Chapter Text
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“Alright be safe out there and remember Valentine’s Day tends to bring out some of our craziest calls so stay on alert.” Sergeant Grey says to the officers in the roll call room. They all stand and start shuffling their way out of the room as Lucy speeds up to catch up with Sergeant Grey.
“Sir…my TO isn’t here” she says.
Grey slows his steps and turns on his heel,
“Oh…right. Officer Bradford is taking a personal leave day so you'll be on front desk duty. Go find Sergeant Roberts and check in with him”
“Sounds perfect…” Lucy responds and she begins heading in the direction of the front desk.
She’s mildly curious why Tim has taken a personal leave day. She remembers hearing the other TOs tease him about the fact that he hasn’t missed a single work day in several years.
She checks in with Sergeant Roberts and settles in for her day at the front desk.
Her desk-duty day seems to go by quickly.
She spends it filling out mundane paperwork, fielding ridiculous inquiries and requests for information from the citizens of LA, but all in all it’s a typical day at the front-desk. When her shift finally comes to an end, she realizes she’ll actually get to leave on time for once.
Lucy quickly showers, gets dressed and emerges from the women’s locker room ready to attend Nolan’s anti-Valentine’s Day party.
She has curled her hair and applied her signature date-night red lipstick and although she’s dressed a bit more casual than she might be for an actual date night, she still looks drop-dead gorgeous. She’s wearing a lacy white top under a floral print jacket and tight blue jeans that hug her curvy legs. She grabs her gym bag and begins making her way out of the locker room.
The dimly lit halls of Mid-Wilshire seem pretty desolate tonight. It seems everyone must have bailed out early with Valentine’s Day plans. As she rounds the corner, she is surprised to see Tim walking in her direction.
“Hey there…” she says nervously as they come into closer proximity.
“Weren't you taking a personal day today?” she asks.
As Tim comes into better lighting, she can see a look on his face she’s never seen before. Her normally stoic and unreadable TO looks somber.
“...everything ok, Tim?”
She reflexively uses his first name which is something she’s never done before.
Tim pauses a few feet from Lucy.
“Yeah…it’s just been a long day”.
His eyes slowly sweep up her body and she can see him visibly swallow as they land on her face.
“You look nice…headed out on a date?” he asks.
Tim’s unexpected compliment and wandering gaze has Lucy suddenly feeling shy. She shuffles on her feet and sweeps a hand nervously through her hair in a self-conscious attempt to dispel some of the nervous energy she’s suddenly feeling.
“No. I’m actually headed to Nolan’s anti-Valentine’s Day party…are you stopping by?” she asks even though she knows the answer to that question. Nolan had invited most of Mid-Wilshire but only a handful sounded even remotely interested in spending the holiday at his house.
“No,” Tim says.
“I think I’m just going to head home…it’s been kind of a rough day for me” he shares.
Lucy, sympathetically tilts her head and furrows her eyebrows as a look of concern spreads on her face.
“Everything ok? Do you want to talk about it?” she offers.
Tim sighs deeply and runs a hand behind his neck.
“No, I’m ok…”
He looks at her and pauses for a moment and considers how much to reveal but he’s feeling pretty miserable and finds that his ability to filter his words have weakened at the moment.
“I just got back from visiting Isabel in rehab…she’s doing much better actually…but we signed divorce papers today”
“Oh, Tim…I’m so sorry.” Lucy says and she has to work to resists the urge to stroke his arm in an effort to comfort him.
“...are you sure you don’t want to come to Nolan’s party…we can talk…if you want” she says and she suddenly feels self-conscious that he might consider her offer too familiar and inappropriate.
“No, I’m ok…just don’t really feel like being around people and trying to make small talk tonight” Tim says.
“Alright…I’ll see you tomorrow then” Lucy says as she begins to walk away.
Just as she’s about to push open the double doors that lead into the garage, she hears Tim calling her. He reaches her before she’s had a chance to open the heavy doors.
“ah…this is going to sound weird…but I can really use some company tonight…would you by any chance consider skipping your party to come have a beer with me?” he asks.
