Headcanon: (Before they're together) Maura drives a groggy Jane home after having her wisdom teeth out, helps her up to her apartment, and tells her to go to bed and rest. Jane grumbles that she's fine and doesn't need to, but crashes straight onto her couch and is out in 5 seconds. Maura takes off her shoes and covers her with a blanket and she looks like an adorable miserable chipmunk and she can't resist giving her a kiss on the forehead.

Origin: thepriceismeg

A/N: I've begun to write again! I've got a few lined up for me to begin working on, just short little one-shots, before I work on my larger projects! Hope you enjoy this little story! Hope I did the headcanon justice. All praise thepriceismeg for her genius headcanons :)

"Eurgh, why does this have to happen to me," Jane whined, flopping down on the couch.

"Jane, you're going to be late if you don't get changed right now and leave." Maura frowned down at her best friend, hands on hips. It was like Heroes Night all over again.

The detective grunted. "I've been living with these teeth my entire life, WHY do I need to get them pulled out now?"

Maura gave an impatient sigh. This was not the first time she'd had this conversation with the stubborn brunette. It wasn't even the fifth time she'd had to repeat the reasons in an attempt to get Jane moving. "Really Jane, you should've had them out a long time ago. Your upper ones are fine, but, especially your bottom left, it's grown in crooked, which is why your jaw sometimes hurts, and it's not beneficial either in terms of hygiene. It's very difficult to reach the teeth effectively. And it could potentially put strain on your lower jaw overall, and impacts–"

"Thank you, Maura!" Jane grabbed her arm, imploring her to stop. "I know, I need to get these out." She pouted. "I just hate that I do. Eurgh! I hate going to the dentist."

The doctor chuckled, smiling down at the grumpy woman. Sometimes Jane acted just like a little child, whinging over the smallest things. "You were the child that hated all the visits to the doctors and dentists, weren't you?"

"I didn't need to! I was fine!"

"You were probably also the child who ended up with the most scraped knees." Maura tried to hide her smile when Jane shot her a glare. But she could see the good humour behind those dark brown eyes. But then Jane sobered up again, in the face of such a calamity as a trip to the dentist.

With a sigh, Maura put her hands on her hips, glaring at the detective. "We can do this the easy way, or the hard way."

Jane looked extremely disgruntled, but it seemed that she had learnt her lesson from all those months ago. She pushed herself off the couch and, grumbling, stomped past the doctor to yank the front door open. Maura could hear her all down the hall and sighed again, even as she smiled quietly to herself. Following the brunette, she took one last look around the apartment, to make sure Jane hadn't forgotten anything she might need, then shut the door.

Maura smoothed her dress down again, before glancing at the clock once more. Then she turned back to the journal she'd been reading to pass time. It really did have some riveting insights on the latest analytical advancements regarding DNA sequencing for forensic purposes. She turned the page, brow furrowed in concentration when the quiet of the waiting room was interrupted by the sound of a door opening. Looking up, she quickly got to her feet when a kindly woman appeared next to a very woozy looking Jane.

"Dr Maura Isles?"

Maura nodded, smiling. "Did everything go well?"

"Perfectly." The assistant gestured towards Jane, who was clearly still under the influence of the anaesthetic they'd given to numb the pain of pulling out the teeth. "Jane will probably be a little groggy and sleepy due to the anaesthetic, and it will hurt a bit when the effects wear off. No solid for at least three days, but after that it should be fine."

Maura nodded. "Thank you."

"Not a problem, Dr Isles. Have a wonderful day!"

With a smile and a wave, the assistant disappeared through the doors again, and Maura turned to see a frowning Jane. Really, she didn't understand why Jane hated the dentist so much. That woman had been so cheerful. As Jane stumbled a little though, Maura quickly reached out to hold her by the arm, worry on her face.

"Mmmm, fine, Maur." Typical Jane, to brush off help, even as she tightened her grip on Maura's hand. "Owwww," she mumbled, the movement from her words causing her jaw to ache. Before she could make another sound, Maura shushed her.

"Don't talk, it'll only hurt more when you move your jaw. It'll hurt more when the medications stop working."

"Mmmm," Jane made a distressed sound, and the look on her face was so adorable, Maura couldn't help chuckling.

"Sorry." Maura pulled Jane a little closer to her, encouraging the detective to rest some weight on her. "It won't be so bad. And I've been researching new soup recipes and other easily ingested foods for you."

"Mmmm." A gloomy sound.

"And I'll even let you have chocolate milk for dessert."

"Mmmm," Jane's eyes lit up, and she seemed a little more cheerful as Maura led them back to where her blue Prius was parked. She laughed at the brunette's response, reaching out to open the door on Jane's side and attempting to help her in. Just as she expected, Jane resisted.

"M'fine, Maur. Do it m'self."

