To all those who've so graciously followed me because of SOD, thank you! But this is NOT the next installment. As I've said, I was going to take a bit of a break from that story and start something new…and this is it! So hopefully, you will all still stick with me through my new story, as well! I promise, it will NOT take me seven years to finish this one! Drop me a review. Tell me your thoughts.

I wasn't listening to any music this time. Didn't need it. This story has been brewing for a while.

I own nothing here…too bad because you all know where I'd have taken them.

The List

Chapter One

Jane stood just outside of the half closed door of Maura's bedroom in her gray sleep shorts and matching cotton tank, sweat soaking it through and through, absentmindedly pulling the garment away from her chest as she tried to decide whether or not to go in. She hated it when the nightmare became too much and even while she slept, her body reacted this way, drenching her in perspiration, forcing her lungs to burn for oxygen and her eyes to fill with tears. She hated that her nose was now clogged with snot and she had to wait until her sinuses drained before she could breathe through it again. She hated that her body was shaking uncontrollably and she felt that she could vomit at any moment.

But what she hated most, more than all of the physical reactions combined, was the fact that after all of these years, Hoyt could still arbitrarily invade her dreams, turning them into nightmares, even though he was long dead, killed by her own hands. She hated that he was still able to reduce her to this emotional mess, leaving her to pull herself out the nightmare through sheer force of will, wondering if she'd screamed out loud or only in her dream.

She pushed the hair off of her slick forehead, closing her eyes, trying to slow her breathing and heart rate, begrudgingly using the technique that she and Maura had practiced so many times before together that now she was adept at doing it alone and on her own, disgusted that she still had to. This was a skill she would've rather not mastered.

'Don't go in, Jane.' She thought to herself, pulling air into mouth, holding for two seconds and then releasing it slowly. 'You made it all the way over here to her house and into her guest room without waking her up.' Breathe. 'You can do this, dammit. Do not wake her up. You are a fucking badass homicide detective. Sack up!'

She looked down at her bare feet in the darkened hallway, the small Boston Red Sox nightlight that Maura kept in the wall socket just outside of her bedroom door now the only light visible. She was embarrassed that Maura had felt that she had to install this thing for her and had told her so, but suddenly very grateful that she did it anyway. Also, very grateful that she would even consider it. After all, it did not fit into the décor of the rest of the house or fit the sophisticated professional woman who lived here.

'I'll not having you breaking your neck finding your way up here in the middle of the night in that state, Jane. I don't know why you don't just come up here in the first place and skip the guest bedroom altogether when you are having nightmares. You always end up here anyway.' Maura had chastised. 'You know I don't mind you sleeping in my bed. You've done it often enough now. But until you decide to do that straightaway, the nightlight stays.'

Jane had made this shaky walk up Maura's stairs from the guest room in the middle of the night many times now, using this little lamp as a beacon.

Jane smiled slightly, the part of her mind that could reach outside of her terror and feel relief, did.

She focused on it, continuing her breathing exercises, pulling her damp and now cold shirt away from her skin again, grimacing at how wet it still felt in her hand, the chill of Maura's air conditioning raising goose flesh all over her body. She shivered.

'He shouldn't be able to still do this to me.' She thought, turning and leaning her butt against the wall next to Maura's door, hands on her bare thighs, her long fingers digging into the tight muscles, loosening them. Her eyes were still focused on the nightlight and its slight glow, her head bowed, the toy plugged in just next to her calf, the two familiar red socks comforting her.

She bent at the waist and touched it's switch with her index finger, tilting her head so her unruly black mane fell to one side of her head, snapping it off and then smiling at its simplicity and innocence. Maura somehow had known that she'd had this same one as a child. Maura somehow knew a lot of things. She suspected her mother was a big source of her information and what she hadn't gleaned from Angela, her brother, Frankie, had filled in the blanks. Jane's heart swelled knowing that Maura cared enough about her to find out these little details about her childhood from her family.

Suddenly, the darkness was too much, the smile instantly gone. She quickly snapped the light back on.

