Edward Rumpke was weary as he made his way up the stairs and fumbling with the keys to the one bedroom apartment he called home for the past two years. With a huff, he locked the door and dragged his tired body to the worn futon and collapsed with a heap. It had been a day. Normally the raccoon enjoyed his multiple jobs since it allowed him some flexibility and variance but today had been a marathon. From picking up hours at the french cafe this morning, then meeting with the stage director over in Tundra Town to finalize some lighting for a show that premiered this weekend at a different theatre across town, and finally barbacking till the wee hours of the morning, Edward found the black bags under his eyes to be heavier than normal.
He should sleep but his nocturnal instincts were in full effect. Looking around, the raccoon tried to find the remote for his modest TV. With a sigh, he saw the small plastic device on the counter near the kitchen. Cursing under his breath, the masked mammal retrieved the device. Before he could plop back onto the welcoming warmth of the plush couch his pocket began to ring. After more mumbling and cursing under his breath, Edward reach into his pocket and pulled out his new phone that had been a gift from his girlfriend. The blinding screen flashed the number for the bar he had just closed down.
"Hello?" Edward grumbled.
"Oh, did I wake you up?" A cheerful voice belonging to the bar owner chirped. She was a small armadillo by the name of Amanda. "I just checked the deposit box but couldn't find the receipts from the credit card… Oh wait I see them!"
Edward tried to hid is annoyance and take a breath. "There ya go… Anything else Amanda?" The raccoon began to pace around his small apartment, an annoying habit he got whenever he was on the phone.
"Nope. See you tomorrow night!" With a click, the phone went dead. Looking down at his phone that was a present, Edward smiled. The last two weeks had been interesting to say the least. He had sat his now girlfriend Judy Hopps down and had a serious conversation about his identity and their future. The following day, the raccoon had lunch with his new girlfriend and her work partner Nick Wilde. At Judy's request, the rabbit bought a new phone for Edward so the new couple could keep in touch. Edward had accidently broke his old device in an instance of a nervous breakdown causing Judy a lot of grief.
Another buzz from the device caused the raccoon to look back to his phone, it was a reminder that today was "T-Day." With a grumble, Edward went to his bathroom to prepare for his bi-weekly medication. If he was up and awake, he might as well get the shot over with and then finally get some sleep. He pulled out a spare towel and his medicine. Before he could fill the syringe, he received yet another call.
"Damn it…" The raccoon cursed. He expected Amanda to be calling again but to his surprise it was Judy giving him a call. He clicked the green button and answered the incoming call.
"Well good morning Judy… Why the hell are you awake!?" Edward smiled to himself. It was near 4AM and while his species was know to be active at night his bunny officer tend to keep regular hours.
"Hey Edward! I couldn't sleep so I decided to exercise a bit… Mind if I stop by?" The energetic rabbit asked between breaths. Edward rolled his eyes.
"Sure, but it's a little late to be running about? Wait, where are you?" The raccoon asked with some concern.
"Outside your building…" Judy said.
"Sweet sawgrass woman, you ran all the way here!?" Edward moved to his window and opened the blinds. Sure enough, the slender form of the rabbit could be seen next to the main entrance wearing form fitting pants and an oversized tee shirt. "Isn't that over an hour run?" He continued with some concern.
"One hour and thirty minutes actually… Are you going to let me in or do I need to run back home?" Judy said looking up to his window and waving with a wide smile. With a sigh, Edward went to the com system next to his door and pressed a button to unlock the door. With a jump, the rabbit ran to the door. "See ya soon!"
Edward smiled and unlocked the door to his apartment. Within a minute, a grey blur had wrapped herself around his waist in a tight hug. Instinctively the raccoon wrapped his paws around the muscular frame of his girlfriend. "What were you going to do if I wasn't home?" The raccoon asked holding Judy close.
"Well my plan B was to go ahead and take a Zoober home, but I had a feeling you were still up. You usually don't go to be till like 7 or 8 AM." Judy said burying her face in his shirt.
