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It had been about a month and a half since Jane had decided to follow Maura on her holiday to Paris. She hadn't regretted one minute of it. They had been taking walks along the Seine, sightseeing, visiting unexpected fleamarkets, having French coffee and pastries in quaint small coffeshops and dinner in luxurious French restaurants with views; they had watched the sunset from Montmartre, eaten crêpes late at night in the Latin quarter, and made love in the small one-room roof apartment that Maura had rented. Jane had been having such fun that she had asked (and obtained) another month of vacation before starting her new job at Quantico.
Now she ended her Skype meeting, slowly taking the earbuds out and closing the screen of her laptop. Like in a trance, she wandered outside on the rooftop terrace the apartment opened onto, where Maura was sitting in the sun, working on her book. She lifted her head from her papers when she noticed Jane.
- Jane? Are you alright? - she asked concerned.
Jane sat down opposite to her.
- They want me back Maura. One of the training agents has injured himself and the FBI needs me back in Quantico earlier to cover for him. They booked me on a flight on Sunday. -
Maura looked a bit outraged. - But it's Friday! -
- I know. - Jane sat a for bit with the expression of a kicked puppy. Then all of a sudden she smiled at her best friend. - Let's go do something fun, Maura! Let's have one last day around the city being crazy. Then tomorrow I'll pack. But today I don't want to think about it. - She looked so excited Maura couldn't but be swayed.
They decided to go on a cruise on the Seine, having a fancy riverboat lunch and basking in the sun among the usual crowd of camera-brandishing tourists. For dinner they made themselves a picnic on the terrace, with take-away greek food from a nearby restaurant, gelato, and of course wine. Jane felt like she was in heaven.
She was trying very hard not to think about her flight back in two days.
Maura looked pensive too. Jane could see she had been ruminating over something the whole day, and she had been patiently waiting for her to get to the point when she would feel like sharing. For some reason, it felt like something that shouldn't be rushed.
Finally Maura lifted her gaze and caught Jane looking at her with a soft smile, and that seemed to settle something in her. She put her glass down.
- Jane, do you remember last year, the sweat lodge? -
- The sweat lodge? How could I forget. Why? -
- I told you I had a revelation about you. -
- I remember! And you wouldn't tell me what it was. -
- Yes, well. I also had a revelation about Jack. -
- Jack? Oh yeah, you said he was a great guy and other great guys would find you eventually, right? -
- Well. I lied a little about that. - Maura looked a little nervous.
- You did? Without breaking out in hives? - Jane teased.
- It wasn't technically a lie, that just wasn't my revelation. I realized... - She stopped a second to look down at her glass of wine. Then she lifted her gaze to Jane's and continued. - I realized that this thing that we do, these relationships we have, they always end the same way: either we leave them, or they leave us. We leave the bad ones for obvious reasons, but the good ones, they leave us. And they leave us because there always comes a point where in order to choose them we would have to sacrifice this thing we have with each other, and we never do. I realized that I was very sad to let Jake go, but I wasn't heartbroken. He was ready to sacrifice his relationship with his daughter to be with me, but I would never have left you to go with him. And it was the same with you and Casey. I realized that me and you leaving each other, it is never going to happen. That I don't want it to ever happen. -
She stopped, her eyes boring into Jane's.
- I realized that I want to marry you, Jane. -
Jane was staring at her, eyes round with shock, completely still. Maura broke eye contact and looked nervously down.
- Of course that wasn't the right time to tell you, so I waited. But this last month, while we were here together just the two of us, I thought about it again and I felt like this could be the right time to ask you to marry me. - She stopped again. - If you want to, of course, I mean... -
- Maura - Jane interrupted her. She had woken up from her shock and was smiling tenderly at her best friend. Maura looked back at her.
- Of course I want to - Jane said with a gravely voice, and pulled her into a kiss.
When the kiss broke, they stayed close, with their foreheds pressed lightly against each other. Jane chuckled.
- What's funny? - Maura asked.
