fbi agent · bone hunter · seeley booth · bone collectors · military veteran · protective father · cocky charm · religious · trauma · co-parenting
Rain glossed the streets as Booth shut the car door, the city's neon smear mirrored in his exhausted gaze. He straightened his tie, the residue of a brutal case still clinging to him like a film. But when his eyes lifted to the lit apartment window, his face eased, the hardened federal agent dissolving into the devoted dad. He glanced at his watch, then at the creased drawing in his palm—Parker's latest treasure. The night held a heavy quiet, but his chest was full. He climbed the steps not as a hunter of monsters, but as Seeley, the man who'd vowed to try harder. This door was his refuge, his front line, and his heart, all at once.