A/N: So after all this angst in the western, I decided I needed a fluff break. And by fluff, I mean a little more intense than fluff. The end of this chapter sort of just happened. Also, to those of you who pointed it out last chapter, I had Joey Tribbiani in my head when I wrote that last line. I just couldn't help it! Rachel needed to get hit on by someone cheesy, although that storyline isn't really brought up again in this chapter. But it can be soon.

"So if it's given that this angle is sixty degrees, and the… the angle on the line outside the other end of the triangle is a hundred and fifty degrees, that means… this one's thirty," Jane muttered, scrutinizing her math book carefully. "And—so, wait. That means the last angle would have to be ninety."

"Yeah."

"But that'd make it a right triangle."

"Yeah."

"But it doesn't look like a ninety-degree angle! I couldn't draw a box in there!"

The raspy, wearied laugh of her classmate only added to Jane's frustration. "Dude, come on! Didn't you take geometry in high school? It doesn't have to look like a right angle to be a right angle, bogus as that sounds."

"I freakin' hate math," Jane grumbled, tossing her pencil to the other side of the room. As luck would have it, her cell phone rang just then, prompting a relieved, "Oh, thank God." She flipped it open. "Bless you, and have I told you lately how much I love you?"

"Define 'lately,'" Maura chuckled. "You're done with classes for the day, aren't you?"

"Yeah, I'm just studying with a friend. Big math test coming up."

"Oh. Anyone I know?"

"On the test?"

"Your study friend. Oh! 'Study buddy!'" Maura laughed, recalling a phrase she had heard Stacey use.

"Um, no, I don't think you've met. Her name's Riley," Jane said, her eyes darting briefly to Riley, who smirked at the sound of her name. "Yeah, she's some dumbass senior who's stuck in moron math with me."

"Hey, shut up!" Riley laughed, smacking Jane's head.

Maura waited for the laughter on the other end of the line to subside before she spoke again. "Can you still come to look at our sink?"

"I'm planning on it, yeah. I've got some tools in my bag just in case I'll need 'em."

"Great! Can you come over right now?"

"What? Maura!"

"My favorite professor is doing a special lecture for people interested in forensic criminology. I thought it was tomorrow, but I got the date wrong, and it starts in an hour. I really don't want to miss it, and I really don't want to miss you, either."

"Well can't I just come over when you're done?"

"You said you had to watch your brothers tonight. Make sure they don't try to sneak cigarettes into the basement again while your parents are out of town?"

Jane sighed heavily. "Oh yeah, I forgot about the twerps."

"Good thing I pay such close attention to your life. Now can you come over?"

"Sure, why not?" Jane sighed again, shutting her book. "It's not like I was gonna get anywhere with this anyway. I'll be there as soon as I can."

"Wonderful! Did I mention I've got some fluff for you?"

"Ooh," Jane growled. "In that case, your wish is my command."

"And you know Stacey's a math major, right? So if you still want to study when you get here, I'm sure she would be happy to help you with anything I don't have time to go over with you."

Jane laughed uneasily. The last thing she needed right now was a certified genius like Maura or someone majoring in math to see how much she was struggling with basic problems. "Yeah, maybe. See you in a bit, babe."

"Bye!"

Smiling at the chirp in Maura's tone, Jane stowed the phone back in her pocket and apologized to Riley. "Sorry about that," she sighed.

"No big. What's up?"

"That was my girlfriend. Plumbing emergency."

"Ah." As their friendship was pretty new, there had never been explicit talk between the two of them over whether or not the other was gay—but they had come to a sort of tacit, mutual understanding that they played for the same team. Nodding at Jane's backpack, Riley asked, "So is that a plumbing tool I saw in there earlier?"

Jane pulled it open, bringing the tool out so she could cram her textbook back in the bag. "What, this? Yeah, it's an auger."

A crooked, almost intimidating grin split on Riley's face, aided by a glint in her eye. "Oh. I thought it was maybe some kind of weird sex toy or something."

"Nah, that's not really my thing," Jane muttered, getting her things together and standing up quickly.

Riley got to her feet as well, shrugging. "Hey, if you're vanilla, that's cool. No worries. I didn't want to make you feel weird, dude." They stood awkwardly by the couch for a moment before Riley's half-smile returned, and she nodded towards her bedroom. "I've got a drawer full of some if you ever wanna try any out, though."

"Didn't you just say you didn't want to make me feel weird?" Jane asked, trying to sound cool but only coming off as rather nervous-sounding.

"Yeah, I'm sorry," Riley said, giving her head a shake. "I've just been a little… hey, where's your girlfriend live? Can I give you a ride?"