Chiding herself for her childishness, she snapped it off again and stood up, her back flat against the wall, her right shoulder just brushing the gilded frame of the Basquiat original that hung there outside of Maura's bedroom. She moved her shoulder slightly away from the frame, knowing that this particular work was one of Maura's favorites…and also that it had cost more money than she made in a year. Jane had choked on her beer when Maura had innocently revealed its price tag.

The darkness of the hallway began to weigh on her, her heart beginning to race again. She quickly leaned back down and snapped the nightlight back on, its small glow soothing her once more.

She stood back up and then pushed herself away from the wall, her nerves calming and her heart rate slowly returning to almost normal, the breathing exercises working, the little light and what it represented helping most of all.

She wiped her forehead again, the sweat now dry, but her hair was still slightly damp. She looked longingly at Maura's door. She knew that if she went in, she would sleep and the nightmare's would stop, at least for tonight. She always slept better in Maura's bed, her best friend within easy reach. But she hated putting Maura in the position of being her constant savior, even if the ME herself didn't seem to mind.

'Don't go in, asshole.' She thought to herself. 'Don't even think about it. Let her sleep. Just because you are having a bad night doesn't mean that she deserves to have one, too. Walk back downstairs and get into your bed and go to sleep. Or at least fucking try!'

Jane moved toward the stairs, placing her hand on the bannister, one foot on the top step, her jaw set.

"I'm going back downstairs.' She said to herself, her heart beginning to race at the thought, her breathing increasing. 'I'm going to leave her alone this time. He's not going to wake both of us up.'

She looked down the stairs, the soffit light above the kitchen sink that Maura always left on for her just in case she needed to find her way into her home safely at night barely illuminating the bottom riser.

She was frozen. She couldn't bring herself to move down another step. The house was now full of shadows. Those shadows were now full of him.

She closed her eyes, trying to focus her mind, her heart hammering in her own ears again.

'He is dead, Jane. He is dead, Jane. He is dead, Jane.' She repeated to herself three times, counting each time she thought it, her therapist telling her that this exercise would help her logical mind convince her illogical mind what she knew was true, the act of counting alone engaging the left side of her brain, the side that controlled rational thinking.

She took a deep cleansing breath and opened her eyes, looking down again at the bottom step.

Hoyt stood there looking up at her in his orange prison jumper, the white t-shirt under it just visible at his chest, his eyes twinkling, white wavy hair wild, his evil smile wide, blood dripping from each palm.

'I'm waiting for you, Jane. Come down to bed.'

Jane stumbled backward, closing her eyes tightly again, grabbing for the bannister to keep from falling, her rational mind knowing that what she was seeing was impossible, but her fragile mind that had just woken up from a nightmare involving this very man fought her for dominance. She was instantly filled with terror…again.

Tears sprung to her eyes and spilled down her cheeks as she tried to gain control of herself, desperately hoping that she hadn't woken Maura. She clenched her fists and rubbed her eyes with them.

'Jesus, Jane! Get ahold of yourself before you wake her up!' She screamed at herself, backing against the opposite wall, across from Maura's bedroom door, eyes still closed, leaning over, her hands on her thighs again.

She didn't dare look downstairs a third time. Her therapist had also told her that confronting her fears would be the first step towards conquering them, but she wasn't in the mood for confrontations right now. Not while she was alone and certainly not in the dark.

"Jane? Are you coming in?" Maura's soft sweet voice broke into her panic.

Jane's eyes flew open and she stood up straight, quickly and angrily wiping the tears from her eyes and face with her palms, trying to be quiet.

'FUCK! FUCKFUCKFUCK!'

Jane stood quietly against the wall, rubbing her fist against her nose, her sinuses clearing finally but at the most inopportune moment, mucus coating the back of her hand. She looked down at it and then rubbed it against her soaked tank top, not sure what else to do. She'd forgotten the little pack of travel tissues that Maura left for her in the bedside table in the guest room.

She always forgot them in her panic to get to her safe place.

"Jane, I'm awake. Please come in." Maura spoke sleepily. "I know you're out there."

Jane smiled, realizing that Maura was playing the game and loving her friend a little more for it.

