The "Side B" of Chapter 87
Nick entered his room at the Zootopia Police Academy, groaning and stretching with his hands behind his back. It had been another long day of barely passing his drills, getting yelled at by Major Friedkin, and nearly limping his lithe body back to his room to get ready to do it all over again the next day.
Just six months to go, Nick thought sardonically.
The fox sat on the edge of his bed, considering turning in early. He certainly already felt tired enough. He was, of course, very gifted with the intellectual side of the academy, but physically?
Oh well, it was getting easier. He often wondered just how Judy had done it.
Judy. It was all for her that he was doing this, wasn't it? Not that Nick didn't want to become a better mammal, but something in how she offered that carrot pen to him and asked him to change his whole life course...
It was almost laughable, when he thought about it. She knew him for something like two days before that. What a two days, though.
Nick scoffed. He was treating Judy's presence like a reward. He absently picked up his phone and stared at it, navigating to his contacts. There she was, under "Carrots" of course. His contact picture for her was one of her giving him a bright smile right before he left for the academy. It perfectly highlighted her exuberance and emotion, and had just a tiny taste of sadness in it, as the both of them knew they'd be apart for around nine months after that day.
God, he missed her.
Nicks thumb hovered over the call button, but he couldn't bring himself to press it. He didn't want to communicate the desperation and longing for her sweet voice. That voice wouldn't sound out of place on the most attractive vixen, Nick considered. Warm, very feminine, bright, often seasoned with a hint of mischief.
Yup, Nick thought. I'm hopelessly attracted to her. He sighed heavily. Judy called him randomly, as was her wont. Nick liked it better that way; he wanted to talk to her, but he wanted her calls to seem spontaneous and natural, like she was, not like a scheduled pat on the head for his endurance.
It'd been awhile. Three days, to be exact. Nick brought a hand over his ears and scratched a little. Any moment though, could be the one where-
The phone rang, and Nick flinched, reflexively hitting the accept button as soon as the first ring dissipated. It was her!
He mentally cursed himself. He should have waited at least two rings.
"Carrots...!" Nick put the phone to his ear. He slipped easily into his default persona, which had been a part of him so long it was inextricable from his true self. "Miss the sound of my voice already...?" He was one to talk. He smirked at himself, shaking his head.
"Please, Slick. It's only been three days since I last called," Judy's response had that playful bite he craved. "How goes the academy?"
"Same ol', same ol'," Nick looked at his claws, which had been whittled down by trying to climb those ice walls in the drills. Major Friedkin had called him "slick Nick" for that, which had made him internally seethe. That one was Judy's.
"So that means you're about ready to drop?" Judy saw right through his airy confidence.
"Ugh, every day," Nick admitted, covering his eyes with his paw. "I seriously don't know how you did it."
"Told you it wouldn't be easy," Judy scolded. It was almost triumphant, a deserved punishment for the hubris Nick had put up before he left.
"You did," Nick nodded absently. "Still a half a year to go. I'm pretty sure foxes weren't designed for this type of punishment."
"Oh, you can do it, you big baby..." Judy teased. Nick's mind schemed. It was time to fire back.
"Yeah, I can," Nick said, draining the warmth from his voice. "But sometimes, I'll admit, I think back to the hustles. How easy they were. How good at them I was." It wasn't exactly a lie. He'd chosen a much harder road than he thought he ever would.
"Nick...?" Judy sounded surprised. He had her on the line.
"I could be making a small fortune still, Carrots," Nick tried to sound disgusted. "Just going with the flow, doing what I'm good at."
"Nick..." Judy's voice became almost hushed.
"Instead, here I am, punishing my body, trying to be something different," Nick said stonily, though the corner of his mouth perked up. "Trying to break two decades of bad habits in just over half a year. Sometimes... I just think..." Nick let out a heavy breath.
"Nick!" Judy seemed alarmed. "Please tell me you're not thinking of quitting...?" Nick clenched his fist and grinned widely. Time to go for it. He mentally prepared himself.
"I won't give up, no I won't give in, until I reach the end, then I'll start again!" Nick began to sing. Admittedly, he was out of practice, but that just made it more fun.
