A.N: I own nothing of Bones!

Sorry for taking so long for update, but this month has been crazy!

CHAPTER 18- TRYING TO PAY BACK

She was so pale and shaking so hard that Booth was sure that she could pass out at anytime soon. He still managed to support most of her weight by grabbing her waist, and for once temperance Brennan had no objections. The vomiting had finally apparently subdued, and now she slowly moved from her kneeling position to a seating one, and Booth was fast to help her. Man, her hands are so cold. He placed her against one wall in order to give her some support, bending so he could face her. Her eyes were glassy and tired, and booth had the distinct impression that she could very well lie down on the floor and fall asleep.

" Feeling a little better at all?" His voice was a soft whisper and she was glad for that, since her head started throbbing fiercely after all the hurling effort. It felt like there were drums inside it. She also felt awfully emotional again, because Booth was so damn sweet. Even in her worst time, like this one, with her puking her guts out, he still managed to stick by her side and take care of her, holding her hair and stroking her back, always telling her it was going to end soon. She felt blessed even if she didn´t actually believed in God.

" A little. I´m still very dizzy. And now my head really hurts." Had she been more conscious about her own actions, she would try with all her strength to hide how terrible she still felt. It was just her nature, not to show any sign of weakness. But oh, she got so tired of this sometimes. She may not admit it very often and outloud, but it was good to have someone to share. And her loosen tongue made sure that she wasn´t able to filter her thoughts before actually speaking. So, she came out with the blunt true, and Booth just nodded while getting out of the floor for a moment and coming back with a wet towel, placing it on her forehead. " Thank you." She closed her eyes and found herself seeking for the comfort of his shoulder,resting her head there and trying to suppress all the nausea that still dominated her body.

" Another though night, huh?" Booth stated carefully, at the same time feeling her forehead in order to be sure that another fever spike wasn´t taking place. Thankfully, despite she was definitely feverish, it didn´t look like a really high temperature. It was with the nausea he was concerned right now. " I´ll bring you another dramin,ok? So you can sleep. And some aspirin for the headache. You think you can keep it down?" She was still so pale that he couldn´t be sure. He stroked her hair lightly, amazed by how great he felt having her so near. It was like they had been doing that their entire life, or at least he felt it that way. She opened her eyes at his question, and Booth realized exactly how much that freaking pneumonia was costing his Bones. She looked absolutely drained and depressed.

" I´ll try. I wish this antibiotic wasn´t so strong. Remind me of complaining about it with dr. Crane. It has to exist another option." He let out a small smile as she feebly attempted to protest about her treatment again. That w as his Bones for sure.

" Do not try to intervene with the good doctor´s decisions, honey. She did go to med school, so I´m sure she knows a thing or two about what´s best for you. You´re just upset right now." he laughed a little when she just twisted her nose at his statement, her eyes becoming softer as she stared at him.

" You do know that as soon as I´m feeling better I´ll kick your ass because of all those petnames, don´t you? But right now, it feels nice." She mentally cursed herself by admitting that yes, she liked his sweet nicknames.And here I was thinking that I was better with my slipping tongue thing. I guess I still need some policiment. He gave her a smug charming smile as his hands kept getting lost on her curls.

" And I´ll have to remind you that you are liking it , as you´ve just admit it right now. And for the record, I think it feels nice too." I think that Bones´s lack of self control with words is contagious. Ok , seeley, changing the subject before it gets more weird than it already is. " Ok, I´m getting you some meds now so we can go back to bed. Just stay still, will you?" He started to get up when she grabbed his hand,a shy expression over her face that he could only classify as cute.

" Can I have my toothbrush? I would get it myself, but…" She shook her shoulders feeling completely embarrassed to tell that she didn´t think she could manage to stand by her own. The world was still a blur. But Booth didn´t need any other explanation, just giving her what she needed and leaving.

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They finally left the bathroom, after Booth had ministered her meds and she felt sure that the nausea would not come back anytime soon. Temperance didn´t even try to fight when Booth just took her on his arms, embracing him by the neck and resting her head on the curve of his shoulder. She knew that trying to walk would be plain stubbornness.

He placed her carefully on the bed, lying by her side, and almost jumped when she moved in order to be completely entwined with his body, her legs curling against his, her head leaning against his chest and her hands resting near it.If only she could know the effect that this has on me. But now is not the time. I need her to be on her hundred percent for this. So, he just accepted her snuggling, letting his own hands find their way to her hair and waist.

" Booth? I´m so sorry. For all this trouble." Her voice was already groggy with sleep, but he could sense the sadness in it, and was fast to calm her down, tightening his embrace.

