July 6th 2:30am
Aiden's head lay against the pillow, his eyes unfocused on the muted television screen as it played some random infomercial about a blender or some other such kitchen appliance. Sleep was eluding him, and the unfamiliar decorations on the wall, the impersonal atmosphere of the hotel room, mixed with the thought of the woman he loves out there somewhere in danger managed to ensure that sleep wouldn't come. His eyes moved slowly to the digital red display on the clock, his brow furrowed at the late hour.
He flexed his hand, feeling the warmed metal of the two pendants that he had nearly refused to release. The room was warm and uncomfortable, and though the air conditioning was running, it couldn't seem to keep up with the humid, mildew filled air that he felt was suffocating him. He was still in his suit, refusing to remove his jacket or tie, and only conceding loosening his tie and taking his shoes off out of habit, and politeness. He looked at his phone again, the blank screen and lack of messages made his stomach clench again, and he rolled to his side, staring at the strip of light sneaking in at the bottom of the door. His eyes refused to close, and his brain constantly rolled through the evidence they had on the case over and over. There was a flicker of shadow beneath the door, quick enough for him to know that someone was in the hallway, and he wondered for a moment if Booth and Temperance had ever gotten to the hotel after their trip to the hospital. He sighed heavily and rolled onto his back again.
With a resounding groan, he stood up, wondering if some fresh air or a snack from the vending machine would help him be able to clear his head and maybe he'd be able to get an hour of sleep. He stood up slowly, feeling the pull of every single muscle in his body and carefully slipped on his shoes. He slipped the pendants into his pocket, grabbed his hotel key card and his wallet from the dresser, and quickly stepped out into the hallway, latching the door behind him.
He kept his steps slow, knowing that he was in no hurry to get anywhere, and that despite the idea that fresh air would help him sleep, he was well aware that it would have the opposite effect on him. The hotel felt deserted. It was a three-floor chain hotel with a pool, workout area, and business center, and as he stepped down the hallway toward the small lobby, he noted that there was nobody at the front desk. Sitting on the desk was a note that if anyone needed assistance, to call a number, which he assumed was to an office where the night manager was sleeping on the job. The desk was clear, but for a large bowl of apples on the corner, a free 'snack' for guests, he supposed. He reached for an apple and tossed it in the air, catching it as he turned around, admiring the boilerplate pictures of the Shenandoah mountains on the walls. They were typical hotel accoutrements where the frame stayed the same, but the pictures changed.
He stepped to the doors and walked outside, and felt as the oppressive humidity hit him full force. He took a deep breath, trying to find some oxygen for his lungs through the miniscule droplets that floated in the air, his chest feeling as heavy as the air. He looked into the parking lot, noting that Booth's vehicle was indeed there, and he wondered to himself when he had arrived, and had a nagging irritation that he hadn't been informed of any changes in the progress of the case.
He rubbed the back of his neck with his hand, a nervous tick that Antonia would frequently point out when he would do it, and he felt a lump in his throat as he thought of her. He leaned his back against the building for a moment, breathing in the air slowly, he could almost smell her scent, he could almost see her. His hand slipped into his pocket where he rubbed the pendants between his fingers, silently praying to himself. He lifted the apple to his mouth, taking a bite out of it, he felt his stomach roil a bit in hunger, a statement that the apple was not what it was looking for. He turned and tossed the rest of the apple into the trash can beside the door, taking another deep breath as he stepped into the lobby again.