"NICK!" Judy screamed. Got her! Nick tried not to chuckle as he attempted to conjure up the rest of the song.
"Oh oh oh oh oh! Try everything!" Nick hazarded.
"That's not even the right order the lyrics go in!" Judy objected. "You rusty-furred nitwit!" Ah, her insults always were so pithy and cute. Nick started to chuckle and tried to keep it from becoming a full belly laugh.
"Gotcha!" Nick said triumphantly. "Nah, I won't quit."
"Your bunk-mate should punch you for that," Judy suggested. "For my sake, at least." Ouch. Nick had been on the receiving end of some playful punches from that often-sloshed bear. He could feel them the next morning.
"Fitzbearald? He's drinking with his pals, I think," Nick tried not to sound irritated.
"Well shouldn't you be with him?" Judy chirped. "You could always know a bit more 'everyone' than you already do."
"Want to be able to get up in the morning, Carrots," Nick deflected. He just didn't really like Fitzbearald. "I shouldn't go out drinking tonight."
"Right," Judy didn't sound like she bought it. There was a bit of a pause. "So uh... what keeps you going then? I mean, if it's okay to ask."
Uh oh, Nick thought. He turned his head and hummed. What was the right move here? C'mon, Nick, think. You're a fox. You're sly. Just lie. No, no, too easy. Tell the truth, but don't tell her too much. She deserves to know at least a little of what you feel.
"One moment, Fluff, trying to come up with something that makes sense," Nick said. Of course he didn't want to admit what he felt for her right then and there. Maybe not even after he got back. This was going to be a dangerous dance.
"It doesn't have to make sense," Judy giggled. Oof, that laugh...
"Well, I... I keep going because of you," Nick's surprised himself with his candor. Judy made a confused squeak. He had to slip back into persona. "C'mon Carrots, you remember! You asked me to be your partner."
"Yeah but- but you wouldn't actually do it unless you wanted to, right...?" Judy's seemed puzzled. "You wouldn't do it just for me. C'mon."
"Well, I have always wanted to be part of a 'pack', like I told you," Nick said playfully. This was also true, yet... "But no, I think I'm doing it for you."
"Nick! C'mon, stop..." Judy sounded embarrassed, perhaps even self-conscious. "Like why...? Because you want to make me happy?"
More than I'd like to admit, Nick responded mentally.
"Maybe that's part of it," Nick put a mysterious edge in his tone. "But mostly, because I want to be surprised."
"Surprised how?" Judy's was back on the line again, but he didn't want to tease her this time.
"You remember that big ol' speech I gave you at the end of the first day we met?" Nick twisted his mouth into a half-frown.
"Oh, what?" Judy scoffed. "You mean the one that I had the time to reflect on word by word as I dragged my cement-soaked feet home? The one that you were basically right on every point?"
"Not every point," Nick shook his head. "You surprised me, Carrots. Especially when you came back. You surprised me with your will, compassion, determination, and your just- your refusal to lose."
There was a pause. Had he gone too far?
"Nick..." Judy's voice was almost mystified.
"So you gotta have some more surprises somewhere," Nick said airily, relaxing onto his top bunk. "Maybe hidden in those giant things you call ears? Anyway, I want to see them. After two decades on the streets, you think you know everyone. But apparently I can still underestimate and misjudge. That's on me. But I want you to keep proving me wrong. Keep proving that the world and the mammals in it are interesting, unique, and worth learning about. Worth... getting to know."
He hoped he wasn't being too blunt.
"Okay, Nick," Judy was barely audible. Then, she sounded determined and warm. "You better make valedictorian. I want to pin your badge on myself."
"Eh, it'll be easy," Nick waved his arm as if to dispel her doubts. "Well, maybe not easy, but I'm definitely gonna-"
"RAAAAAUGHHHHHHHH!" The door to Nick's room burst open and a bear darted in, holding his arms up.
"AAAGH!" Nick screamed and nearly fell out of his bunk.
"Nick! What's going on!?" Judy was startled.
