Title: Life Waiting

Summary: Do Tyra and Tim have a future together after she leaves Dillon? Post 'Always' FNL.

Rating: Probably a T rating, maybe M not really sure yet.

Disclaimer: I wish that I do, but unfortunately I don't own these characters.

AN:After the last episode of FNL left us sort of in the dark about the future of Tyra and Tim, I thought I'd write my own ending to their story.

Prologue

She stared down at the positive pregnancy test for the tenth time it seemed and still couldn't comprehend what she was looking at. How could this have happened? How could she be pregnant? The test must have been wrong, there was no other explanation. She was on the pill and he always used a condom.

Sitting on the cold floor in her small bathroom, she started replaying the days before her visit to Dillon somehow ended with her in bed with her ex-boyfriend.

Chapter 1

Eight weeks ago

Racing toward the ringing phone she hit her shin into the small coffee table in her studio apartment. "Shit" she muttered as she picked up.

"Tyra?" her mother's voice sounded through the line. "Is that any way to answer the phone?"

"Sorry mama I just tripped and hurt my foot. What's up?"

"What's up honey is that I'm calling my daughter who I haven't seen in months to let her know that her sister needs her"

Rolling her eyes over the guilt trip she regularly received from her mother, "why does Mindy need me? She has you and a husband and a son. Her life is full"

"Well her life will get even more full in the next few months honey. Mindy is pregnant…"

"Wow." She said interrupting.

"…with twins." Her mother finished.

"What?" Tyra exclaimed not believing what she just heard.

"Yeah honey and she isn't doing so great with the news. Especially since Billy might be losing his job soon."

"Why would Billy lose his job? They love him at East Dillon. He's a great Assistant Coach," She asked curiously.

"They might be getting rid of the football program honey and with the babies on the way Mindy is worried and she could use a little support from you."

Tyra stood there quietly thinking of what to do. Her finals were over in two days. She could try and make it to Dillon for a visit if she wanted to but did she really want to?

"Tyra? You still there?"

"Yeah mama I'm here. I'll try and make it home in a few days."

"Please do hon. I know that you don't really like visiting but we do miss you and we do want to see you."

"Its not that I don't like visiting mama, its just that every time I step back into Dillon I feel like I'm seventeen again trapped in that gossipy town with no future." She said feeling like a whiney little child.

"Oh Tyra. You have a future that's why you're at college. We're not going to hold you hostage here for goodness sakes." Her mother said with exasperation in here voice.

A wave of guilt hit Tyra realizing that avoidance of her past in Dillon was also keeping her away from her family who loved and missed her. "Okay mama, I'll be home on Friday."

After hanging up the phone she went into her closet and pulled the bag that sat on the top shelf. Opening it up she found what she was looking for, a rubber banded stack of letters with familiar chicken scratch writing on them.

Shoving the bag back into the closet she took the letters and sat down on her bed debating whether or not to read them again. Why in the world did these letters have such a pull on her? She must have read and re-read them about 50 times. Maybe it wasn't the letters and what they said that had the pull but the man who wrote them, Tim Riggins.

Tim was her high school boyfriend. Their relationship was tumultuous. They loved each other as much as they hurt each other. Sometimes you couldn't tell where one began and the other ended while other times they were like cats and dogs ready to fight to the death. That was probably the reason why they could never work out their problems. They were both stubborn, never willing to admit their faults, never willing to admit they were hurt by the other, and never willing to admit how much they actually cared for one another.

She loved Tim Riggins since she was a little girl. He was quiet and mischievous. You could never tell what he was thinking; if he was glad to see you or wanted you to leave his sight. Maybe that was the attraction for her. Trying to figure out who Tim Riggins was and what he thought of her. He finally did admit what he thought of her during their freshman year of high school. A guy asked her out, whose name she couldn't remember at that moment, and Tim got jealous. But instead of telling her, he picked a fight and after many many days of not speaking, he admitted to her that he liked her and didn't want her dating anyone but him.

From that day forward they were inseparable. Things remained like that until the football game that ruined the life of his best friend Jason Street and put him in a wheelchair. No matter how often they fought or how often they argued she knew he loved her. She could read him like an open book and vice versa, but after the accident it was like a switch was flipped and Tim suddenly became a stranger.

Their fights suddenly became more volatile and hurtful. It led to cheating from both sides and their eventual break up. She knew that her small foray into the cheating world was to get Tim's attention and bring him back to her, where as his was falling for his best friend's girlfriend, betraying both her and Jason.

His dating Lyla hurt so much that it was hard to move on. She tried and dated someone for a while but in the end when Tim needed her she was always there. Even now after all these years she was there for him. Tried to help make his time in prison a little easier by writing him letters. Tried to throw him a lifeline; to show him that he isn't the loser he believes he is, but a man who made a mistake.