As soon as he looked at the front desk, he noticed something was off. The bowl of apples that only a few moments before had been on the desk, was now tipped onto the floor, apples littering the small lobby. Instinctively, his hand moved toward his gun, but his logical mind shook it off as he stepped toward the desk. He wondered for a moment if a stray animal had somehow entered the lobby at some point. He moved around the lobby, lazily picking up the apples that had scattered in front of the desk, wondering to himself how they had managed to fall. He was just stepping over toward the desk to place the apples back in the bowl, when he heard the distinctive crunching sound of someone or something biting down on an apple. His brow furrowed, and he paused, listening carefully, he heard it again, coming from just beneath the desk. He paused, his eyes focused on the bowl for a moment, he pulled an apple from within it, and slowly rolled it across the floor past the desk. After a moment, he saw a small hand reach out, tiny fingers wiggling toward the runaway piece of fruit. He crouched down and watched, as following the hand came a mussy head of blonde hair. He gasped, his heart jumping into his throat as the child's head turned just as she caught the apple, and he was met with a pair of blue eyes that he had been so desperate to see again.
Two dark blue eyes popped open and a gasp escaped at the memory of the vivid dream that had taken control of her. She could feel the weight of the arm of her protector around her, and feel the gentle wisps of breath skating over her cheek as she held her, slowly calming her racing pulse. The room wasn't dark, and she was grateful for the bedside light that was left on. She felt warm under the covers, and her tummy had an angry rumble. She turned slightly, looking up at Antonia's sleeping face, a tear rolling down her cheek, Melody reached up and gently ran her fingertip across her cheek, lifting her lips to kiss her cheek gently.
The action caused Antonia to move in her sleep, rolling onto her back, she sighed gently, and Melody was unsure if she had caused her to wake, watching the gentle rise and fall of her chest and her eyes flickering beneath her eyelids in sleep. She waited a moment and watched, noting no movement, she carefully slipped her feet to the floor. She kept her eyes on the sleeping woman as she moved about the room, straightening out the t-shirt she was wearing, she swiped at a tear on her own cheek, one that had been left over from her nightmare.
She felt her tummy rumble again and looked between the door and her sleeping protector, feeling compelled to tug her awake and announce her hunger. When they had gotten to the room, they had changed into clothes that they had purchased at a nearby drug store, showered off some of the dirt and muscle aches that they had acquired through their ordeal, and Antonia ordered a pizza, which they quickly devoured before collapsing into the bed in an exhausted heap. That had been hours ago, and with her hunger, she became extremely anxious. She stared at Antonia, who had rolled onto her other side and slept soundly against the mattress, and with a resounding grunt, Melody moved toward the door. She looked up at the chain lock at the top, far too high for her to reach and she narrowed her eyes with frustration. She looked to the bed, and then to the door, and moved swiftly toward the chair beside the small table. She dragged it across the floor, propped it by the door and climbed onto it with minimal effort. With a flick of her wrist, the chain was unfastened, dangling against the door.
She climbed from the chair and moved it aside, carefully slipping out the door. She couldn't hear the lock engage when the door closed behind her, and swiftly made her way down the hallway. She had remembered seeing a vending machine, but knew that she had no money to get a snack, and as she moved toward the front desk, immediately seeing the bowl of apples.
Her tiny pink tongue darted across her lips as she moved quickly toward the desk, hiding behind it for a moment, trying to figure out how she could reach the bowl. She looked at the chair and contemplated climbing onto it when she saw movement from down the hallway between the little space between the wall and the desk. She crawled under the desk securely, sitting there for several moments as she waited for the person to go away. After another moment or two she shifted, and looking up, she saw the back of someone's head, a man was standing beside the desk, his face away from her, staring at a picture on the wall. She stayed beneath the desk, holding her breath as she waited. After another moment or two, she could see the front door open, and assumed it was clear for her to move again.
She carefully climbed onto the chair, glancing toward the door to make sure the man was gone, and reached across the desk to the far corner where the bowl was sitting. Her fingertips caught the edge of the bowl, and pushing down, it sent several of the apples tumbling out of it, falling to the floor in front of the desk. She tried again, and the bowl fell forward, quickly tumbling to the carpeted floor of the lobby. She saw one of the apples land within reach, and reached out for it, pulling it to her behind the desk, she huddled quietly for a moment. She held the apple in her hands, waiting a moment before she finally took a big bite. She could taste the sweetness of the apple, sliding down her throat to her waiting tummy, and smiled to herself at her clever find, happy to have something to soothe her hungry tummy. She munched once or twice more, tasting the delicious fruit she thought of Antonia back at their room, and how she might be hungry also.
