Chenford Oneshots

Pt 2 Undercover

The door creaked open, and Lucy stepped into the familiar warmth of her apartment. The weight of the past month, the lies, the constant tension, the fear, clung to her like a second skin. She was finally home, but the world outside still felt too close, too dangerous.

The sound of heavy footsteps echoed from the hallway. She turned just in time to see Tim standing there, frozen. For a moment, neither of them moved, both caught in the silence between relief and fear. Then, before she could say anything, he crossed the room  and wrapped his arms around her, pulling her close, holding her as if when he let go he would lose her. Tim felt his shirt get a bit wet from her tears and he took her face in his hands and looked into her beautiful brown eyes. "Your ok," his voice shaky with emotion. "You're back,". Lucy smiled with tears streaming down her face and she nodded. Lucy exhaled, her body sinking into his embrace. The feel of him against her, solid and real, was the only thing grounding her right now. She hadn't realised how much she needed this—him until after the arrest.

"I'm here," she murmured, but her voice cracked. She was home, yes, but she didn't feel whole. There was a part of her that was still out there, tangled in the mission.

Tim pulled back again slightly, his hands still gripping her arms, his eyes searching hers. "Luce, are you really okay?"

Lucy hesitated, the answer caught in her throat. She wanted to say yes, to tell him everything was fine, that she had made it through unscathed. But the truth weighed too heavily on her.

"I don't know," she admitted, her voice small and wobbly. "I don't know if I'm okay."

Tim's expression softened, but she could see the worry still etched deep into his features. He had been through this before. The last time someone he loved came back from an undercover mission, she hadn't been the same. Lucy knew that fear was lingering in the back of his mind now, the ghost of his past.

"You don't have to be okay yet," he said softly. "I'm just glad you're back."

She nodded, but the tension in her chest didn't ease. The mission had pushed her to the edge, made her question everything, especially herself. She'd spent weeks pretending to be someone else, trapped in a world of criminals and violence. And now, back in her own home, she didn't quite feel like herself. Sure she had done the same sort of mission before, but it never ended up being this long...

"I just... I don't know how to turn it off," she whispered, her eyes dropping to the floor. "I was in so deep, Tim. I had to be someone else. And now... it's hard to come back from that."

Tim's grip tightened on her arms, his voice steady. "You don't have to do it alone. I'm here, okay? We'll get through this together. One step at a time."

Lucy met his eyes, her heart aching at the sincerity she saw there. He meant it. He had always been her anchor, the one person she could count on no matter what. But she also knew he was carrying his own fears, the scars from his past with Isabel. She didn't want to add to that burden.

"I'm sorry," she said, her voice barely above a whisper.

Tim frowned, shaking his head. "Don't apologise. You did what you had to do. I'm just glad you're safe."

Lucy let out a shaky breath, the weight of his words wrapping around her like a blanket. But the guilt still lingered. She had seen what undercover work had done to people—how it could chip away at their soul. And she was terrified of what it might have done to her.

"I was so scared I'd lose you," Tim admitted, his voice breaking the silence. "Every day, I thought about what happened with Isabel, and I couldn't help but think... what if the same thing happens to us?"