It was a game that they'd started a long time ago when Maura became aware of the nightmares that sometimes plagued her best friend, at times almost incapacitating her altogether. It was a game that allowed Jane to save face and gave her time to recover from whatever had forced her into Maura's home in the first place, but still allowed Maura the option to deny Jane entrance into her bedroom and subsequently, into her bed, should she desire.

Jane could choose to answer Maura or not and Maura could choose to reply or not.

Jane waited.

"Jane." Maura repeated, sounding a little more alert. "You are out there."

Jane waited.

"Am not." Jane finally replied, smiling, praying that Maura would reply.

"Are, too." She said, quickly, sacrificing her perfect grammar to make Jane feel more comfortable.

Thankfully, Maura had never denied Jane access once they'd gotten this far. Deep down, Jane knew she never would.

She closed her eyes and took a deep breath, smiling, wiping her eyes again, drying her hands on her sleep shorts, her tank top now so saturated that it would hardly do any good. She stepped toward Maura's bedroom door and slowly pushed it open.

R&I R&I R&I

Maura lay in her king-sized bed, her small body swallowed by the sheets, blanket and comforter, as well as by the sheer size of the bed itself. And even though the doctor had the run of the mattress...it was hers, after all, she always slept on the side closest to the en suite bathroom and very near the edge, a body pillow usually pulled close, one leg thrown over it, the rest of the bed left for Jane…or whomever Jane assumed shared Maura's bed when she did not.

It had been a rare occurrence when Jane had needed Maura and her bed and had been denied, her space being occupied by someone else.

Jane never called beforehand on any of the nights when the nightmares came unexpectedly, she'd merely pulled into Maura's drive and seen another car in the space where she would normally park. On those occasions, Jane understood, but she still felt somewhat betrayed even though she knew she had no right to feel this way. She had never told her best friend of those new "feelings", uncertain if they would be returned and not wanting to risk losing their unorthodox but highly cherished friendship if Maura couldn't, or worse, wouldn't, reciprocate. Maura deserved a life and even if Jane couldn't bring herself to visualize her own life without Maura in it, she would gladly suffer in silence to allow Maura happiness.

And on those occasions, Jane had parked her car down the street, out of sight, walked back the block or so and quietly let herself into her mother's apartment, which sat directly behind Maura's home, but still on her property, and then sleeping fitfully on her couch. She'd still needed Maura, but realizing that she couldn't have her on that particular night, she always felt somewhat safe and comforted knowing that the doctor was at least nearby.

Her mother never questioned waking up and finding her grown daughter asleep on her sofa. She'd even gotten used to leaving a pillow and blanket on the end of it, just in case. She knew Jane lived an unusual and stressful life because of her job. She also knew that sometimes Jane needed to be near her best friend, but not knowing the exact reason why. Jane had kept the fact that the nightmares had returned from her mother, knowing she would worry unnecessarily. Jane had reasoned that there was nothing that her sometimes overbearing mother could do to stop them, so why put her through the stress.

Angela never made a big deal of the times her daughter had shown up unannounced on her couch because she was just happy to see her independent, exasperating and often contrary eldest, no matter the motive. She would wake her gently in the morning with a hot cup of coffee and a warm breakfast, knowing that when Jane stood at the window, coffee in hand, waiting for Maura's guest to leave, that she was doing her best to support her firstborn in any way she could, not really needing a reason to do so.

To Jane's chagrin, sometimes the guest leaving Maura's house was female. During those times, jealously almost paralyzed her, even though she had no right to feel it and no justification for it. She knew that Maura was attracted to both men and women, with a leaning more towards the "fairer"sex, and had known it for a very long time. Maura was very honest about her sexuality from the very start of their budding friendship. It had never affected any aspect of how she'd treated or acted towards Maura, nor would it ever.

Until just recently. Until she'd realized that she had fallen in love with her.

Ironically, when one of her visitors turned out to be male, Jane didn't even feel the slightest twinge of jealousy. She didn't feel anything really, knowing that she could easily challenge any of them and win, given the opportunity.

