A/N: Uhm. I didn't think this ever needed to be said, but apparently I was wrong. Do not review my stories negatively simply because you don't like the pairing; I clearly state who it is I'm shipping, so don't complain. If you don't want to read Sharon with a man, then don't read stuff where I'm shipping her with Andy. Same goes for my Sharon/Brenda stories. That is all. Enjoy the story.
Disclaimer: I do not own anything.
Prompt: 'Changes in their relationship'. Thanks bumblebee for the prompt.
The sound of three knocks on the wood door makes Sharon jump. She turns her head quickly to see Lieutenant Flynn opening the door, not waiting for her to invite him into her office. She straightens up, sitting upright in her seat, pushing her glasses back up her nose. Andy has two cups in his hand and a few files tucked under his arm.
Sharon looks down at her watch; it's quickly approaching 11:30pm and they've only just begun working after catching a case no more than two hours before. Andy places one of the cups down on the desk in front of her and then she looks down at it. She hadn't asked for him to bring her anything from wherever it was he had disappeared off to. Things between them still weren't at the best of places, so she's not even sure why he thought to bring her whatever it is.
"What's this?" Sharon finds herself asking him, looking over the top of her glasses at him.
"Coffee," he grunts as if the answer was clear.
As she inhales, a strong smell meeting her nose, she realizes the answer was clear. It smells delicious and she can't deny she needs it. She was just about to finally get some sleep when she received the call letting her know that a body had been found and had her name written all over it. Sharon licks her lips as she wraps her hand around the paper cup; it's hot and warms her hand instantly.
Sharon looks up at Andy, who is sipping from his own coffee. "Thank you, Lieutenant," she says with a small smile on her lips.
His only response is a nod and then he places the files down on her desk, and turns to leave. For a brief moment she thinks of saying something else, something more than a 'thank you', but she comes up with nothing. Andy seems satisfied with what she says if the small smile he sends her way before fully walking away means anything.
–
A few weeks have passed since the night Andy brought Sharon that coffee. Sharon's standing in front of her mirror, trying to decide what dress she should wear. Andy's waiting for her outside, so she's trying to hurry, but nothing looks right. Her car's been acting up, so for the past few days Andy had been nice enough to drive her – he's the closest to her and it's not really out of the way.
Sharon groans to herself and then goes with the purple sheath dress. She quickly puts on the dress, checks her makeup in the mirror, and then fixes the last few strands of hair that are out of place. She rushes with getting her things together, not wanting to be rude and come out late when Andy didn't have to come pick her up. In her defense, he always shows up early. She gets the two bags she's taking with her, one holding all the things she needed to take home with her to work on, and the other is her purse. She feels like she's missing something, but she has no time to think about what it is. She grabs her phone and keys, making sure her service weapon and badge are in her bag before leaving her apartment.
Sharon gets to Andy's car quickly. The door unlocks right when she reaches for it and she opens her mouth to apologize, but he speaks before she gets the chance.
"You look nice," is what he says. Not 'good morning', or 'you're late', or any of the other things she imagines he would have said.
Sharon turns to him, a surprised look on her face before she finally pulls the car door close. "Uh. Thanks," she says carefully.
Andy doesn't say anything else about it, and Sharon doesn't either. They ride in a silence that is comfortable and soothing compared to the hectic days they've had to deal with. At different times during the drive she can see him turn to look at her, his lips curving into a grin before he tuns back to the road. Sharon finds that she likes this. Smiles and grins, compliments and coffee, all of it is much better than how their relationship was going not too long ago. It's a nice change, one she hopes makes for a better working relationship as well.
–
It's been a week since that morning in the car. Each day since Sharon's paid a little more attention to what she picked out to wear. She tells herself it has nothing to do with Andy, but she knows she's only lying to herself. The appreciative looks she catches him giving her, the boost in her self-esteem, and the general mood of everything is something she welcomes. It feels good.
Sharon and Andy are alone, the last two to leave. Sharon's packed up and ready to go. It's Friday and Rusty's away for the weekend, so she's in no rush. She's been contemplating asking Andy if he'd like to maybe join her for a quick bite to eat before they headed home, but she's not sure if it's a good idea. She knows he'd probably say yes, they'd probably enjoy themselves, and it would most likely add to the nice changes that have been occurring. But she can't help thinking how much of a bad idea it might be. Change is good, but sometimes change can be dangerous. Like this.
She's always had a love-hate relationship with Andy. You didn't interact with Internal Affairs as much as Andy did and not have some type of relationship with the higher-ups. There was even a time, years before her transfer into IA, when the two of them were friends. Now, all these years later, it's a different relationship she finds herself wanting with him. It doesn't surprise her that she's grown used to the way things have been the last few weeks with him. She's only human – it makes sense for her to enjoy the way he makes her happy without even trying to do so.
