Chapter 8:

Taking Care Of Her

Nick didn't leave Judy's side for the rest of the night. Even when she was fast asleep he stayed away for as long as he could to make sure she was okay. He was paranoid that something would go wrong and something terrible would happen to her. And even more so he just wanted to be in presence. The day had been very scary. He had almost lost the one person who meant more to him than anything in the entire world. He felt like he had to protect her at all costs.

She was allowed to go home the next morning which was good because the hospital was dreary and boring, the exact opposite of everything Judy liked and was. Nick took it upon himself to carry her out of the hospital.

"Nick, I can walk you know," she said.

"You're still hurt. There's no way you're going to be allowed to walk right away."

She couldn't help but laugh. "Yes sir." She wrapped her arms around his neck and rested her head on his shoulder. If Nick was going to take care of her all day she would let him.

He took her home and putt her on the couch. He made sure she was comfortable with pillows and blankets.

"Are you hungry?" he asked.

"I'm starving."

"I'll make you breakfast."

"You don't have to."

"Yes I do." He ran his fingers through her hair. His hand was warm and soft. She held it for a second and the two locked eyes for a moment. "I'm taking care of you today carrots, deal with it."

She giggled. "Okay."

He set to work making them waffle and eggs for breakfast. When he was done he brought her a plate and a glass of orange juice.

"This is delicious!" said said after she tried it. "You're a great chef."

"You think all I did before I met you was cheat people out of money?" he said with a smirk.

On the TV they noticed Mayor Lionhart was giving a speech to the citizens of Zootopia. Word had gotten out about his kidnapping quickly. People had been afraid and no one knew what was going on. Now that he was back it was time to address the crowd.

"It's been a tumultuous couple of days but first and foremost I want to inform you all that the criminals in question have been taken into custody thanks to the ZPD, specifically Nick Wilde and Judy Hopps. Second, yes the rumors are true that the whole thing was a plot to have the predators take over Zootopia. It's no secret of hidden unrest between predators and prey but I want to remind everyone that each and everyone one of you in Zootopia, no matter who you are, are valued by me and everyone else. We are all a part of this world together and we must live as one."

"Do you think someone will try something like this again?" Judy asked.

"I hope not," Nick replied. If so he was going to make sure Judy was safe. "Do you need anything? Are you in any pain?"

"No, I'm fine…" Then she felt a sharp pain. "Okay, maybe a little bit."

He gave her the medicine the doctors prescribed her and held her in his arms for a few minutes afterwards.

Judy was surprised by his actions. It wasn't the first time they had cuddled on the couch but he was being so affectionate today. She loved it. She loved having any excuse in the book to be close to him, even if for a few minutes, but even still it was unusual.

"Nick, why are you being so nice to me today?"

"Aren't I always nice to you Judy?" he asked confused.

"Well yeah, but you're being even nicer than usual. What's up?"

Nick was silent for a moment. How could he possibly convey to her how much he cared about her and how much she meant to him. "I feel like this whole thing is my fault. If I had done more to protect you, you wouldn't have gotten hurt."

"It's not your fault," she said. "If anything it's mine, I was careless. You were the brave one yesterday, not me."

"Don't say that, you're always brave Judy. I admire you for it, I really do." He took a deep breath. "I was really scared yesterday Judy. Terrified actually. I thought I was going to lose you. You have no idea how important you are to me." He felt the tears coming back and he fought to hold them back. "If I ever lost you...I don't know what I would do."

Judy felt her eyes stinging with tears as well. She had no idea Nick cared about her that much. She hugged him tightly. "You're important to me too Nick. You're the most important person in my life. I really meant it yesterday when I said I'm lucky to have you. I always will be."

He hugged her back. "Same here Judy."

She felt the pain meds starting to kick in as she started to get drowsy. She knew she would be asleep in seconds. As she drifted off, she did so with a big smile on her face. He was by her side and he always would be. Maybe one day, she would have the guts to tell him that she loved him. But for the moment, being close to him like this was enough.

The time was now, he had to tell her. He'd come to realize how precious time was, how in a blink of an eye she could be taken away from him. He couldn't wait forever to tell her. Even if she didn't reciprocate, he couldn't go through life without her knowing.

"I love you Judy," he finally whispered.

She didn't respond. Crap, maybe she really didn't love him back.

But when he looked down at her he saw that she was fast asleep. He sighed. He'd tell her another time. For now, just being with her was enough.

*WW*

Judy recovered quickly from her injuries and was back at work within no time. It was hard to keep her still long enough to recover because she was always a bouncing ball of energy. But Nick was by her side every chance he could making sure she was comfortable and happy.

She returned to the police station a couple of weeks later. She was beyond excited to get back to work. Sitting around recovering was boring. She needed some action in her life and she was eager to see what the next assignment Bogo gave her would be.

"I wanna kick some bad guy ass today," Judy said as she and Nick headed towards the station.

Nick laughed. "It's your first day back, you really think Bogo is going to give you a crazy assignment right off the bat?"

"He should. I can handle it. We need to go out and fight vigilante style!"

"I think you're getting a little too ahead of yourself carrots. Let's just get through today."

She pushed his arm playfully. "Aw, you're no fun!"

She walked through the door of the police station.

"SURPRISE!"

She stared in shock. There were balloons and decorations everywhere. Pizza and cake were on a big table. There was a big banner that said "Welcome Back Judy!" All of the cops, Clawhauster, Maribel, and even Mayor Lionhart were there.

"Oh my god!" she exclaimed. "What is all this?"

"It hasn't been the same without you around here," Clawhauster said.

"We just wanted to show you how much we love you Judy," Maribel said giving her a big hug.

"This is amazing! Thank you all so much!"

The next hour was spent eating cake and pizza and talking and dancing to some fun music.

"This cake is really good," Judy said to Maribel as she was eating her second piece. "Who put all this together anyway?"

"It was all Nick's idea," Maribel said.

Crap, Nick thought. His cover had been blown. Of course Maribel couldn't keep a secret.

"What?" Judy said in shock. She looked at Nick who was suddenly interested in his phone.

"Yeah last week he said we should throw a surprise party for you when you came back to work. He was really excited about it. He said he wanted to do something special for you."

Nick looked up from his phone and found Judy smiling at him. Then she reached out and gave him a big hug.

"Thank you," she said.

He hugged her back. "You're welcome Judy."