Chapter 31: Vegas Baby

"Annie, wake up." I stir and turn to look at the alarm clock. "Spencer, it is 7 am." Spencer nods emphatically, frustrated that I'm not as stressed as he is. "Annie, we have to be at the airport 3 hours before our flight and it will take us at least an hour to get to Dulles from here with the morning traffic. We have to get going." I groan and roll over and pull the blankets over my head "Spencer have you ever waited less than an hour at the gate for a flight?" Spencer says with exasperation "no because I always err on the side of caution and I'm always very early. Please get up, just the stress from possibly missing this flight is going to give me an ulcer." I turn over and motion for Spencer to sit down next to me. I grab his hand, lightly caressing his hand with my thumb and ask "are you nervous about seeing your mom and that's what this is all about?" He seems speechless for a minute, sitting with his mouth open and says "...maybe." I smile softly and say "I should be the nervous one. I've never met your mother, what if she doesn't approve of me?" Spencer scoffs and squeezes my hand as he says "I've told her all about you, she will definitely approve of you. I'm just worried I'm going to disappoint her." I give him a quizzical look and ask "Spencer, why on earth would she be disappointed in you?" Spencer says "I'm just afraid she will only remember me as this amazing genius and all that stuff, but I don't feel like I'm as amazing as she thinks." I hum in understanding "sounds like you have imposter syndrome. You are an amazing genius, Spence." He sighs "I just never want to let her down." I nod and say "you won't let her down. I'm sure she is just ecstatic to see you." Spencer smiles and nods "I'm ecstatic to see her." I lean forward and kiss him on the cheek "just for that I'll get up at this ungodly hour to ease some of your anxiety." Spencer laughs "it's 7 am, it's not that ungodly." I continue walking towards the bathroom "any hour you wake me up from a deep sleep is an ungodly hour, Spence." Spencer laughs and leaves the bedroom as I start getting ready in the bathroom. I get dressed in my leggings, t shirt, sweatshirt, and brooks tennis shoes. I also put my hair up in a messy bun and opt to wear glasses instead of contacts after I wash my face and brush my teeth. I'd already packed my suitcase and my carry on the night before and just add some of my toiletries to the suitcase that will be checked before meeting Spencer in the living room. Spencer looks at me and smiles and asks "ready to go?" I ask "we will go to the hotel before seeing your mom right? I don't want to meet her for the first time looking homeless like this." Spencer laughs "you don't look homeless, you look beautiful," and kisses me on the forehead. I blush and thank him for the compliment. Spencer is in black sweatpants, a t shirt and quarter zip, and converse. I look at him and smile "I'm glad we are both comfy travel people and not dress up travel people." Spencer laughs "I'm not sitting in one seat for hours and walking all over airports in uncomfortable clothes." I laugh "me either. I don't think I've ever left Ryder for this long." Spencer hums and gives me a sad smile "he will be happy at the pet lodge and he gets to play during the day with other dogs. I know you'll miss him, but he will be so happy to see us when we get back." I return the sad smile and say "okay, ready to go?" Spencer nods and checks his phone "Derek's downstairs to take us to the airport." I look at Spencer in shock "we could've gotten an Uber?" Spencer shakes his head "Derek offered and he's been waiting downstairs since I woke you up now let's go." It's just then that I notice Spencer's bags are not in the living room with us. Spencer grabs my suitcase and backpack while I carry only my purse. I love his chivalry, but I also hate it when he does so much for me because I feel lazy. I lock the door behind us and follow Spencer down the stairs. We get downstairs where Derek is waiting. Spencer pops the trunk and puts my bags in the trunk. I go to get in the back seat and Spencer says "Annie sit in the front, I know you get car sick." I look at him and protest "but Spencer don't you want to talk to Derek?" Spencer chuckles "I can talk to him just fine from the back seat. Take the front, baby." I decide not to argue