Disclaimer: Hart Hanson owns Bones, not me.
*MUSIC*
Fade Into You by Mazzy Star
Don't Walk Away by Bethany Joy Galeotti
Sailed On by Landon Pigg
"You know it's love when all you want is that person to be happy, even if you're not part of their happiness."
- Julia Roberts.
May 2011
"Sweetie!" Brennan heard, right before she was enveloped in warm flesh and soft smell that was unmistakably Angela's. "I've missed you so much!"
Brennan chuckled as she pulled away from her best friend. "I've missed you too," she admitted freely.
Angela raised an eyebrow but didn't comment. Her large smile slipped slightly as she noticed the bones laid out on the table in front of Brennan. "Well, these are obviously old," she said dryly. "You came to work early to work on limbo cases?"
Brennan, hands gloved and hair pulled back with a hair tie, turned her attention back to the remains in question. "Yes," she replied. "I've missed doing that."
Angela rolled her eyes. "You were just in Maluku doing just that," she pointed out.
"But not here," Brennan gestured towards the lab. "I meant I've missed being back here, working at the lab." She sighed, shaking her head. "I don't know why I missed it so much."
"Because it's home, sweetie," Angela supplied, in her all-knowing tone. Changing the subject swiftly, she said, "Okay, so I want to hear all about your trip - the abridged version, of course - and I'm gonna gush about Paris for days, but first, tell me…Have you seen Agent Studly yet?"
Brennan ignored the leery smile on Angela's face, bending down to take a closer look at the fracture on the skull of the bones on the table. "Yes," she murmured in the monotone voice she reserved for either saying the observations she had made about human remains out loud, or for moments when things were becoming too personal for her liking. "I saw him and Hannah just yesterday."
Angela's heart skipped a beat when Brennan mentioned 'Hannah'. Oh, no. Please, not…Booth didn't get a girlfriend, did he? He couldn't have. He was in Afghanistan! "Hannah?"
Brennan didn't move her eyes from the remains, "Yes, his girlfriend."
Angela gasped, and her knees actually grew weak. She spotted one of those silver stools that were sometimes left on the platform, grabbing it and placing it close enough to the autopsy table that she could carry on a conversation with Brennan without having to raise her voice, but far enough away that she wouldn't interrupt Brennan's work physically.
"His girlfriend?" she questioned, her voice a whisper. Her heart was pounding furiously, breaking more than just a little for her best friend. "Oh, Bren…I'm so sorry."
"For what?" Brennan asked, straightening up to look at Angela.
"For Booth, going to Afghanistan and bringing home a two-bit tramp," she clarified, growling out the words. A fire flared in her dark eyes - things had gotten so close, so close to where they were supposed to be. Just a year ago. But then everything got majorly screwed up, the partners both ran in opposite directions, and now…
Brennan noted the tears that had welled up in her best friend's eyes. "Why? Are you in love with Booth?" she asked innocently.
Angela scowled at Brennan. "No, hon, I'm talking about you," she said, exasperatedly.
Brennan nodded her head, understanding, "Well, I'll be fine," she assured her friend. "Eventually I'll move on, just like Booth has."
Angela's jaw dropped at Brennan's might-as-well-be admission. She was staring so dazedly at Brennan that she didn't notice when the alarm at the bottom of the steps beep or when Cam stepped up right next to her.
"Angela, I didn't see you come in - it's really good to have you back…" Cam trailed off, her smile slipping into a frown as she noticed that the artist was just simply staring at Dr. Brennan. She reached out a hand and tentatively shook Angela's shoulders. "Angela? Angela, what's…Is everything okay?"
Angela snapped out of her shock state, her head swiveling to Cam in slow motion. "Brennan just admitted to being in love with Booth!" she hissed in a low voice, as though this was something classified that shouldn't be heard by the wrong ears.
Cam's eyebrows rose up to her hairline. "Whoa," she muttered, a smile flitting onto her pretty face. "Really? Wow, what did they do to you in Indonesia?"
Brennan frowned at the both of them. "What? Nothing. Who did what?" She shook her head, confusing herself. "Listen, it's not a big deal, Angela-"
"Not a big deal?" Angela repeated, jumping to her feet. "Not a big deal!" her voice rose an octave. She was pretty much shrieking now, in the quietest voice she could manage. "Brennan, you're there. You're finally there, you're in love and you're admitting it but Booth's all…And he's in love, and that's not a good thing!"
Cam was suddenly very confused. "Wait - it's not a good thing that Booth and Brennan are in love with each other?" she asked, frowning. "I thought this was what we've all been waiting for."
Angela nodded, eyes half crazed. "Yeah, and it would be awesome, but Booth isn't in love with Brennan," she clarified.
Cam's jaw dropped, her dark eyes wide. "Oh, no," she murmured.
"-he's in love with some no good, home wrecking, 'jump-on-any-male-within-spitting-distance' slut!"
Brennan gaped at her best friend with an incredulous expression on her face. "Angela!" she gasped, shocked. "Now, really. What is with all the name calling? You've never even met Hannah before. I have, and frankly, I think she's very nice, very beautiful…Blonde. Definitely perfect for Booth."
