Lucy stood in the spare room of Tim's house, she remembered when she had convinced him that changing this back into a spare room was a good thing.
" Lucy it's my home gym what is wrong with that?" He had asked when she started pushing his Nordic track out into the hallway.
"Tim you have to have room for guests, plus covid is over... well for the most part. So, you can go to the gym now." she said putting her hands on her hips.
"what guests, you and Angela are the only ones that come over?"
That seemed like a lifetime ago. Now she stood looking at the big bed. Tim said she could stay if she wanted, to make herself comfortable. She was wearing one of his large army shirts and a pair of sweatpants Angela had given her. She was not allowed to wear pajamas with Emmett, he said it meant she was denying him access. She shivered at the thought of him on top of her again. Sex with him was never good before they got married and after, well it was almost never by choice.
She set the few outfits she had left in the dresser and slipped off the shoes she was wearing. She would need to buy some more. Sighing she walked down the hall to see what Tim was doing. As she walked into the kitchen he looked up and smiled at her, he was looking over the divorce papers Wes had left with them.
"If I remember correctly, these are simple enough and as long as he doesn't fight you this should be quick."
Lucy laughed "He will fight it. He thinks he owns me." She sat down at the counter.
"If he knows what is good for him, he won't." Lucy rubbed her neck and winced, the bruises were still fresh, and they still hurt.
"Lucy, I know you talked to the doctor already and I your 'injuries' have been marked down, but is there anything else you want to tell me?" She could hear the concern in her voice, the want to help fix what was broken.
" Do you remember my wedding day Tim? When you helped me zip up the back of my dress and you stared at me in the mirror, you asked me if I was sure. If I wanted to marry Emmett." She let the tears fall as she asked. Tim nodded his head and looked at her, no makeup and still as beautiful as ever. " I wanted to tell you to take me away from all of it, I wanted to leave, I wanted so bad to tell you that I loved you and It wasn't Emmett that I wanted to marry that day."
Lucy pulled Tim into a hug and held onto him while she sobbed. The whole day crashing down around her. She feared what was to come and relived to be out from under her husband at the same time. She had not wanted to tell Tim her feelings this soon, but she had seen him sitting there so willing to listen to her that she could not hold it in. Tim just held her as she cried, and she could feel her tears mixing in with hers.
When he pulled back and put a hand on either side of her face, she flinched " I'm sorry" She said.
"Don't be" Tim said still holding onto her, "You have been through so much I am not sure how you are not passed out sleeping right now".
"I have gotten used to no sleep" she laughed. "I am kind of hungry though, do you mind if I make something?"
"How about I order dinner from that one Thai place that you love, and you can go choose a movie for us to watch." He said holding her hand. She liked the contact, the feeling of safety like he would never let her get hurt again.
"That sounds good. But eventually I would like to talk about what I told you" she said looking down at her hands.
He kissed her forehead and let his lips linger. "I would like to talk about it to. Not today though" He told her and her immediate reaction to argue with him made him smile "You have been through so much and your life has literally changed again today. We have a whole year to catch up on but know this Lucy Chen. I do love you and we will figure this out."
When the food arrived, Tim set it up on the coffee table and laughed as he noticed she had chosen the Lethal Weapon franchise to watch. He tried to convince Kojo to leave Lucy alone and go lay on his bed, but he never left her side. Maybe it was not that Emmett was allergic to Kojo, maybe Kojo just saw something in him that no one else did. They watched the first two movies, laughing at the inaccuracies in it. At about 11 pm Tim looked over to see Lucy asleep on the floor curled around Kojo. Wanting to wake her he put a blanket on her and let her sleep.
When he woke the next morning, she was in her bed. He poked his head in and saw that she was covered in sweat and looked like she had not been able to lay still. She was still sleeping though. He closed her door softly and smiled, she was safe.
"Come on bud, let's go for a run and let mom sleep" he said to the dog.
Lucy woke later to the sound of people in the house laughing. Getting up she took a quick shower and threw on a pair of shorts and a tank top. Walking out into the living room she smiled as she saw all her favorite people in the living room having a drink and waiting for her to wake. She noticed the quick double takes from everyone at the bruising and scars on her neck and shoulders. Looking at them, she did not understand how she never told them what was going on. In one day, they had made her want to be herself again. They had all come together to help her out and she should have never doubted that.
"Lucy!" John exclaimed when he saw her. "Come tell these horrible people how you just fell for me at the academy!"
" Oh yeah completely head over heels" She laughed and took his beer from him taking a drink. She felt free, smiling she nodded at Tim as she sat down next to John. " Might not have worked out but it was a great stress reliever."
Everyone in the room cringed and laughed. Nolan's whole face went red, and he sat back laughing. He pulled her back with him and kissed her head. She missed him too. While they might not have worked out all those years ago, she had gained the greatest friend and she did not ever want to give that up again.
The day went by slow. Angela and Jackson dragged her into the room to try on the clothing that they had brought over for her. Tim, John, and Nyla sat in the kitchen going over plans and how they were each going to keep an eye on her at work and home. Emmett had been released that morning and while the restraining order had been granted, that did not mean that he would listen to it. They watched as people walked through them every day, and they had seen the destruction of it.
Around 5 pm everyone started to trickle out, leaving Tim and Lucy alone in the house again. She helped make dinner and they sat on the couch watching more cop movies. The silence was not tense, and she was not on pins and needles waiting for someone to tell her she was doing something wrong.
As she got up to go to bed, she stopped and looked at Tim. "Can I ask something?"
"Anything" he said smiling at her.
"can I sleep in your room... with you?" she was looking at her feet now. She knew that even with this being a safe place she was going to have nightmares. " I will stay on my side... I just don't want to be alone."
"Of course." he said as he stood. He kissed her head and lead her down the hall to his room. She slid into his bed laying on her side watching him get undressed and slip under the covers with her. He laid on his side looking at her and smiled. "anything you need Lucy, I am here."
She smiled back and reached for him. He did not hesitate, he pulled her to him and wrapped his arms around her. They both knew there would be staying on one side of the bed.