Chapter 20: Purple scarves

Spencer's POV

I end up spending the night at Lina's after we have undercooked bread and peanut butter for dinner. We're asleep on Lina's bed when her alarm goes off.

"Lina," I groan, shaking her shoulder to wake her up. "We gotta go to work."

"Mmmm... 5 minutesss," mumbles Lina.

"We can't. Come on." I gently peck her cheek.

"Okay fine." Lina yawns, sitting up. Her loose shirt exposes the love bites on her neck I gave her last night.

"We gotta find you something to wear to cover those up." I chuckle.

Lina grins. "I'm gonna see if I own any turtlenecks. What about you?" She gestures to my share of hickeys.

"Uhhh... you got a scarf I can borrow?"

"Sure." She walks to her closet and pulls out some clothes. "Here." She pulls out a long purple scarf and tosses it to me.

I wrap the scarf around my neck. "Thanks."

"Hm. I don't own any turtlenecks, but I actually have a double of that scarf." Lina pulls out another purple scarf and smiles brightly at me. "Looks like we're matching today." A few moments later, we're on our way to work.

"Are you hungry?" I ask, knowing that we didn't really eat dinner last night.

"Kind of." Lina looks out the window. The weather is quite warm today, so her scarf looks out of place with her sleeveless blouse. Soon, we arrive at the office and walk into the bullpen.

Morgan stirs his coffee.  "Good morning, kid." He looks at Lina and I. "What's with the matchy scarves?"

"N-nothing," I stammer.

He narrows his eyes suspiciously at me. "Isn't it kinda hot today to wear one?"

"Ummm...." I look at the ceiling, not knowing what to say.

"And aren't those the same clothes you wore yesterday?"

"I, uh... I-I gotta go." I quickly dash off, glancing at Lina and see her trying not to laugh. I watch as Prentiss walks up to her and whispers something in her ear, making her blush.

Suddenly, someone yanks my scarf from behind and my neck is exposed. I whip around to see Morgan with his eyes wide, staring at my neck.

"Whoo!" he exclaims. "Emily, check Yang!" I watch as Prentiss quickly pulls off Lina's scarf, revealing the marks on her neck as well. Noooooo! I mentally scream. I'm never going to hear the end of it from Morgan.

"Damn, kid," he says, shaking his head. "You guys finally did it, didn't you?" He wiggles his eyebrows at me suggestively.

"Nooo! We were just making out!" I yell. The whole office immediately goes quiet, and everyone is staring at me. I look at Lina and see that her face is bright red, and I'm 100% sure that mine is as well.

"Ahem." Hotch clears his throat from the doorway of his office. "We have a case, we'll brief it on the jet. Wheels up in 10." I scowl at Morgan and snatch my scarf back. He smirks and pats me on the shoulder.

I quickly grab my go-bag and walk towards Lina. "I'm sorry, Derek can be a little..." I start, not knowing what to say.

"It's okay, I get it." Lina shrugs. "Friends tease each other." She nudges me in the arm and wraps her own scarf around her neck. Approximately thirty minutes later, the team and I are on the jet, waiting to take off.

Garcia is also here, in the video call on the laptop. "Hey, Reid," she greets cheerfully from the screen.

I crack my neck. "Hi! What's up?"

"Isn't it a bit too warm to be wearing a scarf?" she questions knowingly and I know that Morgan had told her.

"Derek told you, didn't he," I say and glare at Morgan. Even though he's not looking at me, he's smirking.

"Mhm." Garcia wiggles her eyebrows. Before she can open her mouth to say anything else, Hotch comes in and I'm saved by the bell.

"Everyone, let's gather around," he states. We all sit in our seats, forming a small circle.

"In the past 2 weeks, there have been six abductions in Las Vegas," Garcia announces. "All the victims were abducted in pairs of two—Sonia Haynes, 28 with Izzy Williams, 27. They are both friends and have known each other since Grade 3. Then there's Edward Cooper, 31 with his sister Holly Cooper, 35. And finally, Mark Davis, 33 with his girlfriend Lola Zhang, 29."

Morgan frowns. "Six people in 2 weeks? That's a lot." Everyone nods in agreement.

"What's he even doing with them?" Prentiss questions.

"I can give you the answer to that," Garcia answers. "Mark and Lola were released from their captor 2 days ago. When police questioned them, they said that the UnSub makes them fight each other, and whoever wins has to attempt to nurse the injured one back to health."

"Nurse?" JJ scratches her chin, confused.

"Yes," Garcia states. "They said that the UnSub locks them in a room full of medical supplies—IV's, meds, bandages, scalpels, you name it."

Rossi raises an eyebrow. "So what happens if they don't do what they're told?"

