Previously on Danger in the Date :
"Good night," she replied and he disappeared into the guest room. Brennan turned off the lights in the living room and went to the bathroom, where she turned on the shower and undressed. She brushed her teeth more thoroughly than she'd ever done, and repeated the action several times. Then, she washed her hair and body, scrubbing her skin, rinsing off Richard, still not getting rid of the dirty feeling. Her tears mixed with the hot water and bit into the small bite wounds between her neck and shoulder. Eventually, she decided that enough was enough. She turned off the shower, dried and wearing only the robe, got into the bedroom, where she put on warm pyjamas and crawled underneath the covers, shivering.
Booth chuckled miserably as he heard her turn on the shower. Well, if nothing else, I hope it can make her feel a little bit better. He turned on his other side and listened to the sound of the water running. Strangely, it had a soothing effect on him, too. She's here, she's safe. I got to her in time. By the time she finally turned off the water, Booth was yawning and struggling to stay awake. When he heard a door open, presumably the bathroom door and another one open and shut - which was probably her bedroom door - he finally fell asleep himself.
Brennan was dead-tired, but kept being interrupted in her sleep. Every other hour or so, she would startle awake, blinking rapidly as she thought she saw green eyes looking at her in the dark. Despite the fact that Richard would be in the hospital or in jail by now, she kept turning the lights on to check her room. After the third time, she sneaked out and retrieved the baseball bat she kept beside the front door, feeling slightly better having it next to her. Brennan snuggled under the covers once again, and desperately wished for sleep to come and claim her until morning. Her wishes were in vain.
Booth woke up from a nightmare. The image of Bones, looking up at him yet unseeing was burned into his retinas. Her eyes had looked so empty. Lifeless. He sat up and turned on the light. Booth closed his eyes and when her dead eyes appeared in front of him, he focused on something else. Anything else. The last hockey game he had played. Parker. The big pile of paperwork on his desk. Pops' voice... Slowly but surely he calmed down again. When he felt sleepy, he lay down and turned the light off. Hoping it would be the first and last time he would have that particular dream.
The next time she woke up, she experienced the worst head-ache of her life, veins throbbing, temples burning. That would be the consequence of too much alcohol. Knowing it wasn't going to get better anytime soon, she got out of bed, her head feeling way too heavy for her neck. Next, she made her way into the kitchen, looking for a glass of water; the only remedy she knew. The kitchen light she turned on sent lightning through the inside of her skull, and she groaned, keeping her eyes half-shut as she drank. After emptying the first glass, she decided that this extreme head-ache required a second, and then a third glass of water. Her head felt as though it was splitting in two. Brennan stumbled back to her bedroom.
The moment after I shot the lock to pieces, I pushed the door open and stormed into the room. When I saw him with his hands around her neck, strangling her, I didn't think. I just reacted and shot him. "Oh God, Bones!" I gasped when I saw her. Her eyes were open, she was staring at the ceiling. She was naked and pinned beneath Richard's dead body. I quickly ran over to her and pushed him out of her and away from her body. The sight in front of me was horrible, blood stained the white covers underneath her legs and she had a dark bruise on her cheek as well as on her neck. I quickly checked for breathing and a pulse. "Come on, Bones." I was frantically trying to find a heartbeat. When I couldn't find one, and I couldn't hear, see or feel her breathing, I tipped her chin, and started CPR. 'Come on, Bones! Don't you dare die on me!'
With her fingers closed around the door handle to her bedroom, Brennan heard a sound coming from the other bedroom. She paused, listening. There it was again. She wondered if Booth had awoken to a hangover as well, and knocked softly on the door. "Booth, are you okay?" Brennan called out softly.
I knew I had to call an ambulance, but I couldn't. I couldn't leave her. I had to go on. I couldn't stop the CPR, because I knew the moment I did, she would be gone. So I decided to wait until the FBI back-up arrived. When they finally did, the muscles in my arms were sore from applying the constant pressure, in a vain effort to keep her alive. Tears were blurring my vision when Agent Jenkins spoke up. "It's too late, Agent Booth. She's gone."
