Sorry about the delay folks. Had a very busy weekend with family and my husband's birthday (July 4). Our foray into June is the loose sequel to Chapter 4 and involves the boys this time. Hope you enjoy!

Reference for back story: Love & Carbonite by Lachelle Nepper & The Aubrey Chronicles by mphs95

Rated T for strong language.

June 1, 2022

It was a beautiful sunny day in Washington DC, perfect for getting together with friends and enjoying the summer season. Hodgins and Angela were with their children in Virginia Beach for the weekend and Cam and Arastoo took their boys to Williamsburg. As for Booth and Brennan, their family went over to Aubrey and Jessica's to spend the afternoon and evening together so the guys could watch a game.

But not just any game. Today was Game 1 of the four-game series between the Philadelphia Phillies and the Chicago Cubs. It was a series that both Booth and Aubrey had been looking forward to since the 2022 MLB schedule was announced months earlier.

It was a day no one would ever forget, even when they tried.

*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*

In Aubrey and Jessica's living room, the two friends messed with each other as they watched the game on the 60-inch television attached on the wall. On the mound Jose Alvarado waited as Chicago's Jose Baez came up to bat. A confident Booth decided to have some fun. "Aubrey, if Alvarado strikes out Baez, you have to take a shot."

Aubrey turned to Booth. "What?"

"According to Angela's holiday calendar, today is Dare Day…and I dare you to take a shot of that shitty old Fogelsong."

Aubrey, not afraid of a challenge. "Old Fogelsong isn't shitty, but all right…but Baez will not be struck out."

"Uh, I've seen his stats and he sucks right now." The two men watched as the Phillies pitcher struck out Baez, causing Booth to laugh and Aubrey to groan. "Shoot it, Aubrey."

"Fuck…" As a commercial came on, Aubrey rushed into the kitchen, grabbed his favorite whiskey along with two shot glasses. Heading back into the living room, he poured the drink and shot it down. "Ahhh, good stuff."

Booth shook his head. "Why you like that cheap shit, I'll never understand."

"It's smooth, just like me, Booth." Aubrey replied before he got a thought. "I've got an idea."

Booth saw the game come back on but sat in befuddlement as his friend began pulling food and other items out of the fridge and cupboard. "What the hell are you doing?"

"Just getting stuff to make the game a little more interesting." Aubrey carried out a large bag of nacho chips while holding a tray of nacho cheese, chips, Cheez Wiz, bean and French onion dip, and assorted peppers. "Jess got these peppers at the Farmers Market this morning. There's serrano, fresno, and other assorted ones."

Booth looked them over. "What do you want me to do? Take a picture of you with them, Aubrey?"

"Cute, but no. Some of the peppers that she picked up were these bad boys…" Aubrey held up two peppers. "They're called Scotch Bonnets and Komono dragons."

Booth nodded as he looked at them. "How hot are they?"

"Hotter than habaneros." Aubrey got a large smile on his face. "You know, in honor of Dare Day, I propose a dare for every inning."

Booth gave a cocky smile. "I can't bet, Aubrey…"

"No betting. It's a dare. This inning, whenever one of your players strikes out, you take a shot and vice versa for me. Then, Phillies are up, and you make a dare."

Booth glanced at the table. "Anything here off limits?"

"Nope." Aubrey chuckled.

Booth, a glint in his eye, smiled. "Oh yeah...this is going to be fun."

*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*

In the back of the house, Brennan and Jessica sat inside the three-season room, nicknamed the COVID room due to it being built during the pandemic two years earlier. As Christine entertained Hank and Rachael outside, the two women indulged in a glass of wine.

"While the pandemic was a terrible time, I do enjoy this room you added to the house, Jessica." Brennan sipped her Chardonnay. "I'm also enjoying this wine from your family vineyard. I must thank your brother for letting us get the first taste."

"Yeah, having a family vineyard does have its advantages." Jessica sipped. "This is the first glass I've had since we were all stuck in the lab last week. That killer hangover kept me away from it."

"Me as well. Booth made me a large container of Dr. Wells' Hate concoction and I do not want to imbibe any of that again."

"Yeah, that's for sure." Jessica heard loud laughing from the house. "Booth and Aubrey are getting loud and they're going to wake the twins up. After I scold them, would you like me to bring you back some water or tea?"

"Yes, a bottle of water would be nice." Brennan set her glass down. "Actually, I'll come in with you. We can bring out the fruit salad to snack on until it's time for Booth to grill dinner."

The two women came in to hear Booth cackling. "Take it all down, Aubrey!"

On the couch, Aubrey finished his shot, chowed down a nacho with a pepper on it, and then chugged some water. "Holy shit…that Scotch bonnet is a hot mother fucker."

"Guys, keep it down. Jamie and Savannah are sleeping upstairs." Jessica said quietly. "If they wake up, you two are putting them back down, game or not."

Holding back their snickers, the two men nodded. "Okay, Jessica. We're sorry." Aubrey said, holding back a slur.