and get in the front seat as requested. Derek immediately greets me with a cheerful "hey, Annie, how did I get so lucky to have such a pretty copilot this morning?" I chuckle and say "I just never should have told Spencer I get car sick easily." Spencer says from the back seat "you never told me you get car sick. You told me to pull over and then promptly threw up on the side of the highway." Morgan laughs "was it car sickness or alcohol, be honest?" I scoff "Derek it was a Monday morning on the way to visit the Smithsonian. No alcohol was involved, I promise. Now Spencer is paranoid I'm going to get sick every time we get in the car." Spencer hums "I didn't want to get an Uber and have you get sick on the drive to the airport. Morgan can drive like a maniac but he can also drive smoothly when we aren't in a high speed chase." I laugh "I'm fine when I drive." Spencer scoffs "you drive like we are in a high speed chase if we are just going to go to the grocery store." I laugh "what can I say I was raised on Talladega Nights." Spencer and Derek both look at me confused I look at them and say "you know. Will Ferrell, John C. Reilly. 'Shake n Bake.' 'If you ain't first you're last.' Any of this ringing a bell?" They both look at me like I grew another head "oh come on guys! Spencer I have got to show you that movie when we go visit my parents." Spencer laughs and says "can't wait." Derek laughs and says "just when I think I know you, Annie, you throw another curveball at me." I cackle "Derek Morgan nobody will ever know all there is to know about me." I hear Spencer say from behind me "challenge accepted." I laugh and continue the conversation with the guys as we pull up to the American Airlines drop off area at Dulles international airport. Morgan helps Spencer get the bags out of the trunk, not letting me help. I look at the guys with exasperation "I may have a uterus but I can carry my own backpack and suitcase." The guys laugh and shake their heads as Derek says "all right I guess we will let you carry your own bags." I say "thank you" and grab my stuff from him. Spencer and I thank Derek before walking into the airport towards the American Airlines desk to check our suitcases. I help Spencer with the tech kiosk and print our luggage tags and we wait in line for about 15 minutes before checking our bags. We walk hand in hand towards security, IDs ready from checking our bags. We slowly move through airport security. Spencer is required to travel armed at all times so that definitely makes security a bit of a hassle for us. He has all the necessary paperwork though so it's over fairly quickly. It actually takes about an hour to get through all of it. I can tell Spencer is less than thrilled about having to remove his shoes and we sit putting them back on before following the signs to our gate and hopping on the AeroTrain to get there. We stand on the train and wait for it to start. It starts with a fast jolt forward. It zooms around and I can feel my motion sickness kicking in as the train moves. I try to hide it but Spencer notices "look at me. Breathe in through your nose out from your mouth. Focus on my eyes and breathe in...breathe out...in...out." We continue to breathe together, people probably thought we were crazy, until the train stops at the stop for our gate. We get out and I immediately go to sit down at a nearby bench. I check the time, 10:07 am. Spencer sits next to me "we've got plenty of time, our gate isn't far, take all the time you need." I shake my head, burying it in my hands "I'm sorry Spencer, I think it just caught me off guard." Spencer shushes me "would you be upset with me if I were feeling sick?" I shake my head and say in a small voice "no." Spencer nods and says "then let me take care of you. Do you need anything?" I take a deep breath and say "why don't we go get some ginger ale and something to settle my stomach. I didn't eat breakfast." Spencer nods "that's a good idea, let's go do that." We walk towards our gate and find a food court along the way. I look around and see an Auntie Anne's Pretzels. I nudge Spencer "I think I want a pretzel, do you want one or do you want to go somewhere else?" Spencer chuckles "you're the only person who wants pretzels at 10 am." I chuckle and say "no, I'm not, there's other people in line!" Spencer chuckles as we get in line