"Thank you, Zootopia! For Everything! Good night!"

Gazelle had just finished her encore. The concert was coming to an end, and the crowd was beginning to disperse. Judy was a part of the crowd near the stage, still jumping and cheering for more, with Nick standing beside her, just clapping, but looking pleased.

"Ohh, it's over already?" Judy pouted, halting her jumping. She could listen to Gazelle all night.

"Carrots, need I remind you that we have a shift at 8am?" Nick said, in mock disapproval. He was also upset that the night winding down, but he couldn't deny that he was tired.

Right on cue, Judy stifled a yawn. He was right after all, and it was nearing 1 in the morning.

"When did you get so goody-goody?" She joked, bumping him with her hip again.

Nick's heart skipped a beat from the contact, but he ignored it and shot back "When I was blackmailed into helping some bunny cop." with his signature sly grin, and began walking toward the exit with the rest of the crowd.

"Hustled" she corrected, hopping after him "hustled into helping some bunny cop."

Nick sighed, remembering the incident, not exactly fondly, but with a small smile "You would have made a great con-artist, Carrots."

"And you're making a great cop" she responded. "Are you still giving me a ride home?" she added, as they exited the concert area.

"No, I was actually just going to leave you here. Early day tomorrow, I don't know if I'll have the time." He said, head still facing forward, but his eyes shot her a mischievous look.

"Har har." She said, rolling her eyes. "You're the one that said you wanted to drive, so don't go blaming me tomorrow for your lack of sleep."

Nick spotted his car in the distance and grabbed his keys from his pocket. "Well, after that remark, I think I will leave you here." He said, and he broke into a run, looking back over his shoulder and laughing.

This was a mistake.

As soon as Nick's head turned back around, Judy zipped past him, not only knocking him off course, but snatching the keys from his hand.

Judy hopped high, turned in midair, and stuck her tongue out at him. "Too easy" she over her shoulder as she landed and sprinted toward Nick's car.

Nick was taken aback by the sudden burst of energy, and fought to regain his balance. "How is she not tired at all?" he thought, as he chased after her. "This bunny is going to be the death of me."

Nick finally reached the car, gasping for breath, and gaped at Judy. She had her legs crossed and was sitting on the roof. "Y'know I actually thought about leaving you here. Would have served you right." She teased, and tossed him the keys.

"How – are you still – so fast?" He said in between breaths, and rested his head on the roof, right next to her. The cool metal was a godsend.

"I make an effort to stay in shape, Officer Wilde. Maybe next time I ask you to come jogging, you'll do it." She chided, sliding off the roof. "A better question is how are you so out-of-breath? You're basically fresh out of the academy, and you were a star student!" She added, giving him a disapproving look.

"Yes, exactly. Star student." He said, regaining a bit of his composure. "I aced all my written tests, Carrots, and I used my wits, rather than brute strength." He added smugly. "I've tried to avoid senseless physical exertion my whole life. I'm quick, but I never really had a lot of stamina."

The ambiguity of his statement dawned on him. "I'll admit, I haven't met many women that could…finish a race before me" he said suggestively, giving her a smug grin.

"You're so gross" Judy said, rolling her eyes, but not before failing to stifle a giggle.
"Come on, get in" she said, walking around to the passenger door.

"Now who's being gross?" Nick said in mock disgust.

"Oh my god, you never turn it off, do you?" she groaned, sitting in the passenger seat.

"You love me." He responded, turning the key.

"Yes, yes I do." She responded, smiling. And there it was. As the car purred to life, the level of a certain scent spiked in the car, and Nick knew what it was immediately. Judy had tried to play it off as a platonic, endearing gesture, but her body had betrayed her.

Nick hastily rolled the window down. As disappointing as it was, he couldn't allow the scent to cloud his mind. He loved the way she smelled when she was "in the mood". In fact, he couldn't get enough of it.

But she doesn't deserve that, he thought to himself. He knew all too well the kind of discrimination that predators and prey in relationships received. Hell, he received enough it just by being a fox, but a bunny with a fox? There's no way he would make her go through that. As much as they both hurt because of it.

"Nick? Something wrong?" she asked. He was lost in thought, and had been far too quiet.

"No, thinking about waking up tomorrow." He said, thinking quickly. Guard up he thought to himself. Don't let her see she gets to you.

"Hmm, don't be such a baby" she said, fooled by his response. Smiling, she turned to look out the window. "I could have stayed here all night." She sighed.

