I don't own Rizzoli and Isles, but I wish I did.
A/N: Thank you for all the reviews, follows, and faves! I've tried to work in some of y'all's suggestions in where I can. I'm sorry that this is a little shorter and has taken longer than I'd like to get to you. Enjoy!
R & I R & I R & I
After Jane and Maura returned to Maura's house from the hospital, Jane had received a text from Korsak requesting that she and Maura come in early to school to write their statements about the fight. Morning arrived, and Maura dragged a grumpy Jane into work at an ungodly hour. The doctor argued that they their early arrival was necessary for the two of them since they had to leave their classes so abruptly yesterday.
Grumbling, Jane agreed that Maura was right. She needed to see if the sub, who covered her classes had followed her lesson plans. Most time they do; if not, then she would have to do some damage control. Jane made a mental note to say a thank you if a teacher ended up losing his or her planning period to help her out. She'd get them a Starbucks gift card or something in gratitude.
The two women entered Korsak's office where he was already waiting for them. The older man slid two witness reports across the desk for the women to complete. Once finished, Korsak directed the two women to come behind his desk to view his computer monitor.
"Alright Jane, Maura. On the monitor I have the recording of yesterday's fight. I'd like to go through the footage with the two of you. I have the fight on a couple of different cameras and angles. Let's take a look."
The two women watched as the altercation from the day before played on the monitor. Jane cringed when she saw the fist connect with her mouth. Maura gasped; she hadn't seen Jane get injured. The doctor only saw Jane after the fact.
Korsak clicked his mouse to pause the footage. "Ok, here, Jane. Bryant Stewart here in the red shirt was the instigator in the fight, and William Bradford is in gray. According to the footage, William appears to be defending himself. Do you agree that he is acting in self defense?" Korsak turned in his seat as he questioned the brunette.
Jane thought back to the fight. "Yes, I'd agree with that."
"Ok, good. Now, if we watch the tape, you can Bryant strike you. Do you believe that was intentional? I ask because witnesses did state that he called you a derogatory name and tried to get out of your grip after doing so."
"The punch was thrown before she insulted me. Honestly, I think he punched me because he's got lousy aim," Jane chuckled hoping to ease a little of the tension. It did.
"Can you play that again, Vince?" Maura leaned in close to the screen and to Jane. The blonde's perfume was making Jane heady.
Once Korsak replayed the footage, Maura gave her assessment. "I agree with Jane. The punch wasn't intentionally thrown at Jane, but the insult was."
"Thank you, both." Korsak tapped the table before standing. "Let me talk with Mr. Talbert about the next step. Since a teacher was injured in the fight, it makes this situation a whole lot messier."
The couple exited the office and ran into the last person Jane wanted to see at the moment: her mother.
"Janie! Oh my poor baby!" The worried woman wrapped her daughter in a tight hug before taking the brunette's face in her hands.
Angela meticulously studied her daughter's face trying to assess the damage.
"You know, I'd fuss at you for getting yourself hurt, but you did help that young man from getting pummeled. I saw the tapes, Janie. He could've been really hurt." Angela said affectionately before releasing Jane.
Shocked, Jane thought she had actually avoided a scolding from her mother, but she was wrong. Angela smacked her daughter across the shoulder before launching into her tirade. "Now, it would have been nice if you let your poor mother know that you had been injured and went to the hospital! How's a mother supposed to feel when she doesn't know how badly her baby was hurt! Thank God for Maura! At least she cares enough to keep me from worrying." Angela caught the blonde off guard when she wrapped her arms around the woman and squeezed her tightly. "Thank you for texting me and calling me yesterday."
"Of course, Angela," the doctor squeaked out as Angela released her.
Jane knew her mother wasn't finished. "You should be more like Maura, Jane. She's so thoughtful!"
The brunette rolled her eyes. "Fine, Ma. Next time I get a busted lip from being in a fight, you'll be the first to know."
Angela narrowed her eyes at her daughter before responding, "Thank you. I just worry; you know that."
Jane softened, "I know, Ma. Now, Maura and I should get going." To Angela's surprise, Jane gave her mother a quick squeeze before she grabbed Maura by the hand and dragged her in the direction of door.
Still thrown off by her daughter's unsolicited affection, Angela called out, "Ok, sweetie. Don't forget dinner this Saturday!" The traditional Sunday dinner had been moved to Saturday on account of spring break and an upcoming surprise Jane had planned for Maura.
"We won't!" Jane barely finished the words before the door shut behind the couple.
"Phew! I thought we'd never make it out of there." Jane dramatically sagged her shoulders in relief.
Maura chuckled as she scolded the overdramatic woman, "Jane, she loves you. Be nice."
"I know, but you didn't have to grow up with that woman as your mother." Jane released Maura's hand and draped her arm across the blonde's shoulders. "Thank you for letting her know by the way."