Lucy is shocked to hear these words come out of Tim's mouth. She stares at him for a few seconds.
“Strictly platonic of course”, Tim rushes to add the last part as he holds palms up for emphasis.
There is no way Lucy is going to turn down the chance to spend some time with Tim outside of work and it isn’t because she thinks it will lead to anything romantic but because she likes the idea of getting to know him in a more personal way.
She really thinks this might go a long way into helping her possibly start to break through his tough exterior a bit. And though she’d never admit it to a living soul, deep down the thought of spending an evening hanging out with Tim on Valentine’s Day gives her schoolgirl butterflies.
She gives him a warm smile, nods and simply says,
“Ok, sure…I can do that”
They awkwardly stare at each other until she breaks the tension and starts walking through the double doors.
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Las Torres Bar is pretty packed that night- not only is it Valentine’s Day but it’s also Friday and that means it's a miracle they even find a place to sit. They find an open high top table, sit and order a couple of beers.
Tim drinks his beer before Lucy has even had a chance to get through a third of hers. She looks at this empty beer bottle and then up at his eyes and raises her eyebrows and says, "I think you might need something stronger..."
A shy smile escapes him, he chuckles and says, "Yeah...I guess I do"
Lucy goes up to the bar and orders three tequila shots and two more beers. She balances herself on her forearms and she waits for her drinks as her eyes wander over the bar. There's plenty of couples and singles there that night.
She people watches for a bit and then eventually her eyes travel back to their table. She sees that a tall blonde has made her way over to Tim and is chatting him up.
Lucy furrows her brows and rolls her eyes.
The nerve. How did she know they weren't there together?
She laughs to herself but thinks maybe this is what Tim needs- a night with a beautiful stranger.
She makes her way back to their table and the blonde has left.
"So I see you have an admirer..." she says to Tim in a lighthearted tone.
"Yeah...she was just being friendly," Tim says.
Lucy studies him and says, "Can I ask you a personal question, Tim?"
He looks at her and takes a deep breath, "...hmm...yeah but I think I need this first"
Tim grabs the tequila shot and downs it in one gulp.
"Ok...shoot" he says as he wipes his mouth with the back of his hand.
Lucy pauses and looks at him thoughtfully.
"When was the last time...you…ah..you know...were with a woman?"
Tim's eyes widen in surprise and he looks around the room. He's suddenly feeling self-conscious. He starts to feel guilty and wonders how appropriate it is to be in a bar with his rookie talking about his sex life.
He swallows hard, straightens up and leans forward and considers how honest he's willing to be and whether he's willing to start this topic of conversation with Lucy.
But it's been a long time since Tim has confided in anyone about his personal life and he feels like he wants to talk.
"Isabel left almost two years ago and we just signed the divorce papers today. So up until this afternoon, I was still a married man...so yeah, it's been a while."
Lucy's eyes widen in surprise and she clears her throat.
"...so two years?" she asks in disbelief.
Lucy studies him in utter disbelief and Tim is suddenly feeling embarrassed so he simply shakes his head.
"Yeah...it's been a while" he says as he looks down at the table, suddenly finding it difficult to make eye contact with her.
"You know...if you wanted to, you could pick up any woman at any bar in LA and even more so tonight...lots of lonely single women everywhere." she says.
"...I'm sure you wouldn't have any trouble" she says before she can stop herself and his eyes fly up to meet hers.
Lucy looks away quickly, suddenly embarrassed at her obvious compliment and she hopes it doesn’t sound like a come on’ because it wasn’t.
She looks to the bar and catches sight of the tall blonde who is still fixated on Tim.
"You know that blonde is still eyeing you...she might be lonely too. Do you want me to be your wing woman?" she asks him with a smirk.
Tim shifts in his seat uncomfortably and says,
"Lucy...I don't think this is a good conversation for us to have"
"Oh, come on, Tim...we're both adults here. We're just two friends tonight. Think of it like one friend helping out another"
He breathes deeply and says,
"...I've never had a one-night stand"
"...oh" Lucy says quietly.