The words burned her tongue, and she dropped her gaze back to the remains on the table, her mind automatically compartmentalizing as soon as she began cataloging the marks on the scapula.
She shook her head at her friend's erratic behavior, "Are you sure you're not in love with Booth, because you're exhibiting a very angry behavior right now, at the mere mention of his girlfriend."
Angela glared at Brennan. "I'm not in love with Booth. I'm being angry for you, the woman who's actually in love with Booth, because you're taking this all so calmly!" she snapped, not meaning to take it out on Brennan. "How can you be so okay with all of this?"
Brennan shrugged, "I think it's a good thing that Booth found Hannah."
Angela snorted. "Bull."
Brennan lifted an eyebrow, throwing a stern look in Angela's way. "You're being unreasonable, Angela," she said, in a way a mother would to a stubborn child. "Booth is happy. I think we should all be happy for him."
"I would, if he were happy with you," Angela insisted with her arms crossed over her chest, lips formed into the perfect scowl.
Cam, from her spot on Angela's vacated chair, took in a shaky breath. Who would've thought? Cam mused to herself. Who would've thought this was how things would turn out? "Well, I'll be on both sides," she compromised out loud. "I'll be on both of your sides. Booth's and yours," she assured Brennan.
Brennan furrowed her eyebrows together in confusion. "Well, thank you, Cam, but there are no sides," she said.
Angela opened her mouth, preferably to say something else to shake Brennan out of this ridiculous 'I'm okay with everything' thing she had going on, when they heard a very distinctive, "Hey, guys!"
Brennan, relieved that she wouldn't have to hear more from Angela about how and she and Booth were meant to be together - because it was painful enough hearing her own thoughts on the matter - turned to give her partner a fleeting smile. "Hey, Booth," she said, returning to her cadaver. "Back on the job?"
Booth nodded, grinning wildly at her as he went over to greet Cam and Angela (who barely, reluctantly, allowed him a brush of the lips to the cheek before moving away from him, still angry) with hugs and kisses on the cheek. "Yeah, and just in time, too - there's a body down in Arlington," he informed her. "Ready to go?"
Brennan sighed, gazing despondently at the remains of the war hero on the table. "Oh," she pouted. "Well, I guess…"
Booth, noticing the look she was giving the old skeleton, rolled his eyes. "Come on, Bones," he urged. "We've been over this before, Bones. Fresh body first, old bones later."
Brennan gave him a look. "Don't patronize me, Booth," she snarked, snapping off her gloves. "Cam, will you have one of the interns take care of this for me?" she nodded towards the bones as she moved to the small rubbish bin by the steps to discard her gloves.
Cam nodded. "Of course, Dr. Brennan," she assured the anthropologist. "And, may I just say, that the interns aren't the only ones eager to be working with you once more."
Brennan flashed her a cheeky grin. "What happened to working for me?" she teased.
Cam, slightly surprised by the woman's joking - because that rarely, if ever, happened and it had never been with her before - simply laughed. "I blame it on sentimentality," she shrugged. "Won't happen again."
"Uh-huh," Brennan said in a disbelieving tone, a small smile on her lips.
Angela, sulking in the corner, shook her head slightly, still incredibly upset over this. This is all wrong, she huffed silently. Booth should be over there, holding Brennan, tempting her to go out on the field with kisses and loving words. Brennan should not be pretending she's fine and happy and that all is right with her world when I know it's just been shattered. This is just…It's all wrong.
Brennan gave Booth a brief look. "I'm just going to grab my kit," she informed him. "I'll be right back."
He nodded, smiling as she left. Turning back to the other two women, he flashed them both a large, carefree smile. Well, Brennan was right - he is happy, Cam noted with equal parts joy and sadness.
"So, ladies - how was your year?" Booth asked, warm, sparkling brown eyes flickering between Cam and Angela.
Angela threw him a scathing look and turned on her heel, storming away from him and making her way swiftly down the platform stairs. I need to cry, she sighed to herself as she made her way to her office.
Booth reeled his head back, startled by Angela's reaction to him. "Whoa," he muttered, turning to Cam with a bewildered expression on his face. The sort-of sympathetic look she was giving him further fueled his confusion. "What the hell was that all about?" he asked, placing his hands on the edges of the table and leaning against it.
Cam sighed, standing up from her seat to walk over to the autopsy table, her arms folded across her chest. "She's angry about Hannah," she confided, speaking slowly so that she wouldn't accidentally reveal anything about Brennan's feelings.
Booth raised his eyebrow, though Cam didn't miss the way a smile slowly grew on his face just at the mention of Hannah's name. "Angry?" he shook his head. "Why?"
Cam shrugged. "She sorta thought that…I mean…Even I thought that once you and Dr. Brennan came back here, you guys would finally be together," she said in the most delicate way possible. "I guess Angela was just counting on it more than the rest of us."
Booth blinked at Cam, once, twice, three times. "Cam…That…I put that behind me," he said, his voice low.
"Oh, I know," she assured him. "I know, big guy. And I'm happy for you."
"Is, uh, is she?" he asked, his head turning slightly to throw a look over his shoulder in the direction of Brennan's office.
