A/N: Hello, all! A bit of a late Valentine's Day fic. This one is definitely 100% finished, and I will be posting it daily for the next three days. I know I have a terrible track record for finishing fics, so I told myself I wasn't allowed to post this until it was totally complete. I hope you enjoy it!
Disclaimer: I don't own any of the characters or the show, etc. etc.
Jane shifted uncomfortably on her couch, growling slightly to herself. Remote in hand, she pressed the up button, quickly cycling through her lowest-grade satellite TV package.
"Jo!" Jane whined. The little scruffy bundle next to her raised an ear in answer. "You're my valentine this year. Woo me."
The little dog huffed a bit and resumed sleeping. Her short breaths came quickly as dog breathing was wont to do, but soon they had settled into a steady rhythm. Man's best friend her ass.
Jane glanced at the clock, noting that it was barely 6 p.m. She sighed heavily again. Why did Valentine's Day have to fall on a weekend? If it were during the week she could at least have stayed at the office catching up on the precipitous mountain of paperwork threatening to completely engulf her desk. Or she could have asked Frankie and Korsak…maybe even Nina… out for a drink at the Robber.
Did Nina even have a boyfriend? Jane really needed to make more of an effort with the lady.
Maura, of course, had Jack to spend this lovely annual occasion with. Not that Jane particularly desired a man to take her out to an expensive restaurant and bring her roses that didn't smell like anything and chocolates that tasted like chemicals. She fucking hated the expectations that the holiday invoked. She would have to dress up and make an effort to look pretty. He would have to spend an egregious amount of money wining and dining her. And then they would be expected to have really great sex.
"Ughhhh!" Jane whined, dramatically flopping backwards onto the couch with her arms extended. She didn't want all that movie shit or anything. She just wanted not to be reminded she should be doing all of those things. And maybe someone to not do all of those things with.
Jane looked at the clock, which told her it was now 6:30. Maura should be getting to the restaurant right about now. She probably dressed in red, maybe even in that red dress she showed Jane last week. The one that was all skin tight and drapey at the same time so that it accentuated all of her curves while still looking impeccably classy. It was a fucking dream of a dress.
Jane's attention was drawn to the screen, which showed a woman wearing an uncomfortably tight neon pink and black dress gesturing to something behind her. Ah, the weather channel. Jane turned the volume up.
"Boston will likely be seeing a foot of snow tonight. We already have about an inch on the ground, covering the frozen rain we all saw last night. So be careful out there, Valentine's Day revelers—we might be getting fresh snow, but it is going to be slick underneath!"
Jane turned the volume back down again, thinking of Maura. She hoped they took Jack's car, a sensible jeep, rather than Maura's completely impractical green machine. Who buys a car that's completely useless four months out of the year? Jane sighed again, pulling out her phone and ignoring the part of her mind telling her not to intrude on her best friend's date. She opted for a text, the more subtle method of communication: Roads will be icy. Be careful tonight.
The response back was immediate: Oops.
Jane's eyebrows furrowed as she held her phone in her hand, contemplating the one word answer. Oops? Did Maura get into an accident? Instantly Jane's fingers were dialing her best friend's number.
"Maur, are you okay?" Jane asked quickly when the blonde answered on the first ring. Her finger was nervously twisting a lock of dark curly hair and her foot tapping impatiently on the floor.
"Yes. But I seem to have slid down an embankment. Any chance you can lend me a hand?" The tone was offhanded and casual, completely not indicative of a woman who just crashed her beloved car.
"Of course, Maur. I'll be right there," Jane paused, rising from her couch to run into her bedroom, where she pulled on a pair jeans and a sweater. "Where is there, exactly?"
"Dudley and Cottage," Maura replied meekly.
Jane paused, left arm in her poofy red coat and right arm hanging limply by her side. If she weren't already holding the phone between her shoulder and ear, Jane would have contemplatively cocked her head to one side.
"That's like, three blocks away," Jane stated. She continued putting her right arm through the sleeve of her coat and set to pulling on her snowproof boots. "Wait…where's Jack?"
