AN: This idea has been running around my head for a while. Song fic inspired by Another Auld Lang Syne by Dan Folgeberg. Angsty and sad, I know but what can I say?

Disclaimer: Sadly enough I do not own Bones.

Booth did a double take when he saw that familiar profile at the end of the aisle. He was picking up a few last minute items for tomorrow's dinner. He debated whether or not to approach her. She'd been well-known during the years they worked together and the years since had turned her into a full-fledged celebrity.

Met my old lover In the grocery store

The snow was falling Christmas Eve

I stole behind her in the frozen foods

And I touched her on the sleeve

Brennan's head snapped up at the sound of name and a familiar voice. She gaped at the sight of Booth standing close enough to touch. Brennan had imagined seeing him so many times before she wasn't sure if he was real. When he reverted to her old nickname she knew for certain it was really him. She'd almost forgotten what a genuine smile could feel like.

She didn't recognize the face at first

But then her eyes flew open wide

She went to hug me and she spilled her purse

And we laughed until we cried

Brennan rolled her eyes at Booth's insistence on escorting her through the store and to her car. He never did like her going places alone. She realized in that moment how much she had missed his protectiveness. She hadn't felt this safe since she left the Jeffersonian all those years ago.

We took her groceries to the check-out stand

The food was totaled up and bagged

We stood there lost in our embarrassment

As the conversation dragged

It had been so long since they'd talked…neither one was ready to part yet. The holidays were a busy time. Booth was especially busy with family and work. Brennan was scheduled to fly out the day after Christmas. She was in DC to visit the Hodgins' brood, which now consisted of Jack, Angela and their five children (six come summer). They kept in touch by phone and e-mail but hadn't met in person in almost as many years as Booth and Brennan. They couldn't find a bar open that late on Christmas Eve so they grabbed a pack at the store and huddled into Brennan's rental car.

Ten years had gone by since they last worked together. Ten years since she accepted a job offer and left the Jeffersonian. They had parted with well-intentioned promises to keep in touch and visit regularly. Brennan didn't manage to get back to DC until she received a wedding invitation a few years later. Her publisher had some big event planned for the same weekend but she'd told them to cancel it. There was no way she could miss her former partner's wedding.

We went to have ourselves a drink or two

But couldn't find an open bar

We bought a six-pack at the liquor store

And we drank it in her car

We drank a toast to innocence

We drank a toast to now

And tried to reach beyond the emptiness

But neither one knew how

Brennan choked out a question about Kimberly (she still couldn't believe he'd married a Kimberly). Booth's eyes were warm when he said she was good. Their second child together was due in February.

So much remained unspoken between the pair. Booth would never know Brennan accepted the job because she could no longer deal with the overwhelming attachment she had for her partner. Brennan would never know Booth still considered her the love of his life. Yes, he loved his wife, but it would be dishonest to say he cared for her the way he had for Brennan. What he had now was a different sort of love, grown out of a desire for companionship and family. The little girl with bouncing brown curls and the little boy on the way guaranteed he didn't regret the choice.

She said she married her an architect

Who kept her warm and safe and dry

She would have like to say she loved the man

But she didn't like to lie

Booth, of course, wanted to know if she had finally found love. Brennan denied the validity of love in her usual fashion. She had had three relationships last longer than a year since leaving DC. The most serious of them fell apart soon after her trip to DC for Booth's wedding.

Booth couldn't stop himself from staring. She didn't look any older to him than she had ten years ago at the airport. Brennan found herself getting lost in his familiar brown eyes. Eyes so full of warmth and comfort she wanted to cry. She hadn't found anything or anyone who could even come close to comparing to Booth. Brennan was not a woman who believed in regret…still…she couldn't help but wonder (not for the first time) what kind of life they could have built together. Would they have their own little girl with blue eyes rather than brown?

I said the years had been a friend to her

And that her eyes were still as blue

But in those eyes I wasn't sure if I saw

Doubt or gratitude

Brennan smiled graciously when Booth mentioned having seen her latest book. Once again at the top of the best-seller's list, of course. He gave her a playful nudge when complaining about the actor cast to play Andy. Brennan could no longer convince even herself that the character wasn't based on Booth. The books and movies kept her traveling but not for the purpose she loved. She hadn't examined a real skeleton in almost a year.

She said she saw me in the record stores

And that I must be doing well

I said the audience was heavenly

But the traveling was hell

We drank a toast to innocence

We drank a toast to now

And tried to reach beyond the emptiness

But neither one knew how

We drank a toast to innocence

We drank a toast to time

Reliving in our eloquence

Another Auld Lang Syne…

A quick glance at his watch told Booth his wife would be wondering what took so long. "Santa" still had to visit that night, after all. They sat, gazes locked, in one of what used to be "their" moments. The six pack Booth had purchased was gone. He knew it was past time he should be leaving. Sitting here with her like this, so much like old times, was bittersweet at best. When he finally managed to say goodbye and reach for the door handle, a halting voice and gentle touch on his arm stopped his progress. Brennan wished him a soft Merry Christmas before placing a brief kiss on his cheek. The skin on his cheek flamed where her lips made contact. It was definitely time to leave, before the temptation became too much and he did something he would regret.

The beer was empty and our tongues were tired

And running out of things to say

She gave a kiss to me as I got out

And I watched her drive away

Watching the taillights disappear down the road Booth drifted back to the last Christmas they were partners. Their last Christmas was a year after Caroline's blackmail scheme. That year Booth kissed her for real…no manipulation, no scheming…but there was mistletoe. He beat himself up over that kiss for a year after she left. It had been the catalyst that sent her running. Booth shivered a bit at the biting air then turned his face up with a small laugh. Snow had been falling softly all day but now, now when he blinked back the tears burning the back of his eyes, now it rained.

Just for a moment I was back at school

And I felt that old familiar pain

And as I turned to make my way back home

The snow turned into rain.