Author's Note: I apologize for the delay, I didn't have internet all week (means I had a lot of time to write though.)

The Words 10

New Beginnings.

Booth took Brennan to her apartment, where he had prepared lunch. Brennan was indeed very impressed with the work he had done, her entire residence had been cleaned and a healthy salad with tomatoes and nuts had been prepared for her. They divided the salad in two and ate mostly in silence, until Booth had to ask her something.

'How long do you think you'll be staying here, Bones? Don't take it the wrong way, I'm not pressuring you, I'm just curious.'

Brennan looked at him. 'I honestly don't know. There will always be work for me here.'

'But you're not staying forever.'

She shook her head. 'Of course not. But I haven't set a date or term.'

He nodded. 'Ok. Reason I ask is.. I was thinking of going home no later than coming Friday. It's Wednesday now and I don't really want to go but I feel I have to.'

Brennan frowned. 'Is something wrong?'

Booth looked at her, debating whether to mention the reason for his departure or not.

'I don't want you to get the wrong idea. I mean, right now you're the most important thing to me. But you know.. I have Parker as well, back home, and Rebecca called me to say he's feeling a little ill. And I was supposed to have him this weekend, I had everything arranged for him to stay with Rebecca, but now I feel I have to go back, you know.'

Brennan nodded. 'I understand, go see Parker. I'll still be here when you get back.. If you get back.'

'That's the thing. I was wondering.. Since there is no set date for you to come home, I was wondering if you would consider.. Coming home with me. But I don't know if it's too soon. For you, or for giving up the apartment, stuff like that..'

'Oh the apartment is fine, I'm renting it from someone here and she can move back in or have someone else rent it, that's not the problem, Booth. But I can't.'

He looked sad. His heart ached and his brain raced. What did she mean? He went back to Hannah's warning and decided not to run but to talk. 'Why, Bones? What's keeping you here? Come on, we have friends who care about you, and we have work and so much more back home.. I understand you want space to think about everything, but you can have that there..'

'What's the big deal with me coming with you, Booth?' Brennan asked, not angry but more confused. 'I need space and time, and I have that here. Why should I give that up? I can't be with you yet and you know that, you promised to wait and now you're telling me there is nothing for me here so my only option really is to go back with you? There is plenty for me here. The work helps me concentrate and focus on more than the work. It relaxes me and gives me a clear state of mind, so I can think about us and our relationship without getting confused or scared all the time. This place does that for me. Back home there's too many memories, too much that went wrong already.. I'm scared I'll mess it up.'

Her confession touched him deeply and he nodded. 'I understand. I'm so sorry. I'll go back for the weekend and call you on Sunday, if you want me back I'll come back and if you don't, I'll be here waiting for you, ok?'

'That seems acceptable,' Brennan said, her voice soft and strained with tears she didn't want to reveal. 'And I'm sorry too, Booth.'

'No need. It was my fault. I guess I'm not as intelligent as you thought.'

She smiled at him. 'Or you're just even more in love with me than I thought.'

'Possible,' he answered, winking at her. He wanted to answer yes, oh yes. But he didn't and Brennan was grateful. She felt he wanted to say something else but didn't to protect her from herself. So she put a hand on his cheek and left it there for a few seconds before dropping it in her lap again. 'You're a very good man, Booth.'

Booth didn't answer. He just remembered the feel of her hand and committed it to memory, hoping it would stay there forever. Or at least until it could be replaced with other memories.

Brennan already knew she wanted Booth to come back, and even the idea of going back with him had been tempting. But it would be such a sign of weakness, she wouldn't do it. For herself.

After lunch they cleaned up the small amount of mess they made and Brennan went back to work while Booth stayed at her place reading. He never was one for reading but he found some collected short stories which belonged to Bones, and she'd told him it was one of the things that had inspired her to start writing, so he was curious. He also had permission to read what she had done for her new book, although she told him a thousand times it wasn't finished. He told her to go to work and stop worrying about her book, and she did.

This went on for two more days, and way too soon it was Friday and Booth was ready to leave.

'I'll drive you to the airport,' Brennan offered.

'Thanks, Bones,' Booth answered, harboring mixed feelings about wanting to leave and wanting to stay. He told himself he was doing the right thing, and of course he was, but still it felt like betrayal. Convince the woman she's everything to you and then run again. Just what she'd expected of him.

When they arrived at the airport, it was time to really say goodbye, for now.

'Bones.. You know I'm not leaving you, right?'

His voice was so gentle and soft that Brennan couldn't help but smile softly at him. 'Yes, I know that. You need to do this and it's ok. I will see you soon.'

He could see that some of it was just words, that she didn't actually believe all of it herself, but still it was a comfort.

'I'll call you as soon as I land and I'll call you again when I'm ready to come back, if you still want that, ok? And any time you want to talk, just call, it's ok. Any time, Bones.'

Brennan nodded. 'Ok. Have a good flight and I would feel better if you'd call me when you land.'

'I will.'

