All Things
A/N #1: My apologies to those readers waiting patiently for the next chapter of Guarding My Heart. I promise I have started it, but after re-watching the Christmas movie (more than once–I regret nothing), the idea for this story popped into my head and just demanded to be written–my first new fic in nearly six months...
"When he died, all things soft and beautiful and bright would be buried with him." - Madeline Miller
Dimly aware of an agitated Rufus coming to an abrupt stop beside her, hoarsely shouting Jiya's name, Lucy bent over at the waist, burying her face in her hands and screaming Wyatt's name as a thick, choking wave of grief swept over her. The immense relief she'd felt when the Korean doctor agreed to accompany them to help deliver Eung Hee's baby was obliterated in an instant by a stunned anguish that nearly stopped her heart. Gone...oh, God, he was gone. Ripped away from her once more by fate...or the force...or whatever (whoever) felt the need to finish Lucy Preston off once and for all.
Dozens of images instantly flashed through her mind–each one more dismal and haunting than the one before–of a life without Wyatt, and it was all Lucy could do to keep from sinking to the frigid ground in utter despair. Loss after loss...Amy, her mother, the loving father who'd raised her, hell, even Wyatt for a time–all taken away by Rittenhouse, one after the other. Lucy had tried, tried with everything she had, to be brave, to be strong, to soldier past each devastating loss, but losing him forever, well, that was it...game over...
In the midst of an eerie silence as she, Rufus, and the doctor stood frozen in place waiting–for what, she was terrified to find out-when all Lucy could hear was the frantic beating of her heart, Rufus' gasp of relief sounded abnormally loud. Because suddenly, everything in her world was overwhelmingly right again, as just then, Wyatt slowly walked around the side of the abandoned shed with a small bundle in his arms and a shy, pleased smile on his face. "It's a girl," he announced, gazing down at the newborn cradled against his broad chest in awe.
Staring at him in shock, the lingering shackles of pain and regret encasing Lucy's heart fell away, and for the first time in weeks, she could see clearly–see him clearly–without the smothering layer of sorrowful disappointment that had enveloped her from the moment Wyatt had haltingly informed her that Jessica was alive. How foolish she'd been, Lucy realized with startling clarity, to continue to blindly, willfully even, keep this man at arm's length. Wyatt Logan had easily, perhaps at times carelessly, taken possession of her heart so long ago, she could barely remember not being head over heels, "until death us do part" in love with him. Perhaps it was time to let the past stay in the past.
As Rufus and the doctor hurried forward to help Jiya with Eung Hee, a welcome sense of calm enveloped Lucy. Wordlessly, she watched Wyatt smile gently at the infant nestled securely in his arms, when without warning, a intense wave of longing to see him with a child of theirs swept across her heart, so forcefully it nearly took her breath. As if sensing her gaze, Wyatt raised his eyes, a quizzical expression on his face. Fearful her newly-acknowledged feelings were on full display for him and the others to see, Lucy turned away to congratulate Eung Hee on her beautiful daughter.
Moving slowly, but with a sense of urgency spurred on by the need to get their little group safely to the port, they took turns helping the new mother, who was understandably rather shaky on her feet (except for Wyatt, who seemed reluctant to relinquish his hold on the baby).
Helpless to completely reign in her emotions, Lucy's thoughts wandered as she trudged along with the others, sneaking occasional glances at the man beside her. Images and fragments of conversations swirled around her mind as she tried with little success to figure out how to reconcile what her heart was yearning for with the caution common sense dictated she exercise after the chaotic events of the past few days...
She and Wyatt looking through her journal after their future selves had abruptly departed and his earnest, "Lucy, I never meant to hurt you..."
Sitting around the campfire with Wyatt and Jiya, listening in growing dismay as he resolutely informed the women that he'd come to the conclusion that not only was Jessica the reason Rufus was dead, but that his wife had to be taken out of the time line somehow and he wanted to be the one to do it...
Wyatt pushing the damn journal into her hands after Rufus miraculously appeared to rescue them, saying, "I guess this is why you end up with Flynn..."
Upon their return to 2018, Wyatt's unanticipated but obviously sincere toast to Flynn after Agent Christopher confirmed his death in 2012 after killing Jessica...
The startling realization that in the new 2018 time line, she and Wyatt had been together since 1941 Hollywood because Jessica had never been resurrected by her mother and Rittenhouse...
Their emotional conversation about Amy which led to Wyatt sweetly confessing, "I don't want to live in a world where we're not just Lucy and Wyatt..."