The doctor snuggled into brunette's side before replying, "Anything for you, Jane."
Jane tried grinning at the doctor, but hissed in pain as the stitches pulled at her lip.
Maura's brow knitted in concern before relaxing into a smile when a marvelous idea came to mind. "Let's go to my classroom before the kids get here. I'll kiss it and make it feel better."
"Doctor's orders?" Jane smirked at the grinning blonde.
Maura smiled lecherously and winked at the brunette, "Doctor's orders."
R & I R & I R & I
"Are you sure you don't want to press charges?" Korsak asked as he removed his glasses setting them down on the paperwork before him.
Jane ran her tongue along the inside of her lip. It was still pretty swollen and the stitches snagged her tongue. "I'm sure."
"After speaking with Mr. Talbert, We will pursue the total 180 day suspension then for his assault intentional or not against you," Korsak scribbled in his notes.
"Umm, Korsak. I never bothered to ask. What was the fight about in the first place?"
Korsak shook his head; the entire affair disgusted him. "Apparently, Bryant's girlfriend had sent a Snapchat to William, and he didn't like it."
"You're fucking kidding me. I got a busted lip over that!" Jane was pissed, but she wasn't going to change her mind about filing charges because of it.
Maura didn't bother to scold Jane for her language. Truth be told, she believed the situation warranted it. "Jane, sweetie, calm down." The doctor placed a soothing hand on the agitated women's forearm.
Korsak couldn't help his curiosity, so he had to ask, "Jane, why aren't you filing charges?"
Jane slowly exhaled before answering, "He's a dumbass kid, who made a mistake. If I file assault charges, that follows him straight out of high school. He'll have baggage before he even makes it to the real world. He has already screwed up his chances of graduating on time because of this. Shit, if I hadn't gotten hurt, he'd probably have gotten two weeks of out of school suspension. But the ugly truth is that he did strike me, so he must pay some consequence. I think the 180 days is fair."
The brunette's explanation didn't surprise Korsak; he would have done the same thing if he was in her shoes.
Korsak laid down his pen before addressing the couple again. "Ok, then. Thank you, both."
Before the two women could leave, Korsak called out, "Oh, and Jane?"
"Yeah, Korsak?" Jane stopped turning back to answer the older man.
"After work tonight, let me buy you and Maura a drink," Korsak smiled warmly at the two women.
Jane glanced at Maura who tacitly approved, "That sounds amazing, Korsak."
R & I R & I R & I
"Jane, I'm so glad you wanted to come here with me," the blonde happily squealed as she bounced up the stairs of Boston's planetarium.
The two women entered a large room with a domed ceiling and large movie theatre style seats. In the middle of the room sat the intricate projector that would change the walls into outer space.
"Where you wanna sit, Maura?" Jane's hand rested on the small of the doctor's back. She wasn't really sure what direction she was supposed to go.
Maura scanned the empty seats for the perfect vantage point for the upcoming show. "Let's sit in the middle of that outer ring. We should be able to see very well from there."
Once the two women were situated in their seats, Jane snaked her fingers through the blonde's, and leaned comfortably back in her chair.
"Tell me, Maura, why the planetarium?" Jane's broad grin caused the blonde to giggle.
Maura was downright giddy!
The doctor closed her eyes as she summoned old childhood memories. "As a child, Jane, I loved science."
Jane interrupted, "No, really? Maura Isles loved science?" She finished off her remark with a smirk and a wink.
Maura's eyes twinkled at the incorrigible brunette before she continued, "When my mother and father realized that science was my passion, they took me everywhere they could to foster this love. For this reason, my parents took me to visit museums all over the world. Mother obviously espoused the beauty of science found in the creative arts, so she did her part taking me places like the Louvre or Musée d'Orsay. Father prefered to take me to places where I could expand my scientific knowledge by experiencing it firsthand. Visiting this planetarium is an example of his efforts."
The doctor shifted in her seat to fit more comfortably into the brunette's side. "If we were in the country, we'd visit the observatory at least twice a year, once in the summer and once in the winter. This allowed us to see the movement of the constellations over the course of the year."
Maura continued to gush, "Did you know, Jane. That the word constellation comes from the Latin con meaning together and stella meaning stars?" Maura sighed in contentment. She loved Latin and etymology.
Jane chuckled, "That makes sense."
"Thank you, Jane." The doctor's eyes twinkled affectionately.
"For what, Maur?" Jane's puzzled expression told Maura that she needed to elaborate.
"Wanting to know more about my childhood. It means a great deal to me." Maura said softly with a slight tremor in her voice.
"I know," Jane smiled warmly before raising Maura's hand to her lips in a sweet kiss.
After showing Maura so many American high school experiences, Jane realized her efforts were all a little one-sided. The brunette didn't know much about Maura's childhood, and she kicked herself for not learning more about her amazing girlfriend's past. Jane resolved to change that, so that's the reason behind the evening's foray into science.
