A/N: Thanks for the reviews and advice, guys! Keep' em coming!
In this, and the following chapters, Jane and Maura's inner thoughts will be in italics.
Enjoy!
Chapter 2 - Something to talk about
Once they had taxied onto the runway, and the noise from the engines powering up filled the cabin, Maura noticed that Jane seemed uncomfortable again.
Maura squeezed Jane's hand tightly, reassuring her wordlessly. Jane leaned her head back and closed her eyes, bracing herself as the inescapable roar of the engines and thunder of the wheels grew louder and louder, as the plane surged forwards and into the sky.
When the noise had calmed and the plane had finally levelled off, Jane opened her eyes and held her nose, trying to pop her ears. She noticed Maura watching her, and shrugged her shoulders. Maura reached into her pocket and handed the packet of Lifesavers to Jane. Jane smiled. "Thanks Maur. You're a genius!"
"I know...and I just saved your life." Maura waited for a response.
"Is that supposed to be a joke?" Jane asked with a smirk and nudged Maura. "Ma used to always bring Lifesavers along on a journey."
"She was right. Sucking on one of these will help with the pressure in your ears. Changes in cabin pressure cause air to push on the ear drums and that's what causes the discomfort."
Jane popped one piece of candy into her mouth and smiled.
With a 6 hour flight time, Jane was grateful for any distraction. When the drink service came around, she hastily accepted two complimentary mimosas. What took them so long? Oh boy, do I need this!
"The vacation starts now!" She said, handing one of the long-stemmed glasses to Maura. "Cheers!" They clinked their glasses and drank deeply.
"This is going to be a vacation to remember!" Maura giggled.
Jane smirked, her eyes dropping down to the bag at her feet. You've no idea, Maura.
Maura skimmed through the in-flight magazine, and noticed an in-depth article on the affects of flying on the human body and how to reduce the risk of DVT. She smiled to herself and began to read. Jane was fidgeting in her seat, turning this way and that, stretching, crossing and uncrossing her legs.
"Jane?" Maura placed a hand on Jane's leg. "Maybe you should get up and stretch your legs properly?" Maura explained about the need to keep moving on long plane journeys. "So, go and have a wander, and take a look out of the window."
"Okay, doc." Jane stood up and walked off down the aisle.
She stopped beside one of the windows and took a deep breath. She was definitely not as afraid of flying as she used to be, and she was determined to get over it. Jane pulled up the blind, and looked out of one of the windows. A landscape made entirely of white puffy clouds greeted her.
"Wow!" She walked back to their seats and asked Maura for the camera. "It looks like Marshmallow Fluff Land out there!" She gestured to the window. "I have to take a photo!"
Maura smiled and watched Jane proudly, impressed at her bravery and strength in working to overcome her fear. You're an amazing human being, Jane Rizzoli. My life was so empty before you...I've never loved anyone this much.
After taking the photo, Jane returned to her seat and switched on the TV screen in front of her.
"Do you think you've gotten over your fear?" Maura asked gently, and Jane nodded sincerely.
"Pretty much. Thanks for your help, I couldn't have done it without you."
"Really?"
"Really."
After watching an episode of How I Met Your Mother, Jane flicked through all the other channels.
"Maura, there's nothing good on!" She complained, looking over to Maura to find that she had fallen asleep, her magazine still in her hand. Jane smiled at the sleeping woman.
How did I fall in love with you, Dr Isles? When did I fall in love with you? I know when I realised it...Why did it take me so long? I'm so glad that I'm stubborn! You're beautiful, amazing, and mine!
These thoughts ran through Jane's mind of their own accord. The more she consciously thought about it, the deeper those thoughts became. What did I do to deserve you? Can you ever really know how much I love you? I know that you sometimes doubt yourself and your relationships, but you shouldn't! I'm going to make sure you can't doubt me!
As a stewardess walked past Jane asked her for a blanket. She returned a moment later with a new blanket wrapped in a plastic bag. The stewardess smiled at the sleeping Maura and left them in peace.
Jane ripped the packet open and wrapped the soft blue blanket around Maura, taking the magazine from her, noticing the science article. You're such a nerd, Maur! Jane kissed her cheek gently. And you're such a sap Rizzoli!
Maura smiled in her sleep and shifted slightly. Jane leaned down and lifted her flight bag onto her knees, unzipping it. Keeping her hands inside the bag, she picked up the box. Jane flicked the box open and admired the contents with a bright smile.
"Jane..." Maura stirred, and Jane hurriedly closed the box. She put the bag away and turned to Maura.
"Hey. Did you have a good sleep?"
Maura nodded. "Did this blanket come out of the packet? Because a study in Shanghai found that 80% of reusable airline blankets are not washed between uses, and the CDC advise that..."
Jane leaned over and cut Maura off with a kiss. Maura smiled against Jane's lips.
"Yes, it was a fresh blanket." Jane said, pulling back. Maura slipped the blanket off herself and stood up.