However, she had absolutely no idea how to compete with a woman for Maura's attention and affection, having never felt the reason or inclination to do so in the past. But since discovering that Maura had recently began sharing her bed with women from time to time now, and realizing how she herself now felt towards her best friend, she felt that she should somehow be prepared for that eventually, even if she had absolutely no idea why she felt this way or even where to begin.

She'd never told her mother of these feelings either and was always completely unaware that she herself was sometimes being observed also, as she stood at her mother's window, watching and waiting for Maura's guest to leave.

Angela wanted Jane to figure this out on her own, uncharacteristically biting her tongue every time as she occasionally saw Jane wipe a tear from her face as she watched Maura's new houseguest pull out of her drive. She would busy herself in the open kitchen, banging around loudly on purpose as she made Jane's breakfast, allowing her only daughter the time to compose herself before serving it to her.

After she was done, Jane would shower and change, slip out of the apartment, walk down to her car and pull into Maura's drive and enter the side door, as if she'd spent the night at her own apartment across town.

Angela didn't understand this behavior, but she also knew that her daughter was a very complex and proud woman and that she must have a good reason for it, so she never brought it up. She never would voluntarily.

Jane stood in Maura's bedroom doorway, looking at her best friend lying in her large bed, lost in thought, Hoyt momentarily pushed to the periphery.

'She seems so small. How is it that she can be so big at the same time?' Jane thought, referring to how Maura could always make things seem so much better just by being present.

"Jane, you're pondering again." Maura said, sleepily. "It's late. Please come to bed."

The detective was startled from her reverie.

Jane's heart leapt at those last four words, aching for them to have another meaning other than how they were intended. Jane swallowed hard, the reason that she was standing quietly just inside of Maura's door crashing back into her mind.

He had been here. Every time she'd climbed these stairs in the middle of the night, it was because he had been here, chasing her from her own bed and pushing her into Maura's.

She tried to focus.

"I am not pondering." Jane knew she was caught, so she quickly walked around the bed, pulling the covers down, intending to crawl in between Maura's cool two-thousand thread count sheets, her heart still pounding, Charles Hoyt still very much fresh in her mind, his glinting eyes still boring into her from the bottom of the stairs. Maybe he was still down there…waiting for her.

Maura rolled over and spoke softly to her in the dark. "Change your top, Jane. I know it's soaked with sweat."

Jane unconsciously reached down and touched the clammy fabric, grimacing in the dark.

"And you know I don't care if you choose not to change, but I also know how much you hate sleeping in a damp night shirt." She said matter of factly, before rolling back over and pulling her legs up closer into her stomach, one leg still thrown over the body pillow, pulling the covers up over her shoulders, settling down for the night. "And you are just going to get back up and change anyway, so do it now, please."

Jane thought about ignoring Maura's astute, and quite frankly, absolutely true statement, but decided that her own comfort was more important than showing Maura that she didn't really know as much about she herself as her best friend thought she did.

"Stop being stubborn, Jane."

Jane grunted softly as she made her way to the long dresser that sat opposite the end of the bed, opening the top drawer now reserved for her own sleeping clothes and took out another shirt, gently closing the drawer, willing herself to not slam it, as badly as she was beginning to want to. She walked back to her side of the bed before beginning to change.

Jane knew that Maura had her back towards her and that the room was dark enough that even if she were facing her, she still would have a hard time making out any details, but she still felt self-conscious undressing in front of her best friend. She always had.

Maura had once jokingly called her prudish. Jane had balked and given her attitude at the time, but deep down, she knew that it was true. She wished she could be as open and confident about her body image as Maura, but she wasn't. She wasn't sure she would ever be, especially not in front of Maura. Or even behind her, as the case may be now.

She hooked her thumbs into the hem of the shirt and quickly, in one motion, whipped it up over her head and off, dropping it onto the floor at her feet before shaking open the clean BPD t-shirt and pulling it swiftly over her head, smoothing it down over her hips. She felt better already as she moved to get into the bed again.

"Please go put the dirty one in the hamper." Maura said, softly.

