Disclaimer: I do not own the Mentalist and would not be foolish enough to claim to.
Jane was still staring at Teresa's back when the sounds of many feet scuffling, and the door to the backyard slamming, interrupted the silence that had fallen between them.
"Food smells great." James huffed, out of breath as he barreled in from the hallway past the washing machine and dryer, with Tommy's arms clutched around his shoulders, laid out on his back, and the both of them laughing. He had a ball he juggled back and forth in his hands.
"Yeah!" Tommy said happily.
Drew hummed in agreement, bouncing in behind them and making a beeline to sniff at the sauce close to his sister. "Is it ready yet?"
"Uh, yeah." A hand gestured up the stairs as the other made it's way into a back pocket. "Dad's home." Teresa's quiet words took the smiles from the faces of all three Lisbon boys immediately. The whole room paused, eyes intent on her.
Tommy, of course, was the first one to speak up. "Is he..." He was watching his big sister closely, like the next thing she said would be the most important thing in the world.
With a shock, Jane straightened and frowned worriedly, suddenly realizing that was probably true. The younger boys had probably learned to rely on Teresa's protection. They'd make themselves scarce if he was drunk, leaving him to the one person who seemed able to handle him. He looked at Teresa's shoulders in wonder, unable to understand how such narrow, frail looking elfin things could bear so much weight.
"He's fine." Voice now gentler, Teresa turned a smile down upon her middle brother as he took her hand. Winding their arms around his small body, she crouched slightly behind him, putting her cheek against his arm.
Jane just watched on in amazement as Drew's tenseness melted away. How had he even ended up here? With someone so warm and caring? With a family?
"He- ah, he even invited Patrick to stay for dinner." She put one knee down for balance and peered upward to meet Jane's gaze. Her eyebrows lifted, asking even as she announced it.
He gave a surreptitious nod. More time with Lisbon? He'd take it, even if it might prove a little hazardous to his health. He really didn't want to insult the patriarch of the Lisbon clan by refusing anyway. That might just be the last straw that broke this unusual truce that held the universe at a standstill.
Teresa next looked at Tommy and James, smiling beseechingly. "Won't that be fun?"
"I'm eating in the garage." James tugged Tommy off his back and set him on the floor. He was ignoring the look the nine year old was giving him, but before he could turn away completely, his sister's bark stopped him in his tracks.
"No, you're not."
He looked back, obviously surprised.
Teresa straightened and gestured to the table. "We're gonna sit and have a nice meal and you're gonna make nice."
The younger boys groaned. "We're sitting?"
One look from Teresa though, and they started scuttling to clear the table without being asked.
Wanting to get out of the line of fire, Jane joined them, still watching the interchange between the two oldest Lisbon children, but from a safe distance.
James opened his mouth, as though to argue. "Reese-"
"He's trying." It came from Teresa's barely moving lips in a fierce, yet hushed whisper. Her eyes shot to Jane for a second and back so quickly, he almost wasn't sure he'd seen it. "The least you could do is try too."
The oldest Lisbon boy appeared torn, jaw tense as he clenched his teeth.
"Please." Teresa spoke the word so quietly, it was barely audible, tipping her head toward Jane in an incomplete glance.
A huff and a growl answered her. "Fine. But the second he starts yelling, I'm out of here." To illustrate, James flung his arm in a rough gesture.
"Thank you." Teresa replied. "Now get the garlic bread out of the oven, will you?"
Grumbling, James stomped his way over to the stove.
Teresa rolled her eyes.
Finally, in between setting down plates Drew had handed to him, Jane managed to catch his Lisbon's full gaze.
She licked her lips, before she stepped closer, drawing him a little to the side into a whispered conversation. Her lips near his ear tickled.
He tried to suppress a shudder and remember to hold onto the plates in his hand at the same time.
"So you can, can't you? Stay, I mean? You don't have to if you don't want to but-"
"I'd love to, Teresa." He answered into her ear, paying her back in kind for effecting him the way she did, grinning at her as he pulled the z into her name the way she liked. The way that made her shiver.
It drew forth both the tremble and the smile he'd been hoping for, before a crumpled brow ruined it. "What about your grandmother?"
"She'll understand." He shrugged, waving that away. "I can use your phone to call her though?"
She nodded to the ancient cord phone hanging on the wall near the back door. "Of course."
He pecked her on the cheek as he hurried by to the phone. It was almost scary how natural the motion felt, even if it was the first kiss they'd shared since their lips had locked the night of their first dinner together.
Her hand trailed off his arm reluctantly, too stunned to move or care.
It made him smirk as he picked up the phone and dialed.
Mrs. Ruskin, when Elsa handed over the phone to her, sounded delighted that he was getting to know Teresa's family. "You be sure to make a good first impression, Patrick. All right? It's good that you're spending time there, but pointless if you alienate Teresa's family. They seem awfully important to her."
