Notes: I've had a couple people message and ask about potential future oneshots with Ollie so I thought Christmas would be a good holiday to approach and have a cute little fluff piece. Of course I started writing the cute little fluff piece on the night we don't talk about, which made me lose a couple days of writing as I lost my damn mind. But I came back to it and finished it! So, here is my spin at a #sharonlives Christmas fic sequel, looking at what if the heart issue had happened with Ollie in existence. Enjoy!
"Ollie," Sharon calls softly, trying to catch the baby's attention while she kneels on the floor of the living room. Oliver was sitting on a small wooden rocking horse in front of their Christmas tree, wearing the festive Christmas pajamas his mother had picked out for him. Buzz had offered to take some pictures for them and Sharon thought it would be good to get some first year and holiday pictures to share with the family.
The tree had been up and decorated since the day after Thanksgiving. It had managed to withstand Oliver's efforts to undecorate almost every evening. Every time he and Sharon settled down in the living room after dinner he would waddle over to the tree and take an ornament off of the bottom area he could reach, bringing it over to his mother to show her what he had "found".
"Ol, look at mama," Andy calls to his son, helping redirect his attention. Oliver turns his eyes away from the tree and grins at both of his parents, moving to get off of the toy he was sitting on.
"No, no, no, stay on the pony," Sharon tells him, scooting forward to help him sit back on it properly.
"Mamaaa," Oliver reaches for her with a slight whine.
"No, just stay for one second," Sharon encourages, "Look at Buzz!"
Sharon scoots back a bit more so she's not in the shot and Buzz manages to click of a few pictures of the boy on the horse before he abandons ship and climbs down to toddle over to his mother.
"Mama!" Oliver exclaims as he crashes into her chest.
"Ollie!" Sharon replies with a smile as she wraps her arms around him and moves to stand up. Andy catches her as she stumbles slightly, continuing to hold on as she steadies herself, "Ooh, that extra macaroni at dinner is settling in."
"You okay?" Andy asks, a slight furrow to his brow. She and Oliver had caught the flu a few weeks before and it was taking her quite a bit to bounce back.
"Yeah," Sharon assures him with a smile, "Just a long way up from the floor these days."
"Did you want a couple pictures of the three of you?" Buzz offers.
"Sure, that would be nice," Sharon nods and carries Oliver back over to the tree. Buzz gets the three of them positioned properly before snapping a couple pictures of the trio and a few more of just Sharon and Oliver at Andy's request. The boy starts to fuss after he takes the last picture and he turns his camera off as he straightens up all the way, "It sounds like that might be the end of our photoshoot."
"I think we have plenty of good choices," Buzz assures her as he starts to pack up.
"Thank you again for offering to do this," Sharon tells him as she shifts her hold on Oliver to hold him across her chest instead of on her hip, "We really really appreciate it."
"It's no problem," Buzz shakes her off as he clips his bag closed, "Really. I'll still probably take a look at these tonight, I can bring you a flash drive with the pictures tomorrow."
"No rush," Sharon tells him, "Seriously."
"Yes ma'am," Buzz offers her a small smirk, "I'll see you two tomorrow?"
"I'll be in a little late, but yes," Sharon nods before she and Andy walk Buzz to the door. Andy continues walking him out to his car as his wife detours to the kitchen and grabs a bottle from the fridge, "You ready for bed, bubba?"
"No."
"Sure you're not," Sharon laughs softly as she turns to the microwave and pulls the door open, putting the bottle inside and punching in a few numbers before pressing start. She bounces her son and presses a soft kiss to his temple as he chews on his fingers. Her waist leans a little further into the counter as she waits for the microwave to ding, her vision fading slightly behind her glasses. She reaches up and pulls the frames off before rubbing her eyes and sighing softly as she shakes her head. Oliver reaches out and tries to grab the glasses from her hand, "I don't think so, mister. You've broken two pairs in the last year."
"No!"
"That's right no," Sharon smiles and sets the glasses on top of the microwave before pulling the door open and grabbing the bottle. She screws the top back on and shakes it up before testing the temperature, "Alright, let's go rock."
Sharon nestles the bottle between her chest and Oliver's stomach as she wraps her other arm around him before heading down the hall towards the nursery, Pickle trailing behind them. She sinks down in the rocking chair and puts her feet up before shifting her hold on her son and giving the bottle another shake. Pickle hops up onto the footstool and stretches out with his head resting on Sharon's ankle. She smiles and scratches his ear with her toe before giving the bottle to Oliver, letting him hold it as she rocks them back and forth. After a few minutes she sees the living room lights get turned off before one of the hall lights flips on and Andy shows up in the doorway, hands stuffed in his pockets.
"Almost bed time?"
"Almost," Sharon smiles at him, "It was nice of Buzz to take those pictures for us."
"It was," Andy nods as he steps in, "I'm sure they'll look great…"
"Ask," Sharon says after she notices Andy hovering near the footstool, trying not to stare at her but failing.
"You okay?"
"I'm fine," Sharon assures him with a warm smile, "Our son weighs twenty five pounds, I've hardly been bench pressing anything lately."
"Okay," Andy holds his hands up, "Okay."
"Okay," Sharon grins up at him and tips her chin up for a kiss. Andy leans down and presses a kiss to her lips before looking down and laughing as he finds Oliver already asleep, the bottle half hanging out of his mouth. He takes the bottle and sets it on the night stand before carefully lifting him up out of Sharon's arms to put him in his crib. He gently brushes his hand over the boy's head before pressing a kiss to his brow and pulling his small blanket up a little more. Sharon pushes herself up and grabs the bottle before running a hand up her husband's back, "I'm going to go rinse this out and I'll meet you in bed."
