#Does that mean that Tim is still in Metro or is it just for this op? 👀

[theflyindutchwoman]

[fluentmoviequoter]

Rook Book to Remember Me By

Part 2 of Rook Book

Pairing: Tim Bradford x fem!Metro!reader

Summary: Tim's delay in transferring to Metro may have cost him everything, and as he and Lucy search Los Angeles for a killer, he only has his memories and a fake rook book to remember you by.

Warnings: ANGST, death, fluff

Word Count: 3.6k+ words

A/N: I know this is a Chenford gif but it fits. :)

Masterlist Directory | Tim Bradford Masterlist | Request Info/Fandom List

“What is that?” Lucy asks as she waits beside Tim’s desk. “A bomb?”

“Lower your voice, boot,” Tim snaps. “We don’t need a stampede.”

“Yes, sir. So, what is it?”

“What does it look like? It’s a book.”

“No, it’s a rook book with a bow on it. And I bet I know who it’s from.”

“50 pushups.”

“But-“

“You want double?”

Lucy frowns as she silences, and she watches Tim lift the book. He opens the front cover and shakes his head before dropping it into one of his drawers. Lucy doesn’t move toward the door, and Tim sighs as he leans against his desk.

“What?” he asks.

“Is that just a book? Or a none-rook-book-rook-book? Like the one somebody’s pretty TO used to carry?”

“Pretty TO?” you ask from behind Lucy.

Tim had been too distracted by the book and Lucy’s prying questions to notice you walk in. Dressed in your Metro uniform, you slide your hands into your pockets and smile.

“I’ll assume you’re talking about Tim,” you add.

“Yeah, right,” Lucy snorts.

“100 pushups it is,” Tim announces.

“Tim,” you chide softly. “You can’t blame her for being excited to see this side of you. It took me your entire probationary period to learn you could smile.”

“Chen, give us a minute,” Tim says.

“Do I have to?” she asks quietly.

“Yes,” you and Tim say together. The difference is that you add, “Please.”

You watch Lucy move toward the equipment room before turning to Tim. He furrows his brows and unconsciously blocks the drawer with your gift in it.

“I’m sorry I didn’t answer your call last night,” you begin. “Metro raided a speakeasy, and it went a little haywire.” “Are you okay?” Tim interrupts. “That’s what I was going to ask you. I know you tolerate me, maybe even like me a little, but you don’t call unless you need something.”

“I, uh, just wanted to hear your voice. But I’m fine, I promise.”

You nod and run your tongue over your bottom lip as you think. “Still have nightmares?”

“I’m fine.”

“Look, Lucy is ready to pass that test, but in the end moving to Metro is a big decision. One you can do; I don’t doubt that. Just… don’t stick around because you think you have some debt to pay or something. Your boot is important, but your career is too.”

“I’ll remember that.”

Your Metro Commander yells your name, and you lay a hand on Tim’s shoulder before whispering a farewell. He watches you go and decides that when he calls you tonight, he’ll ask why you chose the book you did. Hopefully, he thinks, it will allow him to admit some things. He needs more than your voice to calm him in the middle of the night these days.

“Can I just say one thing?” Lucy asks from the passenger seat of the shop.

“Will me saying no stop you?” Tim replies.

“I think you’re really cute together. She’s been waiting for you, and I don’t think you should make her wait just because you’re scared.”

“What makes you think I’m scared? You mean well, Chen, but this is none of your concern.”

“Maybe not. But it’s yours, and you know I’m right.”

Tim wants to keep arguing, maybe threaten Lucy with more pushups to make her leave it alone, but the radio cuts him off.

“Attention all units. Officer down at Wilshire Federal Building. Metro requesting backup. Will advise.”

Tim’s world slows as he pulls the shop to a curb. He and Lucy are too far away to provide backup fast enough, but he can’t move until he knows that you’re okay. Lucy watches him as he stares at the radio, but with each second of silence, she gets more concerned for him.

“She’s going to be okay,” Lucy whispers.

Tim shakes his head. He doesn’t want to think about the alternative but believing that you’re okay without knowing is more dangerous than being wrong and hearing another officer’s name over the radio.

“Bradford, Chen, Harper, Nolan,” Wade radios. “Get back to the station and prepare to assist Metro.”

“Uh, you- you drive, Lucy,” Tim says as he unclips his seatbelt.

“Attention all units,” the dispatch officer begins.

She identifies the downed officer, and when your name is said, Tim’s world stops. He waited too long, and now he can never tell you how he feels. He had a crush on you, he wants to say, but it turned into so much more.

“Tim,” Lucy calls as she opens the driver-side door. “C’mon.”

Tim doesn’t feel any shame as he leans on Lucy. She ushers him into the passenger seat before she drives to the station with lights and sirens on. Tim’s silence is terrifying, and although Lucy is also feeling grief and is heartbroken to hear you’re gone, her concern for Tim outweighs her own emotions.

As Tim exits the shop, his devastation suddenly makes room for anger. He doesn’t blame any of your fellow officers, but if he had moved to Metro sooner, he would have been there with you, and maybe he could have changed the outcome. He slams the door and ignores Lucy as he storms into the bullpen.

Lucy and Tim slow as they see several Metro teams gathered together, but it’s obvious that something is wrong, something is missing. There’s a gap where you should be, and even the elite tactical officers seem lost without you.

“What happened?” Tim asks.

“Officer Bradford, we can’t release any information yet,” Wade answers. “Metro’s going to fill you in on what you need to know. They need as many of us as they can get.”

Tim clenches his jaw to stop the remark that he wants to make. The Metro teams are talking quietly, and he gestures for Lucy to step to his other side as he moves closer.

“You saw the shot?” one of them asks.

“Yeah,” someone answers.

“Then where’d they take her?”

At the realization that you’re not only gone, but they don’t even know where your body is, Tim begins looking around. He sees his Sergeant, Captain, and the Metro commanders huddled in a corner and walks directly to them.

“I want a position in the task force. You need more people, and I’m one of the few patrol officers who knows how to complete a manhunt like this,” he demands.

“I understand where you’re coming from Bradford, but you’re too invested in this to go out alone,” Wade replies.

“Then let me go with him,” Lucy interjects. “Tim knows what he’s doing, and we can patrol and engage in the manhunt at the same time, right?”

Wade looks to the Metro sergeant to his left, who shrugs noncommittedly. He sighs before nodding and tells Tim to get back out on the street and wait for the information about the gunman.

“Wait,” Tim tells Lucy as he stops beside his desk.

He pulls the book from the bottom drawer and tucks it under his arm before continuing to the shop. If this is his last drive where you’re involved, he wants you there. Or as close as he can get.

“Dispatch released a picture,” Lucy says before turning the dash computer toward Tim.

He looks at the picture until the light turns green, and then he begins a grid search surrounding the Wilshire Federal Building. If that man is still nearby, and Tim finds him first, prison will be the least of his worries.

“What’s the book?” Lucy inquires.

“It’s her favorite,” Tim answers.

“You know what her favorite book is. That’s really sweet, Tim.”

“She’s been telling me for years to read it and I keep making excuses not to.”

“And now?”

Tim nods, and Lucy knows that he is going to not only read the book but devour it and everything related to it to feel close to you again.

“7-Adam-19, assault in progress inside Shell gas station at the corner of Santa Monica Boulevard and Greenfield Avenue. 9-1-1 caller requested your presence on scene.”

Tim hits the steering wheel before telling Lucy to accept the call. He doesn’t have time to break up a fight in a gas station, not when your killer is on the loose. The gas station is less than five minutes away, but Tim gets grumpier with every minute. As he and Lucy enter the gas station, he’s prepared to jump in the fight just to finish it faster.

“You called the police, what’s the problem?” Tim asks the cashier.

The young girl looks scared; her face is pale, and her hands shake above the cash register.

“This doesn’t look like an assault in progress,” Tim adds with his arms crossed tightly over his chest.

Lucy steps forward to speak to the girl while Tim looks around. The gas station is empty, but Tim doesn’t make it far before he sees a blood trail on the floor. It rounds the end of the cashier’s counter and disappears under a door. Tim pulls his gun and whispers for Lucy to stay ready as he steps toward the door.

“In there?” Lucy asks.

The woman behind the counter nods, and Lucy gestures for Tim to go ahead. Tim pushes the door open and raises his gun to clear the room while Lucy stays on the other side of the opening. He looks down to follow the blood but freezes when someone speaks.

“Officer Bradford, California Penal Code 217.1 is punishable by what?”

“Chen!” Tim yells as he holsters his gun.

Lucy hits the light switch for the storage closet, and Tim kneels to lift a bloody gun from the floor.

“They said you died,” Tim says as he moves closer to you.

You hear Tim begin asking questions when he enters the gas station and hope that the cashier that you scared by walking in covered in your blood can point him to your hiding spot in the storage closet. Your gun is on the floor beside your feet and your long-sleeve Metro t-shirt is balled against the gunshot wound in your shoulder.

When Tim opens the door, you ask him about a penal code before your head tips forward. Staying conscious while losing blood isn’t as easy as some may think, and you want to make a joke, but Tim jumps to action before you can.

“They said you died,” Tim says quietly.

He lays a hand over your cheek as his other hand applies more pressure to the fabric on your shoulder.

“I think that was the goal,” you mumble.

“Chen, radio for-“

“No!” you interrupt. Your voice raises at the idea of Chen communicating this news over the radio. “The men who we went in there to arrest have radios. They knew we were coming, but if they think I’m dead we can use that.”

“You need help,” Tim argues.

He reaches for his phone, and you lay a bloody hand on his forearm to stop him. You wait for him to look at your face to smile.

“We find another way to get help. But as far as anyone with a police radio knows, I’m still dead.”

“How am I supposed to get you treatment for a GSW without raising any red flags? Any ER nurse will call the police.”

“What about Grace?” Lucy suggests. “Nolan’s friend? If we could talk to her before we take you in, she may be able to keep it quiet.”

“If you think it will work, let’s do it,” you agree.

“No,” Tim interrupts. “We’re not putting your life in the hands of a rookie.”

“Tim, she’s right. This is a good plan and one we need if we want these guys off the street. Please, just trust me and Lucy for a few minutes. You can yell at us and brainstorm new Tim Tests later.”

“Call Grace,” Tim says as he moves his arms around you. “If this starts going wrong, or something happens to you, I will use my radio.”

“Understood.”

You keep your uninjured arm across your chest as Tim lifts you into his arms. Lucy leads the way out and opens the backdoor of the shop before apologizing to the gas station clerk. She leaves her card and scribbles the number of someone who can clean the bloody scene but reminds the girl not to call the police or tell anyone you were here. As Tim drives through traffic and Lucy talks to Grace, you notice a book in the floorboard and chuckle.

“What?” Tim asks quickly.

“You have my rook book.”

“Guess I don’t have to read it now that you’re not dead.”

“If I didn’t know better I would think you’re mad at me, Bradford.” “You know exactly what I’m thinking.”

“Don’t risk your job for revenge, Tim. I know you care about me, and I care about you, too, but this isn’t worth it. We work the case like any other.”

“Easy for you to say,” Tim snaps. “You didn’t think the woman you love was murdered twenty minutes ago.”

Lucy ends the call and looks through the cage at you. It’s not how Tim planned to tell you, but he feels lighter with the admission.

“I’m sorry, Tim,” you whisper.

“Tell me after.”

“I’m not waiting until the end of Lucy’s probation period.”

“Please don’t,” she agrees. “I can only take so much more pining from this one.”

“I don’t pine,” Tim grumbles.

“Yes, you do,” you and Lucy argue together.

“Bradford, status report?” Wade radios.

Tim looks at Lucy, who apologizes quickly for not communicating a code 4.

“Code 4, Grey,” Tim replies. “But don’t ask any questions right now.”

“Okay. As long as you didn’t break any laws, this conversation never happened.”

Tim glances over his shoulder at you, and you state, “I haven’t broken any laws. Have you?”

“Not yet.”

“If there’s blood on this book later, that’s your fault.”

Tim sighs, and it sounds almost like a laugh. You don’t have time to tease him before he pulls into the emergency room drop-off area of Shaw Memorial Hospital. Grace and several nurses run out and wheel you in quickly, promising to help you without asking any questions or reporting anything to the police.

“What now?” Lucy asks as the doors close behind you.

“Now, we find the people who are getting 15 to life for trying to kill an officer for completing her duties,” Tim answers.

“Tim,” Lucy calls.

He stops, and she points to the blood staining his skin. Tim opens the trunk of the shop and retrieves a pack of wipes from one of the war bags. Lucy watches as he harshly scrubs your blood from his skin and gets angrier with every wipe he tosses aside.

“Are you sure you’re up for this?” she asks.

“Lucy,” he begins as he slams the trunk closed. “I’m pissed off and I have a feeling in my chest that I’m not used to. But how I feel doesn’t matter. We’re going to get every single one of the people involved in this, and make sure they end up in a hole.”

“By ‘a hole,’ you mean prison, right?” Tim walks around the shop rather than answering, and Lucy rushes to repeat, “You mean prison, right?”

“7-Adam-19, report to Sepulveda and Ohio Avenue.”

“What now?” Tim yells.

He steers the shop into an illegal U-turn and speeds down Sepulveda Boulevard. Lucy gasps as they near the intersection.

“Turn left onto Ohio,” she says.

“Why?”

“Just do it!”

“Second left onto Camden,” she adds after he turns.

Tim slams on the brakes when he sees someone sitting on the curb at the end of Camden Avenue. Lucy exits the shop as soon as it stops and rushes to hug you as you stand.

“Aren’t you supposed to be in the hospital?” Tim demands as he joins you.

“Uh, no?” you guess.

“It’s not your fight anymore. You’re dead, remember?”

“Tim-“

“No, you’re going home. You just got out of the hospital.”

“It was just a flesh wound. Lots of blood, a couple of stitches, but no long-term damage. Besides, when’s the last time you got to watch a ghost slap the cuffs on her killer?”

“Look around Tim,” Lucy encourages.

He already know where he is: the sight of his first arrest with you as his TO, it’s a day he’ll never forget. Tim groans before he waves his hand toward the shop. Lucy cheers and offers you her seat. It’s strange being in the passenger seat with Tim again; last time you were here, he was in long sleeves and fresh out of the Army. He was a great rookie, and he’s a great TO, but you want him to be more.

“Tim!” you alert just as Tim slows to a stop.

“I see him,” he agrees.

“Was that too easy?” Lucy asks.

“Well, it’s not over yet,” Tim responds.

“We can do it,” you tell Tim. “You go left, I go right, Lucy splits the middle.”

“This is the coolest thing I’ve ever done,” Lucy whispers from the backseat.

“Alright,” Tim agrees. “Lucy, you do whatever you have to do to get the one in the middle down, okay?”

“3… 2… 1…” you and Tim count down together.

You exit the shop silently and leave the doors open. As Tim goes wide to take down the suspect on the left, you move toward the man who shot you. You, Lucy, and Tim strike at the same time and push the suspects down onto the sidewalk. The man beneath you attempts to elbow you in the face, but you shove his head down against the concrete and warn him against moving.

When you cuff him and pull him up to his knees, the man gets a good luck at your face. His expression changes and he leans away like you’re truly a ghost. He tries to move back, but only tips and rolls into the street.

“Leave him,” Tim says as he reaches for his radio. “Grey, this is Bradford, Chen, and our missing Metro officer. We’ve got good news and three suspects in custody. Send backup to my location.”

“No R/A?” you ask. “Because you seemed really eager to send me back to the hospital earlier.”

“You seem fine,” Tim explains with a shrug.

“Tim,” you call as you exit Wade’s office.

He’s changed into his civvies and is preparing to leave for the night. You can’t let him, though, because there is no more time.

“Can you- do you wanna come over for a bit?” you ask.

The left side of Tim’s lips move up as he nods, and you accept his hand as he leads you to his truck. Tim drives to your home in relative silence, and you use the time to find the right words to say. Once you’re inside, you sit on the couch beside Tim and decide to tell him everything. You’ve let him into your life and your house, now you just have to let him in on how you feel.

“You said you loved me in the shop today,” you say. “But I have been falling for you since the moment you walked into roll call your first day. You’ve always been more than my rookie and I can’t live another day without you in my life, Tim. I want you. Nightmares, embarrassing memories between us, fake rook books, all of it. I need you, Tim.”

