"For God's sake would you just leave the doctor at the door for once?" Bo stomps into the clubhouse and flings her jacket on the couch.
"What do you mean 'the doctor'?" Her girlfriend counters in an indignant tone, following the succubus.
"I mean stop being so logical and practical all the time!" Bo huffs as she opens the refrigerator, longing for a cold, cold drink and willing the cool air to calm her down.
Lauren, half confused and half offended, stands behind the succubus and decides to duke it out this time. "What's wrong with being logical and practical? How do you think I should act then?"
"I don't know – maybe you could show some passion!" After counting to three and knowing that Lauren won't relent this time, Bo settles for two bottles of water and places them on the counter. "You're always so calm! About everything! Like every time we fight, I still come back to an amazing dinner! And, and those yummy cookies!"
"Wait," Lauren says, eyes closed as she rubs her temples. "So you're saying you don't want dinner after we fight?"
"No!" Bo throws up her arms. "I'm saying get angry – get really angry when you want to! You can even start a cold war, or a fiery war, or any kind of war! God, Lauren, stop holding back and live a little!"
"But I am." The doctor's soft tone catches Bo by surprise and it confuses her further that Lauren is smiling, albeit sadly.
"I'm living, which means I'm breathing," Lauren says, looking down on the floor. "And every breath I take, it's one less breath from the 672,768,000 that I have in my lifetime, assuming that I live to 80."
The doctor takes a deep breath and points at her nose, smiling, to illustrate her point. "So every dinner we don't have together is one fewer meal, and if I withhold food from you, that's one fewer gesture to show that I care."
"Lauren," Bo steps forward and holds Lauren's hands, but Lauren shifts them to the cold bottle of water. "And every cold war means we speak to each other less. Every fiery war when we spiel hurtful words or be mean? That's less time we spend appreciating each other.
"So," The doctor encloses Bo's hands in hers, rubbing them gently, "The way I see it, it's less to do with being a doctor, and more with being aware that I'm human.
"One who loves you so much that she can't bear to waste a single moment with you. That she'll defy all the rules and be blind to any future heartache. That she wants to show you how she feels for you, regardless of the situation or consequences."
"Really, I don't know how you can say I'm always so calm and logical, Bo," Lauren lets out a mirthless laugh and steps away. "Because to me, it's the most illogical thing that I've done in my life. And I can't help it, because what I feel for you…it feels like someone lit a fire in me."
"Oh, Lauren…"
"Lauren," Bo says as she goes around the counter, chasing after the doctor.
"Lauren." She bends down, trying to catch the doctor's eye, but the doctor refuses.
"Lauren." Settling for a hug instead, she holds her girlfriend tight. "I'm sorry. I really am – I didn't mean for it to come across this way."
"But you did," Lauren says, her voice muffled as she buries her face in Bo's shoulder. "You think that I'm cold and that I don't love you enough."
"No, hon, no," Bo shushes her, rubbing her back and rocks them back and forth. "That's not what I meant at all."
"Look, I get what you're trying to do." Bo leads the doctor to the couch. "But hey," she says as she cups the doctor's face and strokes her cheeks with her thumbs. "The reason I say those things is that I want you to express yourself freely when you're with me.
"I love that you don't let me starve or just leave a protein bar on the counter for me when we fight – your cooking is amazing. It's so delicious that I have to fight Kenzi for the leftovers, remember?"
Lauren rolls her eyes, smiles softly and Bo heaves a sigh of relief.
"But when we fight, I want the chance to take you to your favorite restaurant," Bo says. "I want to buy you a lovely dress, tag a note with a crooked smiley face on it, and rehearse the cheesiest apology that I can come up with.
"I'll then persuade Trick to loan us his car, and I'll take my absolutely stunning girlfriend out to town, to remind everyone – and myself – of how lucky I am to have her, and that I'm such an idiot for getting into trouble with her."
Lauren laughs, and Bo feels her cheeks hurt from her own wide, wide smile. "There's the laugh I love." She coaxes and releases Lauren's face, holding her girlfriend's hands instead.
"I'm not always aware of our different lifespans, and sometimes I can't even get myself to think about it," the succubus continues. "But I don't want us to hold back because of that – I want us to go through everything together, and that includes the best – and the worst."
"That way, when it does happen, I can keep a complete set of memories with me," Bo's voice turns a pitch higher, her eyes watering slightly from the thought, but she soldiers on. "I want to miss the times you make me sleep on the couch, or how you won't let us eat anymore pizza, or when I have to grovel at your feet, begging you to forgive me."
"And that's it, Lauren. I want to have to fight for you, fight for your love and work damn hard at our relationship." The succubus nods fervently. " I want you to keep me on my toes, to remind me that I better not let up and give someone else a chance to barge in.
"You, Lauren Lewis, are absolutely amazing and incredible and the most giving person that I have ever known. I love you so much that I want to see every side of yours, and then tell you that I love you anyway."
Blushing, Lauren tries to look away, but Bo holds her face – gently – as well as her gaze. "I'm probably a lousy photographer, Dr Lewis, and that's why I have to work extra hard to capture your thoughts, your feelings and each moment of your life.
"I don't want a caricature of the doctor – I want Lauren Lewis, the whole meal deal. I want you to know that nothing you do or say will keep me away, and that you're worth everything that I have to give - and more.
"So Lauren, every breath that you take from what's remaining of the six hundred and seventy two million breaths, I would love to take it together with you. Will you do me the honor of sharing that?"
"Oh, Bo."