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A/N: So a lot of you have asked this question, and I address it in the summary: Yes. There will be Rizzles. If I'm writing it, you can be your ass it's Rizzles. Also, lots of people don't like Alex. I get that! Neither do I! Patience, young grasshoppers. But we're getting there with this chapter, so stick with me, folks. I wouldn't let you down. Disclaimer: I don't own Rizzoli and Isles.

xxx

The next morning, Jane was already sitting at her kitchen island dressed for work and enjoying a bowl of Frosted Flakes with extra sugar when Alex sleepily appeared from the bedroom. Jane ended up sleeping on the couch cuddled with Jo Friday, but Alex hadn't seemed to notice. She glanced up at Alex to greet her.

"Morning. I made coffee if you want some."

"Are we gonna talk about those or not?" Jane followed Alex's blue eyes to her own hands. She sighed, knowing there was not an easy way to avoid the question now. She began to explain without looking up from her cereal.

"We were about to bust a murderer when I came up on what would have been his next victim. He knocked me out. When I came to, he had me tied down in his basement. He put a scalpel through each of my hands. He would've slit my throat if Korsak hadn't got there just in time." Her voice was expressionless. Alex reached up to wipe a tear before it had a chance to fall down her cheek. She wracked her brain for something to say to fill the uncomfortable void that fell between them. All that came to mind were more questions.

"When did it happen?"

"Well I got transferred to homicide about a month after you left. It happened a few months after I transferred. We just had our latest run in with him a couple of weeks ago. He had an accomplice who helped him escape prison. They kidnapped me-"

"Jane, oh my god!"

Jane waved her hand dismissively. "It's fine. I shot the accomplice. Hoyt's back in jail. I'm okay. I was a mess, but I think I'm slowly becoming less of a mess. I've had a lot of good people to help me through it." Her voice remained quiet, and Alex could tell talking about the ordeal was something Jane wasn't used to.

"Like Maura?"

"Yeah, like Maura. Her, Korsak, Frankie, Ma.. when she's not nagging me anyway." The sound of Jane's phone interrupted them. She was called to a scene. She grabbed her coffee cup, gave Alex a quick kiss on the cheek and was out the door.

Jane found herself dialing Maura's number on the way to her car.

"Good morning, Jane! I was just about to leave my house and head to the crime scene. Is everything alright?"

"Not really.. Well, I mean yeah, everything's fine. I don't know why I said that. Anyway, I called to see if you maybe just wanted to ride with me?" Her voice got higher in pitch as she asked the question.

"That sounds lovely, Jane! You know, there is definitive evidence that carpooling to and from work significantly reduces-"

"Haven't had enough coffee for that yet, Maur. I'll see you in five."

Maura laughed at Jane's caffeine addiction. It was the same one she hounded her over, but this morning everything seemed lighter.

After arriving at Maura's, Jane began to step out of her car and walk towards the front door. She stopped when she noticed a man inside Maura's house. She paused, unsure if she should proceed towards the house. Just as she was about to take the next step and close the door of her car, Jane saw Maura approach the man and kiss him softly on the lips. I am so not in the mood for this shit.

She made her way onto the porch and knocked three times - firmly and quickly. Maura opened the door only a few seconds later as the man stood behind her. Jane though he looked like a nice enough guy, but it was barely 8:00 in the morning. Couldn't he keep it in his pants long enough to go to work? Well.. It was only a peck on the lips. But still, I'm sure Maura doesn't want that nasty morning breath of his on her.

"Hello, Jane! This is Jack. He's a professor. Jack this is my friend, Detective Jane Rizzoli. We're carpooling today." He extended his hand towards Jane to greet her, but Jane simply shoved her hands into her pockets and threw him a half-hearted "nice to meet ya." She still wasn't over her complex with shaking hands, and the conversation she and Alex had earlier that morning certainly wasn't helping matters.

"Well, I'd better get to work. Nice to meet you, Detective. I'll see you later, Maura." He leaned in for one more kiss, this time on her cheek, before heading out the door.

Jane gave Maura an expectant look, waiting for her to explain Jack's presence. Maura took the hint and started talking. "We met when I was giving guest lectures in an anatomy class. We hit it off immediately, but we've only been romantically involved for a couple of days. Last night was the first night he stayed over. I thought he would have left for work before you arrived or I would have told him about shaking hands. I'm sorry for that."

"Hey, no need to apologize, Maur. It's okay. I'm just a little touchy about it today, that's all. I didn't mean to offend him or anything. He seems like a nice enough guy." The two shared a smile before Jane's face took on a more serious, determined look. "But if does you wrong, I'll shoot him." She started to laugh at her own joke so that Maura would understand she was only kidding. It was a habit she quickly developed when she and Maura became friends and she realized that she didn't always understand sarcasm or her sense of humor.

"Well thank you for your offer, but I don't think I would want to leave his daughter to be fatherless no matter how he treats me."

