Title: She Heard Laughter
Fandom: Rizzoli & Isles, Jane/Maura
Rating: PG
Notes/Summary: This is another written for a fanfic challenge on Tumblr. This challenge was 'Laughter'.
Notes 2: I'm not sure how many of these little short stories I'm going to write, but I'm going to put them all in this collection of 'Shorts' for now.

She Heard Laughter

Constance awoke and, glancing at the bedside clock, was surprised at how well she had slept and even more surprised at how late she had slept. Rising, she grabbed and pulled on her robe, then exited her daughter's guest bedroom.

As she quietly made her way down the short hall towards the bathroom and kitchen, she heard voices. Actually, she heard laughter. Maura's laughter. And actually, it was more like giggling.

She slowed to a silent stop just before rounding the corner into the kitchen, and just listened.

"Jane!" her daughter's voice reached her ears, "Jane, stop it!" But the directive was accompanied by another soft giggle, telling the older woman that whatever Jane was doing, Maura was at least partially enjoying it, despite her request for it to stop.

Constance couldn't hear what Jane said in return, the detective's voice too low in both volume and pitch to be made out, but whatever it was it caused Maura to admonish the brunette once again with an obviously only half-hearted, "Jane! I'm trying to make coffee!" as a soft steam hiss also could be heard.

"Shhh," this time she could hear Jane fairly clearly, "You'll wake our guest."

"That is exactly what I'm afraid of!" she heard Maura's light-hearted loudly whispered reply.

A picture of what was going on in the kitchen became clearer in Constance's mind. Maura was probably at the island, stamping out beans in an attempt to brew a fresh cup of java and Jane was probably standing behind her, probably very close behind her, probably flush with the doctor, hands probably wandering to places Constance would rather not imagine, and probably whispering inappropriate suggestions in Maura's ear.

A small squeak? A soft yelp? The older woman wasn't sure how to describe the sound she heard. But she knew it was a sound Maura made and it was quickly followed by another bout of giggling and another admonished, "Jane!"

Maura's mom strained to hear Jane's side of the conversation. She thought she heard something about the two of them having their own Roman coffee orgy but surely that wasn't what she said, was it?

Well, whatever it was, Maura's response was to laugh as she replied, "You are so incorrigible!" Constance also thought she hear a slap, imagining Maura was shoeing away those wandering hands of the detective's.

Constance then heard a muffled chuckled reply from Jane, and a final hiss of steam before the kitchen fell mostly silent. The older woman could only assume Jane had finally convinced Maura to at least give her a kiss.

And that's when Constance found her eyes stinging.

Because, while she'd admit that she was a little taken off guard when she found out Jane and Maura were more than just friends, and while she'd admit that she wasn't initially pleased by it, she also would now admit that Jane's presence in Maura's life had changed her daughter.

Changed her for the better.

But she hadn't been able to really pinpoint what that change was until this moment.

Of all the people who had come and gone from Maura's life, of all the people who had come and stayed, including Maura's father, including she herself, no one before had ever made Maura's eyes light up so bright, no one had ever made Maura smile so much.

No one had ever made her laugh so easily.

No one before. No one until Jane.

In short, no one had ever made Maura so happy.

And there was simply no way she could ever be displeased about that.

Constance blinked back the tears before they could fall, and retreated silently to the bathroom, purposely closing the door with a loud click when she got there, purposely alerting the two lovebirds that she was awake, and giving them time to compose themselves before she made her way to the kitchen.

Neither of the two younger women the wiser that Constance had heard their laughter.