to get pretzels. We each get an order of pretzel bites and some cheese dipping sauce. Spencer gets a water for himself and for me and I'm still on the hunt for a ginger ale. We find a little news stand shop that sells bottled drinks, included is ginger ale. I buy a ginger ale as well as a cosmopolitan magazine to read on the plane. Spencer got us seats by the gate while I went to make my purchase. I make my way back over to him and sit down, taking my pretzels back. Spencer notices the magazine and scoffs "I can't believe you read that." I chuckle and say softly "hmm you wouldn't cum as hard as you do when I give you head if I didn't read this magazine." Spencer's eyes go wide as he looks around to see if anybody heard us. I chuckle "Spencer, nobody can hear us and even if they did nobody would care enough to listen to our conversation." Spencer hums and continues to eat his pretzel bites. I look at Spencer and ask "are there any do's or don'ts with your mom I should know about?" Spencer chuckles "she's great. She can take anything you throw at her. Just don't be offended or upset if she's having a bad day while we are there and she lashes out at one or both of us." I nod in understanding and grab Spencer's hand "Spence, in the hospital I treat a lot of people with degenerative diseases. I know how it goes and I know how to handle it. We are going to have a great time, okay?" Spencer smiles and nods, giving me a quick kiss "I love you." I giggle "I love you, too, Spence." We finish our pretzel bites, I throw the trash away for us and start reading my cosmo as Spencer reads a book he brought with him, shocker. After an hour or so the flight attendant announces that we will start boarding soon. Spencer reaches in his bag and hands me my ticket. It says "first class." I look at Spencer in shock and say "Spencer Reid, you did not buy first class tickets!" Spencer chuckles "it's a long flight and I want us to be comfortable." I chuckle and roll my eyes "Spencer, you didn't have to spend your money on this." Spencer shakes his head "I wanted to spend the money because I wanted to ensure we had the best possible experience traveling. I have the money for it so don't worry about it." I drop the subject as requested and follow Spencer to the flight attendant to board early. I whisper to Spencer "I feel like a snob." Spencer chuckles "you're not a snob." The flight attendant lets us board the plane and we walk through the tunnel onto the plane and show the flight attendant on the plane our ticket. She shows us to our seats, two seats together at the back of first class, against the wall. We have our own row and I'm grateful it's towards the back so we can have some privacy and it will be slightly darker. I let Spencer have the window seat and I take the aisle. We get settled in and talk while everybody else boards the plane. Spencer and I talk and the time flies by until we are about to take off. The plane starts moving on the tarmac and the flight attendant gives the safety demonstration. The movement outside of the window is making me sick and I ask Spencer quietly to shut it which he does with no complaints. As we take off I grip Spencer's hand. He gives me a concerned look "are you nervous or are you feeling sick?" I close my eyes and respond "a little bit of both." Spencer nods "once we get level in the air why don't you take some Dramamine?" I let out a shaky breath and nod. The plane levels off in the air and Spencer hands me Dramamine to take. I smile and take the medicine from him "if I didn't know any better, Dr. Reid, I'd say you're trying to drug me." Spencer chuckles and nods "only to treat your motion sickness, nothing else," and kisses my forehead. I read my magazine for a bit after taking the medicine. After about 10 minutes I start to feel drowsy and fight to keep my eyes open. Spencer notices, like always, and says "here, lean on me, it's fine. You'll be more comfortable." I think about arguing but ultimately decide that I don't have the energy to argue and just nod. I take my glasses off and put them securely in my purse before I lean on Spencer and nuzzle into his arm. I'm thankful he's wearing a quarter zip so he's cushioned just a bit. I reposition slightly and put some headphones in to listen to music and drown out other sounds and slowly drift off to a Dramamine induced sleep.

