Title: Tapestry

Author: AccordingToMel

Summary: Theirs was a relationship born of mutual need and convenience, two unlikely threads woven together in the complicated tapestry of the pattern of their lives.

Characters/Pairings: Cadgins (Cam/Hodgins)

Rating: G

Spoilers: General season 4

Word Count: 864

Disclaimer: I'd like to own them. Sadly, I do not.

Author's note: Okay, so this is totally different from what I usually write, but I felt inspired to try something new after the most recent Macro Thursday on the 206_bones livejournal community. It's longer than I'd wanted it to be, but shorter than anything I've ever posted before. Let me know your thoughts – if you love it or hate it or are indifferent! Thanks for reading :)

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Tapestry

He was a conversationalist. Passionate. Intense. Honest.

She was a sustainer. Sensitive. Real. Forthright.

Theirs was a relationship born of mutual need and convenience, two unlikely threads woven together in the complicated tapestry of the pattern of their lives. He needed a compassionate ear to listen. She desired the companionship of another human being. It was an alliance built on unsteady ground, but one that eventually formed its own roots – strengthening and affirming itself on a slowly building foundation.

It started in the lab, during one particularly rough day. He had witnessed his ex with her new lover, and for the first time it truly hit him that they were completely and verifiably over. It wasn't that he was specifically seeking attention that day. But she was there with him, a willing ear, an impartial perspective. So he talked. And she listened. And it felt foreign, and different, but somehow something worked throughout the course of their exchange.

The next time it happened was a week later, during an emotional case. Soon he would purposely seek her out to talk. But it was him, always him, at first. Until one not so special day, a couple of months later, she had come to him crying after breaking up with her boyfriend. And suddenly what had once seemed so foreign began to feel like the most perfectly natural thing in the world.

Life carried on as usual. They both continued to work together. They both dated other people. But they always made time for one another – time to talk. And somewhere along the line, their weekly conversations turned into twice weekly conversations, which turned into almost daily conversations. And soon the desire to date other people dissipated entirely. They had everything that they needed in one another.

After a year, she realized that she was in love with him. It was another year until she told him this fact.

The day he proposed was not unlike most others. They had both been working late on a case when he appeared in her office with a blanket and a basket of her favourite food. They'd had a full course meal on the floor of her office. The final course was a slice of strawberry cheesecake with a beautiful diamond ring laid gently on top. The next day they had celebrated with their friends and colleagues.

Zack had stood up for him at their wedding. Felicia for her. It was a small, intimate ceremony consisting of close friends and family. But she couldn't remember ever seeing him so happy. Or feeling so happy herself.

The day she found out she was pregnant was a shock to them both. But the doctors said that in spite of her age, she could expect a healthy, normal pregnancy. They named their daughter Destiny Autumn, after both maternal grandmothers, and she was their joy in life.

They both took the day off of work for her kindergarten graduation, something neither had done simultaneously since their honeymoon. She was beautiful, and they were both so proud of their daughter. The next day they shared pictures and stories with their colleagues and friends.

Four days after her twenty-first birthday the call came that no parent ever wants to hear. She only heard a few words: "accident…drunk driver…no survivors…", but it was enough. They had held one another and cried for days. And she couldn't ever remember seeing him so devastated. Or feeling so devastated herself. They never stopped talking about her though.

When he was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer, they decided that it was time to go on that world cruise that they had always wanted to take but had never allowed themselves the time to do. Neither of them had ever had so much fun in their lives, and they were grateful. They spent the next couple of years regaling stories of their adventures to anyone who would listen.

He died in his sleep, at the respectable age of 74, holding her tightly in his arms as they slept in their bed. He had always sworn that the only way he could leave this world was if he knew she was right there beside him when he went. Somehow it didn't bring her as much comfort as she'd once thought it might.

One week after his funeral, she went to his graveside and sat down on the soft ground. She cried as she read his headstone:

Jack Anthony Hodgins

Never was there a man who loved more freely,

spoke more passionately,

or gave of himself more honestly.

- He will be missed by all who had the honor of knowing him

(1975 - 2049)

But once the tears finally stopped flowing, she began to talk, like they always had. And every week after that, Camille Hodgins went to visit her husband, sharing her life with him as he had once done for her, until she finally passed away seven years later.

He was a lover. Nurturing. Genuine. Beloved.

She was a fighter. Passionate. Courageous. Strong.

Theirs was a relationship born of mutual love and admiration, two not so unlikely threads woven together in the complicated tapestry of the pattern of their lives.