The Face with Two Skeletons

By: Tropicwhale

Disclaimer: Mine? Who's been saying that wonderful lie? oh...ignore them, they lie like rugs. Bones and all things associated with the show belong to other people...dammit.

Author Talk: *Sigh* I'm updating because I'm physically unable to do my homework until at least nine'o'clock

Chapter Fifteen

As it turned out Angela was on loan to the Egyptology department to use her computer skills to render a faded proportion of a stone tablet and couldn't take Zack home until later in the evening. Booth told Brennan and Cam that Zack wasn't feeling well and Dr. Saroyan found him a blanket so he could take a nap on the couch in Brennan's office until he could be taken home. For the next few hours everyone checked in on him to make sure he was doing alright, including Dr. Brennan. Zack was in and out of conscious when Booth and Brennan started to hunt down the private detective that followed Anne Zerbrowski around. Dr. Saroyan stopped in sometime around four o'clock and checked on Zack. "How are you doing, Zack?"

"Lousy." Dr. Saroyan laughed and stroked his hair. "My mom used to do that when I was a kid."

"Did she?" Zack nodded, his head never leaving the pillow.

"I'm sorry I yelled at you, Hodgins, and Angela at lunch today. I was frustrated with my lack of progress with the skeleton I've been working with."

"Don't worry about it, Zack."

"Okay." Dr. Saroyan smiled. "Is there any progress with Anne's remains? Who's taken my position?" Zack asked.

"Don't worry about it."

"I can't seem to do that. I want her to have the best….unfortunately, that's me and I…" Dr. Saroyan smiled.

"We removed the wings and unbolted the skeleton. The feet are attached to the base with some sort of super glue and the paint is thick enough that any trauma is obscured."

"So not well."

"No."

"I'm sorry."

"Why?"

"If I wasn't having an affair with Zerbrowski I would have been able to help."

"You were friends with the victim's husband through your basketball team. I'm sure Caroline Julian would have thrown the same fit that she's going to throw if she found out you were on the same platform as the remains."

"I backed away as soon as I could."

"I know. She'll be mollified by that."

"She scares me."

"She scares everyone." Zack smiled and closed his eyes. Cam stood up and went back to her job. Two hours later, Zack was woken up by Angela.

"Hey, sweetie. Ready to go home?" Zack nodded and stood. Angela wrapped her arm around his shoulder and walked him out of the lab. "How you feeling?"

"Still woozy." Angela gave his shoulders a squeeze. "I am not sure if I should have not eaten lunch at all or eaten more."

"I understand. I feel that way after I've vomited." Zack moaned and laid his head on Angela's shoulder. Angela laughed. She stopped at the vending machines and bought a bag of chips and a bottle of water. "Here. You'll feel better after you get something in your stomach." Zack nodded and carefully open the chip bag. He carefully put it into his mouth expecting to run straight to the bathroom to vomit again. Instead, he found himself starving and thirsty. He chowed down on the chips and water with Angela laughing. Zack looked up at her as the chip bag grew empty. "You're like a little kid with a candy bar."

"I wasn't allowed to have sugar. My mother said it made me antsy." They started walking again.

"Wow, I kinda feel bad for you Zack."

"Why?"

"Not overdosing on sugar, no drinking underage, not learning basic social skills? These are things that are a kid's right."

"I was beaten up a lot. And I graduated college at sixteen. That was kinda cool."

"I guess. And if you weren't like supersmart you wouldn't here with us." Zack shrugged.

"That's true."

"Glad you agree, Zack." Angela joked. At least, Zack assumed it was a joke. Angela got her keys out and they walked out into the late spring sunshine. Zack felt loads better in the fresh air. "Still hungry?" Angela asked as they got into her car and Zack took another gulp of water. Zack nodded. Angela drove them to the Royal Diner and Zack got a Ruben sandwich and Angela got a cob salad.

"You've been eating a lot of salads lately." Zack observed. Angela grinned.

"I'm a bridesmaid at a friend's wedding. I need to lose like ten pounds." Zack looked at her confused. "The dress is a size three in American. In Chinese it's like 34."

"That has to be frustrating."

"Very."

"If you would like someone to workout with I can help." Angela smiled at him.

"Oh, thank you sweetie." They finished their dinner in quiet. Angela started to pay but Zack beat her to it.

