A/N: This is it, folks... the final chapter! (But stay tuned for a short epilogue to follow!)

With just the tiniest sliver of a chance that Jane might possibly even consider giving what they had a second chance, she had to do something. And it had to be big.

Twenty-four hours later, Maura sat in a backstage dressing room, wringing her hands in her lap. The day before had been stressful, and full of phone calls with film industry folks who had tried to talk her out of exactly what she was about to do. And she had fired every last one of them. She had tossed and turned all night. The doubts streamed through her mind endlessly, but only one thing mattered anymore. Her mind continually came back to one single point of focus: Jane.

"Are you ready, Miss Isles?" The production assistant's voice jarred her from her thoughts.

Maura took a deep breath and let it out slowly. She stood up. "As ready as I'll ever be."

Jane was sitting at her desk, bored out of her mind with paperwork, when Angela rushed into the bullpen.

"Jane!" Angela seemed nearly out of breath.

Jane sat up and stretched, looking curiously at her mother, wondering what in the world she was up to now.

"Ma? What's up?"

"You need to come to the breakroom. I need to show you something!"

"Well, I'm kind of in the middle of something here. What is it?" she asked.

"Just come with me. Now!"

Jane looked at her mother and sighed in resignation. "Alright, alright. I'm coming," she replied, rising slowly from her chair. Angela grabbed her by the arm and pulled her hastily into the breakroom, where she immediately turned the television to... a shampoo commercial?

"This is what you wanted to show me?" Jane asked, looking at the screen in confusion. "Do I have a split end problem you're trying to tell me about or something?"

Angela scowled. "No. It's just about to come on. I heard her announce it before the commercial break."

Before Jane had the chance to ask another question, the sound of audience applause flowed through the television speaker, drawing her attention to the screen. Jane looked up to watch as Ellen welcomed her next guest.

"Please welcome, Oscar-winner and star of the hit film series Queen of the Dead, the lovely and talented... Maura Isles!"

Jane gasped as she watched Maura walk onto the set, the crowd cheering for her as she swayed her hips to the beat of the music, that classic movie-star smile plastered on her beautiful face. It wasn't Maura's real smile, not the one Jane knew, but still she looked stunning.

Maura and Ellen exchanged pleasantries, and quickly got down to business.

"So Maura, I understand that you have something of an announcement you'd like to make?" Ellen prompted.

"Yes." A close-up shot showed Jane the clouds in her hazel eyes, the barely visible worry lines on her brow- this was not the happy, free Maura she would have expected to see. Jane frowned. Her plan to save Maura with her absence seemed to be failing.

After a beat, Ellen encouraged her to continue. "Please, enlighten us."

Maura took a deep breath. "I'm taking a step back, from acting."

The audience groaned in disappointment. Jane swallowed.

"But you're sort of at the height of your career, aren't you?" Ellen asked, obviously knowing the answer, but seeking to draw more information. Jane wondered how much information Maura was willing to give.

"I've been very blessed with the projects I've had the opportunity to be a part of, particularly in the last few years, yes," Maura answered sweetly. "I've played some really great characters, and been fortunate enough to work with some really talented people, but the industry is becoming increasingly difficult for me to deal with, personally. I need to step away from it, at least for a little while."

"But you've worked in the movie business for a long time, so I have to ask, what brought this on now?"

Maura took another deep breath and let it out slowly before answering. "I lost someone very special to me. Partially because of my own fears and insecurities, but a lot of it had to do with the pressure of this industry." She looked out at the audience. "A lot of people don't realize the pressure put on actors to maintain a certain image. If you want to get ahead, you have to play by the rules. I've been playing by the rules for a long time, and it has worked out well, professionally. But personally..." She looked down at her lap, her sadness apparent, then back up. "It cost me the love of my life."

Jane felt as if all the air had been sucked from her lungs. She couldn't believe her ears.

"The love of your life? That's a pretty strong statement. What happened?" Ellen continued.

Jane was hanging on every word.

A small smile tugged momentarily at Maura's lips, then faded. "I fell in love with a woman..."

