LB 7

A/N- This takes place a while later, as you can probably guess (you can go by the date). I have a list of various plot points I want to hit, so I'm playing around with them. Let me know if you have any ideas!

Stand tall for the people of America. Stand tall for the man next door.
-Beast, Niko Vega

The bed bounced slightly as the covers rustled, and a cool draft fluttered under the sheets. Sharon shivered slightly and rolled over, pulling the blankets tighter. She was on the edge of wakefulness, everything seemed to happen slowly, like a dream. There was a soft creak and then a gentle thump and muffled swear. 

"Jack?" she mumbled sleepily.

"It's fine, Shar. Go back to sleep." He said softly. He ducked back out of the closet, tucking a crisp striped shirt into his black pants. 

"What are you doing?" The words were slurred with sleep. She rolled to her side to watch Jack. 

"I have a trial this morning, remember? Thursday, June 22th."

She closed her eyes. "That wasn't until later...."

"Tony called and said he needed me in a little early. Something came up. He wasn't very specific."

"Oh," she mumbled into the pillow. "Okay. You should take a Tylenol."

"What?" he said, pulling on his jacket.

She half-opened her eyes and looked at him. "You must have a headache after last night."

"I didn't have that much to drink, Sharon. I'm not hungover." His tone was suddenly defensive and somewhat sharper.

She moaned tiredly, not wanting to argue. "That's not what I meant. You came home so late that you're going to be tired. You don't want a headache in court."

Jack's expression softened. "Oh. Thank you, Shar." He sat down next to the bed. "Next time I'm out late, don't bother staying up. I don't want you exhausting yourself." He sat down next to her and set his hand on her shoulder. "Has our little girl done anything this morning?"

"No," she mumbled. She guided his hand down to her stomach and held it there. They sat that way for a minute, before she felt a soft kick. She smiled at Jack. "That's the second one...."

He grinned back, leaned down to hug her tightly, then pressed a kiss to her cheek before getting up. He pulled the covers back up. "Get some more sleep. You still have some time before you have to get up for work."

"Okay." She watched him go and was asleep again before he even left the house.

*~*~*~*~*

Two scant hours later, she was awoken by her alarm. She shut it off, and swung her feet to the ground, stretching out before getting up and walking to the bathroom. She soaked a washcloth in cold water, soaped it, washed her face, combed her hair back into a ponytail. Her make-up was in a cat-patterned box on the the counter. She opened it, pulled out an eyeliner marker, mascara, concealer. A few minutes later, she went back to the bedroom, shed her pajamas and tossed them over the bed. She got redressed in her uniform, leaving her shirt unbuttoned when she went to get Ricky up.

She opened his door and looked in. He wasn't there, and his covers were thrown back. "Ricky?" she called. "Ricky?"

"Mama!" his clear voice rang out from down the hall.

"Ricky!" she hurried down the hall and emerged into the kitchen. Ricky was standing on a bar stool, reaching for bowls from the cabinet. She stepped to his side and grasped his waist. Reassured by her presence, he grabbed the bowls. 

"Okay."

She lifted him to the ground, grunting slightly at his weight

"What were you doing?" she gasped.

"I was making breakfast," he said. "You were still sleeping so I made breakfast. " He broke away from her and stepped over to the bar counter and picked up two boxes of cereal. One was peanut butter puffs, featuring an image of pandas. The second was Sharon's cereal, an organic raisin bran that Jack picked up. He regularly shopped at the whole foods co-op. 

"Thank you, sweetheart." She sat back and watched Ricky gather the jug of milk and two spoons. "Do you need any help?"

"No, I got it." He clambered up on the bar stool next to her and carefully poured out cereal and milk. "See?" He picked up his spoon and happily dove into his breakfast. 

Sharon ate at a more stately pace. "When did you get up?"

"After Daddy left. I watched TV and then I made breakfast."

"What did you watch?" She caught herself sliding into her investigative mode, trying to pinpoint when Ricky had gotten up.

"The yoga lady was on, and she was boring. But then Mister Rogers was on...." he continued.

Mister Rogers came on at six, she knew. So Jack had left quite early. She filed the scrap of information away, trying to disregard it. A niggling voice kept asking her what the hell was Jack doing that early?