She probably wouldn't be so glad about this if she knew what Lisbon's father was like, but he didn't feel the need to clue her in. Jane listened as she warned him to be home before it got too late, before he assured her he understood.
"Don't worry Patrick, it's fine. I'm feeling a little under the weather anyway, so I'll just use the opportunity to go to bed early." Her tone teased that he was wearing her out, keeping her on her toes the way he did.
Laughing, Jane bade her goodbye, and hung up. He tapped the phone one last time, then turned around and nearly jumped out of his skin.
Mr. Lisbon was back in the kitchen and the room had gone quiet again.
The man looked markedly different. He had showered and changed, now sporting a pair of jeans and collared shirt. He looked remarkably clear, but he also still looked like he had been awake for a week straight. "You live with your grandmother, do you, Jane?"
He shuffled. "Yes, sir."
Teresa nudged Tommy toward the table, where Drew had already slid inconspicuously into a seat on the far side. The two youngest sat side by side, James claimed the foot of the table while his father sat at the head, and Teresa sat next to her father's left hand, leaving the last seat between her and James for Jane to sit in.
Taking his seat, Jane make a funny face at the too serious boys on the other side.
Tommy giggled.
To the surprise of everyone seated there, Mr. Lisbon chuckled. "Alright Tommy-boy, you get to say grace."
Looking to Teresa for confirmation first, Tommy did as he was told.
Everyone but Jane bowed their heads and crossed themselves. Even James did so after a scowl from Teresa.
Jane made a show of lowering his eyes in deference. This was something that was important to Teresa, so it needed to be important to him in some way at least. Even if he didn't believe in God or an afterlife. In his mind, if a God existed, he/she/it wasn't paying any attention to them.
The others closed their eyes.
"Bless us oh Lord- and these thy gifts, which we are about to receive, from thy bounty..." The kid peeked at his sister.
She already had one eye open and mouthed the words for him.
"-through Christ, Our Lord. Amen." He left off with a sigh of relief.
They started serving up the food till everyone had a heaping plateful, most of the plates going through Teresa's steady hands so that nothing would be spilled.
"So. Jane." Mr. Lisbon took a forkful of pasta and paused before taking it in. "You get along with your grandmother alright?"
"Yes, sir. She's... a lot like your daughter actually." Jane smiled at Teresa. "All spitfire."
Mr. Lisbon laughed. "You can say that again. Been that way since birth. Only way to survive a house full of boys, I guess."
Between them, Teresa's cheeks turned pink, but she didn't speak up.
"How long have you lived with her?" Mr. Lisbon asked around a mouthful, referring back to Mrs. Ruskin.
"Not long. It's... a new arrangement." Jane answered carefully. He didn't want to lie, but he sure as hell didn't want to tell the truth.
"Can I ask you about your parents then?"
Teresa coughed, putting a hand to her mouth to keep her food from escaping.
Jane saw the way her eyes darted curiously over to him. He almost smiled to see she wanted to know things about him too, so he thought quickly. "My father was never much of parental figure to me, sir. We lived on the road, and I never really went to school or anything like that. At least, not the kind of school Teresa and I are in. I wanted to attend though, to see what it was like." Something he couldn't make himself regret, not with Teresa sitting so close to him he could feel when she took a deep breath.
Her eyes never left his face either.
"So, he left me with my grandmother. She's old, but I can mostly take care of myself, and she wanted the company." A lie, but a necessary one. Teresa's eyes were looking at him through dark lashes in a way that changed their color to shades darker. He'd knew, just from that one look, that he'd never be able to stand it if she viewed him differently or distrustfully. "My father, he doesn't really have a whole lot to do with me now." That was true. At least, not when he could help it. "I call, every once in a while."
Taking another large bite of his food, Mr. Lisbon peered back up at him. "You take good care of your grandmother then, for housing you?"
Not expecting that question to be next, Jane could only nod in response.
"Good. Most important thing in the world, taking care of family." It was said offhandedly. Casually. As though it was something he'd said often.
On the other side of the table, to Jane's left, James scoffed.
The table when still.
Eerily so.
Tension suddenly hung in the air like a physical thing.
Mr. Lisbon eyed his eldest son, resting his forearms on the table so his fork and bread hovered in the air like a menace, rather than a meal. "You got something to say?"
Silence.
Jane didn't know where to look. At James' glare, or Mr. Lisbon's challenging face. So he looked away, toward the other occupants of the room
Drew and Tommy were both staring down at their plates though, not looking up but to glance furtively at their sister, and not eating anymore. Looking closer, Jane could see the boys' muscles were taut, as though ready to spring them into action, or into retreat.
The reaction disturbed him.
Under the table, Teresa's hand abruptly crossed the short gap between their bodies and gripped his leg so tightly, it hurt. Her eyes never left her father, not even to look at James.