Tim leans closer with his arm stretched on the back of the couch behind your shoulders. “This is better than 1001.66,” he murmurs.

“Did you just compare my confession of being in love with you to a penal code about bad checks? Because that is-“

Your words end in a hum as Tim curls his arm around your shoulders and kisses you. He tugs you closer, and you hold his face between your hands as you show him that your words are more than that. Tim has had a crush on you since he started patrolling with you, but now he knows that he loves you and needs you beside him. You push him, and he pushes you, but you do it because you know what you’re capable of.

Tim’s phone rings, but he ignores it as he pulls you closer, so your legs are bracketing his. He leans up to continue kissing you as his phone begins ringing again. You press your hands against his chest and break away to retrieve his phone. He follows your movement and peppers kisses along your jaw, completely uninterested in answering his phone.

You see the name on the caller ID and answer, “Hi, Lucy.”

“Hey!” she replies. “I wanted to ask how you’re doing. And if Tim’s alright after everything that happened.”

“We’re both fine,” you promise breathlessly.

“Wait-“

You assume that Lucy realizes that you answered Tim’s phone, which means you’re still together. She squeals into the phone, and you pull it away from your ear and smile.

“Oh, I have to tell Angela!” she yells.

Tim rolls his eyes and keeps one hand around your waist as he pulls his phone away from you. “Bye,” he says quickly before ending the call.

“Hanging up on your rookie isn’t nice,” you say.

“Like you wouldn’t have hung up on me.”

“You were scared to call because you had a crush on me.”

“Still do.”

“What? Tim-“

Tim cuts you off with another kiss; it’s his answer and a reminder of how he feels. You remember the rook book that was in his truck, but now that you’re a permanent fixture in Tim’s life, you can make sure he reads it.

[bronx-bomber87]

Happy Saturday Lovely Fandom. We've reached the second to last ep of this series rewatch. Unreal. God I LOVE this ep. So so good. Tim being her handler. Reminds me of Alias. Which was my first love for tv show/ship. If you ever watched Alias you’d know why I love this asset and handler situation so much. Let us start.

5x21 Going Under

Start out strong Lucy is going UC. Has to do with the last episode. Frank Teska has been released from prison. He killed his brother for the attack on his daughter Dara. He is back in business. Looking to get into the Ghost Gun trade. You need specific polymer to make them. Metro raided and took his supplier out. Which is where Lucy comes in. She will pose as someone at Southland Chemicals. Be his new supplier.

We join our ship talking about the OP. Tim mentioning he’s using Hard Luck as his CI. Lucy not trusting this guy as far as she can throw him. Tim’s reply is the best. The fact that his CI knows how important Lucy is to him *squee* Then telling her as such. That this guy knows Lucy is special to him That if he messes up Tim will hunt him down. Gah I love this. Calling in favors for his girl. Work version of romantic ha

Lucy’s sweet expression when he tells her this. Basically saying he loves her in not so many words. Lucy being Lucy calling it 'Undercover love.' hehe Tim isn't even fighting it anymore. Just smiles shakes his head and rolls with her antics. We all know he loves her for it. Damn they cute. Actions always speaking louder than words with these two. Lucy couldn’t be cuter as Tim walks away. Her smile saying more than words ever could about how she feels about this man.

Then we get these GLORIOUS phone calls. Like rom-com goodies up in this episode. Love me some protective Tim. Asking her if he needs to talk to her boss? Lucy waves him off. Says she's got it. Tim looking mighty fine Phew lord Scruffy, his sweater and his eyes popping in this lighting. Mmm. Lucy of course checking in on him next. I love this so very much. He won't tell her he's struggling.

So she's going to check on in him since he won't do as such. Tim knowing exactly what she means. Asking if that means he misses her? We all know he does but he deflects in the cutest way. Saying no. His smile when she calls him a jerk. But he's YOUR jerk Lucy haha. He is so damn smitten with her. Loves teasing and messing with her. Just as much as she does for him. One of their love languages shining through in this moment. My damn heart.

She asks if Tim can check in on Tamara? Tim doesn’t hesitate for one second. Of course he’ll check in on their daughter. Doesn’t want her to lose any focus on the job. We then delve into the cute snippet conversations that have my shipper heart fluttering. Lucy telling Tim not to watch 'Top Chef' without her. I love that they have a show they watch together. Makes me giddy. Such a couples thing to have that. Tim giving her crap saying he can’t make any promises.

Lucy asking Tim if he ever wished he had a normal job? Tim says without people shooting at him? Not once. Lucy replying me either. These tidbits are just fantastic. They both love their line of work so much. This whole talking about everything and nothing at all just shows the deep bond they have. Comes from riding together for years 12 hours at a time. Her being UC is isolating but they get to have these moments despite that. Little pockets of joy before this OP heats up.

Tim asking if she’s making any friends? Lucy going on about a lady in her office. It’s so cute I can’t stand it. Talking about his grandkids and such. I love this is so very much. They did a really good job with these shots and the VO's. I saw a lot of people saying felt like rom-com and it really does in the best way. Just being on the phone whole time. Even though they're physically apart they still find a way to connect and be together. It’s so sweet imma get a cavity.

Day 4 rolls around and Tim ask if the monotony is getting to her? Lucy tells him no as long as it’s not for nothing. I mean she had two weeks of it in 3x14. 4 days is nothing but now she has Tim so she's got more to miss this time around. I adore the voice overs in this scene. Tim reassuring her it’s probably cause Frank is double checking her story. I love this shot of Tim in the side mirror. Fierce protector reporting for duty.

Frank has finally surfaced and approached Lucy. Her cover story of being a wanted felon has worked out. Frank thinks she’s an easy target because of it. Lucy playing the fresh start card with him. Not wanting to get into business with him. She does this so well. He tells her not an option. That he needs certain plastics and she needs to not go to jail. Telling her it’s low risk.

Gah I love Tim watching over the situation from across the way. Looking fine af BTW. My god I'll never be over how tall he is and I love it. Tall drink of yum. Look at him in his civvies, the hat, the glasses, the intense way he's watching her. Listening in to their convo. Trying to keep his protectiveness in check. Doing his best not to step in. Especially when Frank threatens her. Which causes Lucy to say yes. Frank says they’ll have dinner tonight then. He’ll come get her from her place. They can hammer out the details of this new partnership.

Lucy meets up with Wesley, Harper, Grey and her man. They’re going over this date for her. Tim looks like he’s going to crawl out of his skin. He hates the idea of this guy possibly thinking it’s a date. He hates this entire conversation really. Keeping his hands in his pockets. Looks at the ground trying to settle his protective nature.

I love Grey checking in with Tim. Minute he hears the word 'romantically and date.' He immediately looks at Tim. Knowing he hates this on so many levels. Tim isn’t being at all discreet with how he feels about this situation. He's basically squirming in front of all of them. Tim continuing to try to put on a brave face. Not well but sure trying. His whole body language screaming his immense discomfort.

Tim is being the least subtle he’s ever been in this moment. Hating the idea she needs a good wire in case he’s handsy. You can see him take a deep breath and clench his jaw at the thought of this. This conversation is killing him softly. Some angsty goodness though. The check in's these two have above getting me in the feels before she sets to leave. That silent communication of their's prominent af. I LOVE him walking Lucy to the door. The intense looks they share on the way.

They both look amazing btw. He keeps constant eye contact with her till he can’t any longer. The intense longing in his stare as he watches her go. *heart clutch* His entire world just walked out the door and it shows. Eric crushing it with the longing look. This is the type of angst I eat up. It’s so so good. Worried Tim is lovely to behold. And that man is insanely worried. He is an open book as she walks away from him. Trying to keep himself from losing his damn mind over this man possibly touching her.

Grey immediately checking in with him. Man wasn't exactly subtle during that whole conversation. Asking Tim if he’s ok? Tim lying saying he’s 5x5. Such a detached military reply. When he is anything but detached in this moment. Wade knowing he’s lying. Their friendship is underrated. Grey saying he has to treat this like any other OP. Any other UC. Sure he'll get right on that. Thanks to Lucy his emotions aren't so easy to turn off anymore. Also not like it’s the love of his life he’s watching over or anything…

Lucy goes to dinner with Frank all wired up. Tim watching intently outside. Fierce protector at the ready. The intense look on his face as he watches over her is doing things to me. *fans self* Like a lion pacing back and forth in it's cage waiting to be let out. Ready to attack at the slightest provocation against her. It's insanely hot tbh. He would gladly throttle this man if given the chance to. All he needs is to be given a reason.

Lucy almost gets Frank to admit to his brothers death when bullets start flying. We watch Tim in an absolute panic call this in. Desperately searching for her in the wreckage from his car. Trying to find her as he rattles off their address. I love her jumping up and looking his way so he knew she was ok. His giant sigh of relief when her head pops up. Feel like we all did that with him. Went from all out panic to instant relief. I said in the hospital scene she is his whole world. That just got shot at and he was paralyzed until she popped up.

He couldn’t breathe until he knew she was alright. His whole body slumping against his seat in relief. Eric crushing it out here with his expressions getting me all emotional. I love how his eyes dart back to her once more before he takes off after the shooters. Double checking she really is there. He couldn’t even be in pursuit of them until he knew she was ok. You can see he wants to stay but can’t. Having an internal battle but knows he has to go after them.

His cop brain in a delay due to this. This delay in reaction definitely affects him in his pursuit of the shooters. Don't think he was fully there mentally. Tim's head was most definitely not in the game when he went after them. Taking us back to 5x01 when Tim told Lucy if her head isn't the game 100 percent it'll get her killed. He is the living embodiment of that line in this moment. This dude almost killed him. Even when the gun is in his face his reaction time is slower.

That is not the Tim Bradford we know and love in the field. He was clouded his emotions running rampant. He had not compartmentalized at all. When Jan shows up it really hits him what almost happened to him. Saying he got lucky it was empty. Otherwise…ugh I don’t even wanna think about it. He’s panting his adrenaline waning and it showing. Looking over where the guy was knowing this could've been far worse. Knowing what it would've done to Lucy.

I love the minute she’s done dealing with Frank Lucy calls Tim. Anxiously awaiting him to answer her call. Both so worried about one another. Gah this episode is fantastic. Never seen Tim this panicky or shaken up. This is a UC OP he’s involved in I can’t imagine how he’d be if he wasn’t.

He just loves her so much. Having a legit meltdown till he knows she’s ok. It’s all over his face as he talks to her on the phone. Eric killing me softly in this one. Lucy isn’t pulling any punches with her worry either. Both making me emotional as hell. Tim replying ‘Yeah I am now.’ *internal screaming* Wasn’t ok till he knew she was.

The love they have for each other is all over this moment. I’m not crying you are…You can see all the tension leave his body when he hears her voice. The neediness in both their voices when he says they should meet up. Gah yes you do. They needed to hear each others voice to calm down after that adrenaline fest.

Then we come to THE laundry scene. One that broke my damn brain. Pretty much broke the entire fandom's brain. I love how she rushes to him and clings on. Wanting zero space between them. Tim leaning into her arms. Rubbing his hand up and down her back. I’m sure both their hearts were racing. They are each other’s safe space and this hug shows that.

So scared and only finding comfort in each others arms. So much emotion surging through them in this hug. I love me a good hug and this one is fantastic one. Trying to ground one another with it. Speaking their concerns about what they just went through. The swaying gets me too. I love everything about this hug.

Lucy basically launches herself at him. He catches her effortlessly and holds her so tightly to him. The remaining tension melting out of of their bodies. Because they were running on adrenaline and anxiety until this hug. Tim holding her so close making sure she’s real. There with him. I’ll never be over this moment and how lovely it is.

This next portion just proves why Lucy is his person. Tim is losing his mind with worry over this guy. Over him trying something. His anxiety coming off him in waves. Lucy wants to soothe him because it's her natural instinct. Tim looks like he wants to cry or punch a wall or both when he ask if he’s tried something? Lucy reassuring him he hasn’t but even if he did she’s got this. The fierce protector coming out strong right now. He can barely contain it. Tim deflecting a little saying ‘I know.’

Lucy knows this man so damn well. Telling him knowing and feeling ok are two different things. She's so right. I love the way she grabs his jacket trying to comfort him. Tim is being so soft and vulnerable in this moment. She wants him to know it’s ok. She’s ok and it’s very ok if he isn’t. Eric killing this episode left and right with his expressions. His heart is hurting it’s all over his face and Lucy is reaching out with a reassuring touch. I love her for validating his feelings. Not judging him for them.

But also knowing he’s being very vulnerable right now and she’s being wonderfully receptive to that. Tim gets a little defensive saying. Not his first time. Lucy is SO good with him. Doesn’t shame him for being bristly about this. Knowing it’s his PTSD in full swing. So soft in her reply and expression. Letting him know probably what’s making this so much worse for him. This is why she’s his person. Never shames him for his feelings only loves him through. Gah they’re making me so emotional. I love this couple so much.

Before Tim gets anymore emotional he tells her he has to go. Now isn’t the time to talk about this. That he knows if she doesn’t feel safe she will bail. If she’s good he’s good. Lucy confirms she’s good. Tim says he has to get back to the station then. Grey is waiting for a status update. Lucy stops him before he can go. Not ready to be apart from him just yet.

Grabbing his arm keeping him from leaving. I love the way she is looking at him landing on his lips. Then she says the 4 words that made us all collectively lose our minds. ‘Lock the door first.’ Is this real life? Did we really get this moment? Adrenaline fueled we made it out alive laundry room sex? Oh my damn lord.

The way he looks at her when she says this. *fans self* Tim is definitely not treating her like any other UC…I remember gasping at her saying this. Needing to be with him in this moment. Tim’s smile realizing what she’s saying. My god. Laundry room sex is now canon for them. We got shower sex last ep and now laundry room post-op sex. My god the writers were good to us. I like being pandered too LOL Also you know there is a damn good chance highly likely really this was unprotected too.

Lucy couldn’t let him walk away yet until she had him. Hot damn. Tim not one to deny her anything is easily roped into her naughty plans. I’m still not over the risks they took to have this heated moment together. They had a frenzied hookup while she was on assignment. I’m dead. They’ve actually killed me in the best way. S5 truly is a fic come to life. I love every minute of it. Clearly missing and craving sexy time with her man. Also probably still hopped up on adrenaline as well. Undercover hookup phew lord we are blessed haha

Lucy calls Tim after she gets away with Frank from the warehouse. Saying the OP is done. Frank has nothing left to build. Tim is flirty af in his reply. With a shit eating grin to go with it. Saying that’s too bad... Lucy is confused and says why? Tim referring to their hookup in the laundry room. Bummed he wasn't going to get another. Timothy Bradford I never haha This man is so different when he is truly loved and happy my goodness. I couldn't love it more.

Hard to believe this entire episode is canon. Tim is definitely loving his sex life with Lucy and proud to let her know about it. Hell so are we haha Horny Tim is hilarious and I love him so. They could find another laundry room for a repeat performance if he would like LOL Fanfic come to life this season swear to god. We live in a world where this scene happened and I’m dying.

They return home because at this point it’s their home. Gah love how Tim looks at Lucy as he approaches her. Man is so insanely in love with her. Lucy saying she needs a big meal, hot bath and quality sexy time. Heh. Then to sleep for 24 hours straight. I love how Tim encases her hands in his caressing them as they speak. Running his hands up and down hers. Needing this connection.

I love Tim being the physically affectionate one of the two. I always knew once they got together he would be the one who couldn’t keep his hands off her. Touching really is one of their many love languages and I adore it. Never saw them nearly as touchy with their ex’s. Just another reason proving why they’re so right for each other. Gonna be the death of me and I welcome it. Lucy can tell something is up. Asking him what’s going on?

Oh my poor damaged boy. Having a trauma response right now with her saying she needs time to decompress. I love him not deflecting and telling her how he’s feeling instead. That’s not easy for him. I also totally get his response. I still have trauma responses to things as well. Lucy knowing it is telling him it was only a week. That one nights keep will do her just fine. Trying to say without saying she’s not Isabel. Tim accepts her answer.

Lucy says she has to come clean about some thing though. That she knows she made him promise not to. But she watched 'Top chef' without him. For shame Lucy Chen . For shame LMAO I guess that monotony did get to her since she finished it without him.... Tim is so offended I’m dying. Calling her a 'Bad girlfriend' *screams into a pillow* They’re so friggin cute I am dying. Lucy's 'No, I'm sorry!' It is horrible Tim is right haha Making him promise not to then watching it without him. Every right to be playfully mad at her.

