RIZZOLI & ISLES

There’s Something To Be Said For Slumming It

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Title: ‘There’s Something To Be Said For Slumming It’

Author: readthesubtext

Rating: Pretty tame, all things considered

Spoilers: All episodes to date

Genre: Hurt/Comfort. Femslash… and OK, a little bit of fluff. These two are turning me into such a sap.

Status: One–shot. Complete @ 1,929 words

Pairing: Jane & Maura. Who else?

Disclaimer: The characters don’t belong to me, I just borrow them for my own amusement. ‘Rizzoli & Isles’ is the brainchild of Tess Gerritsen, Janet Tamaro et al, and the property of TNT.

Synopsis: Jane & Maura have a heart–to–heart in the aftermath of ‘Money For Nothing.’ A fresh take on the obligatory ‘kiss and make up’ scene.

There’s Something To Be Said For Slumming It

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“OK, no,” Jane announced, unceremoniously wrenching the beer bottle away from her friend’s hands, “You don’t take dainty little sips, Maura, you’re supposed to chug it. This isn’t a wine–tasting session.”

Maura rolled her eyes, her exasperation quickly turning to amusement when Jane parried her attempts to snatch the bottle back. Regarding the Detective defiantly, she reached for the discarded champagne flute at the side of the table and proceeded to down its contents in one fell swoop.

“There. Happy?” the Doctor demanded, a look of distaste clouding her features as she was forced to wipe her chin with the back of her hand.

“It’s a start,” Jane conceded, her eyes radiating warmth as she offered the bottle back to her friend. “Now come on. Down the hatch.”

Seeing Maura wince at the nautical reference, Jane shot her a quick look of apology, but her expression rapidly evolved into one of concern when Maura evaded eye contact, suddenly pensive. The reality of the situation was clearly close to dawning on the Doctor all over again and Jane bit her lip, hoping she wasn’t about to witness another meltdown.

“You know, if this isn’t having the desired affect, you could always try some of my Mom’s – 100% non–lethal – concoction,” the Detective teased in a half–hearted attempt to break the oppressive silence, “I hear it works wonders.”

Maura mustered a wan smile, and Jane folded her hands together, jiggling her thumbs back and forth nervously.

“Look, Maura, I know I was a jackass earlier – ”

“No, you were right,” Maura interjected, her lips curling with self–reproach. Her eyes flitted over Jane’s attentive features, but she ducked her head when the Detective’s gaze softened, not sure if she could keep her composure in the face of Jane’s compassion.

“I let my involvement with Garrett cloud my professional judgement. I should never have been allowed to work this case.”

“But you were the one who called foul play,” Jane assured her earnestly, “If it was down to me, he would’ve gotten off scot–free. You gave us the ammunition we needed to nail the son of a bitch.”

“Jane, I slept with the son of a bitch,” Maura reminded her in an anguished tone, hastily backtracking when the Detective visibly recoiled at her revelation. “I don’t mean – not yesterday, but he…” Maura found herself blinking rapidly as her voice dropped to a strangled whisper, “He was my first, you know?”

Jane took a moment to process that information, her eyes brimming with empathy when Maura shot her a furtive glance in an attempt to gauge her reaction.

The bar was rapidly filling up, and Jane eyed their fellow patrons warily, realising that this wasn’t a conversation she wanted to have in public. She slid out of their booth, hovering besides the Doctor and laying a comforting hand on her shoulder.

“Come on,” she said softly, “Let’s get out of here. I’ll call us a cab, OK?”

Maura hesitated for a moment, and then nodded her assent. Jane threw a tip on the bar and ushered her friend towards the door, unthinkingly resting her hand against the small of Maura’s back as they made their way towards the car park.

She stopped in her tracks when she felt Maura draw to a halt besides her, and shook her head when she saw the Doctor glance uncertainly towards her car.

“Maura, I’m not gonna let you go home and cry yourself to sleep, OK?” Jane said firmly, but the undercurrent of tenderness in her tone was enough to draw a hesitant smile from the blonde.

“I think I just need some space, you know? To process all of this.”

“Well, you’re good at multi–tasking, right? Which means you can still process with me around.”

“Jane…” Maura protested weakly, barely managing to cling to her resolve when the Detective turned luminous eyes in her direction.

“So… your place or mine?”

* * * * *

Fifteen minutes later, Jane cleared her throat and averted her eyes while Maura bent down to greet her pet tortoise, patting his armour affectionately. Bass looked thoroughly unmoved by her attention, prompting Jane to mouth “ingrate” behind the Doctor’s back.

“That’s quite a bond you have there,” she observed with more than a hint of sarcasm, “I mean, he can’t even be bothered to stick his head out of his shell unless you’re bribing him with a strawberry. And not just any kind of strawberry – ”

“He’s shy,” Maura protested, and Jane regarded her dubiously.

“Really? And here was me thinking he was just plain anti–social. Not that you can blame him. Being petted when you’re a tortoise is probably like someone knocking on your head when you’re wearing a helmet.”

“So you’re accusing me of abusing him now?”

Jane couldn’t contain her laughter when she saw the indignant expression on the Doctor’s face. “Maura, I’m kidding. I’m sure Bass loves you, in his own warped kind of way.”

Jane squeezed her friend’s arm, making a beeline towards the blonde’s fridge and seizing the half–empty bottle of red wine residing there.

“You want one?” she asked, and Maura shook her head, her lips curling into an enigmatic smile.

“Wait there,” she said, holding out her hand, and Jane’s forehead furrowed in puzzlement when Maura promptly disappeared from the room. She heard the Doctor exclaim something under her breath, followed by what sounded like a jubilant peal of laughter, and curiosity finally got the better of her.