Him risking his life for her and the others by wresting the controls from the helicopter pilot Emma had paid off, and her soul-wrenching fear as she frantically tried to wake an unconscious Wyatt after they crashed...
The eye-opening conversation with Rufus, who'd shrugged aside her dismissive, "I don't want to be anyone's second choice," comment and revealed that even when everyone else in the bunker thought Lucy was dead during the six weeks she'd been a Rittenhouse captive, Wyatt never gave up on her, that he always knew she was out there, and he knew for a fact while Wyatt had proved to be willing to give up Jessica to save his life, if saving him meant giving Lucy up–he'd still be dead, before declaring, "Doesn't sound like second choice to me..."
The calm, confident way Wyatt took charge when Eung Hee unexpectedly went into labor, and though she could tell it went against every instinct he had, letting Lucy and Rufus leave for the port to find a doctor, his parting words merely, "Be careful," but, oh, the worried expression on his face...
Once they reached the outskirts of the base, the doctor secured a wheelchair for Eung Hee while the others followed, threading their way through the frantic throng of soldiers and refugees. "Hey," Rufus declared to no one in particular, "Wyatt delivered a baby."
Throwing a mischievous grin over her shoulder at a clearly uncomfortable Wyatt, Jiya added slyly, though in obvious admiration, "In the middle of a war zone."
Peering at him out of the corner of her eye, Lucy was charmed when a blushing Wyatt protested, "Alright, it wasn't a big deal," noticeably eager to change the subject.
Unable to resist, Lucy teased in a low undertone, "What else don't I know about you?" shaking her head fondly when he gave her a shy, dimpled grin but refused to answer.
While Rufus and Jiya offered to find some transportation back to the lifeboat, Lucy and Wyatt stuck close to Eung Hee and the doctor. As they drew near to where the M.A.S.H. tent was located, a small boy appeared suddenly, shouting, "Eomma," and when in her excitement at being reunited with her son, Eung Hee abruptly thrust her newborn daughter at Wyatt, he deftly scooped up the squirming bundle as she gratefully embraced the boy. Lucy watched in wonder as he smiled and shushed the infant's faint cries of distress before handing the baby over to her dazed father.
After she and Wyatt waved away Eung Hee's heartfelt thanks for their help and they bid her goodbye, they were dismayed when Rufus and Jiya returned with disappointing news. Although surrounded by military vehicles of all kinds, Rufus grimly confirmed that every single one has been fitted with explosives to keep them from falling into the hands of the encroaching enemy forces after the evacuation.
With a tired grimace, Wyatt voiced aloud the group's worst fear-they'd have to travel the more than fifteen miles to where the lifeboat was located on foot for the return trip to 2018. Shuddering inwardly, Lucy took one look at the rigid set of Wyatt's jaw and squaring her shoulders, fell in step beside him, Rufus and Jiya just behind them.
Walking for hours in the sub-freezing temperatures, darkness had fallen when the team entered a small, seemingly deserted village. Hoping desperately that Wyatt would allow the team a short break to rest before traveling on, a nearly-frozen Lucy began to ask him about the symptoms of frostbite when he came to an abrupt halt, a finger to his lips as he rapidly scanned their surroundings. Instantly falling silent, she and the others finally noticed, to their horror, there were lifeless bodies littering the ground near them.
Rufus' harsh whisper broke the silence. "Who kills a nun?" he asked incredulously before Wyatt shushed him, the ominous, not-too-distant sound of gunfire filling the air.
"We're surrounded. We can't outrun them, and we can't fight them. We need to hide, c'mon," he muttered tersely before leading them to a church a short distance away. The two couples quickly ducked inside, and while Wyatt moved to check the rear of the building, Rufus and Jiya sank into a pew near the doors. Standing motionless in front of the bare altar, Lucy's exhausted brain barely heard her friends' whispered conversation as they huddled together for warmth. Wyatt's desperate words raced around her mind. We're surrounded. We can't outrun them, and we can't fight them. We need to hide...
In a daze, wobbly legs unable to hold her up any longer, Lucy dropped down less than gracefully in front of the altar. A few minutes later, she was joined by Wyatt, greatly comforted by the reassuring warmth of his muscular arm against hers. "What're you thinking about?" he murmured, diligently keeping his eyes on the door to the church.
"Flynn," she shrugged, feeling the weight of his solemn gaze when he turned to look at her, "The last thing that he said to us before he went to get the lifeboat was if we all run off to save Rufus, who will save the world?" At Wyatt's lack of response, Lucy took a shallow breath and doggedly forged on. "If we die tonight..." only to be interrupted by his fierce whisper.
