Prison changed Spencer. Anybody who knew him could see that.

Spencer’s life has never been a walk in the park. From his mother’s schizophrenia, to his father walking out on him with nothing more than a letter when Spencer was only twelve, to the immense bullying he faced in his adolescence for being intellectually gifted… those were only the beginning.

The FBI was both a blessing and a curse in Dr. Reid’s life. He loved his job. Being a Profiler, saving lives. Making a difference. But there were certainly cons to compete with the pros.

His second year as a Profiler, he was abducted and tortured by an unsub. That led to a Dilaudid addiction on his part, which he had to deal with alone. His sort-of-girlfriend was later shot in front of him before he even got the chance to touch her, every surrogate father figure he’d met through the BAU had left him just like his biological father. And then there was the prison debacle. Where he was forced into relapse and stuffed into a maximum security prison for 3 months.

But even throughout all of that, he may have lost a bit of his spark. But he never lost his empathy.

Spencer was forced to do things behind bars that had him questioning his morality. But at the end of the day, he was constantly being reminded of what a good person he is by the team.

That included you.

You were transferred to the BAU temporarily while Spencer was in prison. Plucked right from the academy. Your scores were highly impressive, some of the best the Bureau’s ever seen. Your background in forensic psychology was what ultimately got you the position.

Once the team had proved Spencer’s innocence and gotten him released, Unit Chief Prentiss made the decision to make you a permanent member of the BAU.

That made you the youngest team member. Which is where Spencer previously sat. He’s still the second youngest, despite being over 10 years older than you.

He knows how it feels to not be taken seriously. To feel like the underdog. Easily overlooked.

Spencer hasn’t known you long. A little over a year. But in that timeframe, you’ve become relatively close friends. He’s never been great with social interaction, but you two get along regardless.

Even if you didn’t, though, Reid’s a Profiler. Trained in reading behavior. He knows what frustrations in result of underestimation looks like.

And you’re crossing off all those boxes as of late.

You’re quieter. You’ve been slowly pulling away, turning down invitations to hang out with the rest of the team. Allowing yourself to become sort of an outcast.

And Spencer can’t just let that happen. Knowing he used to be in that position.

The team was currently in Santa Barbara on a case. Alvez, JJ, and Simmons were visiting the most recent dump site, Lewis was at the coroner’s office. Rossi, Prentiss, you and Reid were at the local sheriff’s department building the Profile.

Spencer was seated beside you. At first, he was inspecting your expressions, but he couldn’t help but admire the way your hair fell around your face.

“This red marking the unsub’s leaving on the victim’s chests is what’s stumping me. It’s applied so messily for someone with such organized behavior.” Emily stated, which got a nod of affirmation from Rossi. Spencer was still watching you. Brows furrowed, lower lip between your teeth.

You were onto something. But he knew nobody else was gonna pick up on that, and you weren’t gonna speak up without prompting.

“What’re you thinking, {{user}}?” Spencer chimed in, leaning his forearms on the table and lacing his hands together.