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Miles was used to the heat. Every summer of his life, until now, had been spent with the hot Texas sun beating down on him. But there was something about the way the LA sun beat down through the windshield of the shop, AC off, long wool sleeves, and the weight of his TO’s glare that even the hottest Texas summer hadn’t prepared him for.
Celina had mentioned that he’d get to switch to short sleeves after passing his 6 month exam, but something (Lucy not so subtly shaking her head as Celina spoke) told him that wouldn’t be the case with Tim as his TO.
“There’s gotta be some way I can earn short sleeves,” Miles sighs.
“My boots don’t get short sleeves,” Tim shrugged, “and I’m not changing that rule for you Texas.”
“I bet you made an exception for Lucy,” he mumbled under his breath.
Miles winced before Tim could even slam on the brakes. He knew before he even finished the sentence that he was going to regret it. Lucy and Tim may be back together, but she still hasn’t given Tim a straight answer on moving in with him (even though she totally lives with him). It’s a sore subject for Tim, and bringing her up in the shop when Tim is already irritated is never a good idea.
“Lucy,” Tim hissed sharply, refusing to admit that even as a rookie, Lucy was always the exception to his rules, “made, and won a bet to earn her short sleeves.”
“Okay,” Miles perked up, a lightbulb flashed through his mind “then how about I make a bet too. I bet I can get Lucy to admit she lives with you by the time I take my six month exam.”
Tim hesitated, knowing how this could backfire on him, but ultimately decided it was worth a try.
“Alright boot,” he agreed,
***
Miles got his first opening to convince Lucy when they’re all at lunch gathered around the food trucks. The group's attention had just turned to him after Celina asked if he had made any more attempts to get back in the dating scene.
“Nah,” Miles shook his head, “I’m gonna take some time to reflect on my previous mistakes before I try again”
“Mistakes like putting that you’re a cop in your profile, after I told you not to, and almost getting yourself taken out by the Eastern front?”
“Well, yeah,” Miles sighed, “but also just mistakes I made with Camilla.”
“Oh! Like letting her move out to LA only for you to realize you weren’t in love with her anymore?” Celina chimed in helpfully.
“Can I finish my thought?” Miles rolled his eyes, “or would y’all like to continue roasting me like I’m the winning pig on the last day of the county fair?”
“I was going to say that one of the biggest mistakes we made as a couple is that we each kept our own apartments, but we only ever stayed at mine” He attempted to be nonchalant as he said it, but his gaze fell to Lucy as he spoke.
Lucy’s head snapped up at that and her eyes narrowed, her glare shifting back and forth between Miles and Tim.
“We both spent more than a preacher at an out of town strip club on rent, when we coulda been saving instead” Miles continued.
“Ya know,” Lucy cut in, stabbing her fork into her salad, “Maybe Camilla liked the independence of having her own place. Maybe she needed the security to know she wouldn’t be starting from scratch if things blew up”
Lucy sent Miles and Tim both one last glare, before gathering up her trash and indicating to Celina that their lunch was over for the day.
Quickly realizing how negatively the conversation had turned, Miles risked a glance at his TO. Tim’s face gave nothing away, but he knew a walk next to the shop in the afternoon heat was definitely in his future.
***
In hindsight, using Lucy’s late arrival to roll call in his next attempt probably wasn’t the smartest choice for him to make.
Tim was out on a personal day, helping Genny with something, so Lucy had volunteered to act as Miles’s TO for the day. The morning had been relatively calm, the pair responding to a few low priority calls as they drove in relative silence through the streets of LA.
“Ya know Ma’am,” Miles interrupted the music that was quietly playing, “I couldn’t help but notice that your longer commute left you more frazzled than a cat chasing a laser pointer.”
“What are you implying Boot?” Lucy’s eyes narrowed, “because I know Sergeant Bradford has trained you better than to bring up your superiors personal life in the shop”
“I mean no disrespect ma’am,” Miles raised his hands in surrender, “I’m just pointing out that I’ve noticed how much closer Sergeant Bradford’s house is to the station than your apartment. It must make for much smoother mornings.”
“Okay,” Lucy pulls the shop over, voice deceivingly calm, and leans across Miles to open his door, “you just bought yourself 20 pushups between each call”
“Ma’am?”
“You heard me. Get out, twenty pushups, and then maybe I’ll let you get back in the shop.”
“Yes ma’am,” Miles reluctantly climbed out of the shop and dropped to the ground.
“Tim’s tactics have really rubbed off on you,” Miles grumbles as he finishes his tenth push up.
“You wanna add drunk tank to your punishment boot?”