"Oh, it's beginning!" Maura was practically vibrating in her seat as she squeezed Jane's hand tightly in excitement.
For the next hour, the two women experienced the beauty of our solar system in realistically breathtaking images. Jane had to admit; it was pretty damn cool. Shit, she even enjoyed the science lessons that accompanied the presentation. Admittedly, her favorite lessons came from the genius woman beside her.
By the end of the hour, the two women happily left the planetarium to ascend the steps to the observatory.
The weather that night was pleasantly warm, which allowed the women to really enjoy the opportunity to stargaze.
The doctor happily regaled Jane with facts about the stars and constellations, so Jane decided to encourage the blonde to share more trivia. Maura lived for trivia.
Jane pointed out a constellation to Maura. "Isn't that the Big DIpper?"
"Yes!" Maura's hundred watt smile could have lit up the night sky. "Did you know that the Big Dipper isn't really a constellation?"
"How so, Maura?" Jane encouraged the blonde to continue; the brunette loved nothing more than to watch Maura get excited about science.
"Well, it is actually an asterism, which means it's a pattern of stars that are easily recognizable. It's a part of the larger constellation, Ursa Major. In Latin, that translates into Big Bear."
Jane nodded her head coaxing the doctor to continue..
"The constellation Ursa Major has been used for thousands of years to help travelers find the star, Polaris. Polaris is best known as the North Star."
Now genuinely interested Jane questioned the doctor, "So, why the name Big Dipper?"
"In the 1800s during the Underground Railroad, runaway slaves would use it to find the North Star. You see," Maura pointed at the grouping of stars, "the handle of the Dipper points directly to the North Star."
"Oh, I can see that." Jane was thoroughly impressed.
After a moment of gazing at the heavens, Jane broke the silence. "You know, Maura, the only constellation that I can readily recognize besides the Big Dipper is Orion's belt."
"Really, Jane? It is beautiful and easy to identify, which is why so many people love it." The doctor was excited to learn something previously unknown to her about the feisty Italian.
Jane could see the stars reflected in the doctor's eyes, "It's always been special to me," Jane wrapped her arms around Maura from behind before directing her attention to the night sky."
"When I was a little girl, I was very close to my Nonna and would spend countless summer days with her. She's the one who taught me to play the piano." Jane was lost in her memories and didn't realize that she had mentioned her Nonna's role in her musical education.
The brunette's admission surprised the doctor, but she left the remark alone. Maura wanted so badly for the brunette to play again, but she knew that pushing Jane might make her shut down.
"I was devastated when she died." Jane felt the tears prickle her eyes, but she continued, "Since I was only eight, I had a difficult time coping with the loss."
Maura squeezed Jane closer to her body to offer support.
"So, Ma took me outside and told me to look at the night sky. She pointed to the constellation of Orion's Belt and told me that Nonna was sitting on his belt watching out for me. If I ever wanted to talk to her, I just needed to look at the night sky, and she'd be there."
Tears trickled down both women's faces as Jane recounted her childhood memory.
"Granted, when the constellation was no longer in the sky, Ma said Nonna headed south for a vacation, but she was still looking out for me." Jane laughed as she recounted Angela's effort to explain eight-years-old Jane's question of where the constellation went in the summer.
"Although it's silly and not scientifically sound (Jane squeezed Maura, so she knew she was teasing), it still gives me comfort. Anytime someone special to me passes away, I figure they're up there partying with Nonna."
This made the two women chuckle, and Maura turned in Jane's arms to face the brunette.
"I love you, Jane. Thank you for sharing that with me," Maura gently kissed the side of Jane's mouth without the stitches.
"I love you, too, and thank you for sharing tonight with me, Maur. I will never tire of learning about the enigma, who is Maura Isles. You are an extraordinary woman, and I'm so lucky to have you in my life." Jane winked at the blushing blonde. "Now, tell me some more about that star over there." Jane pointed to an especially bright star.
"Well…"
The two women continued to stargaze until the observatory closed for the night.
R & I R & I R & I
Knock! Knock! Knock!
"Maura, would you get that? I bet it's the pizza guy!" Jane called out from Maura's bedroom where she was currently in search of her favorite Red Sox t-shirt. She had a sneaking suspicion that Maura had purloined it.
"Of course, Jane," Maura called back and deposited her wine glass on a coaster.
The doctor unlocked the door, and lo and behold a smiling Constance Isles stood before her.
"Mother! What are you doing here? You're not supposed to arrive until Thursday!"
Here it was Sunday evening, and her mother was already there to spend time with her.
Jane emerged from Maura's bedroom and greeted Constance warmly, "Hey, Constance. How was your flight?"
"It was wonderful, Jane, I managed to miss the bad weather leaving Barcelona." Constance stepped into Maura's foyer.
