Hey there! Hope you're not tired of me yet, because I'm not done. And even if you think I'll leave this one unfinished, I can assure you I won't. It might take some time, it might be longer than I think, but I will get this done.

For now, here's another one.

Enjoy!

Chapter 38

Jane, Maura and TJ had spent their Saturday indoors watching movies, eating pizza and playing games. Around 2PM TJ got tired. He took a nap in Jane's bedroom, giving the two some alone time before the pure bliss is over. In just over 24 hours they will all go to Maura's house for Sunday dinner, and both Jane and Maura knew they will be exhausted by the time everyone will go home after showering Jane with questions, mostly from her very worried mother regarding how does she feel and what about her brother.

They were cuddled on the couch, Maura curled up as close as possible to Jane's right side. Jane wrapped her right arm around Maura's shoulders, feeling Maura burying her face in Jane's neck.

"Are you sure you don't want to kiss me?" Maura said quietly into Jane's neck.

"I want to kiss you more than anything."

Maura raised her head up, meeting Jane's eyes. "But you said…"

"I know what you think, Maur. It might be stupid and childish, but I don't want you to feel like "the other woman". You are not the other woman, you are far from it, but I still don't want you to feel like it. I've already let you down so many times, and I want this," she gestured between herself and Maura, "to work."

Maura's eyes softened. "This is actually very sweet of you. It is a bit childish in a "15 years old teenagers first time in love" kind of way, but it's also very sweet."

Jane looked at her, the words "thank you" darting from her eyes.

"You know that kissing me won't make me feel like "the other woman"." Maura said, giving Jane her most reassuring and meaningful look.

"Maura…"

"Jane." She cut her off.

"Don't do this to me. I already feel like crap for all the mistakes I've made."

"What you're doing to me isn't fair too. You kissed me and then you were gone for so long. I've missed you so much; I never knew I was capable of such a strong emotion in such capacity. I see the way you look at me, Jane. I look at you the same way." Maura's tone was soft, caressing. She held Jane's hands in hers as she spoke and looked into her eyes. "So, I will ask you again – are you sure you don't want to kiss me?"

Jane looked at Maura. Her eyes showed so many emotions – a huge mixture of excitement, hope, love, happiness, knowing, inviting and delight – a mixture Jane couldn't process all at once. She saw the honesty, love and tenderness in Maura's eyes, and before she could register her mind, she felt herself beginning to close the small gap between their lips. Her left hand went behind Maura's neck, supporting her head and pulling her closer at the same time. Her right hand found its place around Maura's middle, her palm resting on the small of her back. She felt Maura's breath on her mouth, knowing Maura was looking at her own lips just as she was looking at Maura's. The distance between their lips was less than an inch. They were both breathing heavily, but to Maura it seemed like Jane had stopped. She threw her head back.

"Oh, for crying out loud."

Her hands were on Jane's cheeks, cupping her face, and she pulled her closer in one quick move.

Fireworks.

Lips met and parted, but never truly left the other's. Maura slid one hand to the back of Jane's neck, feeling Jane pulling her even closer. It wasn't long before Jane felt Maura's tongue gently caressing her lower lip. She opened her mouth a bit wider, both of them remembering the incredible sensation of feeling the other's tongue in their mouths. When their tongues touched Jane felt, and heard, Maura letting out a small moan into her mouth. With a swift, smooth move, Jane pulled Maura into her lap as her left hand traveled down from Maura's neck to her back.

She felt herself getting wetter in every passing moment. She almost forgot how fast Maura could get her all worked up. As she remembered the sensations that Maura made her feel, her brain kicked in.

"Maura, we have to stop." Jane said, pushing Maura gently by her chest. They were both breathing very heavily. "TJ is sleeping in the next room."

Maura rested her forehead against Jane's. "I can't wait until after dinner tomorrow."

Jane ran her thumb over Maura's cheek. "Me too. I wish we could skip it, but it's at your house."

"Not for too long."

Jane tilted her head up. "What do you mean?"

Maura seemed to realize what she just said. "Oh, I'm not supposed to say anything actually. Angela will tell you everything tomorrow."

"Before or after screaming her lungs off?" Jane said sarcastically. Maura couldn't help the small laugh from leaving her mouth.

They stayed in silence for a little longer before they decided to go to bed. They fell asleep on each side of TJ's small figure, their hands on his stomach and their fingers linked together.

"Hi there."

Frankie looked away from the small TV screen and towards the source of the voice. "Hey, how are you?"

"Me? You're the one in a hospital bed and a busted knee." Jane said and walked in. "I got a surprise for you."

