A/N: Despite having finally succeeded, Judy knows she has a lot to answer for.

Welcome to the final arc of the story!

With this chapter, I can officially say that I have written 7 chapters in 2024 (Chapters 25 – 31), with 58k words written. This is the most I've written for this story in a single year by far, surpassing even 2016 (47k words, for reference). A big part of me being able to do this is thanks to all of you here for your kind support. Your kudos, comments, encouragement—even just being here—all bring me so much joy, and they help to motivate me in so many ways.

Thank you all so much, from the bottom of my heart. I would like to dedicate this chapter to all of you. Merry belated Christmas, and Happy New Year!

Thanks to BeecroftA, MasterDarkElf, Bloodfox22, Blkdragon7, warnerplanet, Tinbuzzard11, side-fish, SKdaGamer, Dargur, TheAlienHeart, Guest, serpentacodex, Muxeum, J Shute, Mooni.95, InTheLionsDenOnDA, and dannymc0911 for reviewing!

Also, a special thanks to BeecroftA for editing this chapter.

Chapter 31: Each of Their Victories

It was perfect.

The scene that was playing out right in front of her was everything Judy could have ever hoped for. The bright morning sunlight streaming in through the windows. Mother and son, embracing each other and vowing to start over again. With every word that the foxes said, she felt her own heart melting into a little puddle inside her. And the moment Evie hugged Nick and said that everything would be okay, Judy couldn't hold back a couple of teardrops from escaping her eyes. She exhaled softly, quickly wiping away the tears before either of them could notice.

Keep it together, Judy.

As the two foxes finally broke their hug, Nick took a step back, his breathing slowly returning to normal. He wiped his eyes one last time, before looking at her with a gentle smile.

"We…have a lot to work out, don't we?"

Evie returned the smile warmly.

"We do. But we'll do it together."

They both gazed into each other's eyes for a while longer, before Nick finally turned towards the grey bunny beside him. He opened his mouth to say something, but then paused halfway.

"…Are you crying?"

Rats.

"In case you're not aware…" Nick gestured to his mother, then at himself. "The big sappy reunion was for me, not for you. You're never beating the emotional bunny allegations at this rate."

"Oh, stuff it, Nick. How could I not be emotional after seeing and hearing everything that I just did? I'm so glad I got to see this side of you again." She paused to rub her eyes again, before smiling at him. "So, do you still regret kneeling on the ground earlier?"

"Heh, you've got guts, asking me that after everything that just happened. But if you must know, Carrots…no, I don't have any regrets."

"'Carrots'?" Evie parroted, raising an eyebrow.

"Oh, that's just what Nick called me ever since we first met. He likes to give people nicknames—he calls Robbie 'Flatfoot', too." Judy chuckled.

Evie turned to him, looking mildly disappointed. "Really, Nicholas?"

"Hey, it's a term of endearment." Nick shrugged. "Besides, they're already used to it, so I don't see any problem."

The vixen suddenly had a playful glint in her eye; she turned towards Judy, a grin growing on her face.

"If that's the case, you can call him 'Bottlebrush'. He hates being called that," Evie replied smugly.

Judy gasped, her own mouth immediately curling up into a grin. She spun towards Nick, just in time to see the colour begin to drain from the inside of his ears. Ever so slowly, he raised a single finger up.

"…I have one regret."

Judy and Evie burst into laughter simultaneously.

"Why does he hate being called 'Bottlebrush'?" Judy asked Evie. "Is it because his tail looks like one?"

"Actually no, he got the nickname for a different reason." Evie grinned. "When he was around six, he was trying to help me clean the house. Instead of using a broom like I asked, he had the brilliant idea of using his own tail. You should have seen him running around the house, shaking his little tushy back and forth; it was one of the most adorable things I've ever seen." Evie's voice steadily rose in pitch as she told the story.

Both Nick and Judy's eyes widened simultaneously—though for distinctly different reasons.

