AN: Ok maybe this isn't as fluffy as I thought it was gonna be, but it's sorta fluffy. Or not, I don't know. I've failed. So I guess it's really up to you to decided. But I thought it would be cute to kinda give you a modern simple life chapter between them, because we never really see them without all of the dead bodies and melodrama!
I'm thinking about incorporating a case up in here! Who votes yes? Who votes no?
Trust me there will be angst, fluff, and loooooots of lovin through this case
"In general these babies live seven to ten years," Hodgins said, holding up the giant black millipede that walked slowly over his palms.
"She's late," Angela said, twirling her pen in her fingers and staring at the sliding doors.
"Excuse me?" Cam asked.
"Brennan," Angela said, keeping her eyes on the doors "She's late."
"It's only 7 Angela, she doesn't have to be here till 8," Cam said.
"But she's always in here by 6:30," Angela said "So for her, she's late."
At that moment Brennan rushed into the Jeffersonian, walking briskly into her office and placing her bag on her couch, reaching for her lab coat and sliding it on her shoulders as she slid her card through the receiver and walked onto the platform.
"Who is my intern for today?" Brennan asked casually, placing her hands in her lab coat pockets.
"Oh, uh, me Dr. Brennan," Mr. Nigel Murray said quietly as he walked onto the platform "I was just a tad tardy. My alarm clock failed to go off."
"Oh it's no problem," Brennan said "Our case was finished up, but I am running behind on the identifications of the skeletons from limbo, so if we make head way we should get that done."
"Do you want me to retrieve them for you?" Nigel asked.
"Sure, choose which ever one you want," Brennan said.
Nigel's eyes widened and he glanced between Brennan and the other squints "Really?"
"Yes," Brennan said seriously "I'll get the paperwork started, you get the bones and lay them out in anatomical order."
"Yes Dr. Brennan," Nigel said excitedly as he practically ran for limbo.
"Ok, what's the deal?" Angela asked.
"I beg your pardon?" Brennan asked sincerely.
"First you show up late, then you excuse your intern for being late, and then you let your intern choose which ever skeleton he wants to analyze. Brennan you're anal about your system for skeletal identification," Angela said. "What happened last night?" she asked with a devious and evil grin.
"Nothing," Brennan said "Well, not necessarily nothing, I went home, got take-out, finished some of my paperwork, which I will have in your inbox soon Dr. Saroyan, then I brain stormed ideas for the last chapters of my book, got a shower and went to bed."
"Ok Sweetie, you never come in late, and on the rare occasions that you do, it's because you got some," Angela stated.
"Got some what?" Brennan asked.
"Sex Dr. Brennan, she means sex," Cam interrupted.
"Oh," Brennan said with a nod "No, I didn't have sex last night or this morning, just decided to relax a little bit today."
"I have the bones Dr. Brennan," Nigel said, jumping onto the platform and placing the clear container on the autopsy table. "Did you know that until the 1960's men with long hair weren't allowed to enter Disneyland?"
"I thought you busted out random facts when you were nervous," Hodgins said, walking down the steps to his cubicle to place his millipede back in its container.
"I also do it when I'm very excited," Nigel said, "97% of all paper money in the US contains traces of cocaine."
"Wonderful to see where our country is going," Brennan murmured "Place the bones in order and I'll go get the note forms from my office," Brennan said, pulling her hands out of her pockets and motioning to the autopsy table and her office.
Angela watched Brennan's left hand move and caught sight of the ring on her finger, Angela smiled evilly and followed after Brennan as she retreated towards her office.
When Brennan reached her desk, Angela walked in and shut her office door, locking it and keeping her back pressed to it "Want to explain what's on your hand?"
"Huh?" Brennan asked, placing multiple papers on two clip boards.
"Left hand sweetie, fourth finger," Angela said "Because from here, I see three huge rocks."
"Rocks?" Brennan asked.
Angela sighed and walked over, grabbing her friends hand and turning it so that the ring was facing towards her "Explain…now."
