I am really not sure what happened with chapter 33! It would appear and disappear and most (pretty much all) people seemed unable to access it! if you have the fanfiction dot net app, it appears there – but the site on both my mobile and computer show it only sporadically and I cannot understand why it is there and then gone. I wrote an email to their help desk after a day of it, but I haven't heard back.

Thank you for all the reviews! Thanks for sticking with me! So many people have commented on how viewers were deprived of these conversations and a proper recovery from Booth's behavior and the Hannah storyline and I completely agree. My chapters may be long-winded, but I feel like there's just so much I wish the show had explored and given us prior to them getting together (including them getting together – they deprived us of that moment as well!). Hopefully I can wrap this up in the next few days. Someone asked if a cellutube is real and as far as I know it's not… I got the idea from the first Lethal Weapon movie, in which an old bathtub was used to withstand a bomb. So this was my idea of taking that tub, standing it up and making it into a stall-type saving device lol. Thanks again for reading!

-Mac

Chapter 33

Booth looked at Bones closely as two members of the bomb division continued to outfit her with protective gear. Benji had explained to Booth that the protective gear was not as bulky as they would prefer due to the size of the cellutube. They were just trying to keep them from cracking their heads open or ruining every organ inside from the impact they would absolutely take when they landed in there. And it was better than nothing.

He could see Bones looking at the team with an expression of clinical observation – but he knew her better than that; he could see the fear in her eyes. There was no guarantee here. No chance to say goodbye to all of her loved ones or finish things that were left undone… he, too, had to push this reality from his mind. Fear gripped his heart – the thought of leaving Parker, hurting him… it was too much to think about right now. But mostly, fear coursed through every nerve ending in his body because he couldn't face this situation alone. He would gladly do this alone. But he had to do this with her – risk her life.

"Bones, how you holding up?"

"I'm fine, Booth. Why do you keep asking me that?" She shot him an annoyed look – the kind she used to always throw his way in their early days of partnership when he'd been overprotective and she wanted to always prove that she could take care of herself.

"Because we are about to set off a bomb on purpose, Bones. That we are standing on. There's no one here to explode, except us… so. I wanted to check in."

She tilted her head and squinted her eyes and he smiled, despite the magnitude of this dire situation. The old familiarity of their partnership was present and for a moment, it's like nothing had ever happened. It was like they had always been partners. Like no one had ever come between them and they'd never hurt one another. It was like they were standing, once again, at the center. And they were holding.

"How about we do not talk about you two exploding," Benji suggested. The poor guy looked pale. He was doing his job – and Booth had known him for years. He was the best. He always deactivated the bombs. He trained his team well. He never had to leave a building while two people were forced to set off the explosion. He'd already offered to take Booth's place. He couldn't take Bones's place, because he and Benji definitely couldn't squeeze into the booth.

"Thanks for everything," Booth said, quietly to him. "For doing all of this, for showing up right when you heard about her and never leaving her side before I got here."

Benji nodded. "They were going to send another lead with the team for Blake, but when I heard it was Dr. Brennan on here, I needed to come myself," he explained. "We've known each other a long time, Booth."

Booth nodded. "We have."

"So I trust you can do this and we can keep our friendship going. Okay?"

Booth just nodded again, seeing how hard this really was for Benji. "Okay. And… thanks again."

Just then, Sam Blake walked from the basement back up to the main level. The cocky guy that Booth had had a run in with just yesterday was gone. In his place stood a man who looked haggard and very, very stressed. Well, good. It was too awful to imagine Bones partnering up with someone who didn't care what happened to her. And he knew she was here because of this agent. He could look as guilty as he anything right now and Booth still wouldn't forgive him any time soon for his carelessness with her safety.

Sam ran, many agents behind him, hoisting bags and boxes full of whatever evidence they could pull from the basement.

"What were you able to retrieve?" Bones asked him.

He stepped toward her. "We can go over that later," he said quietly. "Please don't worry about anything right now except your task at hand. I'm… I'm really sorry, Brennan," he added.

She nodded and crossed her arms. "It's okay," she said.

