AN: A thousand sincere apologies for messing up the posting of this story's second chapter. I accidentally added it as a new story, rather than a chapter. So I'm very very sorry to those of you kind enough to put Flightchapter 2 on your story alert and favorite stories lists. I am apparently challenged by the publishing tool. Thank you to everyone who reviewed Flightchapter 2, and I'm sorry that I'm going to have to delete that and repost it correctly as a chapter to the original Flight—but I'm saving all the amazing, wonderful reviews you all took the time to write! Thanks especially to DoctorSweets and BxBForever for helping me figure out this mess, and the appropriate ratings. This chapter is T-rated, but in the future I'll err on the side of caution and post chapters that get close to that gray area as an M. I hope I didn't offend anyone with that first chapter!

Also, since I couldn't PM you—thank you DBLover for your incredibly thoughtful and sweet review! Made my day.

As soon as Booth walked into the Medico-Legal Lab, Cam was at his heels.

"Do you know what's going on with Dr. Brennan?" she asked. "I got this text message. Not exactly overflowing with information."

Booth scanned the brief text. Worse than he thought. The fact that she planned to stay away long enough to not even give Cam a return date made him nauseous. Running from him—after what she'd seen, he could understand that. But running from her job? He could barely believe it. He had been awake almost all weekend, hating himself, berating himself, driving himself into a frenzy of anxiety and guilt. He'd been to church, he'd been to the gym. Praying it out, sweating it out, nothing had worked. He'd never felt so messed up in his entire life.

He replied with a terse "no" and shouldered rudely past Cam. He was sorry. He was sorry to everyone, for everything, because all he could ever seem to do was hurt the people he cared about the most. There would probably come a day, maybe soon, when he would let Parker down too. Everyone should just expect it and understand that he was no safe keeper of hearts. Not a man to trust.

It was sort of tragic, really. How long he'd been able to pretend that he wasn't in love with his partner—totally, irretrievably crazy-gone in love with her—when she was right here next to him, in arm's reach. Only now, when she was missing (that was the only way he could think of it, that she was missing), did he realize how much he needed to see her, needed to be near her, to know that she was safe. He looked back at their years together objectively. Looked at the man that was Seeley Booth, watched him interacting with his beautiful partner. Saw him meet her for the first time, watched as his entire body puffed up with challenge, because he was so intent to bend this impressive woman to his authority. Even that early, his response to her blotted everything else out. It should have been a warning sign but he hadn't seen it. She had just gotten under his skin like no one else ever had. And then later, watching himself painfully trying to explain to her that their friendship was a guy friendship, that he didn't really see her as a woman. So cowardly. Though it was true that he didn't see her as a woman—he saw her as his woman. Then that kiss under the mistletoe, chaste as it was, had still made him feel like he was high. And the embarrassing way he lurked at the dock as Sully sailed out of her life, as if to wave a neon-bright banner that said 'He's gone! Turn around! I'm here instead!' It was so obvious, so pathetically apparent how much he loved her. Now he could see why Angela hinted so often, and got so frustrated with them. Because it was clear as day that he oriented his whole life towards her, like a sailor to a star. If only he hadn't kissed her, tried to greedily reach for more than he deserved, she would still be here next to him. He could be content forever with his usual little allowances: guy hugs, capturing imaginary fuzzies from her hair, leaning in a little too close when they were both smiling. He promised God that if Bones just came back safe to him, he would never again jeopardize their relationship by being greedy. He could go back to the torture—hell, he would cherish it.

He dragged a hand through his frustrated hair and walked into Angela's office. He had a list of the cities that Bones had purchased tickets to. He'd been staring at the list all weekend trying to think of a way to narrow it down but had come up with very little. To say that he wasn't thinking clearly was an understatement. He had finally been able to examine the problem rationally—maybe a certain rational empiricist's voice had floated through his mind—and realized that the timestamp of the last purchased ticket would have made it highly unlikely, if not impossible, that she'd have time to catch the four flights that were scheduled to leave the earliest. But that still left four other flights that she could have taken. He didn't know how to narrow it down further. He needed Angela's help. And he explained as much, though she wasn't looking exactly cooperative.

"Why?" she asked, crossing her arms and gazing at him sadly. "Why would I help you find her? If what you're telling me is true—not that you've really given me all the details you should have—then she's really angry with you for some reason and felt the need to escape. And you know I love you, but she's my friend first. Why on earth would I help you find her if she doesn't want to be found?"

He'd expected this. So he pulled out the big gun: honesty. "Because I'm in love with her." He almost sniffled, and sounded so pathetic it made him cringe.

Angela only sighed and rubbed her eyes wearily. "This isn't how I wanted to hear you finally admit that."

"I know."

She tilted her head speculatively. "If I was to help you, and you did find her, what would you do?"

"I would apologize. Not that it would matter… what I did, Ange, it was… unforgivable. And I know that. Things between us, well I think they're ruined. Forever. But I need her to know that it's not her fault. None of it is her fault. And I need her to know that… that she is, was, the best thing I've ever had, and losing her? Biggest regret of my life."

"What the hell did you do, Booth?" she asked incredulously.

He shook his head, unable to lift his gaze from the floor. His jaw was clenched in misery.

Angela couldn't bear to see anyone in so much pain. It just wasn't in her nature. "Let me see your list of cities. I'm not saying I'm definitely going to help you—I just want to see them."

He nodded gratefully and handed his list over. He had narrowed her destinations to Tokyo, Melbourne, Moscow, and Cairo. "And this is assuming that she didn't just buy the tickets, turn around, and drive away from the airport," he continued quietly. "She could still be in DC for all I know." He narrowed his eyes at Angela as a thought suddenly occurred to him. "She could be staying with you this whole time."

"Uhuh. Don't even. Don't ask for my help and then accuse me of being shady, Booth. I told you you're my friend too and I meant it."

"I'm sorry," he said quietly.

"You are sorry," she agreed. "I've never seen you like this. So low." Her eyes melted with sadness as she looked him over. "Okay, listen. If you promise me, promise me, that you'll do everything you can to fix whatever this problem is between you guys, I'll tell you where she is."

"You know where she is?" he nearly shouted.

"I do. But I'm still worried because she clearly doesn't want to be found."

"Angela. Please."

With a dramatic sigh, she relented. "She's in Cairo. I would bet my house on it. It's the only city in that list that has any special meaning to her. She worked on an excavation there a couple years ago, at the Red Pyramid, had some sort of trippy experience in the desert—you know how she is, which is funny right? To simultaneously be such a slave to the scientific method but also embrace the completely irrational beliefs of other cultures? Actually—"

"Angela!" he interrupted. "Where in Cairo? Will she be at this… red pyramid?"

Giving him a crass look, she continued. "Well, the dig at the Red Pyramid is long since over, so I'd guess that she'd check in with the Museum of Egyptian Antiquities. It's one of the most famous museums in the world, you can't miss it. I saw pictures of this one really cool room where they have all the little animal mummies that the… Booth?"

Without a response, the agent had turned on his heel and dashed out of her office.

"You're welcome!" she shouted after him crankily.

AN: I know this chap was a short one. I'm working on the next one now… it's going to be M-rated. Warned! : )