"He was doing a great job of it too!" Evie continued. "He even started using his tail to clean the inside of some old glass bottles. But then he came across a really small bottle that his tail wouldn't fit in. So he did what any smart six-year-old would have done in that situation."

"He didn't." Judy gasped, trying her hardest not to burst into hysterics.

"He did. He forced his tail all the way in. I was finishing up in the kitchen when I suddenly heard him call out for me. When I turned, he walked up to me with his little bottled tail in his paws. And then he burst into tears." Evie laughed. "We did get his tail out with some oil in the end, but he's hated that nickname ever since."

Nick groaned, slapping a paw over his eyes.

"Well, thanks for dredging up some childhood trauma, Mom. How many other embarrassing stories of me have you already told her?" he groaned.

"None, actually. I wanted to save it for when you were around," Evie replied warmly, the look on her face completely genuine. Nick opened his mouth to say something, but he decided against it in the end. He sighed instead, turning back to Judy.

"…This is payback for what happened with your folks, isn't it?" he deadpanned.

"Huh. You know, I actually forgot about that until you mentioned it. But don't worry, Nick, I won't wear the name out. I'll make sure to save it for special occasions." Judy grinned.

"For the record, naked baby bunny running through the fields is still the more embarrassing story."

"Sure it is, Bottlebrush." Judy winked. "C'mon, let's get out of here."

Nick's shoulders slumped, and he muttered something unintelligible under his breath as he trudged after her. In the corner of her eye, Judy saw Evie slip her arm around her son, leaning close to him as they walked together. His expression quickly brightened, and Judy couldn't help but smile to herself at the sight.

It was a short walk out of the canteen and towards the entrance to the building. The moment she pushed the door open, Judy saw a single brown bunny standing right outside, pacing around nervously. Robbie's ears twitched at the sound of the door opening, and he immediately spun towards her. The moment he saw the two foxes emerge from behind her—with Evie's arm wrapped around Nick's—his eyes lit up, and he began running over. He opened his mouth to say something, but Nick beat him to the punch.

"So, Mom, would this traitorous little rabbit be the reason why you knew that I was planning to visit you today?" Nick asked, glaring daggers at Robbie.

The brown bunny skidded to a stop in front of Nick, the light in his eyes suddenly replaced with panic. Nick leaned down towards the small bunny, his brow growing increasingly furrowed.

"So that's how it is, huh? You lied to me again. I did so much for you, told you all my deepest secrets about my mom, specifically told you not to tell Carrots about this, and you still went behind my back to do this to me?"

The colour seemed to drain from Robbie's face; he looked like he wanted nothing more than to sink into the ground where he stood.

"I-I…umm…" he stammered. "Look, Nick, you have every right to be upset, and—"

Before Robbie could continue, Nick placed a paw on the brown bunny's head, cutting him off. The fox's expression softened.

"You finally grew a spine, Flatfoot. I'm proud of you."

Robbie looked like his brain had just short-circuited from the fox paw on his head. After his system finally finished rebooting, he blinked.

"Uhh, you're…not mad at me?" he squeaked.

"Oh, of course I am. But don't you worry your fuzzy little tail about it. One day, I'll get my full-fledged payback on you, and you can be sure that I'll enjoy every second of it. But for now, you're good." Nick petted his head, before turning back to Judy and leaving the bewildered brown bunny to think about the implications of what he'd just said.

"As for you, Carrots…" He frowned slightly. Judy nodded, raising a paw before he could finish.

"I know, Nick. I promise I'll tell you everything."

Nick felt the neckerchief around his neck again, before letting out a big huff.

"This would normally be the part where I bring you over to my old home, but I'm guessing you've already seen it for yourself, huh? Way to ruin the surprise."

"I didn't really see much, to be honest. I was mostly in the living room," Judy replied. "If you want, you could still bring me there now. I could pretend to be surprised when we get to your house. I can even act all shocked that you decided to see your mom yourself."

"Spare me the theatrics." Nick rolled his eyes. "But since we've already skipped a few steps and we're all here right now…how about we just go for some lunch?" He paused, looking over at his mom. "All of us."

