A/N: Simon Baker's birthday should be a national holiday. All those in favor, please write letters to your nation's leader. I'm just kidding, but that would awesome! I'm not completely satisfied with this, but I had a limited amount of time to write this, so I didn't really have time to go back and fix things. If you found any mistakes, please tell me so I can fix them. Happy Birthday, Simon! This one's for you!

Disclaimer: Why can't you just leave me and my non-The-Mentalist-owning self alone?

Warnings: Language, OOC, and FLUFF! (sorry, fluff makes me happyfuls!)

I walked into the bullpen under the cheerful gazes of my coworkers. I didn't share their mood, even though it was me they were happy for. I was actually quite upset.

It was my birthday, which meant that I had managed to survive another year without my lost family and not going completely insane.

But it also meant that I hadn't yet caught Red John, the bastard responsible for the whole thing. Then again, I had been the one who had insulted him, made a fool of him on live television. And so he had taken my Angela and our Charlotte in revenge. My worst mistake.

And I was turning 41. That was hell in and of itself.

I fell back onto my beloved couch, hoping that I could feign sleep before—

"Happy birthday, Jane!"

Too late. Damn.

I opened my eyes to see Van Pelt standing in front of me, grinning and holding out a gift-wrapped box. I smiled at her enthusiasm. No one could resist a happy Grace.

"Thanks," I said, sitting up and taking the box.

"I hope you like it," she said excitedly. "It's from all of us…"

I noticed her pause. "What's wrong?"

"Er, it's from me, Rigsby, and Cho," she said quickly, replacing her smile.

"Oh? And where was Lisbon?" I couldn't help but ask.

"She said she'd already gotten you a gift." I saw her blush slightly. "Now open ours before I explode!" Rigsby and Cho looked at me expectantly.

I laughed. I already knew what it was—rather, what they were—but I wasn't about to spoil their fun. As I ostentatiously opened my present, I noticed Lisbon walk into the bullpen and sit on the edge of Van Pelt's desk, watching me in amusement from behind her coffee mug.

"Thanks, they're great," I told Van Pelt, exchanging my old, beat-up shoes with the new ones I had just received. To my surprise, they fit perfectly.

"They fit?" Rigsby asked in what seemed to be utter shock. I obviously wasn't the only one who hadn't expected it.

"Told you they would," Van Pelt said smugly, crossing her arms over her chest.

Cho simply smirked. Rigsby grumbled.

"Thanks," I repeated. I stood up. "I hope you didn't spend too—"

"Don't worry about that," Van Pelt interrupted. "It's not your problem."

I smiled at her, Cho, and Rigsby, purposely not looking at Lisbon, knowing it would annoy her and that she would walk over to me.

Which she didn't. What the hell? I thought as she hopped off Van Pelt's desk and exited the bullpen. What had I done now? I wanted to know, so I started walking after her.

"Fifty bucks says she gives him her now," Rigsby said to Cho.

"Shut up, man," along with a punch in the arm, was his answer.

Her? Her? What did that even mean? Now I was worried. Was Lisbon finally getting me back for all the times I'd embarrassed her? Suddenly I wanted to go back to my nice safe couch, where there would be witnesses and Lisbon wouldn't try anything. I was fully aware of what she was capable of, and I didn't want to experience it, ever.

But, for whatever reason, I kept walking. Lisbon had to be aware that I was following her. My new shoes weren't any different than others, and they squeaked loudly every time I took a step. After a minute, she stopped walking and looked around. I ducked behind a corner. I counted to ten and snuck a peek at her.

She was gone. Cursing quietly, I searched for her in the crowd until I saw her ascending the spiral staircase to the second floor. I hurried to follow her, my curiosity burning brighter with every second that passed.

Where in the world was Lisbon going? The answer to that question became clear when she stopped in front of a door marked storage, glanced around, then went inside.

Why?

I knew I shouldn't go in, but I felt like I had to. So I did.

"Hello, Lisbon," I said loudly.

She didn't even blink. "Hey, Jane. Happy birthday."

"Thank you. May I inquire why you're in a storage room?"

"Only if I can inquire why you followed me." Lisbon smirked at him.

"Touché," I said. "Okay. I followed you because I was curious, and only became more so when Rigsby made a remark about you giving me 'her' now to Cho."

Lisbon scowled. "Damn him. I'm putting him on stakeout for a month," she muttered.

"So why are you in here?" I gestured around the room.