"See you there," Andy winks, the two of them heading out of the room together but separating in the hallway. Sharon goes to the kitchen and rinses the bottle out before putting it in the dishwasher. She grabs her glasses off of the top of the microwave and folds them together, turning off the last light before heading to bed. Andy was already changed and stretched out on his side of the bed, scrolling through something on his phone. She changes into a nightgown and goes into the bathroom, taking the time to wash her face and brush her teeth before coming out and climbing in next to him. A soft groan leaves her lips as she sinks into her pillow and reaches out to turn off her light immediately, "No reading?"
"Mmm, no," Sharon shakes her head as she gets situated under the blankets before shuffling closer to her husband and resting her head on his shoulder, "Exhausted."
"Sleep," Andy tells her as he presses a kiss to her forehead.
The next morning Andy and Oliver turn towards the PAB as Sharon turns the opposite direction to head to a doctor's appointment. She'd gone once with Oliver when they had first gotten sick to get some medication, but had made a second appointment at the behest of her husband when it didn't seem like she was bouncing back as quickly from the virus. If she had to be honest it didn't seem like she was bouncing back from anything lately, it seemed like a sluggish crawl. Sharon had narrowly managed to convince him that she was fine to go on her own and he and Oliver should head to work as normal and she would catch up with them later.
Once at PAB, Andy drops Oliver off at the daycare, kissing the curly red hair on the top of his head after setting him down. He signs him in before heading up to the murder room, greeting the rest of his teammates as he makes his way to his desk. He finds a thumb drive sitting on top of his keyboard with a sticky note from Buzz. He gives him a nod of appreciation before tucking the thumb drive into his pants pocket and dropping down into his desk chair.
They didn't have a case so they would spend the day catching up on paperwork unless they were rolled out. Andy prayed they'd have the quiet day in the office he'd been looking forward to, they'd been slammed with cases lately and they were behind. If they could get caught up it'd help them get a couple days off for Christmas which they desperately needed. He shuffles through the files a bit before organizing them in the order he needed to tackle them, opening the file on top before starting to type.
Three hours passes before he decides to get a new cup of coffee, frowning as he looks at his watch and notices the time. He pulls his phone out of his pocket as he makes his way towards the break room. He doesn't see any texts from Sharon, swiping a couple emails off of his notifications before putting his phone away and getting a mug down. He fills the cup only half way before diluting it with hot water out of the brewer. Taking a sip out of the cup he pulls his phone out again as it dings, seeing a text come in from his wife.
Meet me out front in five, was all it said. Andy texts her back a quick affirmative response before texting Provenza to tell him he was going on a walk. He abandons the coffee mug on the counter and makes his way downstairs, heading out the front doors of the building. His eyes squint in the sun and he looks around before noticing his wife walking towards one of the stone benches that was out front. He makes his way over with a smile on his face before it fades as he notices the distraught look on hers.
"Hey," Andy says as he sits down next to her, offering his hand out. He smiles briefly as Sharon curls her fingers around his and squeezes tight.
"Hi," Sharon replies softly.
"What's up?" He asks after a few moments of silence, leaning his shoulder into hers in a brief nudge.
"I…" Sharon starts, her voice cracking right away. She shakes her head and pulls out her phone, looking at the lock screen. It was a picture of the two of them with Oliver at a Dodger game over the summer. The boy had a traditional blue Dodger cap on his head and a wide grin on his face as Andy held the phone out in front of them.
"Shar…what is it?"
"I am not okay…" Sharon manages to get out before her breath hitches. Her grip on his hand tightens and her knuckles whiten as she holds tight onto him, "You know I've had issues…since Ol was born and I got shot…I haven't been…I didn't really bounce back from it. I haven't been able to run like I used to, or at all really. I get tired more easily…"
"Right," Andy nods, "The doc said it was a lot for someone, and it might take a while before you felt back to normal."
"Normal isn't going to happen," Sharon says, "Or I suppose it's going to change."
"What do you mean? Sharon, what did they say?"
"I have another appointment later this week with a different doctor, but my doctor said that I most likely have something called cardiomyopathy. Between the extra strain put on my heart when I was pregnant, getting shot, how often I've been sick this year…It's damaged."
"Damaged?"
"That's the simple explanation," Sharon shrugs, "There were a lot of technical words thrown around. I have the paperwork in my bag."
"So what does this mean?"
"They won't know more until the second appointment, but there were mentions of medication management or possibly some surgical implants," Sharon tells him, "But they also mentioned reducing stress, more regular hours…"
"Basically what they told me?"
"Yeah," Sharon lets out a choked laugh with a nod. She finally looks up at her husband and he could see that her eyes were already red.
"Shar…" Andy shakes his head, reaching up to cup her cheek.
"I don't want to miss my baby boy growing up," Sharon whimpers as she leans into his hand.
"What do you want to do?" Andy asks, "I'll do whatever you want to."
"I'm going to talk to Mason when I go inside. But I think regardless of what I find out later…" Sharon takes a deep breath and sighs as she lifts her hand to brush a tear away from her cheek, "This is it. I need to retire. I need to think about Ol…and you…and Rusty…and myself, my actual self for once. I obviously haven't been doing myself any favors by continuing on like nothing has changed."
"You know I'm here for you," Andy reminds her as he presses a kiss to her forehead before brushing her hair behind her hear, "I obviously want you to be healthy, and around for many years to come. I know Ollie does too."
"I know," Sharon whispers and drops her head down to his shoulder, wrapping her arms around his waist. Andy wraps his arms around her and pulls her close as he presses a kiss to her head, "This has been over thirty years of my life…"
"We'll do something just as great for the next thirty," Andy murmurs in her ear.