Lucy wastes no damn time and confronts Tim about the shooter in the alley. I love her so much for always calling him on his shit. Saying how he didn’t tell her he almost died in that alley. Tim brushing it off saying because he didn’t. Oh Timothy. Acting like her losing you wouldn’t completely wreck her. Absolutely devastate and ruin her like it would for you. I think that’s exactly why he did it though. Acting like it’s not a big deal when he knew it was.

Protecting her from that fact. Lucy coming at him saying doesn’t matter who told her. That they’ll set aside the fact he left it out of the report. 2x01 Tim would be appalled ha. Doing it for the same reasons Lucy did then. Insane how this same kind of fight still involves Isabel indirectly. Lucy can’t believe him right now. Acting like it’s nothing. Like she didn’t almost lose him.

We see a little more trauma Tim come out here. Just assuming she's keeping things from him when she's under. I so relate to him reacting this way I do. I misread something my best friend had texted me the other day. I made an assumption like Tim is here. My friend was wonderful texted me back ‘ Your trauma is showing.’ And it knocked me out of it. It’s involuntary when it runs so damn deep. And we know it does for him.

I’m so glad Lucy is there to knock him back out of it. Saying No you know Isabel did for a fact. Calling him right out for it. These kinds of fights are so good for them. Forces them to face the stuff they’re hiding. Things they didn’t really touch on last episode. This was a much better and more open conversation. Tim didn’t hide behind being ‘fine.’ And Lucy isn’t letting him get away with it. Tim can’t fight that logic and it’s all over his face in the second gif. The way his body slumps in reply.

Lucy making a strong ass point next. Saying if this is going to work between them he has to see the difference. She not wrong. He really does. Tim shooting back of course he can. (Babe you got some work to do...) What I love the most is Lucy said her piece. Put him his place about this. Which was needed and now Tim is saying his. The dialogue in this scene so much more productive than 5x20 was. Airing things out and how they actually feel. Tim voicing his need to know she will listen to him if he sounds the alarm.

That otherwise all the pain he went through was for nothing. Then he says the line that shows me Lucy is the love of his damn life. ‘I can’t lose you the way I lost her.’ Tears in this man’s beautiful eyes. Imma cry myself. Finally voicing the fear he kept inside last episode. He cannot lose this woman My heart. She is everything to him. Pulled him out of the depths of his pain and hurt. Brought him back to life. He loves her so much and is saying as such in this moment.

Lucy can see this and reassures him he won’t lose her that way. She would walk away for him if it ever got that close. Ugh my heart. He sounded the alarm earlier and she shut it down. So they both have stuff to work on. I mean it's why he brought it up. He felt like he was sounding the alarm in the laundry room. Lucy brushed it off saying she didn't want to tap out. But them having this conversation hopefully they can be more aware of these things for a future OP and in general really. The need to openly communicate is a must.

Tim says 'Okay.' Choosing to trust what she is saying. Then we get another glorious hug. The way he clings to her. His hand around her neck pulling her to him is so visceral. He loves her so damn much and it’s shown beautifully in this embrace. How much she means to him. Pulling her in close. Lucy doing the same thing clinging to him like a life raft. Her arms pulling him close to her as well. We see both her hands on his shoulders. *sigh*I'm so proud of them for both speaking their minds in this scene.

