Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

2018

When Lucy and Sofya had decided to take Lucy’s car to the station, it was one big mistake. It broke down a few blocks away from the station, and now they have to push it down the street, earning weird looks from pedestrians and other drivers.

„You know, we could’ve just taken my car to the station. We would’ve been there way faster, and we wouldn’t have received all those looks on our first day, where we will still embarrass ourselves anyway.“ Sofya groans as she stops pushing the car for a second.

„Do not speak ill of my baby“ Lucy pouts. „Be happy it didn’t happen when we were driving to your parent’s house“ she giggles, imagining the faces of her parents who count on punctuality.

„Hey Mamas. That’s a nice ride“na man calls from the sidewalk, interrupting their teasing. „I think I’m gonna have to take it off your hands“ he adds as he flashes them a gun tucked into his waistband.

„You’re gonna steal our car, the one that broke down two blocks ago?“ Sofya asks him, one eyebrow raising in amusement.

„Yeah. Maybe take you for a spin, too.“ he smirks.

„What is that? A .380? 9mm?“ Lucy asks, eyeing the gun.

„It’s a Glock, sunshine. You wanna hold it?“ he shows it to her.

„Yeah, no. That’s the manufacturer, not the caliber. You got it off someone around the way who sold you the shiniest junker he had, because he knew you couldn’t tell the difference.“ Lucy scoffs and Sofya shows him the quick draw holster on her belt.

„My gun, on the other hand is kept in an LAPD-issued holster, rather than tucked in my pubes. So you can either lie on the ground, or we can quick draw and see whose gun shoots better. Spoiler alert: It’s gonna be mine.“ Sofya tells him and turns her head to Lucy.

„I don’t like him. You’ll take him sunshine“ Sofya decides, grinning as she shoves Lucy into his direction. She rolls her eyes at her as she stomps towards him and takes him down.

„Hands behind your back. You’re under arrest.“ Lucy speaks, scrunching up her nose as she smells the mix of cologne, sweat and something else that reeks of horse manure. Gag.

——————

„Come on boy. Don’t trip over your own feet.“ Sofya says as she drags the guy into the reception area. Lucy follows behind, giggling as the man stumbles over the step at the entrance.

Sofya slams the head of the man on the counter of the reception desk and Lucy puts the gun right next to it. „Officer Orlova and Officer Chen reporting for duty.“ Lucy announced. Someone in blue took him off them.

A few minutes later, they were speed-walking to the locker rooms, already spotting Jackson West, another rookie from the academy.

„Look who’s here! How are you?“ he approaches them with a big smile, clearly too excited for his first day. He hugs both, squeezing the air out of them. „I’m so excited for today, you don’t understand.“ he adds grinning from ear to ear.

He always had this golden retriever personality going on - a perfect match for Lucy. Sometimes, Sofya thinks he’s a tiny bit annoying but she loves him with her whole heart anyway. They’ve been in the academy together and without him, the days wouldn’t have been as funny as they were back then.

„We’re good actually, excited too but definitely not as excited as you are.“ Lucy chuckles. „Exactly.. How many cups of coffee did you have this morning?“ Sofya asks, both eyebrows raising.

„I drank tea actually.“ he states. „But I have a boyfriend now and he makes me very happy at the moment. You..?“ he questions wiggling his eyebrows, his eyes jumping from Lucy to Sofya and back.

„Oh we’re both single. A few one night stands here and there but nothing serious.“ Sofya answered smiling. He doesn’t need to know about Lucy and Johns, another rookie, relationship. Sofya just hopes that it ends soon, especially Lucy’s phase of being obsessed with man as old as her dad. It’s not like she doesn’t love to see Lucy happy. She does want Lucy to be happy. But John isn’t exactly the man she should be looking for. Especially not if he just came out of a marriage. Sofya shudders at the thought of them doing- she doesn’t even want to think about it.

„Also, I think we have to go and change now, otherwise we will be late and we do not want that.“ Sofya reminds them. Lucys eyes widen. She doesn’t want to be late at all, being raised as a perfectionist. She nods quickly and waves with a bright smile.

