Disclaimer: I do not own Bones, but I am obsessed!
Author's Note: Happy (almost) Wednesday. This one was ready to go, so I posted it. Anyone else disappointed in last week's episode? I'd been looking forward to it for so long. I suppose that my expectations were too high. Hannah just needs to go. Oh, and did anyone notice that Dr. Goodman was on Castle the other night? It took me a second viewing to recognize him. Anyway, enjoy this chapter and I will see you Sunday.
Chapter 6: Happy To Be With You
May 6, 2006 The Brennans' Apartment
Brennan woke to an empty bed, groggy and confused about the events of the day before. Suddenly, they all came rushing back to her and she took a deep breath, burying her feelings of hurt and confusion. She got out of bed, a bit unsteady on her feet and made her way into the kitchen. She could smell coffee and she saw Booth's head buried in a kitchen cabinet where he had been putting away clean plates from the dishwasher. He had obviously stopped back at home, as he had changed clothes and picked up breakfast on his way back. There were containers containing fruit, pancakes, scrambled eggs, hash browns, and various fatty, processed meat products that she knew he had bought just to annoy her.
She couldn't help but notice that he was humming to himself. She didn't recognize the tune, but it was cheerful. "Good morning." Booth jumped slightly as he hadn't been expecting Brennan to get out of bed quite so early.
"Hey, Bones. How are you feeling?" His voice was filled with concern as he grabbed a mug and filled it before handing it over to his partner. He quickly handed over the creamer that he knew she used in her coffee as well as the sweetener that she favored.
"Hungry." He chuckled and waved his hand over the food that he had picked up at a nearby diner. He pulled two plates from the cabinet and rummaged in a drawer for some silverware while Brennan finished fixing her coffee.
Booth handed her a plate and began to serve himself. "Well, let's eat. I checked on Lucy when I came back in, she's out like a light."
Brennan nodded. "She was up past her bedtime last night, she should sleep late if left undisturbed."
"Good, she needs her rest. Come on, Bones. Eat up. There is some tasty bacon, I know you'll love it." She chuckled softly at his teasing tone as she helped herself to the fruit and pancakes.
"Thank you, Booth. For breakfast. It was very kind of you."
"It is my duty as your partner, and even if I wasn't under strict orders from Angela to make sure that you ate, I'd still want to make sure that you were doing OK. You're not alone here, Temperance."
Brennan gave him a soft smile. "I know. Thank you, now eat your unhealthy breakfast, before it gets cold."
The duo were just finishing their food when a bleary-eyed Lucy walked into the room, dragging her stuffed monkey by its tail. She rubbed sleep out of her eyes as she gave her mother a kiss on the cheek.
"You're still here, FBI guy?"
Booth shrugged in response. "Technically, I'm back. I brought breakfast, Squirt. Help yourself. There is a plate on the counter and a cup of orange juice in the fridge. Fresh squeezed. So how is Ringo today?"
Brennan looked at Booth pointedly. "That is an inanimate object, Booth. It doesn't have feelings."
Lucy giggled as she searched the fridge for her orange juice. "Ringo is fine. Thanks for asking." She filled her plate with the food that Booth had provided and sat at the table where her mother was now looking through the world events section of the paper as Booth perused the latest sports news. Lucy paused for a moment, watching her mother and her mother's partner sitting together. Lucy wished that she could wake up to the image every morning. They looked so happy together, and Lucy felt like they were really a family, even if it was just for a few minutes. Booth handed her the comics page as she seated herself. She raised an eyebrow at him.
Booth made a face and innocently asked, "What?"
"I usually start with the Arts and Leisure section." Booth groaned as he flipped through the paper to find the appropriate segment and hand it over.
"Of course you do. Seriously, do you two ever do anything normal?" Lucy shrugged as Brennan scoffed.
"I don't understand how reading the newspaper is an abnormal activity."
Booth set his paper down and stared at his partner. "She's a kid, kids read the comics."
Brennan set down her own section of the paper and eyed him warily. "That is a false assumption. Lucy is a gifted child who chooses to engage her brain and not ruin her mind with silly comics or random cartoons on the television."
"I know she's gifted, Bones, but it wouldn't kill her to see Lucy van Pelt pull the football away from Charlie Brown."
Lucy huffed, "I'm sitting right here you know." Rather frustrated, she flipped to the forth page of the paper, trying to finish the article that she had started on the first page.
