Chapter 16: First kiss

Spencer's POV

One week later.

Today I'm getting discharged so I can finally go home. Thankfully, I don't need a cast for my leg since the bullet only went in my flesh. And despite being stuck in a hospital for a whole week, I've had an amazing time with Lina. I read books to her, went out on walks—well, more like she went out on walks while pushing me in a wheelchair—and we even had lunch "dates" together in the hospital cafeteria.

I guess ever since Lina confessed to me, I've been feeling more confident around her. I'm planning to tell her that I share the same feelings for her as well, but I want to wait for the perfect moment. As I come up with ideas on how I would do it, Lina walks in my room.

"You need help packing?" she asks.

"Nope, I'm fine," I answer. Lina nods and leaves the room. I didn't pack much so it was mostly books and a few clothes that I brought in my go-bag. After I finish, I leave my room and find Lina waiting outside for me.

"You ready?" She smiles brightly at me.

"Let's go." I return the smile. I wince a bit as we start walking, my leg still not fully recovered.

"Let me help you." Lina puts my arm around her to support me and we slowly walk to the elevator. I try not to put too much of my weight on her, since she herself is still injured.

"Thanks," I say and we awkwardly walk out of the hospital and get into the car.

"You know this is bringing back memories." Lina smirks.

"What memories?"

"When I had an appendectomy, you stayed here with me. Except now the tables have turned."

"I guess there's just something about us and hospitals," I joke and she laughs. We drive in silence to where the jet is waiting for us. Lina helps me up the steps as we board. I sit down in one of the seats with a heavy sigh.

She grins at me. "Tired?"

"Nope, just getting old." I raise an eyebrow at her, knowing that I'm actually 2 years younger than her.

"Alright then, grandpa," she teases and sits down next to me. A while later, we're back in Quantico on the elevator going up to the BAU. Since we had an early flight, it's only 3 p.m. here. Immediately after stepping into the office, I am greeted by the whole team.

"Hey, kiddo." Rossi pats me on the back.

"Hi," I say.

"How are you feeling?" JJ gives me a hug.

"A little bit sore." I crack my neck. "But nothing I can't handle."

"Reid, go home and get some rest. You can come back tomorrow," states Hotch, "Yang, you as well.." Lina and I open our mouths to protest but he stops us. "Don't argue." We sigh and nod respectfully. Then he smiles at us and walks away.

"Alright, Pretty Boy," Morgan slaps my arm. "See you soon." I smile at him. Before leaving, I quickly head to my desk to grab a few items. I look over my shoulder and see Lina standing at the elevator, waiting for me. I walk over to her and see her smiling at me.

"Are you ready to go?" she asks.

"You don't need to wait for me," I reply, "I'm fine driving myself."

"Okay, cool," she replies and we both leave the building.

I head to my car and drive home, listening to some classical music on the radio. As I pull into the parking lot of my apartment, I realize that I miss Lina. Without thinking, I pull out my cell phone and dial her number. It rings a few times before she picks up.

"Hello?" she answers from the phone.

"H-hi," I stutter, not knowing what to say.

"Hey, Spence. Did you need something?"

"I was wondering, uhhh...." I rack my brain, trying to come up with a reason why I called her. "I was wondering if you want to go out for dinner with me later?" I blurt out quickly.

"Oh...." Lina mumbles, sounding hesitant and I immediately regret it.

"I-it's okay, actually. It was a stupid idea." I'm about to hang up when she stops me.

"Wait, Spencer. Yes, I-I-I would love to have dinner with you."

A smile spreads across my face. "Great, it's a date." I blush.

"A date," she repeats and giggles from the other end.

"I'll come pick you up at around seven?"

"Sure. I'll text you my address." After that, she hangs up and I head into my apartment. I then take a quick shower. As I dry my hair, I decide to call Morgan.

"Hey, Derek," I say into my phone.

"What's up, Pretty Boy?" he asks.

"Um, I'm going to dinner with Lina tonight."

"My man." Morgan chuckles. "What's the occasion?"

