DISCLAIMER: I do not own Rizzoli & Isles nor any of the characters from the show. I am writing this purely for entertainment, not profit. Rizzoli and Isles are property of Tess Gerritsen and TNT.

Full disclaimers on Chapter 1

Chapter 6

"You were having a lot of trouble breathing."

"Yeah, I remember that."

"And due to lack of enough oxygen, you were going in and out of consciousness." Maura sighed. "I tried 911, but the EMTs were overwhelmed. It was a big quake, seven in the magnitude scale, and they had their hands full, we would need to wait."

"Right."

"But you couldn't wait. You were dying, Jane." Maura swallowed hard again. "Literally dying."

Maura felt her hand, that was on the bed, enveloped by Jane's hand, and a gentle squeeze and a small smile to incentivize her to keep going.

"I changed approach, and requested a medevac."

"I am pretty sure my health insurance does not include air medevac." Jane chuckled.

"Mine does." Maura replied cryptically, deviating her eyes and blushing.

Jane furrowed her brows.

"But… how?"

"It does not matter…" Maura dismissed. "I got a helicopter that arrived there in a few minutes. But by then you were already having hemoptysis."

"Hemo what?"

"There was blood on your mouth when you were breathing…" Maura swallowed hard at the memory, and Jane squeezed her hand again.

"Oh."

"We had barely taken off on the helicopter, and you flatlined. They couldn't do chest compressions because your thorax was already likely compromised. It took several defibrillator rounds and an injection directly to your heart for you to come back again." Maura bit her bottom lip, her eyes welling in tears, as she shook her head and deviated her eyes trying to regain her composure. "By then it was clear how dire the situation was. You were taken immediately into surgery as soon as we arrived at the hospital, and I was informed you flatlined again in the OR, but luckily there they were equipped to fix your lungs and restart your heart. You spent the following hours in the ICU, and only about two hours ago, given there was no further hemorrhage, you were moved to this regular room…"

Jane nodded.

"In the meanwhile, I had called BPD to inform them of what happened, and asked them to inform your family. I authorized them to provide my contact so your family could call me, and I spoke to your brother and to your father. They explained the mystery of why you were at the airport in California yesterday morning when you should by then have been safe and sound back in Boston – your flight cancellation. I have been keeping them up to date on your situation."

"Thank you, Maura. You saved my life."

"You saved mine first." Maura smiled touched at her.

"You don't need to delay your plans, Doc. You were in that airport because you needed to fly somewhere."

"My trip can wait."

"Maura…"

"Why did you do it?" Maura finally blurted.

"Do what?" Jane asked, furrowing her brows, not understanding the sudden question.

"Risk your life for a stranger…"

"You are not a stranger. You were in danger. And I knew there was something I could try." Jane shrugged.

Maura shook her head.

"You could have died, Jane. You almost did." Maura's voice sounded slightly broken, and Jane finally realized how much self-control Maura was exerting over her emotions right now.

"Hey, I am right here…" Jane squeezed Maura's hand. "It was just a scare."

"You should not have done it." Maura sighed.

"I vowed to serve and protect, Maura. Every day I might put my life on the line. It is second nature. No big deal, okay? Don't sweat over it."

Maura just shook her head, clearly not convinced.

"I am actually glad my original flight was cancelled…" Jane offered.

"You what?" Maura looked horrified at Jane. "Are you out of your mind?"

Jane chuckled. "My mental faculties are not impaired, Dr. Isles. But I am glad my original flight was cancelled, I am glad I was at that airport, and I am glad I could push you out of the way of that wall. This?" Jane pointed with her chin to herself. "This will be healed in a couple of days."

"More like a few weeks."

"You got my meaning."

"I did, Jane." Maura smiled gently at her. "I don't understand why you did it, but I am grateful you did.

The nurses chose that moment to arrive back bringing breakfast.

"Glad to see you are okay, Miss Rizzoli. Your partner here was agonizing over your state…" the older nurse offered gently, as she raised Jane's bed to a position Jane could eat.

Jane's eyes met Maura's, who had the decency to blush.

"She does worry for nothing…" Jane tried to make light of the situation.

"I wouldn't refer to flatlining twice in a day as exactly nothing. She had reason to be concerned. It is very romantic that you did all you did to save her…" The nurse continued, and Jane furrowed her brows, puzzled. "Here you go… Bon appetite!" The nurse added with a flourish, before leaving the room.

"Is there something else I missed, Maura?" Jane inquired, as Maura helped uncovering the trays, given one of Jane's arms was immobilized and in a sling because of the shoulder.

Maura just swallowed hard. "I can't lie." She almost whispered.

"Then tell the truth…" Jane challenged, not understanding the situation.

"You were dying. Even if I could get to a private medevac, it would be ages to coordinate work. So I used my health insurance. I can't lie, and I never assume something. I… I always ask for the exact and literal meaning of things… But I learned other people don't… And that is the loophole I sometimes explore when I absolutely need to lie." Maura admitted.

"I still don't get it…" Jane continued puzzled, sipping from the orange juice slowly.

"I told them my partner was severely hurt in helping me. I meant my partner as my work colleague, but they automatically implied my partner as in a romantic relationship partner…"

"I see…" Jane had to hold back a chuckle. Maura had been ingenious.

"They asked if you had already been added to my health insurance, I said not yet, and they did it immediately… I used the documents I found with your carry on for it." Maura added sheepishly.

"Well, it worked." Jane forked a few pieces of melon, realizing she was famished.

"It surely did… But I didn't think too far ahead, I was too concerned at that moment. I cannot lie now, to keep it…" Maura rubbed her forehead, wearily.

That explained why Maura had not interjected at all to the friendly nurse.

"I need to find the best way to rectify my ruse." Maura sighed, picking up her phone, but Jane extended her hand and placed it on Maura's forearm, stalling her.

"There is another alternative…" Jane looked intensely at Maura, her eyes holding an unspoken question.

"I couldn't possibly force you to perpetuate the lie…" Maura furrowed her brows.

Literal. Jane recalled Maura had just said she needed things literally, in unequivocal terms.

"It would not be a lie if we were really partners… It would just be a matter of the timing when it began, a technicality…" Jane smirked, her eyes gently observing as realization downed on Maura.

"You… You would be… really interested… in me?" Maura asked, surprised.

Jane raised her brows. The woman in front of her seemed to totally ignore her sex appeal.

"If I am to be completely honest with you, I felt attracted to you from the moment you asked me if I was lost…" it was Jane's turn to smile sheepishly.

Maura's grin widened. "It was reciprocal…" She admitted.

"So… What do you say?"