This story came about from a tumblr gif via Twitter- I needed an idea for a one-shot and this is the result. Thanks to MyoFiona for dropping it into my lap...top.

As I started to write this, and really thought about it, for a poop-load of personal reasons it was actually incredibly hard to write...and I had to step out once in a while and take a moment. Anyway, the end result was worth all the angst...I hope. And if nothing else, it cleared away a few dusty corners of my mind.

I'd love you to review, it means a lot and I truly value your opinions.

No beta, no proof reader, so any howling blunders are my own.

TNT, Tess Gerritson and Janet Tamaro own the characters and franchise of Rizzoli and Isles...but all the words are mine.

The prompt was this:

'Maura can no longer stand to see Jane with Casey, and decides to leave. Maura hopes, as she is about to leave, that Jane will say something, but all they do is...'

She had expected more...no, actually, she knew not to expect anything...but she had hoped for more of a reaction...more than this..

...this, whatever the hell it was...this situation- like their relationship- wasn't run of the mill, wasn't ordinary – and they had never been anything less than extraordinary.

This moment, her 'denouement'...it should have knocked Jane off her feet...knocked her sideways...made her wake up from her stupor...because this was the hardest thing Maura would ever have to say...

...and if it had been the other way round...

"I'm leaving Boston Jane..."

...if it had been Jane telling her best friend that she was leaving...

"What?!...why?!"

… Jane telling her that she couldn't stand to see her make the biggest mistake of her life...

"Because Casey won't make you happy Jane...and I love you too much to stay and watch your life come apart in front of me..."

...'again'... you want to say 'again', because you've been here before, unfailingly, ready to sew all the strands back together again...never quite as perfect as before, but a fair semblance...

"Maura...you can't say"...and her breath hitches, catches in her throat...

" You don't know that..."

...and it would be too damn hard to have to be here this time...when it's your own fractured heart about to break in two...

" I do Jane...because it's already happening..."

...you've seen the changes, seen her evolution alter its course, take subtle steps away from all she's ever been...ever could be...should be...

"Maura...I..."

"I love you Jane...so much."

...and you walked away, because you wanted so much more than this...you wanted all of her...and you wanted her to want all of you ...not just need you...needing and wanting are not the same thing at all...and she doesn't seem to understand the difference...

...why could she not understand the difference?...

You love her.

It is the simplest emotion of all...and the hardest to make any sense of...it defies logic- and it's so hard for you because logic is all you have.

You love all of her in every way possible - and just the thought of leaving her is enough to make your heart constrict and contort...and you know that hearts can't actually do that...you know it's impossible for a heart to shift inside you...but it hurts.

It hurts so much that each beat feels like a splinter being chipped away...and you realise that this feeling, this pain is not just for what you will have lost...it is for what you will never have.

She loves you.

You know it... sometimes, she can look at you...look into you, and you can feel a love and desire burning with an intensity that takes your breath away...and you know she feels the heat reflect back to her...but she turns her eyes away from it...she is so afraid to get burned...afraid to face her fear head-on.

Her refusal to face what has always been there means you have become the contents of an unopened love letter, that sits on the mantle shelf, fading into sepia as the days and weeks go by.

And until she faces her fear, until she admits the truth to herself, then she will never open it and read the beautifully written offering inside.

She won't say the words...she can't say the words...and you hate to ask this to yourself... but when did this brave, confident woman become so...weak...so...compliant?

When she told you, all those weeks ago, that she loved Casey and planned to live with him, maybe even marry him... that was when your heart began it's descent into your chest.

She loves Casey and will stay with him...and even as she says it, when you look her straight in the eyes, willing her to see what you see... she cannot meet yours...will not meet yours.

She told you she loved Casey... and all you saw in those dark chocolate pools was guilt... and pity.

She will stay with him...it's an obligation, not a declaration of undying love. It's a solution to a vexing problem...marry the veteran, have the grandchildren her mother craves -but that Jane could live without- be the stereotype...be desperately unhappy and unfulfilled, but fit the profile.

Do anything but admit you love Maura Isles...that you want her as well as need her.

Casey likes to walk away...and yes, it is ironic- until a few months ago he couldn't walk at all.

But Casey is a leaver, he stays around when he wants to, and leaves just as soon as he thinks he's too settled.

His career takes him all over the globe- Jane's keeps her in Boston. He could retire, take up a post closer to home...but Casey is selfish and a self-fulfilling prophecy- he will leave... and Jane will be alone.

But when it comes to Jane, you as well have been selfish...you wanted her for yourself, and for a while...you had her... and you thought you'd stop at nothing to always have her...and so now you've all but stopped trying...because nothing is all you seem to get back.

She hardly comes to see you in the morgue...Frost says that she's closed herself off to everyone...he wants the ballsy Jane back...he misses her too.

You said your goodbyes, she gave you a nothing kind of hug...and then had to go out to a scene...Pike would be here when she got back.

A few days pass and now you are ready to leave. Washington is ready for you.

You don't want to leave...you don't want to never see Jane again, you want to see her everyday...wake up with her, love her... and fall asleep beside her...

You should hate her...you wish you could...but you know you never will.. ...hate is only the flip side of love anyway...too close for any kind of comfort.

Bu if you stay, this pain in your heart will only get heavier, and your love for her will only become stronger...and you cannot torture yourself any more.

Even though it will be torture without her...

The traffic is conspiring against you... your flight leaves in three hours and there's an accident on the Turnpike...you need order and control today of all days.

She was in your head before you left Beacon Hill... before you even left the driveway. Angela cried, hugging you like an only daughter going off to college... hugged you hard... like Jane should have done... you waited until you were in the car and cried like a baby...grieving for someone very much alive...at least death leaves no room for possibilities.

You make it to the airport in good time...you wander aimlessly around the shops and cafes, time ticking far too slowly, like it has all the time in the world, and Jane is in your head again...you can hear her familiar raspy voice over everything else and you miss an announcement over the tannoy system...damn it, was that important?

And there it is again...Jane's voice sounding so close this time...

"Maura...please...turn around..."

And it's Jane...out of breath, panting hard, hair wilder than ever... looking straight in to your eyes...

"Jane?.. what the... what are you doing here?"

Your legs have gone weak and breathing isn't as easy as it was a minute ago...why is she doing this?...

You feel a well of anger bubbling up inside you...how dare she come here now...

"You were right..."

Any thoughts you had of an angry retort are put on hold...

"I wouldn't be happy with Casey..."

Thank you for reading...reviews are most welcome.