5.) The Spider Man

I was feeling lightheaded and dizzy, as I took a seat on the jet. Exhausted wasn't even the word for how I was feeling, but at the same time...my adrenaline was through the roof.

"I believe you promised me an explanation." Reid said, taking a seat next to me.

"That I did." I responded.

"You don't have to tell them if you don't want to, Melanie." Rossi chimed in.

"No, it's fine. I mean...they were going to find out eventually, so we might as well get it out the way now." He nodded and cleared his throat, sitting up in his seat.

"Then allow me to start from the very beginning. You all remember the case that I did back in 2008, with the missing kids, and that one gifted child that helped me solve the case?"

"That was one of your most legendary cases." Morgan said.

"Yeah, I remember being fascinated by the fact that a ten year old solved the case in a day, even when it took the local police officers weeks to do so." Reid say.

"Well...let me introduce you all to that gifted ten year old." He said, as everyone looked at me with shocking expressions.

"Hi." I said, waving awkwardly.

"So...you're a psychic?" Emily asked me.

"Yeah. When I touch someone or something, I can see the past and present through their eyes, and not only can I see it...I can feel it."

"What do you mean you can feel it?" JJ asked.

"I mean that if I touch someone who was stabbed multiple times, I'd feel every single stab." I said. "Which is why I wear these gloves. Not because I'm a germaphone, which was partially false information, but because I don't want to see or feel anything."

"So how often do you use this gift?" Morgan asked me.

"Up until today...I haven't used it since that case I helped Rossi on."

"You haven't used it in fourteen years?" Reid questioned. I shook my head, not wanting to explain exactly why I haven't used it, and thankfully nobody asked for a reason.

"Well we appreciate your hard work and dedication on the case. You didn't have to use your abilities to help us, but you did and we appreciate it." Hotchner said.

