December 24th 2012

It was snowing. It had been snowing for the past week and it did not look like it was stopping any time soon. I pondered how long it had been since it last snowed so prolifically in Boston as I knocked on the front door of Jane's condo waiting patiently for her to answer the door; I really wished I'd remembered my set of keys. As the door swings open the answer comes to me twenty one and a half months, one in every five years snow falls as heavily on this upon the North Eastern states.

And there she is tall, thin and absolutely beautiful her brown eyes gleam at me in amusement as she takes in my appearance. My shoes, Louis Vuitton's are now taking on a grey hue as it appears, despite my best efforts they have been victim to the snow fall. "You look like hell Maur' what happened?" Her eyes slowly make their way up my body to note the specks of snow stuck in my hair from the down pour, I certainly am lacking my usual "pristine" appearance today with my blouse hanging loose from my skirt and my blazer rolled down on one sleeve. I'd rushed from my home several blocks away.

"Jane, I can't get the lights on my tree to work. I switched them on like I did yesterday and they just wouldn't come on!" I had tried turning them on and off, taking the plug out and looking at the fuse and came to the conclusion that one of the bulbs must've blown but I'm far too short in stature to remove the lights, Jane helped me put them up in preparation of the Rizzoli's coming to mine tomorrow, I'd leapt at the chance to host the Rizzoli family Christmas as my mother and father had informed me that they would be spending Christmas in Paris with a promise to Skype me in the morning. I was disappointed but I hadn't dared to allow my hopes to rise prior to this news, it wasn't often that my parents visited and it had been a while since we'd spent Christmas together my mother has been better the visit she showed her artwork Jane assured me she wouldn't let her be like that again but it seems my mother didn't need the "kick in the butt" that Jane would give her Skype dates had become a regular occurrence in my life. Now it seemed that I would be entertaining the entire Rizzoli clan fully expecting a day full of load excitement and overzealous merriment. But first I really needed to sort the lights out before anyone arrived; I would be embarrassed for my home to be viewed by anyone as anything other than perfect.

"Are you asking me to come over to help you painstakingly look through your Christmas lights to find the bulb that's tripped the wire?" I nod my head furiously sending her a smile that I hoped would persuade her to come to my aid. "What would be in it for me?"

"The joy of helping out your friend?" She sends me a glare before looking at me with a blank expression. "Not good enough."

"And a beer?" She grins at that.

"Fine but you're ordering me a pizza and not taking the peperoni off it this time." She turns to find her boots and jacket throwing herself onto the sofa as she zips her boots up and strides towards me grabbing her keys off the counter before locking her door. "You better have that Prius outside; I'm not walking to yours Christmas Eve or not I have my standards."

I roll my eyes before leading us down the stairs to the car park, unlocking my car as she grins. It doesn't take long before we get to mine and I let us in swiftly, telling her that I intended to change my clothing into something more comfortable and less wet while also inviting her to a beer and the use of my sofa which I know she would recline on almost immediately watching whatever baseball, football or hockey match shall be gracing my television screen tonight. It was because of that that I felt safe in the knowledge that I would have the time to rearrange my appearance properly without Jane becoming impatient with me.

I had been aware for a long time of my feeling for Jane, with her unconventional beauty and soulful brown eyes. She has softness within her that she would only allow me to see, a latent insecurity brought over from her high school years. It was that fact about her that made me certain that she could never allow herself to acknowledge the attraction between us, the fear she would have at not being accepted within society would flourish should she allow herself that. I on the other hand already had prior experience of what it is like to be an outcast within society, both within my work as "Queen of the dead" and at school "Maura the Bora" still haunting me. Sapphic love was not a novelty to me having explored my bisexuality during my years at medical school. I had previously come to the conclusion that the majority of my love affairs would appear heterosexual, with a 60/40 divide between those that I found attractive.

