Note: So that was a longer break than expected.

What if? Booth and Brennan had met much earlier.

AU? Yes

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The ball slipped cleanly into the pocket. Booth downed the last of his beer, at home with the smoky atmosphere and the familiar the clack of the balls. Man, he missed the feeling of a shot he just couldn't miss. He toyed with the chip in his pocket and wondered again if it was really necessary to quit playing altogether.

From the stool beside him, Jared caught the longing in his gaze and slapped him on the back. "Come on, Seel. I've got to get back to base, and you have to work tomorrow. Time to call it a night."

Booth took one last look and followed his brother out into the cool spring night.

They split up on the corner and Booth walked home alone, enjoying the invigorating feel of the cool, fresh air against his face. He let himself into the apartment building and took the stairs two at a time.

He kicked off his shoes at the door, noticing as he did that his roommate was home and, judging by the feminine heels at the door, had company. He walked into the kitchen, tossing his keys on the counter as he reached for a glass. He was halfway through his water when a woman stepped out of his roommate's bedroom. She was fully dressed, her hair pulled back in a ponytail, and she walked past him, stopping at the door to put on the shoes he'd noticed.

He stepped toward her. "Hi", he said, holding out his hand. "I'm Sully's roommate, Seeley Booth."

Her gaze was cool, assessing, as she replied, "I assumed." She took his hand in a perfunctory handshake, and a jolt of pure attraction hummed through his body. "Temperance Brennan."

"Nice to meet you, Temperance", he managed.

She turned without another word and a second later the door clicked shut behind her.

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Five days later, he ran into her – literally – in the hallway of the federal courthouse. The folder she was carrying went flying, and only the fact that his coffee was in his left hand rather than the right saved them both from being scalded. For a moment, they scrambled to pick up the scattered papers before they were trampled by passers-by. When they had all been retrieved, he said, "I'm sorry."

"You should watch where you're going", she snapped.

"So should you", he responded, annoyed.

There was a moment of tense silence before she said "Right", much less aggressively. "I apologize." The words sounded foreign, as if she rarely had an opportunity to use them.

She brushed past him and disappeared into one of the courtrooms.

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It was a few weeks before he saw her again. It had been a long week, and there was no way he'd rather spend his Friday night than sitting on the couch with a beer and a bag of chips, watching the game. The score was tied in the middle of the third period when she walked through the door, Sully a half-step behind her. They grabbed a bottle of wine from the fridge and disappeared into Sully's room.

He turned up the TV.

Saturday morning he rolled out of bed in time for his early basketball game. He turned on the Saturday morning cartoons for company as he ate his toast, shaking his head as Wile E Coyote got hit with an anvil yet again.

He noticed her as soon as she walked out of Sully's room, his eyes following her as she walked into the kitchen and opened a cabinet. "Glasses are in the cabinet to the left of the sink", he said.

"Thanks", she said quietly.

She poured herself a glass of water and wandered back into the living room, standing there awkwardly until he patted the couch beside him. "Plenty of room."

She nodded and sat, asking "What is this?"

His spoon clattered into his bowl. "You've never seen Bugs Bunny?"

"No.", she said, her attention on the screen.

He shook his head in disbelief. "Lucky I'm here, then." Basketball game forgotten, he began to explain the show as she listened avidly.

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He could hear the music before he opened the door. Inside the apartment were dozens of Sully's friends, dancing and having a good time. He ducked through the crowd to get to his room, taking a minute to regroup before joining the party.

He spent the next hour shouting to be heard over the thumping bass, dancing with one woman after another. When he finally stopped for a break, he ducked out onto the balcony.

The glass patio door slid shut behind him, muting the music just a little, and he turned to see Temperance, sitting quietly in the single cheap patio chair.

"I'm sorry", he said. "If you want to be alone, I can go back inside."

"It's OK", she said. "I just needed a break for a minute."

He nodded and leaned on the railing, enjoying the contrast between the peaceful streets in front of him and the raucous party behind.

After a moment, she spoke. "I'm not sure I've ever been to a party this loud."

He looked over his shoulder at her. "What? No crazy college parties in your past?"

She shook her head. "I've never really been a party person. I preferred to focus on my studies."

"Oh", he said, waggling his eyebrows at her. "You were one of those people."

"My studies were very important to me", she answered seriously. "If I neglected them, I would have lost my scholarship."

He nodded. "And you needed the scholarship."

"Yes", she said.

He shrugged, suddenly anxious to put her at ease. "You didn't miss much. A little hearing loss, a bunch of people acting like idiots, a hangover the next day … You were better off studying."

She looked inside. "I should get back."

He nodded solemnly. "Sully will be missing you."

She slid the door open and stepped over the threshold.

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It seemed like Sully was never home anymore, so it was surprising to find his roommate on the phone when he got home from work. He waved as he headed into his bedroom to change, and when he came out, Sully was waiting for him.

"What's up, Sul?", he asked.

Sully beamed. "I got the job!"

Booth must have looked puzzled, because he added, "The one in New York? Come on, man, I must have told you."

Booth shook his head. "I don't think so. When do you start?'

"Three weeks!" Sully's excitement faded just a little. "Look, I'll cover my rent for the next two months. Our lease is up then, anyway."

"Right", Booth answered. "Perfect timing, right?"

Sully grinned and clapped him on the back. "You know it."

He turned towards the door. "I'll see you later, Booth. I've got to tell Temperance." He grinned. "With any luck, she'll to come with me."

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She was sitting alone on a bench outside the courthouse when he sat down beside her. "Nice day", he said.

She looked over at him. "Sully and I broke up. You don't have to be nice to me anymore."

He handed her the coffee he'd bought for her. "I like being nice to you."

She took a sip, looked at the flowers swaying gently in the breeze. "He wanted me to move to New York." She sounded bewildered, as if Sully had asked her to move to Mars.

"He said he was going to ask you", Booth answered.

"What was I going to do there?", she asked rhetorically. "My life is here."

"You could build a new life there", Booth answered.

"I don't know if I could", Temperance replied. "Is it wrong that I didn't want to try?"

"No", Booth said. "You have to do what's right for you. New York, now, with Sully? It wasn't right, or you'd have gone."

"I don't know if I'll ever meet someone who'll make me want to pack up my whole life to go with him."

"You will", Booth answered. "But the thing is, when you do? He won't want to go if you don't go, too."

He tossed his empty cup in the trash can. "See you around, Temperance."

"Yes", she answered. "See you around."

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Comments, questions, theories about whether spring is ever going to come?