Beautiful Things

I unlocked the door to my apartment, allowing myself inside. Morgan and Reid were close behind me. I dropped my bag on the hallway floor, kicked off my shoes, and proceeded into my place.

Morgan and Reid examined the apartment, just like I thought they would. Apparently people's homes are a reflection of themselves. Mine surely wasn't. I spent little time here, so dishes had piled up and clothes were left around. When I was here, it was for a quick sleep, or a quick meal, or a quick shower.

This didn't look anything like my office at work. My office was neat, and clean, and crazily organized. Why? Well because ninety-five percent of my time was spent there, and the five percent I have at home is surely not used for cleaning.

I reached for a sweatshirt that sat on the couch. I slipped it over my head, and then showed off the couch like Vanna White. There was another one, on an angle, beside it. They didn't look amused with my classiness.

"Your beds!" I exclaimed, trying again. Still all I received was staring eyes. "Oh come on, they're soft and--"

"This place is a mess," Morgan finally said.

"A mess? It's not that bad, Morgan!" I protested.

"And neither are pig sties," he replied teasingly.

I showed them the rest of the house so they wouldn't be lost. Then we all decided it'd be best if we retired to bed. We had an early morning tomorrow, just like every morning until we caught this killer.

I would have appreciated a good night's sleep, but my mind just wouldn't allow that to happen. I managed to sleepily pick myself up out of bed, walk through the living room, and into the kitchen. I didn't wake either of the sleeping agents.

The kettle taunted me from across the kitchen. I imagined how nice a tea would be right now. That and the sound of rain could easily make me fall back asleep. It wasn't raining, though, so the tea would have to do.

"Hey," a voice startled me.

I turned around to face the doorway. Reid stood in it, sending a curious glance my way. I think I might have been blushing.

"Sorry," he said, "Didn't mean to scare you."

"There's a serial killer after me," I reminded him. "I'm sure my fear isn't all your fault."

He laughed.

"Why are you up?" he asked finally.

"I couldn't sleep," I answered him, adding a yawn after which completely contradicted me.

Stupid yawn, that's Reid's job.

"Oh, I see."

Awkward silence.

"Want some tea?" I offered sweetly.

"Uh okay," he replied, as if he didn't really know if he wanted any or not. It was more out of politeness.

I didn't care, because I didn't want to have to drink tea alone. And I really needed it. My nerves were completely out of wack.

We sat at the kitchen table, since it was pretty much the only table I had. The place didn't really come with an actual dining room, not that I would have used it anyway, but I'm just using it as a defense to why I don't have a proper table.

"Don't be scared," Reid told me as he stared down at his drink. He looked up, letting his eyes meet mine. "Nothing's going to happen to you."

"Honestly, I wish I could believe that," I said without thinking. I cursed myself afterward, though I knew it was true. Nobody can promise anybody total safety.

"As long as we're here, you're going to be okay," he assured me, not taking my previous comment into consideration at all, "And we're not leaving until we've caught him."

I thought anxiously of what to say next, but all I came up with were blanks. What would one say to that? I didn't believe him. If this killer wanted me bad enough, he'd find a way to get me. And I can't go my entire life with supervision. At one point, I'm going to be alone. That point will be my moment of weakness, and the only way he'd let that go to waste would be over his dead body.



The morning came, like a bad curse. I hadn't slept more than four hours in total, roughly. I was sure Morgan was the only one who got a decent rest in my house. From the looks of it, that statement was true.

My dress shirt had various wrinkles in it I hadn't noticed when I grabbed it from the floor, and my pants were missing a button, which I managed to fix with a safety pin. My hair was a tangled mess I spun up into a bun after abandoning the idea of brushing it.

Reid didn't look much better. We both looked like we spent the entire night awake, which we had. Dark circles rounded his eyes and his response time during conversations was noticeably delayed. Neither of us were in any state to work a crime scene.

"Whoa, look at you two," Morgan laughed as soon as we both got in the car.

"Oh shush," I mumbled from the passengers' seat; a spot I had stolen, forcing Reid into the back.

"Can't wait until the others see this," he continued on.

"There's a coffee shop around the corner," I told him. "You need to stop there for our sake."

"I think you'll need more than a coffee to fix you two, but alright."

After we made a stop, we went to the station. The streetlights were still on at this time. And I wasn't sure Reid and I looked any better.

Just as I thought this day couldn't get any worse, even though it was under six hours in, it did. Rory was the first face I saw as I entered the station, and he was talking a million words a minute. I told him to shut up.

"Rough night?" he asked.

"I can't remember what sleep feels like," I replied.

Reid and Morgan fled to the media room where the rest of their team would be meeting. Rory followed me to my office, which I wasn't exactly crazy about. I tried to drop a hint by walking faster, but he wouldn't take it.

"Could I help you with something?" I asked him.

He had already made himself comfortable in the chair across from my desk. I hadn't even set my bag down yet.

"I'm worried about you, Meg," he said, "I know I bother you all the time, and I know you know it's on purpose, but that doesn't mean I don't care."

He lowered his head, as if he was ashamed.

"Hey," I retorted, capturing his attention again, "Nothing's going to happen to me, alright? So no need to ease up on the teasing, it keeps me motivated." I shrugged lightly as I smiled.

"There's another video," Rory sighed, "But it's not another girl."