Temperance lay in her bed staring at the ceiling. The numbers on her alarm clock seemed a million times brighter than usual. To her, they were counting down the minutes she had to run to Booth and tell him to stay.

8:55—1 hour and 5 minutes. She was tired and cranky, mostly because she hadn't slept since the night before. So what if Booth was right? Maybe she didn't want to remember him. All the more reason to go to sleep, right? She turned her body away from the alarm clock and closed her eyes.

"I'm not giving up on us." Booth's voice echoed in her mind. Temperance sighed and turned back over.

9:00—she sighed once more. This was going to be the longest hour of her life. She got up from the bed, convinced that she wasn't going to get any sleep, and walked into the kitchen to get a glass of water. On the way, she passed the table with the pictures on it and deliberately tried to ignore the ones with Booth in them. She took three steps and then stopped suddenly and turned back around. She decided that her willpower was incredibly lacking this morning. The photographs of Booth and her seemed to stand out among the rest, and she noticed how happy they had seemed.

She knew that she was going to miss him more than she had originally thought. Maybe even more than she had ever missed anyone or anything.

Bits and pieces of memories of Booth had flashed through her mind for the past week, but she had pushed them aside. She had written them off as unimportant details of a life she once knew.

Now, however, they seemed to be the only thing she could think about. Subtle touches and a smile that he reserved only for her came to her immediate memory. She knew, however, that these were more of revelations than actual memories. Temperance had never been good at noticing things or reading into people's emotions. Now that she knew he loved her, she viewed everything slightly different. The reason that he was always there to save her wasn't his alpha-male tendency anymore. It was now the fact that he had wanted her to live, so that he could be with her.

She now wondered if everything had been because of that.

Had he called her into the field with him just because he needed her? Or was it because he had wanted her close to him?

Her mind was suddenly filled with more memories and questions than she could handle, and she formed a slight headache. She remembered standing at the altar with Booth, though she wasn't in a wedding dress.

"What do we do now?" Was her question, and she had briefly considered actually exchanging vows with the man standing beside her.

When had it changed? When did the man she viewed as her partner become the man she viewed as the reason her life had purpose? She figured the realization had been recent, but that the feelings had been there since the day they had met.

A sudden memory of another man, one who she had been apt to sail away with, flooded her mind. That was when she realized exactly when she knew how she felt about Booth. She couldn't stand the thought of being away from him, even if it was only for a week. A year would've killed her. The stupid psychologist had known this, but lied to Booth for some unknown reason. A part of her almost wished he had told Booth the truth.

Maybe then she wouldn't be in this position, and Booth wouldn't be leaving. If only she could admit her feelings to him, everything would be okay.

Yes, she realized, Booth was right. The memories had always been there, she was just hiding them from herself. Her biggest fear was to end up alone, and that's where she figured her life was going. She was afraid of commitment, of relationships, of love. She felt that if you gave your heart to someone, it was just like giving them permission to hurt you.

The only thing was; she knew Booth wouldn't hurt her. Not now—not ever. That's what made him different from all the rest. He cared about her, protected her…loved her.

And she loved him.

The realization hit her suddenly and she grabbed her coat. The clock on the microwave said 9:40. She hoped twenty minutes would be enough.

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Temperance looked down at her watch as she practically ran into the airport. If it was correct, the time was 9:57 and she had three minutes to get Booth. She knew, however, that the plane usually boarded fifteen minutes before lift-off. She pulled out her cell phone and prayed to whatever God Booth believed in that he would answer his cell phone. After three rings, he did.

"Bones?" His voice said on the other line. She noticed he sounded close, as if he was only standing a few feet away from her. She turned to her right and found him sitting in a chair in the middle of a row of seats. She hung up the phone as he walked towards her.

"What are you doing here?" He asked.

"You can't leave." She answered automatically. Booth nodded.

"I know." He said and then gestured to the board above him. "My flight is delayed." Sure enough, beside the word California was DELAYED in bright red letters. Temperance shook her head.

"No." She said. "I mean you can't leave--ever."

"Bones-" He began to protest, but Temperance cut him off.

"I remembered." She told him and then looked down. "You were right...I was afraid." Booth, for once, seemed speechless and looked torn between saying something and remaining silent. Temperance pulled out the letter she had wrote to him when she was buried alive. She handed it to Booth who took it before giving her a confused look.

"You weren't supposed to read this unless I died, but I think under the circumstances, it's the best thing for me to do." She told him and then looked down at her hands. "I've never been good at expressing my feelings, and well..." She trailed off. Booth read the letter as Temperance watched in anticipation. He turned it over to read the last few words of the letter. When he looked up, his eyes held more emotion than she thought was possible.

"Bones, I-" He began, but seemed unable to finish.

"I know you want me to tell you I love you, because that's what you believe makes a relationship," she started, "but love is really just a word used as a label for the emotions people feel when endorphins react with certain-"

"Bones." Booth said forcibly. "Shut-up." He pulled her face to his in one swift motion and crashed his lips to hers. At first the kiss was hungry, as if he was afraid that it wasn't real, and he wanted to make the most of the time he had. However, the kiss became softer and sweeter as he realized that it wasn't a dream, and she wasn't going anywhere. It broke off into short, light kisses and then he rested his forehead against hers.

"I can't believe we waited this long." He told her with the smile that he reserved only for her. She laughed and pulled away slightly.

"Come on." He said and placed his hand on the small of her back. "You can help me with my bags." They walked together to the baggage claim and grabbed Booth's luggage.

"So...no California?" She asked him jokingly. Booth smiled.

"Are you kidding me?" He asked. "After all that?" He turned towards her and gestured to his bags. "Your place or mine?" He asked. Temperance smiled and shook her head as Booth intertwined her hand with his.

"There will be no living with Angela after this." She said and leaned against him. He laughed and wrapped his arm protectively around her waist as they walked to her car. She smiled as she realized that this was where she belonged. Wherever Booth was, there she knew she would follow.

A special thanks goes to DemonSong10 who, although we do think alike on some things, gave me the idea to have Booth leave and the idea for the conclusion. You've been an amazing help and this story wouldn't have been the same without you.