Kansas
Disclaimer: I own nothing except the OCs and the storyline.
Happy Christmas and Happy New Year everyone! Well almost Christmas anyway.
Lily cut the pie into slices and placed them all on a plate. She absentmindedly licked her fingers to get the apple flavoured juice from the pie off them.
She smirked when she realized what she was doing and thought, "Guess the Booth boys' love of pie is rubbing off on me."
Then Cole appeared behind her and reached both arms either side of her to try and get a piece of pie.
She smacked his hands away and said, "No! At least wait until I bring it outside. There is supposed to be some dessert at the barbecue you know."
Cole just smiled and replied, "Whatever you say Kansas."
He kissed her cheek and walked back out into the back garden where everyone else was. Lily was about to put out more food when Parker and Suze walked into the kitchen.
Except Suze had Parker, who was a good foot taller then her, in a headlock.
"Say it stupid!" she exclaimed as Parker tried to wriggle free.
"Alright, fine! You aren't butch!" Parker said.
Suze smiled and let go of him. Parker straightened his t-shirt and mumbled, "Crazy weirdo!" He quickly ran out of the kitchen before Suze could get him in a headlock again. Suze sighed and walked to stand beside Lily. She grabbed an apple and started to slice it onto a plate.
"All I can say is that I'm glad you're here Lily. I have been hanging out with boys for too long," she said.
Lily nodded. She knew how that felt.
Although Suze had only one older brother the Booth boys had become her 'adopted brothers' of sorts. But unlike Lily, Suze had a mother who paid attention to her. Angela and Suze were very alike in their looks, Angela passing her brown hair and complexion onto her daughter. But Suze had her father's bright blue eyes while her brother Tom was practically a replica of Hodgins when he was younger.
Suze and Lily got along great, both bonding the day Lily met the Booth family and over which Booth boy could fit the most pie into his mouth. Surprisingly Michael won and the two girls had formed a friendship.
Suze picked up the plate full of apple slices while Lily picked up the one with the pie. They walked out to the French windows but Suze stopped in the doorway, leading out onto the porch.
Lily frowned and looked to where she was staring.
Brennan, Booth, Angela, Hodgins, Sweets and Cam were sitting on the porch laughing and talking. Parker and James, Tom and Michael were at the tree house, Michael up on Parker's shoulders, trying to reach a Frisbee that had found its way up in the far branches. Cole and Matt were passing a ball back and forth in the middle of the garden and Suze seemed to be staring in their direction.
"Are you ok?" Lily asked.
A small smile graced Suze's face and she said, "Who is that?"
Lily frowned again and looked at Cole and Matt. "Um…that's Cole and Matt. You've known them for years…"
Suze's eyes suddenly went wide and she ducked behind the curtain of the French windows. Lily quickly went and stood beside her.
"Are you ok?!" she asked again.
Suze poked her head around the curtain again and then snapped it back. "Oh my God! That is NOT Mattie! Mattie is this little kid that I used to play hide and seek with when we were small. This Mattie…this is NOT Mattie!"
Lily nodded, "Nope it is Matt."
Suze glanced at them again made a weird sighing noise and then hid again, the plate of apples still clutched in her hands.
"But…but…he's tall and…and well built-very well built and so cute…What happened to him?!"
"Apparently, puberty," Lily commented.
Suze sighed again and said, "He's handsome isn't he?"
Lily looked at Matt and then back at Suze. "I guess he's a little handsome."
"A little handsome?! Calling him a little handsome is like calling the Empire State Building a little tall!" Suze exclaimed.
She looked at them again and asked, "Is he still that sweet guy I knew back then?"
Lily smiled and said, "He is very sweet. And kind and smart and-."
"Honey you had me at 'He'," Suze said. The two girls laughed and with a surge of confidence on Suze's part, they walked into the back garden.
-Cole and Matt-
Cole caught the ball with his foot and sent it back to Matt. But instead of catching it, Matt let the ball hit him in the shins. Cole frowned and looked at the direction in which he was staring. Lily and Suze were putting food onto the table and Matt seemed fascinated by them.
Cole walked towards him and flicked him on the forehead.
Matt snapped out of his trance and said, "What was that for?"
"You were staring! At people you've known for ages!" Cole argued back.
Matt looked shocked and he looked back at the girls. "THAT'S Suze! What…what happened to her?"
Cole frowned again and said, "Nothing. She's perfectly fine."
