A/N: Welcome back. Another week another chapter, I am so proud haha. It usually goes wrong when I say that, so let's see if this time will be different ;).

So, this chapter was inspired by Mphs95's request(s). I hope this chapter lives up to expectations.

Thank you Kareneb and Mphs95 for reviewing!

"You okay?" Hodgins asked as Lilly got into his Mini.

"Yeah, I am fine, thanks for picking me up. Booth would kill me if I would have walked to the metro with that sketchy guy walking around. Seeing that dude kind of freaked me out, taken the metro and there was this guy walking around that kind of freaked me out, so I am really glad you were able to come and get me." Lilly answered as she tried to get settled in.

"No problem. I rather drive over than having to listen to a phone call we can't do anything about at that moment." Immediately Hodgins regretted the words as he spoke them. Quickly he changed the subject. "I hope you don't mind, but I need to pick up Angela and Micheal Vincent from the baby massage class as well."

"Oh. Sure." Lilly managed to get out. "Does... Angela know?"

"No, of course not; I can't reach her during the class. Well, technically, I can, but I would have to call that place and have them interrupt the class. We try to leave that for emergencies."

Hodgins rambled on as Lilly worried about soon sitting in the same tiny car as Angela. Thus far she had managed to stay out of the way of the artist.

They were already standing in front of the building for a while. "Have you had dinner yet?" Hodgins asked when Lilly had barely responded to his diffuse answer.

"No", Lilly said. "I know it is kind of late but the day just got away from me, so I'll throw something in the microwave when I get home. Maybe toss a pizza into the oven. It will be fine." She threw in a tired smile.

Hodgins nodded. "I hear you. Same here. Dr. B. needed my test results so I stayed a little longer. That is why I missed the baby massage class. Hey! Why don't you come back to our place? Dinner will be simmering on the stove by now and there is always more than enough to fill an extra plate." Hodgins excitedly extended the invitation.

"I appreciate that, but I wouldn't want to spoil your evening with your family."

"Come on, you wouldn't ruin the night. But, suit yourself, you're more than welcome if you'd like to join. In the meantime, I'll give Angela a call to see what is taking her so long." Hodgins smiled as he grabbed his phone. "Like I already don't know. The moms always have tea afterward and they'll forget the time." He entrusted Lilly. Hitting speed dial, he waited until he heard his wife's voice.

"Hey, Ange, how long do you think you'll need?"

...

"Hmm. Hmm. Yeah, I thought that was why you're running late."

...

"No, you don't need to hurry. I have Lilly here to keep me company."

...

"Because she needed a ride home. You know how deserted the federal block gets after 6 pm."

...

"Yeah exactly. You know how he is." Hodgins chuckled as he mouthed Booth's name towards Lilly.

...

Glancing to Lilly who was staring out the window, Hodgins continued. "Hmm, well then it is about time that happens, Ange. I thought you already promised Brennan you would anyway."

Lilly noticed that now Hodgins brow was furrowed into a frown.

...

"Yeah, I agree that wouldn't be ideal, but don't blame it on the Mini. Uh-uh, everything happens for a reason and at the right time, isn't it?"

...

"Yep, same parking spot as always. Okay, see you in a bit". Hodgins hung up.

"I hope I am not causing problems", Lilly said softly, embarrassed that lately, it seemed that was all she was doing. Hearing only Hodgins' side of the conversation had been enlightening enough.

"What? No, of course not. You could have just told me that you and Angela haven't been in the same room for weeks though," Hodgins casually threw in.

Blushing, Lilly stared straight ahead. "What good would that have done?"

Hodgins shook his head at Lilly's antics. "Well, for starters I would have insisted on you having dinner with us from the beginning."

Lilly looked at him. "That still doesn't sound like a good idea."

"Ohhh, but it is. You two can't keep avoiding each other forever. I don't even understand why whatever is going on isn't even resolved yet."

"It was working alright", Lilly uttered under her breath.

"No, it wasn't. Keeping a distance like that almost severs the team, it messes with the dynamics if it goes on for too long. What happened that you are avoiding Angie?" Hodgins' voice was filled with concern.