Brennan noted all the items on the coffee table as well as her husband's bad attempts to hide a grin. "Booth, what are you two doing?"

Booth's arm went around the back of the couch, and he smiled at his wife. "We're just eating some nachos, watching the game, and enjoying a shot or two."

Jessica, holding a bowl from the fridge, grew suspicious as well as she saw her husband's glassy eyes and assorted items on the coffee table. "You guys aren't competing on who can eat the most food again, are you?"

"No." They said together.

Brennan nodded. "Good. Booth, when you two did that during that Supreme Bowl last February, you had a lot of gastric distress as well as a considerable amount of flatulence after we went to bed."

"No, Bones. I'm fine." Booth turned red before turning to his chuckling friend. "Shut up Aubrey…at least I don't have nightmares when I eat shitty food."

Aubrey threw popcorn at his friend. "Fuck off. I don't have bad dreams when I eat junk."

Booth found a few kernels and tossed them back. "That's not what I hear…"

"Booth, stop throwing food at Aubrey!" Brennan admonished as she held multiple bottles of water. "You're 50 year old and it's childish."

Ignoring Brennan, Aubrey threw more popcorn at his friend. "Then you're hearing bullshit."

"James Aubrey, quit throwing food on my couch." Jessica scolded while holding a large bowl, paper plates, and utensils. "Now, don't do anything stupid and keep it down. We've got the baby monitor in case Jamie or Savannah need anything."

The room clear, Booth sighed. "That was close. Now we're onto the 5th inning."

"…and the Cubs are winning 6-4, baby!"

"Yeah, your shittiest pitcher is up. Okay, my dare is every strike out, you must eat a pepper with some of that dill dip Bones made. If the player gets blanked out, you have to eat a nacho with the cheese and dip, with a pepper of the other guy's choice, or shoot some whiskey. If the player is blanked out, you have to do both."

"Yeah…wait, we're almost out of whiskey…wait…wait, Booth. I know." A buzzed Aubrey got up and opened the cabinet above the fridge. "I've some of that shitty bourbon Wells gave Jess for Secret Santa last year."

"Perfect!"

*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*

An hour later, Brennan and Jessica were back outside finishing off the fruit salad when they heard Savannah whimpering through the monitor. "Oh, if she's awake, her brother is not far behind. Probably hungry and needs a diaper change."

Brennan picked up the fruit salad to take back inside. "Do you need assistance? Not with any breast feeding, but with the diaper change if there was any urination or defecation."

Jessica chuckled. "If you don't mind, that would be helpful. Having two of them can be a challenge during a diaper change."

"Of course." Looking outside, Brennan opened the door. "Christine, I'm going to help Aunt Jessica with Jamie and Savannah. You three stay in the yard."

"Okay, Mom." Christine responded.

"When's dinner, Mom?" Hank yelled. "I'm hungry."

"I'm hungry too, Mommy." Rachael chimed in.

Brennan rolled her eyes. "You had fruit salad thirty minutes ago. Your hunger could be due to thirst, so drink water. However, if you're still hungry, there are cut carrots in the fridge."

Jessica considered. "The game should be over soon and the chicken has been marinating for a couple of hours. We can probably start preparing the fish and veggies for Booth and Aubrey to grill."

"Good idea-" Brennan's response was interrupted by a loud voice in the house.

"HOLY SHIT, AUBREY! WHAT THE FUCK IS IN THIS PEPPER? GIVE ME THAT BEER!"

Startled, Jessica and Brennan rushed into the house and through the open living area, only to be greeted with Aubrey laughing before falling off the couch as a gagging Booth chugged his beer. To their shock, he grabbed a bottle of bourbon on the table and began chugging that as well.

"It's a Komi…Kimono…Dragon…Jess said it's pretty hot, but not as hot as she is…" Aubrey slurred from the floor.

The two women took in the living area. Empty bowls of dips and cheese laid about. Two shot glasses were nearby, both with pepper seeds inside them. There were six beer bottles, an empty bottle of Old Fogelsong, and an almost empty bottle of Hudson Baby Bourbon.

"What is going on here?" Brennan asked incredulously.

Booth turned around, glassy-eyed and smiling. "Hey Bones…how are you…you're so pretty."

"Booth, how much alcohol have you had?"

"Not sure…" Booth moved to scratch his head but poked himself in the eye. "Ow…um there was beer…then we brought out the Old Fogelsong…shitty stuff…"

"It's snot snitty…not slip…shitty…" Aubrey slurred from the floor. "Then we had that cheap ass bourbon Wells bought us…then, we have fun daring each other to eat peppers and drink shots."

"That last pepper you made me put in my shot and soak about killed me, Aubrey." Booth moved to itch his eye before crying out in pain. "Ow…fuck…my eye's burning…"

Brennan huffed as she walked to the bathroom while Jessica's large green eyes grew huge. "Superman, you two ate all those peppers?"

