Jane was led to the holding cell in usual Jane fashion. He was used to this sort of thing. If he had to count how many times in his life he had been whisked away by authorities, he would lose track. He never put up a fight. Not once. He was always taken with his pride intact. He never regretted the actions that had led him to being in that position. Whether it was killing the man who murdered his family and being held up in an FBI detention suite, arrested for putting an illegal tap into a CBI agent's office to stay current on the developments of a case he cared most about, or being forced off of a plane for confessing his undying love to the woman he longed for- he never felt one bit of remorse.
This time was no different. He conducted himself in the way that he knew how. He let nothing stand in the way of what he needed to do. He was a man of action when his mission was greater than himself. He would overcome any obstacle and at any price. He was not a man who could settle on status quo when more desperate things were at stake. The results, in his opinion, always outweighed the means.
His only regret in this case was letting the situation between him and Lisbon get this far out of hand. He felt lucky though that he still had those last few moments to let her know how he felt. Whether she reciprocated his feelings or not, he felt relief in knowing that he made it in time to at least let her know how he felt about her. What happened next was now beyond his control. Or was it?
He had plenty of time now to think while being detained overnight in the TSA cell. He felt unusually calm, though, and his mind was oddly at peace. After his outburst on the plane his heart was racing and it took a few moments for his breathing to regulate. After the adrenaline had worn off, he was able to sit in the holding cell with a clear mind. He sat there all night letting the hours pass without much of a thought. There was nothing to think about at this point. He had fabricated a devious scheme at the hotel to try to keep Lisbon from leaving- which backfired tremendously. His confession on the plane was another ordeal that did not seem to go over that well either. He was not giving up. He just needed to sit there and let himself be. His mind, which usually worked at a rapid pace, let itself unwind and settle. He was not planning an escape from this cell. He knew his limitations, but also knew that at this point he had nowhere to run to. Lisbon was probably just about landing in DC and he did not let himself think about what she would be doing next. He learnt over the past few months, with the tension between them, that wallowing in self-pity would get him nowhere. He pushed all negative thoughts out of his head once again and sat there peacefully without any thought as to how this night would end and what the next day would bring.
He felt himself going through an assortment of internal changes as the night progressed. The friction felt between him and Lisbon over the past few weeks was now softening within him. His confidence began to grow as he was coming to the awareness even more now that there were things in life that were beyond his control. He let himself surrender to that thought and it was a humbling one. He let down his barriers that evening and it felt good. He let them down in front on Teresa Lisbon, which was his biggest breakthrough ever. He was beginning to feel like a new man. Although he was rejected by the woman he loved more than he even realized, he didn't let the pain bring him down. He liked this liberating feeling of being able to admit to his limitations when it came to controlling or manipulating another person. He was glad it was Lisbon who taught him this lesson. He loved her so much. He loved her more than ever now. And if he knew her well enough, he would keep that glimmer of hope inside of him that she would come back to him as she always did. He did recall seeing a few tears fall from her eyes, which gave him a bit of comfort. He let that hope stay alive inside of him and did not cast it away from his thoughts.
He would not be an idiot and let her go again. This was too darn important to him. However, the ball was clearly in her court now and it was too premature on his part to make another move right now. It may scare her off completely. He just needed to wait and see what morning would bring. He could not think too far ahead yet. He did not want to think at all.
He received a message from the TSA guard that Agent Abbott was on his way to bail him out. It was now 6:00 AM and Abbott would be there in a half an hour. Abbott's plane was due to leave at 10.
After all of the paperwork was squared away it was already 7:00. Abbott left the cell to confirm Jane's flight status with the airline reservations desk and told the TSA agent that he should escort Jane to the gate where they would meet and board the flight to return to Austin.
On his way out, Abbott bumped into Lisbon who was making her way into the TSA holding area. Abbott told the agent on guard that he should allow her to enter the cell where Jane was being held.
After Abbott left the cell, Jane did not budge from his chair. Although he was now a free man, he just sat there with a mind clear from anything. He was in no rush to go anywhere. He would let his next steps lead them him to wherever they may lead. He would be honest with himself and let his heart lead and not his calculating head. He was past that stage now. So he just sat there. He was not feeling broken. He was not feeling anything. He had nothing to lose at this point since he had now lost it all. He was not ready to think about that though. He knew his determination would kick in at some point, but he needed to handle the situation delicately this time which was something he was not accustomed to doing. He knew himself well enough that if he let himself sink into depression, the despair would prevent him from moving forward and acting in a wise fashion- like a decent human being- so he would not mess up again.
Just then, he heard the creaking of the door. He did not turn to look since he frankly did not care about anything or anyone is his surroundings at this point. He was focused internally and was letting himself just be.
When his line of vision came in contact with the site in front of him his attention was drawn. It was Lisbon.