"Yeah, how many people can say they have a psychic on their team? That's pretty bad ass, if you ask me." Morgan said. I smiled, covering my mouth as I yawned, before closing my eyes and drifting off to sleep.

~~~

When we arrived back in Virgina, Reid gently shook me awake, just as the plane landed.

"Hey...we're home." He said.

"Oh, okay." I yawned, stretching out my tired body, all while my stomach growled loudly. "Oh God...please tell me you didn't hear that." He laughed softly.

"I did, actually. When was the last time you've eaten?"

"Not since this morning."

"Wanna grab a bite with me? I know this little diner around the corner, that stays open twenty-four hours. My treat." He said, giving me a small smile. I felt my heart flutter in my chest, as I nodded my head.

"Okay, sounds good." I followed him off of the jet, letting Rossi know that I was going to get something to eat with Reid, before meeting him at his car. The drive was quiet and short, which made me a bit nervous. Ugh, why does he have to make me feel so girly? And why the hell was I so nervous? It's not like this was a date or anything, just two people getting some food, after a long, stressful day.

"Order anything you'd like." Reid said, as we sat down inside a booth. I skimmed the menu, already knowing that I was going to get a burger and fries, because that's what I've been craving all day long.

"Can I ask you a question?" He asked me.

"Sure." I said, looking up at him.

"What made you want to be involved in our case?"

"I honestly didn't know that I was going to be apart of the case. When Rossi asked me to come with him to his job, I didn't expect to get so involved."

"Did you like it though? Being a profiler for the day?" He asked.

"I did." I nodded. "I just don't like the fact that those families never got justice, because that son of a bitch decided to take the easy way out." I bawled up my fist, feeling my anger rising.

"Yeah, not all cases have a happy ending, but we have our fair share of wins."

"Can I ask you something now?"

"Of course." He said.

"What made you want to be a profiler? Like...how did you know this is what you wanted to do?" I asked him.

"Well I'm actually a supervisory special agent, but...you didn't ask for that specific information. Um...I didn't know what I wanted to be, at first, until I met my mentor and he inspired me." The waitress approached our table, taking our order, before walking away.

"I think that might've been Rossi's goal. To inspire me to find something that I like and that I'm good at, but at the same time...what if I didn't have this ability. Would I still be good at it?" I was basically asking myself that question, but Spencer answered anyways.

"I think you would be." He said, as I looked up at him. "You have the determination that most of us don't have, except for maybe Hotch and Prentiss, but...I saw how dedicated you were towards this case. The way you thrived to help people, letting your voice be heard. That is what a good FBI agent is and you would be an amazing one." Oh. My. God. Am I blushing?! Yes...yes, I am.

"Wow...thank you, Spencer. You have no idea how much that means to me." I smiled.

"Just being honest." He tucked some of his hair behind his ear, his face turning a light shade of pink. Was he blushing as well? "I'd like to know more about you. Seeing as how we'll probably be working together in the future."

"What do you want to know?"

"Rossi mentioned that you and your grandmother are staying with him, but if you don't mind me asking...where are your parents?" He asked, making me look away from him. "I'm sorry if I--"

"No, no...it's okay." I said, taking a deep breath. "My mom died when I was ten and my dad was never in the picture. Apparently, he wasn't ready for a kid, so he packed up and left."

"I'm so sorry Melanie, I shouldn't have brought it up."

"It's fine. It was bound to come up sooner or later. My mother was murdered in cold blood, by who the media called...The Spider Man."

"Wait...wasn't he the one that was doing all of those kidnappings? I remember reading about it a long time ago." He said.

"Yep, that's him. Ironically, after I helped Rossi solve that case, The Spider Man set his sights on me." I began, taking a deep breath. "He started dating my mother, shortly after meeting her in the grocery store, and the first time I met him...I knew something was off. I never saw his face when I helped Rossi with the investigation, but I do remember seeing a huge tattoo of a spider on his neck."

"And your mother never saw the tattoo?"

"Nope. He always had it covered, which should've been an instant red flag, but...I don't think she cared enough to notice. Even when I tried to warn her, she refused to listen to me, saying that I wasn't going to ruin her chance of happiness again."

"Again?" He questioned.

"Basically I'm the blame for my dad leaving, and I wasn't even born yet." I said, laughing a little. "I don't know...it was like something in her changed and even my grandma noticed it, which is why she made the decision to take me and leave. We were gone a week and my mom never even called to figure out why my grandma never brought me back home, which made me think that she really didn't care about me. Unfortunately, that wasn't the case, at least...I don't think it was. Returning home a week later, we both knew something was wrong, but...we weren't prepared for what we found." I wiped my falling tears, while Spencer reached across the table, and grabbed my hand.

"I'm so sorry that you went through that. I can't even imagine something so gruesome." He gently squeezed my hand, making me feel a little better. I excused myself from the table, going to the bathroom, so I could get myself together. It's been fourteen years and I still remember that horrible day, as if it had just happened yesterday.

Once I got myself together, I joined Spencer back at the table and thankfully our food had arrived.

"Since you shared something personal with me, I'd like to share something personal with you." He said, as soon as I sat down.

"You really don't have to do that." I told him.

"I know...but I want to." I nodded my head, watching as he took a deep breath, and exhaled slowly. "My father left too, leaving me alone to deal with mother, who has paranoid schizophrenia. She barely even noticed that I was there, which made me feel lonely all the time. One day, when I was in middle school, I was in the library and um...Harper Hilman comes up to me, and tells me that Alexa Lisben wants to meet me behind the field house. Alexa Lisben was the prettiest girl in school, so of course...I went."

"I don't like where this is going."

"Yep...she was there, along with the entire football team, and they...uh...stripped me naked and tied me to a goal post."

"Oh my gosh, Spencer." I gasped, covering my mouth.

"So many kids were there, you know, just watching." He said.

"And nobody tried to stop them?"

"Mm-mm. I begged them to, but they just...they watched." He slowly licked his lips, the painful look on his face tugging at my heart. "Finally, they got bored, and they left. It was like midnight when I finally got home, and my mom didn't...she didn't even notice. She was having one of her episodes, so she didn't even realize I was late." I could see the tears glistening in his eyes, as I stood up and slid into the booth next to him, wrapping my arms around him.

"I'm so sorry that happened to you." I said. "Did you ever tell your mom what happened?"

"No." He said, shaking his head. "The only person that knows is Morgan, and now...you."

"Well thank you for trusting me with something so personal."

"And thank you for trusting me." I laid my head on his shoulder, as we started eating in silence. It wasn't an uncomfortable silence, but a comforting one. Something we clearly both needed right now.