Sharon hums as she leans into Andy's touch, shuffling back further against him in bed.
"Morning," Andy murmurs as he presses a soft kiss to her neck.
"Morning," Sharon replies, turning over in his grasp to face him. She gives him a lazy smile as she runs her fingers through his hair, attempting to straighten the stray locks, "Have I told you how much I love waking up next to you?"
"You might have mentioned it once or twice," Andy smiles. He had been making more of an effort to stay in bed in the mornings instead of getting up before Sharon so he could get into the shower. The fear and pain he heard in her voice that morning had shaken him to the core. He never wanted her to wake up alone and afraid ever again. Sharon presses her lips against Andy's gently, resting her hand against his chest.
"Where'd you go just now?"
"Just thinking about the other week," Andy tells her, rubbing his hand up and down her side. Sharon smiles softly and kisses Andy once more, resting her head against his.
"We're okay," Sharon assures him, "We're okay."
"I know. I worry about you."
"Funny, I worry about you," Sharon murmurs with a wry grin on her lips.
"Quite the pair aren't we?"
"Mmhm," Sharon squeezes Andy's arm before pulling back, "You should get in the shower. You have court this morning."
"We could shower together, save some time, some water."
"That does sound tempting," Sharon hums before looking behind her at the alarm clock. She bites her lip before getting out of bed and padding towards the bathroom. She looks over her shoulder at Andy as she stands in the doorway, "Coming?"
Andy scrambles out of bed as he follows her.
"Not yet," He rasps.
Later in the morning, Sharon lazily drags a teabag through the mug of hot water on her desk as she reviews reports, occasionally making notes and signing off on things. She lets go of the string and grips the handle of the mug, bringing it to her lips, blowing gently before taking a sip. Her eyes flick up as she hears her door open, widening when she sees Rusty.
"Is it lunch time already?" Sharon asks as she sets the cup down before checking her watch.
"Unless we're in a new time zone," Rusty smiles, setting his bag on the couch.
"Sorry, I've been in meetings all morning. I've completely lost track of time," Sharon says, closing the file she had been reading, before standing and rounding the desk. She wraps Rusty in a big hug and presses a kiss to his cheek, "It's so good to see you. I feel like it's been days since I've seen you."
"It's only been a couple days," Rusty says as he pulls back. Sharon shrugs and smiles, grabbing her bag and hoisting it over her shoulder.
"I know, but I miss you when you're gone."
"I miss you too," Rusty says, following her out of her office, "I thought Andy was coming?"
"He was, but the case he's testifying in is running behind. So, it's just you and me," Sharon comments as she presses the down button on the elevator.
"Oh okay, I thought you said there was something we needed to talk about," Rusty asks as they get into the elevator, "Like family stuff."
"There is, but I can talk to you about it," Sharon assures him with a smile, "Nothing bad."
"Okay, good," Rusty smiles, relaxing slightly. The two ride quietly down to the main floor, wandering across the street to a diner. They claim a table in the back corner before Rusty orders a burger and fries for himself along with a chocolate milkshake. Sharon's stomach growls as she listens to him order before nodding and ordering the same thing.
"Oh, no pickles though," She asks, wrinkling her nose in semi disgust as Rusty regards her with wide eyes. The waitress nods and takes their menus before moving onto the next table.
"I have literally never heard the word milkshake come from your mouth unless it was to tell me not to get one," Rusty comments. Sharon rolls her eyes as she takes her glasses off, tucking them into her blouse.
"Contrary to your beliefs I do actually eat ice cream on occasion," Sharon tells Rusty as she takes a sip of her water, "I don't just survive on kale."
"I think you're lying," Rusty grins, drawing a chuckle from Sharon before he rests his arms on the table, playing with his straw wrapper, "So what did you want to talk about?"
"It's more...telling you something," Sharon demurs as she leans back in the booth, threading her fingers together in her lap.
"What? Is something wrong?" Rusty says immediately jumping to conclusions.
"I told you it's nothing bad," Sharon assures him, taking a deep breath before spilling the news, "I am pregnant."
"You're...what?" Rusty questions, not quite sure he heard correctly.
"Pregnant," Sharon repeats, tilting her head as she tries to read his face, but not being able to make heads or tails of his reaction. Rusty open and closes his mouth a few times before finally managing to utter words.
"That's…wow. That's just…wow. Like…how is that even possible? Wait, no don't answer that question. I don't want to know those details," Rusty babbles, "Like a baby, a real baby?"
