Fic: Layers (1/1) (Alternate ending for The Baby in the Bough)

[only_more_love]

Title: Layers
Series: All That Lies Between Us
Characters: Booth, Brennan
Rating: K
Summary: Alternate ending for The Baby in the Bough.
Spoilers: For The Baby in the Bough
Word Count: 666
Feedback: is always appreciated and hoarded like gold. Or maybe chocolate. Thank you.
Notes: If you haven' t seen The Baby in the Bough, this might seem a bit confusing, as some of the dialog is taken from that ep. I didn't like the bit with pacifier at the end, so I wrote a brief alternate ending.

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Click here to read the other ficlets in this series.

“You know, with next year’s book, you should, uh…. You should get that second home in the town you saved. I mean, it only makes sense, right? Because every year, plasmas, they go down. They get cheaper and cheaper. It happens all the time—”

“Forget it,” Brennan said, interrupting Booth.

“What? I’m just saying that Andy’s gonna miss his Auntie Bones, and he’s gonna wanna see you,” Booth said, lips bent in a smirk. “We’ll all go fishing. Come back home. Plop ourselves in front of that big 103 inch plasma screen of heaven and football. And you can make the five-layer dip!”

“Seven-layer dip,” she said, unable to resist correcting him even as the tiny voice inside her that had been getting increasingly loud since Christmas suddenly spoke up about what a pleasant picture Booth had painted with his offhand words.

“Even better! Seven layers. Perfect. You can talk to Andy. Hello, Andy, little man…” His words trailed off into a series of unintelligible and infantile sounds that made her roll her eyes.

“You know what I find interesting?” she said, pitching her voice louder than his.

“What?” he said, turning his head to look at her.

“The fact that you take for granted your presence at my hypothetical second home.” Sweets would have been proud of her, she thought, with the beginnings of a smile as Booth blinked back at her, clearly flustered. “That is a rather domestic scenario you just posited,” she said, enjoying Booth’s discomfort. It was a rare occasion indeed when she rendered her partner speechless.

“Well…” He scratched the back of his neck. “I just meant that…”

Brennan raised her eyebrows and waited for his explanation. “Yes?”

“Never mind.”

Still smiling, Brennan leaned toward Booth. Because it seemed natural, because sitting there with Booth felt so easy, and there was such an air of inevitability to it, she didn't stop her fingers from curling around his slim black tie and then tugging him forward until she smelled the coffee on his breath and saw the surprised glint in his eye. When he didn’t pull away, her eyes fell shut; she released his tie and closed the remaining distance between them until their mouths brushed in the briefest of kisses.

His hands drifted to her shoulders, their pressure warm and steady. Retreating slowly, Brennan opened her eyes to find Booth watching her.

“How long you been thinking about doing that?” he asked, a hint of arrogance in his voice as he brushed a strand of hair from her face.

“Oh, as if you haven’t,” she replied, flicking his tie with her index finger.

“Since Christmas?” he asked, with a wink.

“I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

His eyes danced with laughter, and she smiled back. “Sure you don’t,” he said. Letting her go, he hopped down from the back of the SUV. “If you want some more of that, you’re gonna have to buy me dinner.”

“Who said I wanted more?” she shot back.

“I can tell, Bones. Non-verbal communication. Now come on,” he said, and held his hand out to her, “let’s go spend what’s left of your seven-figure advance.”

Ignoring his hand, she stood and stepped away from the car, brushing off her pants. “You’re saying you’ll actually let me pay for once?”

“Yup,” he said, closing the back. “Today I will. One-time offer on account of you missing Andy.”

“How can I possibly refuse an offer like that?”

“Simple; you can’t.”

She watched Booth’s smile widen as he fished his car keys from his pocket and then tossed them to her. Laughing, she caught them and quickly rounded the car to scramble into the driver’s seat before he could change his mind.

After buckling her seatbelt, she turned her head to glance at Booth. “It looks as though you’re on the grandma side today.”

“Sure looks that way, Bones.” Shrugging, he reached out to smooth his thumb across her cheek. “But don’t get used to it.”

---

A/N: Hugs and thanks to everyone who commented on #59. :)

Comments

[gina227.livejournal.com]

Exactly my thoughts! I found it really telling the way he said "we'll go fishing and then come back home" instead of saying "and then go to your house". It made me squee a little bit.

[lerdo.livejournal.com]

It was telling; it's too bad the Bones writers didn't have Brennan calling him on it.

Thanks for commenting.

[spaceyplum.livejournal.com]

FABOO!!!

[lerdo.livejournal.com]

Danke! :)

[late-heart.livejournal.com]

Ahhhh, now there's an ending that would have been worth watching.

(The pacifier scene made me shrivel up a little. Ugh.)

Adored the key toss -- what a sweet, sly moment.

Well done you!

[lerdo.livejournal.com]

Merci beaucoup, my dear. :)

(The pacifier scene made me shrivel up a little. Ugh.)

I know! It made me gag.

Adored the key toss -- what a sweet, sly moment.

Thanks; it seemed like something Brennan would appreciate. ;)

[cloudillusion.livejournal.com]

Loved this. A much better ending than the pacifier thing. I might have to go re-watch, stop before the pacifier, and end with this bit instead :)

[lerdo.livejournal.com]

What a lovely thing to say. Thank you very much!

