A/N: I would like to thank biba79 for beta reading my first Bones fanfic in English. Reviews are highly appreciated, guys, tell me if I should write more Bones fanfics in English!

The Crack in the Anthropologist

She knew she was better reading bones than people. As a forensic anthropologist, she can give voice to the dead - even when she couldn't voice or name her own feelings -, gathering evidence and closing cases as fast as the time she took to end her relationships. Until him.

Brennan watched from the porch as her partner walked around the backyard, one of his hands tucked inside his pockets, the other one holding the phone – he just had to talk to Wendell right away -, his shoulders relaxed and a matching peaceful expression gracing his entire face. She could imagine what he was thinking, the same things popping up in her head over and over again: this was their house. They had a home. And that backyard would be the place to build everything they've always wanted: a tree house, a pool, and cherry blossom trees.

A small smile tugged on her lips and she took a deep breath, feeling more content since they started their house hunt months ago and it only widened as he walked back to where she was standing, a glow in his eyes that made her heart skip a beat.

"Wendell said we could start it off tomorrow." He stopped beside her, his hands clasping together the way they always did when he was excited about something. "This place will really be ready before you know it, Bones."

She felt the baby kicking again and her eyes found his.

"I guess your daughter agrees with you again." – He laughed, walking slowly around her and hugging her from behind.

They stayed like this for a while, his chin against her shoulder, their fingers intertwined over her huge belly, a comfortable silence enveloping them, his soft breath against her neck giving her goose bumps.

"You know, Bones," He spoke quietly in her ear. "This is my dream house, I've always wanted something like this. A place where I could start a family." He chuckled. "At first I thought it was going to happen with Rebecca. I was young and about to have a son, it sounded like the best idea." Booth shook his head, the absurdity of it all – of having a family where Bones wasn't a part of made him chuckle again."I'm glad it never happened since it would mean we wouldn't be here right now."

He felt her tense then, her whole body going stiff and heard her taking a deep breath. Brennan slowly turned in his arms, their faces only inches away, her belly pressed tightly against him. Her blue eyes bore into his and he was capable of cataloguing each one of the emotions there: curiosity, hurt, fear, vulnerability.

"The second time… What if she had said 'yes'?

The question felt like a punch in his stomach, all the air leaving him in one single gasp. His heart raced and his mind didn't need her to say who she was talking about. Although he couldn't tell if he was more surprised with the question or with his brilliant scientist dwelling on 'what-ifs', he was pretty sure he owned her an answer.

"I knew my proposal was a mistake before I even had the chance to actually propose, Bones."

"I don't understand, Booth." When she frowned, it was the best indicator that she truly didn't."You were happy with her, you said it yourself. You asked her to move in with you. Why would it be a mistake to propose to her? I can't seem to follow your reasoning."

He let out a long sigh, this conversation being the last thing he wanted to discuss in their new house. Some things are better left unsaid. She was the one who said that but also the one who had just violated their agreement.

"You can love a lot of people in this world but there's only one person you love the most. Remember when I said that to you?" Brennan nodded, remembering how her heart sank after his words and the undeniable desire she felt to go back and change everything she regretted back at the time. "Do you think I was talking about Hannah?"

"She wasn't a consolation prize. You seemed to be in love with her. It was only logical to assume that yes, you were talking about her."

He couldn't blame her for jumping to that conclusion but a part of him couldn't believe how clueless she was then and how clueless she was now. He tucked her hair behind her ear, one hand palming her face and he fought the urge to lean in and kiss her until she believed she was the one he had always loved the most.

"It was never about Hannah, Bones. Ever." He couldn't help but notice the way she frowned even more. "I've never stopped loving you. Not even then. I had to keep you at an arm's length to give myself a chance to fall more in love with Hannah. After a few months, I started to realize it wasn't possible. I'd always be in love with you. You'd always be the person I'd love the most." He was relieved to see in her eyes that she believed him, so he went on. "I'm always following my gut, Bones. And from the moment I told Sweets I'd propose to her to the moment when I asked her if she wanted to marry me, my gut begged me not to. It was very clear that she wasn't the type to settle down and marry someone. I knew it. And yet, I didn't care if it would end us, I had to ask. In the end, the whole thing was to prove to Sweets that I could do it, and not about me and my wish to marry her. I wasn't even thinking about it before that day. Since you confessed you made a mistake, I was trying not to think about absolutely anything. It all hurt. It was all complicated."

They both felt the baby kicking again as if she was asking them to stop talking about it. It didn't matter anymore.

"You still haven't answered my question, Booth."

"You're the one who says that 'what-ifs' are a waste of time."

"I'm also the one who didn't believe in love and had no intention of having a child." She argued back, crossing her arms and waiting for her answer.

"I don't believe I could go through it, Bones. As only my partner during all these years, you were able to make me happier than her. You completed me in a way I've come to realize she never could. There were so many things about my past and my demons that I've felt no need to share with her. She just…" He touched his forehead with hers, breathing the next words against her lips. "She just wasn't the one, Bones. You are, have always been, right from the beginning. You're not the consolation prize, you understand that, don't you?"

"Of course I do, Booth. I never doubt your feelings toward me."

"Good. Because, Bones," She closed her eyes, his husky voice making her heart beat faster. She felt his lips against hers. "You were never, ever, my second choice."

She opened her eyes and met his, the truth of his words there, in her favorite kind and warm brown eyes. In one swift movement, she grabbed the front of his t-shirt, pulling him impossible closer and covering his mouth with hers in one desperate kiss, a kiss that told him she believed every word he said and told her she was the only one. The one. The standard. And together, they were the center. They would hold. That night and for the next 30, 40, 50 years.