"A real baby," Sharon replies, looking up as their waitress brings their food. She sets their plates down in front of them before the milkshakes.
"Anything else I can get you two?"
"No thank you," Sharon tells her with a smile. The waitress leaves their check on the edge of the table before going to attend to her other customers. Sharon grabs the bottle of ketchup and drizzles the condiment over her fries as she gives Rusty time to process.
After they spend a while eating in silence Sharon looks across the table at Rusty, setting her fork down. Rusty looks up from his own food, chewing a fry over as he looks at Sharon.
"Are you really eating your fries with a fork?"
"Maybe," Sharon comments, "You wanna let me in?"
"I mean this is…definitely a shock. I-I-I never even considered this was, like, a conversation that we would have," Rusty admits, "But, like, I assume this is something you and Andy want to do…right?"
"Yeah," Sharon nods, a wistful smile on her face.
"Then I'm happy for you," Rusty nods, picking up another french fry, "And Andy, even though this is mostly your thing right now."
"Thank you," Sharon says honestly, smiling at Rusty. She reaches over and squeezes his hand gently before taking her hand back.
"Um, when are you due?"
"My due date is December 8th."
"So like, how..."
"Far along am I?" Rusty nods and Sharon smiles, "A little over 12 weeks."
"Who knows about the…baby?" Rusty inquires, wondering if he was one of the first or last told.
"At the moment besides Andy and me - Chief Howard and you."
"Ricky and Emily don't know?"
"No," Sharon shakes her head, stirring her straw through her milkshake, "I wanted to tell you first, give you a little more time to process, it's a big change and you're around more than they are."
"Well thanks…I think. When are you? Going to tell them, I mean…Ricky and Emily."
"When they come to visit next weekend. Andy and I were going to take them out to dinner once they got in. You are welcome to come, of course, I just don't know how they're going to react. You know how…"
"They can be? Yeah," Rusty laughs, "I think I'll sit that dinner out, Gus and I are planning on going out of town next weekend anyway."
"All weekend? I was hoping we could have a family thing…you know, dinner or lunch or something. It's so rare that all of us are together," Sharon pouts slightly.
"What about on Sunday? We'll be back for an early dinner," Rusty offers.
"That would be great," Sharon smiles brightly. The two finish their lunch before heading back across the street to the station. Rusty picks up his backpack from Sharon's couch slinging it over his shoulder.
"I have to get to class, I'll see you later?" Sharon nods and wraps her arms around Rusty, hugging him tight. Rusty wraps his arms around Sharon and holds her close, "I love you, mom."
"I love you too," Sharon murmurs before pulling away, quickly swiping at a tear on her cheek.
"Oh god, what did I do? Did I say something? I didn't mean to…" Sharon shakes her head with a smile as she looks at the boy, amazed at his depth of concern.
"You didn't do anything, it's just hormones, I promise," Sharon assures him, nudging him out the door, "Go, don't be late for class."
"I'll text you later," Rusty assures her before heading for the elevator, waving a hello at the passing Major Crimes team.
Later in the afternoon after Andy finally returns to the office he knocks in the doorway, leaning his shoulder against the frame as he loosens his tie slightly. Sharon looks up and smiles at him, taking a sip of her tea.
"Hi, how did testifying go?"
"Nah, I've gotta go back in the morning, still didn't get to me after lunch and the judge called a recess until tomorrow about half an hour ago. How was lunch with Rusty?" "It went well…I think he'll warm up to the idea quickly. He and Gus are going to be out of town next weekend, but they're going to try to be home for a family dinner on Sunday, provided the other two don't storm off."
"You worry too much," Andy chastises.
"Emily I'm not that worried about, but you know how Ricky was when I was adopting Rusty," Sharon laments, leaning back in her chair as she looks at Andy, a worried look drawing across her face.
"Ricky was also being influenced by his father. This time, it is us, sharing our news, with no input from Jack."
"Yet," Sharon slips in, "I feel like I'll be garnering a visit from my ex-husband once the kids talk to him."
"You know he doesn't have to be let in. All you have to do is leave his name at the security desk out front," Andy reminds her for what seemed to him to be the millionth time.
"I know, I know," Sharon nods and sighs, "I just have a couple files to finish up and then we can head home?"
"Sounds good," Andy nods, straightening up. He winks at Sharon before leaving her doorway, pulling the door closed behind him as he returns to his desk. Sharon takes another drink of her tea before returning to the reports spread out across her desk.
[TBC...we'll finally get to meet Emily and Ricky for the first time in this fic]