I don't own Rizzoli and Isles, but I wish I did.
A/N: I am incredibly sorry for taking so long to update. It's a crazy time of year for teachers, and free time is at a premium. I appreciate you sticking with me. I know this chapter is kind of shorter than usual, but I'll make up for it in the next :) Mistakes are mine. Enjoy !
P.S. There is some bad language in this chapter.
"C'mon, Maura. Pick up the damn phone." Jane huffed. She had already tried three times that evening to get a hold of the out of pocket blonde. She was growing increasingly agitated. To be fair, Jane would've have been more patient had it not been for the big blow up with her Pop earlier that afternoon.
Jane, Frankie, and Tommy were enjoying a Red Sox game on Tommy's tv until Frank Sr. made an impromptu visit. The older man had no idea that all three of his children were in town. Tommy had invited Jane and Frankie that week because he thought Frank was out of town on business. Frank instructed Tommy to stay in town to cover the other appointments he had made for the week.
Apparently, Frank had finished his business early.
The knocking on Tommy's door startled the trio from their rowdy cheering.
"Uh, hey, Pop," the youngest Rizzoli managed to mumble before Frank strode into the apartment.
"Tommy, what's the sco-" Frank stopped in his tracks. "Janie. Frankie. What are you doing here?"
Frank's tone was a mixture of surprise, confusion, and agitation. The last time he saw his oldest children, the visit hadn't ended well. Jane was still recovering from her injury, and Frank had the audacity to come visit her with his bimbo girlfriend. The shock of her father's insensitivity set Jane back emotionally during her recovery.
"Hi, Pop." Jane was the first to respond. The brunette threw a "what the hell" look at Tommy. The youngest Rizzoli was equally surprised. Jane and Frankie hadn't seen the man in over ten years. Time hadn't been kind to him.
Tommy intervened and tried to prevent the argument that was about to explode. "They're visiting for spring break. I thought you were out of town."
"I finished my work early. I'll leave." Frank Sr. turned on his wheel to leave.
Frankie, ever the peacemaker, stopped his father. "Uh, Pop. You're welcome to stay and watch the game."
Apprehensively, Frankie glanced at Jane. Her face was unreadable. For her part, she tried to let go of her anger over the years, and she thought now would be a good chance to try.
The afternoon went well until Tommy let it slip that he was leaving Florida. "Shit, watching this on tv is nothing like seeing it in person. We can do that all the time when I move back."
As soon as the words left his mouth, Tommy knew he had made a big mistake. This was not the time or place to bring up the topic of his move.
"What do you mean, move back to Boston! Your place is here, Tommy." Frank Sr. smacked his hand on the arm of Tommy's sofa.
"What kind of work will you do? Good luck finding someone to hire you."
The ferocity that comes from seeing a younger sibling dumped on spurred Frankie to jump to Tommy's defense.
"Geez, lay off, Pop!" Frankie's usually relaxed countenance was twisted up in agitation. "Janie and I want him to come back to Boston to work with us."
"You're barely competent enough to work with me let alone teach!" Frank Sr. completely ignored Frankie and rounded on Tommy.
"What the hell, Pop!?" Jane came to Tommy's defense fuming at his father's behavior.
"You!" Frank Sr. pointed a meaty finger at his first child. "This is all your fucking fault!"
Jane's voice raised an octave in disbelief, "My fault!?" Jane was rubbing her wrist clearly agitated with the course this conversation was taking.
"Yeah, if it weren't for you, Frankie could be working for some business or, shit, a law firm earning a helluva lot more money than he is now! Frankie, you've always wanted to be just like Janie. I just wish you would have grown a pair for once! At least you didn't try to be some fucking cop."
Frank Sr., who had at one time been a loving father and husband, had allowed the years to twist him into a cynical hateful old man.
"Damn it, look at my family. I worked my ass off to try and give you the best life possible, so you could go to college and make something of yourselves. Now look at you!" Frank sneered and focused on Jane.
