Chapter Text
Tim wakes up the next morning and sees that Lucy is still asleep. He takes his time watching her and to him, she is absolutely radiant. His lips place a soft kiss on her forehead and his hand moves to her belly. He’s going to be a dad and he still can’t believe it. Then he thinks about the ring, the absolute perfect ring, and he knows that he wants to propose and he wants to do it soon.
“You’re thinking too hard babe.” Lucy’s eyes are closed but she’s very much awake. “Cuddle me.” Tim pulls her closer to him and wraps his arms around her. He wouldn’t change this for anything. “That’s so much better.”
“It really is so much better.” He murmurs. His hand once again gravitates to her stomach and he doesn’t even realize that he’s doing it.
“It’s hard to believe it’s real.” Lucy’s voice brings him back to this moment and not lost in his own thoughts. “We’re having a baby.”
Tim’s thumb runs soothing circles along her belly. “I’m so happy Lucy. You have made me so happy and our life together is better than I could ever imagine. This little boot is our miracle.”
Lucy can’t stop the smile on her face. “That’s kind of a perfect nickname.”
“This will be another rookie to train, but at least we can do this one together.” Tim grins. “You’ll always be in my top five favorites.”
“I’m glad that I can still crack the top five.” Lucy teases him. He rolls them over, careful to not jostle her too much and crashes his lips against hers. “Although I thought by now I would be in the top three.”
Tim chuckles. “Wouldn’t you like to know?” Lucy giggles. He wants to give her the perfect proposal but he doesn’t know how or when to do it.
They finally get to work and Tim holds his breath when Lucy goes out for the day. He’s always worried but it is heightened now more than it was. A loud knock on his door has him almost jumping out of his chair. Wade is standing there with his eyebrows raised and arms crossed. “Are you ready to head to our meetings?” Tim realizes how late it is.
“Yeah, sorry, I didn’t realize that it was that time already.” Wade knows something is on Tim’s mind and decides to ask him about it after their meetings.
“So.” Tim looks over at Wade. “Are you going to tell me why you are so distracted today?”
Tim feels his cheeks go red. “I’m not.” He knows that Wade sees through him. “I’ll tell you, but you need to keep this between us.”
“Did Lucy actually say no?” Tim has to keep himself composed.
“No!” His voice goes high pitched and he pulls the shop over. The last thing that he needs is a car accident. Tim runs his hand down his face. “I had every intention of proposing last night. I had a plan and it would have been perfect.”
“But?” Tim turns to face the man who’s being important to both of them.
Tim blows out a breath. “Lucy told me she’s pregnant.” Wade was not expecting this but he also isn’t surprised. “And I’m happy about it, so happy, but I’m also scared. I just didn’t think that I should propose at that moment. Now, I just don’t know if the beach proposal is right. What if she thinks I’m proposing because she’s pregnant?”
Wade has to put his hand on Tim’s shoulder to stop him from talking. “Breathe Tim.” The man finally takes a moment. “Lucy wouldn’t think that, I can assure you. She loves you and you two are stronger than ever.” That seems to relax Tim a bit. Wade has never seen him so frazzled before except when Lucy was taken. Although he was determined then and definitely in love with her. “And don’t delay the proposal. You just need to keep communicating with her. She’s probably scared out of her mind too.”
Tim feels his hands finally get less shaky. “I’ve been so worried about this that I haven’t even checked in with her.”
“Tim, this is big news, okay?” He knows this. “Talk to Lucy. The beach proposal could still be perfect, but that’s completely up to you.”
Tim doesn’t need everyone knowing about this again. “Do you have any other ideas? I don’t need to tell anyone else about the pregnancy. That’s our secret for now and Angela will open her mouth.”
“What about something simple? Maybe create something with things that are special to the two of you or a collage of pictures.” Wade knows that Lucy loves that type of stuff which is exactly why Tim chose the ring that he did.
Tim thinks it over. “That’s actually a great idea. I could do a backyard picnic or something like that.” Lucy has always loved the dates where they stay in and create memories together. “Thank you for your help and calming me down. This baby is so lucky to have you in their life. Lucy and I are so grateful for you.”
“You’re family, Tim. All of you are.” The men share a hug and then head back to the station.
He has an idea, one that he needs Lucy out of the house for. He talks to Genny who said she will call Lucy to take her out to dinner. Tim will get everything ready tonight. After today, they have the next few days off and it’s going to be perfect.
Lucy knocks on his door a few hours later. “Hey.” She sounds tired and he feels guilty.
Tim stands up and moves his fingers close to hers. “How was your day? I missed you.”
“I missed you too.” She murmurs. “It was busy, but I made it through. Genny called me though.”
Tim sees her chewing her lip. “Is everything okay?”
“She wants to get dinner. It’s been a while since we’ve hung out and I think she needs some girl time.” Tim lets her continue. “I should be back by nine the latest.”