She finished her cereal and waited for Ricky to finish his second bowl. 

"Go get dressed, okay?" She picked up the dishes and carried them to the sink. She finished as Ricky came back, dressed in khaki shorts and a faded tee. He took the dishes from her and set them in the drainer. She smiled. "Thank you, baby." She walked towards the living room, buttoning her shirt.

"Mama!" Ricky ran after her.

"What?"

"Can I say hi?"

She stopped and waited for Ricky to catch up. A while after she and Jack had told Ricky that the baby was a girl, he had decided to periodically say hello to his sister. It had been an occasional event that gradually morphed into a bi-weekly event. 

"Of course." She turned towards Ricky and he set his palms against her now very obvious baby bump, before leaning in.

"Hi. Hi, Sissy. Bye." He was about to pull away when Sharon felt the baby move again. Ricky leapt back and fell on the floor. "Mama!"

"It's okay, Ricky." She knelt down to pick him up. "That's your little sister  moving around."

"Ohh." His face still showed shock, but he was grinning brightly. 

She helped him up and together they left the house.

*~*~*~*

Sharon dropped Ricky off at his summer school. He was enrolled in a Catholic pre-school, in preparation for kindergarten at St. Joseph's School the following fall. She continued on to Parker Center, parking in her usual spot, before grabbing her bag and heading inside. She squeezed into the elevator, the others granting her a space at the front. 

"Third."

"Fifth, please."

"Eighth."

She tapped all the requested buttons, then took a moment to look over the notification board. Deputy Chief meeting on Monday. Retirement party for Assistant Chief Luke Altergott. Police Commissioner's Ball in two weeks. 

The elevator dinged on her floor, and she swept out with a crowd of others. 

"Commander Bancroft?"

"Sergeant Raydor, come in." Bancroft gestured to a seat and rose to sit on the front of his desk. "Have you made your decision?"

"Sir, I-"

Bancroft sighed. "I had been hoping you would say yes, but I can see that's not what you want to tell me. The Chief wants an answer by the end of the week."

"Sir, I have an answer-"

"He doesn't care if you say yes or no, but I won't take 'no' for an answer. At least not without a damned good reason."

Sharon looked at him curiously. "If you don't mind me asking, why do you want me for this job so badly?"

Bancroft looked tired. He sat down in the chair next to Sharon and leaned back, eyes closed. "No one in FID is interested in taking over the squad. To be perfectly honest, they know what it entails- damage control, armor against verbal arrows, a cool head- and they don't want it. And I don't see any other high caliber officers that can do it."

"Surely there's someone." She didn't want it. The prospect of losing all her friends and their respect wasn't appetizing, despite promotion.

"Russell Taylor. He's too high-strung. Takes everything personally. He's a weasel. Louie Provenza. Certainly experienced enough, and he doesn't give a shit what anyone thinks of him, but he's always in trouble with Flynn. And Flynn is far too hotheaded. Hotchkiss would be good, but she's planning on retirement. There's a few others, but you get the idea. We thought you'd be good. You're calm, nothing on your file, top marks in the academy. Even if you don't think it now, you're going to want a more administrative job soon. Kids are demanding and it's easier to have fewer hours and not fear for your life every day."

She looked down at her hands. "Is there any way I can delay choosing about it?"

Bancroft didn't open his eyes. "I can propose an interim head, then you'd give me your answer before you go on leave. Learn all the rules when you're out, then come back and take over. The Chief and the commissioners won't like it, but they can deal."

Sharon made her way to the desk pair she shared with Meri. He was flipping through the photos in his wallet. His wife, Jill, and their three kids: Eric, Adam, and Joyce. Jill was petite with a wild blonde mane, but their kids looked more like Meri. They were all gangly, with freckles, flaming hair, and Jill's deep brown eyes. 

"What's up?" She sat heavily on the edge of her desk. 

"Hmm?" He glanced up. "Oh, it's Jilly's birthday in a couple weeks and I haven't figured out what to get her."

Sharon laughed. "That's it? You're way ahead of the game, Mer. Most guys don't remember until a couple days before. Do you have any ideas?"