"He had to cancel on me tonight. I was driving to your apartment to see if you wanted to spend the night together."
Jane visibly cringed at the M.E.'s word choice. Sometimes the blonde could be so mature to a fault. Immature implications such as the ones currently flowing through Jane's mind never even occurred to the impeccable M.E.
"Yeah, Maur. You know I always love hanging out with you. No, Jo. You can't come. Mama just got her car cleaned." Maura heard the distinctive noise of Jo's claws scraping excitedly against the wood as she danced excitedly at Jane's feet.
"Actually, Jane. It would be best if you walked. The roads are far too icy for you to attempt driving. Would you…mind bringing me an extra pair of snow boots? I seem to have dressed inappropriately for the weather, which is why I have been sitting in my car for so long."
Jane smirked, imagining Maura in that smoking red dress and a pair of impossibly high stiletto heels trying to clamber up a snowy embankment. Heh.
Who was she kidding? Maura was probably freezing and uncomfortable and here Jane was making fun of her. The guilt settled in after that thought. Jane grabbed an extra pair of boots, an extra jacket and two of those Grabber hand warmers. She peeled off the wrappers and put them in the pockets of the extra coat so they would be perfectly warm by the time Maura slid her hands in them.
"Be good, Jo. Mama will be back in a few minutes with Maura." Jane said mostly to her dog, knowing full well that Maura could hear everything she was saying. "Yes, I know I'm walking now. Yes, I know you're perfectly capable of walking, too. Maura, tell Jo that this is a human-only trip!" Jane exclaimed exasperatedly, inching past the bounding terrier to slip through the front door.
Successful, she closed the door, locked it and immediately bolted down her apartment building steps and into the falling snow. Her boots crunched rhythmically against the snow as she jogged to her beleaguered friend.
"Maur, I'm gonna hang up. I'll be there in, like, two seconds."
"I hardly think that's accurate, Jane. I estimate a minute at least. I'm on the northwest corner."
Meaning Maura had been turning left towards Jane's apartment and likely had trouble on the turn. That was a pretty steep embankment, now that Jane thought about it…
The snow was falling thickly, quickly coating Jane's eyelashes and melting on the exposed skin of her face as she jogged. The cold, biting air ripped through her lungs, stealing away breaths that normally would fall evenly from such light exertion. Jane spotted the taillights of Maura's Prius glowing faintly from under a sizable layer of snow.
"Maur!" Jane shouted, skidding down the embankment. Her raspy, low voice tore through the eerily silent snowstorm and made Jane wish she had just stayed quiet. There always was something so calm about snow. The way it moved and fell in silence; the way nothing else stirred, no other noise was made. It was too pristine to be disturbed, like a sleeping baby.
It also caused a lot of property damage. Maura's car had rolled slowly enough into the ditch, which, owing to a number of days of sleet and rain, had at least a foot of frozen water on which to heavily impact the front bumper of a car. Through the layer of snow on the car, Jane could already see the accordioned mess of metal that was the hood of Maura's car. This was no small accident.
Jane wiped the snow off the driver's side window and knocked once. The airbag was deployed, and Jane could just see the faint outline of Maura reclined back in the driver's seat. Maura waved a hand that beckoned Jane to open the door.
"Hey, Maur," Jane breathed out, instantly sucking the air back in when she saw the angry red mark on the side of the M.E.'s cheek. "Is everything okay?" Jane quickly scanned the rest of the M.E.'s body, looking for any overt sign of injury. Eying the deployed airbag, Jane quickly deduced that it was the cause of the cheek welt.
The M.E.'s slim wrist found the electric seat lever and slowly raised her seat, "Yes. No injuries other than multiple contusions caused by the airbag deployment."
"ContusionS?" Jane asked, emphasizing the "s."
"Yes. I believe I have one on my left cheek and multiple on my mammary glands." Maura stated, pointedly looking down at her ample cleavage.
Jane's gaze bounced down there, too. Sure enough, the usually creamy skin was tinged bright red. It almost matched the color of her dress, which, Jane mused, was happily the one she had imagined Maura would be wearing. It had a swoopy neckline, just low enough so that Jane had a tantalizing view of the rounded tops of Maura's…mammary glands.