"Uh… sure," Jane said slowly, not wanting to be rude by turning down the offer. She really could stand to make some new friends at school. "She's in the freshmen dorms at BCU."

"Wow, BCU," Riley said, sounding impressed. She led the way out of her apartment and back down to the street. "That's pretty awesome. What's she studying?"

"She wants to be a medical examiner," Jane answered, unable to keep a hint of pride out of her voice, which Riley couldn't help grinning at.

They had reached a ramshackle old jeep, one window of which appeared to be half-covered in duct tape. After informing Jane that the window on the passenger's side was permanently stuck partway down, Riley got in and revved up the car. "So, a medical examiner, huh?" she asked, pulling onto the street. "So like a doctor? Never would've thought you'd go for a geek, Jane."

Although her tone was merely teasing, Jane said, "Hey, she's not a geek! I mean, okay, she's sort of a geek. But a cute geek! A super hot geek, in fact. A well-dressed, well-mannered, real lady of a sexy geek."

"Whoa there, bucko!" Riley laughed. She flipped down the sun visor, and a pack of gum fell into her lap. With another laugh, she took her eyes off the road to get out one stick for herself and toss another to Jane. "I've gotta meet this girl, make sure you really deserve her!"

"Ha, ha," Jane muttered, unwrapping the gum. "Come on in with me; I'm sure she wouldn't mind."

"How long have you guys been going out?"

"Actually we celebrated three years just a few weeks ago."

Riley whistled. "Wow, for real? So you guys are like high school sweethearts?"

"Yeah."

"Nice. It isn't a problem that you're like, going to different schools, and not living at home under your parents' watch anymore?"

Jane cleared her throat awkwardly. In a bid to seem cool to her older, independent classmate, Jane had yet to tell Riley that she did actually still live at home. "Uh, no. It's not a problem. We're good. We're great."

There was silence for a few moments, and Riley absently flipped the radio on to a classic rock station. "Man, I just don't get it," she said after a while.

"What, Zeppelin?" Jane asked in disbelief, in regards to the music practically blasting out of the car radio. "What's not to get it? It's like, God… playing with Jesus."

"Nah, I mean sleeping with one girl!" Riley laughed, and Jane went silent. "Dude, you're young. And as a totally objective party, you're really hot. You could be getting laid left and right, y'know? Look, if you're ever interested, I've got some friends who are sort of getting into experimentation and would be totally discreet."

"Um, thanks, but no thanks," Jane said. "I'm a one-woman girl."

Stealing a glance at Riley, Jane could tell the girl was only placating her when she said, "Aw, well, that's sweet I guess." Very high school, but sweet. Maybe she'll grow out of it soon. They drove in a bit of an awkward silence for a while, both of them eventually falling into the same rhythmic head-banging. Eventually, Riley asked, "How'd you do with the adjustment? I mean, if you guys have been dating for three years, people were probably cool with your relationship in high school, right? Your roommates been cool about it?"

"Oh, yeah," Jane said. "Really cool. Mine, um… I actually knew them all in high school, so—so they already knew, and that's cool. Maura's have all been really awesome about it, too."

"Wow. How many roommates does she have?"

"Three. One of them's dating my best friend, actually. They—Maura's roommates—really love playing dress up with me, though. Halloween was interesting."

"Ha! I bet. You're lucky, you know. It took me a while to find a roomie who could accept me for who I was." She glanced over at Jane. "A sexual maniac."

They shared a laugh at that, so it was with relatively good spirits that they reached BCU's campus. Jane directed Riley to parking closest to Maura's building, and they turned quite a few heads as they got out and started walking. Jane visited enough that she was familiar at least by sight to a number of people, and she was unknowingly the object of many a brief, private fantasy. Throwing Riley into the mix led to an unprecedented level of squared, sophisticated swagger.

Jane felt good, she felt cool, walking next to Riley. Sure maybe she was a little crass, but she at least seemed to have taken a genuine liking to Jane. And even if they clearly shared different outlooks on relationships, Jane couldn't help thinking it would be nice having a gay friend to talk to once in a while. It wasn't something that had ever really bothered her in high school, especially once she had started dating Maura, but now the prospect of having one was sort of exciting. Just another reminder that Jane wasn't alone.

Maura flung open the door when Jane knocked a few moments later, and she raised her eyes upon seeing Riley there. "Oh!"

"Hey babe," Jane said, walking in. "This is Riley Cooper, math classmate. She gave me a ride."

"Hey," Riley said, giving Maura a nod.