She was once his favorite, but her subsequent coming out quickly changed that. When Angela discovered Jane and her friend in bed together, she was shocked for obvious reasons, and it took days before either woman felt comfortable addressing what happened. Ultimately in the end, Angela's love for her daughter superseded any doubts or misgivings. Angela was a smart woman and agreed with Jane that revealing her sexuality to her father while in high school might not be the best idea. For this reason, Angela kept Jane's sexuality from Frank and resolved to stand by her daughter no matter the cost. Jane deserved to tell Frank when she was ready.
Once Frank found out that Angela had been keeping Jane's sexuality from him for years at their daughter's request, his love turned to disgust. He justified Angela's protection of Jane as his reason for leaving his family and cheating on her.
Over the years, Tommy and Frank reconciled, which was the reason for Tommy's move after he got sober. Frank offered him a job and a chance to start over. Although they tried to dissuade him, Tommy decided to make the move anyway.
"What do you mean look at us!?" Tommy shouted back.
"C'mon, Tommy don't you see it?" Frank saw red. "You're brother and sister earn next to nothing and are wasting their talent working with little shits every day, and you're just some ex-drunk who works with his father because he can't do anything else!"
"Shut the fuck up, Pop." Jane growled through clenched teeth. She stood from the couch, stalked over to the door, and flung it open. "Say whatever you want to me, but don't mock Tommy's sobriety. Get out!" Jane's eyes flashed at the man she once idolized.
Frank Sr. looked to Tommy expecting him to yell at his sister for having the audacity to kick him out of his own apartment.
"You heard her. Get out." Tommy's steely gaze left no room for argument.
With no other choice, Frank Sr. stormed out of Tommy's apartment and his children's lives again.
R & I R & I R & I
Jane angrily pressed the button to end the call and typed out a quick message. The brunette's frustration and anger got the better of her, so she unintentionally took it out on the blonde.
J: Maura, it would be nice if you picked up your damn phone for once!
Jane tossed her phone down on the bed. Tommy only had a one-bedroom apartment with a couch that had seen better days; the older siblings opted to stay at a nearby hotel instead.
"Jane, she's probably out with her mother. Maybe they went to a museum or something." Frankie calmly reasoned. He knew what happened when Jane got worked up enough. His mind flicked back to the fight the two women had about that Daniel asswipe. He knew this wasn't the same type of situation, but he knew Jane better than anyone else. Maura was a close second, but the man had grown up with the fiery Italian.
Jane sunk down on the edge of her bed and dropped her head in her hands. "You're right. Pop just made me so fucking mad. I can't believe that asshole is our father." Frankie swung his legs off his bed to face his sister.
"Yeah, I know. He just proves how amazing Ma is. I can't believe she put up with him," Frankie shook his head sadly. The two siblings knew there must have been a lot more shit that Angela tolerated, but she kept it all from them. Angela really was a selfless woman.
The brunette audibly sighed, "You're right. Let's just get Tommy out of here as soon as we can. He's definitely on Pop's shit list now, so financially, I'm not sure how much longer he can hold out here. Pop needs him right now until he finds someone else. Granted, I bet Pop will avoid talking and seeing Tommy as much as possible. Did you get a chance to talk to Tommy about his finances?"
"Yeah, he should be good for awhile, but I'll help him with the move with some money I've saved up," Frankie offered.
"I've got money saved up, too. Until he gets his feet on the ground, he can live with Ma. I know she'll love it." Jane chuckled.
"Poor Tommy," Frankie laughed.
A buzzing phone interrupted the two.
"That's probably Maura. I've got some asskissing to do." Jane grimaced and grabbed the phone from its spot on the bed.
Jane swiped the phone to unlock the screen, "Hey, Maur'."
"Hello, Jane. I picked up the damn phone." Maura's smooth voice carried over the line.
Shit.
The Italian winced; she should have never sent that text. "Umm, yeah. Sorry about that," Jane replied lamely. She knew she was in trouble.