He shrugged. "I was thinking of sending her a bouquet at work- lilacs and things like that. If I can get a babysitter I'd take her out somewhere."

"What day is it?"

"It'd be a Thursday. Why?"

"I could take your three. Ricky's been dying to have friends over."

"Oh, Shar, no. I can't impose like that." He looked up. "Especially not-"

She rolled her eyes. "I'm not made from porcelain. It's only one night, and your kids are well-behaved. Besides, you and Jill need some time off." She smiled. "I can emphasize somewhat."

Meri looked her over, debating himself. "Alright. It's a deal then. But if you ever need anything, just let me know."

"Deal." She watched him slid his wallet back into his pocket. "What are we doing today?"

"We get to sit the rest of our shift next to the elementary school on Lamar. Check that no one's speeding through there."

"Oh, boy," she giggled. "Sounds exciting."

He snorted. "Yep."

*~*~*~*~*

"Twenty-five. . . . Twenty-six. . . . Twenty-two. . . . Twenty-five. This is awful. Twenty-four. How much longer?"

"Fifteen-minutes."

The radio crackled suddenly. "All units, we have a fatal 10-50 at Larkspur and Fifteenth has been reported. Robbery-Homicide is rolling out, but we need officers at the scene. Please respond."

Sharon slapped the radar gun down on the dash. "Let's go!"

Meri made a disgruntled choking noise. "But-"

"All we have to do is keep people out of the crime scene." She snatched the radio up. "It'll be fine, Mer. No armed perps running wild, just normal, curious people." She grinned. "This is unit 21, we'll cover the 10-50. ETA five minutes."

"Copy that, 21."

Meri rolled his eyes, but turned the ignition and flipped the flashers on, nonetheless. "I'm going first. You stay back."

Sharon wanted to argue, but she could see where he was coming from. "I suppose." They rocketed through the light traffic, arriving at the foot of a tall hotel. "This is the place?"

Meri shrugged, and picked up the radio. "This is 21; are we supposed to be responding to a. . ." he looked up at the building. "Timothy Hotel?"

"Affirmative."

"Where are we going?"

Sharon pointed out the car. "Just follow the people." There was a crowd forming at the side of the hotel, in the middle of a barely visible quadrangle. She got out of the car and walked around to Meri's side. "Come on, slowpoke." She thumped the roof of the car with one hand and began walking away.

She does exactly what she pleases exactly when she pleases, and not a moment later, Meri thought with a snort. He threw the car door open, and set off after his partner, slamming the door behind him.  He caught up to her after a moment. He walked by her side until they had almost reached the edge of the crowd and then cut ahead of her.

"Hey-"

"No. I must go first."

She crossed her arms over her belly and narrowed her eyes. "Fine."

Meri waded into the crowd and began shouldering his way through. It was a mess, people were shouting and shoving each other. They shoved him back until he pulled his badge out and began flashing it at eye-level. He felt someone push past him as he tried to squeeze between a tight-knit group of girls and looked up. It was Sharon, much to his unsurprise. She moved effortlessly through the crowd, people parting for a pregnant woman when they wouldn't for him. "Lady in blue, coming through," he mumbled and fell in behind her. 

They reached clear ground a few moments later. The onlookers had left a wide circle around the mangled remains of a man. A tall, young man in a green hotel uniform stood nearby, wringing his hands nervously. He spotted Meri and Sharon and practically ran over to them. 

"Are you the police I called?"

"Yes." Meri lifted his badge again. "Lieutenant Meriwether Arthur and Sergeant Sharon Raydor. What happened?"

"I don't know. I was running the concession stand at the pool and all of a sudden I heard someone screaming and I came over here and there was this. . . this. . .  this guy and I didn't know what to do so I called 911 and then there were all these people and-"

"Son," Meri said gently. "Just sit down for a minute and take a deep breath."

The kid nearly collapsed onto the grass. 

Sharon looked at Meri. "How soon will RHD be here?"

"Not more than a few minutes, I don't think."

She nodded. "I'll talk to the kid, and you keep everyone back?"

"Sure." He stepped away.

Sharon lowered herself to the ground next to the young man- boy, really- and set one hand on his knee. "Hey, look at me, okay?" 

