AN: Sorry for the delay with this chapter, guys. Just midterms popped up, nasty little vermin. That's the price I pay for going for going to college. Anyways, here's chapter three, yet another Hannah chapter. Anyways, thanks again to everyone who reviewed- 17 on two chapters? Not bad, not bad at all. That's what keeps me writing.
Lyrics are from My Heart Is Broken, by Evanescence.
Chapter 3: Oblivious
I can't go on living this way
And I can't go back the way I came
Shamed of this fear that I will never find
A way to heal my soul
My Heart Is Broken, Evanescence
It felt odd, wandering back in here.
Hannah glanced quickly around the lab, trying to notice if anything seemed out of place. To her eyes, everything seemed… normal. The scientists, or 'squints" as Seeley used to call them, were hurrying about at a rather normal pace, shuffling boxes and files around the Jeffersonian Institution.
She felt out of place in this hall, the beckoning of hard, scientific knowledge just outside of her forte. She reported the facts, but on events, on history in the making- this was the realm of the geniuses, those who understood the very fabric of their universe. This was the realm of Dr. Brennan- not Hannah, or Seeley, for that matter.
Still, Hannah shrugged slightly, and wandered towards the lab area. She hoped that Seeley would be there- she wasn't sure how much longer she could take without seeing him.
())))(((()
"Large fracture on the right ulna…"
Wendell hovered over his current remains, his eyes squinting against the light of the lab room as he tried to make out the injuries to the murder victim's right arm. The body had been found at the bottom of a nearby harbor, bond and gagged to a rock. It had just come in this morning, and with Dr. Brennan being late for some odd reason, it was up to Wendell to begin the preliminary examination.
Of course, it didn't help anything that Dr. Brennan was pregnant. Her hormones were spiraling out of control on an almost daily basis, and Wendell, or whichever intern was working at the time, often had to deal with their usually stoic boss beginning to bawl at the autopsy table, or get depressed a second later. Wendell knew it would disappear after the kid was born, but it was making his job unsettling for the next few months.
Of course, something else had to make things even more complicated.
He was moving over from the ulna to the radius in his examination, when he heard footsteps come towards the podium. He glanced up instinctively, and froze when he spotted a blonde-haired woman, pumps on the ground and coffee in hand, peek around the lab. He had seen the woman a few times before, but not for almost a year.
Wendell watched Hannah for a minute, as the reporter continued her search around the lab. Too soon, however, she glanced up the podium, and spotted Wendell's gaze. Her eyes met his for a second, and than a bright smile burst on her face, which Wendell noted seemed a bit too quick, and rather forced. She waved at him, and walked up to the side of the platform, Wendell watching her with wide eyes as she did.
"Hey," she said rather brightly, as Wendell finally blinked. She continued to glance at him, tilting her head slightly. "You work for Dr. Brennan, right… Wendell, isn't it?"
Wendell gulped and than forced himself to relax. "Yeah," He didn't expect her to remember him right of the top of her head, he had only met her a few times before than. "Hannah… long time, no see."
She kept grinning, her smile easing slightly at his words. "Yeah, it has been a while." She glanced back around, and than turned back to him, her facial expression rather questioning. "If you don't mind me asking, but have you seen Seeley around this morning? I've been all around here, but no one's seen him."
"Umm…" Wendell trailed off, unsure of how to answer. He did have an idea of where Booth was, but considering who was asking, it would be rather delicate to reveal that fact. "Well, I haven't seen him this morning, either. Sorry about that."
Hannah's smile faded somewhat at his answer. "Oh… well, if you do see him, can you tell him I stopped by?"
Wendell nodded slightly, and nodded at her. "Sure."
Hannah turned to go, and Wendell dipped back down to continue his preliminary examination of the remains. He let out a low sigh of relief, until he heard Hannah stop.
"Actually…" she called back, turning around to face the intern again. "Just curious, but have you seen Dr. Brennan around, either? Sorry to interrupt."
())))(((()
Of course- how stupid could she be? Why not call Temperance? She was Seeley's partner, after all- she might be able to get Hannah into contact with him.
It didn't even cross her mind that Temperance may not want to get her in contact with him- Seeley had been clear that the feelings between the pair were purely professional at this stage, and that he was in love with Hannah- why would he lie to her about that?
She gazed at Wendell, who shuffled slightly at her question. It was minute, but the young man seemed rather uncomfortable with her presence. Hannah would dwell on that later- right now, she was hoping for an answer.
"That examination better be done, Dr. Bray- I need those preliminary results ASAP, and I don't have Dr. Brennan today-"
Hannah jumped at the sound of a new voice echoing into the lab area. She craned her neck around to look at the new arrival, and spotted Dr. Saroyan walking into the lab, her strides dignified. The doctor glared for a second at Wendell, until she glanced over and spotted Hannah standing beside the platform.
Hannah waved at Cam, as yet another surprised look crossed the medical examiner's face.
"Oh…Hannah!" Cam stuttered, her eyes growing a bit wider at the sight of Booth's ex. Hannah watched her for a moment, and than rolled her eyes slightly. It seemed everyone she ran into from Booth's team was shocked by her presence.
"Hello, Dr. Saroyan… sorry for the interruption." She said quickly, hoping to cover for Wendell's delay. "I was just stopping in to say hello."
"Uh, sure…" Cam trailed off, her face relaxing into a more blank expression. Hannah watched her, but still noticed that her body posture was rather anxious still.
"Anyways, I'll be on my way," Hannah said quietly, turning to go out the main entrance. "It was nice seeing you both again- and thank you, Wendell."
She hurried out the door, shaking her head in confusion as she did. What was with everyone?