A/N: I just had to urge to write this short little one-shot. Sometimes we have to go where the muse takes us. I'm not even sure I like how this came out but I needed to write it. So I hope you enjoy it. If not, I'm sorry. I was just way to full of fluff to write anything else.
Maura was tired. She couldn't believe how tired she actually was. She was used to functioning on very little sleep. She had managed to survive the rigors of medical school, grabbing sleep whenever she had a free moment. The intelligent woman was able to not only function, but excel in her position as Chief Medical Examiner for the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, being called in at all hours of the night and day to crime scenes and working long hours on cases, with little to no sleep. But none of that, none of her life experiences up to that point, would prepare her for what she had found to be the most tiring adventure of her life.
Having grown up in a not so normal household and never having any younger siblings or family members that had their own offspring, Maura's only knowledge of raising children was what she had read in the multitude of reading materials she had committed to memory in preparation. Every book, journal, and internet article that she had read warned her extensively about the exorbitant amount of energy required to raise a family and they all had warned her that she would be beyond exhausted and should use any opportunity possible to get even the smallest amount of sleep. While this would frighten and worry any normal first time mother, Maura did not consider herself normal and had the utmost faith in her abilities. She wasn't concerned in the slightest that she would encounter the typical struggles of a first time mother. Maura knew that with her superior intelligence and the time that she had dedicated to studying and preparing she would have no problem raising a child.
But the intelligent woman never left anything to chance and knew that where she would falter, her beautiful wife and her partner in raising this child would come through for her. The honey blonde woman had the help of the strongest woman she had ever known. Her helping hand in raising her first child was not only one of the top homicide detectives in Boston and not only her best friend, but also the woman who she felt such love and devotion for, that when she was merely in the presence of the Italian brunette she knew she could take on any obstacle that came her way. Maura felt that the overwhelming strength of Jane Rizzoli was such a dynamic force, that it built her own strength up when she was around her. She knew that just being with Jane made her stronger.
Maura took a moment as she stood in her kitchen, waiting for the coffee, which had become her lifeline in the first months of her child's life, to brew. In that moment, the honey blonde thought about how she had reached that point in her life. She never dared to dream that one day she would be sharing her life with Jane, let alone raising a child together. From the first moment she laid eyes on the ravishing brunette, Maura knew that she was physically attracted to her. How could she not be? The policewoman was the epitome of strength and femininity and with her immaculate bone structure, Maura couldn't help but be attracted. But as Maura got to know that tall beauty more and more, she found that there was so much more to the woman than her immense beauty. She was strong, loyal to a fault, passionate, funny, and took the time to be the only friend that the honey blonde knew she could always call on. The medical examiner told herself that she was happy to be just friends with Jane. She convinced herself that if she couldn't be with the Italian beauty, she would settle for having the strong, caring woman as her best friend.
It was then that Maura Isles told herself the only lies she was ever able to successfully tell anyone. She told herself that she was okay with just having Jane at her house and when the Italian brunette stayed late or overnight, she told herself that friends often stayed at each other's homes, sharing each other's beds. Maura told herself that she was completely satisfied with having the other woman with her at all times and talking on the phone at all hours. She told herself that she had no problem sharing meals and laughs and cries and gentle, soft touches with the woman she deeply loved even if it never went any further.
But as with any lie the intelligent woman told, Maura's lies to herself quickly crumbled. Maura found that it wasn't enough to be extremely close friends with the woman she loved. She wanted more and she knew she would never be happy just being friends with Jane. Maura knew that there was no way that she could hold her feelings for her best friend back and eventually they came pouring out one night as the two women enjoyed their dinner. Maura Isles poured out her heart, knowing that she had shared her last meal with the only person that she had ever felt such feelings for. The honey blonde sat, quietly waiting for the final words to sever the friendship she had worked so hard to build. She expected to be rejected, just like she had been by everyone that she had ever loved. But the tall slender woman stood in front of the honey blonde with a smirk on her face and pulled the smaller medical examiner into their first kiss of many that would come in their time together. It was from that moment on that Maura knew that she would never be alone again.
The two didn't date long before they decided that they wanted to spend the rest of their life together. They didn't need too. When Jane proposed one fall afternoon in the middle of the Common after the pair had only been "officially" dating two months, they both agreed that they had basically been dating all along and that they were ready to pledge their lives to each other. Organizing the wedding took a little bit of time, what with Maura's plans for an elegant affair and Angela's meddling, but less than a year after the women had become truthful about the way they felt for each other, Jane and Maura married each other with the friends and families there to watch.