„Bye ladies. See ya in roll call.“ Jackson waves back. Lucy does a 180° turn and guides Sofya behind her to the locker room.

„Thank you.“ she whispers and Sofya nods. Lucys secrets are safe with her, always. As well as Sofyas secrets are safe with Lucy.

They known each other since they were children. They grew up together and know everything about the other one, from their favorite color to their darkest secrets. Her mother started calling them moon and sun when they turned 18 years old; Lucy is the sun and Sofya is the moon. Each carrying a tattoo that binds them together like day and night. You wouldn’t catch them without the other one. Sure they have a few fights, but nothing so serious that it will break them apart. They love each other, platonically, too much to let that happen. That’s one of the reasons why they moved in together. The big dream of a lot of teenagers - living with their best friend. Sofya loves it actually. She couldn’t imagine her life without Lucy by her side. Sometimes they just sit together and think about how their lives would have been if they had continued studying psychology and neuroscience. It would be so different. Sofya would live on the other side of the world and Lucy, well she would still follow her parents’s expectations.

Sofyas parents were nothing like Lucy’s. Sofyas family is always supportive; it doesn’t matter what Sofya wants to be or doesn’t want to be. What counts for them is that she’s happy with her life. The same goes for Lucy. Since Sofya is an only child, Lucy felt like a second child for them. Sofyas mom, her name is Elena, loves Lucy like she’s her own. Her father, Valentin, too. He loves spoiling the girls with little gifts every time they come to visit, still treating them like they’re his little girls, playing hide-and-seek in the backyard until the sunset. Lucy sees them as her parents, too. She tells them a lot more about her life than she tells her own family. And that means a lot.

——————

Lucy and Sofya were not late at the end, even though Lucy was convinced they would be late if Sofya didn’t hurry to tie her bun. She practically begged her to be faster, Sofya was nearly rolling on the floor because she had to laugh so hard.

They took a seat in the front row, where Jackson and John already sat down.

„All right, all right. Settle down.“ a voice booms through the room. „We got some new blood this morning. And some are pushing the expiration date.“ Wade Grey announces, the room filling with laughter. His gaze goes to the rookies. „Get up. After six months together in the Academy, you’ve earned the right to be here. But you’ll have to prove yourself to stay. The way we do things matters. Protocol and tradition are the metal from which every cop in this city is forged. Understand?“

„Yes sir.“ John, Jackson, Lucy and Sofya answer in unison. She and Lucy worked hard to be here today. They had a few ups and downs, especially with Lucys parents. But here they are, trying their best to help the people in Mid-Wilshire.

„Sit down. It’s time to play the Training Officer match game. Our contestants are Lucy Chen, a hotshot who made her first arrest before clocking in for work alongside Sofya Orlova, a prodigy. Legacy Jackson West, who broke all his dad’s records at the academy. And John Nolan, who was born before disco died.“ he introduces and laughter erupts again. „And the winners are: Officer Bradford, you get our hotshot. Detective Harper, you get the prodigy. Officer Lopez, you get our legacy. Leaving Officer Bishop to ride with the 40-year old rookie. Now, hear me. Today is your first day. Don’t let it be your last. Forget the Academy and listen to your T.O.s. They’ll teach you the way it should be done. That’s it. All right. Be safe out there. Officer Bishop, I need a word with your rook.“

Lucy and Sofya both stand up and walk over to talk to their T.O.s. So, Lucy got Tim Bradford as her T.O. He was handsome, Sofya has to admit, but she isn’t into men anyway. Detective Harper had the same expression as Tim Bradford. They both looked like they could ruin your day with one sentence, literally.

——

The T.O.s bring their rookies up to the rooftop of the parking garage. Four shops with a good amount of distance between them are parked up here. Sofya eyes the shop Detective Harper is presenting to her.

„This is your shop. Do not call it a car. It is where you work. Every day before we go on patrol, it’s your job to prepare the shop. First you check the exterior for any damage. If you find any nicks, scrapes or dents, log them in. Check if the suspect has left anything. Money? Drugs?“ she lists as they walk around the shop.

„A dookie?“ Sofya adds, testing the waters. Harper chuckled at the comment. „Yeah. Yeah, that too.“ she smiles. They move to the back of the shop.

