Disclaimer: I don't own Rizzoli and Isles nor this song, which is "Maybe, Baby" by Sugarland. Amazing song, you guys should totally check it out! ;-)
A/N: I had to get this out of my head before I continued 'Boundaries'. Sorry for all of you who are waiting for it, I'll be going back to it shortly! In the meantime, enjoy this one-shot :-)
Synopsis –
A lot of things can happen in ten years. And in fact they did. But Jane Rizzoli never forgot a promise she made ten years' prior that had her standing on the front porch of her childhood home. What would happen now?
Maybe, baby, we didn't get Christmas... But maybe, baby, we could have New Year's Day.
Chapter I
Jane Rizzoli sighed heavily when her cabby stopped on her parents' front porch, signaling the end of her ride.
"That will be 16 dollars, Rizzoli," Kyle Boxers, a boy who had gone to high school with her – and was now a man who had taken over his dad's taxi business – said with an easy smile.
It had been at least ten years since he had last saw Jane and yet she hadn't changed a bit; still the same strong jaw, pronounced cheek bones, black, untamed mane and easy, dimpled smile.
The brunette fished out a twenty out of her leather jacket pocket and handed it over to him, "Keep the change, Captain Underpants."
A bark of laughter filled the car, "Yeah, yeah. Get out of my car before I throw you out."
She reached for her lone luggage sitting by her side before exiting the car, "Thanks for the ride, man. See you around?"
"Course, wouldn't miss the town's party for nothin'," Kyle said before honking and driving off.
Without the warmth of the cab's heater, the Italian was rapidly engulfed by the cold air that seemed to always be present in New Castleblayney, especially on winter.
Blowing out another heavy sigh and seeing it turn white in front of her was her cue to search for her keys in her pocket before carrying her luggage to the front door. She didn't get a chance to try and open it though because her mother, having heard the honk, had rushed to the door to greet her daughter.
"Janie!" Angela Rizzoli exclaimed, engulfing her daughter in her usual bone crushing hug, "What are you doing standing out there? You must be freezing!" the older woman frowned when she looked at her daughter, "And you're only wearing this jacket? Are you trying to get sick, young lady?"
"Hey Ma," Jane wheezed out, "I was just looking for my keys."
"You kids, always forgetting your damn keys. Haven't I taught you nothing? Frankie is always leaving his everywhere else but with him and don't even get me started on Tommy…"
And just like that it was as if no time had passed at all. So good to be home.
##################################
Hours later, Jane found herself engulfed by another kind of warmth – the one made by old knitted wool sweater, a mug of steaming hot chocolate and sitting by the fire in the living room.
She could hear her mother working on dinner in the kitchen and her father working in the garage. Her brothers would be home soon so she was just basking in the silence and comforting background noise before all hell broke loose at the house.
The fire crackled with its amber flames and, if she looked at it fixated enough, she could almost see the way it remembered a honey blonde with silky hair flowing in the wind…
"Jane!" Maura's yelp was muffled by the wind roaring and the motorcycle beneath them flying away.
"Relax, Maur, enjoy!" Jane yelled back, knowing she went unheard when she felt the other woman's grip on her tighten, making it a bit hard for her to breath.
Not that she minded, she loved having the honey blonde's arms wrapped securely around her. And like this? With the power of a 1989 Africa Twin taking them whatever they wanted? Hell yeah she loved it.
The 4XL helmets they were wearing did nothing to contain their hair from whipping around with the wind, making seeing things a bit tough, but Jane could get them to their destination with her eyes closed if she had to. And they were almost there.
It took a little bit of coaxing from the brunette to get the blonde to let go of her even after the bike was off, but eventually she did and hazel green eyes found sparkling brown eyes looking down at her from where the other woman was standing by the bike.
"Hey there," Jane said with a cheeky grin, making her dimples pop.
"Hey," Maura said still exhilarated, breathing heavily and creamy skin flushed, "I shouldn't let you talk me into these things."
"You can't help yourself, I'm just that charming," the lanky teenager said still smiling.
