.
...four times Tina and Newt kiss because of work and one time they don't...
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1. November
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They're on a plainclothes operation being directed by CCTV. A group of youths just burgled a local shop; Tina and Newt were closest, patrolling the streets when the call came, and now head quickly down the road to apprehend them all before they can get away.
They've been partners for two months now. Tina's the veteran, but not by much, and they hit it off from the start. Newt is slightly less commanding than his female counterpart, allowing her to delegate, which works out much more nicely than her last, rather sexist partner, who barely ever let her drive or call any shots. Accordingly, Tina knew she liked Newt from the first day, when they walked to the patrol car and he automatically took the passenger seat despite the fact that the keys were in the ignition and anyone's game.
Her opinion of him only continued to improve from there, as despite his initial reticence he's clearly smart, on top of things, and the perfect balance of compassionate and firm. She did have concerns about his softness at first — being a cop, you can't afford to be overly emotional — but he keeps it nicely in check and they share a laugh or two after making some of the more ridiculous arrests in their time together. They also share some seriously close calls, and Tina has to say that crazy as it is, she trusts Newt with her life. Which is good, being partners. That's all they are, anyway. Work partners.
This chilly November evening is one of their first times out and about together in plainclothes, and to Tina's surprise, Newt reaches over and takes her hand as they make their way down the lane aided by CCTV operators.
"Just want to fit in," he explains, and it's true that everyone else on the streets appear to be couples.
"Okay," Tina says dumbly. She swears he runs his thumb gently over the back of her hand, and feels her stomach flip flop.
"CCTV, we're looking for an IC3 male, white trainers, black sweatshirt?" Newt verifies into the radio.
The operator confirms it. Newt tugs Tina to the right, and she's briefly annoyed because she knows where they're going, it's just that her partner is being unnecessarily distracting. He doesn't let go of her hand until they take the suspect into custody.
For whatever reason, even after all is said and done, Tina can't stop thinking about the way Newt had reached so naturally for her hand and interlaced their fingers with the ease of an actual couple. She's used to men being more passive than that; his assertiveness is something she'll have to grow accustomed to.
Except there's no reason to grow accustomed to any part of Newt's romantic behavior, assertive or otherwise, because there's no dating within the force. She and Newt must remain platonic friends and partners. Work always comes first.
"Good show, PC Goldstein," Newt says before he hops out of the cruiser where Tina drops him off at his car.
Tina smiles. "You too, Scamander."
He hesitates for a split second; then, in a flurry of movement so quick Tina wonders if it really happened at all, he leans over and kisses her on the cheek. With that, he's out of the car in a flash of teal peacoat and a confusing expression that seems both remorseful and relieved.
Well, Tina thinks as she tries to get her thoughts in order, it's all part of the job.
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2. January
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They're in plainclothes again, tracking two men suspected of drug dealing. The suspects have been standing on the same strip of pavement for awhile — a telltale sign — spending far too much time looking around at the foot traffic and shifting every so often. Newt and Tina dawdle, waiting for something to happen.
"I think we aroused their suspicion," Newt whispers ten minutes later. They're both shivering, hands thrust into jacket pockets. "That must be why they haven't moved yet."
"I think you've had too much to drink," Tina replies, smiling. They'd spent the first half of the evening doing their due diligence and scoping out a handful of bars before getting the call.
"I don't drink on duty," Newt objects disapprovingly.
They both glance over at the suspects, who are still lurking at the corner. The streets are beginning to clear out, leaving Tina and Newt searching for a valid reason to stay in the same place.
"We could circle round the block," Newt suggests.
Tina is hesitant to let them out of their sights. CCTV is instrumental, but her own pride resents relying on someone other than herself any more than necessary. "Let's wait a minute," she suggests instead, leaning against the wall of the convenience store and crossing her arms. It's starting to snow, light little flurries of snowflakes that drift lazily onto their shoulders and melt as soon as they touch the pavement.
"As you wish," Newt concedes, rocking back and forth on his heels and trying to look casual.
Another couple of minutes pass. "Newt," Tina hisses when she sees the suspects notice them. "We have to look preoccupied or they're gonna get suspicious."
"I have an idea," Newt breathes, and suddenly he's very close to Tina, one arm above her head, trapping her with the lanky frame of his body. His eyes are startlingly vivid despite the dim street lighting, and when he blinks she can count every snowflake caught on his pale eyelashes.
