Friday, December 28th- 6:15pm-
Booth and Sweets stepped into the living room and watched Ace and Melody setting up their chess board on the coffee table. Quietly, they sat with their coffee on the couch nearby and watched as the little girl concentrated completely on the task at hand. Ace put his chess pieces where they belonged, and Melody focused on her own side of the board, kneeling beside the table.
"Are you ready to talk?" Ace signed, nodding for her to make the first move in their game. She moved her first piece and her eyes traveled to the other two men in the room. "They can't read sign language." Ace said, and signed to her.
"And I know he's not going to tell us what they're talking about." Booth muttered, watching Sweets glance to him with an amused expression, that was matched by Ace's playful glare.
"Are you sure?" Melody asked, watching Ace promise her, and then made a move on the board.
"Why did you try to leave last night?" Ace asked.
"I needed to find you." She signed back, taking her turn. "You said you were my friend."
"Yes. I am your friend, but you can't just leave in the middle of the night." He signed. "It was cold outside, and Pops and Nana would not know where you went."
"I would not have been cold. I put my coat on." She signed, rolling her eyes. "It's your turn."
He gave her a serious look and rolled his own eyes, moving his piece on the board. "I'm here now. What did you want to talk about?"
Melody took another glance at Booth and Sweets, and back to Ace. She moved her piece.
"Do they look like they know what you're saying? They're a couple of poop heads." He said, watching Melody cover her mouth with her hand as she let out a giggle, her eyes moved to the other two men, and neither one of them seemed to understand. "See that, they have no idea... and don't call people names, that was just to show you that they can't read our signs." He signed and took his turn.
"I think they're talking about us." Booth mumbled to Sweets.
"That's what it looks like to me." Sweets replied, watching the little girl look toward them, and back to Ace.
"I want to go home." She signed to Ace. "I want to go home. I want Ant. I want Bean and Christopher. I want my room. I'm sorry I was bad."
"Then why didn't you try to go home last night?" He asked. "Why were you looking for me?"
"They would find me there. I need you to tell them that I was bad, that I was bad before and now I am good, like you. I am good now." Melody signed, moving her piece, looking at him desperately.
"That's not how this works, kid." Ace replied, shaking his head. "You can't do what you did, and have everything go back to normal." He signed to her, watching her face twist into a scowl. "You lied." He signed. "It wasn't just a little lie, it was a big lie." He signed. "You hurt people. This is not a game. Your life is not a game of chess." He signed. "You can't move the pieces where you want to, then try to move them back." He signed. "That's not how this works." Ace signed, moving several pieces rapidly, he captured a couple of her pieces.
"I want to go home!" She signed, her hands moving rapidly and angrily, she stood up.
"Then you have to figure out why you did what you did." He signed, remaining calm. "You need to start telling the truth!" he signed resolutely, moving several of the chess pieces, he captured another one of her pieces and she looked at him in surprise. "See that? You get all emotional, and you make mistakes." He signed. "You need to start thinking before you do things. You need to start asking for help."
"I am asking for help! I am asking you for help!" She signed, tears springing to her eyes as she stared at the chess board angrily.
"Getting a little rowdy over there." Booth muttered to Sweets, who nodded knowingly.
"Look at me." He signed, her eyes now burning into him, the dark blue was turning darker as her jaw set angrily. "I love you very much, Melody. I want you to be able to go home, but you have to understand that it is not a simple fix. It's not easy. You cannot pretend that it didn't happen. Do you know why Mister Sweets is here?"
"No." She signed, looking back to the chess board, she moved one of her pieces, signed heavily and looked back up at Ace.
"He is here to decide whether or not you get to go home or not." Ace signed, watching Melody glance back toward Sweets and then to Ace again. "Everyone knows that you lied, Melody." He signed. "Everyone knows that what you told your social worker was not the truth. Mister Sweets is going to want to know what made you lie. Your answer is going to determine whether or not you can go home, or if you would be better off somewhere else."
"What is the answer?" She signed back, feeling a lump in the back of her throat, she was fighting so hard not to cry.
"That's not something I can tell you." He signed. "It's in here." He said, reaching forward to tap her head. "And it's in here." He signed, tapping her sternum lightly.
She sighed, looking into Ace's eyes and the pouty look on her face was clearly being used to mask the pain in her heart. She looked into his dark eyes and could see that he was being sincere with her, he was being straight with her, honest. "Ace, I miss my mommy." She signed, closing her eyes tightly she let a tear escape her eye, and opened them back to him.
"You miss your real mommy?" He asked, watching her nod her head slightly, her lip trembling while he stood only feet from her. "You're afraid that with all of these changes... adoption, new house, baby brother. You're afraid that you're going to forget her?" He signed, watching her nod her head, still holding strong.
He took a deep breath and watched her for a moment, trying to figure out exactly what to say, and a slight smile rose on his lips as he watched her. "I'm a pretty old guy, aren't I?" he signed, watching her brow furrow in confusion. "Right? It's okay, I admit it." he signed, watching her nod slowly, but unsure if that was what he was looking for. "I'm a pretty old guy, and my mommy went to heaven when I was your age." He signed, watching her nod. "That was a really long time ago, but I can promise you... I have never once forgotten her." He signed. "She is part of me." He continued, watching her swallow hard. "My mommy had brown hair, brown eyes like me." He signed, touching his head, her eyes lightened. "She had a dimple right here." He smiled, pointing at the dimple on his cheek, and her eyes lightened even more. "Any time that I want to remember my mommy, I look in the mirror." He signed, watching her eyes start to tear up again. "It's like she's looking right back at me." He said, making another move on the chess board, he reached to her king as he captured it, and lay it on the board in defeat.
Melody stared at him for the longest time, her eyes focusing so deeply into his, he could feel a chill running down his spine from the intensity. There was only three or four seconds, and she was around the table like a shot, her hip hitting the chess board sending the pieces falling to the floor as she made her way around the table, wrapping her arms around Ace tightly, she held on for dear life.
Ace closed his eyes as he held her to him, opening them to see Booth and Sweets looking over toward them curiously. "Checkmate." he said out loud, as he closed his eyes and continued to comfort the little girl in his arms.