1: Maura's Abduction

First of the Aftermath Series, by ReduxQue. Maura's Abduction is a scene from a private moment in the lives of Jane and Maura. Set the night Maura comes home from the hospital after she is rescued from Harris. In the face of almost losing her, Jane summons up the courage to set a matter straight.

Jane sighed deeply and kissed Maura softly on the head. She was exhausted, but she was too afraid to go to sleep. Her eyes burned. Her heart ached. Maura had fallen asleep about two hours ago. She had cried herself to sleep while Jane held her. Even though she'd been rescued, she was still frightened. Maura trembled continuously no matter how tightly Jane held her in her arms. Jane's heart broke to see her this way.

Jane laid her head next to Maura and wrapped her arm around her. Maura sighed softly and leaned back against her. Jane froze, hoping not to wake her since it took so very long for her to fall asleep. After a few moments, Maura again fell into a steady sleep. Her breaths were even and deep.

Jane's heart twisted inside of her chest. Just last night, she thought she'd never see her beloved Maura again. She thought she would die before she had a chance to tell her how she felt about her. She loved her. She loved her more than anyone who'd ever come into her life before. And when she realized that Maura had been kidnapped, she swore to herself that if she got her back safely, she wouldn't let another minute pass without telling her how she felt.

She was going to do it tonight, but Maura just wanted to shower and go to bed. Once Maura got settled in the bed, Jane crawled in with her. She held her like she always did when she invited her into her bed. But this time, Maura broke down in her arms. Jane had never seen her cry like that before. She tried to console her, but she was inconsolable. Jane wondered what had happened to her while she was abducted. When she asked, Maura just sobbed and told her she couldn't talk about it.

Jane's heart burned inside. She wanted to go back in time and kill Harris all over again. She squeezed her eyes tightly shut and inhaled the sweetness of Maura's hair. She let out a quivering breath, being careful not to stir Maura awake. It took everything to hold the tears inside.

But she was back now. And in her arms. This is where she wanted her to be every night. She was just too much of a coward to confess. No, not a coward, just cautious. She was always cautious when other people's feelings were involved. Maura whimpered in her sleep and her body jerked suddenly. Jane looked over at her and pulled her tighter against her.

"Jane." Maura whimpered again. "No. Please, don't go."

"I'm here, Maura." Jane whispered in her ear. "I'm here."

Maura started crying again, in her sleep. She was sobbing and crying out for Jane. Jane reached over and flipped on the lamp and came back to her. She shook her gently.

"Wake up, sweetie." She said.

Maura's eyes shot open. Tears raced down her face. She looked over at Jane. Fear was in her eyes. "Jane?"

"Yes. I'm here."

Maura threw her arms around Jane's neck and hugged her. Her body trembled violently. Jane wrapped her arms around her and pulled her closer.

"Shh… It's okay."

"I had a terrible dream."

Jane placed a soft kiss on her cheek. "It was just a dream. I'm here."

She let go of Jane's neck and laid back down. "I'm so sorry."

"Please don't apologize, Maur."

Maura turned her head away from her. "Okay."

Tears filled Jane's eyes as she looked at her. She wanted to ease her pain. She wanted her to believe that it was going to okay. She moved closer to her.

"Maura?"

Maura kept looking at the opposite wall, hiding her face in shame. Jane touched her chin and turned her gaze towards her. "Look at me."

She finally lifted her eyes to gaze into Jane's. She made an attempt to smile at her, but she felt too much pain to be successful.

Jane laid down beside her and leaned closer, pressing her forehead against hers. "I am so glad to have you back." She whispered.

Maura choked on a set of tears and cupped Jane's face with her hand. Jane covered her hand and kissed the tip of her nose.

"I was so scared that I was going to lose you, Maur." Jane took a deep breath and sighed. It felt so good laying here with her and holding her. And feeling her breath against her face.

"I didn't think I was going to make it." She said.

"But you did." Jane whispered. "You got away." Jane stroked her fingers through Maura's hair and caressed her face. "I'm so proud of you.

Maura nodded and sniffled. "Thank you, Jane."

Jane pressed her lips against her forehead and kissed her, "I love you so much," Jane said. She couldn't hold it in any longer. She pulled away from her and gazed into Maura's trusting eyes.