Tina doesn't know what possesses her to reach up, cup the side of Newt's cheek, and stroke a thumb tentatively down his jawline. When she rests her other hand on his chest, slipping underneath his jacket, she sees his Adam's apple bob as he swallows hard. And when his gaze drops deliberately to her lips, their fate is as good as sealed.
It's frigid outside, but everywhere he touches her burns and sparks. Newt presses his free palm to the small of her back and crowds her against the side of the building as their kiss tips over from a tentative "this is for pretenses only" charade to something hungrier and frighteningly real. And Tina is lost to it.
Newt's lips are chapped in the cold, but somehow still soft and surprisingly gentle despite their shared, heretofore unrecognized (or at least unacknowledged) urgency to be with each other. He tastes of something addicting; Tina finds herself wanting more as she deepens the kiss, hands roaming underneath Newt's jacket. She can feel his heart jumping against his chest and feels immense self satisfaction at having produced such a response. Not that she's any calmer.
Newt tilts her chin just slightly to the side, fingertips leaving a trail of warmth even through the blue latex of their gloves, and cants his own head to claim her lips again. He's even more assertive doing this than Tina would have originally given him credit for — not that she's lodging any complaints. Boldly, she buries her fingers in his hair, then tugs him closer by the zip of his parka, and now they're chest to chest and his other arm finally moves to wrap around her waist so he's relying on Tina to hold him up as he kisses her senseless.
How ridiculous it is, Tina thinks now, to be literally making out with her partner of four months against a building in the middle of an important drug bust. She has to admit he's cute — she's always thought that — and Queenie, a 999 dispatcher who's been her best friend for over a decade, is right that there's been palpable tension for awhile, but good lord, this was unexpected.
The radio at Tina's waist crackles loudly; she and Newt jump apart, as though the CCTV hasn't caught it all. Horror seeps into both of their expressions as they realize exactly what they've just done.
"CCTV FH? Yeah, they've scarpered," the CCTV operator says. Tina wants to bury her head in the ground like an ostrich. Better yet, get run over by the next car that comes by. Newt can write them a speeding ticket, and she can die a peaceful death and never have to face anyone who saw what just happened. Particularly her boss, and, depending on how much mercy this CCTV operator has, the internet.
"Oh god," Tina groans. "We're getting fired." She shoves Newt off of her and straightens her clothes, jerking her head towards the crosswalk. To the walkie talkie she asks, "Where are they now?"
"Suspects have split up, one IC1 male in a red jumper, slim build, medium height is heading for a residential area."
Tina and Newt nod resolutely at each other and set off.
"...and it's a left, left, left down the lane to your right... he's gone into an estate now, he's going to start garden-hopping if you can cover the east side."
The operator continues giving directions and they follow quickly, Tina keeping a careful distance from her partner and kicking herself for having turned a blind eye to a goddamn drug deal. It was a very nice blind eye, of course, but the devoted policewoman in Tina is positively appalled.
"Well," Newt says as they hurry to the east side of the estate, "I think they bought it."
Exactly, Tina agrees. It was really just to do with the suspects. Because in the end, it's all part of the job.
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3. March
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It's been a successful shift: six arrests, four of them quite major. Newt and Tina have taken hundreds of thousands of pounds of class A drugs off the streets and removed three guns from unlawful holders. Productive as they've been and pleased as they are, they're also both exhausted as they get into the cruiser.
"Good day," Tina comments, starting up the engine.
"Mm," Newt agrees. "Excellent form, by the way."
"I know a thing or two," she replies teasingly. Her partner was arguably prouder than she was upon her recent promotion to Inspector.
"That you do," Newt affirms with a small crooked smile.
Tina remembers suddenly how he'd jumped in front of her when one of the perpetrators came at them with a machete earlier, before backup had arrived and they'd realized the gravity of their situation. Another officer had taken the attacker down just in the nick of time, but Newt's altruistic response goes far beyond instincts or being a good partner.
They haven't discussed what happened two months ago (thankfully everyone seems to have kept quiet about it as well) and their relationship remains restricted to the workplace only. No drinks, no hanging out, and certainly no dates. Commissioner Seraphina Picquery makes sure of that.