When Mindy told her Tim was going to prison for owning a chop shop, she was angry. She ranted and raved to her sister on the phone about the stupid life choices he made and how they ruined his life, but as soon as she hung up the phone she cried for him. She cried for the boy she used to love, for the future he wouldn't be able to have after his release and she cried for the life she always hoped they would have shared. He was going to rot there for five years. That is how the decision to write him started. She wanted to tell him he was an idiot and bitch him out but also wanted to show him that she was there to support him and will be until he no longer needed her. And so week after week she sent a letter out informing him of her life and the lives of his family. Disappointed at first not hearing back from him, she didn't give up, and eventually Tim came around and started writing.

His letters were angry at first. Angry at himself, angry at his brother Billy, angry at the world, but with time the old Tim started breaking trough. In fact it wasn't just the old Tim, it was an older more mature Tim. A Tim she didn't fully know.

The things they shared in the letters felt harmless knowing, they wouldn't see each other for a long time. But now, knowing that the 5 years he was to spend in prison turned into only a little over a year, going to Dillon would be harder then she thought.

Four days later

With butterflies in her stomach she stepped into Buddy's and spotted Tim behind the bar. She stood there watching him just as some guy made a comment about the length of time he had been waiting for his drink and called him a jailbird. In typical Tim fashion he reached across the bar pulled the guy up by his collar and threatened him.

"I've been waiting for five minutes for my drink," she shouted, repeating the guys words and taking a step forward. He froze as a small grin appeared on his face. Slowly his hands loosened from the guy's collar and he stepped back. "Hey there Jailbird" she added making her way towards the bar.

Walking over to where he was standing she couldn't take her eyes off of him. He looked as he always did, his long brown tresses hanging down to his chin, his muscled body stretching the t-shirt he was wearing, but there was something different in his eyes, a darkness, a maturity and maybe a bit of fear.

"Move" she uttered harshly to the guy who a moment ago was going to get pummeled by Tim Riggins. As he vacated the seat she slid into it and looked up at Tim with a smile. "Hi".

He didn't say anything but smiled back. Reaching down into the ice he pulled out two bottles of beer and motioned towards the door. Standing up she moved towards the end of the bar following him outside into the cool night air. As they stepped out Tim placed the beers on a nearby table and pulled her into a hug.

Finally speaking, he whispered. "I'm so glad to see you"

"You too" She said softly wrapping her arms tightly around him.

They stood there enfolded in each other's arms for a few minutes before slowly taking steps back and making their way towards the table where their beers sat.

Sitting there next to her felt surreal to him. She looked the same as she always did yet there were subtle changes in her he noticed. Gone was the blond hair he was so used to seeing, replaced by long brown locks that only brought out the blue in her eyes. Her long lean body looked the same yet there were more curves prominent then he remembered. What he noticed the most was her demeanor. She looked happy and calm, relaxed, quietly sitting next to him.

"Is everything alright?" he asked finally.

"Sure. Why do you ask?"

He shrugged his shoulders. "I don't know you look like you have something on your mind."

She smiled softly. "Mindy is all mad at me since I've only been home to visit once since Stevie's been born."

"So why don't you just come home then?"

"Cause I don't like coming home Tim." She said with slight irritation in her voice.

Not knowing how to respond he shrugged again and took a swig of his beer. Her response was typical Tyra, straightforward, not hiding anything, and a slight attitude she couldn't help but let come through.

"I guess she'll need help with the twins when they're born." She said quietly.

"Twins?" He asked. What was she talking about? Was he so out of touch that he didn't even know that his brother and sister in-law were having twins?

"Yeah. Billy didn't tell you?"

"No." he said quietly. "We haven't been talking much." He admitted with a heavy heart. A moment passed before he stood and looked at her. "Hey look. I gotta clock back in."

Looking up from her sitting position he saw confusion in her eyes. He knew she wanted to know what was going on between him and Billy but he just didn't have the energy to explain things right then.

"Hey, its good to see you. And thanks for writing it meant a lot." He said softly trying to change the subject of his brother and him.

Turning, he made his way to the door before he heard her speak again. "Billy didn't come see you?"

"No, he saw me. Took real good care of me." He muttered before opening the door and stepping back into Buddy's.

For the rest of the night that conversation haunted him. He kept debating whether he should contact Billy and find out about Mindy's pregnancy. He was still so angry with his brother and couldn't imagine having a civil conversation with him at this time. At the end he decided to let it be and ignore the gnawing feeling he had in his stomach.

So I'm not really sure when to rate something M so I might have to change the rating mid story. How explicit does the love scene have to be? If anyone has any info, let me know please.

Thanks for reading. Please leave a review, I'd love to hear what you all think.