It Takes Two To Tangle
Ch. 6
I've been ordered to update, so here is next installment!
Jane didn't really want to talk about this unpleasant time in her life, but she felt Maura deserved to know. She was her best friend, her support system, her confidant, and potentially her girlfriend. She looked at the M.E.'s warm, compassionate eyes, and felt certain she was making the right choice. "I'll tell you in exchange for some breakfast." She winked at Maura, and leapt from the bed to prepare for what she knew would be a good meal.
Jane crunched on an English muffin as she began to unravel her history with the dying woman. "I met Sandra when we started at the academy. We became fast friends. We had so much in common. She loved sports, had a real passion for police work, she played guitar, and I played the piano." Jane began rubbing the scars on her hands. Maura knew it was because she subconsciously wondered if she would ever play again. "It was really good, so when she asked me out, I was pretty hyped." Jane's face brightened as she recalled what started off as a good relationship.
Maura heaped more scrambled eggs and bacon onto Jane's plate. "It seems your relationship was based on the simple Law of Attraction….you know, drawing in people who think and act like you—value what you value." She poured more coffee into their cups.
Jane nodded, "But only to an extent; it all went south after Sandra met this girl named Chloe. Anyway, I really clicked with Sandra's whole family. I spent many weekends at their house in Old Wethersfield. They had a huge in ground pool, and I used to help her dad clean it. Her mom was almost as good a cook as mine. There were a few times when our families would get together and everyone seemed to get along."
"Did your family know you were dating another woman?" Maura wiped the corner of her mouth with her napkin.
"Yeah, they did. They'd known for a while that I had been dating men and women, and they've been really cool about it. So, the first ten months of our relationship were great. Then she meets this girl Chloe. She was a clerk at the courthouse." Jane swallowed hard. "Maur, she cheated on me."
"Oh, Jane, I'm so sorry." Maura reached across the table and put her hand on Jane's. She just wanted to hold Jane in her arms; she could feel the ache in her friend's voice as she retold the tale. The events had unfolded years ago, but the pain in Jane's voice felt as though it had happened yesterday.
"Well, I guess I was idealistic, young, and naïve at the time. She begged me to forgive her, and I tried; it wasn't easy though. I wanted the relationship to work, and I was trying to force it to work. I had to see Chloe when I was sent to the court on police business; it sucked. Sandra said it was a horrible mistake and that it would never happen again. They were drunk at a picnic and ended up having sex in the back of Chloe's car; Clichéd huh?"
Jane looked vulnerable, and embarrassed as if she had somehow failed, causing her girlfriend to cheat.
Maura reassured, "Jane, it wasn't your fault. You're aware that people are notorious for doing what they want to do despite knowing better or saying otherwise."
"I know, but it hurts just the same. It gets worse Maura. Three days after Sandra told me that she had cheated on me, I caught her kissing another woman in a bar. She was a serial cheater; every time she drank, she cheated. I told her it was over."
"But it's not over; it still bothers you to this day. You haven't put it behind you, Jane. If you had, you wouldn't be feeling like his now." Maura began clearing the table.
"After I broke it off, she started drinking heavily. I offered to help get her into a program; she refused. Her parents and her sister blamed me for it. They said had I been more understanding and tried harder, things would be different. I told them that if Sandra weren't alcoholic then things would be different. They cut me off; I never heard from any of them again, and Sandra moved back to Connecticut."
Maura put the dishes into the sink and stood behind Jane's chair. She wrapped her arms around the other woman, her hands clasped over Jane's chest. Maura kissed her cheek and said, "I promise it will get better."
"What if I can't forgive her Maura?" Jane put her left hand over the ones clasped around her.
"Even if she apologizes, and you can't forgive her, you'll learn to accept that you can't, and you'll still be able to move on; it may take time, but you will." Maura let go of Jane and resumed cleaning up.
"Thanks Maur. I'm sorry to eat and run, but I have to call Maria and pack some stuff. If I'm not back by tonight, I'll be back by tomorrow morning; by tomorrow night, we'll be on my couch watching movies and eating pizza."
With that, Jane grabbed her jacket and left.