Run by Thriving Ivory

You don't have to hold breath
Til you can't breathe
Don't have to cry yourself to sleep…
And you've been walking after midnight
On a tight rope
I can see you shaking now

Are you gonna run
Are you gonna run…?

Til you can't anymore-
You know it's gonna hurt…?
You know it's gonna hurt…?

With your heart on the floor
But you want to fall in love
Do you want to touch
Light of morning

Cause it's me who you're thinking of…
And it's you I'm thinking of…

Yeah, it's you who I'm thinking of…
It's you I'm thinking of…
Do you want to fall in love…?

Brennan licked her lips glanced at Booth and leaned back into the couch. He looked at her and sighed as she exhaled, "Sarah said I have scars."

Booth wasn't expecting that and his facial expression showed it. He locked eyes with Brennan's glossy ones. "Sarah…Sarah from the dig. I…I told her of you…of us." Her fragile eyes looked down at her hands now, anywhere but to his. "I don't know why I did…maybe it was the need to share my feelings with someone." There was a breath of silence.

Then she continued, "She said my scars were evident by the hurt she saw in my eyes…" Brennan inhaled and looked Booth deep into almond eyes. "...she was right... Booth, I carry it with me still. The pain of losing you… I'm even more scared to get close to you than I was before. Because it's true, everyone I have ever loved does leave me." Brennan had said a lot. More than Booth had ever heard her say before about them. Hell she had even used the word love. She had never told anyone she loved them. He had to trust it was true in the past. Though, she had pretty much just said it a second ago.

Booth let his head fall and sighed then he inhaled as he looked up at her. "I'm sorry Bones. I'm truly sorry for what happened, but I can't change the past. I can only control the present and right now…" Booth was cut off by Bones.

"Is not the time, it's not our time. I understand Booth. I shouldn't have said anything. I'm sorry." Brennan said getting up from the couch embarrassed at her outburst of sudden emotion. She turned and looked at Booth sharing a sad smile and walked off into her room.

Booth inhaled and sunk back into the couch as he rubbed his tired eyes. He rolled over contemplating everything that had just taken place. The fact he had unintentionally hurt Bones by no fault of his own. He knew he had hurt her when he left, but he didn't realize Hannah was pregnant. Hell Hannah didn't realize she was pregnant, not until she was four months along.

Otherwise he never would have started his and Bones dangerous little liaison. Hannah and he were on their last try and it didn't look like it was going to work a second time around so what harm could come from taking the road less traveled and breaking that barrier with Bones? If they only knew of the consequences, there were so many if only's.

Now he and Bones were finally where they belonged. That is until that certain night, because life doesn't call for time outs. So, you move forward and do your best at whatever it is you believe is the best thing to do at the moment. You wonder should you make a left or a right turn. Turn around or go straight? Then you do it-make a decision, the wheels don't ever stop reeling. Neither does ones thoughts.

So, there they lay. The ghosts of the past, so far away yet so close to each other. Brennan was tossing and turning yet awake with glossy eyes as Booth did the same on her couch. He knew he wouldn't sleep tonight and knew his tossing and turning would only wake Ashley, so the couch it was. They remained miles apart, yet mere memories away from one another. As the past moved through their souls like a hurricane wind, their hearts became the tornadoes it created. The destruction of their paths ever present, and the storm wasn't even over.

Booth woke to Ashley yelling his name, "Daddyyy! I'm up now! Wewah you Daddy?"

Her yell woke Brennan as well as she padded into Ashley's room. Ashley and she both realized it was only the two of them and she had beat Booth into Ashley's room. "Whaya is my Daddy Auntie Bwen?"

"Where, wh-a-rrrr-e, Ashley. And he is…" Brennan started to say he was coming when Booth entered the room.

"Good morning baby girl." Booth said bending down and kissing Ashley on her cheek. The little girl was still a bit confused as where her dad was this morning. He wasn't cooking breakfast because she didn't smell it. So where was he?

Brennan glanced at him. He looked as tired as she felt. She wondered if he had been up thinking all last night too. "Auntie Bwen can we have pancakes this mowning?"

"Morrrning." Brennan corrected. "And yes we can." Brennan said and Ashley smiled and surprised Booth when she sat up and lifted her hands toward Brennan to help her down from the bed and get dressed this morning. Brennan didn't hesitate as she reached her arms out for Ashley and carefully picked her up. Booth watched as Brennan pulled her head back to look into Ashley's eyes and smile with the little girl who was now giggling through a morning yawn.