"Playboy?" he asked playfully.

"No, just a regular boy." She smiled. His expression was confused, but it turned into a big smiled as TJ rounded the corner and ran into the room.

"Uncle Frankie!"

"Hey little buddy!" Frankie said, hugging him as best as he could. "Is Tommy…"

"No, Maura's been watching him since Thursday evening." Jane interrupted him and sat down in the chair next to his bed. "She's just talking with the doctor at the nurse's station. Apparently they went to med school together."

Just then, Maura appeared at the doorstep, smiling at Frankie. "I'm glad to see you're safe."

"Thanks, it's good to see you too." Frankie said. "What are you all doing here?"

"Auntie Jane said the doctor wants to see she's okay, so we can come and see you." TJ said.

"Speaking of which, how about auntie Maura and I will go to see my doctor, and you can stay here with Uncle Frankie?" Jane asked TJ, who nodded vigorously. "Okay, so we'll be back soon."

"See you later sis. Bye Maura." Frankie said.

"Bye little brother."

They were on their way towards the elevator to see the doctor, when Jane grasped Maura's arm.

"Jane?" Maura said, concerned. Jane didn't answer, she just tried to keep her balance.

"Jane, what is it?"

"Everything's spinning." The short answer came in a very tired voice.

"You need to sit down." Maura said, automatically going into her doctor mode. She helped Jane to the nearest chair and helped her sit down as carefully as possible. "How long have you been feeling dizzy?"

"Since… Friday morning, but I only really started to notice it yesterday." Jane said. Her voice was weak and powerless.

"What's your Doctor's name?" Maura asked.

"Doctor Creevey…" Jane said, a little confused.

"Stay here, don't try to stand up. I'll only be a moment." Maura said and walked away. She came back less than two minutes later and told Jane she asked the nurse to page Doctor Creevey so she won't have to get up. Ten minutes later, he arrived.

"I'm sorry you had to wait, I was with a patient." He apologized with a smile. "Which one of you is Jane Rizzoli?"

"Me." Jane answered in a low voice. "I was beaten while on the job. The EMTs checked me at the scene and said it wasn't a must for me to go to the hospital, but that I do have to see a Doctor today."

"I can see why. Have you been feeling any other symptoms?" he said, studying her.

"Except for the obvious dizziness, I felt a little weak in general and sometimes there was a little pain around here." Jane said, placing her hand on the right side of her torso, just under her chest.

"I see. Let's get you a wheelchair and bring you upstairs."

"Okay, roll your shirt up for me please."

Jane did as she was asked. She looked down at the spot Doctor Creevey was currently studying, and saw her skin was now in slight shades of purple and red.

"It didn't look like that when the EMTs checked me." Jane said. She looked at Maura, who was standing a couple of steps away and biting her nails. She shot her a reassuring look, and Maura returned a smile as she dropped her hand.

"Is this hurts?" Doctor Creevey asked and applied a little pressure on Jane's torso.

Jane had to choke down a growl. "Yes, a little."

"Okay, Annie please order an MRI as fast as possible." Doctor Creevey said to the nurse at the left of him. She nodded and left the room in a hurry.

"Wh… Do you know what is it?" Jane asked.

"I have a few guesses, but I don't want to misguide you. Hopefully the MRI machine will be available today so we can fix whatever that's broken in you as soon as possible." he smiled as he spoke to her, "Excuse me, I have to go. I'll be back later to give you an update."

And with that, he left them alone in the room.

It took another hour and a half and a favor for Maura from her old school buddy, but eventually Jane managed to get an MRI scan quite fast. Twenty minutes after she was back in the examination room, Doctor Creevey came accompanied by another Doctor.

"How are you feeling Detective?"

"Pretty good, considering." She cracked a smile. He smiled in return and introduced the other Doctor.

"This is Doctor Lewis, our neurosurgeon."

"Surgeon?" Maura said. Jane noticed that she suddenly left her Doctor Mode behind.

"The MRI scan showed that you have a small rapture in your spleen. The internal blood loss was what caused your dizziness and weakness. The location of the rupture makes things a little tricky due to the proximity to the spine, but we can still operate. In fact, we have to. Honestly I'm surprised it took you two days to notice, your body must be very strong." Doctor Lewis said.

"Wow, uhm, okay. So when do I go into surgery?" Jane said, trying to digest everything.

"In an hour. The nurse will come to prep you soon. The recovery shouldn't take more than a week, as long as you avoid any physical exercise and effort. We'll talk more when the surgery will be behind us." Doctor Creevey said. Jane nodded, and the two doctors left her and Maura alone, once again.