Tim is one of the most attractive men she's ever met. He's tall, lean, fit and extremely handsome. She's shocked he has managed to stay celibate for so long and truly surprised he’s never had a one-night stand.
"Don't you miss it?" she asks and she knows she's pushing her luck but she is truly curious.
"Of course...but a one-night stand?…I just...I guess I've never really had to…I've always been more of a one woman kind of man" he says.
That Lucy can believe.
"...and I'm not really sure that's what I'm looking for right now. I don't think being with a stranger is what I need. To be honest, I think I miss the affection more than anything. I miss being with someone I know, someone I'm comfortable with. I don't think a one-night stand would help me there" he confesses.
Lucy takes a deep breath and she looks out into the bar at the crowds of people laughing and chatting as she processes what he's just said.
She's considering offering to help remedy his situation but she doesn't know how he would take it. She also doesn't do one-night stands but the thought of being with Tim sends that familiar warmth to her belly and a shiver down her spine.
She's always been attracted to Tim. She won't deny that but she never would have thought he'd see her as anything other than his young rookie.
Suddenly a waitress places a drink on their table and interrupts her thoughts. The blonde has sent Tim a drink and Lucy looks up to see the woman approaching.
Lucy smiles softly at Tim and says,
"There's a first time for everything" as she stands.
The blonde reaches their table as Lucy is grabbing her coat and purse off the back of her chair.
"Hi" she smiles warmly at the blonde and says,
"You can take my seat...I was just leaving"
Lucy looks over at Tim and gives him a quick wink. Before he's had a chance to react, Lucy is out the door.
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Within thirty minutes Lucy is sitting on her sofa in her apartment. She’s wearing her most comfortable pajama pants and a ratty but incredibly soft t-shirt. Her hair is piled up on top of her head in a messy bun and she's got a steaming hot bowl of popcorn on her lap. She's been scrolling through the channels for a few minutes trying to find a good murder documentary to watch. She finally chooses one and pulls her soft fluffy blanket around her body as she settles comfortably into the couch.
Like a cat, she wiggles around the sofa until she finds the perfect position and presses play when suddenly the jarring sound of her doorbell ringing startles her.
She jumps with a start and lets out a tense breath,
"What the..."
Then she rolls her eyes and grudgingly gets up to see who it is. She's convinced it's her next door neighbors, three doors down, who'd promised to send their middle school aged son over to sell her magazines for a school fundraiser.
As she looks through the peephole she gasps and yanks her head back. Her hand flies to cover her mouth as she whispers to herself,
"...oh shit! What's he doing here?"
She takes a deep breath and runs to the hallway mirror. She frantically removes her hair tie, throws her head upside down and fluffs her hair with both hands. She lifts up one arm up to sniff under her armpit and then rolls her eyes at herself.
"...what are you doing?"
She takes a deep inhale and opens the door.
"Hey!...Tim!...Wha...what are you doing here?" she blurts out.
Tim is standing on the other side of the door with both his hands shoved in his jean pockets. He looks a little uncomfortable. He licks his lips nervously and says,
"Well, you left in a hurry, I didn't have time to say goodbye..."
They stare at each other awkwardly for a moment until Tim breaks the silence.
"Can I come in?"
"Of course! Sorry..." says Lucy as she steps aside to let him through.
"Why'd you leave so quickly?" he asks.
"I figured you were hitting it off with that woman...she was very pretty," Lucy says.
"Yeah...and I told you I didn't want to..you know..just sleep with some stranger. I was actually enjoying just talking to you." Tim says.
"Oh...you meant that...huh?" Lucy says.
She purses her lips, smiles sweetly at Tim and says,
"Do you want to hang out? I was about to watch a murder documentary".
She looks at him grimacing,
"Sounds pretty lame huh?" she laughs.
Tim gives her one of his signature smiles and says,
"That sounds perfect"
They settle into her couch and Lucy offers him the bowl of popcorn which he gladly takes. He takes a healthy handful of fluffy kernels and starts munching away.