•••••

I wake up, I don't know how much time has passed since I fell asleep, but I do know I have to pee really bad. I lean up and notice I now have a blanket covering me that I didn't have when I fell asleep. I look over and see that Spencer is now asleep in his seat with his own blanket. I put my glasses on and quickly get up and groggily walk to the bathroom to pee. I pee in the cramped airplane bathroom and make my way back to my seat. I sit back down and adjust the blanket on Spencer's lap, covering more of him, before I sit down and decide to read my cosmo some more while Spencer sleeps. One of the flight attendants approaches and quietly asks if I would like anything to eat or drink. I look down and see that my ginger ale from before is empty and nod as I quietly request ginger ale and pretzels. I also request some water and peanuts for Spencer for when he wakes up. The flight attendant returns with the food and drinks and I settle it all on the tray in front of me. I do have to hand it to Spencer that first class is much nicer and more spacious than coach. I wouldn't have slept as well as I did if we weren't in first class probably. I don't feel groggy or tired anymore so I check on the screen in front of me the flight information and see we have two hours left still. I decide to watch a movie and am surfing through the movie options as Spencer starts to stir next to me. He groans and stretches. When he opens his eyes and locks his with mine he smiles at me. I ask him "how did you sleep?" He smiles sleepily "I slept very well. What about you?" I chuckle and say "I also slept very well. I was going to watch a movie, want to share an ear bud and watch it together?" Spencer smiles and nods as we look through movies to watch together. We pick a heist type action movie to watch together and get settled and comfortable back in our seats. The movie plays for about 20 minutes before Spencer asks a flight attendant walking past for some coffee and sugar packets. She smiles and says she will be right back with it. I ask him "did you have coffee this morning?" He nods "I had a cup while I was waiting for you to wake up." I nod and continue the movie. After five minutes the flight attendant returns with the coffee. I take it from her and go ahead and fix it for Spencer before handing it to him. He smiles and thanks me as he takes the cup from me. It's piping hot so he lets it cool as we watch the movie. I doze off a bit as we watch the movie and I get comfortable leaning on Spencer's shoulder. I don't fully fall asleep, but he doesn't dare disturb me even the slightest. He sips his coffee and watches the movie and I listen and smile to myself at how happy I am to be able to go on such adventures with the man I love. That he loves me enough and trusts me enough to let me meet his mom. There has never been any question from me on whether or not he loves me, but reminders like these are welcome all the same. I'm slightly disturbed when I feel Spencer lean over and fasten my seat belt for me. I stir and open my eyes to look at him. He shushes me and says "we are landing soon," and kisses me on the forehead. I smile and nod as I lean into his shoulder again and wait for the descent to begin. Once I can really feel the drops I grab Spencer's hand and grip hard, probably too hard, while also gripping the arm rest of my seat. Spencer tries to calm me down and I just try to breathe. I'm not nervous once we are in the air, it's the in between that unsettles me. We land and Spencer and I quickly move to get off the plane and out of the way. We stop by the restroom before heading towards baggage claim. While we wait for our bags, Spencer gets everything ready to call an Uber to the hotel. We discussed getting a rental car but just decided to get a hotel within walking distance of his mom's care center and we would just Uber anywhere else we wanted to go while we are in Vegas. We wait about 20 minutes and just stand in comfortable silence or talk about different things during that time. We make our way out to the pickup area for the airport. Spencer approaches a car that matches the description on his app and asks them "who are you picking up?" The man looks and says "I'm picking up Spencer!" Spencer nods and moves to put the bags in the trunk. The Uber driver gets out and helps him and then Spencer and I decide to sit in the back