It was a windy autumn day, so even when they weren't riding, their hair was still floating around. The sunset shining from behind Maura's head gave her an angelic glow and Jane couldn't help but reach a hand and cup and a freckled cheek.
"You look so, so beautiful," she whispered, leaning in to press a soft kiss on cherry red lips, making the other girl giggle when their helmets collided, "I wanted to make something nice to you."
"And taking me for a ride on this death trap was it?" the honey blonde asked but her tone was light, letting the other girl know she was being teased.
"I'd never let get into a death trap, Poindexter," Jane pinched her side, "But no, it wasn't. That was," she pointed to something behind her.
Maura carefully got off the motorcycle and looked over where Jane had pointed. That's when she was a table beautifully set for two next to the tree house in the middle of the lake of the city's park.
The house was beautifully decorated with fairy lights that were starting to faintly glow as the natural light began to end.
"Jane…" Maura sighed, turning to the other girl who was fidgeting nervously, "This is… This is beautiful."
"You liked it?" the brunette let out a breath she didn't know she was holding in, "Alfie helped me, he said he'd get Annie to make some of your favorite dishes and then he would come here and set it up and all I had to do was…" she was silenced when she felt soft lips pressing against her own and the feeling of the other girl smiling into it.
"Nobody has ever done anything this nice to me before," Maura whispered against those full lips, grazing their noses together.
Jane opened her eyes and took in everything; the orange glow of the setting sun, the beautiful girl pressed against her, her honey blonde hair blowing softly to the wind… Who wouldn't wanna give her everything in the world?
"Well, get used to it," she smiled to the girl, pressing their lips together again, "Happy birthday, Maur. I love you."
"Janie! Hey, Janie!"
Jane jumped off the couch before she opened her eyes and instinctively reached for her gun on her hip. She had momentarily forgotten it was safely tucked into her old bedside table.
"Frankie, what the hell?!" she shouted angrily at her brother when she focused her eyes on the figure who had disturbed him, slugging his arm, "You don't yell like that to wake up people."
"Sorry, sis, that's the only way I know," he smirked and shrugged, showing her he wasn't sorry at all, "It's the only way I know how."
"Asshole," she slugged him again, but this time with a smile.
He had gotten so big since the last time she saw him; a man, really. A fine young man was standing in front of her, so different yet just the same.
"Why are you looking at me like that?" Frankie asked, shoving his sister's legs to the floor so he could sit on the couch too.
"You look so… grown up," Jane smiled softly at her middle brother, "It's weird."
The young man couldn't help but blush at his sister's gaze, "Yeah…" they were both silent for a while, measuring each other and what to say.
Frankie finally worked up the nerve to speak up, "We missed you, Janie."
And by his tone of voice, she knew he wasn't talking about the Thanksgiving dinner she had skipped in other to have Christmas and New Year's off.
"You guys went to visit me in Boston a couple of times," the brunette shrugged her broad shoulders dismissively, not wanting to talk about it.
"That's not what I mean and you know it," her brother called her out on it, knowing well enough she had a stubborn streak a mile long, "I was wondering if you were ever coming back here."
She had wondered that a few times herself. Especially on those lonely nights in which she had nothing but beer and bad television to keep her company.
Would she ever go back? Should she ever go back? The town just held so many memories. Some good, a lot of them bad, but overall it was just bittersweet.
"It was complicated, Frankie," Jane sighed, still avoiding looking into those brown eyes so much like her own.
Knowing it wouldn't get him anywhere to keep pushing, he decided to just let it go, "You wanna know what's complicated, Janie? Fucking college math. That stuff is impossible!"
She barked a loud laugh at that, grateful that her brother was letting her off the hook, "Yeah, well, that's what you get for being the genius in the family. Have you decided what you want to become?"
He looked over at her, trying to figure out how she would react to his news. It wasn't like she took it well in the past, "I wanna move to Boston with you."
His statement took her by surprise, but she quickly schooled her features.
