1Title: Vicariously
Author: SplishySplash, Ihave207Bones
Pairing: B/B
Spoiler: Yanks in the UK
Rating: T
The US Airway flight from London landed at Dulles International Airport sometime after eight and on the seven forty-seven were a tired FBI agent and anthropologist. They stood up from their upgraded first class seats and the agent grabbed both of their bags from the over head compartment before they headed off the plane.
Brennan was first to exit the plane with Booth in tow and reached for her bag from his hands. "I can carry my bag Booth." She argued with a tired smile
"You upgraded me to first class, it's the least I can do for you Bones." He said placing it on his shoulder as he carried his own duffle in the other hand.
She didn't argue as she followed him of the play and down the walkway towards the baggage claim in a companionable, yet tired silence.
They had reached their destination when Brennan searched her bag for her cell phone that had fallen deep into the bag away from its normal pocket and slipped underneath her laptop and novel. Booth stood next to her with his hand protectively on her back as he awaited for their carousel to bring their luggage.
She gasped as the phone found its way into her hand and she pulled it out and turned it on. The screen flashed that she had a voice mail and she held it to her ear, prompting it to play.
Booth shifted to pull his bag off the conveyer belt and waited patiently for her bag to follow, instead the old woman standing next to him struggled to pull her very large bag off the belt, he easily reached across and pulled the carpeted bag off. Her smile brightened as she thanked him profusely before turning on her heels and leaving the baggage claim.
Soon Brennan's modest and worn bag came down the chute and around to him, he pulled it off and turned to see a frown on her tired face. He juggled the bags and made it over to her with a frown. "What is it?"
"It's from Angela, she broke up with Hodgins." Came her response in a shaky breath. "I need to see her."
"We can hail a cab and head over. . ."Booth suggest as they separated the luggage and headed out of the claim towards a melee of cars awaiting their passenger.
"You're probably exhausted, Booth. You don't have to come, it's mostly going to be filled with crying, ice cream and movies." Brennan said.
"That's okay, I don't mind." Booth encouraged. "And you're just as exhausted, if you fall asleep I can keep her company." She nodded in agreement as she held out her hand for a taxi.
One pulled up almost immediately and a tall man stepped out with a cheesy smile. "Where would you like to go?" he asked as he picked up Brennan's suitcase and loaded it into the trunk. Brennan gave the address and they were loaded into the yellow taxi and on the freeway towards Angela's apartment.
*~*~*
The ride was long and cramped, Brennan sat in the middle and her leg touching Booths as their carryon luggage took up the window seat. She leaned back with her head against his shoulder and she sighed contently. "Did you sleep at all while we were in the air?" Booth asked with a smile.
"Not really, I started working on the next chapter to my book and I got caught up in my writing." She said with a yawn. "I couldn't have slept if I tried."
"Sounds like you had a lot on your mind." He said softly as he brushed her bangs that hand fallen across her forehead.
She chuckled slightly. "That's an understatement of the year." She said as the car came to a stop in front of Angela's building and the driver climbed out. Booth was first to get out and held his hand out for her to grab, she took and slipped out of the car.
Booth grabbed the luggage as Brennan paid the fare and the met on the side walk before Brennan lead the way up the stairs towards her friends flat. They reached a large oak door and she raised her hand to knock on the door, they waited silently as they heard hard footsteps against the floor to the door. The handle turned and Angela stood on the other side, her face lacking her normal enthusiasm for life and makeup, she wore baggy clothes and her eyes were red and tear stained.
Brennan handed Booth her carryon and left her bag standing next to him as she enveloped the artist in a hug. Angela buried her head into the anthropologist's neck, but didn't cry and it didn't last long, she let go and moved out of the way so they could bring their luggage inside her apartment.
"You didn't have to come over. . ."Angela said flatly as she shut the door.
"No worries, Angela." Said Booth as he wrapped his strong arms around her, they stood there for a moment longer before she motioned for them to sit on her long modern black couch.
"What happened?" Brennan asked, taking the seat in between Booth and Angela. Booth glared at her insensitivity, but softened slightly as he knew it wasn't her fault.
Angela took a deep breath and shook her head. "I don't really know and I don't want to think about it right now." She said sadly, looking at her hands. "I guess for tonight I just want to wallow in self pity."
"Well that is why we are here." Booth said encouragingly and Brennan nodded. "Bones said something about ice cream and movies. . ."
A smile graced Angela's sullen face as she jumped to her feet. "Good idea, that always makes me feel better." She said getting to her feet and motioning them to follow. "Why don't you change into something more comfortable."
*~*~*
It was within the span of ten minutes that they were situated in the middle of Angela's California king sized bed with Brennan in the middle of Booth and Angela leaning against the headboard, each with their own pints of Ben and Jerry's as the opening credits for Never Been Kissed scrolled up the large flat screen TV.
"This bed is probably bigger than my bedroom." Exclaimed Booth as he stretched his blue plaid covered legs out and still couldn't reach the end of the bed.
"It has its advantages." She said almost slyly. "You know for the brightly colored ties and socks, you wear lame pajamas."
Brennan chuckled slightly as she gained looks from both Booth and Angela. "It's because at work he needs some sort of outlet for his socio-economic rage which he expresses with the colorful ties, socks and the belt buckle." She explained with a tired smile. "He doesn't have that at home."
"What happened to the 'I hate psychology' thing?" Booth asked with a smile
"I'm just repeating what Dr. Wyatt said." She said with a shrug, Booth elbowed her playfully. "I still hate psychology, it's a soft science."