Brennan heard his heavy breathing through the door. And decided to just go in. She found him, anything but sleeping peacefully, tensing and relaxing his muscles repetitively, his face contorted, his breathing too deep for his state of exertion. She stood next to the bed, hoping he wouldn't be angry when she woke him up. "Booth," she said and nudged his shoulder. "Booth, wake up."
I dismissed everyone. I sent all of them out of the room and ordered them to take that son of a bitch with them. Once I was alone, truly alone, I gently slid one hand underneath her head as I positioned the other one beneath her and pulled her closer to my body. Cradling her to my chest, I started to cry. "I'm sorry, Bones. I'm so sorry."
When he started to mumble something, she tried harder, grabbing both his shoulders and shaking him. "Booth! Wake up," she said in a louder voice. Brennan proceeded to pull the covers off of him so his chest would grow cold and he might wake up from it. "Come on, Booth."
When he felt a rush of cold air, Booth sat up straight in the bed. For a moment he was disoriented and he stared ahead. Once the room started to come into focus, he tried to determine where he was.
Brennan recoiled when he sat up suddenly, a wild look in his eyes. A few steps away from the bed, she waited quietly for him to get his bearings and become aware of her presence.
Slowly it came back. I'm at Bones' place. Booth closed his eyes as he lay back down, running his hands over his face, trying to get rid of the horrible images the nightmares kept providing. He took a shaky, deep breath as he focused on calming back down.
She grew concerned as she watched him. "Booth, are you okay?" Brennan asked him very softly, not meaning to startle him with her unexpected presence.
His eyes snapped open at the sound of her voice. "Bones? What are you doing here?" He hadn't noticed her before, which was just more proof of how far away his mind still was.
"I heard sounds and you weren't sleeping peacefully," she explained herself, "I didn't mean to - but I figured if you were having a nightmare, you'd want to wake up, so I woke you." He looked vulnerable, and the sight tugged at her heartstrings. This was nothing like the anger-fuelled agent who'd shot locks and bad guys to save her just a few hours before.
"Yeah," he sat up as he ran a hand through his hair, "I definitely wanted to wake up. What time is it?"
"I don't know," she replied truthfully. There was no clock in the guest room. "Are you..?" She felt stupid, repeating her question for the third time. "Would you like a glass of water?"
"Nah, I'm fine." Booth turned the light back on and looked at his watch. "Well, it's only 6:08, so I suppose, you should go back to bed, Bones. You need some more sleep." And so do I.
She wanted to do as he said, but she hesitated. "What were you dreaming?" she asked him carefully.
"I'm fine, Bones. It was just a dream, right?" But he couldn't help but feel the panic trying to override him again, so Booth quickly established eye contact. Her eyes weren't glassy or unfocused, they were alive and alert.
Brennan slowly crossed her arms in front of her chest, feeling cold and suffering from the head-ache, but for some reason suspecting it be better if she stayed and talked to him for a little while longer. She sat down on his bed and turned to him. "But it upset you. The dream," she stated. "What was it about?"
"That doesn't matter, Bones. It was just a dream. Aren't you tired? You probably have a headache, too, since I still have one. You should go back to bed." Now that he had turned the light on, the bruising stood out even more against her pale skin.
She regarded him thoughtfully, knowing he was keeping things from her, and he grew uncomfortable under her scrutiny. "What was the dream about?" Brennan ignored his earlier comments and pressed on calmly. Now that she was focusing on him, she didn't feel her head-ache so much anymore.
"Let it go, Bones." Booth looked at her as he crossed his arms as well. "I had a nightmare. Traditionally, they upset you. Nothing special about that. Okay?"
She noticed his defensive posture. "But what was it about? You're always telling me I need to talk about things that upset me. Why don't you? You can talk to me, you know."
"I don't want to talk about it, Bones. I want to forget about it and get some more sleep. It'll be a long day today. You should go back to bed yourself."