Lucy calling Tim out was so needed. He has to see she isn’t Isabel. If not it’ll destroy him. No one gets through to Tim like Lucy. This scene was so raw and honest. Very much needed after all that was left unsaid in 5x20. Never be over them being vulnerable with one another especially Tim. Not only telling her he needs her to listen but sharing he CANNOT lose her. Basically laying any cards she didn’t already have from him on the table. So proud of him. He’s come so far and this scene shows it. I truly love the writers for how real they write them. Phew Lord this was a good ep.

~~~~

Side notes-non Chenford

Angela calling Aaron from closet about a case hilarious. The entire ep trying to do stuff for her I was laughing so hard.

Also nice to see Celina go out with a nice guy. She deserves it.

Well the next one is the last one holy moly. Thank you forever and always to those who like, comment and reblog these reviews. You all have made me so appreciated by doing so. I will see you all in the 5x22 :)

[sylvies-chen]

sweet nothing sleeping

summary: lucy has never been so happy to have fallen in love as she is when she’s falling asleep

pairing: tim bradford/lucy chen

word count: short??? i wrote this on notes app don’t ask me to count

warnings: none

a/n: this was written at *many* a 2am but it was my coping mechanism for the chenford breakup so there will be nothing but fluff and happiness here!! but also sorry in advance for any typos. written for my @morganupstead who gave me this idea ages ago and I just took forever to write it LOL

••• ••• ••• •••

cause they said the end is coming

everyone’s up to something

I find myself running home to your

sweet nothings

She’s had a long day.

The list of grievances wracked up in a single shift has been nothing short of astounding. For example: a man no less than an hour into her first stretch of patrol who puked on her. A bar fight gone horribly wrong, and he was drunk out of his mind so when she showed up at the tail end of a swift punch to the drunkard’s gut then… well, you can figure out the rest. Then another man threatened to sue her and the entire LAPD Mid Wilshire division because he refused to be told by a woman to stop ejaculating in public. Nothing but insufferable misdemeanours one after the other, without end. The robbery homicide tailing the end of her shift was the worst. Lucy doesn’t know what’s more horrible: how violent the young married couple’s death was, or how her first thought was that she wished she could have been the detective on a flashy case like this. Knowing she was even capable of putting her career before her compassion and duty left her gutted.

It leaves her now with a bitter aftertaste of guilt and shame. That coupled with the exhaustion and ridicule of her other calls makes for a particularly dreadful combination. Normally she can see Tim in passing and vent to him about things, but he’d been stuck in some new Metro training program all day. Updated protocol or tactical practice, or whatever they wanted to call it. Based on the state she sees Tim in at the end of one of those days, she’d call it something more akin to torture. It also means she had no support system throughout the day whatsoever apart from Nolan’s typical words of encouragement, which were swell but never substantive.

Since Tamara’s moved out, things have been lonely too. She misses her old roommate. If nothing else, at the end of the day Lucy still had a young and vulnerable kid she had to feed and house and clothe. Cooking for them always felt like a backup ritual, a healing sort of constancy, and that’s gone too.

So she heads to Tim’s. Her foot feels like lead on the gas, pushing down hard and inching dangerously closer to speeding the closer she gets to his place. It’s like her heart can feel the distance closing and misses him even more, the weight of her bad day crushing her heart and leaving spider fractures. A magnetic pull is always at its strongest the minute before contact, after all.

For the most part, Lucy’s been able to hold it together. She’s kept things professional, never complained, held her head high. And even as she trembles with anticipation as she knocks on the door, there’s a part of her refusing to let go of that facade.

She knocks at the door, but there’s no answer. Three louder knocks after a minute of waiting, and still nothing. Only after a third round of knocking does she think to use the spare key he’d given her last month.

“Hi,” Lucy calls out as she enters his place. No immediate response, but that’s no matter. She puts the keys down in his key bowl and hangs up her jacket.

The sound of nails skidding against the floor alert her only seconds in advance to Kojo’s presence. He runs up to her full speed but comes to a screeching halt when he reaches her. With his tail still waving fervently, he tries to sit down. (Tim’s trained him to understand that petting and general affection from guests is contingent upon his very handsome sitting.)

“Kojo! Hey there buddy,” she greets him with a soft laugh, like an old friend. Lucy knows by now, even having owned him once, to scratch him behind his ears. The gesture earns her a right good lick from chin to cheek on the left side of her face.

“Yeah, you’re a good boy, aren’t you? You’re a good boy,” she tells him as she keeps petting him. “Now where’s our Tim?”

She looks around half expecting Tim to appear in the hallway, but no sign of him is to be seen anywhere, save for the sound of his television from the next room. Football. Figures.

“Alright, Sir Kojo, King of the Canines,” she declares, patting him on the head and gently urging him forward by the collar, “let’s see what your dad’s watching.”

The two of them make their way to the family room to see what he’s up to. For a football game, Lucy’s already surprised that he isn’t shouting at the TV and jumping up and down like he normally does.

When she enters the room though, she doesn’t see him watching sports. Instead, she sees a passed-out Tim on the couch, snoring in his Rams jersey, remote loosely balanced in his hand. She tilts her head, curiously soaking in the scene.

She should have expected this. He’s been working as hard as she has lately. Though she isn’t entirely sure as to why, he’s been taking on extra shifts and doing double overtime these past two weeks. God knows he didn’t have the steam for a full game of football. Tack on her unexpected company, and she’s sure she’ll tire him out even more.

But the look of him. The television emits a soft glow that flashes hues of green and blue across his stubbled cheekbones. His head hangs back completely crooked on the headrest, and with the positioning of his arms, Tim’s posed like a dramatic renaissance painting. She can’t help but let out a soft giggle under her breath, and then silences into the brightest of smiles she can give after a day like hers, because nothing about this is funny anymore.

Even drooling, his mere presence soothes her. Lying there, entirely disarmed and peaceful. The world and all its troubles just melt away, dissolve in her mind until only a faint trace of what remains lingers like dust. It’s a beautiful haze Lucy can get stuck in, just standing there and watching him. The tight corners of his mouth, his eyes shut gently, the curve of his neck, the way his hair’s a little shorter right now.

Oh hell. Who is she to disrupt him anyways.

She tiptoes over to the couch and carefully extracts the remote from his hand. Turning the television off to avoid more light and sound will definitely help him sleep. Whether Tim’s asleep or awake, it doesn’t matter. Lucy always sleeps better when she’s next to him.

What doesn’t help Tim sleep, apparently, is Kojo. Having followed Lucy into the room, though she will defend him ferociously and say his heart is in the right place, Kojo makes a beeline for the couch and starts pulling at Tim’s jeans with his sharp canine teeth.

“No! No, Kojo! Bad Kojo, stay back,” she pleads in a whisper pushed out through gritted teeth.

Kojo seems to only get more excited— a sort of escalation which Lucy saw all too frequently in her calls from today. Tim jolts awake almost immediately.

“What the-“ he sits up and pulls his jeans away from Kojo, but then looks up at Lucy, still hovering over him guilty as ever. “Lucy?”

“Sorry.” She winces, finally shooing Kojo away enough to give them more space. “I didn’t mean to wake you. I was trying to put a blanket over you but Kojo got excited.”

“It’s okay,” he assures her, though he’s still rubbing at his eyes. Lucy’s almost certain he’s still half asleep and hasn’t registered the whole situation before him. “I gave you a key for a reason. What are you doing here?”

“I…” She tries to explain it rationally to him, to go through each bad happening chronologically, to compartmentalize. But then, his voice. His sweet, low, milky, humming voice like the pulse of a heart being soothed into a slower rhythm. It’s so steady, so calm. Something about hearing it unlocks a valve within her. She cracks, as she knew she would when she decided to come, and before she knows it she’s crying.

“Hey, hey,” Tim hushes gently, immediately sitting up. “What’s wrong? What happened?”

“Oh nothing,” she sobs. “I just had a crappy day. I got puked on and yelled at and all this nonsense which I can normally handle but I don’t even know why I’m… why I’m…”

“Don’t question it too much,” he tells her. “Just let it out.”

“Okay.”

And so she does. For a little bit, she just cries. Surprisingly, it’s not sad. The world isn’t ending, nothing is going to go wrong. There is no other shoe about to drop, no real heartbreak, no evil around. These tears are but a release, and there’s a safety to them.

Once she’s done, she wipes at her tears with her sleeves and sniffles.

“Better?”

“Better,” she says, and can really mean it, genuine smile and all. “Thanks.”

“You never have to thank me.”

She nods, but switches the subject. “You never told me how you’re Metro seminar went today.”

“Eh, it was alright,” he says. “Apart from being exhausted and sore all over, of course. We’ve got some new recruits who are… eager.”

She looks at him with loving suspicion. “You went full Tim 1.0 on them, didn’t you?”

“Yes,” he admits with a big huff of relief. “I ran through the drills and protocol updates 36 times because they couldn’t get it right. I didn’t have the heart to just demote them from my team.”

“Tim Bradford not having the heart for a tough love moment? Who are you?” She teases. “Where was this energy 6 years ago?”

“Waiting for you to come along and change it, I guess,” he sighs wistfully. “Always just waiting for you.”

“You’ve gone soft, Sergeant Bradford.” She shakes her head. “People will talk.”

“Let them.”

He pulls her in for a kiss, and it only deepens for a moment, then plateauing into a pleasant and chaste hum before release. His arms pull her into his side and her head finds that perfect spot on his chest to nestle into.

The sigh she lets out is almost a song. “This feels good, being here with you. Feeling at peace.”

“Just wait for it.”

“Huh?”

Lucy doesn’t know how Tim saw this coming, but before even asking she’s given an answer. Kojo jumps up onto the couch and steps on Lucy’s lap to lick her and Tim all over their tired, sweaty faces.

“Argh! Kojo, off!” She squeals, though not so gravely that she can’t laugh in the process. Eventually, with enough shooing, Kojo calms down. He doesn’t leave the couch, but lies down next to them, choosing to rest his head on her lap and make happy little sighs.

“Told you.”

“How did you know he would do that?”

Tim shrugs. “He’s happier when you’re around. Like me.”

Lucy smiles, even when pushing Kojo off of them. “I love you.”

Tim doesn’t respond. Too much time passes. A beat, and then another. She gets worried.

“Tim?”

“Oh so you weren’t talking to the dog then?”

She giggles and smacks him playfully across the chest with the back of her hand. “No! Well I do love him, but he drools. And you’re—“

“Human?”

“The love of my life.”

She watches the ripple of those words dance across his face. Tim smiles, his cheeks turning all shades of pink and red. Though he doesn’t seem scared off by her comment, the surprise of it still shows in his raised eyebrows and subsequent lines in his forehead. The way his head tilts, like he can’t quite believe it. But, above all else, the love in his eyes. And that way he’s looking at her now… sometimes she thinks that’s what life’s all about.

“I know I don’t have to be yours,” she continues. “You know, having been married before and all, but—“

“Don’t think for a second you aren’t,” he lets out, almost like the words couldn’t contain themselves. “You are.”

“Good.” Her turn now: the ridiculous blushing, the smile, the love in her eyes. So much joy.

So much fatigue too though. Being around him, getting to decompress like this, it’s making her crash fast. She yawns, and Tim yawns in subconscious response, and out of his own fatigue.

“I should get going,” Lucy tells him, though her face is still nestled into his sweater and has no intention of leaving. “I really only came over to feel some comfort and decompress but I didn’t bring a change of clothes or anything.”

“Mmm,” he groans in disapproval of the idea. “Stay for a bit.”

“No. No, I’ve… gotta…” She sucks in a deep breath, Tim’s woody scent catching onto her nose. Her eyes flutter and her muscles start to release their tension as the hand which isn’t sprawled across Tim’s chest starts to massage the spot behind Kojo’s ear.

“Oh, maybe just a few minutes…” she tells him hesitantly. “But keep me talking, I don’t want to fall asleep.”

“Ok. What about the rest of your day? You never finished telling me all the things that had you so upset.”

“Well it started when the air conditioning in the shop nearly exploded on me, and then I immediately took my first call at this dive bar before I could get it fixed. But oh, you won’t believe what this one guy did…”

Lucy goes on and on, her eyes growing heavy and her voice growing layers of drowsy rasp, fighting sleep to tell all her stories of woe. The drunkards, the sexist pigs, the violence. Part of her registers Tim’s lack of response or reaction as she tells her stories. Time passes. She talks, and he listens.

“I think it’s better not to dwell on it though,” she concludes eventually. “I’ve felt all I can feel about it for one day. And anyways I… I can barely remember my own anguish now. It feels so far aw—“

She looks up to see him passed out, his breathing a low rumble that threatens snoring. The soft fur under her other hand feels alarmingly still as well, until she looks to the other side and sees Kojo sleeping on her lap.

So much for leaving. She supposes that’s exactly how she wants things anyway. The heartbeats of these two precious boys at the tips of her fingers, nestled right next to hers. Giving her strength, steadying her scattered mind. Under these dim lights and warm blankets and beloved company, she wouldn’t dare move a muscle.

“Oh hell, who was I kidding,” she whispers to him. “I was always going to end up here anyways. With you.”

She rests her head on his chest once more. The last thing she remembers is the rise and fall of Tim’s chest against her hand and the feel of Kojo’s soft fur against her other.

This isn’t a big moment. No fireworks, no heartfelt confessions, no twirls or kisses in the rain. But even as the day ends and the lights go out, she feels love where it dwells best: in a quiet room. And it remains that Lucy has never been so happy to have fallen in love as she is when she’s falling asleep.

[centralperkchenford]

Chenford + post season 5 finale, chenford hugging but Lucy don’t want to let go yet because she feels safe when Tim holds her

Chenford + post season 5 finale, chenford hugging but Lucy don’t want to let go yet because she feels safe when Tim holds her

Chenford + at the hospital and all their feelings come out.

I combined this with a NGL prompt

Lay back and let go You don’t even have to say anything,

“Let’s go.” Tim whispers to Lucy who is staring absently into space. He winces at the large bruise on her neck. He feels a rush of anger and guilt, anger that man put his hands on her like that and guilt because he couldn’t get to her quick enough.

He nudged her and she slips her hand into his, it feels cold so he rubs it between his two hands before pulling her forward to the shop. He watches her climb in, her movements slow and stiff. She shoots him a look when she sees he’s watching so he walks to the driver’s side and slides in.

Lucy reaches across the console and grabs his hand, he squeezes it but she doesn’t let go.

“Are you okay?” He asks her. She bites her lip and then her cheek and looks over at him.

“It’s been.. a long few days.” She answers. “I’m managing but—”

“You are worried about Aaron.”

“And everybody we care about.” She says. “Nyla. Nolan. Angela and Wesley are fine but what if…thank goodness Tamara is out of town.”

Tim sighs as he pulls up to the hospital, he doesn’t really want to get checked but he told Grey they would. Lucy looks over at him and there are tears in her eyes.

“You.” She says. He looks at her confused but she doesn’t answer instead she opens the door and hops down. Tim does the same and then goes in front of the truck to meet her.

She latches on to him, her whole body wrapping around him. He’s used to this, she likes to cuddle likes to feel him against her. He doesn’t mind at all, he likes having her close. But this is different she clings onto him, her fingers digging into his shirt. He hugs her back putting his chin on the top of her head.

“Luce.” He mutters. “Let’s go inside. The quicker we do this, the faster we can get home.” Lucy fingers dig in deeper and she buries her face into his chest.

“I could have lost you.” She says into his chest. “There were so many.”

Tim sighs and adjusts her so she’s still tucked into his side but they can start moving. “I know. I could have lost you too.” He says remembering the man’s hands at her throat. They get to the hospital entrance and Tim takes a deep breath.

“We are okay.” He says. “We survived baby.”

She just clings onto him some more as they walk in to get some help. “Don’t let go.” She mutters and he looks down at her. “It makes me feel safe.” His heart breaks a little and he kisses the top of her head.

They are checked over although it’s a bit difficult with Lucy clinging to him. The nurse starts to say something but Tim shoots her a glare, if Lucy wanted to cling on to him because it’s the only thing that makes her feel safe. Then so be it, he’s going to let her.

“You both look okay.” Says the nurse. “You both have cracked ribs so I will get some paid meds but other than that you are good to go.”

The nurse leaves and it takes a couple minutes for Tim to realize that Lucy is shaking and sobbing into his chest. Her fingers gripping his shirt, he rubs her back in soothing circles.

“Lucy, what’s wrong? We are both going to be okay.” He says softly. She stuffs loudly and looks up at him with tears in her eyes.

“You could have died. I could have died. You should have been with your team Tim. I mean I’m glad you weren’t.” She says and Tim shudders at the thought of Lucy alone fighting all the bad guys off.

“I would have rather been with you whether there was a threat or not. I always want to be around you Lucy.” He says and he cups her face. “You are more important than knocking down doors with metro. I know you don’t need protection but—” He pauses as he continues to rub circles on her back.

“If I can be there and help you I want to be.” He says and then he kisses the side of her head. He takes a deep breath rubs her arm up and down. “I love you.”

Lucy makes a gasping sound like she’s trying to catch her breath. They hadn’t said I love you yet although they showed it in everything they did. Taking the desk job. Willing to move stations. Getting him into metro no matter the cost. Being supportive of her decision to do undercover no matter how nervous it made him.

Everything they did, everything they said it was done and said with love. He isn’t expecting her to say it back knowing how she is.

It’s not that he thinks she doesn’t love him. He has a pretty good feeling about that. It’s the fact that he doesn’t want her to feel pressured.

He’s about to say that but she beats him to it. “I love you too.” She says and then her lips crash into his and its frantic and messy. He barely has time to register what she just said because she’s pulling him closer and rests her forehead against his with tears in her eyes. “I love you so much Tim. And I’m scared I’m going to lose you.”

“You won’t.” He says fiercely like she did when she got back from being undercover. “Because I will fight. I will fight for you and I will fight for us. I love you too much to ever let you go.”

She just blinks up at him and cups his face. “Okay.” She says her voice soft and light. “Okay we will fight.”

And god he loves her.

He pulls her so she is basically sitting on his lap. He kisses her gently and then hugs her. Whatever was out there, whoever was out there trying to take them down they would fight and they would fight together.

[dreamerrgirl]

Chenford + 5x19 speculation fic... their relationship is put to the test ❤️

When Tim quietly pushes Lucy's apartment door open at 10:30 that night, the last thing he expects to find is his girlfriend pacing back and forth across the floor, her hair falling out of the messy bun she has piled on the top of her head.

"Hey," she says, giving him a distracted smile, still pacing.

"Hi yourself," he answers, raising an eyebrow at her in question. "Is everything okay? I figured you'd be in bed by now."

She shakes her head. "No, I'm too wired to sleep."

Oh yay, Tim thinks to himself, internally groaning. He had really been looking forward to collapsing into bed and snuggling up with her the second he walked through the door- he was pretty much dead on his feet. Taking a deep breath in an effort to keep his brain functioning for at least a few more minutes, he slowly sinks down onto one of her barstools, giving her his full attention.

