Fanfic - Cam and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day (Bones)
Title: Cam and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day
Author: AccordingToMel
Summary: So when Cam finally rushes out of the house almost forty-five minutes later than usual to find that it’s actually snowing, she decides that things can’t possibly get any worse. Except that they can, apparently.
Characters/Pairings: Cam/Hodgins
Rating: PG
Spoilers: Nothing specific.
Word Count: 3,808
Disclaimer: Not mine. Never were. Never will be. It’s probably for the best.
Author’s note: Holy crap, my first Cadgins fic in like 6 months! I don’t know why I suddenly decided to write something again, but I just felt like it was time. This is kind of from a prompt on the cam_hodgins livejournal community, but I totally failed in actually doing it properly. Also, I want to dedicate this to Jess (akarana) - here’s my little gift to you! All the harassing paid off finally, I guess ;). I hope you enjoy! And the title is blatantly ripped off from the book “Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day” by Judith Viorst (which I loved as a child). Oh, and this is un-betaed, so all mistakes are 100% my own.
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Cam and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day
Cam considers herself to be a reasonable person most of the time. But sometimes...well sometimes reason is not at the top of her priority list. Especially on a Monday morning after a particularly stressful weekend - she doesn’t even have the energy to think about the disastrous dinner she had with her family and the heated argument that followed between herself and Michelle. Never mind the fact that she slept through her alarm and was only roused from her slumber by the sudden onslaught of painful menstrual cramps which were not going away, even with the Midol she’d taken upon literally jumping out of bed.
So when Cam finally rushes out of the house almost forty-five minutes later than usual to find that it’s actually snowing (and why the hell she didn’t check the weather station before leaving this morning is beyond her comprehension at the moment), she decides that things can’t possibly get any worse.
Except that they can, apparently.
It takes Cam a few extra minutes to pull out of her parking stall, because first she has to clear the snow off the windows of the car. She’s admittedly a little unimpressed at the amount of snow that fell last night, considering it’s not even the end of October yet. Cam throws her purse and other belongings onto the passenger seat before making her way to the back of her car. She rummages through the trunk in an attempt to find her snow brush, but there’s so much crap in there that in the end she decides that it’s not worth the time and effort and opts for using the sleeve of her coat instead.
When she finally sits down in the driver’s seat and turns her keys in the ignition, she’s eternally grateful to hear the purring of her engine. At least the car started, she thinks wryly to herself.
It starts out as an uneventful drive, though she’s probably speeding a little more than usual in an attempt to make up for lost time. It isn’t that she stops paying attention, but more that she’s become hyper-focused on her mission - which is making it to work in as short a period of time as possible. So when an idiot driver in the next lane decides to try and cut her off without so much as a shoulder check, Cam almost doesn’t notice.
Thankfully she manages to swerve out of the way while simultaneously laying on the horn and shouting meaningless profanities at the other driver. Cam breathes a sigh of relief when the other driver pulls away just in time. And things would be fine again if not for two minor details. The first is that the snow has made the roads slippery and so her tires don’t have the kind of traction that would be preferable in a situation such as this. The other is the fact that she didn’t technically have another lane to swerve into and so ended up ploughing into the curb on the right side of the street.
It only takes a few seconds for the grinding noise to start and for her to notice the distinct tilt of her previously level vehicle. Cam makes a hasty right turn onto a side street and pulls over in front of a little brown house. She takes a deep breath in an attempt to quell the fury that is beginning to well up deep within her stomach before grudgingly opening the door and stepping out of her car.
The damage is confirmed in under a minute - two flat tires on the passenger side of the vehicle. Cam isn’t sure whether she should laugh or cry. So she does neither. Instead a long string of colourful language that would make a sailor blush leaves her throat in a frustrated rush and she kicks at the tires helplessly. After a few minutes of this, she finds she’s feeling slightly better. But she’s now stranded on a side street and so very far away from the office, where she should have already been.
With one last angry kick to one of the flat tires, she goes back to the driver’s seat and sits down, pulling out her cell in the process. A couple phone calls later to her mechanic and a tow truck she’s learned her fate. It’ll be close to two hours before the tow truck will be able to make it out there. The first snowfall always leads to more accidents than any other time of year. Cam is sorely tempted to throw her phone through the front windshield, but figures in the end that she’ll probably regret that decision.
So she does the only thing she can think of. She dials the number of the one person she silently prays will be able to help her out of this mess.
“Hey Camille, what’s up?” Booth’s chipper voice preens over the line when he picks up, and suddenly she has the urge to slap him through the phone.
“Where are you right now?” she asks tersely, not even bothering to hide her annoyance.
