Author's note: Sorry this has taken so long! I just started my semester and I rarely leave the fine arts building. =p BUT I hope this was worth the wait. =] Enjoy! As always, special thanks to brainysmrf and Angiebc.
"Bones?" He knocked on the door. "Bones!"
She didn't answer and panic immediately set in. This was too familiar, too similar to the night a few weeks ago. Thinking the worst had happened, he didn't bother trying to call her or even finding his keys. He positioned himself, counted to 4, then threw his shoulder into the door. It gave way, breaking the frame in the process.
Stumbling over broken pieces of wood, he looked up to find his partner standing in front of him, glaring.
"Booth! What are you doing!"
"Bones, just listen. I can explain…" He looked around, noticing that they were alone in the apartment. "Wait…Where is Angela?"
"I sent her home."
"You sent her home! Bones, why would you do that?"
"Booth…" She kept her eyes down.
"Bones…"
"I just wanted some time to myself. I haven't had any since this whole thing happened and I need time to process."
He said nothing in response and simply stared at her.
Defeated, she walked towards back into her bedroom and came back with a notebook in her hands.
"What is this?" Booth asked as he took the small item from her outstretched hand.
"It's…a set of rules…" She took a deep breath. "His set of rules."
Confused, he opened to the first page. Rule #1: "Seeley Booth will not be spoken of, or thought of in this house hold. He does not exist as far as you're concerned." He drew in a sharp breath. Rule #2: "You are mine. And mine only." Booth got to the 23rd or so rule until his stomach rolled, nauseated. He couldn't take it anymore. "Bones…"
"Now you know." She said, distancing herself from him. "I'd like you to leave now."
"Bones…Please. Stop trying to push everyone, me, away…"
"You left, Booth. You barely spoke to me for several months. I'm fine. Alone."
He let out a strangled groan. Her words hit him like a wrecking ball and suddenly, he couldn't stand to be apart from her. Crossing the room in long strides, his hands met and cradled the sides of her face. She flinched, fear evident in her eyes. He softened his stance, and pulled her in for a hug. She tensed at first, staying rigid in his arms. Then she went limp, leaning into him. After rubbing her back and chanting soft words in her ear, he pulled back. Brennan tried backing away, not meeting his gaze but he once again placed his hands on her cheeks, making her look at him. "I'm not going anywhere, Bones. I have always been here for you. That's not going to change just because you're trying to get rid of me. Alright?"
She nodded.
"Okay, Bones?" He released the breath he hadn't known he'd been holding. "So, what do you want to do tonight? We could go to the diner? Oh, hey! You want Thai food? We haven't had that for a while."
Her eyes were wide. She looked…shell shocked. Booth cursed himself inwardly. Hoping he hadn't scared her.
"I find that I'd like to talk to Hannah."
His heart sank. It nearly killed him to know he couldn't help her. But if Hannah could…jeez, he thought, this is one big mess.
"Ah, sure thing. I'll call her and wait with you until she gets here."
Using a key Brennan had given her, Hannah rushed into the apartment, "Babe, what's wrong? Are you alright?"
"I'm fine, Hannah," she shifted uncomfortably.
"Wait…are you alone? I thought Seeley was supposed to be with you?"
"I am," he finally spoke up. "But I was just leaving."
The women stood in silence as he gathered his things and began to leave. "I'll see you tomorrow? For the meeting with Caroline?"
"Of course," both women said.
The door shut behind him and Hannah turned towards her friend with a comforting smile. "Okay. Spill. What's wrong?"
An hour or so later, they sat on the couch, curled under a blanket, each holding a glass of wine.
"…and so we're standing there. I'm in nothing but a glorified corset and black eye. And the whole circus has moved on!"
They fell into a fit of giggles.
"He's worried about you, you know," Hannah said suddenly. Brennan went silent but held eye contact, if reluctantly. "Listen…I know how hard this is…How much you don't want to talk about it, especially with a guy. But it's Seeley…He loves you. He's your best friend…You should let him in, Temperance…" Her voice trailed off.
"I don't want him to know," Brennan said quietly. "I don't want him to know how weak I was…What I let happen…"
"Temperance…" Hannah set her glass down and took her friends hands in her own. "None of what happened was your fault. I know that's hard to believe…But you need to know that…"
The women stayed silent for a moment. Brennan took a sip of her wine, shifted slightly, and smiled. "Enough talk about this sad stuff. Tell me something funny."
Hannah grinned, proud at how far her friend had come over the last few weeks. "Well…" she bit her lip then leaned forward conspiratorially. "You know about the fig tree?" Brennan nodded. "Well, what Seeley always leaves out of that story is the fact that we got caught…" The two women laughed as Hannah continued.
Brennan looked around the room at those surrounding the conference table. Caroline stood at the head, Sweets and Booth sat on the side opposite to her and Hannah. She took a deep breath.
"It started about approximately a month after we started dating. Cam had called in and needed me in the middle of the night. He did not want me to leave and he struck me. After that, the abuse happened seldom at first, once every two weeks or so. But the frequency increased. Soon it was happening every day. I was to abide by a specific set of rules that he put together. I would be punished if I disobeyed." The tension in the room was palpable. Her friends and colleagues kept shifting uncomfortably. "As Dr. Sweets has already stated, he and Booth were there the day it stopped." She paused looking to Caroline for guidance as how to continue. Even though she was in a room with people she trusted implicitly, she was nervous.
Booth's jaw clenched. Never mind the fact that Hannah was the one beside her, comforting her. Hearing his partner saying them out loud, the things the bastard did, that made him want to knock heads.
"Dr. Brennan," Caroline started, her voice calm and coaxing. "Would you please explain what exactly the abuse consisted of? The others will leave if you want them to."
At that, Sweets immediately began to rise, as if anxious to leave.
"No…" Brennan stopped them. "It's alright. I'd like you all to hear this now." She looked at Hannah, who squeezed her hand reassuringly. "The abuse was physical, of course. He would use his hands as well as his feet. He also…" She trailed off, then took a deep breath and thought hard about the how to phrase the next part. She wasn't wholly sure what it qualified as, considering she was in a relationship with the man, however awful. "He also…forced himself upon me. Again, almost every day. I was to make myself available to him whenever he wanted me and…" Her voice trailed off. This was proving to be much more difficult than she'd anticipated. She fought back tears that threatened to spill over.
Sweets chimed in, in full shrink mode, "When you say that he forced himself upon you. You mean…"
"He…forced me to have sex," her voice broke.
Hannah wrapped an arm around her shoulder and comforted her. Brennan looked at Booth, who met her eyes with an emotion she'd rarely seen directed at her. Anger.
