They continued their weekly dinners, and Brenda actually looked forward to them. She'd always thought of Flynn as someone who could be relied upon for work, but hadn't gotten to know him much outside of work. Where he could come off as brash and arrogant sometimes, on a one to one basis he was really quite charming and amusing. She wondered why she'd never really noticed that before. He made her smile with his quips and one-liners, where at work she'd sometimes been annoyed by them.
The weekly get togethers with the team were helpful too. Instead of being just the boss, she was their friend. The feeling of family overwhelmed Brenda. She wished she'd taken the time to get to know them like this long ago. They'd always been a tight group, but now, it had grown into something more.
Often she found herself left with Flynn at the end of the evening, as the others drifted off to do other things on their Friday nights. She didn't find it to be a bad thing, they ended up talking even more. He even got her to play pool while they were at the bar, and he found her to be an excellent player, not something he expected. What he also didn't expect to feel was the reluctance at the end of the evening to just let her go home alone. It was slowly dawning on him that he wanted to be more than just her friend, but he couldn't take that chance. Not now, not with Fritz still in the picture. He knew she talked to him often, could see the strain on her when they did chat. She was confused as to what to do, even after many months of them being apart. Her love for him was still not strong enough to get her to give up her job and move across the country for him.
Given that, it shouldn't have come as a surprise when a process server turned up at Major Crimes and presented her with divorce papers. Brenda had simply took them, stuffed them in her big purse and locked herself in her office, pulling the blinds shut with her team looking after her, saddened for her. She'd held up admirably well since the separation, but this, this changed everything. The end of her marriage was very real now.
Andy kept an eye on her office, hoping that she'd come out soon. He was used to her quirky ways, and this silence was not like her. Deciding that he needed to do something, anything, he approached Provenza. They had plans to go to a baseball game the next day, Saturday. It had been awhile since they'd gone to a game and both looked forward to it. What Andy wanted was to see if they could get one more ticket, that they'd take the Chief with them to the game tomorrow.
"And what exactly would she do at a baseball game, Flynn? Don't you remember her yelling at us for going that one time?"
"I think she was yelling at us because we left the scene of a crime and took over a crime scene. I don't think it was the baseball game itself, genius." Flynn said to him.
"Still, baseball? The Chief?" Provenza was befuddled. Why would Flynn want her to come with them?
"Come on, Provenza! I'll pay for the ticket, just see if you can get one, so she can come with us." Flynn didn't usually plead, but he felt like he had to do this.
Seeing that his friend really wanted the Chief to come with them, Provenza complied. Fifteen minutes later, he walked up to Flynn's desk and told him mission accomplished. He was going to head over and get the ticket, and that Flynn owed him big time. Flynn just smiled, nodding his head in agreement. Now all he had to do was convince the Chief to come to the game with them. He got up and walked towards the office, knocking before letting himself in. Brenda looked up at him, she hadn't been crying, but she was obviously stressed.
"What can I do for you, Lt.?" she asked him, hoping there wasn't a case right yet. She wasn't focused, she felt scattered.
"Well, Chief, Provenza and I wondered if you'd like to come to a Dodgers game with us. We have tickets to the Dodgers game." He smiled at her, wondering if she remembered screeching at them about Skybox tickets so long ago.
It brought a smile to her face. It was around then that the team had started to really come together, after the roughness of the early days of her tenure here. They'd covered for one another, got through it. Provenza and Flynn had anted up on everything they owed the team, and Brenda still enjoyed the Merlot that they had repaid her with.
"When's the game?" she asked.
"Tomorrow afternoon. Think you can make it?" Flynn asked, his face like a little boy, waiting with anticipation.
"Well, it doesn't look like I'm doing anything, and barring us getting called in on a case, I'd love to go." Brenda agreed.
"That's great, Chief. I'll pick you up around 2:30, okay? And I promise you, we'll get to the game. This car is much better than that piece of crap I used to drive. We'll have to swing by and pick up Provenza, too. I'm his ride also."