„Now to the shotgun-safety check.“ she takes one of the guns into her hand, which are located in the trunk of the shop. „Verify it’s empty. Clear it.“ she adds, showing it to Sofya confirming the magazine is out and there is no round in the chamber.

„Can I?“ Sofya asks carefully as she motions to the rest of the stuff in the trunk. Harper nods. „We have police tape, road flares and spike strips….“ she lists everything they have in the back, leaving Harper impressed.

Lucy and she spent hours at night to learn all of that and now it finally pays off.

„You’re making my job easy, Officer Orlova. Now the body-cam test.“ she taps with her finger right under her chest where she placed a body-cam before they walked up to the roof. Sofya got one too. She turns it on and says her name, like she was told by her rook book.

Harper nods, guiding Sofya to the front seats of the car, their workspace.

„Log in to the computer. Put in our serial number. Then test the lights and sirens.“, Harper explains and Sofya let the sirens chirp. „And finally, check yourself. You’re about to hit the streets without knowing what happens next.“ she finishes and puts the shop into drive.

—————

Tim Bradford was very intimidating. His face was stone cold and his personality - god Lucy doesn’t even want to talk about it. He doesn’t even talk! They’re driving down a quiet streets, a few cars occasionally crossing their way. The silence was awkward.

„So, why do you want to be a cop?“ Bradford suddenly questions.

So he does speak, wellll.

„Is this a trick question?“ Lucy asks. Her gaze sways from the street to the grumpy cop beside her, right into his blue eyes. There was a beat of silence.

„You want me to train you, I need to know why you’re in this car.“ he reasons and Lucy snaps out of her confused gaze and straightens her posture, her gaze shifting back on the street.

„Okay. Uhm, my parents are both therapists, so I spent my childhood talking about my feelings, but then I met-“ she is cut off by Bradford slamming on the breaks.

„I’ve been shot!“ he shouts, an angry expression on his face. Lucy’s still confused by Bradfords sudden interruption. „Where are you, Boot?“ he asks her. Lucy looked around.

„Uh“ she couldn’t see a street sign anywhere.

„Where are you?!“ he shouts again. Lucy was in full panic mode.

„Um.“ she bent out of the window, frantically searching for a street sign.

„Now I’m dead. It’s your fault. Get out.“ he told her.

She failed. She is a bad officer. Maybe her parents were right.

Don’t let them in your head, sweetheart. It only matters what you want.

The words from Sofyas mother echoed in her head. She should believe her. It matters what Lucy wants. And she’s still a rookie; every rookie makes mistakes.

„What?“ she asks as she blinks a few times in disbelief. He can’t be serious.

„Get out and walk. You can get back in when you know where you are.“ he tells her and she scoffs as she steps out. „What was that, Boot?“ he definitely heard her scoff.

„Nothing.“ she says through gritted teeth and starts walking. Bradford just nods and starts driving.

Such an asshole, Lucy thinks as she kicks away a pebble of stone.

——————

„LAPD, open the door!“ Harper shouts as she knocks on the door. A woman in a bathrobe answers the door. „Ma’am we got a call about a possible burglary in process.“ Harper speaks as Sofya looks behind the woman, trying to see anything.

„I didn’t call anyone.“ the woman tells them as glass shattered in the distance.

„Watch her.“ Harper assigns her. „Copy.“ Sofya nods and watches as Harper runs around the corner to the back of the house, where someone is trying to get through an upstairs window.

„Hi. LAP-“ the person falls off the roof and into a tree. „Sometimes, I hate this job.“ Harper mutters to herself as she stomps over to the person. 

A few seconds later, Harper approaches Orlova with a disgusted expression and explains the situation.

„Okay so let me get this straight. You sneak into houses to have sex, not to rob them?“ Sofya squints as she tries not to imagine things.

„Yeah. It’s a fetish.“ Sofya adjusts her posture at the woman’s statement. Her eyes widen for a second before she scrunches her eyebrows together, looking at Harper in disbelief. „Right.“ Sofya mutters and pushes the woman into the back of the shop.