He looked up, and she could see he was terrified. 

"Everything is going to be fine. Can you tell me your name?"

"Luke Gray. I work here part time, mostly the desk and concessions."

"Okay, Luke." She chose her next question carefully, trying to steer him onto solid ground. "Do you go to school here?"

"I'm going to college in the fall. Not here, but I live here, yeah."

"That's good. College is really fun. What are you majoring in?"

"Petroleum engineering."

She gently questioned him, getting a background and general information. She had just started steering him back to the matter at hand when she felt a hand on her shoulder. She looked up into the face of a tall, dark-haired detective. The sun was behind him, so she couldn't see his face. 

"Hey, Sarge. I can take it from here."

"Robbery-Homicide?"

"Yep, Lieutenant Flynn." He offered his hand and pulled her to her feet. 

"Hello again, Lieutenant." She smiled, remembering Jack's friend, the man she had met in IA several weeks before.

He smiled back. "Say hi to Jack for me?"

"Sure."

He stepped back to let her pass. "Congratulations, too."

"Thank you." She waved slightly and rejoined Meri at the periphery of the taped-off section of lawn. "What do we do now?"

"Well. . . we'll probably have to fill out incident reports for RHD, but that won't happen now, so we can just leave."

*~*~*~*~*

"Are you going to the Police Ball?" Sharon asked as they reentered Parker Center. 

"Yeah, probably. Jill and I usually go. Are you?"

Sharon shrugged. "If Jack's free." She hoped he would be. They had gone in the past and she had enjoyed it. They hadn't gone the previous year, because they had been busy moving from Jack's apartment to the house they were living in presently. They'd lived in the apartment for a few years, then after saving a respectable amount, they had bought the small house on Rowena Avenue. It wasn't anything flashy, but it was tasteful, and had an elegant air to it. One story, with large windows and plenty of natural lighting. When Sharon's parents had visited, her mother had said it looked like something out of a Lands' End catalogue. 

"Well, I hope you can come. It'd be nice to know there will be someone there that I can have a sober conversation with. Half the people who go just treat it as an occasion to get blitzed." He snorted. Meri was an observant Methodist, and had chosen to abstain from all alcohol. 

"I'll speak with him tonight then, see if I can't talk him around."

"Please do." He sat down at his desk and riffled through the papers in their inbox. "Junk, junk, junk, letter for me, junk, letter for you...." He froze while passing it over to her, then angled the envelope so he could see the return address. "From Commander Bancroft, Force Investigations Division." He let the last word hand between them. "What's up? Everything okay?"

Sharon grabbed for the letter and pulled it away. "It's probably just about the trial for that guy I tackled a while back. I heard he made a deal, so he probably got his trial date moved up." She picked up her letter opener and sliced the top edge of the envelope. She drew out a paper on letterhead. There was a yellow sticky note on it, which she quickly palmed before flipping the letter around to show Meri. "See?" She turned it back to read it. "The trial's been moved to- oh!" She huffed angrily. "This coming Monday!"

Meri took the letter and scanned it for himself. "Have fun with that. It also says you have 'mandatory trial preparation' with 'DDA Andrea Hobbs.' The name sounds vaguely familiar. I think she's the new woman they hired."

Sharon rolled her eyes. "I'm probably her first appointment. They want to try her out on a beat cop before they sic her on Robbery-Homicide detectives." She took the letter back and read it for herself. "They want me to meet her today. Don't waste time, do they?" she grumbled.

"Time is money," Meri said cheerily as she packed her things up. "Have fun. Play nice."

She grinned and punched his shoulder as she passed him. "Since when have I not?" She walked out to the hall and decided to take the stairs to the first floor to walk down the street to the DA's office. As soon as the stairwell door clanged shut behind her, she dropped the smile. She pulled the now slightly crumpled note out of her pocket.

 Sergeant Raydor- Enclosed with your trial notifications is a job description for Captain of FID. I realized I never gave you one. -Comdr. A. Bancroft

Sharon pulled out a second packet of paper and flipped through it as she walked out of the station. It was several pages long, but Bancroft had circled some sections with pink highlighter. Hours, vacation time, pay, duties, dress code. She paused at pay, and her jaw dropped. It was nearly twice what she was currently making.

