Chapter 14
... a lazy sunday ...

Brennan stirred, her mind slowly awaking. 'What's that smell?' she thought. She sniffed and after some time she was able to identify different smells. First she smelled Booth... or at least his after-shave. The smell clearly came from the bed she had slept in. Which was a logical thing, since it was Booth's bed. She nodded and tried to name the other things she was smelling. Coffee and maybe pancakes? She wasn't quite sure about that, but she knew how to find out... her stomach rumbled audible. She got out of the bed and rummaged in her bag for her bathrobe. She quickly walked over to the mirror to check if she was presentable. 'I am still a bit too pale, but I look healthier than yesterday. I really slept well – no nightmares.' She thought and tried to put her hair in order.

She did not really succeed – she had no comb in her bag and before getting to the bathroom she would surely meet Booth. She shrugged that thoughts away 'Why bother, Brennan, he saw you nearly dead... and you sure as hell have looked worse than now.' Still she was not really satisfied with her appearance. She tried to use her fingers as a comb. Then she went over to the window and opened it. Fresh, cold air poured into the room and she inhaled deeply.

After some time she went back to the mirror. Her cheeks showed a bit of colour now and she thought. 'That will have to do!'

When she entered the kitchen she saw Booth standing at the stove, whistling and making pancakes. She could not suppress a smile... he was wearing an apron... which was apparently designed by Parker.

"Good morning!" she said and he quickly spun around, the pan in his hand. "Hi" he said, his warm chocolate brown eyes fixed on hers. "Bones, you look almost alive today" he smiled. "No, you look beautiful" he added in a low murmur.

She was not sure if she had heard it right, so she pretended to have overheard it completely. "You look funny!" she stated and pointed to his apron.

He followed her eyes and grimaced "Ah, yeah,... that apron... Parker made it... I had to swear I was going to wear it..." He shrugged.

"It's cute... the apron I mean" She hastily walked over to the table. "Can I help you, Booth?"

"Nope, you've got the perfect timing, Bones, everything is ready." He smiled again and showed her the pancakes, fruit, cereals and the orange juice he had prepared on the table. "Sit down, Bones."

He poured coffee for both of them and sat down. She shook her head "I don't think you are always having breakfast like that" pointing towards the cereals and the fruit.

"Right,... but you need food to recover" he gave her his charm smile "Now be a good girl and eat!"

"You should not have gone to so much trouble, Booth..." She was interrupted by a "Sh-sh – eat your pancakes, Bones!" and he did not want to argue. After all she WAS hungry and it tasted wonderful.

After some time she had eaten several pancakes, a bowl of cereals and two apples. She let out a deep sigh... "Wow, I think I've really had enough..." and placed a hand on her belly.

Booth smiled at her and rose to clear the table. "I can do that" Brennan said and quickly rose too. "Bones..." he saw the impatient look at her face and gave in "Okay... you can help me."

"I am going to pick up Parker in half an hour, Bones... you are going to stay here, we are going be back soon, okay?" "But Booth... you can go somewhere else with him, or I can go somewhere else..." she stuttered.

"Bones, we are going to stay here, together... no problem! It's raining anyway, so I won't go somewhere else with him..." he looked at her.
"But, Booth, ... I mean... what is he going to think... me staying here...?" Brennan blushed a bit.

"Gee, Bones,... he is a smart little guy... I'll tell him you have been ill and are staying here, because somebody has to look after you..., 's that okay?" Booth's voice sounded amused.
Brennan just nodded. A day with Parker and Booth... at least this was going to spare her the uncomfortable silence... and maybe distract her from her inappropriate feelings.

Booth left to pick up Parker and Brennan made use of that time alone by taking a shower. She enjoyed the feeling of the warm water massaging her stiffened shoulders and neck. Staying in bed too much always made her feel like that. She washed her hair and dressed up in jeans and a red shirt. Her hair was still wet, when Parker and his father arrived.

"Dr. Bones... Daddy told me you have been ill and to the hospital... are you alright now?" the little boy gave her a worried look.
"Yeah, I am fine, Parker. Thank you for your drawing... I'll put it on my fridge, when I am back at my apartment!" she ruffled his hair and turned towards Booth. He had not said a single word, he was just leaning against the wall, watching them. Parker chattered something about him being at the hospital talking to the plucky duck.