"That's fine, Lt. It's a date then. Now, is there anything else?" Not wanting to be rude, but she'd been trying to get a hold of Fritz and find out why he'd filed for the divorce and not at least given her a heads up. She thought she'd at least deserved that much, not just some process server showing up at her work place.
"No, ma'am. Will we see you tonight, going out with the group?" Flynn asked. He enjoyed their team outings, even if he didn't drink. It made him feel like he'd become accepted by the team, considering how much he had sabotaged it in the beginning. He really felt as if they had each others back.
"I'm not sure, Lt. If I do, I won't be staying late. I have a few things I have to do, and I've just been putting them off." Brenda looked down.
Flynn was disappointed, but didn't want to press her further. Her going to the game the next day was already enough. "Okay, Chief. Talk to you later."
He left her office, happy that she'd agreed to the baseball game. He didn't know why he'd wanted her to go with them, just thought that she might like to do something different. And he'd get to spend more time with her. It was all he wanted to do lately, be around her. He didn't want her to know that, though. At least he'd have Provenza along with them. The two of them should be able to keep her entertained for awhile. Sitting at his desk, he smiled, remembering how angry she'd been so long ago, over the Skybox tickets and their idiotic hats. His smile grew larger as an idea formulated in his mind. He had to go shopping before he picked the Chief up the next day, that was for sure.
The rest of the day flew by quite quickly. Provenza had arrived back, giving Flynn the ticket and demanding payment immediately. Andy had coughed up the cash, and things were relatively normal for the Major Crimes unit. End of day came, and they checked to see if the Chief wanted to go out with them for their weekly get together, but for the first time, Brenda begged off. She hadn't been able to get a hold of Fritz, and she was in a crappy mood because of it. She just wanted to go home. The team understood, and they gathered their stuff together to proceed with out her. Andy excused himself for a minute, to go in and say goodbye to her, make sure she wouldn't change her mind. He tried, but she held firm, telling him that she'd see him tomorrow.
Andy left, following after the others, disappointed more than he let on. Without her along, a part of them was missing. Still, he'd see her tomorrow, and for that, he was glad.
Brenda headed home shortly after the rest of her team left. She had wanted to go with them, but really hadn't been up to it. What she really wanted to do was talk to Fritz. She was angry that he hadn't even phoned, to tell her that he'd decided to file, that she'd been blindsided in front of her team, of all things, and knew they felt sorry for her again. She'd spent the last few months being strong, but now, she just wanted it to be over with. The indecision had taken its toll on her, and she was at least glad someone had made the first move to end it. She needed to get on with her life, and get out of the limbo she felt she was in. Going to the game tomorrow would be a good thing, she told herself. Getting out with friends, and forget about sulking. That's what this evening was for.
Getting home, she left her stuff on the couch, leaving a trail to her bath. She drew a hot bath, went back for a glass of Merlot and carried it into the bathroom. Settling into the bath, she took a sip, hoping to let all the stress go for a little while. Grabbing her phone, she dialled Fritzs' number again. Getting his voicemail again, she left an angry message for him.
"Look, Fritz, I think I deserved better than a process server showing up to tell me that you wanted a divorce now. You could have at least told me. Damn it, you could have told me you decided yourself. I've never been more angry with you than I am right now. And why can't you answer your phone? I've been trying to reach you all day!" The machine clicked off, leaving Brenda with just dial tone. She put her phone down and had another sip of her Merlot. God, she just wished that this whole thing was over, totally, the divorce final, that she could just move on. Whatever feelings she had left for him were dissipating rapidly, as annoyance set in.
Finally, she just wanted to sleep, looking forward to tomorrow. Anything to forget what had happened today. The fact that she'd be spending it with Andy made it worthwhile. As she dressed for bed, she began to wonder why spending time with him meant so much to her the last few months. She almost laughed at the thought that they were friends, considering they'd despised each other when she arrived here. Now, there was no one else she'd rather be around, they'd come along way over the years. Smiling, she fell asleep thinking of Flynn, strangely comforted by the fact she was going to be with him the next day.