Cam smiled, trying her best to hide the sadness she felt for the lonely anthropologist. "Yeah, big man, she is," she replied softly. "She told Angela not to be all crazy about this. That you're happy so we should be, too."
Booth nodded, unable to explain the slight tinge of disappointment he'd felt at Cam's words even if he tried. "Oh, that's good," he said, taking in a deep breath and exhaling.
Cam eyed him curiously, sensing that something wasn't quite right. But Booth was already smiling again, and that odd look that had flashed over his face was gone, replaced by only happiness. "You know, she seems to like Hannah," she couldn't help but add.
Booth nodded again. "Yeah, the two of them got along really well the other day," he beamed. "I think they could really grow to like each other. You know, become friends."
"And you want that?"
"Well, yeah," he replied, as though this was obvious. "Bones is a very important part of my life, and now so is Hannah. It'd be great if they could be friends."
At the rate she's going trying to make sure you're happily oblivious to her heart, she might just actually become Hannah's new BFF, Cam thought sarcastically.
"Booth!" Brennan's voice called out. They turned to see her, coat on and kit in hand. "I'm ready. Let's go."
Booth nodded, walking over to Cam to give her another kiss on the cheek. "It's good to see you again, Camille," he said with a smile.
"You, too, Seeley."
"Don't call me Seeley."
"Don't call me Camille."
The two old friends shared a warm smile. "Oh, I've missed that," Cam admitted.
Booth chuckled, pressed another kiss to her cheek, and whistled as he walked away to join Brennan.
Cam watched the two of them walking away, her eyes trained on the way they moved. They were standing right next to each other, but there was a certain movement, a certain way in which Brennan, angled slightly towards Brennan, seemed to be making sure she was slightly apart from Booth, and how Booth, walking in a straight line, kept his hand by his side instead of on the small of her back like he used to.
Things were going to get a whole lot worse before they get better, Cam observed astutely. If they get any better.
"You're sure your brother won't mind me tagging along?" Hannah asked Booth for the thousandth time in the past two hours.
Booth, Hannah and Parker were on their way to Jared's and Padme's apartment. Jared, who had married Padme, was now the proud father of five month old Krishna Madeline Booth. Since 'everyone' was back in DC, the new parents had thought it was only fitting to invite them over for dinner and drinks.
"Yes, I'm sure," Booth chuckled. "Babe, don't be so nervous. It'll be fine."
Parker, sitting in the backseat, rolled his eyes, but made sure his father didn't see.
He wasn't all that keen on his father dating this woman. He didn't know her, but she'd moved into their place. He had never met her before and he was having 'family dinners' with her every night. He had wanted time alone with his father the first time he had seen his dad for the first time in a year, and instead he had to share him with her the whole time.
If he would've picked anyone for his dad, it would be Brennan. She was nice and cool and she never lied whenever she answered his questions - though, sometimes, like when she told him all about where the 'myth of the Easter bunny' really came from, he had to lie to his parents and just went along with the kid-friendly version -and she was pretty. He knew her, he liked her, she had a pretty awesome dad who not only knew his science experiments, but had been in prison before.
Parker had wanted his dad to go to Afghanistan, to save lives. But he had expected everything to be the same when he returned but everything had changed so much.
"Is Bones going to be there?" he piped up from the backseat, knowing he wouldn't get in trouble because he wasn't interrupting the adults when they were speaking. "She is, isn't she? 'cuz I brought a whole bunch of stuff for her to see."
He hadn't seen Brennan in a year, too. She had been in some jungle in Indonesia. He'd checked where it was on the internet, and found it to be in Asia. It was a pretty long way away, and his mom had said that where she was could be dangerous. So, every night, when he prayed for his dad, he prayed for Brennan, too.
Booth chuckled, his eyes flickering to the rearview mirror to catch a brief glimpse of his son before focusing on the road again. "Yeah, bub, I invited her and she said she'd come," he assured his son. "I don't know if she has other plans last minute but…"
Parker shook his head. "No, she'll be there," he stated resolutely. "Bones doesn't lie."
Booth nodded. "Yeah, that's true. She doesn't lie," he agreed.
"What did you bring her, Parker?" Hannah asked, determined to bond with the son of the man she loved. She didn't think they'd made a lot of headway over the past week, but it had been such a short time. She'd just have to be patient.
Parker sighed, knowing he would most definitely be in trouble if he ignored her. "Just some of my graded schoolwork," he answered vaguely. "I brought the ones I got really high scores on, so she can see. And the first place ribbon I got for the science fair. She's gonna love that!"
Booth grinned, just imagining the look on Brennan's face when she saw Parker's first place ribbon. "Yeah, that's probably true," he chortled.
"Did you think my essay was good, dad?" Parker asked again. The essay he'd written in English class had been one of the many papers he'd brought along with him. He had gotten the highest score in the entire grade for that one, and Ms. Jameson, his teacher, had even submitted it for an essay competition. He'd won second place, but the guy who beat him was in an older grade, so Parker wasn't all that disappointed.
Booth nodded. "It was pretty awesome, bub," he assured his son. "You want her to read that, huh?"
"Yeah. I did this one all on my own, so I'm pretty happy about it," he said, grinning excitedly. "Dad, can't you drive any faster?"