"Well, I offered to leave you here" he joked, shooting her another sly smile. "But then you went and stole my keys."

"I knew I should have left you." She said, laughing.

The scent spiked again. He couldn't figure out what it was that he had said to set her off this time, so he angled his muzzle toward his open window and fell silent.

The rest of the car ride was uneventful. As the adrenaline and excitement from the concert had worn off, Judy became increasingly aware of how tired she actually was, and began to nod off almost immediately, while Nick was getting lost in his thoughts again. Judy's scent was spiking for what seemed like no reason at all. He glanced over at her and saw her breathing deeply, in the early stages of sleep, and then it dawned on him. She was probably hitting her heat cycle again. The time of the month where every single thing that happened made her scent flare up, as if she were the last rabbit on the planet, and repopulation was her only responsibility.

Great, he thought to himself. He hated it during her cycle. Well, that wasn't entirely true. He loved the way she smelled, that's for sure. It was intoxicating. And Judy always seemed more… well, not clingy, but more affectionate. She would touch him more, just brushes on the shoulder, or a hug at the end of their shift. To be honest, Nick really loved every second of those moments. The affection mixed with her scent made his head spin. No, what he hated was when he had to shut her down. He hated having to pretend that he didn't notice. He hated having to ignore his own urges and bodily functions.

More than anything, he hated the look on her face when he did all these things. She was so naïve, but she wasn't stupid. She would constantly drop hints, asking him to go to lunch or out to coffee after their shift ended, but Nick always had an excuse to avoid her, always promising to make it up to her. The look of disappointment was almost too much for him to bear. Maybe if she was just blunt about it, then he wouldn't have the heart to tell her no.

It took a few seconds for Nick to realize that he had driven right past Judy's apartment. He turned the car around and threw it in park right in front, then looked over at her. She was fast asleep in the passenger seat, head lolling to one side and ears drooping. She really does look cute he thought to himself, laughing at the reaction his statement would have gotten out of her.

She stirred, and another wave of scent hit him in the face. His heart felt like he was going to explode. He looked forward and put his head on the steering wheel, breathing very deeply. He couldn't handle this anymore. Why did he have to be so noble?

"Carrots. Hey, Carrots" he said, starting to shake her gently. "Judy. Wake up, you dumb bunny, we're here."

"Mmph, whaa?" She mumbled groggily.

"Yeah, me too." Nick said, grinning at her.

"Oh, shut up." She quipped, realizing what was going on. "Apparently I was more tired than I thought…"

"Nonsense, you could have stayed at that concert all night!" Nick replied, still grinning.

"Ughh, are you always this irritating?" She said, rubbing her eyes gently.

"Yes?"

She sighed. "Dumb fox" she breathed. Then she smiled. "Thanks for the ride, and for dancing with me at the concert." She grinned "Even if you have the dance moves of an elderly elephant."

"Well, it looks like you'll be paying for the coffee tomorrow morning" he said, acting offended.

"Sure" She said "My treat" and she leaned over the middle and hugged him.

Nick's heart was pounding on the inside of his chest. Her scent was overpowering, and Nick's eyes glazed over for a fraction of a second before he pulled himself back together. He somewhat awkwardly patted her on the back. "Well. I'd better get going, I still have another ten minute drive ahead of me, thanks to this dumb bunny." He said dryly.

Judy pulled back and looked at him. "Do you just want to stay here?" she asked. "You know I just bought that couch. It's super comfy"

Judy was trying to stay casual, but she had a vague, hopefully look in her eye, and her scent had made another massive spike.

"No, I can't, my uniform is at home, and my spare is at the cleaners right now." He said. That wasn't entirely true, but he wasn't going to let her know that. "Thanks, though" He added, trying to look grateful.

The hopeful look in Judy's face was replaced with one of disappointment, and her ears drooped ever so slightly, but she nodded and said "alright, if you say so." And she stepped out of the car. "I'll see you tomorrow, then?"

"7:45 sharp" he said, forcing a smile. "Try to be ready, Officer Hopps."

She rolled her eyes and smirked at him, but said nothing as she turned around and headed toward her building.

Now it was Nick's turn for his ears to droop. He watched her go inside with a sigh. She didn't even turn around to wave. Nick dropped his head back onto the steering wheel and sighed again. "You're so stupid" he said aloud to himself. "So. Unspeakably. Stupid."