Title: Bioluminescence
Author: Annie Wright (AnnieW177@aol.com)
Rating: G
Category: DRR, just a bit of schmoopy fluff, Doggett POV
Summary: Doggett waxes poetic about...stuff.
Disclaimer: More of Annie's Disclaimer Haiku!
		John and Mon aren't mine:
		From them I make no profit.
		Carter is a sad man.

Author's notes at the end.



	She sits on my back porch, beer in hand. She's kicked off her shoes, and I see her red toenails twinkling at me in the dusky light. Her feet are tucked up under her, her chin on her knees as she sits and watches the sky turn from blue to pink and orange. 
	I don't know why I asked her over tonight. Sometimes we go for a beer, but tonight...I didn't want to sit in a smoky bar surrounded by disgruntled Federal employees. I wanted it to be just us, her and me and a six pack of Heineken. 
	But we haven't said much tonight, and I don't know if it's because we've said all we need to say, or because we haven't. I'm leaning towards the latter. 
	I have a lot to say to her. But how am I supposed to do this? "Monica, have you seen the file for the Lukesh case? And by the way, I love you?" Something tells me that's not about to work. "Monica, pass me a beer, oh and just FYI I'm in love with you?" 
	Boy do I need to work on this.
	She turns to me, a sunny smile on her face. "You okay?"
	I nod. "Right as rain."
	"You're awfully quiet."
	"Just thinkin'."
	"'Bout what?"
	How do I respond to this? Do I tell her that I've been thinking about how beautiful I think she is, that her smile lights up a room? Do I say that she's got this light about her, this radiant quality that makes me want to be wherever she is? How do I tell her that she's been the one bright spot in an abysmally drab life, a beacon in the darkness? 
	"Stuff."
	Her throaty laugh is my reward. "That's not an answer, John."
	"Yeah, I know."
	She takes a long swig of beer, her golden-hazel eyes searching my face. "Why do I get the feeling you have something to tell me?"
	I look over at her, sitting there in the golden glow of sunset, with her hair pulled back in a messy ponytail, her super-trendy office clothes traded for a pair of jeans and a Brown University tee shirt, and I wonder if I am man enough to tell her the truth.
	"Because...I do."
	Her eyes narrow in concern. "What? Is everything okay?"
	"Yeah, it's better than okay, actually." I start to peel the label off my beer bottle, grasping for words. 
	"You gonna share?"
	I look over, out at my yard, thinking. How do I say this? 
	"You know how fireflies...they glow?"
	The look she gives me is puzzled. "It's called bioluminescence. It's a mating signal."
	"Yeah. Well, uh...it's like they're the one light in the darkness-the night can be pitch black, but damn if those bugs can't find one another in the darkness."
	"Is this leading somewhere?" she asks, leaning forward. 
	"These bugs...they probably have no idea how what they're doin' affects everything around them. Little kids love 'em, want to catch 'em and keep them for pets. They fascinate people who have never seen 'em before. And yet they just go on about their business, not knowing the kind of happiness they bring to people." I feel foolish, but I can't think of any other way to describe it.
	She cocks her head, a perplexed smile on her face. "Spill it."
	I return to peeling my beer label. "That's what you've done for me, Mon."
	"What?" Her smile widens. "Speak English, John. You're crap with metaphors."
	Despite myself, I laugh, and I bring myself to look her in the eye. "You're like a firefly, Mon...you have this quality, whaddya call it?"
	"Bioluminescence?"
	"Yeah...you have this bioluminescent quality about you, you make everything around you brighter."
	She smiles, blushing.
	"That's what you did for me. I was surrounded by darkness, and then you came along and just...I dunno, glowed so bright I had no choice but to go to you. You're fascinatin' and beautiful and you don't even know how you've affected me, Mon, you haven't got the slightest clue."
	Slowly she unfolds herself and crawls over to me, coming so close that I can feel her breath on my face. "That's the nicest thing that anyone's ever said to me, John Doggett." I can see that her eyes are damp, but she's got a big grin on her face. She leans forward and kisses me tenderly, hesitantly, and when she looks at me again I can see the question in her eyes.
	"I love you."
	Tears spill over onto her cheeks, and she's laughing as I pull her into my arms. She settles between my legs, her back on my chest, her head in the crook of my neck.
	"I never thought you'd say it." Her hand finds mine and she entwines our fingers, settling them on her stomach. 
	"Me neither."
	We sit there silently in the fading sunset, watching the fireflies appear as if by magic, their tiny lights a beacon in the darkness. 



Author's Notes:

Many thanks to Sarah, Lisa, and Megan for the beta-ing of this piece of schmoopy dreck. Your encouragement means the world to me!

Feedback is like a cold beer on a hot DC night...thoroughly enjoyed, and always welcome at AnnieW177@aol.com