After a mostly sleepless night filled with much deliberation, Ted came to the conclusion that he definitely needed to talk to Barney, to reassure him that, despite the kiss outside the bar, despite Barney's barely veiled defiance in MacLaren's immediately preceding it, everything was still normal between them.

Well – the new normal, anyway.

The incident outside the bar had certainly added a new element to the situation, one which Ted wasn't quite sure yet what to do with – but it had also served to reinforce his control over the situation, Ted was sure. However, if he allowed Barney to see that he was still a little shaken, a little confused by the whole thing, that would just be relinquishing that control again.

He had figured out Barney's obsession with his approval for what it was, called him on it, and proven it with that single, intense kiss to which Barney responded with such open desperation – and now, all Ted had to do was keep on doing what he'd been doing for the past few weeks, to prove to Barney that the incident in Robin's bedroom, the kiss – none of it changed anything.

Nothing was any different than it had ever been.

It wasn't.

Ted called Barney at work the following morning, holding his breath as he waited for the answer. The tone of Barney's voice when he finally picked up, after four or five rings, was small and uncertain – and utterly reassuring to Ted.

"H-hello?"

Ted kept his own voice casual and light. "Hey, dude. Wanna do lunch today? I'm buying."

"Uh… Ted, I…"

"Great. I'll be there in an hour."

Ted let his voice take on the subtly authoritative edge that Robin teasingly referred to as his "dad voice", leaving no room for argument – and it worked just as well as it had been working for the past few weeks. After a moment's hesitation, Barney agreed in a quiet, subdued voice that used to sound so foreign from his lips, but had become what Ted was used to.

"O-okay. See you then."

Ted hung up the phone with a decided sense of triumph. He was still in control of their arrangement – of their friendship – and nothing had changed. And he would talk to Barney, let him know that everything was all right and that nothing would change – at least, not until he was ready for it to.

They walked from Barney's office to a little café across the street; and Ted chose to attribute the lack of conversation on the way to the sounds of the busy city traffic that surrounded them. It just made sense to wait until they were in the relative quiet of the restaurant before saying much.

And, if Barney still seemed quiet and withdrawn as they ordered their lunch and waited for their food to arrive – well, Ted guessed that was more or less to be expected. There was bound to be a bit of awkwardness after the way they had left things, and Ted meant to rectify that right away, to bring things back to the barely tolerable level they'd been at before his last ill-fated "test".

"So, Barney… I wanted to talk to you…"

"I wanted to talk to you, too."

Ted frowned, fighting back the automatic irritation he felt at being interrupted. "Good," he stated, nodding and forcing a tight smile. "Me first."

"No."

Ted raised a single eyebrow as Barney looked up at him, his expression solemn and troubled. His gaze faltered for a moment, falling back down to the table, before he squared his shoulders and met Ted's eyes again, his voice trembling slightly but quietly defiant.

"You said I could always call a halt to this…" He waved a hand in a vague gesture to indicate the entire situation. "… this whole thing… if at any point I decided that it wasn't worth it. And… I don't think it is, anymore."

Ted stared in shock, suddenly breathless, literally feeling as if he'd been punched in the stomach. "Wh-what?"

Barney looked away again, drawing in a deep breath before looking up at Ted once more. "The… the manipulation. The mind games. I… I'm sick of having to worry about it. I'm sick of… of all of this..."

"What mind games?" Ted scoffed, defensive. "You knew from the beginning exactly what this was. Everything was really straightforward, Barney – and you know that, bottom line… you brought all of this on yourself…"

"No." Barney shook his head slowly. "Ted… this was all your idea. You came up with what you wanted to happen, and then… didn't really give me a choice about it." He was quiet for a moment, a slight, bitter smile on his lips when he continued. "I always knew you were just a little bit of a douche, Ted. But I never… I never thought you were cruel."

Barney stood up, and Ted reached out instinctively to grab his arm, looking up at him, urgency in his eyes and in his voice. "Barney, think about what you're doing. You're frustrated, and… and confused. I get that. But, just sit down and talk to me…"

"There's nothing to talk about…" Barney froze when Ted touched him, not pulling away – but not sitting back down, either.

"Barney… you think you want to do this, right now… but you're going to change your mind later on," Ted insisted. "Think about all that you're giving up if you walk out that door."

Barney nodded once, closing his eyes, and for a moment Ted thought he'd gotten through to him, as Barney gently pulled free of Ted's hand on his arm and turned as if to go back to his seat. But then, instead of sitting down, Barney merely took out his wallet and put a couple of bills down on the table – more than enough to cover the cost of both of their meals – before turning once more and heading swiftly, purposefully out the door.

Barney didn't come around for a few days after that.

Their friends wondered aloud where he was, and why he wasn't answering any of their calls – and Ted pretended to be as puzzled as they were. Privately, however, he was slowly going out of his mind.

He'll come around, he told himself. He has to. He can't just stay away from all of us forever – and he can't really come around them without running into me. He can't just avoid the situation indefinitely.