"I'll hold you to it," She tells him as she squeezes him tight. The two of them sit on the bench for a little while longer before Andy lets go of his wife and stands, holding his hand out to her.
"Come on."
"Thank you," Sharon says as she takes his hand and accepts his help up. She holds his hand around her waist as they make their way inside, keeping her hold once they get inside and head for the elevators. The two part in the hallway as she makes her way towards Mason's office and he heads back to the murder room. Provenza arches his eyebrow at him and he shakes his head, indicating he'd find out soon enough.
Later in the week, Andy takes the day off to go to Sharon's appointment with her, the two of them dropping Oliver off at the daycare on their way to the new doctor's office. It's a little after lunch before they leave the cardiologist with a confirmed diagnosis for Sharon as well as an appointment scheduled for the following Monday for her to have surgery.
The doctor had suggested the placement of a pacemaker for a first line of treatment after the more thorough testing she'd been put through, along with getting her started on some medication. They left the doctor's office with assurances that they had caught the issue early enough to make sure that Sharon was going to be around for many years to come with proper care. There was always going to be the potential for more invasive surgeries in the future and, if necessary, an actual transplant.
"So?" Andy asks as they sit in the car at the PAB, looking over at his wife.
"So, today's my last day," Sharon shrugs softly with a sigh as she runs her thumb over the face of her badge, "Thirty two years, eight months, and seventeen days of service…"
"You've had a great career, you've made a lot of impact. The LAPD is better because of you," Andy tells her.
"You're laying it on a bit thick," Sharon laughs as she looks over at Andy, "Sure you want to spend the rest of your life with a certified old woman?"
"You decided to spend it with a certified old man," Andy shrugs and grins at her.
"I did…I did," Sharon laughs and leans over to kiss him gently, "I love you."
"I love you too," Andy responds. She kisses him once more before undoing her seatbelt and getting out of the car. She clips her badge onto her belt and grabs her bag, hoisting it over her shoulder before waiting for Andy to make her way into the building. She takes his hand in hers as she presses the button for the elevator, letting out another soft sigh.
"I'm going to talk to Mason and then I'll talk to Provenza," Sharon explains to him as they step into the waiting elevator, "And then we can tell the team. I'll have some paperwork to do today…"
"What ever you need to finish up, then we can take Ol and head home."
"Home sounds good," Sharon breathes, leaning into him for a moment before straightening up as the elevator dings announcing their arrival on their floor.
"I can go with you if you want," Andy offers as he watches her take a bracing breath.
"I think I've got this," Sharon tells him with a thickness to her voice, "But thank you for offering."
"Of course," Andy nods before giving her hand one last squeeze. He takes his own heaving breath as he watches her walk towards Mason's office once again before turning in the direction of the murder room. He pauses in the hallway by the interview rooms and stuffs his hands into his pockets as he slows to a stop. Sharon had told him she was pregnant in this hallway. A lot of their relationship had played out in the halls and offices on the ninth floor. The idea of her leaving, even though it was what she needed to do, was causing a knot in his throat. He couldn't imagine how she was feeling.
Sharon makes her way into the murder room about an hour later, her heels announcing her presence in the quiet room as the team talks over a cold case they had pulled out to look at after they had finished their paperwork earlier in the week.
"Good afternoon, everyone," She greets with a warm smile after letting them wrap up their conversation.
"Afternoon, Commander," Provenza greets along with everyone else.
"Lieutenant, could I borrow you in my office for a few moments?" Sharon asks, nodding her head in the direction of her office before making her way over. Provenza nods and follows after her, casting a curious look at Andy. She drapes her blazer over the back of her chair and sets her purse down on the back table, turning around when she hears the door shut, "How about we take a seat?"
"Sure," Provenza nods, sitting down in one of the chairs in front of Sharon's desk. His eyes widen a fraction as she takes a seat in the chair next to him instead of her desk chair, "I take it it's serious."
"You could say that," Sharon smiles and crosses her legs as she faces him, "Long story short is that I am retiring today, effective immediately."
"Retiring?" Provenza chokes out.
"Yes, as much as I have seemed to have adopted the Provenza die at my desk methodology since I started in Major Crimes…I've been given a lot more to think about, people to consider, the last few years," She points out with a wry grin.
"Does this have to do with the appointments you've been going to this week?"
"It does," Sharon nods, "In the last year or so it seems, between cardiac stress from my pregnancy and other injuries and ailments I've done some damage to my heart and they've diagnosed me with cardiomyopathy. It's not too serious right now, I'm having a pacemaker implanted on Monday and they're starting me on some medication. I'm not being forced to retire but I need to think about Oliver, and others. And I know if I don't leave…"
"Sharon Raydor doesn't stand down?"
"Something like that," Sharon sighs softly and folds her hands in her lap, "I've advised to Chief Mason to let you take over the unit and that Detective Paige would be a good fit for a full time addition to the team. He agreed, provided you both accept."
"Of course, of course," Provenza nods.
"Good," Sharon smiles. She pushes herself up and walks around to the other side of her desk, pulling the middle drawer open. Shuffling through the contents she pulls out a red accordion folder, bound together by a black stretch band. She uses her knee to shut the drawer before walking around and holding the folder out to Provenza, "This is my…how to run Major Crimes book, I suppose. There's some how to's in here on budgets and other administrative items. Write ups on team members, just kind of notes that I took over time…I know it's thick and you are very capable of holding this position but I would advise you take a look through it."
