It was a normal Wednesday. Jane was at Maura's because she was always at Maura's. Angela was cooking dinner, and Maura said something clever, something that made her eyes shine with laughter, slyly sneaking glances at Jane to make sure she got the joke, to make sure Jane is as pleased with Maura as Maura is with herself, and Jane knows. It's like being shot in the guts, and she staggers from the intensity for a moment.
This nerd, this geeky, nerdy, science-obsessed woman is everything she wants in a partner.
She just hadn't been looking for a woman. She didn't think she wanted anything about a woman, but the memory of Maura's laughter against the shell of her ear, the strength in those arms when Maura held her every time she fell apart, the softness of Maura when she was vulnerable, looking up at Jane to protect her are all things she absolutely cannot live without. She hadn't been looking for a woman, but she's found one. She found her person so long ago, and she hadn't even been looking.
It was overwhelming, and Maura came forward, concern on her face as Jane stepped back again, away from Maura and her soft eyes and even softer mouth, a soft mouth that Jane was unable to look away from. Jane brushed the wall behind her, came to a stop, then stepped forward instead. A lot of things made sense now. Why it hurt when Maura dated such substandard men. Why it felt so good when Maura accidentally fell asleep in Jane's bed, why it felt so good to wake up tangled in Maura. The look on Maura's face told Jane that Maura had already figured all of this out - of course she had, the woman was a genius - and the flash of teeth on Maura's lower lip tells Jane that Maura's nervous too.
"It's ok," Maura said, her voice low, half-reaching a hand toward Jane.
"It is," Jane confirmed, and the anxiety left Maura's face, was replaced with a shy smile Jane had never seen aimed at her. Jane's hand met Maura's halfway. There was a lot they'd need to talk about, a lot they'd need to figure out, but Jane had always loved Maura, and it was going to be ok, even if it was a Wednesday.