Disclaimer: I don't own anything to do with Rizzoli and Isles.
*Taking the episode by itself and ignoring both the Casey story line and the promo for next week.*
One Path
-By MegannRosemary
"Oh god, we have to get out of here," Maura squinted at her watch.
Jane leaned over to look as well, forgetting - or perhaps only ignoring - that fact that she had her own timepiece. "You're right, you're always right. Giovanni, can we drive you home?"
"Escort you come," Maura corrected. "We're not driving."
They were only tipsy, a little louder and more giggly than usual, but they weren't going to regret it in the morning.
"You ladies don't want some...uh... company tonight?"
"No thank you, Giovanni." Maura stood up, brushing her skirt with shaking hands.
"You have some...you know...going on tonight?" He gestured between them, eyes wide with curiosity.
"None of your business, G." Jane followed Maura out of the booth and, tucking her arm through Maura's, hurried them all to the door.
"Fine, fine," He grumbled on his way out. "Just sayin', it's hot."
The dropped Giovanni off first, waving off his final charming comments. No sooner had the door slammed shut and the taxi had pulled away from the curb, could Jane feel Maura shaking beside her. The tears that she had been holding back all evening came pouring out.
"Maura." Jane patted her leg awkwardly across the empty middle seat. "Hey, you're almost home." She continued to pat and Maura continued to shake until the car pulled to a stop.
Jane threw money at the driver and hurried around to the other side of the car. She helped Maura, who was fumbling with her seatbelt, out of the car and to the front door.
The tears flowed now in earnest, streaming down her cheeks. Jane felt around in the other woman's purse for the keys and unlocked the door, ushering them both inside.
At last, at long last, she pulled Maura into her arms, right there in the foyer with the front door still wide open.
She'd known that Maura couldn't have handled a breakdown earlier and had held off from offering comfort, knowing that it would bring on the tears. It had been pure torture to hold back, instead trying to be as supportive as she could in other ways.
The tears soaking her jacket told her she had been right, at least in some ways, to hold off.
In other ways, seeing and feeling Maura's intense pain like this, made her wish she had stuck to the other woman like glue.
Jane pulled Maura - still sobbing, though quietly now - into her side so that she could close and lock the door with her other arm. "Let's get you to bed."
"Can you stay until I fall asleep?" She sounded like a mere child, afraid of the dark and the ominous shadows that came with it.
"Yeah, I'll stay."
"The guest room is made up already," Maura managed, holding onto the facts.
"Thanks."
Once in Maura's room Jane steered her in the direction of her pyjamas and headed into the bathroom herself. There, she soaked a cloth in cold water and brought it back.
Jane found Maura curled in a fetal position on the bed; blanket pulled up to her chin, eyes squeezed shut, with tears still leaking from beneath the full lashes.
"Hey, Maura..." She didn't know what else to say. She knelt on the floor and leaned in, pressing the cloth to the other woman's cheeks. She wiped away the streaming makeup and cooled the flushed skin.
"I can't stop, I can't..."Maura chocked out.
"You don't have to, let it all out."
Her chest heaved, "I just want her to know me as me and not the dead baby and I want her to know that that dead baby is alive and-" Fresh sobs cut off her garbled train of thought.
Jane moved the cloth and impulsively replaced it with her lips, kissing one tear stained cheek then the other.
She brushed the tears out of Maura's eyes and kissed one salty eyelid then the other.
She leaned forward again, pressing her forehead against Maura's, their breath mingling. "Maura, no matter what, Hope will love you. You're beautiful, smart, successful...you're perfect. Any mother would be proud to have you as their child."
"She doesn't even know...and she won't..."
"She will one day."
"Maybe, if I ever stop crying long enough to tell her."
"And when you do, she will be over the moon happy."
Maura managed to open her eyes, red from crying. "You think?"
"I know."
She let out a shuddering breath. "Thank you." Her eyes flicked down, glancing at the full lips so close to her own, and back up to meet Jane's eyes.
Maura bit her lip, stealing Jane's concentration and making it focus on the white teeth contrasting against her pink lips. Jane couldn't help herself; it was like she was in a trance, as she leaned in and pressed a kiss to the exact spot.
There was a spark and a then hot flood of desire that coursed between the two of them. There was also something more, something deeper that moved mountains and forged rivers.
Tongues searched and hands explored, searching for that something more.
It was something so deep and so pure that it could only be described as love.
Jane pushed herself slowly up from the floor, their mouths barely separating. It was crazy and impossibly awkward but worth it as she lay down beside Maura, pulling her in close.
Their bodies fit together perfectly, two halves of a whole, and they both relaxed into each other, sighing.
Finally they separated and Maura hid her face at base of Jane's neck. She dropped a kiss on her collarbone, replacing her own uncertainty with confidence and giving Jane goosebumps in the process.
"Jane."
"Maura."
Their lips met again, nibbling and tasting.
"What is this?" Maura managed, her voice scratchy from crying.
Jane didn't have an intelligent answer, she only shrugged best she could, one hand drawing lazy circles on Maura's back.
"What will my mother say..."
"Well you don't have to tell her what we did, not exactly. Plus, like I said before she will love you no matter what."
"This is a big matter."
"It shouldn't be..."Jane didn't know what to believe. On one hand it wasn't a big deal because it seemed so right, like it was meant to be and there was no other way but to continue of the path they had stumbled upon that evening. On the other hand, it all seemed so daunting to her. "Nothing else matters, just you and me babe."
"Cute."
"But true."
Maura snuggled closer, slipping a leg between Jane's and resting her head on her shoulder to get more comfortable.
Jane could feel her relaxing again, this time her body preparing for sleep. She could only imagine the exhaustion brought on by the tears.
"Thank you, Jane."
"You're welcome, Maura. I'll always be here for you." And she closed her eyes too, against the day and against what challenges may come. She drifted off to sleep, totally content in her own perfect world.
A/N: I enjoyed last night's episode a lot, ignoring the fact that Casey is still somewhere. Thanks for reading and let me know what you think :D Please, please, yell at me if I am getting too repetitive because I feel like maybe I am...