Sharon struggled to stem her tears as she looked down at the one picture she had of her and Andy. A small part of her mind knew that she had been taking things a little too slowly, but she had also thought that he understood her hesitancy with moving forward in a new relationship. Things were still so raw after her divorce from Jack, and she had wanted to be absolutely certain that Andy was the one for her, the person who would be her companion in her middle and old age. And then, abruptly, the letter had appeared on her desk that morning, giving her no warning.
A soft knock came on her office door, and she cleared her throat, blinking rapidly to call back her tears. "Come in!" she called out softly, wondering who wanted her attention. "Sharon, I just wanted to go over some of this testimony you're going to give tomorrow at the Clemmons trial."
Andrea walked in, carrying a thick folder, and Sharon smiled a little at the sight. "Oh, yes, I'd forgotten about that."
The woman took a seat across from her, giving her a searching look, as if she knew that something was wrong with only that sentence. Setting the folder on Sharon's desk, Andrea crossed her legs and sat back, analyzing her face closely for an insight to her. Sharon squirmed a little under the scrutiny, knowing that her friend could usually read her like an open book. "I know that you've been under a bit of stress, what with these cases you've caught lately. However, that does not sound like you at all. What is going on?"
Sharon took a deep breath as she let her head fall back against the chair, staring up at the ceiling. "Andy retired."
"What?"
"That was a little more emotion than I had, Andrea. Maybe I'm still in shock. He left me note, explaining everything, I just…I don't think I can quite believe it? And I know, I need to focus on the trial tomorrow, because we need to put this man behind bars for a very long time. It's just, I've gotten so used to people walking away from me, and yet somehow I never thought that he would be the one to do so, as well."
The first damnable tear rolled down her cheek, and she struggled to keep from wiping it away, knowing that would clue her friend into just how upset she was quickly becoming. "We can focus on the trial in a moment, Sharon. You need to let these feelings out before they overwhelm you."
"No." She shook her head as she screwed her eyes closed. "I need to focus on work and then, after the trial, I can break down." Sitting up, she reached out for the folder, eager to focus on something other than her personal trials at that moment.
Andrea reached out and covered her hand on the folder, and their eyes met. The sympathy swimming in her large blue eyes was enough to cause her to lose the grip on her tenuous hold over her emotions. "Oh, honey, it is okay to let go. Come here."
Sharon stood and walked over to Andrea's side, sitting on the edge of her desk as she looked at her friend. "I don't know what I'm going to do, Andrea. I was just starting to come out of my shell and trust men again. I was going to open my condo to him, because I didn't want to be away from him at the end of the day. I guess I just wasn't meant for companionship at this point in my life."
Her tears were fast and quiet, and then Sharon took a deep breath as she looked into her friend's face. "Why don't we head out for supper while I prep you for the trial? I mean, you probably haven't had much to eat today, and since you closed that case with a confession, the rest of the night stretches before you unfettered. And I have been craving those thoroughly horrible cheese fries from the diner down the road."
Suddenly, Sharon was grateful to have such a friend by her side, and she gave a grateful nod as she stood up tall. "Do I look all right?"
"Maybe a few little mascara smudges at the corner of your eyes. Do you mind?" She shook her head, and Andrea stood and made her way over to her. With gentle fingers, she dabbed at the outer corners of Sharon's eyes. "There, now no one will ever know about your momentary loss of control."
"Thank you," she whispered fiercely, reaching out and squeezing Andrea's hand gently. "I mean it, Andrea. Thank you."
The younger woman nodded before returning the gesture. "You are most welcome. Now come on, those cheese fries aren't going to wait forever."
Sharon giggled a little, glad to find some humor about her situation. "I suppose not." Bending, she pulled her purse out of her bottom drawer and placed the strap over her shoulder as she took a deep breath. "Now, let's head out."
Andrea nodded and went over to the door, resting her hand on the knob as she waited for Sharon to join her. They went out into the squad room, and Sharon found herself trying not to shrink under the questioning gazes of Amy and Tao. Somehow, they knew that something was wrong, and she glanced away from them to look at Andy's desk. Already, there were bare spots, and she knew that word would get around the office soon enough. Still, she didn't want to deal with that at the moment.
They had almost made it to the freedom when the elevator doors slid open, revealing Provenza. The look that he gave her broke her heart all over again, and she pursed her lips tightly as she fought to keep her face neutral. "He didn't even tell me what he was planning. If I had known, I would have talked him out of this stupid decision. It was an asshole move, Sharon."
"Thanks, Louie. Would you answer any questions that the others have? I don't particularly feel up to that task at the moment, especially since I have to prepare for court tomorrow. I'll be away from my phone tomorrow as well, since Andrea isn't certain when I'll be called to the stand."
"Of course." He reached out and patted her upper arm softly, and Sharon hummed gently as she stepped into the elevator.
"They all mean the best, Sharon."
"I know. I know. But could we just focus on the trial for the rest of this evening? We'll have drinks this weekend, and work all...this out." She circled the air with her finger as Andrea nodded, pressing the lobby button. "Sometimes it lasts."
"And sometimes it hurts. But you'll be stronger for it, of that I have no doubt. And if you want me to shove my foot up his ass, just tell me, too. I can probably get away with it, given how many lawyers I know."
Sharon swallowed a laugh as she shook her head. "No, I don't think you'll need to go quite that far. Though I know who to call on when I need some muscle in my life."
"You got it, Sharon. Anytime and anywhere." They shared a smile and Sharon stepped closer to her friend, knowing that despite everything that was about to happen, Andrea would be the person to help pick up the pieces that were left behind from whoever walked out of her life.