A/N: Gonna be helping out with a kid's camp this coming week, so it will be a bit before I can update. Thanks so much for all your support thus far :)
"There you are," Jenna smiled pleasantly, shielding her face against the sun with her hand as she stepped out into the gated garden.
Maura was on her knees, wearing a faded pair of jeans and a button up Jenna recognized as her other mother's. She yanked a weed from the ground, adding it to the bulging trash bag beside her. Maura glanced up, smiling faintly as Jenna lowered herself to the ground beside her.
"She's doing great," Jenna offered. "Probably gonna be discharged tomorrow. I figured I'd just tell you, you know, instead of us skirting around the topic, while you pretend not to care."
Maura's eyes shot up again, sharp and wounded, but she merely pursed her lips together. Jenna watched her expression soften, almost graciously. Maura feigned apathy no more easily than she could lie.
Jenna glanced at the overgrown earth beneath her legs. She reached for a series of leaves, growing a few inches away, ready to uproot them, as it seemed her mother wasn't going to offer much to their conversation.
"Those are my peonies," Maura stopped her. Jenna let her hands unclench from around the neck of the plant. "They just haven't blossomed yet."
"In this mess, I'm surprised you can even tell what's a weed and what's not," Jenna muttered, looking at the overgrown and neglected garden.
"Well, you can identify a peony by its dark green lobed leaves," Maura offered, nodding toward the plant by Jenna's knee.
"I honestly don't know how you have time to know so much about everything," Jenna sighed, almost a bit wistfully. She glanced back down at the ground, deciding not to risk destroying her mother's garden any further. She brought her knees to her chest, her eyebrows rising as she found her mother's eyes.
"If you thought you read a lot during your childhood, you should have seen the rate I devoured reading material during mine," Maura matched her eyebrow raise. "I know your mother and I were a scattered presence at times during your and Cody's upbringing, but my mother was almost always absent from mine. My formative years were spent filling my mind with knowledge that comes in handy at odd times."
"I never did meet Grandma Constance, did I?" Jenna spoke in order to keep the conversation alive, though in fact, she could produce a blurry memory of the woman's severe face, as she handed her a small parcel – a book – that Jenna had eagerly added to her collection. Alice's Adventures in Wonderland, Jenna still remembered. It was an ornately decorated book, with thin, beautifully illustrated pages, and an old musty smell that Jenna had inhaled in adoration. She wondered what had become of it.
"Once," Maura amended. "You were four when she came to visit. She was quite taken with you. She was very impressed and fascinated that you embodied so many of both mine and your mother's traits at such a young age – you had so much sass and intelligence for such a young girl," Maura laughed fondly. "Unfortunately, my mother only stayed in Boston in small doses. She was in Europe when she was diagnosed with breast cancer, and I only saw her once more, as it had progressed into the untreatable stages very rapidly." She let out a tiny sigh, glancing toward the other end of the garden. Jenna wondered if she were even speaking to her any more.
"I was always glad Angela was able to be such an influential part of your lives," Maura added, a fond smile on her face.
"Oh, yeah, Nonna's always there, ready to secure the next generation for our family," Jenna laughed lightly.
"So I suppose she dropped a few hints about great-grandchildren again?" Maura muttered with a bemused expression.
"'Hinting' would be gracious – you know how she is, it's blunt or nothing from her," Jenna let out a small sigh.
"So, how are things between you and Matt?" Maura's transition was far from subtle as well.
"Things are fine. Nothing new to report. You guys don't honestly think I wouldn't tell you if I had news, right?"
"No, no, of course not," Maura assured her, placing another handful of weeds into the bag. "You've been dating for a while now, so I expect we're all just waiting for it to become, well…more permanent, especially considering your age."
"My age?" Jenna's tone became defensive. "If I go by your and Ma's example, I've still got a good decade before I have to settle down…."
"I apologize, I didn't mean for that to sound so offensive," Maura amended. "But you must consider that neither your mother and I hadn't been in an overly serious before we met and that we had both suppressed our sexuality for so long, we really didn't give much indication of settling down early on. You, however, have been in a relationship with Matt for over four years now."
"Marriage and relationship length are not dependent on one another," Jenna reminded her.
"No, that's not what I was implying..." Maura assured her.
"But what are you implying then? Because you're starting to sound like Nonna..."
Maura let a small sigh escape from her lips. "I just worry about you, Jenna. You're so far away from home, and your communication with us is poor. You remind me a lot of myself...and I don't want to see alone."
"Mom, just because Matt and I aren't jumping on the marriage train doesn't mean he's going to up and leave me. I like him. A lot. And I'm pretty sure he's crazy about me, too. I'm just not sure I'm ready for the whole marriage shebang just yet," Jenna explained, her throat a little tight as she continued to defend her choices.
"I know your mother and I didn't always provide the best example of married life, and how it ended between us is hardly reassuring to you either, but I promise you that marriage doesn't have to be horrible and stressful," she let out another small breath. "I just want to see you happy, Jenna."
"And I am happy, Mom. I promise," Jenna rested a hand against Maura's shoulder as she said the words. "And I also promise that your and Ma's relationship has nothing to do with how I'm handling mine, okay?"
Maura nodded, though Jenna wasn't sure she was entirely convinced.
XXX
Jane wiped the sweat from her forehead, the mid-afternoon sun still merciless as she stood outside the high school auditorium, watching the crowds of people pouring in through the doors fade to a trickle. She pulled her phone out of her pocket, huffing in frustration as she registered the time.
She popped the button on her blazer, regretting (perhaps for the first time) that she had opted for a suit instead of a dress. She squinted across the parking lot, letting out a relieved sigh as she noticed the figure approaching her – curled blonde hair, black dress, matching pumps and handbag.