Lilly shot Hodgins a look like he was a moron. "Well, what happened is that I unintentionally managed to get in the way for Dr. Brennan and Booth to have their happy ever after", Lilly said dryly.

"Yeah, that is indeed something Angela can go overboard on..." Hodgins agreed with Lilly. "..., but please tell me you don't blame yourself for that. I mean... Dr. B. and Booth have been prancing around each other for years now. Them still not having worked it out is on them, not on you."

"I try to not blame myself, but I fear Angela does blame me," Lilly confessed.

"She maybe did when she just heard that it happened, but I know she's over that by now."

Skeptically, Lilly tried to read Hodgins' expressions. "So, what about that screaming contest at Booth's place when I was in the bathroom?"

"You heard that?" Hodgins cringed when he thought about that. Booth was an impressively skilled guy that had served the country several times and you didn't want Booth turning against you. Seeing him angry had almost made Hodgins wet himself.

"Sort of", Lilly confirmed. "It was kind of hard not to hear. I heard the commotion but I didn't know what they were saying. Booth gave me some weak evasive explanation when I asked, but when he told me that you and Angela had heard Stein talk about... you know, I connected the dots." The awful way she had felt that day flooded back to her.

Hodgins nodded. "I am sorry to say that you connected that correctly. It was about what Stein had said, but Angela wasn't angry at you per se, she was pissed at Booth's reasoning or lack thereof. She was afraid of the consequences for Dr. B."

At that point the car door opened, interrupting the conversation. In silence Angela leaned in, placing Micheal Vincent in his car seat and getting herself. Only having grumbled a soft hello to Hodgins' hi.

The drive to the Hodgins home was a rather uncomfortable one, the silence tangible until Hodgins decided to fill the time by sharing details of a new bug found somewhere in the Amazon.

As soon as they were inside the apartment; Angela was quick to excuse herself to put Micheal Vincent to bed. Hodgins walked with Lilly to the dining room area. "I'll be right back. Michael V is very easy to get to sleep. So, make yourself comfortable, help yourself to the bread or something." He smiled awkwardly at the intern before he left to put his son to bed.

Alone in the room, Lilly looked around spotting a picture of the Hodgins' mansion. She knew that the Hodgins' mansion would be huge even though she had never been there. The logic between having an apartment and this villa in the same city was beyond Lilly, but that naturally was a byproduct of having money. Her grandfather lived in a Victorian-inspired home of the same type of grandeur, a home that had been in the Johnson family for generations.

However, Lilly had grown up in a brownstone in central New York, because her mom had loved the characteristics of the home. Her dad had considered selling it after mom had died, but Lilly had begged him to keep the house. The home was filled with momentous her mom had collected and Lilly had enjoyed being surrounded by them.

Instead of selling it, they had lived there together for a little over a year until Lilly had fled to her Canadian boarding school. The wonderful memories had started to make her miss her mom more and more instead of comforting her and being alone in the house more often than spending time with her dad had made her very unhappy. It had made her feel like she had been boxed in. Her dad had bought a second home in the state of New York, closer to his parents but had kept the brownstone to Lilly's delight.

In Lilly's Canada years the house in NYC had been rented to other families, mostly expats. Which Lilly had loved and hated simultaneously. Another family living in the house she had grown up in had made her jealous at times. It had always felt like her home but she wasn't able to make new memories with both her parents anymore. In hindsight, it had been good for her to not spend time at the house for a couple of years. By the time she had finished high school, Lilly was ready to move back home and her dad joined her.

During her college years in NYC, she and her dad had slowly found a way to live together again in the large house during the week. Most weekends they had spent at the other house in New York State or at the family home with her grandparents. Lilly was both a city and an outdoors kind of girl. Living in a city was so convenient and she loved all the different types of people you would see in a day. And then spending the weekends and vacations on more of the countryside had felt like mini staycations. She knew and appreciated that she had been privileged to have a childhood like that. Losing her mom had been incredibly difficult, but if that hadn't happened it would have been the ideal childhood as far as Lilly was considered.

Hodgins cleared his throat as he and Angela walked in. He pointed to the table with a welcoming smile. "Ready? I am starving."

Lilly nodded before she found her voice. "The family residence looks beautiful on that picture."