"I'm not giving up yet," and when she nodded, he continued, "Guess it's all up to fate...What?" he asked at Lucy's amused reaction.
Shaking her head, she replied with a knowing look, "You...talking about fate."
Wyatt grinned sheepishly and admitted, "So, you were right..." before falling silent, his dark blue eyes fixed firmly on her face.
Taking pity on him, Lucy teased, "And here you had me convinced there was no such thing as fate."
Undeterred, after a moment, he responded lightly, "Timing is everything, huh?"
And just then, gazing into his weary eyes, it was all too much. The emotional roller coaster of pain and suffering she and Wyatt had endured at the hands of her mother and Rittenhouse these past months suddenly culminated in this very moment, possibly their last one together in this life. Biting her lower lip, Lucy looked away, her eyes welling up, and just like that, she knew it was time–well past time, in fact–to tell Wyatt the words he deserved to know-and was probably longing to hear.
Staring straight ahead, Lucy threw caution to the wind and went for it, the need to get everything out rising up in her chest. Swallowing thickly, she began, "When I thought you were dead, for a moment I saw my whole life without you...and my world ended, Wyatt." She sighed softly. "I just kept thinking about all this time that we have wasted–just wasted so much time–and then all of a sudden, there you were, holding a stranger's baby that you had delivered, and I knew," offering him a tremulous smile.
"You knew what?" he asked cautiously, even as a faint hope lit up his eyes.
Lucy's confession fell easily, freely even, from her lips. "I'd fallen in love with you, and nothing that happened, or didn't happen, or might happen was ever gonna change it." Pausing for a second to angle her body towards him, she was relieved when he instinctively mirrored her action without taking his eyes from her face, now just mere inches away.
"I love you, Wyatt Logan. I've loved you since the Alamo...since you kissed me with Bonnie and Clyde...since that night in Hollywood," her voice trailing away as she unconsciously held her breath waiting on his response.
"What happened after..." Wyatt frowned slightly, "I wanted to choose you, I just felt like I owed her something." When Lucy absently wiped away her sudden tears at his earnest, faltering explanation, he continued, "Wish I could take it all back," gazing at her intently.
Shaking her head, Lucy interjected, "But the crazy part is, Flynn already did, and now, all that we have between us is a past that only we remember," looking into his eyes, willing him to understand what she was trying to say.
"So..." Wyatt wondered hesitantly.
"I don't care about the past any more, and we might not have a future. Maybe all that matters is right now," and in the dim light of the church, Lucy clearly saw the love in his eyes he'd professed to her only days ago. Abruptly shaking his head, Wyatt put his warm, calloused hand on Lucy's neck and drew her lips to his. The delicate, tender kiss held so much promise–of love, forgiveness, hope. Caught up in the glorious feeling of Wyatt's mouth on hers, Lucy's mind barely registered the heavy clanging of church bells above their heads, but they abruptly broke apart at the sound of gunfire and a loud thud outside that shook the ground before a bright light began seeping through the church doors.
Jumping up, Wyatt took Lucy's hand in his and keeping her behind him, ran toward the noise and light. While she knelt beside Rufus and Jiya, he cautiously approached the entrance, weapon held firmly. Opening the flimsy door, Wyatt peered out, then surprisingly, immediately walked outside. The others followed slowly, startled to see not only Agent Christopher standing there in the snow beaming at them, but astonishingly enough, with the mother ship and a disgruntled-looking Emma Whitmore behind her.
"Oh, my God, I can't believe you're here," Lucy stammered as she firmly embraced the older woman before stepping back so Jiya could hug her also.
"Well, I didn't want to have to leave you here to die on Christmas–plus, I wanted to time travel, at least once," she exclaimed cheerfully while a vigilant Wyatt kept an alert eye on Emma, whose hands were apparently cuffed behind her back.
When Lucy finally looked over at the redhead, she sneered and jibed, "What? No hug? What would Jesus do?"
Unable to keep silent any longer, Rufus glared and remarked, "And you brought Scrooge–was it the ghost of Christmas Past or Future that got her here?"
Unimpressed by his snark, Emma responded dryly, "I think I liked it better when you were dead."
She shrugged indifferently when he snapped back at her, "Sorry it didn't take," before turning his attention to Agent Christopher and teasing, "So, how'd you like time traveling?"
"Not my choice of destinations, but still quite the miracle," the NSA agent answered with a wry grin. They were all smiling at an excited Jiya saying something about a Saint Christopher medal when suddenly, Emma's hands were free and she tried to escape to the mother ship.
