Chenford-The Bar

8

Tim's breath faltered. He couldn't tell what was going on. The face in front of his didn't seem to care what was happening. She was just looking. Looking at his features and breathing softly. He couldn't help but look at hers.

Tim quickly snapped back into reality as they were nearing each other too quickly.

"Lucy?"

Lucy backed up. "Sorry." She hadn't meant to make it weird, but it was something about the way Tim's presence made her feel that made her unable to look away. She forced herself to anyway.

She turned around and rubbed the back of her neck.

"It's fine." Tim grabbed his keys. "Let me drive you." He looked at Lucy, her back towards him. She didn't want to give in, but she didn't want to fight Tim for doing something nice. She silently nodded.

She had decided it'd be best to get her car later that day with Tamara's help because she hadn't felt like driving a car with a headache.

Lucy was dreading going home. Not because it meant that she had basically ruined her day off by now having to eventually get her car and also nurse herself off a hangover but because she knew Tamara would be waiting with questions. Especially about the clothes Lucy was wearing that happened to belong to Tim.

Through the haziness of wanting to get home as fast as possible, she had forgotten to change.

Tim parked the truck and got out. Lucy did the same. "I can walk myself up." Tim nodded. "I know." Lucy sighed and continued walking, not wanting to argue about something so small.

Once they made it upstairs, Lucy turned her head to Tim. "I'll see you at work." Lucy started unlocking the door, Tim put a hand on her arm, stopping her from opening the door. "Lucy." He said it in a familiar low, soft voice. She looked at him. Once again, they were mere inches from one another. "We don't have to be awkward around each other. It was one kiss. For work. It's not a huge deal."

He said the words he knew he didn't believe, but he had no choice. She was the one person he couldn't date. It was an unspoken rule he had made for himself. "Don't date other cops." It was something he started doing after Isabel.

Lucy nodded. "I know, Tim. It was for work. Didn't mean anything." She repeated his words back to herself because she knew if she said them outloud, she would actually process them, but she knew that even then, it wouldn't explain the achy feeling in her chest after hearing them.

She removed his hand from her arm and fully unlocked the door. Tim stood there, watching as she walked in and shut the door. He clenched his jaw and walked back downstairs.

Lucy set her things on the counter and sighed. She went to sit down on the couch when a voice behind her spoke. "Sooooo. I was right." Lucy jumped at Tamara's voice. "Jesus Christ, Tamara! Were you lurking?" Tamara brushed off the change of subject. "Doesn't matter. You," She pointed at Lucy. "Stayed with Mr. Zaddy last night. Good for you." Tamara had done a suggestive dance move while speaking, and Lucy groaned.

"It wasn't what you think. I got wasted, and he brought me to his house to make sure I was ok. It was closer." She rubbed her temple. "Right. So why are you wearing his clothes?" Tamara smirked. Lucy looked down. "I was wearing jeans. It was uncomfortable. He let me borrow some." Lucy got up.

"Right. Right. Makes sense. So you slept on the couch then? He was in his room?" Tamara went over to the fridge. Lucy looked at her and wished she was anywhere else but stuck in this conversation. "No. I uh. Slept in his bed, actually." Lucy sat down on a stool at the kitchen island after walking over. "Mhm, and he slept on the couch then?" Tamara grabbed out a drink. Lucy looked down at her hands. She knew Tamara knew that Tim had slept near her because he had answered the phone. "Well..." Tamara turned around quickly. "Oh?"

Lucy sighed and groaned. "I had a nightmare! He was comforting me, and then I uh." Lucy was quiet for a few moments. Tamara stood across from her. "You?" Lucy put her arms on the island and put her head in between them.

"I asked him to stay with me." She said, muffled from the position she had her mouth. "What was that?" Tamara smiled and put her elbows down, putting her head in her hands. Lucy lifted her head. "I asked him to stay, and he fell asleep next to me." She looked at Tamara and could tell she was enjoying this. She groaned again.

"Oh. Well, how did that go? I assume you both stuck to opposite sides of the bed?" Tamara put her drink on the counter, knowing full well the story was going to get better. Lucy muttered. "Oh my god." Tamara grinned, biting her bottom lip. "So?" Lucy sighed. "We woke up in each other's arms." She spoke in a defeated tone, looking up to see Tamara doing a small victory dance. She got up from the island and made her way back to the couch.

"Knew it." Tamara said in a dignified tone as if she wasn't just dancing. Tamara followed Lucy to the couch.

"So how did Chris take it?" Lucy looked at Tamara, who was sitting at the other end of the couch. She gave Tamara a confused look. "Take what?" Tamara smirked. "The breakup."

Lucy groaned. "We didn't break up. And I don't plan on it either." It was Tamara's turn to groan now. "But whyyyyy? Chris is so." She stuck her arms out. "Eh."

Lucy looked at her, slightly offended. "I thought you liked Chris." Tamara sighed. "I do, but. He's just, you know. Not that. Interesting." Lucy tilted her head, slightly disappointed that Tamara felt that way.

The two women didn't speak for a few moments, and Tamara could sense she may have crossed a line. "Listen, I know you didn't wanna hear my opinion about him, but I don't think you've really thought about how..." She trailed off and thought for a minute to think how badly she wanted to roast Chris. "Bad? No. Uhm. Not aware of his surroundings orrrr. Ya know. Uh. Humming a tune? For example." Tamara looked at Lucy and leaned her head forward.

Lucy knew what she was getting at. Chris had slipped up a few months back with humming the song she had sung in the barrel Caleb had put her in. She knew she'd brushed it off too quickly, but she also knew Chris hadn't meant to.

"It was an accident." Lucy looked down at her hands. She hadn't realized, but she had begun fidgeting with them.

Tamara sighed. "Lucy." She tried making eye contact. "You can't just let that go. He should've told you he saw the video. I know it was a while ago, but it's not like it's gotten better. You guys barely see each other with all of the work you both do, and when you do, you always come home exhausted and complaining about something he did on the date."

Lucy looked up and finally reciprocated the eye contact, and she nodded. "I know." She groaned for the millionth time. "Ugh, I know." She buried her face into her hands. "He's kinda douchey." She admitted while trying to squish the hangover out of her face. Tamara nodded and silently spoke. "Kinda is an understatement, but that's ok. Progress is progress." She got up. "So. What's your plan now?" Lucy looked up from her hands.

"I have to get my car."