"What's to explain, it's a ring," Brennan said.
"It's not just any ring. It's an engagement ring, and I swear that I recall you ranting about how marriage is just an antiquated institution, but the only person who could change your mind on that subject matter, would be Booth. But from what I know, you and Booth aren't together," Angela said "Or am I mistaken?"
Brennan sighed and turned her head sideways, while Angela released her hand and nodded "So what's the real story?" she asked, slight hurt coloring her voice.
"Angela I'm so sorry," Brennan said "We never broke up, but we had to put on this act that we were so that we could remain partners. I hated lying to you, but-"
"But nothing Sweetie," Angela said "It's ok, I understand. Trust me, I've been there. I've done crazy things for love. Like jumping off a 10,000 foot cliff with nothing but a little sheet to break my fall."
"But you hate heights," Brennan said.
"Exactly, but Chris just wanted to go parachuting, so I agreed, after lots of tears," Angela said with a smile "So…he proposed?"
"Yes," Brennan said.
"When?" Angela asked.
"Last night," Brennan informed.
"And you said yes?" Angela asked.
"Yes," Brennan was able to say before Angela squealed and enveloped her friend in a tight hug.
"Oh Sweetie! You're getting married! Wow, I never thought I would say that," Angela said.
"Yeah me neither which is why I want to enlist your help, but as of right now, you can't tell anyone about this," Brennan said in a hushed voice.
"Oh no problem," Angela said "But, someone might notice, because that thing is huge," Angela hissed reaching down for her friends hand and bringing it up so that she could study the ring.
"Yes I know, but I don't want to take it off," Brennan said.
Angela hummed and nodded "Make Nigel analyze this skeleton all by himself, keep your hands in your pockets, so then no one knows and Nigel will be happy."
"I can still correct him if he's wrong right?" Brennan asked.
"Oh yeah," Angela said "Now do you want me to stay on the platform if you need a way out?"
"Yes, that would be very much appreciated," Brennan said, grabbing the two clip boards and walking from her office.
"I have the bones laid out Dr. Brennan," Nigel called.
"Very good," Brennan said, walking onto the platform and handing one of the clip boards to Nigel and placing the other one on the desk beside her "I decided to see how much you know, so you are going to analyze this skeleton by yourself, and I will add my insights and corrections if needed," Brennan said, keeping her hands placed in the pockets of her lab coat.
"Alright!" Nigel said excitedly, before bending over and starting his analysis of the remains.
*****
"Night Sweetie," Angela said as she walked onto the platform and gave her friend a hug "And congratulations."
"Thanks Ange," Brennan said "I'll see you Monday."
Angela smiled and walked down the platform, running into Booth as he made his way into the Jeffersonian "Congrats Agent Hot-stuff," Angela said playfully, slapping his shoulder a little harder than needed before heading towards the parking garage.
Booth looked back at Angela and shrugged, sliding his ID, walking up the platform and wrapping his arms around the waist of his newly pronounced fiancée. "Hey beautiful," he whispered, kissing her cheek lightly as she straightened up and leaned into his chest.
"Mmm," she groaned "Hi."
"How's your day been?" Booth asked "And how is your leg and wrist?"
"My leg and wrist are both a little sore, but it isn't noticeable, as for how my day has been, my day isn't over, and won't be for awhile," Brennan said ruefully.
"Why?" Booth asked.
"Well, I've been behind on the identification of limbo skeletons so I have to identify at least 3 more tonight, my book is due to my publisher in 4 days, and I still have 5 more chapters to write, one of my students shattered a skull so I have to piece that back together, three of my other students need help with their dissertations, and I still have the paperwork to finish with the 3 skeletons that Mr. Nigel Murray and I identified today, along with the paperwork from the last case," Brennan listed off, her head pounding as she thought about how much work she had to do. "Oh and Angela knows," she added.
