A/N: This is it. The last chapter. The end of the story. I hope you enjoyed reading it as much as I enjoyed writing it. I will actually be going into temporary retirement from authoring fanfiction for the next month or so. I've written a novel, and I'm in the process of editing it, and I don't have the time to be working on two stories at once. I took a little break from my novel to gain some perspective, but I couldn't stop writing, so I turned my creative juices towards my fave TV show: Bones. Now it's time for me to get back to my novel and finish everything I started. Thank you so much for your incredible reviews - you are all extremely kind, and you make my heart smile, like this: (:

And now, for the prizes. For our final closeout liquidation sale, all Bones cast must go. That means anyone who reviews this last chapter will not only get the Boreanaz, Deschanel, Panitz, and Squint Squad package, but a special edition limited-time-offer Eric Millegan, aka Zack Addy. With your own Millegan, you can pretend like Zack never went crazy and apprenticed himself to a serial killer. After all, isn't denial the healthiest way to cope?*

Without any more stalling, here it is: The Last Chapter.

*Author is not a therapist. Do not take her advice, it may cause you to develop serious emotional issues.

"Bones?"

She snuggled into his shirt. It smelled like Spring Fresh detergent and Booth. It was nice.

"Time to get up. We got a case to solve."

She tightened her arms around his neck. Her office couch was just the right size if she twined herself around him like this. "Let's just nap a little longer," she murmured.

He chuckled, and she felt his hand smooth her hair. "After awhile, Bones, it stops being a nap and starts being a slumber." He rubbed her back. "C'mon. Wakey, wakey."

For some reason, every fiber of her being resisted letting go. The deeper, irrational corners of her heart whispered that if she just held on a little longer, remained in his arms a little longer, felt his solid presence and knew beyond a doubt that he was there a little longer, she would be satisfied. But somehow, it was never enough. She knew it would never be enough. The moment she let him go, a tiny cold knot of anxiety would start to form in the pit of her stomach, and she would begin to wonder what madness had persuaded her that he could be hers forever. Of course he couldn't be hers forever, couldn't love her forever – forever stretched far beyond their lifetimes. They'd be dead and gone before they reached the end of forever, and his affection would likely wear out sometime around a decade from now.

But then he'd put his arms around her again, and she'd remember why she accepted his proposal in the first place: because she had faith in him. She loved him too much not to. And somehow, his touch alone could drag her mind away from the horrible, logical future she saw and back into the present with him. Maybe he would be here later, maybe not, but he was here now. And for now, now was enough.

"Booth?" she asked quietly.

"Yeah?"

"Are you scared?"

He rested his cheek against the top of her head. "Of what?"

"Of us." She buried her face in his shoulder. "Getting married."

She could feel the flexion of his face muscles; he was smiling. "Bones, the only thing I'm scared of is a lawyer showing up at our wedding and telling me you're already married to a mystery man from Fiji."

"That's not going to happen," she reassured him.

"I know." He paused a moment. "Why? Are you scared?"

"No," she instinctively answered. Then she felt ashamed of the lie. "Well, yes. A little. I'm a little scared."

He wrapped his arms around her securely, enveloping her in his warm embrace. How does he do that? Brennan wondered. How does he always tell me exactly what I need to hear without saying a word?

"What scares you, Bones?" he murmured.

"What happens if marriage doesn't work?" she whispered. "What if our happiness doesn't last? What if we end up stifling each other, and we find ourselves trapped, bound to each other but desperate to leave? What if getting married ruins us?"

"Hey." His voice was strong, confident. "Hey. Don't talk like that. A brilliant woman once told me never to jump to conclusions."

"No, I told you that," she corrected. Then she understood. "Oh. You were referring to me."

"I think for a second there, you were jealous of yourself," he teased.

"I wasn't jealous!" Brennan protested. "I merely wanted you to attribute the advice to its rightful source."

"Right." He chuckled. "But my point is, you don't need to be scared of that stuff. There's no reason to believe it's going to happen. There's no evidence, no data to support it. That's why I'm not scared." His words were bold, but somehow she didn't believe him; the tone of his voice belied him.

"Or maybe there is evidence, and you are scared," she suggested, "but you're foolhardy and imprudent enough to ignore the warning signs and proceed anyway, propelled by the strength of your convictions."

He was quiet for a moment. "Some people would call that brave."

"Then maybe…" She shifted around so that she could lean back and see his face. "Maybe I can be a little scared, and you can be brave enough for the both of us."

Booth looked into her eyes and smiled. "I can do that."

She kissed him, realizing just how fortunate she was to have him. I love you.

He kissed her back. I love you too.

"Now, we really need to get up," he told her. "Or I'll give you something to be really scared about."

"Like what?" she asked, not moving an inch.

He spoke in a menacing whisper, as if uttering the darkest threat. "I'll serenade you."

"I'm up, I'm up!" she exclaimed, sitting up and jumping off the couch.

"Too late!" he declared. "It's happening now, baby, I can feel it!" He leapt up from the couch and threw his arms out spread-eagle. Then, wearing his cheesiest crooner face, he began belting out a song. "Wooooaah, myyy-y-y lo-ove, my da-a-arlin', I've huuuungered for… Yoo-o-our touch, a long…. Lonely time!"

"Oh, God, Booth, stop, please," she begged him between laughs. His singing was truly atrocious; she only recognized the song as Unchained Melody from the lyrics.

There was no stopping him now, however. He grabbed a Guatemalan artifact from one of her shelves and sang into it like a microphone, continuing with gusto. "And tiiiiiiiiiime, go-o-oes by-y, so slo-owly, and time… can do… so-o-o much! Aaa-a-are youuu! Still miiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiine?"

"No more, no more," she choked out, barely able to speak.

He threw himself to his knees at her feet, one arm stretched dramatically towards her face, his own face scrunched up with the force of his singing. "I-i-i-i NEEEEEEEEEE-EEEE-EEEED YO-OUR LO-OVE! I-hi-i-i…. Need your love. Go-od speed, your lo-ove, tooooooo-oo-OO-OO MEEE-EE-EE-EEEE!" And then he flung his arms around her waist and pulled her to the ground, kissing her enthusiastically. She tried to kiss him back but she couldn't stop laughing, which got him laughing too, and soon they were both prostrate on the floor trying to keep their sides from splitting.

When their giggle fit subsided, they both laid there for a moment, staring up at the ceiling. Booth sighed and put his hand over hers. "Now, if you ever doubt how much I love you, just take me to a public place and I will repeat that spectacular performance. I'll make a complete and utter fool out of myself just to prove to you that I care."

"I wouldn't ask you too," Brennan told him, turning her head to look at him.

"Did you think that was a promise?" Booth asked, staring at her with mock-indignation. "That was a threat. You won't have any choice in the matter."

She snorted. "Oh. I see. In that case, I'll be very careful not to doubt you."

"Good." His fingers curled around hers.

She squeezed his hand, and realized she wasn't scared anymore, not even a little.

A/N: If you haven't heard the song Booth is singing (perhaps you have been under a rock for the last twenty years?), I strongly urge you to go to Youtube and take a listen. It's "Unchained Melody" by the Righteous Brothers, and I would post a link but the HTML won't let me. It's pretty much THE B&B song. Not to mention, perfect for the ultimate super-cheesy karaoke. Thanks everybody for reading - catch you on the flip side.*

*P.S.: If anyone knows what that means, please tell me.