Hello! I've been gone for a while, but have been binging on MC and love it! I'm expecting this will be about 6 or 7 parts in total.

Part I

Monday Morning

The alarm went off, signifying the start of another day. Sharon woke to the buzzing noise and, with a tiring yawn, reached over and turned off the alarm. She looked over to the man lying next to her, still fast asleep. Sharon rolled her eyes, amused by how easily Andy slept through such loud noises. After another yawn and morning stretch, Sharon let go of the thoughts and climbed out of bed. However, Sharon was washed over with a strange feeling and slowly sat down again. It was an aching through her entire body, but was gone the moment she sat down. Perhaps she stood up too quickly; a head rush. This time, a bit more slowly, Sharon stood up again and walked into their bathroom.

Like every morning, Sharon turned on the shower and, as the water warmed up, pulled off her pajamas, hanging them on a hook behind the door. Sharon reached her hand under the running water, ensuring the temperature was acceptable, then stepped into the shower. Normally, starting the morning like this was one of Sharon's favorite things. The warm water cleared her mind and removed any feelings of tiredness that still lingered. She liked having a morning routine, a precise schedule to prepare herself for the chaos of the day. Normally, a shower was the perfect start to her morning ritual. However, this morning the water was not doing the trick. As she ran shampoo through her hair, she felt the aching again. Her arms felt the urge to go limp, but Sharon fought it off long enough to rinse out the shampoo. She leaned against the tiles of the shower, finally allowing her arms to fall to her side.

At some point, while still in this position, the second alarm went off from the bedroom. Andy's alarm was almost twice as loud as hers. When he first moved it, Rusty swore he could hear it from the kitchen. Now she grew found of it; a signal that Andy was indeed awake. Knowing Andy would also need to shower at some point, Sharon quickly finished, turned off the shower, and dried off.

She pulled her hair up in a small towel and wrapped herself in a cushy bath robe, just as Andy shuffled into the bathroom.

"Morning," he muttered. Andy was not a morning person. His eyes were only half opened as he came over to Sharon, kissing her on the check. After he moved in, this became an addition to Sharon's morning routine, an addition she absolutely loved.

"Good Morning." Sharon accepted the kiss, then watched Andy for a moment, as he turned on the shower again. When Andy first moved into her condo, and began sleeping in her room, it was tricky for Sharon, sharing space without disrupting her morning routine. She would be blow drying her hair, while he scooted in front of the mirror to brush his teeth. Just as she was finishing her make-up, Andy would come behind her to fuse with his hair or cologne. Then, Andy was always pulling her into one more kiss before they left the bedroom or grabbing at her as she tried to get dressed. Sometimes, he even convinced her to get back into bed for a bit longer. Very rarely did she ever agree to that.

This morning, however, Sharon found herself eagerly waiting for his kisses and hoped he would suggest climbing back under the sheets. Not exactly to be intimate, but to rest the growing aches in her muscles. As two of them dressed, however, Sharon noted Andy had no intentions of getting back into bed this morning.

The tired feeling did not leave for the rest of the day. Normally if a shower did not do the trick, tea or, at such rare times, a strong cup of coffee would. There was no such luck this morning.

At work, Sharon leaned against a nearby desk or stayed in her office, trying to ignore the pain and focus on the work at hand. Early that morning, a doctor was found in her office with a bullet hole in her chest. Provenza and the rest of the team surveyed the crime scene, gathered statements, and informed the victim's husband of the incident. Sharon sat in her office, reviewing the crime scene photos, waiting to hear from Tao about the interview with the husband. However, as the day lingered on, Sharon found it more difficult to focus. At some point, probably after the coffee wore off, the aches in her muscles grew worse. Her head was aching as well. Sharon tossed her glasses onto her desk, and rubbed her temples. She closed her eyes and leaned back, continuing the circular motions to the sides of her head.

"Sharon?" Andy must have knocked first, but she never heard it. "Hey, you okay?"

"Mhhm?" she opened her eyes and put her arms down, "Fine. Any news?"

"Yeah," He paused by the door, probably wondering just how 'fine' Sharon really was. Finally, Andy gave in, "We talked to Doctor Ryan's husband. He said she was with him Sunday night, and she usually wakes up before him to work out. He said there's a park nearby she jogs at."