Four hours. Four agonizingly long hours. Two hundred and forty minutes of pacing back and forth in the waiting room as she bit her nails. About three hours into Jane's surgery Maura had to be strong like she didn't know she could be, and hold her tears in bay as best as she could.

After Jane said goodbye to Maura and her bed was led out the room towards the OR, Maura went back to Frankie's room to tell him and TJ what will be happening. She didn't stay long. She didn't want TJ to see she was worried and become worried and upset too. So she went back upstairs to the waiting room and did what she knew best.

Maura looked at her watch. 3PM. Only five minutes had passed since the last time she checked it, and once again, she started pacing back and forth. She tried to calm herself down by solving equations and telling herself some of her "fun facts", as Jane always called them, in her head.

'Three to the thirteenth is 1,594,323.

The square root of 2,916 is 54.

Charles Dickens' "A Tale of Two Cities" has sold approximately 200 million copies since it was published in 1859.

The word God is mentioned 4,895 times in the Hebrew version of the bible.

The cube root of 42,000 is approximately 34.76.

The egg cell is the largest singular cell in the human body, while the sperm cell is the smallest.

Sneeze can travel in over one hundred mile per hour.

Seventeen multiplied by two hundred and fifty six equals 4,352.'

It calmed her down a little, and Maura kept going on and on with the facts and the equations in her head until she saw a young doctor in light scrubs walking her way thirty minutes later. She stopped biting her nail and looked at the young doctor.

"Are you Maura Isles?"

"Yes. How is Jane?"

"She's doing absolutely great. Doctor Lewis wanted me to tell you that it shouldn't take much longer, and she is ought to wake up sometime during the couple of hours after the surgery is over." The doctor gave her a reassuring smile.

"Is there any damage to the spine? The MRI showed the spleen was pushed close to the T10 and the rupture was very close to it." Maura asked in a mixture of concern and matter-of-factly. The doctor simply smiled at her another reassuring smile and calmed her down.

"The rupture was indeed in close proximity to the T10, but as of now it doesn't seem to be affected. I have to go back now, but if there will be any update I will let you know."

Maura gave the doctor a little nod and the doctor walked away.

"What is this annoying beeping sound?" Jane grunted, opening her eyes slowly.

Maura couldn't help but letting out a soft chuckle full of relief. "It's about time you'll wake up, you almost missed dinner."

Jane looked at her. "Was that sarcasm? Am I finally rubbing off of you?"

"I guess you are." Maura said quietly.

They were quiet for a few moments, only looking into each other's eyes, until Maura cleared her throat and broke the silence.

"I should let Doctor Lewis know you're awake."

"Yeah, okay." Jane smiled at her, and Maura hurried out of the room. She came back within a couple of minutes with both doctors Creevey and Lewis.

"Good morning, Mrs. Rizzoli. I'm glad to see you're awake." Doctor Creevey smiled at her.

"Yeah, it's good to be back." Jane said, smiling politely.

"The surgery went very well. We have managed to fix the rupture and stop the bleeding, but your spleen is not as it used to be. I think I'm being correct if I say that you probably suffered from an earlier injury in your spleen?" Doctor Lewis asked, looking up from his charts.

"Yeah, I…" Jane said, "I shot myself on the job. It's a long story."

"I don't judge, my brother is a cop too." He smiled at her. "Your spleen, though, is damaged. I'm not saying you need a transplant, but you have to let it heal properly. You have lost a lot of blood, considering the location of the rupture, and not resting enough and letting it heal can cause complications."

"So when will I be cleared back into work?" Jane asked.

"Not in the next two, maybe even three months." He said. When Jane was about to protest, he quickly added "I'm not saying you must stay in bed during the whole time, but I do recommend drastically decreasing the amount of effort your body usually does. If it heals properly, I estimate that within six weeks you can start doing some light workout, but not too much. Maybe you should start with a little yoga and Pilates, but again, don't over estimate your strength."

"Detective, if you make sure to follow doctor's orders I can assure you that in just a few weeks you'll be cleared for desk duty." Doctor Creevey offered a calming smile.

"Okay, thanks." Jane said, her tone inconclusive.

"Do you have anyone who can take care of you while you recover?" Doctor Creevey asked.

"I will. She can stay with me." Maura jumped immediately. "She's my best friend and I'm a doctor as well as her emergency contact and her POA."

"That will definitely do. We would like to keep you overnight, just to make sure nothing goes the wrong way." Doctor Lewis smiled at her. Jane just nodded.

"If you have any more questions do not hesitate to find either of us." Doctor Creevey said, and both men left the room.