Evie's eyes brightened instantly.

"I would love that!" The vixen clasped her paws together.

"Alright, let's get going then." Nick replied with a smile, sticking his paw out to his left and grabbing a brown-furred bunny—who had been trying to slowly inch away—by his shirt collar.

"Eep!"

"And where do you think you're going, my little Flatfoot?" He asked with a playful lilt.

"Ah, Hobbs did ask whether I wanted to go for a drink, so I—"

"—Already said no, because you wanted to see whether I had made up with my mom," Nick continued saying in a sing-song voice. "But now you're trying to sneak away to avoid facing the consequences of your actions. I taught you a lot of things over the last six months, but there's one thing I never taught you."

"W-What's that?" Robbie stammered.

"How to make a getaway after hustling someone. Now come along, buddy. We've got a lot to talk about over lunch. Both you and your sister." He shot a parting glance at Judy, before dragging Robbie behind him as if he were a piece of luggage.

Robbie glanced back at her with a panicked look, but all she could do was to grin back sheepishly.

Oh boy.

Although she had a feeling that Nick was just making a show of it to her younger brother, Judy couldn't help but feel a tinge of trepidation at that final statement. Despite how well things had turned out between the two foxes, she knew that she'd broken her promise to Nick. She'd gone behind his back, lied to him, and almost ruined everything between him and his mom.

She felt a lump begin to rise in her throat, but she forced herself to swallow it back down. There was no point thinking about it now; everything she did had been her choice, and she had to live with the consequences of her actions. No matter what Nick thought of her, she had to tell him the truth.

The whole truth.

When Nick had mentioned lunch, Judy had expected one of the many places he loved to frequent, like the noodle shop downtown that they often visited for supper, or the café near City Hall with great waffles and ice cream.

She never expected this.

The cab had pulled up to the front porch of a building that was at least twenty storeys high. But the height wasn't what stood out; it was the fact that the entire white and pink building was covered in an array of lush greenery that made it look like a large orchid. Just looking at it made Judy's wallet feel lighter.

This can't possibly be the right place, she thought, staring out the window at the building.

"We're here," Nick said, proving her wrong immediately.

Before Judy could even say anything in response, her car door swung open from outside. She looked up to see a tiger bellhop holding the door open with a wide smile.

"Welcome to the Sky Orchid Hotel, ma'am. May I take your bags?"

"Oh, no need for that, we're just here for lunch," Nick replied on her behalf, opening his own car door and getting out himself.

"Ah, of course. I hope you have a wonderful lunch." The bellhop nodded politely as Nick motioned for her to get out of the vehicle. It took a moment for Judy to respond, but when it clicked, she quickly scrambled out of the cab, giving the bellhop a sheepish wave as she did so. Robbie and Evie got out of the cab soon after, both with similarly stunned expressions.

"It's not as grand as The Palm Hotel, but I don't think we can sell enough kidneys between us to afford a lunch there." Nick glanced over his shoulder, seeming quite amused by their befuddled faces. He led them past the front desk and towards a restaurant at the far end of the lobby, where a smartly dressed antelope stood holding a clipboard.

"Good afternoon, sir. Welcome to The Red Dot! Do you have a reservation?" he asked politely.

"No, we don't. This was kind of a spur of the moment thing. It's my graduation day, you know," Nick replied with a chuckle, hooking his thumbs in the lapels of his dress blues.

"Oh, my heartiest congratulations, sir!" The antelope smiled, giving Nick's uniform a quick once over before resuming eye contact. "And not to worry, I can arrange something for you. Would you like a table outside, or would you prefer a private room?"

"Umm…" Evie raised a finger. "How much does—"

"A private room will be fine," Nick answered, not letting his mom finish.

"Very good, sir. This way, please." He bowed slightly before motioning for them to follow him. Nick walked in after the antelope with his paws behind his back. Judy followed behind him hesitantly, not sure of what to expect inside.