***
“Boot,” Tim breaks the silence in the shop after five days and a few more failed attempts from Miles, “since you love metaphors so much, I’ve got one for you: you’re about as subtle as a brick to the face.”
“Pardon me sir?” Miles asked, confusion lacing his tone.
“Lucy is pissed about your comments directed at her living situation, and she thinks I’m making you say them which means she’s pissed at me. So you either need to be more subtle, or the bet is off and you’re stuck in long sleeves”
“Understood sir”
***
Since his attempts to appeal to Lucy’s logical side clearly were going about as well as a sinner touching holy water, so Miles decided to shift his strategy. Lucy was the most empathetic person he had ever met, and Celina had assured him that once she officially moved out the room was available to him. Maybe, if he can make himself seem pathetic enough, Lucy will take pity on him and offer him the room.
She doesn’t. Miles spends the next four days complaining about his living situation whenever Lucy is in earshot. Every comment he makes about back pain or restless nights is met with a shrug or an eyeroll.
He even pays Smitty fifty dollars to blast his music extra loudly, so that Lucy can hear it as she’s leaving the station for the day. She responds by sending him a listicle of the best ranked noise cancelling headphones.
His short sleeved dreams are slipping further and further away.
***
With two days left until the six month exam, Miles had decided that desperate times called for desperate measures. And with record temperatures on the forecast for the next week, he was feeling more desperate than a bass during the annual fishing derby.
He spotted Lucy, at her desk, hunched over and reviewing the paperwork the night shift had left unfinished. A quick glance around confirmed Tim was nowhere to be seen, stuck at the courthouse for the day.
“Lucy,” he started and then coughed, quickly correcting himself, “Sergeant Chen, ma’am, can I be blunt with you?”
Lucy leaned back in her chair and crossed her arms. Eyes narrowed as she nodded, “I’d prefer that to your previous passive aggressive attempts at making your opinions on my living situation known.”
Miles gulped, for all that Lucy was sunshine personified, she could also be scarier than his mama when he forgot to take the chicken out to thaw.
“I apologize ma’am. It’s just,” he hesitated before finishing, “I was so desperate for short sleeves that I made a bet with sar-“
Lucy’s hand shot up in the air, and Miles snapped his mouth shut with an audible click.
“All of this was over a bet?” Lucy asked, voice dangerously quiet.
“Uh, yes ma’am,” Miles nodded, suddenly feeling hotter than he ever had in the shop.
“Well dammit Miles,” she exclaimed, slapping her hand down on the table, “why didn’t you say that from the beginning? God, there’s nothing I love more than Tim losing a bet.”
She abruptly stood up, grin stretching across her face, “you really would’ve saved yourself so much time, and push ups, if you’d just told me that from the beginning”
“Oh, I’m…sorry ma’am?” Miles replied, tone laced with confusion at Lucy’s sudden change in attitude
Lucy turned quickly and gestured for Miles to follow her, “Come on Texas, you’re suddenly feeling under the weather. Go clock out. I need your help.”
***
Tim walked through the door of Lucy and Celina’s apartment exhausted in a way only a day of dealing with lawyers could make him. They rarely spent the night at Lucy’s anymore, but when she had texted him that she was heading home for the day and would see him later, he assumed she meant the apartment. She’d been very pointed in her use of calling the apartment “home” since Miles had started his comically unsubtle attempts at winning the bet. While it bothered him deeply, he was doing his best to respect her clear boundary.
“Luce,” he called into the apartment, grabbing a beer from the fridge and taking a note of how bare it is, “thoughts on a lazy take out order for dinner?”
“Sarge, as much as I’d love for you to treat me to dinner, I have to ask what you’re doing in my apartment? ” the responding voice is much deeper than Tim expected. Startled, Tim almost dropped his beer as he quickly turned in the direction of the voice. His eyes quickly settled to where Miles sat lounging on the couch.
“Texas?” Tim questioned, “why are you here? Where’s Lucy?”
“I’m just relaxing in my new apartment after a long shift,” Miles replied nonchalantly, “although I’m pretty sure Sergeant Chen told you she’d see you at home. So I’m not sure why you’re here.”
Realization, and excitement, dawned over Tim’s face as Miles’s words settled over him.
“Right. Got it,” Tim nodded, attempting to keep the smile from splitting his face, turning quickly to leave the apartment and head home to Lucy.
“I’ll see you at roll call sir,” Miles called after him, “In short sleeves!”
***
Miles starts his first shift post six month exam sitting proudly in the front of roll call, arms on full display in his short sleeves.