Author's Note: Next chapter. This is sort of an episode tag for The Hot Dog in the Competition.

I do not own Bones or any of its characters.

Thank you to everyone who is reading/following/reviewing this. It is always appreciated.

D: I tend to agree with you that if the writers are going to try to sell us on the idea of theirs being a relationship that will last, they will need to show more sides to it other than the physical and the comedic. Something along the lines of what we saw glimpses of in The Bones on the Blue Line, for example. I know that the Sweets Journal for the iPad is also an attempt to show us more sides to their relationship, but I have hopes that we will see more onscreen this season, especially given that it seems like the writers did try to portray Daisy in a more sympathetic light in this season's The Prince in the Plastic. In the meantime, I guess I can try to envision things the way I'd like them to go, anyway. :)

Charlotte Thornton: I agree with the idea that I think Daisy does try to help him as best she can, even if she doesn't always understand everything inside him. But I also do think that Sweets does keep things to himself...things that probably no one knows about to this day...

Peanutmeg: Thank you for the review. :) My main beef with the Swaisy relationship these days is that it really does not feel as fleshed out as it could be. I think if it were, it would be more enjoyable. Thus my attempts to add a little something more. Anyway, I hope you enjoy this chapter as well.

Chapter Three—Questions

After spending over fifteen minutes staring at her salad rather than eating it, Doctor Camille Saroyan began to wonder if she was going to have to give up on her dinner.

It had been a harrowing day at work. It hadn't been entirely expected, but she had started out hoping that it could be avoided.

The pathologist pushed her carrots around her plate with her fork. It had been no easy decision for her to hire Finn Abernathy as the newest intern at the lab. Even though he was easily one of the brightest students currently in Brennan's grad program, Cam knew ahead of time that Finn had a questionable past and had wondered if it was prudent to have him working around evidence in murder cases. But in the end, she decided that what was most important was having the most brilliant minds helping the Medico-Legal lab flourish in its pursuits.

Sadly, it turned out to be a decision fraught with difficulty from the start.

On one front were the visits from Caroline. Granted, the pathologist understood that she had an invested interest in making sure that the integrity of the lab was maintained, and the prosecutor did bring up some valid concerns about Finn's past. But after talking it over with Angela, who had researched into it and Brennan who had discussed the matter outright with the intern, she came to the conclusion that Finn would more than likely be an asset rather than a hindrance to their work.

Then there was the initial friction between Finn and Hodgins, and to top it off, the intern's brief decision to walk away from the job. All of it had been smoothed over by the end of the case, but still it had frayed Cam's nerves far more than she would have liked. She had begun to wonder if there would be any other personality issues in the future between Finn and members of the Jeffersonian.

Cam took a sip of water. She had felt confident about her decisions regarding Finn as she was leaving the Jeffersonian that day and had decided to treat herself to dinner at the Royal Diner, but now she couldn't help but be consumed by doubt. Doubt and by questions that consumed her thoughts.

"Doctor Saroyan…may I join you?"

The pathologist looked up to see Sweets standing next to her table. She immediately smiled in response.

"Doctor Sweets," she said. "Sure. Have a seat." The psychologist smiled back and sat down. A waitress stopped by and Sweets ordered a cup of coffee and a sandwich before turning his attention back toward Cam.

"Is something going on?" Sweets inquired. "Perhaps something at work?"

Cam sighed, her shoulders slumping in defeat. She wasn't really shocked that Sweets had been able to detect her discomfort, and in the back of her mind, she theorized that part of the reason she invited him to join her was because she knew he would catch onto it eventually. Still, she had to admit that it was always a little unnerving that Sweets was usually able to sense what was on her mind as effortlessly as other people walk across a room.

"Yes, it's work," Cam sighed. "It's Finn. Our new intern."

"I heard about him," the psychologist nodded. "Apparently he is posed to be the next 'Doctor Brennan' within the field of forensic anthropology."

"Yes, he's brilliant," the pathologist agreed. "But it's not that simple."

"I know," Sweets murmured. "I talked to Angela at one point today. She gave me the basics of the situation."

"I want Finn to be a part of this lab," she continued. "I know that he will be a great asset to our team. But I just don't know if someone with such a dark history…I don't know if they can move past it. I mean, I know that Doctor Brennan and even Booth have a lot in their pasts too…but all that…I just don't think that kind of darkness existed within them, you know?"

"And yet I understand that you still plan to keep him as a part of the team?" Sweets questioned after the waitress dropped off his sandwich. "Something must be overriding your concerns about his past."

"It's…I'm sure he's a good kid," she sighed. "And Doctor Brennan agrees with me on this. And I don't want to think about a world where someone who had to face such horrible things has to suffer for the rest of their life just because of a mistake. It just doesn't…it doesn't seem right. Especially when it wasn't their fault that something bad happened to them."

"This isn't just about Finn, is it?" the psychologist asked after taking a large bite of his sandwich. The two of them ate in silence for a few moments while his words sank in. Eventually Sweets finished his sandwich and leaned toward her.

"Doctor Saroyan…I think you'll find that a single mistake is not going to stop Michelle from succeeding either," he said gently. "I know that right now, things might seem bad, but I think you will find that they will work out in the end. Michelle is a good person. You know that. So is Finn. The world will give them more chances, I'm sure." Cam finally started to smile and took a hearty bite of her salad.

"Sweets, thank you," she said warmly. "Thank you, for what you said and for…for everything." Sweets grinned back at her as he sipped his coffee.

"You're welcome, Doctor Saroyan," he said.

"I do hope that working here will help Finn find his way," Cam continued. "After everything he's been through, he deserves a chance at a fresh start. I just hope that the dark parts of his past don't overshadow his current life." Sweets stood up and placed some money onto the table that more than covered his share of the bill and the tip.

"They may not overshadow his life now," the psychologist said. "But they won't go away either….Good night, Doctor Saroyan."

Sweets then walked away as silently as he had arrived, leaving Cam with one nagging thought and a lingering question.

'That sounded like more than his training talking…It sounded like…like the voice of experience.'

'And if that's the case…then what kind of dark past has he been carrying around all this time?'