These characters are not my own; I'm just enjoying them. This is an A/U story set after The Closer, Season 6...
"Well, that's the last of it," Andy said as he closed the lid on the box, patted the top, and he turned toward the team. He was met with solemn faces, and he sighed as he looked from person to person. "Guys, really, it's going to be okay. No one died. I'm just retiring."
"Not the same, Sir," Julio frowned and looked away.
"Andy, we are going to miss you," Brenda chimed in, her Southern accent hanging on each word. Andy turned to her and gave her a small smile. There she was, standing near him, his chief, in her rumbled pink sweater covering a yellow and blue dress. Her hair looked like it had been brushed by a toddler, sticking up in several directions. Brenda was a good detective, but she was often a mess otherwise.
"Chief, it wasn't that long ago, just a few years now, that I was a thorn in your side," Andy gave her a wink.
"Yes, but times have changed," she gave a single nod. "I realized you aren't just a thorn in my side; the whole team is," she flashed an almost nervous grin to the team. No one knew what to say. Andy was leaving.
"Come on, guys," Andy gestured and looked around the room again, "no one died. Be glad about that. I'm just retiring before something like that happens to me."
"Sir, Lieutenant Provenza is much older than you are, and you don't see him retiring," Julio spun back around in his chair to face Andy. "You're just giving up."
"Provenza isn't retiring because he'll lose money in that deal, having to give half to his first ex-wife," Andy explained. "Besides, you have to work to retire, and we know he does very little of that," he smirked at Provenza, who grimaced at Andy and looked back down at his crossword. Provenza was doing his best to not pay attention to Andy, and Andy was well aware of his annoyance. "I am retiring. I don't have to share my pension, and it's time for me to start a new chapter of my life."
"I'm not speaking to you," Provenza grumbled from behind his crossword.
Andy sighed again and looked around the room. Brenda was standing near his desk, a frown on her face. She looked sad too, which, in a way, pleased him. He knew he'd earned her trust, and the two had come a long way from their start long ago. He glanced toward Gabriel, the guy he'd grown to respect. He was a good detective, and Andy had enjoyed working with him. Julio, that guy, Andy would miss. Julio was quiet, but he had your back, always. Julio was a hard worker who never asked for accolades; he did his job, period. Julio had lived a hard life, losing many close to him, but the guy was still determined to make the world a better place. Mike, the guy made Andy chuckle all the time. They had also worked together now for several years, and Andy knew he'd miss his vast array of information. Whatever the case, Mike seemed to know something to help the team. The guy was sharp and loyal; Andy liked that about him. Buzz, the camera guy who had become part of the team, had also become a friend of Andy's. Yes, he and Provenza had pulled Buzz into a few different schemes of theirs over the years, or more likely, Provenza had pulled Andy AND Buzz into different schemes, but Andy liked that Buzz always did the right thing. Sure, he complained, but he was a good guy, and he was good for the team. That brought Andy to Provenza. As he glanced at his friend, his best friend, Andy shook his head and frowned. There was no one like Provenza; he could not be replaced. Andy didn't even know how to describe the guy, other than to say he was an old, divorced cop. That didn't even accurately describe him, as it really described many the cops in the building. Provenza was one of a kind, and Andy knew it would be hard to leave his best friend. Provenza had always been there for Andy, and Andy just hoped he could get the guy who rarely took a day off, to visit him on a regular basis. Even though he didn't want to admit it, daily life would be very different for Andy without Provenza in it.