"He has a kid?" Maura shut the door behind her and the two began making their way to Jane's car and then the crime scene.

"Yes. It doesn't bother me. I have no real expectations for how long our relationship will last, but if an appropriate time for me to meet her should present itself, I think I would be quite nervous."

"Oh come on, Maur. You'd have nothing to be nervous about!"

"Well... what if- no, never mind. It's silly." Maura looked out the window as Jane pressed her.

"No come on Maura, you hate it when I do that to you. Tell me. What's up?"

"I think Jack is someone I could develop a serious relationship with, and if that happens, it would be nice if his daughter liked me. What if she doesn't think I'm cool?"

"Not possible. Maura you are the only person in the world that I have ever known who can be a total dork but also the coolest person in the room at the same time. I mean that. You are the coolest, and if some dumb kid doesn't see that then she's the lame one."

Maura laughed and gave Jane a big smile. "Thank you, Jane. How are things going with Alex?"

Jane let out a big puff of air through her nose and rolled her eyes. "They're not." She propped her right elbow up on the armrest between them and shifted so that only her left hand was steering the car. "I don't know how to do this with her. And I can't believe I'm even telling you this, but last night we... ya know," she raised her eyebrows so that Maura could detect her innuendo, "and it wasn't the same. It wasn't like I was with her - it was like I am when I'm with everyone else. Then this morning, she asked me about Hoyt as soon as she woke up. No 'good morning,' no 'how'd you sleep', nothing. Just 'hey what's up with your scars.'"

Maura was determined to help her friend. "Well first of all, Jane. It's perfectly normal for friends to discuss their sex lives, although I know it makes you uncomfortable. It sounds like you're just feeling very emotionally detached from her. But it also sounds like she's trying to rush you back into your old routines. That can be very unhealthy, Jane."

"Yeah... I know." She paused for a moment. "Thank you, Maur. You're a good friend."

xxx

A month had passed since Jane told Alex the story behind her scarred hands. Within that time, Alex had arranged for a meeting in D.C. to discuss her upcoming position, which was only three weeks away. She and Jane had fallen mostly back into their old routines. They started going back to their favorite restaurants and date destinations. They even started planning their wedding again. To Jane, everything but moving to D.C. was good enough at this point considering all they had to overcome as a couple. Meanwhile, Maura had formed a serious relationship with Jack, and his daughter thought she was just as cool as Jane said she would. Jane and Maura had become much closer within the past 30 days. So much closer that some of the detectives wondered if Jane was having an affair with Maura.

It was July 3rd. Alex had begun packing for her trip to D.C. while Jane sat on the sofa and yelled obscenities at a bad umpire on the television who couldn't hear a word she said. Maura was saying goodbye to Jack who was leaving for an annual camping trip with his daughter. After he left, she was feeling a little sad and thought calling Jane would cheer her up.

The phone in Jane's apartment began to ring. "Jay, please get that! It's probably your mom calling for the third time today," Alex said from the bedroom.

"Son of a bitch!"

"Excuse me?"

"Not you," Jane moved to pick up the phone. "Hello?"

"Hi, Jane."

"You okay, Maur? Sounds like something's wrong."

"Nothing's wrong, I'm just a little sad that Jack left for his camping trip. It's selfish, I just wish I had more time to spend with him this week."

"Well that's the job for ya. Sorry my detective work has been so awesome in finding things for you to test this week. I'll promise to do worse come Monday."

Maura was right about Jane being able to cheer her up. "Jane, you should never apologize for being great at your job. Has Alex left to catch her flight yet?"

"Nah, she's still packing. She'll have to leave soon though or she's gonna miss her flight. Hey, you wanna come over and listen to me curse at my television after she leaves?"

"If by that you mean watch baseball, yes, Jane. I would love to!"

"Perfect! I'll order takeout for us. She's done packing, I gotta help her down with her bags. Come on over!"

"Okay, see you soon."

xxx

When Jane heard a knock on the door, she knew immediately who it was. She opened the door to reveal her best friend with a six pack in one hand and a bottle of wine in the other. Jane's smile grew wide.

"If we're going to have a girl's night, we have to do it the right way."

"Well I'm not one to argue with a doctor!" Jane took the items and placed them in the fridge while Maura began to sort out their takeout orders. They had developed a rhythm that was unlike anything either of them had known.

"Jane, can I ask you something?"

"Sure, what's up?" Jane carried their food to the living room and sat it on the coffee table while Maura followed behind with the a glass of wine and a bottle of beer.

"Well you and I have developed the best friendship I've ever had. Sometimes I'm just struck by how different we are, yet how we seem to know exactly what the other is thinking. Have you noticed that?"

"Now that you mention it, yeah. It's like we make up for what the other one lacks. You've helped me a lot with that, that's for sure."

"It's the yin and yang. In Chinese culture it represents two opposing forces that are actually complementary to each other."