Maura just caressed her cheek softly and nodded.

"I am so sorry I waited so long to tell you."

"To tell me what?" Maura searched her eyes for clarification. Her thumb gently caressed the outline of her face.

"I took for granted you being here with me every day. And when he took you, I realized that I may never get a chance to tell you how I feel." Jane's voice trembled and her tears streamed out of her eyes.

"How you feel?" Maura questioned, a frown creased her brow. She swiped a tear away with her thumb.

Jane swallowed hard. "I am in love with you, Maur."

"You are?"

Jane nodded briskly. "I've been in love with you for as long as I can remember."

Maura continued to caress Jane's face softly. Her thumb grazed lightly over her top lip as she stared into her eyes. "Why didn't you ever tell me?"

"I'm telling you now." Jane swiped the tears from her eyes with her shoulders. "And I promise you, Maura, I will never allow anyone to hurt you ever again. Do you understand me?"

Maura nodded.

"And I'm so sorry I let you down. But it'll never happen again. I will protect you." Jane pressed her head against hers again and fought back another set of tears. "Please believe me. Maur." She finally choked up on her tears. Her heart was too overwhelmed to go any further. "Please believe me." She repeated.

She fell into Maura's arms. She tucked her head into the crook of Maura's neck and cried softly. Maura wrapped her arms around her and wept with her. Jane allowed herself to have a few minutes of weakness as she laid there in Maura's arms.

She kissed her softly on the neck and then her cheek. And then she raised up and looked into Maura's eyes. Maura was smiling up at her, her eyes told her how much she believed in Jane's promise, long before her lips spoke it.

"I believe you." She said softly and pulled Jane closer. She slowly closed the distance between them.

Jane paused when her lips were inches away from Maura's. At this vantage point, she could see every fine detail in her beautiful face. And even if she had bruises and scrapes, she still was the most beautiful creature on face the planet.

She glanced down at Maura's bottom lip. It was cut and bruised. She gazed into her eyes and took her lips gently, being sure to capture her top lip instead. Maura gasped, although she was expecting the kiss, and stilled upon contact. It was only momentary, because within a few seconds, she sighed into Jane's kiss, pulling her closer and deeper into her.

Jane made sure to be careful and not re-injure her lip. Her kiss was slow and tender. She released her top lip and took the bottom one. She grazed her tongue over the healing cut and then pressed her lips against it. She pulled away and gave her a sweet Eskimo kiss.

Maura leaned her head against Jane's and sniffled. "Thank you. I really needed that." She whispered.

"Me too."

Maura laid back down and turned over onto her side. Jane flipped the light off and laid down beside her. Maura reached behind her and pulled Jane's hand around her waist. Jane cozied up next to her and spooned her tightly. She placed a soft and tender kiss on her shoulder before she rested her head on the pillow.

Silence fell over them as Maura held on to her hand tightly. "Will you stay with me tonight?" she asked.

"Of course, I will." Jane said scooting closer. There wasn't much space, but she made sure every available inch was used. She pulled the blankets over them and relaxed onto her pillow.

"If I fall asleep, please don't leave."

Jane's heart twisted inside of her. She would never reject Maura's request to stay with her ever again. If she had stayed with her that night, she wouldn't have been kidnapped. "I'll never leave you." She whispered. "Never."

Maura sighed softly and settled her head on the pillow. "I want to assure you of this one thing." She said quietly.

"What's that?"

She was quiet for a while and then. "I can truly say I reciprocate your feelings."

Jane smiled. Jane thought of a million things to say in the few seconds following Maura's statement, but none were more fitting than silence itself. So, she just let Maura's words be the last words spoken that night.

Tomorrow they'd face tomorrow's challenges, but as for tonight, they were going to sleep in the safety of each other's arms, now with the full knowledge that their feelings for each other are returned.

Hi. Thanks for reading my one shot. I'm embarking on a project to write a few one-shot scenes that follow important scenes from the show. Kind of like a "What you didn't see" scene. Who knows, it might be a total failure, then it might be a hit. I don't know. I'm just writing because it's fun. I'm taking one shot scene suggestions. Please PM me or leave your suggestion in the review section. Follow me for updates! I'm a rancher/cowgirl by trade, so I'll post as often as my schedule allows me. ReduxQue 😊