"Yeah, I got that. Well how about this. You go to your office, and take a break, and I'll go get us something to eat, then we can eat and I'll help you finish all of the work you need to do," Booth said.
"What could you help me with?" Brennan asked.
"I can finish all of the paperwork, and I've learned a few things from you. I don't have a trained anthropological eye but I might be of some help," Booth said.
Brennan chuckled "Ok," she said "You go get food, and I'll go get our three residents of limbo for us."
"Alright, I'll be right back," he said, pressing his hands into her stomach, in turn pressing her back harder into his chest. He leaned down and kissed her neck gently, whispering "Take it easy," before turning and jogging out to his suburban.
Brennan nodded and walked down to limbo, pulling out three boxes of bones and carrying them up to her office. She sat them on her coffee table and pulled her transparent white board in front of her, scribbling down her to-do list with a bright red marker so that she could keep track and keep herself from becoming overwhelmed.
Booth came back and found Brennan leaning over one of the autopsy tables with small bits of bone scattered across the table "I thought I told you to take it easy," Booth said, setting the box on the other, clean autopsy table.
"I know," Brennan said, taking a small piece of bone and gluing it to the other pieces she already had assembled "But this is the hardest, and the longest task I will have to do today, so I decided to get a head start."
"Wow that's a lot of really small pieces," Booth said, wincing slightly as he noticed the whole autopsy table being covered in small, white shards.
"Yup," Brennan said apathetically, taking another shard and gluing it to the assembled frontal bone.
"Well come on, take a break, eat something for a change," Booth said, resting his hands on her shoulders.
"But I almost have the frontal bone assembled," Brennan said, reaching for another piece of bone and gluing it in place.
"Well you'll get the rest done later, come on," Booth said, pulling her off the stool and leading her down the steps of the platform, the take out box hoisted under his free arm.
"Am I allowed to work on my book while we eat?" Brennan asked.
"Nope," Booth said "You have to relax, calm down for a little bit, then finish working."
"But if I calm down I won't have the vigor to complete my work like I have now," Brennan said, taking the box from under his arm and placing it next to the boxes from limbo.
"Yeah we both know that's a load of crap," Booth said, taking the stack of boxes and sitting them next to the couch carefully, making sure the bones didn't break.
"Yeah I know, I'm just trying to get you to let me work," Brennan said, flopping down on her couch and curling her legs under her as she grabbed one of the take out boxes.
"And we both know that no matter what I won't let you work," Booth said, slipping off his coat and throwing it over the back of the couch, sitting next to her and opening his own take out box.
They ate in comfortable silence and when Brennan finished eating she set her empty container on her coffee table and rested her head on his shoulder, closing her eyes and taking in his familiar scent, the warm feeling it always brought radiating out from her stomach.
Booth threw the container in the take out box and wrapped his arm around her shoulder, reading through her to-do list on the white board in front of him. He sighed and tightened his hold on her "You work yourself to death, I hope you realize that."
"Apparently not because I have a lot of shit to do," Brennan sighed, taking her head off his shoulder and rolling her neck before standing up and running her hands over her face.
"I think that if we are going to do any work we should play music," Booth said.
"You can sift through the music on my computer and try and find something you like, but fair warning if you use my sound analyzing program, which is where most of my music is, it will play through everyone's playlists, and Angela's is the first and as we have seen, she's a big metal fan," Brennan said.
Booth groaned and clicked on the program, the sound of drums being hit quickly and a man screaming in a deep voice 'Fucking bow down!' filled the room, accompanied with more incoherent screaming, drums, and guitars. Booth quickly clicked the pause button and shook his head "Why does it play everyone's playlist?"
"Because everyone has that program on their computers, so their playlists are synced together. Everyone can see what music I like to listen to, and vice versa with everyone else," Brennan explained.
"Ok, so what genre's do you have on here," Booth said, clicking on her playlist and looking down the genre column, "World, rock, rap, hip-hop, R&B, alternative? You like alternative music?" Booth asked.
