A/N Major Crimes is back! Yeah! After that lovely Shandy scene I just could not write an episode tag. So here's a small drabble.
For all of you waiting, the next chapter of Life is full of surprises is in the works. I hope to have it published soon :D
Provenza walked down the hall where Captain Raydor had disappeared to. He kept telling himself he shouldn't care, it wasn't part of his job description, but it had been a tough case and she looked like she needed someone to talk to. He turned the last corner and stopped suddenly. There she was. He saw her leaning against the railing in the outside balcony, lost in thoughts. He couldn't see her face, but if he had learnt anything over the course of the couple of years she had been head of Major Crimes, he knew that there were probably tears in her eyes as she tried to compose herself before heading out with Rusty.
The old Lieutenant sighed and he was about to take those final steps when he saw movements from the corner of his eye. His partner and friend Andy Flynn was already sliding the glass door open and walking towards her. He saw him tentatively calling out her name and Sharon turned her head around. He had been right, her eyes were red and puffy from crying and Flynn laid a hand on hers clinging the railing.
Provenza shook his head. He knew that something was growing between those two. Maybe they haven't even realized yet, but he had known his partner for a long time, and he could see that Flynn was slowly falling in love with their Captain. Well, nothing he could do now, except hoping that nobody got hurt. He turned around and left Flynn to console Sharon.
"Hey" Andy tighten the hold over her hand.
She gave him a slight nod and tried to dry her eyes with her other hand, pushing her glasses away.
"I'm not going to ask you how it went, but I'm here if you need someone to talk to"
Sharon gently curved up her upper lip and turned her head to look at the horizon again. "It was horrible" she quietly said after a couple of minutes of silence. "She first started shouting, accusing me of wasting time and then after she heard and the whole story finally sunk in, she stormed away crying"
"That was understandable" he whispered back. "But Sharon, there was nothing we could have done. It had all happened before we got involved…"
"But I still feel guilty for making the decision of holding back the information" she said more loudly. "When did I become so cynical? From the beginning I had no doubt: the mother was involved somehow"
"And you were right" he insisted. "Maybe not directly, but if she had told us everything from the start, we would have closed the case hours ago"
She shook her head. "I still can't wrap my mind that just a couple of years ago I would have been the one insisting we tell the mother about the kids and chief Johnson would have done what I did. When did it change? When did I become that person?" she looked at him with pleading eyes and it broke his heart.
"There's nothing wrong about it." He tried his best to reassure her. "It's how homicide works. It's what being the boss means; making the tougher decisions that nobody else can." He smiled sadly. "And you are a great boss, Sharon. Never doubt that"
She still wasn't convinced, but she appreciate his efforts and she laid her hand on his upper arm in gratitude.
"Do you want to grab a bite or something?" He suddenly asked "I won't be a drinking partner, but if you need to relax somewhere I could come with you and keep you company and then take you back home." He shrugged "I do it for Provenza all the time" he added jokingly.
She lightly chuckled. "Better not this time. Rusty is somewhere in the building waiting for me. I promised I would talk to him tonight." She quickly looked behind her, something she had seen coming to mind "Actually he was conspiring with Provenza about something. I've got a strange feeling about it"
"It's a very common feeling when Provenza is involved"
Now she openly giggled. She looked down and for the first time she realized where their hand were. She quickly slid her left hand from under his and blushed hoping that no one saw them there like that.
She looked down without meeting his eyes "Thank you Andy." She paused and lifted her head up. "Thank you for being here for me."
He smiled "I said I would. Besides, what are friends for?"