Knowing she'd angered him once or twice today already, she figured three times wouldn't make such a big difference. "I'm not leaving until you talk to me, just so you know that," she said boldly, placing her hands beside her on the bed, her hair falling over her shoulder as she leaned slightly forward.
He looked at her as she leaned forward. "So this is how our partnership works nowadays, Bones? You can do whatever the hell you want? Ignore me when you don't like what I have to say? But when you decide you want something, no matter what it is, you can just push on, until you get what you want? Is that it?" Booth leaned forward himself as he looked into her eyes.
As though they were bullets, his words shot through her chest and lodged themselves in her heart. Yes, they hurt. But Brennan was determined to take any crap he wanted to give her. Even though she had only really ignored his advice once, she had certainly deserved it, there was no need to pity heself. "I'm doing this for you," she told him, keeping her voice under control. "I don't want you to be upset. Was the dream about your past? An unpleasant memory?" she pressed on.
"Now, logic would suggest that if you wanted to do something for me, you would do what I ask, wouldn't it?" Booth asked her, ignoring her questions about his dream.
Brennan nodded, growing suspicious of what he was about to say.
"Then why do you keep pushing me on this, Bones?"
"Because it's what you would have done if our roles were reversed," she answered him clearly.
"True," Booth answered her, "But then again, if you didn't want to talk about it, you wouldn't give in, would you?"
She laughed mirthlessly, "Oh, I think I would," she said decidedly, letting her head fall back a moment as her gaze settled on the ceiling. "There's no escaping you sometimes."
"But you try anyway, don't you, Bones?" he stated matter-of-factly.
"Yes, of course," she replied and focused on him again. "But I think this would be about the time when I would give in." She looked expectantly at him.
"You really want me to tell you, don't you? The problem with that, Bones, is that I don't know why you need to know. When I ask you about stuff like this, I ask you, because I know you would ignore it if I or Angela don't pry it out of you. So, wanting what is best for you, I coax you until you tell me. But why do you want or need me to tell you?" he asked her as he continued to look at her in the soft light of the bedside lamp.
"Same reason," she shrugged, sure he was finding her very annoying and stubborn. "Why don't you want to tell me?" she countered.
"I would deal with this whether I tell you or not. It's gonna take me a while to deal with this particular nightmare, but I've done it before. On my own. So why should I tell you?" Booth knew he was pushing her, but he had to make her see how frustrating and painful it can be if people shut you out on purpose, even though you meant well.
She scrunched up her nose, thinking she might not succeed after all. "Booth, are you ever going to tell me or not?" she said, frustrated. "I want to help you, but I can't do that if I don't know why you're upset. So stop wasting time, okay? Tell me or don't, but be clear about it." There, she'd said it. Her patience had worn out.
"Okay. I suppose I could tell you. After all, you are right. I would want to help you, if you had been the one to have woken up from a nightmare." He settled against the headboard, as he gazed up at the ceiling. "It was about you."
"Oh. I'm sorry," Brennan said awkwardly, wrapping her arms around herself.
"Why are you sorry?" he asked as he focused his attention back on her.
"I didn't want to be the reason you're upset again," she told him. "But go on. What did I do this time?" She tried to sound light-hearted, but she realised painfully that this wasn't a good time for jokes.
Booth looked away from her again as he continued to study the ceiling. "I was too late. You died."
She stared at him. "Died how?" she blurted out.
Once again, he turned to look at her. "I stormed into his room, shot him in the head this time, and after I pushed him out of you, off of your body and on to the ground, I tried to find a pulse, to verify you were still breathing, but it took me a second before I could do that. I got distracted." Booth paused for a moment. "You want to know what distracted me for that split second, Bones?"
Brennan nodded, listening intently. It felt strange that he was talking about her, though obviously, it wasn't really her.
"Blood. The sheets and your legs were covered in it. After I recovered from that shock, I quickly turned my attention to finding your pulse. But I couldn't find anything. You weren't breathing and your heart had stopped beating. I started CPR." He paused. "You know, it's funny, Bones. I know it was just a dream, but my arms are still sore. Anyway, the CPR was useless. Eventually the FBI back-up arrived and they forced me to stop. It was too late." Booth gazed at the ceiling again. "You were dead."
