A/N: Thank you so much to all of you who gave me wonderful ideas on baby names and such for the fic! I think I have made my decision but if you would like to give some more ideas, go for it :) Don't worry for all of you who don't want me to end this story either. I think I'm going to do a sequel so when this fic does wrap up, look out for that. I'll give more details when the time comes.
And a big thanks to Trinitystargazer3 for your videotaping idea. That part was not my idea (You'll see what I'm talking about once you read).
Also, so no one is confused, it's about the beginning of November in the story timeline, with Booth being gone a little less than a week at this point.
"Hey, Ange thanks for coming early. We can't move into the house for a couple of weeks so you and I can share the bed."
Brennan let Angela into the apartment. "Sweetie, we don't have to share the bed. I can sleep on the couch. Bren, you have no idea how excited I am to go shopping for this baby. She is going to be so spoiled!"
Brennan smiled. "Angela, you can't possible know the gender of this baby yet. Plus, I don't know if I want to know. I'm sure Booth wants to be surprised."
"No! We need to find out. We can find out and we can decorate the room and we don't even have to tell Booth!"
"I can't do that. I can't keep a secret like that from him!"
Angela laughed. "We'll see. So when's your appointment?"
Bren glanced at the time on the oven. "In an hour."
"Can we go shopping after? Please, Bren?"
Brennan looked dumbfounded. "No baby things. Not yet. There's no sense in buying a lot when we're just going to have to move it soon!"
Angela rolled her eyes and shrugged. "Fine. But I'm not making any promises."
"Bren, stop shaking so much. It's making me nauseous," Angela said, putting a hand on Brennan's leg to keep her from bouncing it.
"Sorry. And don't talk to me about nausea. You don't know the first thing about nausea until you're in my position. I feel like I could toss my toast any time."
"Toss my cookies, Bren. The saying is toss my cookies," Angela said, laughing.
"But I didn't have cookies. I had toast for breakfast."
"Yeah. I know."
"So then why did you say that I had cookies?"
"Never mind."
"Temperance?" A nurse called from the office door. Angela and Brennan followed the nurse down the narrow hall to the exam rooms.
"So what brings you here today, Dr. Brennan?"
"Isn't that your job to know why I'm here?"
Angela elbowed her. "What she means is she's pregnant and she's here for her first visit."
"They should know that. I told them that when I called to make the appointment."
"Sweetie, it's called making small talk. She was just being nice and talking to you."
"Well then that should not be something she should ask. It makes her sound like she's bad at her job."
The nurse, who was used to the grumpy pregnant women, gestured to the scale. "Please step up. We need to take your weight." Brennan did as she was told and promptly stepped off as soon as a proper reading was taken.
"I'm sorry about my friend," Angela said to the nurse, "She's just upset because her husband should be here."
"He has a job to do and I understand that," Brennan piped up, "I only wanted you here because I know I wouldn't hear the end of it from you if I had told you I went to my appointment by myself. I've come to know you quiet well, Angela, and I know you would've been very upset with me."
"Damn straight. Now, come on. Let's get this show on the road!" Angela cried.
They followed the nurse to the exam room and waited for the doctor to arrive.
"Hello, Temperance. It's nice to see you again," the doctor said as she walked in.
"Hello, Dr. Francis. This is my friend, Angela."
"Nice to meet you, Angela. Temperance, I got the blood work from the Georgetown University health clinic. Congratulations on the pregnancy. I'm assuming that's why you're here?"
Brennan nodded.
"Okay then. First, I need to get some medical history on both you and the baby's dad. Can I ask where your husband is?"
"He's been deployed. Just earlier this week actually. He'll be gone for a while."
"A whole year," Angela added.
Dr. Francis looked dismayed. "I'm sorry to hear that. Do you know most of his medical history though?" Brennan nodded again and Dr. Francis asked her a long series of basic questions that Brennan answered easily.
"Normally, I would have some blood drawn but they did that at the university so I can use those records. I need you to give us a urine sample now. I just need to make sure your protein and sugar levels are all okay. I'm not expecting anything abnormal, this is just standard procedure," Dr. Francis told her.
When Brennan returned from the restroom, she was met with Angela's video camera in her face.
"Angela! What are you doing?"
"Taping it! For Private Studly!"
"Private Studly is Corporal Studly now, Ange."
"Ooh! A promotion! Atta boy, Booth."
Brennan ignored the camera and sat back down on the exam table.
"Okay, Dr. Brennan, I'm going to do a pelvic and a physical exam."
Brennan laughed. "Uh, Ange, I'm sure Booth doesn't want to see me have a pelvic exam. You can probably turn off the camera for just a bit."
"Ha, yeah, good call. We both know how bashful he is about…private things." All three women laughed as Angela shut off the camera.
Not long later, Dr. Francis gave Angela a thumbs-up to turn the camera back on. "Alright, you ready to find out your due date?" Brennan's heart suddenly started beating faster than normal. She was getting anxious, still floored that this was happening. Dr. Francis escorted Brennan and Angela to a sonogram room.
"I'll do the sonogram if that's okay. Our normal sonographer is out sick today," Dr. Francis told them.
Brennan lied down on the table and gave Angela a nervous glance. Angela, who already had the camera on, said, "Sweetie, are you okay?"
She nodded. "I'm fine. Just…I'm fine."
"It's okay to be nervous, Dr. Brennan," Dr. Francis told her, "I was scared shitless with my first. But it's natural. You'll worry you won't feed the little one the right food or get the right toys, send them to the right schools. But you just have to go with the flow. You'll figure things out."
Brennan just nodded.