I clear my throat. "Well, I'm going to tell her that I like her."

"Really?" Morgan sounds surprised. "What made you want to do it?"

"Um, remember how when I was in the hospital, I told you not to tell Lina I was awake because I wanted to surprise her?"

"Mhm."

"Well, before I got a chance to, Lina confessed to me."

Morgan gasps. "Woah."

"She also said that she didn't want to tell me while I'm awake because, she doesn't know if I feel the same way for her. So I figured I will tell her myself... and hopefully it'll all work out." I rub the back of my neck, feeling nervous.

"Lemme guess, you called me because you want some tips?" Morgan smirks.

"Yeah...." I answer hesitantly and he chuckles on the other end.

"Well, first of all, find a nice, quiet place," Morgan begins, "then give her a compliment, that'll let her know that you're interested. After that, tell her that you like her and lean in for a kiss."

"A kiss???"

"What, you never kissed a girl before?"

"I've been on dates before, but I never kissed a girl... because I didn't want to scare them away." I can hear Morgan struggling to contain his laughter.

"You? Scare them? With that pretty face?"

I roll my eyes. "Are you gonna help me or not?"

"Alright, alright," he replies with a chuckle. After a 2 hour lesson with Morgan, I feel more confident in myself.

"Thanks, Derek," I say. "I never thought I would ever ask you to do this."

"Don't sweat it, kid. Good luck, man." He hangs up.

I breathe out a sigh of relief. Time to get ready. I'm not quite sure what to wear, so I go with the usual—button up shirt, tie, sweater vest, and trousers. I look in the mirror and frown. I decide to lose the sweater vest and put on a cardigan instead.

After that, I stare at my reflection, thinking about what to do with my hair. I try slicking it back with a comb but it looks weird so I just ruffle it up instead. I check my watch and see that it's already 6:39 p.m. so I quickly grab my keys and go.

In my car, my cell phone buzzes and I open it to see a text from Lina with her address. I'm surprised that we only live a few blocks from each other. I quickly start my car and drive to her apartment. Exactly 8 minutes and 34 seconds later, I'm in the elevator heading up to Lina's place. When I arrive at her door, I take a deep breath before knocking.

"Coming!" Lina's voice sounds faintly from inside. A few seconds later, she opens the door and I can't help but stare. She is wearing a white off shoulder top, with a black skirt, and a necklace with a small heart pendant. I trail my eyes down to her feet and notice that she's wearing white sneakers. It looks out of place with the rest of her outfit, but it's so Lina-like and I love that about her.

"Hi," I squeak, my voice unusually high.

"Hi." Lina gleams. She has on her usual makeup look except she's wearing some eyeshadow.

I catch myself staring at her so I quickly look away and clear my throat. "Um, are you ready to go?"

"Yup, just let me grab my purse." Lina quickly walks away. A few moments later, she's back.

"Let's go." I hold out my arm a bit and smile at her. She hooks her arm with mine and we walk out of the building together.

"So... where are we going?"

"This small cozy Korean restaurant," I reply. "I figured you would like it since you're Korean?" I start to feel unsure of myself, but then I relax when Lina giggles.

"Oh, Spence." She gently nudges me. "I grew up in L.A., but thanks for the thought." I smile at her and lead her to my car. She's about to open the door but I quickly stop her.

"Wait." I open the door for her and gesture for her to go in. She laughs and tousles my hair before stepping in. I hop in on the driver's side and turn on the radio which is playing "Moonlight Sonata" by Beethoven, then I pull out of the parking lot.

"Beethoven," Lina whispers and glances at me. "You like classical?"

"I do." I keep my eyes on the road. "Beethoven's my favourite."

Lina beams. "Same!" We drive in silence, enjoying the music playing. Soon enough, we reach the restaurant and I get out of my seat first to open Lina's door.

"Why are you doing this?" She giggles.

"Just being a gentleman." I pretend to bow a bit which makes Lina laugh. When I'm with her, I feel so comfortable and can actually joke around a bit more. With others, I'm much more conserved and quiet.

