Monday mornings. Hectic for most people. The weekend has ended, time to drag yourself out of the comfort of your bed and get to work or school. Most people relying on the support of caffeine to make it through the day.

That's why every place open in the early hours that sell coffee, or other caffeinated drinks, are packed. The lines all holding people that are nervous and or anxious about being late to there 9 to 5 jobs or the more pressing jobs. Nurses, engineers, teachers, doctors, the list never ending. Some students stressing about being late to their first class, wondering if they got all their assignments completed.

Not all people are rushing to get to work or to class, some people just getting off work, looking for a quick pick me up so they can make it home or complete the errands they have to run that day. Some people not having work or school to get to, just taking some time to enjoy an early breakfast at their favorite café. The few who make their own hours, choosing to get out early and complete their other daily tasks.

Despite the packed cafes and other establishments, the sidewalks seemed to be just as crowded. People rushing one way or another to get to those early morning jobs or classes, maybe even just trying to get home. No one paying attention to anyone other than themselves and their tasks at hand.

That being the reason two people, walking fast, both distracted by different things concerning something that only themselves know of, run right into each other. The man jumps back as he feels the hot liquid of the girls newly acquired drink soaking into the top layers he's wearing to help ward off the cold air.

"Oh my gosh!" The young woman gasps out, "I am so sorry! I wasn't watching where I was going and I-"

"No, it's fine. I wasn't really paying attention either," The older man cuts her off.

"No, no it's my fault. I swear I'll pay for w-whatever I ruined." She stumbles over her words, looking the man over for damage the hot drink may have caused.

"N-no, really, it's mostly on my jacket. No damage done, I swear." The young man stutters slightly as he assured the women that it was alright. "Is your camera alright?"

Looking down at the camera hanging from her neck, the woman quickly answers. "Oh, it's fine. It's an old one anyway." Calming down, the girl sends the tall man a smile, taking in his appearance. He was tall, on the skinny side, with shaggy hair, it suited him well, she thought. His brown eyes shining in the early morning light, a few strands of hair falling in front of them.

"At least let me buy you a coffee or something, I feel terrible and I need a new drink anyway." She holds up her empty, half squished cup for emphasis.

The young man looks at the girl, she was a bit shorter than him so he had to look down slightly to really see her face. She was beautiful, he had to admit. Her long brown hair was falling in waves around her shoulders. Freckles dotted around her nose. But what he seemed to focus on most were her eyes. Bright brown eyes shinning with the small smile that lit up her face as she looked up at him. It was just a small smile, simple, yet it seemed so bright. Something he didn't see a lot of these days.

"You really don't have too." He insists even though he found himself not wanting to leave her company just yet.

"I promise, it's no trouble, I want to. It's the least I could do." She finds herself saying while looking up at the stranger she ran into moments ago. There was something about him, something in his eyes. They seemed to hold so much. So much knowledge but also pain. They looked happy yet sad. Bright but dark.

"Ah, alright, if it's no trouble." The man nods, pulling her from her thoughts.

Shaking her head, she gives him a bigger smile. "No, no trouble at all. You know Lilly's? I've heard they have the best coffee." She asks while pointing over her shoulder, referring to the café near by that she had just come from. "If coffee is what you want of course." She quickly adds.

"Ye-yeah, a coffee is fine." He stutters again, actually surprised he hasn't more. He's never been great at talking with people, especially women.

"Okay great. Oh, I'm Ryder, by the way. Ryder Matthews." She introduces herself, suddenly remembering she hadn't given her name.

"Uh, Spencer, Spencer Reid." He notices she didn't offer her hand to shake, which he was grateful for, he thought it would make this awkward, or more awkward. She slowly turns around, motioning for him to follow, which he does.

"Again, I am so sorry for this." She tells him with an apologetic smile as they walked next to each other.

"It's fine, really. I didn't like this jacket that much anyway." It wasn't a total lie, he wasn't attached to the jacket but he did like it. But he could live without it and he could see how guilty she felt and didn't want to make it worse. He found that he liked her smile and didn't want to give her a reason to frown.

She smiles up at him as she opens the door to a little corner café that read "Lilly's". Spencer guesses it was maybe the owners name or something along those lines. It was a cozy little cafe, it smelled of freshly baked foods with a hint of coffee and chocolate. There were a few tall round table scattered around the floor with tall chairs to match, around the walls there were a few booths, some being window seats. Over to the left there were two couches and a chair facing each other with a large coffee table in the middle. The walls were a dark color, along with the dark hardwood floor. There was art and pictures lining the walls, adding the color the place needed.