"What time was she killed?" Sharon put her glasses back on and waved for Andy to sit down.

"Between three and six this morning." Andy accepted the offer and sat across from her.

"Do we have surveillance videos from the hospital?" Sharon picked up a photo of the woman, laying lifeless on the floor of her office. She was wearing a suit, no exactly convenient for a morning jog.

"Buzz is reviewing it now." Andy leaned forward, causing Sharon to drift her attention away from the photo. Andy stayed quiet. Clearly, he was observing her.

"Yes?" Sharon asked quietly. Andy was a good detective. It was difficult to read him, but she could see he was analyzing her, choosing his next words carefully.

"I was just thinking," He smiled reassuringly, "Buzz won't be able to find anything substantial by end of today, and Tao and Amy are handling the husband," He paused, straightening his posture, "maybe we should call it an early night."

Sharon arched her brow and looked at her watch. "Andy, it's only three. Do I really look that bad?" She tried to smile, but even the muscles in her face hurt.

"No, no. But something's wrong," he stood up and came around to her side of the desk. "I do love seeing you sitting on a desk, especially in that skirt-" Sharon let out a laugh and rolled her eyes. She stood up to be at Andy's level, but almost instinctually, leaned against the desk. "But, it's clear you're not feeling well." He gestured to her, pointing out the way she was standing.

"Okay," Sharon gave in with a sigh and looked down at Andy's hands. "I've been a bit…tired today."

"Tired?" There was a hint of suspicion in his tone.

"Achy," she corrected herself, making eye contact with Andy once again, "and my head is pounding."

"Achy?" This time, there was no suspicion. He placed the back of his hand on Sharon's forehead. "You're warm, do you feel warm?"

"Exact opposite, actually." Sharon allowed Andy to continue his examination. In a strange way, the attention made her feel slightly better. "I've been feeling cold ever since we got here. I assumed it was the A/C."

"It's not the A/C," He sighed gently, his expression softening. "Sharon, you're sick. I think you have a fever."

"What?" Sharon let out another laugh and shook her head, "No. No, I'm not sick." She stepped back, but felt a bit dizzy doing so. Andy must have noticed, as he put his arms on her side and motioned for her to sit down. She did so without hesitation.

"Stay here," he left Sharon alone in the room for only a few minutes. She watched through the blinds as Andy walked over to Provenza, clearly to discuss her condition. Sharon knew what was coming, and for once she knew there was nothing she could do. Andy came back into the room, carrying their coats.

"Andy really, I can wait another two hours-" Sharon rarely saw this expression on Andy's face. The last time she saw this expression, Andy was in the hospital, about to go into surgery. He was concerned, worried, but this time, he was worried about her. "Okay." She nodded and stood up. Andy helped get her coat on and carried her purse. They left the murder room, without any questions from the team, and drove back to the condo.

Sharon was relieved to take off her heals as they walked through the door. The apartment was quiet. Rusty was still working with Andrea. Sharon allowed Andy to pull her coat off and guide her to the bedroom. She sat down on the bed and, without a word, Andy undressed her. Normally feeling Andy pull off her stockings was a welcoming, pleasurable feeling. Today, she merely wanted the job done so she could get into something more comfortable. He pulled off her skirt and blouse, then left to the bathroom. Sharon, down to nothing but her underwear, felt goosebumps on her skin and quickly retrieved under the sheets. Andy handed her pajamas and sat a glass of water and pills on her nightstand. Without argument, she put on the warm pajamas and took the pills.

"How do you feel?" Andy sat across from her, his arms resting on her legs.

"Terrible," she admitted and took off her glasses, dropping them on the night stand next to the glass.

"You didn't say anything this morning," his voice was quiet, almost a whisper.

"I thought it would go away." Sharon laid down and looked up at Andy. He was just far away enough that his face blurred without her glasses. "Are you going back to work?"

"No, I'll call Provenza and get caught up. Do you need anything? Tea?"

"No," Sharon shook her head and closed her eyes. She felt Andy kiss her forehead, then leave her side. Sharon was already falling asleep as he shut the door to the bedroom.