A/N: Thank you so much for the amazing response to the last two chapters. More fluff to come. This will be the last update for about a week or so but then comes some pretty juicy stuff so be sure to stay tuned. Enjoy!
Chapter 21
July 1998
"Hon, can you grab that box over there?" Tempe asked Booth, exhausted by the two days straight of moving.
"Yeah, Bones, I got it. Why don't you take a load off for a while, okay, babe?" he said as he steered her over to the couch and gently pushed her down onto the cushion. Laughing at the indigent look on her face at his action, he leaned down and gave her a gentle kiss before doing as she asked and carrying the box into their bedroom.
Tempe sank back into the cushion of the comfortable, worn-in couch they had brought over from Booth's studio apartment at Penn State to their new shared one bedroom apartment they got in Washington D.C., right near Rock Creek Park. Since Tempe had lived in a furnished dorm room while she was at Northwestern University, they had spend the last several days packing up the furniture that Booth had in his apartment and moving all of it over to their new place. And to add to the stress of moving and getting settled in a new place, her internship at the Jeffersonian started in three days. Booth assured her she was going to be great but Tempe knew the prestige of the institution and was nervous about working for someone with the academic prestige that the administrator of the Medico-Legal Lab, Dr. Goodman, had.
But despite all the distress she was feeling, it didn't come close to the happiness she felt. Every time her ring caught the sunlight and the reflection hit her eyes, she felt her love for Booth rise up inside her. It was a pretty awesome feeling. She found that she loved being introduced to new people and hearing Booth introduce her as 'his fiancé.' When she met the other Jeffersonian interns, she was surprised that one of the first things that the other women in the group noticed was her ring. She felt like she needed to carry around a picture of Booth in her purse just to show all of the other women who he was. But there was supposed to be a dinner for everyone in the lab in a couple of weeks so she was excited that she could go there and start introducing Booth as HER fiancé.
Deciding she had sat for too long, she got up and started sorting through one of the boxes marked 'living room.' In this particular box were the pictures from the picture wall she had made for him in his old apartment. Now, she was excited to create a place that was theirs; both their names were on the lease and this would be the place they both lived for the rest of the summer and hopefully if Booth got the placement he wanted in Washington D.C. She also couldn't wait to add to the picture wall with the pictures they had taken over the course of their two year relationship and now, engagement.
That was something else they had decided: they both wanted a long engagement, setting a tentative wedding date for September of next year. That way, Booth would be eight months into his job and she would have one year of a three-year doctoral program. Sometimes she got sad thinking about planning the wedding, thinking that this was something that she and her mother should have done. But Grams was so enthusiastic about it that she had already started even though Booth kept reiterating to her that they wanted something same and simple, for family and closet friends only. Tempe was skeptical that that would still be the plan a year from now.
Looking around the living room of the one bedroom apartment, she thought they had done a pretty good job so far. The kitchen was isolated from the rest of the apartment with a bar that separated it from the small area that was meant for a dining room table and chairs. She and Booth would love to get an overstuffed chair for the loving room that went with the couch, and of course, the TV already was in the spot that Booth had picked out when they first saw the apartment.
"Hey, Bones, where did you want the dresser?" Booth called from their bedroom. She was very excited they actually had a door to the bedroom and not a curtain that was held there by a shower rod.
The second hand furniture Tempe had purchased in the thrift store in University Park had held up really well and they definitely saved money by moving it to Washington D.C. and not having to purchase new furniture. She looked around the room; her heighted awareness of spatial depth helped her organize in her head exactly where everything would fit.
"Why don't you put it against this wall here, Booth. That way to won't block the bottom part of the window," she told him, watching as he moved it to the exact spot she pointed out. As he did that, she got the sheets out of the washer/dryer unit they had in their apartment and made the bed. It looked awfully inviting right about now.
Apparently Booth thought the exact same thing as he dramatically flopped onto the bed.
"Booth!" she exclaimed. "You are going to mess it all up," she whined, looking at the now wrinkled sheets.
He just grinned at her and pulled her down onto the bed before rolling her underneath him.
"I was planning on doing that anyway," he whispered to her right before leaning down and capturing her lips in a fiercely passionate kiss, the motion of his hands on her body stirring up feelings of intense arousal that were always simmering just under the surface whenever he was around.
"You still worried about the sheets, Bones?" Booth teased as he broke the kiss, giving her what she called his 'charm smile.'
