Chapter 14: Nighttime Routines

A/N: The good news is that this story is pouring out of me faster than I can write it, which means there's plenty more to come. The bad news is I won't be able to post much over the next week. I will pick back up with regular posts next week though! In the meantime, I wanted to give you all one last mini-chapter before I go, which probably should have been part of the last chapter. Maybe I'll combine them when I'm done with the story. 😊

Maura: June, Present Day

Maura stood with her arms wrapped around herself protectively as she watched the bathtub filling with steaming hot water. She poured in some vanilla and lavender bath salts. These scents always reminded her of Jane, and when she sunk into the warm bath, she imagined that Jane was holding her in a warm, loving embrace.

Maura closed her eyes, took a deep calming breath, and leaned her head back against the side of the tub. She was still feeling overwhelmed by the emotions of the past few days, but her blind panic had subsided. Of course, she knew that losing her family again was always a possibility, but she also knew that Jane was right – she had to try to focus on what she had instead of what she could lose. It was definitely easier said than done, though.

For tonight, she needed to focus on herself, her daughters, and Jane. Everyone else could wait; everyone else would understand.

Maura stayed in the bath until the water was nearly room temperature and she was shivering slightly. After she finished, she cleaned up the bathroom, brushed her teeth, and returned to her room. Tears welled in her eyes when she saw that Jane had left a notebook on her bed. She ran her fingers over the cover lightly before she turned to find pajamas. Once she was dressed, she sat on the bed and picked up the notebook. She opened the notebook, and out of habit, she let the pages fall through her fingers.

Then, she opened the notebook to the first page, intending to at least try to write something, when she realized that the notebook was not, in fact, empty like she thought. Most of the pages were blank, but Jane had written on the first page:

Maura~
You are the strongest person I've ever met. Never forget that. I know everything seems hard right now, but remember I'm here for you, no matter what. You are my best friend and my family, and I love you more than you know.
Welcome home, Maur.
❤Jane

The tears that had been threatening to fall since she first saw the notebook on her bed finally started to flow. Even though the note was short, by the time she got to the end, she could barely see through her tears.

As her tears slowed, she gently closed the notebook without writing in it and placed it in the nightstand next to her most treasured possessions.

Jane: June, Present Day

Jane had rejoined the rest of her family at the table, and just as she expected, they had all understood that Maura needed some time alone. She could tell that her mother was itching to go "mother" Maura, and that she was fighting against her instincts to find Maura and smother her with love. Her mother seemed to recognize that, even if she would feel better if she could actively take care of Maura, it wasn't what Maura needed right now. For that, Jane was grateful.

Since it was still a school night, everyone left between 7pm and 7:30pm, and Jane felt exhausted as she closed the door behind her mother. She returned to the family room where the girls were still playing. Well, Emma and Finn were playing Guess Who while Harper told an animated story to a half-asleep Sophie.

"Finn, Em, I forgot to check your Friday folders," Jane said, referring to the folders sent home with kindergarteners that included their reading log, homework, and any notices for parents. Their usual routine was for Jane to check their folders on Sunday afternoons while Harper napped, and Emma and Finn had quiet reading time. "Can you get them for me?"

"Can we finish our game first?" Finn asked, glancing at Jane.

"Yeah, sure," Jane said. "I'm going to go start a bath for Harper and Sophie. When you guys are done, please put the game away and bring your folders upstairs for me."

"Okay," they said together.

"Harper, Soph, let's go upstairs," Jane said to the younger girls.

Harper ran up the stairs, dragging a very tired looking Sophie behind her. Jane felt like Sophie looked as she followed them upstairs. She started the bath before helping the girls brush their teeth. Sophie woke up a bit in the bath, and she and Harper enjoyed playing with the bath toys. She lifted Harper out first, wrapping her in the kids' panda towel that had a hood with a panda face.

Sophie was giggling profusely as Jane lifted her out of the tub, and she squirmed out of Jane's hands the second her feet hit the floor. Jane was faster, though, and she caught Sophie before she ran out of the bathroom wet, wrapping her in the kids' duck towel. "I got you, you wiggly little noodle," Jane said, laughing along with the girls.

Sophie quickly turned in Jane's arms. Her face glowed brightly with happiness. "Am I your noodle?" she asked excitedly.

Jane laughed and placed a kiss on the tip of Sophie's nose as she pulled the hood with the duck face over her head. "Yes, you're my wiggly little noodle," Jane said with a bright smile of her own.

Sophie threw her arms around Jane, and Jane didn't care that the little girl was still wet, soaking Jane's shirt. She loved that such a little thing like a nickname could make the three-year-old so happy.

"We have our folders, mama," Emma said when she stuck her head into the bathroom and waved the folder in the air.

"Alright, put them on your beds, please," Jane said. As Emma started to leave the bathroom, Jane called after her, "Wait, do you guys want to take a bath or showers tonight?"

"Bath," Emma said at the same time as Finn, who had joined Emma in the doorway, said, "shower," causing them both to start giggling.

"No, you guys have to do the same thing," Jane said simply.

Emma and Finn glanced at each other briefly before Finn said, "Okay, bath."

Jane nodded and started to drain and refill the bathtub with clean water before she took Harper and Sophie into their bedroom to get into their pajamas. She quickly helped them dress and brush out their hair. She gave them each a goodnight kiss and left them to pick out books to read before bed.

Jane knocked on Maura's door gently, and she jumped when Maura opened the door almost immediately.

"Sorry, I heard you saying goodnight to the girls, so I was just coming out to help put them to bed," Maura said as she laughed slightly at Jane's reaction.

"Yeah, I just didn't expect you to open the door so quickly," Jane said, laughing too.

