Chapter Text
He hated this. Maybe it was because he'd been dragged on this miserable trip to San Francisco against his will.
He rarely left LA. He grew up there. The only exception he could think of was Afghanistan, and he'd been fighting a war there, after all. Now he was stuck here because Lopez couldn't let him just stay at Mid-Wilshire and do his job. Instead, he'd been pulled to "The Golden City" for some "detective work."
The city was nice enough. Tim didn't know why they were just wandering around.
"Angela, we're here for work, not sightseeing."
"Relax. You need to take your mind off things. Besides, we're almost at Pier 39. Isn't that right, Emmy?" Angela said, bouncing Emmy in her arms.
Tim didn't argue. He just walked alongside her and Wesley, third-wheeling their happy family. As if being dragged here wasn't bad enough.
Pier 39 was nice, he supposed. Seagulls squealing all over, the sound of families dragging their kids along with them, from one landmark to the other. Tim pulled away from Angela, finding an open spot along the railing.
He looked out at the water and thought, Seals are nice. They never have to worry. Just eat and sleep.
Lucy would really love it here.
There it was. Of course. He'd never stop thinking of her. It felt like only yesterday they were joking about taking a trip north to see the Golden Gate Bridge together.
But that was over now. Lucy left, and he hadn't seen her in forever. He remembered every detail of how it happened. A quick UC op, two months, low stakes, a simple drug bust. She was supposed to come back, but she didn't, she just... left.
And now it had been almost a year since they'd last had a real conversation.
No. It had been a year. Three hundred and sixty-five days.
Suddenly, he understood why he was here. Why Angela had dragged him along instead of letting him work. It was the anniversary of the day Lucy disappeared.
The search had been called off after one month. The department ruled she'd left voluntarily, she'd taken all her personal identification with her, no signs of foul play, there would be no use in searching.
Everyone eventually gave up and began to believe she left on purpose too, even her parents moved on and lived their lives.
But Tim never gave up. He still called her phone every single day, it always went to voicemail.
He missed her so much it hurt him, and he still didn't understand why she left. Why didn't she say anything? Not even a goodbye.
He was done with this sightseeing trip, whether Angela liked it or not, he was heading back to the hotel.
He pulled out his phone and texted her: Heading back now.
He started walking, turning onto a commercial street buzzing with people. He hated how the people here thought they were so smart with their stupid advanced technology. Hated the smell of San Francisco. Hated the loud families and their loud kids. Hated-
He could recognize her in a heartbeat. That was just how important she was to him.
Walking in the opposite direction, ten feet away, was a woman. Same hair, same height, same build, same eyes, same face.
He couldn't have mistaken her. Not in a million years. "Lucy-"
Their eyes met, for a split second it took Tim back to the day they first met.
She kept walking, Tim chased after her, weaving through the crowded sidewalk, sliding between civilians. She was always just ahead, always out of reach.
Was he hallucinating, did her miss her so much that he started making up her face? But he didn't care, he had to catch up. This time, he wasn't letting her go.
She turned into a small side alley, and Tim finally closed the distance. "Lucy, wait!" but she kept walking.
He finally catched up and cornered her at a dead end, a narrow gap between two buildings, trash bins and fire escapes. She stopped, he could see her much clearer now, she was wearing a formal blazer that Lucy would have never worn before. "Lucy..." His voice cracked, but he didn't care. "What happened? Please, come back. If I did something wrong, if I pushed you away somehow, tell me. I'll fix it."
She turned around. Her face was calm and detached, but for just a second he saw Lucy, the old Lucy, the Lucy that always had a smile on her face.
"Sorry, sir." Her voice was cold and distant. "I think you have the wrong person. I don't know you."
She walked past him, continuing the way she was heading.
Tim's world shattered all over again.