He looked over his shoulder and cocked his head to the other agents, indicating it was time to leave. "You got this," he said to her, before shooting a brief, intense look at Booth. And then, he was gone – out of the building. To safety.

"Okay, Booth," Benji said. "They got what they need from downstairs. This is all set up," he said, looking at the cellutube. "You have a wire on you and we are activating it as soon as this blasts."

Booth wondered for a moment why he didn't just activate the wire now and he noticed Benji's look. He was giving him privacy. Knowing… they might need to say something to each other before possibly dying.

"Just talk to us – if you're conscious, just talk to us. We can't get to you right away – but, we need to know…"

"Got it. Okay."

"You're so close, you just really need to jump and propel yourself inside, and pull her with you as hard as you can."

"Don't worry about that," he said, knowing that getting her in there was his only focus right now.

"You have eight minutes until the second bomb goes off. Do not run that clock out. Jump as soon as you're ready. We are setting this one off so you can go whenever. The moment you feel ready to go, go." He looked over at Bones. "Dr. Brennan, you need to take a few steps and get right over here to Booth."

Bones walked a few steps until they were toe-to-toe. She looked at him, and he could see so much in her eyes – her unending bravery, all her questions, fears, all of their history, everything they ever meant to one another, sitting there, looking at him.

"Okay, guys," Benji said, looking from Booth to Bones, trying to hide his nervousness. "I'm out." And just like that, he ran from the warehouse, after all of the other agents who'd already cleared out.

It was show time.

B*B*B*B*B*B*BB**B*B*B*B

Brennan looked at the timer that Benji had left them with. The one on the mat no longer mattered – they'd be setting that off long before that timer was up. No. The second bomb gave them only…

0:07:31

And she finally felt nervous as the reality crashed down around her. Minutes. They had minutes. Just minutes left to live. Or die. Or survive. But… she eyed the large structure in front of them and thought about Booth's ability to get in there in a nanosecond.

You have a lot of faith in Booth.

No. Faith is an irrational belief in something that is logically impossible. Over time, I've seen what Booth can do. It's not faith.

We are out of air. We don't know if our message got out, much less if anyone understood it. And we are buried underground. What you have is faith, baby.

Hodgins had been right. Booth was the one thing that Brennan had faith in. He could do it. She had no doubt that he could do this. If only he were just jumping in himself. She feared his goal to pull her to safety was going to get him killed. She knew that might be the outcome for her today. She hated that he was also going to be in that position. Because of her. Again.

And yet... she knew he would pull her to safety. Even if it defied the odds. Because she had seen what he could do countless times. All these years. And he always brought her back to safety. And when he was in danger, she rescued him and brought him back home, too. Safely. No matter what had happened to them, they were still those people. Who would do whatever they had to do, to keep each other safe.

Booth took a deep breath. "Are you okay?" he asked quietly, a small hitch in his voice. "It's okay to be scared." He looked over at the cellutube and then back at her. "I am, too."

Brennan nodded. "I'm okay. I guess… we should probably jump. Benji said not to run the time out, so…"

He stared at her intensely. "We have a few minutes, Bones. It's okay."

She closed her eyes, thinking about everything. Angela, her baby… her dad, Russ… Rob, Amy, Keeley… Hodgins, Sweets… and Booth. Booth stood out from everyone, he always had. He stood out, and now… he stood before her and she could see exactly why she felt like opening up to him in the car, see exactly why he was the one she learned to love, the one who broke through her walls. Something about him had always made sense to her. He'd broken through despite every protestation to keep him out and at a safe distance. His steady loyalty – the very thing that brought him here today – was so unwavering it was breaking her heart.

After everything they'd been through, he kept showing up. He kept being there. He kept trying to save her. He kept being her partner. And her friend. Even when both of those things had been given up. He held on tight. All of the things he said – he'd never meant to let go. Her trust had been shattered by him – and yet…

… she knew who he was.

