AN: I know I finished Welcome Back, McNally a while ago. I took time to get as much of this story finished as I could before posting. I'm more than halfway done the entire story. CRAZY!

I don't think you need to have read Welcome Back, McNally first, but I recommend it. Some of the scenes are exactly the same, but it's all from Sam's POV. I really like writing from his POV. Let me know what you think!

Of course Sam had heard what happened the night before. Oliver called him when it was over and everybody at the station had been talking about it since he walked in that morning. Why no one told him while it was actually happening was not so clear.

When he talked to Oliver, he was pissed. He should have been called in. He was the right man for that job- with or without McNally being involved. At least, that's what he thought before he spent an hour talking it out with Frank. He agreed that Sam was more than qualified for the takedown. He also told him that he definitely would have called him had Andy not been in any danger. Frank told him that they needed the focus to be on the good of the entire operation, not just making sure she got out of it unscathed. After listening to the whole thing he knew two things; that Callaghan had something to do with the decision and that they were probably right.

"Nash, just go," he said to his partner and she looked at him, surprised.

"What do you mean?" She asked innocently before taking another quick peek at Frank's office. He looked past her long enough to see Andy smile at Nick and then back at Frank. Traci had been craning her neck for an hour and it was starting to irritate him.

"We're done," he shrugged. He did not want to talk about Andy with anyone, but especially not her best friend. "I'm leaving, too."

He illustrated this by standing up and walking out of the office. He wanted to leave. He really wanted to leave and go get a drink, but he couldn't. He wasn't sure why he couldn't. Maybe he needed to see her up close. Maybe he needed to talk to her. He paced the hallway a few times before walking right into Oliver.

"What are you doing out here?" Oliver asked.

"Nothing," Sam said, shrugging.

"Brother," Oliver sighed, shaking his head. He looked back toward the crowd outside of Frank's office and then back at Sam. "You need to calm down. Go to the Penny. I'll meet you there in 10 minutes."

Sam watched the crowd start to disperse and Oliver turned to see what he was looking at so intently. They both sighed as they caught a clear sight of Andy hugging Nick outside of Frank's office before walking to their friends.

"Now what?" Sam asked and Oliver shrugged. Sam leaned against the wall outside of the locker room and sighed again. He should have left when he had the chance.

Oliver looked at him once more before he got genuinely excited at Andy's arrival.

"McNally!" He yelled and Sam could not look over at them. "Glad you're back!"

"See you tomorrow, partner," Traci said as she passed him and he nodded to himself while she continued to the parking lot. He could have sworn she was smiling when she said it, but since he wasn't looking at her, it was hard to know for sure.

Sam finally looked over at his best friend and his ex-girlfriend. She hadn't even seen him yet, but she did then. She was hugging Oliver, smiling, but as soon as she noticed him, he watched her smile fade until she pulled back from Oliver.

"I'm glad you're safe," Oliver told her. Sam couldn't agree more, but he wasn't going to say anything just yet. "Sorry I didn't get to see you last night. I had my hands full."

"Don't worry about it," she said and Sam saw her one shoulder shrug and he held back his smile at the familiar gesture. "I'm just glad we all got out of there alive." That caught his attention. He knew it had been an intense take down from what Oliver and Frank had said, but they didn't make it sound that dangerous.

"Yeah," Oliver nodded. "Listen," he said and he finally looked back at Sam who was still watching them. He quickly looked back at Andy, though. "I've got to go change before heading to the Penny, but I'll see you there, right?"

"Not tonight," she told him and Sam was actually glad to hear that. He wasn't ready for a night of trying notto look at her across the bar. "I haven't been home yet. I spent the night at my dad's last night and came straight here."

"Fair enough. We'll see you tomorrow, though, for your Welcome Home Party?" Oliver asked and Sam rolled his eyes. Something else no one told him about. Was he supposed to avoid the bar? Was he expected to show up with the rest of his squad and celebrate her and Nick's arrival home?

"I'll definitely be there for that. Wouldn't miss it."

"Fantastic," Oliver said. They both started walking toward him and he decided it was time to move. He pushed himself away from the wall and made sure to keep his eyes on her. "We're all really glad you're back, McNally," Oliver said and she smiled. "Brother, I'll see you in a little while."

"Yeah," he said and he thought he heard his voice crack. But he didn't break eye contact with Andy. He did hear Oliver chuckle before going into the locker room, but he ignored it. "Welcome back," he said to Andy.

"Thanks," she said before looking down at her feet. He noticed her clenching her fists which was something she did when she was anxious. That made him feel a little more confident, but also a little worried. She was stronger- stronger than him most of the time.

"McNally," he said through a sigh, and she looked at him. He didn't know why he cared so much, but he did and it bothered him. "Are you okay?"

"I'm fine," she answered and he flinched at the harshness in her voice. He nodded, biting his lip.

"Listen, I've been where you are," he told her. "I know what it's like after that first time. It can be hard; it was for me."

