Haha, see now…I've got you all figured out! You LOVE angst, you goofs! And here I've been trying to keep this story lighthearted. I mean, who needs more pain in the world, right? Isn't that what BONES is all about? Getting away from life for awhile? But NOOOOO, the ONE chapter I post with a sad ending is everyone's fave.

Figures.

Well, little known fact about me. I hate B+B fighting. When they are fighting, I have been known to feel physically ill. And when they are fighting because of something I WROTE? Haha, I can't type fast enough to 'fix' it.

So, here you have it, you angst bunnies. Sorry to burst your angst love bubble. Don't mind me; I'm just trying to make Booth and Brennan happy is all.

(If it makes you feel better, I cried when I wrote "Friday's" chapter. Oh, poor Booth! Oh, poor Brennan! Oh, poor ME! ¡Pobrecitos!)

haha

--b&b—

Saturday

11 AM:

Brennan reached for her glue as she continued working on a skull reconstruction. She'd been at the lab for over four hours, unable to sleep in. Especially when there was so much work to be done. She was in such deep concentration that she didn't realize her cell phone was ringing until it went straight to voicemail. It buzzed near her thigh, and she jumped a bit, startled by the sensation.

Pulling off her gloves, she reached into her pocket and noticed three missed calls from Karen, her agent. Quickly dialing into her voicemail, she listened.

"Dr. Brennan. Call me immediately" Karen gushed. "I have FANTASTIC news."

Curious, Brennan dialed the number in her contacts list.

"Hello?"

"Karen, hi, it's Dr. Brennan."

"Ah!" Karen squealed. "Can you come to the office immediately? Something VERY exciting is happening."

Brennan looked around her. "Okay, I suppose I can do that."

"Oh, you know what? Don't bother" Karen continued. "I'll just tell you over the phone! Very good news…your publisher has been asked to market your books internationally. This means they are going to be translated into other languages."

"And…that's…good?" Brennan clarified.

"Good? It's like…the freaking Bible or something! Temperance…can I call you Temperance? It's…it's almost unheard of. Sometimes, they might translate a book into one language, if it's really popular, but they are talking four languages. French, Spanish, Chinese and Japanese. It's…it's really quite amazing. If you want, I'll take you out to lunch to celebrate. But you probably have someone else you'd rather celebrate with. So don't mind me, I'll just be putting together the paperwork, darling! Ta!"

Brennan chuckled as she closed her phone. She looked around the lab and saw that it was empty. She did want to share her good news with someone. But as she walked around the lab table, she realized there was really only one person she wanted to share it with. But she didn't know if he wanted to hear it.

--b&b--

10 PM

Booth set his empty beer bottle on the coffee table and looked at the room around him. It was still a mess from the night Parker had been there, and from the day before. He'd woken up that morning and crawled out to the living room, where he'd collapsed on the couch all day. He'd meant to turn on the TV, but since that was from Bones, it just made his heart hurt. He just needed one day to be miserable, and then he'd be fine. He'd go see her tomorrow, invite her to the diner and smile at her, eat pie, and everything would be just fine.

He was so lost in thought that he almost didn't hear the slight click of his door. His body went on alert, but as soon as the door opened, he knew who it was.

But it was too soon, and he just couldn't deal with rationalizations tonight. Not just yet. But he sat up at least and faced the TV, but he couldn't quite make himself turn around.

Brennan's eyes adjusted to the darkness of the room. There were no lights on, and the only way she could see Booth was from the white t-shirt he had on. It was tight against his biceps, and he was leaning forward, his elbows resting at against his thighs.

She leaned against the open doorway between his kitchen and living room, a spot she'd stood in a few times before. She wasn't sure what she was going to say, and when she opened her mouth, what came out surprised both of them.

"When I was 19, I had to give my first lecture in college" her husky voice slid through the darkness of the room, "I made notecards, and prepared a speech. And when it was time to give it, I stood up, and walked to the podium. But halfway there, I tripped and fell down, and all of my notecards scattered on the floor."

Booth didn't say anything; he just leaned forward and put his face in his hands.

Brennan continued from her spot in the doorway. "People were laughing, and no one tried to help me. I even looked back at my professors, and they were smirking. I was only 19." She paused and her voice cracked. "But already it seemed like everyone I knew resented me for my intelligence. In high school I knew people didn't like me because of how smart I was, but I thought that in college, people would admire how smart I was. Or at least not make me feel like an outcast because of it."

She was wringing her hands slightly, but still made no move to enter the room. "But throughout the whole speech, the students just laughed the whole time. No one was listening. And that night, I went back to my dorm, and I was alone. I didn't have any friends, I didn't have any family. I didn't have anyone to talk to."

Booth swallowed, and could feel his jaw working, but still, he couldn't make himself turn and face her.

"So, I read more. And I got smarter" Brennan confessed. "And I worked harder. And I promised myself I wouldn't need anyone's approval. For anything, ever."

"But then…" she stepped into the living room, his back still to her, "one night, after a case, you looked at me, and you said, 'You got that one right, Temperance.', and I…"

She paused and then walked to stand in front of him. "I felt approved of."