Jane's gaze bounced back up again. "I, uh, here's the boots," Jane said, awkwardly shoving them into Maura's lap. She held Maura's spindly heels as she watched the M.E. slide her delicate feet into Jane's very practical snow boots. They were far too big for her, and their worn tanned leather clashed ridiculously with the M.E.'s classy red getup.
Jane marveled vaguely at how the two of them managed to be such good friends. The physical manifestation of their differences was so jarring it was comical. Yet somehow, the two of them balanced each other out. The thought made the corner of Jane's mouth tick up happily.
She held up the parka as Maura stood up stiffly in the heavy boots. Maura shrugged it on over her thin, chic black designer coat. She smiled warmly in gratitude up at Jane as her hands slid inside the warm pockets. Jane shrugged and mumbled some sort of excuse for the gesture. She had them lying around and knew it was really cold outside. She figured Maura had been there awhile. How long had Maura been waiting outside, anyway?
"It has been about a half hour at this point. I called 911 but it seems that they had their own trouble getting here. Wait a second…" Maura said, stopping Jane in her tracks. The lanky brunette was already trying to scramble up the incline, causing a small avalanche of snow to tumble toward the small Prius.
Maura opened the back door of her car to reveal a small duffel bag, which she slung casually over her shoulder.
"Do you have an emergency bag in your backseat?" Jane asked, equal parts amused and exasperated at her friend's preparedness. She motioned for the blonde to wait while she clambered up the steep incline; she then extended her hand down for the M.E. to take while she made the slippery trip upwards.
As the two righted themselves, neither was quick to unclench their hands. Maura slipped her ungloved hand and Jane's gloved hand inside the warm pocket. It was a tight fit, but comfortable enough for both of them.
"Here do you want my…" Jane said, pulling the glove off her right hand when she realized Maura was lacking gloves. Maura shook her head no, smiling at the gesture.
She pulled Jane's hand back into her warm pocket, "Don't want you catching cold either, Detective."
Was that a flirty tone Jane was detecting? It sounded distinctly flirty. Not any flirtier than the doctor's usual banter...Jane supposed when she thought further on it. But Jane wasn't her type anyway so why did it matter?
The two crunched down the street together, following the earlier tracks Jane had already made. The snow was still falling, but slower and in lighter, swirling rivulets. They landed delicately in the M.E.'s blonde locks and coated her perfect eyebrows and lashes. In her red dress and elegant coat she looked comical covered with a worn puffy parka and large, equally worn work boots. She tromped in them—something Jane was sure Maura Isles had never done in her life. It brought a smile to her face like nothing else.
There she was, again falling down that rabbit hole labeled 'Maura Isles.' Sometimes Jane could feel herself falling and observe herself falling at the same time…like half of her was clumsy and helpless and the other half of her was raising its eyebrows and judging.
"It's beautiful out here," Maura breathed after they had walked a few paces in silence. The red brick of the buildings was lined heavily with snow that resembled the piped white icing on gingerbread houses. The thick flakes swirled down, grabbing futilely onto the already laden barren branches of trees that lined the quiet street. Lights burned brightly in almost every window, lighting the pair's way through the grey night.
It was the kind of night that would go perfectly in some cheesy romance movie, where the guy would walk the girl to her door and they would shelter on the stoop of her building, staring adoringly at one another, until one of them—maybe both of them—moved in to close the gap between them. They would passionately kiss with swirling snow and loud swelling music and everything would be all gooey and perfect.
Suddenly Jane's hand felt heavy and claustrophobic in the M.E.'s pocket.
"Is that what you were doin when you crashed your little pansy ass car?" Jane asked, patented Jane Rizzoli smirk on her face. She nudged the blonde a little with her elbow to jolt her out of her reverie. She smoothly slid her hand out of her best friend's pocket, stretching her arms behind her nonchalantly.
"Doing what?" Maura asked, adopting a slightly defensive tone.