“I’m at the office, but I just got a call about a new case so I was just about to head out,” he informs her. There’s a slight pause. “Are you okay? What’s going on?”
Cam pinches the bridge of her nose and forces herself to take a deep, calming breath before responding. “I’m sitting in my car on the side of the road with two flat tires-“
“How did you-?” Booth starts, but she doesn’t let him finish.
“That’s not important right now,” she snaps, though there is less bite in her voice than before. “I already called a tow truck to take it to my mechanic, but they won’t be able to get here for another couple of hours. I don’t have that kind of time to wait. I need to get to the office as soon as possible. Can you come pick me up on the way to the crime scene or something?”
“Where are you?” came the reply. Cam told him the intersection she was closest to.
“That’s completely out of my way. Can you give Angela or Hodgins a call? Hell, even Sweets. I’m sure he’s probably old enough to drive by now. See if one of them can come get you?”
“I suppose so,” she agrees reluctantly, holding back a frustrated sigh.
“Look, if they can’t do it you know I’ll come out there,” Booth adds seriously. “Let me know.”
“All right, thanks.” She hangs up without another word and for the briefest of moments thinks that she might like to call a cab to take her home instead. She’s not in the mood to deal with the rest of this horrendous day, if her morning is any indication. But Cam knows she has about three million things to do at the office and can’t afford to miss the entire day.
She considers actually calling a taxi, but she’s pretty sure that someone from the lab could get to her faster. Cam has never had any luck with cabs.
So she takes another calming breath and dials Angela’s cell. It rings about twenty times before Cam decides enough is enough and hangs up. Next she calls Hodgins, who also does not answer his phone. What the hell’s the point of having a cell phone if you never answer? Cam wonders bitterly as she dials Sweets’ number, idly wondering when she had put it into her contact list in the first place. He answers on the third ring, and she’s so happy she could almost cry.
“Dr. Saroyan?” He sounds confused and a little curious.
“Yes, hi Dr. Sweets. I was wondering if you might have a few minutes to do me a favour?”
“Well...” he starts, trailing off, and Cam already knows that it isn’t going to be good news. “What did you need me to do?”
“I need someone to come and pick me up. I sort of...well, my car has two flat tires. And the tow truck isn’t able to get here for another couple of hours. And I really need to get to the office. So...” she leaves the sentence unfinished, but the implication is clear.
Sweets hesitates for a moment before finally speaking. “I’m afraid that I can’t at this very minute. I apologize, Dr. Saroyan. But I think Hodgins is in the lab. I’ll see if he’s able. Hold on a moment.”
Cam taps her fingers against the steering wheel impatiently while she waits for Sweets to hunt down Hodgins. After a few minutes she considers hanging up and waiting for him to just call her back. But then she figures that she’s stayed on the line this long, so what harm could a couple more minutes do?
“Dr. Saroyan?” a voice asks not thirty seconds later, though it’s not Sweets this time.
“Hi Dr. Hodgins,” Cam says, and tries to sound less like a woman on the verge of a nervous breakdown and more like the sane, rational professional she typically is.
“I hear you need some rescuing?” he asks, and there is the slightest hint of amusement in his tone. If looks could travel through phones to kill...well, Hodgins might have been a dead man at that moment.
“Yeah,” Cam responds wearily, not even bothering to tear a strip into him. She doesn’t particularly feel like spending the mental energy at the moment, even if he deserves it.
“Where are you?” he queries, so she tells him. “Okay, I’ll be there in a few.” And like that, the conversation is done.
* * * * *
A few minutes turns into almost twenty-five. But Cam is actually grateful for the time, which she uses to calm down slightly and get some perspective. She’s even able to make a few calls and get some reports faxed to the office for her so they’ll be there when she arrives. Which is not to say that when Hodgins finally pulls up, she’s suddenly in a chipper mood. But she’s no longer ready to castrate the first person she sees, so she considers that to be a small victory for the day.
“Hey,” he greets her warmly as he steps out of his smart car. Cam is already waiting outside, leaning against the hood of her Honda. She has never seen this vehicle of his before, but she’s not the least bit surprised that he has one.
“Hi Hodgins.”
He shoots her a sympathetic smile before walking around to the opposite side of her car to survey the damage.
A low whistle escapes past his lips. “Wow, that’s pretty impressive,” he murmurs and actually does sound impressed.
Cam rolls her eyes, choosing not to respond directly to the comment. “Can we get going?” she wonders instead.
“Yeah, sure,” he assures her, shaking his head in amazement before heading back to his own vehicle. “But are you just planning on leaving this here all day? What are you going to do?”
