Work Text:
Genny had made plans to visit with Tim once he was home from the hospital when they thought his stay would be a simple procedure; but when Ashley called to say he had been taken into emergency surgery, Genny did her best to move up those plans. Still she was unable to get a flight into Los Angeles until this morning. Thankfully, she had been able to speak to Tim who assured her the surgery had gone well, or else she would have been worried and restless all night.
When Genny arrives at the hospital as soon as visiting hours begin, she can’t say she is completely surprised to see Lucy already by Tim’s bedside. She is, however, a little stunned to find the other woman asleep in the chair. A pillow prompt under her neck and a blanket covering her. As Genny walks further into the room, she can see that her brother is awake and watching Lucy with soft, sleepy eyes. Walking quietly so as not to wake Lucy, she stands next to Tim’s bed. Whispering to him when he finally acknowledges her presence, “Has she been here all night?”
“Yes,” he answers with the cutest smile on his face. One Genny hasn’t seen on him in quite a while. The kind her students get from time to time when they believe themselves to be in love. Though in Tim’s case, he might be more correct in his beliefs. “I didn’t want to wake her.” His eyes battle with reluctance and a sense of inevitability. “I probably should though. She’ll get a crick in her neck if she stays like that.”
“I got it.” Genny says as she gently shakes Lucy awake.
Lucy blinks back the sleep from her eyes. As she seems to remember where she is, her eyes first go to Tim. When she sees he is fine, her body relaxes before she looks at the monitors to check Tim’s vitals. Then finally she registers that they are not alone. She rubs her neck as she stands to greet Genny with a hug. “Genny, hey! Have you been here long? I’m sorry, I should have picked you up from the airport.” She berates herself.
“Don’t worry about it. I just got here.” Genny assures her. “And I was happy to take a cab. I’m glad to know Tim didn’t have to spend the night alone in the hospital.” She truly is grateful to Lucy for being here. But she feels the need to lighten the mood so she stage whispers conspiratorially. “You know he makes the worst patient. I pity the nurses who have to deal with him.”
“Oh, yes. And he never likes to admit when he is hurt. Aaron and I practically had to drag him into the hospital. And he still fought me on being admitted.” Lucy agrees with huge, teasing smile.
“You know I can hear you.” Tim grumbles.
Lucy rolls her eyes, but doesn’t argue the point any more. Instead she asks Genny questions about recent events in her life, but Tim interrupts. “You should go home and get some rest, Lucy. Now that Genny’s here.”
The excited grin falls from her face, and her eyes dim a little. If he wasn’t lying in a hospital bed, Genny would pinch him for his behavior. As it stands, Tim looks like he wants to kick himself, but he recovers. “I just mean you’ve been here all night. You need to take care of yourself.” He insists though the idea of Lucy leaving seems to be the last thing he actually wants.
Deciding to give her brother a break because she knows his heart is in the right place even when his head can be up his own ass, Genny agrees with him. “He’s right, Lucy. Go home, take a nap, shower and change, then get something to eat. I promise I’m not going anywhere. Tim won’t be alone.” Getting to the heart of the matter that worries the both of them.
Lucy considers the idea as she looks between the two of them before settling her eyes back on Tim. “Okay, I’ll check on Kojo too. Make sure he hasn’t destroyed your house.” She jokes. “I’m coming back later. Grey gave me the shift off.” Her tone brokers no argument, and Tim doesn’t dare try. He actually seems relieved with the knowledge that she will be back.
“Do you need a key?” Genny asks as she starts to look in her purse, but Tim and Lucy answer her with simultaneous objection. She should have known. Of course, Lucy has a key to Tim’s home.
The tension in the room fills as Lucy debates with herself over something before deciding to place her hand on Tim’s shoulder. She gently rubs the area as her hand lingers a touch longer than necessary for colleagues and friends as she holds Tim’s gaze with her own. Genny feels the pressure to turn away to let them have this private moment, but she is too curious to do so. Tim smiles at Lucy in effort to silently communication he will be okay while she’s gone. Lucy releases the breath she’s been holding before replacing it with her own smile.
Finally, she turns to address Genny. “You’ll call me if...if...” She can’t say what she fears even though Tim is out of the woods.
“Absolutely. First call.” Genny emphatically reassures her. She wouldn’t keep Lucy out of the loop where Tim is concerned. No matter what her brother says.
With one last nod and a look back at Tim, Lucy exits the hospital room. Genny watches as her brothers eyes’ follow Lucy out the door and pass the window for as long as he can. For now, she doesn’t comment. Choosing to let him have this sense of privacy. Instead she takes the seat recently vacated by Lucy. Before Tim can distract her by asking questions about the kids or how her moving plans are coming along, she wants to know how is doing. “How are you feeling? Honestly.”
“I’m good. Obviously, there is still some minor pain from the surgery. But other than that I’m fine. Glad it’s nothing like I felt yesterday.” Tim attempts to joke.
“You know it’s okay to admit you were worried.” Genny gets right to the point of what he has been avoiding. “Anyone would feel the same in your situation. No need to put on the tough older brother act with me.” She eases the statement with a teasing smile, but she is completely sincere. Tim hides too much of himself too often with the people he loves.
