Six Weeks Later

Brennan was standing on the platform examining a new skeleton that had come in when Angela approached her.

"Do you have the markers yet? Can I take a crack at the face?"

"Not yet Angela! I told you I'd let you know when it's ready."

"God sweetie, what's with you lately? You've been on edge since Booth left. I know you miss him, but you can't take that out on everyone here."

"That's ridiculous," Brennan said giving Angela a look like her friend had just called the ocean pink. "I don't miss Booth. It's just that Agent Sanderson and I don't work together quite as well since he's new. The other day he let the FBI clear a crime scene before I had even gotten there. Who know what particulates we could have missed."

"Uh huh," Angela shook her head in a sarcastic manner. "I'm sure Agent Sanderson is getting on your nerves, but why can't you just admit, that it's just not the same when Booth isn't here?"

"Booth is my partner Angela, that's it. Things are easier when he's here because we've worked together a long time and we each know how the other one works, that's all."

"Ok, if you insist, but you need to calm down a bit. Why don't you get out of here and take a walk. You've been standing at this table for 5 hours straight.

"I don't need to calm down Angela, but you're right, a walk might do me good, then I can come back to examine this tibia with fresh eyes. I'll go get some coffee across the street."

Brennan was crossing K St. thinking about how annoying Angela's comments were when she heard her name.

"Dr. Brennan how are you?"

Brennan was startled. She turned around to see Rebecca standing there. Social situations had never been her forte, but this was a particularly odd situation considering Parker was with her. Wasn't he supposed to be up at the Lake with Booth?

Brennan stumbled her words a bit, "Oh, hi Rebecca, hi Parker."

"Hi Bones!" Parker waved ecstatically.

"Parker," Rebecca scolded, "it's not nice to call her Bones, you should call her Dr. Brennan"

"But daddy always calls her Bones."

"It's OK Rebecca, I don't mind. Parker is like a miniature Booth, and I think it's kind of sweet when he calls me Bones."

"How is Booth?" Rebecca asked.

"What do you mean? Haven't you talked to him?

Bones was getting nervous. Had no one heard from Booth since he had left? Had Booth lied to her? She reached into her pocket and fingered her phone thinking about the moment when she could get away from Rebecca and Parker and call Booth. After all, he did say she could call him whenever. Rebecca could sense her agitation and quickly responded.

"Oh, yes of course. I spoke to him on Saturday when he dropped Parker off, but I haven't heard from him since then and I assumed that he had just gone back to work. Maybe he decided to take a few more days off before he went back."

Brennan calmed a little, perhaps Rebecca was right and Booth simply wanted to take another week off before he came back to work. There was no reason he had to call her when he got back into town. After all, they were just colleagues, and if they weren't working together there really wasn't any reason for him to call. Brennan smiled at Rebecca and Parker and waved it off.

"Yes of course, I'm sure that's it. It was nice running into the two of you, and I'm sure I'll hear from Booth in the next day or two," she said as she ran across the street.

Brennan was visibly upset as she entered the coffee shop. Although she and Booth were work partners, she had also considered him a friend, weren't friends supposed to check in with each other when they were back in town? She reached into her pocket again and handled her phone. She should just call him, like she had a thousand times before, that wouldn't be weird. She had even called him about non-work related things every once in a while, I'm sure Booth wouldn't care. She went to pull the phone out, but then it was her turn to order and she slipped it back into her pocket. By the time she left the coffee shop she changed her mind and went straight back to work.

Not that she was able to concentrate the rest of the day. And when she left work and got in her Mercedes to drive home, she found her car instinctively wandering over to Booth's apartment. She sat outside for a moment before she rang the bell. There wasn't any real reason for her to be there. In fact, she wasn't even supposed to know he was home. "You're being silly," she said to herself. "You've known Booth for four years, he's let you cry in his arms, there's no reason why you can't show up unannounced."

Brennan rang the bell but there was no answer. She rang again. Still no answer. Brennan turned to go but then stopped. She saw the rock by his door and remembered that the key was beneath it. She reached down and picked up the key and slowly opened his door.

"Booth, are you here." But he obviously wasn't. All the lights were out in his apartment. The lake house address was on the fridge. A big pile of mail was stacked on the kitchen table, but when Brennan sifted through it, she noticed that nothing important seemed to be in the pile. He had been there; he just wasn't anymore. As she wondered what to do, the phone rang. Booth's answering machine picked up and Brennan heard his message.

"Hi, you've reached Seeley Booth, I will be away from Washington DC in the Poconos until August 24th. If this is an emergency please call me on my cell phone. If this has to do with work please call Agent Sanderson at the FBI."

Brennan waited, but no one left a message. The lake house, maybe Booth was still there, but why would he come back and drop Parker off just to go back up? Hadn't he said that Rebecca said it was fine for him to stay with Booth the full two months? She cursed herself for not asking Rebecca when she had the chance. Hadn't she learned any investigating skills from her years as Booth's partner?

Brennan pulled out her cell and dialed Booth's number, she just wanted to make sure he was ok, and talking to him would be the quickest way to figure out this mystery. But Booth did not pick up, and the phone went directly to voicemail. Brennan knew she might be acting irrationally for one time in her life, but she jumped in her car and was soon heading out of the city towards Pennsylvania.