"Happy Birthday to you," the team finished singing to Rusty, and he blew out his candles. He was thrilled; Sharon's idea of a birthday party was a success. Rusty might never admit it or not, but he was delighted with his day, his evening. The team was all there, they had had pizza, and now they were having cake. A real birthday party. Sharon had noticed just how happy he had been all day. She had started by making him pancakes for breakfast. Andy and Provenza had taken him to lunch, and Buzz and Julio had taken him to the movies. Now, they'd all enjoyed a relaxing evening at the condo. Mike had brought Cathy, his wife, but otherwise, it was just the team. It had been a great evening, well almost.

Sharon couldn't help but notice the glares she had been getting all evening from Andy. She had no clue what that was all about. At first, she thought it might have been directed at Rusty, that something might have happened at lunch. Because of the movie, she hadn't seen Rusty all day, so she hadn't had a moment to find out if something had happened. She'd been alongside Rusty most of the evening, so that made a small bit of sense, but she also didn't peg Andy as someone to stare down a teenager. Then, she noticed that even when she wasn't near Rusty, she was getting the glare. She'd tried to have a couple of small conversations with him, but Provenza had always popped in to chat as soon as she and Andy had tried to strike up any conversation. Now, as the evening was drawing to a close, she could feel the glares, the stares, and she had no clue. What had she done to make him mad? She had barely seen him in any sort of personal capacity over the last week, which was good and bad. It probably helped her as far as her intense feelings for him, but tonight, oh, even when he was mad about something, she could feel the heat rising off her anytime she glanced in his direction.

"Is everything okay?" she asked him as people started to eat the cake. She'd cut everyone cake first, and now, they were all enjoying it. Rusty had asked for a yellow cake and chocolate frosting, simple and perfect for her basic baking skills.

"The cake is good," he commented, ignoring her question. "You make the cake?"

"I did," she said, and before she could ask anything more, Provenza walked over again.

"Ahh, Captain, who knew you were your own Betty Crocker. Good job on the cake. Do you think I might be able to take a piece home with me?"

Andy rolled his eyes and mumbled, "Oh, my-are you serious, Provenza? It's Rusty's birthday cake!"

"Yes, I'm serious! I don't get baked goods that often, and yes, it's Rusty. He should share. We took him to lunch if you recall."

"Lieutenant," Sharon patted his arm, "yes, there will be leftover cake, and I'll be happy to send you home with a piece. Andy, would you like a piece to go too?"

"No, I'll let the kid have it. Doesn't seem right to take from a kid," he grumbled.

"I'll take Flynn's piece, too," Provenza put up his hand to indicate he wanted it as well.

"Let me go and pack that up for you, Lieutenant," Sharon offered. She could tell Andy was still irritated about something, but maybe it was a scuffle with Provenza. That wouldn't be the first time either.

"Thanks, Captain, and then, Flynn, I need you to take me home," he told Andy.

"You know that if you had driven yourself here, you wouldn't have this problem of needing a chauffeur," he told Provenza, as Sharon was trying not to laugh.

"True, but I also wouldn't have been able to have a couple beers. So, now that Rusty has officially been celebrated for turning a year older, we can be on our way. They've got the Dodgers on tv tonight, and I don't want to miss it."

Sharon packed up cake for Provenza, making sure to put two slices in for him. She didn't need an earful at work about not being able to eat Andy's extra piece either. The team started to head out, stopping to say thank you to Sharon and a birthday greeting to Rusty. Buzz was still there, helping Rusty go through the gaming system Andy and Provenza had gotten him. It had been a group idea, with the rest of the team getting him some games and gaming accessories for the set.

"Here's your cake, Lieutenant," Sharon offered him the two wrapped pieces.

"Ahh, thanks, Captain. Flynn, now, we're leaving," he said. Sharon glanced Andy's way and noted he was staring, or glaring again. She had at one point thought it was the outfit. She had on jeans and a low-cut blouse, one that made her feel very feminine, but she didn't get the vibe he was staring at her clothing, rather almost glaring through her.

"Whatever, Provenza!" Andy said, with a little more irritation to his voice than normal. Clearly, something was bothering him. "Let's go. Thanks for the party," he nodded to Sharon and walked out her front door without any sort of personal good bye. It was strange; it was unlike Andy. Even with the two just being friends, he always was more personable than that. Sharon started thinking about what could be bothering him. He hadn't mentioned his girlfriend, so that could be it too. Maybe he'd gotten into something with her before the party. She really didn't know, but only knew he was acting a bit odd and very much unlike Andy.

Once Andy and Provenza left, Sharon turned back to Rusty and Buzz, "Sharon, would it be okay if I went over and hung out with Buzz tonight? He said we could hook my new gaming system up on his entertainment system. Please?"

Sharon was about to protest, but Buzz cut in, "Captain, it's really okay. To be honest, I'd enjoy playing this thing a little myself. It's two models newer than mine, and the graphics are much better."

"Well, I see no problem with that," she relented. "Rusty, let's be a good guest for Buzz," she remined him. "Buzz," she turned back to him, "let me know what time to pick him up in the morning, and I'll be there to get him."

"That's fine, Captain," Buzz said, and Rusty jumped up and quickly ran to pack a small bag. Once Sharon got the two of them out of the condo, she finished cleaning up from the party, looking forward to relaxing with a glass of wine. As she continued to clean up, her mind wandered to Andy's odd behavior. What was going on with him? Sharon finished, deciding to forgo her glass of wine to instead find out what was wrong with Andy. His behavior bothered her, and she wanted to get to the bottom of it. Was it something even more serious? She didn't want to wait until Monday morning in the office to ask him about things. If it was indeed related to Provenza, he wouldn't want to talk about it with Provenza a few feet away. She acted quickly, boldly. That was her new motto, so she grabbed her purse and jacket, and she headed to her car. She was going to find out what was irritating Andy Flynn.

She almost turned around. In the 45-minute drive from her condo to his house, she almost turned around. Four times. Four times she talked herself out of turning around, and instead she found herself turning onto his street. She pulled her car in besides his in the driveway, and before she got out, she took a deep breath. She looked toward the house, noting that his living room light was still on. Her stay a few months ago at his place had her knowing the layout like the back of her hand. Bold. She was here, and she was going to be bold. Friend. She was his friend, and that wasn't about to change now. He was irritated about something, and she was going to find out what was going on. Bold. She turned off the car, stepped out, and made her way up the walkway. Knock. She knocked, her bold attitude driving her to do all of that. Deep breath. She hoped he'd answer so she could sort out his mess.