That's because no one wants the job.

She stuffed the papers back into her purse and yanked the door to the DA's office open. It was an older building, with black and white tiled floors and dark wood mixed with marbled glass. There was a small directory posted on the wall. Most of the names were a permanent part of the sign; a strip of paper at the bottom was the lone exception.

Andrea Hobbs, DDA- 325

There were no numbered offices nearby, and it took Sharon several minutes to find the right hall. It wasn't part of the main building, instead she had to find the annex and search the warren of halls for Hobbs' office. She eventually found it sandwiched between the fire exit and the men's bathroom.

"DDA Hobbs?" She knocked on the door.

A shadow moved behind the frosted glass, there was a scuffling noise, and then the door opened. "Hello!" The woman was tall, with light blonde hair pulled back in a short ponytail. She was dressed in slacks and a sleeveless blouse, and had clearly been moving into her office. "I'm sorry, I haven't unpacked my appointment book yet, so who are you?" She stepped back to allow Sharon into the small room.

"Sharon Raydor, LAPD. I'm here about the Rogers' case?"

"Oh, alright. Just take a seat. . ." the woman waved her arm across the office. "Let me just get the file," she added before disappearing behind another stack of boxes.

Sharon looked around. The office was little more than a glorified closet with a large window. A wooden desk dominated the room. There was a matching bookcase along one wall, and three mismatched chairs crammed into the remaining space. Every surface was piled with cardboard boxes and loose papers.

She picked the chair nearest her and hefted the top box onto the other chair. It wasn't heavy, nor were the other two boxes, so she stacked them all on the other chair, before taking a seat.

Andrea Hobbs reappeared a moment later, flipping through the file. She pulled her chair around from behind the desk and sat next to Sharon. "I'm truly sorry about the mess. I just moved in yesterday and. . . Well, at least I don't have to share an office." She grinned, and Sharon smiled back. "Oh! I never introduced myself. I suppose you know, but I'm Andrea Hobbs, and I was just hired by the DA's office.  Not to make you nervous, but this is my first case." She smiled again and held out her hand.

Sharon shook it. "Sharon Raydor."

"Sharon. Okay. Just call me Andrea. I've read the file, but I'd like to hear you tell your version of events, if you don't mind."

"Of course." Sharon sat back, trying to recall what had happened. "My partner, Meri Arthur, and I were about to go off-duty, I think, and then the call came over the radio that there was a vehicular pursuit and that the suspect might be armed. I told Meri we should go, because we were only a block or two away. When we got there, Meri told me to wait in the car, and I did, but then the guy started coming my way, and-" Sharon stopped and bit her lip, trying not to laugh. "I opened the car door and he ran into it, and then I tackled him. And that was about it."

Andrea raised one eyebrow elegantly and shot Sharon an amused look. "They included photos from the incident in the file. It looks like you and our perp duked it out."

"I think I broke his nose," Sharon said looking down. It hadn't been a big deal. No one seemed to understand that. "Will that cause a problem?"

Andrea laughed. "No! The defense might bring it up, but I have your photos, too. I think that'll take care of any potential problems." She flipped the file around and pushed it towards Sharon. "You had one hell of a shiner."

Sharon took the file and looked at it grimacing. There was a pair of glossy photos of her face included in the typed papers. The first one was a profile, and the dirt and blood on her shoulder and cheek and shown up brightly. The second one was taken from the front and looked even worse, capturing her black eye. She passed the file back.

"It really wasn't that bad. He just gave me the black eye. The nosebleed was a coincidence."

"So modest. Don't tell the jury- they like drama. I think some of them feel like they're in some sort of crime show when they get jury duty for stuff like this."

Sharon grinned. "What is the case about anyways?"

Andrea looked down at the file. "We had a warrant out for our friend Sean Rogers after an aggravated assault and robbery at a convenience store, but he did a runner when patrol went to pick him up. We can get him for resisting arrest and assault of a police officer as well. It's pretty open and shut, but he's decided to plead not guilty for some half-assed reason, so we have to go to court." She flipped through the papers again, and they fell into a companionable silence. "Do you want to try some practice questions?"

