September 2007

Brennan coughed; the dust from the road filling her throat and lungs, the heat was giving her a headache. She covered her eyes, squinting, the sun glaring horribly in her direction.

The wind was blowing warmly, whipping her hair around her shoulders, and making little mini dust tornadoes across the side of the road. Fortunately, she had the shade of a giant pine tree to comfort the sweltering heat that the 12 o'clock sun was bringing down on her.

Of course this had to happen today. The day with record breaking September temperatures. When she had already been in a horrible mood and probably not very fun to be spending time with, they had to crash.

She knew it was probably partly her fault. She had snapped at Booth all morning during the case, finally culminated in a screaming match in the car. So logically it wasn't really her fault, he was the one with the hands on the wheel, but she had probably provoked him to the point where he wasn't really looking at the road anymore.

Luckily there hadn't been any other cars around, which wasn't exactly lucky anymore since they had been stranded in the middle of Nowhere, Virginia, in the middle of some random state park that she hadn't paid attention to the name of at all while they were driving. She was too busy trying to ignore Booth.

She had just woken up upset. She wasn't usually moody, she could handle her emotions, but today something just felt off. She couldn't place it, and she certainly couldn't talk to Booth about it, but in the back of her mind she knew it wasn't fair to take it out on him.

He's only trying to be there for me. I don't want to push him away, today I just feel…wrong.

She reminded herself not to get in arguments during a particularly windy road. Advantageously, neither of them had seriously gotten hurt; the only one who had taken the most of the damage was the tree they had crashed into, and the hood of Booth's car which was severely dented. Brennan felt bad about that.

Glancing over at Booth, who was leaned over the hood of the car, his sleeves rolled up to his elbows, sweat coating his face lightly, and grease smeared over his toned forearms. He was frowning frustratingly at the engine, which seemed to be not wanting to cooperate with his pleas to have it start working again.

"Is it working?"

"Don't you think that if it was working we would have been out of here by now?"

She turned away, knowing that she deserved that. She had been a btch to him all morning, caused him to crash his car, and now they were stuck in God knows where with NO cell phone service.

Walking slowly towards him, she leaned against the side of the car, trying to think of the words. Maybe she should just go with simple.

"Booth."

He looked up at her, wiping the sweat off his face with his forearm. "Listen Bones, if you're going to lecture me about the rules of the road, or some bullsht like that, I'm really not in the mood to hear it."

"No…I'm sorry Booth."

He looked up at her again, this time his eyes were kinder. Booth knew that she had a hard time apologizing, so she must really mean it if she was saying it now.

"Listen Bones, it wasn't your fault that we crashed."

"No not for that. You were driving after all. I'm sorry that I was so horrible to you today. I didn't mean it."

Brennan now had his full attention he moved from his spot next to the open hood, and next to her, leaning close to her, their bodies almost touching.

"Is something wrong Babe, I mean we argue, but today you were really on my case. Is something bothering you?"

She looked down, and then back up at him. "No…I mean, I don't think so. I just woke up today, and something felt off Booth. I don't know what it is, but I shouldn't have taken it out on you."

He reached a finger tilting her chin up to face him. She looked up at him, and he could tell that she was visibly upset; her usually clear blue eyes were cloudy.

If only I hadn't let her get to me, and actually paid attention to why she was snapping maybe I could have seen what's wrong.

"Is it something I did Bones? Are we going too fast?"

She shook her head, chewing on her lip. She hadn't ever been good at tapping into her own emotions, and today was no different, but she definitely knew she didn't want things with Booth to change.

"No, no. It's not that. It's not about you. I'm just not having a good day I guess."

"We all have those days Babe, it will pass."

"Are you sure?"

"Yeah I'm sure, I'm just glad you're ok." He grinned at her, and she smiled back.

"Me too."

"Honestly Bones, I thought you were going to break up with me."

"No!" It came out a lot louder and more forcefully then she intended, but at least he looked up at her.

"No, I don't want to break up with you. When I'm with you Booth, I…I just, I don't know what it is. Its different then anything else I've ever felt…"

He cupped her face in both of his hands, smiling at her, leaning down and kissing her softly.

"I love you too Bones."

She smiled, leaning up and kissing him, and then wrapping her arms around him tightly, snuggling her face into his shoulder, as his arms snaked around her small body, pulling her closer to him, knowing that what she meant by the small gesture.

I love you too Booth.

March 31, 2011

Booth hated traffic. He absolutely despised it. It stopped him from getting where he was going. It slowed things down. It was the reason murderers got away, and Parker was alone in the parking lot when he picked him up from school.

The main reason he was loathing the traffic that he had been stuck in for about twenty minutes now, was the women who was sitting next to him, looking like she would rather be anywhere else.

"Bones."

She turned to look at him expectantly, her eyes shining.

"What?"

"Nothing, I was just trying to make conversation."

She looked down, and then out the window into the rain that was causing most of the traffic.

"Oh. I'm not very good at that."

"I know."

She pursed her lips, sighing loudly, wishing that she had the power to teleport out of the car. The tension in the car was so thick, she felt like she was drowning. Every movement was watched. Every glance that they shared, she remembered. She wanted it back, but there was no going back.

Booth tapped his fingers on the steering wheel, turning on the radio, and immediately regretting it. The soothing sound of Ben E. King's "Stand By Me" flooded the large SUV.

It had been their "song". Booth remembered with a bittersweet fondness explaining to Brennan the significance of having a "song". She hadn't understood at first, but slowly she had warmed to the idea. He remembered dancing to it one night when it came on the radio in his apartment.

She blushed turning away to make sure he didn't see. Quickly he clicked off the song, the unforgiving silence again filling their minds.

"So how are the twins?"

"Fine."

"Is Chloe feeling better?"

"She had the stomach flu, but she's better."

Why is he asking me this? Why does he have to act like they're his kids when he doesn't even know that they are.

Booth smiled, thinking about the little girl falling asleep in Brennan's arms. He hadn't seen the little 3 year olds since Sunday, because Brennan hadn't been at work on Monday, and they went to preschool all day. He liked them; they reminded him so much of the Bones he used to know. The one who let him in. There was something about them though, that he couldn't put his finger on.

"I'm glad."

"Yeah."

"Bones, come on. Please try and engage, just a little bit."

"I don't want to talk about Sam and Chloe."

"Why?"

"I just don't, so can you just drop it Booth!?"

He put his hands up in surrender. They weren't really needed on the wheel since the car wasn't even moving.

"Fine, we won't talk about them. I just thought that you'd want to, I mean they're your kids---,"

"I know that." They're yours too.

Booth looked out the window. He knew she wasn't exactly warm to him lately, but it was weird she didn't want to talk about Chloe and Sam. He hadn't been able to stop babbling about Parker for years, he still couldn't. But it was Bones, who knew what logic was whirling around in her head at this moment.

"So…this weather…its' rainy."

She looked over at him like he was a complete idiot. That hadn't exactly been an observation of rocket science proportions. It's rainy. Wow.

"Yes."

Maybe I should have kept the radio on.

"And we're stuck in traffic."

She nodded. "Yes."

Booth sighed, deciding that conversation at this point was hopeless.

Lying sucks. I don't want to do it anymore, but……I have to. Right?