" You really need to stop feeling sorry for things that are completely out or your control, temperance. Just rest,ok?" Before he could think any further, he was kissing her forehead, his lips soft while absorbing the heat emanating from it, travelling until stopping on her cheek, suddenly realizing what he was doing. Brennan had opened her eyes , widening them at his intimate touch. He was about to apologize when she just smiled a bit and snuggled closer.

" I wish I could kiss you back, but I´m afraid of these germs getting you too."

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She woke up in the middle of the morning, looking to the clock and realizing that it was 10 AM already. She looked at the watch in disbelief, asking herself when was the last time in her life she had allowed her body to sleep until that time of the day. She honestly couldn´t recall. But then again, nothing was the usual since she got sick. She usually did not wake up at six AM to take medications, much less at dawn to throw up or stop fever spikes. Therefore, her sleep wasn´t usually that disturbed. Plus, she felt tired all the time, and she knew it was because of the pneumonia. Which made her extremely disappointed at her own body. She always thought that, if she was to be this sick, her physical prepare would help her to resist it better. She was seeing otherwise. If it wasn´t for Booth and his care, she honestly didn´t know how she would be right now. Booth. The thought of her partner and friend made her open her eyes wider, in order to examine the man lying by her side, in a deep sleep, his hands still on her waist and a worried expression over her face. Somehow she knew she was the cause of such worry. She squinted her eyes, happy to have the chance to watch Booth so closely without him realizing. He w as always so observant that it was hard to do so. He was gorgeous, she thought. But he was so much more. He was caring, smart, funny. Temperance didn´t even know when it was the first time she had realized all of this, but oh, he was. It was long gone the time in which she just thought about Booth´s physical attraction. She sees now that it is so much more. And for the first time in her life, she feels somewhat ready to face it. It was becoming more and more clear that, after all this situation, there will be no way things will remain the same. And surprisingly, she´s not half as scared as she once thought she would be.

She stole another glance at him before moving carefully, disentangling herself of his grasp, suddenly happy to realize that her strict bed rest was officially over.I think I might go crazy if I had to stay another day like this. She considered what she could do with her conquered freedom, and as she looked at Booth , an idea struck her mind. He has been taking care of her so far. Maybe it was time for her to pay back a little. So, she crept silently of the bedroom, trying to ignore the weakness at her legs as she walked to the kitchen, like she had forgot how to use them properly. It felt like there was iron over them. But she dismissed it, knowing that she still had a long way to go until she felt the way she used when she was healthy.

She opened the fridge and closets, happy to see they were full, and absolutely surprised to find mostly organic food in there. She knew that Booth refused vehemently to eat it. But she loved it. Her eyes welled up against her will by realizing another of Booth´s great care about her. He had purchased all her favorite things.Only Booth to do such a thing for me. That sight only made her more willing to please Booth somehow. If she was already decided to make him a nice breakfast, now she was a woman in a mission.

She ignored the first wave of dizziness that took over her, closing her eyes slightly and leaning against the counter as she pancakes she had just prepared became blurred to her vision. As soon as the spinning sensation was over , she proceeded her work, heating the syrup and placing bagels on the toaster. She was picking some fruits from the fridge when it came again, but this time much stronger, and she had no time to react as her knees weakened and bent, and before she could realize things went black and she was on the floor , the glass she was holding hitting the floor with a loud sound and breaking into a million pieces. And then, before she could even think clearly, there were strong hands shaking her softly, his voice cursing in a way she had never heard before, and she opened her eyes to find Booth bending over her, his face full of worry as he surveyed the fallen woman on his kitchen.

Booth couldn´t say for sure if he felt more scared or more angry. He knew his hands were shaking with the pure scare he had just suffered. In one moment he was soundly asleep in his bed, and in other there w as this loud bang coming from his kitchen and he realizes that his Bones is no longer with him. He ran the faster he could, only to find her on the floor, surrounded by a million pieces of glass, her eyes closed and her breathing heavy.

" Temperance, c´mon. Talk to me, sweetheart." Despite he is absurdly angry by realizing that that crazy woman had ventured out of bed without his supervision, he feels like kissing her senseless when she opens her eyes and focus on his face. She looked so surprised as she looked first at him and then around her, at the same time that whatever is in his toaster pops out with a funny noise.

" I broke a glass. I´m sorry." Booth looks at her in disbelief, as his eyes start to process the entire mess around them. Her index finger is bleeding, and he suddenly realizes how lucky she was for not having worst wounds given her current status. And still, all she can think about is to apologize for breaking a freaking glass.

" It´s ok. What I really want to know is how in hell did you mange to do this. And mostly, why are you up all by yourself?" He tries to leave the anger out of his voice so he wont upset her, but his heart in thundering so loud that Booth is sure she can listen. She tries to focus a little more, but he can see that she´s having trouble with doing so. Booth is sure that she feels drowsy, to say the least.