"Some," Brennan said, pulling the files out of her inbox and setting them on the stack of folders that had paperwork sitting inside of their manila flaps.
"Just choose the first song and let it play through the playlist," Brennan advised "The paperwork is all here," she said, placing her hand on the stack of folders, "If you want you can complete these out on the platform with me, you might not get as bored as easily," Brennan said.
"You just want me to keep you company," Booth said with a smile.
"Maybe," Brennan said innocently, smiling at him weakly before retreating back to the platform.
Booth chuckled and gathered the folders in his arms, clicking on the first song of her playlist and exiting her office, heading for the platform and placing the folders on one of its desks.
The sound of an acoustic guitar flooded through the lab, and Brennan immediately began humming to the song, and singing softly as voice was added to the equation.
Booth smiled to himself as she continued when the female voice took up where the instrumental left off "And hey Sweetie, Well I need you here tonight. And I know that you don't wanna be leaving me, yeah you want it but I can't help it, I just feel complete when you're by my side, but I know you can't come home till they're singing la, la la la la la la, till everyone is singin la la la la la la la," she sang softly, smiling as she thought of the man sitting only a few feet from her as she sang and brought another sliver of bone and placed it against the other, already glued, pieces.
A smile was etched permanently in Booth's face as he listened to her sing softly to song after song that played, matching the voices word for word, and before he knew it, he had finished the paperwork, and she was placing the last few pieces of skull in their appropriate positions.
"Alright, it's done," Brennan said, holding up the skull that was covered in jagged lines from where the breaks occurred.
"That's amazing," Booth said, "How did you do that so quickly?"
"Quickly?" Brennan asked "Booth it's been almost three hours, since we started."
Booth looked up at her questioningly and then looked down to his watch, and sure enough, it was 1 o'clock in the morning "Wow," Booth said "Time flies when you're having fun."
"Time doesn't literally fly, it just passes," Brennan corrected, walking down the steps of the platform and placing the skull on one of the holders she had in her office.
Booth sighed and gathered the folders in his arms, walking throughout the lab and placing the folders in the inboxes of the appropriate people, most going to Cam, but a few going out to Angela and Hodgins, and the curator of the Jeffersonian.
"Alright," Brennan said to herself as she crossed out 'paperwork' and 'cranial reconstruction' on the white board sitting in the middle of her office. She nodded and walked to the containers of bones and lifted them into her arms, walking onto the platform and setting them on the desk where Booth was residing.
"I'm going to multitask," Brennan told Booth as she took two of the boxes and sat them on the two autopsy tables.
"Remember that thing I said about working yourself to death?" Booth asked sarcastically, taking one of the boxes and placing the bones on the table lightly.
"Of course I remember it, but it's quite inaccurate since I am still alive," Brennan said, glancing over to him and straightening her back "You know how to set the bones out? Correctly?"
"Bones, I see these guys every time I come here, after 4 years I've come familiar with how they are set out," Booth said, placing the sternum under the skull and placing the two clavicles to the sides of the skull.
"I guess I have underestimated your intelligence," Brennan murmured.
"See! I told you Bones," Booth said with a smile.
Brennan returned his smile and they set out the rest of the bones in silence, placing the containers to the side as Brennan placed the two clip boards on the autopsy tables next to the skeletons as she leaned over and analyzed the skeleton she placed out.
Booth took up the clipboard for the skeleton she was analyzing and looked at the places that needed filling in "Race?" he asked "No! I know a way to figure that out!"
Brennan looked at him and pulled back "Alright, go for it."
Booth smiled and placed a pencil parallel with the skull right under the nose, the teeth pushing against the pencil leading Booth to his conclusion "Negro."
"Very good," Brennan said with a smile "Where did you learn the pencil trick? That's usually taught to novice anthropology students."
"I read," Booth said, writing the race in the appropriate space and looking at the next space "Sex."
"That's fairly easy," Brennan said "Want to give it a try?"
