Maura danced around the common room in a chequered apron and yellow rubber gloves, radio blasting as she scrubbed every available surface with commercial grade disinfectant.
"I don't know what this is, but you got me good, just like I knew you would," she belted into her scrubbing brush microphone.
Finals were over, she was moving to her own place, and she was going to medical school. She swayed her hips, perhaps not hitting the high notes as well as Duffy, but absolutely matching the singer's energy. She spun around in an impressive pirouette, then almost fell over in surprise when she saw Jane in the doorway, doubled over with laughter, biting down on her fist to keep quiet.
Maura's face went bright red. "How long have you been standing there?" she asked, mortified.
"Long enough to know I can't wait to take you to a karaoke bar," Jane said, cackling.
Maura flicked some suds at her. Jane, dressed in shorts and a tank top for the August sunshine, flexed her muscles and looked around.
"What do you want me to start with?"
She was here to help Maura move. In true Maura style, everything was in neatly labelled boxes, stacked in uniform 3-box towers.
Maura took off her gloves and apron to reveal a blue flowery sundress, and joined Jane at the boxes.
"We should start with the mattress, then the boxes closest to the door."
Jane headed to the bedroom. "I'm gonna miss it in here," she said, looking around at the now-empty room. All trace of Maura had been removed.
"I'm sure it's much the same as any other college bedroom," Maura said.
"Don't tell me you're not even a little sentimental about the first place we… You know?"
"The first place we had sexual intercourse?"
"Jeez, way to be romantic, Maur."
"Well, isn't that what you meant?"
"I guess, but I didn't mean it like how you said it. You really don't feel anything about leaving?"
Maura shrugged. "I'm keeping the mattress."
Jane groaned. "It's not the same. It's not about the thing, exactly. It's about, like, the place, in the world. This place, these coordinates," she gestured vaguely, "were where we first, you know, connected in that way. And after today, we're never gonna be here again."
Maura paused. She had been about to comment that many other people had probably 'connected' in exactly the same place before them, and surely would afterwards, but she realised this really did mean something to Jane, and it seemed to hurt Jane to think she didn't care.
"For me," she said, choosing her words carefully, "it's not about the geographical location. It's about the person. You. And I don't mind leaving, because I know you're coming with me."
Jane looked at Maura, surprised by the emotion she had just displayed. Jane knew Maura felt deeply, but she didn't often talk about it. Jane slid her arm around Maura's waist and pulled her into a hug.
"I'd follow you anywhere," she murmured.
The radio was still playing in the other room, and it was at this moment the DJ chose to begin blaring 'I Kissed A Girl,' which was so out of sync with the moment that Maura burst into giggles.
"Come on, Maur, I was trying to be so romantic," Jane said, but she was already laughing as well.
Still chortling, they lifted the mattress and hauled it out to Jane's father's van.
BREAK
Maura wasn't sure what made her choose a playlist from 2008, but as she wiped down the kitchen counters, risotto simmering on the stove, she couldn't help singing along with Duffy.
"You think you're loving but I want to be free," she crooned, laying out plates on the table.
She'd styled her hair and put a dress on after swimming, but her feet were tired so she danced around the room in bare feet. She'd been planning to step into her heels when Jane arrived, but she had her hands full of cutlery when she heard the doorbell, and shoes slipped her mind as she rushed to open it.
"You're right on time," she said, pulling open the door with a smile.
"You weren't kidding about the pillars," Jane said. "Here, I brought wine. And dessert."
She handed Maura the bottle of wine, M&Ms, and a pack of blueberries. Maura grinned, and Jane got a warm, fuzzy feeling which spread right to the tips of her fingers.
"Dinner's almost ready, come on in," Maura said, leading the way to the kitchen. Jane closed the door behind her.
It was surprisingly different from Maura's Boston apartment. Jane felt the Kensington house had less warmth, somehow. It had art and sculptures and expensive, comfortable looking furniture. But the apartment had been softer, cosier.
