Hodgins sits behind a metal table near the edge of the lab, a microscope in front of him. He's looking at what he considers to be some really awesome bug larvae. Every few minutes he scribbles a new note into a small notebook. Lost in his own little world he doesn't realize that Dr. Brennan and Agent Booth have returned to the lab. Though the lab is virtually empty, small lamps and still illuminated tables provide a scant amount of light.

He can just barely hear them speaking, but he can see them clearly, though they do not seem to notice him. He notices that Booth's hand is at the small of Dr. Brennan's back as he leads her into the center of the lab. But Hodgins notices something else as well. Booth is fishing around in his pocket for something. When he finally grasps the item he's after and pulls it from the fabric folds, Hodgins sees the tiniest glint of silver.

"Hey Bones?" Booth asks, his voice laced with unease.

"Yeah?" Brennan asks, turning to face him.

Hodgins sees their eyes meet and lock as Booth plunges forward into an uneasy explanation of the silver item he's just placed into her hand, his own cupping over hers, so that they're both holding the half hidden item.

"I wanted you to have this. It's a pendant my grandfather gave me when I was a little boy. It's Saint Nicholas."

Brennan raises an eyebrow at this remark, and Booth quickly intercepts her reply.

"No, not that St. Nicholas, Bones. He's a Patron Saint, a protector."

Hodgins can see that Brennan is clearly stunned by the gesture and is speechless. She brings the silver pendant closer to inspect it thoroughly, and he swears he can see her eyes glistening as though she's fighting back a dam of tears. She attempts to vocalize her appreciation at such a thoughtful gift, but she can only manage a weak squeaking sound. Words having failed her, she simply places her right hand on Booth's chest, in the general area of his heart. She clutches the pendant in her left hand and brings it to rest over her own heart, hoping that her actions will translate.

Brennan finally finds her words again, but they are so soft that Booth has to strain to hear them. Jack can only imagine what she's saying, but realizes that she asked him a question when he sees Booth take the tiny silver chain into his hands and undo the clasp.

Stepping forward so that they are mere inches apart now, Booth moves each side of the silver chain around Brennan's slender neck and closes the clasp. Jack notices something else during this display. He sees how Booth's fingers gently trace the necklace from the clasp to the front where the pendant lies, his fingers visibly brushing her skin as he does so. Brennan closes her eyes as his fingers dance around her neck and over her collarbone.

Jack smiles, thinking of how Angela will react when he tells her what he's just witnessed. His mind is drawn away from thoughts of Angela when he hears Booth speak.

"There aren't many things in my life that matter to me more than Parker. But, this thing that we have, whatever it is, it means a lot to me." He pauses for moment, trying to find the right words to truly explain how he feels.

"Temperance, I—"

She interrupts him before he can say what she hopes he will say; what she fears he will say. This moment is too perfect to let words get in the way. She presses her index finger gently against his lips to quiet the torrent of words he wants to unleash.

From his table, Jack Hodgins can see everything, including the way Seeley Booth has just ever so lightly kissed the finger that Temperance Brennan has placed on his lips. His jaw drops as the scene breaks and they both depart in opposite directions.