Everyday for the last four months had been the same. I'd wake up, forgetting what had happened, but as soon as my eyes would open I'd be reminded of my life now. Everyday I'd wake up and remember that in one moment everything had been taken from me. Today wasn't any different I thought to myself as I looked around the room, the cards and flowers that still came in, sitting on various surfaces, the chairs next to my bed and Parker's DS sitting on the table beside me. He'd been in last night, and it had been better, he'd jumped right into the bed with me, sitting on top of me and telling me about Max's lesson earlier that day. It was the first time in months that he didn't seem frightened to touch me, didn't have the fear in his eyes. Angela had said that eventually he'd come around, and to my surprise he did. I wondered how much of that was because of the squints... He'd been spending a lot of time with Bones and Angela. As he sat with me laughing and talking on and on, I couldn't help but feel a pain in my heart, I was missing his life while I was in here. Finally when Rebecca came to get him, he leaned in and whispered to me "Daddy, it's okay that you can't hug me, I'll hug you okay?" I wanted to cry right there as I felt his little arms encircle my neck. "One day soon Park. I promise." I told him as he was letting go. Not long after he left I had fallen asleep, something I'd come to dread. I had dreams where I'd be chasing down a perp, or dreams about dancing with Bones, but I always dreamt about before, never about being paralyzed. That made waking up so much harder.

It was wednesday and I knew that Bones would be in at some point during the day, she'd taken to having lunch with me monday, wednesday and friday. The other two days Jack and Angela would come in, they had a schedule going trying to keep my spirits up. I knew today though that I'd be busy. The physical therapist wanted to get me up and moving. There was a device called a Lokomat, which was basically a robot suspended above a treadmill. They would secure me into the lokomat and it would do all the walking for me. Up until a week ago my therapy hadn't been going so well, there had been no improvement with sensation or any return at all. Then last tuesday as Angela was holding my hand I squeezed back, nearly making her fall out of her chair. I noticed too that when Bones came in that night I could feel her fingers kneading at my thigh. Something was happening, finally after four months of not being able to do anything but lay in bed, or sit in my wheelchair, something was coming back to me. I still couldn't move my arms or legs, or feed myself, but i could feel things now, I could even move my fingers a little. I lay here moving those fingers as Anne came in to look at my chart, she was my physical therapist.

"Now Seeley, tell me that you're ready for this." She said with a smile.

"I am. A little nervous, but I'm ready." I answered her.

Minutes later she was gone and the nurse was coming in to dress me. This was probably the second worst part of my day. I had to watch as he moved my limbs for me, all the muscle nearly gone from them. I'd lost sixty pounds in four months, most of it muscle, and to see how thin I'd become shocked me everyday.

"Seeley, relax man, I can feel the tension in your shoulders today." Andre said as he leaned me forward to pull my shirt over my head.

"I know right man, I shouldn't be worried, it's not like I can feel anything right." I said angrily.

"Soon enough man. Soon enough." Andre said forcing socks over my feet.

When he finished that he moved to the worst part of my day by far, changing my catheter. I'd never realized how much you lost if you were injured like me. There was no modesty, no control, someone else had to do everything for you. I just closed my eyes, like I did most days, hating every minute of this. When he finished he pulled my legs into a pair of sweat pants and declared me ready to go as he lifted me out of the bed, placing me in my wheelchair. Since I had little movement below my shoulders I was given a sip and puff chair, that I could move with my mouth. I'd blow or sip depending on what I needed to do. I'd gotten used to the fact that this could be my life, but I certainly didn't like it.

"Alright man, head down to the therapy room, Anne is waiting for you." Andre said following me out of my room.

When I wheeled into the room I saw Anne and three other therapists there waiting for me and Bones was there.
"Bones, I thought you were coming for lunch?" I asked feeling my face flush.

"I finished up on the muldovan case early and thought I'd swing by to take a look at what you're doing today." She said softly.

"Oh. Getting me up and walking today!" i said trying to sound excited.

"Alright Seeley, we are going to get you up on that table and get you all strapped in, then we'll lift you with the machine and get you going. You ready?" Anne asked.

"Yep. Let's do this." I answered, a little embarrassed that Bones was here to see me lifted like a sack of potatoes.

I closed my eyes while one of the therapists lifted me from my chair, remembering a time not more than a month ago that I'd yelled so loudly at Bones, a nurse came running into the room. In the last four months I haven't been exactly happy, or nice everyday, and one night I was in a mood. I didn't want visitors, but she'd come anyways. She was telling me that once my body decided it was time that I'd get something back. I at that moment snapped at her, I yelled and cursed, throwing my head back into my pillow, trying to get some anger out.

"Damn it Bones, you don't know what this is like. Don't tell me something that may never happen! GET OUT! JUST GO!" I'd Screamed at her until the nurse came in my room.

"Seeley, please calm down. Dr. Brennan, maybe you should go." the nurse had said quietly.

"Booth, I'll go, for now, but I'll be back." Bones said laying her hand over mine before she walked out of the room. I hated myself more that night than I had in my entire life. I loved her and I was too afraid to admit it, to pigheaded to let her see me weak.

I felt the therapist lifting me up to a sitting position and opened my eyes to see her directly in front of me waiting for my eyes to find hers. There was something there, something unsaid, like she hated seeing me this way, but accepted it. I could see the caring on her face, she wasn't a person who believed in god like I did, but I could see that she was hoping, maybe even praying for something good.

"It's like you've never seen me sitting before Bones." I teased her.

"This is the beginning Booth." Was all she said as they attached the harness to the metal and plastic that now covered most of my body.

As they hoisted me up into the contraption, I could feel the nausea taking over me. I hadn't stood in four months and the sheer energy it took to get into the lokomat had worn me out. Just sitting up for too long had been tiring, and now after they had me in this thing that looked like one of Zack's robots I wondered if it was worth the effort. I tried to push that thought out of my head, it was worth it, it was worth trying, I wanted to be able to hug my son again, I wanted to be able to run around after him. I gave myself a mental pep talk. You can do this Seeley, for Parker, for Bones, you can do this.