Chapter Six
The weekend came fast and with one last week of school Temperance was starting to see more and more kids out when she was in town. She had recently talked to Lisa and Brad into letting her work part time at the cafe that Megan worked at. Her new friend had got her the position without much of an interview and she was set to start Monday. She had never had a job before and was excited to work for her own money and be able to save up for college. Meg of course wanted her to know that it was also going to be used for fun but she only rolled her eyes at the response.
She and Meg had increasingly grown closer and she had learned that she worked every shift she could to support herself so she didn't have to rely on her single mom to pay for everything for her. She was the nicest person she had ever met who was the same age as her and while Temperance didn't believe in fate or soulmates, in a different universe if she did believe she would think she was meant to meet the dark haired cheerleader. She wasn't sure how she had gone so long without her.
The same could be said she thought about Seel, her newest nickname for the football player also thanks to Meg who had been hanging around the two of them more often than not lately. She and Seel had been running in the mornings before he went to school and then at night if there wasn't anything else to do. Megan had been joining them some nights and the three of them were starting a bond where Temperance finally knew what it was like to have friends, friends and a family.
Her relationship with the Mitchell's was still rocky at best but she felt comfortable with them and felt like she sort of belonged in the big house. Comfortable enough that when she asked if Megan could stay the night before they were to head to the mall she wasn't scared like she thought she would be to ask. In fact she was sure they were overly happy to agree. It had only been about a month since she had arrived, which was usually the timeframe she left home or where things escalated more than they already had. Yet she felt like she had been there much longer, which was not in the least bit logical.
"You girls be safe and do not let that boy drive recklessly or do anything stupid, do you understand?" Brad said as they say at breakfast. Booth had somehow convinced both of them to let him go and they decided it was worth it if it meant he'd carry their bags. Well Meg had decided that and Tem thought it made logical sense. Lisa had given her money the night before and Brad had given her more and while she tried to deny it both times she was grateful to be able to buy something for herself. More reason she was looking forward to starting the barista job.
"Trust me Mr. Mitchell, we won't let Seel-team do anything dumb, I'm fairly certain he's in love with this one here so I know he wouldn't do anything to hurt her." Quickly turning red she elbowed her friend and shook her head. That had been her go to phrase for days whenever he was brought up.
"We're just friends, neighbors, that's it. There is nothing more to it plus doesn't he have a girlfriend. Sara or something?" She felt like he had heard him talk about her and how she was heading to a summer home in the Hamptons after school ended. It sounded incredibly extravagant but it seemed like he liked her.
"Yet he practically begged to spend the day with us, shopping, instead of with the pretty blonde." Megan rolled her eyes and Brad just chucked and shook his head about how this was not the conversations he had to deal with when Kevin was a teenager. Megan then looked at her and urged her to finish eating. "Thanks again Mr. Mitchell for letting me stay, it was nice to hang out with Tem here instead of at my place or work." Temperance smiled at her before moving their plates to the sink to wash off before Brad could tell her not to.
They met Booth outside as he was wiping off his grandfather's car and she rolled her eyes at the obvious need to try and impress them. "Hello ladies, your chariot awaits." Before she could ask what that meant Megan was taking her hand and dragging her towards the car.
"Is this some sort of alpha male situation?" She asked as she turned towards the backseat where Megan was sitting, having made sure Temperance got the front seat. The brunette rolled her eyes and leaned forward to rest her chin on the back of the car seat.
"I mean he did wash the car and seems like he's using a new air freshener. I suppose we could label it that way. I think it's more of a just boy thing in general." Booth groaned from beside her and Megan shrugged. "You started it, bud. Just had to ask how long we'd be after insisting you go with us. Then insinuating that you'll hangout in the arcade? No way you're along for the entire ride."
While she was new to the on goings of a teenaged boy she giggled at the grumbling coming from the drivers seat. "That was before I knew just how long you two planned on being in every story. I thought going to a mall meant hanging in the food court or something." She hummed having not really known what the plan for the day was either until Meg had brought up everywhere she wanted to go. Though that was probably her mistake for saying she hadn't been to a mall since she was much younger.
"Come on, Seel, this girl doesn't get out much she needs to see everything the mall has to offer. I can't believe her parents let her go this long without a proper shopping trip. I will never let you just shop local." She looked over at Seel and bit her lip hoping he went along with it. Before Megan came over she sat Lisa and Brad down and asked them not to tell her friend her status as a foster child. They had both been so great to her and she didn't want it to be awkward but it would help her. Thankfully they honored her privacy and somehow they went twelve hours with Megan not asking at all about their family or for any family stories. They didn't even have to pretend.