"You would have something like this ready in case of an emergency," Provenza grumbles as he takes the folder. Sharon laughs softly and shrugs as she leans against her desk instead of taking a seat again.
"What can I say?"
"You're sure about this?"
"I am," Sharon nods with a soft smile, "I'm not falling off the face of the earth. I'll still be available if you have questions or anything, but I need to focus on me for right now."
"Good," Provenza nods, "You deserve it."
"Thank you," Sharon responds. Provenza stands from his chair and she straightens up, holding her arms out. He rolls his eyes before stepping closer and wrapping her in a hug, "Keep an eye on him. At least until he joins me."
"I won't let him out of my sight," Provenza responds before stepping back.
"I'd like to talk to the team and then I have to go down to HR to fill out some paperwork before I leave today," Sharon explains, "I'll take my personal stuff home today, but the furniture and everything was bought when we redecorated…you'll get a small stipend to redecorate if you want."
"I think I'll make do," Provenza laughs. Sharon grins and responds with her own chuckle before looking out into the murder room. She watches in silence for a few minutes as the seven of them as they continue to bounce ideas off of each other, pinning things up to the murder board, "You've made a great team. They'll do fine once you're gone."
"I didn't even pick most of them," Sharon tells him after taking a deep breath, "The majority of you were under Chief Johnson."
"You've still made them a great team," Provenza assures her.
"I trust you to keep them in shape," Sharon threatens gently, "The last six years have been the hardest, but most rewarding of my time at the LAPD. I won't have it go to waste."
Provenza laughs again and the two of them make their way out to the murder room. He drops the folder she had bequeathed him on top of his desk before taking a seat in his chair. Sharon takes a moment to admire the board in its done up state before turning to address her team, surprised to already find them looking at her with anticipation.
"I suppose you're all smart enough to figure out that there's something going on," Sharon tells them with a small smile as she brushes her hair from her face and tucks it behind her ear, "I've discussed with Chief Mason and the lieutenant…and I know that it's short notice, but today will be my last day with the LAPD. Some health issues have arisen and the best solution is going to be for me to retire. Lieutenant Provenza is going to take over command of the unit and Detective Paige, we would be honored to have you officially join Major Crimes full time."
"I would be honored, Commander, thank you," Cami responds in a soft tone, contradictory to her bubbly outspoken personality, "And I'll be the first to say that you will be missed."
"Thank you, Detective. I will definitely miss seeing all of you every day and working along side you," Sharon tells them, "The last six years have been some of the best I've spent with the department, and that is thanks to you, all of you. But don't be strangers. You are always welcome, and Christmas is only a couple weeks away. I expect to see you at our party. We have a bit to make up from from last year."
"We wouldn't miss it," Tao pipes up, "Don't tell Cathy but you make the best sugar cookies."
"It's about the only thing she can cook," Andy fake whispers to the other lieutenant.
"Andrew Flynn that is not true," Sharon exclaims before she lets out a choked laugh followed by a snort, covering her face in embarrassment. The tension in the room begins to ease as each of them gets up from their desk chairs to hug Sharon and offer their well wishes. She sighs as she makes her way through the line, Buzz hugging her last, "I have to go downstairs to fill out some paperwork, but I'll be back up before the end of the day, so no one leave too early okay?"
"Yes, ma'am," Andy winks at her, letting her know he wouldn't let any of them escape without a last goodbye. Sharon steps into her office to gather some papers from her desk and purse before striding out of the room towards the elevators.
"Alright, We're going to need a cake, something to drink, and some balloons," Provenza orders after a few minutes, "I think the five of you can handle pulling that together. Flynn, why don't you call Hobbs and Baker? Have them come over later this afternoon? Tell Hobbs to bring Rusty and go pick up that gremlin of yours from the day care."
"He's not a gremlin," Andy grumbles, "And what exactly are you doing?"
"Supervising," Provenza says as he folds his crossword puzzle back and leans back in his chair. Andy rolls his eyes and slips off the edge of his desk before pulling his phone out to call Andrea and Gavin as he goes in search of a couple boxes for his wife to pack her things into later.
Within the next few hours they all manage to pull together an impromptu retirement party for their Commander. They add more balloons and streamers to the festive Christmas decorations that had been put up in the murder room earlier in the month. One of the empty desks is appropriated for a sheet cake and drinks the group had managed to secure from the bakery and grocery store and the murder board had been flipped over to the clean side and decorated with dry erase doodles as well as a goodbye message for Sharon.
They quickly pass around a card that Amy had thoughtfully picked out and prop it up in front of the bouquet of flowers that Tao and Andy had run across the street to get before Andy goes downstairs to pick Oliver up from the daycare. He signs his son out and lifts him onto his hip, slinging his tiny backpack over his other shoulder before heading to the elevators to go back upstairs.
"Mama?" Oliver asks as he clutches his tiny hand around the lapel of his father's jacket.
"We're going to go see Mama," Andy tells him as he presses a kiss to his head, "Then we're gonna go home and snuggle."
The boy yawns before he rests his head on Andy's shoulder. He looks up as the elevator dings, signaling that they were stopping on the third floor. He perks up as the doors open, wiggling in his father's hold.
"Mama!"
"Hi my darling," Sharon smiles as she steps onto the elevator. She stuffs the folder she'd been holding in her hand under her arm before reaching out for the boy as he flings himself forward in his father's grasp, reaching out for her, "Oh hello!"
"Mama!" Oliver snuggles close as he tangles his fingers in the tail ends of her hair. Sharon smiles and presses a kiss to his head as she rubs his back.
"Did they call you?" She asks Andy.
"No, I just thought I'd go down and get him a little early," He shrugs with a smile, "Figured we weren't doing much more this afternoon."