"Frankie…" she said seriously, "No. We had this conversation a long time ago…"
"Yeah, yeah, yeah, I know, you don't me following into your footsteps, you made that very clear, Janie," Frankie interrupted just as forcefully, "But this time you don't get to decide. I am going to Boston."
"And what? Just throw away the last ten years? All the hard work we all did to get you through college? Are you trying to break Ma's heart?" their argument was whispered, something difficult to occur within the Rizzoli clan, but their words never lacked emotion.
"No! I'm not going to do that to them or you," he had made his decision a long time ago, even though it had taken some time to accept it, "I don't wanna become a cop, Janie, not anymore. I wanna be a DA."
The silence between them was heavy even as Jane let out the breath she didn't knew she was holding. It was a relief to see the last ten years had been useful to her brother, that one of her sacrifices had actually meant something.
Maybe that was a sign.
"A District Attorney, huh?" she asked, a hint of smirk curling her lips, "You do know that Detectives hate DA's, right? You're all a bunch of assholes."
"Yeah, well, I'm not one yet," Frankie retorted with a smirk of his own, "You'll learn to love us 'till then."
Maybe…
##################################
Christmas was a few days away and Jane still hadn't finished her shopping. And she made the mistake of mentioning it to her mother, whom had now forced her out of the house with the other to not come back until she was done.
There was no arguing when Angela Rizzoli decided on something.
That's why Jane was aimlessly looking at shopping windows down New Castleblayney's main street on a chilly Tuesday afternoon, bundled up to her core and sipping on Poncho's famous hot chocolate.
It really was the little things that made her miss her hometown the most.
Truth be told, there was only one gift missing from Jane's list. Her family's presents had all been bought in November after a night when she woke up in cold sweat with her mother's voice yelling in her ear about there not being any presents left for her to give away.
Her mother didn't know that. Nobody knew about that. After all, it was silly to go Christmas shopping for a present you promised to give ten years prior, wasn't it?
She wasn't even sure she was going to buy the damn thing. She just wanted to find it. Just to be on the safe side.
It was the first snowfall of the season. They loved the first snowfall of the season.
"This place always did look better in white," Maura sighed, her hot breath tickling Jane's neck from the position they were in, watching the snow fall in the safe and warm environment of Maura's tree house.
This place was a new development at the Isles' state; as a child, the blonde girl never bothered with wanting a tree house, figuring it would just be another lonely place for her to hang around.
But ever since she met the rambunctious brunette who was currently cuddling tightly to her front – even though she'd always deny to being the little spoon – and she mentioned she had always wanted a tree house but her house had never had a tree big enough to do so, the blonde decided she wanted to do this for her.
"Mmhmm," Jane agreed, not moving from the most comfortable position known to man.
Chuckling lightly at the lack of response from the usual very talkative girl, Maura decided to keep trying, "I take it you liked your Christmas present."
Sighing, sensing her girlfriend wouldn't let this go, Jane reluctantly moved away from her to take a seat across from her, looking to see an expectant face staring back at her.
"I loved it, Maur," she smiled softly, staring into those hazel green eyes she loved so much, "Thank you so much! I really don't know how I'll ever give you something in return."
"Jane," the other girl scolded, appalled by the idea that she was doing this expecting something in return, "You don't have to give me anything in return."
"Of course I do, Maura," the Italian rolled her eyes, scoffing, "I know you already have everything money could ever give you, but come on! It's Christmas and I'm your girlfriend – it's like a double combo for significant presents."
Laughing at the other girl's logic – that sounded absurd to her – Maura scooted over with two cups of hot chocolate so she was sitting shoulder to shoulder with her girlfriend – or, given her lack of height, shoulder to head.
"You are the most significant present I could have ever asked for," she said sincerely, resting her head on a broad, quarterback-y shoulder.
Trying to hide away her blush behind her hot chocolate, Jane smirked as she took a sip, "That was the corniest thing you have ever said, Maur."
Recognizing she was being teased, the blonde smiled back, also taking a sip from her drink, "It doesn't make it any less true."
