[A/N: Thank you all so much for reading. I am so very grateful for your comments and for those of you who have "alerted" or "favorited" this story. Your reviews are helping me conquer my fear of trying to write Bones fanfic. Please keep sending comments and suggestions. I'd rather hear something--even a critique--than wonder if a chapter went over like a lead balloon! I haven't read much post-100th eppy fanfic on purpose--I wouldn't want to copy anyone's ideas, so I'm interested by the comments you've made about other post-100th episode stories.

I'm at a point in this story where I need to figure some things out, and I have a very busy weekend, so it might be a bit longer than usual before you see another chapter!

I only write fanfic for fun and for comments. All money and credit and applause for the show belong to the Bones creators and actors and Fox. I don't own this song, either, but I love it!

Happy Mother's Day to all of you moms out there!]

Chapter Six: Wreck of the Day

Driving away from the wreck of the day
And the light's always red in the rear-view
Desperately close to a coffin of hope
I'd cheat destiny just to be near you
If this is giving up, well I'm giving up
If this is giving up, well I'm giving up, giving up
On love, On love

[From "Wreck of the Day" performed by Anna Nalick]

Booth had rushed to his office and immediately felt claustrophobic there. Frustrated, he ran up and down the stairwell a few times—a technique he often used to think or to blow off steam—but he found that he was annoyed by the lack of privacy there. He couldn't leave the building during an interview—that would be unprofessional. But he couldn't go back into that room and listen to a happier version of Bones' childhood. More than that, he couldn't face hearing about how another man had been "enough" to save a woman from her past. Seeley Booth was trapped in a horrible sort of emotional hell at work. So he went to the one place where he could find absolute privacy within an agency devoted to invading the privacy of people.

In the relative privacy of the large bathroom stall at the end, Booth leaned hard on one wall as he thought about what he'd just heard and tried to deal with it. Finally finding peace and quiet, he became lost in his thoughts, halfway listening to the noise of people coming and going without even knowing of his presence.

After about ten minutes, he relaxed enough to get better perspective. Now feeling more like he had regained control, he considered heading back to his office. But just as he reached for the latch on the door, his phone buzzed.

"Watch out. Sweets is looking 4 U."

Booth smiled in spite of himself as he read the text message. They were still partners. Bones still had his back. He'd just have to make peace with that. It had been enough for years, and it would have to be enough going forward. Finally smiling, he slipped his phone into his pocket and opened the door, mumbling to himself as he did so. "Thanks, Bones. The last person I want to see right now is...

Sweets."

As he opened the door, the agent found that he was staring down into the face of the very person his partner had been trying to help him avoid.

As Booth pushed past the man to wash his hands out of habit more than anything else, he grumbled, "Jeez. Seriously? How did you even find me in here?"

Sweets glanced down at Booth's ankles and smiled, "If you want to hide out in here, you really need to wear less colorful socks."

Booth wrinkled his forehead as he grimaced at the psychologist, "Hey, I don't usually "hang" out in here. But maybe you do. Maybe this is something creepy you enjoy doing. Maybe I need to tell Daisy that her fiancée likes to stalk people—other guys--in the men's room."

"Your being nasty is not going to scare me into leaving," Sweets said, hoping that he'd be able to withstand the defenses Booth would surely throw up before him.

"Fine. Stay. I'll go," Booth said, moving toward the exit.

"Wait!" Sweets insisted, somehow placing himself between the doorway and the man so determined to pass through it. He knew that trying to intervene physically was not going to end well—not for him at least. But Dr. Brennan had been right; he owed Booth this.

"What the hell, Sweets! You know that I'm not going to stay here and talk to you. Now move before I move you myself."

As Booth leaned closer into Sweets' personal space to intimidate him, the door swung open and Deputy Director Hacker walked in. He paused for a moment trying to make sense of the scene in front of him. Unnerved by witnessing an obviously heated, almost intimate exchange among two of his staff members, he cleared his throat.

Completely frustrated by the curious look on Hacker's face, Booth whirled and returned to the safety of the restroom stall. The last thing he needed was for Hacker to think he had a thing for Sweets. Sweets had blushed 400 shades of red—that clearly wasn't dispelling the man's thought. Once inside the stall, Booth remembered how Sweets had found him. Although it was difficult for a man of his size, Booth climbed up to crouch on the toilet so that nobody could see that he was there. He listened as Hacker greeted Sweets awkwardly and Sweets stammered a bit. Other people came into and out of the restroom. Booth waited for what seemed like a long time and then listened as Hacker washed his hands and said something. Dammit, why hadn't Sweets just left when he had a chance?!

