After closing a rather difficult case, Sharon was happy to get home early enough one Wednesday afternoon to cook dinner. It had been almost a month since Andy's heart attack, and he had a doctor's appointment the next day to determine whether he could go back to work. His heart attack had, thankfully, been mild, but given the stressful nature of Andy's job, his doctor hadn't yet cleared him to return to work. Sharon stepped out of her heels before she'd even closed the door. She looked around for Andy and spotted him reading on the patio, so she decided to change into more comfortable clothes and get dinner started before going to greet him.

Much more comfortable in yoga pants and her favorite beige sweater, with her hair pulled back, Sharon tied her apron on and started dinner. The news was blaring on the TV in the background, so she never heard Andy come in. She jumped when she felt his arms around her. His lips went straight for the sensitive spot on her neck that made her crazy. This was his signature way of initiating bedroom activities, and, more times than not, he was successful.

Sharon pushed Andy's face away from her and stepped to the side. "Don't even think about it, Casanova." Logically, she knew that it was now safe for that, but she'd feel much better about it if his appointment the next day went well. He still seemed so fragile to her. Andy had been too tired to even think about sex the first week after his heart attack, but he had been insufferable since then.

"Sha-a-aron!" Andy whined.

"Rusty's not going to be happy when he finds out you've taken over his 'whiner of the house' title. Four syllables. That's impressive."

"Well, you're being ridiculous about this! The doctor said it was perfectly fine to resume sexual activity when I feel up to it. Trust me. I feel up to it."

"Just one more day, Andy. Humor me. I'll be less sleep-deprived, and Rusty will be safely across town at Gus's. The wait will be worth it." Rusty's presence in the condo hadn't stopped them before, but it was so much better when they didn't have to be sure to keep quiet.

"Fine," Andy huffed. He turned to walk away, but Sharon pulled him back to her.

"I didn't say we couldn't do stuff," she said meaningfully. She had allowed pretty much anything short of actual sex in the last couple of weeks, but Andy hadn't wanted to do much more than kissing. He'd rather not get himself aroused and then have nothing to do with it. They'd been making out against the kitchen counter for several minutes when Sharon felt a familiar bulge against her. "Seriously, Andy? That's all it took?" An amused smile played at her lips.

"I told you I was up to it," he said, sheepishly. "Come on, Sharon, blue balls can't be good for my blood pressure."

Sharon rolled her eyes. "Thanks for the image." They started back at it, but froze when they heard keys clanging in the designated bowl and the door slam. They hadn't heard the door open, but Rusty was obviously home. Shit. There was no possible way for Andy to escape without Rusty seeing him.

"Oh, come on, you guys," Rusty groaned. The kissing had come to an abrupt halt, but it was no mystery what they had been up to. "Do you have to suck face in the kitchen? There's food in here! I'm in here, for that matter!"

Sharon hastily untied her apron and gave it to Andy to hold. He faced the counter, trying to shield himself between it and Sharon, and busied himself with looking through a stack of mail. Sharon hoped Rusty would say hello and go straight back to his room to drop his things off, but he stepped into the kitchen. "Hi, honey. Um, don't you have some reading to do for class tomorrow?" He was still a Journalism major, but he was minoring in Political Science for the heavy reading and writing that would help prepare him for law school.

"My day was great, Mom, thanks for asking. And one of my classes was canceled today, so I got it done then. I only have one class tomorrow that I have to read for."

"What do you need? I'll get it for you while you put your things away," Sharon offered, desperately trying to get him to leave the kitchen. 'Scarring Rusty for life' hadn't been an item on her otherwise extensive to-do list today.

"Thanks, but I'll get it. I just wanted some Tylenol."

That was easy enough. Rusty had a bottle of water in his hand, so Sharon could just toss him the Tylenol bottle and send him on his way. She carefully turned around to get the Tylenol from the medicine cabinet, but, out of habit, she instinctively opened the bottle and shook two pills into her palm to hand to Rusty, like she always did when she gave him medicine. Damn it. He was already approaching her, and she couldn't very well replace the pills and toss him the bottle now. Still standing awkwardly against Andy, Sharon placed the tablets into Rusty's waiting palm. He gave her a strange look. He couldn't believe she hadn't demanded to know what was wrong with him that required Tylenol. It usually annoyed him when she did that, but, now that she hadn't, he found that he missed her concern. Whatever. It was just a headache. "Thanks, Mom." Rusty accepted the pills and started for his room. Once he was a safe distance away, Sharon followed him down the hall to make sure he was okay.

Sharon stood in Rusty's doorway as he put his bag on the floor and took the Tylenol she'd given him. "What's the matter?"