"What's wrong? Is the detectives exam stressing you out?"

"No, it's not that," she says, worrying at her bottom lip, standing on the opposite end of the kitchen. "It's more about you said this morning, about us having to get used to not seeing each other as much."

"Yeah, and I said we'll figure it out, right?"

"Well yeah... but how?"

Tim shakes his head, his brain at a loss for the moment. "Well I don't know right this minute."

"I mean, it's not like we have any control over the hours we'll be working," she starts, Tim swearing he can physically see the gears turning in her head.

"Right..."

"And it's not like I'm going to ask you to leave Metro or anything."

"You better not, you're the one who got me there in the first place," he jokes, giving her a look. "And you know I'd never keep you from going after your dreams."

"I know," she says, smiling softly at him. "But then where does that leave us?"

Tim takes a second to study her hesitant expression, his eyes narrowing. "I feel like you have an answer to this that you want me to get to, but I'm just not getting there," he says honestly. "What are you thinking?"

Lucy sighs, her teeth continuing their assault on her bottom lip. "I don't know- I don't know if it sounds crazy or not. I’m not very good at this kind of stuff.”

“At what kind of stuff?”

She shrugs, not meeting his eyes. “I don’t know, all this serious relationship stuff. I’ve never really been in one before.”

“Is that what this is?” Tim teases, smiling at the incredulous look she gives him. He holds his hands up in defense. “Hey, we haven’t really had that talk yet, you know, the feelings talk?”

She makes her way towards him, her smile almost patronizing. “I thought it was implied.”

He lifts his shoulders, feigning nonchalance. “But it is nice to hear every once in a while, you know,” he says, his voice low, a sliver of truth seeping into his words.

She’s standing in front of him now, close enough for Tim to feel the heat radiating off her body. “Lay it on me,” he continues, staring into her eyes.

“Well, I was thinking that between you having to run home after every shift to feed Kojo and bring him out before having to drive all the way over here, that’s already taking up a lot of our time.”

Tim nods along. “I don’t know,” she says again, her eyes dropping to the floor. “If we could somehow find a way to get rid of all the back and forth, that might help.”

Tim leans back a little, his heart giving a little lurch in his chest. "Like moving in together, you mean?" he clarifies, his eyes searching hers.

She smiles sheepishly. "Yeah, something like that."

"Are you sure you're ready for that? I mean when Chris brought it up not even half a year ago-"

She makes a face at him. "That's different."

"How?"

She sighs, cocking her head. "Do you really need me to spell it out for you?"

When he doesn't answer, she steps closer, looping her arms around his neck, her face just far enough away that he's not going cross-eyed looking at her.

"I know we haven't been together very long, but, I've never felt this way before about anyone, ever," she says, her fingers gently running through the hair at the nape of his neck. "You feel like home to me, and I keep finding myself wanting to spend more time with you, not less."

"I feel the same way," he murmurs, leaning forward to gently rest his forehead against hers.

"Yeah?"

"Yeah." He kisses her then, softly, gently, and can feel her smiling against his lips.

"So I'm not being crazy?" she asks, her voice gaining more confidence.

"No," he says, giving her one more kiss, because for some reason, with her, he can never get enough. "I think it's a great idea."

Pulling back, he attempts to stifle a yawn, but is entirely unsuccessful. "So," he continues, rubbing his hands together. "Now that we have that figured out, can we go to bed please?"

"Really?" she snorts, looking at him like he's crazy. "That's all you have to say? It was that easy? I've been agonizing over this all day!"

Tim shrugs, crossing his arms. "I don't know, it's as they say- when you know, you know."

"And you know?" she asks, cocking an eyebrow.

Pushing himself to standing, Tim stretches his arms up and over his head before he brings one down around her shoulders, pulling her tight against his side as he smiles down at her, unable to resist kissing her for the third time. "Oh, I know," he mumbles against her lips, gently steering her towards the bedroom, wanting nothing more than to crawl under the covers and fall asleep with her tucked safely in his arms, knowing they'll have many more nights together just like this.

[sisterofficerlucychen]

congrats, boot!

“Lucy?”

There’s a puzzled expression that paints itself over his features, forehead crinkling as he picks up the small pair of black booties and dangles them in front of him. He’s seen them one too many times before and while his innate instinct is to smile at the memories they hold, his lips curve downward in confusion. Did he miss something?

He’s sure he hasn’t. Both are doing well in their careers; Tim as lieutenant of Metro, Lucy as detective. Neither of them have brought up the conversation of a change. He’s still in his first year of a new rank, “the boot in charge” as Lucy affectionately described it and she’s in her fourth year as a detective, guiding Aaron through his first year. So why the boots?

He looks down at the bed that’s covered in different sets of baby booties. Unlike the other times where she’s written out ‘congrats, book!’ on a blank piece of paper in Sharpie, this time is different. There’s a pale yellow card in the middle of it all, his name written in cursive in what Tim can only assume is from her ‘special pens’ which are really just a set of Gelly Roll Stardust pens he got her for Christmas because she once told him how much she loved using glitter pens in grade school.

This time, he does smile as he sets down the pair of booties and leans to reach the card. His eyes scanning the front for a moment, still quite unsure what to expect. There are tiny stars that surround his name in gold and silver and he can almost picture her leaning against the kitchen island, brows furrowed in concentration as she focused on drawing the perfect little stars without smudging the fresh ink.

He pulls at the flap to open it before pulling the card out of the envelope. It takes him a second, more than a second, as he blinks completely dumbfounded at the greeting card in between his hands.

HAPPY NEW BABY!

Soft pastels fill the cover with different painted baby items: a teddy bear, bassinet, baby blocks, pacifier, rattle, bib, baby boots, baby mobile, bottle, diaper. It’s a baby card. He knows what it means but at the same time he’s in complete and utter shock because could it be? He wants to call out her name, almost too afraid to open the card to see what it holds but his breath is hitched in his chest and he can’t quite bring himself to speak her name.

So he stands there for a moment, maybe hours though time definitely feels like it’s standing still, just staring at the card because he knows what this means despite not knowing for sure. He can picture it now. Her growing belly, the endless list of baby books that they’ll get through, telling their friends and family, laughing over baby names — the entire journey until their tiny little human finally arrives. Tears well in his eyes as he’s overcome by emotion: excitement, awe, shock, fear, love.

“You really should read it.”

The smile on Tim’s face immediately drops as he turns to face Lucy who’s leaning against the doorframe with a smirk on her lips. There’s a sudden panic that washes over him as he wonders if he suddenly got it all terribly wrong but the expression behind her eyes doesn’t indicate that, she’s just teasing him. He nods, unable to do much else as he finally opens the card to find a: Congrats, Boot!

He laughs because of course that’s what she’d write. He lowers the card to find her standing in front of him holding up a pregnancy test with a grin that reaches her sparkling brown eyes. His gaze falls onto the two pink lines and Tim can’t help but laugh in amazement.

“We’re having a baby!”

Lucy’s giggle fills the room and it’s the sweetest noise Tim’s ever heard. This is everything he’s ever wanted, something he thought he’d never had. Except, here she stands, this absolute ray of sunshine that came into his life to make it better day by day, making every single one of his dreams come true.

“We’re having a baby!” he echoes as his hands find her waist pulling her in toward him. They’re beaming at each other as they hold the other, swaying softly as their foreheads touch. There’s a magnetic pull that draws them even closer as their lips finally meet. She smile’s against him before finally pulling away. 

“So? What do you think of your new role, boot?”

“Best job yet.” 

[alexihawleys]

Chenford's not going to break up. They're are the main couple on the show and breaking up makes no sense because their love is so strong!! You could go watch a teen drama if you want a more dramatic story, but that's not going to be Chenford!!!

so i'm just wondering, do you have a crystal ball? you must to be making big swing full certainty predictions like that 🔮

anyway: ....................ok! i applaud you in thinking that. i will likely not go watch a teen drama, but thanks for the suggestion.

i mean, let's break down how it does make sense for the story, though, just so this isn't an ask where i just nod and move along.

tim and lucy got together near-immediately (for tim) and immediately (for lucy) after breaking off relationships, which by definition makes them each other's rebounds. despite the fact that they have intense, serious feelings for one another, giving literally 0 time and space between those relationships and their own can (and still could) create issues in their ability to communicate effectively and process their relationship milestones. that's not a whole ass reason to break up, but it's a very specific part of their foundation that we've never seen them address on screen and could contribute to issues in the future.

lucy lied to tim about the metro job, never actually apologized, and tim has literally brought it up as a moment of her being dishonest (5x18) despite being okay with it. lucy may have been lying for good reason, but it doesn't detract from the fact that she did lie, and since has continued to withhold information from tim. regardless of the fact that tim trusts lucy, that kind of behavior can lead to a lack of trust or even just a flicker in tim's head of doubting whether or not lucy's actually being truthful in intense moments.

tim is visibly not okay with lucy diving into uc work, despite also lying to her and telling her he's completely fine with it and will support her. this is a heavily nuanced issue and should be treated as such, so i'm not going to deep dive into it too hard, but this matters a ton. tim is not only trying to hone in his own emotions surrounding being legitimately abandoned by a past romantic partner in favor of a life she'd unintentionally built doing undercover work, he's trying to project a fully on-board 1000% supportive boyfriend who has no problem with anything happening in the uc world. it's not something he's going to be able to sustain long-term, and lucy can already see the cracks in his facade.

tim and lucy don't communicate in the same way now that they're together romantically. that is not to say they don't communicate – they do, and when they actually talk they're good at it, but they've both been placating each other with the commutation in the final s5 episodes. tim has repeated and repeated he's ok with lucy doing uc work long-term because having the conversation about him not being could be difficult. lucy hasn't pushed on his answer because having that conversation could be hard. it's easier for them not to talk about it when it's kind of irrelevant right now, and at the same time – it's easier for them not to talk about it when he could hold her and they could simply invest in physical comfort. that's dangerous in a relationship that has foundational issues like theirs. by not talking about their issues, they're effectively sweeping them under the rug and letting them grow larger.

ok, so look at all of this and think about it this way: tim and lucy have a strong relationship, of course. but their foundation has cracks in it that they refuse to address because it could be harder to fix than they're prepared for – it could also be one of those things that doesn't have a fix in the moment, which is worse. tim would never want lucy to give up a career path she loves just to make him happy, because it wouldn't make him happy to see her do that. btw, to be frank: implying lucy's only doing uc because she's been praised about it is gross and taking away her agency/autonomy. she does uc because she loves it. if that's what she chooses, let her fucking choose it and stop acting like she needs to pick between having a loving partner and being an undercover cop. just because it's a complex situation doesn't mean lucy has to give up a career path she loves.

anyway, the foundation has cracks, they're not addressing them/letting them grow, and our story threads are all leading to a drama point. could that drama point be a...conversation? i guess. a fight that lasts 1 episode? maybe. i just doubt it. when you have characters who could very easily still connect with some distance between them romantically (and actors whose chemistry can support it)...why wouldn't you play into that dynamic? split them up and make them work together. make it hurt. make them understand that they want each other and have been put in a position where maybe they can't have each other right now. make it clear to both characters, even more than they already understood, that they need each other. that they want each other. that they'll figure it out however they can because being together is more important.

maybe that's not a path everyone's interested in, but i think it would be fucking tremendous to see them write into the pain points of chenford. they don't do that with other ships, and i get why – but chenford's always been treated differently (imo because they know eric and melissa can sell it better than anyone else on that show) so why the fuck not give them some genuine problems to work through? that's a real part of life! a genuine thing that happens between people! why not delve into some of those issues at an early enough phase in their relationship that it still makes sense that they haven't addressed it?

anywhoo if you do have a crystal ball can you ask it what grade i'm going to get on my math final?

[makeitastrength]

Are you writing anything right now and can you share a sneak peek?

Hey anon!

I’m just about to post chapter 5 of my current fic, which is the halfway point. It’s fully written, so I guess that’s not really an answer to this question, but it’s the only thing I currently have finished.

I do have a couple WIPs going. One is meant to take place in S6 and address the communication issues between Lucy and Tim as well as the whole UC thing. I’m hoping to have that ready to go before the S6 premiere. I’m also working on an alternate version of 5x01-5x08, but it’s gonna be a while before that one sees the light of day.

Anyway, I’ll share a little sneak peek of the S6 fic below.

She’s been looking forward to their date night all week, to having Sunday off and being able to sleep in together after their night out, nowhere to be and nothing to do all day. It wouldn’t be the first time they’ve had to cancel plans for the job. She had a shift that ran late one day last month, disrupting their plans, and just two weeks ago Tim was out on a Metro op until 2:00am, the dinner she cooked for them having long since gone cold by the time he finally walked through the door.

But this is different. This wouldn’t just be putting it off for a day or a week; it would be six weeks, minimum, until she’s back home.

Six weeks until she’ll see him again.

“Do you want to do it?” Tim asks, his voice breaking through her spiraling thoughts.

“I… yes,” Lucy answers, hoping he doesn’t hear the slight waver in her voice as she forces the word out around the uncertainty that’s clogging her throat.

A few months ago, she probably wouldn’t have hesitated. But a few months ago, she wasn’t in a relationship with a man who means the world to her. A relationship that is her future, her forever. And she loves being a cop, loves being a UC. But she loves Tim more. It still scares her sometimes how much. But she does. She loves him and she loves the life they’re building together. And if there’s a chance this op could put their relationship at risk then, well, it’s not even a choice. She’ll choose him. She’ll choose them. Every time.

But also… this is her chance. Her chance to prove that she belongs on the detective squad, that she’s earned her place there and that she would be a tremendous asset.

“If you want to go,” Tim begins, aiming for unaffected, “you should go.”

Lucy hesitates. “What about you?”

“What about me?”

“Tim,” she huffs, frustration already building. She needs to know he’ll be okay – really okay – in her absence. But sometimes she feels like they’re talking in circles every time she broaches the topic, her expressing her concern and him promising he’ll be fine.

“I’ll be fine,” he says then, exactly on cue.

Except… he won’t. His entire body is tense and the anguish he’s attempting – and failing – to conceal behind his eyes is far more telling than his words. And while some of it might be because he’ll miss her (she’ll miss him too) and because he’ll be worried about her (she’ll be worried about him too), she knows there’s more to it than that. What she can’t determine is whether he’s lying to her or to himself.

[m3frosh]

scarcity

i've been throwing around an idea for a chenford fic. hopefully to be fully complete + posted sometime!

chapter 1 

"Come on, come on. Please pick up," Lucy tapped her nails against her phone, closing her legs near to her body.

"Hey Lucy, what's up?"

She shifted, willing her mind to ignore the very large part of her wanting to run and hide, the part of her that didn't want Lopez to pick up.

"Lucy, are you okay?" She could hear Lopez moving around in her bed, the ruffling of her sheets and comfy blankets giving it away.

"Uh-uhm yeah. I'm okay but I was wondering if I could ask you a favor? I know we aren't close or anything, but I didn't really know who else to go to," she paused. "Considering the situation I'm in."

"Yeah of course. What type of situation are you in?"

She paused again, taking a breath. What exactly was she going to say? The words were clogged in her throat. This was a calculated risk she was taking. She knew Lopez wasn't the backstabbing type, she was loyal, but Lopez owed her no loyalty. They were friends, yes, but more closely defined as colleagues; Tim was Lopez's best friend and she felt like she was trampling all over it, behind his back too. This was evil. She was evil. 

"Lucy?"

"Oh, sorry," Here it goes. “I was actually hoping we could talk about Tim?” The words dripped off her tongue like honey, leaving a sickly sweet and heavy weight. 

“Oh no. What did he do this time?” 

Lucy almost laughed, only a small giggle coming through. Of course, she would expect Tim to have done something.

“Do I have to hurt him for you? You know I will.” 

She smiled. “That’s sweet but no.” 

“Okay, then what is it?”  She could practically see Lopez shift, the way her eyebrows would knit together, 

“Okay, so uh,” She wiped her sweaty palm against her leg. “As you know, Tim and I have really only barely started to date. I mean yeah we’ve known each other for years now, but we’ve only started to fully explore each other romantically in these past few months, so we never really talked about anything serious. Like moving in together, marriage, or kids. Wh-which I didn’t expect at all because again, we only began romantically in these past few months, and with Tim in Metro, me barely clawing my way into becoming a detective with the whole Prim - five-player trade thing- it’s not like we would really focus on that type of stuff anyways.”  

“And your UC work.” 

“Yeah, and my UC work.” 

“So, what exactly is the issue? Are you unsure about how Tim is feeling about something specific? Because I’m sure if you talk to him, he’ll listen. Tim acts like a hard ass but we both know he’s just a big softie. And he might be annoying, but he does listen.” 

She’s right. 

“You’re right. But I just don’t,” she hated how her voice cracked. “I just don’t know how he would feel about this. Tim is amazing but it would be too much. You know Tim, he loves his work and it would be cruel for me to do this to him.” 

“Lucy, look,” Lopez’s voice dropped to a sympathetic tone and a small part of her couldn’t stand that. It’s almost as if she knew. Of course, she would; she wasn’t any dummy, but still, it was nerve-wracking. “I’m not entirely sure what we’re talking about here, but Tim would never hate you. For anything. That man is crazy over you. Honestly, I’m not even sure how you deal with him sometimes - or how I do either - but what I do know is that if you talk to Tim, about whatever it is, he’ll listen. He’s a dummy,” she giggled. “So it might take a little bit for him to fully grasp the situation, but he’ll pull through. And if he doesn’t, then I’ll beat him up. I’m not above that y’know?” 

She didn’t say anything because Lopez was right. As she knew she would already be. Yay.

“Lucy.” 

“Yeah?” 

“I’m here for you too, okay?” 

“Thank you, Angela,” She wiped her wet cheek on the back of her hand, sniffing. “I really appreciate it.” 

“Of course, anytime.” 

*:･ﾟꔫ *:･ﾟ

Knock. Knock. “Lucy? Are you in there?” 

Lucy shifted on the couch, her hands moving from beneath her head to grab her phone. 5:01 am. “Yeah. Just gimme a sec please.” 

