It's my last day of Christmas break and I spent it writing this one shot. I hope you like it :)

Big thanks to NatesMama for editing! If you haven't read her stories, go do it, they're great! :)

Enjoy reading

It was one of those evenings he loved. He'd brought take out to her apartment because they still had some things to discuss. Temperance Brennan and Seeley Booth never were off work.

She was currently on the phone with her publisher and had moved to her bedroom. That's why he took his time to look around her apartment. He knew this place by heart, had been here countless times. It was very comfortable, very Bonesy. But every time he came here he found something new. There were all those artifacts which she'd brought from some exotic digs. Then there were pictures all around the room; some of Bones and Angela, some of Bones and Parker and some of Bones and himself. He loved looking at those pictures. They always reminded him of how far they had come in those three years of their partnership.

Their beginning was a bit bumpy at first but Booth knew from the very first time he'd seen her in the lecture hall at American University that they belonged together; both in a professional and in a personal manner.

He sighed as he placed one of the pictures of the both of them back to his rightful place on the shelf. Friends. They were just friends. That's all she wanted at the moment. And even though he wanted nothing more than to be more than that, he accepted her whishes and waited for the day when they would finally move beyond that line.

He turned around and walked back to the couch where he took their now cold meals into the kitchen; ready for reheating once she was finished.

Back on the couch he took a sip of his beer and took the anthropology journal that lay on the table. 'Might as well read something while she's still on the phone.' And though he wished for better reading material, he opened it somewhere in the middle.

He was curious as three Polaroid pictures fell out of it as he turned a page. Without thinking he turned them around and he nearly choked. There on those pictures were his Bones; although a very, very young Bones in a hospital bed. And in her arms she cradled a tiny bundle which was undoubtedly a baby.

'Bones has a baby? No! She would have told me, wouldn't she? We… we're best friends. We don't have any secrets. There has to be another explanation!'

"Booth, I'm so sorry! Erica tried to pressure me int-" She stopped immediately in her tracks as she say Booth's shocked expression and the photos in his hand. Her own eyes went wide in shock.

"Where- Where did you find those?! They're… You don't have the right to…" She hurried to him and ripped the pictures from his grasp, holding them to her chest protectively.

"Bones…I-I don't understand. Who's that in those pictures?" He shook his head in confusion. "I mean, I know it's you. That's obvious but… the baby? Who is the baby?"

Instantly her eyes filled with tears "I think you should go now, Booth."

"Oh no, Bones." He got up and stepped in front of her. "You can't shut me out now." He searched for her eyes but she wouldn't look at him.

"I can and I will! I want you to forget what you just saw and I want you to go now!"

He stood there for a moment, just looking at her. After a few moments he took her hand in his own and softly brushed away her tears with the other.

"It's yours." He then whispered. It wasn't a question, it was an observation. A truth she could no longer deny, and with a sob she threw herself into his arms and began crying.

"She is. She's my baby." She whispered through the tears before her voice failed her completely.

Booth dragged her over to the couch where he sat them both down and he immediately encircled her with his arms, capturing her in a warm embrace.

"It's okay, Temperance." He whispered again and again, all the while stroking her hair or placing soft kisses to her forehead.

After a while her tears had subsided and she just enjoyed being in his arms; tired from her break down. Neither of them said a word for a long time, and Booth was sure she'd fallen asleep; but she hadn't.

"I gave her away because I wanted her to have a better life than I had."

Booth had to strain his ears in order to hear her words. "Why didn't you ever say anything?" he asked, just as quietly.

"No-one knows. Not even Angela."

"Your dad?"

She shook her head. "No-one."

He again placed a kiss on her forehead "Okay."

He wanted to know what had happened back then, why she was pregnant at such a young age and why she didn't trust anyone with it. But he was afraid of being shut out, afraid of overwhelming her.

After a while he jostled her gently "Show me those pictures again, huh?" She nodded and handed him back the pictures which she'd held clutched to her chest the whole time.

"What's her name?"

She stroked tenderly over the little face imprinted in the picture. "Hope. Her name is Hope." she whispered.

He smiled at that. "I like that. It fits her."

