DISCLAIMER: Fox owns Bones. I only wish I did. Think of the money…
A/N: This is my first Bones fic and having still not finished watching the first season (don't judge me, I'm British & don't have Sky so I've had to scrounge…) this was just an image I had stuck in my head. I had to write it so I could finally concentrate on The Things That Men Do, my current Angel fic.
Like I said, this is my first attempt so reviews telling me where I'm going wrong (but preferably where I'm right!) would be much appreciated. Hope you like it!
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Seeley Booth collapsed on to the sofa, utterly exhausted. The last few days had drained him both physically and emotionally. Cases with kids always did. It had taken its toll on Brennan too.
He had watched her, examining the bones of yet another little child they were too late to save, seen the sadness in her eyes, the inability to comprehend how someone could do something like this to someone so innocent. All he had wanted to do was wrap his arms around her and protect her from all the evil in the world. Not that she'd ever let him.
Booth reached for the beer on the table beside him, taking long hungry gulps until the bottle was half gone and he gasped for air. He wanted to wash away the memories of this last case, just like he wished he could forget the details of so many others. Over time the names faded but never the faces. Wherever he went, whatever case he was dealt, those faces went with him. And he knew it was the same for Temperance.
He closed his eyes and let his head sink into the cushions. At least this case was done. He wondered how Bones was doing. Without bothering to open his eyes, he dug his cell phone out of the front pocket of his jeans and flicked it open, his thumb hovering over her speed dial button, number one. He paused, looking down at the phone. Maybe he shouldn't call.
When he had given her a lift home from the Jeffersonian, she had just stared out of the window, deep in thought. It hadn't been an awkward silence, it never was with them. He knew she was upset so he'd walked her to her door. She'd opened it and looked back at him, those intelligent eyes so full of pain.
He had wiped a tear away from her cheek, somewhat surprised that she had let him.
"Do you want some company?"
She smiled but it hadn't reached her eyes.
"No, it's ok. I think I'm just going to go straight to bed."
He had smiled as broadly as he could and turned back down the corridor.
"Seeley?"
Turning to face her, he felt his heart skip a beat. It always did when she used his first name.
"Yes Temperance?"
She seemed to soften when he returned the favour, her voice quieter.
"Thank you."
And with that, she had closed the door and he'd ended up here with just a beer for company.
He snapped the phone shut and dropped it on the table, downing the rest of his Budweiser. Leaning his head back and staring at the ceiling, he cradled the empty bottle to his chest.
Booth sighed and let his eyes gradually close. He couldn't help but think of Brennan. She had changed so much since they had started working together, since they had become partners. Booth had to admit, he'd more than once considered them being more than just partners in the work sense.
She was so totally different to the other women who had come in and out of his life. For a start, she wasn't blonde. She challenged him more than anyone else, refusing to automatically go with his gut instincts and instead methodically investigating each logical solution.
The main difference was that he trusted Brennan more than anyone else in the world. He trusted her with his life. And he knew she trusted him in the same way. The way she looked at him, the gentle touch of her hand, they told him that. Sometimes he wished they would tell him something more.
Angela was always dropping barely concealed hints about the sexual tension between them. He and Brennan had even once agreed that they were somewhere between friends and lovers. He just wished he knew where that somewhere was.
Looking back, Booth tried to remember all the times he had battled the urge to kiss her, to tell her that being friends just wasn't enough anymore. He quickly lost count.
He clambered off the couch, stretching his aching muscles as he padded over to the kitchen. Dropping the empty bottle in the trash, he poured himself a glass of water, grabbed his cell phone off the table and headed for the bedroom. He stripped off quickly, leaving just his boxers, too tired to bother with his pyjamas
Sliding between the sheets, Booth felt a tired sigh escape his lips. He couldn't get Brennan out of his head. Slowly, he began to drift off to sleep, escaping in to a world where he wasn't too pragmatic to tell her how he felt.
The shrill ring of his cell phone pulled him sharply out of his dreams. Fumbling for the phone, he flicked it open without checking the caller ID, his voice thick with sleep.
"Booth."
There was a pause at the other end and then Brennan's voice washed over him, bringing him fully back into the land of the living.
"Oh god, I'm sorry. I didn't mean to wake you."
"No, no Brennan, it's fine. I've literally just got into bed. Just been a long couple of days."
She sighed heavily and he knew she'd been crying.
"How could anyone do that, Seeley? What kind of psychology is that, to hurt a child, let alone four?"
Booth knew she didn't really expect an answer but he tried to find her one anyway.
"He was a sick and twisted man, Temperance, just evil. No two ways about it. But he'll get what he deserves behind bars."
"But what if he doesn't go to prison? What if there's some stupid technicality and they let him go?"
He winced at the desperation in her voice, the fear. All the martial arts and weapons training in the world can't protect you from the fears that creep up on you in the night.
"They won't let him go, Bones. We've got him bang to rights. You saw to that. You always do."
He didn't try to hide the pride and admiration in his voice. He wanted her to hear it.
"Don't call me Bones."
It was more an automatic response than a real admonishment, especially as he could hear a slight smile in her tone.
"We stopped him, Temperance. He won't be seeing the outside of a jail cell for a very long time. We stopped him."
She sighed, though this time from exhaustion.
"Yes, we did Seeley."
He smiled, feeling his heart beating a little faster.
"You ok?"
"Yeah, I'll be fine. I know you're right, I just needed…"
She sighed again and he could almost see her sitting there in the dark, shaking her head as she paused.
"You're always so nice to me, Booth. I'm sorry I don't always return the favour."
"You do it often enough and always when I need it."
"Thank you, Booth. Guess I should let you get some sleep now. It's pretty late."
He smiled into the handset.
"Don't worry, Bones. Pick you up for breakfast around eight?"
She laughed. He loved that sound.
"As long as you're buying."
"Sure. Sleep well, Bones."
"Same to you, Booth."
The line went silent and he closed the phone, chucking it back on to his nightstand as he rolled over. Closing his eyes, he couldn't keep the smile off his face.
Drifting off to sleep, Booth swore to himself that one day he would finally find the courage to tell the woman of his dreams how he really felt.
One day, he'd tell her he loved her.