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It happens in a second, one second he’s fighting the suspect off the next he’s on the ground getting beat within a inch of his life. Fortunately his metro team is on it and they are pulling the suspect off and pulling Tim to safety.
“Sarge.” Mad Dog calls through it is fuzzy. “Are you okay?”
Tim blinks up at him as if he’s confused to who he is and nods. “Don’t tell Lucy.” He says hoarsely. “Please she has enough on her plate right now.” The person holding him up says something like: “She will want to know.” But Tim shakes his head and winces when his head throbs.
“No.” He says in what he hopes is a firm voice. “She doesn’t need that stress on her.” Mad Dog still looks hesitant, and Tim thinks back to the last time he told people to keep Lucy in the dark and they weren’t even together yet. And how worried she was when she found out about his emergency surgery.
“Please.” Tim begs and he’s starting to get dizzy again. Mad Dog pulls him all way up and finally nods although he looks like that he hates doing it. And it’s not like Lucy won’t find out, someone from the station will find out and tell her but he doesn’t need her panicking
Tim closes his eyes and someone in the distance calls for him to open his eyes.
“Sir.” Says another voice. “Sir you need to stay awake.” He thinks it’s Po or maybe Sergio.
He feels himself being lifted onto a gurney and his eyes are closing slowly.
“We need to call Chen.” Says Po. “She needs to know.”
“No!” Says Tim hoarsely. And he’s not sure why he’s being so stubborn about this. “Please just give me time.”
He feels the ambulance start to move and he knows his team is doing what he asks no matter how against they are.
The ride to the hospital is uneventful other than the paramedic telling Tim to keep his eyes open. When they arrive at the hospital he’s rolled to a room and immediately hooked up to everything imaginable.
“Sir. We have to monitor you for the next few hours. Is there anyone you want me to call?” The nurse asks. Tim sighs. Lucy. But that was out of the question right now.
“No.” He says. “My girlfriend has enough on her plate right now. I-I don’t want to worry her.” The nurse nods but gives him a look.
“All right if you change your mind let me know.” She says. Tim sighs and leans back against the pillows.
He was doing the right thing. She was studying for the detective’s exam and shadowing Harper. He can’t bother her.
***
“Hey Chen?” Says a voice behind Lucy. She turns and sees Angela hurrying towards her a concerned look on her face.
“What’s up?” Lucy asks as Angela falls into step with her.
“How’s Tim?” She asks. “You know after he almost got beat to—” She stops when she sees the look of horror on Lucy’s face.
“You didn’t know?” Angela asks taking a step back. Lucy’s mind is racing and her heart is going a million miles a minute.
“Know what?” She grits out. Angela sighs and rubs her hand down her face. Saying something like fucking Bradford “Angela what happened to Tim?”
Angela sighs again and her eyes dart nervously around her. “There was a struggle and Tim got beat and they think he has a concussion.”
Lucy feels lightheaded as she takes in Angela’s words. Her heart feels like it’s going to jump out of her chest.
“How do you know this? Why wasn’t I told?” She says through her teeth.
Angela shrugs. “The metro guys were talking and I-I heard Tim’s name and I was concerned. So I asked.”
Lucy turns on her heels and marches towards the door. Her mind on one thing and one thing only. Tim.
When Lucy gets to the hospital she feels like she’s on a mission. The nurses point her to Tim’s room right away and Lucy marches towards it trying to steady her breathing.
When she gets to Tim’s room it’s empty and she feels like she can’t breathe. She paces the room until she hears voices in the hallway and the unmistakable sound of Tim grumbling.
The roll him in again and she’s at his side in an instant.
“Lucy.” He says. “How—”
“Angela told me.” She says softly running her fingers through his hair. “Baby, why didn’t any one notify me?”
Tim bits his lips and turns to look at her wincing as he does. “I told my team not to notify you.” He says and Lucy looks at him confused. He had done this one other time and even though they weren’t together, the fear that Lucy felt when she found out he had emergency surgery.
“Why?” She asks her voice is steady but she’s barely holding it together as he blows it out.
“I didn’t want to worry you Luce. You are already stressed out enough. And I’m fine.”
Lucy doesn’t think getting almost beat to death and a concussion is fine but she takes a step back. Her mind still reeling as she takes in the fact that Tim kept this from her because he didn’t want to worry her.
“You shouldn’t have kept that from me Tim. I was going to find out anyway. I don’t care how stressed I am. You are more important.” Lucy says. “But you purposely didn’t tell me. Do you not want me here?”
Tim shakes his head. “Of course I do Luce. But you have so much going on. And what if you couldn’t get here right away? You would be thinking about me instead of the job and that would put your life in danger.”
“I am a good cop Tim.” She says and she takes a step forward. “I know how to concentrate without getting myself killed.”
Tim sighs and looks up at her. She knows he knows she’s a good cop. He trained her after all, but that didn’t mean he wouldn’t be by her side if she was the one that was hurt. She knows he would drop everything just to get to her.
“Baby I know you are a good cop. But if it were reversed I wouldn’t want to be anywhere but by your side.” Tim says. Lucy looks away from him and let’s out a breath.
She pulls a chair up and sits by the bed, crossing her legs.
“What are you doing?” He asks looking at her confused. He thought she was mad at him.
“I’m sitting here with you.” Lucy says but she makes no move to grab his hand.
“I thought you were mad at me?” Tim asks her. She adjusts herself and then leans forward her elbows on her legs.
“I’m mad at you because I love you.” She says and then her whole body freezes. Her cheeks turn bright red as she looks anywhere but Tim.
“Lucy.” He says softly. But she still doesn’t turn to look at him. She is still furious that Tim didn’t let her know that he was hurt but those three words had been itching to get out and it’s not like it’s not true. She does love him with every inch of her being. “Baby look at me please.” Lucy looks up at the ceiling and bites her lips before turning to look at him tears burning her eyes.
“I—” She begins but Tim cuts her off, his face determined to say what he needed to say.
“I love you too.” He says and Lucy’s heart nearly stops when he says it. And then she is launching herself at him kissing him hard.
“You love me?” She questions him. Her eyes full of tears as she stares down at him. He wipes tears from her eyes.
“I do.” He says fiercely. “I do Luce. I do.” Lucy bends down and kisses him one more time.
“I wish you wouldn’t of kept this from me Tim. You are more important than anyone or any job. You matter to me.”
Tim reaches up and tucks some hair behind her ears. Lucy runs her hands gently across a nasty looking bruise on his face. She traces each bruise on his face and then down to his chest.
“I’m sorry Luce.” He says sincerely. “I didn’t mean to upset you.”
Lucy sits back down but this time she takes his hand. “Please just tell me next time Tim.” She says. He brings her hand up to his mouth and kisses it gently.
“I hate worrying you Luce. But I promise baby.” He says. She nods and lays her head down on his chest.
“Does this hurt?” She mumbles. Tim runs his fingers through her hair.
“No.” He says back quietly. “You are good baby.”
They stay like that for a while until she starts to close her eyes. And then Tim is nudging her up, and pulling her to climb into bed with him. She does and he wraps his body around hers, resting his chin on her shoulders.
“I was really scared when Angela told me you had been hurt.” She says into his chest. “I was afraid I would never get to tell you how I feel.”
Tim kisses the top of her head softly. “I love you baby. And I am sorry.”
Lucy curls into him more gripping the thin hospital gown in her eyes.
“It’s okay.” She says. “I love you too.”
Lucy eventually falls asleep to the beating of Tim’s heart beneath her ear. And his fingers combing through her hair. And there’s no place she’d rather be than in his arms.