Jane stopped, her knee already on the mattress, her hands on the covers, ready to crawl into bed. She stood again, gritting her teeth, bending and swiping the soiled shirt off the carpet, and stomped towards Maura's closet where she knew in the back, against the far wall, she kept her dirty clothes hampers.

As Jane passed Maura, the doctor said calmly, "Put it into the proper hamper, Jane."

Jane cut her eyes in the dark at her best friend as she walked into the closet, opened the hamper reserved for dark clothes, aggressively tossing the shirt inside, and closed the lid soundly. She stomped out of the closet and back to where she started, eyeballing Maura as she passed her again, who paid her no mind, eyes closed, arms around the body pillow and hands tucked under her chin.

Jane stood by her side of the bed waiting, her breathing hard, her lips a thin line.

"Anything else I should be doing before I can lay down and go to sleep?" Jane said, hands on her hips.

Maura was quiet for a moment before answering, never opening her eyes or turning over to face Jane as she spoke.

"You sound angry. Are you angry with me, Jane?" Her voice was calm.

Jane grit her teeth again, fighting the urge to yell, gaining some composure. "No, I'm not angry with you. I am agitated with you."

"But not angry." Maura stated more than asked.

Jane was trying hold her temper. "No." She said curtly.

"And definitely not terrified?" Maura asked quietly, her voice soothing.

Jane's brow furrowed in confusion. 'What the fuck is she talking about?'

"Why would I be terrifi…" She said before realization washed over her like a bucket of warm water.

She smiled at her friend, who hadn't moved a millimeter since turning over and who also knew exactly what to say and do to break through to Jane without making her feel as though she were being appeased, pitied or psychoanalyzed in any way.

"You're good." Jane said, her smile lingering.

Maura had purposefully and gently taken her mind off of the horrific nightmare that had brought her into the blonde's bedroom in the first place and without Jane even suspecting.

"Come to bed, Jane." Maura said, her voice sounding sleepy. "It's over. He's gone. You're with me now."

R&I R&I R&I

Laying quietly on her back in the dark room on her side of Maura's king-sized bed looking up at the ceiling, she realized that she'd not turned on the fan before she'd settled in. It sat idle, mocking her. She wanted it on. She needed it on. If she was going to lie awake all night, she needed it's quiet steady hum to lull her, the subtle breeze it created moving cross her exposed skin.

She looked over at her bedmate, somewhat jealous of her ability to sleep so soundly. She could hear the quite respirations Maura made, a slight snore just audible at the end of each one. Jane looked back up at the fan. She knew that if she turned it on, she wouldn't have to hear it anymore. As endearing as she usually thought it to be, tonight it only reminded her that she was still wide awake and Maura wasn't.

She moved the covers off, throwing her legs over the edge of the bed, standing up. Suddenly, she was frozen, terrified that Hoyt was standing just outside of Maura's open bedroom door waiting for her, once again her irrational fears paralyzingly her.

'I should've closed the door.' She thought, rubbing her hand over her mouth. 'He couldn't get us if I'd just closed the door.'

She swallowed, her dry throat clicking in the quiet room, her breathing becoming short and fast, her heart pounding. A chill visibly ran up her spine.

She closed her eyes, breathing deeply, setting only one goal.

Turn on the fucking ceiling fan.

She opened her eyes and focused on Maura, who laying sleeping so soundly, using her peripheral vision and the edges of Maura's bed to guide her to the switch, walking slowly, her eyes never leaving the prone woman who was completely unaware of her dilemma. She wanted to keep it that way.

She found it and flipped it on, turning the setting to medium, the blades immediately beginning to turn above her head as she continued to focus on Maura as she quickly made her way back into the bed, sure that Hoyt was right behind her. Pulling the covers up to her chin, relief flooded through her, happy that she hadn't panicked or woken Maura up…again.

She closed her eyes, smiling, feeling the cool breeze ruffle her hair and cool her face. She took several quiet deep breaths.

'Now I'll sleep.' She thought, but knowing better.

She lay on her back like this for many minutes, taking more deep quiet breaths, before turning her head to look at Maura. They were in the same bed, but several feet apart. It might as well have been miles.

