Hello again!
Thanks for all the awesome reviews along the way! Special thanks to all the regulars & Kelly2727!
Disclaimer: Rookie Blue, Facebook & Twitter do not belong to me in anyway, but this idea does-
Summery; Sam can't seem to talk to Andy, so what if he found an alternitive way to communicate? A 1 shot!
Friend Request
Andy couldn't wait for this day to be over with. She was tired, hungry and way past irritable.
She had spent seven hours going over every last inch of her life for the past six months, reliving every harrowing moment, recounting every experience and she wanted to stop.
She just wanted it all to go away.
When they wrapped up her debriefing, she breathed a sigh of relief. Now it was really over.
She passed Nick in the hallway, a small smile tugging on her lips at seeing him.
They had really grown close and she knew that without him, she wouldn't have made it through Dakota.
She hadn't seen any of the close familiar faces she had been hoping to see other than Frank's.
She wished Traci had been here, and Dov and Chris, Gail and even Noelle and Oliver. She wanted to know how they were, how their lives had been in her absence.
Andy briefly wondered about Sam as she retrieved some of her stuff out of her locker before closing the door and shutting the thoughts out.
She made her way home, and found her condo a little dusty, but better than she expected. Her fridge had been cleaned out and the air didn't smell musty, so she figured Traci had been around keeping an eye on it.
She grabbed a shower after putting her phone on to charge, she couldn't wait to call Traci and her dad. She had missed them so much that she knew long term UC's would never be an option for her again.
Andy grabbed a bottle of water and her partly charged phone, found a comfortable spot on her bed and switched it on.
Various notification popped onto the screen, missed calls, texts, voicemails, emails and even a few for Facebook.
She took her time reading and listening to them, as those closest to her tried to make sense of why she bailed on them.
Lastly were the Facebook notification's, Traci had tagged her in three photo's, Dov had posted on her wall. Gail tagged her in a status that read 'You are soooooooo dead' along with Nick.
Months of what she had missed crammed into half an hour of visiting a social network.
One last notification stared at her from the screen, a tiny red star lit up next to a new friend request.
The name that accompanied it was kind of hard to digest, after all it was something she never expected.
It was dated for a month after she left, plenty of time to cancel the request, unless it was forgotten.
Sam heard his phone ping, his heart just about stopping at the sound.
He had his phone set to alert him to any Facebook activity, so that he would know when she accepted or declined his friend request.
He never let his hopes get up that it would be her reply, because he didn't know when she was coming back. If she was coming back.
Oliver had probably posted on his wall, or Noelle had tagged him in a photo or Nash had sent him a message, the reason for the sound.
Grabbing his phone, he opened the Facebook icon to find his friend request accepted.
That meant she was back, and alive.
He smiled at the first signs of contact that would maybe lead to something more, or maybe just settle the harsh feelings that were dumped in between them when life got in the way, and emotions became too much.
'Hi'. Popped up into his message inbox seconds later, a heavy sigh escaping his lips as she made the attempts to reach out to him.
Since Sam sent the friend request, he had run every possibility through his mind that she might decline. Every waking moment was consumed by what the next step would be whether she declined, or accepted, and now that the moment was here, he was lost about what to do.
He sent a timid 'Glad you're back' in response to her greeting and waited, not expecting much of the situation. Expectations let you become disappointed eventually.
'Did you Miss me?'. Andy sent back, Sam envisioning the look she had on her face when she sent it.
Carefully selected words were typed up and sent back, Sam careful to stop himself from over stepping boundaries by jumping in and sending 'yes' when he knew she probably wouldn't respond too it well. So he sent a 'It's been quiet, I lost my allergy to silence' back instead of a hasty yes.
Andy couldn't help the goofy grin that she knew was on her face. Sam wasn't mad at her for leaving, if he was still talking to her, and had sent her the friend request. It spoke volumes, a telltale sign that he was willing to bridge the gap that had formed between them.
'So... no new rookie to drive you crazy?'.
When Sam read the words he really wanted to tell her that there would only ever be one rookie that drove him crazy, she still did actually. She always would.
'Nope, there was only ever one'. So he told her, simple, without the crap.
'She must be a handful'. Sam let out a chuckle, even in text he could pick up her humor and playfulness.