Over the past two months, Andy had thought about all of this, about leaving his team and his friends, but in the end, he'd decided to retire and start over again. A fresh start, that was what he needed. It had been a hard decision, but it had been one he'd made and once Andy decided on it, he didn't look back. He'd had an especially hard last several weeks, leading up to this decision. Work had been work, dirt bags killing dirt bags. That wasn't new, but he'd been injured again too. The stabbing had taken a lot of out him, more than he had initially thought. It had happened now just over two months ago, and he just wasn't bouncing back. Sure, he should have listened to his doctor's recommendation to take it easy, but Andy was Andy. He couldn't just sit around at home, and he hadn't. He gone right back to work, partly because Captain Raydor had been investigating him. He'd had it out with her, which was also nothing new, and in the end, he'd been exonerated of all charges, again nothing new. Once he'd gotten Raydor off his back, he'd tried to take a few days off, but the team had caught case after case, even going over Christmas. That had caused problems at home. While he was struggling to recover from surgery, he was also struggling with his family. They'd shut him out, probably for good now. No one from his family had visited or even checked on him during his stabbing or recovery. That had hurt, almost as much as the stabbing itself. It had hurt him in a different way, but it had hurt him deeply. He thought things were turning around when he'd gotten the invitation to see Sandra and the kids for Christmas. He'd told himself that this was the olive branch; his family was trying. Work came up again. They hadn't taken the news well when he'd called to cancel the family Christmas plans due to work. That had sparked another argument with Sandra, one claiming all Andy did was work, and all he ever did was ruin everything. Since then, he hadn't heard from them, and they had stopped taking his calls. His family had shut him out, and he was afraid they would never open up to him again.
With all that mess, Andy had decided enough was enough. He was struggling with work, and he was struggling with his family. The idea of starting over had come from one of his AA meetings in early January. Andy was listening to a guy give his testimony when this man mentioned that he needed a fresh start. Something clicked with Andy. Nothing was different that night; it was the same building and mostly the same people, but something clicked. Even after being stabbed in the parking lot, Andy had returned to the same group mainly because he felt comfortable there and had listened to many of the same people for years. Something, though, on that cold early January evening clicked, and Andy left the meeting with a smile on his face, an expression he hadn't had for a long time. Andy had practically raced home, excited to start this new chapter of his life, all his plans hitting him at once. He would retire from the LAPD. That would be easy; he was eligible for retirement and had a decent one coming his way. He'd find a new job, something that he hoped wouldn't be too hard, something in security, hopefully. The final thing that put the biggest smile on his face was that he would move. Andy would leave LA, and he'd go home; Andy was ready to move back to New York. His family in LA had shut him out, but he still had a sister in New York, and he'd go toward her. He remembered a phrase the guy said in his meeting, "When one door closes, another opens," and Andy felt the pull to New York was just the fresh start he needed.
"Flynn!" Andy heard and almost jumped there at his desk. He had his hands on the top of the box, the only box he had to show for his time on the force. He frowned and looked toward the source of the noise.
"What? I thought you weren't talking to me," Andy smirked.
"I'm only reminding you not to take your stapler," Provenza made a face at him. "I believe that belongs to me; it's my stapler."
"Really?" Andy threw up his arms, and the team started to laugh. "Whatever, you can have it," he sighed. "It's will save me from packing it!" Andy opened the box and dug out the stapler, making it a big production as he put it back on his now empty desk.
"I thought the movers were packing your things, Lieutenant," Buzz frowned.
"They are, tomorrow, or I should say, I packed, and they are picking up my things tomorrow," Andy explained. "I've got most of the house packed, and I don't want to add much more to the pile. I was hoping the few things from work would fit into one box I still have open. I'm trying to pack as little as possible. I've given away most everything. The new place doesn't have a lot of room."
"Wait, you're flying, Andy?" Brenda asked, tilting her head to the side as she thought about his comments.
"Yeah, sold my car. It's old anyway," he waved his arm in the air. "Guy is coming to get it tomorrow, and then tomorrow evening," he glanced toward Provenza, "I expect Provenza will come and pick me up. I'm staying at his house for two nights until my flight. That allows me to finish the sale of my house here and then make my flight. By Thursday, I'll be out of your hair and on my way to New York, and by early next week, I should start getting settled in my new place."
"Are you moving in with your sister, Lieutenant?" Buzz asked. "Casey and I have talked about doing that when we get older. It's nice, for old people, especially siblings, to share their lives if they have no one else."