Maura noticed Jane was very quiet. She stepped a little closer to her and gently, as to not startle her, placed her hand on Jane's arm.

"Jane?"

Jane tilted her head up to meet Maura's eyes. "Yeah?"

"Are you okay?"

She let out a loud sigh. "I will be. Don't let it worry you, I'll be fine." She gave her a weak smile and squeezed her hand.

"It's almost six." Maura stated.

"Oh, right, you have to go to Sunday dinner. TJ and everything." Jane said.

"I do, yes, but I could stay there for a short while and then come back here." Maura offered a sweet smile.

"I don't want you to give up Sunday dinner just to sit in a hospital chair." Jane shrugged.

"Jane, you're not making me do anything. I'm here because I want to be here." Maura cupped Jane's cheek and sat on the edge of the bed.

Jane looked into Maura's eyes. She saw nothing but honesty and care in them. And love. So much love.

"I'm sorry."

Maura's face shifted. She was surprised and a little confused. "What are you sorry for?"

"Choosing the wrong person to be married to, for a start." Jane said. "For not stopping you from going to Connecticut; for not following you to Connecticut; for realizing I made the wrong choice only when it was too late; for going to that stupid undercover mission that apparently was planned by a five year old,"

Jane smiled when she heard Maura laughing.

"But most of all, I'm sorry for what I did to you. I'm sorry I hurt you just because I was too scared to make the right choice."

Maura stayed silent. When Jane noticed she wasn't getting a response, she spoke again.

"I wish we wouldn't have missed all this time."

Maura hadn't said a word. She kept looking at Jane and saw how truly sorry she was for the way things happened between them, so she did the only thing she could think of to express her feelings.

Jane didn't expect to be kissed, but when she realized it was Maura's lips capturing hers she put her hand on the back of Maura's neck to pull her closer. The kiss didn't last long, but it was just what both of them needed.

The sound of an incoming text message from Maura's cell phone distracted them.

"Open it. I won't go anywhere." Jane joked. Maura gave her a little smile as she opened the text.

"Who is it from?" Jane asked when she saw the confusion in Maura's eyes.

"Lieutenant Cavanaugh… he's asking how you and Frankie are doing. He said he was told you were out of there only a few minutes ago and asks whether to tell the others or keep it down for a while." Maura looked at Jane when she finished reading the text message.

"Tell him we're both doing pretty good considering, and that if he could keep it down I'll owe him my mental health." Jane gave Maura a warm smile as Maura laughed at Jane's sarcasm. When Maura finished writing the text, she put her phone back in her coat pocket and looked at Jane.

"I have to take TJ to my house now; Angela might get suspicious if we don't show up anytime soon. I'll ask him not to say a word about you and Frankie, but he is a child so he might slip." Maura let out a small giggle. "I will be back later. Don't push too hard, don't exhaust yourself."

"I'll try." Jane's eyes sparkled.

"Thank you. Do you need anything? Want me to bring you something from your place?"

"No, I don't think so. Just uhm… do you know a good lawyer?" she asked. When she saw Maura's slight confusion, she explained. "I need a lawyer for the whole divorce thing."

Maura smiled a warm smile at her. "I'll make a call. Mother said if anything ever comes up I should call the family's lawyer."

"Oh, you don't need…"

"I want to." Maura said in a definitive tone.

Jane smiled at her. "Come here."

Maura walked closer to Jane's bed with a little smile on her face, and sat down on the edge. Jane took Maura's hand and placed a gentle kiss on her knuckles. Maura, in response, planted a soft kiss on Jane's lips.

She felt Jane's tongue touching her lower lips. Maybe it was intentional, maybe it was an accident. Either way, Maura opened her mouth a little wider and let Jane taste her.

The beeping sounds from the monitors grew louder and quicker, and they ended the kiss softly, leaning their foreheads against each other.

"Can't we just plug it out?" Jane said with a sad tone.

Maura let out a chuckle. "I think it will only cause a bigger fuss."

She planted a soft kiss on Jane's forehead and smiled at her. "I'll call you later, and so will my lawyer."

"Bye." Jane said in a sweet tone.

She watched as Maura left the room and closed the door behind herself, and only then she allowed herself to let out the breath she'd been holding since she saw Maura in her apartment.

'What the hell am I doing? I have to tell her.'

'You'll hurt her.'

'More than I did so far?'

'Way more. You kissed someone else, slept with someone else.'

'Exactly the point! We want to build a relationship, and it won't work if I'm not honest with her!'

She debated with herself for a long time, and every time she was left with the same conclusion.

'I have to tell her.'

A penny for your thoughts?