Hoyt still lingered. He always did.

Jane needed to be closer. She turned over onto her side, reaching her arm out, searching for Maura's back, her fingertips just touching the silky fabric of her night shirt, the warmth of Maura's body evident, her breathing still slow and steady, her sleep undisturbed.

Jane scooted herself forward so that just the tips of her fingers were able to move close enough to press into the actual firmness of Maura's back lightly. She lay like this for almost half an hour before her arm began to fall asleep and her fingers began to tingle, still no closer to sleep than she had been when she'd first laid down.

She needed more of Maura. There was nothing sexual about this need, there never had been, not under these circumstances.

Jane slid closer, until she could press her knuckles gently into the small of Maura's back, her body heat now radiating, her smell just on the edge of detection.

Jane flared her nostrils, breathing deeply, pulling it in as best as she could.

She wanted to move closer but wasn't sure if she would be allowed.

"Maura?" Jane asked quietly, her coarse voice shaking slightly.

No answer. She waited.

"Maura?"

Maura took a deep breath. "Yes, Jane?"

"Can I…I mean…can we, do the thing that we usually do when I come over after a nightmare?"

Jane suddenly doubted herself and her reason for being here.

"Come here." Maura said, sleepily, holding the covers up at her waist, waiting for Jane's arm to encircle it. Maura had done this many times before.

Jane's heart soared, her insecurities immediately banished and thoughts of Hoyt dampened, but not quite put to sleep.

She slid forward eagerly and wrapped her arm around Maura's stomach, moving her body up against the doctor, molding her long frame as close as she could, her face buried in her soft hair. It smelled of juniper and citrus.

This entire thing was only slightly sexual now, underlying and barely acknowledged, unavoidable given Jane's new attraction. The majority of Jane's reasoning to move this close to her best friend was because she needed the calmness and peace that Maura always seemed to bring into her own mind after the night terrors. She needed her strength and confidence. And tonight, she also needed some information.

"Maura?"

Maura sighed heavily, her own agitation at being woken up so many times beginning to show.

"What is it, Jane?" She said curtly.

Jane could hear the change in Maura's voice and hated that she was the reason for it, but she had to continue, needing to know the answer to the question she was about to pose.

"Is this weird for you?" She paused, considering her next words. "I mean, is this what best friends do with each other? I don't want this to be weird."

Maura was quiet for a while and Jane thought that maybe she'd gone back to sleep. But then she spoke, having considered her words carefully, as Maura was known to do.

"I can only answer your question from my own experience. And since you are the only best friend I've ever had in my entire life, then yes, this is what best friends do with each other. And no, it doesn't feel the slightest bit weird for me." She said matter of factly. "How does it feel for you?"

Jane smiled into Maura's hair. "It makes me feel safe." She hesitated. "You make me feel safe."

"Then why are you so worried that I'll think it's weird?" Maura inquired, a smile evident in her voice, knowing that Jane wasn't one to divulge information about her own feelings very easily, if ever. Maura felt privileged every time Jane allowed her a small peek inside of her heart.

Jane was suddenly quiet, struggling with her feelings, her heart beginning to race.

'Tell her!' Her subconscious screamed at her. 'Now is your chance! She's asking you this for a reason!'

She closed her eyes, a lump forming in her throat. She knew she wasn't going to confess her true feelings and it was killing her. There was just too much at risk.

"Jane?" Maura asked, turning her head towards her best friend but the angle was too great so she settled for looking at the ceiling instead.

Jane swallowed over and over, forcing the tears and the lump in her throat away before she answered.

"Because I need you and not just because of...this. I don't want to scare you off. You are the only one that I trust completely with my…problem." Jane paused. "And you are the only one who's ever been able to scare him away so he'll let me sleep."

Maura took Jane's hand and moved it up in between her own breasts, holding it close to her chest. She'd never done this before.

"Okay, now you just made it weird." Jane deadpanned.

Maura chuckled, but then she became quiet and Jane sensed she had something to say.