"So things looked tense when I walked in here, Dr. Sweets. How's Booth?"

"Agent Booth and I were just discussing a difficult case, that's all."

"So everything's fine? How is Temperance? Are things going well with her partnership with Booth?"

Dandy, Booth thought. Today is truly the day from hell.

"You'll be getting another report today. They are working quite well together and have resolved a number of issues," Sweets said. Good boy, thought Booth.

"That's good to hear. You know, I should call Dr. Brennan. I really would like to date her again. Say, Dr. Sweets… Do you think I should ask Booth to put in a good word for me—since they're partnership is going so well?"

Booth nearly groaned and gave his presence away.

"No. No, sir. I don't think that would be wise. Agent Booth and Dr. Brennan are consummate professionals. There's no need to make them discuss something as personal as Dr. Brennan's social life." Booth realized that he was hating Sweets less and less by the moment.

Taking advantage of the opportunity to pry a bit in private (or what he thought was private) Hacker continued, "I see… Those two don't… you know… have a thing for each other, do they? I sometimes catch a vibe or something when they're together...."

Sweets cleared his throat a bit. "They insist that they're partners.... Only they know for sure. I focus on their working relationship--which is fine, by the way," Sweets said. Booth was impressed with Sweets' ability to lie so skillfully. He made a mental note of that fact before Hacker spoke again.

"Okay. Well, I have a meeting. There's no reason you can't put in a good word about me with our favorite anthropologist, right?" Hacker said before excusing himself. Sweets giggled nervously. Booth just shook his head and counted five reasons in his fist why Sweets shouldn't recommend that Bones date Hacker. When the deputy director reached the door to the restroom, he paused to look at Sweets to question why he was staying in the restroom and obviously not using it. Sweets pulled out a toothbrush and mumbled something about needing to brush his teeth.

As soon as he knew that the coast was clear, Booth burst out of the stall and headed for the door. Somehow Sweets managed to get ahead of him.

"Look. It's just the two of us. You're obviously still upset. I thought we might talk about what happened in there."

"No way."

"Agent Booth, I insist," Sweets said, swallowing hard as he watched the vein in Booth's forehead throb in anger as he looked down and saw Sweets' hand pressed against his chest. Annoyed and considering at least two other ways he could get out of the room aside from going straight through Sweets, the agent moved away to start pacing. But he quickly ran out of steam. He just didn't have the energy to fight. Not after the interview. Not today. And now his throat was threatening to close up on him as Sweets stood there waiting—waiting for him to spill his guts. Booth glared at him for a long moment before speaking.

"Fine. I got upset. But I dealt with it. And I don't need to talk to you."

Sweets just looked at him skeptically.

"You might like talking about your feelings, but I don't. I need to DO something—like my job—something constructive." In a voice eerily similar to the one Dr. Brennan had just used on Sweets, Booth said to him, "You've profiled me..." Then he switched to a more condescending, mocking tone, "You know that, as the child of an abusive, alcoholic father, I learned early on to shut up about and ignore my feelings. Instead, I do things to keep people safe. That's all I'm trying to do here. My job. Let me do my job. I'm not talking to you about anything else."

Sweets nodded and let the agent know how impressed he had been with his rational excuse for leaving. Booth was using his own science against him. Dr. Brennan had clearly rubbed off on him. Using Brennan-style logic instead of sheer force proved how truly desperate Booth was not to talk to him. Unfortunately for Booth, it also proved to Sweets how very much the man needed to talk to someone. "You're right, Agent Booth. But you're upset, and you're just going to carry this around all day. Just answer one question honestly, and I'll let you leave." Sweets could hear his own heartbeat echoing in his ears. He was terrified that Booth was going to mop up the floor with him just for trying to keep him there at all.

Booth had been inching closer to Sweets as they had talked. As he drew close enough to do bodily harm, the door swung open again. Both men turned to find a confused Jacobs staring at them in wonder.

"Sorry... Am I interrupting something?"

Booth stepped back quickly and glared at the man. Sweets blushed again. Booth wanted to strangle him for that reason, too.

"Hey, look. I'm fine with it. No problem. Just surprised... Never suspected. Are you two...."

"If you even finish that question, I will use you as a punching bag, Jacobs. For God's sake, get out of here and guard the damned door."

Jacobs started to protest, but Booth stared him into submission. He mumbled, "Yes, sir," and left the room.

