A/N: Thanks for all the lovely reviews! Here is the conclusion to this little story. It also works as a tag to "Green Light."
Austin TX, Present Day
Lisbon smiled warmly as she sat back and watched Jane handle the turquoise teacup she'd reunited him with for his birthday. He held it with reverence, one finger gliding gently along the barely noticeable cracks in the porcelain, a look of wonder on his face. It reminded her of how she had held the letters he'd sent her from the island.
She stored the letters in a large cardboard keepsake container that, until recently, had also held the shards of the broken teacup in a sealed plastic bag. Up until a couple of months ago, she hadn't thought she'd ever take the initiative to put the pieces back together. Back in Cannon River, she'd missed him so much that the idea of undertaking the project was too painful, especially since she hadn't known if she'd ever see him again.
Even after they'd been reunited in Austin, the timing had never been right. It had taken them a while to find their footing again with each other, in spite of the confiding nature of his letters. He'd gone back to hiding the workings of his mind. If she'd put the time and effort into repairing the cup at that point, he would have seen it for what it was: an admission not only that she loved him, but that she had loved him for years. She was too much in doubt of the nature of his feelings for her to take the risk of showing him that. Then, once Marcus had entered the picture, it hadn't seemed appropriate.
However, now that he'd confessed his love and was making sincere efforts to open up to her, she knew that repairing the cup would make the perfect birthday present, and if anyone was overdue for a happy birthday, it was Jane. She felt proud and grateful that she'd been able to do this for him.
"You look like the cat that got the canary," he said, interrupting her thoughts.
She smiled at him. "I'm just glad you like your present so much."
"I love it. I can't wait to try it out," he said as he carefully set the cup down on the table. Then he grinned as he reached his hand out to grab hers, "but first why don't you come over here and give me a birthday hug?"
She didn't need to be asked twice. She sighed in contentment as she let him pull her onto his lap sideways and settle his arms around her. They sat for a while in silence, enjoying the soft glow of the coloured lights Lisbon had strung up.
She gave his hand an affectionate squeeze as she buried her face in his neck. She'd dreamed of doing this so often during the lonely winter nights in Washington, just being able to sit with him, to hold his hand, to breathe him in. She was grateful that she'd had her own memory palace to help her remember all the little things she loved about Jane. But as he squeezed her hand in response and snuggled her closer to his chest, she couldn't help but think just how much better it felt to have the real thing.