Author's Note: Next chapter. There will only be one more after this one. I believe that the episode that I will refer to in the last chapter was the moment when Sweets really became a member of Booth and Brennan's team and was when he truly completed his transition.

This chapter jumps ahead a bit and takes place during the events of The Con Man in the Meth Lab.

I do not own Bones or any of its characters. *sigh*

Thank you again to everyone who is reading/following/reviewing this. I really appreciate it. :D

Mendenbar: And thank you again for your reviews. I hope you will like how I got into Sweets' head for this part...

Peanutmeg: After watching it the first time, I couldn't help but think about that look on Sweets' face when he realized that he couldn't tell anyone the truth... It was so sad...Glad you liked the chapter. :D

Stephaniew: I think that part of the reason that Sweets was finally accepted into the group was because he grew as a person during this time. I wanted to show that in this story. Thanks again for the review. :D

206: Thanks. I didn't think that the Jeffersonian gang really considered what kind of a hard spot Sweets was in with Zack's escape, and then with the bombshell that Zack dropped on him later...It was a powerful episode that I enjoyed too. ;)

Mitchellhp: I was originally thinking of Sweets when writing that part in italics. I had that scene where Zack was in the diner with Cam, Hodgins and Angela as my inspiration. If you watch, the camera has the viewpoint of someone on the outside looking in. But after actually writing it, I decided that it could apply to Zack as well, so I tried to leave it ambiguous. I'm glad you enjoyed it.

Super ario: And thank you. :D I agree that it would be such a hard thing to keep that a secret even though you know you have to. Sweets is stronger than people may realize.

Disturbing Suspicions

The truth was Sweets was a little worried about Booth today.

He had been shocked a couple of days ago when he found out that Booth had a brother. Shocked and a little annoyed that he hadn't found out sooner, but he let that pass. Besides, it was clear that Booth had a lot to look forward to here of late. His birthday was coming up and there was that RICO case that he was wrapping up, which was sure to bring him many accolades. Sweets was happy to see that things were going well for the agent. He had just wished that he could figure out what to get Booth for his birthday.

However, Sweets had been watching the news earlier in the day and noticed that there was no mention of Booth in relation to the RICO case, and that worried him.

'What happened? That was supposed to be Booth's shining moment. Was there some sort of political thing that caused him to get shut out?'

He was heading to Booth's office to see how he was doing. He knew the agent would be in and out all day since he was still working on the case with the body that was found in the pseudo meth lab. But since his work load was light today, Sweets figured that he could wait around to catch him.

Sweets heard the 'ding' of the elevator door and walked in to see that there was a man already there in a naval uniform. He glanced at the man's visitor badge and noticed the name 'Booth' right away.

"You must be Agent Booth's brother?" the psychologist said as he got on the elevator. The man introduced himself and asked if Sweets was from the FBI. Sweets hesitated before answering; he was glad that he could meet Jared, but he wasn't sure how well his being a psychologist would be received.

'If he's anything like the Booth I know, Jared will either have a hard time believing that I could be a doctor at my age or he'll clam up once he realizes that I'm a shrink. Probably both…'

"FBI, yeah…Lance Sweets," he answered, careful to leave off his "doctor" title. He looked down at what Jared was holding in his hands and noticed that they were hockey tickets.

'Booth's a huge hockey fan…they're probably for him…But I thought that Booth was a Flyers fan…'

"Capitals," Sweets said casually.

"Yeah, I know Seeley's a Flyers man, but when in Rome right?"

Sweets nodded as they reached their floor, and the elevator doors opened. But he secretly thought that Jared seemed oddly nonchalant about giving his brother tickets to see a hockey team that he didn't actually care for.

"Yeah I still haven't gotten him anything for his birthday," Sweets said as Jared opened the door for him. He was hoping that maybe Jared would give him some insight on what kind of present he could get Booth

"Oh, my brother doesn't like birthday presents," Jared said as he quickened his pace to get ahead of the psychologist. Sweets frowned at that comment and not just because he was no closer to possible gift ideas. He remembered how Booth seemed thrilled with the bobble head that the police in London had given him and how he displayed all sorts of mementos that he had received all around his office.

'That doesn't seem likely. Booth seems to enjoy getting presents, and I'm sure birthday presents would be no different. Why would Jared say otherwise?'

Although he managed to hide it, Sweets began to have some unpleasant ideas form in his mind about Jared's relationship with his brother.

"These are more like a 'thank you'," Jared continued, referring to the tickets he was carrying. "Or an apology."

'An apology? For what? And why do I have the feeling that there have been other "apologies" in the past?' Sweets wondered.

"You know how it is with brothers, right?" Jared said as he entered Booth's office.

"No, only child."