All Booth needed was the rumor running rampant that he was now batting for the other team. He'd gotten that often enough—his looks often made women suspicious since he was still single. They couldn't believe someone with his face and sense of chivalry and toned body hadn't long been ensnared by a female. They couldn't see that his heart had been captured long ago but not yet claimed. The guys in the office sometimes commented on his lack of attachment, too. Of course, none of them had been brave enough to ask him about his sexual preferences, but more than a few had wondered for the same reasons the women had. Whatever they thought about him didn't really matter, but Booth decided that he'd be damned if he'd have his co-workers thinking Sweets was his type. "If rumor gets out that you and I are dating, I will kill you, you know that, right?"

"Just answer my one question and then you can go."

Ever full of surprises, Booth glanced up at him and asked, "You're serious? Only one?"

"One."

"Fine. What is it?" Booth walked away as he listened to Sweets. As the men talked, they circled around one another, one of them constantly moving. It was like a verbal boxing match. Both people took turns moving closer as if to throw a punch and then retreating so as not to be knocked out by the other.

"Why did you leave that interrogation?"

"I told you already—I had to take a call."

"You're lying."

"You really want to give me a reason to hit you?"

"Why, Agent Booth? Why did you leave? Be honest."Booth said nothing.

"Dr. Brennan said that you left to give her some privacy. But she lied, too." Booth stopped moving. "Bones doesn't lie."

Sweets was struck by how convinced Booth was of his partner's absolute honesty, "For you, she will. She knew why you left. Do you?"

For a moment, Booth looked as if he were on the verge of exploding from the frustration that now encircled him fully. The thought that Bones knew why he'd walked out of that room was just too much for him to consider in that moment. The fact that she'd lied to protect him from Sweets nearly broke his already shaken heart. At his limit, he looked at Sweets and then charged him to use his strength and size to drive his point home. He got right up into his face and spoke in a way that he knew was usually persuasive, "You can just put a pass in my file today, Sweets. Sign the form and let it go. I'm not talking to you today. Bones and I are working well together. We're partners. Hell, she even warned me that you were looking for me. We don't need your help. I have to get back to work."

Booth pushed past Sweets and bolted for the door. Just as he reached it, Sweets uttered words that stopped him cold. "Actually, I have a few very specific concerns about your working relationship. You know, after you left the meeting, Dr. Brennan took over and handled the situation flawlessly."

"She did?" Booth asked, unable to turn away from Sweet's words about his partner. Now that he had Booth's attention, Sweets continued, "It was amazing—even for her. And given the subject matter? I don't know how she did it—how she survived the interview. But she did. She's amazingly strong."

"See? There's no problem. Bones is strong, I'm eager to do my part of the job. Everything's fine with our partnership. No problem."

"I'm afraid that you are the problem, Agent Booth," Sweets said more confidently than he felt. He felt years being peeled from his lifespan with every passing second. Accusing Booth like this might land him in the hospital.

"Excuse me?" Booth asked, whirling and moving closer to the now nervous psychologist.

"You walked out on an interview. You left your partner facing an emotional situation that was dragging her back through the pain of her very troubled past. You left her, Agent Booth. You walked out on her when she was in the middle of a very difficult situation."

"I did not walk out on Bones!" Booth growled. Sweets could literally feel the man's outrage. Booth opened and closed his hands several times, considering afresh his many reasons for wanting to choke the man before him.

"Do you really think she's emotionally mature enough to realize that? Everyone leaves her. Everyone walks out. You promised her you would be there for her—as her friend, as her partner. But you walked out when things got tough."

All the air whooshed out of Booth's lungs. He had never considered that Bones might have thought he was leaving her... abandoning her. Dammit, he needed to talk to her. What if Sweets had been right?

"Why did you leave that interview, Agent Booth?"

Booth stepped away and paced for a moment. "Fine. My white knight complex makes me hate hearing about Bones' crappy, lonely childhood. I know about her past—I don't need to relive it with her."

"But that's not why you left."

"I just told you that it was," Booth growled at him, now starting to get angry all over again.

"It's possible that you might not know why you left, but I think you're just avoiding saying it out loud. Tell me the real reason you left."

Booth just glared at him.

Sweets pushed forward, "Tell me the real reason you left. If you tell me, I can help. Seriously."

"You're not going to leave this alone, are you?"

"No."

"Not even if I hit you?"

Sweets swallowed hard and stood a bit taller, "No."

Booth turned his back and braced himself with extended arms on the back wall of the restroom.

Sweets spoke quietly to him to encourage him, "If you admit it out loud, it won't be so hard... You know why you left. I know why you left. Even Dr. Brennan knows why you left. It's not a secret. You don't have to lock it down and keep it inside anymore."

"I hate you," Booth said through gritted teeth. What was it about this kid that opened him up and made him talk about things? He wasn't as good as Gordon-Gordon, but the kid was pretty damned annoying.

