Note: Here's the last part. I hope I haven't strayed too far out of character.
Disclaimer: I don't own them.
Brennan walked out of the customs area in Cairo, scanning the crowd for a familiar face. Almost immediately, she spotted Claire, an archeologist who had joined on the dig a few months earlier. Claire was the kind of person who seemed to make friends effortlessly, and since she had joined the dig, Brennan had enjoyed having her around. In some ways, Claire reminded her of Angela.
Before long, they were settled into a dusty jeep, heading out towards the dig. As they left Cairo behind them, Claire asked, 'So? How was the wedding? Tell me everything!"
"It was good. Nice. They actually got married this time."
"This time?"
Brennan laughed. "About five years ago they were going to get married, but at the last minute they couldn't because Angela was already married."
"Didn't she know she was married?"
"It was something about jumping over a stick in Fiji. She didn't think it was legal."
Claire grinned. "But it was?"
"Yes"
"I think I'd like this friend of yours."
Brennan nodded. "You would. Everyone likes Angela."
"So? Any single guys at this wedding?"
Brennan looked out at the passing desert. "Well…"
"Oooh, there's something to tell! Come on, spill. I've been stuck in this desert with only dry academics to talk to for months."
Brennan smiled, glancing back at her friend. "Claire, you're an academic. So am I."
"That's why we need to mix with non-academics, otherwise we end up talking about papers we're writing and which dig is running out of funding. So, tell me about this guy you met."
"I didn't actually meet him."
"Tempe, what are you saying? You saw a hot, single guy at a romantic wedding and you didn't meet him?"
"I already knew him."
"Oooh, We've got a long drive ahead of us, Tempe, start talking."
"He … we used to be partners."
"And?"
"And friends."
"That's it?"
"Well …"
"You were sleeping with him, weren't you?"
"No! I just … Have you ever known someone who almost knows you better than you know yourself? That's what Booth was to me. He was my closest friend."
"So why'd you lose touch?"
"I was in love with him. I guess I'd known for a while, but I wouldn't admit it to myself, because I didn't think he felt the same way. Once I figured it out, I needed space to get over it. Besides, he wanted a wife and kids, and most of the women he dated seemed to resent me. I didn't want to stand in his way. That's why I decided to come here to work on the dig."
They sat at their table at the diner, a plate half full of fries between them.
"What's bothering you, Bones?"
Brennan felt consumed by guilt, wishing she could put off telling him a little longer. "What makes you think something's bothering me, Booth?"
"You haven't stolen a single fry. Something must be wrong. Come on, you can tell me.", he coaxed.
She looked at him, trying to memorize his face. "There's a dig in Egypt."
"So what, you're going to head over there on your vacation?"
She took a deep breath, knowing she needed to tell him. "I've agreed to go for a year. I leave next week. I told Cam this morning."
"So what happened when you saw him again?"
"We … talked."
"Come on, Tempe, don't hold out on me. I'm trying to live vicariously through you, you know."
"We talked a little at the reception and he asked me to meet him for breakfast."
"And? Come on, Tempe, what happened?"
They sat at the diner, trapped in an uncomfortable silence, until the waitress came to take their orders.
When she left, Booth brought up the wedding and they spent several minutes pleasantly discussing the reception – Zach's crazy dancing, Angela's father's musical toast, Hodgins's cousin's breakdancing injury. When they had exhausted the wedding talk, they naturally moved on to other topics - Brennan's life in Egypt, Parker's baseball team, Booth's new apartment. It wasn't until the waitress had cleared their plates away that Booth brought up the reason they were sitting there. "I've missed this, Bones."
Brennan stared down at her coffee cup, playing with her spoon. "I've missed this too, Booth, but don't you think it has been too long?"
"He … he said he was in love with me, too. He said he still was in love with me."
"And you're still in love with him."
"I didn't say that."
"Not with words. So?"
He reached out, putting his hand on hers. "I'm still in love with you. I guess the question is, do you feel the same way?"
She looked up. "I don't know, Booth. I know that I've missed you – but it's been two years. We can't just pick up where we left off. I'm not even sure if I want to."
She saw his jaw tighten as she continued, "Booth, we live on different continents. I can't just ignore that. I don't want to be with someone unless I can actually be with him. I don't want to be committed to someone I see twice a year."
Booth's eyes locked on hers as he said, "You have a good point. Well, I see three options. Option 1: we do the long distance thing, meeting as often as we can. Option 2: I find a job in Egypt – it might be a little tricky with Parker, but it's a possibility. Option 3: You move back here."
"Or option 4 … we keep things as they are – me in Egypt, you in DC."
"So if he loves you and you love him, why are you here?"
"What? I work here."
"So you go back to DC, see the guy you're still in love with, find out he's still in love with you, and get on a plane back to Egypt?"
"I had to come back, I'm committed to the dig."
"Who cares about the dig?"
Brennan laughed. "I do, Claire. I've worked on this project for two years. I can't just walk away!"
"So you're just giving up on this guy?"
"Not exactly."
"So? Stop holding out on me."
"So we're agreed?"
"Yes. You come to visit me in Egypt next month, I'll come back for a visit the month after that, and we'll talk whenever we can. After two months, we'll evaluate. I'm committed to the dig for four more months, but after that I can move back if things are working out."
"Right."
"I should get going. I'm supposed to be at my dad's place in half an hour."
"Can I pick you up and drive you to the airport?"
"We're going to try a long distance relationship. We'll talk whenever we can, and he's coming here next month."
"Did you have sex with him?"
Brennan laughed. "You sound like Angela. No, we didn't have sex."
"Why not?"
"Booth is a romantic. He wants our first time to be special, and there just wasn't time."
"Gee, Tempe, I would think that in a situation like that, you'd make time."
"We didn't figure any of this out until breakfast yesterday, and I promised my dad I'd spend the afternoon with him and my brother's family. Booth did give me a ride to the airport, though."
"And you didn't stop at a hotel?"
"No. But when he walked me to security, he kissed me."
"Look at you. That is the goofiest expressions I've ever seen on your face."
Brennan glanced over at her. "Oh, I guess …"
"No, it's good. I'm glad you found someone you like that much. And I can't wait to meet him."
"Meet him?"
"He's coming here next month, right?"
'Yes."
"There's that goofy expression again."
Also, I'm thinking of doing another alphabet series of one-shots – not fights, necessarily, and not Booth and Brennan necessarily (although I'm sure some of them will be BB fights, 'cause those are fun). Of course, that means I need A words. Any ideas?