Booth felt his heart sink as he watched Harlow's eyes tear up and as she ran from the room. He didn't want to leave Brennan he never wanted to leave her again but he knew Harlow needed him. taking a quick look back at his wife he saw tears in her eyes too but he stood up and followed his daughter. He almost ran into Max on the way out the door.
"She's gone to the waiting room." He said immediately. Booth ran off and stopped at the slightly opened waiting room door where he could hear Harlow crying.
"Harlie it's ok…" he heard Parker say. She sniffed.
"No… no it's not Park." She sniffed.
"Harlow trust me it is. She's been gone for a long time it's normal that you don't remember her properly…" his young son said calmly. "…I don't think I even remember her voice and I know her a lot longer then you."
"But.. But she's my mommy…"
"I know Harlow I know." She sniffed again.
"Parkie, what if Daddy doesn't love us as much anymore!" she said with a sob interrupting her sentence every two words. Booth felt his heart tighten at her words.
"What makes you think that Harlow."
"Mommy's back and Angela told me he really loves Mommy and he might go way again and forget us like the last time…" Booth couldn't take it anymore he walked into the room.
"Harlow…"
he said kneeling down in front of her. She ran over to him.
"Daddy
I'm sorry I runned away…"
"It's ok darling I know this is a lot to take right now. But I need you to know that I'll never stop loving you! never. No matter how much I love Mommy." She nodded into his shoulder. He looked up at Parker and tried to smile. His son stood up and wrapped his arms around his sister and his father. After a few seconds Booth looked up.
"Park why don't you go into Bones. I know she'd love to see you. but remember she's still sick."
"Ok Dad." He nodded. As he left Booth sat up on one of the chairs and took Harlow up on his lap. "Now baby what do you not remember about Mommy." He asked quietly.
"I remember her face… cause you showded me the pictures. But she looks different cause of the bad men Grandpa Max told me about." She sniffed. She'd always seemed so old for her age but now she really did seem like just a baby.
"Yes…"
"and she doesn't smell like I remembers she used to smells like your wardrobe, and the bowl of stuff in the bathroom…"
"That's right good girl." Suddenly she looked up.
"And the trying song!" she smiled.
"What's that?" he said.
"The trying song mommy used to sing it to me." Her eyes had brightened at the memory.
"See you do remember." She nodded. He grinned and kissed her forehead. "Now come on lets go back into Mommy." He stood up still holding her.
Brennan looked up and smiled as her husband and daughter walked in. She was still holding Parkers hand. He'd gotten so tall in the last year. And Harlow had gotten so big.
"Harlow what do you want to ask Mommy?" Booth smiled.
"Will you sing the trying song mommy?" she said grinning. Brennan reached out her arms to her. Harlow climbed onto the bed and sat up beside her.
"Of course Harlow." She looked up at Booth with tears in her eyes. "I've been thinking now just a little too much and I don't know how I can get in touch with you but there's only one thing for me to do it's to keep on trying to get home to you…" she sang softly.
Three hours later, Rebecca had collected Parker. Angela and Jack had said goodbye and Came and Sweets had come and gone and Max had headed home. And now Harlow was curled up asleep against Brennan's side. She was running her hand through her dark hair, but was looking up at Booth who was sitting on the chair beside her.
"My dad told me about the last few weeks." She said softly. "The drinking, you stayed in the office for over three days Seeley." He looked down at his hand as she took it in hers. He could feel the cuts on her palm rub against his hand.
"I broke. I couldn't take not having you anymore. I couldn't mind Harlie anymore." He shrugged.
"I've told you before, grief is irrational."
"Bones are you honestly telling me that you'd prefer that I hadn't missed you? that a couple of years ago when you thought I was dead that you didn't care?" she stopped stroking Harlow's hair.
"no…"
"You know what Bones it doesn't matter anymore. You're back and I really don't plan on losing you again for about seventy years!"
"The chances of you living until you're over a hundred are very slim Booth. unless you convert to vegetarianism…" he leaned down and kissed her.
"Never going to work." Booth smiled. His life was on the mend. They were all back together, and this black period in his life had just proved to him all the more how much he loved Temperance Brennan. How much he loved his family. He sat up on the bed on Brennan's other side, and wrapped an arm around her.
"Bones you will never know how much we missed you … I was so sure you were dead I… I didn't know what to do. we had a headstone in the graveyard, we visited every few days…" just then Harlow muttered something.
"What did she say?" Brennan asked as she saw Booth's smiled widen.
"Daises…"
"I don't know what that means." Brennan said.
"We brought you daises. Always daises." He said softly.
