I suppose it is the romantic inside me that has always enjoyed the beauty of spring. Which is precisely what I was doing that fine April morning as I strolled across the National Mall. For the first time in many years, I was finding more free time than I knew what to do with. While I did somewhat miss having a job, my retirement from the FBI was becoming more and more appreciated. It was my wife who initially pushed me to retire, reminding me of the fact that I am not exactly 25 anymore. The FBI prefers younger field agents anyway and it took little persuasion on my part to convince the higher-ups that my time was over. They offered me a job in the building, but I knew that sitting behind a desk all day would only make me miss the glory days of stake outs and tracking down criminals. So I left for good. My wife was making enough money as a college professor to support the both of us, so there was not much pressure on me to find another job yet. Instead, I was spending my days fixing up our new house and enjoying Washington D.C. from a different perspective. The National Mall was a favorite haunt of mine that spring, when the trees and flowers were in bloom and people on the streets responded with a welcoming "Good morning!"
That is, most people.
As I was heading off in search of a café, I could see a woman walking briskly in my direction. She was tall, with auburn hair that fluttered around her shoulders in the light breeze. Her beige colored bag swung against her hip in time with the long strides her feet were taking. As we drew nearer I could make out a large grin on her face as she stared at nothing in particular, simply enjoying the day. I offered a friendly "Hello!" as we passed and when our eyes met, we both froze.
Her eyes were a magnificent blue. Blue like the sky. A blue I think I will never forget.
And they belonged to a woman I know I will never forget.
"Well if it isn't Temperance Brennan…" I can honestly say I was happy to see her. No, our relationship might not have ended on the best of terms. I know I pushed for too much, too fast. She wasn't ready. It took a lot to get over her. That spring marked two years since I had seen her, let alone spoken to her.
But I was happily married at this point. Bethany, my wife, had walked into my life during an investigation three years ago. She had been the friend of the murder victim and when the case was closed, I kept her number. To make a long story short, we really hit it off and had been happily married for a year and half that spring.
I stood there, smiling at this woman in front of me, this ghost of my past. I watched as the grin on her face morphed into something that told me she really wasn't that happy to see me. She huffed out a short, "That's Doctor Temperance Brennan" as she turned on her heel and practically marched off.
Change is inevitable. Winter makes way for spring. Comfort turns into friendship which then opens up into romance. But sometimes, certain qualities will remain the same. Dirt will be dirt no matter what season it is. In some ways, I was not at all surprised that she hadn't forgiven me. Moved on, I'm sure she had, for that would be the logical and rational thing to do. God knows she always lived by her brain, her personal creed that defined the world around her. I guess I had always hoped that if by chance we met again, she would have had enough time to look at the situation in a different way, from a new perspective.
As I walked away, my steps a little slower, I could practically hear her voice, that voice from half of a decade ago, telling me that love is only a fleeting feeling.
I could feel goose bumps rising along my neck as the cold December wind blew through me. I had left my scarf at home after Gracie, my two month old daughter, spit up on it just moments before I left to do some last minute Christmas shopping. Ah Christmas, what a wonderful time of year. This year had been particularly wonderful, if not a little bit hectic as well. The birth of our first child was certainly a momentous occasion. The fact that it occurred right before the holidays meant that everyone was coming to our house in two days to spend Christmas with the new baby. It also meant that Bethany was experiencing something comparable to pregnancy hormones as she literally swept through the house like a hurricane. I don't think our Swiffer had been used that much the entire time we've been together as it had those past few days. I was pretty sure nobody would even notice the cleanliness of the house if Gracie was present, but I was tired of trying to explain this to Bethany. Which was why I was window shopping in a bustling downtown D.C. two days before Christmas.
After going at this for an hour, I was starting to lose feeling in my hands. Nothing sounded better than a nice warm mug of hot chocolate. With the little marshmallows in it. And whipped cream. Maybe a drizzle of raspberry syrup too.
Caught up in my daydream as I walked through the entrance of a little café, I didn't recognize the woman sitting at the table nearest the door. It was not until I turned around and began looking for a place to sit that she really caught my eye. She wore a lavender knit hat that allowed her hair to flow from beneath it. Her puffy winter jacket of a matching shade was draped over the back of her chair and she wore a dark green sweater that looked very nice with her pale complexion. As she sat there reading what was probably some forensic journal, I couldn't help but notice how genuinely happy she looked. There was an absolute glow about her as she flipped through the pages and sipped at a mug of hot chocolate.
Seeing as how there were no empty tables at this point and my only other option was sitting with a rather grimy old man in the corner, I decided to take a chance. After all, it had been more than a year and a half since our previous encounter; maybe she would be more welcoming this time.
As I slid into the seat across from her, her eyes drifted up and locked with mine. She slowly lowered her magazine and a small smile made its way across her face.
"Hello," she began. So far so good, at least she hadn't bolted from the café. Or told me to leave.
"Enjoying the hot chocolate?" I thought I'd start with some simple, common ground.
"Of course. How are you doing? I noticed your wedding ring. How long have you been married?"
I nearly laughed at her bluntness. Temperance Brennan was never one to easy into things anyway. So I spent the next few minutes talking about my life. I told her about Bethany and Gracie. She didn't say much, just continued to ask questions about my wellbeing. The more I talked, the more relaxed she became. Relieved even? I realized that she probably blamed herself for our separation so many years ago. Okay, it was partially her fault, but the blame fell mostly on me. I shouldn't have asked for so much. But things all work out in the end right? She seemed happy enough and I certainly was.
