Beautiful Boy Chapter 20/?
Paring: Booth/Brennan/Parker/Introducing New Major Character Laura in later chapters
Rating: M - WARNING: There is mention of child abuse and mental health issues
Genre: Romance/Family/Angst
Summary: Please Read Summary: Parker has been returned after being abducted and months of sexual abuse. Booth and Brennan deal with his issues while learning to deal with their burgeoning relationship and a family they thought they’d never have. There will be issues of resolving child abuse trauma and mental health for all..
Chapter 20
Colin Harseny led Booth, Bones and Parker into his office the next morning with a smile on his face.
"Hello everybody, how are we doing today?"
"We're doing pretty good," Booth replied as he hitched Parker up in his arms. He honestly had no idea how Bones went about carrying him around because he was definitely not infant size even though he may act like it.
"Good morning Colin; things are going ok but haven't changed much since I talked to you Saturday." She smiled at Booth knowing he was going to try and put up the façade of the perfect family.
Colin nodded in his understanding as he pointed for them to sit down in their 'normal' chairs. "I see that Parker doesn’t seem too worse for wear though, he looks healthy enough." he said looking at the boy who was burrowing his face in his father's neck. He then looked at Bones. "How is the breastfeeding going? Is he adapting to the mock nursing?" he questioned not knowing that Bones had actually began lactating a few days earlier.
"Actually we were very fortunate there. With the support I received from my Physician, the herbs and the information on feeding adoptive children I found on the internet I was able to establish a normal milk supply rather quickly. We haven't given him any supplements in the last few days other than the vitamins my Doctor recommended." She was very proud of the fact that once again she had achieved what was the equivalent of an A in her production of breast milk.
"That's wonderful!" Colin said with a huge smile on his face. "No wonder it appears that Parker is thriving so well." He then added "have you had any contact with Parker's birth mother?"
"She's never seeing him again," Booth said quickly and firmly. "Tempe is the only mother Parker needs." He reached over and gave her hand a squeeze.
She looked back at him with eyes full of so much love a blind man could have seen it. "Thank you" she whispered to him in response to his squeeze.
"I'm happy to see that this hard change of events has brought both of you closer. Am I correct in assuming you two have gone past friendship and work partnership?" Colin questioned.
Booth blushed in a normal 'Booth' fashion when he automatically knew the doctor was asking 'are you having sex' in a much nicer and polite way. "I love her more than anything in the world" was his response.
"Yes we have and the sex" then remembering it wasn't sex with Booth "I mean making love to Booth is the best experience I have ever had. Although I do have to say sometimes I wonder how parents of young children manage to have more than one until that one goes to college." She laughed ruefully. "It seems like every time we start to make love Parker decides to wake up."
Booth blushed bright red as Colin laughed. "You have to remember that Parker is not your average baby. Even while in this mindset he is a traumatized individual. He is probably more aware of the two of you then most infants would be." he then thought of another topic he wanted to talk about with the couple. "On that note Agent Booth I wanted to ask you a few questions about Parker's 'first' infancy and 6 months of life."
Booth was taken aback by this, "How come?" he questioned already panicking a bit because he didn't know all that much. "What do you want to know?"
"Well I guess first off is he behaving similar now as to before?"
Booth thought about that. He hadn't been with Parker much as an infant. Rebecca had kept him around her family most of the time. "When he was with me he cried a lot and was really fussy I always thought it was because he missed Rebecca."
"He has always seemed to gravitate toward the females in our unusual family, and it seems if given a choice he was settling down easier for me than Booth, but that seems to be changing slightly." Bones added. I had originally thought it was just because he was a "Booth" and had all the charm of his Father." she smiled at Booth thinking of his charm smile.
"He always has been a little flirt." Booth said with a slight laugh, blushing again. "I would never struggle to find a date when he was around as an infant and toddler."
Colin nodded and wrote something down. "I know you told me this before but I want to ask again, how often was Parker in your care up until a few weeks ago?"
Booth wasn't sure of this line of questioning but answered. "Once he was two he came every other weekend, sometimes less. I would just have day visits then, but once he was around four he would come for the weekend." he explained.
"And how would you explain his affect when he was with you?"
"What does this have to do with anything?" Booth exclaimed, finally not able to take it anymore. "You better not be saying that I've hurt my kid in anyway. He always loved coming to hang out with me!"
