"The Object of My Affection" - Chapter 65

[shannyfish]

Title: Object of my Affection
Author: Shannon - shannyfish
Disclaimer: I do not own “Bones” or its characters, Fox does. This is merely for entertainment purposes only. 
Rating: PG-13
Summary: Booth and Brennan must struggle with not only the Grad Students trying to take Zack’s old position, but also help get through a tragic end.
Warning: Post Season Three - “Pain in the Heart”. Would take place during Season Four, probably mid to late. Warning! Do not start reading this unless you plan on reading all…like…one hundred chapters (it might be that many…might not…). This will be an epic/saga-type fic and shall include all kinds of fun plot twists. The rating of this story will most likely fluctuate, FYI.

Chapter 65 - “Bon Voyage”

Author’s Note: rejoice all...

Trailer #1: h t t p : // www . mediafire . com / ?20w12iod0dd

Hopefully this all shows us, just remove the spaces : )

*~*~*

Three Days Later...

Booth Residence

“Are you sure you don’t want me to go with you?” he asked.

“I’m positive,” Brennan assured. “I’ll be fine.”

“You’re sure?”

“She said she’s sure, Dad,” Parker interrupted. “And I’m going to be late for school.”

Booth sighed. “You’re not going to be late. Come on, Buddy. Say bye to Bones, we’re going right now so you’re on time.”

“Bye Bones! See you later!” Parker called as he ran to the door with his backpack slung over one shoulder.

He didn’t want to be apart from her right now. Today was the day that Sully was finally leaving. Though he was overjoyed with that fact, he still didn’t like the fact that she was seeing him off without him. For some paranoid reason, he was afraid she’d get on the boat with him and leave him. Brennan would tell him that he was not only being paranoid, but illogical as well. He let out another sigh.

“Booth,” Brennan said as he hung his head a bit and headed in the direction of Parker. When he turned, she reached out and pulled him to her. Her lips met his and for several moments, they were one. Joined in passionate kisses. “I love you,” she told him.

“I love you, too,” he told her with a silly smile.

She loved it when he smiled. She could tell that he was nervous, though she’d already told him that he had no reason. “I’ll see you at the Jeffersonian? Are you bringing lunch?”

“Chinese?”

“Thai.”

Booth smiled brighter. “Thai.”

*~*~*

Marina

The boat was still named the “Temperance” and she didn’t see it changing. If he was going to, she had a feeling that he would have already done so. It would have hurt Booth to see it. Brennan understood that Sully wasn’t ready to let her go. She couldn’t imagine being Sully, having to struggle with not being able to have the one that she loved... Of course, in a way she did. She had loved Booth for some time, though it had been difficult to admit to herself let alone to him.

“You didn’t have to come, Tempe.”

She approached the boat. “I wanted to see you off,” she told him honestly. This was the second time she was seeing him off. Both times, he would leave loving her. This time, she did not return his feelings. Both times, she’d also stayed for Booth.

“Really,” he said a bit awkward. “You didn’t.”

“I thought-” she started confused.

Sully laughed and stepped down from his boat and onto the dock to be with her. “Same old Tempe,” he told her. “I just meant...wow, this is hard,” he admitted and looked down at the boards of the dock below their feet.

“I didn’t mean for this to be difficult,” Brennan said. “I just, I wanted to tell you goodbye...and that I hope you’ll be well.”

“I appreciate it,” Sully said after a moment of silence. “Coming here to see me off.”

“You just said-”

He laughed and shook his head as he looked up at her. “I love you, you know... I mean, I know you love Booth and I do want you to be happy, Tempe. But know that I love you still...and if one day you and Booth happen to split up...I’ll be waiting...”

“You sound like you want me to leave Booth,” Brennan commented feeling a bit defensive.

Sully frowned and placed his hands in his pockets. “I want you to be happy.”

“But?”

“But I’d rather you were happy with me,” Sully told her. “You can’t blame me, Tempe.  We really had something... I still feel that we do.”

“I’m not leaving Booth,” Brennan told him.

“I know. I’m just saying.”

Brennan frowned at him. “I do hope that you are happy with what you’re doing. And I hope that you find someone else to love.  Booth always says that there are people out there for everyone, you just have to give it time.”

“I had that person,” Sully told her. “I just took too long coming back.”

“Even if you had come back a year later, there’s no assurance that I would have gone with you. There’s actually a high chance that I would have chosen the same and stayed at my job.”

“What would make you leave the Jeffersonian, Tempe?”

“What? Why would I leave the Jeffersonian?”

“It’s just a question.”

Brennan stopped and thought about it for some time. “The offer of a better position.”

“There’s a better position?” he asked curiously.

“Perhaps if I decided to have children of my own...and I found motherhood appealing, I would give up my role at the Jeffersonian, so that I could provide them with enrichment full time. Though I would want to be a consultant to the Jeffersonian, of course.”

“You’re going to make a great mother, Tempe,” Sully told her.

She didn’t know what to say. She could see the pain in his eyes. This was truly hard for him. He was in pain. She hated to be the cause of it. Brennan looked down. Not able to keep eye contact with him any longer.

“I should go.”

