A/N: Thank you so much for the reviews, follows and likes! I'm glad everyone enjoyed I'm at a Payphone so far! I've decided to continue the story, from different points of view, using a series of one-shots. This is the sequel to I'm at a Payphone, although it can be read as a one-shot.
"Call from a Payphone"
Sam's POV
It's been 3 months. 3 long months since I finally said those three little words that up until this point in my life, have only been said to my sister and mother. Three words I never thought I would say to anyone I wasn't related to. Why would I? Sure, there were women. At one point there were plenty of women. None I ever wanted to say those words to, though. At least not until Andy McNally barreled into my life.
I'm not angry with her, I mean who am I to be angry at someone for leaving in the middle of the night? I'll admit I wasn't happy when I realized she wasn't showing up at the Penny; but when Luke walked in with that look on his face, and when Nick never showed up for Gail, I knew. I knew he chose her, and I knew she took it. There was a small part of me that wished I had been picked. I get why, this operation could potentially be tied to a few of my old ops, and the possibility of me being made is much higher than Andy and Nick's. Still though, the thought of being JD, the bad ass drug smuggler who had a soft spot for Candice the insurance agent was highly appealing. Andy may be pissed at Sam, but Candice still loved JD.
Nope, three months since I said "I love you", then messed it up by trying to joke with her, than tried to desperately make her realize I wasn't joking by putting my feelings out in the open for all of Division 15 to hear, I'm sitting on my couch getting ready for my first day of work tomorrow as Detective Swarek. I should have told her when I told her we would get a dog. I thought if she came for a drink, I would tell her then. The idea was simple, really. If I became a detective, I could still be a cop and be with her. I wouldn't have to worry about getting her killed when we were partnered because my emotions got in the way. Sure, I would still wear my heart on my sleeve every time she left the station, but I knew I could make the right decisions and not get her hurt.
It's been an interesting three months. I never would have thought I would spend so much time hanging out with girls, especially girls like Nash and Peck. Sure, Noelle and I were friends, and then there was Andy of course, but generally I did not hang out with women. However, after Andy left, I realized that Nash was basically alone. Jerry was my best friend, and Nash would have become a sister had they gotten married. And the thing about Nash is that she's cool. I get why Jerry loved her. She knows what to say and when to say it. She's awesome at her job, and awesome at being a mom. Being there for her and helping with Leo and the house was the least I could do. After all, if I hadn't broken up with Andy, she may not have left Traci without a fiancé and a best friend. Peck-well Peck is a different story. I've never seen someone hold a grudge the way that woman does. I've also never seen a woman pound back shots of tequila the way she does either. After practically carrying her out of the bar that night, she's become a regular drinking buddy. She's also become fiercely protective of my feelings for Andy, although she refuses to even think about her own feelings for Nick. I really need to ask Nash what happened with them, because I've never seen a guy that badly in the doghouse for doing something because he thought his girlfriend was leaving. Still though, her sarcasm is pretty spot on, and her loyalties are as fierce as they come. I thought she would rip Marlo's face off today…
… Marlo Cruz. Man, I was not prepared for her return to the beat. Marlo and I were friends from the academy days, she was always nice, if not a little too flirty. Clearly that hasn't changed since she went to join the SWAT team almost a decade ago. I've never seen Peck's eyes go as wide as they did when Marlo asked if I wanted to help break in her new couch tonight. If looks could kill, we'd be picking up Marlo pieces off the floor of the bullpen right about now. The thing Peck doesn't know is that with Marlo, it's all a joke. Not many people know that when it comes to Marlo and flirting, it's not the men you have to worry about. Of course, not many people actually know that. I'm going to have to remind myself to have a talk with her when Andy gets back. If Andy is at least talking to me by then, Marlo will have to cut out the flirting, otherwise Andy may never believe all the things I said to her in the bullpen before she left.
'I'm just going to take a shower and call it a night', Sam thought to himself. It's only 8:30, but tomorrow is going to be a new, and probably long day of learning the detective beat with Nash and Callaghan. I'm just about to head up for a shower when my phone rings. I don't recognize the number, but the first 3 digits remind me of others I've seen like it. Generally those digits are used for Toronto payphones. I decide to answer, thinking maybe it's an old CI calling about some random case I've worked. "Hello", I answer. Silence. Followed by heavy breathing. "Hello, is anyone there?" Again, heavy breaths into the receiver are the only indication anyone is even there. "If you don't say something, I'm going to hang up if you can't-" "Sam". That voice. The voice I've been replaying in my head for 3 months. The voice that talks to me in my dreams every night, the voice I could not get out of my head in those first 6 weeks after Jerry died. My rookie's voice. My Andy's voice. "An—McNally?" "Yeah, it's me." In that second so many things came to mind. Was she safe? Was something wrong? Was she coming home? Did she still love me? But before I could even get a sound out she was talking in the voice she has when she's been over thinking and her brain has been working on over drive. "Listen, I just wanted to let you know I would have gone. I probably would have made you sit there for a while, but I would have gone for a drink. Before you say anything, where are the plans we made for two? If "Happy Ever After" did exist, I would still be holding you like this" she's singing softly, the words to a song I never thought I would know the name of, let alone the lyrics.
That night had been one of my favorite nights with Andy, even though nothing out of the ordinary had really happened. We were just driving to my house to drop off our bags and my truck. When it came on the radio and she turned up the volume, I couldn't help but smile. I had heard the song in the shower a few mornings ago; one of the few mornings she had not been at my house for breakfast actually. The minute I heard the first verse, I thought of her. The song screamed Andy. The song screamed us. Snapping out of my thoughts I cleared my throat and was able to get out "McNally, when you come home, I'm going to show you what happy ever after really means. I mean it." "You have 30 seconds" NO! I've finally heard from her and we're getting cut off? The universe is really cruel. "Sam, I'm gonna hold you to that." Click. The line was dead before I could respond. Maybe that's a good thing, because I'm sure I would have said something stupid. Probably as stupid as the joke I tried to crack back in the locker room about the amount of bones in the human body.
Smiling the biggest smile I've had in months, I hang up the phone and head upstairs to take a shower. I've waited two years, then three months, and then I almost lost the one woman I've ever been in love with. Knowing that my future was a little more certain, I knew as I descended the stairs to the bathroom that when it came to Andy McNally, I would gladly wait forever.
I wonder if tomorrow Nash will show my how to run a trace on payphone numbers…