"Thanks...I'm gonna go to the bathroom. Sorry to disturb you, Jane."
"Oh Maura, you did that long ago!" Jane smirked and got up to let Maura by. Maura beamed, kissed Jane's cheek quickly, and headed to the bathroom.
When Maura was gone, Jane waved the stewardess over again.
"How can I help you, Ma'am?"
Jane spoke quietly. "Can I get a bottle of champagne? It's something special for my girlfriend..."
The stewardess nodded. "Of course."
I'm so out of my depth!"Erm...I don't want to make a huge scene." Jane said quietly.
The stewardess nodded knowingly. "Sure, I understand." She smiled brightly. "Shall I bring it out right now? We will start serving lunch in about half an hour."
"Now?" No time like the present, Rizzoli!"Yeah, now is perfect." Jane smiled and pulled out her wallet. "You're best bottle, please."
"I'll be right back. Good luck!" The stewardess smiled and left, and Jane noticed Maura returning from the bathroom. Jane let Maura back into her seat and sat down beside her again. Maura reached over and placed her hand on Jane's knee.
"You okay, Jane? You're not feeling nervous again are you? You look a little pale."
"Oh, I'm okay..." Jane squeezed Maura's hand and looked up to see the stewardess returning with a bottle in an ice bucket and two glasses.
Here we go! The butterflies in Jane's stomach started up.
"Your champagne, ladies. Enjoy!"
"Thanks." Jane smiled. Maura's eyes were wide and she was grinning.
"Champagne, Jane?"
"Yeah, why not?" Jane poured the bubbly liquid into the glasses, handing one to Maura.
"Thank you." Maura sipped the golden liquid. "Ooh, Veuve Clicquot...Sip it slowly, Jane!"
Jane took a large gulp. "It's good! Got any champagne fun-facts for me, Maur?"
"Of course! There are approximately 49 million bubbles in a regular bottle of champagne, and the pressure in the bottle is about three times that of a car tyre..."
"So a flying champagne cork could do some serious damage! Tell me Dr Isles, why does champagne make me drunk so much more quickly than beer?" Jane asked with a laugh.
"That's because of the bubbles. They carry the alcohol into the bloodstream. It's faster because champagne has three times the bubbles of beer...And what's really interesting is the size of the bubbles. A higher quality champagne will have smaller bubbles, like these." Maura gestured to her glass before taking another sip.
"You really do know something about everything, don't you?" Jane said with a warm smile, leaning down with one hand to reach for the box in her bag. "Maura, I..."
Jane made a move to kneel down, but as she did so, knocked the ice bucket from the table. "Crap!"
Jane quickly grabbed the bottle before too much spilled, and then she scrabbled around to pick up the ice. Maura just laughed lightly. Jane looked at her.
"Jeez, I'm so clumsy sometimes! Sorry, Maura." The moment ruined, Jane surreptitiously slipped the box back into her bag. Dammit!
"Oh, Jane. Don't worry." Maura touched Jane's hand lightly before refilling their glasses. "It's ok, hardly any got spilled. Come on, cheers to our vacation!"
After lunch had been eaten, and they had almost finished the champagne, Jane had settled down and she was beginning to feel sleepy. Maura went back to reading her magazine.
Jane put in her earphones, turned on her ipod, and closed her eyes with a contented sigh. She would just have to wait for another opportune moment; after all, their vacation had barely even started.
"Well I'm not braggin' babe so don't put me down. But I've got the fastest set of wheels in town..."
Jane was listening to the Beach Boys, singing along in a whisper, and absentmindedly rubbing the scars on her hands, when she felt Maura tap her lightly on the shoulder. Jane opened her eyes and pulled out her earphones.
"You okay?" She asked. Maura nodded and held up her own earphones and splitter.
"Do you think we could share for a bit?"
"Sure!" Jane connected them up and then handed the ipod over to Maura. "Your choice."
Maura beamed and proceeded to riffle through all of Jane's tracks and albums, as Jane put her own earphones back in and waited patiently for Maura to decide what to listen to.
"Jane, don't you have any..."
"What?"
"It's okay. I found her." Maura pressed play and 'Something to talk about' by Bonnie Raitt began to play. Jane nodded along to the beat, closed her eyes again, and mouthed along to the words.
"They think we're lovers kept under cover. I just ignore it, but they keep sayin' we laugh just a little too loud. Stand just a little too close. We stare just a little too long..."
"This song always reminds me of us, and of Frost and Korsak." Maura said dreamily. "Remember, when they used to speculate about us..."
'It took a rumour to make me wonder, now I'm convinced that I'm going under...'
Jane smiled and opened her eyes to look at Maura.
"Mmhm. The whole of BPD used to speculate about us, Maura, so it kind of is oursong..."
Maura reached over and tucked a stray strand of hair behind Jane's ear, kissed her jaw and whispered, "We certainly did give them something to talk about!"
"Wow!" Jane breathed, and rubbed a tired hand over her face before pulling Maura closer. "I can't wait to get off this plane!"