Wyatt yelled, "Hey!" as he and Agent Christopher immediately drew their weapons on her, forcing Emma to stop and hold her hands up, a sour expression on her face.
"Wait," she ordered, focusing her steely gaze on Lucy, and with the next words out of her mouth, Emma recklessly played what she clearly thought was her trump card, "I can bring Amy back."
Everyone froze in place, watching the two women. "She's lying," Lucy managed evenly, despite not quite successfully tamping down the tiniest spark of hope the words triggered.
"Try me," the redhead taunted in return. Under Wyatt's watchful eye, Lucy slowly approached Emma. "I only did it 'cause your mother ordered me to," she whispered harshly when Lucy came to a halt in front of her, "But I can undo it–means nothing to me and everything to you." When that failed to elicit the desired reaction, Emma tried a different tact. "The truth is, I admire you, Lucy...we'd make one hell of a team–screw the Rittenhouse agenda–we could make history whatever we want."
Mentally rolling her eyes, Lucy stepped even closer and said flatly, "I want all of this to be over."
Green eyes gleaming triumphantly, the other woman's face softened slightly as if sensing Lucy was somehow weakening before adding, "And you want your sister back. I can make that happen–you just have to trust me."
Ruthlessly silencing the faint hope in her heart that would always long for her sister's return, Lucy shook her head and breathed, "I don't" before turning abruptly and coldly instructing Wyatt, "If she gets any closer to that ship–shoot her."
All hell broke loose then when without warning, a sniper's bullet dropped Emma. As they stared down at her lifeless body in stunned disbelief, heavy gunfire filled the air. "Everybody get to the mother ship," Wyatt shouted hoarsely, he and Agent Christopher laying down answering gunfire while the others ran for their lives. Rufus slammed his body into the pilot's seat while Lucy and Jiya hastily sat and buckled themselves in, the frightening sound of bullets pinging off the mother ship's gleaming exterior. What felt like an hour, but was in reality seconds later, Wyatt was pushing his superior through the open hatch and practically fell on top of her in an attempt to get aboard safely. Thankfully, before they were even securely harnessed, Rufus' fingers were skillfully dancing across the control panel and the mother ship effortlessly obeyed, landing the team beside the 2023 lifeboat a mere moment later. Since Jiya refused to be separated from a giddy Rufus for even a second, and Denise refused to even consider jumping in the lifeboat (upgraded or not), Wyatt and Lucy agreed to bring it back to 2018 only after Jiya swore the auto pilot would get them home.
Climbing on board, Lucy sat and began fastening her safety harness as Wyatt took his seat, and to fill the silence, asked, "Rufus is gonna get the mother ship home alright, isn't he?" Not that she really doubted it or anything.
"Rufus got us to the lifeboat, didn't he?" Wyatt patiently replied. It suddenly occurred to her that this very scenario might be what Future Lucy and Wyatt had intended all along.
"Maybe our future selves came back to save Rufus so that he could save us all," she mused thoughtfully.
"Maybe," Wyatt shook his head. He seemed oddly unconvinced.
Lucy's hands stilled on the straps as she stared at him. "Maybe what?"
"Or maybe they wanted things to turn out differently for us than it did them," he answered gravely before leaning toward her with a dimpled smirk.
Lucy tried but unable to suppress an answering grin, gently scolded, "You know, I think I can handle this by now," when Wyatt's hands expertly snapped the buckles securely into place–deliberately mimicking his actions from their very first jump, she realized.
"It's no problem at all," he casually informed her before lifting that killer blue gaze to her and adding, "Ma'am." Okay, that was still so hot...an unfair advantage over her, sure...but still hot...
Her heart swelling with love, Lucy sternly uttered the response she knew Wyatt was expecting, "Don't you call me Ma'am," even as her lips curved upward. Her smile faded when he didn't return it. "What?" she asked quizzically. To her surprise, Wyatt only leaned closer and placed large, warm hands on either side of her knees. "What?" she repeated, feeling slightly alarmed.
Gazing intently at her, he suggested, "We can try to get Amy back now...we have both lifeboats." He was looking at her so hopefully, it hurt her heart a little when she couldn't agree.
"No." One small word, yet for Lucy Preston, it conveyed a multitude of emotions.
"But the stuff in the journal," Wyatt persisted, eager to persuade her (and Lucy loved him for it even more fiercely at that moment–if that was even possible).
"No, Wyatt, I've thought a lot about this," and then reminded him about all the things that could go wrong (and had) whenever any of them tried to mess with the time line, the horrible losses they had all suffered. He listened solemnly, considering her reasons before nodding regretfully and proceeding to fasten his own harness.
