She watched the skyline as the plane started to make its descent. Sharon cleared her throat, which apparently was the wrong thing to do, as her seat companion took it upon himself to strike up a conversation.
"You live in L.A.?" Sharon heard him ask and tried not to sigh; she'd managed to avoid him for most of the flight, not that the man had done anything at all to be a problem, but she'd just had a lot on her mind and had been exhausted enough to sleep part of the trip.
"No," she said with a kind, yet small smile as she glanced to him. He smiled back, taking her answer as a door opening to a full-on conversation.
"Me either, yet, I mean," he gestured wildly with his hands. "I've got a job interview. I hope to be moving out here. I'm just finishing college."
Sharon nodded as she listened, glancing back out the window. The scenery was familiar, yet foreign, palm trees looking odd compared to the New England forestry to which she'd become accustomed. "Ahh, best of luck," Sharon said with a quick nod and a smile to him, turning her attention back out the window. She was glad she'd been given a window seat today; it had proven to be a good place for a long nap.
"Moving here would be a dream come true, and I mean, with my degree in film and all," he continued to gesture. "I mean, I know I'm not going to be doing anything amazing with my lack of experience and all, but this just would be a great job for me, a good change in my life."
Sharon nodded and gave him a glance again, listening to him as he explained his placement on this flight. Funny, as she didn't want to share with him, but she did share some of his sentiments and possibly even dreams. She'd been living back East now for 14 years. 14 years. Her beloved aunt had survived 11 of them, and these last three, she'd been alone with the kids getting them through high school. Emily was now in college, studying at NYU with hopes of becoming a professional dancer. Sharon had insisted she obtain some sort of useful degree, and Emily had finally listened. Ricky was off to school soon too, and that was part of the reason she was on this trip. He'd decided, sight unseen, to attend Stanford, the same place Jack had attended law school. That hadn't been his reasoning, far from it. In fact, it had almost been the reason NOT to attend Stanford, but Ricky had his sights set on the tech world and wanted to get to California, much like her seat companion was droning on and on about right now with his future job prospects.
With Emily well on her way to finishing school and Ricky moving across the country, Sharon had found herself almost alone now, or so she would be in a few months. She was content with that, that is, until the LAPD of all groups had called her. There had been a major scandal in the FID division, and they were cleaning house. Her name had come up quite quickly, she was told, mostly from Gavin who was getting the inside scoop all over the building. She'd been away from the LAPD long enough that she had no real ties to the scandal, yet the LAPD was looking to rebuild with people familiar with the department. Promoting someone to take over FID from within hadn't been a true option, not with their cleaning house mentality, but with Sharon, she'd done that job now for the last 14 years, just on a different coastline. She'd been called and now summoned to LA; it appeared she, too, like her seat companion, was flying west for a job interview.
With Ricky relocating to California, this job really fell into her lap at a good time. Sharon had spent the last decade plus raising her kids, tending to her adoring aunt, and working. Sure, she had dated a little here and there, the random guy, the chemistry teacher from the high school, even a banker, but nothing had ever been serious or more than just a few dates. She had more than enjoyed her life, had made some nice friends, but that didn't mean that this job potential wasn't something that excited her. She'd missed LA over the years, knowing, though, that getting away when she had had been the right thing to do. It had been toxic back then, dealing with work, Jack, and really just all of it. She'd struggled financially, and moving back East had really settled a lot of that. She'd not given much thought to LA since then, honestly, and she'd not had to interact with Jack much either. The two still remained legally separated mainly because neither had been in the state to file things further. She was fine with that and had no clue if and when she would see Jack. Jack. Good old Jack.
She'd barely heard from him over the last years, and the kids had had even less contact. He hadn't done anything when Emily had graduated, and she seriously doubted he would do anything for Ricky. Sharon had a PO box address in Vegas, and that was about it. She assumed he was checking it because she'd not had anything returned. His parents had kept in touch, somewhat, with the kids before they had both passed away, a month apart from each other. Jack hadn't even told her about that until well after the fact, which had annoyed her; the kids did love their grandparents, the little they saw of them. Jack hadn't been that close to them, and he just hadn't bothered to tell them until a few boxes showed up, addressed to the kids, mementos from their grandparents and another week later, a call from a lawyer with information about a little money the kids had been left as well. That had been it. Their ties to Jack and his family were ceasing to exist, and while she hated it for her kids, she'd done everything to be mother and father to them.
Sharon jumped slightly, realizing she'd been daydreaming and had missed the landing. The plane was now on the ground, moving slowly toward their gate. She eyed her seatmate who was sitting forward, looking ready to pounce on the aisle as soon as the all clear was given. She had to almost smile at his excitement, and she, herself, took a deep breath and sat back in her seat. Los Angeles. She was back in town and had an interview with the LAPD tomorrow. She expected the interview to last most of the day. It was Tuesday, and while she hadn't planned on her entire week to be consumed by this, such was life. She would interview Wednesday, and because she had the good sense to know how things worked around here, she'd also left Thursday open in case they had another interview left for her, and she had promised to spend a day (or two) with Gavin. Sharon had a red-eye on Saturday night, scheduled to land early Sunday morning in New York. She was planning on brunch and church with Emily in New York and would then take the train north after that, finally arriving home Sunday evening. Yes, she had a full week ahead of her and was optimistic about what the future might hold.
Was she set on this job? No, Sharon wasn't at all set on this job or a definite return to Los Angeles. Leaving the East Coast also meant leaving Emily, and she did hate doing that. Moving toward one child would take her from another. She was also content with her life, not that she couldn't change things, but she was content. She had inherited Berine's place when she died, really everything from Bernie, and after hiring a good attorney to sort through things, Sharon had a good chunk of money in the bank. The kids would be set for college, and she'd sold most things back East. She still had her small bungalow, and yes, while it was home, it wasn't anything she was particularly attached to either.
"So, have you ever been here before?" Sharon turned her head and found her seatmate trying to chat with her again. She could see he was nervous, and she gave him a warm smile.
"I lived here for years, moved away, and I might be moving back here. Like you," she said with a single nod, "I have a job interview."
That got him smiling, and he gave her a wide smile as he nodded, "Hey, that's awesome. Good luck. What do you do? Business?"
"No," she chuckled. "Actually, ahh, I am a police officer, a captain."
His eyes widened, and Sharon recognized that same expression, the one that blew people away when they registered her job. She found it funny. No one ever suspected she was a cop. He glanced at her, and she shrugged her shoulders and smiled."
"I'm impressed," he nodded.
She chuckled again, "Don't be," and with that, she nodded. "It looks like you are almost out of your misery. It's almost time to get off the plane. Best of luck."
With that, he smiled to her and offered the same. Sharon quickly lost sight of him as she got off the plane and moved into the large airport. She smoothed her clothing, held her head high, and she started for baggage claim. She was looking forward to her hotel tonight, a good rest, and she would see what L.A. had to offer her this time.