DISCLAIMER: Surprise surprise, I don't own Bones. Give me time, just give me time…
A/N: I wrote two companion pieces ('One Day' and 'One Day More') a few weeks ago showing the two different sides of a conversation between Brennan and Booth. Thanks to a lot of support and encouragement, I decided to extend them into this longer story. As such, you might recognise the beginning. Oh, and please please please review! Yes, I'm desperate for your praise and criticisms…
My biggest thanks goes to Ava as ever, my super cheerleading muse.
Seeley Booth collapsed on to the sofa, utterly exhausted. The last few days had drained him both physically and emotionally. Cases with kids always did. It had taken its toll on Brennan too.
He had watched her, examining the bones of yet another little child they were too late to save, seen the sadness in her eyes, the inability to comprehend how someone could do something like this to someone so innocent. All he had wanted to do was wrap his arms around her and protect her from all the evil in the world. Not that she'd ever let him.
Instead, he had found himself wrapping his arms around that terrified little girl, her dress covered in blood and tears. Thanks to Bones, they had found where he was keeping them. They'd got there in time and that tiny blonde bloody mess had clutched at him, desperate for help, desperate for comfort. Looking at Bones, he had seen the same look in her eyes. She needed help, she needed comfort. But she never seemed to need him.
Booth reached for the beer on the table beside him, taking long hungry gulps until the bottle was half gone and he gasped for air. He wanted to wash away the memories of this last case, just like he wished he could forget the details of so many others. Over time the names faded but never the faces. Wherever he went, whatever case he was dealt, those faces went with him. And he knew it was the same for Temperance.
He closed his eyes and let his head sink into the cushions. At least this case was done. He wondered how Bones was doing. Without bothering to open his eyes, he dug his cell phone out of the front pocket of his jeans and flicked it open, his thumb hovering over her speed dial button, number one. He paused, looking down at the phone. Maybe he shouldn't call.
When he had given her a lift home from the Jeffersonian, she had just stared out of the window, deep in thought. It hadn't been an awkward silence, it never was with them. He knew she was upset so he'd walked her to her door. She'd opened it and looked back at him, those intelligent eyes so full of pain.
He had wiped a tear away from her cheek, somewhat surprised that she had let him.
"Do you want some company?"
She smiled but it hadn't reached her eyes.
"No, it's ok. I think I'm just going to go straight to bed."
He had smiled as broadly as he could and turned back down the corridor.
"Seeley?"
Turning to face her, he felt his heart skip a beat. It always did when she used his first name.
"Yes Temperance?"
She seemed to soften when he returned the favour, her voice quieter.
"Thank you."
And with that, she had closed the door and he'd ended up here with just a beer for company.
He snapped the phone shut and dropped it on the table, downing the rest of his Budweiser. Leaning his head back and staring at the ceiling, he cradled the empty bottle to his chest.
Booth sighed and let his eyes gradually close. He couldn't help but think of Brennan. She had changed so much since they had started working together, since they had become partners. Booth had to admit, he'd more than once considered them being more than just work partners.
She was so totally different to the other women who had come in and out of his life. For a start, she wasn't blonde. She challenged him more than anyone else, refusing to automatically go with his gut instincts and instead methodically investigating each logical solution. Sometimes it drove him mad but now he realised it was just the way they worked, the ying to his yang.
The main difference between Bones and all the other women was that he trusted Brennan more than anyone else in the world. He trusted her with his life. And he knew she trusted him the same way. The way she looked at him, the gentle touch of her hand, they told him that. Sometimes he wished they would tell him something more.
Angela was always dropping barely concealed hints about the sexual tension between them. He and Brennan had even once agreed that they were somewhere between friends and lovers. He just wished he knew where that somewhere was.
Looking back, Booth tried to remember all the times he had battled the urge to kiss her, to tell her that being friends just wasn't enough anymore. He quickly lost count. He wasn't ready to face that fight. There was too much to lose.