If he'd just talk to me…

Ted's thoughts kept going back to the moment when he'd kissed Barney, his mind replaying every detail, each instant drawn out in his memory. He'd done it to prove a point – to force Barney to admit that his constant need for Ted's approval, his desperation for his friendship, was really so much more than that – to admit how much he needed Ted.

And with every day that passed in Barney's complete absence, Ted was more and more convinced that it had backfired spectacularly.

You wanted to bring to light how much he needed you… and yeah, maybe you did.

But that's not all you brought to light, is it?

As much as he hated to admit it, when Ted had kissed Barney, he'd allowed something to surface from deep within himself, as well – something he'd never imagined existed. As much as he knew that Barney wanted not just his friendship or his approval but him, completely – Ted had to admit that he wanted Barney, too.

Each day that he was gone from their little group only emphasized it more.

He'll call. Eventually, he'll give in… and he'll call.

Ted told himself so day after day, resisting the temptation to call Barney himself. Countless times each day, he found himself taking out his phone, hesitating over Barney's number – but each time, he made himself put it away again. He knew that calling Barney – revealing how badly he wanted contact with him – would only serve to give Barney the upper hand again.

And he will give in. Sooner or later. He has to. And when he does – then I'll be in control again…

But as time went on with no sign of Barney, Ted began to doubt his certainty, and the temptation to call Barney grew stronger.

Four days after their aborted lunch meeting, Barney walked into MacLaren's – and Ted barely managed to suppress an audible sigh of relief at the sight of him. Instead, he made himself look away with barely a glance, continuing his conversation with the others as if he hadn't even noticed Barney's entrance.

"Barney!" Marshall sounded as relieved as Ted felt when he caught sight of their friend, beckoning him over to their table as Robin and Lily both called out to him at the same time. "Where were you, man? It's been ages."

"Four days, to be exact," Barney clarified with a teasing grin, clearly thrilled at how much he'd been missed. "Geez, you people can't deal with just a few short days without the fascinating tales of my misadventures to keep you from getting bored? I just went on a little business trip."

"Without telling any of us?" Lily scolded, one eyebrow raised in her best stern, teacher look. "That's kind of dangerous, Barney – especially when you work for Evil, Incorporated…"

Barney gave her an exaggeratedly shocked, offended look as he took the empty seat which just happened to be next to Ted. "GNB is not…"

"It might as well be," Lily insisted. "And anyway, that doesn't matter. If you leave town for days at a time, it's always a good idea to let your friends know you'll be gone."

"Yes, ma'am." Barney sighed, rolling his eyes. "Should I get a crossing buddy before crossing the street next time, too?"

His tone was light and playful, but as he spoke his gaze drifted toward Ted – and there it was. Ted suppressed the smile he felt at the uncertainty in Barney's eyes. Barney still cared, Ted knew – if only because he knew how easily Ted would be able to cut him off from the group again, if he so chose. Ted had proven it the last time, when he'd disowned Barney as a friend, and Barney hadn't spent any time with any of them for months.

Robin was the first to leave the group, on her way to work. When Lily and Marshall announced that they needed to go a little while later, Barney moved as if to rise from the booth as well – but Ted subtly caught his wrist on the booth between them, his firm grip preventing Barney's hasty escape.

Ted noticed the visible, convulsive swallow in Barney's throat, but Barney didn't do or say anything to alert the others to what Ted had done. He just smiled at them and waved goodnight with his free hand as they headed out the door – before pointedly turning in his seat and glaring at Ted. Unfazed, Ted gave him a satisfied smile.

"I knew you'd be back."

Barney gave him a resentful sneer, rolling his eyes. "Please. Like I'm back for you." The words stung, and Ted's eyes narrowed angrily as Barney went on, meeting Ted's eyes, his tone quiet and unhappy. "You know this is all I've got, Ted. You know that. It's not fair that you can just… just take it away from me anytime you like."

"No one's taking anything from you, Barney," Ted insisted, his voice softly, patronizingly patient. "It's your choice. Always has been."

Barney let out a frustrated scoffing sound. "You know I don't have a choice," he snapped. "If I did, trust me, I wouldn't be here."

But Ted knew better.

Barney had yet to free his wrist from Ted's now much gentler grasp.

"Actually…"

Ted's voice was low and enticing as he casually ran his thumb across Barney's wrist, and Barney looked up at him sharply, wariness mingled with that same ever-present hope in his eyes – and something else. Ted could see it so clearly now – that faint, barely veiled longing in Barney's expression, that tiny part of him that still clung to the possibility that Ted was so subtly, deliberately entertaining. Ted leaned in closer, his free hand slipping under the table to rest on Barney's thigh. Barney jumped slightly with surprise, but didn't quite pull away, as Ted concluded in a hushed, secretive tone.

"… you have a choice to make right now."

Barney swallowed hard, his gaze arrested by Ted's piercing eyes, his voice hoarse and trembling slightly as he responded, barely over a whisper.

"A-and what's that?"

A sly smile played across Ted's lips before he leaned in even closer, close enough to whisper his enticing words in Barney's ear.

"Whether or not you're going to come upstairs with me."