Hey thanks for the reviews they were really encouraging. Just wanted to ask for feedback on this chapter as well, I don't know whether its good or not because I have a bad habit of not re-reading work, but I tried this time. Hope it flows and what not, enjoy.
Taking a deep breath Brennan almost lost her nerve, contemplating a way to fit through the small bathroom window to avoid the ensuing conversation. Mentally kicking herself she walked outside of the bathroom where the smell of pancakes wafted over to her, soon joined by Booth's off-key and rather endearing humming of some unrecognisable tune. Then it hit her it was one of those children's songs that she had learnt with her kids. It was so long ago, but she could still clearly picture her Amy trying to teach the baby how to clap and sing along.
"If you go out in the woods today, you'll be sure of a big surprise"
"Bones" Booth cheeks flushed a pale pink, as though embarrassed for being caught singing such a girly song.
"I…"
"Was singing a children's song?" Brennan replied, a playful smile dancing on her lips.
Realising that deflecting was the best means of defence "I didn't think that you would know the words." It had been the wrong thing to say, the smile that had graced her beautiful features was replaced with sadness.
"That's kind of what I wanted to talk to you about Booth." Silence stretched out for what seemed like an eternity, "Booth I think your pancakes are burning. I think I'll go and set the table." Brennan walked out of the kitchen living Booth to wonder what she had meant, the one coherent thought that he could muster was that she wanted to talk to him about children? Wait she's not pregnant is she? The thought froze him for a second, until he heard Brennan call out his name.
"Yeah Bones, I'm almost done, you can't rush the Booth pancake making process, it requires a lot of concentration." He placed their breakfast on two plates, and placed her breakfast in front of her, proud that he had managed to make pancakes in the place of bones for her.
Brennan stared at her plate, holding her cutlery with a death grip. The two of them were unsuccessfully trying to make their way through breakfast but with an awkward silence reigning there was little chance of success. Brennan was shifting food around her plate and Booth was yet to pick up his cutlery, merely staring at Brennan as though she had grown a second head.
"What?"
"Huh?"
"Why you asking me what, I thought you wanted to tell me something?"
Brennan's face betrayed her nervousness "yes, but your body language, and your facial express put together scientifically speaking would suggest that you have a question to ask, there is something that you want to ask isn't there?"
Booth's futile attempts t avoid voicing his question were quashed when she rubbed her stomach, the words just tumbled out of his mouth, and he regretted them, as he saw the look of sadness that appeared on her face. "You're not pregnant are you?"
Her answer shocked him to his core, she grabbed his hand in hers and made him promise to hear her out, and to not leave no matter how angry he got at her, she stated that in no uncertain terms was he to leave until she had told him everything. But her answer almost made him leave right then and there, but his brain over road his racing heart and made him stay. "I'm not anymore."
"You had an abortion?"he choked out.
"I believe that it's a woman's prerogative to have an abortion if she doesn't want the baby and I'm sorry if I'm offending you Catholic sensibilities. Furthermore in anthropological terms - "
"Bones" he cut her off, "Just yes or no."
"No."
"What do you mean you're not anymore?"
Brennan stood from the table and walked to the living room, unlocking one of the drawers, she pulled out what appeared to be an old photo album. Explaining what had led her to DC was going to be the hardest thing she would have to do, next to losing her children and the love of her life.
"Booth I want you to take a look at this okay? Just look and I'll explain as we go through them."
Booth took a deep breath before fingering the title of the book, Bennet family memories. He didn't dare to open the book, feeling as though he was invading something extremely private. Brennan sensing his nervousness opened it for him. She positioned herself so she could see his face, hoping that he would not become angry at her for not telling him sooner.
Booth started at the open book, his brain barely registering what his eyes were telling him. He could have sworn his heart stopped. There stood Bones, nothing unusual there, it was setting that threw him. She stood, beautiful as ever in a pink room, a crib and rocking chair, clearly marked the room as a nursery. What the hell was Bones doing in a nursery?
