"Nice quote, but there's a reason why you remember your first lover. Those feelings are very strong and that's when it's some random person, not when you have the friendship we have," he answered, knowing that they were both using words as a crutch. Words were safe, intellectual debates could go on forever, although they would be a lot more long-lasting if Reid hadn't decided to straddle him all of a sudden.
Derek didn't have it in him to push him off, but as Reid went on, the tension increased. Reid might pretend to be practical, but he was also playing a very dangerous game. "The fact that I haven't been with anyone was a conscious choice, because I didn't want to get involved with anyone working under me. With a group this small, the likelihood that random sex leads to emotions is very high. With you, it's a guarantee."
He nodded. "Yes, it would be bad, Reid, because I don't want a relationship. There's a different between being friends who have sex and what you're asking. With what you want, I'd never find that person, because I'd be emotionally involved with you. Can't you see the difference?" He closed his fingers around Reid's hand and pulled it away from his face. "I love you, Reid, and sex I can do, but we're world apart when it comes to what we want out of this. You are-" He smiled. "You're my brilliant genius that is just discovering his sexuality and you expect what everyone does at the beginning. I've been doing it for too long to attach any meaning to it."
He sighed. "It would never be equal, Reid. We would never be equal, and while I wouldn't care if we were home and you were some random person, but we're not home, and you're not some random person."