"Jane! It's so great to see you back, partner!" Frost rose from his seat and hurried over to hug his partner hello.
"Hey Frost, it's good to be back man. I've been going crazy at home! I bet you two have been going crazy without my help," she teased.
"No joke," Frost admitted. "We really could've used your help on some of the cases."
"He's right Jane, the place isn't the same without you," Korsak stated as he reached the brunette and gave her a warm hug.
"Thanks Vince," Jane said with a sincere smile as she hugged the older man back. "I really have missed you guys."
"So are you back for good?" Frost asked, resting against his desk.
"I don't know the specifics yet. My doctor released me to return to desk duty. As boring as that is, it's still a million times better than sitting at home. I just have to talk to Cavanaugh and see when I can start."
"He's actually been in a rather good mood lately; I wonder what hit him," Frost commented.
"Yeah, we actually saw him smile the other day," Korsak added.
"NO?!" Jane exclaimed, shocked. "Well then, I hope this helps me get on his good side. Wish me luck boys," she said as she began to walk towards the lieutenant's office.
"Good luck," both Frost and Korsak called behind her before going back to their work.
Jane slammed the door to her apartment with all the energy she could muster. Though a part of her said she was possibly overreacting, she was still boiling with anger. She went to the fridge and grabbed a beer before sitting down on the couch and texting Maura.
Hey babe. How's your schedule looking like so far today?
Jane! I was hoping to hear from you before the end of my shift, baby. It's going well so far; I just scrubbed out of a surgery and it was my last one for the day. I just need to do rounds but that shouldn't take more than 45 minutes. I should be out by 5:30. How did it go with your lieutenant?
Jane frowned. Not quite as expected.
Do you want to talk about it?
Yeah, I think I should.
Your place or mine?
I already started drinking so mine would probably be best.
Maura sighed, wondering what news Jane could've gotten to have made her that upset. I'll be there as soon as I can. I love you.
I love you too Maur.
Jane heard the jingle of keys outside her door a while later; she and Maura had exchanged keys a while back. Maura came in with a pint of mint chocolate chip ice cream, Jane's guilty pleasure.
"Hey baby, you sounded bad on the texts. How bad is it?" Maura asked as she sat down next to Jane before giving her a kiss on the lips. "I brought this for you in the event you wanted some. I know you've had your beer so it's probably best to wait for later."
"Thanks Maur," Jane said before grabbing the pint and going to put it in the freezer. "I'll have it after we have our talk."
"What did Lieutenant Cavanaugh say?"
Jane frowned once more before sitting on the sofa once more and beginning to tell the Maura the details of her meeting.
*knock knock*
"Come in!" Sean yelled from inside his office. "Rizzoli! Good to see you." He walked around his desk and hugged his best detective. "Have a seat," he said as he motioned to the chairs in front of his desk
"Thanks lieu, it's good to see you too, sir." Jane took a seat.
"So what brings you in today? I was under the impression you were still on medical leave."
"I am, well, still am." She handed him a folder she'd been carrying with her. "Inside is the necessary documentation stating I'm released by my doctors to return to work," she said proudly.
"Already?" Cavanaugh said, surprised.
"Well, it's just to desk duty sir, but yeah. Physical therapy has been going really well and the physician overseeing my progress has deemed me fit enough to return to work."
Sean took a couple of minutes to look over all the paperwork. "That's perfect Rizzoli. We're truly glad to get you back on the clock."
"I'm glad to be back, sir," Jane said with a smile. "So when can I start? Tomorrow?"
"Well I'd love for you to be able to start tomorrow, as soon as possible in fact. We've really needed you around here. There is however, one limitation."
"What's that?" Jane asked, taken by surprise.
Cavanaugh sighed. "I spoke to IA and they will not allow you to return to work without clearance from the in-house psychologist."
"WHAT?!" Jane yelled as she rose to her feet. "WHY?!"
"Rizzoli! Sit down."
Anger filled Jane's eyes as she slumped back down onto her seat.
"I don't like this any more than you do, but it's protocol and it has to be done. After going through the psychological and physical trauma you went through with Hoyt, it's necessary for you to attend a few sessions before you can get back out on the field."
"I'm being relegated to desk duty for now," Jane said. "Does that mean that I'm still able to return to work as soon as possible? Can I return to desk duty and attend these mandatory appointments at the same time?"
"Technically you're not supposed to be back in any capacity until you've completed the sessions, but I arranged it so that you can. You can start work again tomorrow if you'd like, but you'll have to see the psychologist once to twice a week for a total of 10 sessions. If at the end of those sessions they clear you and you get the clearance from your physician, you can return to field duty."
Jane didn't like it, not one bit. There was nothing she could do. She shook her head, annoyance clear in her demeanor. "I don't have a choice, do I?" she asked.
"I'm afraid not," Cavanaugh replied.
"Well, in that case, when's my first appointment?" Jane asked as she got down to the details.
Maura looked at a clearly worked up Jane, unsure of what to say. Jane looked at her expectantly.
"Well?" Jane questioned.
"I can see why you're as angry as you are Jane, I truly do."
"I sense a 'but' somewhere in there," Jane replied.
Maura took her time replying, knowing she was unable to lie and that her point of view on the matter was not what her girlfriend wanted to hear. "Jane… I just… I can't help but see how they have a point."
"Not you too Maura!" Jane yelled.
"Listen to me; it's not like I'm picking sides. I saw you when you first came into the hospital and were still unconscious. The paramedics informed the attending doctor you saw first of the attacks you had one the way to the hospital. I know you still have nightmares… You thrash in your sleep… you say his name."
Jane stared at Maura, unable to believe what she was hearing. She knew of the nightmares; she remembered them sometimes when she woke up. Yet she couldn't remember the rest. "I say his name?" Jane repeated.
Maura nodded. "It sounds like you're trying to help someone, a woman. And then you start yelling at him to get away from her. Every time I think you're going to wake up. I put my arm around you and try to calm you down… it seems to work for a while because you go back to sleep. Still, I think you would benefit immensely from talking to someone about this Jane."
"Why didn't you say anything about it before?" Jane asked.
"Because I didn't want to upset you. You never mentioned them once we were awake and I thought that you didn't remember what you were dreaming. I'm sorry, that is stupid of me to think. I'm sorry I didn't say anything sooner."
"No Maura, it's not your fault. I'm glad you told me now. I'm still not happy about having to do this, but I don't want him to get to me while I'm with you. I don't want to put you in any danger, ever. If this is what I have to do to get back to work and to keep you safe, then I'll do it."
Maura took Jane's hands in her own, glad they'd reached an agreement.
"I'm happy you're willing to do this, Jane. I'll help you with anything I can, anything at all."
"I know you will," Jane said as she brought Maura to her and kissed her temple.
Thanks for the continued support everyone! What do you think of Jane's mandatory psych sessions?