"I'm tired of everyone paying for me like a kid. I am twenty-nine point-"

"I get it, Zack. Besides, a lady never turns down a free meal." Zack smiled at that. It was funny. They got back into the car and drove to Hodgins' house. Angela stopped the car in front of the gate and got out to punch the passcode in. She then got back in and drove through to the garage.

"Thank you for driving me home, Angela." Zack said when she had put the car into park.

"You're welcome Zack." Zack went to get out of the car and heard a loud booming sound. Then Angela was screaming. Then everything went black.

Zack woke askew and pinned between a tree and an airbag somewhere to the right of the property's gate. His head was bleeding and he was certain two ribs and his left femur were broken. He immediately looked for Angela. She was right beside him, panting, pinned to her seat by the steering wheel. "Are you okay?" Angela nodded.

"I-I think my arm is broken."

"Probably other stuff too. Is there any tightness in your abdomen? There might be internal bleeding."

"I don't know…the car's sort of pressing on me." Zack nodded. He understood. He could hear the sirens in the distance. "What happened?"

"My apartment exploded…if the flames coming from that direction are any indication."

"My car?"

"I think it saved our lives. We would have been mincemeat if your car had gone ca-boom instead of the garage."

"Ca-boom?"

"I couldn't think of any other accurate description of the sound I heard before everything went black...my head hurts too much."

"Oh. Okay. Are you okay?"

"My leg, two ribs feel broken and I'm pretty sure I have a major concussion. Angela, I'm afraid."

"So am I, sweetie."

"I don't want to die right now."

"Me neither. Let's keep talking okay? I heard somewhere that you shouldn't fall asleep if you're hurt this bad. Something about shock."

"Okay. Talk about what?"

"I don't know. Tell me about when you started playing basketball."

"It was right after I came to D.C. I came about five months early than Dr. Brennan needed me because she was out of the country and I….I wanted to settle in before starting to work….I was in a car accident…and the officer and EMT that pulled me from the wreak happened to be Copperheads. They asked me to join when I could walk again. In fact I think my one leg is broken in the same place as last time."

"Is that good or bad?"

"I'm not sure. I'm not a medical professional."

"Well, it'll probably be easier to set this time."

"I guess."

"So, Zerbrowski….tell me about him."

"He's my friend."

"You have sex with him."

"Only on occasion."

"Define occasion." Angela had that tone to her voice, the one that she used when talking about sex and attraction. Zack didn't say anything. "ZACK!"

"Yeah…I'm thinking."

"What about?"

"Zerbrowski….Booth said earlier today that if he really cared about me he would have left Anne."

"Booth's smart about that stuff."

"Angela…"

"Yeah, Zack?"

"Did you ever have sex with a married man?"

"Yes."

"What was it like?"

"At first it was exciting…doing something forbidden. But, eventually, it made me feel cheap. It's no fun when you have to be someone else's dirty little secret…knowing that they have someone else that they go home to after they're done with you."

"Zerbrowski usually becomes aroused more if he thinks I'm attracted to someone else."

"Aroused in a good way or a bad way?"

"I'm not sure. He starts interacting with me in way that indicates that he wants sexual intercourse more often."

"It sounds like he's only using you for sex, Zack, and is possessively jealous. Those aren't good qualities."

"I'm only using him for sex and I thought jealousy is a good thing. It shows someone cares enough that they want you for themselves."

"Yeah, but he's also keeping up a charade that he's a straight man in a monogamous relationship with his wife."

"He says he does that because no one would accept our relationship as what it is."

"Yeah, but you deserve someone that doesn't mind showing you off…and who doesn't complain about your sexual prowess like Naomi from Paleontology."

"I don't think that person exists, Angela. The odds are astronomically high."

"They do, Zack. There's someone out there for you, and just you. Just watch."

"The sirens are loud…I think the ambulance is on the road."

"Don't change the subject on me." Angela smiled to show she was joking. Suddenly there was an EMT there telling them both it will be alright and to stay calm. Zack relaxed. It was Keg. Angela and he were in good hands.

Author After Talk: So yeahhhhhh....HI!! Is it sad I've forgotten what I've written? I'm focused on what needs to happen so when you referance something and say it's good I'm flattered then I'm like...wait...what? So then I go and look it up and go "OOHHH" Okay...cool. MORE TO COME! WRITING chapter twenty

Tropic