Gasps erupted throughout the audience. "Oh boy!" Ellen exclaimed.

"...And that's against the rules," Maura finished.

"Unless you're a comedienne!" Ellen commented with a smirk.

The audience chuckled at Ellen's quip, and Maura gave a small smile. "Which, unfortunately, I am not," she added.

"No, you're what they call a leading lady. Hollywood elite."

"Everyone told me to keep quiet, that it wasn't right for my image. They told me that if I wanted to keep getting leading roles in studio films, I had to 'look the part', and that there aren't any parts for leading lesbians."

Ellen nodded her head. "Yeah, that sounds about right. I'd hoped things would have changed a lot more by now, but I was given a similar speech over a decade ago. And then I decided it wasn't worth it anymore."

"I've finally come to realize that as well," Maura agreed. "You see, I used to think my career was all I had. And then I met her, and everything changed… but I was still living by the same rules. And it wasn't working anymore, but I was still afraid to step outside of what I was told, afraid to risk something so important." She sighed. "Instead I ended up losing the most important thing of all."

"Who is this mystery woman?" Ellen pried.

"I'd rather not say, out of respect for her privacy."

"Fair enough. Do you still think there's a chance for you two?"

"I don't know," Maura looked up hopefully. "But I really, really hope so. With every part of me, I hope there is still a chance."

"You're willing to give it another try if she is?"

"Absolutely!"

"Is there anything you want to say to her, in case she's watching now?"

Jane held her breath and watched as Maura turned her attention to the camera, and the frame closed in on her face. She seemed to look right at her as she spoke softly.

"I miss you." Maura's voice was wet with tears and she gave a sad smile that made Jane's heart break into a million tiny pieces. "I love you. And I am so, so sorry for not knowing how to show you that before. I made a lot of mistakes, and a lot of bad choices, but I'm trying to do things right this time. I want to do things right, if you'll give me another chance. I know that I must have hurt you, and I don't know if I'll ever be able to make up for that, but if you'll let me, I'll spend every day for the rest of my life trying."

Jane didn't see or hear Ellen's conclusion of the interview, nor did she notice when another commercial flashed across the screen. Angela's voice was somewhere in the mix, saying her name, but it all seemed so far away. All Jane could think about was how Maura had gotten it all wrong- that it was Jane who had made the mistakes, Jane who had caused the hurt. Hurt that was supposed to have been relieved by her absence, but had somehow only compounded. How could she have gotten it so wrong yet again? Maura's voice echoed in her ears. I miss you. I love you.

Jane turned and ran right out of the police station.

Maura sat on the front steps of the Rizzoli home, feeling more nervous than she'd ever been in her life. She knew the interview would have aired by now, and she had no idea how Jane would react. And maybe waiting at her home wasn't the best idea. It was intrusive to say the least, but Maura couldn't help herself. She had to see Jane, and she had to do everything she possibly could to increase her odds of getting her back. This was the final step of her grand gesture, her last chance to reclaim what she had lost, and there was no distance she was unwilling to go at this point. The stakes were so incredibly high.

Her wait was almost too short, her stomach a hurricane of nerves as she watched Jane's car pull into the driveway. She stood on unsteady legs to greet the distracted detective as she exited the car.

Mind still reeling, Jane didn't notice Maura until she had nearly reached the steps. She stopped short, incredulous. "Maura? What are you doing here?"

The words Maura had carefully and repeatedly practiced before suddenly vacated her mind, so she voiced the barest truth. "I needed to see you."

"I just saw you- I- I saw your interview." Jane stammered. She had no idea what to say. She was still processing.

Maura nodded her head. "That's good. I wanted you to hear all those things."

"But why did you do it? Your career, it's-"

"It's nothing compared to what you and I had together. What I think we still have, despite everything that's happened. I want to try again, Jane. Please."

Jane continued as if Maura hadn't spoken. "I never wanted you to give that up for me. I never wanted you to give up anything for me."