"Not without breaking the speed limit."
Parker sighed, slumping back against his seat and glancing at his watch impatiently. "What if she's already there?"
"She'll still be there when we get there. Dinner doesn't even start for an hour."
Parker groaned at his dad's words, but kept quiet after that, just sneaking glances at his watch as though this would somehow speed time up. Or his dad's driving.
"You know…I'm a journalist," Hannah stated unnecessarily, turning around in her seat to face Parker. "I'm pretty great at English class. Can I read your paper, too?"
Parker gave her an apologetic smile. "You can," he agreed. "After Bones. I just…I've been waiting for her to read it for months. I just want her to read it first, after mom and dad."
Hannah nodded understandingly. "Sure, of course," she smiled, trying not to show how disappointed she was. All Booth's son had ever talked about, when they weren't talking about Booth's year away and what had happened for Parker during that time, was 'Bones'. Hannah was starting to feel a little unsure about her place in Parker's life and, by extension, Booth's life.
"Seeley! Hey, good to see you, man!" Jared greeted his brother with a large smile and a brotherly hug. "Hey, little man," he greeted, bumping fists with Parker. He had seen Parker continually over the year. Sometimes, he and Padme would take him for the day or for the weekend when Rebecca was too busy or had a business meeting she couldn't get out of.
"Hey, Uncle Jared," Parker grinned. "Is Bones here yet?"
Jared laughed, ruffling Parker's blonde mop. He knew just how excited Parker was to see Brennan again - he and Padme had been on the receiving end of several long chats about how he couldn't wait to 'show Bones this essay' or 'tell Bones about the trip to the Jeffersonian whatchamacallit exhibit'.
"No, not yet, buddy," he smiled at the disappointed frown on Parker's face as he ran through the door and plopped down on the couch. "She'll be here soon, though."
Jared turned back to face his brother, finally able to mask his surprise at the sight of the blonde woman his older brother had his arm around. "So, Seel…Who is this?" he asked, closing the door behind Booth and Hannah as they stepped into the apartment.
Booth, positively glowing with happiness, squeezed Hannah around the waist as he introduced her to his brother. "This is Hannah Burley," he said. "Hannah, my brother Jared. We met in Afghanistan."
Hannah, with a smile that hid how anxious she was, held out her hand confidently. "It's a pleasure to meet you," she said courteously. "I've heard a lot about you and Padme."
Jared nodded and smiled, taking her hand. "Oh, well, good," he said a little awkwardly. "I don't know anything about you, though…Seeley never mentioned you in any of his letters."
Booth chuckled, shucking off his coat and helping Hannah with hers. "Yeah, well, I wanted it to be a surprise," he shrugged. "So, y'know, surprise."
Jared rolled his eyes, opening his mouth to retort, when his wife's voice called out to him. "Jared, can you watch over Krish for a little…" she trailed off, stopping in the middle of the living room as she caught sight of the blonde woman she was unfamiliar with. "Oh. Hi."
Jared stepped away from Booth and Hannah, his arms outstretched as he lifted baby Krishna from her mother's arms. "Hi, princess," he cooed, cuddling the baby close with a large, goofy smile on his face.
Parker, who had seen the baby too many times for his liking, merely rolled his eyes, whipping out his DS while he waited for Brennan to show up.
Padme, her arms free, extended a hand to shake Hannah's. "I'm Padme, Jared's wife," she introduced herself, smiling uncertainly. Her eyes widened when she noticed Booth wrapping his arm around the blonde woman's waist.
"I'm Hannah Burley, Seeley's girlfriend," Hannah returned the greeting, smiling sweetly.
Padme's eyebrows rose. "Oh, wow," she murmured. "Well, that's…Great."
"I hope I'm not intruding," Hannah continued, a small frown on her face. "I thought this was more of a family-and-friends gathering, and I wanted to sit it out. But Seeley wouldn't take no for an answer."
Her voice had turned soft as she spoke the last part, turning her head to give Booth a playfully chiding look.
Booth chuckled warmly, leaning in to press a kiss to Hannah's lips. "Well, you're a part of that now," he insisted. "And, besides, I want them all to get a chance to know you." Seeing the still dubious look on her face, he grasped her chin in his hand and gently tilted her head up. "They're gonna love you, Han, don't worry."
Padme blinked a few times, sharing a look with her husband, before taking Booth by the arm. "Why don't you and, uh, Hannah get comfortable on the couch? The others should be arriving soon," she said, like a good host.
Angela, Hodgins and Cam arrived not long after, bearing wine, dessert and gifts for the baby. Angela, especially, had gone overboard. She'd been ecstatic to learn of the baby and had put together a very elaborate baby basket that was half her size. Brennan had chipped in, going shopping with Angela the day before to pick out the cutest things they could find. It stood on the coffee table, half opened - there had been far too many things inside for Padme to go through all at one go, and she didn't want to turn this into a second baby shower.
"Where's Bones?" Parker asked, exhaling loudly and rolling his eyes as everyone fawned over the baby.