Looking up at Lucy, he quietly tried once more, "And you're sure you're okay with that?"
There was one last thing Lucy needed to say on the subject, and then she'd never speak of it again–not even to Wyatt, who was watching her carefully. Shaking her head, she replied, "Of course not, but everybody loses someone they love, and no matter how badly they want to, they can't get them back...and in spite of that, they find a way to go on." When he nodded slightly, Lucy concluded, "That's everyone's history."
They stared at each other for a long, poignant moment before Wyatt capitulated and sighed, "Alright...well, Jiya said auto pilot, right?"
And purposefully ignoring Lucy's teasing, "You sure you know what you're doing?" he quickly tapped in 12-24-2018 and San Francisco, CA, before touching "auto pilot."
With a rueful grin, Wyatt said, "Alright, looks like we'll be home for Christmas after all," and held out his left hand for her. Without hesitation, Lucy placed her smaller hand in his, and as they smiled at each other, the lifeboat arrived in the bunker a split second before the mother ship.
After a hasty mission debriefing where Connor kept glancing incredulously from one face to another, especially Rufus', the team grabbed showers and a quick meal before splitting up. Rufus and Jiya had offered to help their former boss destroy the mother ship for good, and Wyatt was pulled into some kind of top-secret meeting with Agent Christopher.
That left Lucy curled up on one of the cots in the room she now shared with Wyatt. Definitely feeling cleaner now-both in mind and body-after her brief, lukewarm shower, she was scrolling through her phone when he came in. Shutting the door firmly and sitting, he took off his boots as Lucy relayed the information she'd found about Eung Hee and her family.
"Wow...Sounds like a crazy, ordinary...wonderful life," Wyatt observed meaningfully.
Lucy nodded in agreement, replying, "Thanks to you," and watched as Wyatt stood and walked over to the end of the cot.
"No, that was your call," he insisted quietly. Getting up on her knees to face him, Lucy merely lifted one narrow shoulder.
"You're the one who said everyone was important," Wyatt reminded her, putting his hands firmly on her hips.
Reaching up to grip his biceps, Lucy conceded, "Maybe not to history, but everyone's important to someone, I think." They smiled at each other in shared understanding. When Wyatt bent closer to kiss her, she stopped him with a murmured, "Careful," quickly drawing his glance above their heads. They both chuckled at the unexpected sight of a sprig of mistletoe dangling from a festive red ribbon.
With an easy, dimpled grin, Wyatt wondered (rather rhetorically), "How'd that get there?"
"Apparently, Agent Christopher has a dirtier mind than we thought..." she mused. And naturally, Wyatt would never question the actions of a superior officer.
"Well, I mean, it is a custom, right?" he husked, moving even closer to Lucy, delighted when she nodded thoughtfully in agreement. And then his warm lips were on hers, and at last, the final piece of the puzzle fell into place for Lucy Preston. She was home now because Wyatt Logan was her home, her life, her everything. After several long, satisfying kisses, she leaned back slightly, one hand loosely wrapped around the back of Wyatt's neck and caressing his stubbled cheek with the other, said with a pleased smile, "That's the first time we've done that in the present...I mean, our present...I mean 2018."
"Well, it's gonna be 2019 soon," Wyatt offered helpfully, "So maybe we should..." his voice trailing off while he watched her expectantly.
She knew instantly what he meant and smartly finished his thought, "...make up for lost time?" And then the time for talking was through. Wyatt smiled tenderly at Lucy before fastening his mouth to hers, and carefully guiding her backwards onto the cot, easily settled the never-forgotten, comforting weight of his muscular body between her open thighs.
Even as Lucy's body eagerly welcomed Wyatt's loving touch, her joyous, hopeful heart whispered a bittersweet farewell to her old life–to Amy, the parents who raised her, even to Garcia Flynn. With nothing but open road ahead of them, she and Wyatt were building a new life together, starting right now...
A/N #2: Although I enjoyed the first hour of the Christmas movie, I was truly moved by Lucy's reaction in the second hour when she thinks that Wyatt has been killed in an explosion. (That scene was the inspiration for this story.) I began thinking about Lucy's emotional journey over just a few days between the time Wyatt told her "I love you" and that precise moment, when it took the thought of losing him forever to give her that last little push, and wanted to explore her mental and emotional struggles to get there. I hope I've succeeded :) As always, my sincere thanks to everyone for their favorites, follows, and reviews, especially from those guests I'm unable to respond to. I want to wish all of my Timeless friends a Happy New Year and thank them for a wonderful 2018-and now back to writing Guarding My Heart :))