True Colors--songfic, B&B comfort/angst--rated K+ Author: redrider6612

True Colors
By Phil Collins

She had told him not to come, told him she was fine, she just needed to be alone. But something in her voice had pulled him here in spite of that. As he waited for her to answer the door, he replayed the conversation in his head, but he couldn’t quite put his finger on what bothered him. Then she opened the door and he looked at her and he knew something was terribly wrong. She looked…shattered.

You with the sad eyes
Don’t be discouraged
Though I realize
It’s hard to take courage
In world full of people
You can lose sight of it
When the darkness inside you
Makes you feel so small

She sighed wearily and turned away from the door, leaving him to come in or not, his decision, but she certainly wasn’t going to invite him in when she had told him not to come. Closing the door, he followed her into the living room. She sat at one end of the couch, curling her feet up under her and drawing the throw around her legs. Booth sat down near her, studying her face. Her eyes looked huge in her pale face, and there were shadows under them that hadn’t been there the last time he’d seen her.

“What’s wrong, Bones?” he asked gently. He wanted to pull her into his arms, but he sensed she wasn’t ready to accept that yet. Instead he moved a bit closer to her.

Her eyes suddenly filled with tears and she turned her head away, trying to hide them. “Why did you come? I told you not to.” Her voice was rusty as though she hadn’t used it much. Her eyes went to the fringe she was fingering.

“Hey, you’re my partner and I could tell something was wrong. Can you tell me--?” he asked, ducking his head a little to try to meet her eyes. She darted a glance at him, then, unable to bear the warm concern in his eyes, returned to the fringe, a frown between her brows.

“People think I’m cold and unfeeling because I work with human remains without getting…emotional. But I’m not, Booth,” she said, finally locking gazes with him. The incredible pain he saw in those crystalline blue depths tore at his heart.

But I see your true colors shining through
I see your true colors, and that’s why I love you
So don’t be afraid to let them show
Your true colors, true colors
Are beautiful, oooh, like a rainbow

“I know you’re not, Temperance,” he murmured. Her given name on his lips brought fresh tears to her eyes which she tried unsuccessfully to blink away. “I know that you feel the pain of the victims far more deeply than is healthy for you. The cool professional mask you wear is your coping mechanism.”

A pair of tears spilled over and Booth reached out to catch one of them on his finger. Embarrassed, she sniffed and turned her face away and his hand dropped to his lap. “Yeah, well, sometimes it takes all I’ve got to keep the mask in place,” she said with a crack in her voice.

Show me a smile now
Don’t be unhappy
Can’t remember when
I last saw you laughing
If this world makes you crazy
And you’ve taken all you can bear
Just call me up, because you know I’ll be there

“Hey, you know you don’t need that mask when you’re alone with me, right?” he asked with a faint smile. Her face turned towards him and her lips twitched, but the smile couldn’t quite break through. “Any time you need someone to vent with, I’m a phone call away,” he reminded her.

She sighed. “That’s a lot to ask of you. It’s not like you’re my—“

“I’m your partner,” he interrupted because he didn’t want her to finish that sentence. “If you can’t vent with me, who can you vent with?” he asked, his warm brown eyes holding her steady. But she still couldn’t quite accept the comfort he was offering, so she looked down at her drawn up knees. She looked so small and vulnerable, huddled there in the corner of the couch. Sympathy he knew she didn’t want from him welled up.

And I see your true colors shining through
I see your true colors, and that’s why I love you
So don’t be afraid to let them show
Your true colors, true colors
Are beautiful, oooh, like a rainbow

“It isn’t fair to you, to have me dumping all this…baggage on you, when you deal with a lot of the same things I do—“ she protested, once more on the verge of tears. Her arms wrapped around her legs, pulling them tighter against her body as though she was afraid she might blow apart any minute.

Such sad eyes
Take courage now, and realize
When this world makes you crazy
And you’ve taken all you can bear
Just call me up, because you know I’ll be there

“I can handle it,” he insisted firmly, moving closer to her. He sensed she was almost ready to accept a hug. It was killing him watching her struggle with her pain, when all she needed to do was let go and lean on him. She was still learning that part of being strong was knowing when a burden was too much to bear alone.

And I see your true colors shining through
I see your true colors, and that’s why I love you
So don’t be afraid to let them show
Your true colors, true colors, true colors are shining through
I see your true colors, and that’s why I love you
So don’t be afraid to let them show
Your true colors, true colors, true colors
Are beautiful, oooh, like a rainbow
Show me your colors, show me your rainbow
Show me your colors, show me your rainbow
Show me your colors, show me your rainbow

Long moments slipped by, comfortable moments of silence filled with her struggle to find her inner balance again. Blinking up at him, her tears nearly gone, she was amazed at how much better she felt with him there. He brought such warmth and security, along with a certainty that everything was going to be alright. Which was illogical, since he hadn’t really presented any concrete solution to her problem. But she felt herself grow calmer as they sat there in silence. Then he pulled her into his arms and held her tight, and the knot of emotions that had been building inside her for the longest time loosened. She turned her face into his neck, breathing deeply, luxuriating in his solid strength.

Booth rubbed her back soothingly, relieved to feel her gradually relax against him. Her breath on his neck was sending his thoughts along a well-worn path, a path he’d told himself over and over would only lead to heartache and disaster. If ever there was a wrong time to go there, it was now, when she was more vulnerable than he had ever seen her. Right now she needed her partner and friend, Seeley Booth. The trust she showed by letting him in and allowing him to be there for her was very precious to him, and there was no way he was going to risk blowing it. Maybe one day the time would come when he could explore these unpartner-like feelings he had for her. Until then he was content with this.

_________

awww, don't you just wanna hug them both? now, please review, musie needs some lovin'!