Hey guys! Thanks so much for all your wonderful reviews! They make me so happy =)
So a jealous Andy was really quite fun to write...more fun than I had thought. Hopefully I didn't go overboard with it.
Anyways, there's one more chapter after this. Hope you all enjoy this, and as always, please review! xx
Two weeks. It had been two weeks since the green-eyed monster of jealousy had made itself at home in Andy's heart, and in those fourteen days she had been constantly tormented by thoughts of the beautiful blond who seemed to be permanently attached at Sam's side. Trish was at the Penny every night. Trish called Sam almost every day while they were on shift - never mind that they were working and could be at any time involved in a stand-off or hostage situation. And Sam answered almost every time, with Andy only privy to one side of the conversations she so desperately wanted to listen to. She over analyzed every sentence they spoke to each other, every movement she saw them make at the Penny, trying to decipher any romantic feelings or sexual tension between the two.
It was disconcerting, really, seeing him constantly involved with another woman other than...well, herself.
She half wondered, in silent thoughts during sleepless nights, if Sam had felt this way when she had been with Luke. Every time her trail of thought went down that path, she allowed herself stolen moments of fleeting pleasure in thinking that he had in fact been consumed by jealousy the way she was now. But she only allowed herself mere seconds, because Sam had moved on from whatever she and him had had...which was, come to think of it, nothing. Nothing, except some mishandled night of passion that was cut short.
She hit the punching bag hard, the image of Trish's face replacing the red nylon fabric in front of her. Sweat poured down her face, a loose strand of hair sticking to her sweaty forehead. The door to the gym opened, the rush of cold air feeling good against her hot skin.
She wasn't a violent person at all, but she hadn't hit something in a while, and to be perfectly honest, it felt good.
She punched the bag again, her face twisting with intensity and anger.
"Damn McNally, remind me never to get on your bad side," a male voice said, and she turned to see the very man her thoughts were revolving around at the moment.
"Sam," she breathed, slightly winded from her erratic punches, "what the hell are you doing here?"
"I saw you from the outside, and thought I'd step in and see what's wrong," he answered, a lopsided grin on his face, completely relaxed except for his eyes. If Andy didn't know any better, she would have thought they held trepidation and...nervousness?
"What do you mean 'see what's wrong'?" she asked, slipping one hand out of the black boxing gloves and wiping it across her face.
"Well, you only come here when you're upset about something," he said, hands slightly raised, as if on guard against any attack from her.
"I work out all the time," she said huffily, taking off the other glove and placing her hands on her hips in indignation.
"Yeah, but you only do this - " he gestured to the punching bag, "when something's eating you. I've been your partner for a year and a half, so I think I know when something's off in your world."
"Well aren't you a great detective?" she snapped, the harsh words tumbling out of her mouth before she could stop them, not knowing what he had done to make her so angry.
"Geez, McNally, don't bite my head off," he replied, his tone reflecting her coldness. He raised his hands against her verbal attack.
"You know what Sam?"
"What?"
"I'm going to choose to ignore that."
"Ignore what? I didn't do or say anything to deserve this, did I? I don't remember, so please enlighten me if I have somehow offended you," he said, his words laced with sarcasm.
Andy felt like her heart was going to jump out of her chest, it was beating so fast. Why was she acting like this? She felt jittery, like her nerves were on fire. Jealousy alone didn't do this. Maybe it was the combination of jealousy, adrenaline, and the fact that it was that certain time of month, but whatever it was, Sam didn't deserve this kind of treatment.
"I'm sorry," she said softly, letting out a trembling sigh.
"Andy, what's wrong?" Sam asked, his voice gentle, letting her know he didn't hold a grudge for the way she had just treated him. "Tell me. Is it your dad?"
"No, no, it's not. He's fine." She shook her head.
"Then what is it?" he asked. His concerned eyes almost broke her resolve to keep her silence on the whole jealousy thing.
It's Trish, you moron! You guys are all buddy-buddy and it's eating me alive. I'm your 'friend'. I'm your...I'm yours. Right?
"Nothing, it's nothing. It's just been a long week, that's all," she lied, hoping that he couldn't tell. His eyes narrowed, his brow furrowing, and she shivered despite herself as his eyes bore into hers. It was like he was peeling back her walls, one by one, until he would find the real reason she was acting like this. And he could never, ever find out.
"Okay," he finally said, taking a step towards her. "You need anything, or you wanna talk, you call me." The offer nearly brought tears to her eyes. Good God, my hormones are out of whack.
"Thanks Sam," she said, smiling weakly. He smiled back, though frown lines were still evident on his forehead.
"Always. You wanna get out of here, get a burger or something? You must be starved."
"Yeah. Yeah that would be great," she answered, this time her smile real. "You sure you don't mind going out with me like this?" She gestured to her messy ponytail and makeup-less face.
He let out a soft laugh which finally dispelled the frown lines. "You look beautiful Andy. You always do." The momentary lapse of his mind filter made him freeze at his words, like he was unsure of how she would respond, but she didn't seem to notice his sudden anxiety.
"Yeah, nice try. I'm still going through with my plan to crash your next poker night with Traci."
"Honestly, McNally, you're mood swings are going to be the death of me," he said, somewhat serious.
"I keep you on your toes. It's not like you don't have mood swings yourself," she answered over her shoulder as she headed into the locker room. "Give me five minutes to freshen up, okay?"
"Andy, just know that poker night is a time-honored tradition that isn't taken lightly. You either come to win or don't come at all," Jerry said, a faux serious expression on his face as he tipped his glass towards her.
"Oh come on, Jer, don't dissuade her. She told me her strip poker skills are severely diminished with alcohol. We'll just have to get her drunk, that's all," Sam said, coming up behind them with a grin.
"You are never going to let me live that down, are you?" Andy laughed.
"Hell no, McNally. You can't just drop a bombshell like that and expect me to forget about it," he teased. He leaned in closer, his lips brushing her hair, the motion sending her nerves into overdrive.
"Why does your hair smell like chocolate?" he asked, a sly smirk on his face.
"Maybe because someone 'accidentally' spilled his milkshake on me when he tripped on a rock," she shot back, wrinkling her nose at him.
"Hey, I never said it wasn't a good smell," he said, shrugging, a twinkle in his eye. They both saw the door open and the woman walk through it at the same time. Andy's heart plummeted.
"Hey guys, I'll be right back," Sam said, setting down his drink and walking towards the blond who was standing in the doorway. Andy saw her eyes light up at the sight of him walking towards her. She saw her lips move with a smile, and she tensed when Trish laid a hand on his arm. Sam gestured to the outside, and the two of them disappeared into the night.
She knew it was foolish, stupid, and immature, but she had a sudden all-consuming desire to follow them outside.
"Hey, Jerry, I think I see Traci over there," she said, waving her hand vaguely in the direction of a particularly busy corner of the bar. He shot her a grin and jumped off the bar stool.
She got up and walked outside, trepidation and anxiety and just a little bit of foolhardiness mixing with the already generous amounts of alcohol swirling around in her bloodstream.
They were in the parking lot, near a streetlight.
Sam pulled something out of his pocket.
It was a small box.
He opened it.
The light reflected off the diamond ring that was sitting in the velvet encasement.
Trish let out a squeal.
There was a beat of silence.
She through her arms around Sam.
Andy saw his lips moving.
"Is...what...wanted." She only caught every third word or so from his mouth.
It was an entirely different matter when Trish opened hers.
One word.
"Yes."