"I have other pajamas at home, these happened to be the ones I grabbed." He defended, taking notice of Angela's light blue shorts and Brennan's that was bright pink plaid. "And besides, yours are just as lame as mine."
Angela shrugged. "I have better pajamas, don't you doubt it and I figured that since you guys are here I would wear something a bit more appropriate." Angela said with a sad smile. Booth mumbled something about not doubting Angela's taste in sleepwear before the three fell into a silence.
It wasn't long into the movie that Brennan leaned over Booth and placed her three quarters full ice cream onto the night stand, giving up on the frozen dairy snack. Her eye lids grew heavy as the blond woman on the screen accepted the position to go undercover at a high school and soon her head rested on Booth shoulder.
Booth shifted to accommodate her slumping posture against him and wrapped an arm around her shoulders before pulling a throw across their legs. Angela turned her head and glanced at the partners with another sad smile on her face. "She never has taken jet lag too well." Angela commented.
"She didn't rest or anything during the flight back." Booth explained in a whisper, the gentle vibrations from his chest caused her to bury her nose into his chest. "She started working on the next chapters to her book and got carried away."
"As you slept?" Angela asked.
"Yeah, she upgraded us to first class and I slept like a baby for part of it." He said with a smile. "I never realized how much room you get up there."
Angela was silent for a moment as if trying to find the right words to say. "How is she taking the death of her friend?"
"She was upset for awhile, but she took it in stride." Booth said, his voice conveying his worry. "She compartmentalized his murder like she always does." He ran his hand through her hair and brushed the bangs from her closed eyes.
"I don't like it when she does that, it breaks my heart." Commented Angela, with a frown. "She had the hardest time when we thought you were dead, even though she didn't come out and say it."
They hadn't talked about what had happened after he was shot and the two weeks until his 'funeral' and it was her reaction during the funeral that confused him. She was angry and she had every right to be in his opinion. "If I could redo those entire two weeks, I would've called her."
"You're here now and that all that matters." Angela said. "But a phone call would've been nice, we couldn't get her away from the lab and in the long run it was safer for her to be there, Sweets was worried that she could become self destructive."
"She wouldn't have done that, it's not rational." Booth commented, "Worked herself to the point of exhaustion maybe, I noticed at the funeral that she had lost some weight and her eyes were dark like she hadn't been sleeping."
Angela nodded in confirmation and pointed a finger at him. "If you ever do that again, I will hurt you personally." She threatened.
"Please do." Booth said as Brennan slid down further so that her head rested on his stomach and her arm was around his waist. His fingers toyed with her soft hair that remained in the hair tie as he pulled it out and smoothed out the curls.
"She doesn't deserve any of this I can't see how she can go through all this and still come out still as strong willed." Angela said, reaching over and pulling out a knot that was in her hair.
"She has good friends like you who are willing to drop anything at her call." Booth said, taking Angela's hand in hers. "She insisted in coming straight from the airport as soon as she got the voicemail, because you are hurting."
Angela gave his hand a squeeze. "But she also has you." She said with a smile, almost up to par with her usual bright smiles. "I know I've teased the both of you about getting together, but you have no idea as to what you mean to her."
"It's supposed to be us comforting you, not the other way around." Booth said with a weak smile.
"What can I say? I live vicariously through your relationship with her, but seriously it nearly broke her when she was holding you after you were shot and with everything else that has happened I'm worried that she will rebuild that wall around her."
"I will try my hardest to not let that happen to her." Booth answered, holding Angela's gaze as both had forgotten about the movie.
"That's what I want to hear." She said with a smile.
They were silent for a few moments before Booth spoke again. "Do you want to talk about what happened with Hodgins?"He asked.
Angela closed her eyes painfully. "Not really, I still don't really know what happened." She responded with a sigh.
"Do I need to have a talk with him?" Booth asked in almost a growl. He liked the entomologist, but sometimes he said things in a harsh tone and needed to be put in his place and if he needed be, Booth would be the man for it.
"No, I was the one who broke it off." Angela said sadly, a lone tear slipped down her cheek. "I'm not entirely sure why exactly."
Booth looked at her in surprise. "But you got your divorce and . . ." He stammered, trying to find words sensitive enough for the situation.
"I don't know, I just need some time to process it." Angela said with a yawn. "I don't want to think about it anymore tonight, I want to obsess over you and her and sleep peacefully, right now."
He nodded and slide down the headboard so that both him and Brennan laid against the mattress, the sleeping anthropologist mumbled incoherently as Booth covered her with a heavier blanket before sighing loudly. "To help me sleep better, did we make you feel any better?" He asked.
"Some." She answered with another yawn. "But if she wakes up in that position in the morning I will be happier than a school kid with candy."
He chuckled and glanced at the TV screen, taking notice that the credits had filled the screen and that he had missed the entire movie talking with Angela and simply holding the woman in his arms, he inhaled the fruity shampoo that was in her hair and slowly drifted to sleep.
Angela watched for a moment longer and sighed contently, no matter how much her life was spiraling around her she could look between the partners next to her and they would light the path until she found her way, no matter which direction. She tried to pick out the moment when she became so obsessed with the agent and the anthropologist, and it had to have been when the man walk into the Jeffersonian with his irresistable charm smile and changed the woman. With the two of them she could live vicariously and hide from her failing relationship and drift off to a peaceful sleep.
