A/N: I didn't think this needed to be said, but now I'm forced to add this to all of my stories:
This work of fiction belongs to me, sociallyawkwardpenguin. The Rizzoli and Isles characters belong to TNT. However this story, and all original characters, belong to me. Absolutely no reposting of this story is permitted (including translations of this story) without my express written permission. If you see this story posted in any other forum besides Archive of our Own or FanFiction, please notify me via private message immediately.
We had candles, flashlights, batteries and an all weather radio. Maura had even gotten me instant coffee, even though I know it goes against everything she stands for.
My mother was tucked into the guesthouse with Tommy and the baby, insisting she would be just as comfortable in there as she would be with Maura and I. I had a feeling Tommy was in for a good, long talk about fatherhood and how he needed to do the right thing. I almost felt bad for him, because there was nowhere else for him to run to today, and probably for the next couple of days.
Frankie was stuck on patrol, but was sending regular texts to let us know he was all right, and urging us to stay off the roads.
Jo Friday, Bass and Bass Junior were around, doing whatever it is that animals do during a hurricane. Jo had taken a liking to Bass' heat lamp, and last I checked, was lying belly up underneath it, while Bass circled nearby, unsure of what the furry creature was doing to his heat source.
Maura and I were holed up in her house, watching movies on her couch while we waited for the remnants of Hurricane Sandy to make his way through. Technically we were on call, but at the moment things were quiet. Once the storm was over, Maura was likely to have her hands full of storm related deaths, but there was something about a hurricane that kept most murderers at home, hunkered down the same way we were.
Maura and I had been switching back and forth between fictional movies of various genres and the documentaries she loves so much. We had started out next to each other on the couch, then, as usual, had started gravitating toward one another without even realizing it. Halfway through the second movie, Maura's head was on my shoulder. This had become such a regular event when watching television together, that I hadn't even noticed. It was just normal for us. I don't think it ever dawned on either of us that it even though it was normal for us to just sit this way together, not many other "best friends" did the same thing.
Once the credits started rolling on the movie, Maura got up and grabbed our glasses. "Want more iced tea?"
"Sure. You know, if you and I weren't on call, we could be drinking something a lot stronger than iced tea. Half of Boston is probably having a hurricane party right now."
"It's terrible, being a responsible adult, isn't it?" Maura asked.
"Awful." I replied, lying back on the couch, holding one of Maura's throw pillows over my face as I whined. By the time I had removed the pillow from my face, Maura was already back at the couch with both of our drinks.
She put the drinks down on the coffee table (on coasters, of course) and looked at me.
"What?" I asked.
"Well are you just going to take up the whole couch now?"
I love it when Maura looks indignant. I just can't help but smile when she pouts and sticks her hip out and gives me that "C'mon Jane, keep up with me" look.
I tossed the pillow behind my head and scooted over to the side, still lying across the entire couch but making room for Maura to lie with me.
"Really, Jane?"
"Wow Maura, you're starting to sound just like me. C'mon. We're gonna watch some documentary about west African arthonids or whatever. I need to stretch out so I can sleep."
"Arthropods. And it's really fascinating. I don't know why you would fall asleep watching it."
"Maura." I whined. I'm good at whining.
"Okay fine, just move over."
Maura sat down on the edge of the couch and wiggled around trying to find a comfortable spot.
"Maura." I tapped my shoulder. "Just c'mon."
Maura looked at me uncertainly. I tapped my shoulder again. "What? I mean we were just sitting up and you were resting on my shoulder. I want to nap, you want to watch your documentary, so just, lie down."
Maura hesitated for a split second longer before finally giving in and curling up next to me. I reached over her shoulder, pressed play on the remote, and smiled when I felt her relax into me.
If you were to ask me, I would outright deny enjoying the documentary. But I actually had taken an interest in it, mostly because every once in a while Maura would pipe up with some interesting tidbit, proving, without even realizing it, that she was a hundred times smarter than the people that made the documentary.