"Okay, I know I'm a real awesome gift," the brunette said sarcastically, "But you already have me. You have to ask for something else."
"First of all, Jane, you are a really awesome gift. Mr. Adverb will be sad that you forgot about him," even though she wasn't looking at her girlfriend, she could sense her roll of the eyes, "Second of all... there might have something I'd like to have, although I'm not sure you'll be able to find it on such short notice."
Noticing her girlfriend's hesitance, Jane hastily put her drink down to wrap the available fair hand in hers and spoke with her husky voice, in that low tone that let the other girl know she truly meant what she was saying, "You can ask me anything."
Releasing the breath she didn't know she was holding, the blonde squeezed the hands holding hers tightly.
"You know how I told you I figured, based on a blood test I did at BCU in Boston a couple of months ago, that I came from an Irish ancestry?" she only continued when she felt the other girl nod against her, "I started reading up on them, a lot, about their culture and I have found myself fascinated the Celtics. Thinking that I might come from that is just so... overwhelmingly amazing it takes my breath away."
"Celtics..." Jane murmured, "You mean like leprechauns and fairies and stuff?"
"That's an incredibly pop-cultured massificated way of putting it, but yes," Maura smiled softly, "As I was saying, I was studying about that when I walked across an antique dealer's shop and found the most beautiful necklace," she sighed dreamily, eyes closed, visualizing the piece as she spoke, "It was a round, silver piece with a Hazel tree carved into it."
"Just like your eyes," she heard her girlfriend whisper in a reverent tone that made her heart skip a beat, "Does it have a special meaning?"
"In fact, it does," the blonde girl couldn't hold that fact in even if she tried, "It means creativity, purity and honesty."
There was a brief pause during which Jane mulled over that information, "It describes you perfectly, Maur."
She couldn't think of a better gift to give her girlfriend.
##################################
"Janie, why do you keep looking out the window? Are you waiting for someone?"
Her mother's question, albeit innocent, still felt like a knife being punctured to her heart.
Something was off with the city this winter; it was bone chilling cold and yet not a single snowfall had fallen from the sky.
"I'm waiting for nobody, Ma," Jane sighed heavily, her exhale fogging the window where she was sitting by.
She had been to the house today. Maura's house.
The brunette didn't know what to expect; it had been ten years since she had last seen it and, at the same time, she felt like she was seventeen again, stopping by it to pick up her girlfriend to go to the movies.
She was clutching the Christmas gift tightly into her hand, that had turned clammy despite the cold. It was foolish, she knew; it wasn't like the other woman would simply pop up and act like nothing changed at all.
But she had found out a piece of her past she was really glad to see.
"Jane? Jane Rizzoli?" the voice sounded rougher, older, yet it carried that same kind, Mexican accent she had tucked away in her memory.
"Alfie?!" she turned on her heels, turning away from the house she had been staring at for the past thirty minutes, to see a broad shouldered, tanned, brunet man looking surprised back at her.
"When Annie called and said you had been by her shop, I almost couldn't believe it," Alfonso Herrera, the fixer-upper at the Isles estate ever since she had started coming here, said with a kind smile.
He had always been very fond of the tall, lanky brunette that turned the life of everybody living at the Isles estate upside down.
"Well, I had to see it; the last time I was here, the only place we could get a hold of that amazing cup of hot chocolate was over there," she gestured towards where she knew was the kitchen's place.
"Yeah, she upgraded a bit since then," he was still just as good-looking as he had been when she was younger and sounded just as in love by his wife as he always had been, "I had a feeling you would stop by, so I was on the lookout."
"Yeah?" she shrugged her shoulders, trying to sound nonchalant, "Why did you thought that?"
His greenish-brown eyes looked at her sadly, his broad smile faltering slightly, "She's not here, Jane. She hasn't been here in ten years."
"Maybe I wasn't looking for her," she tried to save herself even though the older man could see right through her, "Maybe I just wanted to see your ugly mug."
That got a loud bark of laughter from the man, "Yeah, right. Maybe, baby."