- It's just... I always thought, if this ever happened, I would be the one down on one knee. -
- I am not down on one knee, Jane, we are both sitting. - Maura observed with her brow furrowed. - Wait, should I be on my knees?- she asked worried.
Jane laughed. - No, don't worry. - She took her hand and smiled at her. Maura smiled back.
They sat there in silence a bit more, sipping their wine in the warm evening air, their hands laced together.
- So, when are we planning to get married? - Jane asked, trying to sound casual.
- Tomorrow? - Maura answered, a nervous smile on her lips.
- Wh- tomorrow?? - Jane sat up, shocked again.
Maura tried to speak as fast as she could - Well I have been a resident here for more than thirty days and so I thought I could get the papers in order so that we could get married here and usually you have to wait ten days and then you have ten days to get married but now you are leaving the day after tomorrow and we only have five days left so... - She looked panicked.
- Maura!- Jane snapped at her to shut her up. - What if I had said no? - she asked more gently.
- You don't want to? - Maura looked genuinely worried.
- Are you asking me if I want to marry the love of my life in the most romantic city in the world, without my parents or about a hundred half-Italian relatives, just you and me at a registry office? Of course I want that, this is better than my Red Sox dream! -
Maura smiled the happiest smile she had ever seen on her face - I'm the love of your life? -
Jane returned her smile - I don't know why it has taken me so long to realize it.- she said softly. She kissed Maura again, and this time they didn't stop, leaving the rest of the picnic to the ants.
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Maura looked at her own image in the mirror, holding up two dresses with her hands. One was white, sleeveless, with a v-neck and floreal patterns all over. The other was also white, but with short sleeves, a round neck and tiny details of butterflies, lipsticks and skulls in nice tidy rows. She sighed while she put one, then the other in front of her body, unconvinced.
- Mmmmgggghhh... - From behind her came the sounds of a very sleepy detective waking up in the bed on the other side of the room.
- Jane, you're awake. Come here and help me choose: which of these two do you think I should be wearing? -
- What? Mauraaa... It's too early to ask me questions - Jane lamented, sitting up in bed.
- It's ten in the morning Jane, and we have an appointment at the registry office at two. -
Jane just made another unintelligible sound and stood up, pushing back her mane of black hair with her hands and rubbing her face. - Can't I at least have coffee first? -
- There's coffee on the terrace, yes. And breakfast - Maura answered distracted, still staring at her reflection. - I mean, it's pretty hot today, so I should wear the Etro, but I like the Alexander McQueen so much better... - She sighed again.
Jane walked up behind her, and put her hands on her sides, admiring how they looked together in the mirror. - I would marry you naked, you know that right? - she said.
- Somehow I don't think that would go down very well with the registry officer - Maura observed with amusement in her voice.
- I think it would be very funny... for about five seconds before they arrest us - replied Jane trying to suppress a laughter.
- What are you going to wear? - Maura's serious gaze met Jane's in the mirror reflection.
- Let's see... I have black pants, a white shirt and a black jacket. -
- It's called a blazer Jane... don't you have anything else? -
- Why yes: I have black pants, a number of bright colored t-shirts, and a black jacket - Jane retorted.
- Better go with the shirt - conceded Maura. She looked desolatedly at her own choices of wear.
- You know Maura, we have no guests, no party. This is just about us. Wear the one that makes you happier, and if you get too hot, I promise to get it off you as soon as possible. -
Maura didn't look entirely convinced. Jane kissed her left shouder and walked towards the bathroom. - Plus, I like the little skulls best - she threw over her shoulder, then closed the door behind her.
After a shower, she wandered back to the terrace to find coffee, fruit, eggs and croissants, and Maura looking much more relaxed and happier. On the table near the orange juice sat a small box, clearly from a jewelry store.
- When did you get this? - asked Jane perplexed.
