Seriously… how can you not love Oliver Shaw? These chapters were only supposed to be quick scenes 1000-1500 words at most… and then there's Oliver. Enjoy.

Thanks to SairsJ for the once over and Mamaverd for the brainstorming session.

Sam flinched a little but didn't look back. "Yeah, Boss?"

"Men's locker room is that way!"

Slowly but Shaw-ly

Sam met Andy's eye and raised his brows; he chose not to turn around though as he offered the boss a slight wave to let him know he got the message. With a quick wink at Andy, he pivoted on his heel and headed for the men's locker room smiling as he listened to her chuckle behind him. That wasn't so bad, he thought. Nope, it definitely could have been worse.

Sam pulled open the door and thankfully the locker room was almost empty and he was able to dress in solitude. He wasn't quite ready to explain the smile that was permanently etched on his face, not that they couldn't guess. Still he was glad for those extra few minutes alone where he could think about seeing Andy again without everyone else goading him about it. He knew he was just delaying the inevitable though; his friends and co-workers were not going to let this pass without a few smart ass remarks. He would just have to suck it up and not give them any further ammunition.

Sam had just fastened the last button on his uniform, surprised at how much he missed it, when Oliver stuck his head in the door, "you ready, brother?"

Sam pushed his locker closed and looked over at his friend. "Let's go," he said, reaching Oliver in a few short strides.

Oliver put his arm around him, "been awhile, my friend."

Sam looked at him and started to nod before his eyes were pulled away; he watched Andy as she made her way into the parade room ahead of them. "Oh yeah, what did I miss?" Sam asked distractedly.

Oliver looked pointedly at Andy. "You mean besides the obvious," he answered, only catching the tail end of Sam's eye roll when he turned back. "You'll never believe what Epstein di…"

"Glad you could join us gentlemen," Frank remarked from the front of the room. They were the last to arrive so without wasting time on formalities, the Boss started in on the general announcements.

Once everyone was up-to-date with any ongoing investigations and outstanding warrants, Frank revealed the pairings for the day. "Peck and Williams, Diaz and Nash, McNally and Shaw…"

Andy turned to grin at Oliver; she had been told that he would likely be her new partner and she was actually looking forward to it. If she couldn't have Sam as a partner, Oliver was the next best thing.

"Booking," Frank finished and the grin dropped off Andy's face when Oliver grimaced at her. She knew he was irritated that being her partner meant he was going to have to pay penance for her mistakes too. She shrugged her shoulders and tried with the smile again but he wasn't being swayed.

"And lastly…"

Sam rolled his eyes and braced himself; he knew there was only one other name besides his own that hadn't been called and after Oliver's comment this morning, he had to wonder how long they were going to be sharing the dog house.

"Swarek," Frank continued with a mocking smile. "You and Epstein will be manning the radar gun on the Expressway near Spadina."

Sam gritted his teeth and nodded. And so it begins.

Frank nodded in return, impressed that Sam was taking it in stride, not that he probably wouldn't hear about it at the end of the day, but still, it was a start.

"Serve, Protect, and Play on Your Own Time!"

He was scowling at Dov when he said it, and everyone was well aware of what Dov had done last week, but there were also a few snickers and knowing glances thrown at Sam and Andy when some caught a double meaning.

Sam rolled his eyes before pushing a still sniggering Oliver towards the door. "Better you than me brother. Better you than me."

"Just shoot me now." Sam begged as they both watched Dov spring from his seat and flash his partner a toothy grin and a big thumbs up.

Oliver put his arm around Sam. "Come on, buddy, large coffee, my treat."

Sam's gait faltered for a second as Oliver never offered to buy anything. "You're going to need it." Shaw continued under his breath.

Amen to that, Sam thought ready to head towards the sally port until Oliver redirected him to the coffee station.

Sam shook his head. "I should have known," he muttered as Oliver lifted two cups off the stack.

"You know fixing my coffee for me doesn't really count as 'your treat'."

"Yeah, well. I'm stuck in booking because of your little…" He broke off at Sam's glare. "Aaanyway, I'm a little short this week; you know, three girls, birthday parties, dental visits…"

"Oh, so you won't be at the Penny tonight either?" Sam prompted, letting Oliver know in not so many words that he was going to be 'busy'.

"No, no, my friend," Oliver disputed. "Now, I wouldn't go that far. Besides, shouldn't you be paying me back for saving your sorry ass?"

"What?" Sam jerked his head back in surprise.

"Come on; I'm sure you haven't forgotten already. Come on; now who arrived just in the nick of time when Brennan had you down and almost out? Come on. You remember."

"I've been away for three weeks man," Sam reasoned.

"I know. And since I didn't get the thank you card in the mail, I'd say your show of gratitude is way over due. Besides," Oliver was looking over Sam's shoulder watching Andy watch them as she headed back towards the locker rooms. "I'm pretty sure you've been missed."

Sam followed Oliver's eye and caught Andy's. Returning her small smile with a wink, he turned back to see Oliver's knowing grin, but he wasn't going to give him the satisfaction. "I've missed… everyone too, but…"

"Some more than others?" Oliver taunted.