together. I do get nervous taking Ubers, especially in strange cities, but I do feel safer now because Spencer is with me and I know he's armed. I get a bit woozy in the car, a mixture of motion sickness and some grogginess coming back from the Dramamine. Spencer notices and squeezes my hand to check in silently. I squeeze back to tell him I'm okay. It's a short drive from the airport to the hotel and I'm grateful. We get out of the car and Spencer and the Uber driver get our bags out of the trunk. I happily take my bags and head into the hotel, Spencer not far behind. We easily check in to the hotel and head up to our room. In the elevator, I lean against the wall and close my eyes, trying to calm down the wave of nausea and dizziness I'm feeling. Spencer rubs my arm reassuringly until the doors open on our floor. I follow Spencer down the hallway and he opens up our room. I put my stuff down and move to get in bed. Spencer stops me "I know you want to get in bed, but please humor me and take a shower and give me your clothes so I can send them to be washed? Airports and traveling can cause you to pick up a lot of bacteria and I don't want either of us to get sick on this trip." I really want to throw a fit about it but decide to humor him and start stripping. I strip naked and hand him my clothes before going to my suitcase to get my toiletries to shower. I grab my stuff and quickly go to hop in the shower. Spencer does the same and asks if he can join. I hum "yes, but no funny business right now Spence. Still not feeling well." He hums in agreement "I just want you to feel better," and kisses my forehead. I hum in acknowledgment before quickly continuing my shower. After I've finished a thorough yet quick shower I hop out and start drying off. I brush out my hair and notice Spencer already pulled out a t shirt and underwear for me to sleep in. I get dressed and bundle up under the soft cool covers, nearly falling asleep in mere seconds. Spencer comes out of the bathroom in just a towel which opens my eyes just a bit, though it's nothing I haven't seen before. Many times. He puts on a pair of boxers and pajama pants and laughs when he sees me in the bed snug as a bug in a rug already. He walks over to the window and shuts the curtains, completely darkening the room, and turns on the fan, creating white noise. He gets in bed behind me and says "sweet dreams" I try to mumble the sentiment back, but I'm already asleep before I can start the second word.

•••••

I wake to Spencer coming out of the bathroom, still in just his sleepwear. He smiles once he sees my eyes flutter open. I ask him "what time is it?" He says "it's 5 pm here, 8 pm back home." I groan "this is why I hate motion sickness. Every time I take Dramamine so I'm not sick the whole time, I end up so groggy that I feel like I waste the first and last day of my trips." Spencer nods and gives me a sad smile "I understand that. Have you tried the sea bands? The pressure point bracelets? I don't know how well they work, but they're worth a shot to see if they work as well as Dramamine." I nod and rub my head "I should give those a try. I swear Dramamine only works because you can't have motion sickness when you're in a coma!" Spencer chuckles "I can see where you would think that. Are you feeling well enough to go see my mom tonight or do you want to stay in?" I shake my head "no, I'll be okay, do you want me to get ready now?" Spencer smiles softly "we can go visit whenever, take your time." I look at him, knowing how he can be, and say "Spence, I'll start getting ready. I know you're very excited to see her. What should I wear?" He smiles and says "you would make a blank sheet look like the most beautiful piece of extravagant couture." I blush and smile, avoiding eye contact, and say "thank you, Spence. However, that does not help answer my question. What are you wearing?" He smiles "probably some black pants, a button up, and my converse." I nod and say "okay then I'll wear leggings, a sweater, and tennis shoes. That sound okay?" Spencer smiles and nods "she won't care about your clothes, Annie, she's going to care about getting to know you." I smile and lean up to kiss him and then say "I can't wait to meet the wonderful woman who raised the man I love and made him who he is." Spencer blushes and says "she can't wait to meet the woman who makes me so happy."