"I'm fine Sam," she told him and he just shrugged. "I'll be fine," she said softer and he scoffed. She looked surprised, but she never understood just how stubborn she could be.

"You willbe," he told her and he knew it came out bitterly, but he couldn't help it. "Like I said, I've been there. So, if you need to talk about anything, let me know."

"Thanks," she said uncertainly. He nodded and turned to leave. He hadn't expected on staying to talk with her, but he knew he wanted to. He still wasn't sure how he felt about her being back. He knew it would happen eventually and he was very happy she was safe, but he was still so thrown by her reappearance.

"Sam!" She called from where she remained and he turned slowly. He wasn't sure what she had planned. They watched each other and she looked surprised herself.

"Andy?" He so rarely called her by her first name, but it seemed like the right move. His voice seemed to shake her out of whatever trance she was under and she started toward him. He couldn't help but notice how confident she looked. It terrified him.

When she reached him, she took one deep breath and hugged him tightly around the neck. He stiffened involuntarily, but let out a relieved sigh and hugged her back with one arm. It felt so good to hold her again, but he wasn't sure if he should feel that way- if she wanted him to feel that way. When she finally pulled away from him, she looked into his eyes and he noticed a deep cut on her forehead that she was clearly trying to hide.

"I'm sorry," she said, surprising him almost more than the hug had. "I know you want to help, but, uh, I'm okay. I am."

"Uh, yeah. Okay," he stammered and he internally rolled his eyes at himself. "I meant what I said, McNally. I know you're okay and you don't need my help, but call me if that changes."

"Thank you," she said with a smile and he couldn't help but smile back. They both turned toward the door and, out of habit, he put his hand on the small of her back to lead her out. He immediately regretted it and tensed for a second before pulling it back and putting both of his hands into his pocket. He didn't want to risk any other intimate gestures.

They continued outside together in silence. He just kept looking straight ahead, for the best. But, out of the corner of his eye, he could see her clenching and unclenching her fists again. She could deny it all she wanted, but something was up.

"Have a good night, Detective," a young officer who had been sucking up to him since his promotion said as they crossed paths. He wondered if she knew yet.

"Goodnight," Sam said before watching Andy for a reaction.

"Detective?" She asked and he nodded. "Congratulations."

"Ah, thanks," he said, nodding again. Three months ago when he got promoted, he'd heard the same thing over and over again. Now, it seemed a little odd. "Goodnight, McNally."

"Goodnight, Detective," she said and he couldn't fight the smile that followed. He watched her turn away from him and get into Traci's car.

As they pulled away, he got into his truck and held onto his steering wheel until his knuckles turned white. He let out a deep breath and rested his head in the middle of the wheel and sat up again, starting the truck. He wasn't going to let Andy's sudden reappearance shake his whole world. He'd done it too many times to count and he was tired of blaming her for their problems. He knew it was all on him.

If he had just told her how he felt sooner.

Sam walked into the Penny and saw all of Andy's friends huddling around a small table. He never understood why they couldn't move to another table. He was surprised to see Collins rubbing elbows with everyone while Andy was home alone.

He sat down next to Oliver and let the bartender know he was there with a flick of his wrist. He got a scotch in return.

"So," Oliver said, dragging out the word. Sam took a deep breath and waited for him to continue. He knew that Oliver was waiting for him to say something, so they both sat in silence for a minute. "Sammy. What happened back there?"

"Nothing," he shrugged. He felt like he was lying, but he also felt like it was the truth. They'd talked and hugged, but nothing substantial was shared between them.

"Six months of silence and nothinghappened?"

"What did you expect would happen, buddy?" Sam asked, finally looking at him. Oliver shrugged, but he looked a little sad. "We weren't going to run into each other's arms, if that's you think."

"Did you at least tell her you missed her?" He asked and Sam shook his head.

"Who says I missed her?"

"Your face," Oliver shrugged and Sam downed half of his drink. "So blind. So blind," he sang and Sam hit his head a few times against the bar.

"How are the girls?" He asked changing the topic and Oliver laughed a little too loud.

"Oh, they're great," he told him. "How's McNally?"

"I'm going to leave if you don't stop," he said and Oliver put his hands up in surrender. "I'll let you know if anything changes."

"I'll believe that when it happens," Oliver laughed and Sam rolled his eyes. "But seriously, how are you doing with all this?"

"I'm fine," he shrugged. To his own ears, he sounded just as stubborn as Andy. "It's just going to take some getting used to. It's been a while."

"It's a good thing she's back, Brother," Oliver told him and he looked at him. "You'll see."

"Thanks, Buddy."

"You coming tomorrow night?"

"I don't know," Sam shrugged. "See how the day goes, I guess."

"Okay," Oliver nodded.

They sat together through another round of beers. They talked about work and about Oliver's family. They didn't bring up Andy again. As they got up to leave, each throwing down a few bills, Oliver clapped him on the back a couple of times and Sam nodded solemnly at him.