"Thanks", Hodgins said. "Currently the CFO of the Cantilever Group is living in it with his family. Angela preferred a place of our own without the generations of history being breathed by the walls."

Well, that answered that question. Lilly thought as she sneaked a peek at Angela. Angela looked rather uncomfortable too with the current situation.

Hodgins' plated up the food, once again trying to fill the uncomfortable silence between the women. "Hmm, it smells like Amelia outdid herself again. I can feel my mouth watering!" Casting encouraging glances at his wife to restart the situation Hodgins dug in. A few times Angela opened her mouth to say something but decided against it as Lilly was pretty much looking the other way. Both women weren't eating much. Okay, so this isn't working.

"I am sorry, Lilly. I want to apologize for my behavior. I have not been a good friend or even a good coworker for the past month. It wasn't right to judge you and Booth and I should have been more helpful to help you deal with that lawyer guy." Angela blurted out her apology.

Lilly was surprised at the mea culpa from Angela. Until now Lilly had worried that Angela was angry at her, not that the artist was tripped over by guilt. Relieve washed over Lilly. "I understand. You're Dr. Brennan's best friend. I'd probably react as protective if it happened to my best friend."

"That is very nice of you to say. But it wouldn't be the right reaction. My reaction wasn't the right reaction. We're more than just coworkers at the Jeffersonian and I should have checked in on you earlier as a friend. But at first, I was so angry at Booth and when that settled, I heard you were keeping your distance from the whole team. I kind of hoped you would have come to me on your own account. You know, when you were feeling like interacting with people again. I was, am, ashamed of my behavior."

Lilly nodded. "Yeah... It was difficult. I was avoiding you too. I didn't think I could handle your anger. That is what I thought, that you were furious at me. Booth and I... We're better off not dating or being romantically involved. You really don't have to worry about him and I repeat that."

"I am not and I realized it isn't any of my business if the two of you were. Bren was actually the one who pushed me to see that. For Wendell, it would be nice if you'd act on your feelings for him." Angela automatically went back to being a meddling friend.

Lilly was surprised by Dr. Brennan's kindness and an open mind. She ignored Angela's comment about Wendell. With Wendell having stormed out of her apartment, she wasn't exactly sure where they were standing. Hopefully, he just needed time to think through what she told him and wouldn't be blaming himself for anything, because nothing substantial had happened. If needed she would make sure he knew, but she expected him to be able to connect the dots himself. "So, does that mean that we are good now?"

"Yes, as far as I am concerned, we are."

"Great", Hodgins said, relieved that somehow the ladies had managed to clear the air. "Do you galls need to hug this out?"

"Not really", Lilly said.

"I think we need to." Angela countered as she simultaneously got up and pulled Lilly in for a hug. "I am sorry for everything. I hope you can forgive me and that we can have fun like before. I missed being able to talk about girl stuff to forget all the death and despair."

Lilly nodded. "Apology accepted. I am glad we've talked about it."

"As am I", Hodgins said. "See, this wasn't that hard. I told you that dinner at our place would be a great idea."

The women nodded as they finally dug into their food.

"I'd like to make it up to you. Would you like to go to that new yoga class everyone is talking about? I saw there are still a couple of spots available for the 6 am classes." Angela asked.

"Are you trying to keep me from going to the gym with Booth?"

"No! We could go to one of the days where you don't hit the gym. I meant it when I said it wasn't my business. I only suggested it to do something fun together. Angela looked disappointed.

"I am sorry", Lilly said. "That was supposed to be a joke, but I guess I just butchered it. I'd love to go with you."

Angela smiled, a little uncomfortable that she had mislabeled the nature of Lilly's question. "Oh okay. When do you want to go? We could book the class after dinner."

"Have you gone to a class there before?"

"Yes, I have. The instructor's name is Jake, he is really nice and professional. Some women there find him really attractive."

Lilly smiled. "Hmm. I hope them drooling over him won't ruin the class."

"It won't," Angela said with a smile.

A/N: I know, I know, Angela got off the hook quite easily. But that is what happens when you don't actually like to fight, like Lilly. Though, there is one character in this story that definitely doesn't agree with this XD. Maybe we'll find out who and why in a couple of chapters. Thank you for reading and please leave a review!