"Pleasure to meet you," Maura said, holding out a hand for Riley to shake. Shooting an amused look at Jane, Riley shook Maura's hand but said nothing. "I have to say, it's certainly nice of someone to have taken on the task of trying to help Jane apply herself in mathematics. She can be quite stubborn." Before Riley had a chance to respond to this, Maura glanced down at Riley's tattooed arm and gasped softly. "Ooh! A female koi fish!"

Riley's grin was now genuine, not condescending. "Wow! How cool that you knew that."

"They symbolize independence and freedom," Maura explained to Jane, who did not look particularly happy with the way her girlfriend was feeling up this other girl's arm.

"Right. Unlike your Boy Scout of a girlfriend, I can't stay tied down to one girl," Riley said, winking at Jane and giving her a gentle nudge.

A new voice joined the conversation: "Wow, are you all lesbos?"

Jane and Riley looked over at the couch, where Stacey was sitting with her boyfriend Jack and one of their classmates, the girl who had just spoken. Stacey twisted around to apologetically say, "You'll have to excuse Natalie, here. She doesn't mean anything personal. Just no filter."

"I didn't mean it offensively," Natalie said lightly. "I'm just honestly curious."

"About what?" Jane asked, ignoring Stacey's head-shake of warning.

Natalie shrugged. "What the hell girls sees in other girls. Don't get me wrong, I have plenty of gay friends," she said quickly, cuing a wearied exchanged glance between Riley and Jane, "but I just like, don't get it."

"Honey, with that attitude, there's bound to be plenty you don't get," Riley said, her voice dripping with fake sweetness. "With the proper accessories, there's nothing dudes have that girls don't have in abundance." She smirked. "And we get to choose the length and width of that accessory, too."

A little put off by Riley's phraseology, Natalie frowned. "Well… what about, like… I dunno, something like biceps? I mean sure, a girl could be toned, I guess, but the basic musculature is totally different, right?"

"Oh God, no!" Stacey groaned. "No, no! If I have to hear one more of Maura's detailed lectures about how hot Jane's musculature is, I will kill myself."

Maura's jaw dropped. "I don't give lectures about it!"

Stacey raised her voice loud enough for Amber, who was behind her closed bedroom door, to hear: "Yo, Amber!"

"What?" she yelled back.

"Musculature!"

There was a brief pause. Then, "Is Jane here?"

Stacey gave Maura a look which clearly said I rest my case, and Jane could barely contain a smirk. "Wow, you talk about my body to your roommates?"

"And why wouldn't she?" Riley asked. "C'mon, Jane, flex for the non-believer over here."

Jane sighed, but soon found herself rolling up one of the sleeves of her blue plaid shirt. She had never cared for being an exhibitionist, but Maura had been gently encouraging her to wear a little less now and then, to be more at ease with her body. The lack of layers sort of went against instinct now that the weather was becoming decidedly winter-like, but Jane didn't get cold easily, and there was no tank-top beneath her low-collared shirt.

To join the fun, Riley shrugged off her jacket and tossed it on top of Jane's backpack in the corner. She held her arm up to Jane's and flexed it as well, smirking as Jane appeared to be trying to size them up and see whose was (as Maura might have said) more aesthetically appealing.

"What else ya got?" Riley asked Natalie.

"What about abs?"

Riley popped her gum loudly and ripped her vest open, revealing nothing beneath it but a dark blue sports bra and an abdomen that was not altogether unpleasant to look at. All gazes were then directed at Jane, who rolled her eyes at Maura, who tried to do her best to look impassive. Sighing gruffly, Jane stuck one hand in her back pocket and used the other to lift up the hem of her shirt, partially exposing abs everyone else in the room (but Maura) had assumed were only conceivable with the help of Photoshop.

"Pecs? Pecs," Natalie offered, first sounding questioning, and then somber.

"Mmm, that's true, I guess," Riley said, unbothered. "But no matter how hard a guy works to bulk his up, you wouldn't ever be able to motorboat 'em."

"To what?" Natalie asked, as Jack casually folded his legs.

"You know," Riley said with a catlike grin. She nodded at Jane, then glanced at Maura's chest, her bottom lip between her teeth. "Say these two are gettin' it on, and Jane just kinda gets her face all up in that amazing rack and—"

"Whoa, hey!" Jane said fiercely, all traces of embarrassed amusement gone. She was briefly torn between wanting to stay cool and yet letting Riley know she had crossed a line. "Game ends now, Riley."

Still looking unruffled, Riley shrugged, and without bothering to button up her vest again, leaned over to pick up her jacket. Pulling it on, she asked, "Any of that answer your question, Natalie?" Instead of waiting for a reply, Riley gave Jane a semi-apologetic look, said goodbye to Maura, and headed out the door.