"I'm sorry that I didn't answer the phone. Mother and I were attending the opera." Maura explained cooly. This trip was the first real separation the two women have had, and the situation made them a little irritable.
Frankie grabbed his sneakers and wallet, motioning that he was going to get a beer down at the bar. Jane mouthed a silent thank you.
Returning her attention to the doctor, Jane answered contritely. "I'm sorry, Maura. I was an ass. I had a shitty day and took it out on you. I just miss you."
Maura sighed softly, releasing her frustration in one cleansing breath.
"I've missed you, too." Maura slipped off her heels and perched on the edge of the bed. "Now tell me. Why did you have such a bad day? I thought you, Frankie, and Tommy were were watching the Red Sox match?"
"Game, Maura, game," Jane smirked and stood to get a bottle of water from the mini-fridge.
"You knew what I meant," Maura laughed softly. "Now, tell me what went wrong."
The aggravated Italian proceeded to relate the day's verbal altercation very passionately using the most colorful language imaginable. Considering how upset Jane's father made her, Maura refrained from admonishing the brunette for her choice of words. Honestly, the story royally pissed her off.
"As soon as I have a free weekend from track, Frankie and I are going to take a few days off to fly down there and help him move."
"I'd like to help, Jane. Want me to come with you?"
Jane smiled, "I wish you could, but I know AP tests are approaching."
The doctor knew Jane was right. Besides, the two women had to take time off to see the NBA finals. Maura couldn't do both.
The blonde persisted, "There must be something I can do. I know you want to get him out of there soon. Do you mind if I help pay for movers? It would be incredibly helpful and efficient to have people do all the packing for him."
"What!? No, Maura! That's way too much. We couldn't ask you to do that."
"I know, Jane, but I really want to help. Can I at least help enough to have movers do the work?"
"I don't know, Maura. I feel bad asking you." Jane nibbled on her thumbnail.
Maura couldn't help herself, "Badly. You forgot Mr. Adverb again."
"Maura!" Jane whined, "I hate it when you correct me."
"Well, I hate it when you use improper grammar," Maura retorted.
The blonde could hear Jane's snort through the phone.
"We'll talk more about it later, but do you care if we Facetime? I really miss your face." Jane asked softly.
Maura smirked before agreeing. "Of course. Hold on a moment."
A still elegantly dressed Maura Isles filled the screen of Jane's phone. The sight made Jane's heart ache.
"Hey, beautiful. How come you're not ready for bed?" Jane's brow knitted in confusion.
Maura raised an expertly sculpted eyebrow. "I was under the impression that I needed to call you as soon as possible."
"Oh, yeah. Right. Sorry again for being an ass," Jane mumbled.
Maura had switched over to her iPad when she Facetimed Jane. "Do you mind if I change? I'll just prop you up while I undress." Maura winked at the grinning brunette.
"Don't get any ideas, Maura. Frankie's bound to be back any minute now." Jane glanced at the alarm clock on the bedside table. He had been gone half an hour.
The sexy blonde pouted and walked off screen. "Oh, alright."
Jane could hear the rustling of fabric as Maura removed her dress and slipped on her pajamas offscreen. Just to be mean, Maura tossed her sexy underwear onto the bed for Jane to see.
Maura heard, "Not cool, Maura!" blare through the speaker of the iPad as she came back into view.
Before Jane came into her life, Maura would never have dreamed of wearing a t-shirt, let alone a t-shirt to bed. Now Maura was clothed in one of Jane's old BPD shirts.
"I wondered where that shirt went," Jane smiled and laid back against the pillows of her bed.
The blonde chuckled and pretended to appear confused. "I have no idea how that got in there." Maura brought the shirt to her nose and inhaled its scent. "Mmm, it smells like you."
Maura stretched out on the bed in her room in the suite, mirroring Jane's position.
Jane's twinkling eyes made Maura's heart flutter.
The brunette realized she hadn't even bothered to ask Maura how things with her mother were going
.