She nodded. "Do you think she has a good life now?" In this moment she wasn't the famous anthropologist and best-selling author Dr. Temperance Brennan. She was that 15 or 16 year old teenager that had to grow up far too quickly. In her eyes Booth saw the insecurities of a mother who wanted the best life for her child. A mother who gave up her most precious treasure. It broke his heart to see her that way.

"I don't know, Bones." He sighed loudly. "I wish I could tell you something different, but I don't know."

Resignation showed in her eyes but she didn't answer anything.

"Bones, can I ask you something?"

She could sense his insecurity and so she smiled "Booth, I just told you my biggest secret, so yes, you can ask me anything."

He took a deep breath before he began. "How did it happen?" He didn't cast blame, he was just curious.

At the question Brennan grew pale, but she promised to answer him; and so she did "I just turned 16. My- my foster father… he was a monster. The minute I came into their home he terrorized me; humiliated me, really. And after months of threatening me, finally one day, he… he raped me." Again her voice broke and she had to fight back tears. She had never spoken about this aloud and she'd thought she'd be over it by now. But talking about it now with Booth brought up all her feelings again.

Booth had to physically restrain himself from punching something. He'd imagined several scenarios involving her secret pregnancy, but sexual assault had been the last thing on his mind. Instead of getting violent, however, he just embraced her harder. He didn't talk yet, sensing that she wasn't ready.

"I couldn't do anything, Booth. I-I tried to fight him, but he was just so strong…"

"It's okay, Temperance. It wasn't your fault. It was his, okay? I don't want you to ever think that you did something wrong, you hear me?" He searched for her eyes but instead of meeting his gaze she continued.

"The moment my foster parents found out that I was pregnant they sent me back to the group home."

Booth snorted "What kind of people were they?! Did you tell anyone what happened?"

"I told my foster mother but she just laughed at me and called me a slut. Said it was my fault. But she didn't believe me when I said it was her husband. Neither did the case worker. So I never told anyone after that."

By now she had composed herself a little again. "Do you understand now why I gave her away, Booth? I didn't have any money; I was back in the system, I couldn't take care of her like she deserved."

"Yeah, I understand, Temperance. You did the right thing." Again he couldn't stop himself from kissing her forehead. "I'm proud of you, Bones."

She smiled a little and looked back to the pictures still in Booth's hands.

"The moment I held her in my arms was amazing, Booth. I-I know it sounds stupid because I was only 16 but it was the most wonderful moment in my life."

Booth nodded. "It doesn't sound stupid at all, Bones. You're her Mom, it doesn't matter how old you were."

They fell back into silence again until Booth broke it after a few minutes.

"Did you ever try to find her?"

She shook her head. "I don't want to interrupt her life, Booth."

"But what if she want's to meet you herself? I mean, she's 16 now."

"I can't, Booth." Suddenly she sounded desperate. "I could never meet her and then let her go again, live as if nothing had happened."

"You wouldn't have to do that, Bones, what-"

"No, Booth! Please stop convincing me of something I don't want!"

"Okay, okay. I'm sorry… But… I do want to thank you, Bones."

"For what?"

"For trusting me with this. I promise your secret is safe with me. And I'm so incredibly proud of you."

She just smiled and laid her head back on Booth's chest. It felt good to having told someone about her daughter. All those years she had carried that burden all by herself. Now with Booth she had someone to talk about it. Someone who would share her memories with her and someone would who hold her when she needed a shoulder.

"Hey, you haven't eaten anything of your dinner earlier. How about we reheat that now, huh? You can't skip dinner, Bones." He said after a while.

She nodded "I find that I'm quite hungry, Booth."

With that he stood up, placed one last kiss on top of her head and walked into the kitchen. A few minutes later he returned with their once again steaming meals and placed them on the table in front of them.

His gaze fell again on the three pictures with the tiny baby, which still lay there. Maybe someday Bones would decide to go meet her. And if she did, then he would be here for her; would support her. He believed that meeting would be good for both of them, mother and daughter. But he wouldn't pressure Bones into anything.

Deep inside he knew that someday she'd come to him and together they would search for her daughter. After all, there's always Hope.

Please let me know what you think :)

xx