Stacey spoke up for Natalie, looking thoughtful. "Yeah, why am I straight again?"

"Hey!" Jack protested. "Because you've got me!"

"Because…"

"Because we both liked The Brave Little Toaster."

"Oh, right!"

Maura looked confused. "What constitutes bravery in a toaster?"

"It's a kids' movie, Maura," Stacey explained.

"About anthropomorphic kitchen equipment?"

Jane rolled her eyes again, foreseeing a long conversation about yet another childhood movie Maura had missed out on. "I'm gonna use your bathroom," she muttered, walking past Maura. "Then I'll take a look at your sink."

Once she had disappeared behind the door, Stacey looked at Natalie and said, "Well! I think we're all done here."

"But there are still two pages in the packet left to go over."

"Yeah, um, I don't have time for that," Stacey said. "Those first few problems took way longer than I thought, and Jack and I have got plans." She stood up, ushering Natalie out the door.

"We've got plans?" Jack asked, once Natalie was gone.

"Um, yeah. To finish the last two pages of this packet." Stacey turned to look at Maura, who appeared a little confused. "Hey, Maura. Sorry about Natalie—she's really smart when it comes to calculus, but she can be a total moron when it comes to social skills."

"I'm a total moron when it comes to social skills!" Maura cried, looking worried that one day Stacey would use this as an excuse to exclude her.

"Yeah, but with you it's cute," Stacey explained. "With Natalie, it's rude. Obnoxious. She shouldn't have gotten Jane and that girl started, it was uncalled for." She frowned thoughtfully. "Or maybe you really should just be grateful you're so pretty."

This didn't do much to ease Maura's mind, and when Jane came out of the bathroom, she walked over and led Jane by the hand to her bedroom. Quietly she shut the door behind them, and Jane, clearly in a glum mood, sank onto the edge of Maura's bed. "So! Your friend Riley."

"Yeah," Jane mumbled. "I don't actually know her that well, really."

"No?"

"No. I'm just…well, y'know." Her eyes were fixed on the floor, and she started kneading her hands. "I haven't been making friends at school really," she said, getting the words quickly. "I mean, being at home and close to the people I went to high school with has sort of made me, well… I dunno, I sort of fall back on that. I wanted to try and make a new friend, and Riley's been pretty cool. She's never come onto me or anything though," she hurriedly added, looking up at Maura.

Maura just laughed and sat next to her. "Well, of course not! She clearly perceives herself as an alpha type, and sees many of her own qualities reflected in you."

"What? You're talking crazy, Maura." Thinking of Riley's sex toy collection, she insisted, "We're nothing alike, butch factor notwithstanding."

"She certainly did seem a little more sexually experienced than you," Maura said. When this elicited no response, Maura looked over at Jane, whose eyes were staring at the floor again. "I think she made some good points," Maura continued softly. She maneuvered herself so that she was straddling Jane on the edge of the bed, and gently brought Jane's hands to rest on the small of her back. "How's that?" she murmured.

Jane's hand shifted downwards to cup Maura's backside and bring her a little closer. "Good," she said quietly.

Maura smiled encouragingly, but Jane missed it, as her eyes were currently fixated on the cleavage offered to her by the cut of Maura's lavender cardigan. "I think spending time with Riley could be good for you," Maura whispered, her hands curling around Jane's neck.

That got Jane to meet her gaze. "Yeah?"

"Yes," Maura hummed, rolling her hips almost imperceptibly. "How would you like to try some motor-yachting?"

Jane's throat was almost too dry to laugh. "It's motorboat, Maura, not motor-yacht."

"Tomato, to-mah-toe," Maura said.

A few moments later, she would not have the willpower or presence of mind to try and be funny.

Jane's lips were gentle and hesitant as they traversed from Maura's jaw down to the tops of her breasts. She paused, and Maura's hands tightly wound themselves into Jane's hair, her hips starting to roll a little more anxiously. Jane felt a swell of confidence and excitement, spurred on when Maura's grip pushed her closer. Jane's eyes closed and she was surrounded by beautifully soft skin, her nose and mouth buried in Maura's spectacular breasts. Jane took a shuddering breath, and Maura gasped, letting out a repressed whimper at the feel of Jane's breathy groan.

Time to kick this into high gear, Jane thought , one hand shifting up to hold Maura's upper back steady.

But then there was a knock on the door, and it opened suddenly. Rachel was standing there on the phone, and it took her a moment to realize what she had just walked in on. The giddy look her face was instantly, almost comically replaced by one of intense mortification and she turned bright red. In turning to look at her, Maura had nearly fallen off the bed, and only barely managed to land on her feet (still a remarkable effort, considering how weak her legs felt).

