A short song-fic based on the Carrie Underwood song Someday When I Stop Loving You. Hope you enjoy!


Booth shoved one last tee-shirt in his duffel bag and zipped it up. Glancing again at his orders, he sighed and then looked at his watch. Time to go, he thought, and grabbed the duffel and his coat. Taking one last look at his apartment, he shut the door behind him.

Brennan would be meeting him at the bus stop, and that made Booth smile slightly…and then it made his heart seize. They weren't romantically involved, and yet Booth felt a strong connection to Brennan that he'd never felt with anyone else before. Gordon Gordon had hit the nail on the head when he'd told him that he was in love with his partner. But there wasn't anything Booth could do about it, especially now that he was leaving on a mission that was taking him halfway around the world.

---

Brennan sat on a bench at the bus stop, waiting on Booth to leave. He was making small talk, but she wasn't much listening. All she could think about was how she'd have her work cut out for her, breaking in this new agent Sizemore. Inside, she was fuming that Booth had agreed to do this job, slipping back into his sniper persona. Angela would romanticize Brennan's anger into something more than just simple irritation at Booth for leaving her in this mess. Angela would try to convince Brennan that the real reason Brennan was so angry was because deep down, she was in love with her partner. Brennan almost laughed out loud at that. Her? In love with Booth? Absurd! She didn't believe in love.

"Bones? Are you even listening?" Booth said, halfway into his story about how the Flyers beat out the Hurricanes for the Stanley Cup.

"I'm sorry, Booth. My mind was elsewhere," Brennan replied, giving him a smile. "What were you saying?" Booth started his story over and Brennan tried to stay interested in his story about pucks and sticks and fights, but she found her mind wandering again. She thought back to the first time she'd met Booth. She'd not liked him from the very start, more because she was being forced to working with him than anything on Booth's part. They were like oil and water, never melding together. She did her thing and he did his. At the time, she'd thought of him as a minor irritation, someone she'd have to deal with only for a short time and then she could get back to her normal life. Now, she realized, he had become her best friend, the only one whom she could trust. If she believed in love and soul mates and such, Booth would've been the perfect one for her to fall in love with. He was brave, patient, kind, intelligent (although not as intelligent as her, mind you), handsome, and loyal. She was sitting there for a minute before she realized she was sitting on the bench alone. She looked up and saw Booth putting his duffel bag in the bottom compartment of the bus. Suddenly, she realized she didn't want him to go. She would miss their dinners together, miss working with him, miss him period. Tears sprang to her eyes but she blinked them back before walking up to him, who had a smile pasted on his face.

"Well, Bones, I guess I gotta go," Booth said softly, his jaw clenching as he tried to take in every last detail of her so he'd never forget. He grabbed her in a hug, squeezing her tight, as if trying to convey his feelings for her without having to verbalize them. But it was on the tip of his tongue…those three words…and he wrestled to keep them contained.

The urge to bury herself in Booth's arms was overwhelming and Brennan tried with all her might to fight against it. She was sorely confused…he'd probably be back in a couple months and then things would return to normal, the figurative earth would be righted. So why was she feeling sad?

Booth let go right after the driver blew the horn. He pressed his lips against Brennan's forehead and then backed away, stepping onto the bus.

One foot on the bus 'bout half past nine
I knew that you were leaving this time
I thought about laying down in its path
Thinking that you might get off for that

---

Angela sat at her desk, hands in her lap, as she tried to process the news that she was going to be a mother. Not that she hadn't wanted kids. She'd told Hodgins that she'd wanted a million of them. But that was when they were together, eyes bright with the future they were planning. Now, she was essentially alone. She looked up as Jack passed by her office. He smiled and waved as he walked past.

I remember that night we laid in bed
Naming all our kids that we hadn't had yet
One for your grandma and one for mine
Said we'd draw straws when it came time.

Jack walked into Brennan's office and sat on her sofa. She wouldn't be back for some time so he was certain he'd be alone with his thoughts for a while. With his head in his hands, he sighed. He'd known things were over between him and Angela for a while now, but this news, this baby, just cemented things in his mind and heart. He let the pain ripple through him for a bit and then stood up, resolved to finally put the past behind him.

I'll move on baby, just like you
When the desert floods and the grass turns blue
When a sailing ship don't need her moon
It'll break my heart, but I'll get through
Someday when I stop loving you.

---

I bet all I had on a thing called love
I guess in the end, it wasn't enough
And it's hard to watch you leave right now
I'm gonna have to learn to let you go somehow.

Angela picked up the phone to call Wendell and then put the phone back on its cradle. She never entertained thoughts of sharing this bond with anyone other than Jack. Things had been so good, so wonderful for them once. Where had it all went wrong? As she pondered this, she walked aimlessly by the platform and out the door of the lab. When she was free from the building, she grabbed her cell phone and dialed Wendell's number.

"We need to talk," she said when he answered.

---

The whole afternoon went by in a blur for Brennan and before she knew it, it was dark. She grabbed her purse and coat, turned off the lights in her office and stopped. This would be when Booth would pick her up to take her out or meet her at the diner. Neither, she suddenly realized, were going to happen.

I'll move on baby, just like you
When the desert floods and the grass turns blue
When a sailing ship don't need her moon
It'll break my heart, but I'll get through
Someday when I stop loving you
Someday when I stop loving you.