"Yeah apparently this one prefers local shopping which is pretty cool instead of big retail stores. You can't be mad at that Megan, you work for a small business." He gave Tem a small smile knowing she had been needing that save. While he didn't understand why she would hide secrets from her best friend, he knew it was the best for her. Megan muttered whatever from the back and he chuckled at her dramatics as he pulled into the mall parking lot.
"I was only kidding, by the way, about not wanting to walk around the same store forever. I don't want you to feel rushed." He said softly as Meg walked ahead of them. "I don't want you to be uncomfortable either." He felt very protective of her for some reason and knew that this was a very out of her comfort zone experience to be out like this. They had gotten closer as they went on their runs or just hung out at each other's places. Even adding Megan into the mix felt natural, but he knew she was still holding back with their friend and just wanted her to be okay.
"Thank you. I'll be okay, thank you for coming by the way. I'm sure you could be doing other things." He shrugged sure that there was something he could be doing but he really had no idea what it would be.
It took almost two stores for him to notice Tem was finally comfortable with shopping. She had mostly just followed Megan around the first two letting her throw clothes at her she would just put back. By the third she had finally picked up a couple shirts she seemed to like. "They'll fit around my cast well after surgery." She said but he knew she liked them more than just being practical.
By the fifth store he has been officially made the bag carrier and while Megan has about five bags to Brennan's two he still had to roll his eyes. "Is this what you meant by alpha male?" He asked only to be quickly told what the phrase actually meant and he knew not to argue from there on.
He did manage to get them to break for some food though and he sighed gratefully at the weight off his arms as he leaned against the table. "Lesson learned, never going shopping again with you two. Especially you." He said pointing to Meg before turning to Tem. "But you aren't much better Miss 'hold these while I try this on' except the pile was bigger than you are." Both girls giggled as they chatted to each other on what they should eat. Leaving them to their deciding he went for pizza knowing they'd still be there when he returned.
There seemed to be more choices than Brennan anticipated when it came to food court food and she listened as Megan reviewed every single item she could think of as they waited for Booth to return with his food so no one took their bags. Finally she let Meg convince her to get Chinese and they both stood in line chatting and giggling over what to do for the rest of the day.
It wasn't until she felt someone hovering behind her that she began to feel uneasy. Being in such a public place she had done much better than she had anticipated, but her nerves quickly began to rise as she stepped a little closer to Megan. "Are you okay?" Her best friend asked and she did her best to muster a smile.
"Yeah I'm okay, there are a lot of people around." She said doing her best to remain calm though she could feel the presence behind her almost as if they were directly on top of her. She knew it was a man, she could tell by the way he breathed and the more she thought about it the more scared she got. Digging money out of her bag she handed it to Megan. "I'm going to find the restroom, just order me whatever." Before her friend could say anything she bolted away.
Finding the first empty stall she leaned against the side of it and forced herself to breathe. "You're fine." She said to herself. "Stop being such a baby." She was so angry at herself for ruining the good day she was having. By the time she came out of the bathroom Booth was standing outside the door.
"What happened? Meg said you went pale then ran off." He said putting his hands on her shoulders to settle her she closed her eyes trying to remain calm before shaking her head. Her cheeks felt like they were on fire from embarrassment and she tried not to cry as he stood in front of her.
"I'm so sorry, don't worry I'm okay. Just had a moment, let's go eat, I know you're starving." She was going to avoid the issue and knew he knew better than to press it right now. They had gotten fairly close as of late and he knew a lot of the panic attacks she was having, but he never asked why. Instead he just let her talk or comforted her if she let him. She was forever grateful for that.
They walked back to the table and she sat next to Megan and put on a smile. "Sorry, I suddenly had to go to the restroom." She lied and it seemed like Megan accepted it because without a question food was being placed in front of her. "This is all mine?" She asked at the assortment that was on both of their trays from the Chinese stand.
"You said to get whatever and I wasn't sure what I wanted so I just got us a little of everything." Megan said brightly and she had to laugh at how indecisive and wild she could be. "You sure you're okay though?" She finally asked and she nodded, forcing herself to hide all of the emotions she was feeling. There was no reason to freak out her friends or anyone else for that matter. She knew she could figure out a way to hide all the pain.