„Shame we can only charge them with misdemeanor trespass.“ Harper tests as she looks at Orlova. „There’s evidence of a burglary.“ Sofya shrugs.

„But how when they didn’t take anything.“ Harper asks.

„They took a shower, obviously. We can charge a 459 just for stealing water.“ Sofya reasons, eying the rocking shop in the back. „That’s actually a good idea. Wait, hold that thought.“ Harper says and turns around, hearing moaning from inside the shop, which is still rocking rhythmically. Suddenly a bare foot appears on the back window.

„Are they….“ Sofya starts. „Are they having sex in our shop?“ Sofyas face is covered in disgust.

„Damn it. Hey! Knock it off! Don’t do that!“ she slams on the window. „Maybe we should invest in something other than handcuffs. Maybe they have a handcuff fetish too.“ Harper jokes as she moves around the shop to step in. Sofya follows, chuckling: „Maybe.“

——————

Lucy is still walking alongside the shop, trying to find a street sign but failing miserably. Tonight she will definitely study the whole map of LA, and maybe drag Sofya into learning too.

„You know where you are yet, Officer Chen? No? Then finish your story about why you became a cop. Here, I’ll do it for you. You wanted to piss off your parents for making you an emotional science experiment.“ he says, when suddenly a small truck with three men inside approaches them from behind. Bradford gets out of the shop and walks up to the driver of the truck. Lucy stands at the other side of the shop, looking at the three men. They’re not from here.

„Gentlemen. I have an honest question for you. Were you grown in a Petri dish of stupid?“ he asks with his grumpy voice. „Por favor, no hablo ingles-“ the man starts.

„Don’t pull that crap with me.“ Bradford hisses.

„Licencia y registro, por favor. Hazlo rápido, mi compañero está enojado.“ Lucy pleads as she gave the man a sympathetic look. This action may have consequences.

„Well, aren’t you fancy? Tell him that it’s immigrants like them that make Americans like you look bad. If it was up to me, we’d send them all back by catapult.“ he barks out.

„Um-“ Lucy hesitates for a second. She is not that kind of person to say those things. She’s here to help and not to be mean to people who try to find peace. She sighs and tells herself that she only has 10 hours left with that kind of asshat Bradford. „Dijo que debes evitar tocar la bocina a un policía cuando tu camioneta está en violación de la mayoría de los códigos de vehículos del estado.“ she speaks without stuttering and Bradford frowns.

„Officer Chen, a word?“ he demands. Uh-oh. They step aside on the sidewalk. „Do I strike you as a man who means what he says?“ he asks.

„Yes, sir.“ Lucy answers.

„Do I seem laid-back to you? Wishy-washy in any way?“ he asks again, his piercing blue eyes never leaving Lucys face.

„No, sir.“ Lucy says, shaking her head.

„Entonces, ¿por qué cambiarías las palabras que salen de mi boca?“ he speaks. Lucy pales, she has failed yet another test. „Everything is a test, Officer Chen, and you just got another F. I know what you’re thinking - was that casual racism a test, too, or just the Spanish? Unfortunately for you, there’s no way to know.“ he snapped.

Lucy just gave him a firm nod, not wanting to argue because that will just end in him finding a reason to write her up a blue page. The day has just begun and it’s already hell.

——————

„Guess your shift didn’t go well, sunshine?“ Sofya teases as Lucy approaches her in the locker room. Lucy groans and sits down on the bench in front of her locker, head in her hands. „Everything okay?“ Sofya asks carefully as she pulls her shirt over her head and sits down next to her.

„Today was horrible.“ she mutters and turns around to open the door of her locker to start changing.

She is exhausted and just wants to sleep. First she had to walk next to her T.O., who was sitting smugly in the shop, and she had to find some street sign just so he would let her back in the passenger seat. Then they had to catch a guy who thought a unicorn was laughing at him. But at least Lucy did a perfect flying tackle and the guy is now in handcuffs.

„I know. Now, Jackson said he and John will be at the bar. Do we wanna go too?“ Sofya wiggles her eyebrows, hoping for Lucy to say yes, because she neeeeeds a drink. But she doesn’t want to leave Lucy alone or drags her into something with her approval.