Brennan looked back up at him. She took a few steps forward and wrapped her arms around him. She held him for a minute before stepping back away from him. “Have a safe trip.”

“Please remember that I love you,” Sully said.

“I will.”

*~*~*

Jeffersonian

She wasn’t sure what to think about Sully. Would he be okay? Was Booth right? Would Sully be able to move on like Booth had said? Would he find someone? Brennan sighed and then continued on. She needed to move on. Sully was gone; there was no use in remaining in the past. Her future was with Booth.

Looking down at her watch, she noticed that she was running late. Booth should be there already with their Thai food for lunch. She stopped when she noticed that there was a gathering at the platform. Booth would have normally have just taken it to her office. Avoiding the grad students was normally a must. She could hear his laugh, so she proceeded in the direction of the platform.

As she approached, she had her card ready. She slid it through the keycard reader and then stepped back up onto the platform as she clipped her ID back to her jacket’s lapel. Brennan smiled when she immediately realized who had brought everyone together on the platform. Angela and Hodgins had returned from their honeymoon.

“It was beautiful!” Angela beamed. “I swear we practically could step into the ocean from our back door!”

“Angela!” Brennan said excitedly. She was thrilled to have her best friend back. She pushed through her grad students that were standing around and wrapped her arms around Angela. She had needed her best friend. It felt like she was whole somehow. Brennan would be able to rely on Angela once again.

“Hey Sweetie!” Angela said happily as she returned the hug. She could tell that they’d need to talk. “I can’t believe how much I missed!” she said as she pulled back to look at her friend directly. “Is he still here?”

“No, he’s gone.”

“Did you make sure that he left?” Booth asked.

Brennan frowned and looked back at Booth. “I’m surprised you don’t have a friend in the Coast Guard alerting you of it.”

Booth smiled. “If only I were that connected.”

“You didn’t miss that much,” Brennan admitted.

“Oh,” Angela said. “From what Cam said. I missed quite a lot.”

“Don’t worry, I have the video,” Cam spoke up.

“What video?” Brennan and Booth asked at the same time.

Cam smiled. “Hodgins will probably appreciate it as well.”

“Oh?” Hodgins asked, his interest peeking.

“Brennan took down Sully,” Cam told them. “Here in the Jeffersonian.”

“And you have it on tape?” Hodgins asked excitedly.  It was practically a belated wedding present. “Please tell us we can watch it now.”

“He surprised me,” Brennan tried to defend.

“I don’t care. I just want to see it.”

*~*~*

Doctor Brennan’s Office - Jeffersonian

“I’m glad Angela and Hodgins are back,” Brennan said as she ate out of the box of Thai food. They’d finally gotten around to lunch and she was glad for it. It was finally time where they’d gotten to spend some time together. She had known that Booth hadn’t been thrilled with her choice to see Sully off on her own.

“They sounded like they had a good time,” Booth commented. “I’m surprised they came back.”

“Maybe that’s part of the whole idea of a honeymoon,” Brennan told him with a smile.

“So, you have to be excited,” Booth told her as he poked at his food.

Brennan shrugged a bit in response.

“Okay, maybe I should rephrase it as Cam has to be ecstatic to have them back, so she can stop hearing you bash their temporary replacements,” Booth said.

“They weren’t qualified,” Brennan defended. “I made it very clear to Doctor Goodman when I started here that I put together my own team. That way I can ensure that the people I work with are qualified in their position.”

Booth grinned. “And then you ended up with Cam.”

“Cam is qualified.”

“You didn’t like her at first.”

Brennan glared a bit at him, but found herself ultimately smiling. “She was...a surprise.”

“Well, I guess we’re back to the dream squint squad,” Booth told her as he started to eat again.

“I don’t have an assistant yet, I doubt it can be considered a dream team quite yet.”

“You will.”

“Eventually,” Brennan said.

“Worried about it?”

Brennan shrugged. “Zack was just so perfect for the position. None of the grad students I have shout that...”

“I’m sure I could train them to do that.”

She laughed and then shook her head. “I’m sure Hodgins would love to do that.”

“Messing with them is fun,” Booth told her. “Though the best way to figure out who’s going to be “the one” is going to be to put them all out in the field and figure out who’s going to work the best in the field and in the lab.”

“But I don’t usually take my assistant out into the field,” she told Booth.

“You don’t think it’s important to see if they can work in both places?”

“Sometimes you just have to learn as you go,” Brennan told him. “Sort of like how you taught me...like how you’re still teaching me how to work in the field. Some things you just have to learn from experience, Booth.”

“You’re right.”

“I am?”

“You are,” Booth told her with a bright smile.

Brennan just smiled and started to eat her food again.

“I was thinking...maybe we should both take a week off once Escrow goes through in order to get everything moved,” Booth spoke up. He was overjoyed at the prospect of sharing a home with Brennan. It meant that she was his in a way. She’d chosen him. They were going to be a family...and Booth wanted to cherish every aspect of the unification of their two households.

“It would make things easier,” Brennan spoke up. “I’ll talk to Cam about it tomorrow.”

“Of course if there’s a case, then we’ll have to work, but I just figured if not...then why not take the time to be productive?”

“Makes sense.”

“Good.”

*~*~*

TBC...