"This makes me feel safe." She said, squeezing Jane's hand, the small scar on the back of it just barely noticeable under her thumb as she stroked it. "Does this feel weird for you?"

Jane squeezed her hand back. "Absolutely not." She whispered.

"Good. Then let's try to get some sleep." Maura said softly. "We have a lot of work to do with the Lattimore case tomorrow."

Both were quiet for a while and Jane was sure that Maura was asleep and she herself was starting to drift.

Then Maura whispered softly, almost imperceptibly, as if she were talking in her sleep. "Stop fighting this, Jane."

Jane was confused, pulling herself back from her slight doze, unsure if she'd even heard Maura speak or if she'd dreamed it.

"What, Maura?" She asked quietly. "Stop fighting what?"

No answer. Maura was asleep again, her little snores beginning. Before Jane could analyze and overthink Maura's sleepy words, she closed her eyes and almost immediately joined her. It had been a long night.

R&I R&I R&I

Maura hovered just above her face, moving close then slightly away, over and over. She could feel her warm breath on her face, Maura's mouth slightly open, her tongue pushed against her top teeth. Her beautiful eyes were closed, her brow slightly furrowed, concentrating. Her forehead was damp with perspiration.

Jane reached up and pushed her honey-blond hair off of her forehead, pulling Maura down, kissing her deeply, Maura's wet tongue pushing into her own mouth as she greedily sucked on it. She slowly became aware that they were both nude, Maura straddling her hips, her full breasts barely grazing her own, the pink nipples hard and teasing. The hand not on her lover's face was grasping her ass as Maura moved on top of her, grinding her warm slick wetness down into her own center. She pushed herself up to meet each roll, her clit throbbing with the pressure and friction that Maura was creating.

Both of Maura's hands were pushed into the pillow on either side of her head, fingers grabbing handfuls of it as she used it for leverage. She was making small grunting sounds every time she ground down into her own middle.

Maura broke the kiss as her breathing increased, her orgasm building. Jane watched wide-eyed as she pushed up into the glorious heat that was moving faster now across her own clit, Maura squeezing her eyes closed tighter, obviously enjoying the sensations that Jane was creating for her.

'Oh, God, Jane! I'm so close! Don't stop!' She whispered into her ear, her breath hot now.

Jane was aware that she too was very close, the feeling of Maura's weight and movement pushing her to the edge. She held back waiting for her best friend.

WAIT! Something wasn't right! Maura was her BEST FRIEND! She shouldn't be doing this with her BEST FRIEND! She tried desperately to stop the inevitable but it was far too late for that!

She crashed over the edge, moaning Maura's name loudly as she came.

Jane's eyes flew open, her groin still in the throes of a hard orgasm, pulsing with each wave, her hands flying to her mouth, praying that she hadn't actually moaned out loud, her breathing rapid, her body once again covered with sweat, but this time for an entirely different reason.

She quickly assessed her surroundings, trying desperately to get her breathing under control, riding her uncontrollable orgasm out. She was obviously still in Maura's bed but thankfully she had rolled away from the doctor in the night and now lay on her back, her shoulder just barely touching her bedmate.

Maura hadn't moved at all. She still lay on her side, facing away from Jane, arms still holding the body pillow, leg still thrown over it.

Jane listened to the doctor's breathing trying to ascertain whether or not she was sleeping or just faking it to spare Jane the embarrassment. Jane still didn't know if she'd actually moaned aloud in her sleep.

'Please God, let her still be asleep. And please don't let me have moaned enough to have woken her up. And if I did, please, please, please don't let me have said her name!' Jane prayed silently as she listened for any sign that Maura was really awake.

Maura's breathing was slow and deep, but to Jane's horror, there was no sweet little snore at the end of each breath. She tried frantically to remember if Maura sometimes didn't snore when she slept. Her mind was blank.

'Oh my God! She's awake! She heard everything!' She automatically jumped to the worst case scenario, her pessimistic nature rearing its ugly head.

She dropped her hands back to her sides and waited for Maura to say something, her mind a flurry of plausible explanations and excuses that she kept rejecting, knowing that if it wasn't good enough, Maura wouldn't buy it.