Brennan averted her gaze, shameful, knowing he was going through this because of her and her stupid mistakes.
Booth took a deep breath before he continued. "I ordered everyone out of the room and demanded that they take his body away, as well. When I was alone, I gently lifted you and cradled you to my chest, before I started to cry and ask you for your forgiveness." He clenched his fists as his heartbeat slowly sped up, remembering the pain, guilt and loss he had felt at that moment.
"Forgiveness for what?" she asked, a sharp edge to her voice. "It was my fault, Booth, not yours. I got myself into that." She looked at him. He was upset again, and she felt guilty.
He looked at her. "You see, Bones, that part doesn't really matter. I'm your partner. Even if you get yourself into these ridiculously dangerous situations, everyone, including you and me, expects me to be able to get you out of it. If what happened in my dream had happened in reality, it would've been my fault, because I wouldn't have been on time. I would've been the one who let you down. I would've been the one who failed. Therefore, I would've been guilty. It would've been my fault. And that is what I would need forgiveness for. For failing to do what you needed me to do. What you expected from me."
"No!" Brennan reacted as though stung, "Booth, please, that is not true! It could never be your fault." Frantically, she searched her mind for right things to say. But her mind wasn't being very cooperative. "Look, I - I know that officially, I'm your responsibility in the field. But outside work hours, Booth, I'm my own responsibility, no matter how stupid I might act. I would never have bothered you if I'd thought I had other options. But I was panicked, and I'm sorry I dragged you into this. I really, truly, honestly am so sorry I did this to you. Please tell me what I can do to make you feel better," she pleaded.
Booth looked at her as he slightly shook his head. "You're sorry for the wrong thing, Bones. I'm glad you called. My care for you and my concern for you don't stop when you take off your lab coat. You are my partner 24/7, not just during work hours."
She felt tears pricking behind her eyes as bit by bit, the realisation of her stupidity and the extent of Booth's loyalty towards her dawned upon her. "Is there nothing I can do about that?" she said in a tearful voice.
"About what, Bones? You'll have to be precise." Booth answered her as he gazed at the ceiling once again.
"About you feeling responsible for me all the time. It doesn't sound very healthy," she said, carefully rubbing her throat as the lump that had formed there hurt her trachea.
Booth snorted. "Not healthy? Have you considered what would've happened to you if I didn't care about you 24/7? This might occasionally drive me up the walls, but I would much rather have you alive and driving me up the walls, than one day waking up to find out my partner was strangled or shot or beaten to death or kidnapped or raped any time, Bones. If I didn't feel responsible about you, it would be you it wouldn't be healthy for. Right?"
The underlying meaning of his words hit home. Hard. He thought he was the only one who would protect her. That she would have had nobody else to call. Theoretically, she might have called Angela, but there were no others. "Right," Brennan reluctantly agreed. "Still, I don't like thought of burdening you with my existence."
"Bones," he sighed, "You are not burdening me with your existence, okay? I'm telling you all of this, because you wanted to help me deal with my nightmare. And since I know you appreciate honesty, that's all I'm doing. Being honest with you."
Brennan looked sideways at him. She knew he was honest with her. "So, ehm," she cleared her throat, "Does my being alive right here help you deal with it?"
"Yes," he answered her as he looked at her again, averting his gaze from the ceiling, to her. "You said you wanted to help me. Any other ideas on what we could do, to deal with it?"
She shifted uncomfortably, fully realising this was not exactly her area of expertise. Knowing he knew it, too. Her muscles had turned a bit stiff from being cold, but she didn't complain. A little cold wouldn't hurt her, after everything else. "Telling you that I would have immediately forgiven you, even though there'd be nothing to forgive?" Brennan carefully suggested.
