It would take until 2018 to list all of the reasons why killing Sharon made absolutely no sense, so I started this instead. And it distracted me from sending Duff hate mail for telling us during Season 5 that no one major would die after Taylor, haha. (I'm kidding. I respect him and his decisions, for whatever reasons it was made. This is my sadness talking). The Variety article killed this possibility, and the upcoming WWSRD probably will too, but here's a fantasy that parts of the last episode were filmed before the ninth episode and that they're just really screwing with us until then. :)

I'm also still working on my other story, but last night's episode killed the motivation for that one for probably a few days.

Buzz made his way up to the ninth floor of PAB, manila envelope in hand. He'd assumed it was personal letters and video messages for Sharon's children and Andy, but he thought he was a random choice to be given that task. He could understand why she hadn't given it to Andy, since he was undoubtedly one of the intended recipients, but why not Andrea or Patrice? Or Amy? He'd almost just given Andy the envelope before he left, but Sharon's for your eyes only admonition came back to him just in time. He'd slipped out of the hospital to open it in case there was anything he should give Andy before he left, but the first thing he read upon opening it was P.S. read this in a safe place. Assuming that the remaining contents of the envelope were at least partly about Stroh, he'd made his way to PAB without even thinking about where he was going. He was about to sit in his chair when the open door to Sharon's office caught his eye. In the rush of getting to the hospital, no one had even closed the doors, much less locked them. He walked into her office and looked around as fresh tears filled his eyes. Her usually-organized desk was cluttered from the chaos earlier. Nothing about this was right. He sat on the mustard-colored couch and sifted through the envelope, careful to avoid anything personal that might be meant for someone else. Seeing her familiar handwriting caused his tears to spill over and drip onto the paper. After reading through her instructions, which seemed rather odd, he gathered the equipment he would need and returned to her office to watch the video he was instructed to watch first. One thing that did make sense was that Andrea had the personal messages for who needed them, should the Stroh events end badly. Sharon had reiterated to make absolutely sure he was alone and in a secure place before playing the video. He figured he was in the best place for that, so he started the video.

Hi, Buzz. There's no easy way to say this, and I don't have much time, so I'm just going to come out and say it. I'm not really dead. The less you know about it, the safer we'll all be, but I'm in a safe place, and I need your help. The only other people who know about this are those who were necessary to help me pull it off, and it's not anyone else on the team or anyone in my family. Even if you think you know who else knows, you cannot say a word about this to anyone. Buzz's breath caught in his throat. What? Confusion outweighed the joy he felt in knowing she was really alive. Why him? I really hate that I have to put everyone through this, but Stroh is very smart, Buzz. As many people as possible need to think that I'm really dead. Dealing with him is going to require enough mental energy for everyone without anyone else knowing I'm okay and having to pretend that I'm dead. There was too much potential for details about my death to be overlooked if Andy or anyone else in my family knew. Stroh's watching, and I doubt he's alone. He'll go to great lengths to make sure I'm really dead. It's very important for Andy and my children to proceed as though they don't know I'm alive. I know this seems rushed, but I found out that an old acquaintance of mine is why Stroh moved to LA after law school and is partly why he's back now. That part is explained in the other video that you can show the rest of the team, but I'll tell you now that we must move quickly. Sharon continued speaking for a few more minutes before she started to wrap it up. After observing you during your investigation of your dad's and uncle's murders and the way you stepped up around here while Julio was out on bereavement leave, I trust your instincts and your judgment. I also think you're the best person for keeping Rusty centered. I trust Andy not to let grief interfere with catching Stroh, but I know Rusty has to be in a very bad place right now, and I don't want him to think that him dying is an acceptable outcome for this. I need for him to stay focused and to want to survive this. I trust you, Buzz, and I know you're up for the task. I have complete confidence and faith in you. She nodded and narrowed her eyes, giving him the look he'd come to recognize as you can do this before the screen faded to black.

"Yes, ma'am." Buzz read through the written instructions again to make sure he hadn't missed anything before tearing them up and dropping them into the trash can beside Sharon's desk.

Later that night, after calling Emily and Ricky and taking care of details at the hospital, Andy and Rusty reluctantly went home. They both felt numb. The flowers filling the condo didn't help anything, either. Andy couldn't face their bedroom, so he sank into the couch. Taking a shower, changing into more comfortable clothes, turning on the tv, or anything else he would've normally done upon arriving home didn't seem right, so he just sat there.

Meanwhile, Rusty walked through Sharon's and Andy's bedroom, grabbed a picture of him and Sharon off of the dresser, and sat down in the closet. It smelled like her in here, and the organization of her familiar belongings made him feel closer to her. Despite not feeling well for the last couple of months, everything was in perfect order. Tears filled his eyes, yet again, as he gazed down at the picture of him and Sharon, but he couldn't help but smile as he remembered her whining about having to give up some closet space before Andy moved in to the point that he'd finally volunteered to reorganize his things and put more things in drawers so Andy could put some of his things in Rusty's closet. Judging from Sharon's reaction, an onlooker would've guessed that he'd, like, achieved world peace or something. Not something as seemingly small as granting her a little extra closet space.

Andy appeared beside Rusty a little while later. He had no idea how long he'd been sitting there, and he welcomed Andy's arm around him. They hadn't spoken hardly at all since the doctor had given them the news. "It smells like her in here," Rusty half-heartedly explained.

Andy looked around. "Yeah, this was her favorite place in the condo, no doubt." God, it was weird to talk about her in the past tense. It still didn't seem real. Everything that day had been so rushed, and he never dreamed it would end like this. Less than a month ago, they'd been making final plans for their wedding, and now he had to plan her funeral. It wasn't fair. He looked down at Rusty. The kid looked so lost. As heartbroken as Andy was, he couldn't imagine what Rusty was feeling. He still depended upon Sharon so much, both financially and emotionally. He knew Sharon had told Rusty soon after her diagnosis that he would be well-provided for if something, heart-related or otherwise, ever happened to her, but he still probably felt some sense of instability on top of being heartbroken from losing the only person who'd ever been a real mother to him. Andy felt like he should say something, but nothing profound was coming to him. "We'll be okay, kid," he finally said. "I'm here for you, and we'll get through this."

Thanks for reading! The following chapters will have some lighter and sweet moments/memories!