She shrugs, uncertain. She hadn’t entirely sorted that detail out yet. “Well, I was going to just have it towed to my mechanic. But I thought I needed to be here for the tow, which would take a couple hours, so I don’t know...”
“I know a guy who could tow it for you within the hour without you being present. Free of charge, if you’re interested?”
Cam glances up at him in shock. “Well, of course I’d be interested. But free of charge? Are you sure this person can be trusted?”
Hodgins laughs, deep and throaty, and Cam finds it inexplicably soothing to her nerves. “You don’t trust me?” he asks teasingly. But upon seeing her face decides to add, “Yeah, he’s legit. Just give me your license plate and the address of your mechanic and we’ll be good to go.”
* * * * *
About ten minutes later, and a generally silent car thus far (Hodgins has been making polite conversation the whole time, which she finds that she actually appreciates, but just can’t seem to get into a talkative mood), Hodgins makes an unexpected turn which clearly leads them away from the general direction of the Jeffersonian.
“Where are we going?” she asks after a moment, unable to hide the doubt in her voice.
“We’re taking a quick detour,” he informs her, shooting a tentative glance in her direction before returning his eyes to the road. When she remains silent he adds, “It won’t take long. You’ll like it, trust me.”
* * * * *
A couple minutes later they pull up in front of what looks like a small mom and pop restaurant called Bill and Lucy’s.
“What are we-?” Cam starts to ask, but Hodgins holds up a hand to silence her.
“Just wait a second. I’ll be right back.” And with that he hops out of the car and rushes into the building. Cam stares out the window while she waits, idly watching the snowflakes that continue to lightly fall to the ground. She supposes if she weren’t in such a pissy mood she might actually find the whole thing beautiful.
He returns to the car surprisingly quickly but instead of going to the driver’s side, he makes his way towards her window. She fumbles to try and find the button for the automatic windows and is only slightly shocked when she realizes he doesn’t have automatic windows and has to roll them down the old-fashioned way.
“Here, can you take these?” Hodgins asks her once the window is open, handing her a brown paper bag and a carry-out tray holding two large cups.
She’s barely able to respond before he’s literally almost shoving them into her arms. Cam carefully places the bag beside her and balances the drinks on her lap while she reaches over to roll up the window. In the meantime, Hodgins joins her in the vehicle once again.
“What is this?” she is finally able to ask, genuine curiosity tingeing her voice this time.
“This, my friend, is some well needed breakfast from one of my favourite restaurants,” he informs her, pulling out of the parking lot and back onto the street. “In that bag are two of the best cinnamon buns you will find on this side of the country, along with the single most delicious oatmeal blueberry banana nut muffins you will ever taste. The drinks are pumpkin spiced lattes. If you think Starbucks is amazing, you haven’t tasted Lucy’s signature recipe. But I warn you - once you’ve had these, you won’t be able to go back.”
Cam just stares at him as he speaks, slightly taken aback by the kindness of the gesture. He sounds both confident and unsure of himself at the same time, if such a thing were possible. And it takes her a good minute after he finishes speaking to finally say something.
“I...don’t know what to say Hodgins.” And it’s true. “You didn’t need to do this.”
He just shrugs in return, casting a quick glance in her direction. “I know. But I figured you’ve had a pretty crappy start to your day. Plus, I kind of made the assumption that you probably haven’t had any breakfast yet. So, you know, the choice seemed obvious.”
Something warm and tight fills up in her chest, and she thinks for a moment that she almost might cry at his incredibly sweet gesture (and not only because she is overly emotional this morning). It is not only the kindest thing that Hodgins has ever done for her, but it’s also possibly one of the sweetest things that anyone has ever done for her. And especially on a day like today, when everything else has gone horribly wrong and she just needed something to be right. That he was able to sense that this would be what she needed...well it said a lot about Hodgins and the kind of man he was. She’s always known he was a good man, but this is something else entirely. It is both a small and an incredibly huge gesture all at once, and she suddenly finds herself looking at him in a new light.
“Thank you,” she tells him softly, voice thick with gratitude and appreciation. She wants to say so much more, but isn’t sure how to find the right words. “This is...just what I needed.”
His grin is practically blinding. “I’m glad.”
* * * * *
By the time they reach the Jeffersonian, Cam has managed to finish the cinnamon bun and has started on the muffin. Most of her pumpkin spiced latte is gone, and her stomach is finally starting to feel normal again. And she has to admit that Hodgins was right about everything. She’s quite certain that Starbucks has nothing on Bill & Lucy’s. And she’s also quite certain that it has absolutely nothing to do with the person who introduced her to the restaurant in the first place. Mostly.