In response, Jane snaked his hand down and held her fingers back, trying not to show how warm it made him feel to be in physical contact with her. Now wasn't the time.
Finally, the air seemed to rush back into the room as James lowered his eyes to his plate mulishly.
Teresa abruptly cleared her throat. "How was work today, Pop?"
Looking away from James reluctantly, Mr. Lisbon glanced at his daughter before returning to his food. "Fine. Good."
They continued speaking like that for the rest of the meal, until all of the food at the table was devoured.
Mr. Lisbon was the first to get up.
Everyone stopped what they were doing to watch him.
"Gonna watch the game." He grunted. "Boys, you wanna come?"
The older man was either oblivious, or chose to ignore the fact that both Tommy and Drew unsurprisingly looked to Teresa for the answer before agreeing
She nodded, encouragingly.
Given permission, Tommy smiled at his father. "Yeah!" He yelled loud enough for both boys.
Drew nodded eagerly.
Together, they got up from the table quickly.
"Plates in the sink! I'm not a maid." Teresa warned before they could get too far.
The boys grabbed up their dishes, hurried them to the sink, and then ran on ahead of their father into the other room, racing to see who got there first. From the sounds of it, Drew was faster. The static of the TV turning on proceeded the blare of an announcers voice.
After putting his plate and fork in the sink, Mr. Lisbon paused in the archway to the living room, looking at his other two children and guest.
"I'm outta here." James murmured, standing and depositing his plate in the sink before heading out toward the back door.
"I'll help with the dishes." Jane offered. Teresa still had a death grip on his hand and he didn't think she was letting go anytime soon.
Mr. Lisbon didn't take his eyes from where his oldest son had disappeared, but nodded distractedly and went into the living room.
Now that they were at the table all alone together, Jane put his other hand with his first. He curled them both around Teresa's reassuringly.
She didn't move or speak for a second. Just sat there taking in deep breaths. It was possible to see her pulse in her throat though, belying her calm exterior.
Jane leaned close and kept his words to a whisper. "It's okay."
She blinked, looking over at him like she was stuck in a dream and couldn't figure out how he was a part of it. Then her gaze slid downward to his lap, where their hands rested on his knee. Finally, Teresa's grip loosened, as though she was suddenly aware of the fact that she was cutting off the circulation to the fingers of his right hand.
Which she had been, but Jane didn't mind.
"Sorry." Her eyes cut to the living room, where Mr. Lisbon and the younger boys were yelling at the TV.
"Don't be." Jane showed off his teeth in a smile to show his sincerity. "I'm not."
The girl gave him a faint lifting of the corners of her lips his way, before lowering her head to stare at her lap. Edging, she scooted in her seat to swing her legs over the side, so she was facing him, and blew out a slow breath. "We haven't had a dinner, all sitting together, since... since my mother- died." Her quiet words came as though by force of will alone, which Jane didn't doubt. "It was too hard, at first, and after a while, sitting at the table just became... one of those things. Those things that only she would have done. With the way James and Pop have... well, I've never been more scared in my life. But it wasn't so bad. That went well, don't you think?"
He swallowed as her eyes jumped up to meet his, her tone a little too bright, like she was trying to convince herself. "Yeah. It went really well. You tried, you all tried to make it work. I'm proud." He preened, as if he was the one who'd scored an accomplishment.
It had the intended affect of making her smile. "You said I should make and effort." She shrugged and her half-smile didn't fade as she watched his eyes. "Thanks for being here, Jane."
He nodded. "'Course."
"I should- get started on the dishes." Tone suddenly nervous, she took back her hand from his and rubbed both of hers on her legs, looking over at the sink.
"I'll do them. You sit for a minute." Jane rose to his feet.
"But-" She spluttered a protest.
"When was the last time anyone took care of you for a change, Teresa?" Jane asked in a whisper, bending close so their faces were only inches apart.
She just looked at him and then lowered her eyes to the floor.
He smiled at her gently, slipping a hand beneath her concealing curtain of hair to brush his thumb over her cheek in a quick gesture of affection. "I got this."
Lisbon nodded jerkily without looking up.
Jane whistled while he worked for the first bit, and when Teresa had composed herself, they talked back and forth effortlessly. The sound of the other Lisbon's in the living room and the game they were watching were a nice cover for their conversation, so Teresa didn't shy from speaking to him candidly. Their murmured conversation passed the distance between them like a cord connecting them together.
It was all so... domestic.
He was sorry to say goodnight. When Teresa's hand stopped him on the front porch, already out of sight of any prying eyes, he almost swallowed his tongue.
She grabbed the front of his shirt and brought his lips into hers for a searing kiss, leaving him dumbstruck while she escaped back to her home in a rush.
He felt like he descended the steps on nothing but air.