It was already dark outside when Jane sauntered through the empty hallways of the BPD-headquarters. It had been a tough day for the detective. To be more specific, charges against a suspect had to be dropped due to the lack of evidence. Yes, it was one of those days. When a case couldn't be made, Jane always felt powerless. As if she could've done more, worked harder. But in her heart she knew that it wasn't that simple. It's the part of the job that she hated, the part that she was still learning to accept. Every time such a case landed on the pile of unsolved ones, it was up to her colleagues to tell her that 'for every unsolved case we get ten convicted'.

"Jane?"

It was Maura. She looked just as exhausted as Jane. She too had been working this case and tried her best to find more evidence on the body, which was evidently necessary to nail the suspect. But there wasn't anything left she could do; no examinations, no tests to conjure that would have made a difference, no more evidence that could've proved guilty in a courtroom.

"Jeez, what a day, huh? How are you holding up?"

"I can't remember when I ate, or showered or even saw the light of day. I think I've been down in the morgue for two and a half days straight."

"Yeah, we've both worked our asses off..." Jane pushed against the doors and walked up to her locker to grab her sports bag.

"I think I need to beat up the punch bag a couple of times before heading to the Robber. Otherwise I'll certainly come to blows later with every guy who tries to hit on me... Or you."

"Do you want me to keep you company? I can be very encouraging!" Maura grabbed some of Jane's clothes out of the locker and waved them in the air.

"What are you doing?" Jane asked between clenched teeth and raised an eyebrow.

"I'm cheering for you! Look, these are my pom-poms!" Maura gave her the biggest smile still waving the clothes in front of Jane's face.

"Oh, for the love of... Come on!" Jane's lips curled up and pushed Maura ahead in the direction of the gym.

The BPD had a small but fully equipped gym situated at the back of the building. It was only accessible during daytime but Frost wrote an exception rule to her keycard. The ceiling was made of a metal and glass frame so you were able to look up at the sky and see the stars. Even though there was light pollution it was still a beautiful sight when all the lights were dimmed. The perfect place for Jane to relax.

"I've never been here at nighttime." Maura looked around the empty, dusk gym.

It smelled like a mixture of rubber, wood polish, men's sweat and after shave. Maura sat down on a bank press waiting for Jane to come out of the cubicle.

"Yup, well this is my new thing. Every time we have a case like this I end up here to blow off some steam. Otherwise I'll take my anger out on passing nitwits." Jane walked up the leather punch bag, taped her hands and treated her knuckles on a first encounter.

"I'm glad you found a way to relieve some of your stress. I have to admit that your behavior sometimes embarrasses me. Swearing like a mineworker and chugging beer like one too!"

Jane stopped the bag from swinging and looked at Maura. She was probably just as mad and frustrated as her but she was not showing it. Always polite and composed even with a shitty day like this. In the past Maura had to step in numerous times to keep things from escalating and then drove an extremely agitated Jane home.

"So what do you do?" Jane wiped the sweat from the tip of her nose.

"I meditate." Maura pulled her legs under her and sat down in lotus position.

"Pfffff..." Jane started punching harder.

"I know it's hard on you Jane. And tension builds up quickly in your body. You need it on the job. You need to be sharp, strong and always ready to arrest someone or draw your gun. You have to keep your posture during interrogations. I know that you are in need of physical relief..." Maura kept her eyes closed concentrating on her breathing and the pace of the punches Jane was landing.

"Aww, jeez..." Jane shook her hand and bit her lower lip.

The gym was just enough lit to see a smudge of blood on the punching bag. Her knuckles were raw and bleeding. It gave her a sense of satisfaction and accomplishment. The experience of physical pain overruled the heavy feeling that surrounded her heart. She was able to breathe again.

"And I shower."

"What?" Jane turned around only to find out that Maura was undoing herself of her clothes. She quickly turned her head focusing on her hands and tried to ignore the glowing feeling on her cheeks. She fiercely hoped it was dark enough to hide their color.

Maura walk passed her into one of the shower stalls.

"Uhm, even here at the BPD gym?" Jane sounded insecure and her sarcasm almost stupid. Something happened with her voice when she was thrown off her game and couldn't contain her mojo.

Maura noticed and giggled.

"The only thing I need is hot running water. The sensation of the water running over my bare skin in combination with its warmth and soothing sound... mmm. This way I can relax anywhere."

"The only thing that's missing is your cello string-quartet music," Jane said with a sarcastic undertone.

Jane lay down on her back starting to work out her abs. The exercise mat was cold but very welcome to her heated body. She started doing sit- ups and looked up to the clear sky. It had been a bleak day and the night seemed even colder. Jane was able to see a crescent moon appear from behind a building each time she sat up during her routine. But something else caught her eye, made her fall back and kept her down on the mat breathing heavily.

Beside the stars and the moon in the sky there was the reflection of a showering Maura. The glass ceiling functioned as a mirror at night but Jane hadn't noticed it before. She'd only been there just a couple of times alone and always showered at home. She swallowed thickly and watched as Maura ran her hands over her body, softly caressing her skin. Her wet hair fell over her lush breasts.

"Wow..." Jane sighed deeply.

"Did you say something Jane?"

"Uhm... yeah... well I... I'm doing a terrific job on these sit-ups! I can really feel my abs sting with effort!" Jane said shallow trying to cover up the nervous tremble in her voice.

She tried her best to keep her routine going but the sight of Maura, naked and wet only a couple of feet away made her forget doing sit-ups. Her back melted into the plastic underneath her. Her hand wandered her abdomen and slipped underneath her shorts while her other hand pinched a nipple through her t-shirt. Jane could feel her own wetness pooling fast as her fingers start making circular movements. She had to suppress her moans, but to not raise suspicion she had to let some noises escape. When she opened up her eyes she could see Maura touching her breasts, following their roundness with her hands. She moaned.

Jane stopped for a second only to notice that Maura was actually doing much more to her body than just showering. She froze when Maura tilted her head and looked via the glass directly into Jane's eyes.

"Jane, I know you've been ogling me for at least 10 minutes... Why don't you take that body off the ground and come over here?"

Jane quickly pulled her hand out of her shorts, her raw knuckles scraping the elastic band.

"I... I..." Jane stammered but couldn't find her ability to speak.

The door of the shower stall was pushed open.

"It's not nice to let a lady wait..." Maura looked up.

Jane crawled back up and slowly walked towards the shower. She could feel the eyes of Maura following her every step. She squeezed her eyes together and balled up her fist. She took a deep breath of encouragement before stepping in front of a naked Maura.

"You can open them you know."

A wet hand grabbed her fist, the knuckles still painful. Jane could feel how Maura loosened her hand and guided it to her hip. She gradually opened up her eyes.

The woman before her was absolutely stunning. The little water drops on her collarbone, strands of hair sticking to her face, the make-up that started to run down, her nipples a reddish pink due to the warm water. Her voluptuous body with all its curvatures and roundness. Jane didn't need any more encouragement.

"Oh, Maura... Am I allowed to kiss you?"

"Jane... I insist that you kiss me, sooner rather than later." Maura licked her lips.