“Your taxi has arrived,” Hodgins announces with a flourish once they pull into the parking lot, and Cam tries not to roll her eyes in amusement. “That’ll be $40,” he adds with a sly grin.
Cam can’t seem to hold back the laugh that escapes past her lips. “That’s not so bad. Just send me the bill,” she says, reaching into the back seat to grab her things.
Hodgins shuts off the car, and before she even realizes it, he’s already bounded out of the vehicle and is on the passenger side, opening her door. She smiles up at him as he takes the paper bag out of her hands and steps back to allow her to climb out of the car.
They begin to walk towards the building in companionable silence, Cam noticing for the first time that it’s snowing harder once again. Not so much that it feels like a blizzard, but enough to quickly coat her black hair and probably make her look like an old, white-haired grandma.
“Thanks again for coming to get me Hodgins. I really appreciate it,” Cam starts, casting him a sidelong glance. “Today has just been...well, a nightmare. But thankfully it looks like things are starting to look up finally.”
Hodgins nods, looking pleased.
But no sooner are the words out of her mouth then Cam feels her left foot slip on the ground beneath her in a hidden patch of black ice underneath a fine layer of freshly fallen snow. She attempts to keep herself upright, reaching out instinctively to grab hold of Hodgins or regain her own balance, but is unable to achieve either goal. It only takes approximately half a second for Cam to realize she’s slipped, try to right herself, and to recognize that she’s going down before she finds herself on the cold sidewalk on her back, snow drifting down to land on her face.
Arms immediately are grabbing at her and she distinctly hears Hodgins’ voice, laden with an edge of concern. “Whoa, are you all right? Did you injure yourself?”
Cam tries to say something as he gently helps her to her feet, but she doesn’t even know what to say any more. She feels Hodgins’ hands holding firmly onto her upper arms as he stares at her, an expression of concern and fear written plainly across his face.
She can’t be entirely sure if it’s the close proximity and the way Hodgins is staring at her, the way the snow is falling around them so serenely, or the fact that she’s been experiencing nothing but chaos all morning. But whatever the reason, when she feels Hodgins lean into her tentatively, something inside of her just snaps. And before Cam can even process what’s happening, she finds herself suddenly laughing. Not just calm, polite chuckles, but roaring laughter that shakes her entire body and reverberates in the air around them. She laughs at the unexpected snow this morning, and the late start to her morning. She laughs at the cramps and the double flat tires on her car. She laughs at the tow truck, the fall and the fact that her ass is cold, wet and sore. But mostly she laughs at the sheer ridiculousness of this entire morning.
Somewhere along the line she’s leaned into Hodgins’ shoulder, trembling and shaking with the power of her amusement. And he, for his part, has wrapped a loose arm around her back and seems content just to hold her upright. Cam recognizes that she probably looks like a complete mental case, laughing hysterically not more than 500 feet from the front entrance to the Jeffersonian Institute, but she just can’t seem to quell the near hysterical state she currently finds herself in. So she continues to chortle and chuckle and guffaw until the desire to laugh finally begins to fade. It takes Cam a good several minutes to calm down enough to pull back from Hodgins finally, tear tracks staining her red face.
“I’m sorry,” she manages to get out between gasps for air, shaking her head and wiping furiously at the tears still rolling down her cheeks. “It’s just...it’s been an absolutely crazy day. One of those laugh or cry type things. You know?”
Hodgins shoots her an amused look, eyebrows arched comically, but doesn’t say anything right away. Cam uses the time to regain her breath and wipe the rest of the errant tears from her eyes. She notes idly to herself that his one hand is still firmly grasping her arm and that he hasn’t moved away from her yet. She decides that she likes both of these things and makes a mental note to make up this crazy morning to Hodgins at some point in the near future.
“Are you sure you’re okay?” Hodgins finally asks her, looking slightly concerned but also incredibly entertained.
With a shake of her head she grins, smile spreading slowly across her face and into her eyes. “Yeah, I think I am,” she tells him, and honestly believes it.
Hodgins stares at her for a moment, as if trying to decide if she’s completely lost her mind - and maybe she truly has - but his uncertainty quickly turns into a half-smirk, lips quirking up in an entirely boyish manner. The two of them gather up Cam’s belongings and the paper bag from the ground and carry on walking as if nothing at all unusual had just happened. After a moment he holds out his arm to her, which she readily accepts.
“You know...just in case,” he tells her conspiratorially as they begin to walk towards the Jeffersonian. She couldn’t hold back the smile even if she wanted to.
And as they’re heading towards the front entrance, arm in arm, Cam decides that perhaps this day hasn’t been quite so terrible after all.