The three wisely dropped the subject and focused on their own interests for the next ten minutes, until Lucy set her section down. "Hey, Booth?"
"Yes?"
"Can you help me with an extra credit project for school? It won't take long, I promise."
Booth raised an eyebrow at her. "What do you need extra credit for? Don't you have like 120% in everything?"
Lucy frowned, "It's a long story, but I need to make up an assignment for my Social Studies class."
"Uh, sure. Isn't your mom better at this stuff though?"
Lucy shrugged. "Well, usually, yeah. No offense."
"None taken." Brennan stood up and began clearing away the dishes, Booth couldn't help following her with his eyes until Lucy cleared her throat and Booth quickly covered for himself by grabbing his coffee mug.
"Anyway. I wanted to write an essay on the end of the Civil War. What can you tell me about John Wilkes Booth?"
Booth had chosen that moment to finish his coffee dregs and ended up spitting the last swallow all over the abandoned newspaper in front of him.
"Excuse me?"
"Well, Mom mentioned that you must be descended from John Wilkes Booth and I thought that interviewing you would make for an interesting topic."
Booth grabbed a napkin and attempted to clean up his mess as he called for his partner. "Bones! Get in here. What on earth did you tell your daughter?"
Brennan stepped back in from the kitchen, "I just mentioned that from your bone structure and your last name that it was statistically likely that John Wilkes Booth was an ancestor."
Booth was clearly frustrated, and he spoke to her, keeping his teeth firmly clenched. "Bones! That isn't something that I talk about."
Brennan was confused. "Because he shot Abraham Lincoln?"
Booth sighed, "Yeah, he is one of the most hated men in history. And I'm related to him, not really a story to tell at a party."
Brennan tried to atone for her obvious slight, although she was still a bit confused as to why Booth was so offended. "But just think, one of your ancestors irrevocably altered the course of American history, it's a fascinating idea to cogitate."
"No, it isn't. Look, Lucy. It isn't something that I talk about. You just keep it under your hat. If you want to write a paper on why the Phillies are going to win the World Series, I'm your guy. Otherwise, I'm out."
Lucy looked truly hurt that Booth had become so upset. Booth, for his part, felt even worse when he realized that his own insecurities had hurt someone that he cared about. Lucy looked at him with wide and tear-filled eyes. "I'm sorry, FBI guy. I didn't mean to offend you." She put on a brave face and tried to speak in a bright tone, "I guess I could write a report on identification of Civil War soldiers. Did Mom ever tell you about the time that she identified two soldiers from the same field? Turns out that they were brothers but one was a Confederate soldier and one was a Union soldier. They shared the same bone condition and they both died from gunshot wounds to the chest. It was a really cool case from bone storage, wasn't it, Mom?"
Brennan nodded. "Yes, it was."
Booth patted Lucy's hand, trying to show that all was forgiven. "It does sound really interesting, I'd like to read the essay when you are done, if you don't mind."
"Sure thing, FBI guy." Lucy gave him a grateful hug, happy that Booth was no longer angry with her.
Brennan interrupted the moment, deciding that she needed to get back to work. "Booth, Lucy and I are going into the lab. She can work on her paper while I evaluate my mother's bones."
Booth nodded, "Sure thing. I expected it. I've got some stuff to do at the Hoover anyway. Maybe we can all meet up for lunch?"
Brennan smiled at her partner. "That sounds acceptable." Lucy nodded vigorously and bounded off to her bedroom, wanting to get ready for the day.
Booth stood to leave, "Bones, I'm sorry about earlier, it's just something I don't like to talk about."
"I understand, I don't like to talk about my past either. Let's just move on."
Booth nodded. "Sure thing. Are you going to be OK? I can work on my stuff at the lab if you want company."
Brennan tilted her head at him, "Booth, I will be fine."
"I just worry about you."
Brennan scoffed. "You don't need to."
Booth just shook his head, but his voice regained the playful tone that he often used when talking to his partner. "Well, someone needs to. But I'll go do my work in my office, I'll see you for lunch. Take care." Brennan should have found it annoying, but for some reason when he used that voice with her, she liked it. She would, of course, never admit that fact to him.
Brennan smiled at Booth as he made his way out of the door. He flashed her one of his charm smiles and gave a friendly wave as he closed the door behind him. She lingered at the door for a few moments, keeping her hand on the knob that she could swear still contained the warmth from his brief touch. As irrational as the sentiment was, she liked that someone cared about her as much as her partner did.