Rusty shrugged. "I just have a headache. I was up late last night finishing my paper, and then I had to help Hobbs sort through a shit ton of paperwork from the case you guys just finished this afternoon. My God, you guys can kill some trees."

Sharon smiled. "All right. Why don't you lie down for a little while? I'll come get you when dinner's ready."

"Yeah, that sounds pretty good. Thanks."

"You're welcome." Sharon kissed her son's cheek and left the room.

When she got back to the kitchen, Andy had finished her dinner preparations and put it in the oven. "You think he suspected anything?"

Sharon sighed in relief. "I don't think so. He wouldn't have commented on it, but I would have been able to tell if he had."

Andy grinned. "As awful as that was, I believe Provenza still takes the cake for 'erection with the worst audience possible.'

"Ugh, I don't think I want to hear about this."

Andy gave her a puzzled look. "You already do know about this." Sharon gave him a blank stare. "We've talked about it more than once. The entire LAPD knows. You've heard the story about the flight attendants we, you know, visited one night, and-"

"I know that story, but didn't you guys find the dead body before the, you know, visit could escalate?"

"Yes, but...You've honestly never heard this part?"

"If I had, then I would definitely remember it."

"Well, Provenza had taken something to, um, speed things along right before we found the body. It kicked in right before Chief Johnson arrived."

Sharon shrieked with laughter. "You're kidding! The version I heard of this story left that part out. So, did she, uh-"

"She didn't actually see it, but everyone knew what was up-literally-when she asked him why he was sitting on the couch instead of helping with the investigation. I'll never forget the look on her face when she noticed his hands covering it and realized what was going on. And he was wearing this god-awful Hawaiian print shirt, which makes the story even better. I finally handed him a couch pillow to cover it up. Damn, Brenda was pissed at us that night."

Sharon had tears streaming down her cheeks from laughing so hard. "I don't blame her. You two really did put her through hell. I kind of even feel sorry for her." Sharon wiped the tears from her face. "Have you taken your walk yet?" Andy was slowly building up his physical activity, per doctor's orders, and taking a ten-minute walk every day was part of that.

"Not yet. I knew you'd be home in time to go with me, so I waited. I'm, uh, going to need a couple more minutes, though."

Sharon and Andy put their walking shoes on and took the elevator down to the lobby. Before his heart attack, Andy went to the gym several times a week, but they were both enjoying the evening walks outside on days that Sharon got home at a decent hour. The October evening was cool, for LA, anyway, and they talked about their plans for the upcoming weekend as they strolled around the block.

When they got home, Sharon looked in on Rusty, and she was a little concerned when she found him asleep. He was usually quick to complain to her if he didn't feel well, though, so she brushed it off to him just being tired and left him alone. Dinner was ready a couple of hours later, so Sharon went to wake him up. She sat on his bed, pulled his covers back, and lightly shook his shoulder. "Wake up, honey."

"Nuh-uh," Rusty muttered, trying to pull the covers out of Sharon's hands.

"Uh-huh," Sharon retorted. "It's time for dinner." She ran her hand over his forehead and through his hair. "Are you feeling all right?"

"Yeah, I'm just tired."

"Well, you won't be able to sleep tonight if you don't get up now."

"Okay, okay, I'm coming."

By 9:30, Rusty figured it was late enough to go to bed and not elicit more questions from Sharon. He really didn't feel bad, he was just tired. "I'm going to bed, so you lovebirds can have the couch to yourselves," Rusty commented as he left the room.

Sharon looked at him with concern. "Goodnight, sweetie. Do you need more Tylenol?"

"No. My head still hurts a little bit, but it's not bad."

"I'll bring you some, anyway." Sharon gave Rusty a couple of minutes to get ready for bed before going back to his room with the Tylenol and a glass of water. "Are you sure you feel okay?"

"Yes, Mom, I'm just tired. I barely got four hours of sleep last night, and then I had class and my internship all day today. You were about to fall asleep on the couch, yourself."

"Yeah, but I didn't sleep at all last night. I just came home this morning long enough to take a shower and change clothes." Sharon kissed Rusty's forehead and straightened his covers over him. "Goodnight, honey. Love you."

"Love you, Mom."

Sharon turned Rusty's lamp off, changed into her favorite pajama pants and a sweatshirt, and returned to the living room. Andy gave her an agitated look. "You've already shut me down for tonight, Sharon. You didn't have to bring out the 'flannel pants of doom' to rub it in."

Sharon looked down at herself, confused. "What?"

"Maybe you do that subconsciously, but any time these babies come out, I know not to even try."

