Work Text:
Timothy Bradford was never one to be excited about the concept of Valentine’s Day. He always thought it was a day fabricated by companies to sell their stupid products. Back when he was married to Isabel, neither of them cared much about the day. They’d simply exchange small gifts, go on a fancy dinner, and that was about it. After she left on her undercover op and showed no signs of returning home, he slowly stopped believing in the concept of Valentine’s Day.
He was also not really a forward-thinker. He used to believe tomorrow’s not promised, so he took up one day at a time and hadn’t really made any big future plans. So it wouldn’t be wrong to assume that if you told him that, years later he would be sitting in his office desk researching Korean skincare for his live-in girlfriend and freaking out over terms like Niacinamide, Hyaluronic Acid and ultimately choosing what would be perfect for her skin-type after hours of research, for a Valentine’s Day that was months away, he’d first give you a death stare and probably threaten you with a blue page.
But here he was, planning the perfect gift for Lucy two months before the actual day. They weren’t even officially back together yet. That morning, he had gathered all the courage, put his actual feelings for her into words using all the therapy he’d been through and was ready to ask her to move in with him. It was a huge step for him, but he was hopeful for a second chance to do things right this time around. He’d gone to her apartment while she was working the night shift, cooked all of her favorite dishes and poured his heart out to her. Was he disappointed that she dozed off while he asked the most important question he’d probably ask her for a while? A tad. But he was happy she was comfortable enough to sleep in peace with him around. He simply draped a blanket over her, dropped an ardent kiss to her forehead and left.
"To be continued", he told himself. He was really optimistic about their future now. If not just now, in his heart, he knew their destinies were entangled. And so, he officially started his perfect Valentine’s Day gift hunting. Knowing Lucy - famously known as the world’s best gift giver - he knew even two months was less time than it seemed.
One can thus imagine his utter frustration when there were just two days left until Valentine’s Day and still his emails regarding the delivery of the ridiculously priced products were never responded to. He tried calling every customer care service waiting hours in their queues. He chatted with dumb AI bots on the freaking website. All of it only made him want to throw his laptop on the floor in rage.
In the end he resorted to Genny asking her for suggestions for a last minute present. As much as he thought jewelry was a cliché valentine’s day gift, he seemed to be running out of time. Lucy seemed so excited to give the gift she had gotten for him and that just added salt to his wound. He just couldn’t ruin her first valentine’s day after them getting back together. So, he settled for a consolation prize. He remembered the necklace he gifted her the last valentine’s day they spent as a couple and decided on buying her a pair of earrings that would match with it.
Maybe the earrings weren’t as great as the skincare kit, but he was still positive that it was a good present. That was until she pulled him into one of Nolan’s rooms sneakily, amidst the fundraiser party. He actually had tears in his eyes seeing the present she had got for him. He really couldn’t believe the fact that she had remembered him mentioning the book - it was simply a passing comment he’d made while they passed a bookstore in the mall. He himself had long forgotten about it. To top that, he was even more shocked to see a sign of the author on the front page. He teared upon the fact that he gets to spend every day with this amazingly thoughtful, kind and giving woman. He scoffed when she asked if he liked the present. No one had ever put so much thought into any gift he had received till date. He actually found it hard to put his thought into words, so he just uttered “I love you” with utmost sincerity.
He’d almost put his hands in pockets to show her the gift he got for her, until a voice in his mind told him that he’d be the worst live-in boyfriend if he gave her that piece of metal now after seeing her dedication to find a gift for him. He also knew for a fact that she had pulled off this amazing gift in just a day’s time that too while being on duty, because he’d found the other gift just the previous night behind the washing machine. So, he just stormed off the place rushing to find a better alternative. He was never one to feel insecure, especially not in romantic feeling. But every time Lucy did something like this, he couldn’t ignore the pang in his chest that made him feel he probably would never be able to love like her. They were always competitive, it literally defined their dynamic, but this wasn’t that. This was his need to desperately make her feel special in every way she deserved.
So, yeah pardon him if he’s now sitting and planning a trip to Paris (the one place on the top of her bucket list). But even this plan started to feel more and more as a dead end as both of them couldn’t afford such a long time-off given their hectic schedules. Also, he would probably have to spend half his mortgage considering the last-minute ticket fares.
After the fundraiser event, they went to a fancy sushi place she’d wanted to try for a long time. The dinner was pleasant, they talked about work, and random station gossip Lucy had gathered. Every time Lucy would ask him about her present he tried stalling or diverting the topic. He also didn’t want to make her feel that he hadn’t gotten anything for her. Ultimately he decided to make do with what he had and pulled the box out of his pocket.