"I didn't do it for you," Maura clarified. "I did it for me. Because I need to be honest about who I am, and I am a woman who is in love with another woman. With you. Totally and completely in love. I'm not ashamed of it, and I refuse to hide it anymore. I love you, Jane Rizzoli! I never stopped loving you. Not for one second. You make me the happiest I've ever been. Please, please give us another chance."

As if by pure instinct, Jane closed the distance between them and pulled Maura desperately to her, kissing her hard, fingers laced in her honey blonde hair. Maura wasted no time returning Jane's passion, as she crushed their bodies together and they began to quench their overwhelming thirst for one another.

Suddenly, Jane pulled away, leaving Maura leaning forward, every part of her feeling the loss immediately. She opened her eyes and looked at Jane's rapidly changing features, her eyes deep with an emotion Maura couldn't identify. Jane's hand covered her mouth and she started shaking her head. Disbelief? Regret?

"I'm sorry," Jane said, still shaking her head as she took two slow steps backwards, away from Maura. Everything was happening so fast. This wasn't how it was supposed to be. This wasn't right. "I'm- I'm so, so sorry." It was all Jane could say.

Maura fell apart in that instant. With those words, she felt her heart, her hope, every vision of her future with Jane rapidly decay inside of her, leaving little more than an empty shell of herself. Tears burned her eyes as she looked into Jane's one last time, searching ineffectually for an answer to the question she was too afraid to ask: why?

"I'm sorry too," she breathed, a whisper. Yielding to her apparent fate, she turned and quickly retreated to her rental car, tears flowing more freely now as she began to fully process Jane's rejection. She had taken a chance, and she had lost. She had let herself hope, let herself believe, that their reunion could have been a joyous one, could have been a new beginning for them together, but she had been wrong once again.

"Maura, wait!"

But Maura didn't stop, quickly shutting the door and starting the engine. The ringing in her ears was so loud, she wasn't entirely sure she had heard Jane call her name. She didn't trust herself enough to believe it, and she didn't possess the strength to look behind her. Not again.

"Please! Maura!"

It pained her too much to wonder whether or not Jane had ever really loved her like she thought, so Maura put the car into drive and sped away.

Jane watched Maura's car disappear down the familiar street, feeling as though it was taking a part of her with it. A sharp anxiety rose from her stomach, a painful tingling sensation reaching throughout her body and resting in her fingertips. She knew that she had just made a huge mistake.

Moments later, Angela's car pulled into the spot Maura's rental had just vacated. Jane continued to stare blankly as her mother got out and rushed to her side.

"Jane, honey, what's wrong?" Her voice sounded distant in Jane's ears. "Why are you so upset?"

Jane just shook her head, unable to answer.

"Why don't you come inside, huh? I'll make you some tea."

Jane let her mother guide her into the house and sat down in the nearest chair. Thoughts and emotions were swirling through her at an alarming rate. The things Maura had said in that interview, seeing her again, touching her skin, smelling her, kissing her… it brought back every raw emotion she'd been suppressing since the day she'd left. Her body, her soul ached for Maura. So why had she reacted that way? Why had she turned away the very thing she wanted most?

Angela sat down next to her and handed her a warm cup of tea. She smelled the honey rising up in the steam, and it calmed her a little. A warm hand rubbed circles on her upper back, the same comforting gesture she'd received as a child. Angela's voice was quiet when she spoke.

"Better?"

Jane nodded and took a sip of her tea.

"Do you wanna talk about it?" Angela asked hopefully.

Jane sighed. She had to talk about it. She had to work it out. She had to make it right. Somehow. "I don't know what to do, Ma."

"Tell me what happened."

"I came home to- to think, to sort all this out, you know? To figure out what to do with this new… information, and Maura- Maura was here. She-" her voice caught, and the only words she could choke out were "she's gone, Ma! I chased her away and she's gone!"

"Come here." Angela pulled Jane into her arms, stroking her hair while Jane cried out her frustration. When her tears ran dry, Jane sat up and grabbed a tissue from the end table. Angela patted her back. "It's okay baby, take your time."

Jane took a deep breath and let it out slowly. "I freaked. She wanted to give up everything to be with me, and I freaked. I told her she shouldn't have done it."

"You're still in love with her, right?"