The moment she stepped into the restaurant, her jaw dropped. Robbie and Evie were just a few steps behind her, and their jaws dropped shortly after. Right before them was the largest buffet spread that Judy had ever seen. The spread stretched far enough that she couldn't even tell where it started and where it ended. The entire restaurant was big enough that there were separate buffet lines to accommodate mammals of all sizes. It would have been a mini workout in itself just to do a single lap around the entire buffet.

As her eyes drank in the view, a potpourri of delicious smells filled her nose, making her mouth water almost instantly. Besides the main spread in the centre of the room, there were several individual stations with chefs serving up freshly made-to-order dishes. She could see a tempura fry station, a pasta station, and a pizza station; there were more in the distance, though they were too far away for Judy to make out.

Seeing the grand expanse of the buffet was enough to make Evie considerably alarmed. She immediately ran up to Nick, grabbing his shoulder and whispering into his ear.

"Sweetie, how expensive is this—"

"Ah ah ah. I'm not going to hear that from you, Mom. Not today," Nick replied without stopping. "This meal is on me. And don't worry, I can afford it. It's just a couple of day's wages."

"But you don't have to spend this much—"

"I know. But I want to." Nick stopped and turned towards her now. "It's a special day for us, and I want this to be as memorable as possible. Just let me do this for you. Please."

"I…" Evie hesitated. Her eyes suddenly became distant, as if some old memories had surfaced in her mind. After a bit, she acquiesced, letting go of his shoulder. "Alright, sweetie."

Nick nodded affirmatively and continued walking along. A short while later, the antelope led them into a private room. Everything inside—the tables, chairs, and cutlery—was all fox-sized. The antelope mumbled something inaudible into his earpiece, and shortly after, a couple of raccoons came in, carrying a couple of chairs with higher seats. In a flash, they'd swapped out half the chairs and cutlery for something more appropriately sized for Judy and Robbie, before bowing and disappearing from the room.

"Woah," Robbie whistled to himself. "That's impressive."

"Looks like the service is still good. Hopefully the food is as well," Nick remarked.

"You've been here before?" Judy asked. "How do you even know about this place? All this seems a bit extravagant…even for you."

"Well, you're right about that. Let's just say that me and Finnick had a really good hustle once, and long story short, we were able to get in here for free." He quickly turned to his mom. "Don't worry, I'm paying for real this time. And the money's clean."

Evie smiled softly, gently nudging him with her nose.

"Even if it wasn't, I want you to know that I'm very grateful for this, sweetie."

Nick nodded, looking quite relieved at his mom's reply.

"Don't hold back, alright? Like you always say, we have to get our money's worth out of this. Can I count on you to do that for me?"

"I'll do my best." Evie's licked her lips, a grin beginning to form on her face. Satisfied, Nick turned back to Judy and Robbie.

"The spread here is pretty bunny-friendly, in case you were wondering. Although, there is a separate corner for predator food if you're feeling adventurous enough."

"Is this another attempt to get me to eat lobster, Nick?" Judy smirked.

"Fish, actually. But hey, you're welcome to try the whole range. Anyway, I think we've talked enough. Shall we?" he opened the door to the room. All four of them exchanged expectant glances, before they stepped out of the room and into the vast ocean of food.

Judy wasn't even sure where she had gone, or how far she had walked before she finally made it back into the room with her food. Surprisingly, she was the first one back, though Nick and Robbie walked in soon after. The three of them instantly began comparing their hauls, with the question 'where did you get that?' being asked several times. All of them had gone for different dishes; Judy had brought back some lasagna and stir-fried vegetables, Nick had a variety of bread, cheese, and soups, and Robbie had gone for a plate of truffle cream pasta and some pizza.

A minute later, she heard Evie walking in, and she turned towards the door. The vixen was carrying a plate with an almost comical mountain of food piled on it. Judy stared, almost certain she was seeing things. The pile was almost as tall as her face, and there were so many different foods in it that it would have taken minutes just to list them all out.

"They have fifteen different flavours of ice cream! Fifteen!" Evie exclaimed as she set her plate down, her tail wagging back and forth rapidly.