Still, Tina thinks about that kiss much more than she cares to admit. She dropped the guy she had gone on a couple dates with before meeting Newt; since then, she's been pointedly, aggressively single. If he wanted to change that, of course...
"You do know that you have to put the car in drive if we are to go anywhere anytime soon," Newt says conversationally. Tina realizes that she's been sitting there in the driver's seat doing nothing like an idiot.
Before she can think twice, she turns towards Newt, cradles his face in her hands, and hauls him none too gracefully over the console to meet her halfway. His lips are just as fascinating as she remembered; he smells ridiculously good, and it takes everything she has not to get her hands on his bulletproof vest or the buttons of his shirt.
Tina breaks the kiss first because god dammit, they're supposed to be professional. And they're both tired and probably emotional and still high on the excitement of the day, and she really isn't sure that Newt genuinely likes her. And this is just plain a horrible idea; she and Queenie have had this conversation about twenty times since The Kiss.
"That was rude," Newt says a bit breathlessly, and his fingers ghost over Tina's pale wrists as he slowly relinquishes his grip.
Oh. Oh god. Oh god no. "Sorry," Tina apologizes, mortified. Of course that kiss, the first one, had been a one-time deal. To be fair, Newt had initiated it, which is partly why Tina felt he might be open to a repeat. Evidently not. Still, it certainly was rude, overstepping her bounds like that.
"No," Newt clarifies. "Stopping. Why on earth would you stop?"
Relieved, Tina starts, "Maybe because —" Newt is having none of it, however, which suits both of them just fine, and eventually she puts the car into drive.
It's a bit of a stretch, Tina thinks as she pulls out of her parking spot, but what just happened is really just a sign of appreciating your partner's work ethic, right? Right. Just appreciation, nothing more. Yes, Tina decides, it's all part of the job.
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4. May
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It happens in a flash during a traffic stop gone wrong. The chase starts, and Tina calls for backup when the driver starts speeding the wrong direction down the carriageway. All of the police dispatched manage to box the offending car in — it's sparking and smoking and lost a wheel anyway — but when Newt leaps out of the cruiser and goes to detain the suspect, the deranged man slams his foot down on the accelerator in one last desperate, defiant bid, hitting Newt and sending him flying.
Tina gasps, seeing red, and positively hurtles out of the patrol car to seize the guy, bringing him straight to the ground in two seconds flat. The other officers search the totaled vehicle as she reads the culprit his rights, infuriated.
She hands the suspect over to the others as quickly as possible and rushes over to her partner's side. EMTs are less than a minute away; Newt is terrifyingly still. Tina leans down and pushes his bangs out of his face.
"Newt," she implores. He can't be seriously injured, he can't be, because he's her partner — undeniably has become her best friend as well, regardless of the work-only stipulation of their relationship — and she has too many things to tell him before he can leave.
"Hello," Newt says weakly, opening his eyes and wincing. His left arm is at an awkward angle, sprained and possibly broken, and she wouldn't be surprised if he's gotten a concussion, but overall he's blessedly intact.
Tina is overwhelmed by the wave of relief that washes over her. She drops to her knees beside his head and, ignoring the fact that they are surrounded by their coworkers and EMTs and morbidly curious civilians, kisses Newt full on the mouth.
His lip is bloody, so she does her utmost to be careful, but he manages to raise his uninjured arm and run a hand through her hair, tucking a strand behind her ear and looking at her with something in his gaze that takes her breath away.
Commissioner Seraphina Picquery, who has just arrived on the scene, clears her throat loudly then, effectively stopping Tina before she gets herself fired. Hopefully.
Oh, god, this is bad. This is really bad.
But he's so cute.
"Glad you're alright," Tina tells Newt lightly, grinning even though there's no doubt she's going to be written up for her conduct. Then she turns to the emergency team, all of whom are spectating with varied looks of slack-jawed shock, disapproval, and amusement. "You can take it from here."
She walks away, still barely suppressing a smile. It's just relief, isn't it. Anyway, in some countries it's not weird to kiss someone on the mouth in greeting. So this isn't that out of place, if you think about it. It's all part of the job.