'Just tell her how you feel, Jane!' Her subconscious offered up into the mix. 'Tell her how you truly feel about her! Now's your chance to get it out there and off your chest!'

Her mouth went dry at the prospect, her heart hammering harder against her ribcage and thrumming in her ears. She wished she was sure of the time, the room still dark, but knowing that if it was even remotely close to the time for the alarm to go off, then Maura had heard everything.

Maura always woke up at least ten minutes before the alarm was set to sound, her routine as predictable as the sun rising. She would lay in bed, slowly waking herself up, meditating and projecting positive thoughts and good vibes through her brain and then promptly as the alarm blared, she would reach over and turn it off before it had even sounded for a millisecond. And she most definitely never used the snooze feature.

Jane doubted that she even knew how to program the snooze feature on her phone.

Jane, being completely the opposite, used her snooze religiously to trick her mind into believing that she was getting more sleep than she actually was, usually tapping it a minimum of four times each morning before finally dragging herself out of bed.

Maura, having stayed overnight at Jane's apartment many times, had once called her out on it.

'You know, Jane, that you are actually losing sleep when you do that to your brain.' She'd explained with a smile one morning as Jane stood in her small kitchen, head propped up in her hands as she leaned on the counter waiting for the coffee to brew. She turned her tired eyes on Maura, who stood opposite her, totally put together and ready for the day ahead, having still used her daily technique to rouse herself from sleep, even though she had spent the night in Jane's bed.

Jane had blinked slowly once, clearing her throat, pushing her still wet hair to one side of her head, rubbing her eye with the same hand.

'Do tell, Doctor.' She said, her husky voice more raspy than usual, haven't not been used for the past seven hours as she slept.

Maura, not one to pick up on sarcasm very easily, happily explained, excited when Jane was interested in any scientific facts that she had to contribute.

'Well…' she began in earnest, using her hands as she explained. 'Every time you hit the snooze on your phone, you are interrupting the brain waves that are working so hard to get you back into R.E.M. sleep, the optimum resting phase for the human brain. So your brain has to restart this process every time the alarm breaks the cycle. And just as your brain is settling into its rhythm, the alarm interrupts the cycle again, short-circuiting the release of melatonin and…'

'Coffee's done!' Jane interjected, lifting the carafe from the heating element and pouring it into the waiting mug. She looked over at Maura, who looked slightly dejected that she couldn't finish her thought, but her eyes bright and holding no malice, a small smile on her face, her hands settling on the countertop.

She was used to being interrupted by Jane.

'Good talk, Maura. Coffee?' Jane proffered the mug she'd just filled toward her best friend, her brown eyes twinkling, her dimples evident.

Maura smiled, accepting the mug, Jane's interruption forgotten. 'Thank you.'

Jane winked, laughing. 'You're welcome.'

Jane realized later that morning, standing in front of the "murder board" at headquarters, trying to connect the dots on a new case, that it was at that instant...that innocent moment in her kitchen...that sweet understanding smile that Maura gave her...that her feelings for her best friend were beginning to change, evolving, growing into something more than just platonic.

Suddenly, a small familiar sound pulled Jane from her memory.

Maura began to snore.

'Thank God!' Jane thought, closing her eyes, relief washing over her. Maura had been asleep through the whole thing.

She rolled back over and moved her body close to Maura again, her motives slightly different than the last time she'd done this several hours earlier. She didn't move her hand over Maura's hip, however, somehow feeling that she would be violating her trust, having not been invited to touch her so intimately. Being so close to Maura was enough. Instead, she curled her hands up under her own chin, her forearms resting in between Maura's shoulder blades.

Maura sighed sleepily, pushing herself back into Jane, lifting the covers at her hip.

Jane smiled and gladly moved her hand around, resting it on the doctor's toned stomach. Maura didn't pull it up between her breasts this time, but she did lace her fingers through it, squeezing once before fading back into full slumber.

And for that little gesture, Jane was elated. They both slept the rest of the night undisturbed.

Well, there it is, y'all! The start to my new story. Hope you enjoyed it so far. Let me know!