Teresa escaped as fast as she possibly could.
As soon as Jane let her go, she took off. She rushed out of the room and down one of the many hallways in the Blue Rose Hotel. She searched for a place to hide, to get away from everything and everyone. She needed to be alone. She needed time to think before she saw his face again. Because if she saw him, she might break down and confess every single thought that had run through her head while they were dancing.
She finally found a tiny little room with a few vending and ice machines on the second floor. She hurried into it, shutting the door behind her. The only down side of the quiet little space was that there wasn't a lot of room to pace, but she did her best.
She couldn't be in love with him. She couldn't! It was absolutely absurd. It was Patrick Jane! Her colleague, her friend… her pain-in-the-ass consultant. He annoyed the living hell out of her on a daily basis. Scratch that. An hourly basis. And now, after one dance, everything was changed?
Was it because that song got to her head? Or had Hightower gotten to her head? Or had she fallen for him a while ago without knowing it?
Her favorite solution was that she was not in love with Patrick Jane!
Too bad all the signs were there.
"This is ridiculous," she said aloud. She actually laughed at herself. Here she was, at her friends' wedding, alone in a 12 square foot room with vending machines, worrying that she might be in love with Jane.
Ha. If Jane knew about this, he'd never let her live it down…
A sudden knock on the door made her jump.
"Lisbon?"
Oh, no! Please, no…
"Lisbon, are you in there?" It was Jane.
She sighed, and opened the door, ashamed.
The minute he saw her, he laughed. "What the hell are you doing in there?" But his smile faded. "And why are you so stressed out?"
"I'm not stressed," she lied.
Jane put both hands on either sides of her arms. "Lisbon," he began cautiously. "What's the matter?"
He looked her directly in the eyes, making her melt.
You are pathetic, she shot at herself.
"Lisbon," Jane said, never taking his eyes off hers. "You can tell me."
Oh, yeah. Right.
"You can tell me anything," he whispered.
For a moment, her eyes were completely lost at sea in his ocean-blue irises. They were so sincere and beautiful that she forgot for a second what she was so worried about.
Then she realized why she was staring into his eyes and remembered.
How did he do that?
"I can't tell you," Lisbon finally murmured.
Jane exhaled sharply and dropped his hands from her arms, frustrated. "You still don't trust me, do you?" He looked almost… depressed.
The accusation made her wince, and then she felt and overwhelming wave of sadness. "It's not that!" she said quickly. She looked down at the ground. "It's just…" she trailed off.
"It's just what?" Jane asked, exasperated.
I think I might love you. Yeah. Like she was really going to put it that way.
She might as well tell him. If she didn't, he'd just read it all over her face. He was smart that way. Obviously.
So, she took a deep breath, and spoke. "While we were dancing…" she began, finally glancing up to meet his eyes. So, so blue…
Focus, Teresa.
"While we were dancing…" she tried again. "I felt… something…" she stammered. What did she have to do to get the words out? "Oh, God, Jane! Just please tell me you understand what I'm trying to say!" she cried.
She felt her face turn red hot as she studied his reaction carefully. He maintained an impressive, composed expression, but she knew that he understood what she was trying to say, and she instantly regretted saying anything.
Those damn tears burned her eyes again and she cursed them. They were so close to betraying her; threatening to spill.
"Jane…I-" She stopped, because she could hear her voice shake. She cleared her throat and tried again. "I just don't know," she admitted. Her voice was a little better, but not much. "I don't even understand it! But while we were dancing…" She just shook her head and let that one go. "All the signs are there. I don't want them to be, Jane. I really don't." To make matters worse, his face was still expressionless. She probably would have preferred him to freak out on her, turn away and leave. She just needed some sort of feedback. But he wasn't speaking, and she hated awkward silences, so she just continued. "I truly don't know," she said again. "And I don't know how to find out."
She hadn't realized until now that the tears had brimmed over the edge and were now falling onto her cheeks. She cursed at them silently and just bowed her head.
Lisbon felt two hands on either side of her face. As soon as he touched her, her heart started pounding. He gently used his hands to raise her face so he could look her in the eyes. He had a sad smile, and his eyes were honest and understanding. Jane used his thumbs to wipe away her tears, and after he did so, he kissed her.
When their lips met, it was like a wave of electricity shot through her. His lips were softer than she imagined. His hands were still on the sides of her face, and she reached up to knot her own in his golden locks.
Even in this perfect moment, she couldn't help but wonder if this kiss was simply out of pity. She'd just poured her heart out, (quite awkwardly, she had to admit), but he had stayed silent. Had he kissed her to fill the gap in which he had not spoken?
She had to know.
So she broke the kiss, and backed away from his face ever so slightly, just enough to bring her eyes to meet his. But what she saw amazed her.
Jane might be a pain in the ass sometimes, but he did teach her and the team things that they never could have figured out on their own. Like the lesson about pupil dilation, for example.
And right now, Jane's pupils were dilated.
It answered every question she had, and she couldn't help but smile.
"Did that help?" Jane whispered.
At first, she wondered what he meant. But she soon realized that he was trying to help her decide if she was in love with him or not.
"Yes," she answered in a soft voice. "It did."
He waited, but, because he was Jane, became impatient. "And?"
She smiled slightly and whispered, "I love you."