"Brennan, you want to work out?" Jesse leaned against Brennan's doorjamb and watched the other man.
"Sure." Brennan looked up from his computer and smiled at Jesse. "I'm going to kick your ass."
"No, you're not. Meet you in five?"
"As you wish."
Jesse's eyebrows rose at the phrase. He gave Brennan a look, but all he got was an impassive expression he couldn't read. //Okay, whatever. Moving on.// "See you in five."
*
"Hey, Jesse?"
"Yeah?" Jesse stood up from where he was resting by the meditation pool.
Brennan reached out a hand to steady him. "You okay?"
"Minor cuts. No muscle damage to my leg. I'm fine. Nothing to worry about. Adam's got me on antibiotics just in case the knife was un-sterile."
"'In case the knife was un-sterile'? You're kidding me, Jess. Even you can't be that optimistic about a guy on a street corner who cuts you because you've got no cash on you."
"Brennan, I'm fine."
"You got cut." Brennan slid his hands from Jesse's shoulders to his hips, squeezing slightly. "Why didn't you dense up or phase?"
"No time. I didn't know he had a knife, Brennan." Jesse leaned his forehead against Brennan's. "I'm fine. Will you let this go?"
"As you wish."
Jesse was going to ask what the hell Brennan meant by that, but Brennan kissed him quiet.
*
"Emma, you got a minute?"
"What's up?" Emma looked over at Jesse while she ate lunch.
"You know Brennan better than anyone else here-"
"You're running me a close second, I promise."
Jesse smiled. "Thanks. I was hoping you could explain something about him to me."
"Explain Brennan?"
"Oxymoron, I know."
Emma grinned. "Yeah. What do you need?"
"Whenever I ask Brennan to do something, spar with me, drop a conversation, watch a movie, or anything, he's giving me a really weird answer."
"No?"
Jesse laughed. "No. He keeps saying 'As you wish'." Jesse watched Emma's eyes go wide. "You know what it means."
"You never saw that movie?"
"What movie?"
Emma took a drink of water. "It's Brennan favorite movie. I can't believe he hasn't made you watch it."
"What movie?"
"The Princess Bride."
"I've heard of it."
"Never seen it?"
"No. What's it mean?" Jesse shifted so he was leaning closer to Emma. "What's he really saying?"
Emma smiled, softly, almost wistfully. "The main characters in the movie are in love, and the guy, Westley, never says I love you to Buttercup."
"What's he say?"
"As you wish."
Jesse's eyes widened almost comically. He swallowed hard a couple of times, and then hurried to stand up, almost tripping over himself in the process. "I'll see you later."
"Bye, Jesse." Emma smiled again and concentrated on her lunch.
*
"Brennan."
"Yeah?" Brennan was lying on the bed, only in jeans, and he didn't look up from his book.
Jesse crawled up the bed, and took the book from Brennan, kissing him long and soft. He pulled away just long enough to look Brennan in the eye. "I love you, too."
Brennan smiled and pulled Jesse down. "As you wish."
Created on ... April 29, 2003