Changes

Chapter One

Booths POV

"You've reached the voicemail of Dr. Temperance Brennan. I've recently changed cell phone carriers. If you are calling in regaurd to business I can be reached at the Jeffersonian Medico-Legal Lab."

What the hell? Bones changed her phone number? Why would she do that? Why didn't she tell me? My guess, she got busy and just forgot to let me know. Typical. If I pulled that she would blow a gasket.

Shaking my head, I picked up the phone to again to call the lab. Bones was probably still there working anyway. Never mind that it was 6:30 on a Thursday night. She gets so wrapped up in her skeletons she forgets time, food, even sitting. Her concentration has always and will always captivate me.

"Good Evening. Jeffersonian Medico-Legal Lab. Clark Eddison speaking, how can I help you?"

"Hey, Clark. It's Booth. Put Bones on."

"Uh… I'm sorry, Agent Booth, but you just missed her."

I'm almost frozen in shock. Bones left the lab without me having to drag her out. I'm torn between pride (Maybe my constant nagging has finally started to sick in) and worry ( why did she leave that early?). Meh, questions easily answered.

"Did she say where she was going?" My guess home. Or maybe Angela convinced her to grab a drink. That would be a change of pace.

Clark sighs, bordering on rudeness, before saying, "Does the F.B.I. have a new case for Dr. Brennan?"

"Not that I know of."

"Then no, Agent Booth, I don't know Dr. Brennan went. But I will tell her you called."

Click.

Amazed at the coldness from the usually professional, if not friendly grad. Student. He was the closest to normal of the bunch that I'd seen, we usually got along really well.

I grab my keys and decide to head over to Bones apartment. I need to know what's going on here. Changing phone numbers, getting stone-walled by assistants, it's all starting to make me edgy.

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"Bones! Come on, Bones, Open up! I brought Wung Foo's!" I'm trying to sound friendly, not protective and nervous.

I've been standing here at door, pounding for ten minutes. This is starting to get ridiculous. I know she's home. I saw the light on in her living room when I was pulling up.

Sighing, I set the food sown and reach into my pocket. She wont answer the door, fine, Ill use my key. I know its for emergencies only. But, hey, cold Chinese food is an emergency.

"That's it Bones, I'm comin' in."

Wait. Why wasn't my key turning? I know I grabbed the right one. And I know this is her door, 2B. I know it better than I do my own door for God's sake. Something is not right.

What. The. Hell. Is. Going. On?

"Bones! Come on! Talk to me! Let me in!"

Now my gut is screaming that something is going on. She changed her phone number, changed her locks, and won't even respond to me? Something is way off.

As I stand here staring at her locked door, trying to piece this all together, I feel my phone vibrate in my pocket. This better be Bones telling me I'm over-reacting. She'll probably tell me is my alpa-maleness getting the best of me. Once we talk everything will make sense and this feeling will go away. Looking at my caller ID, I know that I'm wrong. Angela M.

"Angela, what's going on? Bones changed her number and locks and won't let me in!" No point in being subtle. Angela always knows when something's up.

"Agent Booth-"

"'Agent?!' What the hell? What's going on?" Panic is making my heart race, hands sweat, and muscles tense. The squint squad dropped the 'Agent Booth' crap years ago.

"Agent Booth, I'm going to say this once. You're going to listen, Hard. No interupptions. And you're going to do as I say. You understand me?" Angela's talking in that no nonsense authoritative way. I've heard it a few times. Never directed directly at me. It's pretty unnerving.

"Fine. Tell me what's going on? What's with the 'agent' crap? Come on, Ange-"

"No, Agent Booth. You're going to go home, or wherever it is that you go. You're going to do what ever it is that you do. None of that is important. What is important, is that you are going to get off Brennan's doorstep, leave her alone and ,maybe, she will talk to you on Monday. Maybe! That is entirely up to her. Is that clear, Agent Booth? Or do you need me to use smaller words?"

I'm shaking with a mixture of fear, anger, and frustration by the end of Angela's speech. Leave Bones when something is obviously wrong? Never gonna happen.

"Angela! I have the right to know what the hell is wrong with my partner!"

"No, Agent Booth, you don't." Angela snorts. "You gave up that right awhile ago. As I said Brennan will talk to you on Monday, IF she wants to. Deal with it. Walk away. You've had enough practice, so it shouldn't be that hard."

With that Angela hung up leaving me more confused than I was before she called.

Numbly, I walked back to my car. Thinking of ways I can handle this.

A. I could bust down her door, force her to talk to me, tell me what's wrong. But I don't know what I'd be walking in on and it could make this situation worse. She won't tell me until she's ready to.

B. I could sit here all night, but if she sees me it could make the situation worse. She would see it as an invasion of her space.

Hating my third and final option, the only one I can see not making this thing worse, I pick up my phone and dial the number. The number I never thought I would willingly call in my life. I beat the steering wheel until I her the 'kid' greet me.

"Sweets, Your office, 30 minutes. If you're not there, I swear I will hunt you down."

Click.

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Its my first try at fan fiction… Let me know how I did.