"Exactly! When did she get- since when does she- how did she get so…" Matt trailed off and then said, "Last time I saw her she was just this little kid who used to have pigtails and used to put me in a headlock for making fun of her too big teeth."
Cole winched and said, "Ya, I shouldn't have taught her that…"
"That was YOU!" Parker exclaimed behind him.
Cole waved him off and turned back to Matt. "Well she certainly turned into a beautiful woman," Cole commented, complementing his 'big sister'.
"That's for sure…" Matt said.
Cole just stood there. What was up with his best friend?
"Oh my God! Oh my God!" Matt said, his hands waving in front of him, "She coming over here! What do I do?! What do I do?!"
Cole frowned and said, "I don't know…act like a guy?"
Matt managed to regain his composer by the time Lily and Suze reached them. Lily went straight to Cole for a hug which he willingly gave her.
Suze stopped in front of Matt and said, "Hey Mattie…"
Matt smiled and replied, "Hey Suze. Long time no see."
And, as if they were back to being little kids again, who knew everything about each other; Matt reached out and hugged her warmly. Lily smiled widely and swore she heard a slight gasp from Suze.
They pulled away and Suze said, "You have to sit by me at dinner. We have lots to catch up on."
Matt nodded and the two of them walked over to the table.
"Aw, they are so cute!" Lily said.
Cole was still frowning and he replied, "Why are they cute?"
Lily looked at him in disbelief and asked, "Don't you see it?!"
"See what?!" Cole exclaimed.
Lily sighed and patted her boyfriend's chest. "Cole, you're a great boyfriend; but sometimes you're an idiot."
Dinner was a talkative affair, everyone trading stories and tales of the past weeks. But Cole was silent for most of the meal, watching the two people in front of him. Matt and Suze were sitting across from Lily and Cole and had been talking to each other none stop. Lily's words were echoing around his head and finally it clicked.
"Oh my God!"
Everyone went silent and turned to him, Lily getting what he had finally realized.
"What is it?!" Booth asked.
Lily stamped down on Cole's foot and he let out a grunt of pain. "Um…this dinner is amazing! Good job everyone!" he said, his voice going unusually high in parts of the sentence.
Everyone just shrugged and went back to talking.
Cole looked at Lily and she smiled at him, showing that at least she liked Matt and Suze together. Cole sighed and looked at the two of them, who were still in their own world, talking about school at this point. Cole smiled slightly and looked at Lily. She smiled back at him.
Dinner had finished and the adults had gone into the house for coffee.
Parker, James, Michael and Tom went back to trying to get the Frisbee down and Lily and Cole had walked over to rest on the hammock.
Matt and Suze were still sitting at the table, talking. Suze looked over at Lily and Cole and Matt followed her gaze. Cole and Lily were lying beside each other, Cole with his arm around Lily's shoulders and Lily, playing the collar of his shirt.
"I envy them sometimes, you know?" Suze said.
Matt looked at her and replied, "Me too. They're lucky to have found each other."
Suze glanced at him and, blushing, she said, "Matt…do you think we could get together and catch up again sometime?"
Matt tried to hide a smile and replied, "Well, aren't you going back to college?"
Suze nodded and said, "Yes but my parents are always going on about how I should spend more time at home so that's what I'll be doing."
Matt nodded and said, "I'd like that."
Cole and Lily looked at over at their two friends from the hammock.
"I have to admit, they look good together," Cole said.
Lily nodded and turned to her boyfriend; lying her head on his shoulder. "Well I think they will make a great couple," she replied.
Cole reached down and pecked her lips. He smiled and mumbled, "You are such a match maker!"
Lily slapped his arm and said, "I am not!"
Cole smiled and kissed her again. "Whatever you say Kansas."
They kissed again, Cole wrapping another arm around Lily's waist.
Suddenly cold water was splashed all over them. Lily and Cole looked up, soaking wet and shocked, at Michael who was holding a now empty bucket.
"You guys need to get a room!" Michael said.
Everyone else was laughing at them and Michael said, "You're going to chase me now aren't you?"
Cole and Lily got off the hammock and wiped some of the water off them.
"No Mickey I'm not," Cole said, "I'm going to tell you that one day you'll find a girl who you'll want to kiss."
Michael screwed up his nose in disgust; his ten year old mind reeling at the thought of being near a girl.
"Now I'm going to chase," Cole said suddenly, taking off after his little brother who was now running across the garden, laughing.