"Daydreaming. Were you thinking about Mr. Handsome Professor man?" Jane teased. She paused, realization dawning on her. "Did the bastard stand you up?" Jane suddenly felt much more serious, bristling in anger at the thought of that smirking, slick Ivory Tower bastard hurting her best friend.
"No, he called me earlier today telling me that his ex-wife surprised him with Allie. It seems Josephine had a date of her own tonight," Maura said slightly bitterly. "But no matter! Because I get to spend tonight with you." She smiled hopefully up at the brunette, who couldn't help but smile back.
Yep. Rabbit hole. Here she was, badass Detective Jane Rizzoli, smiling like an idiot because she got to play second fiddle to Jackass.
Once in Jane's apartment, Maura whipped out two bottles of red wine, a host of expensive chocolates and multiple Tupperware containers filled with various foods. She moved effortlessly through Jane's kitchen, knowing precisely the location where every haphazardly thrown item resided. She placed things on plates, in the oven and in the refrigerator, occasionally stopping to sip her glass of wine or to smile happily at her best friend.
"For someone who just crashed her Prius and got stood up, you seem pretty okay…did you do some yoga or something in your car while you were down there?" Jane asked, curious at her friend's happy demeanor. She took an experimental sip of the red liquid Maura had placed in front of her. It was fragrant and floral-y without being too thick and heavy in her mouth like most red wines were.
Hm. Not bad.
"Here," Maura said, placing a plate in front of her. "Sip the wine again once you've tried this. It tastes absolutely exquisite with food."
In front of her was a mushy brown rectangle topped with squishy purple stuff. Placed delicately on the side were small oblong croutons. "Blech!" Jane exclaimed, not trying very hard to keep the look of pure disgust off her face. "What did you do? Follow Jo Friday around on a walk for that gem?"
Maura sighed, composing herself for one of her many Jane lectures. "No, Jane. That is foie gras, a well-known delicacy in French cuisine. It is known to be very buttery and savory, which is why I paired it with fig preserves and a thick crouton." She sighed again, noting her speech had done nothing to wipe the look of horror on her friend's face. "This particular dish is served at upscale restaurants as a palate opener. It has a very delightful balance of savory, sweet, smooth and rough."
Ever the immature adolescent boy, Jane couldn't help but apply those words to a…less clothed scenario that made her mouth go dry.
She blamed it on the wine. All three sips of it.
Still noting the apprehension lining Jane's face, Maura placed her hands obstinately on her hips. "You don't get the main course until you try at least one bite," Maura paused for effect. "The main course is Entrecôte, known most commonly here in America as rib eye steak." She raised her eyebrows suggestively, knowing full well that Jane had already caved at the word 'steak.'
She smiled brightly as she watched the grumpy brunette slice through the light brown mousse with the crouton and pop the entire thing in her mouth. She marveled in the reactions that fleeted across her friend's face. A brief moment of disgust, highlighted by narrowed eyes and pinched, thin lips…a momentary flick of surprise, during which one of the brunette's thick eyebrows raised and the muscles around her lips slackened…and then the features hardened, solidifying into the familiar mask of Rizzoli stubbornness.
"Well, it didn't kill me," Jane said, shrugging her shoulders and picking up the wine glass. She took a generous swig, and the blonde M.E. felt time stop just enough for her to watch the liquid make its way down her long, delicate throat.
"Good with food?" Maura asked expectantly.
Jane shrugged again, "Yeah."
Too determined to be disappointed, Maura was nonetheless happy to discover Jane sneaking another few bites of foie gras behind her back as she pulled a cast iron skillet from Jane's oven and places it on the front left burner.
I own one of those things? Jane wondered, staring at the skillet. Hm. She popped another French crouton smeared with brown stuff in her mouth contemplatively. This Valentine's Day was shaping up nicely after all. Her gaze made its way from pan to perfectly manicured M.E., whose heels, dress and food choice all imported more gravitas than Jane's disheveled hair and pajamas.
"Fuck," Jane said softly. She slid from her seat and called over her shoulder, "I'll be right back, Maur."