"They were threatened to be killed. And if the partner is unable to save the other person, they will also be killed."

"So why were Mark and Lola released?" I ask.

Garcia twirls her sparkly pen. "After Mark and Lola fought each other, Mark won but since he's a surgeon, he had the medical knowledge to help her," she answers, "and the UnSub just let them go afterwards. Unfortunately, I can't say the same for the other two pairs."

Prentiss takes a sip of her coffee. "And I'm guessing that they didn't get a look at the UnSub's face."

"Nope, they said he was wearing a ski mask."

"How were they abducted?" Hotch questions.

"The couple said that they were getting into their car after a date, and as they were getting into the car, the UnSub held a gun to Lola's head. Which forced the two of them to get into his car." Garcia frowns.

"Well we better move quickly," Hotch states. "If he sticks to his timeline it's likely he's planning to abduct another pair soon." After that, everyone spreads out to do their own thing, so I take out my cell phone to call my mom. A few rings later, she picks up.

"Hi, Mom," I greet.

"Hello, Spencer," she replies. "How are you?"

"Fine. I have a case in Las Vegas, so maybe I can come visit you after I'm done."

"Sure, of course. I've missed you."

"I've missed you, too." My voice cracks a bit. I look over at Lina and wonder if I should tell my mom about her. "Um, Mom?"

"Yes?"

"I, um, I-I have a girlfriend now."

"Really?" She sounds surprised. "What's she like?"

I blush as I think of ways to describe Lina. "She's smart, beautiful, strong, brave. I really like her, mom." A smile spreads across my face.

My mom chuckles. "That's wonderful. I would love to meet her one day."

"Actually... hold on one second." I walk over to where Lina is sitting, reading a book and lean down to whisper in her ear. "Hey, Lina."

She looks up from her book. "Hm?"

"Would you like to visit my mom in Las Vegas?" I ask, feeling uncertain.

"Sure!" she answers me enthusiastically.

I smile brightly at her and put my phone back to my ear. "Mom, I'm bringing Lina with me."

"Can't wait to meet her," she replies and we hang up.

For a second, I regret my decision—Lina doesn't know my mom is schizophrenic and that I might have the gene for it, too. What if she decides I'm not good for her and breaks up with me? I go and sit down next to Lina with a sigh.

"Spence, is everything alright?" Lina questions, looking at my worried face.

I have to tell her. "Lina...." I begin. I lower my voice so the others won't eavesdrop. "My mom has schizophrenia." Lina widens her eyes and furrows her brows.

"Oh, Spencer. I'm so sorry to hear that." She wraps her arms around me, giving me a hug.

I start feeling uneasy. "I might also have the gene for it, too. Normally males begin to show symptoms of schizophrenia in their late teens or early twenties. I'm 25 and going to be 26 soon...."

"Whatever happens, we'll deal with it together." Lina puts a hand on mine. "There's no point in worrying about it now."

"Together?"

"Of course! You think I'll leave you alone because of it?" She gives me a tight hug and I hug her back.

"Thanks, Lina." I kiss her cheek.

"Get a room!" Morgan yells and we both roll our eyes.

Two and a half hours later, we land in Las Vegas. I feel nostalgic as we drive to the police department, remembering how I used to ride my bike down these streets.

"So you're from Las Vegas, huh," Lina remarks. Hotch and Prentiss are sitting up front, with Lina and I in the back.

I nod my head. "Yeah... I haven't been back in a while."

"Y'know, Reid's a great poker player." Prentiss looks at us from the rearview mirror.

"Is that so?" Lina smirks at me.

"I'm actually banned from casinos in Las Vegas, Laughlin, and Pahrump because of my card-counting ability," I state and everyone in the car chuckles.

Forty minutes later, we reach the police department. Morgan, JJ, and Rossi arrive a few seconds after us. The team and I go in to meet Emmett Torres, the chief of police before Hotch gives us instructions on what to do.

"Reid, JJ, and Rossi, go visit the couple that was released. They're in the hospital right now, recovering. Yang and Prentiss, I want you two to interview the families of the people who are still missing. Morgan and I will speak with Chief Torres to gather more information," Hotch orders.

Once everyone spreads out to do what they're told, I make sure no one is looking and quickly walk over to Lina, giving her a kiss on her jaw from behind.

"Spence!" She giggles. "What was that for?" She wraps her arm around my neck and pulls me to the corner of the room where no one can see us.

I kiss the top of her head. "Just for being you."

She smiles then unwraps part of my scarf, and brushes her lips on my neck—the action sending shivers down my spine. I cup her face with my hands and we lock eyes. A strand of hair falls over her beautiful eyes and I tuck it behind her ear. She flashes her angelic smile, making me feel dizzy from the sudden high of pure happiness.