The team turned to Buzz and shook their head. He meant well, but often, he put his foot in his mouth. Andy turned toward him, his irritation evident. "One, no I'm not moving in with my sister. Two, I'm not that old! I'm not dying, Buzz! I'm just retiring from the force, moving, and starting a new job in a new city."
"Tell us about your new place, Andy," Mike added as he pushed his glasses up on his face. "You've been quiet about all of this. We've barely heard anything about your move, just that it's happening."
Andy nodded, "Yeah, I know. It just hit me, that this is something I need to do. It's meant to be, all of it. Looking at it now, I see that. I got the idea, and things have just been falling into place. When that happens, you know it's the right thing to do. I put out a couple of feelers, and my sister, who is a professor, calls me up and says there's an opening for head of security at her college, just a city college there in New York. I get offered that job pretty quickly, just after a couple phone interviews, and then the day I list my house, I get an offer. It's meant to be. My family here could care less about me, and I'm ready to start over in New York."
"You still didn't tell us about your new place," Julio nodded.
"It's simple, and I haven't even seen it in person. My sister looked at it for me. She lives outside downtown, but I wanted to live downtown, something new and different. I want to meet people, and I can walk to work. It's just a simple one-bedroom, but you know the pricing there is even worse than here. I'll be fine. I've got my retirement from here, and then I have a good paying job there for as long as I want to work. The place is a loft-style apartment I bought, so I guess, it's a condo," he shrugged. "It's in an old building they renovated. Place has a gym and a pool, and best of all, there's a parking garage with a parking place. I probably paid too much for the condo, but I got what I wanted. I'm going to buy a new car, well," he rolled his eyes, "new to me, a new used car there. No sense in getting a brand-new car when it could just get scratched up there. I'll buy something newer, and it will still be nicer than the car I have here. It's a total fresh start," he nodded.
"Sir, we're going to miss you," Julio said, his lips not smiling nor frowning. Andy nodded to him.
"I'll miss you, all of you," he added, "even Provenza."
"Andy, I wish you would have let us throw you a party," Brenda frowned. "Seems silly that a man who has been on the job as long as you have would just walk away, just leave the building."
"Chief, thanks, but I don't want a party. I just want to leave and start over again. Most of the building has no idea I'm retiring. Most of the building pretty much hates me; you guys are like family, and this is enough," Andy gestured to the team siting around the room talking to him.
"Flynn, we'll just have our own party at my place," Provenza grumbled. "Steaks and beer to celebrate your career."
Andy rolled his eyes, "Provenza, I don't eat either."
Provenza nodded, "Exactly. You decide to leave me here, all alone and I'm going to send you off as I see fit. Steak and beer at my house. You don't like it, well, not my problem."
"Fine," Andy smirked, "when you come visit me in New York, I'll take you out for ethnic food, anything and everything."
"I'm not coming to New York, and I don't do ethnic food," he grumbled. The team chuckled as they listened to the banter.
Andy shrugged, "Your loss, but I already bought you a plane ticket for later this summer, and we have Yankee tickets too, a gift from my sister," he grinned. "I guess I'll just have to find a new best friend."
Provenza sat up straight at his desk and pointed at Andy, "You listen to me. You might move across this huge country, but do not ever forget the Dodgers. They cannot be replaced."
Andy offered a small shrug, "Okay, I guess that means you aren't interested in the plane ticket and the game."
"Well, I didn't say that," Provenza made a face and looked around at the team. "You mentioned you bought a one-bedroom place," he pointed at Andy. "I'm not sharing your room."
Andy rolled his eyes, "I'm going to get a sleeper sofa, Provenza. I'll even take that when you visit, give you my room."
Fine, Flynn, you insist on moving, and maybe, just maybe, I'll fly across the country to check on you. If I have to go to a baseball game, well, I will, but only because it's better than playing tourist in New York City," Provenza said as he sighed.
"It's going to be great," Andy nodded. "A fresh start in a new city. Don't look so sad, everyone," he looked around the room. "I might be leaving LA for good, but I'll always be just a phone call away."