"Haha, gotcha again, Wilde!" Fred Fitzbearald, a large brown bear, staggered into the room with a buzzed jolliness. "You're such an easy mark!"
"Hey, Fred, you been out drinking again?" Nick's sounded disapproving.
"Yes, Dad," Fred laughed. "You should have come with us! You seem tense!" That bear was so loud that Nick was pretty sure Judy was hearing him, as she kept quiet.
"Well I actually want to pass the academy, Fitzbearald," Nick muttered. "I'd bet against you lasting another week with how much you like to party and eat pizza." Judy hummed a couple of times, amused.
"Hey, I'm ready to be a police officer, Wilde," Fred claimed bombastically, shoving a thumb into his chest. "The world's gotta ask itself if it's ready for me!"
"Yeah yeah, you're drunk," Nick rubbed at one of his temples.
"And you're talkin' to your girlfriend again!" Fred noted, pointing at Nick. Judy gasped over the phone. Nick's eyes widened a little, but he got control of himself.
"Fitzbearald!" Nick replied sharply, trying to cover the speaker of the phone. "We've discussed this! She's my girl. Friend. With a space in the middle; a girl that is a friend."
"Is that what I am, Nick?" Judy seemed extra playful. Nick winced a little.
"Listen, Carrots, I should probably get off the phone and try to get some sleep before Fred's snoring keeps me up till six in the morning," Nick exhaled, trying to mask his nervousness.
"That sounds specific," Judy chuckled, almost haltingly.
"Well, it's happened before," Nick muttered. "Anyway, good night, Carrots."
"Night, Slick," Judy's voice had an unquestionably flirty waver. Nick's heart skipped a beat.
"Her name can't be Carrots, can it?" Fred raised an eyebrow. "C'mon Nick, gimme the scoop between you and her."
Nick reached to hit the call end button before things got out of hand, but thankfully Judy did it for him.
"She's just a friend, Fitzbearald," Nick insisted. Fred picked up a fur brush and started to croon into it with a booming voice.
"You swoon, you sigh, why deny it? Uh-oh!" Fred sang, more on-key than Nick's earlier attempt despite his slight buzz. He dramatically held his free fist to his chest while singing, then thrust his palm out in Nick's direction, shaking it while he turned his head away from Nick.
"Fred, you're drunk," Nick grumbled in annoyance. He turned his phone to show him the contact picture. "It's not like that. She's a bunny."
"That's... Judy Hopps!?" Fred broke into a loud laugh. "Same bunny that Friedkin's always comparing you unfavorably to? 'C'mon, Foxie Loxie! If a bunny can do it, you can do it!'"
"The absurdity of that isn't lost on me, believe me," Nick rolled his eyes, putting his phone down and trying to relax into his top bunk.
"So!" Fred dressed down gracelessly and got into the bottom bunk. "Tell me how you met! There's gotta be a story there."
"Oh, there sure is," Nick smirked, his hands behind his head as he stared at the ceiling.
He began to tell it. Every time he told it, the story got a bit fonder, a bit more earnest. Nick was completely absorbed in telling his account. He went over every detail. He tried not to imitate Judy's voice though, not wanting to do her that disservice.
"Finally, I had enough," Nick said firmly. "I walked right up to that buffalo and told him that no, she would not be giving up her badge to that-"
There was abrupt, loud snoring.
"Right, of course," Nick rolled his eyes. He grabbed his earplugs and put them in. With how sore and exhausted he was, mentally and physically, sleep would come to him even with Fred's booming snores.
Nick rolled over into his bed, his thoughts still buzzing.
"Face it like a grown-up, when you gonna own up that you got, got, got it bad?" Nick lowly half-sung into his pillow.
Fred's snoring caught and it seemed like he would wake up. Nick's eyes bulged. He was half-expecting Fred to join in the next part of the song. Fred's snoring normalized again, making Nick relax again.
Nick slowly let himself grow a smirk. He folded his arms behind his head again.
"At least out loud, I won't say I'm..." Nick lightly laughed as his voice broke off. He couldn't even finish it to himself.
Maybe one day.