Angela chuckled, giving Parker an affectionate smile even as she gently ran a finger down Krishna's tummy. They had found that Krishna loved to be held - by her parents. Anyone else to come within spitting distance of her and she would scream. She enjoyed everyone looking at her, however, and would start crying if no one paid her any mind. Jared had teasingly said that Krishna craved attention.
"She'll be here, mini Booth," she assured him. "She just had a conference call that ran late." Shaking her head at her friend's work ethics, she added, "I told her not to get so caught up that she misses this party."
Parker stared worriedly at Angela. "You mean she might not come?" he sounded positively upset by that.
"Oh, I wouldn't worry," Cam chimed in, patting Parker on the back. "She's got a couple of things for you, too."
Parker's eyes lit up. "Really!" he gushed, excited. Brennan had taken to bringing him back a few trinkets here and there whenever she went on her trips. It never failed to impress him, no matter what she brought back. He called her trips 'adventures' and was pleased that he was able to get something from those adventures.
Cam nodded. "Yeah. She'll be here."
Angela, noticing that Krishna seemed like she had calmed down enough to give holding a try, gave a start. "Oh, I think we should try again," she gushed.
Padme shook her head. "You just won't give up, will you?" she teased Angela.
Cam looked to Hannah, who was sitting next to Booth looking very out of place as she was surrounded by people she didn't know, said gently, "Hannah, why don't you give it a go?"
Angela shot Cam a glare, but Cam ignored her. "The rest of us tried, so maybe she'll warm up to you instead."
Hannah looked a little apprehensive but stood up anyway. "Okay, but if she starts wailing…"
Jared waved his hand dismissively. "If she does, one of us will take her and she'll calm right down," he gestured towards himself and Padme. "Don't worry, just go ahead. Give it a shot."
Hannah nodded, a little more confident. After all - the rest of them had all tried and failed, anyway. If the baby liked her, then good. If she didn't, then she was just one of the crowd. Nothing to be embarrassed about.
With an encouraging smile from Booth, Hannah stepped forward, smiling at the baby in her bassinet. "Hi, baby," she greeted softly, reaching into the pink bassinet to take hold of Krishna.
The moment Hannah's hands slipped inside the bassinet, however, Krishna let out a huge wail, followed by flailing fists and an all-out sobbing, with tears and everything.
"Oh, oh, sorry," Hannah apologized sheepishly, standing back so Padme can take hold of her.
Padme merely chuckled, bouncing the upset baby in her arms. "No, it's okay…Hannah," it was still strange to her to have this woman around. Ever since the first time she had met Temperance Brennan, she'd known that she and Booth would be together. Having Hannah around was so bizarre on so many levels. If she hadn't been told earlier that Brennan had already met Hannah, she would be worried about the anthropologist's reaction to the blonde. "She's like that with everyone. I haven't met one person she could warm up to outside the two of us."
Jared nodded his head in agreement. "She wouldn't even let Padme's family hold her," he confided. "They were upset, but I found that funny."
"Pops?" Booth asked, curious.
Jared shrugged. "Pops is Pops. He's different," was his reply. Booth could only nod, agreeing.
There was a knock at the door, and Parker immediately jumped up from his seat between the arm of the couch and Angela. "I'll get it!" he shouted, running for the door and swinging it open.
If it weren't for the fact that there were so many of them right there within a few feet from the door, Booth would've chided his son for answering it without an adult present or without checking to see who it was. He let it go this time, knowing Parker was just excited to see Brennan.
"Hey, Parker!" Brennan couldn't help a wide grin from spreading across her face as the 'mini Booth', as Angela called him, tackled her into a hug in the doorway of Jared and Padme's apartment. "Wow, look at you! You've grown so much!"
Parker beamed proudly at that. "Dad said the same thing," he said, pulling her into the apartment, closing the door and hugging her tightly again. "Wow, Bones…You look really awesome."
"Well, thank you. So do you."
Parker threw her his own version of the Booth charm smile, sending a sudden jolt to her broken heart. He took her hand and led her further inside the apartment. "I can't wait to show you everything, Bones!" he gushed. "Let's start with the science fair."
Brennan chuckled at his exuberance as he launched into a retelling of the fair, explaining it in minute detail. It didn't seem like he was even pausing for a breath. "Bub, calm down," Booth rolled his eyes. A smile was present on his face, though, as he watched them. It never failed to make him smile seeing Parker and Brennan together - his son, just like him, had a very special, soft spot for 'Bones'.
Brennan took the few seconds she had while Parker rummaged in his bag for the things he'd brought to hug Jared and go over to Padme. "Ooh, she's so beautiful, Padme," Brennan commented on the baby.
Padme beamed, wearing the smile of a proud mother. "Thank you," she murmured, gazing down lovingly into her daughter's big brown eyes. She was surprised to find, however, that Krishna's eyes were fixed not on her but on Brennan.
Brennan, who was very taken with the child, reached out to gently touch Krishna's hand. Krishna's tiny fingers immediately wrapped around Brennan's pointer finger, causing the scientist to laugh softly and gently shake the baby's hand. "Can I hold her?"
