It was a good day for the criminology team at the Jeffersonian—the best kind of day, when the criminal had been apprehended and further murder prevented. Everyone felt like a hero, and normally this was when everyone would head out for a celebratory drink, yet Agent Booth was nowhere to be found, and neither was Dr. Brennan. On one more go-around, Angela was a little surprised to see Brennan sitting at her computer in her office, looking morose—not a usual attitude after wrapping up a case. Angela knocked at the semi-opened door but was not acknowledged.

"Um…sweetie?" Angela said, stepping inside.

Brennan jumped. "Oh, Angela! Hello! Great work on the case."

"Yeah…yeah, you too. We were headed over to Hodgins', actually, to celebrate. I mean, you'll probably think it's stupid, but he's gonna order a pizza and we're going to have a Godzilla marathon."

"Actually, I find the Godzilla films quite fascinating!"

"…you do?"

"Yes! Science fiction is one of the most overly maligned genres, yet it is often the one best suited to holding up a mirror to the time in which it was created. Godzilla appeals to most people because it seems to have an outrageous premise, but if one was to look at the film on a deeper level, one would discover that it was an attempt on the part of the Japanese to artistically reconcile with nuclear fallout and—"

"Okay," Angela interrupted her with a laugh. "We definitely need you to be there to help us, um, dissect these movies to their full potential."

"I'd be delighted to come along!" Brennan said, shutting off her computer and collecting her things. "Thank you for inviting me."

"Of course," Angela said, scanning the room as if expecting Booth jump out from behind a chair. "Where's Booth, honey?"

"Hm? Oh, he's at the Founding Fathers."

"Alone?"

"No, an old friend from the army is in town and came to visit him," Brennan said, leading the way out of the office and locking the door behind Angela. "They're just catching up."

"Cool. How long's he going to be in town for?"

"I'm not sure how long she will be."

Angela stopped. "This friend is a woman?"

Brennan was still walking. "Yes."

"Oh. Oh, sweetie, I'm sorry."

"Why would you be sorry that Booth's friend is female?"

"Because," Angela said, catching up. "Brennan, come on. Even if you didn't like Booth that way, going out for drinks after a case is your thing! It must be frustrating to have another woman come in on your territory like that."

The anthropologist fought to keep her voice steady as she said, "Booth assured me that this woman is just a friend—he mentioned no romantic history and his physiology did not seem to imply any sexual interest in her. But, as you said, it would be irrelevant if he did, because I am not interested in entering any sort of relationship with Booth outside of work."

"Mm-hm…"

Brennan could talk all she wanted, but Angela knew it was bull. What neither of them knew was that Booth had been totally honest in saying that this old army buddy was nothing more than a friend, and she felt the same way about him. And so it would always be, because handsome and charming though Booth might be, it wasn't within his power to turn the head of a lesbian.

"Jane Rizzoli!" he laughed, getting up from his bar stool to meet his old friend. He had always loved the way Jane walked—initially because he thought it was sexy, but as time wore on and it was clear they would only be very good friends, he admired it for another reason: you always got the impression that Jane was the most powerful person in the room; she just owned it the second she walked into it. (And, potential romantic partner or not, it was still pretty damn sexy.)

With a beautiful smile, she said, "Seeley Booth, how's it going, man?" and pulled him into a hug. Upon first meeting him many years ago, she had been impressed by his remarkable leadership skills, and later admired him for the way he treated everyone with equal respect. He was a good guy. They walked back to the bar together, and after they'd sat down and ordered, Jane said, "Wow. How long's it been, you handsome son of a bitch?"

Booth chuckled. "Four, five years, I guess. I was up in Boston on a case."

She whistled. "Wow. Long time. Booth, this is stupid. We live so friggin' close, and we never see each other!" He laughed his assent. It was funny; this subject always came up whenever they happened to get together, yet neither of them ever did anything about it. Work always got too crazy. "Ah," she said, once the bartender had brought each of them a Sam Adams. "I've got to say, it's refreshing to just be able to sit and drink a nice beer with someone. My partner always has to go for that high-class stuff, champagne or wine, or some crap."

He raised his eyebrows and smiled. "Your partner?"

"My work partner, the chief medical examiner."

"Ah. Nice guy?"

"Woman. And yeah, she's nice." Jane covered up with swig of beer, but she could tell Booth was looking at her expectantly. "We're just friends."

"Okay." They sat in silence for a few moments as Booth tried to think of how ask his next question. He absent-mindedly fingered some peanuts in the dish in front of him, then flicked one at Jane. She chuckled and caught it. "I'm trying to think of a tactful way to ask this, Jane, but I can't. So do you mind if I ask a potentially uncomfortable question?"

With a laugh, Jane said, "Well! My favorite kind. Sure, shoot. I mean, you can ask, but I might not answer."

He nodded. "That's fair."

"But in case you're wondering, I haven't seen Katy since I was discharged.."

She'd told him that four years ago, but Booth didn't mention that. "Well, this is sort of related to that. I was wondering if you'd ever …I mean, since the army's policy has changed, I've been curious as to whether or not you'd be… interested in going back. You were a damn good soldier, Rizzoli."