"I just have to get some extra paper. Looks like you stalked me for nothing. Sorry."

"Meh. You're hiding something."

Lisbon looked shocked. "Me? Hiding something?" She put a hand over her heart. "Why in the world would you think that?"

I smiled. She was so cute when she had something she wasn't telling me. "Come on. Tell me."

"Tell you what?" she asked innocently, reading labels on packages of printer paper.

"Lisbon, what are you keeping from me? Can't you give me a hint?"

"I swear on your life that I'm not hiding anything."

"You better have had your fingers crossed," I muttered.

She beamed at me and held up a package of paper. She headed for the door. "See? Now, I've gotta go print out that—"

I grabbed her arm. "Lisbon, I'm not stupid."

"That's your opinion."

I sighed. "What are you hiding? A hint, please."

"Fine. You're gonna need a brush. Happy?"

I stared at her, searching her eyes. She wasn't lying; she was just annoyed that I had kept her from her work. I realized that I was still holding on to her upper arm, but she hadn't seemed to notice. That was interesting… I locked the information away for later.

"Any better hints?" I asked.

"I gave you a hint," she said, struggling to break free, "now let go of me!"

"All in due course, my dear. I just want to make you squirm."

Lisbon looked at me in disgust. "Has anyone ever told you that you're annoying?"

"Yes. I hear it every day." I gazed into her eyes. She was very uncomfortable now; she didn't like being in a room alone with me. I wondered why that was. I liked being alone with her.

"Jane, come on," she whined. "Please let me go. I have work to do."

I didn't answer her. A blush crept up her neck and spread over her face. She began to twist her arm in an attempt to release herself. I let go of her. "Mission accomplished," I said, grinning.

"Ugh," she muttered, along with a series of other words.

"Calm down, Lisbon. I was just teasing. No harm done."

"Ugh," she repeated. "Move." She pushed past me.

I followed her. "Thanks for the hint."

"Go away."

"Why? Don't you like me?"

"No."

"You don't like me?"

"No."

"So you do like me?"

"No."

"Then you must love me." I grinned. We were going down the stairs now.

She flinched and almost lost her balance. "No."

"So you don't like me, and you don't love me."

"No."

"'No?' Then which one is it?" I was actually afraid she was going to punch me if I didn't stop, but I was having too much fun. Now we were passing the bullpen.

"Jane," Lisbon warned, "if you don't stop it right now…"

"Stop what?"

She came to a halt in front of her office door. "Jane!" she yelled. "Stop it!" She glared at me angrily. "What is it with you?"

"I'm sorry, Lisbon." I hung my head. "I'll stop."

"Thank you."

I looked up at her, smirking. "I'll stop if you give me my birthday present now."

She blinked. "What?"

"You heard me."

"No. I'm not making a deal with you." She walked into her office and tried to close the door before I could follow her. It didn't work. I stepped in after her, going to her couch and sitting down.

"Why not?"

"You know why." She went behind her desk and sat down with a huff. "Go away."

"Lisbon, please? You could make Rigsby fifty dollars richer."

"I don't care about Rigsby's finances. He can go buy a lottery ticket."

"Please?" I got up and walked behind her desk. "Do I have to put you in a trance?"

She looked at me with narrowed eyes. "You wouldn't."

"I certainly would."

"Okay, then." Lisbon crossed her arms over her chest. "Try it. Try to put me in a trance. I dare you."

"You and I both know that it would be easier for you to just give me the present now." I didn't really want to hypnotize her, because she would kill me.

Lisbon glared at me for a minute, then said, "Fine. Go out into the bullpen and I'll bring it out to you. I promise. And close your eyes."

A bit stunned, I did as she said. I sat down on my couch and waited, listening for her. I thought she was just messing around with me, but sure enough, I heard Van Pelt cooing at something and Rigsby and Cho laughing softly. I wanted to open my eyes now, but Lisbon would probably smack me.

"Okay, Jane," I heard her say, "open your eyes."

I did, flinching when I saw what she was holding.

It was a puppy, a tiny Dalmatian puppy. My eyes were huge as Lisbon handed it to me.

"Her name is Dexy," she said. "She likes cats, other animals, and most people, and, for some reason, she really likes you."

Dexy was licking my face fervently. I grinned and said, "I can see that."

"She's housetrained and everything else, too. I took care of it." Lisbon smiled at me. "Happy birthday, Jane."

I stood up in front of her. Surprising both of us, I took her chin in my hand and turned her head to kiss her cheek. "Thank you. She's beautiful."