"You would forgive me for letting someone kill you, even though, you called me and expected me to come and save you?" Booth patiently waited for her reply, realizing she was doing the best she could. He had to allow her the time she needed to be able to think about what he asked her as well.
"Of course I would. And I don't think the way you phrase your sentences is fair. Firstly, you're making it sound like you allowed someone to kill me, which would never be true. Secondly, I didn't expect you to come. I hoped you would, but I was preparing to fight. I just needed to pick the right moment."
"And how long were you planning to wait for the right moment, Bones, had I not shown up? You were in your underwear when I found you and he was choking you. You passed out. What if I hadn't been there? You wouldn't have been able to fight back if he had tied you up while you were unconscious." Booth looked at her as he sat up straight and leaned in to her.
Brennan fought the instinct to lean back. "If you hadn't shown up I wouldn't have needed to make him so angry that he strangled me. He did that because I helped you. And I wouldn't have waited much longer, perhaps until he'd be sufficiently distracted. With the adrenaline running through my system, I believe I could have taken him out. Or at least incapacitated him for some time, in which I would run and escape." Brennan frowned as she thought this over, wondering if it would have got to the point where she'd had to let him rape her. She shuddered at the thought.
"The door was locked. How were you going to distract him long enough to get out of his grasp, run to the door, unlock the bedroom door, run down the stairs, unlock the front door and run through the street? And all of that while being drunk? And I'm forgetting about the fact that he was completely focused on you and that he had already made it painfully clear he would just beat you if you didn't do what he wanted."
"I would have managed somehow," she mumbled, not really wanting to think of the situation getting out of hand.
"How, Bones?" Booth pushed the covers back and sat down next to her.
"Well," she began, then remained quiet for some time. "I could have poked into his eyes, maybe kicked him in the testicles, maybe..." Her voice trailed off as she imagined the situation. Her, on her back, Richard pinning her wrists above her head, the rest of his weight pinning down her hips and keeping them in place as he pumped inside her... Brennan felt all colour drain from her face. Or her, trapped against the bed as Richard raped her from behind. She felt sick.
Seeing the colour drain from her face, Booth realized he had pushed too far. "Bones, I'm sorry for pushing so hard. But I need you to realize how much danger you put yourself in. Look at me, please."
She did not, not wanting him to see the weakness she felt. "You've made your point," Brennan said quietly through clenched teeth as she felt herself trembling slightly.
"This is not a point I enjoyed making, Bones." Booth swallowed, before he spoke up again. "You scared me, Bones."
"I'm sorry," she automatically replied. He had no idea how sorry she really was.
"Any other ideas on how we could deal with the nightmare?" he asked her, steering the conversation back to the original topic.
Warily, she shook her head. Her hands were still gripping the edge of the bed and the feeling of nausea hadn't passed yet. Besides that, her head was splitting in two and she had to go to the bathroom from the three glasses of water she'd drunk. "I need to go to the bathroom," she announced and got up.
"Ok. I'll be right here when you get back. I'm not going anywhere, Bones," he stated softly as she made her way out of the bedroom.
Stiffly, she walked towards the bathroom. Inside, she used the toilet and washed her hands. Shivering, she went by her bedroom to put on the warm robe. The sickness began to pass. The head-ache did not.
When he heard her exiting the bathroom, but didn't see her come back to the guest room, he got up and walked over to her bedroom. "You know, Bones. I think I have an idea on what would help," Booth said as he leaned against the doorpost.
Startled, she spun around. "What?" Brennan asked him, feeling her heartbeat slow down when she saw it was him.
"A hug, Temperance. A hug would definitely help." He didn't move, awaiting her reaction.
"You think so?" she asked, tired of punishing herself and longing for a bit of comfort, a bit of warmth.
"Yeah, Bones. Remember when I said I would ask you for a hug when I got scared?" Booth took a step closer to her. "I got scared, Bones." He opened his arms, inviting her into them. "Can I get a hug? Please?"
She didn't stay out of his arms any longer. Stepping forward, she wrapped her arms around his torso, placing her hands on his back. "Of course you can," Brennan told him, relieved that at least he wasn't so angry anymore that he wouldn't have her near.