“Have fun, okay? You never get to relax or have girl time.” Tim grabs her fingers to hold. “I’ll make sure to have a bath waiting when you tell me you’re leaving. Just tell me how far away you’ll be.”
“Have I told you how amazing you are?” Tim looks around and then gently presses a kiss to her forehead.
“You show me every single day.” They finally separate and Lucy heads out.
Tim makes it out of the station without being bothered. He makes a few stops and is home by seven which is plenty of time to put his basket together. He has more than he realized but he’s satisfied with how it looks. The ring stays with him but only so it doesn’t get lost.
Tim has the bath ready as promised and he even joins her. The next morning, he lets Lucy sleep in and even falls back asleep with her. They stay in bed until almost eleven, just enjoying each other.
“How about we have lunch outside today?” The sun is shining and it’s a beautiful day.
“Here?” Lucy grins and he can hear the excitement in her voice.
“Yeah.” Tim says quietly. “You can be as comfortable as you want.” He only changed into a pair of comfortable shorts and a Tshirt. They didn’t have any other plans to leave. “And I’ll get lunch ready for us.” She gives him a kiss and Tim knows this will be the perfect moment.
Lucy takes Kojo outside while Tim gets lunch handled. She sets the blanket up and brings some drinks out. He brings lunch out and the basket. “That’s a surprise for later.” He says when he sees some confusion on her face.
Lucy pouts slightly but has a smile on her face the entire time. “You outdid yourself.”
“Only the best for the both of you.” The word tug at Lucy’s heart and she loves how excited Tim is.
Once lunch is done, Tim grabs Lucy’s hand. “I love you.”
“I love you too.” She leans in to kiss him. “Are you okay?”
“I’m just really so happy to have you by my side in life, Lucy.” He brings her hands to his mouth to kiss. Then he grabs the basket and places it in her lap. “This is a gift for you.”
“Did I miss a special occasion?” Tim shakes his head.
“I wanted to do something nice for you.” Lucy feels butterflies and opens the basket. “This is a special basket for you. There’s some older things that are very special to us and a few new things.”
Lucy grabs their favorite cup and giggles knowing that it’s been well used. Then she sees the trophy Tim got her but it now says #1 Mom on it. “This is adorable.”
“I thought so.” Tim encourages her to keep going. Lucy sees the booties they use for every occasion. “I didn’t even get to use them to tell you that I was pregnant.”
“That would have been cute, but it was already perfect.” He squeezes her hand to reassure her.
Inside is her moonstone ring, but he has a necklace to match. “This reminds me that you saved yourself and you are here with me every single day.”
“Tim.” She murmurs and runs her fingers along the moonstone. “Put it on me, please.” He does so easily and then kisses her cheek. “Thank you.”
Lucy then pulls out a soft baby blanket. “You love your blankets and our baby will definitely take after you with that.” Lucy giggles. She then pulls out a photo album. “All of our best memories since the day I met you fill this book. We have some blank pages to fill with even more memories for our future.”
“I think you’re purposely trying to make me cry.” Lucy murmurs and she can hear the emotion in her voice.
“No, just spoiling my favorite girl.” Lucy closes her eyes and then opens them a few moments later.
The basket is almost empty but not quite. She picks up the baby onesies and smiles. “These are adorable.” They are little police ones. “I can’t wait to see you as a dad.”
Tim grabs her hands and blows out a breath. “Lucy, for the past eight years, you’ve shown me how much light there is in this world when I thought it was just a dark place. You saved me in more ways than I can count and you’ve healed me in places that I didn’t even know were broken.” Lucy has the biggest smile on her face but she doesn’t seem to suspect what Tim’s about to do. “My life will always be better with you in it. We will continue to get through the hard days, the good days, and everything in between. I can’t imagine my life without you in it. Now you’re giving me one of the greatest gifts of all.” He has to fight his own emotions back. “I love you, Lucy Chen. I love the life we are creating together.” Tim finally pulls the box out and Lucy gasps, her hands flying to her face. “So, will you marry me?”
She nods her head first. “Yes, yes.” She moves closer. “Yes.” Her lips find his and they kiss before Tim can even slide the ring on.
“Do you like it?” He asks while putting it on her finger.
She nods her head. “Do I like it? No, I love it. I love you.” They both think back to Valentine’s Day and when Tim said those words to her. “It’s absolutely perfect baby.”
Tim rests his forehead against hers. “This secret was hard to keep.”
Lucy chuckles. “How many people knew?”
“Everyone seemed to know. Angela has a big mouth. I’m glad that it didn’t make its way to you.” He pulls her into his lap and admires the ring again. “We’re getting married and having a baby.”
Lucy takes his head between her hands. “My dreams are coming true. I can’t wait to marry you and start our family. You’re the best partner in life.” There was nothing more perfect than the moment they were in right now.
That is until seven or so months later, when Lucy was holding their baby girl in her arms. Their wedding rings were on their fingers and life truly couldn’t get any better than this.