Sharon flew up, realizing she'd once again fallen asleep on her couch. She should be grateful she'd slept at all. She hadn't been sleeping well for quite some time, weeks now to be exact. Realizing what she had been dreaming about wasn't all a dream, she glanced felt around for her phone and picked it up. 3:37, and she sighed. Her back hurt, and it had been hurting since she'd spent days in the hospital sitting at Andy's bedside, waiting for him to wake up. That was weeks ago, and her back still hurt, and she wasn't sleeping well. She flopped back against the couch. Her condo. Dark. Silent. Middle of the night. Too quiet. Empty, even with Rusty there. She really needed to get up and go to her own bed, but she had a feeling she wouldn't be able to fall asleep again. Instead, she looked to her phone, the one she was gripping in her hand, and she did what she'd done the last several nights.
"Hey Beautiful, are you not sleeping again?" she heard his raspy, sleepy voice, before she even could utter a greeting. She blushed at even the sound of his voice. Still, now weeks, later, she was just glad to even hear his voice.
"I'm sorry to wake you again. It's becoming a habit, I guess," she sighed. "I fell asleep on the couch and just woke up in almost a panic again. I don't think I'll be able to go back to sleep."
"I've told you to call me anytime, Sharon. Don't apologize for waking me. I believe you spent many a sleepless night waiting for my sorry self to wake up. The least I can do is talk to you when you can't sleep. I'm glad you called. Want me to come over?" he offered.
"No," Sharon waved her hand in the air, which was silly because it was dark, and she was alone. "You still need your rest, although, my calling in the middle of almost every night of the night isn't helping. I don't need you driving around in the middle of the night."
"Sharon, I'm good to drive, middle of the night and all, even to come back to work next week. We talked about that. Hey, talk to me now. Was it the dream about the hospital alarms again?" he asked.
She sighed, "You know me too well," she admitted. "Yes, although, is it a dream if it really happened? I start to fall asleep, hear those machines going off, and I see myself jumping up, thinking you were coding on me."
She heard him sigh, "Yeah, but, I wasn't," he explained. "I never did. You know those alarms started going off because Provenza tripped over them and that caused the cord to come out, hence, the alarms going crazy. That mess was all Provenza, not me dying on you."
She sighed, and took a moment to catch her breath, "I know. In my dream, though, it is you coding on me, not Provenza swearing at the cords he just tripped over."
"Provenza is always causing a mess, huh?" he offered a slight chuckle.
"I should have known I couldn't even be in an ICU room with the two of you without some sort of issue," she said, sounding more relaxed.
"Hey! Don't drag me into this. I was unconscious," he added.
"Well, you did wake up in the middle of all that," she now chuckled.
"Yeah, if I wasn't in enough of a haze trying to figure out what was going on, I hear Provenza muttering and rambling on about the machines. Then, I hear all the alarms going off on the machines, wondering what was happening to me. Turns out, Provenza happened," he sighed.
"I can't believe I sat there for a few days, just waiting for you to open your beautiful brown eyes, and as I'm up and trying to figure out the alarm situation, I look over and see you looking at us," she sighed and then laughed. "Of course, you'd wake up the moment I'm not right next to your bed, holding your hand."
"Why do you think I woke up? You let go of my hand. It was cold," he said.
"It was cold for days, Andy. Trust me, I checked often to make sure you weren't dead. It was that cold," she stated.
"Well, not dead, I can promise you," he said softly. "Things are good, Sharon. That's all behind us. I'm coming over."
"Andy, do not come over," she said, exasperated.
"Too late; I'm already in the car," he replied. "Now that I can drive again and be a normal member of society, I'm going to come over. You can't stop me."
"Andy," she sighed, as she ran her hand through her hair, "I didn't call you to get you to come over. Now, I'm mad at myself for waking you. I'm fine, really. Don't come over; go back into the house. That's an order, Lieutenant."
"Make me," he smirked into the phone, "Technically, I'm not back at work until Monday. It's Friday, so you aren't the boss of me, now," he clarified. "Besides, we agreed that you could only boss me around at work. This isn't work."