"Now, Dr. Brennan, you said you couldn't remember the date of your last period, correct?"
"Yes…why?"
"Well, this little picture is going to help us find out your due date. Could you wiggle your pants down a little and lift up your shirt?" Brennan did as she was told and readied herself for the cold feeling of the sonogram gel.
She cringed a little as Dr. Francis squirted a bit onto her abdomen and the doctor apologized. Placing what Angela called her magic wand on her stomach, Dr. Francis turned the monitor towards the two women and Angela focused the camera on the screen.
"Now, of course, right now, the baby looks just like a little blob on the screen, but I'd say," Dr. Francis moved the wand and hit a few buttons on the machine, "you're due early July, about the twelfth."
Brennan was beaming. She never thought she'd be so happy about a baby, a family. She never thought she'd want a family. Once her parents and Russ took off, she never wanted to have that sense of duty to stay, that kind of love and responsibility for other people. But her love for Booth ran deeper than her indignation for the people she once called her family.
"I know, I know, I should know this, but is there any way, any way at all, that you can tell the sex of the baby?" Angela asked.
"Ange! I don't want to know! And I don't know if Booth does so let's just drop it."
"I'm sorry, we won't be able to tell the gender for a while," Dr. Francis said.
Angela turned the camera toward her and said, "Sorry, big man, I tried."
Hours later, when Angela and Bren returned from their shopping trip, Brennan checked the mail. Bill. Bill. Junk mail. Bill. Booth. Bill. She stopped quickly and back tracked to the envelope from Booth. It was postmarked in Germany. She shoved the other mail into Angela's hands and ripped the envelope open.
Hiya, Bren!
We stopped in Germany for a bit to refuel and pick up a few Army medics to take with us. It's actually really nice here. I kinda wanna ask if I can stay and do something here instead of going to the desert. My buddy, Teddy, and I found out we get to stay in the barracks together. Thank the Lord because some of the guys in the battalion are kinda weird. Nothing bad, they're good guys, you know, but Parker's the only person I'd wanna live with (beside you and the baby, of course!).
Speaking of the baby, how is she (or he)? Did you get Angela to come stay with you? When you go to the doctor, you should take her with you. I wish I could come to your appointments. But I do wanna know if the baby is a boy or a girl. We need to pick out some names, babe! I just can't believe this is happening. I'm already counting down the days until I get to see you!
I love you so much,
Booth
P.S. Here's my address for the base camp in Iraq. Send me something soon! I can't wait to hear from you and the baby.
"Oh, sweetie! How adorable. We need to send him a little care package or something!" Angela said, when she finished reading the letter over Brennan's shoulder.
"What would we put in it though? I have no idea what he would want."
"Duh, sweetie, anything that would remind him of you!"
"Alright, let's go send him something."
One week later, Undisclosed location, Iraq
"Hey, Booth! You got a package! It's from your woman!" someone shouted. Booth perked up and looked around the mess tent. The soldier who had the job of retrieving the mail from the main base camp a couple dozen miles away sauntered toward Booth, waving the box around.
"Give it here!" Booth demanded and the soldier tossed him the package. Very quickly, Booth was surrounded by every guy in the mess tent, waiting to see what was in the box.
"Back off!" Booth shouted and he and Teddy ran to their tent to see what was in the package.
They could tell it had been opened and re-taped for security purposes but Booth couldn't have cared less. He whipped out his knife and sliced into the new packing tape.
An envelope with his name on the front was right on top. Glancing over the other items in the box, he ripped open the letter and read it to his buddy.
Booth,
I got your letter and Angela and I decided to send you something right away. I just got back from my first doctor appointment and everything is going well. My due date is July 12th. I hope to be sending you ultrasound pictures as soon as there is something to see. Right now, the fetus appears as a small circle on the monitor so there is not much to look at.
Angela is here and she is going to stay with me until it is time to move into the house. At that time, Jack is going to come down and they are going to help Pops, Jared and I fix up the house. They are going to stay with me until the baby is born or maybe until you get back. Angela's really excited to decorate the nursery. I know you want to know the baby's gender but for some reason, I am feeling the urge to keep it hidden until the birth. Until the technology was created, women never knew the gender of their offspring. I'd like to keep some semblance of that. However, Angela has offered to find out and conspire with you on ideas for the nursery. I have agreed to this situation as long as neither of you give it away.
I hope you are doing well and are staying safe. I'm not sure if this will be possible, but Angela has included a video tape for you to watch of my first appointment. Angela has promised to keep taping every appointment for you to see.
I love you, and stay safe,
Bren (and baby)
He pulled the videotape out of the box and set it to the side. He was going to ask his commanding officer if he could use the training room in the command center to watch the tape. There was a small white box with a note attached. He opened the box and found another medal, like his Saint Sebastian medal she gave him their first Christmas together.
St. Andrew: Patron saint of Army rangers, the note said.
Booth slipped the medal around his neck to accompany the Saint Sebastian medal he still wore. He discovered several bags of candy all with the note Share! But, the best part of the package was the pictures he found tucked between the multicolored socks and Sports Illustrated magazine. They were just Polaroids of Bren and Angela goofing around. They were making faces at the camera, teasing each other, but Booth was instantly drawn to one of just Brennan smiling sweetly at the camera, a hand resting on her still-flat stomach. In the small white space beneath the picture, Brennan had written miss you and drew a small heart next to the words.
Booth gazed at the picture for some time and hardly noticed Teddy sneaking off with a bag of candy. He planned to go after his friend and give him shit for stealing his food, but, for now, Booth laid back on his cot and stared at the picture for a while in peace, thinking of her.
