Once again, thank you so much for your absurdly sweet and wonderful reviews. They all mean so much to me, and I really can't thank you enough.

This round, you're getting Angela's POV. I'm pretty sure that this is the last of this type of post I'll be doing for this story, but I'm considering (just considering right now!) continuing it as a regular story, if that's something that might interest you fair, lovely readers. :)

As always, the incomparable Misses Isles and Rizzoli do not belong to me. Tragic, really.

All any parent really wants is for their children to lead full, happy lives. Maybe we don't always express that in the most productive way, but whatever we do stems from that desire. I harass Janie a lot, about her job and finding someone to take care of her, but it's only because I worry. Frankie will find some nice girl, I know that. Janie, though, well… she's tough. And sometimes her tough exterior and, let's be honest, her pride push people away. But not Maura.

Maura's the first real female friend Jane's ever had. She was always a tomboy growing up and preferred playing baseball with the boys or working on cars with her father to playing dress up or house with the other little girls. In some ways, it was better to do that, for a girl like her. Boys are simpler, kinder. So long as you can throw and hit the ball as well as they do, they don't much care who you are. Girls are crueler. With the boys, though, Jane learned to be touch and confident. Basically, it ended up being like boot camp for her time on the force.

My Janie is a successful woman, and I'm proud of her. She's gone places and done things no woman has in Boston. At the same time, knowing how much she's been exposed to scares me. The blood, the death. I don't know how she handles it. To be honest, she didn't always handle it as well as she does now. In the beginning, there were a lot of nights she'd show up at our door unexpectedly and end up staying over. It tapered off, but there would, ever so often, be a case that shook her and back home she'd come. After Hoyt, she didn't bother going home at all for weeks. Not that we ever minded. That habit of hers has pretty much disappeared since she started spending time with Maura. I get the feeling Jane shows up at a different door when she's upset now. Or maybe someone comes to hers. Either way.

Maura's been something of a godsend for Jane, I think. I used to worry Jane would toughen up to a point where she would become impenetrable to the good things in life as well as the bad. When she met Maura, though, she started to come back. She started spending more time with Frankie and started coming around more, oftener and oftener with Maura in tow. Some of the lines that had started to linger on her face began to fade a little. The hardness around her eyes softened, and she definitely started smiling more.

Jane is different with Maura than she is with other people. She was never one for displays of affection. Not until she met Maura, anyway, and the way she goes about it is almost protective. She rests her arm along the back of Maura's chair when we're sitting at the dinner table or puts her hand on Maura's back to guide her through doorways. I've noticed, too, that whenever we sit down to watch something, whether it's a Sox game or a movie, the girls seem to seize the opportunity, given the right excuse, to get closer. Frank sits in his lazy boy, while I usually float between the arm of his chair and the kitchen. The kids always camp out on the couch, with Jane in the middle. At some point, Jane rests her arm along the back of the couch behind Maura. Maura will automatically settle into Jane, and the two of them shift until they're comfortable, often with Maura's head on Jane's shoulder and Jane's arm draped over Maura's shoulder. It's happened every time we've all watched something with no exception. Sometimes the dance those girls are doing frustrates me. I can't imagine how they feel. Maura's much more patient than Jane. I get the feeling she's actually content, for now, with where they are. Jane, though, is impatient, and when she knows what she wants, she doesn't like waiting. She must be fit to burst.

On top of that, Jane's always sure to never stray too far from Maura whenever there are a lot of people around. God love Maura, but people make her skittish. I don't know how that poor child grew up, but it couldn't have been with much love around her. Jane may complain about me nosing in her life, but no one could ever say we neglected her or any of our kids. We were there as much as we could be while trying to work enough to provide for our family. It wasn't always easy , but we managed. And, boy, did we have fun, even when we were barely scraping by. It's clear to me Maura didn't have that. She may have had fancy boarding schools and moved in Boston's better circles, but she didn't know love or attention like Jane did. We do our best to make up for it.

We welcomed Maura into our family without hesitation. She seemed unsure at first, but with the way she looks at Jane, I knew she'd calm down soon enough. We worked hard to include her in all our traditions and family gatherings. She stayed close to Jane, always within arm's reach. Eventually, though, she started joining me in the kitchen to help with dinner or the dishes. Sometimes while we were waiting for things to cook, she'd drift to the door, glass of wine in hand, and watch Jane as she slowly sipped. A smile would sort of creep across her lips, and she'd seem to drift away. I don't know what she was thinking about, how could I with that big brain of hers and all, but I knew it had to do with Jane. And I knew my Janie was lucky to have someone who loves her as much as Maura does.

Oh, it's not like either one of them has said anything solid. I don't even think they've told each other. Somehow, though, I think they know it as well as I do. I hope they do. It would be such a shame for two people who love each other so much to miss out because they haven't said anything, not to mention it would be a colossal waste. In a world so full of hatred, we need to grasp onto every bit of love we can. But how could they not know? Even Jane isn't dense enough to miss the way Maura touches her or how often, like she's always making sure Jane's still there. And how she looks at her… Frank used to look at me like that. Still does, actually. But with Maura, there's something more there, too, like she can't believe how lucky she is, like a kid at Christmas, but not once a year, every day. Jane's really no better. The admiration and outright love that sort of flows out of her when she looks at Maura? It warms my heart. It gives me hope.