Sharon jumps when she feels a hand on her shoulder. Andy pulls back and raises an eyebrow. "Must have been a good thought," he says with a slight smirk. Sharon only hums, looking up at him. "You ready to get out of here?"
Sharon nods her head, standing up. "I was just about to come and see if you wanted to walk out together," she admits.
"And what happened?" Andy questions.
Sharon shrugs lightly and stands. "So, Lieutenant," she says after a pause where they only look at each other, both of them thinking similar thoughts, neither of them knowing the other is on the same page as them. "Are you in a rush to get home?"
"Depends," Andy starts as he grabs her jacket and passes it to her. "What did you have in mind?"
Sharon smirks at the sound of his slightly flirty tone, the thickness in his voice warming her body pleasantly. "Dinner," she answers.
Andy makes one of those grunts as they start walking out. He opens her door for her and then she turns her head back, waiting for an answer. "It's a date," is his answer, simple and light while still being complex.
–
Sharon throws her head back laughing, eyes crinkling, hand clutching her stomach. She shakes her head and then wipes at the corner of her eye. She's not sure when the last time she laughed so hard, or so often was, but she likes it. "Okay, okay, okay," she breathes, her jaw aching from the laughing.
"You think I'm kidding," he laughs. Andy's hand rests on Sharon's thigh, causing the woman to look down at it. Silence falls between and Andy finally pulls away. "I should let you get home," he says, moving over some from where he is sitting beside her in the booth where they had eaten dinner.
Sharon feels a rush of disappointment, but she smiles. "It is getting late," she says in an agreeing tone, though she had hardly noticed how much time had passed by.
Andy pays for dinner, though Sharon objects. He turns to her as they're walking out of the door. "Maybe next time I'll let you chip in," he suggests.
"Hm," Sharon hums, smiling to herself. "Next time," she says aloud and her hand bumps into his, brushing it. Her smile deepens at the sensation. "Okay. Next time I get to pick where we go, though."
"Fair enough," he responds, walking her to her car. "All right," he draws out, looking at her as she fishes her keys out. "This is you," he says, for the first time feeling the awkwardness of the night.
Sharon puts her things in her car and then turns to face him, her hand finding her pocket without her really noticing. "Thanks for coming with me. I enjoyed your company tonight. I don't think I've laughed so much in... well, ever."
"It was the plan I had all along," he says lightly with a wink. Sharon hums in her throat.
Sharon takes a tentative step closer, and when Andy automatically reaches out, his hand on her arm, she's more sure of herself. Neither of them say anything as they move closer to each other, their lips meeting slowly. She hums at the first touch of his lips against her own. A warm sensation moves through her body and her hand comes to his arm squeezing a little as she closes her eyes. His tongue swipes her lip, but he doesn't deepen the kiss, which is just fine by her. They're taking it slow, which feels right.
When Sharon pulls back, her cheeks are lightly flushed and her eyes are sparkling. She clears her throat and then takes a step back. "Uhm. Well... Goodnight, Andy," she whispers.
"Goodnight, Sharon," he responds, a pause before her name. He steps back so she can get in her car.
Sharon doesn't look at him again until she's pulling out of the parking space, hands gripping the steering-wheel tightly, heart racing, and a smile threatening to take over her features. He gives her a quick wave of his hand and she smiles in his direction before pulling off and letting out a quick breath. On the way home, she thinks off all the ways things are changing and how much she's enjoying it all.
–
Sharon wakes up with a pleasant ache throughout her body. She hums to herself and rolls over in bed, her leg and arm being thrown over the body next to her. She feels a strong hand pull her closer and she hums, cuddling into the warm body. She presses a soft kiss on the heated skin of the man's chest and sighs as his fingers trail over her naked skin.
"Mornin'," she murmurs sleepily, happily. She receives only a familiar grunt and she smiles at the sound of it. She yawns and then pulls him closer again, their bodies as close as physically possible.
"Somebody's tired," Andy teases.
Sharon nods against him. "Someone wore me out," she admits with a smirk that he can't see.
"I didn't hear any complaints," he whispers cockily.
Sharon rolls her eyes and runs her hand against his skin. "I'm surprised you could hear anything over your loud grunts and groans," she quips back.
The sound of his laughter vibrates in his chest and against her head. "You're one to talk." Sharon hums and it's interrupted by another yawn. Sharon feels his hand in her tangled hair, soothingly stroking where it's sensitive. "Go back to sleep. We have plenty of time to talk later," he tells her.
Sharon wants to comment on it, but instead she simply pulls him closer. As she falls asleep in the warmth of his body, she can't stop thinking of all the changes they've been through the last couple of months. She can't say she regrets even one of them. All of them led to where she is – in his arms. Change is definitely a good thing.
The end.
I just wanted to thank you guys for all the positive feedback and lovely reviews on my first prompt story for these two :) And since you all seemed to really enjoy it, I'll most likely write two more parts to it at some point.