The Dirty Robber. The hangout for cops after a hard day's work. Maura Isles was extremely intelligent but some of the rituals her friends participated in baffled her. Frost after a rough day would sit in a corner eating beer nuts and Korsak would pester him more and more with every drink until one of them finally went home with a woman. Jane was always the most perplexing. Her face was extremely hard to read after a long day and Maura had tried. But this was one of the worst she'd ever seen for the department. Seven months after Jane and Frankie had been shot to the day the siblings were called in to work a homicide. Tommy Rizzoli.
When Maura entered the bar she looked around for the familiar brunette. She noticed Korsak and Frost talking over sodas instead of alcohol. It was strange to see the detectives acting so differently then what she was used to. Walking over to the table she saw Frankie being comforted by one of his uniform friends and offered him a sad smile.
"Where's Jane?"
"She left right after work. Said she didn't want to be out tonight." Vince responded
"Did she go to Angela's?"
"They aren't really talking right now. Jane doesn't know I heard her on the phone." Barry avoided eye contact feeling guilty about the trust he betrayed.
"I'm going to her apartment." The Doctor left on a mission. She needed to see Jane, she'd been worried all day. She hadn't started the autopsy yet, waiting for to talk to Jane before she went ahead with the procedure. Getting in her car she started the engine and stomped on the gas. She'd never broken the speed limit before. There was a first time for everything.
Maura pulled out the key Jane had given her and put it in the lock. Looking in the room she found it was completely dark other than the moonlight shining through the window. Jane sat on the couch, a beer in her hand. The Medical Examiner silently observed her best friend's behavior. The cold exterior, the darkness, being withdrawn, it was everything she feared most. She pulled the door together quietly not risking drawing Jane's attention.
"You should always take your heels off before you try to sneak up on somebody." The detective advised never looking at her friend.
"That's excellent advice." Maura smiled nodding her head even though Jane wasn't looking at her.
"I'm fine ya know. You didn't have to come over here."
"Of course I came over here, you're hurting."
"No worse than being shot." She took a swig of the beer she was holding.
"Is there anything I can do?"
"Nope."
"Do you need something to eat?"
"Not hungry."
"Jane, do you want me to leave?"
"Do whatever you want."
"So you don't want me here?" Maura attempted to swallow the lump In her throat and hide her tears
"Gah Maur don't cry on me." Jane set the bottle down on the coffee table
"I'm not…"
"C'mere." The detective pulled Maura's hand until she was sitting down beside her, "I'm sorry. I'm pissed and I'm frustrated and I'm taking it out on you. I shouldn't be."
"No, I'm sorry. You just lost your brother, I shouldn't be overly sensitive."
"He's not my brother."
"Jane…"
"Frankie is my brother. Tommy is…was just a piece of shit that happened to share my last name." Jane finished her sentence and her hand went cold when her best friend pulled it away.
"I know that you don't actually feel that way."
"Maura we need to drop this."
"I just want to help you Jane."
"And I appreciate it but you can't help me."
"I can be there for you." The Medical Examiner murmured beginning to play with her hands nervously.
"You're always there for me."
"So that doesn't help you?"
"That's not what I meant M." Jane let out a deep breath and rubbed her face with her hands.
"Then what did you mean?"
"I just meant that you can't make it all better in a blink of an eye. You can't make my mother see that Tommy was the bad seed and I was the good one. You can't change the fact that Tommy's lifestyle is the reason he's dead. Maura there's nothing you can do to make this thing any better."
"Tell me what happened with Angela?"
"I went with Frankie to tell her what happened. She slammed the door in our faces after we told her the news. She called a few hours later yelling, screaming at how this was my fault. That is was my responsibility to protect him. How if I had tried harder I could have saved him. My being a cop and then forcing Frankie to become one made Tommy turn away from his family. It's not my fault and that's what I told her. I told her," The Detective stood up, "Tommy's life is…were made up of the choices he made not my choices. Then she yelled some more and I told her I was done. I hung up the phone and promised never to speak to her again."
"Oh Jane." Maura rose from her spot on the couch and wrapped her arms around Jane's torso. Allowing Jane to embrace her instead of the other way around deciding that maybe her best friend needed to feel in control of something. When she felt two strong arms around her she knew she had made the right decision. A pair of lips against the top of her head was a surprise, a welcome one though.
"All of my family except for Frankie has gotten rid of me."
"I'm sorry." The shorter of two responded sincerely pulling her closer, if it was possible.
"I'm the one that's sorry. I've done nothing but act like an ass since you walked through the door." Jane pulled back so she could stare into her best friend's eyes
"You are allowed to act however you want in order to cope with the emotions that this loss has made you feel. I've read many studies about it and I continued to search today hoping there was something on the internet I could do to make you feel better. There were actually some ideas to take into considera…"
"I love you." The Detective interrupted
"What?" The other woman was caught off-guard. Because, while Jane had said this to her multiple times over the years it was never in this type of situation with the tone she had spoke it in.
"I love you M." She took one hand and rubbed her best friend's cheek with it, "I love you so much."
"I love you too Jane." Her heart raced at the touch on her cheek.
"I mean that I'm in love with you Maura. Like in the want to spend the rest of your lives together kind of love."
"Really?"
"Yeah, really."
"I've waited so long to hear you say that." Maura admitted standing up on her tip-toes to lightly brush her lips against Jane's not sure how quick they were advancing their relationship, "I'm in love with you too."