Disclaimer: I own nothing, as evidenced by my itty-bitty apartment and empty ramen containers. I really am a struggling artist cliché, aren't I?

A/N: This is my first fan fic. I hope I'm doing this right! Please let me know what you think, I've been working on this for a while and am really hoping you will love how the story develops as much as I've been loving it! Any and all critiques are welcome – please be honest! As far as the timeline goes, I'm putting this at some point after the end of season two, but before the start of season three. I'm trying really hard to not go too far OOC, so please let me know if you think I've gone too far at any point!

Temperance Brennan grimaced as the technician placed the cold gel on her bare, ever more protruding stomach.

"Here we go!" Martha, the always bubbly technician, smiled eagerly at her. She slowly began rolling the wand over Brennan's belly. I don't need to look, was the refrain she repeated over and over in her head. She knew exactly what was going on inside. 18 weeks. The baby was probably about 8 inches. 7 ounces or so. Fingerprints were forming. Most of the internal organs were now developing. The bones are beginning to ossify. Oh god, the bones, she thought. My baby's bones are forming. As the blurry black and white images began appearing on the screen, Temperance Brennan closed her eyes tight and turned away, not wanting the technician to see the tears welling up in her eyes, as she lay there wishing she were anywhere but here.

Martha was not used to women like Temperance Brennan. Usually, the women she dealt with were overjoyed to see the early pictures of their baby. Usually they were asking a million questions, laughing and crying and smiling the whole time. That was why she loved her job – everyone was always happy around her. Except, of course, for Temperance Brennan. She felt so sorry for the woman. Sure, she'd seen single mothers before, more and more of them every year. Yet she'd never seen someone who seemed so utterly and completely alone. Maybe a baby will be good for her, she thought. Someone to keep her from being so lonely. She reached out with her spare hand and placed it on Dr. Brennan's hand.

"Dr. Brennan, are you alright?"

Her movement startled Brennan back out of her zoned-out state. She instinctively stiffened and pulled her hand back.

"Yes, thank you. How does the fetus appear?"

"Oh, everything looks wonderful, Dr. Brennan. Would you like to know the sex?"

Without thinking, Temperance abandoned her plans of detachment and in a moment of weakness blurted out her answer: "Yes."