"Okay," Sharon nods and leans up to press a quick kiss to his lips. Once they reach their floor Andy puts his hand on the small of her back and leads her out towards the murder room.
"I grabbed some boxes from recycling for your stuff, but I thought I'd let you take care of the packing. You know what you want to take home."
"Thank you," Sharon smiles, "I don't think it should be too much honestly, but it might take me a little bit."
"That's fine, but we do have somewhere to be," Andy assures her before they round the corner to the murder room.
"Somewhere to be? Andy, what…" Sharon asks as she looks up at her husband before jumping as they walk into the murder room and everyone yells 'Surprise!'.
"What on earth?" Sharon shakes her head with a smile before Oliver squeals and claps.
"We couldn't very well send you out without a proper retirement party," Provenza says, "Well…proper's maybe a bit loose."
"No, it's perfect," Sharon laughs, "Thank you everyone. This looks lovely."
The squad spends a couple hours indulging in cake and stories before people start to filter out, soon leaving the Flynn family alone in the murder room. Oliver was passed out asleep on Sharon's couch, snuggled up under her blazer and Andy was wandering around picking up any trash that may have been missed.
"So you're retiring?" Rusty asks as he leans in the doorway to his mother's office as she packs away her personal belongings.
"Yeah," Sharon nods and sighs as she places a couple pictures in the box on her desk, "The doctor confirmed my diagnosis earlier this morning, and it's going to be what's best."
"The cardiomyo-whatever."
"Cardiomyopathy, yes," Sharon smiles, "They caught it early. I'll start taking medication and I'm having surgery on Monday."
"Surgery?!" Rusty exclaims, "You can't say it's nothing serious and then say you're having surgery!"
"Shhh," Sharon shushes him as she steps around her desk to put her hands on his shoulders, "Don't wake your brother. I didn't say it's nothing serious, I said they caught it early. I'm having a pacemaker put in on Monday. It's a quick half hour procedure, I'll stay the night as just a precaution but then I'll be home on Tuesday. It'll help the doctors monitor me and keep me on track to staying as healthy as I can. I am sick, Rusty. But they're going to do what they can to keep me as well as I can be."
"A pacemaker? Aren't those for old people?"
"So is retirement," Sharon replies wryly before giving him a quick hug, "We can talk about it more this weekend, but there's nothing you need to worry about right now."
"Okay," Rusty sighs as he squeezes her before letting go. He sits down on the sofa next to Oliver and reaches up to loosen his tie. Sharon finishes packing her things up into the two boxes that Andy had found for her before putting the lids on and calling out for her husband.
"Hey," Andy smiles as he appears in the doorway, "Ready to go?"
"Yeah," Sharon nods as she slips her arms under Oliver and lifts him into her arms, "Can you guys grab the boxes?"
"Yep," Rusty nods and hops up, grabbing one of the boxes before Andy grabs the other one. Sharon hits the light switch with her elbow and follows the boys towards the exit. She takes one last glance at the murder room before turning the main lights off and continuing down the hallway.
Monday morning Sharon drops her wedding rings into her husband's hand as the nurse preps her for the procedure. He puts them in the pocket of his shirt and pats it twice before squeezing her hand. They both look up as the doctor knocks before coming into her room.
"Sharon, how are you feeling this morning?"
"Good," Sharon smiles and flexes her hand slightly after the nurse finishes setting up her IV, "You?"
"Just fine," The doctor smiles, "I wanted to go over the procedure with you and your husband once more before we take you back to surgery okay?"
"Sure," Sharon nods along with Andy. He takes the time to explain what was going to happen over the next hour in detail before asking if they have any questions.
"So what you're putting in her is not just a pacemaker?"
"No, we're going to put in a device the works as a pacemaker and as a defibrillator in emergencies, called an ICD. The cloud sync that the device is going to have should help us spot any cardiac events before they happen and we'll get you to a hospital for treatment, but just in case that ICD will be in the background and could help us prolong our window to intervene," The doctor explains. He takes in the worried looks on Sharon and Andy's faces and shakes his head, "Don't focus on this right now. This is the back up plan. Your medication should do the heavy lifting, these guys are just playing support."
"Okay, what about after the procedure?" Andy asks
"I'll go over this again before you're discharged, Sharon, but for the next week no heavy lifting, no stairs, no running, no jumping, try to avoid even walking fast, no stairs, no sex, no stairs," He lists off.
"So was that a yes or no on the stairs?" Sharon teases, rolling her eyes as Andy glares at her, "I'm kidding. I'm kidding. No stairs at all, not even a single step."
"What constitutes as heavy lifting, doc?" Andy asks pointedly, wanting a straight answer so Sharon couldn't argue with him later.
"Gallon of milk," The doctor responds, "I know you have your son to keep in mind, but for the next week or so, Sharon herself should not lift him up or carry him if she's in anything but a sitting or laying position. We really need this time to make sure that the monitoring system is working and it gives your tissue a chance to adhere to the wires. Okay?"
"Of course," Andy nods.
"Alright, Sharon, we're going to take you back now. Andy, we should be back in about an hour or so, you can just wait here," The doctor explains. Andy nods and leans down, pressing a quick kiss to Sharon's lips before the nurses and the doctor wheel her out of her room. He sighs and drops down into the open chair and turns the tv on low, his leg bouncing nervously as he watches some of the later morning news programs. It's only a little over an hour later that Sharon is wheeled back into the room and hooked back up to all of the IVs and monitors she needed to be.
"How did it go?" Andy asks, standing up and walking over to the bed. He could tell Sharon was sleeping, but concern bubbled up since she wasn't supposed to have to go under for the placement.