Author: AccordingToMel
Summary: So when Cam finally rushes out of the house almost forty-five minutes later than usual to find that it’s actually snowing, she decides that things can’t possibly get any worse. Except that they can, apparently.
Characters/Pairings: Cam/Hodgins
Rating: PG
Spoilers: Nothing specific.
Word Count: 3,808
Disclaimer: Not mine. Never were. Never will be. It’s probably for the best.
Author’s note: Holy crap, my first Cadgins fic in like 6 months! I don’t know why I suddenly decided to write something again, but I just felt like it was time. This is kind of from a prompt on the cam_hodgins livejournal community, but I totally failed in actually doing it properly. Also, I want to dedicate this to Jess (akarana) - here’s my little gift to you! All the harassing paid off finally, I guess ;). I hope you enjoy! And the title is blatantly ripped off from the book “Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day” by Judith Viorst (which I loved as a child). Oh, and this is un-betaed, so all mistakes are 100% my own.
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Cam and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day
Cam considers herself to be a reasonable person most of the time. But sometimes...well sometimes reason is not at the top of her priority list. Especially on a Monday morning after a particularly stressful weekend - she doesn’t even have the energy to think about the disastrous dinner she had with her family and the heated argument that followed between herself and Michelle. Never mind the fact that she slept through her alarm and was only roused from her slumber by the sudden onslaught of painful menstrual cramps which were not going away, even with the Midol she’d taken upon literally jumping out of bed.
So when Cam finally rushes out of the house almost forty-five minutes later than usual to find that it’s actually snowing (and why the hell she didn’t check the weather station before leaving this morning is beyond her comprehension at the moment), she decides that things can’t possibly get any worse.
Except that they can, apparently.
It takes Cam a few extra minutes to pull out of her parking stall, because first she has to clear the snow off the windows of the car. She’s admittedly a little unimpressed at the amount of snow that fell last night, considering it’s not even the end of October yet. Cam throws her purse and other belongings onto the passenger seat before making her way to the back of her car. She rummages through the trunk in an attempt to find her snow brush, but there’s so much crap in there that in the end she decides that it’s not worth the time and effort and opts for using the sleeve of her coat instead.
When she finally sits down in the driver’s seat and turns her keys in the ignition, she’s eternally grateful to hear the purring of her engine. At least the car started, she thinks wryly to herself.
It starts out as an uneventful drive, though she’s probably speeding a little more than usual in an attempt to make up for lost time. It isn’t that she stops paying attention, but more that she’s become hyper-focused on her mission - which is making it to work in as short a period of time as possible. So when an idiot driver in the next lane decides to try and cut her off without so much as a shoulder check, Cam almost doesn’t notice.
Thankfully she manages to swerve out of the way while simultaneously laying on the horn and shouting meaningless profanities at the other driver. Cam breathes a sigh of relief when the other driver pulls away just in time. And things would be fine again if not for two minor details. The first is that the snow has made the roads slippery and so her tires don’t have the kind of traction that would be preferable in a situation such as this. The other is the fact that she didn’t technically have another lane to swerve into and so ended up ploughing into the curb on the right side of the street.
It only takes a few seconds for the grinding noise to start and for her to notice the distinct tilt of her previously level vehicle. Cam makes a hasty right turn onto a side street and pulls over in front of a little brown house. She takes a deep breath in an attempt to quell the fury that is beginning to well up deep within her stomach before grudgingly opening the door and stepping out of her car.
The damage is confirmed in under a minute - two flat tires on the passenger side of the vehicle. Cam isn’t sure whether she should laugh or cry. So she does neither. Instead a long string of colourful language that would make a sailor blush leaves her throat in a frustrated rush and she kicks at the tires helplessly. After a few minutes of this, she finds she’s feeling slightly better. But she’s now stranded on a side street and so very far away from the office, where she should have already been.
With one last angry kick to one of the flat tires, she goes back to the driver’s seat and sits down, pulling out her cell in the process. A couple phone calls later to her mechanic and a tow truck she’s learned her fate. It’ll be close to two hours before the tow truck will be able to make it out there. The first snowfall always leads to more accidents than any other time of year. Cam is sorely tempted to throw her phone through the front windshield, but figures in the end that she’ll probably regret that decision.
So she does the only thing she can think of. She dials the number of the one person she silently prays will be able to help her out of this mess.
“Hey Camille, what’s up?” Booth’s chipper voice preens over the line when he picks up, and suddenly she has the urge to slap him through the phone.
“Where are you right now?” she asks tersely, not even bothering to hide her annoyance.