Lisbon was blushing furiously. "You're welcome," she murmured. She was looking at me, annoyance clear in her green eyes – probably for making her blush – but there was something else there, too. Something different…

Dexy yipped loudly, wriggling in excitement. "Aw, she's so cute!" Van Pelt exclaimed. "Can I hold her? Please?"

"Of course." I handed her the puppy.

"I want to hold her next!" Rigsby said.

"Why can't I hold her?" Cho demanded.

"Sharing is caring, guys," I said with a laugh. "Be patient."

"I have her things in my office," Lisbon said, "if you want to get them."

"Sure." We walked to her office. She went behind her desk and started handing me toys, food, and other puppy necessities. "Where did you get her?" I asked.

"My brother's dog had puppies. Dexy wasn't sold, and he couldn't keep her, so he gave her to me. I trained her."

"You're allowed to have animals in your apartment?"

"No."

"Oh. Well, I appreciate the risk you took for me. Thank you." I put Dexy's things on the floor and, before she could slip away or protest, I hugged Lisbon. She put her arms around me with no hesitation. I could feel her heart beating faster, and when I kissed her cheek again, it sped up even more. I was certain that if this had been any other situation, she would have already pulled away. Her breathing was shallow and she was trembling.

Lisbon had told me that she liked me…kind of. If she didn't, she wouldn't be acting like a teenager about to get her first kiss. Suddenly, her lips were on my cheek. "You're welcome," she murmured. Then she moved away from me and sat down at her desk, blushing.

I smiled at her. "You always know what I want," I said softly. "You didn't have to do this."

"Yes, I did." She looked up at me. "She doesn't have anywhere to go. I know you'll take care of her. Please keep her."

"Oh, I'm keeping her. I just wanted to say that…" I stopped, at a loss for words.

"You just wanted to say that?"

I took a deep breath and said, "I just wanted to say that you made this the best birthday I've had since I lost my family."

Lisbon blinked, startled. "I… Jane, I…"

"Thank you, Lisbon. You don't know how much this means to me." The sound of Dexy barking and people laughing drifted through the open door. "I'd better go take care of her before something gets broken." I walked out of her office.

"Jane, wait."

I looked back at Lisbon. She had gotten out of her chair and followed me to the door. "What is it?" I asked.

"You forgot something." She grabbed the lapels of my jacket and pulled me back into her office, closing the door. I didn't mean to run into her, but I did. Trying to brace myself and not knock her over, I put my hands on her waist. Instead of backing away, she wrapped her arms around my neck. I had thought she meant I had forgotten Dexy's things. Now I knew where this was going.

In the bullpen, Dexy stopped jumping around and yapping and looked toward Lisbon's office, whining.

"What's the matter, girl?" Van Pelt asked, patting the puppy's head. "Do you miss them?"

"They should have been back by now," Rigsby said, following Dexy's gaze. His eyes nearly popped clear out of his head, and he started laughing. "L… loo… look…" he gasped, pointing.

After glancing at each other, Cho and Van Pelt looked at Lisbon's office. The blinds weren't closed, so they saw immediately what Rigsby had seen.

Lisbon and Jane were kissing.

"What are you laughing at?" Van Pelt demanded. "It's sweet."

"I think he's laughing at Dexy," Cho said. The puppy was staring intently at the couple. Suddenly, she howled at the tops of her lungs. Lisbon looked over at them and said something to Jane. When he looked over, too, Dexy barked, wagging her tail and hitting Rigsby in the face. Everyone (except Rigsby) laughed.

Rigsby glared at Dexy. Then he started singing, "Jane and Lisbon, sitting in a tree, K-I-S-S-I-N-G!" Lisbon gave him the finger as Jane shut the blinds. Dexy, disappointed that she couldn't see them anymore, leapt off of Rigsby's lap and tore down the hall. She ran into Lisbon's office, yapping. She appeared a moment later with a toy bone in her mouth, looking very confused. Just before the door closed again, the three agents heard Lisbon laugh loudly.

Rigsby looked at his coworkers and said, "I don't think there's a song for that."

A/N: Good ol' Rigsby! I couldn't figure out how to write the kiss from Jane's perspective, so I didn't. I like it much better than my other version. Though I'm still not completely satisfied. And I wasn't pressed for time on this one! I started it in June so that I would have plenty of time to make the necessary changes. Things never go the way you think they are. And I still had to fix it. Damn.

Love is just a word until it is proven to you.