Chapter 1 Groundhog Day

As the movie paused for yet another commercial break, Booth stood up to stretch his legs and refill the popcorn bowl. Christine looked up at her dad and grinned.

"That poor man is having the worst time, Dad! Going through the same day over and over again. This movie isn't logical at all!"

Like mother, like daughter, Booth thought to himself with a smirk. He remembered Brennan making roughly the same comment the first time he'd gotten her to watch "Groundhog Day" with him several years after they became partners.

"Booth, this movie plot makes no sense," she'd complained a half hour into it. "Why would someone script a film just to repeat a day ad nauseam?'

"Bones, you gotta have a little patience and give it time," the agent chided. "Eventually you'll see the point, just like he does."

His partner had proceeded to deliver a lecture on the illogical irrational nature of Groundhog Day as a holiday, and the utter lack of scientific evidence supporting its furry patron saint's method of weather prediction. Nevertheless, the movie had become a standing joke between them, which they frequently watched together while completing case paperwork. It was humorous enough to make them chuckle together, and so familiar they could quote the script from memory. This led to much shared laughter between the pair.

As Booth pressed the air popper's 'on' button, he called to his daughter "Hit the pause button, Chrissy, and bring me our glasses; the popper will take a few more minutes to finish its cycle than the ads."

He opened the refrigerator, replenished the ice in the tumblers his fourteen-year old placed on the counter, and poured more Pepsi into each.

"Don't tell your mom we've drunk this much pop," he cautioned.

"Somehow she always knows, no matter how sneaky I try to be," Christine remarked.

"Bones has grizzly bear protective instincts," Booth told her. "She's just trying to keep us healthy, in spite of our sugar consumption. No fun sometimes, but she means well."

"Whenever it's my turn to bring Girl Scout treats, she always sends apple slices and peanut butter," Christine agreed.

"Okay, snacks refilled!" Booth declared. "Let's get back to the movie."

Brennan was teaching her evening class at American University, and Hank was working on a salt map project with his friend Bradley. The parents took turns overseeing the partner Geography class assignments Ms. Hannigan handed out, and this time it was the Monahan's time to deal with a messy kitchen table until the boys completed their work.

So Booth had decided to share a movie evening with his little girl, knowing that his chances to do so would likely diminish the further into adolescence she grew. She plopped down on the couch beside him and stretched her legs out on the coffee table in front of them. Brennan always frowned at this father-daughter habit, but tolerated it as long as their shoes had been removed first.

By the time the pair had munched their way through the rest of the film, Christine had grasped its point. Phil had come to love the quirks of small town life in Punxsutawney, developed tolerance putting up with Ned Ryerson's annoying mannerisms, become an excellent pianist, and fallen for his film producer Rita who was delighted to pursue a relationship with him. Learning patience was a tough thing to do, but it brought fulfilling rewards.

"Maybe the next time we go visit Grams and Pops for Memorial Day, we could check out Punxsutawney," she suggested to her father.

"It's about 4 hrs from Philly, honey, in the opposite direction. And the groundhogs aren't active in the heat of summer," Booth replied.

The two of them had a fun tradition of conjuring up fantasy trips to take for family vacations, based upon things that happened during the year. Each summer Booth took his kids to some of the cemeteries where their veteran ancestors rested, to honor their service. They couldn't cover all the cities in one weekend so they split the locations between Memorial Day and the Fourth of July.

Booth leaned back against the sofa, put his arm around Christine's shoulders and pulled her into a hug. "Do you have any idea how much I love you, Girlie?" he asked softly.

"Almost as much as I love you, Daddy," she replied, kissing his cheek.