They walked out of the church in silence, not looking at each other. Other than Sharon clearing her throat, no one made a sound. Both arrived back at Andy's car, Sharon standing there until he unlocked it. He fumbled for his keys, but before he opened her door, he reached for her hand and gave a small smile. He pulled her into his embrace, feeling her relax as he did.
"We said this wasn't going to be easy," he said softly into her hair, as they stood there. She hummed.
"Yes, I know," she sighed. "Still hard to dig up all that," she said as she pulled back and played with his shirt. He kept his hands on her shoulders.
"It could have gone worse," he shrugged, offering a smile as a peace offering.
She narrowed her eyes, "How?"
"Well," he used his thumbs to rub her shoulders, "We left together. We are still talking. You're even letting me take you home. See, it could be worse."
She let out a small chuckle, still playing with his shirt buttons, "I'm willing to go so far tonight-" she let that hang, and he looked at her with interest, "that, I'll cook you dinner."
He smiled and chuckled, opening her door. He pulled her into his side, before she got in, "We'll be okay," he kissed her head. She patted his arm and got in.
It was a relatively quiet ride home, both reflecting on their conversation with the priest. It hadn't been pretty. Both had gotten angry, as expected, and both had even shed some tears. They'd been embarrassed to admit their whole story to the priest, but much to his credit, he'd just listened without judgement. Sharon knew they weren't the first to confess sins, but it still didn't help that now, every time he looked at them, he knew the WHOLE story.
"Sharon?" he said softly, and she hummed at him as she turned to him.
"Sorry," she shook her head. "How many times did you call my name?"
"Twice," he admitted. "You okay?"
She shrugged, "I will be, yes. Just thinking of everything we said and what he suggested."
"You think it will be helpful?" he asked.
Sharon pursed her lips, "I'm not sure, but I guess we will find out." The priest had suggested that after Andy drop off Sharon and leave her condo for the evening the two take a full week to not interact at all-not see each other, no phone calls, no text messages, no emails-nothing. He admitted he hadn't heard a story like theirs and didn't have any magical answers, but in lieu of everything, he thought that might do them some good. He explained that while they had done just that for over a year, they'd done it in anger, and they hadn't wanted anything to do with the other. This time, he wanted each to reflect on things; they were in a better place now, and he wanted them to think about the other, decide if they wanted their life without the other, and go from there. He said it was good for them to be unplugged from each other to reevaluate things. Of course, he understood that work might be an issue and said to do what was needed for work, but if possible to even avoid each other there. Before, they couldn't get far enough away from each other, and now, with everything in the open and fences staring to mend, how would they feel?
"Well, I'm not looking forward to it, but I'll do it. Besides," he threw a fake grin her way, "I've got a long week at work anyway."
"Yes, yes, you do," Sharon tried not to smile, looking away as she shook her head.
"So, what do you want to do about dinner?" he said.
"I went to the store this morning and picked up some fish. We can have that if you like. I thought I would steam some vegetables and make some rice," she offered.
"Sounds good. I'll grill the fish if you want?" he said.
"Perfect," she smiled. "I must confess that my grilling skills aren't up to yours. That's one thing I really miss about you being around," she smiled.
"Well, then I'll make sure to grill out for you more often. Now, let's get back to the condo, make dinner, call Emily, and hopefully, in between all that, we can talk more about today."
The two arrived at the condo and were chatting as they entered. Sharon walked to the kitchen to start prepping dinner.
"Surprise, Mom!" Sharon, visibly startled, jumped back, stepping on Andy's feet as Ricky surprised her.
"Ouch!" Andy yelled out, wincing in pain. The two were having trouble not hurting themselves at the condo.
"Ricky?" Sharon asked, surprised, and yet happy. "Oh, I didn't know you were coming," she said, opening her arms to him.
"That's why it's a surprise," he grinned, going into her hug. "Andy!" he said, very surprised, as he hugged his mom and registered Andy was hopping on his foot, in pain behind Sharon.
Sharon quickly realized what was going on and broke apart from Ricky, turning to Andy, "Are you okay?" she put her arm on his shoulder, concerned about him.
"Yeah, I'll be fine," he groaned. Sharon's boots with heels had done a number on his foot. "I'm sorry," she said. "We keep hurting each other."