As the duo walks up to the counter to order, a lady in a floral dress passes by them, having just received her order. "Just order whatever you'd like." Ryder says to Spencer as she leans on the counter.

"Hey Ryder, back so soon?" A small girl with a pixie cut questions from behind the counter.

"Hey Amy, I just love your company so much I purposely ran into someone and spilled my drink on them so I could come see you again." Ryder jokes with the young girl, teenager most likely, with a smile. Spencer realizes she was being sarcastic and smiles slightly at her easy going and light personality. It's refreshing as he finds himself surround by the opposite most times.

Amy gives a small laugh and shakes her head, not seeming surprised at all. She takes their orders, Ryder reordering her hot chocolate, stating that she wasn't much of a coffee drinker, and Spencer gets a normal cup of coffee with lots of sugar.

"I can't say I'm sorry enough. I've probably made you late for work or something." Ryder apologizes again as they set their drinks on a near by table, allowing Spencer to remove his chocolate stained jacket, leaving him in a sweater and button up shirt.

"That's alright, I don't mind." Spencer didn't mind being a few minutes late and he found himself not wanting to leave. It's odd, he thinks, he had only just met this woman yet she's had some affect on him. He's not sure what it is, but he can't seem to take his eyes away from her smile. "I hope I'm not making you late for anything." He adds quickly, hoping he wasn't inconveniencing her.

"Oh no, I wasn't on my way anywhere really. I have odd hours, I guess you could say." She chuckles, causing Spencer to smile. Even her laugh was beautiful, he thinks as he looks down at her. "I was just going to sit and read my book, nothing to exciting."

"What book?" Spencer questions, his interest peaked. Books are sometime he knew, something he could talk about.

"Oh, um.." Ryder trails off, setting he bag onto the table, careful not to knock their drinks off as she pulls out a book to show the young man beside her.

Spencer turns his head to get a better look at the cover and finds himself reading the tittle "Knights Gambit"

"Have you ever read it?"

"Uh no actually," Spencer says, surprising himself a little. He was familiar with the book. He was familiar with all of William Faulkner's books. He had just never gotten to that one. "Although I have read some of his other works."

"Really? You like to read?" She seems truly interested as she asks, setting the book down on the table.

"Yeah, I read a lot actually." He decides to keep the whole reading 20,000 words a minute thing to himself, he didn't want to scare her off. "Did you know that William Faulkner was rejected from joining the United States Army in 1914 because he was too short. He reportedly gorged on bananas and glasses of water before the medical examination, in order to give the impression that his short and puny frame was more robust than it appeared; the plan failed. Instead, Faulkner succeeded in joining the British army in 1917 – having forged letters from a fictional referee, a vicar named Edward Twimberly-Thorndyke."

"Really? I didn't know that." Spencer was surprised he hadn't gone off on one of his little rants sooner, it normally annoyed people, but Ryder didn't seem to mind, she actually seemed interested. "You don't meet a lot of people who read these days it seems." Ryder mumbles before taking a sip of her drink. She was amazed by this man. She had just met him but he intrigued her. He was one of the nicest people she'd ever met, that being after she spilled her drink all over him. She's not the biggest reader but she does love it and she's never met someone else who shares in her love. He was also kind of cute. She found herself not wanting to leave his company and for a moment her mouth seem to take over and say things before she even fully processed them. "You can barrow it if you'd like, I've already read it once and I'd hate for you to not get the chance to read it."

Spencer pushes past his surprise as he watches the woman in front of him. She seemed shocked by her own words, a pink tint coming to her cheeks as she looks down at the cup in her hands. "I mean," She quickly starts talking again, not allowing Spencer to get a word in. "You totally don't have to, but if you want I don't mind. I could just maybe write my number down and when your done we could meet up and give it back." If she was going to be honest, she was looking for an excuse to see him again. She knew he would have to leave soon and she would never see him again after he left. That thought itself bringing an odd feeling to her stomach, one she did not like.

"Re-really?" Spencer asks. He probably wouldn't normally do it but he thought it was the perfect excuse to see her again. He knew she couldn't possibly ever like him in that way, but he couldn't help the feeling he got when he thought of not seeing her again after he left. It was an odd feeling in his gut, and he didn't like it.

"Yeah, it's no problem and I did ruin your jacket. Here," Spencer watches as she digs through her bag, soon pulling out a pen. She opens the book and on the first empty page, she writes something down before closing it and handing it over to him. "Just read it and whenever you've finished you can call me or send a text."

Spencer carefully takes the book, opening the hardcover book to see what she had written. It was a number with her name below it, a smiley face following soon after. He smiles down at it, before carefully closing the book, almost like if he did it any faster it would all blow away.

