A/N: This chapter actually isn't a response to a rizzlesfanficchallenge prompt, but someone asked for a cute head canon oneshot and this is what happened.

"Huh. That's weird. She didn't show up."

"No? Hm…wait. Wait, wait, there she is!"

"Where?"

"Look at her, trying to be all sneaky, getting in the top row- up at the left, see? By Frost. Hey, Rizzoli!"

Jane was just finishing up her laces, and didn't bother looking up. "What?"

"Your girlfriend's here!"

That got her attention.

Jane got to her feet. "C'mon, guys, what're you talking about?"

"Uh, little Maura the Bore-a and her massive crush on you," answered her teammate, Ellie. "She's come to every single game, including the away ones, and here we are at the play-offs for the state championship. It took over an hour to drive here."

"So? Maybe she's just trying to show a little school spirit. Y'know, support the team."

"Really? Because I kind of think it might have to do with the stunt you pulled at that mandatory pep rally last year."

Ellie had, in fact, called it. At said pep rally, after a rather suggestive demonstration by the boys' swim team in nothing but their Speedos, Jane had decided to take center stage in only her shorts and a sports bra. In lieu of joining her team in a choreographed dance number with their field hockey sticks, she kickboxed an effigy of their rival school's mascot. Maura, who up to that point had been surreptitiously trying to study instead of pay attention, spent the next three minutes ogling Jane. She had always thought Jane was a pretty girl, but there was something about the amused cockiness of that act that had really caught Maura's attention.

"Whoa, wait, check that out," said Ellie, pointing at Jane's expression as she searched the stands for Maura. "Jane! You like her!"

"What? No, I don't! I don't."

"Yeah you do, you should've seen the smile on your face."

"C'mon, Rizzoli, aim high! You're the captain of a team that's on its way to taking a state title. By the time this is over, you could have any girl you wanted. Don't settle!"

"Settle? You guys don't even think she's pretty?"

"Eh. She's weird. That cancels it out."

Jane just shrugged. She looked back up at the stands, where she had finally located Maura—who had of course been staring at her. At the realization that Jane had caught her looking, Maura flailed so badly that she almost fell off the bleachers. Jane was torn between being embarrassed and amused, and she turned away for a last-minute pep talk with her team. Luckily for Maura, Frost had reached over in time to keep her from falling.

"Geez," he groaned. "You really are kind of pathetic, Maura, you know that?"

"I do, thank you very much," she said stiffly, pulling a book from her bag.

He reached over again (there was a small space between them) and pushed the book back. "Hey, I was just giving you a bad time."

"I don't like when people do that," Maura replied, pulling the book out again with vigor. "Just think about the implication there, Frost! Giving someone a bad time? Intentionally? It's very rude!"

Trying not to laugh, he nodded and said, "You're right. I apologize for being so horribly uncouth in the presence of a lady."

"Gender should have nothing to do with it."

"Okay, okay, I'm sorry. Should I also apologize for not letting you fall off the bleachers and break your neck just now? I mean if you flip out like that just because Jane looked at you, I'm a little worried about what might happen if you like… ever actually tried to have a conversation with her."

"Ohmygosh, what would I even say?" Maura gasped, holding the book up in front of her face.

"Whoa, girl. Breathe," Frost said, taking hold of Maura's arm when it seemed she was on the verge of hyperventilating. "Look. I made the offer before. You want me to talk you up to her?"

"And I've told you before, Barry. It's a very nice offer, but I know you're only sitting up here because you feel sorry for me and you don't know me very well and so you couldn't possibly introduce me very well and and and she's so outgoing and popular and amazing and I'm just a nobody, so please leave it. I can watch her play. That's all I care about. That's all I need. Go team!"

Frost couldn't help feeling bad for the girl. When he'd first noticed her sitting alone at the games, he'd slowly made his way towards sitting by her, so she wouldn't feel quite so alone. It always made him sad to see someone alone at things like this. At least school was somewhere you had to be, and if the only empty desk in a classroom was by Maura, well, she couldn't help that. But coming out to a game was a choice, and seeing her so far removed from everyone made him too sad to watch. When she hadn't asked him to leave her alone, he'd presumed that meant she wanted company, and they had since built up a sort-of "acquaintance-ship" (as he called it) since then. It still broke his heart to hear her talk like this, though.

"Look," he said. "I'm gonna take Anna out just for ice cream or something after the game- either to celebrate, or drown her sorrows if they lose. What if I invite Jane, and you come along?"

