Chapter 24: The End
Fourteen hours of intense labor, and frantic doctors had led to Booth family to where they were in this moment. Sitting in a generic hospital room with a beautiful baby boy in their arms. Brennan was smiling down at him, thinking about their journey to get here, about how not even a year ago she was to scared to even be here. If she had known then what she felt now, she would have done it in a heartbeat.
All the changes and all the lessons that she had learned to embark on had given her something more precious than the life she thought she wanted. That was the most ironic lesson that she had learned. Life, her life, the one she was living spoke to her more clearly and louder than any set of remains she had ever laid eyes on.
She had fought serial killers, worked in large mass graves, and solved countless murders and trials. She had given the lives back to countless faceless people, allowed their families the closure that could only come from saying goodbye. Her greatest feet, the one that would leave the longest legacy was sleeping soundly in her arms.
All of her fears about what kind of a mother she would be faded the moment they place her son in her sweaty arms. She had been so wrong, this was nothing that could be filled by making exceptions. This was the reason she had wanted to have her child in the first place. This was the stop to that tiny clock that seemed to tick in her head just behind her ears. It gave her something she had never known she wanted, and it gave her that with Booth.
"He's perfect." Booth reached out, running his hands over the small sleeping baldhead in his wife's arms. She looked exhausted, probably the same way he felt. It had been a long fourteen hours, and the extent of her vocabulary had once again amazed him as well as the doctors while she had writhed in pain. It had ended with their son, and all the anger she had for him in that moment subsided. He knew she would take that pain all over again, if it would give her one more day with their son. Michael.
" He's like his father, he wears me out." She yawned, wincing as she shifted. The doctor had decided to prevent any further pregnancies while they were delivering him, figuring that it would be best for them in the long run. The risks of her body carrying any more children were to great. None of that mattered now though. They had their child, they had their family. They had Parker and Michael. The Booth family was complete.
"You have not seen anything yet." He said lewdly, leaning in to kiss her. She smiled, this was perfect, it was the happy ending that she had never known she wanted.
"Easy there tiger, it may be awhile before there is any of that." His frown made her laugh. If only he knew.
"You just wait till you come back to work, then see who gets worn out." He said, pulling her closer.
" What if I did not?" She asked, causing him to look at her, questions in his eyes.
"Did not what?"
"Come back to work." She clarified, looking down to gaze at her son once again. His beauty awed her, made her wonder, just briefly if there really was more merit to God than she gave credit for.
"Are you serious?" He had never thought about it, thought about what would happen once there was a baby actually in their arms. He never thought that might change her perspective on work.
"Booth, my parents missed so much when they left. Even though my father is back in my life it is not the same. There are things that he never got to see, so many moments and memories he will never have. I do not want that for Michael. I want to be there when he takes his first step, or says his first word. I want my job to be Michael. I owe him that, to dedicate time for him, to be the best mom I can be. Luckily I am in the financial position to do so. It would be wrong not to take advantage of it." She reasoned looking up at him, gauging his reaction.
"Is this what you want, Bones? I mean will you be happy?" He had his doubts, no matter what the pull, it seemed that nothing could keep Brennan out of the lab for to long.
" I think so. I have been thinking about it for a while now and I know it is the right choice. I want this. I need this." She said looking into his eyes, pleading for his support.
"Alright then." He leaned in, hugging his wife. This was the way it was supposed to be. This is what seven years of hard work and dedication had given him. Right from their very first meeting, to the moment he took her on as a partner. This was the path they needed to walk down, the way it was meant to be. Through all of their trials and tribulations, this was the only ending that made sense. This was the true combination of logic and talent, bonded together to create the most beautiful gift of all, Love.