Booth's unease had caused Parker to start whimpering and then he started to cry, Booth atomically handed him over to Bones. Who decided it had been a while since he had eaten. This was also a way to comfort him when Booth was on edge so she simply pulled up her shirt and began the process of getting Parker ready to nurse. While she hated the look and feel of her new nursing bras she and Booth bought yesterday. She did have to admit they made it easier to wear her usual clothes and still feed Parker. As they had discovered recently she was having trouble settling Parker to nurse. Again as usual as soon as Booth reached over and started to rub Parker’s back he settled right in and began to nurse vigorously.
"You two are definitely a team," Colin said with a smile and then wanted to clarify why he asked the question in the first place. "Agent Booth, it is not that I feel you have harmed your son in anyway. I am simply trying to see if there is any other emotional or behavioral issue’s that might be affecting Parker's treatment that were in place before the abduction and sexual abuse."
Booth shook his head, still upset, but tried to keep his hand steady as he rubbed Parker's back. "Parker was a fine kid, never caused any problem."
"Let me get this out of the way right now. Booth is a wonderful Father. He has always put Parker's needs and safety above his own. The only thing I can relate to you is ever since I have been Booth's partner and had contact with Parker, is that at times he is very active, and can be just a little moody if he doesn't get his way. But isn't that usual for all children” she asked. Her only close contact for any extended period of time had been Parker wasn't he the norm?
Colin nodded, "Again I am not saying anything Agent Booth has done is wrong. I believe he is a wonderful father, but that does not always mean everything is perfect and wonderful." he pointed out.
Bones looked at him suspiciously, not liking counseling and feeling there was still something Colin was trying to say, she continued to look at him like a 5,000 year old skeleton whose identification she had not made yet.
Colin could tell that Bones and Booth were still upset at what he was saying and really wanted them to understand he was not saying anything wrong about either of their parenting. "The main reason I am asking this is because I have been reading over the progress notes of Parker's day treatment staff and some of his behaviors do not seem like new ones."
"What does that mean?" Booth asked still not extremely happy.
"Booth I'm still not sure I like the soft sciences." Turning to Colin she asked "so what exact behaviors are they concerned about, and why are we just hearing about the staff concerns now?" She noticed Parker was squirming the way he usually did when he was done feeding on one breast and was expecting to be changed to the other immediately. She moved him to her other breast, again unconcerned about exposing her breast and nursing him. Again Parker fussed and refused to settle in, and again it took Booth rubbing his back for him to begin to nurse. All three were on auto-pilot for this maneuver having done it every three hours for several days now.
"They did talk to me," Booth admitted a bit sheepishly. He had told Bones a bit about what had gone on when Parker had been restrained at school a few days ago. "And I guess we really haven't talked with Colin since." he too wasn't too thrilled with psychology, but he wasn't upset at Colin for this because he had been told.
She turned to Booth and said "and you were going to share this when? Booth I thought we decided that whatever was going on with Parker was ours to share? Has he returned to being just yours again?" She was becoming more than a little irritated. "After all Booth whatever affects our baby effects both of us, not just you."
"A lot of other stuff has gone on since, if you haven't noticed!" Booth exclaimed and regretted it when Parker pulled away from Bones and started crying. He didn't like it when his daddy was upset.
"Oh sorry Park," he said quickly going to rub his back, feeling awful and sighed. "Sorry Tempe...I should have told you."
Colin was beginning to notice a pattern in Agent Booth and stored it away for future reference.
She was calming down Parker having reminded her that he did not enjoy his Parents arguments. "No Booth your right a lot has been going on and I had no right to be upset." She reached down and kissed Parker's temple and whispered "I'm sorry baby," as soon as Parker began nursing again she turned back to Booth. Not having a free hand she simply smiled at him and silently asked for forgiveness.
"I truly feel you are both going to do wonders for Parker." Colin said with a smile. "I really want both of you to know that even with questions I ask you about his past and yours."
Booth was confused by this. "My past?" he automatically became defensive.
Nyre & TinyTeffers
This silly thing won;t let me post the chapter's they way they are written so they may be a little broken up but we will do the best we can.
Prologue, Chapter 1 , Chapter 2 , Chapter 3 , Chapter 4, Chapter 5 , Chapter 6 , Chapter 7 , Chapter 8 , Chapter 9 , Chapter 10 , Chapter 11, Chapter 12, Chapter 13, Chapter 14, Chapter 15, Chapter 16, Chapter 17, Chapter 18, Chapter 19,