Disclaimer: I own nothing…

Summary: When Parker ends up in danger, Booth calls Brennan… A call that changes both their lives forever.

Rating: PG-13

Author's Notes: It began with Snow Patrol, and it ends with Snow Patrol. The song here is "The Finish Line"… I highly recommend, if at all possible, that everyone check out this song. It's very… intense. Sort of a combination of sadness, calm, and bliss… I'm not really sure how to describe it, but simply reading the lyrics just doesn't do it justice…

Anyway, this is it everyone. I hope you enjoyed the story, and I hope you'll like this chapter. Thank you so much to everyone for your reviews!

The Finish Line:

It's like the finish line where everything just ends

Two Years Later:

The chill in the air was biting, but the sun shone bright as Booth stood back, watching as his son lay a small bouquet of fresh cut white roses beside the marble stone in front of him. He was too far away to hear the words that Parker was whispering, but he knew how much he had been affected by her death, and he imagined the boy was having a tough time with it all. Parker hated cemeteries, but he insisted on coming every few months. There was no real pattern to it, he would just get it in his head that he needed to visit, and insist on going immediately.

It was something Booth understood. The sudden fear of forgetting those who had been lost. And so he had never once denied Parker the chance to visit this place, and he never would. This had been the first real loss Parker had ever suffered, and understood, and it broke his heart that his son had been forced to learn the painful secrets of death so early in life. In his lifetime, Booth had been forced to witness far too much pain and loss, but it had never before hit him so hard as this… Having to watch his son learn to deal with the loss of someone he loved.

It hurt. More than he ever could have imagined.

After a few more moments, his eyes had glazed with tears, and he had dropped his gaze to the ground. Unable to watch as his son cried silent tears beside the stone that lay in front of him, his little fingers tracing over the name that was carved there.

The earth is warm next to my ear
Insects noise is all that I hear
A magic trick makes the world disappear
The skies are dark they're dark but they're clear

It was then that he felt her fingers twine with his, and his eyes were drawn to the ring on her finger as it sparkled in the sunlight. He smiled, remembering the day he had put it there, and then his eyes met hers and that smile only grew. She held his gaze, her eyes soft and her smile light, as she tilted her head to watch him.

After a moment, he let her hand go, only to slip his arm around her waist and pull her close. Her head fell to his shoulder, and he buried his nose in her hair, inhaling her scent deeply before pressing a soft kiss into her hair.

"I love you, Temperance."

She smiled against him then. He felt he could never say it enough, she knew, and she would never tire of hearing him say the words. Snuggling against him, she whispered softly, "I love you, too."

They had been through so much together, and both were more than grateful for the time they had been given. They knew what they had almost lost, and both now understood how precious the time they had really was. Life was fragile, but love gave them strength, and it was no longer fear that dictated their lives. All those fears they had held so tightly to way back when had dissolved the moment she had opened her eyes for that second time, and both had left all that behind to allow for the happiness they now knew.

A distant motorcade and suddenly there's joy
The snowing ticker-tape blurs all my senses numb
It's like the finish line where everything just ends
The crack of radio seems close enough to touch

When Temperance's eyes fell on Parker, the boy was turning to them, using his sleeve to wipe away the tears that had slipped from his eyes. She reached out a hand for him as he approached, and he took it as soon as he reached them; still staring at the headstone as he stood there, a few remaining tears running down his cheeks. Temperance smiled sadly, tears gathering in her own eyes as she let Booth go and knelt beside Parker, urging him to face her. It broke her heart to see him cry, and a tear of her own slipped down her cheek as she reached up to wipe away those that Parker had cried. In her eyes, Parker was as much her son as he was Booth's, and she would give anything to take away the hurt he was feeling.

"I know you miss her, Parker," she told him gently, taking his hands in hers, "but you know grandma's in a better place now, right?" He nodded slowly and Temperance reached out to take him into her arms, holding him close for a moment as he clung to her.

Booth couldn't help but smile as he watched them. Two years earlier, when her heart had stopped, and she had given him the biggest scare of his life, she had told him that the whole ordeal had renewed her faith in God. When he'd asked her what she had seen, she had told him that, during those four minutes, she had seen nothing but him. No bright light. No angels to guide her… Just him. And when she had opened her eyes; when she had been given back her life… In that instant, she had known that there had to be a God, because it was at that moment that she had realized that they were meant for one another… And they had been given a second chance.

They were a family now.

Cold water cleaning my wounds
A sad parade with a single balloon
I'm done with this I'm counting to ten
Bluest seas running to them

He loved watching her with Parker. Before everything that had happened two years ago, he never would have guessed that Temperance Brennan would be so wonderful with children. It had been all she had seen and all she had been through that had turned her off to the prospect of having children of her own, rather than the fact that her less than perfect people skills extended to children, as he had previously believed. Something that was completely untrue. She didn't always know how to deal with adults, but she always knew exactly what to say to a child. Especially a child she loved, like Parker.

Temperance stood then, keeping a hand in Parker's. The boy's eyes once again locked on the headstone and after a moment of silence, he spoke.

"Mom?" Parker questioned, his voice quiet as he looked up into her eyes, his hand still resting in hers. When her eyes met his, he continued, "If the baby's a girl, can we call her Hannah? After grandma?"

She smiled softly at him as she placed a hand on his shoulder and pulled him to her side, stroking his hair gently as he reached his arms up to wrap them around her waist for a hug. "I think that's a wonderful idea, Parker." She told him softly, giving him a squeeze and rubbing his back gently as she watched him.

He gave her a little smile then, letting her go, only to take her hand again. "I think so, too." He told her with a nod.

She smiled back and Booth chuckled a bit from beside her as he slipped an arm around her waist and gave his son a smile. "What do you say we get home, bub? I think your mom here could use some rest."

He indicated Temperance with a little nod and smile as he said it, and she shook her head with a smile of her own. She hated it when Booth coddled her, but she loved it when he referred to her as a mom. Especially in reference to Parker. And she loved it even more when Parker called her mom, which he did more and more often these days.

I feel like I am watching everything from space
And in a minute I hear my name and I wake
I think the finish line's a good place we could start
Take a deep breath, take in all that you could want

With a smile and nod, Parker led them away from the cold marble stone and the sadness it signified, and back out into a world where they were a happy little family. Something all three of them were grateful for.

I think the finish line's a good place we could start