Seeing the pure, childlike excitement on Evie's face made Judy do a double take. It was a far cry from the resigned, depressed vixen that she had met at the ZPD a month ago. In that moment, Judy realised that the Evie she'd seen then had been just a shell. The vixen standing in front of her now—with her eyes shining bright and looking like the weight of the world had come off her shoulders—was the real Evelyn Wilde.

"I'm almost surprised you didn't start with the ice cream." Nick chuckled, looking her plate over. "Also, no lobster? I thought you would have gone straight for that first."

"Oh, I wanted to, but I kept getting distracted by so many things along the way. By the time I made it there, my plate was already full," Evie giggled. "Don't worry, this is just the first round. I'll make sure to get it on the second go."

All of them settled into their seats, with the two foxes sitting directly opposite the two bunnies. As Judy began taking a bite of her lasagna, she saw Nick leaning over to grab a pepper shaker from the middle of the table, As he did so, she noticed a distinct red cloth swaying back and forth in midair just below his head.

"Aren't you going to take that off?" Judy asked, motioning to his neckerchief, which he'd surprisingly kept on the entire time from the academy to the restaurant. Nick glanced downwards, looking at it for a moment.

"Hmm…nah. I think I'll keep it on a little bit longer. Just for nostalgia's sake," he replied, glancing over at his mom in the corner of his eye. He sat back down, staring at his neckerchief a little longer before returning his gaze to Judy, his expression growing solemn.

"Carrots…there's a lot of questions I want to ask you. I feel like I already know the answers to most of them, but I'm still going to ask anyway. Just now, my mom said that she was the one who looked for you first. But tell me the truth: even though you promised not to push the issue with my mom, you still did, didn't you?"

Judy paused mid-chew, her paw tightening around her fork.

Here it comes…

Yes, Nick, you're right. Technically, I did have my ears crossed when I made that promise to you. But I'm not going to hide behind that. The truth is, I've been looking for your mom ever since the day you told me about her."

"'Ears crossed'?" Nick frowned.

"It's a bunny thing; bunny's honour doesn't count when your ears are crossed," Judy quickly explained.

"That's what I thought; I'll be sure to watch your ears very carefully next time you promise me anything." He shook his head. "Anyway, that's why you challenged me to the fight, wasn't it? You were going to use your win to make me visit my mom, talk things out with her…that sort of thing."

Judy hesitated. "Well…not at first. My original plan was to find your mom, explain everything, and then bring her to see you. I thought it would've been easy to find her, but I kept hitting dead end after dead end; I even tried searching for her details in the ZPD database, but I couldn't find anything. That's why I made that bet with you. I was desperate. But then, about a month ago, I found a lead; your old sketchbook that you left for me had references to your mom inside, and I used it to find Finnick. But you already knew that, right? That's why you were willing to leave it with me in the first place."

Nick crossed his arms.

"Yes, I did consider the possibility of you still snooping around when you weren't supposed to. And I did use the sketchbook as a little trap to see if my suspicions were right—which they were. What I didn't expect was for Finnick to betray me the way he did. How much did you pay him to get him to give you my mom's details?"

Evie's ears suddenly perked up at the mention of Finnick's name, though the vixen continued munching on her food silently.

"Actually, I didn't pay him anything," Judy said. Except my dignity, of course. "He didn't tell me anything at first, but after I explained why I was looking for your mom, he told me her full name. That was all I needed; I went straight down to the precinct, and I managed to get her phone number and address. I was thinking about paying her a visit myself to try and explain the whole situation, but…"

"She came to the precinct to look for you," Nick finished, looking over at his mom, who nodded affirmingly. "When did this happen exactly?"

"About a month ago. A month and a week, to be precise," Judy replied.

"A month?" Nick parroted, raising an eyebrow. The gears seemed to be turning in his head. "If you already met her that long ago, why did you both wait until today to do this?"

Judy exchanged glances with Evie. The vixen seemed to wince a little at the question. Judy quickly turned back to Nick and spoke up; she wasn't going to let Evie answer before she could.