Obviously! Sam huffed out a single chuckle. Nice try. "Yeah but don't tell Epstein I like you more. It might hurt his feelings."

"You're a good friend," Oliver offered mockingly, placing his arm on Sam's shoulder once again. "She's a lucky girl that McNally."

No, Sam was the lucky one and he knew it, but he couldn't say it. Oliver was practically drooling as it was, just waiting for Sam to slip up so he could pounce. He fed off this stuff and right now he was looking at Sam like he was an all you can eat buffet. And Sam wasn't about to hand him the fork.

"Yep," he replied cockily.

Oliver shook his head. Damn it! He should have known better than to think Sam would fall for a few well placed words. These feelings might be new for him, but that didn't mean he was naive. "So you buying me a drink or not?" Oliver tried again.

Sam grinned; he loved getting the upper hand. "You'll get your drink, just not tonight."

Oliver may have been down but he wasn't out. "What's wrong with tonight? Do you have other plans?" He asked in mock innocence.

Oh he had big plans, but he wasn't about to admit it to Oliver; Andy was already self conscious enough as it was and she had to spend the whole day with him.

"Come on. You always come to the Penny; at least you did before you… went under. You're not going 'undercover' again tonight are you Sammy? Don't forget; that's how you got into trouble in the first place."

Well, Andy called that one.

Sam flinched a little; Oliver was starting to fight dirty. "You're an ass."

"So I've been told," Oliver acknowledged proudly. "But admit it; you missed me. And I missed you; I just want you to feel the love."

Oh he was going to feel the love alright, just not with Oliver. "Don't worry about me, buddy." Sam smirked. "I can feel it just fine from home."

Oliver didn't doubt that for a minute. "Fine, but just so you know Zoe is expecting you for supper tomorrow night too."

What? No. Sam tried to calm the apprehension that was rising in his chest and took a sip of his coffee to buy some time. He wanted, no needed, a few nights with just him and Andy; they needed to figure out just what normal was, how being together was going to work before they let the rest of the world in. "How about Tuesday? I need a couple of nights to get back in the swing of things."

Oliver raised his brow before speaking in mock concern. "Remember Buddy, you're still healing; the acrobatics should probably be kept to a minimum."

Sam almost choked on his coffee and Oliver chuckled, "seriously though. Zoe is expecting you this week. She still doesn't understand why you wouldn't come over while you were on suspension." She wasn't the only one.

"I really wasn't good company," Sam explained simply. He wasn't about to go into the details; they weren't pretty. First week, he just looked and felt like shit; there's no way he was going to let Oliver's girls see him like that. It would have only upset them, started them worrying about their dad even more than they probably already did. Second week, he was mad at the world wondering why the hell they had to stay apart, and what good it was doing. Third week, he was just a sad, sorry mess and there was no way he was letting anyone see him like that, especially Oliver. He'd never hear the end of it.

"What? Sam Swarek in a surly mood; I can't even imagine," Oliver answered feigning shock. "You're right Zoe would have totally missed your usually sunny personality."

"I'm not that bad," Sam muttered.

"Well, not anymore. For a guy who got the crap beat out of him less than a month ago, you're in surprisingly good spirits."

Sam shrugged, "just glad to be back in the action."

"Yeah, the action, the swing of things…" Oliver shook his head and grimaced. "No need to draw me a picture."

Sam finally laughed out loud; he had missed Oliver, pointed remarks and all.

"So, you'll be over on Tuesday then," Oliver confirmed. "I can tell Zoe you'll be there, tell her they'll be one more for supper?"

Oliver was fishing and Sam knew it; he was obviously supposed to make sure Andy came too or at the very least ask Sam to invite her. Zoe hated being out of the loop.

"Yep, I'll be there," Sam agreed heartily, "shouldn't be a problem."

"You're not going to make this easy are you?" Oliver grumbled.

"What do you mean?" Sam asked innocently, dimples threatening to make another appearance.

"Ass."

The two friends continued to eye each other up until the stalemate was broken by Andy's voice echoing across the bullpen. "You coming, Oliver?"

Sam turned and Oliver watched as his face lit up. "Guess I'll have to get used to that," he mused.

"What? Andy? She's actually a pretty good p…"

"No, that," Oliver interrupted, pointing to the smile on Sam's face before grinning himself.

Sam started to push Oliver's finger away from his face when Dov joined them. He hadn't even had a coffee yet and he was already buzzing in anticipation. "Ready to rock and roll, Swarek?"

Or not. Oliver thought as the smiled dropped quickly from Sam's face. Andy was going to have her work cut out for her if she had to counteract long shifts with Epstein. But somehow Oliver was sure she was up to the challenge.

He clapped Sam on the back before heading off towards booking. "Don't forget about Tuesday."

"I told you; I'll be there."

Oliver turned back. "Sam-my," he warned.

Sam didn't even offer him a look back; he simply followed Epstein out with a wave over his shoulder and a smirk Oliver couldn't see. He would call Zoe when he got to the car; tell her to set two extra plates.

Don't forget to check out the Rookie's Choice Awards starting in a few days: .net/forum/The_Parade/106712/