"Maybe I won't answer the door, then. That would serve you right for doing exactly what I asked you not to do," she tried.
"You'll answer the door," he said confidently.
"How do you know? Maybe I will just go into my room and close the door, drowning on you knocking," she said.
"Then, I'll just use this key," he smirked back to her, greeted with silence. He knew he had her. She hadn't thought about the fact he had a key, even though she'd had to use his key to go to his house countless times while he was in the hospital.
"Fine," she sighed. "Well, then, I'm going to at least go and wash my face. I fell asleep while reading earlier, and I feel gross."
"Oh, lucky me, a gross Sharon," he teased. Sharon chuckled. "I'll be there shortly, Sharon."
"Thank you," she said in an almost whispered voice. "Be careful, and I'll see you soon."
Once Sharon hung up with Andy, she stood and moved toward her bathroom. She wasn't lying when she said gross. She felt like she had when she'd been staying at the hospital waiting for him to wake up. Deciding Andy had a little bit of a drive, she decided to get a shower. Her hair felt gross, her face, everything. She finally started to relax a few minutes later as she felt the hot water. It gave her a few minutes to reflect on the last month.
Christmas had come and gone, and it has been a crazy one. It ended up being one of her favorite Christmas' even with all the circumstances. Backing up even further, yes, Andy had finally awakened, and he had done so in the middle of Provenza's chaotic scene in the room. Provenza had gone to get the nurse because Andy's heart rate was doing odd things, but in maneuvering around the room, he'd tripped on one of the cords. Alarms started going off, and the nurses ran in, to find Provenza tangled in a mess. As they were all trying to get that straightened out, Sharon glanced over and almost tripped over more cords when she saw that Andy was awake. His heart rate doing odd things was apparently his way of rejoining the land of the living. Quickly, the chaos shifted to him, and an hour later, after everything and everyone had calmed down, Provenza left to get back to work and update the team, and Sharon finally had a moment to just sit and look at him, awake, something she'd been wanting to do for days.
"Hi," she finally said as she sat down and took his hand in hers. Finally, it felt warm. It felt like Andy.
"Hi," he said, a big groggily to her. He squeezed her hand.
"So, get some good sleep?" she joked, as she shook her head and closed her eyes. She put her other hand up to rub her face, her hand supported by the side of his bed.
Andy started to chuckle, "Oh, it hurts to laugh," he said, clutching his still sore ribs. "Obviously, I've been out of it for some time. What happened, and please tell me you haven't been sitting in that chair for the duration."
Sharon gave him a small shrug, "I haven't sat here for the duration," she started, and when she caught his glare, even in his hospital haze, she rolled her eyes, "I haven't sat the whole time. I've talked to the nurses, the doctors," she took a deep breath. "But, yes, with the exception to go home and shower after a couple days and another brief run to your house for a few things for you, I've been right here. You've been in the hospital now four days, Andy."
"Four days?" he said, still a bit hoarse.
She nodded, "Yes, surgery and recovery took almost a day itself, and then you've taken quite the nap since then. Your doctors said your body just needed to heal. They've been monitoring you for blood clots. Don't die on me now," she offered him a small smile. He squeezed her hand tighter.
"Last thing I remember, I was at Provenza's place," he said, trying to regain his memory.
She nodded, "Yes, you fell. You hit your head, and you developed a blood clot. You had a concussion, and they were worried about internal bleeding, mainly in your head at first, but since the surgery, they've been worried about one developing anywhere. Andy, you scared us."
He sighed, and he tugged at her hand, "Hey, I'm sorry," he said with a sad look. "Obviously, that was not something I planned."
She nodded, "I know, and it's okay. I'm just glad you are awake," she grinned at him. "I don't think Provenza and I could have gone another day being civil to each other," she smiled even brighter.
"So, wait, am I in the ICU? You and Provenza have been back here with me?" he asked.
She nodded, "Yes, we gave the nursing staff a crash course on our version of family. The kids are both out of town. Don't worry; they know what's going on. I've been talking to Sandra, and she'd been updating them. In fact, I need to let her know you are awake," she said, starting to reach for her purse.