"Took you long en—" she started as the woman stepped onto the curb, though she cut herself off as she lowered her sunglasses. "I thought you were your mom."
"Mom's still not here yet?" Jenna raised an eyebrow as she tucked her sunglasses into her purse.
"No," Jane grumbled, leaning up against the side of the building. "Her flight was due in an hour ago – and I haven't heard a thing from her."
Maura's research with Amy had proven to be far more than just a side project. The more dedicated Maura became, the more time consuming it had become, until splitting her time between the station and their research had become next to impossible. It hadn't been an easy decision, but Jane could sense that after years and years of exclusively working on dead bodies, Maura was eager for a change. Though she knew Maura was passionate and eager to work with Amy, Amy's research was based in New York City, making traveling a frequent part of Maura's position. Jane hated resenting Maura's happiness, but it was far from easy having her so absent from their lives.
"Did you check to see if her flight was delayed?" Jenna asked, fiddling with her phone.
"I was going to, but I couldn't remember her flight information. And I tried calling her about fifteen minutes ago, but she didn't answer."
"And she was supposed to rent a car and meet us here?" Jenna confirmed.
"That's the plan we discussed when we talked three days ago," Jane replied.
"Three days ago?" Jenna raised an eyebrow.
"What? We've both been busy…." Jane's mood was only becoming sourer by the moment, reminded that Maura had become inconsistent with their once daily phone calls or Skype sessions as she had become more and more buried in her work. She had always admired Maura's dedication, and it was a trait Jane had always shared in regards to her profession, but she felt wounded when it came at the expense of their relationship.
"Well, it starts in less than ten minutes, so I hope she's on her way." Jenna scrolled through her emails as she spoke.
Jane scowled. "I'm calling her again."
It rang three times before Maura answered, and her voice was distant and rushed. "Yes, Jane?"
"Where the hell are you?"
"In the lab, running test results. Where did you—"
Jane was incredulous as she interrupted her. "Fuck, Maura, so you mean to tell me you're not on your way?"
"On my way to –" Maura cut herself off. "Oh, goodness, it's Friday, isn't it?"
Jane let out a groan. "I can't believe you fucking forgot."
"I didn't – it's just that – Jane, you have to understand how incredibly busy it's been here and the amount of stress we've all been under—" Maura's voice was panicked, though apologetic as she attempted to justify herself.
"This is our son's graduation, Maura! I don't care if you're on the brink of finding a cure for cancer or whatever! You should be here. You promised you were going to be here," Jane snapped, and her entire body quivered with rage.
"Jane, I'm so, so sorry," Maura's voice broke. "I'll see what other flights are leaving this after—"
"The ceremony starts in five fucking minutes! You missed your shot. You fucked up big time…." Jane spoke lividly.
"I'm sorry. I'm so, so sorry, and –"
"Well sorry isn't going to cut it, Maura. Remember how you've always been so scared to turn out like your own mother? Well congratulations, I'd say it's safe to wager you're worse," she paused for a moment, her stomach dropping as she heard Maura whimper. She bit her lip, channeling her anger once again. "I've got to go now and watch my son graduate like a supportive parent."
Before Maura could reply, she tore the phone away from her ear, hitting the end button. She glanced at the screen for a minute, her hand quivering, before shutting it.
"Well that certainly didn't go well," Jenna chewed on her lip nervously.
Jane only growled, ushering her daughter into the auditorium.
XXX
The dinner reservation Jane had made for Cody at P.F. Chang's was certainly not the celebratory dinner that she had planned.
Cody stared at his feet, slumped up against the side of the table, while Jenna munched nervously on the complimentary chow mein noodles. Jane's eyes were dark, her lips drawn into a thin line. None of them dared to speak.
"I am so, so sorry!" All three of them looked up simultaneously to see a frazzled Maura rushing toward their table. Her hair was frizzy from the humidity, and her smeared mascara indicated that she had been crying. "I know that apologizing is hardly going to fix my enormous mistake, but I'm here now," she offered, sitting down beside Cody.
"And I'm leaving," Jane stood from the table with a huff.
"Wait, Jane! Please don't go!" Maura begged, her eyes welling up again.
"I am not about to cause a scene here," Jane hissed, shooting Maura a heinous glare. She grabbed her blazer from the back of the chair, storming off without another word.
Cody glanced nervously toward his mother, licking his lips, in preparation to speak, when her tears spilled over quite suddenly, quickly turning into hacking sobs.
"Please excuse me," her voice came out in a blubbery wail as she made a beeline for the restroom.
"Well..." Jenna muttered, far from tactful in situations like these, as she munched on another noodle.
Cody let out a weary sigh, resuming his hunched position over the the table.
"Come on, you've got to stop that," Jenna let out a small whine, nudging the noodle bowl toward her brother.
"Stop what?" Cody turned his gaze.
"This," she waved her hand with a flourish. "This whole guilty, sullen thing you've got going, like you think this is all your fault."
He bit his lip.
"Seriously, kid? You really need me to spell it out for you?" He shrugged, continuing to look forlorn. "This couldn't be further from your fault. This all them."
"It was my graduation though," Cody mumbled.
"Yeah, obviously you should have flunked out to prevent all of this," Jenna scoffed. She picked up a noodle, nudging it in Cody's direction.
He took it, chewing thoughtfully for a moment. "You think they're gonna be okay, Jen?"
Jenna leant her elbow up against the table, her tone now serious. "They're doing their best," she offered as hopefully as she could.
Cody slumped against the table again. "Yeah, but I wonder how long their 'best' is gonna cut it..."
A/N: But really I would love to know what you think. Honestly, any and all feedback is so, so appreciated.