Tim scoffs at first, but a moment later he admits, “I was worried. Really worried I’d never walk again when I couldn’t feel anything.” He takes a deep breath. “And even before when it was supposed to be a simple procedure, I thought about how my life might change if something went wrong. Plus, there was a discussion about possible retirement even if everything turned out okay.”
Genny practically snorts at the idea. “Whoever thought you’d be willing to retire now clearly doesn’t know you.” Tim casts his eyes to the side in deep thought, but he doesn’t say anything. Worried she might have sounded dismissive of his feelings and not meaning to at all, she tells him as she lays a comforting hand on his arm, “But whatever you felt and thought at the time makes perfect sense, Tim. You’re allowed to have whatever emotions about this that you need to.”
Tim nods as though he believes her, but the seriousness of the moment requires him to ease the tension. “That therapy is really helping.”
She laughs in spite of everything. “Yeah, it really is. You might want to reconsider.”
Tim offers noncommittally, “I’ll think about it.” It’s the best he has agreed to so far, and for that she is grateful so she won’t push.
Instead she pivots to a new topic. “When is Ashley coming by?” Until yesterday she hadn’t spoken to Tim’s girlfriend. Only heard the occasional stories about her from him. (Which paled in comparison to the amount of stories he told about Lucy. And more importantly how he talked about Lucy with far more reverence.) Tim called to tell her that he was in the hospital and why. She checked in with Ashley only to ensure that Tim was following the doctor’s orders. Then Ashley updated Genny on his condition and need for emergency surgery. Finally, a quick call to inform her that the surgery went well, but that Tim was still sleeping off the anesthesia. Each time they had only spoken briefly and only about Tim. Genny had wondered why Lucy had been the one to let her know Tim was awake and wanted to talk, but didn’t question it further at the time. Too eager to speak with her brother.
Tim shifts in bed as much as he can. “Uh… she was here all day yesterday so I sent her home. She missed worked, so I thought she should go back today since I’m going to be fine. I’ll probably see her later.”
Her brother is not the only one to have the finely tuned Bradford bullshit detector. Who would leave someone they care about alone in a hospital? And then go back to work the next day? No matter what Tim might have requested. Lucy had to be practically shoved out the door, but not before insisting she would be back later today. Genny crosses her arms as she stares her brother down. “I know you’re lying. I’m going to keep bothering you until you tell me the truth. And I have the advantage because you can’t leave that bed.”
After a prolonged staring contest, Tim finally relents. “Ashley broke up with me.”
That bitch!
Genny can hardly believe it. “What the hell?! Who breaks up with someone after they’ve just had surgery?”
To her brother’s credit, he comes to his now ex’s defense. “She has been dealing with a lot of her dad’s health issues lately. I told you he was a retired cop.” Genny nods so he’ll continue. “She said her mother spent years worrying about him and trying to put up a brave front. And she didn’t want that life for herself. I guess yesterday finally put it all in perspective for her.” On some level, Genny can understand. She worries about the risks Tim takes. Being only slightly removed from that fear is still a lot to handle. She couldn’t imagine having to face it head on every day. But she also knows what this career means to him. And she hates to see him get his heart broken again.
Tim remains silent in his thoughts so she has no clear idea of what he may be thinking until he speaks. “Maybe I’m not meant to love anyone.”
“What?!” The concept that Tim isn’t meant for love is so completely unfathomable to her that she couldn’t have heard right. “How can you say that? Of course, you’re meant to love.” Despite how often he hides himself, when Tim loves someone he does so with his whole heart. She’s been lucky to repair her connection with her brother this past year, and experience that notion first hand.
“I didn’t know Ashley had this fear of my job until she told me. Rachel didn’t tell me she was thinking about a move to New York for her dream career until she had already made plans to go. And Isabel...” He gets control of his breathing before continuing. “Isabel felt like she had to live up to my standards all through our marriage, and I never knew. I missed a lot of things with Isabel.” The disappointment Tim has with himself is too much for Genny to bare.
She moves the chair closer to his bedside, grabs his hand and forces him to look at her. “Okay, yes that is a lot to deal with, but it’s not all on you, Tim.” She holds his gaze so he’ll know she’s being sincere. “If I’ve learned anything with the disillusionment of my marriage, it’s that relationships are a two way street. They could have told you what they were thinking and feeling at any time, and they didn’t.”
“Yeah, but what does it say about me that they didn’t?” Tim argues. “For some reason they didn’t feel comfortable doing so.”
“It says that you need to find someone who is comfortable with you. Someone who you can also easily communicate with. Someone with whom you’re not afraid to hold back your feelings.” After she a few seconds, she adds, “At least most of your feelings.” Genny knows who immediately comes to Tim’s mind upon her description, but she won’t call him on it. If she does, he’ll only push himself further away. He needs to come to terms with the idea that his feelings for Lucy are not going to disappear no matter how hard he tries to deny them.