She was in the middle of one such tidbit when the wind picked up and the power went out. She wasn't facing me, but I could actually feel Maura pout.
"Maybe the power will come right back on, Maura." We sat there for a few minutes, listening to the rain fall and the wind howl. The power did not come back on. Maura rolled over so that she was now partially on top of me, facing me.
"Now what are we going to do?"
"You're cute when you pout, did you know that?" I couldn't help but smile at Maura. "We could take naps."
"Naps?" Maura said the word like it was foreign to her; her first attempt at a phrase in a language not yet discovered.
"Yeah, you know, brief periods of sleep during daylight hours. A restful period of relaxation with one's eyes closed."
"That's not the real definition of a nap, Jane."
"It sounded good though."
"It did, but I'm not tired."
"Well, we could just sit here then."
"Sit here?" Maura sounded incredulous.
"Yes Maura. Sit. Here. We have got to teach you how to just relax and do nothing. Really, it's not that hard."
Disheartened, Maura dropped her head onto my chest. Without even thinking, I started to rub her back. She gave this tiny sigh as she started to relax, and I smiled again.
"Did you know that there is a significant increase in the number of babies that are conceived during blackouts? Some statistics even indicate that there are more conceptions during blackouts than during any other time." Maura asked, out of the blue.
"I have heard that before, yes."
"People with nothing better to do during a blackout suddenly find something to do." Maura stated matter-of-factly.
"So what are you saying? You want to conceive a baby with me right now? You're a doctor, Maura. I think you know that's not really possible."
"No, that's not what I'm saying. I was just merely remarking on the fact that when things like this happen, a lot of couples have sex."
"But we're not a couple, Maura."
"I've been meaning to speak to you about that, Jane."
"Uh, what?"
"You're so verbose, Jane."
"No, Maura, did you just say you wanted to talk to me about being a couple?"
"Well, I've developed a hypothesis that I wanted to run by you. See, I've been gathering data on our activities and-"
"Wait, what? You've been gathering data? And you- you've been, you made a hypothesis? Are you experimenting on me Maura?"
"No! No Jane, no. I would never... Jane."
"What Maura? What?"
"Don't you realize I would never do anything like that with you? You're not some toy, some thing for me to experiment on! Do you not realize how much you mean to me?"
"What exactly do I mean to you, Maura? You're confusing me."
"This, that's- I'm trying to explain it to you, Jane. I'm not doing a very good job of it though. What I was trying to say was that I've been thinking. I've been thinking about all the time we spend together and all the things we do during that time together. And the conclusion I was coming to, and what I was trying to tell you, is that you and I already seem like a couple. I mean, just look at us right now."
She did have a point. I mean, we were having this very awkward conversation while she was lying on top of me on her couch. And as bizarre as I felt the conversation was, it never once occurred to me to get up and move.
"I, uh, I don't know how to respond to that, Maura."
"Well, at the very least, you could agree that it does seem like we are a couple. Even if we're not one."
"I can agree with that. I think you have a valid point, actually."
"So, what I was was going to propose was..."
"You were going to propose?" I asked, stifling a laugh.
"No, Jane! This is serious! I was going to propose that we actually try it out. You know, being a couple."
"Well, how do you propose that we do that?" I asked.
"Well, we already do lots of things like a couple, so we wouldn't have to change much. I guess we could just agree to not see other people and..."
"And?"
"And maybe do more of this."
She leaned in and kissed me, and I have to admit that after the initial disbelief wore off, it was really rather enjoyable. And because of that, when she pulled away, I pulled her back and kissed her again.
"I think I could get used to this, Maura."
"Me too, Jane."
Just as we were about to start kissing again, my phone rang, and so did Maura's.
"Rizzoli."
"Isles."
So much for that interesting turn of events. It turns out even murderers don't wait for the end of a hurricane.