"Broad shoulders, slim pelvis, guy right?" Booth asked.
"Yes," Brennan said "How about height?"
Booth stared at the skeleton and asked "5' 6" to 5' 8"?"
"167.5 centimeters, wonderful job Booth," Brennan said, looking at his questioning face and clarifying "5' 7"."
"I'm on a roll!" Booth said happily, scribbling the information onto the paper in front of him. "Do I get a prize for being so smart?"
"Prize?" Brennan asked "Like what?"
"A kiss from my fiancée?" Booth asked deviously, looking at her with his charm smile, automatically tugging a smile on her lips.
"Don't use your charm smile on me," she said, leaning towards him "And you could have just asked," she finished, closing the rest of the distance between them and placing her lips on his gently.
When they parted Brennan whispered "You know I thought you would be uncomfortable kissing over a skeleton."
"I wasn't until you brought it up," Booth said calmly
Brennan giggled softly and pulled away, leaning down and picking up one of the ribs and turning it in her fingers gently as she began her full body analysis.
*****
Booth yawned as he closed the last Jeffersonian issued folder, setting the pen on top of the manila pile and rubbing his eyes with the heels of his hands.
He stretched his back and looked down at his watch and groaned, 4:23 in the morning and he was still in the Jeffersonian. He stood up slowly and walked down the steps of the platform, taking the elevator up to the top floors of the institute, and placing the folders in the inbox for the curator.
When Booth walked back into the lab he turned and walked into Brennan's office, smiling as he found her asleep, her head resting on her arms, the red marker beside her, and a word document waiting for her on her laptop.
Booth looked at the white board and noticed that she had finished helping her students with their dissertation and was now working on beginning her chapters, but he found that she was only able to write one paragraph before she ended up falling asleep.
He smiled and walked over to her, turning her in her chair and hosting her gently into his arms, before carrying her to her couch and laying her down gently, covering her with the soft blanket that was thrown on the back cushion.
He saved the document and closed her laptop, placing it in her laptop case and threw her packed, and quite heavy, bag over his shoulder, along with her purse and her coat. He walked to the parking garage and placed all of her stuff in the back seat, and then laid the back of the passenger's side seat all the way back before closing the door and jogging back into the Jeffersonian.
He returned to her office and turned off her lights, along with locking her door before pulling the blanket off her gently and lifting her into his arms again. He maneuvered out of her office and closed her office door, before walking out to his car and placing her in her usual seat.
He snapped her seatbelt in and closed her door softly, walking around and climbing into the other seat before starting the car and pulling out of the shady garage.
As he suspected the streets of the city were almost dead, making it very easy to make a quick return back to her apartment.
He used his key to let himself in and carried her to her room, placing her gently on her bed and removing the uncomfortable articles of clothing, this time those being her jeans, boots and jacket, leaving her to sleep in her tank top and panties.
He pulled the warm red blankets over her and leaned down, kissing her cheek gently and wishing her a good night before returning her items to her living room and leaving a note on her kitchen counter that told her to call him when she got up, and to actually stay away from the lab on her day off.
Booth truly felt like he was going to drop dead from exhaustion as he headed away from his apartment, but in his attempts to help her he ignored all of the paperwork that Cullen needed from him in a few hours.
"Oh well," Booth said, stopping and getting a large cup of coffee before returning back to work.
Me: Jeff Dun-HAM!!!DOT COM!!!!!
Brennan: What the hell are you doing?
Me: SA-NA-TA-AH-NA!
Brennan: What in the HELL are you doing?
Me: ILLEGAL! ILLEGAL! ILLEGAL! ILLEGAL!
Brennan: -.-*
Me: You were supposed to take him to the spa! I took him to the spa! He put me in the vegetable steamer! IT'S THE SAME THING! It is not the same thing! YES IT IS, IT GETS HOT THEN IT GETS STEAMY THEN IT GOES DING!
Brennan:...
Me: SPARKLY!