Picking Out Colours

A/N: This is just a short one-shot in response to a prompt I received off Tumblr. In light of the R&I finale, the only good thing I can see coming out of the possible pregnancy storyline is Jane and Maura being adorable mommies, and domesticity all around.


The sound of her front door slamming shut woke Jane from her restless slumber. It had been years since Holt's attack, but she still felt slightly on edge, even though her life seemed to have perfectly fallen into place.

"Jane? You awake?" Maura called out, dodging the pram that was currently residing in Jane's corridor, heels clicking against the wooden floor.

Maura heard a small mumble from the detective, leading her to the large bedroom that still had boxes strewn everywhere. She smiled at the sight in front of her, Jane wiping the sleep from her eyes and struggling to push herself up.

"I can't stand another 3 months of this…" Jane groaned, rubbing her back slightly.

Maura laughed, kissing the brunette lightly on the head, "Then there will be late nights and early feeds."

"You better take half of them. There's no way I'm getting like 2 hours sleep a night."

Jane pushed herself off the bed, moaning as her feet took the weight of her protruding belly. It had been 6 long months, of new discoveries and heartbreak. Casey had left, not willing to commit to a marriage and a baby. She hardly remembered the first month, only alternating between the bed and the toilet, morning sickness washing over her.

"Stop thinking about things, Jane. We have a nursery to paint," Maura smiled, holding up the three tins of paint still in her hand.

Jane smiled slightly, knowing that Maura was excited, even though it wasn't her child. Maura had been there when she found out, when she told Casey, when he stormed out the flat, never to be heard from again. She was there when Jane realised that she would have to be a single mother, she was there when Jane realised she was in love with her.

She hadn't noticed Maura moving over to their large wardrobe, newly filled with all their clothes. She turned her head in Maura's direction, laughing at the silly old dungarees the blonde was now wearing.

"Do you think you would have ever said anything, if Casey stayed?" Jane asked quietly, the words failing her. She sometimes felt like Maura had revealed her feelings because she felt sorry for Jane's situation, because she knew Jane needed someone to get her through it all.

"Would I have admitted that I've been in love with you for the last 3 years?" Maura replied, "Probably not, if I knew you were happy with Casey. I'd rather you'd happy and us as friends, than destroying it because you didn't reciprocate."

"You know, everyone thought I was the gay one, not you," Jane laughed, knowing that her doubts were silly. It was just the pregnancy hormones.

Maura smiled, "Well, stereotypes are silly, and often highly incorrect".

Jane walked over to the medical examiner, smirking at her silly attire. It looked odd on her, in the best way, seeing her partner in such a dressed-down way. She couldn't help but admire her figure as they walked into the empty room next to the bedroom, plastic sheeting covering the floor, walls bare and waiting.

"What paints did you get?"

"Well, there's a Mineral Mist, Lunar Falls and Pretty Pink," Maura said, pointing at each tin in turn.

"Normal colours please?"

"A light blue, a yellow, and a pinky-purple, although they definitely aren't the grammatically correct terms," Maura blushed, knowing that the simplification was not specific enough.

"We don't even know the gender yet, so which one should we use?" Jane held the ultrasound picture lightly between her fingers. She and Maura decided to not know the gender, knowing that the medical examiner would go into deep planning and preparation if she knew. The suspense kept her motivated, but not detailed enough to plan.

"Well, that's if we're abiding by the stereotypes, Jane. And we're not the most stereotypical couple, are we now?"

Maura moved towards Jane, wrapping her arms loosely round her stomach. Jane frequently got frustrated at her desk duty at work, and her lack of running made her painfully jumpy. But Maura knew that, inside, Jane was excited. Maura was surprised that everyone had taken their relationship so well. She was expecting outcries and shouts; instead people just smiled knowingly and got on with their day.

The blonde prised the lid off the first tin, noting the light, silky texture of the blue paint. She daintily dipped the brush in, knowing that too much would ruin the shiny effect of the colour.

"We could do a bit of all three? And see which one we like best? Regardless of gender stereotyping?" Maura moved towards the brunette, kissing her cheek lightly before painting a single line on the bare white wall.

The yellow was stark enough to make an impact, but light enough to be comforting.

Maura swept her eye over it, before mumbling, "You know that colour looks roughly similar to my Gucci dress…"

"The one with the nice slit in the bottom that shows off your legs?" Jane smirked.

Maura's laugh filled the room, echoing off the bare walls, "Yes, Jane, that one. I believe you have a certain affinity to it," the blonde smiled while moving towards her partner.

"It does look wonderful," Jane murmured into Maura's lips, kissing her softly, arm round her waist.

"The dress or the paint?"

Maura rested her forehead lightly on Jane's, breathing in the domesticity of the whole situation. She didn't feel the paintbrush being lifted slowly from her hand, and only realised it was gone when she felt the cold liquid paint brushed onto her arm.

"Jane!" Maura shrieked out, glancing down at the pale yellow now coating her arm.

Jane moved again, stealthily considering her condition. This time, the edge of the paintbrush landed daintily on Maura's nose, causing her face to crunch adorably, another shriek on her lips. Jane wasn't sure how she became so lucky.

The blonde grinned cheekily, grabbing another paintbrush and forcing the blue paint open.

"Two can play at this game, detective."