"Everything went fine," The doctor assures him with a smile, "We did a local anesthetic for the procedure and gave her a little bit of a sedative just to keep things calm, so she shouldn't be out too long. The device is already syncing with the app, so we'll just keep an eye on things the next twenty four hours and wait for things to even out."
"What if they don't?"
"If we don't see some normalization before I leave this evening I'll adjust the programming on the device."
"Okay," Andy sighs.
"Your wife is doing just fine, Mr. Flynn, relax. It'll be good for your heart too," The doctor reminds before leaving the room. Andy takes his seat back next to Sharon's bed and wraps his fingers around hers, giving her hand a gentle squeeze.
Sharon sleeps for another hour before she wakes up with a large yawn. She sighs as she turns her head to look at Andy, blinking at him sleepily.
"Hi," She mumbles, squeezing his hand.
"Hey beautiful," He smiles and turns to face her, "How are you feeling?"
"Okay," She shrugs before wincing and reaching up to touch the bandage that was running across her collarbone. She runs her fingers over the thickly padded gauze before dropping her hand back down, "If I get any more scars I'm going to have to change my name to Frankenstein."
"I like your scars," Andy tells her with a grin as he presses his lips to her knuckles.
"Weirdo," Sharon teases. Andy laughs and lets go of her hand sitting up a little more.
"Doc said everything went fine, they're just going to keep an eye on you and make sure that everything evens out."
"Good," She sighs and reaches over to the side of the bed, pressing the button to raise the head a bit more so she was sitting up.
"Can I get you anything?"
"A glass of water would be good. And my iPad?"
"Sure," Andy nods, getting up from his chair. He pours her a glass of water and sets it on her bed tray before going to her bag that was sitting on the other chair. He digs through the contents for a moment before pulling out her iPad and glasses, bringing both of them over to her.
"Thank you," Sharon says as she slips her glasses on and blinks a few times before pressing the home button on the tablet in her lap. A smile spreads across her lips as she sees Oliver's face grinning back at her from the lock screen, "Buzz did a really great job with those pictures."
"He did," Andy agrees. Sharon presses her thumb against the home button to unlock it before swiping through a couple screens and bringing up an e-book. He watches her read for a couple moments before turning his attention back to the tv. The two of them sit in a compatible silence until Sharon's lunch tray is brought in and Andy's stomach growls at the smell of chicken noodle soup.
"You should go get something to eat," Sharon tells him as she locks her iPad before setting it next to her in bed and reaching out to pull the tray closer. Andy jumps up from his seat to help her with it before scratching his head with an apprehensive look on his face. He didn't want to leave her, but he was starving.
"You sure?"
"Andy, I'm fine," Sharon tells him as she looks up at him with a reassuring smile, "Besides, how much trouble am I going to get into in a hospital?"
"That's one of those questions I shouldn't answer isn't it?"
"If you value your health," Sharon laughs and reaches out to grab his hand, pulling him closer to her, "Go get something to eat."
"Okay," Andy leans down and gives her a kiss before taking his hand back, "I'll have my phone if you need anything. And I'm just going to go get something downstairs."
"Yes sir," Sharon winks at him before starting in on her own lunch after he leaves. Once she finishes her lunch she nudges the tray away and picks her iPad up resuming her e-book. An hour passes before she starts to think that her husband was taking quite the lunch break. She was surprised when he wasn't back in 10 minutes but figured the cafeteria was probably pretty busy during the lunch hour.
Sharon flips over to the messaging app and taps on Andy's name before pausing as her fingers slip down to start typing out a message. If he needed the time alone who was she to bother him. She knew that this was going to be hard on both of them at first, and he'd spent so much time over the last couple years worrying about her. Biting her lip she swaps back to the book and resumes reading, only managing to get in a couple pages before she hears the door to her room open.
"Mama!" She hears Oliver squeal before she sees him, her eyes widening in surprise when she sees Emily bring him in with Andy following behind them.
"Emily! What are you doing here?" Sharon asks her daughter as she sets her brother down before walking over to the bed and leaning down to kiss her mother's cheek.
"I thought I was over due for a visit," She says as she straightens up before taking a seat on the edge of the bed.
"In the middle of your holiday show?" Sharon arches her eyebrow. Emily shrugs and wilts slightly under her mother's gaze.
"Understudies need work too," Emily retorts before leaning over to grab Oliver as he pulls on her leg, trying to pull himself up onto the bed, "Come here munchkin. You have to be careful okay? Just give Mama kisses."
"Mama," Oliver coos as he leans over in his sister's hold, puckering up his lips as best he could. Sharon leans forward and peppers kisses over his face before letting him plant one on her cheek.
"Oh thank you," She smiles, laughing as the boy squeals before hiding his face in Emily's neck. Emily laughs and adjusts her hold on him, patting his back, "You didn't need to come, really, I'm fine."
"I know, I know, you're fine, you're gonna get better," Emily rolls her eyes and lets out a heaving sigh before looking at her mother, "Just…accept the visit and the extra help. I'm sure if I hadn't come you might have either divorced or killed Andy by the end of the week."
"Hey!" Andy exclaims, "I'm not that bad."
"No, you're not, she is," Emily winks at her mother before Oliver gets bored of sitting with his sister and reaches out to his mother.
"Mama," Oliver says as he opens and closes his hands. Sharon sighs and shifts a bit in the bed before patting the bed to the right of her.
"Lay him down here," She tells Emily.
"You sure?"
