Booth ran out of the Hoover building, towards Brennan's parked car. To his dismay, it no longer occupied the space and he felt her absence more than usual.
Absence and Presence
Booth lay on his couch, still in his sweatpants. The pain raged through his back and he cursed every time he tried to move a muscle.
Booth was on leave, for the doctors said he needed a weeks worth of rest. This meant no working, no lifting, more importantly, no Bones.
The television had bored him hours ago, as did the graphic novel, so Booth lay on his couch, cruising through the thoughts in his mind.
He had not been this far away from his partner for quite some time. They always had a case or paperwork to do, so this week was proving to be one of torture.
Sure, she had called him and filled him in on what was going on with the case, but Brennan tended to stick more to the technical side of things. He tried picturing the case in his mind, but with little detail to go on, this proved to be a waste of time and effort.
Booth looked down at his cell phone.
11:47 pm.
He knew he should go to bed, but his partner, had not called him yet. Booth sighed and with a pouty face, leaned to stand up. He looked at his phone once again and wagered whether or not he wanted to just call his partner anyway. Deciding against it, he tossed his phone onto the messy coffee table.
Suddenly there was a key in the door and it flew open. Brennan stood there with an armful of Thai takeout cartons.
"Booth?" Brennan kicked the door closed and walked over to the couch.
"Bones, what are you doing here?" Booth half smiled, not really caring how late it was.
"Well, I saw your lights from the street, so I thought you would like to share my dinner with me." Brennan smiled and set the food down on the table in front of her.
Booth smiled and tried to sit up. He winced in pain, but didn't care. This was the best he felt all week.
"Thanks Bones. How is the case going?" Booth picked up some fried rice and dug in.
"Well, we solved it, thanks to the Jeffersonian team and myself. We didn't really need help from Agent Glenn. He and I did not see things on the same level-" Brennan continued talking as Booth watched her tell the story of the case.
This is what he had been missing all week. He never realized how animated Brennan could be and smiled and laughed as she told the saga that she had to go through.
After finishing dinner and her story, Brennan pulled a small bag out of her purse. Inside there was a fruit cup for Brennan and a slice of apple pie for Booth. Booth smiled as she continued a different story about her publisher, while they ate dessert.
The absence Booth felt melted away instantly with the presence of his partner and friend.
Booth was brought back to reality.
"So, when are you coming back to work?" Brennan smiled.
"Monday, I will be good to go on Monday." Booth leaned back and rested on the back of the couch.
"Good. Things have not been the same without you around." Brennan smiled meekly.
"You missed me Bones?" Booth teased slightly.
"Maybe a little." Brennan stood up and stretched. "Well, it's late. Time to go home."
Brennan cleaned up the mess and walked towards the door. Booth called to her as she walked out the door.
"Bones?"
Brennan peaked around the door frame.
"See you Monday morning. For breakfast." Booth raised his eyebrow.
"See you Monday." Brennan closed the door.
Booth smiled and sighed with relief.
She missed me too.