10/10

Still fumbling with his wallet to retrieve the parking fee, Andy felt a small tug at his sleeve, accompanied by a very softly spoken "Are you sure I don't look stupid?". He turned around,already unable to hide his smile, the wallet momentarily forgotten.

The great Sharon Raydor, feared by many among the LAPD, didn't even remotely possess her usual self-confidence. Her shoulders slumped, she was gazing up at him from under her lashes, unintentionally looking terribly cute.

"Honey, you are beautiful," he assured her, reaching out to touch her shoulder. She looked down herself and sighed. "I still can't believe you talked me into wearing this."

"You can't not wear this in this place!" Andy insisted, his other great passion for once outweighing the one he felt for Sharon. At her lost look, he reached out and tucked a loose strand of hair behind her ear. "If you'd rather leave, you can take the car and I'll ride home with Provenza later," he said softly but not quite able to hide his disappointment.

She frowned then shook her head decidedly. "No. I dragged you to the opera and two art-galleries last month. You deserve this. Even if I look like an idiot."

Andy grinned. "You do not. Actually, you look pretty damn hot in my Dodgers gear." He wasn't lying. There was something very sexy about the way she had knotted his spare jersey at one hip to get it to look even remotely form-fitting, especially as the jeans she was wearing along with it were very much that. She looked smaller in the converse shoes he would have never believed she owned and her hair was curled today and pulled back in a long ponytail that fell over her shoulder, his baseball hat too big for her.

For someone who usually avoided fast food, Sharon was surprisingly interested in the hot dog stand and he could tell from the way she was munching through hers and sipping her softdrink that she hadn't allowed herself a snack like this in ages. He was happy to sit there with his arm around her, watching the game while she wasn't very interested. There was no need to explain any rules to her as she had pointed out that she'd been spending lots of Sundays at Ricky's little league games. It was evident, however, that she wasn't particularly taken with any kind of sports. From time to time he looked down at her, checking whether she still looked happy and a big grin spread over his face.

"What?" Sharon asked, balling her napkin inside her hand, about to slide it into her pocket to throw away later. Sharon was far too meticulous to leave garbage behind anywhere, but that was not what Andy was smiling about. Unnoticed by her, there was a big ketchup stain on her chin, just below her bottom lip. He reached out and kissed it away, earning a surprised but hardly unhappy little groan that was soon joined by Provenza's exasperated one on his other side. Her mouth tasted of sugar and oranges and he savored the taste, slowly deepening the kiss.

"Hey idiot." He grudgingly pulled away from the kiss, ready to lash out at his friend when he noticed where the old man was pointing: He hadn't noticed that the break had begun and, more importantly, that one of those goddamn Kissing Cams had been started and trained at him and Sharon, effectively broadcasting their kiss to everyone. He stared at Sharon who was also looking at it and saw her blush furiously. With one fast movement she pulled her hat deeper into her face and reached out to pull him into her again, kissing him deeply, head tilted to the side. He was too taken aback to protest and found himself surprisingly exhilarated by the cheering of the crowd in his ears.

"Fair enough," Provenza grumbled when Andy turned back around, still trying to comprehend the situation. "Everyone knows anyway."

There was a chuckle next to them that soon turned into a downright giggling fit. Flynn and Provenza turned around in unison to look at Sharon whose shoulders were shaking uncontrollably, tears running down her cheeks.

"What the-?" Before Provenza could finish, she held out her phone for them, soon causing them to join into her laughter.

The text message on the screen had been sent by Amy Sykes, reading: "I am watching the Dodgers game with my nephews right now. Just one question, though. Am I the only one who didn't know? Because it wouldn't be the first time."

Provenza pulled his phone out of his pocket and sent his own reply to the young Detective: "No, you're certainly not, Amy. I am sure there are a few people down in New Zealand who haven't figured it out yet."

The End