„Yes, of course. Please. I need it after today.“ she changes her mind and smiles at Sofya and quickly grabs her jeans. Today’s her first day, she definitely has to celebrate that.

——————

„To our first day.“ Lucy lifts her beer. They all toast and John starts to tell something about him feeling somebody die today. Well everyone has their firsts someday. She looks over to Lucy and sees that she’s far away from the whole situation.
„Think someone could use a hug.“ Sofya teases as she sees Lucy’s expression. Lucy snaps out of her thoughts and glares at Sofya.

„Don’t you dare.“ she warns. Sofya giggles and turns to John again to listen to his story.

„I was just talking to him. And I thought that I was ready, but I don’t think anything can prepare you for that kind of situation.“ he sighs and sips on his beer.

„I saw my first body when I was 10. My dad took me to the morgue, pulled a drawer, and there was this kid, maybe 18 O.D.’d on oxy.“ Jackson remembers.

„That’s some questionable parenting right there.“ Lucy adds and Sofya chuckles.

„I’m sorry sunshine. But didn’t your parents put you in therapy at the same age?“ Sofya raises an eyebrow at Lucy.

„They were trying to teach me coping skills.“ Lucy states and Sofya smiles sadly at Lucy, knowing how strict Lucy’s parents were.

„Yeah, so was my dad. You know, this job is a magnifying glass. It reveals everything, especially the parts you’re trying to hide.“ Jackson shares and Sofya nods.

„Yep. My parents always told me that I should be prepared for anything on this job - literally anything. Didn’t know that I would experience two people having sex in our shop at my first shift.“ Sofya tells and Lucy snorts.

„They did what?“ she laughs. „I would’ve died out of embarrassment, especially in front of Harper.“ she adds, giggling uncontrollably.

„Yeah it was very awkward. But Harper is not as bitchy as she seems to be. She’s actually really nice and has great humor.“ Sofya tells and Lucy rolls her eyes.

„Bradford’s such an ass. He’s not funny at all. He doesn’t even talk to me!“ she complains. Even though they just had one shift together, she knew that he’s one of the grumpiest people she’s ever met in her entire life. Well. Actually he’s the most grumpiest out of all of them.

„Awh, that must be horrible for you. Poor sunshine.“ Sofya teases and Jackson snorts.

„How I’ve missed you two and your teasing.“ he jokes and the whole table erupts in laughter.

Maybe the next few months won’t be that bad.

_____________

„So what did Officer Grumpy did to you that you’re that exhausted?“ Sofya questions as they were walking down the sidewalk to their apartment. Lucy groans.

„He’s such an asshole, you don’t understand. He made me walk alongside the shop for two hours until I found one goddamn street sign. Now he wants me to learn the entire map of Mid-Wilshire. Then I discovered that he can speak Spanish too! I should’ve thought of that, yes I know. But he was so rude to those poor man who couldn’t speak English. I just wanted to help them. And the worst of it all - he calls me boot.“ Lucy sighs as she puts her head on Sofya’s shoulder.

„And you did help, Lucy. As grumpy as Bradford might be, maybe that’s just his personality in front of his rookies. You’re a great cop and Bradford can’t and won’t tell you otherwise. I spoke with a former rookie of his today, and that’s normal. He tests you.“ Sofya reassures and slings an arm around her waist as they walk. „Tomorrow’s a new day and maybe he won’t be that grumpy anymore.“

„I know. It’s just… ugh. I don’t know. I don’t like him. You’re so lucky with Harper, she seems so nice. Those Tim-tests already piss me off.“ Lucy exclaims.

„Tim-Tests? Maybe you should give him a Lucy-Lesson next time.“ Sofya chuckles. „And yes. Maybe I am lucky to have Harper as my T.O., but trust me when I say this. Bradford’s by far the best training officer you could’ve dreamt of. You survived day one, so you’ll survive the other ones too.“

„Barely.“ Lucy yawns and hands Sofya the keys to their apartment as they walk up to the door. She just wants to sleep.

Tomorrow’s a new day.