"Because I messed up."

Both of Nick's eyebrows were raised now. He definitely hadn't expected that answer. After a bit, he tilted his head slightly, inviting her to continue. Judy took a deep breath.

"When your mom found me at the precinct, I thought for sure that she was ready to make up with you. I was already thinking about how to rub it in your face. But then she saw your sketchbook and the profile of her that I had printed out, and she realised that I'd been looking for her behind your back. Everything I said made her believe that you didn't want anything to do with her. Things just spiralled out of control, and I…I just made everything worse."

"Judy, that's not true," Evie immediately retorted. "You tried to explain everything, but I was the one who misunderstood; I was the one who didn't believe you."

"But if I hadn't gone behind Nick's back, that misunderstanding wouldn't even have happened. If I didn't do what I did, maybe I could have convinced you to see Nick then, and you wouldn't have had to wait so long to talk things out with him."

Judy looked back at Nick, her ears drooping behind her.

"After what happened at the precinct, I should have told you the truth, Nick. But I tried to fix everything myself instead. I even begged Robbie to help me—it's my fault that he went behind your back and told me what he knew about your mom. He was just trying to help me fix a problem that I made. If I had just trusted you to understand, you could have talked with your mom the way you wanted, on your terms. I took that chance away from you by doing what I did. I'm sorry."

Nick was silent for a while, his head lowering slightly. Judy saw his paws tighten around his arms.

"You should be, Carrots," he finally replied. "What you did was rash, reckless, and dare I say insensitive, too. You've always been stubborn and impulsive; that's just the kind of bunny you are."

Judy felt herself shrink a little. Nick sighed.

"But…that's how you've always done things, isn't it? Charging in headfirst without thinking, not giving up even though everyone else tells you to…when you have your mind set on something, you believe in it to the very end. Just like how you believed that my mom still cared. And…" his face softened. "…like how you believed in me."

The fox leaned forward in his chair, looking her straight in the eye.

"I don't know whether things would have been better if I'd showed up at my mom's doorstep like I originally planned. But because of you, she was able to attend my graduation today. And that means more to me than you know. So thank you, Carrots."

Judy could only stare. She waited for the follow-up smirk, the quip, the punchline, but it never came. It took her a moment to realise that Nick was being completely sincere.

"Nick, I…I mean, you're welcome," she stammered, almost in disbelief.

The fox glanced downwards, his paw running through his neckerchief. He suddenly seemed to be deep in thought, though Judy had no idea what he was thinking at that moment. After a while, he spoke up, though his head was still lowered.

"…There's still one thing I don't understand."

"What is it?" Judy replied, trying to keep her voice steady.

Nick thought to himself for a moment longer, before finally raising his head.

"Why?" he asked. "Why would you do this? Why would you go this far for me?"

The question hung in the air for what felt like minutes. Judy opened her mouth to answer, but she felt her voice catching in her throat. It was a simple question, but for some reason, she was having trouble finding an answer for it. Her mind began racing to find the right words to say. Nick seemed to notice her hesitation, but he remained silent, waiting for her response.

"…Because you're my friend, Nick," she finally answered. "Because you saved me. And because you saved my dream. I'm still a cop today because of you. When you told me what happened with your mom, I told myself that I had to do whatever it took to bring you both together again. I had no idea you'd been through so much pain for so long because of this. I didn't want you to suffer anymore; I…I just wanted you to be happy."

Nick didn't respond immediately. There was a subtle change in the fox's expression that was barely perceptible; his eyes grew wider, and his mouth opened ever so slightly. She could've sworn she saw his lip quiver too, but it was gone as quickly as it appeared.

"I…see," he finally replied, in a tone that Judy couldn't quite place. He quickly cleared his throat. "Well, like I said, thanks a lot for everything, Carrots. But don't ever do this to me again, please. I don't think my poor little heart could take it. If we're going to be partners, it would be good if we didn't have to keep going behind each other's back like this."

Judy let out an inward sigh of relief.