She hadn't been by in ten years. Was she doing what they had planned? Rather, what Jane had planned based on their options back then? Was she still as angry with her as she had been back then?
All of these thoughts plagued her mind. Seeing the single, small, lavender bag sitting next to a mountain of other, bigger ones by the Christmas tree wasn't helping in the slightest. It was Christmas tree and their time was running out.
"If you don't go over there, there won't be any eggnog left," Frankie's voice was soft next to her, but it still startled her out of her thoughts.
"Why is that? Are you gonna drink it all?" she smirked half-heartedly.
"Nah, I'm saving myself for the real food; that would be Tommy," the siblings shared a knowing smile, "You know how much of a black hole his stomach is."
"Hey Squirt!" she yelled from the living room where she still was, "Save me some or there will be consequences!"
"You'll have to come and get it," came the sassy reply from her youngest brother, making her espresso eyes narrow at the response.
"Did her just...?" she didn't wait for Frankie's nod of agreement before jumping from her seat, "Oh, you're on, Tommy!"
At least chasing her brother through the house and tackling him out in the yard would keep her mind out of Maura for the night.
##################################
The week between Christmas and New Year's Eve was pure agony.
Jane would wake up early and go for her five-mile morning run, something she hated but had grown accustomed to; it cleared her mind. At every corner she turned, she would encounter familiar faces who would stop her and tell how glad they were to see her again after such a long time, to ask her about the most mundane of things.
Yet, none of these people were the one she wanted to see.
The brunette found herself hanging out at her old spots; the bench under the big tree by the Country Club's park – yeah, her tally was still there behind it.
The fair she would go every Friday to beat everyone's ass at every game she got challenged to – Dear Lord, the makeshift panoply some of the guys had made her by the darts stand was also still there. It was even the same old man who was there and offered her a free trial just to "show these new kids what real talent looks like."
The arcade still smelled like a fifteen-year old's armpit after practice and she was surprised, although she really shouldn't have, to find out that 'JCR' was still at the number one score. Maybe nobody played that machine anymore.
Maybe, baby, her brain repeated the same song over and over in her head.
But the place she used to hang out the most back then was, weirdly enough, the same place she hung out the most now, back in Boston; the police station.
The smell of day-old coffee and Sheriff's Korsak hidden doughnuts brought a wave of comfort over her she wasn't expecting to feel and it left her extremely overwhelmed.
"Jane Rizzoli? Aren't ya a sight for sore eyes?" the now graying and with an even wider waste than she remembered man greeted her, "What brings you back here? I thought you were up there in Boston chasing 'real' criminals."
"Aw, Korsak, don't get all prissy on me! Can't a girl come over for a visit?" the brunette made her way over to his desk in three long strides, "I came baring gifts," she held a box of doughnuts for him.
"If they aren't from Poncho's, they're not worth it," the old man said with a scowl, still not relenting.
It was Jane's turn to scoff, "You have so little faith in me, old man. Where else would I have gotten the best ones in town?"
"I knew you wouldn't let me down," he said with, finally, a smile, waving her over the desk to give her a once over before crushing her into a hug, "Boston is running you ragged. You look even lankier than you did when you were a kid."
"Nah, I'm just doing the best I can," the brunette shrugged him off, "Trying to prove I'm worth where they put me."
"You're very much worth it, Janie," Korsak said with a fatherly pride, making her blush, "Seriously, though; to what do I owe such a pleasing visit?"
"Nothing special," she shrugged again, taking a seat at the only available chair and opening the box she brought, taking a jelly doughnut to herself, "In town for the holidays, decided to visit some old spots."
"What it had been, though? Ten years?" when she said nothing, his expression sobered, "It's time, isn't it?"
"Oh God, not you too," she groaned, taking a huge bite of her treat, "Alfie hinted to it," she explained around a mouthful at his raised eyebrows.
"He's not a fool, Janie, and neither am I," the Sheriff said, leaning back in his chair, making it crack.