She tipped her beer at him. "Thanks, Booth, right back at ya. But no, I don't want to go back. And it's not because I'm bitter, or because …well, yeah, I do think it would be hypocritical to go back, when they kicked me out strictly on the grounds of who I like to sleep with. I just really love my job right now, I love being a detective. It's like a rush, you know? And you get to help people. It's like being in the army, except on your own turf, and on a smaller scale. Well, I don't have to tell you about that, Agent Booth." He smiled and took a long draw of beer. "Why, have you been thinking about going back?"

"I thought about it, yeah. But it's like you, I'm too involved here. I have a family here, my co-workers, I mean. And Parker, of course. I don't want to leave him."

"How is Parker?"

Jane had to grin at Booth's proud smile. "Oh, he's great. He's doing great, you know? Starts middle school next year, if you can believe that."

"Wow! All grown up, huh?"

"Yeah, it's pretty crazy. How're your brothers?"

"They're good. Frankie's in the force, working hard to make detective, and Tommy…" She sighed good-naturedly. "Finally out of jail, and we're just trying to keep him out of trouble, which is easier said than done, sometimes." Ordering another beer, Jane said, "Okay now it's my turn to ask you an awkward question. Is there anything else keeping you here, Booth? Or anyone else, rather?"

What Booth and Rizzoli had always liked the most about each other was that no matter how long it had been since their last face-to-face conversation, phone call or email, nothing was ever really too awkward. Things always fell right back into place. They were each guarded on occasion, but especially in person, it was never too weird to try asking any kind of question. At this last one, Booth finally looked at Jane, trying to decide how much of the truth to tell her. But one look into those dark, trusting eyes, and he knew he had to be honest.

"My partner," he said in a gravelly voice. "We're like… ships passing in the night. I've told her how I feel, and she can't or she won't be with me, even though I'm pretty sure she feels the same way I do."

"Is this the same partner you had that time you came to Boston?"

"Yup, Temperance Brennan."

"Hm…my recollection is that you weren't too fond of her at the time."

Booth snorted a laugh. "Yeah, we got off to an awkward start. You've got to get to know her, and she grows on you. She's just… she's amazing, Jane. Amazing. No matter where you go—I mean, you could go dig up Einstein and Newton and put them in the same room as Bones, and she'd still be the smartest person there. And yeah, she's kind of obnoxious about it sometimes, I mean, she's not shy about being smart. But that's kinda cute in its own, weird way. She's confident, and she's brilliant, and she's beautiful. She says what's on her mind, she doesn't apologize for crap, and she's just—she can be really fun to be around. You think you've got her all figured out, and then she says or does something so out of left field and you realize how she never acts quite the way you expect. It's refreshing. She's a good, loyal friend, you know?"

"I do know," Jane said softly. "You just described Maura."

"Maura…she your partner?"

"Yeah, Maura Isles. God, Booth, she's just—she's perfect. I like her way too much, it's... kind of getting to be a problem."

"Have you ever told her how you felt?"

"No way. No chance in hell."

"Why not?"

"She's straight! I don't want to go there, it's never a good idea."

Booth shifted uncomfortably in his seat. "I don't know what's worse, not acting on it or acting on it and getting rejected."

"Have you ever slept with her, your partner?"

"Nope. Kissed her, though."

Jane smirked. "Was it good?"

"Perfect."

"Except for the part where she turned you down afterwards."

"Ouch, Rizzoli!" Booth laughed, pretending to stab himself.

"Sorry, man. At least you know, though."

"Yeah, yeah, that's something. And since it's Bones, it's not really weird between us for some reason. I mean, I was so afraid of telling her how I felt and then having her reject me, and then having work suck because it would be awkward, but it's not. It's just business as usual, and we're friends. It would make all my wildest dreams come true if she did want to be with me, but… I'm okay with just being friends with her for now."

Just then, his phone went off, signaling a text from Brennan. "Good, this conversation was getting a little too gay," Jane deadpanned.

Booth frowned. "It's her, it's Bones."

"Booty call?"

"Shut up… huh. She wants me to come over—no, listen to how she texts: 'Hey, Booth – Angela, Cam, Sweets and I are at Hodgins' home enjoying the first Godzilla film. We felt the need to extend you an invitation to this gathering, and would also like to encourage you to bring along your friend, if she would feel so inclined.'"

"Wow," Jane laughed. "Sounds like a keeper, Booth! Can we go?"

"What? You want to go?"

"Yeah, I want to meet this woman. Unless that'd be weird for you."

He quickly tried to assess his feelings. Yes it would feel a little weird to have Brennan meet Rizzoli, bringing his past and present together in such a strange setting, but in a way he wanted it to happen. Jane was such a cool person and a good friend, and he wanted his other friends to know her. Also, he knew he could count on Jane to be discreet and refrain from dropping any hints around Bones. He had to laugh to himself, knowing that the opposite would be true if Brennan were the one in Jane's shoes.

"Okay," he said, texting Bones back. "I think it'd be a fun."

Jane chugged down the rest of her beer. "Great! Let's go. I took a cab, so if you've got your car, let's jet."