"I knew you'd come today if you knew I was here," she finally said, a tear slipping out of her eye. "It's why I didn't tell you why I wouldn't be able to make dinner tonight. I didn't get into specifics, because I didn't want you to feel like you had a responsibility to come here. And do this. I knew you'd come."

He nodded, his own emotions running closer to the surface now. His breathing was coming in shorter bursts. He was nervous. Emotional. And he wasn't hiding it. "I had to come. Bones, this should've been our case. Together. And you shouldn't have been in here, alone."

She opened her mouth to protest that she was the reason she was working cases with another agent, but he held her hand up, cutting her off.

"You're not my responsibility, Bones. It's not why I am here. You're right that when we first became partners, that was the role I took on. Cullen made it clear, too, that in the field, I was to keep you safe because you're not FBI. As if he had to tell me to keep you safe. It's always been my goal. But Bones… I know you can take care of yourself. I know how strong you are. How tough you are. I know what you can do. I know who you are. I know you don't need me. I came because it's you, Bones. And even though I've given you a lot of reason to think that this changed, you're still the one person I couldn't live without. You're still the one person who I need to know is safe and okay. You're the one, Bones. And you always will be."

She looked down, covering her face in her hands, beginning to cry. All of her anxiety was crashing through the surface, breaking through the cracks in her walls – the ones she'd begun to put back up between her and him.

"Despite all of that, Bones… I don't expect…. I only want your friendship back. We will be okay. I promise. Nothing will happen to you. And all I want is the chance to be your friend again. To try to save the best thing that has ever come into my life. To prove that I will never leave you again. Not ever."

She let out a low and quivering breath and saw Rob's last request.

Tell him everything. Leave nothing out. And you don't have to ask me to do the same. I will. For you… This message isn't about dying. It's about living.

"Before we go," she said, finally looking back up at Booth, letting every emotion show. There was no point in hiding them anymore. "You should know that I didn't mean to turn you down the day you… the day you were ready. I was so scared. And I thought I'd hurt you because I am me. I'm not good at relationships and yours was the most important relationship in my life. You were one of the only solid things. And you were someone I couldn't live without. The risk suffocated me. But I didn't say 'no' that day. When we came back, I was ready to tell you. My time away had made everything clear. I was ready, Booth. And you'd moved on. So… I tried really hard to bury those feelings. But they were breaking me. Everything I wanted to avoid in holding back, I'd done it all anyway. I didn't want to hurt you. But I hurt you anyway. I didn't want to lose you, but I lost you anyway. I wanted to stay partners, but when it seemed it was all that was left, I realized that that would never be enough on its own anymore. Not after I saw everything else we'd been and what we could have been. I hurt you, I hurt me… I tried to change into someone who could've been worthy of you, and I took too long."

He shook his head at that, but she had to keep going before she lost her nerve completely. Because Rob was right. There was just no point in holding back right now. With what they were facing.

"I love you, Booth. I have for a long time." He stopped moving and just stared at her, looking almost shell-shocked. "I never wanted to risk you. But… I knew you'd come today. After everything that happened, I knew you'd come. When I'm hurting or alone, you are there. You came to Camden when I was in pain and scared and when I needed to be strong – you were there. It never surprises me. Because it's you and you've proven to me over and over that you're there. You are everything to me. And I don't know how I managed to just completely lose you after all of those years of building the best relationship I'd ever experienced. But it's my biggest regret. And right now – I can't have any regrets. I don't mind you knowing anymore that I love you, Booth. I still wish that I hadn't said anything in the car because… it humiliated me, and I did feel like these feelings were small and unimportant because… well, you were with someone and I shouldn't have… I shouldn't have. But… it doesn't matter right now. It doesn't matter."

"It matters, Bones. It's always mattered. I've never loved anyone the way I love you," he said, his words coming out through a choked voice. "That's why I am here. It's why I will always show up and be here. Because with you, there's no other choice. It's why anyone else would've always been an attempt to move on—"

"—but she wasn't a consolation prize. You said that."

"It's not how I viewed her. I meant that. I still don't think of it like that. That feels so… I don't know, dirty. I didn't see her that way. But I can see now, that I was so laser focused on what I wanted in my life, that achieving it was a bit like a plan, and as choices went, when I thought my only real choice had been lost – she was more than fine."