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5. June
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Tina and Newt both receive promotions at the beginning of June, Tina to Chief Superintendent and Newt to Inspector, after the two of them are instrumental in the incarceration of a known serial killer and drug dealer plotting a mass shooting at the local elementary school. Queenie is starting to get antsy with Tina, begging her to just stop faffing around and get together with Newt, but rules and consciences prevail.
"It's so obvious that you're dying to be together," Queenie pleads.
"Well, we can't," Tina repeats stoutly. "It's not ethical."
Queenie groans and throws a pillow over her face.
Newt and Tina have been partners for nine months now, which when you spend half your time with someone in dangerous situations is a considerable length. It certainly shows: Commissioner Picquery herself has reluctantly commended them for working so seamlessly together (albeit with traces of a suspicious and possibly knowing smile). It doesn't exactly help expand Tina's already extremely limited list of Reason Why I Should Not Date My Work Partner.
Some problems have arisen, though, namely that the combination of adrenaline pumping and the exhilaration of taking a criminal off the streets often makes it incredibly difficult for Tina not to do anything stupid. She's taken to ignoring a sweaty, flushed, panting Newt determinedly tackling and handcuffing a suspect and rattling off their rights in an authoritative voice. This avoidance eventually gets to the point where a concerned coworker asks if she's having second thoughts about her job. No, but I'm having a lot of general and thematically related thoughts about my partner.
Tina also starts to notice that Newt looks at her a lot. He looks at her when he does something well, when he says something clever, when someone else says something funny. One time he seems so focused on her that he nearly misses a fight breaking out behind them.
"Sorry, you've got something on your —" he starts.
Tina stares at him as though he's gone mad, and then a civilian shouts at them because someone's getting pummeled (she swears that save for these rare incidences, which are literally always related to Newt, she's 110% constantly vigilant and skilled at her job). It turns out later to be a bit of mustard on the corner of her mouth, and she finds it oddly sweet, if questionable, that Newt had attempted to mention it.
There's an exceptionally difficult suspect to contend with on a horrible 90-degree day during the third week of June. The guy is putting up a proper fight, even with Newt and Tina — neither of whom are particularly weak or small — attempting to restrain him.
"Settle down now, you're not doing yourself any favors," Newt says, struggling to pin the man's hands behind his back.
"Need backup?" Tina asks, reaching for her radio.
"Might do," Newt replies through gritted teeth, and Tina makes the call. Meanwhile, the suspect attempts to head butt Newt, then spits.
Tina refrains from shouting some choice words at the suspect, instead clenching her jaw and saying, "Okay, that's it," and using the exact maximum amount of permissible force to get the man onto the ground and apprehended. "You do not spit in Inspector Scamander's face," she informs the guy as she yanks him to his feet and marches him to the cruiser. Not on my watch. By the time the other cops show up, Newt is wiping his face and looking at his disheveled but victorious partner with the utmost pride.
June 30th and they're off duty. Newt has donned chino shorts, a button-down shirt, and aviators; Tina's in running shorts and a tank top touting their police department's logo. Upon being released a couple hours early, the partners decide to reward themselves for an incredibly lucrative month. Newt insists that there's a place 45 minutes away with tremendous ice cream, so Tina cancels her dinner plans all too willingly and hops in his Camry.
As it would just so happen, Tina also turns out to be a relentless passenger seat driver. This discovery results in Newt threatening to write her a ticket for disorderly conduct and aggression towards a police officer; the proposed alternative is duct tape or a blindfold. Tina shuts up, grinning.
After enjoying some admittedly delicious ice cream (Tina panics when Newt takes out his wallet, and hurriedly says that she'll pay in her most firm do not mess with me I am a policewoman who can make your life very difficult voice), the partners go for a walk down the boardwalk. It's odd: similar to their plainclothes excursions, yet radically different because try as she might, Tina cannot convince herself that a summer stroll down a beach boardwalk is just part of the job. Of course, this particular outing ends in a massive, supremely immature water fight before the entire beach, during which Tina accidentally splashes a teenage girl in the face; she apologizes profusely, but the girl replies cheerfully, "It's fine, you and your boyfriend are adorable," and paddles off before either party can correct her.
Tina is incredibly not okay when Newt's shirt goes transparent and it becomes apparent that he hasn't bothered with an undershirt. For her part, she refrains from whipping off her tank top and diving in, sports bra and running shorts passing for a bathing suit, as she might with her girlfriends. Despite her best efforts she's fairly certain that as the water fight escalates both she and Newt are trying valiantly to keep their eyes off of each other without being too obvious about it.