My cell phone rang just as I was telling her a funny story about my vacation to Cancun last year. It was Bethany calling, reminding me to pick up more sweet potatoes on the way home. Glancing at my watch, I realized I needed to be on my way. We had been talking for more than a half hour. Well, I had been talking anyways. Either way, I would really have liked to stay and find out about her life. Had she met anyone? Was she still at the Jeffersonian? I suppose that would have to wait until a later date, a later chance encounter.
As I got up to leave, she stood up too. I couldn't believe I hadn't noticed. Her stomach was huge and round. As she ran her hands over her obvious baby-bump, I noticed a modest ring on her left hand.
She must have noticed me gawking at her because her next statement, a simple "I'm due next month," came out as a chuckle. She was now staring right back, smiling, but waiting for a response none the less.
I'll admit I was surprised, to say the least. I was happy for her, don't get me wrong, but this was definitely unexpected. Last I knew, she was completely against the "antiquated notion" of marriage. Yet here she was, ready to burst and sporting a ring. I would be lying if I said it didn't hurt just a little bit. Her husband must be something else if he could convince her to marry him. Whatever could he possess that I wouldn't have been able or willing to give her? Or perhaps seven years was enough to change even the toughest of women?
"Congratulations," I finally managed to get out. I put on a smile, one that I hoped looked happy rather than the confused, dejected feeling that was actually filling my insides.
With another small smile, Temperance Brennan was out the door and out of my life once more.
The sky was bright and clear that May morning and I knew that summer was just around the corner. Sitting on the sideline of the soccer field, I watched with pride as my little Gracie, now seven years old, blocked yet another shot from the opposing team. Gracie's decision to go out for soccer this year was brought on by my wife, who thought it would be a constructive use of Gracie's seemingly boundless energy. The week leading up to her first game, Gracie had me out in the backyard helping her practice in front of the little goal that Bethany bought for her when she joined the team.
I was even more proud when Gracie's team won, 2 to 0, without a single shot making it past my baby. I smiled and cheered as the team congratulated their opponents and ran off the field to waiting parents.
"Did you see when I blocked number 8's shot? Did you see how I grabbed it right out of the air?" exclaimed Gracie as she leaped into my outstretched arms.
"Of course, baby girl, you were great!" I said as I set her back down. Just then, a member of Gracie's team came running over to where we were standing.
"Gracie! Do you want to come to pizza with me? My dad said I could bring a friend!" said the little girl, whose brown curls bounced as she talked.
"Can I please Daddy? Please, please, please?" begged Gracie.
I asked her, "Who is your friend? I need to speak with her parents, but it would probably be alright." Gracie was perfectly friendly, but she could come off a bit too strong for some children. I thought it was great that she had found a friend who appeared to have the same amount of energy as her.
"I'm Christine," announced the girl. "Follow me, we can go talk to my mom and dad."
We followed Christine over to a woman who was kneeling over a bag as she put away a tub of watermelon and a camera.
"Mom! Mom! Gracie's dad said she can go get pizza with us!" Christine called out to the woman. As the woman stood up and turned to look at us, I stopped dead.
"What is the chance that our daughters play on the same soccer team?" I asked with a smile. I hadn't seen Temperance Brennan in about seven years, not since that first Christmas with Gracie. I could hardly believe that this woman had aged at all, let alone seven years. Sure, she had a few more wrinkles and I could see a couple of grey hairs, but she barely looked older than when we had parted so many years ago.
She looked at me blankly for a moment before smiling. I could tell she was going to shower me with statistical facts as she began, "Well, taking into consideration the number of children-"
"Bones! I put the chairs in the car! Let's go get some pizza!" A man came striding over to us with a small boy in tow. The boy had curly brown to hair to match his sister's. The man didn't seem to notice me as he gave the boy to the woman while he planted a kiss on her cheek and picked up the bag she had been packing.
Finally, the man looked at me. The shock that registered on his face quickly disappeared as a huge smile took over before he held out his hand to shake mine.
"Sully! Wow, you look great! Haven't seen you in nearly ten years now! Where have you been, man?" Booth greeted me, exuding energy, just as I had remembered him. At first, I didn't even know what to say. He was the one who had married the forensic anthropologist? He had somehow convinced her to have kids? Our daughters were friends? It was a bit overwhelming.
"Well, I have a very energetic daughter" I laughed as we watched our girls chasing each other around on the field as the little boy tried to keep up with his sister. He couldn't have been more than three.
Tempe was the first to speak. "Would you like to come out for pizza with us, Sully? I am positive that we have many stories to share with each other."
Laughing inwardly at this strange coincidence of events, I accepted her offer. Calling Gracie back to me, we made our way to the car. As I watched the family walk towards their car, Booth's hand at the small of Tempe's back, I felt a mix of emotion. Happiness, for the life she obviously enjoyed. Surprise, that Booth ended up winning her over and even more, convinced her to have children. But no longer did I feel remorse for what I had lost. No longer did I wonder "what if she had sailed off with me" or "what if I hadn't left her." I knew in that moment that this is how our lives were destined to be. At one point our lives were intertwined and they once again were crossing paths through our daughters. As we followed their car to the pizza parlor, I could almost hear her voice telling me that there is no such thing as destiny, that the choices we make guide our lives, not some predetermined fate. I think sometimes you just need to get a new perspective on things.