"Hey," he tugged her hand back toward him, "in a minute," he said. "Stay, just sit here, please? I think you're an expert at it by now. So, you've been here this whole time? You've been talking to Sandra? Sharon, I'm almost speechless. I don't know what to say. Thank you, obviously. I can only imagine how much I scared you, and I'm sorry for that."
She nodded, "You did, but I wasn't going to be anywhere else, Andy. I was happy to talk to Sandra. It was either Provenza or me, and you can imagine how much he didn't want to talk to her," she smiled. Andy groaned at the thought.
"I missed you," Sharon whispered to him, as she tried to choke back her tears. It didn't work; they started falling. Andy sighed, as he looked at her, and he took his hand to brush them away.
"Hey," he offered a smile to her, "I'm sorry. Gosh, I am sorry. I didn't mean to scare you, Sharon. I really can only imagine the worry you had."
She nodded, her water-filled eyes, meeting his, and she shrugged.
He knew she didn't want to be seen crying so he offered, "Sharon, go ahead, and call Sandra. Take a moment because I know you need it. I'll be here," he said sweetly, nodding to her. She returned the nod and stood, reaching down for her phone.
"I'll be right back," she said, but before she left, she turned and looked down at him. Finally, he was actually looking back at her. He had color in his face again, not a lot, but he had some. Without a word, she took the two steps back to his bed, leaned down and gave him a kiss to remember. It took Andy only a second to realize what was going on, and he immediately brought his hands up to her shoulders, pulling her into him. When she finally broke apart and pulled back from him, her hands on the sides of his face, she smiled down at him, "I did a lot of thinking," she offered a smile. He smiled back at her, and she continued, "I realized I'm a total idiot," she said as he grinned. "I'm a total idiot who is totally in love with you, have been for quite some time, but just got comfortable with our friendship."
His grin grew wider, as he looked up at her, "I must have been out a long time for you to figure all that out," he smiled at her, as his hands stroked her arms. "I can't say I'm glad to have fallen, but if it brought about this, well, then, it might be a blessing in disguise," he grinned. "Glad you have figured out what I've known for myself for well, a really long time. Sharon, I have been so in love with you for years, and I didn't want to ruin things, didn't want to push. I didn't think you were at the same place, so that word you used, comfortable, I got comfortable too. Lately though, I was becoming more and more miserable at the thought of nothing more with you, so I can't tell you how happy I am to hear you say that."
Sharon grinned back at him, and she leaned in to kiss him again. When she pulled back this time, she said, "I promised myself I would tell you this when I woke up, and I also promised if you woke up, I'd let you kiss me," she shrugged. "How about I go call Sandra and my kids, and then, we can get back to more of this?" she teased. He grinned, and when she stood, he closed his eyes.
"I'm going to rest up if I'm in for more of that," he mumbled, now with his eyes closed, ready to nap once again, "and, if this is a dream,it's the best dream ever. Sharon noted how good it felt to smile, and she turned to let the family, the whole family, know he was awake.
"It's no dream, Andy. I'll be right back," she said, as she left the room.
Sharon stood now in the shower, eyes closed, thinking back to all of that. She smiled at the memory of finally telling Andy how much she loved him. Remembering that he would be arriving soon, she got out of the shower and found her comfortable pajamas, hoping that she would be able to sleep a few more hours after she sat and talked with Andy for a bit.
She wandered out into her living room, feeling much better, and decided to make tea. She was startled to find Andy already in the kitchen.
"How long was I in the shower?" she asked, as she looked at the clock. She turned back to him, glaring, as she did the math calculations. "Andy, how fast were you driving?" she crossed her arms, glaring over her glasses.
"Well, that's some greeting," he huffed, as he poured the tea into the mugs. "I drive all the way here in the middle of the night, in my pajamas, nonetheless," he exclaimed, and it was then Sharon noticed he was in his pajamas, and she bit her lip to keep from laughing, "and you are irritated with how quickly I got here, huh?" he said, all in a teasing voice.
