It took another week and a half before the two of us were in our friend's presence together. I had become restless at home so started coming down to the morgue to review any unresolved murders. On Jane's insistence I would request that Suzie be down with me, albeit in her office, so as to assist me should I present with any panic type symptoms. It had only happened three times within the first five days, something I was quite proud of however I knew it caused Jane to worry no end. The wide eyed expression of an overwhelmed Suzie was amusing once the panics were over also.

Over the course of the week the boys had started to come over to see me more and more, originally I had been reluctant to spend time with them. Being thrown back to that night in vivid flashbacks should a male stand behind me. However gradually and with a lot of patience from the men in my life I had started to overcome my initial fears allowing the hug that Frost offered last night with only the slightest pause. Jane had insisted she was proud of how things had been going, I myself found it hard to feel pride in these necessary steps. I had always found it hard to interact with people; this was just another manifestation of social insecurity that I felt I was unable to avoid. I had always had a fear of the living, I used to prefer the company of the dead, they couldn't hurt me, not the way the living could. But then I met Jane; she brought me back to the living once and she had insisted that she was going to do it once again.

So far she was succeeding; I was painfully terrified that she might not.

We had decided to tell our friends about the state of our relationship together so as to provide the other with the confidence needed to reveal this, it was my fear that Jane would wish to back out of this, however at her suggestion we had decided to tell people gradually, starting with Frost with the hope that gradually news would either travel round our small group of friends or we would simply let slip by accident over time. We figured Frost and Korsak would be the more accepting with Tommy and Frankie to be more taken aback. Things had been going well until the day that Frankie came by unannounced to find us sharing a kiss in my hall. Jane had been staying over since the incident but often had to go back to her apartment to wash/change her clothing selection. He'd caught us sharing a "brief" goodbye.

He'd gawped at us for what I estimate to have been a good 2.5 minutes before loudly clearing his throat and dragging Jane away from me. I missed her warmth instantly and although our level of physical intimacy hadn't escalated further from deep kissing, something we had been working on but I was uncertain of the predicted outcomes, I still missed her touch needing it to ground me. He continued to stare at us before shaking his head a strange grin marring his features.

"You and Maura?" He directs the question at Jane before pointing between the two of us, Jane nodding silently as her brother continued to point in her direction.

"For how long?" The question is again directed at Jane but by now I can tell that she's reverted in on herself, staring at a speck on the floor, hands by her sides opening and closing spasmodically. I take her left hand in my right before defiantly telling Frankie that it had been "since just after the incident although if I was honest we'd been drawing together for a lot longer before that." He looks at me with an intensity that I hadn't seen in him before as he once again looks to Jane.

"You knew I've liked her for a long time Jane, I told you. Why did you have to go after her, how could I possibly compare to you?"

His response threw me, as both Rizzoli's continued to avoid eye contact with each other yet it was obvious that I wasn't really welcome to join in on this. How could I been as blind as to not notice Frankie's interest, I attempt to see any indication of his attention and find that I am unable to do so. There simply wasn't enough time that I had been alone with Frankie to recognise his attraction. In fact the times that I had spent with Frankie I had been so enraptured with Jane that the younger Rizzoli became a fleeting blip in my consciousness. I certainly hadn't attempted to garner his attention nor, obviously did I wish it. I had been assuming that Frankie may have been about to go on a homophobic spiel. Although it wasn't something I would assume of Frankie I was aware of his strict Catholic upbringing so a mild array of internalised homophobia wouldn't have been a far stretch, especially after being so intimate to the thoughts of his sister. However it would appear that simple jealousy was what was winning over the younger Rizzoli right now.

"You knew Jane and what, what you did this so that you could laugh at me. You always have to one up me and now, now you really did. I was gunna ask you out Maura, for your information and it was going to be perfect I had a plan." His eyes burnt just like Jane's did when she was struggling to get her point across. "How could you do this to me Jane, yet again?"

"I love her!" Two pairs of brown eyes flash in my direction before I realise that it was I who made this declaration, not Jane. "I love her Frankie, and she loves me. I'm sorry… you're a lovely guy, you're just not the right person for me." I feel Jane's hand squeeze my own before Frankie starts blushing and mumbles an apology, kiss his sister on the cheek stating that he was "happy for us, despite his earlier outburst" then he promptly leaves saying he had to get home. Jane chuckles in his wake. "He'll be alright Maur', just let him clear his head for a bit."

The rest of the night goes without hitch however it's obvious that the conversation we had with Frankie was weighing on both of our minds. Once sat on the sofa, a glass of wine being nursed in my hands I decide to broach the subject.

"I had no idea that he liked me, literally no clue."

"Hmmm? Really?"

"How long has he liked me Jane? He said you'd spoken to him about it."

"For about a year, I'd tried to tell him to back off, that you weren't interested but he was having none of it."

"I wasn't interested; I'm not interested in him." I shake my head involuntarily with that statement, watching her eyes soften as she looks back at me.

"I know Maur', I knew even then. But he obviously didn't." By now she's cupping my cheek, her thumb stroking along the bone that had, only recently recovered from the beating it sustained. I'm suddenly overwhelmed with it all and feel the familiar sting of tears, the first of which drips down and is swiped away deftly by her thumb. I try to suppress the sob that wracks my body swiftly and efficiently as Jane encroaches me in a hug.

"Don't cry Maur', it's alright Frankie will get over it."

"I-it's not that, I ju-ust, I was just scared of what he might've done. I know Frankie b-but it brought me back, you know?" She picks me up swiftly tucking my legs up over her arm supporting my weight before she places me down on the bed coming up behind me to hold me from behind. I feel myself calming down as the pressure on my body increases as she holds me tight. It's a technique we had learnt from the therapist we had been seeing, we had individual and group sessions for the past two weeks and the benefits appeared to be obvious.

"Well there is a positive from this Babe." It's not often I get the pet name and I can feel my heart jump once I hear it. "What is that?"

"I got a text from Tommy, apparently Mah told him last week, he's looking after Frankie, says congrats at getting together. We've no one else to tell Maura." I can feel myself drifting off before she's even finished talking, however the relief I feel in her statement is evident so I manage a quiet "Yay!" before drifting to sleep.