Children had always been something that Maura wanted. She had always wanted to raise a family and show a child the love and attention that she felt that she missed growing up. Jane loved her big family so when Maura brought up the idea of having a child, the Italian woman was all for the idea. So after a long and tiring process as well as a long and tiring pregnancy for both women, Maura delivered their baby boy, Michael, with Jane right there by her side. He was the most beautiful child that Maura had ever seen and Jane fell in love with him the first moment that she saw her son. Just the thought of that day brought a huge smile to Maura's face.
The strong aroma of the caffeinated beverage pulled the woman from her happy memory. She couldn't believe that at one point she was afraid to profess her love to Jane and there she was happily married and raising a child together. She never could have dreamed that she would be so happy. But then a monstrous yawn escaped her lips and the doctor remembered what brought the memory to the forefront of her mind. She was tired and even she knew that no amount of coffee would be enough. She had been wrong. It didn't matter that she had read every intelligent article on child rearing and it didn't matter that her wife was one of the strongest women she had ever met. Both women were exhausted. Raising a child had zapped the two women of every drop of energy that was in their bodies. The only time either of them got any sleep was when one of them took over baby duty just long enough for the other to take a quick nap. The rest of their energy came from the caffeinated drinks that they consumed. It was never enough, but Maura didn't know how they would have even survived to that point without the hot, dark liquid that was continuously brewing. Jane had attempted in the beginning to convince her wife that it would save so much time to just have a jar of instant on hand when they needed a quick pick-me-up, but Maura stood firm. She would be the first to admit that she was a coffee snob, but with all the amazing coffee in the world, she made no apologies about it.
So the blonde stood waiting for her lifeline to finish.
Jane was in the bedroom with their baby boy and the honey blonde knew that if she were gone too long, Jane would assume that she had deserted her in order to sneak a nap. Maura knew that her wife would be just as tired and would be craving her morning cup of hot coffee. The honey blonde medical examiner knew that her wife was practically addicted to coffee even before the hand become mothers and she didn't want to keep her waiting because she knew how cranky the policewoman was without it. She filled a mug for each of them before heading back upstairs towards the bedroom she shared with the woman she loved. As she reached the top stair, she could hear the sounds of her wife interacting with their child.
The honey blonde couldn't quite make out what was being said but she knew Jane had to be talking to their son. Her raspy voice was unmistakable, although what Maura heard was unusually melodic. Not wanting to disturb the moment that her wife was sharing with their son, the honey blonde woman crept quietly towards the door of the bedroom with the cups of coffee in her hands. As she neared the open doorway, she got her first glimpse of her wife and child and suddenly her confusion over what she was hearing became completely clear.
Lying there, in the middle of their king sized bed, wild brunette curls spread over one of their pillows, was Jane, lying on her back, with their baby boy curled up on her chest. What Maura had heard as she crept up the hall was not Jane conversing with their son as she originally thought, but was rather her wife serenading the tiny boy. Her voice wasn't perfect and she didn't hit every note. She didn't even get all of the words right. But tears formed in Maura's eyes. She never felt such a rush of emotion as she did seeing her wife, singing to their small child. The song she sang to the young boy sent chills up Maura's spine as she recognized the song and what it meant to her. It was the song that played the first time she danced with her wife and she would never forget the love that the tune invoked inside her.
"When the rain is blowing in your face,
And the whole world is on your case,
I could offer you a warm embrace
To make you feel my love.
When the evening shadows and the stars appear,
And there is no one there to dry your tears,
I could hold you for a million years
To make you feel my love." Jane sang softly and sweetly as she held the little boy and placed tiny kisses on his head.
Maura leaned against the door jam to support herself as she stood and watched the sweet moment between mother and child. But as she shifted her weight, the wood floor beneath her feet let out a small squeak, halting the song. As Maura looked towards her wife she could see chocolate eyes and rosy cheeks staring back at her.
"Oh, uh, Maur. I was, uh, just…" The tough brunette was embarrassed. She didn't mean or want to be caught in the middle of her song.
Maura quickly crossed the room and set the two cups of coffee down on the bedside table and kissed her wife's forehead. Then she leaned down to kiss the top of their child's head. Michael began to fuss and squirm slightly.
"Jane, I think someone misses your singing." Maura smiled the biggest smile that Jane had ever seen.
"Well, I'll only continue if you join us, momma." Jane smiled back at the woman she loved.
"I would love nothing more." Maura said as she climbed in the bed next to her wife. She rested her head on Jane's chest and rubbed her son's back. With the sound of her wife's voice singing the sweet song, Maura found her self drifting off to sleep, fully content and happy with her life.
