Baby Shark Week - Spencer Reid x Fem! Reader
Spencer tries to figure out how to deal with his daughter's first period, with you out of the house...
3rd Person pov
It was strange to have a day when Spencer was off work and you were off running errands... It meant he had the day with his daughter! He adored you, but that adoration only increased the day you gave birth to Lydia Diana Reid, this beautiful little girl, born with curls and big brown eyes. You always joked that she had the audacity to look more like Spencer, despite having carried her for nine months, but he knew you were kidding, you loved her just as much as he did.
His job took him away from home a lot, he would always feel the intense guilt of missing so many of Lydia's firsts. First steps, first words, first spaghetti (even if that one was immensely messy), he'd missed all of them... But he also felt hugely lucky, lucky that, even with his job, you still loved him. Even with his job, Lyddie still loved him. She loved days spent with her father, whether it was more something Spencer wanted to do, like watching a documentary in another language, or something she wanted, like drawing. Today, they decided to do something they both enjoyed, simply cuddled up in bed, using his and you shared bed as it was the biggest, reading their own books.
Lydia was happily reading her fantasy series she'd started a few days ago, already beginning the second book, clearly taking after her father in reading speed, to Spencer's delight. She was leaning up against Spencer's shoulder as he read one of the heavy, hard backed books from his shelves, every now and then, his hand would brush back her hair that so resembled his unruly locks. They'd probably been sat there for an hour or so, before Spencer remembered that growing children needed to eat.
Lydia was eating and sleeping more and more as she grew, dealing with the growing pains and hunger that came with being a twelve year old, she was excited about a lot of things that came with being a teenager, going shopping with her mom for new clothes, wearing a bra, talking about dating. But this wasn't something she was really expecting, or looking forward to...
Spencer placed a gentle hand on Lyddie's head, "Come on you, gotta get some lunch in you," He said smiling, kissing her on the head. Lydia smiled, before shifting to get off the bed, only to be hit by a peculiar feeling, like a rushing between her legs, it was dreadfully uncomfortable, and she wasn't entirely sure what it was, so she quickly excused herself to the bathroom. Spencer was confused by her sudden disappearance, but shrugged it off and went to prepare lunch, something relatively healthy to avoid your wrath, last time you found out that all the two had eaten were cup noodles, you weren't happy.
After making some sandwiches and pouring some juice, Spencer went to find Lydia, realising she hadn't come out yet, it had been a while... He wandered over to the bathroom, knocking gently, "Sweetness, are you alright?" He asked softly, getting no response, aside from some sniffles. He got more worried, he didn't try opening the door, not wanting to invade the poor girl's privacy, "Lyddie, what's going on?" He asked, more urgently this time. He heard Lydia sigh through cries.
"Dad... I think I got my period... I don't know what to do... I tried looking through the cabinets in here but mom hasn't got anything..." She said in a sad murmur. Spencer's eyes widened, as much as this was exciting and important, he also thought of it as a cruel joke from the universe, when he said he wanted to be a part of more of Lydia's firsts, this was not what he meant!
"Dad?" Lydia spoke again, slightly louder. Spencer realised he had yet to respond to his upset little girl, well no longer his little girl he supposed...
"R-right, um..." He stammered, "I can call your mom?" He asked softly, "And I think I still have some emergency pads for your mom, I can grab those." He offered.
Inside the safety of the bathroom, sat on the toilet, Lydia wiped her tears, smiling at her dad's awkwardness, "Yes please, thanks dad." She said with a shake of her head, of course her dad had an emergency period stash. Spencer was almost shaking, he rushed back to the kitchen and grabbed his phone, finding your contact and immediately calling, hoping to all the deities he didn't believe in that you answered.
You were stood in the dairy aisle of the grocery store, looking through some of the items, when your phone began buzzing in your pocket, pulling it out, you saw Spencer's contact, his goofy I.D picture as he contact photo. Smiling, you answered, "Hey bambi, how's daddy daughter day?" You asked cheerfully.
Spencer shuddered a sigh, "Um, it was going fine..."
Immediately your smile dropped, "What happened? Is Lyddie okay?" You asked frantically.
Spencer realised he should've phrased that sentence better, "Sorry, yeah she's fine- I mean, kind of-"
You began getting frustrated, not knowing what was happening with your daughter, but not wanting to snap at your husband, "Spence, please, just tell me what's going on." You said, trying not to sound too stressed out, it didn't sound confident.