- I went out early this morning. - Maura answered. - Go on, open it. -
Jane picked up the box and carefully opened the lid. Inside, on a deep blue velvet cushion, sat two plain golden rings. She lifted one out of the box with two fingers, and inspected it. On the inside there was an incision: Jane, 9.25.2016. The other had a similar inscription, only with the name "Maura" instead.
She admired them for a while, lost in her thoughts. Finally Maura's voice broke her out of her revery.
- Are you ok, Jane? -
-Uh?-
- You're... very quiet. Are you sure you want this? -
Jane looked Maura in the eyes and just smiled. - It's crazy, you know? This is not how I pictured it would end up, our love life. I considered marrying Casey, or you marrying someone else, but never this. And now that it's happening, it's kind of out of the blue, but it isn't really, you know? I feel like we were always going to end up here. It was always going to end up like this. How could I have never seen it before? -
Maura was also smiling. - I don't know Jane. Maybe we were so near to it that we missed it. Or maybe we just needed time to puzzle it together. -
- Well now that we have -now that you have- I'm glad we aren't waiting another minute. -
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Maura ended up wearing the Alexander McQueen.
Jane realised too late that the rite was entirely in French, but a good amont of smiling and copying what Maura was doing got her through it just fine, and when the time came to say "oui", she understood what it meant.
Afterwards, on their way back through Champ de Mars, a couple of tourists insisted on taking a picture of them with the Tour Eiffel in the background (Maura had received a flower bouquet as a good luck gift from the bride who got married right before them, and Jane had to admit they pretty much looked like the poster couple for gay marriage). They asked for a copy of it to text to their friends and family, before going out for dinner at their favourite restaurant.
Frankie: Congratulations sis! I told ma' you would make an honest woman out of her eventually. But weren't you already supposed to be in Quantico??
Angela: You got married WITHOUT ME?? Jane Clementine Rizzoli-Isles, I am not forgiving you this! We are going to have the biggest party ever when you both are back (you are coming back right?). Maura dear, you look radiant!
Korsak: About time too!! Congratulations Jane, you managed to beat Frank!
Tommy: You go girls! Good for you! (And for me, I won the bet!!) Have fun!
Hope: I am very happy for the both of you. You deserve this so much.
Constance: Sincere congratulations from Arthur and me. We couldn't have wished better for our only daughter.
- Have you noticed how no one is suprised to hear about us getting married? -
- Well to be fair no one has ever seemed surprised to learn we are a couple either. -
- Right??? ... Wait, what? How do you mean "has ever seemed surprised"? Did they ask? Did you tell them?? -
- You know I get hives if I lie! And they did seem to already know, I just... didn't deny it. Did I do something wrong? -
- No, Maura, don't worry. You know that I'm proud to be your partner. It's just that I don't like it when everybody sticks their noses into our private life. -
- Don't worry, I didn't give any details. I only told them we are an open couple. -
- Only...??? Maura!!! -
- What? It's true isn't it? Better that than having them pester us because they thought we were being unfaithful to each other. -
- ...fine. -
- By the way, do you think we should stop getting involved with men, now that we are married? -
- Do you want to? -
- No, it's just that monogamy is the current social convention for marriage. -
- Fuck conventions. We can keep doing what we like, can't we? We'll just need to be very clear about us being married to each other. I am your partner, and you are mine. We belong first and foremost to each other. That's the only monogamy I care about. -
- I like that. -
(Maura was offered a permanent teaching position in forensic pathology at Howard University, and decided to take it. She moved in with Jane at her quarters in Quantico.)
(They did get a big party the first time they both went back to Boston for a visit. The entire Rizzoli clan celebrated for almost three days straight, even though a murder dragged Frankie and Nina back to work after the first 36 hours. Kiki and Korsak decided to close the pub to host the party, but somehow that didn't seem to discourage each and every person who had ever met Jane or Maura from dropping by unannounced to congratulate the newlyweds. Jane was sincerely worried about what Frankie's upcoming wedding woud turn into.)
(It did turn into a chaotic nightmare of wedding presents, Rizzoli relatives and Angela's crazy organization. They survived.)