"Stop talking, Booth," she countered. "That mouth should be busy doing other things."
Four days later, Booth was straightening his tie in the mirror he put up two days ago in him and Bones' new apartment. Bones had some get together at the Jeffersonian tonight for all the new interns and even though he was not looking forward to spending the evening with people whose IQ probably doubled his own, he would never complain about being there for Bones. He was going to spend every minute possible with her before he went off to his FBI training in Quantico, Virginia in three weeks.
Bones kept trying to see if he was nervous about his training; she had done some research on what his training would entail, in her typical Bones manner. But he kept telling her he really wasn't; after his years as a sniper in the Army Rangers and the hell his father put him through, he figured he could handle just about anything the FBI was going to throw at him. He couldn't tell her that though; while she knew some of the details about his past, he didn't' tell her everything for a reason. Some of the things that happened to him, he didn't even want to remember much less burden someone else with them.
Satisfied with his appearance, he went out in the living room to wait for Bones. Normally, she didn't take very long to get ready but he knew she wanted to make a good impression in front of her future colleagues tonight so he wasn't going to mention that she had been getting ready for the last forty-five minutes. He may be a guy but he wasn't a complete idiot. Turning the television on and flipping to some random sports game, he patiently waited for his fiancé.
When she finally walked out of their bathroom fifteen minutes later, she literally took his breath away. Although the function tonight was labeled as 'cocktail attire,' he looked she looked absolutely beautiful. Her dress was a midnight blue color that was strapless but tasteful. It fit her body perfectly, with a subtle flair beginning right under her rib cage and extending until it stopped right below her knees. Add to that a pair of silver, strappy heels and Booth thought her legs looked three miles long. She wore one of the chunky necklaces he noticed she had become fond of lately and he couldn't help but smile when he saw his ring sitting on her left ring finger.
"Bones," he said getting up and putting his hands on her waist, pulling her into the circle of his arms. "You look stunning."
She smiled up at him, straightening his tie. "Thanks, hon," she replied, leaning up to give him a sweet kiss. "Now, come on, let's get going. I do not want to be late," she said as she grabbed his hand and dragged him out of the apartment, pausing just for a moment to allow him to grab his suit jacket.
Luckily, thanks to the convenient mass transit in Washington D.C., they were able to take the Metro to the Jeffersonian from their apartment. They walked down the block to the station hand-in-hand, enjoying the warm summer evening. He hadn't told her yet, but he was worried about her taking the Metro by herself when he left for Quantico. He knew she would give him the standard 'I can take care of myself' speech that he pretty much had memorized at this point. But he loved her and that's what people did for people they loved; they took care of them. He had arranged with Pops to buy an old but reliable car for her, one that Pops was currently working on and would have fixed up by the time he left.
Before he knew it, they were walking into the beautiful gardens surrounding the Jeffersonian Institute. They were a couple of tents and tables set up around the perimeter of the gardens and lights were strung up everywhere, illuminating the center of the area, where a lot of people were currently milling around.
He kept walking right in but stopped when he felt Bones let go of his hand and stop of a minute.
"Bones? Are you okay?"
She looked at him with indecision in her eyes and he could tell she was hesitant. "What if they don't like me, Booth? I have always been socially awkward and I really want to be able to fit in with these people but I'm scared," she finished in a soft voice. Booth was shocked and sadden by her statement. She rarely showed him this side of her but he always felt privileged whenever she did.
"Bones, if they even she half the person I see when I look at you everyday, they can't help but love you. You are smart, kind, and so passionate about your work. But tonight, if you ever begin to doubt yourself, just look at that ring on your finger and remember that no matter what these people think of you, I love you. Okay, babe?" he finished with a kiss to her forehead.
He could almost feel her confidence come back up and she took his hand again, intertwining their fingers. He followed her into the meet-and-greet, letting her take the reins and just following her lead.
For the first fifteen minutes or so, he studied Bones. She was looking around the crowd, seemingly analyzing every possible scenario both deciding where she wanted to go. Someone else made that decision for her, though.
"Pretty lame party, right? I have been trying to spike the punch with this pure grain alcohol I cooked up earlier but I haven't found the right opportunity."
Booth looked at the shorter man that had approached them, his curly brown hair giving him some additional height. The man wore a corduroy suit jacket with a hoodie underneath, his dark jeans leading to a pair of black Converse shoes, with an 'I Want To Believe' pin on the collar of the jacket.