Chapter Text

The morning began with Lucy snoozing her fifth alarm today. She didn’t want to get up, nor did she want to face her T.O. He could ruin her mood, again, with just his presence. She wonders if he ever had a wife - or girlfriend. Maybe Tim Bradford is the kind of guy that probably never had one because they didn’t meet his standards. And by standards, she means things like: punctuality down to the second and the ability to run a six-minute mile without breaking a sweat. Well, Lucy wouldn’t describe him as mean…not exactly, no. He’s just allergic to joy. If you would ask him about his favorite ice cream flavor, which she doubts he has, he would probably say vanilla because it doesn’t distract you.

And yet, here she was. This is the man she has to deal with every morning and that perpetual scowl that looks like it was carved onto his face sometime in 1998 and never moved since.

Lucy groaned as she checked her phone for the time and saw that she would be late if she didn’t hurry soon. She let out a huff as she lifted her warm blanket and shifted out of her bed to go to the bathroom to get ready.

20 minutes later she stepped out of her room and was met with the smell of her favorite tea. Sleepily, Lucy wandered down the stairs. Sofya is already up and ready to start the day. Even though she’s the ‘moon' in their friendship, you’ll never catch Sofya waking up after 7am. Sometimes, she wakes up at 5am without an alarm - Lucy admires but sometimes despises it, because how can you wake up at 5am on a fucking Sunday?

"Good morning." Sofya greets her and shoves a cup of tea in Lucy’s direction. She mumbled out a thank you and sat down, across from Sofya, on one of the barstools. "How’d you sleep?" Sofya asked as she sipped on her coffee.

"Okay. Could’ve been better. Wish I could’ve slept longer. Let me guess, you’ve been up since 5am?" Lucy hid her grin behind her cup of tea.

"Oh, you bet. No. Today I actually slept until 6am. Being a police officer is pretty exhausting." She answered, a smirk on her face. It was true though. Being on patrol is really exciting, yes, but also exhausting. Sofya’s head hit the bed as soon as she arrived home and she slept 8 hours, which was not normal for her. Normally, she would sleep for 6 hours max.

"Oh how dare you sleep one hour longer than usual. Are you sick? Do I need to worry?" Lucy joked and Sofya rolled her eyes, mumbling "Bitch." under her breath. Lucy caught it and giggled.

"Love you too“

"Yeah yeah, whatever helps you sleep at night." Sofya laughed and filled her thermos with coffee.

_________

"If you’re not early you’re late, Boot." Bradford approached Sofya and Lucy in the hallway as they arrived at the station.

"Well there goes my good morning." Lucy mumbled under her breath. Sofya snorted.

"What’s so funny, Orlova?" Bradford straightened his back, crossed his arms in front of his chest and shot her a questioning glare.

"Nothing, Sir." Sofya dragged a smile on her face. "Now, would you be so kind and step aside? We need to change now to avoid being late." Sofya asked, emphasizing the now, teasing Mister Grumpy.

Bradford frowned and actually stepped aside. "Thank you." Lucy bowed her head and pulled Sofya to the locker room. "You’re welcome." Sofya said as Bradford was out of sight and Lucy gave her a shove to the side.

_________

"He is SO annoying." Lucy groaned for what feels like the tenth time today as she changed into her uniform. "And those long sleeves are so uncomfortable."

"True, and true. But in a few months we will be wearing short sleeves, hopefully." Sofya reassured her, smiling sympathetically.

"Do you think we can swap T.O. 's? Harper seems so nice." Lucy thought out loud. "But that would not end well, I know." She frowned, already seeing the consequences. Sofya would go through hell with Bradford, not that Sofya would mind, but Lucy literally can’t stand the thought. Sofya already did too much for her.

Sofya on the other hand wouldn’t mind having Bradford as her T.O., but just his personality is making her shudder in disgust. And she’s definitely not as good and clever as Lucy is, and she would fail all of his tests, for sure. Not because she’s not good enough, no. But Bradford would throw her out of the program as soon as she would give him a piece of mind - and she tends to do that a lot.

Just because he’s an ass of T.O., his ego higher than the skyscrapers in New York, doesn’t mean he can bark orders at Sofya, thinking she would follow those with at least a little bit of enthusiasm.