He clambered off the couch, stretching his aching muscles as he padded over to the kitchen. Dropping the empty bottle in the trash, he poured himself a glass of water, grabbed his cell phone off the table and headed for the bedroom. He stripped off quickly, leaving just his boxers, too tired to bother with his pyjamas
Sliding between the sheets, Booth felt a tired sigh escape his lips. He couldn't get Brennan out of his head. Slowly, he began to drift off to sleep, escaping in to a world where he wasn't too pragmatic to tell her how he felt.
The shrill ring of his cell phone pulled him sharply out of his dreams. Fumbling for the phone, he flicked it open without checking the caller ID, his voice thick with sleep.
"Booth."
There was a pause at the other end and then Brennan's voice washed over him, bringing him fully back into the land of the living.
"Oh god, I'm sorry. I didn't mean to wake you."
"No, no Brennan, it's fine. I've literally just got into bed. Just been a long couple of days."
She sighed heavily and he knew she'd been crying.
"How could anyone do that, Seeley? What kind of psychology is that, to hurt a child, let alone four? All because they smiled at him?"
Booth knew she didn't really expect an answer but he tried to find her one anyway.
"He was a sick and twisted man, Temperance, just evil. No two ways about it. But he'll get what he deserves behind bars."
"But what if he doesn't go to prison? What if there's some stupid technicality and they let him go?"
He winced at the desperation in her voice, the fear. All the martial arts and weapons training in the world can't protect you from the fears that creep up on you in the night.
"They won't let him go, Bones. The evidence is overwhelming. You saw to that. You always do."
He didn't try to hide the pride and admiration in his voice. He wanted her to hear it.
"Don't call me Bones."
It was more an automatic response than a real admonishment, especially as he could hear a slight smile in her tone.
"We stopped him, Temperance. He won't be seeing the outside of a jail cell for a very long time. We stopped him."
She sighed, though this time from exhaustion.
"Yes, we did Seeley."
He smiled, feeling his heart beat a little faster.
"You ok?"
"Yeah, I'll be fine. I know you're right, I just needed…"
She sighed again and he could almost see her sitting there in the dark, shaking her head as she paused.
"You're always so nice to me, Booth. I'm sorry I don't always return the favour."
"You do it often enough and always when I need it. That's more than enough for me."
"Thank you, Booth. Guess I should let you get some sleep now. It's pretty late."
He smiled into the handset.
"Don't worry, Bones. Pick you up for breakfast around eight?"
She laughed. He loved that sound.
"As long as you're buying."
"Sure. Sleep well, Bones."
"Same to you, Booth."
The line went silent and he closed the phone, chucking it back on to his nightstand as he rolled over. Closing his eyes, he couldn't keep the smile off his face.
Drifting off to sleep, Booth swore to himself that one day he would finally find the courage to tell the woman of his dreams how he really felt.
One day, he'd tell her he loved her.
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Doctor Temperance Brennan was stood in the centre of her office, staring into space as she clutched a stack of files to her chest. Her whole body seemed heavy and every movement laboured, almost as if she was stuck in a huge vat of syrup. She hated being this tired. It restricted her.
A purposeful cough from the doorway snapped her back to reality. She turned, finding her partner, Seeley Booth, leaning against the frame. He looked so casual, an air of nonchalance about him, but she knew better. Their latest case had drained him and it got to her too.
He smiled at her, full of charm but with a genuine look of concern in his eyes.
"Hey. You ok?"
Brennan smiled back, though she knew he wasn't buying it. She crossed over to her desk, sorting through her files and pretending she couldn't feel his gaze on her back.
"Temperance?"
She felt a shiver run down her spine when he used her first name, same as it always did. She cursed him for his charm and his soothing manner and his kind words.
Steeling herself, Brennan swallowed hard as she turned to face him, surprised to find him standing so close. She could smell the familiar aftershave and, despite everything that had happened over the past few days and against all her better judgement, she felt comforted. Too comforted.