A humorless chuckle escaped Jane's lips. "Of course I am. I can't imagine ever not being in love with her."

"So then you're afraid," Angela concluded.

"Afraid?" Jane snorted, offended. "I am not afraid!"

"Stop that!" Angela chastised. "You're afraid and you know it. You're afraid of hurting her. You're afraid she'll hurt you. You're afraid of what it means-"

"Okay!" Jane shouted, the uncomfortable truth making her squirm. "I'm terrified, alright?!"

"Good! Admitting it is the first step." She winked at Jane, who frowned back at her.

"I'm not an addict," Jane retorted.

Angela continued as if she hadn't spoken. "So the way I see it, if you're afraid of something, you have two options."

"Yeah?" Jane was eager for her mother's advice, for once.

"You can either face your fear, or you can run from it."

Jane considered this for a moment, puzzle pieces fitting together in her mind. "And I just ran from it."

Angela nodded, seeing that Jane was finally getting it. "Yes, you did."

"That's so not me," she realized.

"That's so not you," Angela agreed with a smile.

"So what do I do now?"

"You face your fear, sweetheart."

Jane nodded. "I need to find Maura." She stood up, determination taking over. "I need to fix this."

"She's staying at the Four Seasons. I wrote down the room number." Angela stood up, pulling a small slip of paper from her pocket, and handed it to Jane, who looked back at her in disbelief.

"How did you-?"

"Maura came by the house this morning after you'd left for work. She told me to have you watch that interview. She really loves you, Jane, and she wants to make sure you know it."

Jane didn't know what to say, and she didn't have time to worry about it. She took the paper gratefully and hugged her mother. "Thank you, Ma. I love you!"

"I love you too, baby. Now go get your girl!"

Irritated and red-eyed, Maura flung open the door, fully intending to unleash a fury of uncharacteristically unkind words to whomever was the cause of the insistent knocking. But when she came face to face with a wide-eyed Jane, she found herself unable to speak at all.

"Hey." It was all Jane could manage.

"Jane." Maura stared up at her in disbelief.

"Just hear me out, okay?"

Maura nodded. "Okay."

Jane took a deep breath, gathering courage, then spoke slowly. "There aren't many things I'm afraid of. I'm not afraid of getting shot. I'm not afraid of getting stabbed, or hurt, or killed. But there is one thing that really, truly scares me, more than anything else - like scares me all the way to the bone - and that's the thought of losing the people I love. It terrifies me. And sometimes it makes me do things that are..." Jane paused, looking for the right word.

"Stupid?" Maura offered.

"Yeah, stupid. And..."

"And self-destructive..."

A small smile tugged at Jane's lips. "Well I was going to move on after stupid, but if you want to keep throwing out adjectives, if it makes you feel better-"

"No, I think that's enough. You may continue."

"Thanks. Uh, where was I?"

"Stupid and self-destructive," Maura reminded her.

"Oh yeah. I just- God, I love you so much, Maura! So much! And it scares the living hell out of me! But I shouldn't have run," she said, shaking her head in disappointment. "Not today, and not back in California. I shouldn't have run, and I know that I hurt you and I don't know how, or even if, I'll ever be able it up to you, but I want to try. I want to stop running from this, to stop running from you, because you are the best thing that has ever happened to me, Maura, and I hate not having you in my life! For so long, I've just felt like there was this hole in my life, this piece that's missing, and I had no idea what it was, or how to find it... and then you came along. And it was like, you fit just perfectly. A little Maura-shaped piece was exactly what I needed, all this time. But LA didn't feel right to me and I thought our relationship was bad for you, and I... I just..." she sighed, hanging her head. "I'm sorry for screwing this up. And I'm sorry for hurting you, more than once. And I understand if you can't forgive me."

Silence.

Jane was afraid to look up, her fear growing with every second that passed. Finally Maura took her by the hands and spoke softly.

"Jane. Look at me."

Jane looked into the sweetest hazel eyes, shining with tears.

"Let's start over," Maura said. She cleared her throat and smiled up at Jane. "Will you have dinner with me, Jane Rizzoli?"