" I wanted to make you breakfast. As a thank you for taking care of me. But I got dizzy." If Temperance already felt completely betrayed by her body before, now it´s war. She honestly couldn´t understand why she still felt so crappy. After all, the bed rest was over, right? Booth raises her from the floor carefully not to step into any glass himself, and turn around in order to take her back to the room, but she protested as vehemently as she could. " I don´t want to go back to bed. Bed rest is over, Booth. If you take me there, I´ll just walk back." And she meant it. He can tell by looking into her eyes, and knows that this is a battle she´s ready to fight. So, he decided to humor her just a little, placing her on the couch instead and seating by her side.

" Jeez, Bones. What were you thinking? I know bed rest is over, but hello, did you honestly think that you would feel strong enough after 24 hours just lying down? You cannot go wandering around the place all by yourself yet. And worst, trying to cook. You shouldn´t be pushing yourself. Of course you would feel dizzy." I would never forgive myself if something really serious had happened while she tried to fix me breakfast. He watched as she huffed, the color starting to come back to her face.

" I must say that never in my life my body had disappointed so much. I just wanted to feel useful, at least a little. I already told you, I hate the fact of being such a source of trouble for you." She´s finally starting to feel more like herself. But with that feeling, it also comes the depression that is menacing to take her since yesterday. Now that she got on her feet, she can see the exact extent of her limitations, and she hates it. She can´t even stand well enough to make them a simple meal. Booth smiles at her , at the same time taking her bleeding finger and slowly placing his lips over it, and Brennan feels goose bumps taking her entire body as he starts sucking it lightly. She knows that it´s supposed to be a sweet, caring act, but she can´t help but feel a bit of eroticity. It´s so intimate. He seems to be feeling somewhat the same, because he stares at her carefully, as if testing the limitations and her reaction, and she has the distinct idea that he looks like a little boy caught in something he shouldn´t be doing. For a moment they just stare at each other, and the tension is almost palpable as he slowly places her hand back in her lap. The smell of new coffee suddenly fills the air, and Temperance felt herself sighing with relief.A distraction. That´s all they need. Booth seems to think the same way, for he gets up and start collecting everything she managed to get ready before her vision went blurred.

" let´s not waste this nice breakfast, right, Bones? These pancakes looks great, I´ll give you that. But next time, wait until you´re feeling absolutely perfect before you start with your ultra independent self again, ok?"

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"Booth, I´m not reading any book that talks about a witch boy!" She tried to pull away from her the book that Booth was shoving at her face, something entlited Harry Potter and whatever it is stone. But Seeley Booth just kept his arm stretched, the book firmly grasped between his fingers as he came closer and pulled away the forensics periodic she had found on her purse. This woman has no sense of fun. Not To mention the least of pop culture.

" he´s a wizard boy, not a witch, temperance. Witch is for girls, ok? And c´mon, give it a try. It´s fun. C´mon, Bones. We all know it´s not real, but give the author some credit. She had created a whole new world just from her imagination. This book is already a classic. And just because those weird guys that you like to read haven´t written it, it doesn´t mean it´s not good. It´s just a different kind of reading.C´mon…you´ve gotta know who Voldemort is, or you´ll keep losing all those great references in common speech when it comes about bad guys. Try it. For me." He knew she would capitulate by the moment he´ve said the last phrase. It was a low blow, since she would do anything for him and he was well aware of it. But heck, a person cannot only live of boring anthropology and other scientific stuff. His Bones really needed to improve on that field. And that was why he had already rented a bunch of fun DVDs too. Temperance´s education was just beginning. She gave him a nasty look before opening the book and digging her nose into it.

" Fine. But I wont like it." He just smiled back as he placed her feet on his lap and leaned back on the couch with the remote, flipping across the channels until settling on a cartoon. He received another nasty look from temperance with that choice, but decided to ignore it.

They stayed like this for a good half an hour, and only a great self effort kept Booth from teasing his Bones. She seemed absolutely engrossed on the book, and part of him just had to say something. But then again, if he started annoying her with " I told you so", she could very well just drop the book to be stubborn. The bell rang all of a sudden, and Temperance gave him a curious look. It was too early on that day to be Angela and Cam.

Booth just shook his shoulders and got up to open the door, groaning with the vision that complimented him. With a big smile and young face, stood the one and only lance Sweets, ready to make his way inside.

TBC…

Want to see how Sweet´s visit goes. Press the review bottom! Plus, be prepared for a lot of tension between Booth and Brennan now that she´s out of bed…