A/N: So here it is! Please R&R!
"Hey, Dr Brennan, ready for some serious shopping?"
"You sound like Angela. You should call me Tempe, you are a friend of Booth so it's Tempe."
"Tempe? It sounds strange, Doc doesn't sound right either especially since back in Vegas my nickname is Doc, what about Bren?" Charlie asked.
"Sure, why are you being called Doc?"
"I have a doctorate in math and Danny isn't so original with nicknames like Seel."
"Oh, well lets go." Bones said. Together they walked towards her car and they drove to the mall.
"Okay Bren. We're going to shop in a special way. It's part of my tradition."
"How, why?" Bones asked, she couldn't think of a way to shop special.
"Okay so and please, hear me out. You pick three things out of this shop and tell me what you like and hate about it. That are the only three pieces of clothing you are allowed to pick today. The rest of the day I'm going to pick the clothes you have to try on. I'm going to listen to your pro's and cons and try to get you the clothes you love. You do the same for me. I always get frustrated when I pick out my clothes but nothing seems nice so you are going to pick mine for me and I'm going to pick yours for you." Charlie finished her explanation.
"Is that okay with you, you could look at it from an anthropologist point of view."
"I think I can do that." Bones answered.
"Great I will meet you back here when you picked your three pieces of clothes." Charlie said and she started to look for her own clothes. When they got back they both explained their choices. Then they went off again and got back with clothes for the other. When they were both changing Charlie asked: "So how did you get to work with the FBI?"
"Well, their was a rotting corpse found in the suburbs of DC and Booth asked me, well more the Jeffersonian for help. They sent me to help him. After that I went to Peru, when I got back Booth got me arrested by national security, so he could pick me up. He had another body for me to examine. We had a lot of disagreements at the start but he ended up vouching for me to his boss and I respected that. He has an annoying way of getting under my skin." Bones said coming out of the fitting room at the same time as Charlie.
"That looks great, I just don't know if it's you, I mean you said you liked a skirt a bit longer and I thought it was longer but it looks great. Seel has a way of doing that but that's what makes him such a great guy, don't you think?"
"I love the skirt and it isn't that much shorter it just above the knees. I guess but that's not the only thing that makes Booth a great guy. He has a lot of impeccable qualities." Bones said with a smile thinking of Booth.
"You are right you should get that skirt." Charlie said.
"I think, I will." Bones said walking back into the fitting room. After a two hour shopping spree they both had bought a lot of clothes. They both had four bags in each hand and they been to seven different shops. "Can I ask something I just don't get?" Bones asked.
"What? Just shoot, I can't promise I have an answer unless it's math of course, with that I can promise an answer." Charlie said with a smile.
"No it's about Booth, he talks about all his friends, from his time in high-school , from the time he served and about his current friends. But he only mentioned you once and only because he served with your dad. Now he says you are like a sister to him. Why doesn't he mention you?" Bones asked. Why was Booth holding such another big part of his life from her. She thought he trusted her.
Charlie looked towards Bones and she looked deep in thoughts and even sad. "Look ehm Bren, Seel trust you right?"
"I like to think so, he told me about everything in his past, well not everything but things like his dad and.."
"Bren don't."
"What do you mean."
"I know what happened to Seel when he was young, but he never 'told' told me. I found out when I asked him about what I already knew. He then asked me not to ask about it, to not try to find out more about it. He asked me to respect that. If I ever found out more I had to tell him. I don't want you to accidently say something I don't know then I've to tell him and then it's your fault so don't."
"Oh, but I don't know if he trust me, I mean he left you out, everything about you beside your name and apparently your importance in his life. So maybe he doesn't trust me." Bones said sighing and as they sat down at café.
"Bren, If he had told you about me and, for example, told you we talk on the phone every other week or so. Would you have started asking questions? Like how do you know her, why do you talk to her so much? Seel told me you like the truth and are determent to get it and that you are very stubborn." Charlie said.
"But don't worry Bren, Seel likes that about you." She quickly added.
"I guess that I would ask questions." Bones said.
The waiter approached their table and they gave him their order.
"But from what he tells me he really does trust you. I think he didn't tell you because he didn't want to lie to you and because he believes it is not his story to tell."
"Oh." Bones just looked at Charlie.
She seemed distressed. At least that's what Bones thought.
"You don't have to say anything." Bones said.
"Bren, Seel told me so much about you. When we're on the phone he mentions your name at least every five minutes, you're such a big part of his life. An important part, more important than me."
At this Bones blushed and started to protest.
"No Bren it's okay, it's logical. So here it is. When I was fifteen years old my neighbour back in the Netherlands died. Two months later my dad got shipped to another base near Philly. I moved together with my mom and dad. That is where I met Seel. He lived in the house next to us on the base and we became friends. When I was seventeen my parents and sister and brother were kidnapped. A ransom was made for twenty million dollars. I was all that was left and I had no idea how the hell I was supposed to get the money. Seel tried to help but could only do so much. Every month I would get a tape sent to me with my family on it while..."
Charlie wiped away some tears and Bones reached out to grab her hand it.
