Author: AuditoryEden
Rating: K+
Warnings: Um...IDK, just safety really.
Notes: My first foray into the world of Bones fan fiction. X_X.
Possession of the Facts
One moment the crew had been talking and laughing, Booth an d Bones teasing each other in the way that they were apt to do, Bones occasionally turning to coo over Angela's pregnant stomach with the other girls, the whole room abuzz with laughter and conversation, reunion. The next, Dr. Burnbaum had dropped to one knee in front of Brennan, fumbling in his pocket.
The lab staff grew quiet and both Booth and Brennan froze in their seats. Booth glanced back and forth between his partner and the archeologist quite obviously about to whip out a ring. Bones' posture was stiff, shocked, and her eyes were wide. Even those not so familiar with her mannerisms as Booth could tell that she was pulling away from the man in front of her.
Dr. Burnbaum, however seemed oblivious. He pulled out the tiny black velvet box that so many girls dreamed about, and held it aloft, in the direction of his date. The shaky breath he drew could be heard through the whole bar, as those in other parties, or sitting alone, turned to see why the noisiest group had fallen silent. He exhaled, and Brennan twitched back minutely, reaching with one hand for Booth's arm.
"Temperance Brennan," he began, his voice constrained and passionate, "Will you do me the infinite honor of becoming my wife?"
The whole bar held it's breath, but those in the Jeffersonian party were reacting differently than those in the general audience. Angela, hands clasped on top of her burgeoning stomach, had her eyes closed and her brows furrowed in a look of sympathy. Cam was shaking her head, hand shielding her expression. Hodgins was frowning on the whole scene, Daisy bit her lip, and Sweets looked disbelieving. Booth's face was solid stone, drawn and expressionless. Brennan gave a tiny shudder, eyes wide. Her partner made a tiny move with his hand as if to grasp Bones' arm.
Abruptly, she stood. She was shaking slightly and her mouth moved as if with speech, but no sound left her lips. Burnbaum lowered the box slightly. "Bren, are you...?"
She shook her head minutely, trembling, and ran.
"Bren!" The archeologist called after her, and made to follow her, but Booth stopped him, looming over the slightly shorter man with an expression of thunder. No one from the lab seemed surprised at Brennan's reaction, including Daisy and Sweets. Angela was shaking her head, sympathetic look still firmly in place. Booth glared at the man, before turning around and jogging out after Brennan. Brennan's would-be suitor stood, looking shocked.
"Sweetheart, you are not in possession of all the facts.," Cam informed him.
Hodgins nodded. "That was the Booth and Brennan show."
Angela sighed and chimed in, "Six years of outstanding sexual tension."
Sweets nodded. "Six years of third-party exclusion."
Burnbaum stammered, "B-but we were together for, like, a year..."
Angela hopped down off her stool and made her way over to the confused man. She placed a comforting hand on his shoulder and said, "Bren might have had a thing for you when she was off on the Maluku islands, lonely, separated from her partner of six years, but with Booth in the picture..." She shrugged and smiled a little. "Ball's in the other court now."
xXx
Brennan went rocketing out of the bar as quickly as her feet would carry her, given the fact that her shoes were high heels. As soon as the chilly air hit her face, however, she slowed, breathing deeply and trying to calm the angry flutter of her stomach. The cold felt good in her lungs, calming and cleansing. After a moment, she began to walk a bit more briskly. Then she heard the soft thumping of her partner's footsteps at something of a jog. Booth's arms wound around her, halting her progress and restraining her arms. She allowed him to hold her for a moment, before shrugging a little. Booth relaxed his grip on her, but didn't let her go.
"Booth, please?" she tried, but he just sighed.
"Are you alright, Bones?" he asked. She shrugged again, and tried to free herself half-halfheartedly. "He drove you here right?"
"Yes."
Booth released her, but kept a hand on her arm. "Let me drive you home."
There was no pause before she replied, "Yes."
xXx
Burnbaum was now seated at the bar with a glass of whiskey on the rocks. The assembled Jeffersonian team (plus psychologist), were now explaining the saga of Bones and Brennan to the unfortunate, newly shot-down man.
"Well, when they first got put together, they had a thing," Angela contributed.
Hodgins raised an eyebrow. "An earth shattering kind of thing. Nearly pulled the whole team apart. Don't think they shagged, but I wouldn't bet"
Cam piped in, "They're like Mulder and Scully, sexual tension times ten."
"Buffy and Angel," Angela added.
"Buffy ends up with Spike," Daisy put in.
Angela shook her head. "Hate to break your bubble, but that whole cookie speech? Buffy. And. Angel."
"Conjecture! Besides, Angel broke up with Buffy. Booth would not dump Bones," Daisy exclaimed.
"I never said Booth was Angel, sweetie. Bones is totally Angel."
Cam spoke before the other two could get into a groove, and said, "Well, they have the epic love of all time. End of story."
