It was when he walked into his empty apartment that the tears finally came. He felt like an idiot, giving in to tears. He never cried. But he was tired and frustrated, and dammit but he missed his Bones. He hated admitting it. He hated the feeling of not being complete when she wasn't around. He hated how whenever he met any woman he measured her up to Bones and she would never pass.

The case had totally wiped him out. Three days on the job, with the squints. He had to admit that they were great - but without Bones it wasn't the same. She was away on a dig somewhere in Chile, and had left three weeks earlier with an eager smile on her face and something in her eyes for him that he was afraid to name. When this case had come he had channeled all his loneliness into it, shoving food down his face periodically and catnapping on Bones's couch when Cam or Angela forced him to.

He went to his room, peeling off his dirty clothes and leaving them in a pile on the floor. He was in and out of the shower in ten minutes, and by the time he had come back into the living room sleepiness had set in and every muscle, every bone in his body ached fiercely.

But the longing thoughts of Brennan wouldn't just go away. He couldn't turn his brain off. Tough, he wanted to tell himself. Grow a set, Seeley.

But he could just hear her say "I don't know what that means."

He was lonely, and he wanted his best friend. And it scared him. It wasn't just a connection deep enough for sex. He wanted her to be his best friend. He wanted her there always. Even with Rebecca, he would let her in only so far. But Bones, she could come in as far as she wanted, and the further she went the more he felt like she was his anchor.

And it scared him. The way he wanted her there with him. He wanted to hold her, to feel her snuggling up against him, letting him be as alpha male as he liked. He wanted to hold her and k--.

He pursed his lips. Stop it, Booth. He got up, took two sleeping pills, and went to bed.

**********

She probably shouldn't be doing this. She should go home to bed. She was sitting in Booth's driveway at 3 a.m. in her rental car. Her mind was telling her that the lights were off so he was probably asleep, and that the kind thing to do would probably be to let him sleep. She would call him tomorrow and they could meet for breakfast, maybe even go to the lab since her reservation had been changed to a flight three days earlier than planned.

But she knew she wouldn't sleep well until she saw him. She had missed him much more than she planned to, and lately all she could think of was him. She almost wished he was there with her, with the smile in his eyes and his hand at the small of her back.

She loved that he did that. Although she never said it, she loved it that despite her scientific nature, he felt comfortable enough with her to touch her and yet be platonic. She even - although she would die before she admitted it to anyone, especially Ange - thought his alpha male tendencies were cute, but only when directed to her. She didn't think that last part out loud.

She wanted to see him. Anytime, Bones, she heard him saying. My door is open to you any time. Taking a deep breath, she steeled herself and walked up to the door, letting herself in with the key hidden in the flowerpot. If he was asleep, she decided, she would just check on him and leave.

Quietly, she walked into the kitchen and flicked the lights. She walked through till she came to his bedroom door. She could barely hear the soft snoring through the door. Sighing, disappointed in spite of herself, she steeled herself to go. She turned around…but before she quite knew what she was doing she made an about-face and unlatched the door. She just wanted to see him. Then she would leave him alone.

Walking in quietly, she didn't make a sound, happy to be even this close to him again. But he looked awful. Moonlight streamed in through the window, giving just enough light for her to realize that he was sweating although the room was pleasantly cool. Worried, she stepped in closer and realized that, judging from the rapid eye movement, he was probably in the midst of a nightmare. When he began thrashing around she couldn't take it anymore.

"Booth!" she said, kneeling down beside his bed and shaking him by the shoulder. "Booth wake up. It's a nightmare, Booth, please just wake up," she said, tears coming to her eyes.

Suddenly he awoke, springing upright in bed so fast he nearly slammed into her. "Bones?" he said. He looked horribly disoriented, and she suspected he had taken sleeping pills to help him sleep. "What--?"

"Easy," she said, pushing him back down onto his pillow, keeping her hands on his shoulders until his breathing calmed down. "My flight was changed, and I wanted to see you."

Something was wrong, she realized, very wrong. Afraid she had said something wrong, she began to pull back. But he stopped her. "You wanted to see me?" he repeated, and he sounded so vulnerable her heart broke.

"Yes, Booth. I-I missed you," she said, hoping that he hadn't caught the flutter in her voice. His eyes looked like he was drinking her in.

"I missed you too, Bones," he said, and she did not need to be a scientist to hear the longing in his voice. He held her gaze a long moment. Suddenly, something in her face softened. He heard the soft whish as she took her shoes off and untied her hair so that it curled softly around her face.

Stay with me, his eyes begged.

I will, hers promised.

He pushed back the blankets around him as she slid in next to him, snuggling into his chest. He pulled the blankets back up and wrapped his arms around his Bones.

Almost asleep, she smiled as she heard the sigh of contentment that seemed to come from the bottom of his toes. His head nestled into the crook of her neck, he closed his eyes and slept.