“I’m at the office, but I just got a call about a new case so I was just about to head out,” he informs her. There’s a slight pause. “Are you okay? What’s going on?”
Cam pinches the bridge of her nose and forces herself to take a deep, calming breath before responding. “I’m sitting in my car on the side of the road with two flat tires-“
“How did you-?” Booth starts, but she doesn’t let him finish.
“That’s not important right now,” she snaps, though there is less bite in her voice than before. “I already called a tow truck to take it to my mechanic, but they won’t be able to get here for another couple of hours. I don’t have that kind of time to wait. I need to get to the office as soon as possible. Can you come pick me up on the way to the crime scene or something?”
“Where are you?” came the reply. Cam told him the intersection she was closest to.
“That’s completely out of my way. Can you give Angela or Hodgins a call? Hell, even Sweets. I’m sure he’s probably old enough to drive by now. See if one of them can come get you?”
“I suppose so,” she agrees reluctantly, holding back a frustrated sigh.
“Look, if they can’t do it you know I’ll come out there,” Booth adds seriously. “Let me know.”
“All right, thanks.” She hangs up without another word and for the briefest of moments thinks that she might like to call a cab to take her home instead. She’s not in the mood to deal with the rest of this horrendous day, if her morning is any indication. But Cam knows she has about three million things to do at the office and can’t afford to miss the entire day.
She considers actually calling a taxi, but she’s pretty sure that someone from the lab could get to her faster. Cam has never had any luck with cabs.
So she takes another calming breath and dials Angela’s cell. It rings about twenty times before Cam decides enough is enough and hangs up. Next she calls Hodgins, who also does not answer his phone. What the hell’s the point of having a cell phone if you never answer? Cam wonders bitterly as she dials Sweets’ number, idly wondering when she had put it into her contact list in the first place. He answers on the third ring, and she’s so happy she could almost cry.
“Dr. Saroyan?” He sounds confused and a little curious.
“Yes, hi Dr. Sweets. I was wondering if you might have a few minutes to do me a favour?”
“Well...” he starts, trailing off, and Cam already knows that it isn’t going to be good news. “What did you need me to do?”
“I need someone to come and pick me up. I sort of...well, my car has two flat tires. And the tow truck isn’t able to get here for another couple of hours. And I really need to get to the office. So...” she leaves the sentence unfinished, but the implication is clear.
Sweets hesitates for a moment before finally speaking. “I’m afraid that I can’t at this very minute. I apologize, Dr. Saroyan. But I think Hodgins is in the lab. I’ll see if he’s able. Hold on a moment.”
Cam taps her fingers against the steering wheel impatiently while she waits for Sweets to hunt down Hodgins. After a few minutes she considers hanging up and waiting for him to just call her back. But then she figures that she’s stayed on the line this long, so what harm could a couple more minutes do?
“Dr. Saroyan?” a voice asks not thirty seconds later, though it’s not Sweets this time.
“Hi Dr. Hodgins,” Cam says, and tries to sound less like a woman on the verge of a nervous breakdown and more like the sane, rational professional she typically is.
“I hear you need some rescuing?” he asks, and there is the slightest hint of amusement in his tone. If looks could travel through phones to kill...well, Hodgins might have been a dead man at that moment.
“Yeah,” Cam responds wearily, not even bothering to tear a strip into him. She doesn’t particularly feel like spending the mental energy at the moment, even if he deserves it.
“Where are you?” he queries, so she tells him. “Okay, I’ll be there in a few.” And like that, the conversation is done.
* * * * *
A few minutes turns into almost twenty-five. But Cam is actually grateful for the time, which she uses to calm down slightly and get some perspective. She’s even able to make a few calls and get some reports faxed to the office for her so they’ll be there when she arrives. Which is not to say that when Hodgins finally pulls up, she’s suddenly in a chipper mood. But she’s no longer ready to castrate the first person she sees, so she considers that to be a small victory for the day.
“Hey,” he greets her warmly as he steps out of his smart car. Cam is already waiting outside, leaning against the hood of her Honda. She has never seen this vehicle of his before, but she’s not the least bit surprised that he has one.
“Hi Hodgins.”
He shoots her a sympathetic smile before walking around to the opposite side of her car to survey the damage.
A low whistle escapes past his lips. “Wow, that’s pretty impressive,” he murmurs and actually does sound impressed.
Cam rolls her eyes, choosing not to respond directly to the comment. “Can we get going?” she wonders instead.
“Yeah, sure,” he assures her, shaking his head in amazement before heading back to his own vehicle. “But are you just planning on leaving this here all day? What are you going to do?”