Padme agreed, seeing as how everyone else had tried to hold the baby, too. "Sure, Tempe," she said, preparing to hand the baby over. "But just a fair warning - she doesn't like to be held by anyone other than me or Jar…"
Padme trailed off, jaw dropped, as Brennan expertly shifted Krishna into her arms, chuckling warmly as she held the baby to her chest. Krishna gurgled happily, resting her head against Brennan's shoulder and gazing up at her with a tiny little baby smile on her face.
"What are you talking about?" Brennan shook her head at Padme. "She's such a calm baby."
Hodgins snorted, remembering the tantrum Krishna had put up earlier on. When Angela and Cam had both tried multiple times to hold her and coax her into calming down, Krishna had thrown such a fit that she wouldn't stop crying for ten minutes.
Brennan, however, was completely oblivious to this. She bounced Krishna gently in her arms, grinning widely. "Aw…Precious," she cooed, pressing a soft kiss to Krishna's forehead.
"Wow," Angela murmured, staring wide eyed at her friend. "I've been trying for half an hour to get her to like me. You just strolled right in and, boom! Magic, baby."
Brennan rolled her eyes at her friend. "Okay, now you're exaggerating," she said dryly.
Cam smirked. "No, no, she really wasn't," she said, in her usual sarcastic manner.
Parker, turning back to face Brennan, essay in hand, scowled when he noticed Krishna getting all her attention. "Bones! Why are you playing with the baby! You have to read my essay!"
"And I will," Brennan promised. "I just wanted to meet her."
"Well, you met her, now give her back," Parker demanded.
Booth glared at his son. "Parks, that was rude," he chided sternly.
Parker blushed slightly, falling silent and dropping his gaze to the ground, but he didn't apologize. Booth sighed. He's ten, he's not supposed to be this teen-like for a few more years, he thought exasperatedly.
Brennan, thankfully, didn't react to Parker's rudeness the same way she would've if Booth had said something like that. "You know, I think Krishna's getting sleepy, anyway," she said, noting Krishna's drooping eyelids. "I'll just hand her back and you can tell me everything that went on in your year."
Parker brightened up instantly. "Okay," he agreed eagerly. He faltered for a bit, sighing, and said, "I'm sorry I was rude before."
"No, it's fine," Brennan assured him. "Here, Padme…"
Krishna's eyes snapped open once more when she felt Brennan handing her over to Padme. Her brown eyes trailed over to the scientist and her opened her little mouth, giving out a cry of discontentment. Her hand reached out towards Brennan, her clenched fist opening and closing a few times, indicating she wanted to be held by Brennan once more.
Padme, instead of being envious, simply chuckled. "Looks like she really likes you," she mused. "You know…If you - and Parker," she spared the boy a glance. "Don't mind, could you hold Krish for a while? I've gotta check on dinner."
Parker sighed long-sufferingly but nodded his head in acquiescence. "Fine. But she can't interrupt when I'm telling her about my team winning our soccer match," he warned, giving Krishna a look as though he expected her to understand his words and comply.
In retaliation, Krishna let out a peal of laughter, blew a spit bubble in his direction and a cheeky smile curled on her lips.
Brennan laughed, walking over to the couch with Krishna in her arms. Angela stood up, letting Brennan sit next to Parker, and smiling as she watched them. It was funny to her how this woman, the same one who had declared a hundred times over just seven years ago that she didn't want any children, was now sitting on the couch at a family gathering (family and Hannah, she thought disdainfully) with a baby seated in her lap, listening to the excited chatter of a little boy.
Dinner had gone over smoothly, with a few awkward pauses here and there from a few at the table who weren't that comfortable with Hannah's presence, but Hannah was a journalist, who had traveled all over the world meeting strangers and trying to get them to warm up to her so she could conduct an interview. She was an expert at it, and things had smoothed over pretty quickly.
Now, with Krishna asleep in her room (Brennan had sung her to sleep when she had been far too upset to yield to sleep on her own), everyone was seated in the living room, TV on with the volume set on low, adults chit-chatting amongst themselves and Brennan and Parker still engaged in a never-ending conversation.
"I brought something else for you," Brennan told him, reaching into the paper shopping bag to grab the last remaining present she had gotten for Parker. "This is pretty special - I don't know if you'll like it, but I wanted to get it for you, anyway."
She took out the item and placed it in Parker's hands. Parker took it in with wide eyes, "Wow… Is that a tooth?" he fingered the ivory bone with a gentle finger.
Brennan nodded. "Yes, it is," she confirmed. "It came from a galeocerdo cuvier."
Parker gasped as he recognized the scientific term but Booth, who had been watching and listening in, scrunched up his face. "A what!" he questioned, eyeing the tooth warily.
Brennan and Parker shared an incredulous look, as though they were both shocked that Booth didn't know what it was. They turned their heads to Booth and said simultaneously, "Tiger shark."
Booth rolled his eyes, swallowing his amused smile. "Of course it is," he commented wryly. "Is that, y'know, safe?" he nodded at the shark.
Brennan scoffed. "Of course it is, Booth, I wouldn't give it to him if it weren't," she sounded faintly offended by his question.
