A/N: SPOILERS. WALK AWAY RIGHT NOW IF YOU HAVE NOT WATCHED THE FINALE.
So, I watched the finale and was pretty much speechless for the rest of the night. I was dead set against them writing in the pregnancy (too soon, too soon, too soon!), but after watching the end of the episode a couple of times over and melting at Booth's wide-eyed smile, I've fallen for it. So of course, like everyone else, I had to write about it.
Hope you enjoy!
He's very quiet for a long moment, so quiet that she's suddenly terrified. Did she tell him too soon? Too quickly? Did she give him enough warning? She stands her ground and searches his face for any hint of emotion, her breath suspended painfully in her chest. She'd known she should have waited. She'd been holding the truth in all day, and now it had come out. He had acted so enthusiastic about Angela's baby, and she'd thought—she'd hoped— he'd be just as ecstatic about their own. But now, he's just silent, and she's terrified.
She stares straight at him, not daring to look away, and wants to say, "Booth?" She wants to prompt him. She wants him to say something, because every moment he doesn't speak, she's that much closer to running. It was too soon, he isn't ready, he doesn't want a baby…
Finally, ever-so-slowly, his lips drift upwards. It takes her a moment to realize that he's smiling and that he's giving her an incredulous, bright-eyed look.
"Bones," he breathes, "are you serious?"
She can't help but return his smile, and a laugh bubbles out of her in sheer relief. "You don't…You're not mad? You're okay with that?"
He laughs too, his eyes so, so bright. "I'm okay with that? Bones, I'm so okay with that it's insane!" Stepping into her space, he brings his hands up around her slightly swollen stomach, not touching but just hovering. "God, Bones, when…what did you…how?"
At this, she laughs again, the relief making her knees weak. He's okay with it. "What do you mean how, Booth? Children are conceived through sex."
He rolls his eyes at her, his smile so wide it looks like it hurts. "God, Bones, I don't even…I can't even…" His gaze flicks from her stomach to her face as he shakes his head helplessly. "God, I don't have anything to say. Except—can I kiss you?"
Grinning widely, she nods, and he's crushing his lips to hers a second later. He's kissing her, but then he's laughing too hard to continue, and he pulls away, holding her upper arms to keep her close. "Sorry," he gasps, "sorry. It's just…" He shakes his head and pulls her instead into a tight hug. "Bones, I can't even begin to tell you what I'm feeling. God. A baby."
"Is this good? This is okay?" she asks tentatively, still uncertain. She's relieved, yes, but she's still unsure of herself, of what this means for the both of them. What on earth happens now?
"Bones," Booth replies, pressing a kiss to her neck as he hugs her, "just stop talking right now. If you ask me one more time if this is okay, I'm going to have to kiss you again."
She laughs, but still can't resist pressing, "So it is good?"
His kiss answers her, cutting her breath off in the most delightful way. He pulls away quickly with a laugh and looks down, eyes gleaming. "Can I…?"
When she nods, he reaches out and touches her stomach with a warm, gentle hand, his fingers spread across her abdomen.
"You won't be able to feel anything," she tells him matter-of-factly.
"Be quiet, Bones," he whispers back. "I'm trying to enjoy the moment." He crouches and presses his ear against her stomach, that open-mouthed smile still spread across his face. "I think I hear something."
She shakes her head and laughs. "That's impossible, Booth. Most women don't even feel movement until their second trimester, let alone hear noise."
"Hush," he replies, sending her a mock-glare. "This is our baby here, Bones. Our baby." The surprise registers in his face all over again, and he just crouches there for a long moment, wonder spread across his expression. "Our baby," he murmurs, ear pressed against her still relatively-flat stomach.
She doesn't move because she doesn't want to shatter the perfection of the moment. She's pregnant with Booth's child. He's more excited than she's ever seen him before, and the baby seems to be turning out to be a positive leap forward. All of her fears of rejection and regret have been blown away. She won't be doing this alone, like she'd been terrified of. How can a moment be more perfect?
"Bones," he whispers after a long moment, "what does this mean?"
Not understanding, she gives him a quizzical look. What does this mean? "I'm having a baby, Booth."
He chuckles quietly against her stomach, sending a tickle through her. "I heard you the first time. What I meant was, what does this mean for us?" His expression sobering, he asks, "Are you okay with this?"