"Am I that predictable?" He said, closing the door and leading the rabbit into his apartment. "And here I thought I was a mammal of surprises!" The raccoon said with sarcasm.
"Just a few surprises…" Judy said with a sly smile. "So could I interest you in cuddling watching movies till we both actually fall asleep?" The rabbit sat on the futon and gave her boyfriend a grin. She patted the spot next to her.
"That sounds wonderful but I need to take my medicine first." Edward smiled and started to walk towards the bathroom. Judy watched the raccoon disappear from sight with a confused look.
"What kind of medicine? Did you need some water?" Judy asked.
"No thanks. It's my bi-weekly testosterone shot. Not exactly the funnest thing in the world but you do what you have to." Edward called from the bathroom. Curiosity had gotten the better of the rabbit officer and she made her way to her boyfriend. She saw him sitting on the floor in his underwear patting away at a small amount of blood on the side of his leg with an empty syringe next to him. Seeming satisfied, the raccoon put a band-aid on the spot and started cleaning up around him. Looking up, Edward met his girlfriend's eyes while she leaned on the doorway while a blush crept to his face.
"Real sexy isn't it?" The raccoon said with a chuckle. Judy frowned and crossed her arms.
"That looks painful… Anything I can do to help?" The rabbit asked as her ears drooped to the side. She was still getting used to dating a transexual man. A few days after Edward had come out to her and they had spent the evening together the rabbit read as many articles as she could find about transitioning. Anytime the officer felt like she didn't know enough about a subject she would get a bit obsessive in her research. Her partner Nick Wilde would normally spend the next few days listening to all the new information the rabbit had learned. The fox always said she could get obsessive.
"Nope! Just ready for cuddling." Edward smiled.
"I could-" Judy began
"It's fine-" Edward interrupted.
"But I read-" Judy tried again.
"Judy…" Edward walked to the rabbit and placed his paws on her shoulders. "I have been dealing with this all of my life and I have been giving myself these shots for about five years now. I am a big boy, I can take care of myself." He gave the rabbit a quick nuzzle and made his way to the futon. Grabbing the remote and a fleece blanket, the raccoon plopped on the futon and turned on the TV. Judy felt her face warm and nervously made her way next to her boyfriend.
The raccoon put his paw around his girlfriend and looked down to meet her eyes. She gave a weak smile and said. "Sorry…"
Edward titled his head in confusion. "For what? Trying to help me? You're fine Judy." The raccoon reassured the rabbit.
"But it's not fine! I always want to fix things when all I need to do is listen!" Dramatically, the rabbit officer threw her paws in the air. Edward found himself laughing at the display.
"I appreciate you trying to help. You will be the first person I will ask if I do need help." The raccoon kissed his girlfriend's head and pulled her closer. "Want to watch some Doctor Hooves?"
Judy gave her boyfriend a sideways glance. "Doctor Hooves? What's that? Is it like Grey's Anatomy?" Edward felt his jaw drop.
"...You seriously haven't heard of Doctor Hooves!?" He said flabbergasted. "Oh sweet summer bunny you are in for a treat!"
A few hours later, the pair had fallen asleep leaning their heads against each other as the sun began to stream into the closed blinds of the apartment. Their paws were intertwined as the soft sounds of snoring mixed with the sounds of an epic journey from the TV still running. Judy blinked and cuddled closer to the warm body next to her. Taking in her surroundings, her purple eyes laid eyes on the bandage on the raccoon's leg. Gingerly she reached out and touched the plastic.
Judy Hopps bit her lower lip as her nose twitched. For the hundredth time in the past two weeks she asked herself if she could really do this? Could she really be happy with a transexual man as her partner? Suddenly Edward stirred in his sleep and pulled the rabbit closer. He nuzzled his face into the soft shoulder of his girlfriend. Judy smiled and kissed his cheek and for the first time in two weeks the rabbit had an answer to all of her questions. It was worth a try.