"I believe the proper term is 'soulmates'," Hodgins gravely informed him, slipping an arm around Angela's waist as best he could.
"The thing is," Sweets began, "Dr. Brennan has severe commitment issues. She doesn't usually have extended romantic relationships."
"Not ones that aren't mostly about sex," Angela volunteered. A look of consternation crossed Burnbaum's face.
The group all exchanged looks over and around him.
xXx
The car was silent, the complex silence which is full of other noises. Car horns, the engine, breathing, heartbeats, fidgeting, the squeal of the brakes, the leaky hum of the radio. The silence muffled the partners, wrapping around them like some omnipotent, flannel blanket, warm and comfortable.
"So, uh, what're you going to say to him?" Booth asked, quietly. Brennan shook her head and didn't answer right away. Her partner let go of the wheel with his right hand, and took her left.
After a moment, she spoke, her voice soft, almost inaudible. "I'm going to break up with him." She shrugged and exhaled. "It's the rational thing to do in the situation. Our relationship will naturally take damage from this. Too much damage."
"You don't care about him?"
Bones gave Booth a bland stare. "Based on my past relationships, what would you guess?"
He smiled a little. "You liked him for the sex."
"That would be the reasonable assumption, yes." Brennan closed her eyes, lay her head back against the headrest, and sighed. "This kind of situation, this is why I didn't agree to a relationship with you. In the event where one of us wanted...more, and the other didn't, there would be damage, damage we can't afford to have in our work."
"I would wait for you, Bones," Booth told her. "And I feel like you would wait for me."
xXx
"It's best to get over her and move on," Sweets councilled the archeologist.
Hodgins smirked and said, "When she first came to the Jeffersonian, we all wanted her, but we got over it."
"She was the ice queen," Angela added. "Since then she's become my best friend, and we all love her to death but—"
"No one's got a chance with her but Booth," Cam stated.
"They have a very interesting relationship, from a psychological point of view," Sweets added. "Total opposites, so they developed subconscious methods of bonding. He arrested her father, but that just brought them closer together."
"She doesn't trust guys," Angela noted, "But she trusts Booth."
xXx
"I'll walk you up."
Booth parked the car by the curb outside her building, and climbed out. While Brennan was still unbuckling her seat belt, he appeared by her door and opened it.
"Booth, you don't need to treat me like I'm made of glass," she scoffed at him, but he just rolled his eyes at her, continuing to hold the car door open. She rolled her eyes back at him, but allowed him to hand her out of the car. She grabbed her own purse, giving him a threatening look as he reached to pick it up for her.
"I just shot down a guy. That does not require any particular increase in the amount of respect you show me," she commented.
"Alright, if you say so," Booth agreed, then took her by the elbow to guide her towards the door.
She was quick to shake him off, and stopped, refusing to move. "Booth, what is going on here. I got proposed to by some dumb guy I was having sex with. I don't intend to accept him, and I don't understand why you're acting like this!"
"Uh, like what?" Booth asked sheepishly.
"Like..." She searched for the words. "All...nice...and gentlemanly."
"I am a gentleman! I'm nice!" he defended.
"Well, stop. It's weird," she ordered him, then, slightly flustered, pushed past him to the entrance of the building. He jogged a little to catch up with her.
"Look, Bones, you never just run from stuff, okay?" he told her as they got into the elevator. "I was worried. You can compartmentalize til the cows come home, but that doesn't mean you're okay."
"What do cows have to do with it?"
He sighed. "Never mind, forget the cows. I'm just saying, I'm worried about you."
"That's sweet," she told him, smiling a little, "And completely unnecessary." She pushed past him again as the elevator door opened. He huffed quietly, then turned to follow her.
"You don't have to get all huffy just cause I'm worried about you," he teased her as she unlocked her door. "I have a year's worth of stress to catch up on."
"Go catch up on it, then," Brennan told him, opening the door.
Before he could get another word in, she turned. "Good night," she said emphatically, and closed the door in his face. She counted to one hundred before looking through the peephole.
Booth was still standing there, looking bored.
The door swung open again, and he strolled into the apartment.
"Whatcha gonna do about your guy?" he asked. She smiled, closed the door, and raised her eyebrow saucily.
"I'll dump him in the morning."
xXx
Parting Comments: Well, since I'm going to have to burst a few bubbles, I might as well do it now.
The final scene was not meant to imply they had sex. It was meant to imply he spent the night at her apartment (Which, let's be frank, leaves room for plenty of other indiscretions), but I don't really think Booth would shag Bones right after they came back and she just shot down her colleague-with-benefits of one year. If you choose to believe that they did...Alright, just don't tell me. Questions should be asked in reviews (and I quite like reviews, winkwinknudgenudge).
I CANNOT WAIT UNTIL SEPTEMBER.
Hugs and Kisses,
Eden