"Sure."

Andrea pulled a yellow legal pad out of one of her precarious stacks, then picked a stray pen up from the floor. "There are four other witnesses besides you. The clerk from the store, a customer, and the two officers who went to pick Sean Rogers up from his apartment. I'm just going to start with some background information, then move on to your work and what you were doing that day, and then your interactions with Mr. Rogers."

Sharon noticed as Andrea slipped into more formal, lawyerly speech.

"Name and occupation."

"Sharon Raydor, Sergeant, Los Angeles Police Department. I've been there since '83."

Andrea looked up. "I'll probably ask you to elaborate a little, just so the jury gets a feel for you. Tell me a little about yourself."

"Hmm. . . I'm married, I have a little boy, my husband and I are expecting a girl in the fall. . ."

Andrea waved at Sharon to continue.

"I went to the University of Wyoming for my pre-law degree and Berkeley for my law degree. Long story short, I decided that policing was more exciting than being a lawyer, so I joined the force after I got out of school. Is that enough?"

"Yes, that's perfect." Andrea looked at her notes. "Juries tend to look for education, family, and trustworthiness. The more connections you have to them, the more they like you, generally. You typically work on the streets as part of the patrol, yes? What do you do?"

"My partner and I drive around and make police presence known. I, um. . . I do speed traps, pull people over, answer 911 calls, whatever jobs need to be done."

"How did you get involved with Sean Rogers?"

"Meri- Meriwether Arthur, my partner- and I were going back to Parker Center, and the call came over the radio that there was a car chase happening a block away, or so. We joined the pursuit, and the suspect was cornered. Meri got out to help the other officers, and I stayed back in the car."

"Why was that?"

Sharon rolled her eyes. "Meri doesn't think I should get involved with perps at close quarters because I'm pregnant."

Andrea smiled slightly. "And what happened next?"

"I got involved."

A/N- I'm sorry it took me so long to do this. Uni is an. . . . interesting experience, to say the least.  Latin and Chemistry midterms are rather time-consuming. . . . Thank you so very, very much for sticking with me (; I hope you enjoyed this last one; let me know! Also, what did you think of Andrea? I feel like I don't know her very well. . . . Sī valet, valēo!

LB 6

A/N- I'm so sorry not to have updated. I realize now I left you with an incredibly short last chapter. I apologize; all those chapters I wrote while backpacking come further along in the story (I wasn't sequential.). I just got moved to uni and had my first week of classes, but we had a long weekend. Hopefully, I'll get more up soon. Thanks to everyone for sticking around, especially Taylor, Isolith, and Miss Shannon for reviewing (:

Yes, we're lovers, and that is that,

Though nothing will keep us together.

-Heroes, David Bowie

Around three, Sharon began winding down. Her infatuation with cleanliness was wearing off. She put everything away and pulled out a new set of clothes. She had called Jack and he'd said he'd take her out somewhere nice for dinner, but didn't go farther than that. She picked out a dress Jack had bought for her after his last big case. It was stormy gray with coppery sequins washing up from the bottom of the fluffy skirt. By four-thirty, Sharon had arrived at Cedars Hospital and made her way to Marcia Pierce's office. She was unsurprised when she found Jack wasn't there waiting. She decided not to bother trying to call; either he would come or he wouldn't.

There wasn't anyone else waiting, in fact, Marcia herself was lounging in the waiting room drinking pitch black coffee. She was wearing a white lab coat, half-buttoned, over her flower-patterned scrubs. Unlike many other women her age, she wasn't reading Vogue or a paperback romance. She had an oversize copy of Calvin and Hobbes in her lap.

"Marcia?"

"Sharon! I'm glad you called. I thought I'd have to make a house call." She shut her book and bounded up. "Where's Jack?"

Sharon smiled tightly. "I think he's on his way," she said trying to sound cheerful.

Marcia rolled her eyes. "Mmhmm. That's what they all say. Do you want to wait-"

"No, it's fine. Let's just get started."

~*~*~*~*~

Jack swung into his car, dropped his briefcase on the passenger seat, and glanced at the clock. 4:37.