Ashley stood on top of the toilet in Brennan's bathroom dressed for the day watching her Auntie brush her teeth. "I hear Daddy making pancakes." Ashley said to Brennan and Brennan smiled.

"Has he made them before?"Brennan asked weary of Booth's cooking abilities.

"Yes! Pawka and I love stwabewwy best!" Ashley assured Brennan.

"St-rrr-awbe-rrr-y." Brennan corrected then continued with what she was originally saying. "I only have fresh blueberries." Brennan told Ashley as she helped her off the toilet.

"That's okay, I like those too." Ashley assured Brennan. Brennan and Ashley walked out into the kitchen to see Booth pouring blueberry pancake batter into a pan.

He glanced at Brennan and her tired eyes locked with his. They could feel the silence, hear the pancake batter bubbling and crackling. Breathing picked up and hearts beat faster. They couldn't look away, yet they both didn't want to look. It was like a car accident. You know you shouldn't look, but you can't help but look.

They knew they both had their defenses up and waking up in the aftermath of their own destruction wasn't fun. They both thought they lost each other during the storm, tossed out to sea with the current and lost forever. Though, they both were still so deeply connected it was ridiculous. And the same current, the same connection that they both thought they lost each other too. It was the same current struggling to bring them together.

You see, neither yet realized that sometimes the risk that might break you is the one you have to take to make it right. Yet neither moved and both continued to tippy toe in when they just needed to jump head first. Jump out of the path of destruction and submerge their self in one another and let go of yesterdays and float on for once. Trusting wherever the current took them is where they were supposed to end up. They needed to allow each other a second chance and more importantly allow their selves a second chance.

"Daddy?" Ashley noticed the sudden silence and smelled the burning pancakes. "I think you buwnt the pancakes." Ashley said staring up at her Auntie and her Dad.

"Oh, crap. Dang it!" Booth said as he flipped the pancakes revealing black as night undersides. Suddenly Ashley covered her ears as Brennan's sensitive fire alarm went off beeping a shrill beep meep beep for the world to hear.

Brennan turned off the fire alarm and looked to Ashley, "I thought you said he could cook pancakes."

Ashley shrugged her shoulders, "Guess not." She said and the two women of the house started to laugh at Booth who was running around the kitchen putting burnt pancakes on plates, turning off the stove and scraping burnt pancake remains out of the pan. He stopped suddenly realizing the fire alarm was no longer beeping and turned around locking eyes with what started the fire in the first place, Bones. She met his eyes and shook her head back and forth smiling with a glint in her eyes. He chuckled and returned her smile.

"Auntie Bwen I think you should show my Daddy how to make pancakes. He needs yaw help!" Ashley said while looking up at the two adults with a smile.

Brennan smiled and grabbed the Pam spraying the now cleaned and cooled down fry pan. "Would you like my help Booth?" she said a smile on her face and the spark that started the fire still in her eye.

"I…I don't know I think Ash and I can handle it. What do you think Ash?" Booth said bending down to get Ashley and setting her atop the counter. Her eyes had almost set the place ablaze when she wasn't helping. What would those dangerous sparks of hers do if she did?

Ash answered, "I think you need Auntie Bwen's help. She is the smawtest pewr- person everr. You said so Daddy. So she should help." Ashley stated.

"Ashley you did it. You said your R's. You said person and ever." Brennan smiled at her in praise.

"Good job baby." Booth said.

"I did it! So now Auntie Bwen gets to help! She is a good helper Daddy. I think you need her help lots and lots. I know because she helps me get dressed, bwushes my teeth and changes my baind-aids and helps me say my R's." Ashley stated and Booth and Bones locked eyes.

"Bones, would you like to help? I hear I need your help lots and lots." Booth smiled and Brennan avoided his eyes looking at him then quickly to the pan making sure Ashley wasn't too close to the stove even though she knew she was on the island. The stove was set in a different counter all together.

"I'm always here to help Booth, just like I always will be." Brennan corrected glancing back at him momentarily.

Ashley sat on the counter so that she could help with pouring blueberries into batter and maybe even stirring this time if she was strong enough. She looked from one adult to the other a bit confused. Not hearing the unsaid words the two adults were speaking aloud to one another, yet knowing something was being said.

"Sooo that's a yes?" Booth asked confirming her answer, as a misconstrued conversation was never a good thing.

"Of course Booth." Ashley raised both her arms up in the air a bit happy of the outcome and everyone exhaled a laugh, tension breaking. Ashley was growing stronger with each day. It seemed everyone was. Now if only they would let go with both hands and let the current take them back to the beginning hopefully, before a rip tide came.