She groaned, the material of the leather couch leaving a heavy spot on her neck. She stood, twisting her body to crack her neck and stretch her back. That was the best she felt in the last few hours. 

She crouched closer to the mirror hanging on the door, examining herself. Her mascara was smeared beneath her eyes from all the times she wiped her salty tears, her light blush barely intact. 

“Lucy, are you all right?” Another knock. 

“Yeah,” She rose, trying to wipe whatever she could away. “Yeah, I’m all right. Did you need something?”

“No, I’m okay. I was just checking to make sure you’re okay?” How the question hung from Nolan’s tongue made her feel guilty. Of course, he was worried. 

“I’m fine. How about I catch up with you later?” 

“Yeah, of course. Whatever you need.”  

The breath she held fell when she heard his footsteps fade away. Her eyes glanced over her figure, glad that she no longer had to wear her uniform as a detective. Her nimble fingers went to her belly, brushing the fabric of her shirt smoothly over it, wondering what it would look like when her belly would be swollen with their child. Their child.

It honestly felt like a dream. A sort of horribly terrifying yet sweet dream. How would it feel? To feel full with their child growing inside of her. To be carrying the heavy weight of growing life inside of her at all times - like Angela and Harper. She remembered how they would ache and moan with the movements they made. Angela’s bladder was full all the time and her cravings. Oh, the cravings. 

What would her cravings be like? Would they be some deliciously difficult food to attain, like Harper’s food truck bulgogi tacos? Or would they be a quick, almost disgusting mix of anti-acids, cherry soda, and canned meat? 

She didn’t realize there was another person behind the door until the mirror gently jiggled against the door’s movement. Quickly, she turned, knowing who had opened it, trying to hide her ruined makeup and overall disheveled state. 

“Lucy?” 

Crap. “Y-yeah?” 

“What are you doing here? Are you all right?” She heard him move forward, dropping down whatever heavy duffle bag he had with him. His rough hands reached out for hers, trying to pull her toward him. 

She pulled her hands away, still facing away from him, bringing it to her lip in some condemned act to make it seem natural. “I’m fine. What about you?” 

“No, you’re not. So stop lying.” He moved his grip to her upper arm, snaking it up to her shoulder, gently turning her around to face him. Her eyes searched his, as his did hers, his sharp inhale doing nothing to soothe either of them. 

This moment felt like a cliche. She was hiding a secret, a huge secret, that refused to spill from her lips. Her whole body trembled at the mere thought of how he would possibly react. Tim wasn’t evil, she knew he’d do the right thing, but she didn’t want him to do the right thing for the sake of doing the right thing. She wanted him to want it.

“Lucy,” Tim brought her close to him, his hands wrapping tightly against her waist. She froze. She had felt this feeling a million times, and each time she loved it more than the last, this time though, felt almost suffocating. “Lucy,” he called her name again, in a soft sing-song tone that pushed her to relax in his arms. Her hands felt the muscles of his back through his black Metro shirt, the smell of the day’s sweat and old spice filling her nose. 

“Please just talk to me. I want to help you.” 

He softly swayed them back and forth, as if they were dancing to music, only stopping to move back slightly, the tips of his aged fingers gripping her chin. “Luce, please.” 

She held his gaze, the heavy frowning lines above his brown eyes torturing her heartstrings.  “I-I-I- just,” she gasped, trying to force herself to breathe. “I just-just can’t,” she backed away from his trembling grip, a sob breaking loose from her lips.

[theflyindutchwoman]

I’m piggy backing off our 5x20 anon cause I read your answer and I had thoughts and I was gonna comment on the post but I thought it might be too long 😂

Anyway, I’m really interested to see what they do with Lucy’s UC (long term ops) but on one hand I can see that she really does love UC, but I don’t necessarily believe her when she says she’ll be fine being gone for 6months to a year. She’ll absolutely be good at the work aspect of it, but emotionally being away for that long I don’t think she could handle. She was like almost devastated at the thought of not seeing Tim every day and their shifts not syncing up when she was going to transfer and again when they were discussing the detective vs metro hours. You could see how much she hated the idea of being away from him, and yet she’s gonna be okay not seeing or speaking to him while under for a long time? Idk it just doesn’t sit with me. It doesn’t seem in her character.

And then with Tim — I firmly believe when he asked her out, he already knew she was going UC and probably was already mentally preparing. He knew from the jump what being with Lucy would entail. So I do believe him when he says he’ll be fine. Cause knowing Tim, he thought it all before asking her out and taking that chance with her.

So how interesting would it be if it ends up being flipped. She’s not okay with it but he is, in a way — cause he really won’t be fine fine but he’ll manage cause he loves her.

You know what I mean?

Also I have a feeling it’ll go something like — she does a semi long op between 6a and 6b and comes back realizing she doesn’t like long term and just stays doing short term for a while and then stopping when her and Tim get married and eventually have kids. Cause that’s also what she wants and I highly doubt she’d want to still be doing UC like that once they’re married and have tiny humans and all that.

But also I want Lucy to have whatever career she wants lol she’s a badass.

Disclaimer : this is going to be a very long post… So hopefully Tumblr doesn't eat the 'keep reading' line. Also, I know how polarising the undercover discourse can be, so remember, those are just my two cents.

This is exactly why I hope we get to see Lucy on a long term assignment soon. So that she can find out if UC is truly something she enjoys doing and something she can handle. With all its ups and downs. Not just the part of playing a different character for a few days/weeks : this, she manages without trouble. I'm talking about the separation, the anxiety, always being on edge, the lies and deception, leaving the people you love behind (including the ones she might get attached to while undercover)… All the things she has been told about but hasn't really get to live yet. She needs to experience this to determine if that can be compatible with what she wants in life. The catch is she has to be a full-time undercover agent first. But she deserves to give it a try. Actually, more than that : she owes it to herself to try. Maybe she will decide that it's not for her (at least not long term UC)… Or maybe she will love it...

I think part of the reason why this seems out of character is because we don't really know why Lucy loves undercover work so much, what really attracted her to this line of work in the first place… The fact that the show has often portrayed it in an unflattering light doesn't help at all… It just creates a bigger dissonance. However, we need to remember that she is just starting her career, she's still figuring things out… Up until she joined the Academy, she didn't know what to do with her life. These are her words on the topic : Being a cop is the first thing I've ever been serious about… (1.04) I've been adrift since college, trying on different hats and different personalities, and nothing's felt right, until… Until this. (3.10) That's her whole driving force here : she finally found something she loves, that has meaning to her. That is so important. Even better : she is fully supported in that endeavor, including by people whose very lives got turned upside down by undercover work. We saw how much she loves the danger. It's not a coincidence that she asked Tim if he ever wished he had a normal job. Both of them can't fathom being anything else. Playing different roles is something she clearly likes and so far, only undercover work can give that to her. It's also the only department that showed an interest to her… At the end of the day, this is what makes her feel fulfilled, so I understand why she wants to pursue it and thinks she can handle it.

And maybe she can! Lucy is often underestimated, but she always proves herself. Don't get me wrong, I agree with your assessment : she did look rather devastated at the idea of spending less time with Tim… And yet, that didn't deter her one bit. She was still ready to move to another station. She still went along with the five-player trade despite Nyla's warning that the Metro hours were brutal. She was still studying for the detective's exam. Obviously there's a big difference between seeing less of each other and being completely separated for months. But my point is, she was still ready to make the sacrifice for Tim and she doesn't seem to regret it. She may not like the idea of being away, of not talking to him (and her friends) for months but that doesn't necessarily mean she can't handle it. Those are quite two different things. Wanting a family and a job that takes you away from your loves ones might seem contradictory, but she's not the first woman who finds herself in this conundrum. And notice how in the first two cases (moving in another station + Metro), she was fine with the trade-off (spending less time with Tim) because it meant that he would get to do something he loves, something he would find rewarding. If UC is that for her, then she deserves the same support.

As you mentioned, Tim absolutely knew about all of this and still decided that it was worth the risk. He was aware of her choice of career long before he even realised his feelings for her. From the moment she graduated, he's been nothing but supportive towards her goal. He was the one to convince her to go to the UC Academy. He asked her out mere days/weeks after she last went under (seriously, that was the episode right before). Undercover work is even the reason why they got together in the first place… which is so ironic when you think about it. When he said they were worth taking the risk, he meant it. Just like when he told Isabel that Lucy was different, I have no doubt he also meant it. He has some experience in the matter, he has some inklings as to what being separated for months truly means. Now it can be a hindrance, since it could trigger some bad memories - like we saw during her last undercover op. But it can also be an asset : he can learn from the past and avoid to make the same mistakes. I'd like to think that having both Tim and Nyla as her 'guardian angel' when she goes undercover is not just a happy happenstance. They both know the pitfalls of this job in a very different way and can guide Lucy on how to avoid them, to succeed where they previously failed. And let's not forget that he knows what's it like not to be supported… Ashley was trying to make him quit his job - I can't see him doing it to Lucy. I believe that Tim's biggest challenge will be to express his feelings, since he tends to internalise them. That's why I'm glad that he and Lucy were able to set things straight, to set their boundaries. Like you, I also think he is going to be fine (under the circumstances), but it was an important step for them. They can only make it work if they're both honest and communicate with each other.

And hear me out : maybe they could be the ones to make it work! So far, with the exception of her first solo op, Tim has always been involved… and even then, he managed to insert himself in the equation. So maybe that could be an alternative : having Tim as her case officer. It's not like it's impossible : her last assignment was supposed to last weeks or months, and Grey didn't have an issue with Tim being Lucy's handler. It would also solve a lot of issues : they would still be in direct contact, he would be able to immediately know if something was wrong and raise the alarm if necessary and she has complete faith in him, so knowing he's the one who has her back would probably make her feel more comfortable. And apparently they are not against the casual hookup during their debriefing ;).

You know, sometimes I wonder if we are just over thinking it… The writers have been teasing us with this long term UC mission since s3 and so far, the longest period was the 2-week op she did in 3.14. That and the month away at the Academy if we want to make it count… So who knows if we are ever going to get one. Maybe the writers are just going to follow what NCIS LA did. I don't know if you are familiar with the show, but basically the agents had to often go undercover to solve a case… it ended up being mostly short assignments so the mission would fit in one episode - two in rare cases. A bit like Lucy has done until now. Also, her getting married or having kids doesn't have to mean the end of her career. She could still work undercover. She could be a case officer herself. Or coordinate/supervise UC missions. Or mentor new officers… You know, be in a leadership position, which would be perfect if that happens in a couple of years. Or maybe she can be recruited by another division like Porter suggested in 5.02.

I want Lucy to have whatever career she wants lol she’s a badass. YES! I couldn't agree more! That's why I'm a bit sad at the idea that she has to change her dream… All the other main characters got their dream job. Sure, that job doesn't take them away for a long period of time but hey, it's a show, they can find a way to make it work. In the end, I don't know if she'd enjoy long term UC… I understand why you think she won't : that definitely wouldn't have been my first choice of career for her. But regardless of my opinion on the matter, I just want her to be able to make that choice for herself, you know? To determine what's best for her, whether it's going forward with UC or doing something else. The only scenario I would completely hate is if that decision is taken away from her… That Primm blocks her. Like they did with Nolan and that Union guy… Because unlike with John, I doubt there would be a Golden Ticket waiting for her...

[silverskull]

Forget and Forgive

Chenford Week 2023 Day 6: Get Creative Day Chenford + Why Lucy didn't tell Tim about the detective's exam (5x19)

Disclaimer - this was originally going to be my free day fic, but I much prefer the other one I wrote, so I'm leaving it for the end. This fic fought me a bit, so I'm looking forward to tomorrow a bit more. But it will also be the end of ChenfordWeek and I don't know how I'm gonna cope...

(Also! If you're looking for Tim's Metro plot from this epsiode, I highly recommend checking out quesera's I had a feeling so peculiar to fill in the gaps!)

Full fic below the cut, or here on AO3.

.

.

Nyla had the uncanny stealth of a snow leopard.

“You thinking of taking the detectives exam?”

Lucy nearly leapt out of her chair, her hand jerking the mouse so fast that she accidentally closed all her tabs.

She was sitting at a desk in the bullpen, ostensibly creating suspect profiles for a case she was working with Aaron, but then her email had dinged, luring her in with the subject line, and she’d ended up blithely tripping down a rabbit hole of test questions and interview advice and completely forgetting where she was. She turned to Nyla with a sheepish smile.

“I mean, I guess. I know it’s a bit far ahead of me yet - when I’m not even P3-”

“Don’t knock yourself down, Chen.” Nyla grabbed a nearby chair with her foot, dropping into it and rolling over to Lucy. “There’s plenty less-eligible candidates than you applying. Why not give them a run for their money?” She grinned, still cat-like, and Lucy felt a small shiver of pride.

“You really think I should do it?” she asked, turning to the monitor and clicking open her email again.

“What does it matter what I think? You’re damn capable, and there’s no one here with experience like yours. You know what you bring to the table.” Nyla swivelled from side to side in her chair, her face serene, but a bite to her words. She was analysing Lucy, gaging her response with a steady eye. It gave Lucy courage. She nodded firmly and clicked the ‘Reply’ button.

“Yeah. Yeah, you’re right.” The form was just an expression of interest. If she wasn’t qualified, she’d find out soon enough. Besides, she knew she was a good cop. Tim Bradford, of all people, had admitted as much.

“I know what I bring to the table.”

She’d muttered the last words under her breath, and she was soon lost in the details of the form, missing Nyla’s satisfied nod as she slid out of the chair and went on her way.

Lucy couldn’t wait to tell Tim.

***

“Chen! Hey, Chen!”

Lucy spun in place, not recognising the voice in the corridor at first.

Tim had just left for another meeting with his squad, squeezing her arm gently as they parted ways, and her mind was still daydreaming of the meal he’d promised her if they caught the guy - sushi at the marina, followed by ice-cream and cotton candy on the pier. It felt as if that candy had coated her brain, sugar-pink strands hazing her focus, and it took a second for her to recognise Carradine, waving for her attention from the other end of the hall.

“Oh, Detective! Sorry, I was… I…” She raised her coffee cup in greeting, coming up with no more plausible excuse in the moment. “I needed my caffeine hit. Sorry.”

Carradine snorted, shaking his own empty tumbler in his fist. “The price of the job, I’m afraid.” He gestured for her to follow him back into the break-room, making a beeline for the coffee maker. “This new machine is the business though. Pure rocket fuel.”

There was a moment of silence while the machine whirred and hissed into life, coffee-scented steam wafting enticingly through the room. Lucy shifted on her feet, waiting impatiently while Carradine sniffed and sipped his drink slowly, closing his eyes and savouring the first mouthful.

“So, ah… Is there something I can do for you, sir?” she asked, reluctant to intrude on his peace, but anxious to know what he wanted.

“Ah, yes, right.” Carradine twisted the lid tightly onto his mug, snapping the cover closed and looking at Lucy appraisingly. “You applied to be considered for the detective’s exam.”

She responded slowly, her eyes glancing nervously around the room. “I did, yes, sir.”

Carradine nodded thoughtfully, inspecting the top of his mug before he answered.

“You’ve got an impressive UC portfolio under your belt. Bradford gave you the highest marks I’ve ever seen from one of his rookies. Grey is forever singing your praises.” He looked back up at her suddenly, his gaze steady. “I think you should go for it. Consider this your tap.”

He nodded once more, then strode briskly past her and out of the room.

Lucy blinked, momentarily surprised, and then a slow smile spread across her face.

Tim was going to be impressed.

***

“Hey!” Angela’s voice was singsong, and she skipped merrily past the line of waiting customers to join Lucy at the front of the burrito queue. Lucy rolled her eyes, about to apologise to the people behind her, but Nyla appeared too, glaring any critics into silent submission before they even began.

“I was gonna order for them anyway,” Lucy offered to the man behind her, to assuage her own guilt.

“Never mind that - I just heard the news!” Angela interrupted, smiling conspiratorially.

“The news?” Lucy asked, her mind still focused on the grumpy line of customers behind them and thinking of a case she’d worked recently to intercept an all out brawl when a superstore checkout line had been too slow to move.

“The news, Chen, the news!” Nyla muttered, waggling her eyebrows at Lucy.

“Oh. Oh!” Lucy suddenly twigged, her neck getting hot with all the attention focused on her. “Right, the detective’s exam. I mean - that’s what you meant, right?”

“Duh.” Angela stuck out her tongue, pushing Lucy to the side as Nyla called out their order to the assistant at the window. “Carradine mentioned it to us at our morning meeting. Look at you, girl, getting all grown up and professional.” She grinned mischievously, and Lucy felt herself blush.

“Well, it’s just an expression of interest. Doesn’t mean anything yet.”

“Nu-uh.” Nyla was finished ordering and pulled both women to the second window of the truck. “It’s far more than that, don’t downplay this. Carradine gave you the tap.” Nyla smiled, and somehow Lucy could read pride in it.

“I mean, yeah. But there are still a lot of hurdles. I’ve got to talk to Tim, I need the backing of some active detectives, and there’s still the actual exam-”

“Pshhh.” Angela made a shushing gesture with her hand, tapping Lucy lightly on the shoulder. “Tim would promote you himself if he could, you’re gonna ace the exam, and you’ve got two top-notch, kickass, girl-power detectives on your side right here.” She stabbed her thumbs at herself and Nyla, exchanging a smirk with her partner and waiting for Lucy to respond.

“Are you… Are you serious?” Lucy asked after a moment, pleasantly surprised at the offer. “You’d back me, both of you?”

“Course we would. I mean, you already practically work for us and your track record speaks for itself.” Nyla paused for a moment, looking Lucy up and down while Angela collected their three burritos. “Besides, what are friends for?”

Nyla and Angela grinned at her, and Lucy felt a rush of love for both women overcome her, dipping her head and following as they walked in companionable silence to a picnic bench for their lunch.

He’d probably deny it, but Lucy could already see Tim’s proud smile in her mind’s eye, his shoulders straightening smugly as he lapped up their compliments to her, his fingers tapping gently against her thigh to let her know he heard.

***

“Officer Chen!”