Maura stopped to say goodnight to Emma and Finn before she went into Harper and Sophie's room to read to them while Jane gave Emma and Finn a bath. Once Emma and Finn were ready for bed, Jane went into their room with them. She sat on the side of Finn's bed to check their folders while Emma started reading and Finn searched their bookshelf for a new book.

"You guys get to have a pizza party on Thursday," Jane said.

"You have to sign the permission slip!" Emma said quickly.

"Please…" Jane prompted her daughter.

"Sorry, mama, will you please sign our permission slips?" Emma said.

"Of course," Jane said as she found a pen on one of their desks and signed both forms before replacing them in the folders. She also signed their reading logs and removed the old papers from the folders. "I'll put these back in your backpacks," Jane said as she returned to sit on Finn's bed.

"But we're supposed to do it," Finn countered, which was usually true. Jane had tried to instill a sense of accountability in them by making them responsible for packing their backpacks, but right now, she was too tired to care. Besides, Emma and Finn were already very responsible and mature for their age, so it wasn't like Jane doing it for them one time was going to make a difference.

"I know, but it's been a busy weekend," Jane said. "It's getting late, and you have school tomorrow."

"Okay," Finn said as she climbed in bed.

"Lights out by 9pm, okay?" Jane said as she stood up. Both girls nodded, and Jane leaned over to give Finn a kiss before moving to Emma's bed to do the same.

"You'll put the folders in our backpacks now, right?" Finn said as Jane turned to leave the room. "You won't forget, right?"

Jane chuckled. "Are you going to worry about this all night?" she asked.

"I just don't want you to forget," Finn said quietly.

"Okay, would you like to go do it yourself?" Jane asked.

"Yes!" Finn said quickly as Emma nodded.

Jane held out the folders, and they both scrambled out of bed. "Straight back upstairs when you're done," Jane said even though she knew it was unnecessary.

When the girls got back in their beds, Jane gave them each another kiss goodnight, telling them she loved them as she closed the door behind her. She glanced down the hall to check if Maura was still in Harper and Sophie's room, but since both their door and the door to Maura's room were closed, Jane assumed that they were tucked in and Maura was back in her room.

Jane went downstairs to make sure everything was locked, and the lights were off. When she got back upstairs, she hesitated. She wasn't sure if she should just leave Maura alone or if she should check on her. In the end, her desire to make sure Maura was okay won out.

Jane knocked on Maura's door and waited.

Maura: June, Present Day

"You can come in," Maura called back softly.

Jane opened the door to find Maura sitting on her bed with papers spread out in front of her.

"I'm just making sure I have everything I need for my meeting with the lawyer tomorrow," Maura explained as she gathered the papers up and placed them back in the folder.

Jane nodded and sat down near the foot of the bed, facing Maura. "How are you doing?" Jane asked gently.

Maura smiled at Jane. "I'm okay," she said. When she saw the skeptical look on Jane's face, she laughed and repeated, "Really, Jane, I'm okay, especially considering how overwhelming the last few days have been."

"Okay," Jane said quietly as Maura stood to put her folder into her purse.

Maura sat down next to Jane and tenderly placed her hand on her thigh. "How are you doing?" she asked.

"I'm tired," Jane admitted.

"You should take a bath or do something relaxing then go to bed early," Maura suggested.

"I…yeah…um, I was wondering if you wanted to watch a movie with me in my room," Jane said. "I totally understand if you just want to be alone. I won't take it personally if you say no," she added quickly.

Maura smiled. "I'd like that," she replied. She leaned against Jane so that their arms were pressed together, and she could lay her head on Jane's shoulder. "I don't think I have it in me to talk about anything of importance tonight, but I'd really like to just be with you."

"I'd like that too," Jane admitted, leaning her cheek against Maura's head. Jane gave Maura's hand a squeeze, and Maura lifted her head. Jane stood up and looked to Maura. "I just want to change and get ready for bed because we both know that once I get into bed, I'm not getting back out until morning. Why don't you come down in like five minutes?"

"Perfect," Maura said with a smile, and true to her word, Maura was climbing into Jane's bed five minutes later.

"What do you want to watch?" Jane asked.

"Something light," Maura said.

"Uh, okay, let's see what's on Netflix," Jane said as she started scrolling through the movie options. They ended up settling on Crazy Rich Asians even though both of them had seen it before. After starting the movie, Jane leaned over to grab her phone to set her alarm. "Emma and Finn's bus comes at 8:25am," Jane told Maura. "I usually take Harper to school right after they get on the bus. What time is your appointment tomorrow?"

"It's at 10am," Maura replied.

"Do you want to come with me to bring Harper to school or do you want to use the time to get ready?" Jane asked as she snuggled lower into the bed to get comfortable. "I can bring Sophie with me if you want."

Maura shifted lower in the bed as well, sitting close enough to Jane to allow their arms to press together. Maura found the warm touch of Jane's arm pressed against her own comforting, but her heart skipped a beat when Jane moved to wrap her arm around Maura's shoulders and pulled her closer. Maura turned and rested her head on Jane's chest; she wrapped her arm around Jane's waist. Even though she intended to return to her own room after the movie, Maura knew that now that she was comfortable and wrapped in Jane's arms, she was likely going to fall asleep within minutes.

"I should probably use the time to get ready," Maura said. She wanted to go with Jane, but she knew that she was going to need the extra time to get ready since she probably wouldn't be able to do everything she needed to do to prepare with four kids running around.

"Okay, we'll pick you up after we drop Harper off and drive you to the lawyer's office. I'm going to go grocery shopping with Sophie while you're at your appointment, so let me know if you have any requests," Jane said.

"Thanks," Maura said tiredly, and the last thing she remembered was the pressure of the kiss Jane left on the crown of her head as she fell into a deep sleep.