Chapter 2: New Blood
With the rise of sun the next morning, Lucy gradually begins to feel like herself again. Yesterday sucked. There's no denying it, but with the light of day, she has a more clear perspective on the events of the night before. And she knows that she and Jackson had done everything they had been trained to do, and that sometimes the worst possible outcome is still the one you get. She knows she still has a lot to process, and is actually looking forward to the mandated session with the police therapist later that afternoon.
She finds Jackson in the kitchen, and in a matter of seconds they are hugging it out, both profusely apologizing to each other for the misery that was the day before and resolving that things can only get better from here.
She feels a small tug in her stomach when she thinks about Tim and the look on his face when she'd walked away from him in the garage, and resolves to track him down before roll call, wanting to set things right between them.
Unfortunately, Tim walks into roll call with Grey that morning, leaving Lucy without an opportunity to talk to him. She attempts to catch his eye with a small smile as he finds his seat, but he's engaged in conversation with Nyla. Grey announces he is going to be mixing things up. Lucy and Jackson exchange glances, both feeling sure that this is somehow the result of the massive disaster that was yesterday. "Nolan, you're with Smitty today. Jackson, you're with Harper. Chen, you'll be with our new transfer, Gabriel Reyes from North Hollywood."
Lucy turns to look at her new partner for the day and notices that others in the room, including TIm, have swiveled to check out the new blood. Despite her better judgement, she can't stop herself from doing a doubletake because he is gorgeous. All boxes on the scale of hunkiness checked. Tall with a muscular, but lean, build. Patrol uniform seemingly procured from Bradford's tailor with the way it pulls Lucy's gaze to his biceps. Tanned olive skin. Wavy dark hair tousled in that way that looks effortless but is definitely not, and piercing green eyes, all perfectly offset with a warm smile that reveals a dimple in his left cheek. He lifts his hand in greeting, unabashed by the 30 pairs of eyes scrutinizing him, and Lucy shamelessly notes the lack of a ring on that hand before finally managing to peel her eyes away from him, habitually glancing toward Tim before returning her gaze to the front of the room, only to realize that he's now looking right back at her. She feels her cheeks redden slightly, wondering just how obvious it was that she was practically drooling over the new guy.
As roll call wraps up, Nyla elbows her playfully with raised eyebrows on her way out the door. Nolan and Jackson wish her luck before filing out, instructing her to text if she needs anything, both still wary of newcomers after all that went down with Doug Stanton.
"Hey, Lucy Chen, right?" Gabriel approaches her, his hand extended. She shakes it, finding that his demeanor puts her immediately at ease, despite his unearthly beauty.
She returns his warm smile, "Yes. Hi Gabriel, welcome to Mid-Wilshire."
"You can call me Gabe. Thanks for being willing to show me the ropes around here; I'm sure playing tour guide wasn't on the top of your list for today."
"Not at all. I'm happy to help. I just -" She cranes her head, searching the quickly emptying room for Tim, but he's nowhere in sight. She sighs and shakes her head, "Never mind. Here - I'll show you where we get our gear."
The first half of the shift with Gabe passes easily. She learns that he's a P3 Detective candidate, who has been transferred to Mid-Wilshire in anticipation of an upcoming opening on the squad. It's strange having a new partner at first, her guard up as she notices the sudden absence of familiarity and trust that had become such an innate part of her partnership with Tim.
Lucy is pleasantly surprised, however, with how the day unfolds. His experience is evident, but he treats Lucy like an equal, deferring to her experience as it relates to how things operate within Mid-Wilshire, and never once pulling rank while they work through their calls. Given the debacle that was yesterday, it's the first shift that Lucy feels like she's fully coming into her new position as a fully established P2; no training wheels or officers required, and she is grateful to Gabe for allowing her that experience, knowing full well that there were plenty of more senior officers that would view a recently graduated P2 as just barely a rung above the dung-filled pasture Rookies occupy.
