On Board Conduct Unbecoming

Chapter 4 [The Pope's Brutality]

For the first time in many years, she hadn't decorated for the holidays. Work had been insane, and there didn't seem to be much point if she was going to be in Park City. Her plane tickets to Utah were in her purse, her bags packed and ready in her car. Of COURSE her phone was going to ring.
"I am NOT missing this trip" she told herself loudly before reaching for the phone. "Captain Sharon O'Dwyer".
Chief Johnson had been running a complicated case involving a possible war criminal, and her knight in shining armour, Chief Pope had turned out to be just an idiot in tin foil. Trying to impress her, he'd separated a child from his guardians with the use of an elevator and a beefy young police officer, so that he could hand him over to the Chief to question. Naturally, as always with Major Crimes, nobody had thought further than that end. The circus that ensued had to be seen to be believed. Both the male guardian and the child had accused Pope of police brutality.
Enter a seriously pissed off Sharon O'Dwyer.

Blind Freddy could see that the claims were false. The same blind guy could see that Pope was an idiot. But because the claims had been made, they had to be investigated. Chief Johnson had complaints (didn't she always?) about Sharon's insistence that her investigation needed to go first, but because nobody wanted to be stuck at the PAB over the holidays, they had begrudgingly agreed to run their investigations parallel to each other. They were successfully working together and Sharon thanked the universe for small mercies. It had only been a few days since she'd seen Lieutenant Flynn, but she was equally grateful that he and his wayward partner had kept their noses clean and their faces out of her office leading up to her time off. She'd crossed paths with him in the murder room a few minutes ago on her way to electronics, and it was the first time she'd seen him since she'd gone to his house. Immediately her thoughts flipped backward to the books, the leather, the polished wood and Christmas decorations, and she wondered if he'd added that box of Christmas spirit to his home, or whether it had stayed packed just as hers had.
"Looks like you'll get out of here in time for that last flight Captain O'Dwyer" he said and smiled.
She noticed that when he genuinely smiled, it lit up his whole face. Very different from the sarcastic grin she'd seen in the past. Wait... why was he genuinely smiling? Ahh... he knew she would be gone for two weeks. She cringed at the thought of what messes she would return to after two weeks, but on Christmas Eve she just didn't care. She wanted to be out of there and on her way to Park City. She'd already twice delayed her flight, and was now missing the carols by candlelight being held in the outdoor concert arena.
"Here's hoping Andy" she smiled genuinely back at him, and made her way to electronics. "That GRIN!" she smiled again to herself as she opened the door, unaware that he had followed her on his way to discuss something with the Chief.
"Did she just call me Andy again? What GIVES with her?" He wondered. He was watching her legs as he kept walking through the door behind her to find she had stopped in front of him. His chest collided with her back, and her head spun around to face him a little ahead of the rest of her. Andy grabbed her elbows simply to prevent further entanglement, and blushed as she looked up at him. Wait... was he just BLUSHING? Andy Flynn blushes?
"Sorry Captain. I didn't realise you were going to stop right there" he apologised, hiding his embarrassment from the room.
"It's fine Andy. Simple mistake." she said and turned back just in time to see Buzz and the Chief mouth "Andy?" at each other. SHIT. I did NOT just do that did I? That Damn Grin! Before she knew it, Sharon had blushed too and he'd seen it.
Andy could almost have kissed Provenza when he entered and shouted at Andy "Need a HOUSE Flynn?" dissolving any tension in the room.
"A house?" Sharon asked. The entire room full of people burst out laughing. They'd heard the joke before.
"Ahh.. nothing Captain" Provenza said. "Personal joke".

Her attention to the case was no longer needed the minute the boy confessed that Pope had not really manhandled him, and his father agreed no physical impropriety had occurred. She was on her way to her car when she heard the sound of a text coming in. Pulling her phone out of her front pocket, she sighed at the screen. "Just wonderful" she said out loud in the half empty parking garage. She looked outside through the openings and saw the snow coming down. She had intended to simply park at the airport, and had not prepared to drive in snow, so she couldn't even go home until the snow stopped. "Just great! I'm stuck HERE" she added.
Her phone sounded again as another text message came through, this time from an unknown number. "Merry Christmas Captain. Enjoy Park City. Andy." This time she saved the number.
"Oh to HELL with it" she thought to herself, and typed a return text. "Merry Christmas Andy. I'm stuck here. No Park City." She argued with herself about how to sign it, then added "Sharon" before pressing send.
She leant against the boot of her car feeling defeated.

Text Exchange:
Andy: Where is "here"?
Sharon: Parking garage. Flight cancelled due to snow. Driving cancelled due to stupidity.
Andy: What level?
Sharon: 3 near the elevator.
Andy: There in 5.

True to his word, five minutes later the elevator opened, and out strode Andy Flynn... wearing THAT grin.
"Before you even think it, I'm not smiling at your misfortune. It's a nervous habit I have no control over" he said as he walked toward her. "I'm so sorry your flight was cancelled."
She sighed and patted his arm briefly and said "even the snow gods are against me. I have booked to have all-weather tyres fitted when I get home from Park City. Fat lot of good that does me right now, because I can't even drive home with this snow. Way to go Sharon! That was so smart!"
"Oh geez... so you're REALLY stuck here quite literally then?" he asked her.
"Oh yeah! Merry Christmas Major Crimes!" she chuckled "they're going to love seeing me back upstairs."
"Brenda's Mom has a very festive table set up upstairs because she knows we're not likely to get out of her soon. I'm sure she'd be happy for you to join us" he offered.
"Great Andy. My Friend BRENDA" she said, oozing sarcasm.

He decided to test it out to see how it sounded. He felt kind of strange using her first name having called her Captain for ten years or so but she HAD just signed her text off with it, and he felt he'd be rude to ignore that.
"Look Sharon" he said, and her eyes flicked up to look him in the face. "It's Christmas. You can't spend it alone in your car with the heater on. Come upstairs where it's warm, put that beautiful smile I saw earlier back on your face, and enjoy a little Christmas spirit while we finish this case up. In the meantime, I will try to come up with a plan to get you to Park City. How does that sound?"
OH BOY...not only did he call her Sharon, but he'd paid her the first compliment she'd received in a long time, and it sounded like he truly wanted to help her. "Get a GRIP Sharon" she told herself. "You WILL not cry here."
She felt like her mask was slipping. She couldn't let that happen. Her shield, her protection! She willed it back into place as she found her hand moving to loop through Andy's extended elbow. He was offering to walk her back upstairs and flashing that Flynn grin!

"It's Christmas. The Lord works in strange and mysterious ways, his wonders to perform." she mumbled, and allowed herself to be escorted inside the building.