"Sam, it's too late. I can't do this anymore."

"Okay. You don't have to do anything, okay? You don't have to do anything. I'm gonna do it all. I'm gonna do everything, okay? I'm gonna show you every single day, until you say yes. I'm gonna make you dinner. I'm gonna take out your garbage. I'm gonna walk your dog."

"I don't have a dog."

"Then let's get a dog… Labradoodle, mutt from the pound… I don't care. Let's bring him home and call him Boo. Boo Radley. I've always loved that for a dog."

"Okay, look… Can we just start with a drink? Just a drink... Please, Andy. Just give me a chance."

Andy McNally, known for her allergy to silence, stood in the main hallway of the precinct at a complete loss for words.

A few hours ago, she held a live grenade, not knowing if she would live to see another day. A deranged lunatic had kidnapped a little girl and attached the explosive to her. When Andy found the girl, she knew she had to take her place, even if it would have been the last thing she ever did. To add to that insurmountable pressure, Sam decided that he needed to tell her, at that exact moment, that he loved her.

Back at the station, Sam caught up with Andy in the locker room. After his confession, she thought that they'd finally start to figure things out together, but he made a joke of it instead. She walked away from him, while the pieces of her fragile heart that she had just started to put back together were breaking once more. She could feel him behind her, but she wouldn't stop. The last thing she wanted was for him to see her break down again. He ran in front of her, blocking her path, and tried to explain that he truly meant it when he said that he loved her, and he would do anything to have another shot with her.

And that was how Andy ended up in the hallway, completely silent, and more confused than she had ever been.

She walked down the hall in the opposite direction that Sam had gone, not really knowing what just happened, unable to fully process everything. Broken from her thoughts, she heard Luke ask, "Got a minute?" to which she turned and replied, "Yeah."

They stepped into his office, and Luke explained how there had been some changes in the taskforce since their conversation that morning. A position had become available, and if she was interested, the spot was hers.

"I need your answer in five minutes," Luke stated, as he walked away, giving her some time to think things over.

Her head was spinning. The last several hours had been a monstrous whirlwind of events and emotions, and to top it all off, she was given only a few minutes to make a decision that would affect her future, both personally and professionally.

Before shift that day, she begged to be a part of the operation, and now she had her chance. Obviously a lot had happened over the last several hours, with a prison escapee knocking her in the face, a near-death experience while holding a live grenade, and to top it off, Sam's unexpected confessions of love and promises thrown her way.

Was she prepared to just up and leave for an unknown length of time? What about everyone she'd leave behind? With a sigh, she plopped down into a nearby chair, rested her head in her hands, and weighed her options carefully. Luke told her that she could not let anyone know she was going undercover, and even if she was allowed, time was not on her side, as she would be leaving immediately. There was no time to go to dinner with her dad, have girl time with Traci, or even consider having that drink with Sam. She recalled everything she had said about her job being her first priority, she knew she could not, and would not, give up the opportunity before her. She stood, taking a deep breath, ready to tell Luke her final decision.

That morning, Luke was uncertain about Andy being a part of the taskforce. He saw that she had been going through a rough time, and he knew that it was because of Sam. He felt badly for her, and despite his indiscretion with Jo, he would always care for Andy. He knew she was a good cop, but he wasn't certain that she could walk away from everything and everyone at 15 Division, and completely focus as a member of the taskforce. If there was even a slight chance that she would be distracted, it meant compromising the operation and more importantly, her safety. He was not willing to take that chance.

When Luke heard about what Andy did to save the kidnapped girl, and how she willingly, without a second thought, put her life in harm's way to ensure the little girl made it home safely that night, he knew that she would be able to put any personal issues aside to focus on the op. Her recent actions showed him that she would, without a doubt, do what needed to be done to keep herself safe, and complete the mission to the best of her abilities.

Luke walked back into his office, hoping that a decision had been made, "So, you in?"

Andy looked him straight in the eyes, mustering up all the strength she could, "Yes, I'm in."

After agreeing to the op, an officer dropped her off at home, where she hurriedly packed a bag, got her bills and house in order, and waited for Luke to pick her up. While she waited, she couldn't help but walk back and forth in her living room, overthinking things.

'Clothes, toiletries, shoes, keys… Leaving my phone and wallet. Cleaned out the fridge, garbage taken out… Online billing set up. Heater is off. Windows are closed. Doors are locked. I think that's everything.' She mentally checked off the list as she continued her frantic steps, practically making a hole in the carpet from the all pacing she was doing. She couldn't help but wonder if she was walking away from everyone, just like when her mother left her when she was a child. She shook her head, trying to convince herself she was nothing like her mother. Her mother left a husband and daughter to start a new family, and hadn't even given them a second thought. No, what she was doing was entirely different. This was a tremendous opportunity to take some dangerous criminals off the streets. She hoped that everyone would understand that, but it still didn't make it any easier leaving without saying goodbye. She closed her eyes and wished they could hear her silent apologies.

'Oh, Traci, I'm so sorry for leaving you like this, especially after everything that you've gone through lately. I'm sorry for not being there for you. I really need to do this for myself right now, and I hope you'll be able to forgive me.'

'Dad, please don't worry about me. I'll be okay. I've been trained well, and I'll make you proud. Please don't start drinking again because I'm gone. I will come back.'

'Sam. What are we doing? What the hell happened today? I really wish we could've been normal together. I'm sorry that you're probably sitting alone at the bar right now, but even if I wasn't leaving, I don't even know what we would say to each other. Maybe one day we'll get over hurting each other, maybe not. I really don't know…'

A honk of a car horn snapped her out of her thoughts, a signal that her ride had arrived. She grabbed her bags, locked the front door, and took one last look at the place she called home, saying goodbye to her life as Andy McNally.

Once they were on their way, Luke looked over at Andy, "You good?"

"Yeah, I am," she replied, as she made a conscious effort to push the past behind her, and was determined to keep focused on the job at hand.

"Anything else you need taken care of while you're gone?"

"No, but if something comes up, I'll just figure it out." No matter what had happened that day, or over the past several weeks, she made her choice to be a part of the operation, and she was dedicated to do a damn good job at it.

Forgoing any further conversation, and with a renewed sense of strength, she sat in comfortable silence as they drove to pick up the other officer who would be going undercover with her. As they pulled up to an apartment complex, she saw Nick, her new partner, the one she would be relying on to have her back for the entirety of the operation. A small smile spread across her face; at least she had a familiar face to share the journey with.