Beyond being easy on the eyes, he's extremely personable. Their shop is filled with easy chatter through the morning and Lucy finds herself unintentionally musing about how this experience contrasts so drastically with the early days of riding with Tim, when she sometimes feared she might drown in the tension-filled silences. Sure, things had gradually warmed up and levelled out between them, but it wasn't for lack of effort on Lucy's part. Tim would have gladly spent every day in companionable silence if left to his own devices.
By lunch time, Lucy is relieved to see Tim seated at his regular table by the food trucks. The fact that she hasn't been able to speak to him has been nagging at the back of her mind all morning. Skipping the taco line, she points Gabe in the right direction before making a bee line for Tim.
He glances up as she approaches, and Lucy dives right in, unwilling to let this hang in the air between them a minute longer, "Tim, about yesterday, I ...," she pauses, struggling to find the right words to explain how completely overwhelmed she'd been, without again alluding to an expectation that he had been there to rub it in her face.
It's only a brief flash, but Lucy catches it, the slightest bit of vulnerability and concern in his features, "I just wanted to make sure you were okay."
She feels her face threaten to crumple, hating that she had, even momentarily, thought the worst of him in that moment, "I know. Well, I know that now anyways. I was just -"
He shrugs her off, any emotion in his expression gone as fast as it had appeared, "Don't worry about it, Boot. Let's not make a big deal out of it."
Lucy bristles, not entirely clear on how she's making a big deal out of anything, but then again she probably should have expected the brush off. This is Tim Bradford after all - 1 part sugar to 45 parts vinegar on a good day. And even if the 1 part sugar can be so, so rewarding and worth it, it doesn't make the 45 parts vinegar any less difficult for Lucy to navigate.
She's wondered about Tim's particular ratio with her at times. Yes, in general, he's a massive hardass to pretty much everyone on the surface, but she knows he has a soft side. Firsthand directed at her less than a handful of times, but in the toughest of moments that have served as the foundation for the unconditional trust and care that they have built with each other over the last year. In the way he speaks about his past with Isabel. In the way he turns to Angela for support in his most difficult moments. In the way he charmed poor, unknowing dispatcher Nelle. In the way Rachel described the way he was with her back when they were still together. A person so completely different from the Tim Bradford she interacted with day to day, but also so completely in line with the good man Lucy has glimpsed underneath the prickly layers.
She had thought, maybe even hoped, that over the course of their 13 months riding together, she'd have the opportunity to see more and more of that side of him. Instead, it seemed that for every moment of vulnerability between them, Tim couldn't reinstate the distance between them fast enough with relentless teasing and brashness. And if she's honest with herself, it bothers her, the fact that despite everything they've been through together, he doesn't quite trust her enough to be fully open with her without some sarcastic line of defense prepared to quickly close up any temporary gaps in his armor.
Lucy can feel someone approaching behind her as Tim gets to his feet, extending a hand out in greeting, "Tim Bradford." Lucy tunes out as Gabe and Tim exchange pleasantries, trying to clear her own head of the unplanned psychoanalysis of Tim Bradford.
She tunes back in to hear Tim offering Gabe a seat, "Why don't you sit down - we usually let the P1s and P2s congregate over there…" He gestures a few tables over to where Jackson and Nolan are just sitting down.
Gabe laughs politely, glancing toward Lucy, "Oh, I wouldn't want to ditch my partner..."
Lucy glowers at Tim. Of course she knows the Rookies are typically banished from the ranks, but since when does that apply to P2's? God, he can be such a jerk sometimes.
She rolls her eyes at Tim, before shooting Gabe a reassuring smile, "Don't worry about it. Tim's right. I'll be more comfortable with my own kind over there. See you in a bit."
Tim is shocked to find he actually likes Gabe. Something about the way Lucy had looked at him this morning had really put him in a bad mood, and being the evolved, highly in touch with his emotions man that he was, he'd decided to immediately shove down the idea that he might be somehow jealous [because in what world did that make any sense?] and decided instead that it must be because the guy was a douche.
