First Christmas in New York~ Miami Vice Fan Fiction Crockett X Tubbs

Part 1

Ricki had one arm coiled around Crockett's middle as they casually trudged through the rough and snowy streets of the Bronx. It was less of a romantic gesture than she wished it could have been and more of a protective measure. White boys tended to get too much unwelcome attention from the street-gangs. Most of the time they ended up hurt or dead. But Raquel had a pretty big reputation and although she changed through the years, that rep still followed her. They wouldn't mess with her or her friends. Having her arm around him was one way to wordlessly communicate that Crockett was hers and any challenges to this were unwelcome. It was like the placement of blood above the doors in Biblical times, so that the angel of death would not visit. Ricki hoped Sonny didn't mind her invasion of personal space, but doing this would keep him from some serious trouble in the neighborhood, where he was a minority.

Holiday lights and music seemed to add an air of cheerfulness. Christmas-time in New York City was intoxicating in an entirely different way than its usual bustling chaos. There was a livelihood and hope to be felt even in the darkest of alleys. Everywhere they went, there was an air of great expectation and excitement that could not be rivaled by any other season of the year. Smiles appeared on even the most menacing of punks faces.

And for the first time in years, it strangely felt like Ricki had returned home. A home that had changed in terms of importance and complete aura since last, a foot, was stepped in it. For the immediate absence of loved ones could easily be felt through the city. Although, it was not so easily seen, the strange presence of new and different loved ones seemed to put salve on the burns and scars the past had left upon everyone's hearts. All the same, it was refreshing to know that her other home still existed, even in its changed state. She couldn't help but find it uplifting, that her New York seemed to welcome them as weary wayward travelers, with opened arms.

Ricki's hand nervously extended towards the door of the apartment but she hesitantly with-drew it. She and Raphael used to live inside this very same apartment building, until the day he had gotten married. She had to swallow back the sorrowful lump growing and threatening to close off the confines of her throat. With a hesitant look at her freezing partner, Ricki decided that she had to push herself past the fear of remembering what it felt like to be with her brother. Seizing the handle of the door, she found herself recollecting what it was like to be Raquel Tubbs the model. The model, who would make enough money to carry them out of this pit of destruction, that was known as the Bronx. The model, Ricki believed died, the very day she decided to be a cop. The way she had failed to deliver upon her promise to rescue them from poverty, both troubled and haunted her. Hell, she owned maybe one thing in her life, her car, that was about it. All the expensive clothes and jewelry she had in her wardrobe now, belonged to the Miami police department. By the time she, herself, had become a cop, this apartment had been made safer by her brother, his partner Da'vante Simons, and several other dedicated cops from other city departments.

While Raphael never approved of her decision to become a cop, he supported her every grueling step of the way. Ricki could never forget the way her brother made her feel when she returned from the academy. He decorated the apartment and hosted the biggest party she had ever seen in her entire life, to celebrate her graduation. It was like the entire building and street happened to be in attendance. There wasn't even room to move in their apartment and the hallway was lined with people waiting to get in. This building also happened to be the very same place, her brother proposed to his now widowed wife. Sadly enough, their old apartment was just a few floors down from where she and Sonny would be staying.

A few tears clung to her lashes as she pulled Dav's door open and murmured, "Gosh, I haven't been here in such a long time." The period of time she classified as "being long", happened to be nearly two or three years. Which, when you visit someone every day for most of your life, was a great expanse of time. Ricki grew quieter than usual as she entered the room. The furniture, lighting, and setting had changed a good deal. Even the records beside the turntable had been rotated and the musical collection had been added to, which felt, quite frankly, slightly overwhelming. But then, there were the good old things that remained in the places they had been for years, and those familiar things brought a smile back to her face. Things like the kitchen table, the sink, and the welcome mat, the tinier details, made this place feel more at home than a strange hotel ever could.