"Yes, he'll be fine," Sharon assures her. Emily rolls her eyes and lays the boy down next to her mother. Oliver snuggles up to Sharon and rests his hand on her stomach as he lets out a big yawn. Sharon rubs her hand up and down his back as she holds him close, covering his hand with her free one. She smiles as his eyes droop for a bit before he falls asleep with his face tucked into her side. She adjusts the blankets on the bed, covering him with the top knit one before looking up at Emily, "So how long are you staying?"
"Just for the week," Emily says with a smile, "Patrick and I are still going to come for Christmas though, so we'll be back on the 23rd like we planned."
"You don't have to do all this flying back and forth," Sharon sighs.
"Mom, you've always told me to visit more, I don't see…"
"Visit more, not come running across the country because I'm having heart surgery," She reprimands.
"So you admit it was heart surgery, and not just a quick thirty minute procedure then?"
"I asked her to come," Andy interrupts before Sharon can retort again, "I thought the extra company might be nice. Rusty's pretty busy at the DA's office and I'm on call if the team catches a case, something you made me agree to."
"I don't need to be handled," Sharon tells him with a narrow eyed look.
"I know," Andy nods. Her eyes narrow a little further before she shakes her head and looks back at her daughter, reaching out to squeeze her hand.
"I am glad to see you."
"I'm glad to see you too," Emily smiles and squeezes her mother's hand back.
The next morning Andy brings Sharon home after one last exam by the doctor. He holds the door open for her as they make their way in from the garage. She thanks him and sets her purse down on the kitchen table, greeting Pickle before heading into the living room where she could hear the TV playing. Emily was sitting on one end of the couch with Oliver nestled into her side, both of them still in their pajamas as they shared a sleeve of saltines and watched a movie on tv.
"Don't you two look cozy?" Sharon asks as she reaches over the back of the couch and runs her fingers through Oliver's hair before leaning down to press a kiss to Emily's forehead.
"Hey Mom," Emily smiles and presses a kiss to Sharon's cheek.
"Mama!" Oliver grins as he looks up at her.
"Hi baby, are you having fun with your Mimi?" They had worked on trying to get him to say Emily yesterday, but all he'd been able to eek out was Mimi.
"Mimi!" He exclaims, patting Emily emphatically on the thigh. He offers up a cracker from his hand towards his mother, "Mama."
"No thank you baby, you eat it," Sharon tells him as she takes a seat on the other side, sighing as she leans back into the couch, "Oh that feels better than that hospital bed."
"What did the doctor say this morning?" Emily asks.
"Everything they did yesterday is working fine," Sharon tells her, "I have an appointment next week for a quick check up, but otherwise I should be good to go for a little bit. I'm already feeling better."
"Good," Emily smiles before leaning down and dramatically eating the cracker out of Oliver's hand, laughing as he squeals and jerks his hand back after her mouth closes around it. Sharon smiles as she watches the two of them, glad that Oliver loved his older sister so much and that Emily enjoyed playing with him when she came to visit.
Andy ended up getting called out on a case later that evening after they'd had dinner, so Emily ended up 'keeping an eye' on her mother for the rest of the week. Oliver kept going to daycare during the day until Sharon and Andy could address the kind of schedule they'd want to set for him now that she was retired. That left the two of them time to enjoy a much more leisurely time than they had on the girl's previous visits, always having to work around the Major Crimes erratic schedule. The week was filled with nail appointments, light shopping, and leisurely walks around the block with the dog.
It wasn't until Emily's last day in LA that Sharon finally opened up about the fears that she had. The two had decided to take a walk after their lunch down by the beach. Emily had offered to carry her mother's shoes for her as they slowly made their way down the shoreline with the sand between their toes.
"Sometimes I wonder what kind of life we signed Ollie up for," Sharon admits after a moment of silence in their conversation.
"What do you mean?" Emily asks with an arched eyebrow as she looks over at her mother.
"Andy and I are older. Until last week we were both cops, walking out into danger every day. This…heart thing crops up," Sharon lists, her voice getting thick, "Stroh is still out there…I mean how is he going to grow up?"
"Loved," Emily replies simply as she walks along side her mother, "He is going to grow up being loved. Yes, Ollie is going to have a different childhood than Ricky and I had. He might hate it at times, he might bemoan the fact that you and Andy are using walkers when the other parents are running laps around you. But he is going to grow up knowing without a doubt that his parents love him."
"I'm not that old," Sharon responds with a side eye.
"Sure you're not," Emily grins before continuing, "You have made choices with all of our best interests at heart. You moved in to IA for Ricky and I, so we could have a semi stable parent. You took Rusty in because you knew he wouldn't make it with anyone else and pushed him because you knew he had such great potential. You chose the hospital you had Ollie at because it was going to be the best chance for both of you if something went wrong. You…you chose to leave the LAPD because you knew that if you stayed you weren't going to be able to be the mother you wanted to be to him. You chose Andy because you knew you really did deserve to be happy again."
"I don't want to leave him," Sharon sobs.
"Mom," Emily pulls her hand, getting her to stop. She wraps her arms around her mother and pulls her close, holding her tight, "Mom, you are going to be fine. You're going to be around for a long, long time. But no matter what happens, six months from now or ten years from now…you are never going to leave Ollie. He will never forget you. We won't let him."
Emily holds Sharon as she cries, pressing her lips to her mother's forehead much the same as she used to every time her daughter cried in her lap. Eventually Sharon pulls back and takes a deep shuddering breath as she shakes her head.
"I'm sorry I shouldn't have…"
"You don't have to keep it inside all the time," Emily assures her before offering the sleeve of the cardigan she was wearing, "I'm not Andy so I don't have a handkerchief at the ready, but feel free to wipe."
