Okay, here is the third in my "An Old Friend" series. This is set at the end of "The Wannabee in the Weeds". That's all you need to know for now...read!
A Shot Rang Out
"Hey, Leprechaun, I need a favor," Booth told Riona over the phone.
"What's that? I thought you and Bren solved the case?" she replied, curious.
"Yeah, we did. I want you to come to the Checkerbox in Alexandria. Open Mic Night is tonight, and, well, we're gonna get Bones to sing."
Riona sighed and smiled slightly. There was no getting Booth to back down once he had what he thought was a good idea. "Okay, I'll be there."
"Great! Love you, Leprechaun!"
"Uh-huh. You better, Giant."
"See you soon!"
"Yes, you will." Riona hung up the phone, rolling her eyes and wondering how she became best friends with Seeley Joseph Booth.
Riona got into her yellow Volkswagen Beetle, and she drove to Alexandria. She was happy it was such a short drive, and she listened to Lady Antebellum the entire time. She parked outside and went in to see Booth with the rest of the Jeffersonian team and Dr. Sweets.
"Hey, there's my Leprechaun!" Booth crowed, engulfing her in a hug.
"Where's Bren?" Riona asked.
"She should be here any time," he assured her. "Have a seat and grab yourself a drink."
She rolled her eyes again. "You know I don't do alcohol, Booth."
"Yeah, I know. Grab yourself a Cherry Coke or something."
She sighed, wondering once again why she puts up with him. But, she knew that she would always love having Seeley Booth in her life. Once she met him, he was a part of her, and that would never change.
She sipped her Cherry Coke and nibbled on the cherry that came in it when she saw Bren walk in. She smiled at her friend, but Bren only had eyes for Booth.
"What's going on? Why did you call me here, Booth?"
"Your need to sing in front of a live audience, it's innate, Bones."
"No way," Brennan said.
"Hey, I got the music, the frivolity, what else do you need?"
Every one of the Squints started cheering and clapping.
"Come on, Dr. Brennan, you can do it!" Hodgins cried.
"Come on!" Angela cheered.
"Woo, go, Bren!" Riona chimed in.
"We're here for you!" Hodgins continued.
The piano started, and Booth cocked his head and gave her his charm smile. Brennan gave him a silent look that clearly said "really?" as Sweets walked over to her.
"You're very controlled, Dr. Brennan. I think it'd be a good idea for you to let yourself go."
"Really?" she asked. "What about you?"
"Hey, I will be singing 'Lime in Da Coconut' after you, and you will all be impressed, as was my Abnormal Psychology class in college. This opportunity is a gift from Agent Booth," Sweets put his hand on Booth's shoulder, only to remove it at Booth's glare, "Trust yourself, trust your friends. Let 'er rip. Let's hear it."
Everyone cheered and clapped again as Booth walked her up to the stage. She just looked at Booth and smiled before taking off her jacket and taking the microphone, causing more cheering.
"Come home, in the morning light, my mother says 'when you gonna live your life right?'. Oh, Mama dear, we're not the fortunate ones, and girls, they wanna have fun. Oh, girls just wanna have fun.
"Phone rings in the middle of the night, my father yells 'whatchya gonna do with your life?'. Oh, Daddy dear, you know you're still number 1, but girls, they wanna have fun. Oh, girls just wanna have, that's all they really want. Is some fun. Girls just wanna have fun."
Riona was laughing at her two best friends. Booth was dancing to Brennan's singing, and Brennan was getting really into it. It all went well until Booth stood up and suddenly, a gun shot rang out across the room.
Riona stared uncomprehendingly as her best friend's shoulder jerked back and he fell to the floor. She couldn't move a muscle, everything in her froze. She was finally jarred into action when a second gun shot rang out, and she saw a woman fall to the floor. She leapt to Booth's other side, across from Bren. She was silent as tears formed in her eyes and flowed down her cheeks.
"Please, Booth, don't go. Don't leave me. Please," she whispered, clutching his left hand.
Time and space didn't matter anymore. She couldn't hear anything except for Booth's labored breathing. She couldn't see anything except for her dying best friend.
"Booth, please, stay with me! Booth, don't go! Don't leave me!" Riona begged. "You can't do this, Booth!"
The next thing Riona knew, Brennan was pulling her away from Booth to let the EMTs get to him. Riona hadn't a clue what was going on, her heart aching. She was clinging to Brennan, crying. They whisked Booth away and onto an ambulance before Riona or Brennan could follow, and Brennan asked Angela to drive her car to the hospital so that Brennan could drive Riona there.
~*~BONES~*~
Riona and the others sat on pins and needles for hours at the hospital. Every little noise made Riona jump, and tears flowed down her cheeks constantly. Brennan was her anchor for the time being. Brennan made everyone feel better about the outcome with facts and statistics. While there were things that could go wrong, it was more likely that things would go right. Riona needed that. She needed her best friend.
The doctor finally came out after what felt like an eternity of waiting. Riona wiped away the tears, praying that Brennan's statistics were true. The doctor cleared his throat, rubbed his temples, and then cleared his throat again.
"I'm sorry to inform you that Agent Booth didn't make it. His heart gave out in the middle of the surgery, and there was nothing we could do to save him. I'm very sorry for your loss."
Riona's legs turned to jelly, and she collapsed into the chair. "No. No. No," she repeated, her heart breaking.
Riona started to sob, and it hurt every one of the people around her. One might think from her reaction that she was in love with Booth, but those who knew her knew that this was what happened after thirteen years of non-stop friendship broken up by college and the Army and jobs, only to be brought back together a few short months prior. And, now she'd lost him forever.
Riona was so lost. She felt a hole in her heart where her best friend should be. He'd died. He'd always promised her that he would never die from his time in the Army to now. He had told her that he would do everything in his power to make sure that the two of them would end up in nursing homes together with her husband and his wife, and the four of them would be the ones who caused trouble for everyone. The two of them were family, and now he was gone. So, she just cried. There was nothing else that she could do to express her loss.
So, there is that heart-wrenching tale that I could barely write without tears interrupting me. Please, leave a review.
-AL