Still grumbling, she decided it was futile to try and deny it, "So what if I'm back for her? It's stupid, she didn't even come back for Christmas."
"You know as well as I do that this city's specialty is not Christmas parties," Korsak said sternly, "The Jane Rizzoli I knew wouldn't be moping around whilst there was still hope."
"Yeah, well, I'm not that Jane Rizzoli anymore," the brunette said defeated, "And who says there's still hope?"
That question made Korsak smile even though his graying goatee was smeared with icing, "You wouldn't be here if it didn't."
##################################
"Have you ever heard the story about how Sergeant Korsak proposed to his first wife?" Maura asked as she helped her girlfriend stretch for football practice.
"Oh God," Jane groaned and the other girl wasn't sure if it was pain about her chosen subject or about what she was doing, "What kind of things you guys talk about?"
"All sorts of things," the blonde replied easily, "He's a very intelligent man and I find it rather fascinating talking to him about a number of different subjects."
"And how he proposed is one of those subjects?" the brunette raised a suspicious eyebrow; she knew her girlfriend could be quirky, it was one of the many things she loved about her; but that was just too weird.
"We were talking about the New Year's Eve party the city hosts," the stretching session ended so she helped the other girl off the floor, "It's a very beautiful story."
Jane smirked, knowing the other girl was dying to tell her, but wasn't sure how responsive she would be.
"Yeah? How so?" she decided to appease her girlfriend.
"They hadn't seen each other for a very long time," Maura started talking excitedly, her hazel green eyes sparkling and bouncing slightly on her feet, "He had been sent to war and she had stayed. They thought they would never see each other again, but even so he told her to wait for him and their song at the party once the war ended. That took almost seven years," the brunette eyes widened slightly, even though she wouldn't tell a soul she was enthralled by the story, "Once it was officially over, they took their time waiting for each other. After all, they had promised to wait until the party."
The pause for dramatic effect didn't go well with the impatient brunette.
"And then what?" she asked, rolling her eyes when she saw the blonde girl smirk slightly.
"He went to the party that year but didn't see her all night. It wasn't until the ball was about to be dropped that he saw her beneath the confetti shower. He strode over to her, wrapped her up in her arms and proposed," Maura sighed dreamily, hands unconsciously wrapping around her girlfriend's, "She died three years later."
"That's... beautifully sad," Jane whispered, the weight of the story making her sigh deeply.
"I find it extremely romantic," her girlfriend quipped, sneaking a quick kiss before the other girl had to take off to the field, "Now go on and entertain me."
Of course the entire city would attend the New Year's Eve party. Some folks would even stay in town specifically for it. It was a huge event. So of course her mother would nag about it.
"Janie! You don't have anything to wear to the party!"
"You can't wear that, Janie, it smells like it got stuck in your great-uncle Bert's colon!"
"JANE CLEMENTINE RIZZOLI, YOU WON'T BE WEARING BLACK TO A NEW YEAR'S EVE PARTY!"
What was the point to look good, anyway? Maura wouldn't be there. She hadn't come home for Christmas.
Korsak was right. She was moping.
"You could stay home, you know," Frankie commented after a particularly loud shouting match between his mother and sister, "Not go to the party."
"Yeah, right," Jane rolled her eyes, huffing as she plopped on the couch next to him, "She'll drag me down there by the ear in my pajamas if she has to."
"She'll have to catch you first," he smirked, knowing fully well both women.
The brunette smirked too, shrugging, "I'll let her believe she won just this once."
"Because you have a reason to be at that party," the young man said, fishing for information. When his sister said nothing, instead started to play with a stray thread of the couch's quilt, he continued, "It has something to do with that lonely bag sitting by the Christmas tree?"
"It's…"
"If you say it's complicated, I will kick your ass," he interrupted her and, although he was smiling, she knew he meant it; he just wanted an answer.
"It's hard for me to talk about it, Frankie," she sighed, slouching on the couch even further, "Talking about her, it's just… it's hard."
"I'm sorry, Janie," he said, squeezing her hand when he saw her defeated stance, "You're still going to the party, right?"
