I haven't had any time to write this week because I've been on driving classes every night, so I apologize. The last episode of Bones, though, got me so excited that I want to write faster and get to the Grande Finale. :D

(Btw, if anyone cares, I drove a car for the first time ever. It was pretty great. I'm so jealous of the people who can start when they're 16.)

Chapter 4

Booth dialed the number that he knew by heart and put the phone on his ear. He knew it wouldn't be answered, but he still let it ring a couple of times before ending the call. He sighed.

He had been parked in front of Brennan's building for a while now, but he couldn't get the strenght to get out of the car. He knew she didn't want to see him, but what choice did he have? It would be irresponsible to let her be alone right now and not make sure she was okay, he knew that. He also knew he truly wanted to see her.

Making his final decicion, he stepped out of the car. He remained calm and confident all the way to her door where his certainty started to diminish. Angela's final words at him, before leaving the Jeffersonian, kept repeating in his head. 'Don't let her push you away.' Before he could think of turning back, the door opened and Brennan was standing there.

Her hair was wet and she was wearing a loose, unflattering hooded jacket, something Booth hadn't even known she owned. Still, that wasn't what got his attention. It was her red, raw looking skin on of neck and hands.

He smiled unsurely, attempting not to show that he had noticed. He had a feeling he knew why her skin looked like that. "Hey, Bones. How did you know I was here?"

"I smelled the food", she replied curtly and crossed her arms across her chest. Booth tried not to look hurt at the chilly welcoming, keeping in mind why she was acting this way. Trying to protect herself from more heart break.

He held out the take-out bags. "Well, you were right. Hungry?"

As Booth was preparing for his 'please let me in'-speech, Brennan seemed to be fighting an inner battle. When her stomach made a loud sound that could hardly be interpreted wrong and he raised his eyebrows at her, she sighed in defeat.

"Come on in", she said and led the way into the kitchen. Booth followed, surprised. He had expexcted an argument, at least.

They remained silent as they sat on the couch and dug in their food. It was familiar and comforting to be sitting there with her, he realized. He couldn't remember the last time they had did this, but it was still routine. He looked around, noticing she had changed the order in her living room. He had always loved her place as it was so unique and so Bones, full of things that had names he couldn't pronounce.

It was Brennan who spoke first. "I'm pleased that you're checking up on me -"

"You are?"

"- but you don't need to. I'm fine."

"I know you are", he replied gently and looked at her warmly. He was pleasently surprised as she returned the gaze. "But I'm sure you could still use some company. I heard that Cam made you leave work."

"Yes, she almost threatened to fire me if I didn't", she told. Her smile was feeble, but there. Booth hadn't known that a gesture that small could make him feel as good as it did. "But I found something to do. I'm working on a new novel." She beckoned to the open laptod that had the draft on the screen.

He grinned. "Really? I assume it's about solving murders with bones. Not that I'm complaining, but don't you get tired of dealing with that in your books too?"

"No, it's quite exciting to write about. And Angela's helping with the relationships again", she answered, the courner of her mouth twitching a bit. "But the forensics is the important part."

"Of course." He eyed the computer. "Is that a new laptop?"

Brennan's eyes brightened up. "Yes, I got it last week. It's has much more capacity than the last one. It also has..."

Brennan rambled on about the qualities of the computer as Booth listened, feigning interest. What he really was concentrating on, was her voice. He had started to miss it during the last day. After she was finished, Booth inquired about the new ornaments he hadn't seen before and anything unimportant he could think of.

Ultimately, his plan worked and she started to relax, even earning him a few laughs. That was when he revealed his secret weapon and pulled out a stack of DVDs from one of the take-out bags.

"Ta daa!"

Brennan eyed them suspiciously. "You want to watch a movie."

"Yes."

"But I don't have a TV", she protested, but Booth had already got up and was carrying the laptop with him. He set it on the coffee table in front of them.

"This is a great opportunity to test this thing, don't you think?" He asked, smirking widely. "I thought I'd introduce you to some classics."