I admit, when I first started noticing the way they interact, I was a little worried. After all, it meant Jane wouldn't find a man, wouldn't have kids. I realized soon enough that was silly. All that really matters is that she has someone who loves her and will be there for her to chase the nightmares away. Maura already does both. And, honestly, what mother doesn't want her daughter to end up with a rich doctor?

The only thing I really worry about is Jane. I trust Maura not to go anywhere. She's worked too hard to get to where she is with us to leave it all behind. Besides, we're her family. But Jane has a way of getting scared and when she does, she withdraws. I'm afraid Maura will take Jane's retreat as a sign she's done something wrong. If she can hold tight enough to Jane, though, and follow her when she tries to go, they should be just fine. More than, really. But something tells me that this time might be different, that maybe this time Jane won't run. I can tell she's been struggling with something big, and my best bet is that it has to do with Maura.

The things my Janie will go through for that girl never cease to amaze me. I love Jane, but she's never been the most giving person on the planet. She's busy, I understand that. But for Maura, Jane's willing to even make time to do things she's always hated. Run a marathon? Go to yoga? Jane never would have done either if Maura hadn't asked. All Maura needs to do is turn to Jane with a question on her lips, and Jane's already saying yes.

Take the time they went to the opera, for instance. Apparently, Maura had been trying to get Jane to the theatre for some time, and Jane had, for once, been dragging her feet. Finally, for Maura's birthday, Jane got them tickets. We were having a party at our house for Maura, so we all got to see the way she lit up when she opened them. She threw herself into Jane's arms and kissed her repeatedly on the cheek. I never knew Jane could turn that color of red.

A few days before the big date – because, let's be honest, that's what it was – Jane came over in a positive tizzy. She didn't know what to wear or how to do her hair or… well, she was ranting, so I don't really remember the rest. I waited it out then took her upstairs to give her some pointers. She watched intently so she'd remember how to do it. It was the first time she let me touch her hair since she was about six, and I loved every minute of it. We talked about her wardrobe, picked out a restaurant, the whole deal. By the time she left, she was much calmer than she'd been when she came over. There was something childlike about her concern for making the night special, like she couldn't bear for it to be anything other than the best night either of them had known. I knew then, helping Jane and seeing how determined she was to make it flawless, that, if they let themselves, those girls would have many, many more 'best night evers'… I hope they still might. Lord knows they deserve that chance.

Not long before all of… this, we had a big party at our house. I'd been talking to Maura, trying to hold up a conversation with her even though her eyes kept following Jane. Suddenly, she sort of slid away and went over to Jane. Even though I'd seen them be affectionate before, I was surprised to see how easily Maura stepped into Jane's arms and how openly Jane welcomed her. They stood like that, holding each other, for a long time. I'd never seen Jane let anyone hold her like that, never seen her let anyone get that close. I hurried to wipe the tears from my eyes before anyone noticed them. I turned to talk to Frank then yelled to the girls to come and eat. When I turned back, I saw that they had gotten much closer and were holding each other in a much more intimate way, and I knew I'd stopped something that was a long time coming. Luckily, Jane was too high on Maura to be too angry with me. That moment when I realized what I'd stopped has been on repeat in my head lately. I worry Janie won't get her chance to kiss the girl and know what it is for a kiss to really mean something. Add it to the very long list of reasons I hope my baby wakes up and is still herself when she does.

If Jane doesn't wake up, a part of me will… go with her. I don't want to say the d- word. It will make the possibility too real. No parent should have to outlive their child. No parent should have to see their child like this, laid out, hooked up to machines and IVs. And there's nothing I can do about it. Even so, I hurt more for Maura than I do for myself. If something happens to Jane, I know Maura'll leave us and, most likely, leave herself, somehow.

Maura has practically never left Jane's side since they brought her in except to run home and pack a bag. I know Korsak is taking care of Bass, and we've got Jo Friday with us. Maura sits in that chair beside Jane's bed, waiting. Every morning she goes into the bathroom in Jane's room and cleans up. The clothes she's been wearing, though, look suspiciously like the ones Jane changes into when she comes home after a long day or on her days off. Maura sits there, a closed book in her lap, watching Jane. A couple of times I've convinced her to go for a walk around the floor with me. She's stayed silent the whole time and quickly returns to her chair when we get back. She looks so lost, and my heart breaks for her every day. Through her connections, she got all of us permission to come and go when we want. Maura does neither. She just waits.

The fear in her eyes scares me almost more than seeing my Janie lying there. I know Jane's a fighter, and she has so much good left to do. She'll fight for that. She'll fight for Maura. I just hope she does it quickly. I don't know how much longer Maura will be able to keep waiting before she's just… gone.