"And you are?" Booth asked, stepping to the side to let Bones get a good look at the man too.
"Jack Hodgins," he said, sticking his hand out for the both of them to shake.
"I'm Temperance Brennan and this is my fiancé, Seeley Booth," Bones said, beating him to the introduction. He smiled when he heard it though, loving the way she described him. "I'm going to be interning in the Medico-Legal Lab, specializing in forensic anthropology," she continued, and even though Booth could tell she was nervous, he was very proud that she was putting herself out there.
"Oh, I'll be interning in the Medico-Legal Lab, too! I'm working with the bugs and slime though, not the bones directly. You met Goodman, yet?" Hodgins asked.
"Dr. Goodman? No but I have been looking forward to the opportunity for quite some time now. His reputation precedes him," Bones said, slipping her arm around his waist and leaning into him. Whether it was because she was cold or looking for comfort, he didn't care. He loved any excuse to touch her. He reciprocated by putting his hand on her lower back, in the exact spot he was convinced was made for him.
"Yeah, I don't trust him yet. I'm not convinced he isn't a stooge of the Masonic government. I mean the partnership he just made with the FBI is outrageous. This is supposed to be an institute dedicated to scientific exploration and now who knows what kind of crap we are going to be involved with-"
Booth had had quite enough and couldn't control his temper. "Listen, buddy, I'm going to be an FBI Special Agent in about six months so you want to cool it on the conspiracy theories?" Booth asked, feeling Bones rub his back slightly with her hand, helping him release some tension.
He saw Hodgins just look him up and down with a disgusted look on his face. "Yeah, that figures."
"Bones, I'm going to grab us some drinks, okay?" Booth told her, giving her a kiss on the cheek before leaving, not wanting to cause a scene by decking a squint.
As he poured the drinks that he hoped the bug guy didn't spike yet, he looked back over to see Bones and Hodgins surrounded by several more people, discussing some topic that he probably wouldn't understand.
For the moment he was content to sit and watch her interact with the other 'squinterns' as he dubbed them. He loved watching her when she was talking about her bones; it was one of the times where he saw her truly uninhibited. Well, in public anyway.
He could see the passion so clearly even though he was currently several yards away from her and could not even hear what she was talking about. He couldn't believe that she thought these people wouldn't like her or that she wouldn't fit in. This was exactly her kind of crowd. Booth could practically feel the smartness in the air, even more than he ever felt at college when he was on campus.
"Who are you watching so intently over there, son?" he heard a voice ask. Booth turned to see a larger African-American man in a neatly pressed suit who had a goatee. The man's hands were behind his back and Booth was discreetly trying to look to see what he was holding.
"Um, my fiancé, sir, Temperance Brennan. She is the one in the blue dress and the brown hair," he said, pointing her out to him. "And you are?" he began to ask. As he did this, Bones turned around to see him and instantly excused herself from the group she was talking to, walking over to where he stood.
"Hello, Dr. Goodman," Bones said when she reached them. "I believe my fiancé here, Seeley Booth, has already told you who I am."
"Of course I know you, Ms. Brennan. I was very pleased to see that you had accepted our offer to intern here," Dr. Goodman told her, and Booth was beaming with pride for her.
"Thank you, sir. I am very excited to begin working."
"Well, you will have that opportunity soon enough. But you will need this for your first day," Dr. Goodman said, finally bringing out what he had behind his back and handing it to Bones. From what Booth could tell, it was a light gray lab coat with the Jeffersonian seal over the right breast pocket. While Booth personally didn't understand the significance of this, Bones was obviously very touched and he could tell that she was trying to hold back her emotions.
"Congratulations again, Ms. Brennan. See you Monday." And with that, he left them alone.
Booth put his arm around Bones' shoulder, pulling her into his side. He gently rubbed her shoulder, smiling as she turned into him and wrapped her arms around his waist, burying her head in his shoulder, her right hand still gripping the lab coat.
"I'm so proud of you, Bones," he whispered into her ear, gently kissing her temple.
"Thanks, Booth," he heard her say. She pulled back a little bit and looked into his eyes. "I'm really glad you are here with me. This moment is so much more special because you are here. I love you."
He leaned down and gave her a sweet kiss, echoing her sentiment completely with his actions.