Instead, he is surprised to find that Gabe is pretty difficult not to like. His easy, positive energy basically reminds Tim of a male version of Lucy, minus the constant discussion around feelings. Sharp witted, but also laid back and genuinely easy to be around.
After they finish up, he is watching them walk away from the food trucks toward their shop together, talking and laughing, when a strange, unwelcome thought crosses his mind, causing his jaw to clench involuntarily, They look good together. Like some kind of extremely attractive cop couple.
The next day is Tim's first day with his new Boot. In some ways, it feels completely routine. He has, after all, trained more than a dozen Rookies. In other ways, something feels different this time. Like he's still trying to process something bigger that ended along with Lucy's training. Maybe it's because he's decided he is going to take his next shot at a Sergeant's position if one opens up, mid-training or not. He doesn't for a second regret turning down the opportunity at North Hollywood to finish Lucy's training. At the time, it hadn't even felt like a choice. After everything they went through with the Caleb situation, he wasn't willing to risk that her training might fall into the hands of someone less qualified, and after the Doug Stanton situation, he was that much more confident he'd made the right decision.
He doesn't plan it, so much as inspiration hits at an opportune moment. He's walking his new Rookie through the procedure for checking out their gear when he notices her staring at them from over by the roll call room, clearly curious about his new charge.
Never one to pass up on an opportunity to get under her skin, he makes a show of helping the new Boot grab all of their equipment, before tossing him the keys to the shop. "You can drive today."
He full on grins at her when he sees her jaw drop open, before heading out the door behind his Boot.
Lucy approaches Tim again at lunch, tacos in hand, "Can I sit? Or are P2's banished from this side of the patio?"
He smirks briefly at her, sipping his soda, before nodding toward the empty seat, "Have at it, Boot."
They each chew their food silently for a few moments before Lucy ventures, "So, new Rookie, huh? How's that going?"
Tim shrugs, taking another sip of his soda before arching an eyebrow at her, "Yup, gotta keep things moving forward Boot. On to the next."
Lucy knows he doesn't mean anything by it, that it's just his regular Tim Bradford bluster, but that doesn't stop his words from stinging. She looks away briefly, before swallowing, "Right. Anyway. I - uh - I noticed you let him drive the shop. What was that about? Some new Tim Test in action?"
She doesn't miss the amusement in his expression, "No. Not really. It was actually pretty impressive. He managed not to flip the shop."
Lucy knows he's teasing, intentionally trying to get under her skin, and it's working. "Uh huh," is all she says in response. "Well, I'm sure you've got something fun planned for him, right? What is it? Baby powder IED? Experiencing the glorious R in the DEAR method?"
The half smirk is curving his mouth upward again, "We'll see. Every Rookie is different, Boot. Some just don't need as much… guidance."
"And what is that supposed to mean?" she snaps, surprised at how annoyed her voice sounds, even to her own ears. Why is everything he says so emotionally triggering for me lately?
The amusement disappears from his face, quickly replaced by irritation, "Jesus, Lucy. It was a joke. I knew it would push your buttons; when did you get so oversensitive?"
She sighs, his choice of words grating on her, but also realizing that she is, in fact, reacting pretty strongly to what clearly was intended to be a joke, "You're right. Sorry. I don't know. Maybe I'm still recovering from my first week on the job with you."
She intends the words to lighten the mood between them, but as soon as they leave her mouth, she knows they've missed the mark. Their first week together had been one of the worst weeks of Tim's life and she already knows he isn't particularly proud of some of the training tactics he'd leveraged during that time.
Tim doesn't bother responding, just gathers his trash before smiling just slightly at her to let her know that they are still okay, despite the less than ideal lunch conversation, before tossing, "See you later, Boot," over his shoulder as he barks at his new Boot to get moving.