Still, Jane could genuinely tell Maura she had a beautiful home, and Maura smiled at the compliment. As Maura finished preparing dinner, Jane took in her form-fitting blue dress, wavy hair, and bare feet. The music was still playing, and Jane watched the way Maura swayed her hips to 'You Can't Play on Broken Strings', humming along to the tune.
"God, this brings back memories," Jane said, kicking off her own shoes.
Maura brought two plates of risotto to the table and poured out some wine.
"I was going to turn it off while we ate, but I can leave it, if you like."
"Nah, turn it off before I start singing too."
"You only sing in the car," Maura said, taking a seat and picking up her fork. "And the shower," she added.
"Whereas you always sing around the house. Especially when you're cleaning. And you use whatever's in your hand as a microphone, and do crazy dance moves when you think no one's looking."
"Six years of ballet," Maura justified.
"So worth it. Remember when you taught me how to do that spinny thingy?"
"Do you mean a pirouette?"
"Uh-huh. Your singing made me think of it, it was when we were moving your stuff from the dorms to your apartment-"
"-and the landlord was late with the key! But your dad needed the van back, so we had to unload everything in the street."
"You were stressed, as I recall."
Maura grimaced. "I wanted to be so grown up and independent, and I'd prepared for the move so carefully. I felt bad, it was such a hot day, you'd given up your day off to help me, and we were just sitting there."
"Yup, until my amazing idea," Jane said proudly.
BREAK
Maura sat on the stairs outside the building, feeling a sweat patch develop at the back of her dress. Suddenly, Jane jumped up from her spot beside her, and stood on the sidewalk next to the heap of Maura's belongings they'd had to unload from the van.
"How did you do that spinning thing before?" she asked, attempting it.
She got up on her toes, but when she tried to turn, she over-did the push and toppled over backwards. Luckily, she fell right onto the mattress. Maura snickered, her anxiety dissipating rapidly as she watched Jane's exaggeratedly clumsy attempts to get up.
She went over to her, holding out a hand to help, but Jane pulled her down instead.
"I'm glad you brought the mattress," Jane said, holding her close.
"Mmm," Maura agreed, but before she could get comfortable, Jane leapt up again.
"Yep, because now you can teach me how to spin like you can!"
Maura sighed. "Fine. But, first things first, it is not a spin, or a spinning thing. It is a pirouette."
BREAK
"You just didn't want me to be better than you at something sport-related," Maura said. "It was entirely self-interested."
"Reckon I can still do it?" Jane asked. "I haven't tried for years."
"Finish your dinner first," Maura advised. "And let me clear away anything breakable."
"Fine. But I was good, and you know it."
"You mastered the technique impressively quickly," Maura conceded. Their food was finished. They sipped their wine, and a roguish glint appeared in Jane's eye.
"You did some more dancing that day," Jane said, a devilish grin spreading across her face.
"No."
"Come on, you're already in the mood for noughties tracks-"
"No," Maura repeated, but she was smiling.
It took Jane about three seconds to figure out how to connect her phone to Maura's bluetooth speaker, and then she was pushing the coffee table out of the way and turning up the volume.
She started with her pirouette, which Maura had to admit, was impressive, then skipped to the song Maura knew was coming. She held out a hand.
"For old time's sake?" Jane asked, giving her best puppy eyes.
Maura downed the rest of her wine and stepped onto Jane's makeshift dance floor to Flo Rida and T-Pain's 'Low'.
BREAK
Beer in one hand, Jane hoisted the coffee table back into place with the other, then flopped onto the couch and reached for the bag of M&Ms on Maura's lap.
"You're way too good to pretend you haven't danced like that since 2008," Jane said, breathless and slightly accusing.
"I haven't," Maura protested. "But I do practise squats several times a week at the gym."
Jane laughed. "Of course you do. Do you still have abs?"
Maura tensed them under her dress. Jane resisted the temptation to touch, and swigged her beer instead. Maura was on beer too - they'd finished the wine, and this was to be their last drink before Jane went home.
"Do you still run?" Maura asked Jane.
"Yup. I like running in London at night," Jane said.
