Chapter 36: Avoiding Reflections.

Brennan refused to look at herself in the mirror as she pulled on yet another pair of drawstring pants. It had been two weeks, and she knew she really just needed to go shopping for clothes that fit. She did not have time for shopping, though, and she had a closet full of clothes that she liked, and she just...

She spent her days in the lab now. Anything she wore was covered by her blue lab coat. It wasn't important. Besides, she'd get her eating habits back in order soon enough. She'd gain her weight back, and she'd look like her old self, and she'd need her old clothes. She twisted her hair up in a knot, still avoiding the mirror.

On her way to the Jeffersonian, she made a mental list of everything she had to accomplish for the day. As she was no longer spending her days in the field with Booth, she had been able to make significant process in the Bone Storage Unit. It was very satisfying work.

"And in national news, the high-profile trial of alleged domestic terrorist and cult leader Marshal Coker has entered closing arguments..."

She switched off the radio; it was distracting.

She tugged on her lab coat as she entered her office. Another ostentatious bouquet had arrived from her publisher. The messages on the accompanying cards included increasingly desperate inquiries about plans for her new novel. She had more important things to do than write about Kathy and Andy. She didn't know why squandering her time on novels had ever seemed like a good idea. She almost tipped the flowers into the trash, but changed her mind at the last minute and placed them in Angela's empty office.

Flowers always made Angela smile.

Sitting down to her keyboard, she laughed at the hand-drawn cartoon waiting for her. It was a silly-looking bird with glasses, giving a lecture to a room full of mummies. She tacked it on her bulletin board with the rest of them. They were from Micah. She never saw him anymore, because she never stayed late at the office. She'd tried, but after a few days she noticed that no matter how late she stayed, one of her colleagues stayed too. Whoever it happened to be would always make up an excuse, but she knew he or she was really there to keep an eye on her.

It made her angry, but she chose to accept it, rather than fight it. After a while, they'd see she was fine, and they would leave her to her work. For now, she would leave with everyone else. There was plenty she could do from home.

It was nice, though, how Micah still made an effort to keep in touch.

oOo

She spent the day with Daisy in Bone Storage. Before, this would have been at the top of her list of most unpleasant ways to spend her day, but she had to admit that Daisy had proven useful in Maluku. Furthermore, she never stopped talking. Brennan was adept at tuning her out, and Daisy was content to talk about herself without ever asking for a response. There were no awkward pauses or heavy glances with Daisy. It was perfect.

She knew it was time to begin wrapping up when Cam joined them "Just to see how things are going." If the pattern held, in a few minutes Angela would show up and talk about how much she was looking forward to dinner. It signaled the end of her work day. She made meticulous notes on her stopping point, while Daisy put away the bones.

"Dr. Brennan, Lance and I were going to grab dinner. Want to join us?"

This was also part of the pattern. Someone always asked her to dinner. She always said no.

"Okay, well, we'll be at the empanada place if you change your mind!"

Brennan waved, went home, threw on a gigantic sweatshirt and waited for the final piece of the pattern.

She heard the shuffling of bags in her hallway, and she opened the door to her not-exactly-partner who was struggling to balance takeout while reaching for his cell phone.

"Why don't you just knock?"

"I like to call first, Bones. It's the polite thing to do."

"I fail to see how calling from directly outside the door is any more polite than just knocking. It's not as though you're actually giving me a choice in whether or not you come over."

"You wound me, Bones." He stepped around her and sat the bags on her counter. "And I brought you that soup you like, too."

The egg drop soup from the Thai place. It was her favorite. She could just sip the broth. She could manage that.

"While I appreciate the attention you pay to my preferences, you really shouldn't bring me dinner every night."

"Well, it's the only way I get to see you anymore. Besides, we've always eaten dinner together most nights anyway."

That wasn't true. That hadn't been true since his gamble in front of the Hoover. She let it slide, though. He wasn't the only liar between them.

He handed her the soup and a spoon before making his way to her couch. "Also, your television is better than mine, and I was in the mood to watch a game."

"What game?" She took her place next to him as he flipped through the channels.

"Eh, baseball, football...whatever."

"Are you...is that a rerun of a football game?"

"Classic Eagles."

"How can you possibly derive any pleasure from watching an old football game?"

"You'd be surprised, Bones, how easily I'm able to derive pleasure."

She scrunched her face. "I don't understand what that means."

"Yeah, me either. It just felt like something to say."

Brennan cocked her eyebrow and lifted her spoon to her lips. She'd been able to evade everyone's attempts at babysitting but Booth's. Having him at her house each evening both pleased her and frightened her. He hadn't pushed, but he would. He was looking for his moment. He was patient like that.

"Booth?"

He tore his eyes from the game, because he could hear the weight in her words. "Something you want to talk about, Bones?"

"I'm fine."

"I've never said any differently."

"Then why are you here?"

"We just went over that- food, television..."

"Do you really think you should be spending so much time away from Hannah?"

Something sparked in his eyes. "No need to worry about me, Bones."

"Okay. But I would like you to realize that the reverse is also true."

"Bones, look-" He was cut off by the sound of his cell phone. He whispered an expletive before he answered. "What's going on, Caroline?"

Brennan pretended she didn't notice when he cut a look at her, then walked back toward the kitchen, presumably for privacy. She couldn't make out his end of the conversation, but she could tell from the rise and fall of his tone that whatever was happening was not something that made him happy.

After a few minutes he came back to the sofa. His jaw was clenched and emotions she couldn't quite read were warring across his face.

She waited for him to offer an explanation, but he didn't seem able to speak.

"Is everything okay?"

He looked at her for a moment before answering. "The jury came back in the Coker case. They found him guilty. He'll be in prison for the rest of his life."

"That sounds appropriate." But it wasn't everything, she could tell. She waited.

"Max is out of custody. He was told about your abduction. Caroline wanted to give us the heads-up."

She wasn't ready for this. She should have been, but she wasn't.

Booth started to say something, but he was interrupted by a pounding at her door. The knocking was getting louder, and she knew she needed to get up and answer it, face whatever was on the other side. But she got lost in a memory, and she froze.

Booth was talking to her, saying something, but she wasn't there with him anymore. She was back in a prison created, at least in part, by Max and his lies.

Her father was here now, and he was going to make it impossible for her to pretend.