Is she okay with this? Yes, yes she is. At first, when she saw the results of that first pregnancy test, she'd been horrified. Horrified, terrified, simply disbelieving. She'd sat on the floor of her bathroom for a good hour, wondering if it could be a false positive. But the next one had been positive too, and so had the next two. It was statistically impossible to have four false positives in a row, wasn't it? And then she'd panicked. What if Booth didn't want her? Didn't want a baby? He already had one child out of wedlock; surely he didn't want another one. But he was intensely religious, so he wouldn't believe in abortion, would he? So he'd feel obligated to take care of her, and if there was one thing she didn't want from him, it was obligatory care. So she just wouldn't tell him. But how could she not tell him? She'd be showing soon, and he'd know. He'd know and guess that it was his child, and then he'd be angry at her for not telling him. The sooner she said something, the better.
So she'd been prepared to tell him with the grim mindset of a person facing punishment. But then she'd thought about it, thought of all the possibilities and opportunities, and remembered why she'd wanted a child in the first place when she'd asked for Booth's sperm. She'd remembered his words—how he didn't want her to have a child without his direct involvement—and that had given her some hope. For both the baby and for them, together.
And now, she's okay with it. After seeing Booth's reaction, she's caught his excitement, and she can honestly say she's completely, totally fine with having a baby. Maybe even as happy as he is.
So, she answers simply, "Yes. I'm okay."
Nodding, he stands and takes her hand. "So. For us, what does this mean?" After a moment of hesitation, he adds firmly, "You can't have this baby without me, Bones. It's my child too, and I won't let you do this alone. We're in this together whether you like it or not."
She smiles at him, because leaving him out of this has never been an option in the first place. "Of course we are, Booth. Of course I want you with me. I told you, you're the father." And she means that in every possible way.
At that, he smiles his brightest smile yet and squeezes her hand. "I'm going to be a father."
"You already are one," she reminds him with a grin.
"Parker's going to have a baby brother!" Booth exclaims suddenly, wonder crossing his face. "Or a sister!" He laughs giddily and shakes his head in disbelief. "He's going to love this. He's going to go nuts."
"We're going to tell him?" she asks, relishing the warmth of his fingers around hers and the knowledge that he's going to be with her through this. "Are we going to tell everyone?"
"We can't exactly hide it," he returns, eyes bright. "Oh God, Bones, I can just see their faces now. And Sweets! The poor kid's just going to die."
"That would be unfortunate," she laughs, envisioning the psychologist keeling over in shock. "As irritating as he can be, I would be sad if he died."
"Right, Bones," Booth answers, snorting with laughter. "You'd just be glad he was gone, along with his soft science."
"Psychology is a soft science," she insists, but she's smiling. She's smiling because Booth was right, because this is the best thing that's ever happened to her, and because she's excited for what the next forty weeks will bring. She's excited and she is ready.
"Will you be with me?" she asks abruptly, catching his eyes.
He understands immediately what she's asking. "Of course, Bones," he answers without hesitation. "I'll be with you every step of the way. I'll hold your hair back when you're having morning sickness, I'll run to the store at four in the morning when you're having weird cravings, I'll put up with all your crazy mood swings. I'll hold your hand at every checkup, I'll help you name the kid, and I'm going to be with you when you need me. We're in this together, remember?" And he gives her a smaller smile, less blinding but completely honest. And, even if she doesn't recognize it now, filled with the most love he has to give. It's a smile that has always been for her.
She's not worried. She's not afraid. She is ready because he is.
Leaning forward, she pulls him down for a quick kiss. "Together," she breathes against his lips, and she feels suddenly so light that she could fly, as irrational as that sounds.
"Come home with me," he whispers, his gaze dark and soft.
She nods. "All right. Yes."
He hails a cab, and as she gets in, she remembers suddenly the first time they met and how it ended. That time, neither of them had been even close to ready, and she'd left alone. He'd been left in the rain, and she'd left looking back. Now they've come full-circle, a revolution about their axis, their center. This time, they get into the cab together, Brennan tucked up close against Booth's side, and this time, neither of them are looking back.
There's no reason to anymore.
A/N: Yes, sorry for two author's notes. But quick question: Should this stay a one-shot, or should it be multi-chapter? If I pick this up, I will not-repeat, WILL NOT-be dropping my other stories. Promise. So, thoughts?