She smiled briskly.
"You ready to go?"
Booth nodded, that look of concern never leaving his eyes. She gathered her things and he stepped out of her way, his hand on the small of her back as he guided her out the door. No pressure, just chivalry. Brennan sighed to herself. Same as always.
Walking through the lab, Brennan glanced up at the forensics area and her stomach flipped. For days she had stood there examining the bones of those four little girls, trying to figure out how and why someone could ever do that.
In the end, they caught him. They were just in time to save Jessica Billows, a six year old blonde who had flung her arms around Booth's neck and refused to let go. She had cried and screamed into his chest, her tiny hands slick with blood and leaving imprints on Seeley's shoulders. He just held her, rocking her slightly, whispering reassurances as they waited for her parents, his eyes swimming with tears.
They had caught the guy but she still didn't understand. What had that little girl, all those little girls, ever done to him? She hated psychology, considering it a soft science, but the more she saw working with Booth, the more often she caught herself asking why.
The gentle touch of his hand on her back kept her moving. She glanced at his profile.
Brennan could not deny that he was handsome as she recalled every detail of the architecture of his face without even looking. But he was her partner. They were colleagues who had grown to become friends, but that was as far as their relationship went. That was as far as she'd let it.
Clambering in to Booth's SUV, she settled herself in to the passenger seat and stared out of the window. She did not see the city racing by, didn't feel the chill of the night air. She left the vehicle almost in a daze, her feet carrying her home without her even thinking about it.
Brennan could feel Booth's presence beside her. He was always beside her. She sighed heavily, turning her tired eyes to her partner as she opened the door and stood on the threshold.
He reached out to her then and her heart skipped a beat as she felt the warmth of his hand against her cheek. It was only when he withdrew that she realised he'd been wiping away a tear. She turned away, embarrassed, wishing she had the strength to let him be there to wipe away all her tears. She rolled her eyes to herself at the sentiment.
"Do you want some company?"
Her cheeks burning, she attempted a feeble smile to fend off any more tears.
"No, it's ok. I think I'm just going to go straight to bed."
Brennan cursed herself for her automatic response, another part of the walls she had built around herself. While it was true she desperately needed sleep, she needed company more.
And then he smiled at her, that broad caring smile, and she hated the fact she needed him. And she hated the fact that even now she was holding him at a distance. She felt his name rising in her throat, felt the urge to pull him close and let him hold her, let him protect her.
But then he turned away and the spell was broken.
"Seeley?"
That voice wasn't hers. It was small and fragile. She bit her tongue. He turned to face her.
"Yes Temperance?"
She didn't know what to say. He so rarely called her by her first name, nor she his. She sighed.
"Thank you."
All Brennan could ever say was in those two little words. She closed the door almost immediately, not wanting to see the look on his face. She heard his footsteps get quieter, the roar of an engine in the night. Only when she was sure he was gone did she let herself cry.
She sank to the floor, still at her front door. Those little girls. Those poor little girls. She couldn't save them, just like she could never save her mother. Even Booth couldn't save them, even though he always managed to rescue her. She shook her head fervently, trying to rid herself of these irrational thoughts and the image of the tiny red handprints over Booth's shoulders.
First and foremost, she was a scientist. She had to stick to the facts and cold hard truths or her whole world would fall apart. Brennan scrambled to her feet and marched in to the kitchen.
Brennan's hand hovered over the fridge handle and she told herself off for another irrational fear. Even so, it wasn't until she'd removed the beer and closed the fridge door again that her muscles relaxed.
Knocking back a long hard swig of alcohol, she settled herself on the couch, her legs wrapped beneath her. She picked the label off the bottle absentmindedly, staring at nothing.