In the back of his mind, Sweets thought about how, growing up, he had wished that he had had a brother at times. The closest he had was a cousin, who he was only able to see occasionally, but who he kept in contact with through emails and letters.

'I wonder what Booth was like as a brother,' he thought.

"Having a big brother is like having an extra dad," Jared said as he placed the tickets onto Booth's desk. "A dad who protects you from your real dad."

Sweets could not hide his emotions in that moment and was glad that Jared did not see his face fall.

He had had some suspicions that Booth may have had a difficult childhood. The past gambling problem along with a few other things that had been mentioned pointed toward a possible trauma from his past. Sweets had even theorized that there may have been abuse, but he had hoped that his suspicions were just the result of his being sensitive to incidents of child abuse. Unfortunately not only did it look like he was right about the abuse, but it also looked like Booth may have shouldered the brunt of abuse that would have been directed toward two children otherwise.

Never before had Sweets had such a strong desire to have been wrong about one of his psychological insights as he had right now.

'No wonder Booth feels the need to protect people…he's had to do it since he was a child.'

"He always thinks of you like a kid," Jared said turning back toward Sweets.

"I have the same problem with Booth," Sweets answered.

"There's nothing worse that someone who always thinks they're right. And then they're always right." The psychologist gave a half-hearted smile back in response, but truthfully he certainly did not feel like smiling.

"Pleasure, Agent Sweets," Jared said as he walked out. By now, Sweets felt guilty that he had misled a member of Booth's family.

"Doctor, not Agent," he mumbled once Jared was out of earshot. He stared at the tickets that had been left, and then looked a little off to the side to see all of the books and brochures that Booth had showed him about Hawaii were in the trashcan. Sweets felt heartsick at the sight.

'Something went wrong with that RICO case and now Booth is trashing all of his birthday plans…'

He looked back at the hockey tickets and thought again about his conversation with Jared. Just then another disturbing thought came to him.

'Did Jared have something to do with all this?'

A couple hours later, Doctor Camille Saroyan heard a knock on her office door.

"Come in," she called, not looking away from her computer screen. The door opened and she glanced over to see Sweets walk in and sit down in a chair across from her.

"Doctor Sweets?" she said, surprised. She moved away from her computer toward the center of her desk. "What are you…?" Cam stopped when she saw the grim expression on the psychologist's face and the barely hidden sadness in his eyes. She swallowed hard; she could easily think of something that could cause Sweets to have this demeanor.

"This is about Booth, isn't it?" she asked. Sweets nodded.

"You know about the RICO case, don't you?" Sweets nodded again, silently. Cam looked down at her shoes and sighed.

"Doctor Saroyan…I know what I'm about to ask of you will be difficult, but let me say upfront that I'm doing this as a friend and not as a FBI shrink."

Cam lifted her head to look at him, and Sweets noticed how she narrowed her eyes. He knew then that he would have to be the first one to offer something in this conversation.

"Let me start with what I believe is happening here," Sweets said. "I believe that Booth grew up with an abusive father, and that he felt the need to protect his younger brother from that abuse as much as possible. I think that Jared has gotten used to his big brother protecting him, but he also likes to act out in a passive-aggressive manner by finding ways to belittle Booth around his brother's friends. Now suddenly a career-enhancing achievement was taken away from Booth and, coincidentally, his brother shows up with a half-hearted consolation gift. And even while offering that gift, Jared is resentful of the strong, responsible person that Booth has become because he is dealing with a self-destructive habit of his own. Drinking, perhaps?"

Cam abruptly got up from her chair and moved to stand in front of Sweets.

"All right Doctor Sweets," she said angrily. "Where did you get your information? From Booth's file? Because there is no way that he would have simply told you all that."

"It was not from his file and I can tell you that if it had come up in therapy I would have never told you," Sweets answered calmly, holding his ground. "I hope you realize that. But I'll assume by your reaction that I'm at least partially right."

"Whether or not you are is not the point," Cam spat at him. "What's important is where you got your information."

"I met Jared at the Hoover building a little while ago," he said. "He was dropping off a pair of tickets for Booth to see the Capitals."

"Seeley doesn't even like the Capitals," Cam said, furrowing her eyebrows in confusion. "He would only want to go if the Flyers were playing them, and I'm pretty sure that they won't be any time soon."

"I know…that was one of the many things that troubled me in my conversation with him," Sweets nodded.

"Wait, are you telling me that Jared told you all of this?" she said, starting to calm down. "Because I highly doubt that he would."

"No he didn't tell me," Sweets said, finally rising to his feet to meet Cam. "Not directly. But I had a short conversation with him while he was dropping off those tickets and all of this is what I was able to infer from what he said to me."

"You didn't tell Jared that you're a shrink, did you?" Cam said sinking back down into a chair next to the one Sweets was in. Sweets cleared his throat and shifted his tie.

