There were very few people that could change Booth's mind once it was made up. He was one of them. Parker Booth sat on a park bench with his father eating an ice cream cone. Booth got to see his son every Wednesday and alternating weekends. This was the first time in months that he had asked Brennan to stay at home so he could have some 'father son time'.
"Dad are you mad at doctor bones?"
"No parks why would you think that?" this was not a good way to start the conversation he had planned.
"You didn't invite her to hang out with us. Did you break up with her?"
"No, I actually wanted to talk to you about her"
"Mom says talking about people when they're not around is mean"
"It is sometimes. It depends on what you say about them, I tell my friends at work about you all the time, how good you're doing at school and at hockey, is that mean?"
"No, so we're gonna say nice things about doctor bones?'
"It's more of a question about her"
"Yeah?"
"How would you feel if I asked bones to marry me?"
Booth had prepared for two responses, either Parker would take it well and be super excited or he would be angry and yell at him in the middle of the park. Parker sat there for several minutes without speaking, deep in thought then
"Is bones gonna have a baby?" booth choked on his ice cream as he swallowed it.
"Not unless you know something I don't"
"You asked mom to marry you when she was gonna have me"
"Yeah bub and she shot me down; I'm going for a different angle."
"That's probably a good idea"
"Yeah"
"Dad after you got married would she want me to call her mom?"
"Would you want to?" booth was curious to hear his answer. Did his son see his girlfriend as his mom?
"I don't think so- I mean she's great but it would be weird calling her anything but bones" that was true booth could count on his hands the number of times he had called her by her first name.
"You know when I first started calling her that she didn't like it, I did it to make her angry."
"Like how you used to call Brent captain fantastic?"
"Yeah, her face would get all funny and she would say 'don't call me bones'" he did his best mock Brennan impression. "It took almost three years before she gave up.
"I think she likes it now"
"Between you and me bub I think she liked it then too"
Booth was pretty sure he knew the answer but he had to hear parker say the words.
"So bones, what do you think, yay or nay?"
He smiled at his dad "you should totally do it, totally"
Booth had to fight the urge to burst out into song. He settled for a fist bump with his son instead.
"Do you want to see the ring?"
"You already have it?"
"I was pretty sure you would be cool with it so I picked it out a few days ago."
Booth pulled to small box out of his back pocket. Parker opened the box and immediately started laughing.
"What!" parker kept laughing.
"What's wrong with it?"
"She won't be able to say no"
"Oh no?"
"No dad, you went to Jared" parker started laughing again
"Hey give your old man a break that cost a lot of money"
Parker gave the box back to his dad.
"Hey parker, I have another question to ask you. If she says yes, will you be my best man?"
"You said I wouldn't be a man until I had hair under my arms"
"I think in this case we can make an exception."