Lucy looks at him and then turns to the TV and smiles. She presses play on the remote control and resumes her attempts at wiggling around until she finds the most comfortable position and she wraps her fluffy blanket around herself. Tim keeps his face focused on the screen but gives her a side-eye as he smiles to himself.
A couple of hours later, Lucy wakes up and she has somehow migrated to the opposite end of the sofa and has ended up resting her head on Tim's shoulder. His arm is wrapped around her arm and his head is leaning against hers. Lucy sucks in a deep breath and slowly looks up at him.
She's convinced he fell asleep too but when her eyes meet his, she realizes he's wide awake and he's staring down at her.
"Tim...I'm sorry" she starts to say when he cuts her off.
"It's ok, Lucy. It's fine...you dozed off half-way through the first show and sort of fell on me, but it's fine. I didn't mind it"
He looks at her and pauses as he considers what he's about to say next.
"It was nice...I missed that the most like I was telling you earlier. I missed..you know…the cuddles"
Lucy sits up and studies Tim for a moment. A sad look crosses her face and then she nods her head and says,
"Ok, then, get up..."
She grabs both his hands and gently encourages him to stand.
Tim looks perplexed for a moment and says,
"What are you doing?"
She rolls her eyes playfully and says,
"Come on', get up"
He stands and she starts guiding him in the direction of her bedroom.
Tim starts to object,
"Lucy..."
But he follows her.
Once inside her room, she orders him to take off his shoes. He stands blinking for a moment staring blankly into her room and then he reluctantly toes off his shoes.
She pulls back the covers to her bed and instructs him to get in. Tim hesitates for a moment and she says,
"Just get in"
Tim has never seen this side of Lucy. She's firm and commanding but also kind. He feels like he couldn't say no to her right now no matter what she asked him. So he does what she says and gets in the bed.
She follows after him and gets in on the opposite side. She scoots her back up to him and presses her body into him and he immediately wraps his arms around her and melts into her. He breathes in the scent of her hair and rests his chin on her shoulder and closes his eyes.
This is what he's been needing...and not just today but for the past two years.
They soon fall asleep.
When Lucy wakes up several hours later, her body and legs are wrapped around Tim. Her chin is now on his chest and she can feel his chest rising and falling as he breathes calmly. She contemplates how to unwrap herself from him without waking him up when she hears his hoarse, sexy morning voice for the first time.
"Good morning. Did you sleep well?" he asks
Lucy looks up at him and he's smiling sweetly at her.
"Yeah...it was an amazing sleep actually" she laughs.
"How about you?"
"Same..." he says as he looks at her softly.
She slowly pushes her upper body up with her forearms and turns to look at Tim."
"Are we going to be Ok?" she asks.
"...I mean nothing happened...we can just pretend like you were never here, right?" she asks and she can tell that her words were not something he was expecting her to say.
He takes a deep breath and rubs his sleepy face with one hand.
"Of course, whatever you want, Lucy"
He gets up and finds his shoes and pauses to start putting them on.
He walks over to her front door and she follows him.
"I'll see you on Monday" and he gives her another one of his tiny but sweet smiles.
"Ok...bye, Tim" she says as she watches him walk down her hallway.
What the hell just happened?
She thinks to herself.
She enjoyed spending last night with Tim but she's convinced there's no way he'd ever be interested in her. There's no point in even contemplating it. She was happy to help him out last night but she's not going to allow herself to read anything more into it.
She’s prepared to focus on finishing her rookie year. She's not thinking he'll go easy on her after this either. In fact, he might be even tougher on her now that she’s seen him be vulnerable.
For now, she's just glad she was able to help him out and give him some comfort.
But she can't lie to herself completely. Being with Tim that way...was nice... really nice. She never would’ve guessed he could be that soft and tender.
As Tim makes it to his car, he pauses before he gets in. He looks up at Lucy's apartment window.
What the hell just happened?
He thinks to himself.
This can't happen.
He tells himself.
But he really liked spending time with Lucy and he really liked waking up with her in his arms.
He liked it.. too much .
Suddenly he remembers something and he digs in his jeans pocket and pulls out a crumpled paper napkin with the phone number of the blonde from last night.
Ashley
505-888-999