Brennan nodded. She appreciated the honesty. She didn't want to hear lies that Hannah had never mattered because she clearly had meant something to Booth. His honesty was appreciated because it came from a place of respect for her. For them. For the relationship they'd always had before.

"I never let myself really listen to you that day in the car. I think about it now, and I can't believe that I could listen to you break your own walls down to give me so much of yourself, so much truth and honesty – to see you breaking apart… and that I could just send you away. Never even hug you. Never even be your friend. For a second. I just thought about myself. At a moment where you needed me, I just thought about myself. I never even processed what you said, except to think about how I needed to find time to tell Hannah about our history. My god, Bones… I wasn't the same person. For a long time. And you, of all people, were the person I just kept pushing away. I pushed and pushed until you left. I don't blame you for leaving. I pushed you as hard as I could and as far away as I could. And when you were gone… I could see it all. I was well aware of how people had abandoned you and somehow I did that to you. And I'll never forgive myself for it. Because despite my attempt to move on, Bones… I never did. I love you completely and I always will. I think it's why I pushed so hard. It doesn't make it right. But… it's the truth. God, Bones, that'll always be the truth."

She nodded, feeling her heart breaking at his words. At all the destruction that had come about because she couldn't break down her protective walls when she'd needed to. But… she did eventually. She couldn't regret a moment of it. But… he was here now. And they had to make it out of this. They had to.

"We're going to be okay, Booth."

He nodded and looked at the timer. She did as well.

00:02:59

"And… when we make it through this, I think friendship is a good place to start."

He let out a deep breath, relief in his eyes and a small smile on his lips, despite the severity of what they still had to do here.

"Thank you, Bones. Your friendship has been the biggest privilege of my life. And if it takes the rest of my life, I will keep proving to you that I'll never give it up again."

She bowed her head – thankful for Booth despite all of this, and everything they'd had to go through to get here. That old feeling of thinking she didn't deserve him was creeping up, but… no. He wouldn't be here if she didn't deserve him. When she thought of Angela and Rob, she knew she deserved her friends. And that Booth had never really stopped being hers. Not in the ways that mattered, it turned out.

"We should do it, Booth." She took a deep, quivering breath. "It's time. He told us not to run the clock out," she said, fear lighting her nerve endings on fire.

"Yeah. Okay," Booth said, eyeing the tube, taking a micro step backwards toward it, one arm protectively around her, taking her with him. She took a step, standing as close to him as was possible.

She could see the moment his fear fell away, a look of pure determination taking its place. "I'm going to hold on to you with one hand, Bones. I need to throw myself in and be sure my aim is accurate. I need my other arm. But I've got you. When I move, you move. I've got you."

He looked down at her. She looked up at him.

"I know you do."

He closed his eyes for a second, battling some unknown war in his mind suddenly. "Okay. I'm going to count to 3. And then we jump. Okay? Are your legs able to jump? Push?"

"I'm fine. Don't worry about me."

"You've been standing on your legs for hours, Bones. They were shaking when I arrived. Are you able to—"

"I will jump, Booth. We'll both get in there."

"Yes. We will. Only one of us getting in is not an option."

She swallowed – reveling once again in Booth, the man who could always show her how much she mattered through his protectiveness.

Finally, he wrapped his arm around her more tightly and leaned the other arm toward the open door to the booth. "Three, then jump."

She nodded quickly. "Okay."

"Okay…"

She could feel his heart pounding, his fear rushing through his blood. Fear for them. Fear for her.

"One…"

She breathed and gripped his shirt in her fist. She loved him. She loved him.

"two… "

He was here. Like always. Here. He was right here. He loved her.

"three…"

And then, he moved, faster than she'd ever seen him move before, one second on the mat – the next flying into that booth with all of his might, pulling her hard with him. Suddenly, there was a loud, deafening noise, splinters of light… and the entire booth went careening as the world around them shook. She felt Booth's arms squeeze her tight right as everything faded to black.