"I'm glad you are okay, Bones. You have no idea." Booth gently pressed a kiss on top of her hair, pressing her close. "I'm sorry I pushed you so hard," he whispered softly, revelling at the feeling of holding her in his arms.
"Don't be," she told him. It had apparently been necessary. For the first time in what seemed like ages, she felt some warmth slither through her, and gratefully tightened her grip, hiding her face in his shoulder as she finally could not contain her tears any longer in front of him.
When Booth felt her tears seeping through his pajamas, he walked her over to her bed and lowered both of them onto it. "Get it all out, Bones. It's okay. It's okay."
"I'm sorry," Brennan said for the umpteenth time that night, "It's just - I guess I got scared, too," she sniffed.
"It's okay that you got scared. Quite frankly, it would freak me out if you weren't scared at least a little." He gently untangled her from his body and got up, reaching for the sheets. "Come on, Bones. Get in and get some more sleep. You need it."
Brennan nodded in agreement. But she didn't get in. Instead, she pushed the back of his shoulder towards the door. "You first," she said. "It's not good going to bed alone after a nightmare like that."
"Bones, just get comfy, okay? I'll be fine. I promise, I'll just tuck you in here and then I'll go to bed myself." However, she was apparently having none of it, since she interrupted him again.
"No, Booth," Brennan said with authority, and pushed him towards her bedroom door. "Just trust me on this -" she paused, looking serious. "You do still trust me, right? Or - did tonight change things?"
"Bones, this has nothing to do with trust. I just want you to get enough sleep. So get back into bed, so I know you're comfortable, and then I can go to bed myself."
Resolutely, Brennan took his hand and pulled him with her towards the guest room. He tried to struggle, but she was adamant. Once in the guest room, she straightened his covers and then pulled them back. "Get in," she ordered, putting the pillow back in its place.
"Bones. Stop it. You have had a traumatizing night. I want you to go back to bed." Booth crossed his arms in front of his chest. "Now."
Brennan rolled her eyes at him. "Please," she huffed, "I'm not traumatised." She said the distasteful word. "Just a bit shocked, but -" she shrugged. "I've had quite some scares before, didn't I? I can cope with it. And for now, in, you, because I'm not the one having nightmares about this." She stretched out her arm and pointed her index finger to the bed. When he still did not move in the desired direction, she tried something else. "You got scared and you hugged me, I got scared and I tuck you in. Come on, Booth, it's called emancipation. Nothing to be ashamed about."
"Damn it, Bones! It's not about being ashamed!" Booth took a step closer to the door. "I know you, Bones. Unless I make sure you go back to bed, there is a fairly large possibility that you won't go back to your bed at all. You'll just work or something like that. And you know what, Bones? It's too damn early for that and the night has been too damn short. Now, if you don't want to be tucked in by me, fine. Just say so. But I want you to go back to bed and have some more sleep!"
Brennan almost took a step back at his intensity. Almost. She looked at him, giving him some time to calm down. "Fine, I'll go back to bed. No big deal, Booth. I promise you I'll go back to bed. Believe me?"
Booth was going to ask her to give him a good reason to believe her, since she had proved over and over again tonight that she would just do as she damn well pleased, but he didn't want to hurt her again. So instead he sighed. "Just go back to bed, Bones. The clock's atickin'."
She raised her eyebrows at him expectantly, nodding towards the empty bed on her left.
"Bones. I'm not kidding. I want you to go back to bed. I have to go to the bathroom. When I come back, I'm going to check if you are in your bed. And when I've seen you back in your bed, I'll come back here and go back to bed myself." He turned around and walked to the door.
"Booth," she warned him as he walked out. "I think I've proved tonight that I am the most stubborn of all mankind. I'm staying put and you'll have to trust me when I promise you I'll be getting back into bed." She sat down and crossed her arms to stress her point.