Spencer took a breath, "She got her first period..." Spencer mumbled, it's not like the concept of periods was embarrassing to him, he'd been with you for years, dealing with many, many of your monthly cycles, but this felt different... I mean, this was his baby girl... She was growing up and was going to be dealing with this every month for years, bleeding, cramping, vomiting, worse? It wasn't a pleasant idea for him.
You sighed, "That's all? Is she alright?" You asked, immediately taking the shopping cart and heading to the feminine hygiene section, "I think I have some spare pads somewhere in our room." You continued, knowing that was probably why Spencer was so flustered.
The flustered man in question sighed in relief, "Thank god, thank you," He whispered into the phone. You chuckled, realising just how flustered your husband was, "I don't know why this is so weird to me, I've helped with hundreds of periods, hell I've delivered babies, why is this so different?" Spencer asked, going to your shared bedroom to find your secret stash.
You chuckled, picking out a variety of different products, fully prepared to walk your daughter through each of them and find the best fit, "Because she's yours," You said gently, "It's different this time, don't you remember how worried and overbearing you became when I got my period with you the first time, when we'd started dating?" You asked.
Spencer chuckled wryly, he supposed overbearing was an accurate statement, he was rushing around his apartment, 'period-proofing' as you said, making sure there were vegetables in his fridge (for once) that were high in iron, wondering if you needed him to go to the store for stuff, already planning the conversation with a female store clerk, about which products to buy, which to avoid, help for soothing cramps, the whole nine yards. "Yeah, I panicked..." He argued weakly.
You laughed, "You were insane," You smiled, "But in the best of ways. Lyddie is going to be just fine, I'll be home soon, she can choose to stay in the bathroom and wait for me, or try and sort something and wait somewhere else, make sure she has some tea and a hot water bottle or a heat pad," You said, reminding Spencer of 'The Drill', the same things he'd been doing for you for years, that had somehow completely slipped his mind.
"Right, the drill..." Spencer murmured, taking a breath. "See you soon, I love you," He murmured. You responded with a quiet love you too, before hanging up and picking up some other things.
When you managed to finally get home, making your way through traffic, you immediately went looking for Lydia, you wandered for a bit, before finding not Lyddie, but Spencer. He was sat against the bathroom door, smiling having a conversation with Lydia about scientific inaccuracies in her favourite show, he saw you coming, smiling softer, "She didn't wanna come out, so I offered to wait with her," He smiled, as if what he said wasn't the sweetest gesture.
After getting Lydia sorted, Spencer waiting a fair ways away from the bathroom, not wanting to eavesdrop, the two of you came out of the bathroom, your arm was wrapped around her shoulders and Lydia had a more relaxed look on her face. "You did great," You whispered, pressing a kiss to her temple, "You wanna eat?" You asked, having saw the lunch Spencer had prepped.
Lyddie's face turned pale, almost green at the idea, you chuckled, "Okay no lunch, but at least have on of these, okay?" You asked, handing her a sports drink, full of electrolytes.
Spencer had been so worried, he came over and wrapped his arms around the both of you, "So proud sweetness," He whispered to Lydia, trying not to cry at the idea of his girl being a woman. Lydia laughed, but it was a strained laugh.
"Dad, you're gonna make me cry," She laughed, wrapping her arms around his middle. Spencer chuckled, meeting your gaze over Lydia's head, he smiled, mouthing praises. "Hey dad?" Lydia asked softly, Spencer looking down, humming an answer, "Can we go back to your guys' room, watch something?" She asked, not shy, but definitely more subdued.
Spencer nodded, trying not to be too 'overbearing' as you'd put it, the three of you headed back to the master bedroom, Lydia immediately settling in the middle, just as she had when she was a toddler, so many year ago, grabbing the remote. She shuffled uncomfortably, "God pads are uncomfortable," She grumbled.
You laughed loudly, "Welcome to the wonderful world of womanhood my love," You chuckled, "You'll never get used to it, but your dad will try to help," You said, smiling at Spencer.
Spencer still feels guilty about missing so many firsts, but that was a first he would always keep close to his heart.
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Been a while huh? Sorry! Went through a lot of badness recently, but I hope I'm finally on the mend! Hope you guys enjoyed this one!