She shrugs, uncertain. She hadn’t entirely sorted that detail out yet. “Well, I was going to just have it towed to my mechanic. But I thought I needed to be here for the tow, which would take a couple hours, so I don’t know...”
“I know a guy who could tow it for you within the hour without you being present. Free of charge, if you’re interested?”
Cam glances up at him in shock. “Well, of course I’d be interested. But free of charge? Are you sure this person can be trusted?”
Hodgins laughs, deep and throaty, and Cam finds it inexplicably soothing to her nerves. “You don’t trust me?” he asks teasingly. But upon seeing her face decides to add, “Yeah, he’s legit. Just give me your license plate and the address of your mechanic and we’ll be good to go.”
* * * * *
About ten minutes later, and a generally silent car thus far (Hodgins has been making polite conversation the whole time, which she finds that she actually appreciates, but just can’t seem to get into a talkative mood), Hodgins makes an unexpected turn which clearly leads them away from the general direction of the Jeffersonian.
“Where are we going?” she asks after a moment, unable to hide the doubt in her voice.
“We’re taking a quick detour,” he informs her, shooting a tentative glance in her direction before returning his eyes to the road. When she remains silent he adds, “It won’t take long. You’ll like it, trust me.”
* * * * *
A couple minutes later they pull up in front of what looks like a small mom and pop restaurant called Bill and Lucy’s.
“What are we-?” Cam starts to ask, but Hodgins holds up a hand to silence her.
“Just wait a second. I’ll be right back.” And with that he hops out of the car and rushes into the building. Cam stares out the window while she waits, idly watching the snowflakes that continue to lightly fall to the ground. She supposes if she weren’t in such a pissy mood she might actually find the whole thing beautiful.
He returns to the car surprisingly quickly but instead of going to the driver’s side, he makes his way towards her window. She fumbles to try and find the button for the automatic windows and is only slightly shocked when she realizes he doesn’t have automatic windows and has to roll them down the old-fashioned way.
“Here, can you take these?” Hodgins asks her once the window is open, handing her a brown paper bag and a carry-out tray holding two large cups.
She’s barely able to respond before he’s literally almost shoving them into her arms. Cam carefully places the bag beside her and balances the drinks on her lap while she reaches over to roll up the window. In the meantime, Hodgins joins her in the vehicle once again.
“What is this?” she is finally able to ask, genuine curiosity tingeing her voice this time.
“This, my friend, is some well needed breakfast from one of my favourite restaurants,” he informs her, pulling out of the parking lot and back onto the street. “In that bag are two of the best cinnamon buns you will find on this side of the country, along with the single most delicious oatmeal blueberry banana nut muffins you will ever taste. The drinks are pumpkin spiced lattes. If you think Starbucks is amazing, you haven’t tasted Lucy’s signature recipe. But I warn you - once you’ve had these, you won’t be able to go back.”
Cam just stares at him as he speaks, slightly taken aback by the kindness of the gesture. He sounds both confident and unsure of himself at the same time, if such a thing were possible. And it takes her a good minute after he finishes speaking to finally say something.
“I...don’t know what to say Hodgins.” And it’s true. “You didn’t need to do this.”
He just shrugs in return, casting a quick glance in her direction. “I know. But I figured you’ve had a pretty crappy start to your day. Plus, I kind of made the assumption that you probably haven’t had any breakfast yet. So, you know, the choice seemed obvious.”
Something warm and tight fills up in her chest, and she thinks for a moment that she almost might cry at his incredibly sweet gesture (and not only because she is overly emotional this morning). It is not only the kindest thing that Hodgins has ever done for her, but it’s also possibly one of the sweetest things that anyone has ever done for her. And especially on a day like today, when everything else has gone horribly wrong and she just needed something to be right. That he was able to sense that this would be what she needed...well it said a lot about Hodgins and the kind of man he was. She’s always known he was a good man, but this is something else entirely. It is both a small and an incredibly huge gesture all at once, and she suddenly finds herself looking at him in a new light.
“Thank you,” she tells him softly, voice thick with gratitude and appreciation. She wants to say so much more, but isn’t sure how to find the right words. “This is...just what I needed.”
His grin is practically blinding. “I’m glad.”
* * * * *
By the time they reach the Jeffersonian, Cam has managed to finish the cinnamon bun and has started on the muffin. Most of her pumpkin spiced latte is gone, and her stomach is finally starting to feel normal again. And she has to admit that Hodgins was right about everything. She’s quite certain that Starbucks has nothing on Bill & Lucy’s. And she’s also quite certain that it has absolutely nothing to do with the person who introduced her to the restaurant in the first place. Mostly.
