Why must we learn it the hard way?
And play the game of life with your heart?
- Elvis Costello, Walking on Thin Ice
When Cam, Hodgins and Angela arrived at the bar they were surprised to find Brennan and Charlotte smiling and talking like old friends. Brennan quickly introduced her to the group, "This is Charlotte Townsend, a friend of Booth's."
They all made an effort to shake her hand and smile, "Call me Charlie, please."
Shortly after they all got settled, Sweets came bustling into the bar with a mile-wide grin fixed to his face. He promptly introduced himself and explained that Booth was going to be a little while longer. He sat down across from Charlotte and started to size her up while everyone else made pleasant small talk.
An hour later Booth walked into The Founding Fathers to find Charlotte sitting next to Brennan while having an animated conversation with Cam. There was something off about the scene but taking note of the relaxed nature of everyone, he realized that he was the only one who saw it that way.
Charlotte turned away from Cam and smiled at Booth, "Hey stranger."
He flashed a grin, "Hey there." He signaled the bartender for his usual and looked at his seating options. There were two empty seats, one of either side of Brennan and Charlotte.
"Here, I'll scoot down." Charlotte stated, moving closer to Cam to finish the conversation they had been having before he walked in. He took a seat between Booth and Charlotte.
Brennan watched Booth watch Charlie for a few seconds before she touched him on the forearm, "Did everything go ok with Guildmeyer?"
He turned his attention to Brennan, "Yeah, the guy is a douche bag and a sorry excuse for a human being but I don't think he did it."
"Why not?"
"He's got an alibi – he was scoring in Brookdale Park. I'm gonna have vice check out the story but…" He exhale deeply, his lips fluttering with the expressed air.
Brennan shared his annoyance, nodding, "Back to the drawing square…."
He started to agree with her but then all her words registered with him and he laughed, "What? No. You're mixin' your metaphors there, Bones. It's 'back to the drawing board' or 'back to square one'."
"Well, you knew what I meant."
"Yes, I did."
Booth found himself getting sucked into one of those moments with Brennan – the kind where they just stared and the world in his peripheral went fuzzy until he heard Angela ask, "So Charlie, where are you headed next?"
Booth and Brennan both leaned down on the bar to get a better angle on the conversation.
"Uh, I don't know right now. I'm waiting to hear from my editor for my next assignment."
Cam took a sip of her drink and then asked, "Doesn't it get old? Always being on the road?"
Charlotte shrugged as she felt six pairs of eyes focused solely on her - this was her interview to be accepted into Booth's world. "I like the travel, actually I love it. Yes, it has its downsides; bad food, gross hotels, rental cars that break down at every stoplight but…I see things and meet people that few ever do – I'm very fortunate."
"That's one way to look at it, I suppose." Angela shrugged. Booth caught a hint of snark from the artist and gave her a cautious look before she continued, "Don't you ever worry what you're missing never being in the same place very long?"
"Sometimes, like today on the flight from Prague I sat next to the International Affairs bureau chief for the Washington Post and she offered me a job."
"Really?" Booth asked quietly.
Charlotte turned and looked at him, "Yeah but even after thinking about the whole day, I can't see myself taking it. It's just….it's not me."
Booth's eyes darted around the group but he remained silent. Noticing the uncomfortable vibe oozing from every pore of Booth's being, Cam jumped in and changed the subject, "Sweets how's the dog?"
"You got a dog?" Booth asked after taking a swig of his beer..
Sweets leaned against the bar, "I did. After Daisy left, I was feeling a little… I was…"
"Lonely?" Booth asked.
"Yes, I was lonely. I decided that instead of rushing into another ill-fated relationship I'd try something different. Vonnegut and I are slowly working things out, he's very willful and excitable. " He pulled out his cell phone to show everyone a picture of his new addition.
Hodgins chuckled, "So was Daisy - you'll work it out with Vonnegut."
Everyone with the exception of Charlotte started to laugh before Brennan pointed out, "You shouldn't compare Ms. Wick to a dog, Hodgins." Brennan pointed out.
"I wasn't. I was just saying that he's good with difficult people."
"A dog isn't a person." She responded, rounding her shoulders.
Charlotte leaned back on her stool and watched the group argue over whether or not being 'like a person' was the same as being an actual person. From the stories Booth had told her while they were in Afghanistan Charlotte had a pretty good understanding of who these people were but she realized that without seeing them all together she never would have been able to understand who they were to Booth. Family.
Thirty minutes later Booth could tell that Charlotte was trying her hardest to keep up and be a good sport but she had no frame of reference for half of what they were talking about and she was exhausted. He leaned toward her and whispered, "You ready?"
She nodded sleepily. "I'm sorry, but that flight kicked my ass."
He smiled, "It's OK."
As Charlotte and Booth exited the bar, Brennan watched as he wrapped an arm around the reporter and pulled her close, kissing her temple – sharing the hello they missed at the airport.
Once he was certain Booth was gone, Sweets moved to the center of the group and asked, "So?"
"She's….tall." Was all Hodgins could muster under the watchful eyes of his wife.
Sweets grinned, "She's like Booth in a skirt..."
"She seems very smart." Cam added while spinning the empty pretzel bowl on the bar.
"She's not terrible." Angela volunteered begrudgingly.
"No, no she's not." Brennan sighed with a hint of hurt, "She's not terrible at all."
B&B
Later that night, Booth woke up alone in bed with Charlotte nowhere in sight. He made his way through his apartment and found the window that went to the fire escape open.
"What are you doing out here?" He said as he crawled out and sat next to her.
"I needed some air." She responded without looking at him.
He bumped her shoulder with his, "I'm sorry about earlier, if you felt uncomfortable. We just..." He sighed and ran his hand through his hair.
"It's ok. It's your life." She looked over at his profile in the night, "This, you and I, doesn't really work in the real world, I get that."
"Real world?"
"Yeah, this is a romantic 'A Farewell to Arms' type story I'll tell my grandchildren someday. You know, the time I had the torrid affair with the handsome soldier while I was a war reporter."
"This has been torrid?" He asked with brow cocked.
She grinned, "Ah, I'll jazz up for the kids."
Booth chuckled before turning serious again, he rubbed his hands together and asked, "Is that why you turned down the job at the Post?"
Charlotte ran her thumb up and down her cheek before responding, "Kind of."
"Ok, it's almost 4am, we're sitting on my fire escape, during a very cold November - now's the time to be honest, Charlie."
"I like who I am. I'm not the type to want to change that for anything or anyone but..." She shook her head, hating the words that she couldn't prevent from spilling out of her own mouth, "But, the more time I spend here, with you, I could see myself changing the way I am for you and I don't...don't like that. And that's why I turned the job down."
For a second Booth wondered why he was so damn attracted to unavailable women, he knew Sweets could give him a list of reasons longer than the Great Wall but he that didn't stop him from asking, "What...What if I asked you to?"
She glanced at him sideways, "Asked me to what? Change? That's a little presumptuous on your part, don't you think?."
"No, not change. Take the job or at least consider it? It's not the 'real world' otherwise. It's you swooping in and out every 10-14 days and...It might be worth thinking about." He knew that in the light of day this would seem ridiculous and impossible but in the moment he didn't stop himself.