"They're comfortable."

"Uh-huh. So, do you always coddle the kid over a little headache?" He teased.

Sharon rolled her eyes. "I wasn't coddling him. I just needed to make sure he was okay. He usually tells me if he doesn't feel well, but it's been two years since he's been sick. I'm afraid he thinks he's too old or something to complain."

"I don't think he'll ever grow out of complaining. You've been around him recently, haven't you?"

Sharon smiled. "Yeah, I guess you're right."

Andy gave her a dumbfounded look. "I am? How did that taste coming out of your mouth?"

Sharon gave him an exasperated look. "Not good, so don't expect to hear it again for a while."

On Thursday morning, Sharon eagerly watched her phone for a text from Andy as she trudged through her paperwork from the most recent case. If he was cleared to return to work, he was going to come straight to the station, but he was going to let her know one way or the other before he left the doctor's office. Her phone dinged a few minutes later with the anticipated text. All clear for work, and my physical abilities are where they should be for this stage of recovery. You know what that means...

Sharon immediately responded with only emojis: the woman raising her hand, the red heart, and the woman dancing. Andy called them her 'sexy time emojis.' This was usually Sharon's way of letting him know she wanted some on days that she came to that conclusion early in the day, but if someone else happened to see them, then they wouldn't know what it meant.

At 2:00, Andrea and Rusty arrived from the DA's office. Thursdays and Fridays were Rusty's longest days with her, as he only had morning classes on Thursdays and no class at all on Fridays. Andrea just needed to tie up some loose ends, which didn't take long, and then she and the team stood around talking for a while. Rusty hung back from the group and leaned against an empty table. Sharon had realized he didn't feel well as soon as he'd arrived with Andrea, and she discreetly shot him a few concerned looks as everyone else talked. His cheeks were flushed, he was biting his bottom lip like he usually did when he was nauseous, and his eyes looked runny, like he'd been sick to his stomach recently.

"T-minus four hours until we're alone in an empty condo," Andy whispered into Sharon's ear.

"Hmm," Sharon mumbled distractedly. Rusty had finally met her eyes, and he was giving her the look that was usually followed by 'I don't feel good.' "Oh, no," Sharon murmured.

"No, what?!" Andy sounded indignant. "What are you saying no about?!"

Sharon sighed. "We're not going to be alone tonight. I just got the 'Mom, I don't feel good' look. Rusty's sick."

Andy looked over at Rusty. Now that Sharon mentioned it, he did look a little off, but not necessarily sick. He wouldn't have noticed anything at all if Sharon hadn't said anything. "You can't possibly know that from here."

"Yes, I can. His cheeks are flushed, and he looks like he's gotten sick in the last hour or so. I'm afraid he has a stomach bug."

"But he can still go to Gus's!" Andy persisted. "He's old enough to let his boyfriend take care of him instead of his mom."

"No, he can't. Gus gets paid by the hour. If he gets sick, then he can't work. He can't afford not to get paid. He also works with food. Rusty can't knowingly expose him to illness." Sharon also knew that Rusty would still want her with him, but she didn't bring that up. Andy wouldn't understand. "That doesn't necessarily mean we can't do anything tonight. We just won't be alone. If it's just a stomach bug, then I hope he can get it out of his system this afternoon and then sleep it off tonight. A lot of stomach viruses only last a few hours."

"Ugh, I knew this was too good to be true," Andy muttered.

"Let me go see what's wrong with him." Sharon crossed the room and sat beside Rusty on the table.

"Mo-om, I don't feel good," Rusty whined.

"I can tell, honey. What's the matter? I can tell your stomach isn't feeling good, but anything else? Headache?"

"Yeah."

"Is that all?" Rusty nodded. "Why didn't you tell Andrea you didn't feel well and needed to go home? She'd rather you make your hours up next week than get her and the rest of the DA's office sick."

"I know, but I knew we were coming over here, and I wanted to, like, make sure I was really sick before I said anything. Do I have a fever?"

Sharon was trying to be discreet and not 'mother' Rusty too much in front of everyone, but no one was paying them any attention, and he was already lying on her shoulder, so he obviously wasn't worried about it. "I would say so." She wrapped her arm around him and felt his forehead. "Hmm, you feel a little hot." She put her hands on his cheeks and studied him closely. "How long ago did you throw up?"

"How could you possibly have known-never mind. I don't even want to know. Not long after I got to Andrea's office, so, I guess, like, an hour ago."

"Have you been nauseous since then, or did it go away after you got sick and come back?"

"My god, you could creep someone the hell out. It didn't go away."