Wordless he looked up at her, why does she look afraid of me? Glancing down his fingers turned page after page of Bones with two kids, perhaps they're Russ' kids? Booth knew better however, something inexplicable was building up inside of him, was it jealously? It was when he saw the one colourful picture halfway through the album, that he knew that feeling to be jealously, jealous that another man had managed to make Bones happy, that he had given the 'perfect' life. Suddenly his jealously turned to anger as he wondered if this was the man that had made Bones so upset the night before.
Booth could only look on with utter disbelief.
"When I joined the Jeffersonian I requested that they seal my file, so when you became my partner there was about two years of my life erased from that file."
Brennan reached out to the book that was placed in Booth's now shaking hands and flipped through pages and pages of happy memories, seemingly taken right out of the how to be the perfect suburban housewife handbook. That was until she reached the last twenty or so pages, they were filled with newspaper cut outs. Booth eagerly scanned them, but not quite comprehending what was written in the black and white pages.
"I was…"the sadness in Brennan's voice and the pain she was feeling in her chest, near her heart compelled her to stop, so she could wipe away the tears. Feeling Booth squeeze her knee she found the strength to continue. Booth put the open book onto the table and gently reached for both her hands, silently encouraging her to continue. He reached up to brush away the tears that had escaped her overfilled eyes and squeezed her hand reassuringly.
Taking a deep breath, Brennan began her story.
"It was about six years ago, that I was in Arizona identifying bodies in a mass grave that I found an interesting similarity between the bones. This was a mass grave under a playground, and though one would assume that the family had just used it as a grave site for their family members it turned out to be completely different. The youngest daughter of the family had been having a love affair behind her fiancé's back, her fiancé had been away at war. When he returned to find his love, in bed with another man he soon began to exact revenge on the family members, blaming them for allowing her to love another man. On the 21st of March each year to 'commemorate' his return from war and the day he found his love cheating on him, he would kill a pair of family members, always a man and a woman, normally a husband and wife. By the time the mass grave was found there were fifty-two bodies, a long time for someone to hold a grudge. Long story short…"
Booth registered that she had use a colloquial term, but was more intent on learning what had happened to smirk about it.
"Emily Benet, the youngest daughter gave birth to a baby girl not long after Gregory, the soldier, came home. Her daughter Rachel Benet gave birth to a baby boy on the 18th June 1997 and a girl on 26th May 2001, two days later she was killed along with her husband, by that time I was already helping the FBI track down the killer."
Brennan paused, registering the understanding in Booth's eyes, however, she knew that the next part would be the hardest. Booth was smart he could put two and two together, he had seen the pictures. But above all she hoped, something Booth had taught her, she hoped that she had taught him not to jump to conclusions.
Booth's mind was racing at a mile a minute, Bones' had kids? Where were they? She wouldn't abandon them would she? Why didn't she tell me about them earlier? How come they don't live with her? His anger was now accompanied by both his constant jealously of the thought of Bones with another man, and curiosity. Booth couldn't comprehend who Bones' was anymore, it was like she was leading a double life, his promise to stay and hear her out was getting harder with each bit of information her heard. He knew not to jump to conclusions, but it was what he did, he couldn't help but think that the Bones he knew was a fraud.
Brennan passed Booth a picture, his anger soon rose that Bones in the three years he had known her had not bothered to mention anything to him about the image, the semblance of a family that lay before him. If a picture paints a thousand words, then a photograph is priceless. A pregnant Brennan was standing with two kids, they looked to be three and five in the picture, standing together with a sign that read Happy Birthday to the best mum in the world, there was a man with his hand around Brennan's prominent belly. Booth glanced at her speechless, she was a mother. Wordlessly he turned back to the photo and identified a gold band, with a very expensive diamond inlaid into it.
"That picture was taken five years ago from last week. I was happy then. I mean I know that I adamantly state that I don't want to be Pollyanna housewife, with her perfect wall-street husband and built in nuclear family, but this was different."
Booth just stared wide-eyed at Brennan.
"The Rachel's son's name was Brandon Benet and her daughter's was Chloe Benet, but on 17th August 2001 they became Brandon and Chloe Brennan."