It's going on five o'clock when, sandy and exhausted, they finally decide to head back to the car and grab dinner en route. Conversation across the restaurant table is easy, almost disconcertingly so. Tina shouldn't be surprised; it's just that this setting is so different from sitting comfortably in a cruiser or impersonal break room that she really wasn't sure how it would go. (It goes swimmingly.)
Unexpectedly, the couple's waiter turns out to be an old high school and college friend of Tina's. Jason, a year her senior, served as her big brother figure through her tumultuous teen and early adult years: he intimidated boys who wronged her, he showed up at her house when she had no one else in the middle of the night, and Tina always wondered what had happened to him. The past several years have aged Jason considerably; recognition doesn't dawn until he says, "Hi Teenie," and watches in amusement as she exclaims, "Jason!" and jumps up to give him a big hug. Then he turns to Newt.
"Newt," Newt introduces himself rather curtly. "And you are?"
"Jason," Jason responds, shaking a leery Newt's hand. He winks at his friend. "Good to see you, Teen."
Later, when Newt goes to use the restroom, Jason checks to make sure the vicinity is clear and immediately comes over to interrogate Tina. "Who's the guy?" he demands, lapsing into Protective Older Brother mode.
Tina gives the abbreviated version of their history. "I can't tell —" she begins to lament, but then her date-not-date returns and Jason goes to help another table.
"How do you know him?" Newt asks a bit distastefully.
Tina explains their sibling-like relationship; Newt appears to relax. She notices that he's still jiggling his leg up and down beneath the table and flexing his hands nervously every so often despite their leisurely conversation.
When they return to the car, Tina realizes that she very much doesn't want to walk away from her partner. If this is going to be the only time they hang out like this, and she suspects that it may be, then she intends to get all that she can out of it. "Hey," she says, placing a hand on Newt's wrist when he goes to open her door. "Wanna go see a movie or something?"
His face lights up. "That," he proclaims as she slips into the passenger seat, "is a splendid idea."
They watch a movie which they are only mildly interested in, although it's still entertaining and when Newt laughs he looks at Tina again like it's a reflex. Their shoulders are undeniably deliberately touching the entire time, which is minorly agonizing for Tina. She swears that his hand is creeping towards hers, but then the credits roll and he jumps up, looking embarrassed.
Tina finds herself inexplicably overwhelmed with emotion when they can procrastinate no longer and Newt pulls up in front of her house. He walks her up the porch stairs, neither one able to muster up the words, and then stops in front of the doors, turning to face her. Shaking his bangs out of his face, he starts, "Well, it's been..."
"Hasn't it!" Tina interrupts tearfully. Tearfully. She really must pull it together. Newt's eyes flicker anxiously between her, the doorway, and his car. Then Tina plucks up the courage to continue, "Listen, Newt, I wanted to thank you."
His brow furrows in confusion. "What on earth for?"
Tina takes a step closer to him. "You're... the best partner I could ever have." She cringes: not exactly what she was going for.
"Ditto," Newt says quietly, and also takes a step closer. They're even in height, making eye contact incredibly difficult to avoid. Then he starts to back away and stammers, "Er, good — goodnight."
The silence between them is heavy and expectant and pregnant and rife with something unidentifiable. Newt gazes at Tina, awkwardly affectionate. He gently reaches forward and touches her hair. Lingering for a moment, they stare into each other's eyes.
"So sorry, if you don't want —" he starts, but Tina has never heard anything stupider and draws him in.
It occurs to her very quickly that this is no one-off, hook-up kind of deal. The passion of their previous kisses had left her somewhat concerned that that's all this will ever amount to — a tryst with her partner ending in hurt feelings and empty beds — and though her job comes before everything in her life, including a relationship, Tina is more than willing to make an exception. But Newt runs his hands down her arms reverently and waits (not insecurely, nor shyly, but respectfully) for her to move first. She does, and only pulls away because it would seem that they have things to discuss and she has every intention of inviting him in. His arms are still around her waist, her hands pressed against his chest, and he leans forward until their foreheads gently bump together.
"That," Newt says, quirking the corner of his mouth, "was not part of the job."
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