"Please," Maura breathed. "Everyone's going to want to be with Jane. Thanks, Barry, but I'll just stay. I mean, I'll just leave."

The game started, and the stands became much too loud for anymore conversing. Maura was rarely able to bring herself to sit closer than the back row, out of self-conscious fear. But once the games started, she always regretted this choice, wishing she had the chance to see Jane's athleticism up close.

Because she didn't care about the rules. She barely followed them. She was mesmerized by Jane's abilities, by her commanding presence. Small things from up here, really: the swish of her ponytail, the slight bulge in her calf muscles when she came to a sudden stop, the perfect follow-through of her swings.

It never took long. Maura always started out a game with a book, just in case she got bored, maybe even to look to other patrons like she had been dragged here against her will. But within seconds it sat next to her, forgotten, as she clapped and yelled and cheered right along with the crowd. At halftime, with Frost's encouragement, she even went and bought a plate of cheese fries, just to indulge herself for once. (It was a decision she regretted almost instantly.)

The game felt over before it even started, and Jane had led her team to victory once again. Maura's throat was sore for all the screaming she had done, and her hands were numb with applause. Frost was so excited he was jumping up and down, and when he hugged Maura, she was so thrilled for Jane and the team that she didn't shy away from the gesture. In his excitement to congratulate Anna, he hopped down the bleachers with nary a thought for his safety, and Maura struggled to decide if she wanted to get closer.

Screw it. Yes.

She made her way carefully down to the first few rows, where she was still a little taller than the throngs on the field, and thus had an easier view of the team. Everyone's friends and families had congregated, and Jane found herself lifted on the shoulders of her teammates. She seemed equal parts flattered and embarrassed by the attention, but yukked it up anyway for the sake of the people who'd gathered to congratulate her. The team carried her a bit of a ways along the crowd, and people reached out to high-five her. They got close to the bleachers, and Jane caught Maura's eye.

"Oh gosh," she squeaked. Jane was looking right at her, grinning broadly, hand stretched out. Maura did her best to return the smile and slapped her hand as she passed.

She was giddy all the way to her car.

Maura had driven about ten miles when she realized she had left her book behind in the bleachers. Any other person who'd driven this long in post-game traffic would just brush it off, but Maura Isles could no sooner leave a book behind than she could a best friend. (Or so she imagined, if she'd ever had the latter.) At least going back she was driving against traffic, and she had good music to keep her company.

It was a little jarring to return to the field and see it entirely empty, when just minutes ago it had been filled with people. It was eerie, in a way, especially as the area was still fully lit. But Maura brushed off her irrational concerns and headed in the direction of the bleachers she'd been sitting in - and fast realized she wasn't alone.

Someone was lying on the top row of bleachers, right where Maura had been sitting, and they were reading a book. Maura froze in fear, scared of meeting what kind of person might be lying alone at night in a high school sports field. But the person apparently had heard Maura's footsteps and sat up.

The sky was so dark by now that if it hadn't been for the silhouette of Jane's curls, Maura doubted she'd have been able to tell who it was.

"Hey," Jane called out, waving the book. "This yours?"

Well, that was it. Of course Maura had to answer in the affirmative, and as Jane showed no signs of coming down, Maura had to walk the rest of the way up to her. She felt more than a little embarrassed not only at her book choice, but at the fact that she'd been caught returning for it.

"The Brothers Karamazov," Jane recited, reading off the title and ignoring Maura's outstretched hand. "Geez! You know, I'm in Harris's AP English class, and I don't remember this being on our syllabus. Who've you got, Brown? Was this her idea?"

"You're in AP English?" Maura asked.

"Uh, yes," Jane laughed. "AP Euro, too. It's kickin' my butt, but my counselor said I had to take a couple AP's if I wanted to be taken seriously by any colleges."

Maura pulled the book from Jane's hands. "Well, this isn't on our syllabus. I just wanted to read it for fun."

"For fun? Wow!" And when Jane laughed, it sounded impressed, not condescending. Maura felt hope fluttering among the butterflies in her stomach. "That's really cool. You like to read then, I guess?"

"Yes. This is my favorite book," she said, and suddenly she found the words just pouring out, like Jane had turned on a faucet. "I first tried to read it when I was eleven, but it was too difficult and by the time I'd finished it, it was overdue at the library. I grounded myself for a week because I'd kept anyone else at the library from being able to read it for those four days it was overdue."