Andy held up a hand, as he caught his breath again, "Yeah, now there's a play on words."
Ricky stood, watching everything with a questioning look, as Sharon looked at a hobbling Andy. He made his way to the couch and sat down. Sharon followed him and looked back to Ricky. "Umm, Mom?" he asked.
Sharon motioned him over, "Come, sit for a moment," she said, as she sat down on the couch too. Andy offered her a small smile, and she apologized again, "Sorry for trampling your foot. Will you need to be put on desk duty?" she said as a grin formed behind her concerned exterior.
Andy smirked at her, throwing a fake smile, "I think I'll live." Ricky moved and sat in the orange chair, eyeing the two.
"Watch out for those heels, Andy," Ricky smiled. "Not only does she look deadly in them, they can be deadly as you're seeing. Now, will someone tell me what's going on? You are in the same room, talking, even possibly enjoying each other's company. Last I heard, you were barely speaking after your trip to New York over the winter."
"Well," Sharon took a deep breath and looked to Andy, "we have made a lot of progress and are working on things." She was sitting close enough to Andy, the two grabbed ahold of and held onto each other's hands, "We are hoping to work through everything and move forward as a couple."
"Wow," Ricky said, visibly surprised. "Have to say, I didn't see that coming. When you were out, well, I thought-wait a minute," he turned to Andy, "you found out about the dating site didn't you?' he asked.
Andy rolled his eyes, as he glanced at Sharon and then turned back to Ricky, "I might have come across it. Why?"
Ricky sat back, crossing his leg and crossing his arms over himself, "No reason. I told Emily you two still loved each other."
Sharon narrowed her eyes at Ricky before she rolled her head toward Andy, "Should I be concerned?"
Andy shrugged, "He is your son-there's no telling," he grinned.
Sharon stood, "You two sit. I'm going to start dinner."
"I'll start the grill when you are ready, Sharon, Andy called out to her.
"Oh, I'll let you know, Clay."
"Clay?" Ricky asked.
Andy held up his hand and shook his head as if a 'don't ask' type of response. Sharon poked her head around from the kitchen, "Since you were so helpful in setting up my online profile, why don't you ask Andy all about Clay. He can explain."
"Just one question," Ricky asked. "Does Emily know about this?" he waved his hand between the two of them. Sharon came out from the kitchen again.
"No," she said wiping her hands on a towel. "Honestly, we've just been working through things the last couple weeks. We were coming home to have dinner and call you both. We aren't jumping back into the mess we created; we've been working hard at putting everything out in the open and trying to start fresh while going over the things that we need to work through. This isn't a pick up where we left off; we are putting a lot of effort into this fresh start. Part of that is not hiding any of this from the four of you, but at the same time, asking that the four of you respect us enough to let us work though what we need to do."
Ricky nodded as he listened to Sharon. He looked to Andy who offered him an encouraging smile.
"Your mom and I love each other very much, Ricky," Andy admitted. "That's not the problem. We want to clear the air so we aren't resentful of anything down the road."
"Wow, as I said, didn't see this coming, but I'm glad to hear it. Andy, I like you around here. Let's face it; you do a better job than my own dad. I hope things work out," Ricky said. "I'll respect your space and not pry."
"Thank you," Andy told him, with Sharon nodding in agreement. "We just came from the priest."
"The priest?" Ricky asked in confusion. Sharon walked over so she was standing behind the couch, directly behind Andy.
"We've asked him to help us, almost like a counselor. He saw us today, and while rough, well, we're here," she said. "We're committed to working through this."
"Oh, man, I feel like I have the worst timing ever," Ricky blushed, standing. "Here I was, thinking I'd surprise you Mom, worried you were alone."
"Sit," Sharon pointed and said sternly. Even Andy jumped a little at her instruction. Ricky sat. "You are never a bother, and your timing is not a problem. You are always welcome here at home; I'm very glad to see you. You are staying for dinner, end of story. Part of working through things for us is being around family and figuring out our new normal around our family. Congratulations. You are first up," she smiled.