•••••

Spencer and I walk in to Bennington Sanitarium with food to share with Diana so the three of us can share dinner together. Spencer had called ahead and the nurse said she was having a very good day today, that bringing in takeout would be a great idea. I'm happy to know she's having a good day and feel somewhat relieved that our first time meeting could really go well. Spencer leads the way and I follow, squeezing his hand. We walk into Diana's private room, she's staring out the window, soft classical music is playing from a stereo in the room. There are cozy blankets and pillows on the bed and on the couch area as well as neat little knick knacks all throughout the room. I notice that it all seems to be mostly plush decorations or plastic decorations that couldn't be used to hurt others or herself. Spencer knocks on the door frame, causing Diana to stir from her daze. She turns and smiles wide when she realizes who pulled her out of her daydream. She stands and comes to wrap her arms around him in a hug. She says "oh Spencer, my boy, I've missed you such a great deal! How are you doing?" Spencer smiles softly and hugs her back "I'm wonderful, mom, how are you doing?" She pulls back and smiles "just splendid!" Spencer turns his gaze to me before returning it to his mom. "Mom, there's someone I'd like you to meet. This is Annie, my girlfriend." She turns to me with slight shock and smiles warmly before pulling me into a hug as well. She says "so you're the angel who takes care of my son and makes him so happy. I can't thank you enough. Ever since he had that hospital stay I knew he sounded different, in a good way. I'm sure it's all thanks to you." I blush in shock and say "why thank you for such high praise, Mrs. Reid, I can't thank you enough for raising this wonderful man you have here." She continues smiling and says "please, Annie, call me Diana." I smile and nod, "noted! We brought dinner, should I set it up for us?" Spencer says "I can do that, Annie." I shake my head and say "no, sit and have some time to catch up with your mom. I'll set up the food in here and gather the necessary utensils and get us all drinks from the cafeteria." Diana smiles and says "there are drinks available at the nurses' station, you don't have to trek all the way down to the cafeteria." I smile and nod before leaving the room to give them some privacy. I decide to heed Diana's advice, but take my time and stop by the restroom to ensure they've had ample time to talk about anything they may want to discuss privately. I go to the nurses' station and ask for the requested drinks, the nurse smiles and hands me the drinks from a mini fridge and I slowly make my way back to her room.

Spencer's POV

I appreciate Annie giving us privacy, but I would hate for her to feel unwelcome or outcast when she's around the two of us. I decide to worry about it later and spend the time with my mom. I smile at her and ask "how are you doing, really? I'm sorry I haven't been out to visit as much." My mom shushes me and says "nonsense, Spencer, I love telling all of my friends how my son is saving the world. It's so much better than Mildred's son who is a doctor. He's only an MD while you are working on your THIRD PhD. I'll always be excited to see you, whether it's been mere seconds or years. I'm just so happy you could come visit and be here on Christmas Eve!" I nod and say "Annie wanted to be here until Christmas Eve, but her family does a big Christmas Eve celebration every year and she doesn't want to miss it." Diana nods "I can already tell how wonderful she is, from the brief interaction we just shared and from what you've written me." I only blush and nod at her words. My mom continues "so, are you planning to marry her?" My eyes go wide at the question and I think about it. The immediate answer coming to mind is yes. I nod and say "yes, absolutely. I've never known, let alone dated, somebody who loves with her whole heart quite like she does. She is beautiful, hilarious, intelligent, compassionate, she's just all around wonderful. I don't want to spend a day in my life without her." My mom nods and pats my knee "anybody with a good pair of eyes can see from miles away how much you love that woman....and the same goes for being able to see how much she loves you. When are you going to ask her?" I shake my head "we haven't even been together for a year yet, mom." My mom shakes her head "that doesn't matter. What will matter in the end is how you spent the time you had together." I smile at her and say "all that would change is a ring and the titles. We already live together." My mom nods "if nothing would really change, and you want to get married, then you should especially do it soon, while you're still young." I chuckle and say "I think you just want a wedding." She smiles and nods "and grandchildren." My eyes go wide "we are especially not in a rush for that." Mom chuckles and nods "that's probably for the best at the moment. I want you to be happy more than anything. If she makes you happy then I want you to seal the deal and enjoy your lives together for as long as possible." I nod, still blushing, and say "well I will definitely be working towards that goal, don't you worry." Just then Annie returns with drinks and smiles at us "y'all ready to eat?" I notice her accent is thicker than normal, she's nervous. Very nervous. I smile and stand, walking over to comfort her slightly. I nod and say "I'm ready if the two of you are." Mom stands and walks over to the table, noticing the packaging for the first time. She says in disbelief "you went to the diner Spencer and I used to go to when he was a child! We loved that place." I nod "I still love it, I go there every time I visit." Annie smiles, following the conversation, and says "well I am most honored to be included in the tradition." Mom smiles and says "you're family now, of course you're included in the tradition."