A/N: Thanks for the feedback on the previous 2 parts! This is the last part of chapter 5. Enjoy and let me know what you think!

Chapter 5: The Treatment is Worse Than the Disease-Part 3

Week 3 after treatment

Today was the twentieth day after his first treatment and Booth felt great. The last couple days, he was able to go outside and he never thought something as simple as feeling the sun on his skin would feel so good. And although Brennan made him put on obscene amounts of sunscreen and pants even though it was summer, he didn't care. He didn't even care that his hat did not exactly cover up the fact that all his hair was gone and people stared at him as he and Brennan walked hand in hand down the National Mall.

Yesterday, he had even gotten to see Parker after Brennan took him to get his blood drawn. Spending the afternoon with his son at the park, throwing the football around, gave him the sense of normalcy that he needed before his next treatment. It also reminded him what he was fighting so hard for.

As he woke up this morning, he felt warmer than a D.C. summer should have made him feel. Worried that he had a fever, he sat up and disturbed the actual reason why he was so warm. He couldn't help but smile at the unhappy grunt that she made when he pulled his arm out from underneath her and she fell back on the bed. They had been spooned together on the bed before he woke up and now she was turned slightly on her stomach with her face being buried in the pillow with the crease between her eyes the visible sign of her discontent. Booth thought she never looked more adorable.

Hoping to wipe that look off of her face, he settled himself over her, holding his weight above her on his forearms, bending down to kiss her forehead, her check, and finally her lips. Only on the last one did she wake up, returning the kiss with equal fervor and sliding her arms up around his neck to softly stroke the back of his head as their tongues lazily twisted together. Another benefit of having more energy was that two days ago, they had made love for the first time since the night before his treatment.

They only stopped when oxygen became a necessity and their foreheads rested together as they broke apart, their bodies still wound around each other.

"Good morning," he told her with a smile.

"Good morning to you too," she returned, reaching her head up to give him another soft, short kiss. "We have to get up; your appointment is at 9 this morning."

Booth pouted. "Can't we just stay here all day?"

She stroked the back of his neck once more before slipping out from underneath him and walked toward the bathroom. "No, Booth. Come on, we have to go to your appointment."

Groaning, Booth buried his face in her pillow, inhaling her scent before getting up and ready to face the day.

*******

Once they arrived at Dr. Liao's office, the nurse took Booth to be weighed and he was relieved to find that he had only lost 3 pounds since his last treatment, meaning he had managed to gain 13 pounds back of the 16 he had originally lost. The nurse then led him to the room, took his vital signs, and told them to wait a moment until Dr. Liao would be in to see them. Booth nodded gratefully at her and then perched himself on the edge of the examination table and grimaced as the waxy paper he sat on crinkled.

It wasn't long before Dr. Liao came into the room.

"Mr. Booth, Dr. Brennan, I'm glad you could make it today," he started. Booth nodded at him as the doctor took a seat on the little black stools that were always in exam rooms. Booth couldn't wait for the appointment to be over. He hated all the questions and the poking and feeling like a lab animal. He sighed though as he knew this would be his reality for the next four months. But he took a deep breath and closed his eyes for a moment, reminding himself that he had done it once, he could do it five more times. At least now, he knew what to expect.

"So, Mr. Booth, how are you feeling?" Dr. Liao said as he got up to look at the scar he had on his neck and head. Booth took his hat off to assist him.

"I've been doing okay," Booth started but at Brennan's glare, he continued. "Well, the first week was pretty rough," he admitted.

Dr. Liao nodded and moved away from him, apparently satisfied with the condition of his scars. "I noticed here that you lost 3 pounds since your last treatment."

Booth was content to stay quiet and let him think that was what really happened but Brennan decided that was not the way to go.

"Actually, Dr. Liao, he lost 16 pounds and has spent the last two weeks gaining 13 pounds of it back."

"Bones!" Booth hissed from the table.

"What, Booth? Do you want to feel how bad you did the last time or do you want him to know exactly how bad it was so he can give you some medication to help this time?" Brennan asked him, pinning him with another glare.

Booth sighed and looked at Dr. Liao, knowing that Brennan was right but hating to admit weakness. "It was really bad, doc. I threw up and diarrhea for about six days straight and the only thing I could keep down was this crazy green tea Angela brought me."

He saw Dr. Liao smirk. "That's because it probably contained cannabis, Mr. Booth," he stated calmly, going back to his prescription pad, missing the horrified look on Booth's face.

"You mean, like, marijuana?" Booth questioned, seeing the nod of confirmation from both Brennan and Dr. Liao. "But, but, that's illegal! I'm an agent with the Federal Bureau of Investigation! I cannot be consuming marijuana!" he cried out, stunned at why they were not taking this more seriously.

"Mr. Booth, it is nothing to worry about. I am actually prescribing some to you, in pill form, to help with the nausea. Medical marijuana is very effective, Mr. Booth. It should drastically reduce your urge to vomit and make the first week after treatment much more tolerable."

Still seeing that Booth was not quite okay with this yet, he continued. "Mr. Booth, remember when we talked about how this is a marathon, not a sprint? You have five more treatments left and you can't be losing 16 pounds every time and remain healthy. You need to be in the best physical and mental shape you can be in before starting each new round of treatment and you can't do that of you can't keep anything down for six days out of twenty-one. I urge you to give this a try this time and if it doesn't work, then we re-evaluate. But this has worked for many of my other patients and I think it will work for you too."

Booth considered his words. While still not happy about it, he would do anything to decrease the nausea he felt last time. It literally felt the world was spinning for the whole six days and he could not get the bile taste out of his mouth.

Then he looked at Brennan and remembered how tired and anxious she looked when he was constantly puking his guts out. He knew that she didn't get any sleep during that time and he realized then that he would do anything to keep that look from her face. He nodded reluctantly at Dr. Liao.

"Good," Dr. Liao said. "Your blood work that we had drawn yesterday looks great so a couple more things and you'll be on your way."

*******

As Booth walked out of the outpatient center and toward the parking garage, he felt Brennan hook her arm through his and he leaned down to place a small kiss against her head.

"So the instructions say to keep the cannabis in the refrigerator. Should we keep it next to the beer in case we want a really good time?" she asked.

He looked at her, about to rebuff her statement when he noticed the mischievous smile on her face.

"Really cute, Bones. I'm glad you've picked this of all times to develop a sense of humor," he grumbled as her laughter followed them to the car.