'You have no idea. But she's awesome, smart too. Beautiful'.
Rereading what he had sent without thinking, Sam pinched the bridge of his nose. That was not supposed to come out now, or like that.
Andy felt his words tug at her heartstrings. She knew they were talking about her, but she didn't expect that kind of a response from him, so honest when he kept everything bottled up inside.
'Lucky girl'. Andy sent back, indecisive on what to actually say. She wasn't about to put herself out there again, not without being sure.
Sam saw her retreating back into her shell, his words obviously having hit a nerve somewhere. Really not what he wanted to do.
The soft guitar strings of the Pixies 'Where is my mind' playing on the Tv made Sam laugh out loud. Where exactly was his mind? Coz it wasn't with him now.
'You loose your allergy to silence too?'. Sam sent back, trying desperately to restart the conversation.
'Nope, still here. Just dunno what to say'. Okay, so it was her turn to be bluntly honest and say something that was really truthful. She had no idea what to say.
Sam let the options she had given him blaze through his mind. She had left the door open enough to slip through, he just had to figure out how too.
'Say anything you want too'. He sent back hoping that it was the right choice.
He added 'Whatever you want too' and sent it so that she would understand what he was aiming for.
'Can I start with Sorry?'. Andy was chewing on her lip as she typed the short sentence. She felt like it was too forwards to say that, too soon.
She didn't even think that this was something to be talked about on messages over Facebook. It wasn't a conversation that should happen this way.
Her screen jumped to life as Sam sent a reply, just a simple 'Nope' and nothing more.
Any positive feelings she had; just flew out the window.
Sam didn't think that this was the way to do this. The first time around things had started backwards, and it had ended badly by the time they ended up at an impasse. He wasn't about to chance that happening again, so he was out the door as soon as her message came through.
Halfway over to her condo, he sent the simple 'nope' because driving and typing were not his strong suite.
Andy waited, she was sure that there would be more, but when nothing else came, she stopped wondering. She just let acceptance sweep over her.
Sam stood outside her door, his phone in his hand. It was really late, and he didn't want to knock and wake up the entire building. He just hoped that she hadn't fallen asleep while he drove over here.
'Still awake?'. He sent hoping to cure his nerves by assessing her response.
'I'm still here'.
It came tense, and void of any real clue as to what was going on inside her head.
'Can I restart that conversation?' He had to erase the bad start they had made somehow, so blatantly asking if he could was probably the best way to go.
'Why?'.
Oh boy, she was on the defensive.
Not that he blamed her, his nope was kinda rude.
'I want to start with sorry, with I was stupid, I made a mistake'.
Andy stared at the screen, the small words with huge meaning behind them staring back at her.
'Sam what are we doing?'
She wasn't about to let herself become overwhelmed with hope and it was his way of letting her know that there was no chance to fix it, fix them and what they had become.
'Do you trust me?'
'Sam!'
'Log out of Facebook'.
'What?'.
'Andy!'.
'Okay, then what?'.
'Just wait'
Sam waited for what felt like eons, but it was probably closer to ten minutes in human time before he knocked.
It wasn't long before she opened the door, an exasperated sigh escaping her when she finally saw him face to face.
Andy stepped aside and let him in, her eyes cast away.
'Hi'. Sam said as he stepped over the threshold and into her domain. A warm feeling enveloping him.
'Hi' she managed weakly as she looked up a little.
She motioned for him to sit down and headed to the kitchen, returning with two bottles of water. She didn't have anything else really.
Sam took the water, awkwardness wrapping them up in a moment so tight that Sam wondered if they'd ever get out of it.
"I...um, promise not to log back in until tomorrow?" He suddenly blurted, Andy's sweeping across the room to meet his as she breathed out a soft "What?".
"I have things I need to say first. I meant it when I said I wanted a chance to fix this, to make you dinner and take out your garbage. I just need to know if there is any chance that you will ever let me do that. I was stupid, and I made a mistake, and I'm sorry.
I don't want to pick up where we left off, I want to start over, do this the right way.
I missed you, but the space gave me a chance to get my head on straight, and I want this, I want you. So when you're ready, just say yes. If you're not I won't blame you, because I don't deserve it, so if you say no, I won't hold it against you.