The door snapped shut, leaving them alone again, and Maura quickly glanced back at Jane, who was preparing to stand up. "No," Maura said plaintively, pushing Jane's shoulder down and straddling her once more.

"Maura…"

"Jane."

"Just wait, just for a second," Jane said. "Riley, and that girl—Stacey's classmate, I just …I really wanted to tell her, tell them both, that even though I love your body and even though just the thought of a dick makes me freak out, that's not why I chose to be in a relationship with you. It's not why I'm in love with you."

"I know," Maura said. "But physicality is still important in a relationship, Jane. Please."

"Rachel kinda killed it, though…"

"Don't use that as an excuse! Jane, come on, we aren't in high school anymore."

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"I need more. I need you to be less inhibited."

Jane swallowed hard, looking defiant. "What's this about?"

Now looking scared and uncertain, Maura said, "I don't know. I just—I know you love me, Jane, but it's hard sometimes not feeling …well, wanted. Desired."

"Desired?" Jane asked, her voice lower than before. "You don't think I desire you?"

Maura carefully searched Jane's face, noting the darkening of her eyes. A sign of arousal. "Do you?"

Jane stood up abruptly, and Maura stumbled to the floor for the second time in so many minutes. Before she could get disappointed, though, Jane had backed her up against the door of the room, firmly locking it and pushing herself hard against Maura. There was no time, air, or cognizance for smart remarks or sarcasm; Maura's breathless gasps were a sharp contrast to Jane's heavy panting.

"No," Jane managed to choke out when she felt Maura's thighs squeezing one of her legs. "My turn, Maura."

She gasped sharply when Maura slid a hand between them, and Jane faltered. Her teeth clenched to hold in any noises Maura's roommates might overhear, but she could not stifle a few more gasps as Maura wordlessly removed her hand, instead stretching out a leg for Jane to move frantically, thoughtlessly against.

"Oh, God," Maura said breathlessly, her hands curling tightly again in Jane's hair.

Jane couldn't find the breath for words, kissing her way back down to Maura's breasts as she rubbed harder. This was unreal in its intensity; heat was closing in on all sides, breaking down every wall Jane had nervously, perhaps childishly put up. Maura had been on the receiving end of this kind of pleasure more than once, usually alone, but nothing she had experienced thus far could quite compete with the knowledge of what she was doing to Jane in this moment. Everything was building, and with a few whispered words of encouragement from Maura, Jane pushed herself harder, bearing down more.

And just when Maura thought they were really just getting started when Jane let out a low moan and slumped against her. "Jane?" she whispered nervously.

"Sh, sh." Jane lifted her head enough to offer Maura a soft kiss. "Mm." Maybe just a few more. She was waiting for her heat rate to go down, gently kissing Maura until she felt like she could think clearly again. To say the least, riding Maura's leg had been an exhilarating peek into what the future held in store for them, as Jane knew for certain that the euphoria she had experienced just now would be dwarfed by the high she got when she and Maura decided to take that last step.

Meanwhile, Maura was full of questions she didn't know how to phrase. "Jane, did you…?"

Jane chose not to guess what the intended inquiry had been, deciding instead to make her own: "Do you doubt me, Maura?"

"No."

"I may not be able to list all the scientific names for your body parts, but that doesn't mean I don't think about them all the time." She kissed Maura's forehead. "I think you're amazing, I think everything about you is amazing. I look at you, and I… I can't picture ever being with anyone else."

The unspoken "can you?" hung between them for what felt like several long minutes. Maura's heart swelled with the pure honesty and untested innocence in Jane's voice. Maura wished she was the type of person who could just respond to things without thinking, so she could reassure Jane without pause, but her mind would not be denied the opportunity to mull things over. They were both so young. Could she picture ever being with anyone else? She had dated before, but never been in a relationship before Jane. And it was so much more fulfilling than she could have imagined.

She could not picture someone being more understanding of her than Jane. She could not picture someone who could anticipate her needs better, who could accept her faults better, who could make her laugh more and feel loved more than Jane Rizzoli. She could not wrap her head around a Jane-less future. Her arms tightened slightly around Jane's shoulders.

Neither of them was sure how long the silence had lasted before Maura truthfully said, "Neither can I."

A/N: I kind of like the idea of playing around with Riley in this story, and where that could go. Thanks for being patient with me about updates, guys!
Oh, and about the sex thing. Remember I said this was gonna be more like Boy Meets World, less like Degrassi :) ...not that I'm totally planning on paraphrasing Cory's speech to his mom about love/Topanga for Jane to give Angela...