"Where's your luggage?" Jane looked around the artist for her suitcases.
Behind the older woman, the driver of the car she hired was busily unloading her luggage from the trunk.
"Arnold is unloading them as we speak," Constance explained.
Jane slid past the older woman. "I'll go get them for you and put them in guesthouse if you like?"
Constance smiled warmly at the helpful woman, "Thank you, Jane. That would be lovely."
Maura watched the exchange between the two women in utter bewilderment. Did she miss something?
The usually articulate doctor addressed her mother, "Mother, how did you? When did you? I'm confused."
Constance wrapped the blonde in a delicate hug before kissing both her cheeks. "Darling, Jane and I have been planning this surprise for quite some time. Come, let's sit." Constance pointed at the empty couch in the living room.
Maura's head finally cleared once the two sat down. "Oh! Forgive me, Mother! Would you like something to drink?"
The artist glanced at the half full glass of wine resting on Jane's coffee table. "I'll have whatever you're having, darling," the older woman smiled, "but, first, let's talk about why I'm here."
Maura's face betrayed her apprehension.
"Maura, it is nothing terrible. You see, your wonderful girlfriend and I decided that we should spend more than a few days together." Constance's face split into an excited yet elegant grin.
"I am taking you to upstate New York for the next several days where we can do whatever you'd like to do. I'm all yours for the next week!"
"Really!? Just you and I?" Maura's excitement rivaled a kindergartner's on Christmas day, but then she remembered Jane.
"Wait, what about Jane?" The blonde said to herself more than her mother.
"What about me?" The side door opened and shut as the beautiful Italian entered the kitchen.
"Where will you be going for spring break?" Although excited to have all this time with her mother, Maura felt terribly for ditching her girlfriend for the entire break.
Jane settled into the chair adjacent to the couch, "Frankie and I will be visiting Tommy in Florida for the next several days. We're going to work on getting him back to Boston permanently. We had planned to visit this summer, but Tommy called and invited us to come now. He's sick of working with Pop."
"When are you leaving?" The realization that Jane and she would be apart for nearly a week began to settle in, and Maura couldn't completely hide the sad tone in her voice.
Am I really stressing out about being away from my girlfriend for almost a week? I'm as bad as my students!
"Not until late tomorrow. We're going to catch a flight and get there that night." Jane moved to sit next to the blonde.
Constance was enjoying the interchange between the two women. They behaved like two lovestruck teenagers.
"Ok," Maura turned to Constance, "Mother, is it alright if Jane spends the night since she's leaving tomorrow?"
Constance downright cackled, "Maura! You're a grown woman, and this is your own house! You don't have to ask your mother for permission for your girlfriend to spend the night."
The doctor's cheeks flushed bright red. "You're right. I don't, do I?" Maura giggled at how ridiculous she sounded.
Jane snickered beside the blonde, and this earned the brunette a jab in the ribs.
"Hey! Ow! I didn't say anything." Jane tried defending herself. She quickly hopped out of reach of Maura's offending finger.
The trio laughed and sat chatting long enough for them to finish a bottle of wine and eat the pizza they ordered.
Sighing, Constance stood from the couch. "Darling, I would really love to stay up and chat, but I am exhausted. Forgive me for retiring so abruptly. I'll let you and Jane spend some time together before she leaves tomorrow."
Maura didn't see the wink Constance threw at Jane. The brunette blushed scarlet. She knew exactly what Constance was insinuating.
"Of course, Mother." Then the thought struck her. "Oh my! I haven't even prepared the guesthouse!"
Jane reassured the doctor, "Don't worry, Maur'. Even though it was spotless before, I made sure to clean if for you. Fresh sheets are on the bed and clean towels are in the bathroom."
"Thank you, Jane." The brunette's thoughtfulness astounded the doctor.
Constance smiled warmly. "Good night, dear. Good night, Jane. I will see you in the morning."
The soft click of the side door closing told the women they were alone.
Maura couldn't help feeling pitiful about the couple's upcoming separation. "I'm going to miss you, Jane." The doctor wrapped her arms around the brunette's middle and buried herself into Jane's side.
"Aw! I'll miss you, too. Come here," Jane scooped Maura up into her lap.
Maura sighed in contentment. "When will you be back?"
Jane nuzzled her nose in the blonde's hair relishing how soft it felt.
"I'll be back Friday night. I figured that would give me a full day to spend with you and your mother before she leaves on Sunday. That means you and I have all Sunday together...alone." Jane's voice dipped into the low register that Maura couldn't resist.
Maura moved her body to straddle the brunette. "I need to thank you for convincing my mother to visit sooner." Maura purred, "So, why don't I start now?"
The doctor grinned lecherously as she removed her sweater and exposed the shirt underneath.
That's where my Red Sox shirt went! I knew it!