"You always bite your bottom lip when you feel nauseous. That's called observant. Not creepy."

"Whatever." Rusty took a deep, uneven breath. "Can I just stay here and ride home with you? I don't feel like driving home."

"I don't want you driving, either. I can take my paperwork home, so as soon as you have a chance to tell Andrea you need to leave, I'll take you home. I'll bring Andy to work tomorrow, and then he can take your car home."

"Can't you just tell her for me?!" Rusty pleaded.

"No, honey. This internship is your responsibility. And you need to learn to speak up about things that you're uncomfortable with bringing up. Like a girl you just want to be friends with and adoptions and vlogs about your boyfriend's sister's murderer and a man named Gary who possibly wanted to kill you-"

"Okay, okay, I get it," Rusty interrupted. "Fine, I'll tell her."

"Good."

Andrea broke away from the group several minutes later and came over to Rusty. "Ready to go?"

Rusty gave Sharon one last pleading look, but she shook her head. "Um, I don't feel well, so I was going to stay here with Mom and make up my hours next week, if that's okay," he said nervously.

"Oh, that's fine. I'm sorry you're not feeling well. I'll work with you on your hours if I need to, I don't want you to come back until you're well again."

"Thanks."

"You're welcome. Feel better."

When Andrea was gone, Sharon gathered her things and got a trash bag from the break room for the ride home. Rusty was waiting for her, slumped in the green chair in her office. "Let's go home, honey."

Rusty made it home without incident, but started gagging as Sharon was unlocking the door. He'd left the trash bag in her car, so she quickly opened the door and pushed him inside. "Kitchen sink, Rusty!" She called after him as she locked the door back. "Make sure you're on the side with the garbage disposal." Sharon dropped her things on the floor and ran to Rusty. She dampened a dishcloth and gently pressed it to his cheeks as she patted his back. When Rusty's stomach calmed down, she rinsed out the sink, wiped his mouth with the cloth, and gave him a glass of water. "Rinse your mouth out and go get out of these clothes. I'll bring you some ginger ale in a minute."

"Ughhhhhhh..." Rusty groaned. He slowly made his way down the hall, looking like a zombie. Sharon ran the garbage disposal and lysoled every square inch of the kitchen and living room while Rusty was changing into his pajamas. She'd tackle the bathroom later. The last thing she needed was for Andy to get sick. When she heard the toilet flush a few minutes later, she poured a glass of ginger ale and dug through the medicine cabinet for her thermometer. By the time she got back to Rusty's room, he was climbing into bed. He reached for the glass in her hand, but Sharon stopped him.

"Temperature first."

"Moooooom, you already know I have a fever. Why do you even bother with that thing?! I'm not a child."

Sharon smoothed her hand over her sick son's forehead. "Your temperature feels a little high for a stomach virus. It could be something a little more serious. I need an exact measurement."

"Fine," Rusty huffed. Arguing with Sharon never got him anywhere, anyway. She stuck the thermometer in his mouth and waited impatiently for it to beep.

"102," Sharon sighed a couple of minutes later. "That's what I was afraid of."

"Mom. That's not high." Rusty took the ginger ale from her and took a few slow sips.

"I'm afraid it's a little too high to just be a stomach virus, though. Where does it hurt?"

"It doesn't really hurt...Just feels gross."

"Hmm." Sharon gently pressed down on the right side of Rusty's stomach, just above his leg. "Does that hurt at all?" Rusty shook his head. "Tell me if you have any pain in your stomach at all. Pain from appendicitis often starts in the middle or on the left and moves to the right side."

"I will. Can I sleep now?"

"Yes...Wait, let me give you some Tylenol. I forgot you said you had a headache." Sharon quickly got the Tylenol and gave Rusty two pills. Once he was asleep, she put a basin on his nightstand, changed into some clean pajamas similar to the ones she'd slept in the night before, and sat in the chair in his room with her computer to work.

By the time Andy got home at 6:00, Rusty had thrown up again and gone right back to sleep, and Sharon had given the bathroom a Lysol bath and was working again in Rusty's room. When she heard Andy come in, she met him in the living room, wanting to keep him away from Rusty. Andy gave her an incredulous look. "Oh, my god, are those damn things multiplying?!" The sexy time emojis and flannel pants of doom in the same day? That was definitely a first.

"Wha-Andy, I put these on to be comfortable."

"Uh-huh. So, how's the kid?"

"Not good. He's been sick twice since we got home, and his temperature's 102. It doesn't seem to be appendicitis, though..."

"It's just a virus, Sharon, let it run its course. He'll be fine."