed the microwave buttons.

I glanced over and quickly pulled the door open after she pushed start. "No! Only thirty seconds, newb, do you want to burn my house down?"

"Only if you're in it," she smirked.

I changed the time and pushed start again. Taylor took out the pitcher.

"Hey girls," my mom said as she entered the kitchen. "Taylor, how about you go outside? I'll help Venus."

Taylor looked at me, I shrugged because I wasn't sure what my mother was up to. Then Taylor left.

"Um, I guess you could get the glasses," I said.

"Venus, I'm not here to help you."

"But isn't--"

"I know that's what I said, but you should know me better than that," she scoffed. "Why did you bring Spencer here?"

"Okay, Mom, you know what? We're done with this," I warned her. "Can you please just accept Blake isn't in the picture anymore? Please, I'm begging you, Mother. Begging."

"Honey, you know I won't accept it." She shook her head at me. "All this time I've been the kind, sweet mother, because you were doing every thing I thought was right for you--"

"Bring her back!" I demanded. "You were her once, how hard is it to be her again?"

"Let me finish. I was her because I had nothing to be mad about. You were creating your life perfectly, and I was so proud."

"I don't need you guiding me in the direction you think is right for me. I can do that by myself. I'm old enough to do that by myself."

"Stop saying that," she ordered. "You keep saying you're too old for me to make decisions for you, but when have I ever done you wrong? I got you into a nice school, a nice house, and you've never had to worry about money or anything like that. You've never even had a job for crying out loud!"

"Maybe I need to be responsible for once," I decided. "I'll move out."

My mother laughed. "And exactly where are you going to move to?"

"Philadelphia. Then I won't have to live on campus and I can stay there after I'm finished school."

"No, I won't have it."

"Too bad it's not your decision, Mom."

"Where will you get the money?"

Now it was mine turn to laugh. "Working. I'm not as useless as you think I am."

My mother scowled. "Well I hope you like Philadelphia," she said spitefully.

"Thanks, I will," I snapped. "You grab the glasses and I'll get the juice."