Sharon walked to his side and wrapped her arms around him, "Thank you for coming even if you broke every speeding violation on the way here."
He returned her embraced and kissed the top of her head, "I didn't break every violation. I was already on the way when I told you I was coming. As soon as you called, I decided to come over. I grabbed my wallet, keys, and I came," he said, pointing at himself. "See," he grinned, "pajama party."
Sharon laughed again, seeing him in his t-shirt, flannel pants, and his new navy blue robe. She'd gotten him that as one of his Christmas gifts, suggesting that after his mess in the hospital, they retire his old one.
"How was your shower? Feel any better? he asked, as he handed her the cup of tea.
"It helped, but I really want to stop waking up in the middle of the night with these almost panic attacks that you died," she sighed, as the two sat on the couch. Sharon immediately snuggled into his side, and he put his arm around her to draw her closer.
"Me too," he said. "Crazy lady calls me at all hours of the night, just about every night," he grumbled, and when she smacked his side, he let out a groan.
Sharon sat up briefly, and looked into his eyes, "Thank you again for coming. In my rant about speeding, I didn't do this," she said, and leaned in to kiss him. He held her tightly, returning her kiss. She then settled into his side again, and he began running his fingers up and down her arm, which she found soothing. The two sat and sipped their tea until it was gone. Sharon then sighed, as Andy had his eyes closed too. Both were dozing.
Andy spoke up in a sleep voice, "Sharon, do you think you can sleep now?"
"Hmm?" she mumbled, and Andy chuckled knowing she was almost asleep, finally.
"Come on," he said as he broke apart from her embrace and stood up, "You need to go to bed. You'll hate yourself if you fall asleep out here again. Every time you do, you complain about it all the next day," he said, as he helped her stand and then walked next to her as he got her into her bed. He bent down once she had her head on the pillow and looked at her. Brown eyes met green, and she smiled back at him.
"I'm really glad you came, even if you could have been pulled over for speeding," she said, as she yawned.
Andy waved her off, "It was nothing. Besides, I would have given patrol a piece of my mind."
Sharon ran her hands through his hair as he knelt beside her bed, "Really? That would have been interesting to hear-Lt. Flynn chewing out patrol for his own speeding. What in the world would you have said to them?"
He shrugged, "I would have told them my girlfriend needed me. She had a bad dream and needed me," he grinned. "Then, when they would have argued about that being a reasonable excuse, I would have told them it was the feared Captain Raydor, and I would have been able to get away as they all had a good laugh," he grinned at her. She chuckled to herself, as she continued to look at him.
"I'm so glad you are doing better, Andy," she said softly. He nodded. "I'm glad your doctor has cleared you, and you can return to work. I've missed you there, well everywhere, but I'll be really glad to have you back at work. Now, I finally feel like we can get on with our lives."
"Me too, Sweetheart," he said as he kissed her hand. "You need to get some sleep."
"Sleep here," she patted the side of her bed, "please."
He looked at her with a raised eyebrow, "Sharon, we talked about wanting to not freak out Rusty. That would be the opposite of not freaking out Rusty."
"He'll be fine. We're sleeping. Keep the door open, then. He'll understand. He knows I haven't slept in a long time. He might even thank you because I already can tell I'll sleep better if you are right there," she mumbled.
Andy kissed her head as he stood and then moved around next to her, "Where's Provenza to hear that I was the rationale one and trying to talk you out of letting me sleep here," he mumbled, causing Sharon to break out into a laugh even though she was almost asleep. He put his arm around her, pulling her tight, and he kissed the side of her head again, "Get some sleep, Sharon," he whispered, as he held her tighter.
She hummed, and before she drifted off to sleep, she said, "I love you, Andy. You've got a great bedside manner."
He smiled into her hair, "I love you too, Sharon, so much. As far as my bedside manner, I learned from the best," he said as he kissed her head again, closed his eyes, and the two drifted off to sleep.
Well, I hope you enjoyed this story! Thanks for all the amazing reviews, and I truly hope you didn't think I'd kill off Andy! Thanks to Maidenpride for bouncing story ideas!