'She is so beautiful' Booth thought 'and I love how she is dealing with Parker.' He knew it was not the whole truth... it was not only that single aspect he loved about the woman that was his partner. 'Partner and friend, keep that in mind, you idiot!' he reminded himself.
Brennan looked at him and there eyes met.
They could have looked at each other for an eternity, but Parker interrupted by singing
"Di-da-Daddy, what we doing? Daddy?".

Booth smiled down at his son and said "What about you taking off your coat first and... then we could watch a movie together with Dr. Bones?"

Parker let out a howl and quickly slipped his coat off and tossed it away. "Parker!" his father's voice reminded him of how he was expected to treat his coat. He picked it up and hung it up at the wardrobe. "Daddy, what are we going to watch?" he asked impatiently.

"Well, what would you say about The Lion King?" Booth smiled at his son... he knew Parker could not resist that.

"YEAH!" the little boy was excited... one of his favourite movies! Booth turned toward Brennan: "You've seen it?" Brennan shook her head. "Then it's about time, Bones... and put aside the rational thoughts for some time... just try to enjoy it, okay?" She smiled "I'll try!"

Booth went to the kitchen to fetch them drinks while Parker was already dancing around with the DVD in his little hands. "I got, I got...!" "Bones, could you put it into the player?" Booth shouted over from the kitchen. "Sure" she said and tried to catch the little boy dancing around. "Parker, if you want to watch it, you will have to give it to me." Parker immediately stopped and they bumped into each other... "Ouch" he said, but was smiling. "You are not hurt, are you?" Brennan asked. "I'm fine... I'd like to watch Simba!!!" he said.

"Simba? I thought it was the Lion King?" Brennan looked puzzled. "Simba IS the Lion King!" Parker gave her a look that made her feel like an idiot. "Uhm... okay then... let's watch Simba..." she murmured.
Booth had to suppress a grin when he returned from the kitchen, bringing lemonade for all of them. He knew, Parker knew the whole movie by heart, ... not knowing Simba was something unbelievable to that boy.

They all sat down on the couch, Parker between Booth and Brennan. After some time Parker rearranged his position laying his head in Brennan's lap. She looked surprised but then smiled and started to caress his hair. Booth shot them a quick side glance. He decided to keep that picture forever in his head... His son and the woman he loved ...so close, so natural, so tender. He sighed and looked back to the TV where Simba was trying to frighten a chameleon with his kitten roar.

He knew he wanted to touch Bones, to tell her about her feelings, but he also thought it was not the right thing to do. She was the rational type... she would never fall in love with her partner. They had to stay friends, even if he longed so much for telling her the truth.
He had imagined how to tell her about what he felt, but he had always come to that worst scenario involving Bones shaking her head and telling him they still could be friends.
He knew it was not true... as soon as he had revealed his feelings everything would have changed. There would be an awkward feeling and she would try to avoid his nearness. Better to be near her as a friend and not having her quite the way he wanted to than to lose her completely.

His thoughts were distracted by a hardly audible sob. He looked at Brennan and smiled a bit. Simba had just lost his father and was crying over Mufasa's dead body. Even Bones could not resist that tragic moment and tears were glittering in her eyes. She looked at him and shrugged, then murmured "It's really sad!" "I know" he answered "the first time I saw it I nearly cried too." There was a muffled "sh-sh" from Parker who did not want the adults to talk during HIS movie.

Brennan smiled at Booth for one more moment then returned her attention to the screen.
Half an hour later – Nala had quarreled with Simba at his exile – Brennan realised the boy's little body had become limp. She nudged Booth gently "I think Parker's asleep" she whispered. "No wonder" Booth gave back "He has seen that movie at least a dozen times... he must be bored of it." He smiled at his son and looked at her... "You want to stop watching, Bones?"

"No... I want to see how it ends... even if it's absolutely not logical... still it's ...entertaining" she admitted. He grinned.
They watched until Simba and Nala had introduced their son to all the animals and the movie ended with an Elton John song. Booth yawned. "I guess it's time for lunch now... I'll better go to the kitchen, I have to cook something. I don't want Parker to eat fast food all the time."