I have made so many mistakes with you, with us, the worst one being not telling you how I felt sooner. And when I did, I panicked because I didn't know if you still loved me back.
I still love you Andy, nothing will ever change that".
Sam had moved closer to her, the scent of her freshly showered enthralling his senses.
He was standing close enough that he was sure she would her his heartbeat and smell his nervousness, but he had said what he came to say, so now it was time to give her space to think it over.
He leaned forwards and brushed a soft kiss over her forehead before he stepped backwards and left.
In ten seconds flat he was gone.
Andy stared at the closed front door that he had made his speedy exit through, her brain finally kicking in as her logic returned.
But she still didn't get what Facebook had to do with anything.
So she reached out for her phone, she left it on the kitchen counter when she went to answer the door.
Logging back into Facebook had never been such an excruciating experience. And it was taking forever.
When it finally opened her profile page, she saw a new notification and clicked on the tab to open it.
Then she nearly dropped her phone.
Typed in black lettering was a new request from Sam.
A relationship request.
She couldn't even think straight.
A new message popped up into her inbox as she kept staring at the screen vacantly.
She opened the message icon and saw Sam's name, so she opened the message, her heart beating like stampeding horses.
'I know, it's a little soon, but it's what I want. It's what I've always wanted. We have a way to go before we get there, but it's meant to be motivation for bad days. When you've had time to think about it, when we've talked some more, it will still be there waiting for you.
Night McNally, sweet dreams
x'
Sam knew that she wouldn't wait to see why he asked her to wait until tomorrow before logging back in on Facebook.
Andy returned to her profile page, the request taunting her.
What if she didn't want to wait? Didn't want to overthink it?
Her finger hovered over the accept and decline keys, but one thing stopped her.
What if Sam needed the time? What if he wanted to wait?
'Screw it' ran through her mind as her feet made their way to her bedroom.
Twenty minutes later, she quietly climbed the stairs to Sam's house. There were no lights on so she had no idea if he was still awake or not.
She whipped out her phone, and hit the text icon, it was probably the best way to find out.
The reply was almost instant, her phone nearly scaring her as it jumped in her hand.
'You okay?'.
Sam knew the ramifications of long term UC's were sometimes hard when you came home. You looked over your shoulder, and your nightmares consumed you, if you fell asleep.
He knew Andy was exhausted, he's seen it, so he wondered if that was the case. He'd been gone a while, so maybe she fell asleep and had a nightmare.
'No, I'm not okay' she sent without thinking.
Sam was sitting on the couch, when her texts came through, immediate panic welling when she said she wasn't okay. He stood up ready to dash out the door when another text came through.
'I can't do this and not be a cop. I can't do this, and expect you not to be a cop. I can't do this and not wish I hadn't screwed up and walked away, because I did, and I'm sorry. I can't do this and not overthink it. But I can't do this and get my heart broken again Sam'.
He read the words over and over again, trying to make sense of what she was saying. The more he read it, the more it sounded like she was going to say no. Say she couldn't do it.
So he sent her the only thing back that he could think of.
'I can't promise not to break your heart again, but I can promise to try and not break it. I can't not do this with you, and I can't do this with anyone but you. I wouldn't care if you were a waitress, or homeless, so I can deal with you being a cop, even if I'll be worried all the time. I wouldn't care if you were penniless and totally broke, I just want you'.
It was the truth, he wouldn't care if she was an alien species.
Andy didn't know that he was on the detectives rotation, something he did for her. Something he did to make life easier for them when she came back. He took the position because he knew that when it came to working together, they needed space. He was too protective and too domineering in that department to let her grow as a cop. He knew that she would be safe, he trusted the people that they worked with; with his own life, so he could trust them with hers.
Andy read over his typed words, they were so heart wrenching that she felt the emotion jump off the screen at her.
Sam opened his front door with every intention of going back over to her condo and talking to her, begging her if he had too, but he wasn't about to let her shut him out because he was the worlds biggest idiot, and the only one that didn't see it at the time.
What he didn't expect was her to be standing there when he opened the door.
She tensed a little when she jumped, Sam swinging the door open had obviously given her a fright.
"Andy?".
She had her phone in her hand, making him wonder how long she had been standing there. She was in the process of typing, a response to what he had to say.