"You used to be very fast."
Jane grinned. "Faster than you, anyway."
Maura rolled her eyes. "Your legs are longer."
"Excuses, excuses."
Maura was tired. Automatically, she leaned her head on Jane's shoulder, just as she had done hundreds of times before. She lifted her legs and tucked her feet under a cushion; Jane noticed the movement and pulled the blanket from the back of the couch around to cover her.
It occurred to each of them how quickly and easily they fitted into old habits. Two days together and it was almost as if the last eight years had never happened.
Jane stood.
"I'd better go," she said quietly. "No, stay there, I'll let myself out," she said as Maura moved to get up as well.
"I need to do the dishes anyway," Maura said.
"Ah, shit, dishes," Jane said, changing course and heading for the table. "I can do them."
"I have a very particular method-" Maura said, already on her way to the sink.
"Rinse, turn the water off, soap, rinse, drip dry, towel dry," Jane listed.
Maura smiled in spite of herself. "Order?"
"Glasses, cups, bowls, plates, cutlery. And you put saucepans to soak at the beginning, then finish them at the end."
Maura chuckled. "You have an impressive memory, I'll give you that."
Jane grinned, then began opening cupboards. "And I bet you'll have, yep, washing up gloves under the sink. On their own hook, separate from your cleaning gloves."
Jane put on the gloves and made as if to start.
"You've forgotten something," Maura told her.
Jane slapped her head. "Of course! The apron. Which will be… Hanging on the back of the kitchen door. Ta-dah!"
She put it on, although Maura had to tie it for her because of the gloves. Maura fetched herself a tea towel to dry the dishes, but then Jane disappeared into the hallway.
"You already remembered everything," Maura said, confused.
Jane reappeared holding up Maura's slippers, which she'd found in the shoe rack.
"I thought your feet might be cold," she said, handing them over.
Maura put them on gratefully, and they began washing up. Jane suggested they put the music back on.
"Alexa, play 'You Make Me Feel Like Dancing'," Maura directed.
"God, so cheesy," Jane teased, but she danced along to the song all the same.
"You pick the next one," Maura suggested.
"Alright, if we're doing cheesy. Alexa," Jane said, mimicking Maura's tone, "play 'Can't Take My Eyes Off You'."
Alexa obliged, and Jane sang alone as she washed their plates.
"This makes me think of 10 Things I hate About You," Maura said.
"You made us watch that movie so many times," Jane said. "And every time we did you turned it into a Shakespeare study."
"It's a fascinating adaptation of The Taming of the Shrew," Maura said passionately.
"I know. Because you told me. Many, many times. But I maintain that you only like it so much because you love the idea of someone singing to you on the bleachers."
"It's romantic," Maura defended.
"It's ridiculous. People never do things like that in real life."
"Fiction doesn't always have to replicate real life."
"Oh, really, Miss I-can't-watch-that-movie-if-the-science-isn't-a-million-percent-accurate?"
"Doctor," Maura corrected. "And there's no such thing as a million percent."
Jane flicked a splash of water at her. "Wanna watch it now?" she suggested.
"You were leaving," Maura reminded her.
Jane misunderstood. "Oh, sure, I didn't mean… I'll go."
She took off the gloves and apron and began putting them away.
"No," Maura tried to explain, "I mean, I'd love to watch the movie. But I thought you wanted to go, you were going to leave before we started the dishes."
Jane hung up the apron and turned back to Maura.
"Alexa," she called out, "play 'I Want You To Want Me'."
BREAK
Notes:
Thank you for reading! I have a couple of questions which I'd love your answers to in the reviews:
Does the timeline make sense? I'm sure you get that it's a mix of present and past, but I'd like to know what you think about the memories being non-chronological. My idea is that, like real memories, they pop up, with varying levels of detail, when they link to the present, which works in my head, but does it work for you?
This chapter had a lot of music references - do you like those? If you didn't know the songs, did you have enough to go on to find them if you wanted to? Also, if there's a song you'd like me to work in, feel free to let me know.