Grey’s voice was never loud, but it soared above the chatter in the bullpen, drawing Lucy’s attention immediately. He was standing at his door, beckoning her over with one finger. Lucy dropped her files into the nearest tray, hurrying around the maze of desks and into the Watch Commander’s office. She stood to attention, waiting in front of his desk with her hands behind her back while Grey rustled at some papers in a shelf at the back of the room.

“Sir?”

Grey didn’t turn around, pulling out a sheaf of papers and dropping them on his desk.

“I hear you got the tap from Carradine.”

Lucy swallowed, nodding once, even though he couldn’t see her.

“Yes sir. I know I have a ways to go yet, but I think-”

“I think it’s the right move,” Grey interrupted, turning around at last and looking her in the eye. “You’re a damn good cop, Chen, but you’re meant for bigger things than patrol.”

Lucy felt a swell of pride within her, and she bit her lip to keep from smiling too obviously.

“Thank you, sir. I’ve learned from the best.” She returned his gaze, feeling suddenly overwhelmed and unusually lost for words.

“You have. That’s true.” Grey gave a small smile as he dropped into his chair, lacing his fingers across his chest. “But it doesn’t diminish what you’ve accomplished by yourself. You’re one of the finest officers in this station. Keep putting in the work like you have done, and you’ll reap the rewards you deserve.”

Lucy nodded mutely, too overcome to respond in words.

“In the meantime,” Grey unclasped his hands, leaning forward and shoving the little pile of books and papers he’d gathered across the desk to her. “Some reading material. Study up, and you’ll be ready for anything the exam throws at you.”

She stepped forward, gathering the papers into her arms and searching for the right words.

“Thank you, sir. It means so much to hear you say that. I won’t let you down.” She pulled the books tightly against her chest, stepping back and meeting Grey’s eyes again.

“I know you won’t, Lucy. The detectives don’t know how lucky they are to get you.”

She couldn’t help it - Lucy beamed.

Grey gave a small smile, nodding and dismissing her with a wave of his hand, and Lucy hurried out of his office, excited to get stuck into her research.

Tim was going to laugh. 

If she already knew all there was to know for the Sergeant’s exam, what could the Detective’s exam possibly throw at her? Well, she’d show him. 

It had frequently taken all her self-control not to turn his audiobooks into something far more racy, all those years ago. Wait until he saw what she could do with - she glanced down at the top two research journals on Grey’s pile: ‘Seduction of the Shadows’ and ‘A Lust for Larceny’.

Oh boy.

***

“Hey you!”

Lucy almost missed Nolan, her head bent and her tongue poked out as she struggled with the wrapper on her protein bar. She stopped in front of him, smiling. “Hey! How are you?”

“I’m good, I’m good. I was looking for you.” Nolan was back in his own regular clothes, heading from the locker room to the parking lot outside. “I heard the big news.”

Lucy dropped the protein bar to her side, pride and pity warring for prominence on her face.

“Yeah, I’m… The detective’s exam. I think it’s time.” She reached out, tapping his arm gently. “But look, I know it’s what you really wanted, and I-”

“Lucy, stop.” Nolan cut her off, smiling as he dropped his bag onto the edge of the planter nearby. “Yeah, sure, back in the day, it’s what I thought would be right for me. But that was all ego talking. Being a TO?” He paused in unzipping his bag, gazing absentmindedly into the distance. “It’s what I chose. It’s what I want now. I could have gone anywhere with that golden ticket, but the FTO programme… I love being able to give back. To be out there on the streets. Helping ordinary folk, and helping cops.”

He seemed to realise he’d gone off on a soliloquy when he looked back at Lucy and she was smiling fondly - patiently - as she waited for him to remember why he’d stopped her.

“But anyway, look - the point is, you’re gonna make an excellent detective. I have no doubt.” He smiled at her, pulling a bundle of books from his rucksack and handing them to her.

Lucy took them, turning them around so she could read the titles. “What are these?”

Nolan zipped up his bag again, tapping the top book on the pile. “I bought them back when I thought I still wanted to be a detective. Study material for the exam. They’re yours now.”

“Nolan…” Lucy was pleased, but she knew the price of revision books, and to take them without protest felt wrong.

“I don’t wanna hear it. Go kick ass in the exam. I know you will.” Nolan shifted his bag back onto his shoulder, smiling and reaching out to squeeze her hand once before he left, and Lucy felt another small surge of pride. 

Whatever Tim thought of Grey’s reading material, he was definitely not going to have time for Nolan’s books. She could hear his dismissive tone in her head already, tossing each title onto the rug as she passed them to him, and insisting that she already knew far more than Nolan could ever teach her.

Maybe. But a few extra hours curled up on the couch together sounded really good about now, and she was sure Tim wouldn’t actually care who’d supplied the books when it was her voice reading to him.

***

“What's all this?” Tim’s tired eyes peered over her paperwork scattered across the counter, his coffee mug abandoned as he trailed his fingers slowly along her arm.

“What? I'm studying for the detective's exam!” She slapped him gently on his good shoulder, half amused, half worried that his exhaustion was getting the better of him and he was now forgetting even basic facts about her life. 

“Since when?” His question was genuine, his confusion apparent, and she had the sudden sinking realisation that she’d missed seeing him so much, she’d only imagined talking to him about her plan.

“I didn't tell you?” Her mind flashed back to study sessions on the couch, lunches grilling Angela and Nyla, chatting to Carradine in the corridors of the station - Tim hadn’t actually been there for any of it.

“I... no, I don't think so.” He covered well, but she could hear the upset in his voice and she hurried to give him an explanation.

“If I'm gonna work undercover, the best move is to become a detective in some division, like intelligence or narcotics, right?”

“Right. So you got the tap?” His lips quirked up, his eyes brightening, and he tightened his grip on her hand in his lap.

“Harper and Lopez are backing me.” She felt her own smile broaden as he nodded confidently, and she continued on, “All I have to do is score in the top 12, which-” 

“Which you will.” He cut her off, and her momentary apprehension disappeared at the utter confidence in his expression and in his voice. He leaned forward and she gave a soft sigh, melting into his kiss contentedly, his skin still sleep-warm and his beard scratchy against her lips. He kissed her again, squeezing her hand tightly in his own and Lucy kept her eyes closed, memorising this feeling of being close to him; of being supported by him; of being loved by him.

It would change their lives, without question, but that was the nature of their job, and neither of them had gotten into this life - this career; this relationship - without expecting change.

***

By the end of the day, reality had come crashing in, cold and hard and riddled with bullets; Juarez with her formative years thrown into chaos and Tim under investigation by IA. A simple exam or a disgruntled interviewer didn’t seem like such a big deal any more, and Lucy was just happy to catch up with Tim in the corridor of the station, linking her arm into the crook of his elbow and running through the post-shooting playbook with him as her worried mind replayed his last words at the abduction house: Suspect down. Send an RA.

He brushed her off, reminded her that it wasn’t his first time, but she needed him to know that it was different now. It was different because he had her. His life affected her, just as much as hers affected his, and she wanted to be there, by his side, to work through whatever he needed to deal with.

At last, Tim seemed to get it, stopping to gently clasp her arm and thank her for her concern. 

And when he switched the topic back to her exam, offered to study with her, she couldn’t help remembering her daydreams - curled up on the couch, or in bed, reading her books to him with indecent inflections - and it seemed like it might be the perfect distraction to take him out of his own head.

Their future was never certain - he’d said as much himself - but in this moment, on this night, she could look forward with hope.

And as long as they had each other? 

Anything was possible.

[thisnightissparkling089]

(A not so) Cruel Summer

Thank you for those who checked in and continue to send prompts. I'm still here! Just hit some major writers block. Hope you enjoy this fluffy one shot, and thank you again for all your support!

---

“S’Alright, alright, settle down. Gotta couple of announcements to make this morning before we set you free.” Grey announced as he made his way into roll call and approached the podium.

It was a sunny Monday morning in August, and as his vacation was starting on Saturday, and he and Luna had an All-Inclusive trip booked to Jamaica, he was eager to get through his week. Quickly, the officers fell in line and quieted down as they turned in their seats and gave the man their full attention.

“As I’m sure everyone already knows, it’s the last week of the LA County Fair. Things have thankfully been quite low key so far, so let’s hope that trend continues as it winds down. But while we’re on the topic…”

He paused for a moment and turned his gaze to Smitty. “A friendly reminder that policing does not include going on the rides while on duty if you happen to be working the fair.”

Smitty let out a huff as he threw his hands up. “Sarge, the kid was dodging me. It’s not my fault he decided to hop on the bumper cars while I was chasing him. Clearly it was an invitation!”

Grey rolled his eyes and reminded him of the rules just the same before continuing right along with his agenda, ticking a few more things off his list.

“Alright, last order of business. The queen of pop herself, Miss. Taylor Swift, is in town this weekend. And y’all, SoFi Stadium seats 70,000 people, and every seat will be filled each and every night. Do not underestimate the power of the Swifties. In any event, in trying to stay ahead of things, we’re looking to add two more officers to assist backstage for Friday evening’s show. The shift will be 2pm-midnight. If you—"

Slowly, Smitty’s hand began to raise. Grey looked over at him and folded his arms.

“Smitty, in the most respectful way I can put this, you are the last person I am trusting to keep Taylor Swift safe.”

“Okay, well that’s just rude.” He lamented. “Not that I was even offering, but rude none the less, sarge. What I was going to say is I’m out.”

He leaned back in his seat as a smug smile crept across his face and he looked around the room at his fellow officers.

“I don’t mean to brag or anything, but your boy here scored tickets for Friday night’s show for the low low price of $7,200.”

The shift in the room was palpable at his admission. Nolan, picking the wrong time to take a sip, practically choked on his coffee, and half the officers whipped around in their seats to gawk at Smitty. After several seconds of dead silence, Officer Jan finally spoke up.

“I’m out too sarge, got my daughters and I tickets. And—” He glanced over at Smitty. “We didn’t even pay close to seven grand for three tickets total.”

In the end, it was Lucy who raised her hand and volunteered, figuring she had nothing better to do on a Friday night. After being unable to secure herself a ticket to any of the California dates, she figured this was the closest she’d get to the experience and figured Tim could enjoy some overtime with Metro while she ran her security detail.

She was halfway out of the room when Grey stopped her and asked her back to the podium.

“Sir?”

“Lucy, thanks again for volunteering for Friday night, much appreciated.” He replied as he finished gathering his papers.

“Oh, yeah, happy to help.”

“Listen, we’re still one officer short. Any chance you think Tim might wanna help you out? In a way, it’d almost be like a date night for you guys.”

Lucy snorted in response, but quickly collected herself. “Sir, with all due respect, a stadium filled with 70,000 screaming fans is likely the last place Tim Bradford would want to be, but I’ll check with him just the same.”

Grey chuckled in agreement and wished her luck before sending her on her way to fulfill her latest mission.

Lucy left roll call and headed into the bullpen. She was on her way to find Tim in his office when she practically flew into him walking down the hall. Pulling herself back, she took a breath and recollected herself.

“Hey, sorry. I was just coming to find you, actually.”

Tim took a step closer to her and raised his hand up to brush against her cheek. Realizing quickly where they were, he pulled it back; instead running it through his hair and trying to play it cool.

“Oh, no problem. What’s up? What do you need?”

He looked down to see Lucy flashing her thousand watt smile and beginning to sway from side to side. Her telltale signs that she was about to ask him for a huge favor.

He sighed. “I already know I’m going to regret this.”

“No! It’s nothing bad, I promise!” She assured him. “Taylor Swift is in town and—”

“There it is…”

“Oh, come on! It could be fun! Grey needs extra security detail. You and me, backstage…it’s like a free show! And this is the closest I’m going to get to actually seeing her live for the Era’s tour.”

“You told me you were going to take Tamara if you got tickets.” He reminded her.

“Well, yeah, I was. But Tamara’s not a cop, so she can’t exactly be my partner here. Also, she was tagging along mostly out of pity for me, so…”

Tim stood in front of her thinking over the offer in his head. SoFi Stadium on a Friday night in August surrounded by seventy some thousand screaming people was truly one of his nightmares come to life. But he saw the way Lucy was looking up at him begging him to do this with her. And while there were many things Tim Bradford was capable of saying no to, Lucy Chen was not one of them.

He folded his arms and rolled his eyes. “Fine. But only because it’s you.”

Her eyes instantly lit up with excitement.

“Eeee! Thank you, thank you, thank you! Now we just have to find out your era.” She squealed delightfully. Tim caught her arm gently as she began to walk away from him.

“I’m sorry, my era?”

“Yeah. Each album is an Era. Everyone has a favorite. There’s Taylor Swift, Fearless, Speak Now, Reputation, Lover, Red, 1989…”

Tim knew if he didn’t cut her off Lucy was just going to continue to ramble off Taylor Swift albums.

“Alright, yeah, I get it now, girls got a lot of albums. What’s your favorite? And also, everyone cannot possibly have a favorite era. Half the people in here probably don’t even like Taylor Swift.”

Lucy eyed him up and down. “Uh huh, well, mine is Lover. And I assure you, everyone has a favorite.”

She looked throughout the office and spotted Aaron not far from them. “Oh! Thorsen! What is your favorite Taylor Swift era?”

Tim stood off to the side, skeptical of the whole thing.

“Oh, okay Lucy, asking the hard hitting questions first thing this morning.” He laughed. Bringing a fist to his lips, he stood, deep in thought.

“This has got to be a joke…” Tim huffed under his breath. Aaron glanced in his direction.

“Sir, this requires thought, okay? Like Rep? A whole ass mood. But Speak Now? Girl was in her feelings…and I felt that. But Red (Taylor’s Version) brought us the ten minute version of All Too Well.”

“God, such a good one!” Lucy sighed.

“Ten minutes?!” Tim whispered to himself. “Who the fuck crafts a ten minute song?!”

“I guess I’d have to say Red but Taylor’s Version for sure.” He finally decided. “Damn, good question, Luce. Now I know what to play on patrol today, thanks. Y’all be safe out there, have a good shift.”

“Yeah, you too.” Lucy replied, sending him off before turning back to Tim with a smug smile across her face. She batted her eyes and looked up at him expectedly. Tim, ever competitive, rolled his eyes and stared back at her with a mocking expression.

“Please, what do you want, a cookie? It’s Thorsen. The kid lives and breathes pop culture.” He sneered.

“Alright, fair point. Well listen, I have to head out on patrol. But if you’re so skeptical, why not ask around? In fact, I’ll make it worth your while. Winner chooses the lunch spot, and the loser pays.”  She raised her eyebrows and left him with a smile as she headed to grab her gear.

Tim found himself suddenly alone and frowned. He was always up for a challenge, especially when he won. A competitive man by nature, he loved nothing more than making bets with Lucy. Afterall, even when he lost to her, he still won in some fashion. Looking around the bullpen, he spotted Angela over at her desk.

“I got this in the bag.” He muttered to himself as he walked over to her.

“Lopez!”

“Hello, Timothy.” Angela settled back in her chair and took a sip of her coffee as he approached her and smiled. “To what do I owe this early morning visit?”

“I need your help. You see, Lucy and I have this bet going at the moment. So just go with me on this.”

Angela stopped everything she was doing in the moment, her eyes fixated on him.

“Look, Tim, we’ve been friends for years now. You and I both know you’re my longest friendship, and I love you dearly. I’d take a bullet for you. But what you and Lucy do behind—”

“Oh, seriously?! It’s nothing like that, so you can get your head out of the gutter now!” He pushed himself away from her cubicle, putting more space between them. “Look, do you have a favorite Taylor Swift era or album or whatever? Lucy’s convinced everyone does.

“Reputation.” Angela replied without missing a beat. Tim was left dumbfounded; certain if at least one person didn’t buy into this stuff, it would have been Angela. And his plan had just backfired.

“Morning guys!” He and Angela turned at the sound of Wesley coming up from behind them.

“Even Wesley has a soft spot for Taylor Swift.” She raised her coffee cup, gesturing toward him.

“I mean, yeah, who doesn’t? That girl can sing!” Wesley agreed. “Though Angela and I have differing opinions on what the best era is. Now, don’t get me wrong, Reputation is solid, for sure. But Lover just has so much feeling. I mean, it gave us Cruel Summer, Lover, and False God.”

“For sure, but Rep gave us Ready for it, I did something bad, Look what you made me do, and End Game. And I could keep going!”  

“Agreed, but did you see that SNL version of False God live? Flawless!”

Tim stood, lips pursed, and stared while his best friend and her husband argued over the best Taylor Swift album at 8 in the morning.  

“Alright, I’m ending this now,” He mumbled. “Harper!”

Nyla made her way over to her desk and dropped the file she was holding as she pulled her chair out.

“What?”

Tim sighed, unable to believe this was the morning’s topic of discussion. But she was his last chance. Certainly, if he couldn’t count on Angela, he could at the very least count on Nyla. Nyla would be the out he needed.

“Do you have a favorite Taylor Swift era?”

She flipped open the file she needed and began to sift through the papers, not even bothering to glance in Tim’s direction.

“Yes, it’s Reputation and if anyone tells you there’s a better option, they’re wrong.”

“That’s my girl right there.” Angela smirked before rolling her chair over and clinking her coffee cup to Nyla’s.

Tim walked away in a huff, shaking his head as he tried to ignore the laughter floating through the back of him.

“Utterly ridiculous.” He muttered.

Grabbing his phone out of his pocket, he scrawled out a text to Lucy.

“Where are we meeting for lunch today?”

----

“Identification please?”

Tim pulled out his license and took Lucy’s from her hand to be scanned.

“Alright, you guys are good to go. Thanks for your service today, we appreciate you. Just head on back, they’ll be expecting you.” The attendant handed them security lanyards to be scanned when they arrived backstage and waved them through.

Tim glanced back a few times as Lucy caught up to him.

“What’s up with that line back there? Are people waiting to get in already?” He asked her.

“Merch.”

Tim stopped and looked over at her.

“Excuse me?”

“The line back there, it’s for merchandise. You know, shirts, blankets, sweatshirts…”

“Lucy.” Tim deadpanned. “That line was like five hundred people deep.”

“Oh, I’m aware. Merch is no joke. A lot of people are even showing up in the day before or after their show just to wait in line.”

Tim shook his head and laughed it off. Certainly this wasn’t his first rodeo. He had been to many concerts in his lifetime and thought back fondly to seeing several bands live. The Foo Fighters being his favorite, but there was also the time he and Isabel had seen Fleetwood Mac, and the half dozen concerts he attended as a teen. And he never remembered seeing any kind of line like the one he had just passed by moments ago.

“Oh, hey.” Lucy stopped him briefly, gently taking his wrist in her hand. Reaching into her back pocket, she pulled out a small, beaded bracelet. “I made you a friendship bracelet.”

Tim looked down at the bracelet now attached to his wrist and frowned.

“This just says Lover.”

“Yeah,” Lucy smiled. “It’s my favorite Taylor Swift song. And after all, you are my lover…”

“Okay, that’s—I don’t—let’s just—”

“Aww, is my lover nervous?” She whispered next to him.

Tim knew Lucy took great pleasure in embarrassing him every chance she got, especially in public. He laughed it off as they walked back to the stage and Tim looked around the now empty stadium, shuddering. In just a few hours, every square inch of this place was going to be filled to the brim with people. And they would be screaming.