Sofya’s grateful she has Harper as her T.O., but never ever would she trade her for Bradford. As much as she loves Lucy - but no. A few days for sure, but not for the rest of her FTO program.

"I don’t think Bradford would let that slide." Sofya grimaced as she grabbed her belt. "Now let’s get out there, before you have to do 60 push ups."

_________

"I’ve decided on your punishment." Bradford announced as they arrived at Circus Liquor. Bradford parked the shop.

After roll call ended, Tim barked at her to prep the shop immediately. Grey had shown a clip of her executing a perfect flying tackle. She thought that maybe he would be kinda proud or something, but no he just seemed more pissed.

"Are you gonna tell me what it is?" Lucy shot him a questioning look. Her brown orbs mixed with his ice blue ones as she stared at him, trying to read him. He turned to the door and opened it "I’m more of a show you kinda guy."

Uh-huh. Great.

Whatever he had planned, Lucy was prepared. She quickly got out of the car to follow him. They walked into the direction of some guy. Maybe in his thirties? He looked quite like a drug dealer. And well, Bradford obviously had to know him.

"Ghost Head." He called over the parking space. "No,no. Hold up a minute." They approached him.

Ghost Head wanted to run, but he stopped him before he could do anything.

"This iis harassment." He protested, he was clearly making a deal with the other guy, who had run away.

"What? No. Think of it like a frequent flyer program for dirt bag drug dealers." He put his hands on his hips "Search him, Boot."

Lucy stared him dead in the eyes. There was a beat of silence and she took a deep breath. "Turn around, grab the wall." She instructed.

Ghost Head didn’t move.

He smirked. And Lucy wished she could wipe that damn smirk off his face.

"Make me, Boot."

She looked at him for a second, before stepping forward, one hand outstretched. She could’ve thought of the fact that Ghost Head will defend himself, but she wanted to de-escalate and not escalate the situation.

She ducked as Ghost Head wanted to hit her in the face. He spun them around and suddenly Lucy was against the wall. She tried to push him away, but he landed a punch on her side. She was struggling and her hands were too low.

“Keep your hands up, Chen Don’t let him get on top of you.” Bradford barked at her, hands on his hips as he observed the situation.

Lucy huffed and bit on her tongue. Fuck it. She took Ghost Head's head in her hands and gave him a headbutt. He was baffled by the sudden reaction and Lucy used the opportunity to land a few punches to his lower stomach. Lastly, she swiped his feet away and he fell to the ground.

Lucy shoved him to the ground as he tried to get up again. “You’re under arrest.” She spoke as she turned him around on his stomach. “Really? That was my punishment?” She asked Bradford as she cuffed Ghost Head, the adrenaline gone and the pain on her side getting worse. More bruises to take care of. Yay.

“Yep.” Bradford quipped and walked over to help her as she tried to get him up. “Get used to it.” He added.

_________

Sofya and Nyla drove through the streets of LA, occasionally looking from left to right to spot any suspicious activities. “It’s quiet this morning.” Sofya thought out loud.

Tiles screeched and the shop came to an abrupt stop. “Na na na na na ah! Stop!” Harper glared at Sofya. “You do not, under any circumstance, ever use the Q word while on duty. Never.” She said, wiggling her finger in a ‘no no’ motion.

“Okay.” Sofya didn’t think she was the kind of person to be superstitious.”I had no idea you were superstitious.”

Harper turned her whole body in Sofya’s direction, still glaring. “That’s not superstitious Orlova, that’s a fact.” She stated and opened her door. Sofya stopped her before she could go further.

“Leaving me so soon?” Sofya joked. She didn’t want to ruin the good mood from 2 minutes ago, so she tried her best to lift it up again. Ruining the mood on day two and for the rest of her FTO program wasn’t really Sofya’s goal.

“I’m going to get the trauma plate for my vest, because I have a feeling that I’m gonna need it. You and your big mouth probably just cost me custody of my kid.” That Harper had a kid was new to Sofya. But before Sofya could burn questions into her head, Harper was already at the back of the shop, getting the plate.