Sharon laughs and shakes her head again, swiping at the tears on her face. She gathers the bottom of the tunic shirt she was wearing and brings it up to clean up the rest of her face.
"That's okay."
"Why don't we turn back?" Emily suggests.
"Yeah, that sounds good," Sharon nods before turning and starting to walk back towards the restaurant. The two of them meet Andy at the station to pick up both him and Oliver before they take Emily to the airport. The girl leaves her mother with a firm hug and kiss to her cheek before peppering her brother's face with kisses and promising to see them in a couple weeks.
Emily returns closer to Christmas with Patrick in two, the two depositing a few armfuls of gifts under the tree on their arrival before helping Sharon and Andy get ready for the Christmas party. The party goes off without a hitch even though Sharon keeps herself glued to Oliver the entire time, not wanting to take any chances that something else might happen again this year. She swore the silvered bullet wound in her side ached slightly that day as she went back and forth between holding Oliver on her hip or holding his hand as he toddled around himself.
On Christmas Eve she and her daughter baked cookies as the boys all enjoyed a football game on tv. They went to Mass that evening as was their usual tradition, Oliver spending the time fast asleep with his face firmly pressed against his mother's chest. After Mass they return home and all of the kids open their Christmas pajamas before changing and turning in for the night. In the morning Sharon burrows a little closer to Andy as she hears Oliver calling for her through the baby monitor.
"You get him and I'll start the kettle?" Andy offers. Sharon nods without speaking, sitting for a few more moments before sitting up. She tosses her hair over her shoulder and smiles at her husband as he offers her a sleepy grin.
"Merry Christmas."
"Merry Christmas, babe," Andy replies before leaning up and pressing a kiss to her lips. He swings his legs out of the bed and stands, reaching out to grab his pajama shirt. He pulls it on on his way out the door, heading for the kitchen. Sharon climbs out of bed and puts her robe on before going to gather Oliver. The baby grins at her from his crib, bouncing up and down.
"Did you sleep well so Santa would bring you lots of presents?" Sharon asks as she lifts him out and immediately deposits him on the changing table. She smiles as Oliver babbles a response while she changes his diaper before standing him up and lifting him into her arms. She carries him to the kitchen and deposits him on the floor as Andy holds a cup out to her.
"Herbal."
"Oh, how times have changed," Sharon grins and takes a sip of the warm brew. Andy starts the coffee pot for the kids before directing Oliver towards the living room.
"Let's go see what Santa brought!" Andy tells the boy enthusiastically as they make their way around the couch.
"OH!" Oliver exclaims when he sees the amount of presents that had appeared. He waddles over and crouches down, running his tiny fingers over the shining wrapping paper. Andy keeps an eye on him and makes sure he doesn't tear into anything as he waits for Sharon and the kids to come in. Sharon takes a seat on the floor with her back up against the couch, sitting Oliver in between her legs. She presses a kiss to his head before Ricky starts to hand presents out. She helps Oliver open his presents as they're passed over, simply setting her own to the side to open once they were done. Her brow furrows in confusion as Ricky leans behind the tree a bit before grabbing a box and holding it out in front of himself to read the tag.
"The last one is for Ollie," Ricky says, holding the box out to his mother.
"Where did this come from?" She asks as she looks at the wrapping. It didn't match any of the paper she had purchased that year, and the label said "To: Oliver From: Mom", but the handwriting wasn't familiar and she had signed all of her gifts to him from Mama and Dada. Sharon looks up at Andy and arches her eyebrow, "Did you get this?"
"It says you did."
"I didn't get this for him. I don't even know what it is."
"Well open it and find out," Emily says as she leans against Patrick, "Maybe you were drunk Amazon-ing again."
"That happened one time!" Sharon hisses before sighing and helping Oliver open the package. The wrapping tears away to reveal a box from Build-a-Bear and she could see that there was something inside. She pushes down on the top to unlatch the handle and opens the box before letting Ollie reach in to pull out the contents. He squeals as he pulls out a large light brown teddy bear, rubbing his face against the soft fur, "Let's see what this is."
"Mama," Oliver whines as she takes it out of his hands and holds it out in front of them. She notices a heart patch on it's chest before her eyes notice that its right foot pad was a different color than the others. Grabbing the bear by the foot she brings it closer to her face to investigate, her eyes widening when she realizes it was a photo printed piece of fabric that had been sewn on. The picture was one of the ones that Buzz had taken of the two of them in front of the Christmas tree with "Love, Mom" embroidered on it.
Sharon throws a glance at her husband before pressing down on the heart patch and pulling it closer to her ear to listen to it. Oliver grabs onto it and pulls it down to listen as well, pressing his tiny ear against the bear's chest. A grin breaks out across his face as he pulls the bear away from his mother.
"Mama!" He squeals as he hugs it close. Sharon looks at the kids before looking back over at Andy finally with wide, wet eyes.
"I asked the doctor for a recording of your heartbeat from one of the echoes they did and put it on one of those record your voice things they have at the store. Buzz printed out the foot patch for me and Nic helped me use her sewing machine to do the embroidery…" Andy explains as he scratches the back of his neck, "I thought he would like it…and I thought you would like it…I mean can throw it away if you don't…He has other bears we can distrac…mph."
Andy's rambling is interrupted by Sharon pressing her lips firmly to his, her hands cupping his face. She pulls back after a moment and looks him in the eyes.
"Andy, it's perfect," Sharon tells him before sitting back down with Oliver and pressing the button again, listening to it with him. They both smile at each other as they sit face to face and she reaches out, brushing his hair back from his face. She presses a soft kiss to his forehead and squeezes him close, "Oh my sweet little boy."
[End]