DISCLAIMER: I own nothing but my humble computer and some season DVDs. How sad.
A/N: I really wish they had a special section for entering in disclaimers and author's notes when you go to publish a story. Or maybe they do and I need to get my contact lens prescription upped...
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He knew all of this about her when it started. He knew how stubborn she was, how untrusting and restrained she could be, and he loved her all the same. He knew that it wouldn't always be easy, but then, had it ever been? With them it was always give-and-take, fifty-fifty - and he wouldn't have it any other way.
It had been six months now that Booth and Brennan had been involved as more than partners, more than friends. Booth knew she didn't want to define it, but he considered them to be dating. He didn't just come to the lab for cases anymore, but to take her out to lunch (when he could get her away from another set of bones). There was rarely a night they didn't spend together, typically stumbling in the door ripping each other's clothes off after another sexually-charged day at work. In the field or the lab, he would purposefully stand too close to her and wait for her to get flustered (as she always did). And she would whisper suggestively into his ear when no one was around to hear, causing him to swallow nervously and refuse to meet her eyes lest he take her right there. But beyond their obvious passion, there was depth to what they had, even in the small things. She didn't tell him off for putting his hand at the small of her back, a move that would previously have elicited lectures on unwelcome alpha-male tendencies. And the way she looked at him sometimes… he could see in her eyes that she truly did love him, even though she'd be the last to admit it.
So one morning, as Booth watched the peaceful sleeping form of his partner, he started to think about their situation. For the past month, they had spent almost every night at his apartment. She had slept - just slept - over when he had Parker, even, and he could tell by watching the two of them interact that she wasn't as bad with kids as she claimed. She kept clothes in his closet now, because it was so much less of a hassle than having to go back to her own apartment for clothes in the morning. And in his kitchen cabinet, he now had her favorite breakfast cereal - surprisingly, Froot Loops. He could sense the domesticity of their current arrangement, and he couldn't help but wish she could just call his apartment home.
He was distracted from his pondering by the sound of the alarm clock. Next to him, Brennan groaned and rolled to the side of the bed to turn it off. She turned back to Booth with a smile on her face, and said, "Good morning."
He just smiled and brought his lips to hers for a gentle kiss. He pulled back, smiled again, and asked, "Coffee?"
"Yes, please," she yawned, stretching her arms over her head.
When he came back in, she had already gotten dressed, and was standing at the dresser putting on a necklace. He came up behind her, placing the coffee and a key on top of the dresser. His arms wrapped around her and he started kissing her neck.
"Seeley," she laughed. "Seeley, come on we have to get going." And then she reached for her coffee, and froze.
"What is this?" she asked in a stiff voice.
Her tone caused Booth to pause in his actions.
"A key," he said, tentatively.
"Why?"
"Why is it a key? Are we feeling existential this morning?" he joked, hoping to lighten the now darkening mood.
She stalked away from him to the front hall, bag in hand.
"Well, if the key turns in a lock, and no one asked for the key or even wanted the key, does it make a sound?" And she slammed the door on her way out.
Booth remained standing in the bedroom, frozen in disbelief. "What did I do wrong?" he wondered aloud.
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I'm not going to ask you to review... but if you don't I'll sic Brennan on you after someone's hit on Booth. Now that sounds scary.