"Ma, can we talk?" Alessa leaned against the office doorway, arms crossed and eyes red rimmed.
"Yeah, of course. You want to go somewhere?" Jane regarded her daughter, waiting.
"No, but can I close the door?" The young woman stepped inside the small room.
Jane nodded. "Whatever you need."
Alessa nodded, sniffled a bit, closed the door, and then settled into one of the guest chairs. Jane joined her to sit in the other. "Ma, I'm having issues with some stuff, and I don't know what to do about it." The sniffling was getting worse. "I've been trying to work it out for a long time now, and I can't shake it."
"What's wrong, little one? Why have you been crying?"
"This thing with Janie and Jackson? I can't… I'm trying to be a good friend and support her, but I hate it. He's just not right for her, and I just… I can't, Ma. I just can't." The tears fell.
Jane's tone was quiet, soothing, and gentle as she talked to daughter, so much like herself. "You know, since before you were born, I've always told you the same thing when you were fussy or crying. I've always told you that everything will be okay, and I want to tell you that now, but I can't."
"I know."
"Little one, you two have chosen what path you're going to go down, and there's nothing your mother or I can do but be here for both of you. We love you both, and you know we support you both in whatever it is you want to do with your lives, but we can't fix this one." Jane placed a hand on her daughter's knee. "If I could wave a magic wand and fix it all, you know I would. I'm your mother; I'm supposed to make everything okay. I hate that I can't ."
"No… no, you can't. I guess it's up to me on this one." The young Rizzoli sighed as she wiped at the tears on her face. "Ma, I don't think I'm ready."
"Don't do anything you're not ready for, Alessandra, but you have to know there are consequences if you don't do things you feel you need to. That's life. It sucks, but that's how it goes sometimes."
Alessa let out a harsh chuckle. "You sound like Mother."
"That happens when you live with someone for as long as we have." Jane gave her daughter's knee a pat before sitting back in the chair. "Maybe you should try to get some rest? You look tired, and sleeping sometimes helps your brain sort stuff out."
"It's only 9:30. I think I'll go for a run and then go to bed."
"Okay, but no marathons. We have to get up early to take you to the airport, and you probably shouldn't be tired when your second semester starts."
"I'm a senior in college, Ma. I'm always tired. I got this." She smiled at her mother as she stood up. "Thank you."
"Anytime, little one."
"Janie, what an unexpected but delightful surprise. Are you here for the weekend?" Maura set her scalpel down on the try by the examination table as she smiled a greeting to the young woman.
"Yes. I needed a small break. Midsemester can be quite stressful, as I'm sure you recall." Janie settled against the cabinet near the table. "I am also trying to gain an internship in the area for the summer before graduate school, and this was a good time for me to return to Boston to apply."
"Oh?" The medical examiner returned to her work, dutifully cataloguing every detail of the body before her. "Did you come to ask me for an internship?" Her voice was guarded.
"No. That thought hadn't actually occurred to me, though I'm certain why. You are the top in our field. One would think you would be the first person I would consider asking. I suppose I simply don't think of you in those terms. I hope that I haven't offended you."
"On the contrary," Maura glanced up to give a reassuring smile, "I'm rather happy that's the case. I'm apt to offer an internship now knowing you aren't coming to see me specifically for the purpose."
"I came to see you to tell you something, but I would never use your trust or care to gain something for my career. That would make me feel… disingenuous." Janie shifted, frowning. "I don't like that feeling. I try to avoid it if at all possible."
"Yes, I do understand that." Maura carefully weighed and catalogued an organ as she waited for the young blonde to continue on.
"Maura, I've come to tell you that… Jackson and I," Janie sighed. "I'm not marrying Jackson."
A very brief pause in her work was the only indication that Maura was at all affected by the news. "Oh? May I ask why?"
"I'm not in love with him as I should be, and I feel it would be wrong to marry him. He deserves someone who will love him completely, which I do not."
"That's very mature of you, Janie. I'm sure he's hurt, but it sounds as though it was for the best."
"How long did it take you?" The question was quiet and non sequitur.
The quiet stretched as Maura tried to follow, but finally gave up. "I don't understand the question."
"I'm not certain I do, either." The young woman groaned, straightening her already perfectly straight skirt. "Is it possible to have a question and not know what you're questioning?"
"If you are experiencing such a thing, then I would say the answer is yes. However," Maura again paused in her work, letting her hands rest at the side of the table, "I would argue that it is highly unlikely that's the case. What is more likely is that you do know from where the question comes, but you aren't ready yet to focus on it."
"Perhaps."
"When you're ready to do so, the answer to the question and the others that will inevitably come from it will be easier to hear."
Nodding to herself, Janie stood up from the counter. "I have to tell Ally."
"Yes. She needs to know. It will come as a relief to her."
"She never cared for Jackson." Janie smiled. "Would you and Jane be available for dinner tonight?"
"We will make the time. Is 7:30 too late?"
"No, not at all. Maggiano's? My treat."
"I look forward to it."