"Well," he nodded, "in that case, let me go wash up, and Andy, I can maybe help you grill? I can always use a few tips in that area. Mom was never great with the grill." He stood, and as he walked away, Andy laughed the grill comment since he and Sharon had talked about it in the car. She swatted at him before she went back to the kitchen.
The evening continued to go well, and Sharon smiled as she watched Ricky and Andy laughing from the balcony area where they were talking while grilling the fish. It felt almost normal again, except this time they were really working on trusting each other. That was one thing that had come out in their session with the priest. Sharon hadn't trusted Andy when he had been drinking and hadn't told him about Emily. On some level, the priest explained that maybe she still harbored some of that trust issue up until now, part of the reason she hadn't told him even when they'd gotten back together almost two years ago. In her mind, she kept comparing him to Jack, and as she thought about it, she knew that was true. She was waiting for Andy to just leave, which he hadn't done, not until he'd actually found out about Emily. It was a mess of thoughts, and she wasn't sure she would ever fully hash them out, but trust had been a problem. It wasn't now. She knew that. Andy had trust issues too. He had been upset when he'd found out Sharon was married when they had fooled around, resulting in Emily. He'd lost trust again when 25 years later, the secret about Emily had come out. Trust. Funny, neither had been able to put a finger on one of their main issues, but the priest was right; that was one of them. That topic had been the one that got them arguing some at the church, and the priest told them it was actually healthy to get it out in front of a mediator such as he. They'd hashed it out, both in tears at times, but it had been productive. It should have been; it had lasted two hours. Now, tonight, after Andy went home, they weren't going to talk until next weekend. Sharon cringed at the idea, but she knew the exercise would be healthy for both and give them time to think about each other, their future, and their ability to trust.
The three talked through dinner, and it felt good to be around family again, for all of them. Ricky told them about his projects at work, and they talked about his upcoming trip to New York. He was excited to spend time there, the trip falling over his own birthday.
"My sister can't wait to meet you," Andy told Ricky as they were cleaning up dinner. The guys had told Sharon to sit, so she was nursing a cup of tea while they were all talking.
"Em's told me she's a lot of fun. I'm looking forward to meeting her, but mostly to get some dirt on you. As many Flynn-Provenza stories I've heard, I know she's got tons from your childhood. Now that you and Mom are back together, it just makes getting some stories even better," he grinned.
"Oh, why didn't I think of that when Angela and I had dinner?" Sharon chuckled.
"Well, from what you told me, Mom, that was a little tense. I guess you were just trying to get through dinner," Ricky said.
"Oh," she waved her hand, "not in New York. I had dinner with Angela last week, here. She was visiting Andy, and the two of us had a great time. Next time," she nodded.
"Great. I almost hate to let her around either of you now," he sighed.
Ricky patted Andy on the back, "I'd say your secrets are safe, but," he shrugged. "They're not. Big sis can't have all the fun with all the secrets."
Andy groaned, but Sharon spoke up, "Speaking of her, Andy, we need to call her," Sharon looked at her watch. "It's still a bit early, but maybe in an hour or so?" she suggested.
"Well, as much fun as it would be to hang around and listen to my big sister get a talking to by Mom AND dad, I think I'll bail. I sent a text to my buddy, Sean, and we are going to catch up. I'll be back in a couple hours," he said.
"Okay, that sounds fine," Sharon nodded to him. "Be safe."
"Always," he nodded. "Night, Andy. Glad to hear about everything. I'm sure you know that Mom tried that dating site, but I'm really happy you two are working on things. I hope it works out."
"Thanks, Ricky," Andy shook his hand. "Your mom and I are going to put 110% in to make that happen."
Ricky grabbed his keys, "Yeah, anything I can use to guilt trip Emily and Mom in the future is good with me-you know, the whole, "Em, at least your parents love each other," and to Mom, "It's hard to be the only child in the family from a broken home," he grinned.
"Ricky!" Sharon exclaimed, but Andy doubled over in laughter. "You two are terrible," she shook her head, and Ricky waved as he left.
Andy joined Sharon at the table again, looking at her with a small smile, "Well, not what we expected, but that went well."
She nodded, "It did. I am not sure if us not having a lot of time to talk about the afternoon was good or bad, but Ricky being here," she smiled, "I'm always glad to see the kids."
