Hi all, thanks so much for your great reviews! I want to apologize for the delay on this chapter, I have been ridiculously lately and needed to take some time to brainstorm and think about the story. Enjoy, and don't forget to leave a review!

Chapter 4: Falling and Football

The school day passed both horrendously slowly and impossibly fast for Temperance Brennan and Seeley Booth. Their focus was completely on tonight's game. Booth was going over plays during class, making sure that he had not only memorized them, but that they were nearly instinctual. Brennan couldn't concentrate in class, especially those that she shared with Booth. He kept smiling at her with that ridiculous grin of his, which, as Angela had informed her, "made every girl in a ten mile radius swoon and drool."

Brennan was not only having problems with grins, but also glares. Most of the high school's girls were looking at her, some staring and some glaring. The ones who stared were those who were somewhat happy for her, and probably didn't realize that she went to school with them in the first place. The glares came from girls who were either Booth's ex-girlfriends or girls who were interested in him.

Brennan failed to understand why these girls would be jealous of her for wearing his jersey. After all, they were just classmates. They were just friends. She wasn't even sure if she liked him that much; after all, he was an egotistical, pigheaded jock who was a total womanizer. In the vernacular, he was a player. Although, Angela told her that since Brennan came to the school, Booth had broken up with his on-again-off-again girlfriend of four months, and that they were 'off' for good. Angela was constantly telling Brennan that she should pursue a relationship with Booth, as she believed they were "absolutely made for each other."

Finally, the final bell rang, signaling the end of the day. Angela and Brennan drove back to Angela's house to get ready. They were going to meet Hodgins at the field later on. Angela, being a die hard romantic, was thrilled that Brennan was wearing Booth's jersey. She gave her dark-wash skinny jeans to replace the faded flares she had worn to school, and put on a long-sleeved white shirt under the jersey for warmth. The outfit was completed with a pair of Brennan's dangley earrings and chestnut Uggs, the staple shoe for all high school girls. After dressing Temperance, Angela put on her outfit for the evening, which consisted of black leggings, silver Uggs, a green tank top, and a grey v-neck sweater. Angela applied some light make-up to both of them, so they looked "cute but not trampy", as she put it.

The ensembles had the desired effect. Upon seeing them, Hodgins' jaw opened a few inches and he gaped quite obviously for a few moments before regaining his composure and promptly closing his mouth.

"Hey Ange, hey Brennan," he greeted.

"Hey Jack," Angela replied, eyeing him up and down before meeting his gaze.

"Hi Hodgins," Brennan said, distracted and completely oblivious to the exchange between the other two. She was scanning the field for Booth, hoping to see him for a moment while he was practicing before the game started. She saw him near the fence not far from where their group was standing, and she walked over.

"Hey Booth," she greeted shyly. She felt a little awkward because his teammate wasn't far away, and he was looking at her in a rather disconcerting manner.

"Oh, hey Bones! I'm glad you could make it," he moved his weight from foot to foot, fidgeting anxiously. God, he couldn't wait for the game to start.

Across the field, Coach Jones stepped out from the locker room, ready to call his boys and give them their pre-game pep talk. He was flanked by the assistant coaches, Smith and Roberts, and the team's manager, Austin Fletcher. He spotted Booth, his star quarterback, passing distractedly to Hues, a wide receiver. He was talking to a girl who stood beyond the fence. Finally, he thought, Booth is dating a girl he actually likes. The coach decided that they made a good couple, and as Booth leaned closer to her, she gave him a hard punch to the shoulder that made him grimace. Jones knew that girl would keep Booth on his toes, which was a contrast to the needy blonde cheerleaders that Booth insisted were "his type."

"Jefferson! Let's get in the locker room and talk strategy, boys! Come on, hustle, move it!" The coach exclaimed to the players, whose slow jog towards the locker room quickly turned into a fast run at his prodding.

"Hey Bones, I gotta go," Booth said hurriedly. He was lagging, and he needed to get to the locker room pronto.

"Booth, come here," Brennan said. Booth leaned over the fence that separated them, mindful of the punch he had received earlier for doing so. She surprised them both by quickly leaning in and kissing his cheek. Her head remained next to his, and she whispered, "Good luck," into his ear. Her hot breath swirled in the cold night, warming his ear and his heart. He pulled back a little, gazing into her eyes. His hand sought hers involuntarily, and he shivered from both the cold and her touch.

They were brought out of the moment by the coach's voice hollering "BOOTH" from across the field. He turned to run over, giving her one last look before he took off across the field.

The game was incredible. Brennan had only gone to one football game at her last school, with her ex-boyfriend Sully. He wasn't that good since he was more into basketball than any other sport. Booth, on the other hand, excelled at football. He was clearly the alpha male of the team, leading them into each play with courage and poise. He was very skilled with or without the ball.

The other team, however, was also very good. They were apparently Jefferson's rival in just about everything, especially football. Angela explained to her that last year, the Jefferson team lost to them during the state championship, and Booth and his team have been thirsting for revenge all year.

Every time Booth was tackled, Brennan felt her heart constrict painfully in her chest. She would unconsciously hold her breath until he rose to his feet and began barking orders at his teammates. She tried to explain and rationalize it away, trying to convince herself that she was concerned for him because they were good friends. Brennan broke her train of thought and returned her attention to the game.

It was now late in the fourth quarter, and Jefferson was down by one point. They were a few yards from the goal line, and they were on the fourth down. Booth huddled with his men, their final time-out had been called seconds before so they would have time to huddle and line up. After Booth outlined the play, the boys all clapped their hands together and headed for their positions. Booth stood behind the line of scrimmage, looking a little nervous. The ball was hiked, and Booth received the ball. He pump-faked twice, looking like he was going to throw. However, the play was a fake-out, and he suddenly tucked the ball under his arm and darted through an opening off to the left. He saw a giant linebacker from the other team running towards him, and dove the last few feet into the end zone.

Everyone, including Brennan, held their breath while the referee came over to see if Booth had made it over the goal line. When he turned to the packed stands and raised his arms in the signal for 'touchdown', the crowd went wild. Roars and shouts were heard from the audience. Angela turned to Brennan and hugged her tightly, yelling "We won! We won!"

Brennan had turned her head back to the field to see Booth sprinting over to the fence at the edge of the field. She disentangled herself from Ange and raced down the bleachers towards him. He nimbly hopped over the fence just as she reached him. For several minutes, all they did was stare at each other until the world around them faded away. The noise, the roars, the stadium lights, all disappeared as she lost herself in his warm chocolate gaze. Some strange magnetic force drew her closer to his face, but she froze when she became conscious of her body's unbidden movement. Suddenly, she propelled herself towards him, her chest colliding with his as she wrapped her arms tightly around him. Her head rested on his jersey number, her eyes closed from the contented feeling that swept over her. He brought his jersey-clad arms around her thin waist as best he could with his shoulder pads on. They stayed like that for either a second or an eon, neither was quite sure, until Brennan opened her eyes and moved back slightly, still in his embrace. Once again, they stared at each other, inching closer until she could feel his warm breath on her face. She thought he might kiss her, until Angela interrupted them to grab Brennan and whisk her away to some party.

Booth watched them leave, stealing a glance at Brennan's retreating backside before he remembered his manners and quickly looked away.

Next chapter: THE PARTY! Woohoo! Leave me a review telling me your thoughts on this chap, or any chapter for that matter. Or you can yell at me for the delay. Or you could yell at me for my terrible writing skills. Or all of the above. See you next time!