He backtracked quickly. "No, yeah, I know," he nodded, holding up a hand in apology. "I was just…"
She cut him off. "It's been properly cleaned, Booth. It's fine," she said, dismissing his concerns. Turning back to Parker, she pointed to the beaded chain. "That was made by a local at the village closest to the dig site where I worked in Maluku. My team and I took a short trip to Java a few months back. We encountered a tiger shark when we went on a dive. It was fairly violent, for reasons unknown."
Parker's jaw dropped. "No way! You were in a fight with a tiger!" he shrieked. "That's so cool! Dad, did you hear! Bones fought a shark!"
Booth shook his head, smiling. "Yeah, bub, I heard," he murmured. The way things were going, he was pretty sure Parker considered Brennan his idol. Well, next to his old man, of course, he thought smugly.
Brennan chuckled. "I had a whole team of people with me," she reminded him. "It wasn't just me. We have a few locals with us, and though this very rarely happened, they were prepared anyway."
She had already known Parker would find this something incredible. As a result, she had printed out a few of the pictures she'd had with her and brought it along. She reached into her purse and pulled them out. "See? We managed to, uh, win the fight…" she showed him two pictures.
One was a close-up of the shark in the ocean, very much alive and very much zooming towards them. One of her colleagues had been a fan of photography and had brought along a suitable camera that had high resolution for taking pictures underwater. His reasoning had been that they were going to an island - he'd hoped that they would be able to dive at least once.
The other picture was of the shark, dead and brought back to the shore. Brennan stood with the team and the locals who had helped them, standing over the dead shark. While she had been upset that they'd had to kill the overly aggressive shark, she knew it had to be done.
"What happened to the shark?" Parker asked. "After you brought it back. You can't just throw away a shark."
Brennan grinned. "We didn't," she replied. "The fins and meat were extricated from the bones - shark fin soup and other delicacies involving shark meat are quite popular in Indonesia, too - and the bones, cleaned and kept intact were given to a museum in Jakarta."
"Wow," he said again, his gaze dropping to the tooth and fingering it with an almost reverent look in his eyes. "Did anyone get hurt?"
Brennan nodded. "A colleague of mine was bitten on the leg - his calf was torn in two, but they managed to stitch him up. It'll take him a while longer to regain full use of that leg, so he was flown back to London immediately," she recounted. "A female colleague was hit by the shark's tail on her back, and I was bitten on my torso."
Parker's eyes were wide as he eyed her sweater. "No way…But you're alive!"
Brennan laughed, rolling her eyes. "Well, of course I am," she scoffed. "You think a shark can actually take me down?"
She and Parker shared a snort over her exaggerated vainness. "Can I see?" Parker asked eagerly.
Brennan pursed her lips. "Okay, but it's still reddish, so if you're gonna barf…Don't do it on me because this shirt's expensive," she joked, standing up and lifting the hem of her shirt to show him the two jagged stitch lines three inches apart from each other.
"Wow," Parker breathed.
"Very cool, Dr. B.," Hodgins complimented, eyes sparkling.
Angela, who had shut her eyes in advance, shook her head from left to right. "No details, please," she shuddered. "As long as you're alive, sweetie. That's all I need to know."
"They did a good job stitching you up," Cam noted, leaning forward to get a good look at the healing skin.
Booth frowned concernedly at his partner. "Does it still hurt?" he asked worriedly.
Brennan shrugged, letting her shirt drop back into place. "Every now and then it itches. But no, no pain," she lied - there was no way she was going to admit that the wound still bothered her a little.
Booth, too good at reading her, merely eyed her disbelievingly, "Uh-huh."
Parker immediately slipped the brown and black beaded chain around his neck, fingering the shark tooth pendant. "I am so set for show and tell," he grinned proudly, leaning forward to hug her soundly. "Thanks, Bones. That was awesome. And I'm glad the shark didn't kill you."
She grinned, hugging him back just as fervently. "I'm quite happy about that myself," she replied lightly.
Later on, as Brennan sat at Jared and Padme's breakfast counter, sipping from her glass and reading through Parker's essay - he wouldn't rest until she did - Angela and Cam joined her.
"We'll form the 'Hate Hannah' club," was the first thing Angela said to her as she slipped into the bar stool next to Brennan's.
"Angela," Brennan warned, putting down the paper and giving her a stern look.
Cam, standing on the opposite side of the breakfast bar, patted Brennan's arm in a friendly gesture. "I'll be a double agent," she offered. "Pretend to get close to her to get the inside scoop."
"Stop it, the both of you," Brennan hissed, raising her head to look at the others still in the living room to make sure none of them heard their bizarre conversation. When she was satisfied that they were getting enough privacy, she turned back to them. "Cam, I don't want nor do I need you to be a double agent. And Angela, stop this madness. Hannah is a perfectly nice woman - I think you saw that during dinner tonight."
Angela opened her mouth to argue with Brennan. "This is bad, Bren," Angela insisted. "This isn't how things are supposed to be."
"Or maybe they are," Brennan countered. At both the women's confused expressions, Brennan nodded her head in Booth's and Hannah's direction. They, along with Jared and Padme, were dancing together to some music Padme had put on. Hodgins kept Parker entertained at the side.
"Look at him," she said, her voice growing soft. "Look how happy he is…I would've never been able to make him smile like that."