That was, until Jane however. Jane who completely bowled me over from the second I first saw her shouting for her coffee then later coming to apologise for her behaviour towards me with a promise of a coffee on my desk. It was delivered to me along with a fast friendship that somewhere along the way became something far more, that I would cherish forever. However now all I know is that my love for her seems to be unfortunately one-sided and almost uncomfortable when it hits me with vengeance. I re-enter the living room after my quiet contemplation to find that Jane is currently watching a red sox game having, already onto her second beer which she appears to be quickly draining.

"Sssso Maur' we're gunna go fix these light, right?" I'm dressed in a casual sweater and leggings, warm enough for the weather yet comfy enough for an evening at home. She gets up and walks towards me grinning broadly as she pulls me in for a hug whispering in my ear. "I've always felt more at home here than in my condo, did I ever tell you that?" I shake my head closing my eyes as she kisses me softly on my crown. "I like it here Maur'." With that she steps back and carries on towards my tree leaving me with the comment "There's wine on the coffee table, I thought you'd want it but you took so long getting changed I fear I've gotten a head start." She vaguely waves her hand in the direction of my coffee table whilst making her way to the tree.

I grab my drink and return to see her clearly mulling over the possibilities on how to undertake this operation, her head is tilted to the side and she's sucking on her bottom lip, the effect that has on my insides is significant as I feel warmth spreading through my chest. Although I know it's not physically possible for my heart to explode due to emotions but it certainly felt like it. She suddenly bursts out with an "AHAA" before swiftly starting to unravel the lights and gruffly stating that I should be doing the same "if I knew what was good for me."

Then started the arduous task of unscrewing each light one by one before finally finding the offending light, replacing it which allowed its counterparts to flash erratically into life. She grins at me the way I know she grins when she's really, truly happy. So far evidence suggests I'm the only one who's seen this grin in a while I feel truly blessed to elicit in her. She repositions the step ladder to allow me to help replace the lights standing behind me, advising on the best position for the lights. I reach up to reach high branches, overreaching slightly before I stumble starting to fall.

Before I hit the ground however I feel myself landing on a soft body, strong arms enclosing around me as we both let off a soft "ufff". Her smell wafts over me like a wave and all I can do is lift my head to hers whispering a soft apology before starting to detract myself from her. However I'm swiftly pulled back to her as she assures me that it's all right. We lay there, on the floor for several minutes before she sits up. I feel awkward and don't really know what to do so instead tell her what I know on Christmas trees. "Did you know that the tradition of decorating a tree at Christmas developed in modern Germany in the 16th century before becoming popular in the 19th century, coming to Canada in the winter of 1781 where the tree was decorated by fruits and candles. The tradition finally came to America when a picture of the British Royal family was printed widely across the country; the picture depicted the Royal family stood alongside a Christmas tree this became fashionable and by the 1870's Christmas trees became commonplace in America."

"I love your google mouth Maur' but we really need to get this finished." By now she was stood on the step ladder splaying my Christmas lights back on the tree. She was soon finished, climbing down from the step ladder before she then switches the lights on and climbs under the tree. I had seen her do this once before however I had yet to see the benefit of this. "Come on Maur', join me please."

I carefully position myself to her right ducking my head under the tree gazing up at the lights sparkling in front of my eyes. "It's best if you squint but do you not find it beautiful?" She asks turning so that her face is merely inches from my own. "Yes, the effect is truly magical." "Frankie and I used to do this when my parents were working late, we'd put Tommy to bed and spend hours under the tree pretending to be presents." I turn to face her, surprised at how close we were. "I really like you Maur'" Her eyes hold such certainty that I almost find it overwhelming. "I like you too Jane."

"No Maur', you're not getting me I really like you." I open my mouth to explain that I was in fact fully aware of that fact however I was unable to vocalise my musings as I found a pair of lips planted firmly upon my own. This kiss was chaste, yet occurred long enough for us both to appreciate it. "Jane, I really like you too." She smiles back at me in a way that tells me that maybe; just maybe these revelations were alright.