"I didn't think it was necessary to reveal that fact at that time," Sweets said as he sat back now beside her. Cam chuckled slightly.

"Perhaps that's just as well," she said. Sweets tilted his head at her.

"Doctor Saroyan?" Cam sighed again before answering.

"Well Sweets, once again you've shown me why the FBI thinks so much of your abilities," she said ruefully. "Everything you said is exactly how it is with Booth and Jared."

Sweets nodded; he wasn't really all that pleased that he had been proven right.

"I'm asking…as a friend…what else can you tell me?" Sweets said.

Cam then proceeded to give a condensed overview of Booth's younger days, making sure to not stray from what Sweets had already hinted at. As he listened, the psychologist grew even more troubled; to say that he felt empathy for Booth was an understatement. But a part of him also felt angry: angry that Booth had had to endure something not too far removed him his own early childhood. Even though he knew that he needed to remain clinical and objective, Sweets couldn't stop a tiny part of him from being angry at Jared as well for possibly taking advantage of Booth.

'Booth's been taking care of him…protecting him…all along, and all Jared does is resent him for it.'

"You know, Brennan has taken a fancy to Jared," Cam said when she was finished relating Booth's past. "She went with him to a military function, and she's apparently gotten it in her head that Jared is somehow an improved, more successful version of Booth."

"Doctor Saroyan, do you believe that Jared was somehow responsible for Booth losing credit on that RICO case?"

"I know that I can't prove it without one of them confessing," Cam said. "But…yes I do actually."

"If that's the case then Doctor Brennan's relationship with Jared could be a problem," Sweets said leaning toward her. "Booth already had to give up a chance at recognition in his job for Jared…if Jared also causes any sort of damage to Booth's partnership with Brennan…I can only see this having a painful outcome."

"I agree with you, but what can we do?" she asked.

"Perhaps we should have a talk with Doctor Brennan," Sweets said. "We could go over our concerns and decide on a course of action. She cares deeply for Booth; she would want to ensure his well-being."

"It might not be that easy Doctor Sweets," Cam warned him. "You know how stubborn she is, and she's not going to just buy into your theories…even if they are right…without some sort of proof."

"That's why I'm hoping that you will join me in talking to her," the psychologist said. "I figure that since you've known Booth and his brother for years, you could provide the evidence that she will need to see our position."

The two of them sat in silence while Cam considered Sweets' idea for a few moments. She then got up and went to pick up her cell phone.

"All right Sweets, I'll help you on this," she said. "I just hope it works out."

"Thank you Doctor Saroyan….And is there any way that I could ask you for another favor?"

"What is it?" Cam asked warily.

"Could you give me some ideas about what Booth would like for his birthday? I wanted to be sure that I was getting him something that he really would enjoy."

Later that evening, Sweets was in the Founding Fathers along with everyone else from the Jeffersonian to celebrate Booth's birthday. Even Clark had shown up, to everyone's amazement. He was happy after hearing Brennan's toast to Booth.

'A quiet man who cares for his friends and family…that describes Booth to a T,' he thought.

However, he couldn't help but notice that Jared stayed at the bar, drinking and not getting involved with the festivities.

Sweets watched Brennan and Booth walk off to the side at one point to talk. They even looked his way and Sweets smiled and nodded at them.

'I don't know if what Cam and I said made a difference, but at least they seem to have worked things out.'

He was furthered heartened when he saw Booth guide Jared outside, presumably for a private conversation.

'Maybe Booth is finally ready to make his brother own up to his own mistakes…He needs to let Jared have a chance to grow up…And Jared needs to stop letting Booth "take the hit" for him.'

But after a couple of minutes, Sweets saw Jared walk back in alone and go straight back to the bar to order another drink. When Booth didn't return after a couple more minutes, Sweets figured that the talk did not go well at all. He then saw Brennan walk out with a piece of cake on a plate, and decided that it would be best to leave them alone for now.

The psychologist sat down in a chair at the back of the room and watched the party continue.

'Even if Jared refuses to deal with his issues, that doesn't mean Booth should do the same. No one should have to go through life having to hold all of that inside…especially someone like Booth…'

Sweets knew that it would be a difficult thing to try to bring up Booth's childhood in therapy, even if he had no intention of doing it when Brennan was around. After all, Sweets himself, refused to talk about the abuse he had suffered at the hands of his biological father with most people. But he knew how much the therapy his parents had gotten him had helped and doubted that anyone had done the same for Booth.

The psychologist knew that forcing the issue could even put a strain on their friendship. But Sweets decided that if he really wanted to be Booth's friend, he would have to take on the role of a therapist in this situation.

It wouldn't make up for the past and it wouldn't necessarily solve everything for the future, but Sweets hoped that he could at least make life easier for Booth in the present.