She let out a heavy breath, as she steadied her nerves, her phone dropping as she let her hands fall to her sides.
She looked indecisive at that moment, like she hadn't made a decision yet.
She looked away, up and down the street, Sam's demeanor wearing thin as he thought that this was it. She was going to say that he never had a chance waiting for her, when she came home.
She waved her phone around finally, her eyes looking at Sam before she dipped her head.
"You can just say it". Sam mumbled leaning against the doorframe. If she was going to tell him no, then she was going to say the word to his face, not in text.
"I don't want to wait, I don't want to overthink every single little thing we've both done wrong. No dwelling on the past, no reruns of our mistakes and no more waiting. I know that I just got back and that we need to talk, but I want this. I want to fix this, and fix us even though we're not broken we're- distorted".
Sam listened to her ramble on and on, her words awakening the hope he felt when she had accepted his friend request. The hope he had been living on for the last six months, breathing it, dreaming it.
Andy's tone was so alive, so wrapped up in enthusiasm that even if she was telling him about photosynthesis he would find it riveting.
"You mean it?".
Andy nodded, she really wanted this, them in a good place.
"I wouldn't have come that night, you know for a drink at the Penny. It was still too raw, maybe if I'd stayed I would have a day or two later, but not then". She just needed him to know that.
"I would have understood, I do understand. I said that I love you and then tried to cover it up because I thought that you didn't feel the same way anymore. I'm not good with this Andy, I don't do relationships well, I don't talk and I hide my feelings, but I don't want to anymore, not when that resulted in me making a bad judgment call, and loosing you".
Sam had pushed off the doorframe and moved to stand in front of Andy, his hand held out for her to take if she chose too.
When she did Sam breathed a sigh of relief. He warm fingers wrapping themselves around his and holding on tightly.
He pulled her inside and closed the door, his smile never leaving his face.
She lulled just inside the doorway, her hand still clutching his, her lip caught between her teeth. She had that look on her face, the one that warned Sam that she was about to do something spontaneously.
She smiled and let out a giggle, reminding Sam that she was still the carefree person that left.
The next morning Sam woke up feeling refreshed. He had a good few hours sleep for the first time in months, because Andy was home and safe.
He showered and had coffee before leaving to pick Andy up for work.
He had dropped her off at home after they spent some time talking, even though he wasn't ready to let her go just yet, he knew it was the right thing to do.
He contemplated kissing her in her doorway, but managed to keep himself in control, and just kissed her forehead instead.
Checking his phone on the way out the door, he saw that everyone on his Facebook friends list had liked his new status.
After all it read 'Sam Swarek is now in a relationship with Andy McNally' what wasn't there to like?
Six months later.
Things with Andy had been better than the first time they tried the together thing.
There was less work related stress, a comfortable pattern evolving now that they spent more time apart at work.
Andy was staying out of trouble and more cautious, something Sam felt way better about.
They lived together, at Sam's house, he finally took the plunge to ask her to move in a little under a month ago. He had posted a picture of her toothbrush in the toothbrush holder in his bathroom on her Facebook wall with the comment 'It looks good, let's make it permanent'.
She was on patrol and didn't see it until after lunch when she checked her phone. The 113 likes were enough to convince her that it was really not a bad idea. And besides, she wanted too.
Sam was still struggling to talk face to face, so his way of involving Facebook was ingenious to saying things his lips struggled to say.
But he still spoke in actions.
Andy rented her condo out to Dov when Chris left to be with Denise. So she always had her own place, Sam refused to let her sell it. It would always stay hers.
Now he was ready for the next step, the more permanent one.
The one that started with M.
But he was worried about her not being, that she would say no.
He asked Nash if she thought Andy was ready, her smile lighting her face up in the first really genuine smile he had seen her wear since Jerry died.
Her answer was "She ran because she was ready Sam, and you just weren't seeing it".
So he bought a ring and left it with Oliver until he had worked up enough nerve to actually ask Andy.
But everytime he asked Oliver for the ring and tried to say the words, they just got stuck in his throat. They came out a jumbled mess and his brain shut down before he could finish. So he abandoned the attempt halfway and decided to wait to try again.
