A/N: Just thought I should note that I started writing this story before Jackson was introduced (or even named). For the sake of continuity, I am leaving the name I gave Sharon's husband and his backstory in the beginning of this fan fiction. So basically, this is an AU fic now.

**Many thanks to the lovely Amy for proof reading this story and also for suggesting some really great ideas**

Sharon limped towards the kitchen, where Rusty was mixing eggs for breakfast. He looked at her suspiciously as he noticed the dark bruise that formed on her swollen knee. He opened the freezer, grabbed the ice pack and handed it to her. She took it and thanked him.

"How did it happen?" he wondered.

"A wrestling match," Sharon shrugged.

"What do you mean a wrestling match? Were you attacked or something like that?" Sharon was genuinely touched by the worried gaze in his eyes. She put her arm on his shoulder and shook her head.

"No. It was at the gym. My opponent made this really smart move and I fell. I lost the round." Sharon explained and scrunched her nose. "It's just a bruise. You don't need to worry about me, Rusty."

"Of course I do. That's what we do, right? We worry about each other," Rusty exclaimed and poured the egg mixture into the large frying pan.

"No, Rusty. We live in the same household and we care for each other," she corrected him and wondered where he got the idea that he had to worry about her. It was true that she worried about him and his wellbeing often; he was, after all, an abandoned child with a difficult past. But she couldn't see any reason for him to worry about her.

"Well, I worry about you sometimes." Rusty admitted and his blue eyes examined her reaction.

"Why?" Sharon knew this was a good opportunity for a heart-to-heart conversation and it was a rare one too.

"Because you always worry about other people, and there doesn't seem to be anyone who worries about you," Rusty explained.

"That is very sweet of you, Rusty," Sharon smiled at him. She knew that he had nothing to worry about when it came to her, but it seemed that he found comfort in caring for her happiness and she would not deny him of that feeling.

"So… You came back pretty late last night."

"Yes, Lieutenant Flynn and I went out for dinner after the gym," Sharon explained. "If I knew that you were awake, I would have knocked on your door and said good night."

"It's okay," Rusty shrugged. He pulled Sharon's favorite mug out of the cupboard, poured coffee into it and then handed it to her. Suddenly, they heard a knock on the door. Rusty and Sharon looked at each other, both of them slightly surprised by the interruption. Eventually, Sharon shrugged and walked over to open the door. Andy stood there, a boyish smile on his face.

"Good morning, beautiful," he said and leaned to capture her lips. Conscious of the fact that only a thin wall separated them from Rusty's eyes, Sharon placed her palm on his chest and pulled away. Still close to him, she looked into his eyes and Andy let himself delve into the depth of her green orbs.

"Sharon, who is it?" Rusty's voice quickly brought both of them to their senses. Andy smiled at her and took a step back. She forced her lips to curve upwards in a shy smile, hoping that he was not insulted by her rejection.

"It's An… Lieutenant Flynn," she said. "What are you doing here?" she asked Andy in half a whisper.

"I thought you'd want your car back," Andy said as he pulled Sharon's car keys from his pocket. She took them and gave him half a nod, her mouth unable to utter anything longer than a quick 'thank you'.

"Is he staying for breakfast?" Rusty came around the corner and Sharon quickly pulled away from Andy.

"I don't… Lieutenant, would you like to eat breakfast with us?" she asked in the most official tone she could muster.

"Only if you don't mind it, Captain," he replied and his voice and eyes were soft, comforting.

"Of course I don't." Sharon shrugged.

"Then I better make myself helpful," Andy took his leather jacket off and threw it on the couch. He walked into the kitchen and patted Rusty's shoulder. "I know how to make the best waffles in the world." Sharon smiled at his words. The lieutenant always bragged about his cooking skills.

"Really, in the entire world?" Rusty asked in disbelief.

"In LA," Andy replied with a grin. Sharon grabbed her cup of coffee from the kitchen counter and watched them, enjoying their interactions. Both of them moved elegantly in the kitchen and Sharon's stomach started tingling when the sweet smell of fresh omelets and waffles spread throughout her kitchen and living room.

Rusty set the table and insisted that she sit and finish drinking her coffee. He then made sure that she kept the ice pack on her knee. She bent forward in order to rub the side of his arm, but he quickly went back to the kitchen. Most of the time, Sharon found it hard to show him how much she cared for him and how touched she was by all the small thoughtful things he did for her. It was not something she did deliberately, but out of respect for his personal space. On the rare occasions that she felt valiant enough to attempt caressing his arm or back affectionately, he would flinch and get out of her reach as fast as she could. He would never know how painful it was for her to see him pulling away from her this way; and she wouldn't tell him, because then he might compromise on his level of comfort to make her feel better about it. His body – his choice, she told herself.

"Sharon, are you okay?" She heard Andy's voice. She smiled at him, and shrugged.

"I was just thinking. Did you say anything?"

"I asked if you want more coffee," Andy replied.

"No, thank you. I'm fine. Is breakfast ready?" she inhaled deeply, the delicious smell making her mouth water.

