Angela

Something is off. Something is notably off. It seems that the truth about Allison and Booth withholding information from Brennan is out of the bag. The tension that lodges itself between Booth and Brennan is as thick as a solid brick wall. I only hope that such problems can be worked out sooner rather than later. After everything Booth and Brennan have been through (from the very beginning), I can't sit idly and watch everything they are crumble into a pile of rumble at my feet. I haven't seen them in person for the past few days and I feel like Brennan is consciously avoiding me. She can't escape me for too long. I know Brennan so well that her denial over the phone is unconcealed and impossible to miss.

So the conversation goes from casual small talk, to Alice being home, to the relief in that. Then I try to get out of her how both parents are dealing with the transition back into normalcy. Brennan's answers are purposely unsatisfying. She doesn't mention Booth once. So I bring him up, as an attempt to further push for information.

"So uh, how is Booth dealing with this?"

"We're just fine." Typical. And so the same kind of unsubstantiated answer meant to make me stop asking questions, which is funny because it only inspires me to ask more. Oh Brennan, do you know nothing of my nature?

"Uh-huh. Both of you?" I smirk and like to see how she gets herself out of this one.

"Yes…" Is all Brennan can muster. There is a hint of annoyance and perhaps anger in her voice; she tries with difficulty to mask it. I can tell it's a whirlwind of emotions sparked from Booth but also at my insistence to pry into her life. Like any best friend would.

"Listen sweetie, how bout we go out to lunch today? I think you could use some time out of the house."

"Angela that is the last thing I need. Right now I need to be here for Alice. I don't have time."

"Hodgins can watch Alice. And I know Michael is taken care of. Come on Bren, you need to have a little freedom again, a chance to not think about everything terrible that has happened over the past few months. And I am just the right person to show you a good time, it's my specialty you know."

A slight laugh. My plan is working.

"I'll come pick you up, we can have lunch at…The Founding Fathers," I say this instead of the diner, hoping to secure a more sophisticated atmosphere. "We can dish about life, about our families, or spouses."

"Angela"-

"See you at noon." And I hang up the phone before she can protest any further. This is for her own good, she can cry if she needs to, vent if she needs to, laugh if she needs to. Anything to help her gain perspective and peace…

She stares moodily at the salad before her. It's untouched but she moves the pieces of lettuce around her plate with a fork, head resting on her hand. This isn't going as smoothly as I would have liked. I decide to push the conversation into positive territory.

"So, are you excited for Alice's birthday party?"

A slight grin graces her lips. "I'm excited for Alice. She's ecstatic about the whole thing."

"Well she should be, turning three is not an everyday occurrence. Going to be a big day."

No response, nothing. That's all I've been getting from her this whole lunch date. Lame one sentence answers…I find I can't hold it in anymore. I take a fry off my plate and decide to take the risk.

"Alright sweetie, you have to let it all out. Listen, I know what happened."

"What are you talking about?" Color rushes into her cheeks, and it suddenly dawns on her that I know everything.

"Booth must have confessed to you. Everything he knew about"- Not wanting to say her name, I take the high road, "About everything that happened with Alice."

"Wait wait wait. You knew that Booth wasn't telling me everything he knew?" A look of outrage spreads across her face. Uh-oh.

"Brennan, I didn't tell you because I thought you should hear it from him."

"I can't believe this. The subject of all this is my child for Christ sake!"

"I know…I know that it must hurt. But I"-

"Angela you can't possibly have any idea how I'm feeling right now."

That hurt a bit so I try to counter her argument. "Bren, I was there, I witnessed everything that happened…I think I have some idea of how you are feeling."

"You're not a mother."

Ouch, that one stung a lot. I can't seem to string together a sentence. She looks like she is about to jump all over me, but then after a moment or two, looks defeated. She realizes that she hurt me with that last remark and tries to lessen the blow her words caused.

"Angela, I'm sorry. I know you have maternal instincts, and I'm sure one day you will be a mother, a wonderful one. But you know what? I don't want to talk about this right now. All of this is between Booth and I."

"Sweetie"-

"Thanks for lunch." She gets up and throws a few dollars on the table, leaving me slightly dumbfounded. I stupidly never thought she would leave me here, fleeing the scene so quickly. She can't get rid of me that easily so I run after her.