"Th-thanks." He stutters, not knowing what else to say. He's never been in situation like this before. But she was just being nice right? She felt bad for spilling her drink on him and was trying to be nice.

"No problem really, I hope you enjoy it." Just as she fishes speaking, Spencer phone goes off. He mentally sighs, knowing what it meant. He wasn't ready to leave. Saying a quick apology, Spencer pulls out his phone to looks at the text he'd gotten.

"I'm sorry, that's work. I got to go." Spencer says regretfully as he looks up at the girl.

"Oh no, it's fine. I'm the one whos sorry, I hope I didn't make you too late and again, I sorry about your jacket." She gives him another smile and Spencer can't help thinking that he'd ruin all his jackets if it meant he could spend time with her.

"I-it's fine really, uh, thanks for the coffee and t-the uh the book." Spencer scoops up the book and slides it into his messenger bag, all the while smiling at Ryder.

At seeing his smile, Ryder's grew bigger. He had an amazing smile, she thought. It wasn't a big toothy smile but it was enough for her to see how amazing it was. "Yeah, just let me know when you finish it." Ryder says as she walks around the table, heading to the door with Spencer. "And," She starts hesitantly, "Maybe I could buy you another coffee sometime. Or any drink."

"Uh, um y-yeah. T-that'd be great." Spencer continues to stutter. Did this girl really want to spend more time with him? He had just thought she was being nice but now she's offering to buy him another drink sometime.

"Okay," Ryder breathes out with a smile. She surprised herself buy saying that, she's not normally the type, but there was something about this man and she found herself not wanting him to be out of her life just yet. So when he said yes, she gave a sigh a relief and smiled up at him. "I look forward to it."

"Y-yeah, me too." They both stand at the door for a moment, looking at each other before Ryder shakes her head.

"You're going to be even more late for work, I won't hold you up anymore."

"Right, thanks again for the coffee." Spencer says as he opens the door, allowing both of them to walk out onto the sidewalk.

"No problem, really. Well, I wish you a good day at work, and I hope you enjoy the book." Ryder motions to the messenger bag hanging off his shoulder, where the book now resides. Spencer knew it would only take him a few minutes to finish the book, but he wasn't going to tell her that just yet. He really wanted to see her again and didn't want to do anything to prohibit that from happening.

"Thanks, I'm sure I will." Spencer adjusts the strap on his messenger bag as he stops in front of Ryder. He wasn't sure what else he should say, he's been being cautious this whole time, not wanting to say something wrong.

"Alright, I guess I'll see you when you finish the book." Ryder gives him another smile, earning her one in return.

"Yeah, see you then." Spencer says before slowly turning to walk off. He knew he needed to get to work, Garcia texted him about a case, but it was like he was being drawn to this women. As he walks away it was like there was a rope pulling him back. He stops after a few strides and turns to see her still looking at him. When she catches his eye, she waves and sends him a smile. He'd only just met her but he couldn't seem to get enough of her smile. Smiling himself, Spencer waves back before turning and making his way into work.

*****

"You're late, you're never late." JJ states as Spencer walks into the briefing room.

"Yeah, what you do? Fall asleep on your couch watching Star Trek?" Morgan teases while the youngest team member takes a seat to his left.

"No, I uh... got a coffee." Spencer wasn't going to tell the team about Ryder. He knew the teasing would never end. And he would admit to himself that he wanted something that was untouched by his work. Spencer saw Ryder as something pure and untainted by all the bad things he sees everyday and he would do anything he could to keep it from infecting her. She was like a brightness seeping into all the darkness he sees. And he didn't plan on snuffing out that light anytime soon. If ever, if he could help it.

"Then where is it?" Emily questions, pulling him from his thoughts of Ryder. Reid looks to his left, seeing Emily's raised brow.

"I drank it." He quickly answers, wanting them to drop the subject already. He loved his team, he really did, they were his family, but sometimes he wished they would just let him keep some things to himself.

"What happened to your jacket?" Morgan asks, inspected Spencer still damp jacket that he hung on the back of his chair.

"Isn't there a case?" Spencer ignores his friends answer and asks one of his own instead, looking around at everyone.

"Yes, there is." Hotch speaks for the first time, drawing everyones attention to him. Reid didn't miss the small looks the team gave him as they all turned their attention to the screen as JJ turned it on. "If you would JJ."

As JJ starts to talk about the case, Spencer finds himself glancing down at his messenger bag. The bag holding a simple book with a few simple numbers, and finds himself thinking back to the most beautiful smile he's ever seen.

A spilled drink, a ruined jacket, and a love for books. Who knew that was all it took to change someones life forever?