Melody rolled to her knees and looked out, noting that many of the apples that had fallen were no longer there, but not really thinking about why. Suddenly an apple came into view, rolling just past her as she smiled slightly at her luck. She leaned forward suddenly, wiggling her fingers as she reached for the fruit, her messy mop of hair in her face. She didn't see the man at first, but when she captured the runaway apple, she saw him out of the corner of her eye. Her heart began to beat wildly, her throat closing up. She dropped the apple in her hand and looked up ready to scream and immediately recognized the pair of green eyes staring back at her.
Her scream turned into a yelp, as her body pushed forward, and before she could stop herself, she had launched her full body into his. Her arms stretched around his neck tightly, and he lost his balance and fell backwards, his back slamming hard into the ground as he wrapped his arms around the sobbing and trembling sprite that he was holding onto.
He lay on the ground holding her, feeling her fingertips digging into the back of his neck as he felt his own tears start to fall. She looked up at him, her blue eyes filled with tears as she ran her hands over his cheeks, looking into his eyes as if she thought he'd disappear if she let go of him. "Look at you." He whispered, putting his hands on her face as she smiled a brilliant smile, leaning forward to wrap her arms around him again as she sobbed into his shoulder. "It's okay." He whispered. "It's okay, it's okay." He knew she couldn't hear him, but his words were more for himself as he held her tightly, and she felt the low rumble of his chest beneath her body. "Oh, you sweet little thing." He said, suddenly jolted by the realization that she was alone in the hallway and Antonia was nowhere to be seen. He sat up with her in his arms, carefully pulling himself from the floor, he lifted her into with him as he stood and placed her bottom on the counter for a moment as he disentangled her arms from around him. "Ant?" He signed, knowing the sign, her eyes widened. She looked surprised, and suddenly eager, and tried to wiggle off the counter as she wiped her tears with her hand. "Hey, hey… slow down there." He said, lifting her to the floor. She immediately grabbed his hand and started pulling him down the hallway.
She watched him as he came with her, allowing her to pull him with her, her shock and amazement at his presence was quickly turned into pure happiness and eagerness to share with Antonia her discovery. She couldn't help the tears from falling, and the fear that she had in her heart had quickly disappeared the moment he looked into her eyes and wrapped his arms around her.
They reached the closed door, and Aiden looked down at her with a curious expression, unsure if this was the right door, or if he'd be coming face to face with a stranger. She was one step ahead of him, knocking her tiny fist into the door hard as he lifted her into his arms. It took only a moment and he saw the doorknob turning, his heart filled with trepidation and anxiety which completely disappeared the moment he saw her face, peeking cautiously from the door.
She looked exhausted and worn, her eyes filled with panic, probably from noticing that her companion was missing, and being startled by the knocking at the door. To him, she was the most beautiful sight he had ever seen. Her face didn't register recognition of him just yet, her eyes were on the smile of the little girl in his arms, and she opened the door just a little more, prepared to grab her quickly from what she sleepily perceived as a stranger. "I believe this belongs to you." He said, watching her eyes flick from the little girl directly to his eyes.
Suddenly he watched the expression on her face change. It went from fear, to relief, to something so intense that it almost made his heart burst. She was speechless. "Aren't you going to invite me in, Tex?" He asked. He set Melody on the ground and she pushed past Antonia and ran for the bed, leaping onto the mattress as she smiled, though Antonia remained frozen at the doorway.
"You?" Antonia managed to squeak out.
"I can't fall asleep without you." He managed to rumble, tears coming to his eyes. "I tried, and I just couldn't do it." He said, as his words were suddenly muffled by her lips on his, and her arms gripping him with such ferocity, he thought he would crumble to pieces if she were to let go.
So, he held on.