"You're right, Nick. I promise I won't do something like this to you again." She held her ears up high so Nick could see she wasn't crossing them. "I'll also try to be less impulsive."

"And I'll try to be more open and less stubborn. No guarantees, though." He chuckled, pausing for a moment before adding: "But I can still make fun of you, right?"

When Judy saw the twinkle in his eyes and the playful grin on his face, she couldn't help but smile back.

"I wouldn't have it any other way."

And right there and then, the moment was perfect.

…Until she heard a soft munch from beside her.

They both turned simultaneously. Judy belatedly realised that Evie and Robbie were still sitting beside them with big eyes, having listened to every word that they'd both said. The two fox-bunny pairs exchanged awkward glances for a couple of seconds, before Evie broke the silence, pointing out the glass window behind them.

"Oh! Look at that—they just refilled the seafood station!" the vixen exclaimed. "Just in time too—I'm about ready to go for my next round. Could you come with me, Robbie? I think I might need some help to carry the plates back."

"O-oh, of course, Mrs Wilde!" Robbie said, standing up with her.

"Wait, next round? But you…" Judy trailed off when she glanced down at the table. Other than some leftover sauce, the mountain of food that had been on Evie's plate was completely gone. The bunny blinked several times, resisting the urge to gape.

How did she eat all that so fast?!

"If you want, I could go with you, Mom—" Nick started, but was quickly cut off.

"Oh no, I'll be fine, sweetie. You're not even done with your own plate yet. You should get on it before it gets cold. Would you like me to get you a round of garlic butter shrimp?"

"I'd love that." Nick smiled. Evie smiled back, before motioning for Robbie to follow her.

"Say, Robbie, have you ever tried shrimp?" Evie asked.

"Uhh…no, not really."

"Want to try some?"

Robbie didn't seem to know how to respond to the question. "Uhh…"

"You know, garlic butter shrimp is amazing!" Evie continued, grabbing his paw and gently pulling him along as they exited the room. "I know bunnies don't normally eat seafood, but…" Her voice trailed off as the room door closed behind them.

And suddenly, Nick and Judy were alone again. They stared at each other for a moment, before chuckling simultaneously.

"Robbie's doomed, isn't he?" Judy asked.

"Pretty much. Hey, wanna try some cream of mushroom soup? I think they put truffle oil in there." Nick pushed one of his bowls in front of him towards her.

"Really?" Judy dipped her spoon into his bowl, before taking a sip. The soup was still warm, and the distinct earthy flavour hit her taste buds immediately. "Ooh, you're right, it is good! Here, try some of this zucchini. The marinara sauce is really good too."

"Don't mind if I do, Carrots," Nick said, reaching over with his fork.

As they exchanged food and gave their comments on the different dishes, Judy suddenly felt a wave of nostalgia wash over her. She hadn't realised just how much she'd missed this. It felt like she was back in her cozy little apartment again, sitting and sharing a meal with Nick while talking about anything and everything under the sun. Although they had been able to do that on the weekends when he was back from the academy, it felt different now that he'd officially graduated. She was looking forward to spending more time with him, especially since she didn't have to worry that she was going behind his back anymore. After so long, things were finally starting to go back to normal.

Almost normal.

In the back of her head, there was a little voice that kept reminding her of what Nick had said a few minutes ago. Specifically, the part where he said that they were going to be partners. That meant working together, and spending a lot more time with each other as a result.

The thought caused Judy's heart to beat a little faster. She glanced up at the fox briefly. As she watched him munch on a blueberry bagel, her mind began to replay everything that he'd said. When Nick had asked her why she'd gone so far for him, everything she'd said had been the truth. But…not the whole truth. There may have been one more reason that she didn't want to admit out loud to him. But she couldn't just say it out loud to him like that. Not here. Not now.

You can't hide this from him forever, the voice echoed in her head.

Judy exhaled softly. She knew that the voice was right. Sooner or later, she was going to have to come to terms with her true feelings for him. She had to say something to him eventually.

The question was, how?