“Your taxi has arrived,” Hodgins announces with a flourish once they pull into the parking lot, and Cam tries not to roll her eyes in amusement. “That’ll be $40,” he adds with a sly grin.
Cam can’t seem to hold back the laugh that escapes past her lips. “That’s not so bad. Just send me the bill,” she says, reaching into the back seat to grab her things.
Hodgins shuts off the car, and before she even realizes it, he’s already bounded out of the vehicle and is on the passenger side, opening her door. She smiles up at him as he takes the paper bag out of her hands and steps back to allow her to climb out of the car.
They begin to walk towards the building in companionable silence, Cam noticing for the first time that it’s snowing harder once again. Not so much that it feels like a blizzard, but enough to quickly coat her black hair and probably make her look like an old, white-haired grandma.
“Thanks again for coming to get me Hodgins. I really appreciate it,” Cam starts, casting him a sidelong glance. “Today has just been...well, a nightmare. But thankfully it looks like things are starting to look up finally.”
Hodgins nods, looking pleased.
But no sooner are the words out of her mouth then Cam feels her left foot slip on the ground beneath her in a hidden patch of black ice underneath a fine layer of freshly fallen snow. She attempts to keep herself upright, reaching out instinctively to grab hold of Hodgins or regain her own balance, but is unable to achieve either goal. It only takes approximately half a second for Cam to realize she’s slipped, try to right herself, and to recognize that she’s going down before she finds herself on the cold sidewalk on her back, snow drifting down to land on her face.
Arms immediately are grabbing at her and she distinctly hears Hodgins’ voice, laden with an edge of concern. “Whoa, are you all right? Did you injure yourself?”
Cam tries to say something as he gently helps her to her feet, but she doesn’t even know what to say any more. She feels Hodgins’ hands holding firmly onto her upper arms as he stares at her, an expression of concern and fear written plainly across his face.
She can’t be entirely sure if it’s the close proximity and the way Hodgins is staring at her, the way the snow is falling around them so serenely, or the fact that she’s been experiencing nothing but chaos all morning. But whatever the reason, when she feels Hodgins lean into her tentatively, something inside of her just snaps. And before Cam can even process what’s happening, she finds herself suddenly laughing. Not just calm, polite chuckles, but roaring laughter that shakes her entire body and reverberates in the air around them. She laughs at the unexpected snow this morning, and the late start to her morning. She laughs at the cramps and the double flat tires on her car. She laughs at the tow truck, the fall and the fact that her ass is cold, wet and sore. But mostly she laughs at the sheer ridiculousness of this entire morning.
Somewhere along the line she’s leaned into Hodgins’ shoulder, trembling and shaking with the power of her amusement. And he, for his part, has wrapped a loose arm around her back and seems content just to hold her upright. Cam recognizes that she probably looks like a complete mental case, laughing hysterically not more than 500 feet from the front entrance to the Jeffersonian Institute, but she just can’t seem to quell the near hysterical state she currently finds herself in. So she continues to chortle and chuckle and guffaw until the desire to laugh finally begins to fade. It takes Cam a good several minutes to calm down enough to pull back from Hodgins finally, tear tracks staining her red face.
“I’m sorry,” she manages to get out between gasps for air, shaking her head and wiping furiously at the tears still rolling down her cheeks. “It’s just...it’s been an absolutely crazy day. One of those laugh or cry type things. You know?”
Hodgins shoots her an amused look, eyebrows arched comically, but doesn’t say anything right away. Cam uses the time to regain her breath and wipe the rest of the errant tears from her eyes. She notes idly to herself that his one hand is still firmly grasping her arm and that he hasn’t moved away from her yet. She decides that she likes both of these things and makes a mental note to make up this crazy morning to Hodgins at some point in the near future.
“Are you sure you’re okay?” Hodgins finally asks her, looking slightly concerned but also incredibly entertained.
With a shake of her head she grins, smile spreading slowly across her face and into her eyes. “Yeah, I think I am,” she tells him, and honestly believes it.
Hodgins stares at her for a moment, as if trying to decide if she’s completely lost her mind - and maybe she truly has - but his uncertainty quickly turns into a half-smirk, lips quirking up in an entirely boyish manner. The two of them gather up Cam’s belongings and the paper bag from the ground and carry on walking as if nothing at all unusual had just happened. After a moment he holds out his arm to her, which she readily accepts.
“You know...just in case,” he tells her conspiratorially as they begin to walk towards the Jeffersonian. She couldn’t hold back the smile even if she wanted to.
And as they’re heading towards the front entrance, arm in arm, Cam decides that perhaps this day hasn’t been quite so terrible after all.