Disclaimer: Not mine.
A/N: I was attempting to do the Toronto Star Crossword the other day and this idea came to me. I only got about eight or nine words, some English student I am! Anyway, I hope you like it.
The early morning sunlight filtered through the blinds as Booth rolled out of bed and made his way to the kitchen. He stretched his arms high over his head as a lazy smile stole over his handsome features. He reached the refrigerator and proceeded to grab the milk. He poured himself the first of three glasses that he would drink that day. He remembered boasting to Bones about his healthy eating habits and couldn't help but blush as he remembered her comment about what an excellent breeder he appeared to be. Trust her to be that clinical about sex.
He set his glass of milk on the table and after popping a couple pieces of multi-grain bread into the toaster he made his way to the front door to grab that day's newspaper. After perusing the headlines (all of them gloomy and depressing and he got enough gloomy and depressing at work) he opened up to the Crossword Puzzle. Booth sucked at Crossword Puzzles. He always had, but something inside of him got a perverse enjoyment out of seeing how many words he could actually figure out, all the while knowing that it was way over his head. It usually only ended up being one or two words, but like clockwork, every morning, he sat down to do battle with the daily Crossword. He wasn't the one that had a way with words, he thought to himself as his famous colleague came to mind.
He always refused the help offered him, insisting that if he was going to bomb it, he was going to do it all on his own. He picked up his pencil, arming himself as it were; David ready to face Goliath. Only this time David might not be so lucky; Booth didn't think that God ever weighed in on things as trivial as Crossword puzzles. He looked at the first clue:
Across:
1. Ragout, for one. Sounds foreign. Next!
5. Out of kilter. Men in skirts, Booth snickered to himself. Unfortunately that didn't fit. Next!
9. Presage. He knew he had a dictionary somewhere, but he was just too lazy to get up. Next!
13. The scientific study of the origin, behavior and the physical, moral and cultural development of humans. Yes, finally, one he knew! He carefully wrote in the blanks: ANTHROPOLOGY. He smiled to himself enjoying what he knew was probably going to be the only triumphant moment during this ill fated attempt.
Booth continued to struggle through the clues, finally reaching the end of the ACROSS section with only one single, solitary word filled in. He sat there contemplating another agonizing defeat at the hands of the Crossword Puzzle when he felt a soft pair of lips pressed against his neck. He turned his head and met those lips in a deep kiss.
"Good morning," he said quietly.
"Morning," she smiled sleepily at him. "You'd better get ready or you'll be late for work."
Booth looked at the clock.
"Shoot! Lost track of the time!" He planted one more kiss on her upturned lips before rushing to the washroom.
She made herself a coffee and sat down in his vacated seat. She looked at the Crossword and had to smile at the one word that he had managed to get. She grinned and picked up the pencil.
B B B B B B B B
Booth emerged from the washroom only twenty minutes later and made his way back to the kitchen. She was still finishing getting ready so he figured he'd put in a little more time in on his Crossword. Gearing up for another battle, he sat down and was poised, pencil in hand, when he emitted a loud groan.
"Bones! If I wanted your help I'd ask for it!"
Well, I hope you liked it. I think I just wanted someone to commiserate with, fictional or otherwise, over the difficulty of newspaper Crossword puzzles. If you're a wiz at them then I salute you and congratulate you on your extensive...ummm...what's the word...you know, that list of words that you know...oh yeah, vocabulary! I knew it would come to me.
Anyway, please, please tell me what you thought. Once again, I just love hearing from people, tell me anything! As you can see, I'm not above begging, so please tell me what you thought!