Jane managed to pull herself into the car, and slumped down in her seat. After making sure Jane was, in fact, safely seated and belted in, all the while being whinged at by a very groggy and disgruntled patient, Maura nodded and got into the driver's seat of the car.

"Y'know m'fine, Maur. Don' need 'oo babyin' me."

Maura looked across at Jane as she pulled out of the parking lot of the clinic. "I'm not babying you." She looked away, out the windshield. "I just want to make sure you're alright."

A hand reached over to squeeze her leg gently. "Know."

Her face softened, and she glanced over again to see Jane's apologetic face. "I know you like to be independent, Jane. But that doesn't mean I don't worry about you."

Silence filled the car, until they finally pulled onto Jane's street. Then:

"Thank 'oo."

Maura tilted her head, looking over at a very drowsy looking Jane. "For what?"

"For worryin' 'bou m'."

"It's what best friends do." Maura felt something inside her twist a little at her own words. It wasn't a lie. Best friends did worry about each other.

The hand that had remained on her leg the entire trip gave another gently squeeze, and she could feel Jane's eyes on her, imagine the smile on her face, even though her cheeks were currently too puffed up for such an action; a result of the surgery.

Pulling up in front of the apartment block, Maura stepped out of the car and hurried around to Jane's side. But the detective had already beaten her to it, pulling herself out of the car by the door and walking towards the stairs in a shambling gait that resembled a drunken sailor rather than the usual confident swagger of the detective. Maura caught her halfway, gently taking her arm and guiding Jane towards the door of her apartment building. It was clear that the drugs were still heavy in her system, as Jane's eyes drooped. But she continued huffing and grumbling out that she was perfectly fine, and didn't need any assistance. The doctor only rolled her eyes and refused to let go of Jane's arm. She found time to be amused and enlightened when she felt Jane lean into her a little more as they climbed the steps. For all her protestations, Maura knew that Jane was most likely exhausted, with the operation and the drugs flowing through her veins.

When they finally reached the elevator, Jane was leaning heavily on Maura's shoulder. A short ride later, Maura helped her into her apartment.

"Jane, you should rest. The anaesthesia is still having a very strong effect on you, and the best way is to just sleep it off."

"Mmmm, fine." Jane was frowning again, as Maura tried to guide her towards her bedroom. "Don' need sleep."

"Jane."

"Maur."

Maura couldn't help smiling. Between the medication and the limited movement of her mouth, Jane's voice had lost its authoritative ring, diminishing the resulting effect of her attempt at defiance. And even as the blonde watched, Jane shuffled over to the couch, and collapsed onto it. Eyes closed, and Jane seemed to drift off straight away. But just when Maura was about to turn away, one bleary eye opened and looked at her.

"Don' nee' babyin'," Jane mumbled.

"I know, Jane."

Quiet.

"Stay with m'?"

But before Maura could answer, she was out like a light. A soft smile spread across the doctor's features, as she quietly made her way to Jane's side. It was clear that the drugs were still at work. Jane would be out for a good few hours, Maura suspected. After watching the brunette for a few more moments, Maura kicked her high heels off, and quietly went into Jane's bedroom, searching for a blanket.

Eyebrows raised, she walked over and picked up a blanket that was sprawled over a messy, unmade bed. It was one she recognised. It was her blanket, a warm red checker blanket that had mysteriously gone missing about a month ago. She'd noticed it was gone the day after Jane had spent the night. They had both been too tired the previous night after dealing with a trying case regarding the death of a renowned businessman. Jane had barely slept for over 48 hours, having worked so hard, and Maura had deemed it unsafe for her to drive all the way back home. Instead, she offered to have Jane over for the night, which she was quick to accept – a sign of just how exhausted the brunette had been. Jane had collapsed on Maura's couch and promptly drifted off. Maura didn't want to rouse her from her well-deserved sleep, and had gone in search of a blanket then too. She'd found the red blanket nearby, it being a favourite of hers to wrap around herself when she sat on the couch with a journal in hand, reading in the evening. Maura had gently tucked Jane in, and smiled when Jane's lips curved up and she seemed to snuggle into it in her sleep. She hadn't noticed it was gone until the next evening, when she'd come home from work, and Jane had gone back to her apartment. Maura had sat on her couch, journal in her lap, but she couldn't find her favourite blanket.

And here it was, at Jane's place, on her bed. Picking it up, Maura couldn't help taking a deep breath, noticing that the blanket smelt like Jane. It smelt wonderful.

Coming back out into Jane's living room, she rounded the couch and knelt next to the sleeping detective. She gently laid the blanket over her body, tucking in the corners like last time. Jane didn't stir, locked in a deep sleep. Maura let out a soft laugh, as she took in Jane's face. She looked like an adorable, miserable chipmunk, with her cheeks puffed up like that.

And Maura couldn't help it.

She leaned in, and, gently, kissed Jane' forehead, smoothing some unruly tangles away from her face. With a smile on her face, she whispered back.

"Always."