"Oh, shit." He had promised Sharon he'd meet her at four-thirty for her doctor's appointment. Cedars was across town from the courthouse. "Shit, shit, shit." He slipped the keys into the ignition and roared away, darting between lanes when he could.

After two red lights and fifteen minutes, he finally pulled up to the hospital. He locked the car and walked in. The hallways all looked the same. He picked one at random, hoping it would lead upstairs, where he thought Sharon had said her doctor was. Or did she say the first floor? He couldn't remember. He hurried up the first flight of stairs he found, and, to his relief, he found the door for Dr. Marcia Pierce staring him in the face.

"My wife has an appointment here..." he trailed off.

The secretary looked nonplussed.

"Sharon Raydor. I was running late-"

The woman looked at him with what was clearly disdain. "Room two, on the left. She said you were welcome to join her if you showed up." There was an emphasis on "if."

"Thank you," Jack smiled, trying his best to leave a good impression. He ducked into the back hall an quickly found the room. He knocked, then let himself in. The room was brightly lit by the large window and he found Dr. Pierce already putting her equipment away.

"Sharon is getting dressed. She'll be back in a minute." Marcia didn't even look up from what she was doing.

"How did it go?" He leaned against the exam table, trying to appear casual.

"You'd know if you'd been here," Marcia said sharply.

"I was-"

"I don't care." Marcia snapped her files shut. "You're supposed to be here. I don't care if you have court, if you want to go out for a drink.... You have to be here. That's part of the job. Sharon's not going to complain about it, so I will." She scrawled something across the back of a business card. "This is her next appointment. Be here, on time, or I will kill you myself." She gathered her papers and swept out of the room. "Wait here."

Jack stood frozen. He was somewhat shocked. He had only met the woman on a few other occasions, and she had always seemed clever but reserved. He hadn't thought being- he checked his watch- just under half an hour late would be such a big deal. Appointments always start late, he thought. So, technically, he'd only been maybe fifteen minutes late.

The door swung open and Sharon walked back in. She was wearing a nice dress that he didn't recall seeing before.

"Jack."

"Hey Shar. Sorry I was late. Traffic was terrible."

She smiled faintly and turned around. One had was on her back, holding the dress together. "Would you zip me up?"

He stepped forward and took the dress. She swept her hair out of the way and he zipped it, forcing the zipper upwards at one point, and fastened the little hook at the top.

"How did it go?"

"Fine," she said. She gathered her things. "Not much I didn't already know."

He caught the connotation. "Something you didn't know."

"Yes."

He rolled his eyes when she opened the door instead of elucidating. He followed her out to the desk, where she checked out and received her own copy of the appointment card Marcia had given Jack.

They went outside together, and Jack paused, unsure of the driving arrangements.

"I took a cab. I figured we could just drive in your car."

He nodded and lead her to his parking spot. They slipped in, backed out, and turned onto the street.

"I'm sorry."

"I know." Her cool composure was almost more hurtful than anger.

He tried again. "What did the doc say?" He reached one hand over and set it on her knee.

She sighed, and with that, the façade cracked. "She said everything was fine, but I'm not to go tackling people anymore."

"That's good."

She hummed vague agreement.

Jack glanced at her. "Shar, is there something else?"

"Marcia says she's not totally sure, but she thinks it's a girl."

Jack turned to look at her, stunned. "Really? That's fantastic! Sharon-"

"Eyes on the road, please."

He dutifully looked back to the street with a wide grin. "Really? A girl?"

"Yes," Sharon replied. He could hear excitement creeping into her voice as well, and knew she was too excited to be angry with him any longer.

*~*~*~*~*

They ended up picking Ricky up early. The whole way to the restaurant he babbled excitedly  about his day. The class had gone on a walk; he had petted a dog; could he have a dog; where where they going?

"We're going to Shiki."

"What's She-key?"

"It's an Asian restaurant, Ricky," Sharon said. "That means you can get fish, or noodles, or curry."

"Mac-cheese?"

"No, kiddo," Jack replied. "But I bet you can get something you like."