[made-of-toast.livejournal.com]

I agree with the others, so very much better than the pacifier ending! As I was watching the scene I couldn't help but think "man, he seems mighty alright with assuming he'll be invited over to watch that ONE HUNDRED AND THREE *makes gesture* INCHES of heaven." Well done!

[lerdo.livejournal.com]

So glad you enjoyed this. Thanks for letting me know that. And yeah, Booth was making some pretty big assumptions there. *g*

[makd.livejournal.com]

Absolutely!!! Much, much, better ending! (I hated that pacifier ending!)

[lerdo.livejournal.com]

Thanks! I'm thrilled you liked this. The pacifier ending did NOT do good things for me. :(

[tartsweetheart.livejournal.com]

:::grins:: That was great.

Yeah, what was up with Booth's slips this episode?

When he said "our" in regards to Andy, I almost died over their look. How can it be so BLATANT without going any further?

I need some more puckish behavior, is all I'm saying. : D

[lerdo.livejournal.com]

Why thank you. :D I'm happy this entertained you.

Booth's totally gone. *g*

[lime-mhc.livejournal.com]

I love it! You're such a good writer and this was a plausible alternate ending... sigh.

[lerdo.livejournal.com]

That's very kind of you to say. Thank you. Glad this worked for you. :)

[mdemvizi.livejournal.com]

Even though I liked the pacifier a little, this was amazing. What they could've done when they sat there.

[highvoltage11.livejournal.com]

Cute. I liked how nonchalant he was about the kiss. Teasing her.

[angel-grace.livejournal.com]

This was absolutely adorable! I just had a chance to watch this episode today (damn the scheduling conflicts Mondays at 7!), and I couldn't get over how Booth's picture of her future involved him in a very significant sense. And that's not even taking into consideration the "our" Andy slip!

Anyway, lovely as always. I look forward to whatever you come up with next.

[envy-greene.livejournal.com]

It's been awhile since I've been around, but look what I come back to! Loved their banter - I can hear this scene playing out. Brennan rendering Booth speechless - priceless. And the kiss, no matter how brief...squee!

[devylish.livejournal.com]

how adorale... and it's a better ending than the pacifier was lol...!

[itsacrowsade.livejournal.com]

My list of favorite Lerdo fics is growing, and this one is near the very top of that list!

The little bickering bit at the end is so very in character: (("If you want some more of that, you’re gonna have to buy me dinner." "Who said I wanted more?" she shot back.))

I also love this part, as this is exactly what Brennan would probably do: ((Ignoring his hand, she stood and stepped away from the car, brushing off her pants.)).

This is how the episode should've ended. ;)

[jal-1994.livejournal.com]

Amazing! Beautiful! Gorgeous!

666 words. *gigglesnort*

[cinderellahn.livejournal.com]

Beautiful as usual. Your stories are amazing. So well written and always in character.

[alliemulder2.livejournal.com]

Wonderful, too bad this isn't what happened. Thank you :)

[spy-barbie.livejournal.com]

heee, that's cute! how you manage to make it 666 words, I really don't know, lol!

[buffyangellvr23.livejournal.com]

nicely done :)

[http://users.livejournal.com/_missmargaret_/]

Alternate ending indeed. This feels like it could just settle right into the episode as effortlessly as the original ending, Lerdo. Beautifully written!

[toughlovebaby.livejournal.com]

as much as i loved the ending of baby in the bough, i definitely prefer this one ;)

[witchofthedogs.livejournal.com]

Yes.

*hugs*

[elena1701.livejournal.com]

A much better ending than the one they filmed :)

[phantmgreeneyes.livejournal.com]

I think you're right. a kiss to shut him up would have been much nicer than a pacifier.

[a-h-c.livejournal.com]

Well, yeah, cuz while we shippers can read into things with the best of them, he definitely was making some explicit assumptions about being in that house with her and she would need to call him on it. Nice alternate ending.

[melissa-pbfan.livejournal.com]

I like the pacifier ending but your fic just made me squee! :D

[nonores.livejournal.com]

I like this!
When I first watched the ep I thought the pacifer thing was a bit twee and it just got worse with extra viewings.
It seems like a cop-out on the writers part.

But this is cute - you really bought the banter and they both spot on.

[freevortex.livejournal.com]

yay! I was anticipating your response to the ending of Baby in the Bough, because I personally thought it was a bit weak. But this makes a great end to a very good Bones ep!

[rainbowjumpsuit.livejournal.com]

God. I loved this. This is truly how the episode should have ended.

You capture those two so well and keep them more in-character than anyone else I've ever read.

[odakota-rose.livejournal.com]

*huge grin*
I like this so much better. And that's exactly what I was thinking when I saw the episode, Booth was thinking up an awfully domestic scene. I like it, hehe ;)

[a2zmom.livejournal.com]

I wish it had gone this way. I love the way you write Booth teasing her. It feels so natural.

[amy-thrace821.livejournal.com]

I actually didn't mind the original ending, I thought it was cute that they just went to a park somewhere to hang out, and I thought David was hilarious, but I love this ending even more. He definitely was hinting towards some future together... I wonder if David had anything to do with that, since he and Emily apparently do some improve stuff on it.