Making their way onto the stage, Tim and Lucy scanned their security passes and met with Taylor’s manager.

“What do you mean they’re out? Check another store, we’ve got time.” She spoke into her headset. Taking a deep breath, she shook her head before diverting her attention to Lucy and Tim.

“Hey guys! Sorry about that. Day of chaos as usual!” She beamed. “I’m Andrea Sweeny, Taylor’s manager. You must be Tim Bradford and Lucy Chen.”

“At your service, ma’am.” Tim replied, reaching his hand out to shake hers.

Lucy, barely able to speak, merely nodded and shook her hand.

“Luce,” Tim leaned over to her, whispering in her ear. “Take a breath. It’s just her manager. It’s not like you’re meeting Taylor herself.”

“Right, yeah, I can do this, it’s fine.” She reassured herself.

“Hey, the first set of officers arrived, is she ready?” Andrea spoke into her headset. Lucy’s head jerked up and she froze at the sound of those words.

“Great! Guys if you will follow me, Taylor will see you now.”

Tim’s eyes widened as Lucy began to stammer unintelligibly.

“Sorry, what??” Tim asked, vying for clarification.

Andrea stopped and laughed. “My apologies, I should have explained sooner. Taylor always likes to meet her security detail before the show. She just wants to be familiar with the team and take the time to thank them personally. You guys okay with that?”

“Y—yeah, not, uh, yeah, not a problem.” Lucy stammered.

“Yup all good.” Tim agreed.

Andrea laughed. “Relax guys, Taylor’s nice, I promise.”

The trio walked back to a trailer stationed near the stage and Lucy swore she could hear her heartbeat in her ears as she forced herself to put one foot in front of the other. She glanced over at Tim, and he shrugged, unsure of how this was going to go himself. 

Andrea walked up to the steps while Tim and Lucy stood back behind her. After a brief conversation with the gentleman who opened the door, they found themselves walking inside. With Tim behind Lucy, he rubbed her shoulders and whispered in her ear to take a breath and that she would be fine.

Lucy had been listening to Taylor Swift since she was roughly 13 years old. She had collected all of her albums, both CD and Vinyl, and used to have her walls covered in her posters as a teenager. She had even seen her in concert ten times. But nothing compared to the feeling she got seeing Taylor Swift in person, mere feet from her. Lucy swore her heart was in her stomach at that point.

“Taylor,” Andrea announced. “Meet officers Tim Bradford and Lucy Chen with the LAPD. They’re part of your security detail this evening and will be stationed backstage in case you need anything.”

“Ma’am, it’s a pleasure to protect you this evening.” Tim stated as he extended his hand to hers.

Lucy meanwhile stood in a panic, trying not to stare, and begging herself to say something, anything at this point.

“Holy crap you’re even taller than I expected.” She finally blurted out. Instantly a blush crept up her face, mortified that of all the things she could have said, that was the line that won.

Taylor laughed a full bellied laugh and smiled sweetly.

“Guys, thank you both so much for being here, it’s really appreciated. I like to take the time to get to know my staff, all of them, and thank them for being a part of this. This tour is bigger than anything I’ve put together up to this point and can’t go on without a whole host of people. Everyone truly plays a part, big or small. So, thank you both for contributing.”

“Of course, it’s our pleasure. And as Tim said, we’ll be happy to help if you need anything. I tried forever to get tickets but lost the great Ticketmaster war, so I’m just happy to be here.”

“Wait…you haven’t been able to see the concert yet?” Taylor asked.

Lucy shook her head. "Well, no. But it's fine, really. TikTok really helps fill the gap." 

“Well, that’s changing…Andrea!”

Taylor’s manager popped her head back in. “Yes, my dear?”

“Please make sure that officer Lucy here gets two—no, make that four tickets to tomorrow night's show, I would love for her to get to experience it in front of the scenes instead of behind.” She smiled.

After a few more moments of talking, Tim and Lucy left Taylor’s trailer with pictures, memories, and front row seats to tomorrow night’s show, much to Lucy’s surprise.

Lucy, floating on a cloud, grabbed her phone and quickly began texting Angela, Nyla, and Bailey.

“This night is—”

“Enchanting?” Tim answered, cutting her off. He smirked, hoping she would get his reference.

Lucy looked up at him, with a smile that stretched her whole face. “Enchanting indeed.”

----

The midnight clock on the stage appeared and began to count down. The lights dimmed and the crowd absolutely erupted in screams, cheers, and applause. The feeling in the stadium instantly became electric. Lucy watched on, looking out and seeing the thousands upon thousands of people.

“Los Angeles!! It’s your turn tonight!” Taylor announced as she made her way onto the stage. Tim didn’t think it was possible, but somehow, he found the crowd erupting even louder at the sight of her.

He looked over at Lucy, watching the show from backstage, guarded, and ready to jump into action at any time if needed, but still awestruck watching her idol perform in front of 70,000 people. Her hands were clasped together, resting just below her nose, caught up in the excitement of all the feelings the night brought with it.

As the guitar chords began to play a familiar tune and Taylor talked to the crowd, Tim walked over to Lucy from behind.

Wrapping his arms around her, he began to sway with her and sing along with Taylor, singing to her the lyrics to her favorite song softly against her ear.

“Can I go where you go?

Can we always be this close forever and ever?

And ah, take me out, and take me home

You’re my, my, my, my Lover”

He could feel her body stiffen against him and she stopped and turned to face him.

“How did you—”

“Been listening to this song on repeat so much this week I could sing it in my sleep. It is your favorite after all.”

"Yeah, it is."

Tears began to well in her eyes, in awe of the gesture and the effort Tim put forth to connect with her.

“That being said, I gotta side with Harper and Lopez on this one. Reputation is really the best era. But I guess there’s still time to learn that album in time for tomorrow night…”

"Oh, you think you're getting one of my tickets...that's so cute." 

Tim scoffed, breaking out into a smile as he lightly punched Lucy in the shoulder. 

"Punk. You can't not bring your Lover to the Taylor Swift concert."

Turning against him, Lucy lifted up on her tip toes and kissed Tim, wanting something deeper as a way to convey her thanks, but settling for a few quick pecks, knowing they were both on duty.

“Tim, thank you, I love you for this and for so much more.”

“I love you too, Luce. Thanks for dragging me out here." 

Turning back toward the stage and returning their attention to the show, Tim finally understood what Lucy was talking about. 

And maybe, just maybe, everyone did have a favorite Era. 

[chaoticdelinqueerwithglitter]

[personal vent with some sprinkles of tr]

Today I feel emotionally exhausted. Completly drained. But not physically, with doesn't help because my body have too much energy for just laying down and be sad.

But I can't stop crying for everything and anything at the same time. And I know the sadness, the pain, the tears, are real. I know it bc I feel it. But at the same time I feel like nothing happened to me to be like this, like I don't have a 'real reason', that I'm not allowed to be this exhausted when from the outside it looks like I did nothing.

(And I know that's not true, I know I was burn out from the managements I had to do for having internet back, I know it scares me having an uknown man in my home, even if the internet technician was really nice and kind with my dog, what relaxed me bc if my traumatized dog doesn't feel danger and it someone treats him so good, that means everything is safe. And I know the day before I had a job interview and I had to go to the center what makes me be activated as fuck and my anxiety goes high being inside such a crowded small space like the metro. I know that all this things are a lot for me, I know it but if I don't write it is too easy to forget)

(And I also know that I'm finally talking about things in theraphy that broke me just too mention, I know there are real and valid reasons for be like this, I know I should be proud of myself. But I hate that the past can still hurt me, I hate how weak it makes me feel. Even if I know the fact that I'm finally open this box means I did a lot of progress with myself for getting here. But suddenly the old fears are screaming again and it seems like all the work I did for accepting my own vulnerability and not be terrified of feeling old pains just disappeared. And it sucks so much and only makes me be harder on myself)

Weirdly, if this was like my usual burnouts were I just don't have more spoons or an emotional flashback were I need time to feel safe it would be easy to manage. I would be more compasionate with myself, I'll know what to say to my intrusive thoughts.

But is not that. I'm emotionally exhausted to pretend to be strong, to be fine, to not be broke, to not be fighting with my mind constantly bc I wanna be better, I wanna get better, I can't slip into the same coping mechanisms again (even if it feels so easy to do it).

And I just feel like a kid, starting to cry again and again without "reasons". I just feel like a kid that doesn't want to be this weak, that wants to smile and to not make everyone worried bc it's fine, I'm fine, I'm strong, I'm resilient, of course I'll stand up again, ofc the past is not going to drown me, I'm strong and strong people...

Strong people cry.

Strong people are able to admit that they are scared and want to run away.

Strong people fail. And fail again.

Strong people have a lot of flaws and do a lot of mistakes.

Strong people allow themselves to feel the pain, the sadness, the fear.

They broke. Again. And again. Because they admit when something hurts them, they don't deny the pain, don't pretend to be unharmed.

And after that, they try again. Because they never give up. But they ask for help, the show weakness, they show their tears, they show they are vulnerable.

Because maybe being able to be vulnerable is what real strenght mean.

(and yes, I chose this image on purpose because the contrast with this empty Mikey and Takemichi is so huge, Mikey isolating himself on the top, never breaking until he can't take it anymore... I see myself so much in Mikey and it hurts, but it's also a good reminder of how much I need to remember the lessons that Michi showed us)

And I don't know if any of what I just said makes sense or if it's just me rambling around and remembering to myself what ment for Mikey being so strong and so unbreakable and how Takemitchy being openly vulnerable and showing his feelings to the whole world, saved him. Saved us.

Because Takemitchy saved me too and he does it again every time I'm about to not allow myself to cry and go to the old-repress-and-denial.

So yeah, thanks our crybaby hero. I needed you so much and even if I don't say talk about you enough, I love you a lot 💜

[after-nine-at-the-oasis]

Hey guyss

😬 yeahh the cameras :(

:( bc that's just a rough situation

Ahh yeah then you can see all the trauma of that xdd

Oh right and they get real (not real) cameras lol

Hmm okay so he did try to break in

Ope?

LOL his accomplice o.o guess he did need help xD

Guess he doesn't care about being found now? Fair enough

Do you not see they're cops o.o

Ayy we love the commitment xD

Oh no-

Sir o.o

XD

Oh gosh they really hate her o.o

Don't go in too angry bestie be chill xdd

Yeah bestie she knows 😬

C'mon girl you got this 😬

😑 sir

Leave her aloneee

Okay good response good response

GLAD?

Bro I hate this guy 😑

Okay be chill be chill

But also go off girl xd

Honeyy xd 😭

OPE good thing they left those cameras o.o

??

The bandages and such, were there two of them?

Annnd they don't know the island 😭😬

Nope

Oh gross 😭

NOOO sir sorry 😭 poor girlie :((

Bro is crazy o.o

Bailey now is not the time xD

Nolan I don't think that'll work

Nah yeah he's way crazy o.o

I mean it kinda is a whole operation now xD

Nolannn be chill 😭

Guysss 😭😭

Maybe they'll hear the yelling?

UMMM

UH OH UH OH

EXCUSE ME???

Imagine if they killed Bailey right here

Did he shoot John in the leg???

YEAH RUN GUYS GUN

And screaming lol

Ahhh no him

Howw though?

OHH YEAH THE JAM

SLAY NOLAN :D

YOO go off Nolan with the chair

Y'allll 😭😬

Uh ohhh uh oh

OOP go off

Hey guys XD I mean why are they even there lol

Just for funsies xD

Ah for towels clearly 😌

EW

LOL the backup xD slay

ICONIC go off all y'all

XD funny that Nyla and Angela were too late lol but I'm sure the lift out and emotional just, them being there helped!

Ayy slay Celina :DD

Nice compliments Tim :))

Lol nahhh he ain't

Aww hey guys xD

XD yeah she's being going through it lol xd 🤢

Awww besties :'))

I love them sm thank you very much <33

Yeah it'll be back to normal soon :'DD :')

I'm glad we didn't drag that out too long <33

Aww that good night Celina was cute idk why

The way he said it was satisfying/sweet :)

Babeys <33 🥰

OOP detective's list o.o?

Uh ohh

Nah she's gonna see her name farther down but still there hey :)

Good shock?

Uh oh

Okay maybe it's not good shock xd

ಠ⁠_⁠ಠ huh??

Oh bc she'll be on it for so long :((?

Aww 17 😭😭 Honey I'm so sorry :(((

Lucyyy 😭😭😭😭😭💔❤️

Poor babey :'(( <3

I thought I saw a bit of a clip that said 17th place and that explains it xdd 😭

Nahh she'll do something that moves her up idk how but she will

I'm glad story wise she didn't do too amazing though :') :'/

XD hey besties lol

You look tired

I mean that's kinda what we expected though isn't it lol

Oogh gosh o.o pieces 😬

Ahh yeah xd makes sense

The getting paranoid lol

I mean they were conducting surveillance lol-

I mean they didn't do much xD

XDD guys

LOL

I mean is it really that pleasant there xD

After all the. yk. murder lol

Awww honey 😭 xd

Okay phew I don't have to see her tell Tim lol

Not that he would've been upset with her or anything, he probably hugged her lol :) but still it would hurt me

I mean is it worse though xD

Awww what is it (this is a tiny bit of the clip I saw, like "prize for 17th" is what I saw)

AWWWWW STOP THAT IS SO CUTE

Did he get that as 1st originally on purpose :'))?

Honey <33

LOL metro xD

AWWWW lovelies 🥰🥰 of course she did :')

If this doesn't prove he supports you doing that idk what does xD

Awww honey :')) :'( you could never disappoint him <3

AWW yeah :') xD

Y'ALLLLL they're so cute <333

Aww it is cute/sweet xD <33 🥰❤️

Ope 👀?

Nahh it's a tv ain't it xD

Yep

Lol good for you guys XD

I bet you got that from the beach though and I just have to say. You do know you live by the beach don't you xD

Awww y'all 🥰 at least you had a good time for a while there lol

Happy Honeymoon for real guys 🥰🥰❤️

Awww lol I love them <33

[centralperkchenford]

Chenford prompt + caught making out (or more 😉) in his office

(Bonus points if she’s in his lap on the chair or sitting on his desk)

Chenford prompt + caught making out (or more 😉) in his office. (Bonus points if she’s in his lap on the chair or sitting on his desk)

The perks of Tim having his own office

This one turned out a lot softer than I thought it would. But the good news is I’m on a writing high and I am getting to a lot of the prompts! I have a lot of good prompts right now that I have ideas for. So if you sent some in be on the lookout.

And for once, you let go Of your fears and your ghosts

There were a lot of perks of having his own office Tim thinks as he settles in. One he could actually get work done, two he could shut the door and make people knock and three.. well three was something he recently discovered. The best perk (in his humble, horny opinion) was sitting right in front of him. Lucy. She was the reason he had his own office after all.

Tim pulls the paperwork towards him his least favorite aspect of the job. But then again it could of been a lot worse.

He glances up at his girlfriend to see her on her phone, her hair pushed to the side. She’s already changed out for the day but they drove in together this morning so she had to wait until he was done. Not that either of them minded. Lucy looks up to see him staring and she puts her phone down and leans forward a little bit, her shirt lifting revealing soft smooth skin that Tim knows oh so well.

“What?” She asks grinning. He shrugs but he’s smiling as he looks back down at the piece of paper. Focus Bradford you have work to do. The voice inside his head says but then there’s the other voice the voice that is telling him is beautiful, sexy girlfriend is right in front of him. Lucy must have the same thoughts because next thing he knows she’s in front of him, standing in between his legs. He reaches out and pulls her towards him more and she falls into his lap. Once she’s situated, she buries her nose into his neck. He grips her back as she pulls back to look at him.

“Hi.” She mutters. He kisses her softly and then pulls back.

“Hi yourself.” He says quietly. He glances towards his big window and sees the shades are pulled down and then the door. He knows most people knock on the door save for Lucy and maybe Angela when she’s impatient.

Lucy leans forward again to kiss him her fingers dancing across his neck. He deepens the kiss and then rolls the chair out so they aren’t so squished.

“How was your day?” He asks her when he pulls back but he doesn’t go far. Lucy is intoxicating and he never can seem to get enough. She shrugs her shoulders.

“It was fine. I know it’s been a while but it’s still weird not seeing you on patrol.” She says tracing her fingers across his face. “I mean I was so used to it.”

He nods. He had to get used to not being on patrol as well. He likes being in metro. He likes the action and he likes leading his team but sometimes he misses patrol or maybe he just misses Lucy in the shop beside him.

“Do you miss it?” She asks as if she could hear what he was thinking. He’s not surprised he always thought Lucy may be able to read his mind sometimes. He kisses her nose softly and then her lips before answering.

“Sometimes. But I also love metro. ” He says against her lips. And you. He thinks. They haven’t quite said I love you yet, although sometimes he thinks they don’t have to. They should it to each other every single day. But he does love her, he’s so in love with her that it’s kind of crazy they took so long to get to each other.

“Yeah?” She whispers. “I love that you love Metro. It’s a good fit for you.” Tim holds her tighter.

“Do you know why I love metro?” He asks. She chews on her lip as if she was thinking about what she was going to say.

“The action. The clothes. Being a leader.” She says teasingly. He rolls his eyes at her and then kisses her again because he can.

“Those are all good reasons but the best perk in my opinion is having my own office.” He says slyly and Lucy immediately gets it.

“Yeah?” She says her voice going a little bit lower. “Why do you love having your own office, baby?”

He adjusts her so she’s sitting on his lap fully and then nuzzles his nose into her hair. “Because we can do stuff like this.”

He trails his lips down her face finally landing on her lips and kissing them. She deepens the kiss and he never ever wants to stop kissing her. He wants to always be able to do this. He slides one of his hands up her shirt landing on her bra and she groans into his mouth at the feeling of him kneading her breasts.

He puts his hand on her stomach and then snakes the other one behind her back. They keep kissing lazily as his hands trial up and down her body. Her hands are all over too, on his face and his thighs to keep her anchored to him.

He brings his hand that is on her back up to her hair, running his fingers through her soft hair. She giggles as he runs his fingers up her stomach and then back down again.

“Hey Tim?” She says softly pulling back. He places a soft kiss behind her ear and then looks at her.

“Yeah baby?” He asks. She runs her hands through his hair, her fingers scraping his scalp.

“Do you ever feel like this is exactly where you are suppose to be? Where we are suppose to be?” She asks. He nods his head up and down because yes this is exactly where he’s suppose to be. In metro and dating Lucy.

“Yes.” He says simply. “Absolutely I do.”

She grins at him and nods her head at his answer. “Yeah me too.” She says. There’s a few moments of silence before Lucy’s lips are back on his. He pulls her closer and he’s so into kissing her he doesn’t hear the door open.

“There you are!” Says a voice and Lucy nearly falls out of his lap as they both turn to look to see who interrupted them. It’s Angela and she’s grinning at them both. Tim knows that grin quite well. It’s never good.

“Aren’t you suppose to be doing paperwork Tim?” Angela teases him. Lucy blushes as Tim grumbles something unintelligible.

“Don’t you knock?” Tim grumbles at her as Lucy slides out of his lap. He immediately wants her back and reaches for her hand which she lets him take.

“No.” Says Angela. “I don’t. Wesley and I got a babysitter tonight, so we are all going out to the bar if you two want to join.” She smirks at them and Tim rolls his eyes and looks up at Lucy who smiles at him.

“That sounds fun.” She says brightly. “We will meet you there.” Angela nods clearly pleased at her answer and then backs out of the office leaving the door wide up.

Tim signs and Lucy laughs as she leans down to capture his lips once more. “We are finishing this later.” He mumbles. Lucy laughs again and then pulls him up.

“Go get changed.” She tells him. “I’ll wait here.” Tim nods and heads towards the door. Lucy is still now sitting behind his desk, her hair pulled to one side and her cheeks rosy red.

Yeah he definitely liked having his own office.