Lucy let out an audible gasp. Her hands flew to cover her now wide-open mouth. For a second he didn’t realize why she reacted that way. But when realization struck him, he tried backtracking saying it wasn’t that and revealed the pair of earrings. He steadied himself to see the disappointment on her face. But she showed none. In fact she seemed happy. With a wide grin, she removed the one she was already wearing and tried on the new pair. It looked beautiful on her and she also pointed out that it matched with the necklace. He was still not satisfied and confessed to her how the other gift he’d ordered never arrived. She smiled and said that she loved the earrings. But she did get all the details of the website from which he ordered the skincare products. He very well knew that she wouldn’t rest until she’s tracked down the company and sued them for being a scam.
Valentine’s plans hadn’t ended yet for them. Lucy had suggested a while ago, that they both do an activity of each other’s choice each year for valentine’s day. Lucy wanted to go on a Tea ceremony and Tim wanted to try bowling. They’d decided to firstly go on bowling after their shift the next day. He couldn’t wait for his shift to end the next day. He was looking up all tactics and strategies on YouTube mid-shift.
Finally after a seemingly never-ending shift, he saw Lucy and Celina walking in to the station. He was just about to go out and trash talk her telling how he was absolutely going to crush her in the game when he felt the whole world explode. In the blink of an eye, he was knocked off the ground, his back hitting the glass wall and the impact sending him to the floor. There was a huge weight on his chest that was crushing him and making it difficult for him to breath.
Even after years of therapy and getting back together with Lucy, Tim Bradford, still believed tomorrow’s not promised. The reason was their jobs. Uncertainty was the core of it. But lying on the burning ground with this huge mass on his chest, he hoped against hope for him not to die like this. He finally had someone worth living for. Finally found a reason to be excited about each upcoming day. So, though he was struggling to even take a breath, he managed to choke out a “Help!”. With his lingering consciousness he could see everything around him burning. He was silently praying for Lucy to be alright.
“Lucy!”, he tried calling out but the words came out mumbled. His vision was blurring, but he could hear a faint voice.
“Bradford!” It was her.
She was tugging and pulling him up. She swiftly pushed the desk off him and he could finally breathe. He let out a cough and was still struggling when she pulled off her respiratory mask and put it on him. “Let’s get out of here”, she said and he was dragging his feet out, still fighting. As soon as they reached out there were RAs which quickly pulled them in and they both were incubated with supplementary oxygen masks. The whole thing started giving him a strange sense of Déjà Vu. He grabbed her arm wanting to be closer and the intimacy reminding him that they’d survived.
The hospital was a chaos with people and doctors swarming around. They both still refused to leave each other's side. The doctor didn’t try arguing as they were already short on staff. She checked both of them for concussions first and confirmed neither had any serious injuries. She then did first-aid on all the cuts and wounds and told them to call her if they needed any help. Lucy was clinging on to his side, he too had no intention of letting her go. They settled against the bed cradling each other. He had come so close to losing her. So close to losing the life they were just starting to build.
Tomorrow’s never promised, he knew that for sure now. So, today and this moment was all he had. He was grateful for every minute he gets to spend with Lucy and he decided there’s no way he was waiting to make her his forever. He’d spend the rest of his life proving to be worthy of her.
He pulled her closer to him and whispered in her ears, “Will you marry me Lucy Chen?”. She looked at him as if she was dreaming. She asked him again just to be sure if she wasn’t hallucinating due to all the pain killers. Her blush deepened and she replied with a soft “Yes!”. “But I’d still like to have a ring”, she added. He laughed and said, “The jewelry shop where I picked the earrings yesterday also had great rings, so I picked one, just in case”. They kissed and drifted off into a peaceful sleep in each others arms.
Tomorrow’s never promised. Tim Bradford had made that his mantra for years and it was his excuse to not dream too far and get his heart broken. But right now, lying beside Lucy in a hospital bed, he realized something else.
Tomorrow wasn’t promised, but if it came he wanted it to come with her. If tomorrow comes, he would throw a small, cozy wedding with the people who mattered. Angela would be his best woman. She would tease him till the end of time about how Tim, the Reaper had tears in his eyes seeing Lucy walking down the aisle Kojo wagging right behind her.
And if tomorrow comes after that, they’d spend the rest of their lives, building a home, talking about having kids and one day sit with their grandkids telling them stories about how their love survived everything.