"Just tell me. Say it out loud. It will help. I promise."

Booth sighed and closed his eyes. He knew full well why he'd left that room, but he hadn't planned on even thinking about it—much less saying it out loud to Sweets. But like so many things in his life, Booth faced the challenge head on—even if it cost him to do so. "Fine," he said, pushing off the wall and pacing again. "I couldn't handle watching Andy comfort April like that. Her life was so much better than Bones' and it still nearly broke her. It was too much... too similar... but too different. Yeah, she had all the crappy stuff, but there was better stuff, too. Her dad died to save her mother—he isn't a murderer, she wasn't abandoned by her brother, and she married her best friend. Her husband was able to protect her, hold her, help her. He helped her survive. She's happy. Her life has turned out okay. Things should have been that way for Bones, but they're not."

"But that's still not why you left. What made you leave? Why was watching Andy hold her... listening to how he saved her... why was that so hard for you?"

Booth leaned back against the wall and rubbed his hands over his face. Surely Sweets could see that he was pushing him too hard.

"Just say it... Say it out loud."

"Fine, dammit! I couldn't stand watching them because it made me jealous. I was jealous of Andy being able to help her like that. I can't save Bones like that, okay! I wasn't enough... I'm not enough--not for Bones!"

Booth strode across the room and punched the wall of the nearest stall too hard. It left an enormous dent, but the sting of the impact didn't help lessen his emotional pain. He extended his arms and leaned hard against the tile wall in front of him as if he might push his way through it. Not that he felt like leaving at that moment. He was blinking back tears and contemplating kicking Sweets around just for sport for dragging him through all of this right then.

"Booth...," Sweets began, dropping the agent's title in a gesture of friendship and support.

"Just go. Haven't you done enough to me yet?"

"Agent Booth, look at me."

Full of too many emotions to hide them all, Booth swiped roughly at tears that he refused to allow to fall and turned to face the younger man with a stony expression intended to shut him out.

"You're wrong," Sweets said adamantly.

That was enough. Booth had to leave. He was now desperate to leave. He'd feel too guilty actually beating Sweets up, so he'd play "nice patient" if that's what it took to get him out of this God-forsaken room.

"Sweets, I know you feel guilty for what happened with me and Bones. Let it go. We're okay. Just go. I need to get back to work."

"No. This is important. Dr. Brennan said things to April and Andy that you need to know." Booth just looked at him, wary of the words that might be coming.

"She said that she has friends and a support network."

"I know that. So do you. She does."

"But what I overheard when eavesdropping...," Sweets started to say, but Booth raised a hand to cut him off.

"Don't.... That's private. Don't tell me...."

Sweets continued anyway, "She told them that you were the one she depends on, the one who accepts and cares for her, the one... the one who helped her survive."

Determined to bury the emotions those words brought, Booth evaded and cleared his throat before saying in a shaky voice, "I'm her partner. That's what partners do."

"But she admitted that you were her special someone. She said her partnership and friendship with you were sacred to her... that nothing--no one was more important...."

"Dammit, Sweets! Just write another book so you can give this a rest."

"She said... She said all of that and so much more. The rest you need to hear from her. But there was so much more...."

"Why... why are you telling me this? She turned me down. I have to move on."

"You spend all of your time saving everyone else. Save yourself. Don't give up hope. Hope is part of who you are. Don't do anything or say anything. Just think about it. I think she's just scared—terrified even. But she's not afraid of you. It's not that you aren't enough. She would tell you that herself if you asked her. I'd bet my life on it. And she'd want me to tell you that it's not that you couldn't save her, Agent Booth. In fact, you have been everything she's needed."

Just when Booth was finally tempted to talk to him more, Sweets turned and left the room without saying another word. Booth shook his head and cursed, unable to stop thinking about what Sweets had told him.

Booth sighed and walked over to splash some water on his face. Then he left the room feeling years older but somehow a bit less depressed. He threw soft punch at Jacobs's arm and told him that he'd kiss him on the lips in the office if he spread any rumors about him and Sweets. The younger man grinned at him. Booth thanked him for standing guard. Then he cursed the practice of psychology and his agency's use of it. Jacobs just nodded at his mentor and was grateful he'd been able to do a favor for him.

Booth rushed down the hallway and yelled to Charlie, "You've got 10 minutes to get me a lead, Charlie-boy. Ten minutes to hand me something juicy. I need to work a lead today, man. Bring me something hot."

Booth sent Bones a brief reply to her text, thanking her for the message about Sweets, then he pulled up the history on Shannon Forster's case files for the department, hoping to find a lead he could pursue.