"Oh my gosh, you're adorable," Jane chuckled. She fought a blush when Maura raised her eyebrows. "I mean—I mean, that's adorable. Cute."

They sat in silence for a moment, Maura drumming her fingers along the spine of the book. This was the only time they'd ever been alone together, and as much as she'd been nervous of such a thing happening, now she found herself not wanting it to end. Jane shifted, and Maura was sure it was a sign that she found things either awkward or boring, and was probably on the verge of leaving.

"Why aren't you with the team, celebrating?" she asked.

Jane shrugged. "The team thinks I'm with my family. My family thinks I'm with the team. My friends all think I'm with one or the other." She shrugged again. "I like being the captain and all, but I don't deserve all the credit people put on me. And besides… I'm not really a party person, and they're all gonna be partying and stuff as soon as they get back to Boston."

"Back to—shouldn't you be on the team bus?"

"Didn't you hear?" Jane laughed. "It got totally wrecked this morning. Nobody was caught, but we're pretty sure it was the weasels over at Benchley. We creamed 'em last week, and they're still pretty pissed about it. Guess you saw that game, huh?" she asked with a smile.

"Yes," Maura blushingly replied. "I've been to all the games."

"So I've noticed," Jane said, stretching. "You don't really strike me as the type who likes sports."

"You're right, I don't, generally," Maura said. When she realized the next logical question would be why she came to all these games, Maura quickly got to her feet. "Anyway, congratulations on your victory. I'll see you around school, I suppose."

Jane quickly got up and clambered down the bleachers as Maura took the steps. "Hey, don't be embarrassed! C'mon, please don't g—AHH!"

Maura had stopped for a split second to look at Jane, and there was something about the severity in her gaze and the way the lights framed her loosely-pulled back golden hair that took Jane's breath away. This made her trip, and she stumbled down the last couple of bleachers. Maura hurried down to the ground.

"Oh my gosh, Jane, are you all right?!"

"Oof. I'm fine," Jane groaned, sitting up and clenching her teeth with pain.

"Are you sure? That looked like a really bad fall! Let me get someone—"

"Maura, please," Jane whined, reaching out and grabbing Maura's arm. "It's no big! Just a fall. Look." With some effort, she pulled herself to her feet. "See? Totally fine."

"You might've twisted your ankle. Let me look."

"Maura. Don't. It's okay." Jane sighed and leaned back.

"Then why are you closing your eyes? Are you blacking out?"

"Maura!" Jane laughed. "It was a tough game, and I'm just trying to relax, is all! Come on, just lie down for a second. You'll feel much more peaceful, I promise."

The thought of lying on the grass that had just been trampled and slipped and probably bled on was not particularly attractive to Maura, but her crush had just invited her to do it, so on the grass she went. She thought she might have a heart attack when Jane gently took hold of her wrist.

"Don't freak out," she whispered, "but those lights are going to go off any second now."

Maura held her breath, and gasped when the field lights were indeed shut off only moments later. A few streetlamps down the way kept them from being cloaked in utter darkness, as did a spattering of beautiful stars. Jane took a deep breath next to her, still loosely holding on to Maura's wrist.

"So what's your thing, Maura?"

"My thing?"

"Yeah. I've been in enough gym classes with you to know you're not really into sports."

"Oh, God," Maura groaned, wanting to roll away into nothingness.

"Hey, don't sweat it! It's not for everybody. I mean hey, you kicked butt when we had that archery unit. That was awesome."

"Really?"

"Yeah! How're you so good at that? I kept wanting to ask you, but you always left the locker room before I could ever get a chance to."

"Oh. Well, um… my uncle was always good at it. He's shown me how almost my whole life."

"Whoa. That's awesome!"

"Thank…thank you," Maura said. "I suppose my 'thing' is academics. I like to study. I really think learning is fun, learning new things, I mean. I'm sure you get some sort of high when you're playing, or working out. That's sort of what happens to me when I'm in class and I can feel my mind being expanded, making way for new facts and new ideas, new trains of thought. I love the challenge. I…" She cut herself off when she realized she'd been rambling, and for that matter, probably sounded just as boring and nerdy as many of her classmates often assured her she was.

"I think that's great," Jane whispered. "I really do. We're not all a bunch of dumb jocks, y'know."

"I know," Maura said quickly. "Erin's in the National Honors Society with me. And Vivian's in all my AP classes."

"You come to support 'em in the games?" Jane asked.

Dear God, why?! Why are you asking me these direct questions?! "N-no…"

"Why do you come to them, then?"