Brennan's voice broke, and her vision clouded over a little. She cleared her throat, squeezing her eyes shut and shaking her head to regain her composure.
Once she was sure her eyes were dry and her voice was steady, she spoke again. "Booth is happy. He's happy, and he's in love. Yes, I am…Disappointed. But I'm glad for Hannah. If she's able to give him what he needs, what he wants…Then I'm thankful."
She gave both Cam and Angela a stern look. "Now, don't get me wrong, I am touched that you're both so loyal to me, but Booth is your friend too," she reminded them. "He would be very upset to learn neither of you support this. Be his friend. Be happy for him. Especially you, Cam."
Brennan placed her glass back on the counter and stood up, grabbing the essay and hopping from the bar stool she was sitting on. "I have to get going. I'll see you guys tomorrow," she said, going back over to the others.
"Parker, I read your essay," she told the boy, who looked up at her expectantly, ceasing talk with the entomologist about the new beetles he wanted to show him. "It was very…Wow. It was incredible, Parker."
Parker beamed with pride. "Really?"
Brennan nodded. "I…It was very…Well-written, very articulate," she praised. "Are you sure you wrote it by yourself?" she teased.
"I'm sure. I did it all on my own."
"No teachers? Your mom?"
"Nope."
"Genius classmates?"
Parker chuckled, rolling his eyes at her teasing. "No! Bones!" they shared a laugh.
Brennan handed the essay back to him and gave him a warm hug, "Parker, it was so good. I'm speechless right now…You know, I would've never been able to write something this amazing when I was your age."
Parker's brown eyes grew wide. "No way," he said disbelievingly. "You're the smartest person I know."
She nodded, agreeing, not at all modest about her intelligence. "That's true," she replied matter-of-factly, causing Hodgins next to Parker to laugh. "I was the smartest child in my school when I was your age, as well, but still…That essay was far more superior than anything I would've written when I was ten."
Parker grinned, squeezing her tightly. "I'm not hurting you, am I?" he asked suddenly, remembering her shark bite wounds.
Brennan shook her head, dropping a kiss to the curly hair. "No, I'm fine," she assured him.
"So, you think I'm going to be as smart as you one day?" Parker asked her shyly.
Brennan chuckled. "At the rate things are going, if you keep it up, you might be smarter than me when you're my age," she said, only half-joking. She'd recognized Parker's potential a long time ago. "I expect to see you taking on the world in twenty years, Parker."
Parker grinned at her with a hint of the cockiness she knew he had to have inherited from his father. "Hey, if I'm this smart now, I'm gonna rule the world in way less than twenty years," he joked.
Brennan rolled her eyes at that. "Oy, the dreaded Booth ego," she huffed playfully. "Okay, well, listen, I've got to get going…"
"So soon?" Parker asked, his smile slipping.
Brennan nodded, smiling apologetically. "I've got a video conference to make," she sighed.
Booth, who had stopped dancing when he'd heard that Brennan was leaving, frowned, stepping forward. "What video conference do you have to make at this hour?"
"International," she replied immediately. "Japan. It's an appropriate hour now to have a business call…I'm sorry to run out on you."
Padme shook her head. "It's fine," she said, coming over to hug Brennan. "It was really good seeing you again, Tempe."
Brennan returned her hug. "You, as well. Krishna's a beautiful baby, Padme," she replied, receiving a hug from Jared next.
Parker hugged her, too, making her promise to go out to the diner with him and Booth soon. "Bye, Bones," he waved as she stepped out the front door.
Brennan kept a smile on her face as she walked down the lit hallway down to the elevator. She kept a smile on her face as she entered the elevator and pressed the button for the basement parking lot. She kept the smile plastered to her lips as she stepped into her car and drove back home. She was still smiling as she parked her car and rode the elevator up to her own apartment, the one her father had stayed in for a year so that she wouldn't be out of a place to stay once she returned.
When she had entered her dark, empty apartment, she closed the door behind her. She tossed her keys to her right, where she could make out the outline of the small table she kept by the door for her keys and mail. She stood there, just staring into the darkness of her home, the weight of the pretenses she'd had to keep up all night crashing down on her.
Tears prickled the backs of her eyes, and a sudden, uncomfortable lump formed in her throat. Brennan pursed her lips in an effort to keep the tears at bay, but she wasn't strong enough when she was on her own, surrounded by nothing but a reminder of just that, and one tear spilled onto her cheek.
It was as though that was the dam breaking.
Brennan's hand flew to her heart, throbbing and aching so painfully, and her other arm wrapped around her midsection. She bent at the waist for a moment, the shocking intensity of the pain she was feeling overwhelming her - she had been so good at keeping it all at bay that she would forget, by the end of the day, just how agonizing it was to feel it all.
A sob broke tore from her throat, and Brennan rocked back on her heels, sinking down to the ground and sitting with her back against the door. She brought her knees to her chest, hiding her face in her folded arms at the top of her knees, letting her sadness overtake her.
Just for tonight.
"I was never one to patiently pick up broken fragments and glue them together again and tell myself that the mended whole was as good as new. What is broken is broken - and I'd rather remember it as it was at its best, then mend it and see the broken places as long as I lived."
- Margaret Mitchell.