We enter the restaurant together holding hands, at this point it all feels so natural. I don't even remember taking her hand. "Table for two!" I say to the waiter and he nods. He leads us to a cozy booth in the corner, away from all the other customers.

"This is perfect." Lina sighs in contentment, sliding into the seat across from me. "Have you been here before?"

"A few times by myself." I look around. "I love the interior design of this place. It's very home-y."

"Home-y?" Lina giggles. "A genius with an IQ of 187 and an eidetic memory, can not think of a better adjective than 'home-y.'"

"It's pleasant," I say, too distracted by Lina to think of a more sophisticated word. My thoughts are suddenly interrupted by the waiter.

"Have you two decided what to order?" he questions.

Lina looks at her menu, then at me, not knowing what to order. "Um, Spence. What are you going to get?"

"Oh, I usually get the Bibimbap," I say.

"What's that?"

"It's kind of like rice with different toppings on it."

"Ohh... okay." She squints at the menu. "I'll have the same then."

"Two Bibimbaps," the waiter says, writing it down on his notepad and leaving to get our food.

"So... got any interesting high school stories? I mean, what was it like to be so smart but so young?" Lina flashes me her perfect smile.

"Actually... I got bullied a lot." I frown, remembering all the times I would get picked on.

"Aw, Spence." She puts her hand on mine. "I'm so sorry to hear that." I look at her and see kindness and her eyes, making me feel better.

"This one time, I was tricked into thinking that the prettiest girl in the school wanted to meet with me behind the field house—so I went and saw that the whole football team was there. They, uh..." I hesitate, wondering if I should continue telling Lina about the most embarrassing moment of my life.

"It's okay, Spence." Lina rubs her thumb soothingly along my hand.

I sigh and continue on. "They stripped me naked and tied me to the goalpost. And there were so many people there, just watching. I didn't even get home until midnight."

"Oh, Spencer. That's just... terrible." She frowns. "Nobody did anything?"

"No," I huff. "Let's talk about something else."

"Of course." Lina smiles kindly.

Our food arrives as we start talking about famous plays. "What about 'Romeo and Juliet'?" I ask, swallowing a bite of rice.

"Hm, the work is great but I prefer 'Othello'. I mean, the characters from both plays die tragically from a series of unfortunate misunderstandings," Lina mumbles with her mouth full and she swallows.

I nod in agreement. After that, we finish our food and I pay the bill. "How did you like the food?" I ask as we walk out of the restaurant.

"It was great." Lina chuckles. "First time I've tried Korean food despite being Korean." Suddenly, a chilly wind blows, making her shiver.

"Here." I take off my cardigan and drape it over Lina's shoulders.

"Oh, thanks." She slips her arms into the sleeves. "Aren't you cold?"

"No, not at all," I assure her. In fact, I'm even sweating a little because of what I'm going to tell Lina tonight. We walk in silence down the sidewalk—it is peaceful and quiet, the streetlights casting a dim glow. This is it. I think to myself. I stop walking and prepare myself to tell Lina about my feelings.

"It's so beautiful tonight." Lina continues walking. When she realizes I'm not next to her, she turns around and quickly walks back. "What's wrong, Spencer?" Her eyes round with worry.

"You're so beautiful, Lina." I feel my heart start to race. "You are the kindest, bravest, smartest, and strongest woman I've ever met. You make me feel at ease when I'm around you." I take both her hands in mine. "I like you, too, Lina."

Taking her chin in my hand, I gently tilt it up, looking at her eyes. I slowly lean down and watch her expression, making sure that she's okay with this. Then I brush my lips against hers, feeling the softness of it. At first, she doesn't kiss back, so I start worrying if I've made the wrong decision.

As I start to pull back, I feel her hand around the back of my neck to pull me closer, deepening our kiss. Feeling more confident now, my hands cup her face. She runs her fingers through my hair and we kiss passionately. I can feel my blood rushing through my veins and in this moment, it's as if everything around us disappears. The sidewalk, buildings, streetlights... everything is gone except for us.