Just like that, her smirk was back, even if her eyes weren't shining with mirth, "I wouldn't miss it for the world."
##################################
It was time. Everybody was dressed to their finest, three dishes of her mother's famous lasagna were packed and her red dress matched her brothers' ties.
Hair straightened, heels on, even make up was making her espresso eyes pop out even more; on the outside, she was more than ready.
On the inside? Not so much.
"You look good, Janie," Frankie smiled softly at his fidgety sister, wondering for the umpteenth time how hard she must still love Maura to endure their mother fussing over her in dress, heels and make up.
"Thanks, Squirt," Jane smiled tensely, doing her best not to run her hands through her hair.
"Hey, Tommy is Squirt, remember? I'm just awesome," he smiled, doing his best to try and lighten the mood.
"You're both annoying," the brunette remarked, earning herself a light shove.
"Francesco Rizzoli, Jr! Stop rough housing with your sister when she's finally dressed like a lady!" Angela's scowling voice came from somewhere ahead of them.
"Jesus, it's like she has some kind of radar or something," Frankie muttered under his breath, earning a light shove himself.
"Shut up, Francesco," she smirked at his scowl and walked as fast as her heels allowed her to catch up with her mother, father and other brother.
All of her favorites town residents were attending the party.
Korsak was there, dressed in white with a blue tie, looking more like Santa Claus than ever.
Alfie and Annie were also there, by the food table, organizing a huge tower of cupcakes that were surely to be destroyed a couple of hours later.
There was Mrs. And Dr. Webber, the power couple from the local hospital, whom she had befriended as a young child after several, almost daily trips to their E.R.
Her high school football coach. Her middle school history teacher. A lot of her neighborhood friends. It was a good, familiar feeling, to be back.
It threw her back, once again, to ten years prior, when two very important residents were added to the party, the one and only time they did it.
Constance and Arthur Isles.
She wanted to blame them, she wanted to blame them really badly; but the truth was they just pushed her – more like shoved her – into making a decision she had wondered herself if it was the best one. The decision to let Maura go and live her life to the fullest, praying that one day she'd be able to have her in her life again.
A decision she has had to live with for the past ten years.
"Jane," Annie smiled warmly once she saw the brunette approaching her and her husband, "We're so happy you came back this year."
"I'm happy to be back," she smiled at the couple, "I missed Alfie's ugly mug and your amazing cooking."
"And yet we didn't seem to have missed your sarcastic replies," Alfonso teased her back, "You stayed."
"Of course I did," she frowned, looking into his greenish-brown eyes, "Why wouldn't I?"
"Well…" he started, earning a hard elbow to his stomach, "Ugh, Annie!"
"There are sometimes, cariño, when you should really shut up," the blonde warned him, her baby blue eyes intense, "You shouldn't worry Jane."
The brunette was really intrigued by the couple's action; they were usually such a loving couple, only having sweet gestures for the other.
"Is everything all right?" she asked, a bit worried.
"Everything is good, niña," Annie smiled sweetly back at her, white smile blinding, "You're looking beautiful. I hope you find someone to enjoy it."
"I hope so too," Jane said before she could stop herself, turning to talk to someone who wasn't going to act so strangely.
"Yo Rizzoli!"
"Gio!" the brunette turned to find a tall, with sandy brown hair and big smile coming at her to get a hug; she couldn't help but hug back, "Look at you! You actually look like a decent guy."
"And you look hot!" he smiled, giving her an approving once over, "If you're up for it..."
"In your dreams, you pig," she shoved him, getting away from his grabby hands.
"Sorry, I forgot we bat for the same team," the man raised his hands in apology, still smiling, "It's been so long, you can't blame a guy for trying."
"I'll let it slide just this once," she smiled back at him, grabbing his beer and drinking it, "What are you doing these days?"
"Y'know, helping my Pop out on the shop. I actually took over it, mostly," Giovanni shrugged the same he always did, a bad habit she had picked up from him, "What about you? Being a big shot cop in Boston?"