She smiled and there they were again, standing close but not touching, eyes hugging but bodies apart, just like that day when Brennan fled to Maluku and Booth to Afghanistan. Only this wasn't a goodbye like that one. This one was better, with more certainties and more opportunities for the future. So Brennan reached for his hand again, just as he reached for hers. They stood like that for a few seconds, her eyes telling him everything he needed to know. Hurry. Come back soon, I need you here. I want you here. His eyes were telling her everything he couldn't say yet. I love you. Forever, Bones. I'll be back for you, I'll love you, protect you, cherish every moment with you like it is my last. See you soon.

Without another word they separated and Booth left for his gate, leaving Brennan to stand alone watching him leave. She turned around and started her journey back to her apartment, not being able to see him leave. Even though she knew it was just for a little while, and with a good reason, she couldn't help but feel abandoned once again. And this time it hurt just as much as when she'd seen her parents leave. Because that was the last time she'd watched someone she loved this much leave her.

She knew he'd be back. She knew he loved her, she knew he wanted to build a life with her. But she still felt like she'd been right all along. There were no answers to all her questions. Everything could turn out differently than what Booth wanted. Stuff could happen that would change their relationship. But still, somewhere deep inside of her, she felt something else. Something new. She knew he would be back. And even if it took longer than she thought it would, still, he'd be only a phone call away. Always close, no matter how far away he was. Because not only was his number always on her phone, his heart would always be in hers.

Back home, Booth stayed with his son. Parker had indeed come down with the flu, and wanted to stay in bed all day. So he watched a game with his son next to him, and watched him while he slept later that day. It gave Booth the perfect opportunity to evaluate his position with Bones right now. He felt strange, almost as if he had left her for Parker, but he knew that wasn't true. When he had called her she'd sounded good, encouraged him to take his time and make sure everything was ok before even considering coming back. He had thanked her and talked to her about how she had to know he hadn't left her. Only when he was convinced she knew, had he let her go.

Still, he wished she'd come with him. He understood her reasons for not coming, he did, but still he felt he could have done more. He knew he did all he could without scaring her away, making her feel trapped, so he didn't blame himself. And he didn't blame Bones. Of course she needed more time. She needed an unfamiliar environment to come to her senses and just relax, just think about what was happening and accept it at her own pace.

His weekend home passed quickly, and in no time it was Sunday morning. He was preparing a light breakfast for Parker and himself. Parker was still in bed, he'd slept most of the night and Booth was grateful. He'd had quite a fever the night before and it had promised to be a restless night, but instead, Parker had slept through and was still asleep now. It was 10 in the morning and Sunday breakfast called for eggs and bacon, but only eggs for Parker, if he felt up to it.

Booth was working in his kitchen when he heard his doorbell ring.

He frowned and walked to the door, barefoot and still wearing the jogging pants and t-shirt in which he'd slept in.

He opened the door and his jaw dropped.

'Hi, Booth. I hope it's ok for me to.. 'drop by' like this, but I wanted to check on you and Parker before I went home.'

Still, Booth couldn't speak. He just looked at the woman standing on his doorstep, mesmerized by her blue eyes which were slowly turning nervous.

'Can I come in, or is it a bad time? Booth?'

The woman put a hand on his arm and shook lightly. 'Is something wrong?'

Finally, he found his voice. 'Damn, Bones.'

He took a step back to let her in and she entered, putting her luggage on the ground by the door.

'What are you doing here? I mean.. Why did you come? Why didn't you call?' Suddenly, he had a thousand questions.

Brennan followed him to the kitchen. 'Well, I felt like the time was right to come back, and actually, I missed your company.'

He smiled broadly and enveloped her in a hug. Not a guy hug, a very-very good friend hug. Or maybe not. He kissed her cheek and stroked her back, very happy that this woman, this genius woman had decided to act on an impulse and come back to him. 'I've missed you too, Bones.'

Brennan broke from the hug. 'How is Parker? Is he ok?'

'He's still a bit sick, he's still asleep I think. I'm just making breakfast but I don't think he'll eat much. You want some too?'

'Thanks, that would be great. I haven't slept nor eaten much in the past twelve hours, so I could use something to eat,' she answered. 'And I'll make coffee if you don't mind.'

'Of course not, my kitchen is your kitchen, you know that,' he answered, feeling ridiculously happy. Who would have thought she'd do something this illogical, this impulsive just because she missed him? Who would have thought Bones would follow him back to their home, the place they knew held promises for their future but also scared her because of that? As he watched her making coffee he realized something. She was still scared. That's why she came to him first. To make sure he was ok with everything, to make sure he knew she was back. To make sure he was there to catch her should she fall, because she was scared of falling, especially here. Falling in a place like Iraq meant you could come back here and pretend it hadn't happened. But falling here meant falling for real. And dealing with the consequences. So she'd made sure she had a net before she did something she wasn't comfortable with. And he loved her even more for trying. And for coming back already, because he knew she was way out of her comfort zone.

'Want a cup too?' she interrupted his thoughts. 'Yeah, thanks,' he said, taking a cup from her hand. 'I'm just going to check up on Parks.'

'Ok. I'll finish the eggs,' Bones answered and went to the cooker without a second thought. He smiled at her and went to check up on his son. This is what it would be like every day, in a couple of years. Maybe even sooner. And Booth found he had never been more at peace.

Author's Note: Next chapter will be the last one, for now. Let me know what you think, please R&R!