"I can help you, Booth. Parker is fast asleep anyway." Brennan offered.
"Okay." They carefully stood up and left the sleeping boy on the couch.

"What are we going to cook?" she asked him. "Ah, well...to be honest there's not really a wide range of possibilities" he smiled at her "Tortellini alla carbonara ooooooor Spaghetti alla carbonara, your choice!"
"Oh, I guess I'll take pasta alla carbonara." She laughed at his puzzled look. "Okay... I'd love to have tortellini."

"Perfect... then maybe you could prepare the salad, Bones?" he handed over a bowl and salad and showed her where he stored oil, vinegar and spices.
'That is really feeling odd... cooking here with him, while his son is asleep on the couch... I ... I really like it' Brennan thought and smiled to herself.

Booth was cooking the tortellini and the carbonara-sauce and when they were finished Brennan went to the living room to wake Parker. "Hey, Parker... Parker, wake up...lunch is ready!" Parker yawned but at the sound of the word "lunch" he rose immediately "Yummy... I am hungry!"

They enjoyed the meal and spent an entertaining afternoon with drawing pictures of the characters of the movie they had watched. Parker's cheeks were glowing when his father finally told him it was bed time. "No, daddy... not now... I slept while you were cooking, I can stay up longer!" "Half an hour, lad, that's my last word!" Booth smiled at his son "You know I have to get you to the kindergarten tomorrow, buddy!" Parker nodded absently, trying to draw a grown-up Simba that mysteriously had a blue mane.

Brennan watched him, smiling gently. She had never thought an entire afternoon with a child could be that entertaining. 'He really is a cute boy.' She thought 'He has much of his father...' She looked up at Booth, who was looking at his son with a loving expression on his face. 'He really is a wonderful father'.

Half an hour and some quarrels later, Parker was in his bed insisting on "his Dr. Bones" telling him a story. Brennan did not know what to do... that was something new for her... telling good-night stories to children. "There's a fairytale book in the first drawer, Bones, just read out one of those fairytales, he usually falls asleep after two or three pages" Booth whispered and gave her an encouraging smile.

She sat down on the side of this bed and pulled out the fairytale book. "Which one would you like to hear, Parker?" "Mhm... can't you make up one? A new one? I know all these and you have been EVEREYWHERE... you know other stories, don't you?"

Booth was standing in the doorframe and chuckled. Parker was full of surprises... he was eager to see how Bones would solve that.

"I should..." Brennan stared at the little boy. 'Me... inventing a story???' "I am not good at telling stories, Parker..." she said. Parker's face wore a disappointed expression.
"But... I think ... I can try..." she quickly added. She did not know any stories that were suitable for children, no fairytales, but suddenly a memory popped up in her head. A legend a woman had told her while she had been to South America. It was about a boy who got lost in the jungle. The little boy learned to survive in the jungle and finally found his way back to his parents.

Parker clung to her lips, he did not miss a single word. When Brennan finally reached the end of her story he yawned... "That was nice, Dr. Bones,... a bit like Mogli... I like it... Night, Dr. Bones..." "Good night, Parker" she smiled and rose. "Normally I get a good night kiss..." Parker said. She returned to the bed and leaned down to give him a quick, soft peck on the cheek "Okay then, good night, sleep tight, Parker!"

She left his bedroom door slightly open and met Booth's eyes; he had been waiting outside. "You have more talents that one would think, Bones..." he smiled at her.

"I've never done that before" she said and shook her head. "Maybe you should,... you are good at it!" he realised what he just said. That had been more or less an invitation to stay with him for ... longer.

She pretended to have overheard it and yawned. "I am tired too, you know... but Booth... I really want to go to work tomorrow... I mean you have to go to work too and I can't be here alone all day... that would drive me crazy...!"

"Okay... I'll drop you at the Jeffersonian but first we have to bring Parker to the kindergarten... deal?" he smirked. "Deal? ... What do you mean?" Brennan looked confused. "Oh, honestly, Bones... If I am asking "DEAL?" and you agree, you have to say "DEAL!" and that's it..." he chuckled. "Oh... well, then... deal" she said "And good night"

"Good night, Bones" he answered.

"Booth?..." he turned. "Who is Mogli?" she asked.
He laughed "Oh, Bones... I guess we will have to watch another movie soon!"