Genny tries a different approach. “Every time you talked about Ashley, it always seemed like you were trying to be the perfect boyfriend for her. And that’s not a bad thing to try.” She pauses. “But you shouldn’t have to sacrifice yourself completely for someone. You should be with someone who understands you. And if you want to try something new for her, it’s because doing so makes you as happy as it makes her.” She softly squeezes Tim’s hand. “I honestly believe you’ll be with her someday.” She’s careful not to say ‘he will find her someday.’ Tim already has found the ‘her’ in question.
“Yeah… maybe.” Honestly, it’s the best she can expect from him for now. So she changes the topic to a lighter subject in order to allow Tim a break. They talk about her kids. About how the move is coming along. Her new teaching job she’ll be taking when she officially moves to LA. Anything and everything that doesn’t include the minefield that is her brother’s love life.
Before she realizes a couple of hours have passed when Angela Lopez and older woman enter Tim’s room. Due to their resemblance, Genny concludes the woman must be Angela’s mother. Which Angela confirms. “Mama and I stopped by to see how you were doing and to bring you a get well gift.” She hands Tim the bag in her hands.
“You didn’t have to do that, Angela. Great to see you again, Mrs. Lopez.” He smiles warmly for the older woman.
“I told you, Timothy, to call me Emilia.” She chides him, and Tim blushes under her motherly glare. The sight of which makes Genny laugh and gains the woman’s attention. “Now, who is this lovely woman?”
Tim introduces her as Genny steps forward to shake hands. “Nice to meet you, Mrs. Lopez.”
Emilia smiles at her. “You are very beautiful. Such great genes in the Bradford family. Are you single? Because I have three sons, and one of them might be perfect for you”
The question throws Genny for a loop, but doesn’t seem to surprise Angela who interrupts with “Mami, please stop.”
“I’m only curious, mija.” She addresses Angela before turning back to Genny. “You were saying?”
For some reason Genny doesn’t avoid the question. Probably due to the older woman’s motherly nature. “I’m actually in the middle of a divorce.”
“Awww, I’m sorry to hear that.” She actually does seem sympathetic as she continues. “But you know people who have found love once are more likely to love again.”
“I agree completely.” Genny answers like she shares a secret with the woman before she turns to look at her brother with a pointed stare.
For his part, Tim rolls his eyes as he digs into Angela’s gift. When he pulls out a long nightshirt resembling the kind old men like to wear – complete with a night cap with a cotton ball at the end.
Angela answers his unasked question. “Since you’ll be be here for a couple of days, I thought you’d like to wear something more comfortable than what the hospital provides. Something less constricting.” She concludes with a cheeky grin.
“You shouldn’t have.” Tim deadpans. He might act like he rebuffs the gift, but Genny knows her brother is practical above all else. The material of that sleepwear is quite cozy. And he really does appreciate the thought. Though he’ll probably never wear the nightcap. Which is a shame because she would pay top dollar to see it. Maybe with the right persuasion Lucy will get Tim to wear it.
Speak of the angel, at that moment Lucy walks into Tim’s room carrying a rather large gift basket filled to the brim. She startles at the sight of extra visitors but recovers quickly. Greeting Angela and her mother with an infectious smile before walking to the other side of the room to place the gift basket on the table. She quickly takes her place next to the other side of Tim’s bed.
Tim’s eyes have stayed on Lucy from the moment she entered the room. “I thought you were going home to rest.”
“I did. And I got everything done I needed, but I know how boring hospital stays can be so I got you this.” She indicates the gift basket. “You don’t even have to sign your name to it.” They share a smile. Must be some inside joke.
“And it’s bigger than the one you made for Nolan.” Tim states. Clearly pleased and amused.
Lucy rolls her eyes as she smiles mischievously. “Don’t assume that means anything. This was the only size basket they had.” She shifts nervously. “Would look pathetic to leave it only halfway filled.”
Tim nods in that way he has where he doesn’t believe her, but he is also not going to call her out on the lie. Though it's not as if anyone else in the room believes her statement anyway.
The Lopezes only stay for little while longer before saying their goodbyes. Genny offers to walk them out ostensibly so she can stretch her legs, but really to give Tim and Lucy some more alone time. Mrs. Lopez gives Genny her number and tells her to call when she’s ready to start dating. She listens to mother and daughter as they argue down the hall.
“Don’t even think about setting Lucy up with one of my brothers, mom.” Angela declares.
“I wasn’t going to, mija. Anyone can see her heart is unavailable.”
“She is unavailable. She’s dating a lawyer who works with Wesley.” Angela informs her mother.
The news only momentarily shocks Mrs. Lopez before she adjusts. “We’ll just have to do something about that, won’t we?” She speaks with the absolutely certainty of someone formulating a plan.
When Genny returns to Tim’s room, she stops outside the doorway to observe the two occupants. Smiling, laughing, teasing each other with their hearts practically shining through their eyes. She’s hasn’t seen her brother this happy in a very long time.
In that moment, she decides she will be calling Mrs. Lopez soon. Not for herself or anything having to do with the Lopez sons.
Genny wants to be a part of the mission to get Tim and Lucy together.