"Almost," Rusty replied. She let out a low moan, feeling her stomach fluttering a bit too noisily. Emptying her mug into her mouth, she savored the extreme bitterness of her coffee on her tongue. It erased the taste of Andy's mouth. The bitterness however, lingered and she set the mug down on the table and took in a shaky breath. She had never felt so confused in her life. A week ago, she was mourning the death of her marriage and now she was kissing her lieutenant. Something seemed so utterly wrong with such a swift transition and it filled her chest with a feeling she could barely identify, like a heavy and painful pinch.

"Breakfast is ready," Rusty called out happily and placed a plate with a thick slice of a fluffy omelet and waffle in front of her. Rusty took his usual place by the table and Andy took the seat in front of Sharon.

"So what are your plans for today?" Andy asked.

"I was thinking we go to the hospital to visit Lilly. There are some questions I need to ask her and maybe afterwards, we could try to convince the nurse to take her out of the hospital for an hour. A change of scenery and some fresh air might be good for her," Sharon said.

"Can I come too?' Rusty asked. Sharon gave him a little nod.

The head nurse stopped them as they were about to walk to Lilly's room and Andy pulled out his badge. The nurse shook her head and sighed.

"Didn't anybody call you?" she asked, looking at Sharon.

"Call me about what? What happened?" Sharon asked, an uncomfortable feeling spreading throughout her body.

"Her condition is unstable. No one goes into that room except for medical staff," the nurse explained.

"What do you mean? I thought she was improving. She was fine yesterday," Sharon tried to hide her distress.

"The infection became worse. She had trouble breathing. The doctors had to intubate her," the nurse replied.

"Can I please see her? I won't go in; I'll just stand in the doorway for a minute, please," Sharon begged. The nurse shrugged and opened the door to Lilly's room. Sharon stepped forward and looked into the room. Lilly was lying in bed, a tube in her mouth, looking extremely pale and small in the big bed. Her injured shoulder was bare and the sling was gone. Instead, her arms were tied to the bed rail.

"She was fighting the oxygen, so they had to tie her hands down. It's a normal procedure in cases like this," the nurse explained.

"Is she going to be okay?" Rusty asked, his head peeking behind Sharon's shoulder.

"It's hard to say," the nurse said. "We've seen people recovering from incredibly grim medical conditions and people whose health seemed to be perfect and were gone within hours." Rusty looked at Sharon and could see the almost invisible shudder that went through her body. That was all the indication he needed to see how deeply scared she was for Lilly's fate. She took a deep breath and moved from the doorway. The nurse closed the door behind her. "Listen, if you leave me your phone number, I'll update you on changes in her condition,"

"Okay, thank you," Sharon sighed and handed the nurse her business card.

"And for what it's worth, this girl is lucky to have someone like you who cares for her," the nurse added.

Rusty didn't like silence; it always made him think and over-analyze situations. And silence was heavy around them as they drove back to the apartment. He wished that Flynn was in the car with them, but Sharon insisted that the lieutenant had things to do and sent him home in his own car.

Earlier today, he looked forward to spending some time with Lilly. He's never had any friends who would understand what he's been through as a street treat. He would give anything in the world to feel someone identified with him. Now the situation seemed hopeless.

"I'm sorry," he said and looked at Sharon. He knew that she wasn't letting on how upset she was by the turn of events.

"Sorry about what?" she asked, turning to meet his gaze for just a moment before looking back at the road again.

"I'm sorry things happened the way they did," Rusty replied, "That you're sad recently."

"Rusty, I'm not sad. I'm perfectly fine," Sharon replied.

"That's not true. You have been really sad even before we met Lilly. Did something happen when I was away with my class? Is everything okay with your kids?" By the way Sharon took a deep breath he knew that he was close to the truth.

"Nothing much, really; my husband and I are getting a divorce," she replied dryly, looking at the road.

"I'm sorry," he repeated his words from earlier. "Did you not want that?"

"I did," Sharon said, her voice dropping down a notch.

"And now you don't want it anymore?" Rusty asked.

"He already signed the papers," Sharon sighed.

"So you're already divorced?"

"No," Sharon replied, her sight of the road suddenly clouded by a shroud of tears that gathered in her eyes. She tried to blink them away but it was a futile attempt. "I still have to sign."

"I don't understand," Rusty said, looking at her, hoping that she would look back at him, so he could see her thoughts reflecting in her eyes.

"Rusty, sometimes you think that you really want something, and then when you have it, you don't want it anymore." Her voice sounded tired and defeated in Rusty's ears. He wasn't sure what her words meant exactly. He never met her husband before and he didn't even know his name. But he knew that they hadn't lived together in a very long time. How was it even possible that she would want to stay attached to someone who wasn't even present in her life?

"So does it mean that you don't want to divorce him anymore?" he asked.

"Not necessarily. It means that I need to reconsider my decision. Unfortunately, there are things that are much more important at the moment and I will have to put this aside for a while."