He turned back to her, trying to get a handle over his emotions. "Oh, I've noticed THAT, Bones! You're so damn stubborn that you would go out drunk, intending to find someone to have sex with, or to be found, all because you were too damn stubborn to admit that I had a good point!" He turned around. "I'm going to the bathroom."
"Which is exactly why I'll be tucking you in instead of the other way around!" she called after him, and waited for him to return.
A few moments later, he walked back to the guest bedroom. "Why are you doing this?"
Brennan smiled sweetly at him. "Because, it'll make you feel better," she said pleasantly as she stood up and patted the bed. "Coming?" she asked innocently.
"No. Why do you think it'll make me feel better? Maybe, what would make me feel better, is the knowledge that you are safe and comfortable and ASLEEP in your own bed." Booth countered as he didn't move.
"You're not going to stand at my bedside and wait 'till I'm asleep," she exclaimed, insulted. "And why are you so reluctant to believe I'm going to go back to bed when I'm telling you I'll do it?"
"Why? Really, Bones? Since when do you do something unless you support it 100%? I bet the only reason you are promising, is to get me to do what you want. It's almost 6:30, I highly doubt you think this is an appropriate hour to go back to bed," Booth stated calmly.
"Yes, you're right, I do feel more like getting up, but," she paused, "if it's so important to you, I'll go back to bed. Do you really think I'd be lying to you after all that happened? I'm only grateful that you still want to be around me after what I did. I'm not taking any chances anymore. Now, please, get in here. I promise you'll like it."
"I hope you are not going to get up. But that still doesn't explain why you are adamant about this," he said as he walked to stand next to her and next to the bed. "So, please, enlighten me."
"I'll enlighten you while you get into the bed," she muttered, pushing him down so he was sitting. "Look," she began, "This is what my mother said to me, so it's true. When you've just had a nightmare, your bed doesn't feel safe anymore. That's why you get out of the bed while somebody else makes it for you, and then you let that person tuck you in and say something reassuring. Then, you'll feel safe again and you don't have any more nightmares," she concluded as though it was the most rational thing. "Got it?"
"Bones. I don't need you to do that, okay? I've had my fair share of nightmares. I know how to deal with them. I'm in my bed okay? I promise I won't get out, now you go do the same thing."
She sighed dramatically, exasparated. "Booth, you can't expect me to listen to you when you won't listen to me," she spoke, "Let me have something, too, okay? Then I'll let you boss me around again tomorrow." Brennan would have grinned at her comment if she hadn't been so frustrated with him. And he was calling her stubborn...
Booth snorted. "You don't let anyone boss you around, Bones. Least of all me. Just go back to bed, okay? It's clear this isn't working."
"Very clear," she readily agreed. "All because of you," she accused.
"Because of me? Bones, I'm not the one who was nearly raped and strangled tonight! All I'm trying to do is take care of you! You wouldn't even let me take you to the hospital. I'm worried about you! And it's not just that. You fight me every step of the way. I wonder why I thought this time would be any different."
"God damn it, Booth!" she yelled, and he was finally quiet. "Stop being so dramatic over the simple action of me tucking you in and stop reminding me I could have been fucking raped and murdered at this point! And I didn't let you take me to the hospital because it would be of no freaking use. As you can see for yourself, I am perfectly fine or I wouldn't be standing here, would I? I let you take care of me all the time and it's nice, but you never let me do the same. Does that sound fair to you, Booth? And you know what's worse - the fact that you're being like this because I'm a WOMAN. If I'd been a guy, and if it hadn't been assault, you wouldn't be so freaking careful. How weak do you think I am, Booth? I can take at least as much crap as any man. I'm trying to be patient because I understand where you're coming from, but this is just ridiculous. And I refuse to be a part of it any longer. Suit yourself. I'll be in my bedroom when you decide to treat me as your equal." With those closing arguments, she spun around and left the guest room, fuming, slamming the door shut behind her. "That insufferable man!" Brennan muttered angrily before getting into her own bedroom and slamming that door, too.
So, who thinks Brennan has a point?
Stay tuned for more ;).