"Booth did!" A laughing Aubrey moved to pull himself up but failed. "Oops…hey, the game is over, Booth. Time to grill dinner—"

"No, you're not going anywhere near the grill, Aubrey. Nor you, Booth." Jessica barked as Brennan returned and put a cold wet washcloth on Booth's eye.

"Bones it hurts…"

"Well, you shouldn't be rubbing your eye in the first place, Booth, but you know you should wash your hands before touching your eyes. Now keep this on and stay on the couch." The forensic anthropologist stood up and looked at the two drunk men. "While we go check on the twins and bring them down, just sit there. We'll get your some water to drink."

"Okay." The two men muttered. When the women went upstairs, Aubrey gave a drunken grin and poured the remaining bourbon into two glasses. "To a fun Dare Day…"

"Yeah…" Booth took the glass and he swayed slightly before clinking glasses with Aubrey. After chugging. "I think I'm going to lean back and take a nap."

"Sounds good…" Aubrey leaned his head back against the couch as he remained sitting on the floor. Soon both were in dreamland.

*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*

Booth was the first to wake up. Trying to ignore the banging inside of his head, he opened his eyes and saw a redheaded little girl with large blue eyes staring at him.

"Morning, Uncle Booth."

"Morning, Honey. Where's your mom…ugh…" Booth was swept in a wave of dizziness and extreme nausea. "Where's your dad?"

"Here." The almost four-year-old took two steps and shook her father, who was still asleep on the floor leaning against the couch. "Daddy…Daddy…wake up time."

"Wha…oof!" Aubrey mumbled before being startled awake when a toddler jumped on him, making him almost throw up from the nausea. "Rachael, don't jump on Daddy's stomach like that."

"Mommy and Aunt Brennan says it's time for you to wake up." Rachael grabbed each man and shook them as hard as a child could. "Wake up…"

Booth was having a hard time holding back the bile in his stomach. "Rachael, we're up…we're up…where's your Aunt Brennan?"

The guys' thoughts were interrupted by a loud motor running. "Ugh…" they moaned together as they clutched their heads.

"Make it stop…" Aubrey whined.

"What the hell is that?" Booth barked.

"The blender." Brennan said from the kitchen as she poured two glasses from a pitcher. When done, she walked into the living room and opened the curtains, making the men cringe. "Good morning, gentleman. It's such a lovely day."

"No it's not. Dr. B, what time is it?" Aubrey asked, blocking the early morning sun with his arm.

"7:11. Jessica is getting Rachael around and we're going to take the children to breakfast at the diner. While we're gone, you two can clean up your mess out here."

The two men looked around and saw the table strewn in liquor bottles, leftover nacho cheese, pieces of peppers, and other miscellaneous items. "Ooohhh…" Aubrey said.

"We're ready!" An excited Rachael exclaimed as she, followed by Hank, carefully walked down the steps.

A few seconds later, Jessica joined them with one twin on each hip before setting the babies in their pack and play. "The twins are fed, Guys, and their diapers are still clean. We'll be back later."

Both men realized what was happening. "You're leaving the babies here?" Booth asked.

"But…I…we…feel like…"

"Like you have veisalgia?" Brennan finished. "Of course, you do, but there is still a mess to be cleaned up."

"Where's Christine?" Booth shook his head as he made a realization. "Wait? Did we spend the night here, Bones?"

"Yes, because we were unable to wake you two up and I didn't feel it was polite to leave you here with Jessica while also having to care for five-month-old twins and a toddler." Brennan patiently responded. "As for Christine, she went home with Parker. Hank stayed because he and Rachael fell asleep watching a movie."

"Parker was here?" Booth asked.

Aubrey squinted as he turned towards the back door. "What about dinner?"

"We grilled that nice grouper and chicken for us and the kids, along with some grilled vegetables Dr. B prepared."

"But…but…" Booth's face fell. "What about us? Why was Parker here? He had plans to visit with his friends last night."

"Well, Booth, Parker's plans fell though, so he came over here and had dinner with us instead, and he was quite hungry, so there weren't any leftovers left." Putting on her shoes, she let Jessica lead the children out the door. "We've made you two coffee and some of Dr. Wells' Hate beverage out on the counter. See you later."

The men watched the door shut and they continued to sit. "Booth, they ditched us."

"Aubrey, food is the last thing on my mind right now. I just want to crawl into a hole and die." Forcing himself to get up he stood wobbly. "Get up!"

"Fine…ugh, my head hurts." The two men slowly made their way to the kitchen, where true to her word, Brennan did leave two large glasses filled with a concoction as coffee brewed.

Aubrey took his glass and stared at it. "I hate this stuff."

"I hate feeling like shit more."

Aubrey stared at the cup before sipping and making a disgusted face. "Are we getting too old to do dares like yesterday?"

"Yeah, but they're still fun." Booth cracked a smile. "Wanna see who can chug this crap down first? Loser has to clean up the living room."

"Deal!" Aubrey said before the two men began chugging their beverages down.