Booth leaned back on his couch, and met her eyes. In them, she could see uncertainty and desire.

"And then, one Christmas, we'd all been quarantined, and when it was lifted, everyone left. But you came back, and invited me to come to dinner with you, and your son."

Booth looked away, the muscle in his jaw working, his hands clenching on his knees.

"And one day" she continued, "I learned my mother was dead." Tears sprang up in her eyes, "And I just wanted to be alone. I already was alone, and I wanted to be more alone, I don't know…" she didn't wipe her face as two tears trailed down her cheeks. "I don't know how to explain it. I was alone, and I wanted to be alone." Her hands slid down her sides, "But then you knocked on my door, with food, and you talked to me."

The air between them was silent, crackling. Afraid she'd said too much, Brennan was just about to turn and leave when Booth stood up. He still didn't say anything, but just looked at her.

And she looked at him.

Brennan took in his messy hair and clothes. She met his eyes and then turned, walking toward his bathroom. Once she reached the door, she turned, and he walked after her.

Brennan didn't watch him any longer, but just walked into the bathroom. She turned on his shower, and then measured the water's temperature before turning around and motioning for him to get inside.

He took off his clothes and then entered the shower, and she let the curtain fall back into place, sitting on the toilet. She could hear the splash of water against his skin and against the shower floor. "I had a meeting with my publisher today." She spoke to the curtain, and imagined his body on the other side. Imagined his hands in his hair, washing it clean. "My books are being translated into four other languages, which is a pretty big deal, apparently."

Booth still didn't say anything, but she could hear him moving in the shower, his body brushing against the curtain every once in awhile. There were a couple of splashes, and she knew he had squeezed out his washcloth. Standing up and reaching for a clean towel for him, she waited until he turned off the water. He opened up the curtain, and she handed him the towel. "Booth…I guess…what I'm trying to say is that, I have something good in my life, and for a few hours today, I thought I didn't really have anyone to share it with. And I hated that."

Booth towel dried his body, and then looked at her for a moment.

Brennan turned and made her way to his bedroom. She stood near his bed and began removing her clothes. This wasn't a striptease, it was an unveiling of herself. For him. "When something bad happens in my life, you've been there for me."

His eyes traveled over her body, and he grew aroused from the sight. He stepped closer, and Brennan wrapped her arms around his shoulders, pulling him down for a kiss. His hands cupped her waist then, and they tumbled back onto the bed.

It was a tangle of arms and legs until Brennan rolled onto her back and opened herself to him. Guiding his hips to rest against hers, she welcomed him inside.

Booth pressed his face to her neck and she could feel his breath alongside his face. Her hands began sweeping motions over his back and sides as he began a smooth rhythm.

"When something bad happens" she repeated. "You've been there for me, and when something good happens, I want to tell you about it."

His rhythm increased and he pulled back to look into her eyes. They stared at one another, and Brennan could tell he was close to an orgasm. She concentrated on the feel of him inside her and began tightening her muscles there to increase his pleasure. "When something good happens, I don't go to an art museum to celebrate." She confessed. "I want to have a beer with you."

He inhaled sharply, but continued his rhythm, his face a concentration in pleasure.

"When something bad happens, Booth, I don't want to make myself feel better by watching French films, I want to come over to your apartment and talk to you about it."

His face pressed to the side of her neck again, and she thought she felt him mouth her name against her skin. Her arms wrapped around him, and then all at once, her body reacted in pleasure. A release she hadn't even been reaching for spread from her core to her limbs, and she shook with a sharp gasp. "Booth!"

He growled slightly into her neck, her slick passage making his thrusts even easier, and soon, he was gasping her name as he slid into her one final time, his whole body wracked with shudders.

She continued her light caresses along his back and shoulders, letting one hand slide up to the back of his neck, her fingers curling into his damp hair there. "I don't know how else to describe it, Booth, but…when I'm sad, I want to be with you. When I'm happy, I want to be with you. Let's not give up yet. We don't give up on each other."

He swallowed, and she could feel his chest move against hers, and her legs smoothed against the sides of his. He sighed into her neck and kissed her there. Brennan felt his tender affection all the way to her toes.

"Bones?" he rasped against the skin of her neck.

"Yes, Booth?" she asked, sliding her hands over his slick skin,

He pushed up to his elbows, and looked at her. "Bones…" his neck tilted to the side and his eyes closed tight for just a moment, "Bones, do you think maybe…" he swallowed and looked into her eyes, "Maybe you might be falling in love with me…a little?"

Brennan let her hands fall to her sides, and then she reached up to press a kiss on his lips before settling back down to the pillow. "I think I might be" she answered honestly. "I don't know."

He pulled her into a hug and rolled to her side, pulling her tight against him.

--b&b--

Thanks for coming along for the Reality Week Ride! I don't think the next story will be posted this next week, but I will work on it.

This week was a hard lesson in learning that I didn't prepare enough for RW #1. But, i hope you have still enjoyed it. I have!

Thanks again for all for the kind words. B+B are on the upswing! You knew I couldn't let us all go to bed with them in a fight, right? haha

-d