They examined the pile and decided on Lord of The Rings. After Booth had teased her enough of not having seen it, he pushed play. They settled into watching the movie in a comfortable silence. It felt like the old days, when Brennan lowered her head on his shoulder, filling Booth with a warm feeling. By the time the fellowship was grieving for Gandalf, Brennan's eyes started to droop.

Booth watched her sleep with a smile on his face. She looked even more beautiful while she was sleeping, all relaxed and vulnerable. She was so close he could smell her shampoo... He straightened his posture and tried to focus on the film, even though she kept distracting her, twitching and mumbling about something incoherent.

When the credits appeared on the screen and Booth moved to take out the dvd, she started to stir.

"Wakey, wakey, Sleeping Beauty", he joked, placing the movie in its case.

"How much did I miss?" She questioned, yawning and stretching out her limbs.

He smiled. "Not much. I'll bring you up to speed when we watch the second one."

He hesitated, because he did have something serious to talk about, too. Brennan noticed the change in his mood and tensed up immediately. He crossed her arms across her chest again.

"Booth..."

Before she would start to close up, he looked her straight in the eyes. "Look, I know you don't want to talk about it and I'm not gonna force you to. Not until you're ready."

She looked surprised, but pleased. "Thank you."

"But we still need to catch them." Both of them who he was talking about. "I don't know if they're connected to the murder or not, but we have to find them. They seemed to know your father, so..."

"You want me to ask my father if he knows who they are", she finished for him.

"Yes."

She shifted, uncomfortable. "Can't you do it?"

"Of course", he answered reassuringly. "But I thought that maybe you would like to do it yourself."

She fell silent, pondering. She nodded. "I will ask him and then tell you."

"Okay, great. " He got up, gathering his belongins and advancing on the door. "Call me if you need anything, okay? I have Parker tomorrow, but -"

"Booth", she interrupted him. "Do you think you could stay? I think I can... sleep better if you're here."

"Yeah, of course", he replied right away. "I can take the couch."

"It's not good for your back. I have a large bed. If it's fine with you", she hastened to add. Suddenly Booth found himself yearning for a long, cold shower.

"Yeah, sure. It's- it's fine", he stammered. She smiled the way that always made him want to kiss her and he wondered if he would survive the night.

In the end, everything went fine, much to Booth's surprise. There were moments when he had to start reciting saints, such as when Brennan got into the bed in her nightgown. Or when he woke up and noticed they were tangled together and she had her head on his chest.

He meant to get up, but he wanted to stay where he was for a little while longer. When she started to mumble in her sleep, he woke from his haze and gently moved her off him and tiptoed ouf of the room.

Calling Rebecca he would a bit late to pick up Parker, he got busy in the kitchen. He felt guilty for making his son wait as they already got to spend so little time together, but he couldn't have Brennan wake up and find out he had already gone. There was a reason she had asked him to stay, he thought grimly.

When the pancakes were almost done and he was glancing at his clock every five seconds, Brennan finally appeared.

"You made breakfast", she stated matter of factly, stopping to stare at the sight.

"That's right. Just because we always eat junk food, doesn't mean I can't cook", he answered, triumphant. "But I think I still managed to burn it."

"That's fine", she smiled, amused, and went to to the kitchen cabinets. She was going to take out two plates, but he shook his head, apologizing.

"You go ahead and eat. I actually have to pick up Parker", he said and motioned for the door. There was a flash of disappointment on her face before her smile was back, but it was coming out somewhat forced. "We're going to the park and all..."

"Of course. Thank you for everything."

"Yeah, don't mention it. Or you know", he started, a thought popping into his head upon seeing her starting to eat, head down. "We could go swimming to your pool in stead... All three of us. Parker really likes the pool. And you."

Her face visibly lit up. "Of course. That could be fun. It's been a while since we went there."

It really had. "Right. I'll stop by my place, go get Parker and get back soon.

He finally left the appartment, his mind lighter than it had been in weeks.


Am I imagining, or is my Brennan really emotional in this? Anyway, let me know what you think. ;)