In her mind's eye though, she was looking down at the examination table, conducting a closer inspection of the little girl's remains. The bizarre markings on her bones, the radial fracture of the wrists, the broken fingers. There wasn't a doubt in her mind that she had been tortured. Zach had concurred with her findings and she'd noted more things down in her report.
But then Brennan had looked at Booth. He'd been listening to her findings, watching her intently as he always did when she worked. She used to hate the way he did that but things had changed. A lot of things had changed.
Looking at Booth, she had seen the horror in his pallid face, the anger and frustration in his eyes. She had always been the brain and he'd been the heart, but seeing his anguish…
She had swallowed hard, allowing her brain to process that the tiny pile of bones between them was once that little girl Angela had created, all blonde pigtails, dimples and floaty pink dress.
Brennan had returned her gaze to Booth then, praying he wasn't seeing Parker on that table, and her heart had broken a little.
Blinking hard, Brennan focused on her living room. Her barely drunk beer stood forgotten on the table and she realised she'd been sitting there for almost an hour. She had to go to bed.
She padded into the bedroom, pulled on her sweats and collapsed on to the sheets, letting the darkness envelop her. She wished Booth was with her. She caught herself in that thought and found herself analysing it.
Why did she want Booth there? She hadn't thought about him in a sexual sense. It was just he was always there for her, and now she realised she wanted to be there for him. If she was taking the case this hard, what was it doing to him? He was the one who connected, not her.
Brennan's eyes wouldn't close, too many dreadful possibilities racing through her tired brain. After ten minutes of staring at the ceiling, she grabbed her cell phone and pressed the first button, Booth's speed dial.
A groggy voice sounded over the line.
"Booth."
She paused, realising how late it was.
"Oh god, I'm sorry. I didn't mean to wake you."
"No, no Brennan, it's fine. I've literally just got into bed. Just been a long couple of days."
She heard the pain in his voice and sighed heavily, letting herself voice her fears, hoping it would help him deal with his.
"How can anyone do that, Seeley? What kind of psychology is that, to hurt a child, let alone four? All because they smiled at him?"
Brennan didn't really expect an answer but she knew he would try.
"He was a sick and twisted man, Temperance, just evil. No two ways about it. But he'll get what he deserves behind bars."
Her logic and reasoning deserted her as soon as he tried to console her, her trust in him overwhelming.
"But what if he doesn't go to prison? What if there's some stupid technicality and they let him go?"
"They won't let him go, Bones. The evidence is overwhelming. You saw to that. You always do."
She heard the pride and admiration in his voice and felt herself blush a little, a smile creeping across her lips.
"Don't call me Bones."
"We stopped him, Temperance. He won't be seeing the outside of a jail cell anytime soon. We stopped him."
The tiredness was beginning to catch up with her and she sighed, hoping he could hear her own pride in her tone.
"Yes, we did Seeley."
She could hear him smiling as he replied.
"You ok?"
"Yeah, I'll be fine. I know you're right, I just needed…"
She tailed off, shaking her head in the dark.
I just needed to hear your voice. I just needed to know you were ok so that I could be ok. I just needed you.
She swallowed hard.
"You're always so nice to me, Booth. I'm sorry I don't always return the favour."
"You do it often enough and always when I need it. That's more than enough for me."
Brennan smiled to herself.
"Thank you Booth. I guess I should let you get some sleep now. It's pretty late."
She heard him smile back.
"Don't worry Bones. Pick you up for breakfast around eight?"
She laughed, feeling her worries fading away as her normal routine came back into focus.
"As long as you're buying."
"Sure. Sleep well Bones."
"Same to you, Booth."
She closed the phone, staring at it for a moment before putting it back on the nightstand. Sliding back under the covers, Brennan smiled to herself as she finally managed to close her eyes and felt sleep taking over.
Maybe tomorrow she'd tell him. Maybe tomorrow he'd realise just how much she needed him. One day he'd finally break down all her defences and she'd tell him that she finally knew what love is, because he'd shown her.
One day.