"I was just promoted to Detective," she chuckled at his approving whistle, "Seems like we both did good for ourselves."
"What about that girl of yours, Maura? Where is she? Haven't seen her in ages too."
A knife, being stabbed to her heart. It was getting old, really, but not less painful.
"I haven't seen her either, Gio," she shrugged, trying to fake a nonchalance she wasn't feeling, "We broke up."
"Damn..." he whistled lowly, "I was sure you guys were going to last, y'know. Forever hot."
She laughed mirthlessly, "Yeah, me too."
"I'm sure she turned out to be a great doctor, though. The best," she felt the need to add, even though she wasn't sure why.
"What did she wanted to do?" Giovanni asked, always keen to know when to push and to leave Jane just be, despite his usual denseness.
"She wanted to be a pathologist," the brunette smiled fondly, playing with the beer bottle without realizing, "I told her she could be the Chief Medical Examiner of the Commonwealth if she wanted," she looked up to see a vague look in her friend's eyes, "Dead people, Gio. She wanted to study dead people."
"Wow, that's cool!" the man grinned, "And so like her. Remember when she did that wicked blood for our Halloween party?"
"Yeah," Jane laughed a real laugh for the first time in a long time, "All the girls were disgusted by it, but she had that determined look on her face when she was trying to figure something out. And she was so happy when the fake blood looked 'gore, but real enough'."
Both friends shared a good laugh before the tall man's eyes caught something on the dance floor.
"Hey, it looks like the ball is going to be dropping soon."
"I should go, Gio," the brunette said with a sinking feeling on the pit of her stomach, "Be with my family and stuff."
"Yeah," Giovanni seemed distracted by something she saw.
"I'm talking to you, pig," Jane shoved his shoulder a little bit harder than last time, trying to get his attention back, "Yoooooo! Gio!"
"Janie," he said, still not looking at her, "How many times do we have to say Bloody Mary's name before she appears?"
"Huh?"
"Bloody Mary... You say her name how many times?" her friend asked, finally turning back to look at her.
"Three, why? How many of these have you had?" she asked, gesturing to the beer she was still holding.
"Say her name," Giovanni said with a huge, blinding grin.
"Bloody Mary's?" Jane was really starting to wonder about her friend; he never was the brightest of kids, but this time he simply wasn't making any sense.
"No! Your dead people's doctor," he said, smiling never fading.
"Maura?"
"Yeah!"
"There, I said it," she eyed him warily.
"You have to say it three times for it to work, Janie," he said sternly, but his tone was betrayed by his never fading smile.
"Maura Isles, Maura Isles, Maura Isles," this was ridiculous.
When Jane Rizzoli's eyes found, for the first time in ten years, hazel green eyes looking back at her, it was like the world had literally stopped.
This couldn't be real; she must have been dreaming.
Of course she was, after all why would Maura Isles be standing in the middle of the dance floor, looking hopefully at her?
With a courage she wasn't even aware she still possessed, the tall brunette killed the space between them in a matter of seconds with long, confident strides, their gazes never fading. They weren't even aware the countdown for New Year had begun.
"Maur?" she asked when they were so close not a hair could come between them.
It was a softly asked question, almost afraid to be spoken out loud.
"Jane..."
It was only her name, four little words; but nobody said her name like Maura did.
She didn't waste any time joining their lips in a bruising kiss, pouring everything she had ever felt into it. Not a care in the world, not even aware several eyes at the party were on them, huge grins on their faces.
In that moment, there were only each other and the feelings that had been cooped up in a tiny corner of their souls for ten, long years.
"God, I've missed you," Jane exhaled when she couldn't hold her breath in anymore, their bruised lips still touching.
"Happy New Years, Jane," Maura said, smiling and kissing the other woman at the same time.
Indeed it would be the happiest year in a very long time.
A/N-2: I'm so sorry if you're getting a second alert to this. I had to do some alterations due to ff. policies and decided to add a line to hopefully explain something that got some people a bit confused. Hope you still enjoy it ;)