"And here I thought it was just two guys who sang about shakin' it like a salt shaker." Maura looked blankly at Jane, confused by her reference. "Never mind, that's a song for another time."

An hour later, the Sox game had ended and Maura and Jane were a little loosened up by the alcohol. Maura was beginning to feel sleepy and had her head resting in Jane's lap as the rest of her body stretched the length of the couch. Jane held her beer in her right hand as the fingers of her left hand played with honey blonde hair. She didn't know the action would only put Maura to sleep faster and soon she realized her best friend's breathing had evened out and she had relaxed her full weight onto Jane's body and the couch.

Jane smiled and kept playing with Maura's hair as she flipped through the channels to find something else to watch. She finished her beer, but didn't move. I don't know how the hell she manages to stay so gorgeous all the time. Just then Jo Friday decided to join them on the couch, stepping all over Maura in the process, waking her from her peaceful sleep. Jane started to scold the dog, but Maura waved her hand sleepily to stop her. "She's fine, Jane! I think it's time for me to go home."

"You can't go home like this, Maura. You've had a little too much to drink."

"I'll call a cab," she yawned.

"Just stay here," Jane placed her hand on Maura's shoulder as the stood up from the couch. "You're exhausted. Just stay with me. Hell, spend the whole weekend here, I don't care."

"Okay!" Maura's eyes instantly widened. "Would it be inappropriate to ask to sleep in your bed though? My back is sore after falling asleep on that couch of yours."

"Well I'm going to ignore what you're saying about my great couch and agree to let you stay in my bed."

The two walked together to Jane's bedroom. As Jane was taking off her watch and locking up her gun, she watched as Maura sorted through her closet for a big t-shirt to wear to bed. As she changed into her own pjs, a tank top and boy shorts, her eyes remained focused on Maura's body as she unbuttoned her shirt slowly, almost as if it was intentional. Jane's jaw went slack when Maura let her shorts fall to the floor. She stood in black matching underwear, and Jane had never seen anything as beautiful as the sight before her. She didn't blink as Maura brought the t-shirt over her head and let it fall around her arms and waist. She wanted to soak in every detail, even though she knew she shouldn't.

"Jane?"

"Huh? What?"

"I said which side would you like me to sleep on?"

Fuck.. did she see me staring? I hope not. That would be a disaster. She's pretty much the only person I ever get excited to spend time with anymore. Don't fuck this up, Rizzoli. Keep it in your pants for once.

"Uh, that one's fine." Jane swore she saw Maura smile shyly as she peeled the sheets back to crawl into bed.

"Jane, can I ask you another question? It's kind of personal so I understand if you don't want to answer."

"Maura you can ask me anything right now." And it wasn't even an exaggeration. Both women settled into the bed before Maura asked her question. They both laid on their backs, while Maura's fingers were intertwined resting on her stomach, and Jane propped her head up by placing a hand underneath it.

"How many women have you been with?"

"32." She barely spoke loud enough for Maura to hear her. "It's... a lot, I know."

"I don't judge your worth based on the number of sexual partners you've had, Jane. I simply wondered how experienced you were with women. You seem to have an air of confidence about you that is quite charming at times and nearly irresistible at others."

"Uh.. thanks," Jane chuckled, a little unsure of how to perceive the compliment.

The two fell into a comfortable silence as Maura's eyes became heavy once again and she fell asleep beside of Jane. Jane was beginning to experience more symptoms of the beer she drank, and carefully got up from the bed to use the bathroom without waking Maura. As she was drying her hands, she examined her features in the mirror. The bags under her eyes were less visible now than they had been in years. She was beginning to look more like her old self. She was finally at the point where she could go days on end without waking up screaming, covered in sweat from the nightmares that had tormented her. She was beginning to see the value in acknowledging her own emotions and expressing them. She attributed those positive changes to the woman currently asleep in her bed rather than the woman on her way to D.C. She had been more open and honest with Maura than she had been with Alex even before everything that happened. She finally realized that she needed Maura Isles in her life.

She began to feel a lump rise in her throat and watched her reflection as her dark brown eyes became watery, tears threatening to fall. For the first time in her life, she allowed them to fall freely from her eyes. It felt good. It felt like release. She looked down and examined her hands. The scars, she had become used to seeing, but it seemed foreign to have the weight of a ring on her left hand. She removed it and placed it on the counter next to the sink before looking up to meet her own gaze one more time. She wiped the traces of tears from her cheeks, sniffled her nose and turned to walk back into the bedroom.

Being as careful not to wake Maura as possible, she gently climbed back into the bed. Maura now lay on her side with her back to Jane. Jane wrapped a long arm around the other woman and pulled her in close so that there was no more space separating Maura's back from Jane's front. She rested her head on the pillow, breathing in the scent of Maura's blonde hair that was splayed out in front of Jane's face. This was all she needed, and she was happy with that.