"Brennan wait!" She walks briskly up the street in her heels, her hair blowing about her face. I have to jog to catch up with her. Thank god I'm not wearing heels today. She doesn't stop, ignoring my shouts.

"Bren!" The desperateness of my voice seems to root her to spot. She turns around and faces me, not giving me a chance to speak.

"What makes me so angry is the assumption that I am not trustworthy. Have I not proven myself time and time again in this profession? More than anyone else on our team! What could you possibly say to me to make me not feel like I was betrayed? How can I trust anyone now?"

"Brennan, no one else knew about this. I haven't known for long…Booth wanted to be able for you to hear it from him, not from an outside source. Not from me."

"That only pushes more blame onto Booth. We have both told each other everything about our pasts, certain things," She begins to get choked up and her words come out in a strangled kind of sob.

"Certain things should just be ours. And he didn't, he didn't trust me enough, he didn't"-

I take her by the hand.

"Let's take a walk." We walk up the street and I try to guide her down a row of shops where the street isn't thick with people, to spare her embarrassment.

"This was not an issue of trust."

"How can you say that? He lied to me."

"I really think you are blowing that out of proportion. Yes Booth twisted the truth around you. But try to see it from his perspective. There is fault here, yes. He made a mistake Brennan, but it was not created by a plot to not confide in you. He did not mean to hurt you. You know Booth, you know the syndrome, how it's ingrained in him to do anything to defend you…shield your family from the world. It's always been like that. You know that alpha male tendency that you always talk about? He wanted to shoulder this burden alone. Knowing all of this about Ms. James, Allison, it eats away at you. The world seems a little less bright with the knowledge of one more life gone astray. You were there every minute of every day taking care of Alice…focusing directly on her, about her wellbeing. He did not want you to get distracted, he wanted you to be spending time with your daughter, in case it was the last…He did not want you mixed up the complications of it all, it would have been like a knife cutting deeper and deeper into you"-

"I understand that perspective Angela, but the ironic twist in all of this is: knowing this would have eased some of my pain. Every night when I sat beside Alice's bedside, I was haunted by the memory of what happened. Over and over again I saw the scene replay in my mind. And I questioned humanity, even more than I already do all the time in my line of work. I questioned the supposed higher power, and my faith was shaken…to the point of becoming nonexistent."

"Knowing about Allison's past would not have made it better; it would have only intensified this"- I try to convince her.

"No! That's where you're wrong. I try….I try everyday to find answers, answers for lost souls in limbo, answers as to why the world can be so distorted and evil at times. My mind came up with every possible scenario as to why this happened. But I never truly knew, I never truly knew the truth. Why has everything in my life been shrouded in secrecy? My why was never answered Angela. And all the while, it was dangling right in front of my face. And off the arm of the man I am supposed to trust with my life."

After I long silence, I try again. "Would visiting Allison in custody make you feel any better?"

The question catches her off guard because she did not think I would go there. She probably suspected that I would insist she never see the horrid woman again. Her answer also surprises me.

"No. I do not. I want to forget all this."

"Isn't there closure in somehow speaking to the woman herself? Then you will have all your "whys" answered? You won't have to rely on Booth's standpoint, but you'll have your own. There will be no grey areas, you will see it for what it is, through your own eyes."

Normally, she would rush at the opportunity to go and obsessively interrogate this woman. This is evidence of Brennan's continual change. Although she claims to be beyond angry with Booth, it seems that his words are enough (if only a few months too late).

"I believe everything Booth told me."

"You still trust him them. You know deep inside that he wouldn't intentionally do anything to hurt you."

"I do know that."

"He made a mistake Brennan. I'm not defending what he did. I was livid when I found out that he had kept anything from you…but sometimes, when you love someone so much, you don't expose them to things that will cause them even more pain. Please make up with him. You have too much to lose if you don't. People aren't perfect."

"I know that. It's"-

"Make up with him. Don't let this wreck what you have."

"I never said it would. I still love Booth Angela."

"I want things to be like they were before." I link an arm with her and we continue to walk.

"I don't know if we can ever go back."

"Yes we can."

"We can try, but things will never truly be the same. Just different. That's not necessarily a bad thing."

"Time heals all wounds huh?" I say, unable to not spout off timeless adages.

Instead of looking irritated, Brennan smiles.

"I would have said it differently, but that is essentially the idea."