"While they were being hurt and ... killed. Till there was nobody left and Seel took me in till the day I was eighteen, for fourteen months Seel was my family. On my 18th birthday a government agent came for me to tell me that the nice old neighbour, for whom I always did groceries for, left me two hotel-casinos, one on the Strip in Las Vegas and one in Atlanta. That was where the twenty million should have come from. I went back to the Netherlands to get a degree and I tried to walk away from everything. I spent two years there till my best friend went back with me." Charlie ended, tears still in her eyes.
"I'm so sorry, it must have been so hard, I know a little of what you've been trough. But Booth probably told you about it on the phone calls."
"No he didn't, just like he didn't tell you my story. He is a good brother like that." Charlie said.
Bones smiled. "Your right he is made of good stuff, he is.. made of very good stuff." That moment the waiter came to bring them their food and drinks. They ate in silence till Bones' phone rang. "Brennan." She answered it.
"Hey sweetie, how is the shopping going?" Angela asked.
"Hey Ange, the shopping is good. We're taking a break now."
"Why sweetie? If it's going so good, if your buying all the hot outfits that would drive Booth crazy you shouldn't stop." Angela said laughing.
"Is that Angela, can I talk to her?" Charlie asked.
"Ange, Charlie wants to talk to you!"
"Sure sweetie, just change the subject." Angela yelled when Bones passed the phone to Charlie.
"Hey, what did you guys buy?" Angela asked.
"I don't know, a lot I guess. We all ready spent so much money, it's extremely helpful I don't have to check the price tags." Charlie told Angela. Bones excused herself and went to the restroom.
"Great how do you get her to buy all that stuff?"
"By shopping anthropology style. We just past a shop with an amazing dress, perfect for her. So I need you to call tonight demanding that you want to see it. I'll get her to change and take a picture of Seel's face when she comes out." Charlie said grinning.
"That's great, by the way before you leave are we going to shop till we drop? No breaks, shop in shop out?" Angela asked.
"Deal. Do you still need to talk to Bren?" Charlie asked.
"No that's okay go back to shopping" Angela said and she hung up.
The moment Angela hung up, the phone rang again, the ID-caller said Booth and a picture of his perfect charm smile appeared on the screen. "Sorry Seel, she's in the bathroom." Charlie said.
"Oh."
"Well it's nice to hear from you too, I can practically see your smile drop from your face." Charlie said. He is SO in love with her, she thought.
"No, just didn't expect to hear you.." Booth said when Bones came walking back.
"Oh here she comes." Charlie interrupted.
"Great, put her on." Booth said.
"And the smile is back." Charlie said.
"Hey Bren it's Seel he wants to talk to you."
Bones took the phone and started smiling. "Booth what can I do for you?"
"Having fun Bones?" Booth asked.
"Yeah. What are you doing, where is Parker?" Bones answered.
"That's great Bones, I'm at the park, he is playing with some kids. Oh he is coming over. He is missing you and can't wait to see you." Booth said and Bones heard Parker speaking to Booth.
"So are you, right daddy? You miss Bones too." Bones started blushing, what was wrong with her. "Yeah sure son. Ehm... Bones what time will you girls be back?"
"Ehm I don't know, around five I guess." Bones looked at Charlie for confirmation and she nodded. "Yeah around five is fine."
"Okay see you then, bye Bones."
"Bye Parker, Booth." Bones said. She hung up and finished her salad after which they went back to shopping.
After another twelve shops and another fifteen bags they decided to go home. "Wow I never bought so much clothes." Bones said.
"Well I did, but it's been a long time since I had so much fun shopping and with you I can talk on my own level. No need to dumb it down, since Danny isn't here." Charlie said smiling.
"I know what you mean, Booth always asks for a translation in the lab. On the other hand, I usually need a translation outside the lab." Bones said with the same smile as Charlie. Seeing Bones smile like that she just started laughing. "What?"
Charlie just didn't get it, how could two people be so in love and just not see it. Okay granted it had taken Danny and herself three years to finally get together but they both knew they were in love about a year before that. But Seel and Bren just didn't see it.
"Nothing, you two are just surprising that's all." She said.
"Oh okay." Bones said. "Maybe we should go back."
"Yeah you're probably right, it's four-forty five all ready" Charlie said. So they headed back to the car and put most of the bags in the back and some on the back seats because there just wasn't any room left in the back. They had a silent drive back to Booth's apartment, they got out and went back to the trunk.
"It might be a good idea to bring everything upstairs and we'll figure out which bag belongs to whom there." Charlie said.
"I know which bags are mine." Bones said.
"You sure? I've a few stuff in my bags that are yours, and some of Angela's things. Didn't you have my pink top in one of you bag and that cute little summer dress too?" Charlie asked.
She knew in which bag everything was. But she needed her to bring all her bags upstairs for her plan to work.
"Let's just go, we're already a bit late." Charlie started grabbing the bags.
Bones looked up at Booth's apartment and sighed. She started to grab the bags herself. It didn't really matter. She'll check the bags upstairs after having dinner with Booth. While smiling she locked her car and walked towards the building.