"Come one," he stood, extending his hand to her, "let's sit on the couch, and we can call Emily from there. I brought my laptop up because while I hate to say it, she'll answer my call, but I'm not sure she'll answer yours."
"No, you're right," Sharon said, shaking her head. The two sat down, Andy putting his arm around Sharon, and she got situated in his side. They were quite for a few minutes, just processing their day.
"I hadn't put trust at the center of our issues," he said a few minutes later. Sharon hummed in agreement.
"Nor had I. I guess I had anger, but anger isn't the issue; it's the result. Sometimes, it's good for an outside perspective."
"Yeah," he sighed. "I'm going to miss you like crazy now this week."
"Me too," she reached up and squeezed his hand that was on her shoulder. "You will be busy at work, though," she bit her lip to keep from laughing.
"Yeah," he grunted. "I'm making a photocopy of that class certificate. Framing it. Not going back to that class again," he continued to grumble.
"Hmm, well, Lieutenant, let's try out those online skills of yours and call our daughter, shall we?" she teased as she patted his chest and moved slightly so Andy could get the computer.
Andy started the video chat, settling back in with Sharon on the couch.
"Hi Dad," they both heard, a cheerful Emily greet Andy when the computer connected.
"Hey Dancing Queen. How was the show?" he asked. Sharon wasn't visible yet from the screen. They had done that purposely.
"It went well, and -wait, where are you?" she asked, noting the background. "Dad, are you at the condo? That's Mom's lamp."
Andy pulled the computer back further to reveal Sharon sitting with him, "Hi Sweetheart," Sharon smiled. "
"Mom? Dad? What's wrong?" she asked in a bit of a panic.
"Nothing," Sharon shook her head. Andy did the same.
"Here's the thing," Andy started, "we are trying to work through everything."
"You two?" Emily asked, "Like, as in get back together?"
"We're trying," Sharon shrugged.
"Emily, I love your mom, and she loves me. Sometimes, that's not enough, but we want it to be; we want to sort through our mistakes so we don't make them again. We want a future," Andy explained.
"Wow, I don't know what to say," Emily pursed her lips. Andy had to not laugh; that look was all Sharon. "Mom, I'm still angry."
"Then, perhaps you should speak to someone, a professional even. Talk to one, and if you are too stubborn to do that, they try your Aunt Angela. She loves you," Sharon said. "Life is too short for this, Emily."
"I'll think about it. Are you following your own advice?" she asked.
"In fact, we are," Andy said. "Look, this isn't open for discussion, the 'what you think is good for us' bit, but we wanted to you know. Everything is in the open, and we hope with time, we'll make progress."
"I'll stay out of it," Emily said. "I hope you guys can figure it out. You're both miserable without each other. I see it."
"We know it," Sharon offered a small smile. "Now, will you tell us about the show?"
They talked to Emily another 10 minutes, the most Sharon had spoken to her in a very long time. When they finished, they both put their heads on the back of the couch, exhausted from the day.
"I'm going to go," Andy said, "or, I'll fall asleep right here, and I've already fallen asleep in sitting up once this week."
He stood, pulling Sharon with him. She walked with him to the door, "I had a good day," she nodded, admitting, "even with our session with the priest."
"I did too," he said, giving her a small smile. "You'll be okay this week?"
She nodded, "I'll be fine. You take care of yourself this week and get some rest. I heard you have a long week."
"I will," he nodded. "Enjoy your time with Ricky. How long is he staying, anyway?"
Sharon closed her eyes, chucking, "You know, with all this, I forgot to ask."
"I did too," he admitted. "Well, I guess he's full of surprises."
"Be safe going home," she tugged on his hand.
"I will, and I'll text you when I get there-only because it's still Saturday, and we said we wouldn't talk from Sunday-next weekend," he replied.
Sharon rolled her eyes, "You and your technicalities, Lieutenant."
"Hey," he raised his hand, "I'm only following the rules. You love rules."
"Night, Andy," she leaned up and gave him a quick kiss, one that mimicked the one he'd given her the night before after their "first" date.
"Night, Sharon," he repeated it and winked at her as he walked out the door. She took a deep breath and closed her eyes. Progress.
