MY HERO |T.BRADFORD

X. me and you

CHAPTER TEN
ME AND YOU

"Do you remember when we used to come here every single day after training?" His soft voice spoke, calmly. Valerie let out a small chuckle, trying to catch her breath. It had been a scary couple of weeks, and things were finally going back to normal.

Tim was there for Valerie every day of her recovery. He would stop in at the apartment every morning and bring Valerie and Jackson coffee, and then they would all head to work together. He would stop by every night to watch a movie, or play a board game with Valerie. He was always there. Just like the old times.

Valerie couldn't picture her life without Tim in it. Sometimes, she would think about him and just feel amazed. Before she began police training, she was all alone. She was scared for her future, all because of her father. She had nobody in the world. But now, she had everything she could ever ask for.

And although she was still recovering from her kidnapping, she was beginning to feel happier again. But she didn't do it alone. She had her friends. Her family. And she couldn't of done it without them. She'd be forever grateful.

"Yeah, and you would collapse at this very spot at the end of every run." Valerie managed to get out through her laughing. From the sound of her own laugh, Tim found himself chuckling along with her. Her smile was contagious, her laugh maybe more. And he couldn't help but feel something for her. He always had. But it could never happen. Maybe one day.

"I thought we agreed not to speak about that." Tim rolled his eyes at the woman across from him and he finally stood up straight again, removing his hands from his knees. Valerie did the same, finally being able to breath normally again.

"Oh, Timmy. I didn't agree to anything." Valerie shrugged her shoulders and took a step to the side, overlooking the view of the city. She let out a small sigh.

Tim turned to look at her expression, noticing how her mood had shifted. She looked peaceful, calm. But he knew that there was something that she was hiding from him. "What's wrong?" Tim questioned, his eyebrows furrowing.

"Don't you ever think about..." Valerie trailed off, allowing her eyes to scan the lively city of Los Angeles. "Do you ever think about what our futures are going to look like?" Tim raised his eyebrow in confusion. It was sudden. And the atmosphere was growing emotional.

There was a moment of silence where neither of the pair spoke. Valerie kept her eyes trained on the city before them. Though, Tim couldn't help but admire Valerie from the side. She was beautiful, she was smart, she was funny. She was everything.

"I've always seen Angela as the perfect mother. She'll have a couple kids, she'll be married. She'll be happy. And she'll achieve her dream of becoming detective." Valerie couldn't help but smile at the thought of her best friend growing a family of her own. "Nicholas will eventually find someone he loves, settle down and quit undercover work. He'll move to a lovely house on the side of a lake. Jackson will find someone who loves him the way he loves. They'll be happy together, get married. I think he'd end up adopting a little girl."

"Oh, definitely." Tim agreed with a sweet smile. For the first time, Valerie finally turned her head and met Tim's gaze. His eyes fell softer at her gaze on his. He took a step forwards, taking Valerie's hand in his own. They continued to stare into each others eyes, like it were only them on the planet.

"Nolan will definitely end up marrying again.
I think he'd be a good husband, you just have to find the right person." Valerie continued on, her voice quiet as she stared into Tim's eyes. "Lucy will achieve her dreams, take her own path. I can see her going undercover. With lots of practice and support, she could do it. She's strong, independent. I believe that she could do it. And then, she'll find her person. And hopefully, he won't turn out to be a serial killer."

Valerie let out a small laugh, however Tim didn't join her. He knew that Valerie was only turning their trauma into humour to calm herself down. It was how she coped with her past.

"And, you." Valerie spoke again, sucking in a deep breath. "You will finally find what's right for you. I can see you becoming a sergeant." Tim furrowed his eyebrows with a small smile. "Well, you're very bossy, strict, won't take anyone's shit. And let's be real, you're a bit of a dick sometimes. It's the perfect role for you."

"Oh, come on, Val. I am not a dick." Tim looked down at Valerie with a raised eyebrow. Valerie hummed, as if she were thinking about the statement. "Right, okay. Maybe sometimes. But that's how you get things done as a training officer. I bet you you're a bit of a-" Tim paused and Valerie raised her eyebrows at him. "I'm not going to finish that sentence.

Valerie couldn't help but let out a small laugh at the worried look on his face. Soon enough, the laughter died down and it was only them two standing in silence, holding each others hands and gazing into one another's eyes. It was them, against the world.

"What about you?" Tim asked, quietly. At the question, Valerie was clearly confused at first. But then she gathered what he'd meant. "Where do you see yourself in the future?"

Valerie let out a small breath and she found herself turning away from Tim. She tried to take her hands from his, but he'd only held onto her hands tighter to keep her skin on his. "I don't know." She answered. But Tim wasn't buying it. And she could see that when she looked back at him.

"I know where you'll be." Tim told her, and she'd finally locked their eyes again. She waited for the words to leave his mouth, very patiently. But he just kept looking into her eyes. "Me and you. We'll buy a big, beautiful house up on the hills. We'll get a dog, maybe even two. We'll drive to work everyday together, singing along to your favourite songs and dancing at the red light. And just like we always talked about, we'll paint the door red, put a giant, overpriced reef on the front door and set up lights all around the house. And inside, there'll be a very cozy fire and a Christmas tree in the very corner of the room where we'll sit every night before bed and drink our hot chocolates."

Valerie didn't move, she couldn't even remember the last time she'd blinked. Her mouth hung open slight as he finished speaking. She was surprised he'd remembered all of that. In training, they'd always spoken about what their dreams were. Of course, Tim's dreams were big and brave. But, Valerie's. Her dreams were all about love, passion and joy. And her favourite time of the year, Christmas.

"In the spring, we'd host an Easter party every year. We'd invite families over to participate and we'd hide Easter eggs all around the house and the garden. In Summer, we'd have barbecue parties, champagne nights and pool parties. We'd invite all of our friends over, and we'd have the time of our lives surrounded by our loved ones. And for Halloween, we'd decorate the whole house. I know you love to go over the top. We'd have a giant statue out the front garden, surrounded by pumpkins we would carve together and little decorations."

Valerie finally brought herself to lift her lips, and a large smile spread from one cheek to the other. "Hmm..." she trailed off, her smile only growing bigger and bigger. "What kind of dogs are we going to have?"

"An German Shepard and a Husky. Just like you always wanted."

And it was everything she could ever dream of.

•••••

i'm so sorry for disappearing for 2 months.
but happy christmas eve!!!
thought i'd give an update as a christmas present from me to you :)