They pulled up to the restaurant and a valet took the car away. Ricky held tightly to his parents' hands and swung between them as they slipped inside. It was a small place, painted dark green and an olive bronze. Netting and lanterns were draped across the ceiling and tall plants divided the tables and booths.

"We have a reservation for three. Raydor?"

"This way." A young waitress led them to a booth in the back, deftly weaving between the other diners. "Here are the menus. Our special tonight is coconut curry on rice, and all house cocktails are buy one, get one half off tonight. I'll be back for your orders in just a few minutes."

They spent the time until her return looking over the menus. Sharon read selections aloud to Ricky, eventually helping him decide on California rolls, as there was no macaroni and cheese to be found. The waitress was back soon after. Jack ordered sushi, Sharon the special. She was somewhat dismayed when he looked over the wine list and ordered a glass.

"It's just a glass, Sharon," he said coolly when he caught her expression. He shook his head slightly, and turned to smile at Ricky. "Hey buddy, your mum and I have something to tell you."

"What?" Ricky looked up from the kids' menu he was coloring on. "Are we getting a dog?"

"No, sorry," Sharon said. "Not right now."

"Oh." He kicked his feet in the air, looking at them expectantly.

Sharon looked to Jack, unsure of how to phrase her thoughts. He shrugged back, and she rolled her eyes. "Ricky, remember when we told you that you were going to have a little brother or sister?"

"Yeah. Is the baby here now?"

Jack laughed, grinning. "Not yet. Not for a while yet."

Sharon smiled slightly. "I had a doctor's appointment today and she said that the baby is probably a little girl. So you'll have a sister."

"Oh. Okay. When will she get here then?" he repeated.

"Sometime in October, hopefully," Sharon said.

"Will she have her own room?"

"Yes."

"Can I hold her?"

"When she gets here you may hold her if you're careful," she answered.

"I will be."

"Okay."

"What's her name?"

Sharon looked to Jack again, somewhat surprised.

"Well, we haven't picked a name yet," Jack said slowly.

"She needs one! Can I pick it?"

Sharon smiled. "You can help us pick her name. It's something we will do together, okay?"

"Okay." Ricky nodded and went back to his coloring.

Jack reached for Sharon's hand. "That went over easily."

"Indeed."

The waitress returned with their food. The Raydors sat quietly as she set the plates down.

"Would you like another glass of the wine, sir?"

Jack didn't look at Sharon. "Sure. Thanks."

As the young woman disappeared again, Sharon looked to Jack, eyebrows raised. "I'm driving."

"Alright," he said calmly. "That's fine."

~*~*~*~*~

They arrived home maybe an hour later. Sharon helped Ricky get ready for bed again. She read him a short story about bears and slipped off his bed when she was done. He was breathing deeply, and she watched for a moment before turning off the light and shutting the door.

She walked into the master bedroom and reached behind her head to unfasten the dress and slide it off. When it puddled to the ground, she let her breath out and welcomed the freedom to breathe deeply again. She let her hair down and wrapped a towel about herself, before heading to the lone bathroom everyone shared.

Her thoughts were wandering when she pulled the shower curtain back to begin running a bath, and she yelped in surprise. Jack had already filled the tub. In fact, he was sitting there, amid clouds of bubblegum-scented bubbles.

She giggled nervously, heart still jumping.

He smiled up at her brightly. "I was just thinking that since today is kind of special, I could do something for you." He reached for a bottle and two champagne flutes that had been half-hidden on the floor. "Don't worry, it's just sparking grape juice." He poured them each a glass and Sharon sat on the edge of the bath as they sipped in comfortable silence. After a while, he set his flute on the tiled floor, and she followed suit, watching his face curiously. It looked as though he had something to say.

"What?"

"Nothing," he grinned. Suddenly, he reached up and pulled her in to the water. She shrieked loudly as foam and water splashed everywhere. He landed her gently in his lap, laughing. She threw a handful of bubbles at his face, giggling helplessly. It was times like this that she really loved him. The times when he was laughing and clear-headed and far too clever for his own good.

He scooped up a handful of foam in each hand and cupped her face. She spat bubbles out, right in Jack's face as he leaned in to kiss her. He sputtered and kissed her anyways. It was wet and somewhat bubbly, but she didn't care. Everything was perfect.