“OK, what the hell – ” Jane promptly trailed off when Maura re–appeared in the doorway, brandishing a bottle of champagne with all the flamboyance of a game show host trying to drum up some enthusiasm for the prizes on offer.

“Wait a second, is that…” Jane’s dimples emerged in full force, her eyes crinkling at the corners, “Oh my God, did you buy that for me?”

“Well, I believe it’s the next best thing to the Hope Diamond – at least as far as you’re concerned?”

Jane gingerly took the champagne bottle from her friend’s hands, affecting an expression of reverence. “Well, it comes pretty damn close. I can’t believe you did that,” she stated again, turning puppy dog eyes in the Doctor’s direction.

“How do you know I didn’t smuggle it home in my purse?”

“Because you, my friend, are far too classy for that.”

“Oh, so you’re not complaining about me flaunting my wealth now?” Maura teased, giving Jane a friendly poke in the ribs as she took the bottle from her and began searching for a corkscrew. “You’re such a hypocrite,” she added playfully, prompting Jane to burst into laughter.

“Look, I said I was sorry, OK?”

“So…” Maura hesitated, her smile faltering slightly, “Does that mean you still trust my judgment? That you still trust me?”

“Maura – ” Jane’s expression suddenly became serious as she studied the anxious look on the Doctor’s face. “Yes,” she said simply, but the vehemence in her tone spoke volumes.

“Good, because fighting with you… it was horrible, Jane. Even worse than finding out Garrett was responsible for Adam’s death,” she confessed ruefully.

Jane studied Maura silently for a moment, and then impulsively bridged the gap between them, enveloping the blonde in a tight hug. Maura willed herself not to drop the bottle of champagne and placed it clumsily on the kitchen counter, needing no further invitation to wrap her arms around Jane’s waist and bury her head in the crook of the Detective’s shoulder. She inhaled the faint, but familiar scent of her friend’s perfume, her breath hitching when she realised that her lips were millimeters away from the scar Hoyt had gouged into Jane’s throat.

She closed her eyes, taking a moment to enjoy the sensation of the Detective’s hands travelling up and down the length of her spine, but she couldn’t stop her cheeks from flushing as the hug lingered for longer than she’d dared to hope; long enough for her to become acutely aware of just how amazing it felt to finally get this close to her colleague.

“Jane, I know we come from different backgrounds – ”

Jane suppressed a snort, smiling into Maura’s hair. “No kidding.”

“But I just wanted you to know… when I look at you, I don’t see how much money you do or don’t have, OK?” Maura pulled back to study the Detective’s features solemnly, “I just see my best friend.”

“Aww, Maura, that’s so… sweet.” Jane performed an exaggerated imitation of her friend’s earlier sentiment, clutching her chest and affecting a look of poignancy. “So I’m not too crass and uncultured for your tastes?”

The comment was delivered with a self–deprecating smirk and a teasing tone, but this time Maura didn’t fail to notice the hint of insecurity in Jane’s demeanour.

“No!” she reassured her, but her affectionate smile gradually became tinged with sadness. “I’m just worried that when you look at me… well, that I represent something you hate.”

“Uh–uh.” Jane nearly dislocated her neck from shaking her head so vehemently. “Maura, I’m not gonna lie, I have a huge problem with rich people who don’t lift a finger their whole lives; who have everything handed to them on a plate, and it still isn’t enough for them. Entitled bastards like Garrett piss me the hell off – they have all the opportunities in the world, but they throw them away as soon as the going gets tough. But you…” Jane gripped her friend’s forearms to drive home her point, “You are the smartest, most dedicated person I know. You deserve all the best things in life. And I’m sorry, OK?” Jane’s face was the picture of contrition, “I’m sorry I made you feel bad for something you have no control over. I just – ”

Jane’s verbal diarrhoea came to a rapid halt when she saw the way Maura was looking at her, head cocked slightly to the side and features alight with what could only be described as adoration.

“What?” Maura prompted, her lips quirking slightly when Jane released her arms and adopted a defensive posture.

“I just… I didn’t like seeing you with hi– with them.”

“But why?”

“Because I – I didn’t want you to get sucked back into that world again; air kissing assholes and…” Realising she was potentially digging herself into another hole, Jane sucked in an agitated breath, “I kind of like having you around,” she concluded in a barely audible mumble, scuffing the kitchen floor with her shoe.

“Jane, I was never a part of that world, not really. I haven’t seen those people in months, and they’re the only ones I really kept in touch with.”

“So you’re not gonna be swanning off to play polo this weekend, then?”

“Why, did you have something else in mind?”

Jane glanced at Maura sharply, wondering if she was imagining the flirtatious undercurrent to the Doctor’s tone, and swallowed her visceral reaction when the blonde raised her eyebrows suggestively, nailing her with another one of those mesmerising smiles.

“Jane, I’m not going anywhere, OK?” Maura nudged the Detective lightly with her elbow, her eyes dancing mischievously. “Besides, clearly there’s something to be said for slumming it.”

Maura momentarily stopped breathing when Jane’s hands came to rest against her hips, tugging her forwards until they were practically nose–to–nose.

“What are you doing?” she murmured, resting her palms against Jane’s chest; her fingertips brushing against the bare skin of the Detective’s collarbone as she met Jane’s penetrating gaze without flinching.

Jane smiled softly, leaning closer until her lips were level with Maura’s ear.

“I think it’s time we took slumming it to the next level.”

~ ~ ~