It happened four times, so Oliver just refused to hold on to the ring anymore, telling Sam that he would have to ask her then, or risk her finding it. That would not go down well.
So once again Sam logged in to Facebook and found a photo he had taken of the ring. Andy was in the shower, and he contemplated just posting it on her wall and asking the question, but if she said no, the last thing they needed was a public display.
So he chose the only other option he really had and changed his relationship status to Engaged and waited for her to see it.
Which didn't happen.
He was nervous and edgy, restrained. His mood quiet as Andy sat down next to him on the couch with a slice of pizza.
He knew that she would see it eventually, but he wanted an answer now. He was done waiting.
They watched an entire movie after she finished her pizza and still she had no inclination to check on her phone.
It was driving him insane.
Prolonging her answer was his self inflicted punishment for not asking her in person.
Andy got up and said she was going to bed before pattering away into the bathroom.
Sam got up, switched off the TV and went into the bedroom. He took the ring out of his bedside drawer and opened the box before setting it down on her pillow while she was in the bathroom brushing her teeth.
His mind couldn't help but wonder if Andy had seen his request, but wasn't ready for that kind of commitment.
Sam went from the bedroom back to the lounge and sat down on the couch waiting for some kind of response from Andy. All the lights were off, but she would figure out where he was, it was like she had Swarek satellite tracking.
But he didn't hear a sound.
No shriek, no incessant babbling, just silence.
Going in search of her after waiting for endless forevers, he found her sitting on the edge of her side if the bed, her head dipped forwards, her hands holding the box.
She heard him in the doorway, and looked up as he leaned against it and sussed out which way this was about to go.
Her face was a mad rush of so many emotions that even he couldn't see what she had decided, and he knew her better than herself most days.
She had been crying, something he didn't want to see. He had sworn to never make her cry again, but broke a silent promise to himself.
"Andy, say something". He needed to know, this hanging was killing him slowly.
Andy's mouth moved open and closed, but no sound filled the void between them.
Sam walked until he reached the end of the bed and sat down next to her, his face filled with something Andy didn't think she'd ever see again, he looked like he did the night he broke up with her.
"If you're not ready we can wait, but that's what I want, that's all I've ever wanted with you. A forever". Sam couldn't say more than that, other than he would wait forever if he was waiting with her.
Her hand reached out and took one of his and pulled it over to her lap where she held on to it, the other hand still holding onto the velvet box.
"Andy Swarek". She suddenly blurted out after a minutes silence.
The amount of feeling that rushed through Sam in that split second was so intense he would never be able to give it a name, or describe it. It was everything at once, and nothing at the same time.
"Is that a yes McNally?" Sam turned to face her, his eyes seeking an answer from her.
Andy nodded before looking at him, she was still in shock, rendered speechless, something Sam had never thought he'd see.
Andy was up before Sam the next morning, making coffee and talking to Traci about Sam's proposal. In her eyes, he had done it perfectly, the Sam way.
She had also accepted his Facebook request allowing their relationship status to change. A steady flow of comments and likes had immediately displayed on their notification's.
She kept looking at her ring, her eyes taking in the subtle curves of the broad band as it wrapped around her finger.
She snapped a quick photo and added it to her new album, aptly entitled 'The Rest of Forever' and tagged Sam in it.
She smiled at Sam as he stirred when she put his coffee down next to his side of the bed and sat down next to him.
They had come a long way since he had told her that she wasn't his type and she said she didn't date cops. Something she found ridiculously funny now.
Sam opened his eyes and smiled. He loved waking up to this every morning.
"McNally-Swarek". He said sitting up, he would always call her McNally and if she wanted to do the double barreled name, that was way more than okay.
He tugged her forwards, a warm kiss on her lips as she let out a giggle and stilled from toppling over.
"Seriously?". She said breathlessly when she pulled away.
Sam smiled and nodded, it had the perfect ring to it.
"Thank you Facebook" Sam said pulling her closer again. Another giggle escaping Andy.
"Thank you Facebook". Andy agreed.
"Can we get twitter?". Andy suddenly asked Sam making his eyebrows shoot into his hairline.
"Something you need to say McNally?".
"Nope, not yet, but maybe soon". Andy whispered before sliding off the bed.
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Jelly Bean Jenna©