"How are you and your mother doing?" Jane casually probed.
As spring break approached and Maura grew increasingly excited about her mother visiting for a few days, Jane knew she had to point Constance in the right direction in order to mend her and Maura's relationship. Consequently, Constance's early arrival and extended visit were both Jane's ideas. Jane went one step further and researched types of "bonding" activities to help the two rebuild a relationship. This included Jane asking Maura random questions about her likes and dislikes and things she'd like to accomplish one day. She then passed the information along to Constance.
Jane also needed Maura to be occupied for spring break because of the necessary trip to Florida. The brunette didn't want Maura to meet Frank Sr. because deep down Jane knew a confrontation with her Pop was inevitable, and she didn't want her girlfriend there to witness it. Sure enough, Jane was right about the confrontation.
Maura hesitated, "We are getting along splendidly, but there are still times when it feels awkward. It's like we're strangers who are getting to know one another instead of mother and daughter."
"There's so much she doesn't know about me," Maura said half to herself and half to Jane.
Maura felt old insecurities and childhood memories of feeling unwanted surface.
Jane sighed, her heart aching for the blonde. "She's trying, Maur. It's not going to be easy for either of you, but she does love you." Jane's eyes softened.
"You're right. She does, otherwise she wouldn't be trying now." Maura softly agreed.
Trying to lighten the mood, Jane decided to redirect the conversation, "So what are some fun (well, at least your kind of fun) stuff you've done?" Jane teased the blonde.
Maura appreciated Jane's attempt to brighten the mood. "Well, this evening we went into the city and saw the production of La Boheme. It was beautifully done; but, that's not the best part."
Jane waited for the blonde to continue allowing her the necessary amount of time needed for dramatic effect.
"Mother and I shared a box with several of our friends. All of whom were incredibly interested in my new career path and the new woman I'm currently dating," Maura smirked at the memory. If she was a little taken aback by the fact that her dating life was common knowledge, then Jane definitely would be.
Jane's raised eyebrows conveyed her surprise. "What did they say, Maura?"
"Only what Mother had told them. You're an amazingly sexy, intelligent, and loving girlfriend." Maura, her voice dipping into a lower register, continued, "Jane, I don't know what you did to make my mother love you so much, but I'm glad you did."
Maura seductively bit her lip. "Remind me to show you how glad I am when we're back together."
"Oh God, Maura, when I get my hands on you I'm gonna," Jane's mind was already reeling with what she planned to do to the good doctor.
"You're going to what, Jane?" Maura ran her hand under her shirt thoroughly enjoying the reaction it evoked in the brunette.
"I'm gonna-" Jane started, but the electric click of a lock and door opening interrupted her.
Frankie called out, "Hey, Jane. You decent?" The younger Rizzoli always checked before entering a room he shared with his sister. The thought of seeing his sister in a state of undress made him cringe.
Jane shook herself from her daze. "Huh? Yeah. I'm good. Just talking to Maura."
From Jane's tone, Frankie knew it was safe to enter. "Oh, ok. I'm going to grab a shower."
Before he disappeared into the bathroom, he called out, "Night, Maura!"
"Good night, Frankie!" Maura's voice happily rang out from Jane's phone.
Rolling her eyes, Jane turned her attention back to the blonde. "I guess we should be getting to bed, huh?"
Maura stifled a yawn as she answered, "It is nearly midnight. I love you, Jane."
Jane caught the doctor's yawn feeling her body suddenly grow incredibly tired. "You're right, I love you. Good night, Maura."
"Good night, Tiger." Maura added with chuckle, and the call ended.
No more than five seconds later, Frankie's head popped out from behind the door.
"Good night, Tiger?" Frankie's grin stretched across his entire face.
Jane summoned her best Jane Rizzoli glare. "Not a word!"
Frankie laughed loudly and retreated to the bathroom again.
The brunette slowly shook her head and offered up a simple prayer.
Please, God. Don't let him tell Ma. I'll never hear the end of it.