A few seconds later, Nyla appeared in the driver's seat again. Sofya opened her mouth to ask her first question but Nyla stopped her, her hand outstretched in Sofya’s direction. “No questions or you can walk the rest of the shift.” She told Sofya.

Sofya sighed and continued craning her neck to search for any criminal activity on the street as her T.O. started driving again. She would’ve loved to know more about her kid. Since she can’t get kids herself, fuck endometriosis, she knew better than to pry.

Clearly, Nyla wasn’t the kind of person to talk about personal things unless she wanted to and Sofya had already learned the hard way that silence was safer than curiosity.

They drove for a while without saying much, the hum of the engine and the honks from the outside world filling the air. Sofya was nervous. Her fingers drummed against her thigh. She kept stealing glances at Nyla, trying to read her, but she didn’t let anything through.

“You know, rookies don’t last long when they start worrying about their T.O.s lives.” She finally spoke. Sofya’s lips pressed into a thin line, she felt caught.

“Wasn’t worried. Just..” She trailed off. “Just making conversation.” She nodded.

Nyla simply answered with a glare.

“7-Adam-15, Possible domestic on 1401 West Sycamore. Caller says a weapon’s involved.” The Dispatch's voice filled the shop. Thank god. Sofya grabbed the radio, “7-Adam-15. Show us responding.”

__________

Lucy barely reached the shop, as a woman ran out of the store and confronted them. She looked bad. Her hair was greasy, she had bags under her eyes and she was very skinny. From Lucy's view, she looked like a typical drug addict.

“Hey!” She shouted, “Hey!” She tried again, “Hey, let him go! Come on.” Her arms fell to her side. Tim, who was opening the driver’s side door, was now frozen in place. His eyes were locked onto the woman. Lucy looked between them stunned, her arm still hooked into Ghost Heads.

“Are you alright here?” She spoke softly as Tim didn’t react.

“For real.” Isabel said. Tim finally snapped out of his frozen state.

“Leave him alone!” Isabel tried again.

“Isabel?” He put his hand on his chest. His lips were parted and a side of time appeared, the soft Tim, Lucy never thought she would see. “It’s me. It’s okay. I’ve been trying to find you just-” He paused and looked at her, really looked at her. Isabel shook her head. “Just to make sure you were okay. Are you okay?” He asked her softly and took one step forward.

“I just want to help you.” He whispered and then they just stood there. Tears sprang into his eyes as he looked at his supposed wife. She changed a lot.

“You want to help?” Tim nodded, smiling at her. His hopes for their relationship slowly came back. “Give me all your cash. All of it.” She stretched her hand out. Tim was in disbelief.

“What? No! God, I’ll get you into rehab, Isabel!” He exclaimed and the tears threatened to fall. He is a police officer for gods sake. He can’t help her to get drugs. She can’t use his money for drugs. Isabel’s eyes were pleading and he couldn’t help it. He digged into his pocket and grabbed his cash.

Before he could say anything to her, she grabbed the money from his hands and ran away, leaving him in the dust, her footsteps heavy on the ground. Tim didn’t run after her. He turned on his heel and walked to the shop. His face showed defeat and anger.

As he opened the door, he saw Lucy and Ghost Head. He completely forgot them because of the encounter with Isabel. His mind ran a thousand miles per second, his heart was still racing and a single tear escaped his eye.

He turned and saw Lucy. She looked at him and he knew. Lucy saw it all. Lucy doesn’t know that Isabel was his wife, and Tim decided that it should stay like this. But she’ll have questions. And she’ll be pissed by Tim’s next decision.

“Hey.” Lucy furrowed her brows in confusion. “What do you want me to do with this guy?” She tightened her grip around Ghost Heads arm as he tried to free himself, sensing that Tim wasn’t really paying to them.

“Let him go.” He told her and climbed into the car.

Lucy was confused and pissed at the same time. Shouldn’t that be her punishment?

She fished for the keys in her pocket and let Ghost Head free, who ran immediately. She quickly strutted over to the passenger side, opened the door and got into the car.

She was silent at first. Who the hell was this woman and why did Tim gave her money? She was hella confused. Just as she was about to ask, who this woman was, Tim let out a deep breath and spoke.

“That was my wife.”