"Because… because…" She took a deep breath. "Becauseiwantoseeyou."

"Uh…what?"

Maura gulped and closed her eyes, wishing fervently for the earth to open up and swallow her whole. "I… want to see you. I don't mean to sound like a creepy stalker or anything, I just—I think you're really great. You stood up for Maria Korkman when all those mean girls were making fun of her for her weight, and you're always helping out with school fundraising projects because you like to help, and I've never heard you make fun of anybody, and …I-I guess I just wanted to see you be passionate about something, and …is that creepy?"

"Uhhhm…it's a little weird, yeah," Jane said, and Maura wondered if this was how it felt to get harpooned. "But sweet, sort of? I guess. I think everyone should be passionate about something. That's why I'd never make fun of you, Maura. I get to—people get to see you light up in school 'cause that's what you like to do. I feel kinda bad that we've never really talked before."

"Why do you feel bad?"

"I dunno. We've been in school together since you moved in the district in…"

"Seventh grade."

"Right, seventh grade." I thought you were really cute. "And I was dating Joey Grant at the time. Ah! Such fun."

For once, Maura found herself able to detect sarcasm, and she laughed alongside Jane. "I'm sure he's still upset that you're the girl who got away."

"Oh, yeah. Poor guy. His gender was working against him. Just took me a while to figure that out." When Maura's only response to this was prolonged silence, Jane's voice returned to a worried whisper in the dark: "Does that, um… freak you out at all?"

"What?"

"I'm gay, Maura."

"Why would that freak me out? Has anyone given you a hard time about it?"

"No. Everyone who knows is pretty cool about it. My family doesn't know," she said quietly. "I dunno, maybe that's why I've never dated anyone seriously. I know they'd find out. I always had like this dream, though, of winning the big game, and having my girlfriend run down the bleachers to hug me and maybe kiss me, right in front of everybody. You know, kind of like what Frost did with Anna tonight," she added with a chuckle. Again, Maura's only answer was silence, and Jane propped up on her elbows. "So what's your deal?"

"My deal?"

"Yeah. Can't you tell lies?"

This was an unexpected turn. "Uh…"

"Remember home ec in ninth grade? We had that batty substitute for a week who was like wicked old and couldn't remember stuff and snapped at everybody? And she couldn't remember if she'd shown us a video the class before, and everyone was telling her she hadn't, even though she had, because we all wanted to watch a movie instead of actually having class. And she looked right at you and said to everybody, 'I'm going to ask Maura if we watched it. Because I know Maura will tell me the truth.' And you said, 'yes, ma'am. We watched it already.'"

"And that's when Emily Thompson deliberately sabotaged my sewing machine."

"She did that?" Jane scowled.

"Weren't you upset, too?"

"Well yeah, at first, I was kinda pissed that you'd do that instead of lying and letting us watch a movie again," Jane laughed. "Even if it was about sewing. But I was really impressed, too. I thought it was really brave of you to be honest."

"It wasn't that. When I try to tell lies, I get faint. I get hives."

"Wow, that sucks."

"Rather."

Jane lay back again and whistled. "Then again, I guess we could all stand a little more honesty in our lives, right? Being upfront could save people a lot of time and a lot of pain." Maura hummed in noncommittal agreement. "Maura? Can I be honest with you?"

Maura sat up nervously. "Sure."

Jane followed her lead and sat up as well, eyes now adjusted to the dark enough to see the apprehensive look on Maura's face. "I've… kind of been letting myself think you were at these games for me. I pretended you came to cheer me on, and support me, and I… I wished a lot there was something you participated in that I could go to, just to support you back. And now I know you did come to all these games for me, and I… I really want to kiss you."

Maura's breath caught. She tried to think up the symptoms for heart attacks to make sure she wasn't having one as Jane slowly leaned in, giving her the chance to pull back if she wanted to. But their foreheads touched and Jane was gently cupping the back of Maura's neck, her thumb brushing her cheek.

"International Youth Science Forum," Maura whispered.

"What?"

"I'm a member of the International Youth Science Forum. Our events aren't announced with quite the same gusto as your sports, but our next one's the week before winter break and—"

"I'll be there," Jane murmured, and she pressed her lips softly to Maura's.

Breathe. Breathe. BREATHE. Oh, and kiss her back, you moron.

Jane had already pulled away, and Maura worried that she'd done something wrong. But Jane had merely wanted the chance to whisper "wow" before going in again, and Maura's arms wrapped around her shoulders.