I Pretend You're Mine

16. Tears

Tim spent the entire drive from the hospital to Dave and Amy's house replaying his discussion with Lucy. Well, it could not really be categorized as a true "discussion", since he barely got a chance to speak, and she mostly spoke AT him.

He tried his best to interrupt her.

He even tried to shut her up with a kiss.

Still, Lucy remained firm. She said, "We're done."

Desperately, he managed to tell her, "I don't want to go back to that."

But, it was no use. She would not listen, so he drove home alone with her scent lightly hanging in the cab of his truck and his eyes starting to well up.

He walked to the cottage. Alone.

Then, Tim entered the space they were meant to share to find Kojo was happy to see him, but also seemingly eager for the other person he anticipated would show up. Lucy.

She said she would not stay in the cottage for the night. Lucy insisted on sleeping in the main house to get away from him, and he was torn. Should he try to speak with her again? Should he wait until the morning when she might be calm enough to actually have a REAL discussion with him?

He sank into the couch, refusing to lay in the bed without Lucy and tried to think beyond his own pain. Yet, rational thinking was just out of reach as Lucy's voice echoed in his ear telling him, "I don't care."

That's when it happened. A single, rebellious tear streamed down his face despite his best efforts to remain strong. Kojo jumped into his lap and licked at the droplet in an effort to comfort his owner, which Tim greatly appreciated. Still, he knew that what he wanted was Lucy. Nothing else could mend his currently broken heart other than her. They had been happy for days. Tim did not think he had actually ever been happier in his life than his time in Carmel with Lucy, and he could not imagine returning to L.A. and looking at her from across the station without being able to kiss her, touch her, or even speak to her. His stomach churned at the thought.

Unprepared for her to take another swing at his already shattered heart, Tim decided he would talk to Lucy in the morning. He padded into the bathroom and started to get ready for bed while thinking about how the bathroom he once thought was too small for two people to share now seemed big and empty without Lucy standing next to him. Even his nighttime routine was not the same without her.

♡ ⋆˙⟡ ♡ ˙⋆ ⟡ ♡ ⋆˙⟡ ♡˙⋆ ⟡ ♡

It was painfully obvious to Tamara that something was wrong with Lucy, and not just because her mascara was smudged. She was quiet for the entire drive back to the house.

"Thanks for picking up my car tonight," Lucy finally said as they started to walk towards the main house.

"No problem. You and Tim seemed preoccupied," Tamara smirked but watched as her friend's eyes started to water. "Hey, what's going on?"

"Can we, can we not talk about it? I just need to go to sleep, so this day can be over," Lucy replied somberly, and before she could stop herself, her eyes snapped over to the cottage down the beach, and Lucy saw that the lights were all off, so Tim must have gone to sleep.

If only she knew that he was wide awake, laying on the couch, and staring up at the ceiling thinking about her.

She got ready for bed without having to watch Tim's aggressive flossing, and though Lucy had teased him about it, now she would give anything to watch him in the mirror's reflection as he stood next to her at the bathroom sink.

When she walked into the guest room she was going to share with Tamara for the night, Lucy moved to go to the other twin bed that her friend was not sleeping in when her left thumb brushed against her left ring finger. She was surprised to find it bare after wearing an engagement ring there for the last few days. When did Lucy grow so accustomed to wearing a piece of jewelry that she knew would only be on her finger temporarily? She panicked that the ring was not on her finger, and then Lucy remembered that she tucked it into a pocket of her jeans after removing it to return it to Aunt Amy, but Aunt Amy refused to accept it and insisted she keep it.