Chapter 2: Proven Wrong

Nick groaned in an exaggeratedly loud tone, standing at the edge of the sidewalk along the street just outside his apartment. His audience being the alarmed or confused passers-bys whenever he went about his next set of unenthusiastic whines. His antics earning their magician-like disappearing act from his general presence. Proudly dressed in his pressed work blues with a dark navy blue windbreaker, a set of two tall coffees in his left paw from 'Crescents' a local family cafe. A nice place that primarily served nocturnal mammals. If not for his trademark childishness he otherwise took on the appearance of prestige and professionalism. While not as cold as the weather in Tundratown, the Rainforest district had a artificial rain system in the form of large networking sprinklers whose reservoirs were still experiencing the cold of February. That same cold now making itself impossible to ignore as it weighed his fur down with the aforementioned trickle.

And so Nick groaned again at the frigid shiver he experienced when another wisp of tunneled air burrowed through that quiet street under the thick canopy, his hate for the chilly conditions entirely visible by the time the car he was waiting for finally arrived. Coming to a rest, just aside the small poorly kept street, it's stopping creating a teeth clenching shriek caused from the water logged brake pads. The taller cruiser took some effort to get into, especially while balancing the two coffees. Nick wasn't deterred though as the heat from the vents of the overly sized vehicle immediately welcomed him.

Having settled in just after the click of the door closing behind him, Nick quickly passed a disappointed look to the offending mammal just across from his seat, "Sorry I'm late... traffic." Judy offered with a guilty smile and shrug of her shoulders from the parallel drivers seat.

His response was slow and deliberate as he began the meticulous motion of adjusting the tie of his uniform and sat up in a picturesque example of reason and decorum, he cleared his throat before looking at his partner square with an assessing expression. "Uuuuuuughh!" he groaned loudly with an agitated flourish of his free paw at Judy.

"That bad huh?", Judy barely suppressed a giggle at his antics.

"Blaaaagh!" the whining tone continued with another flourish of his free paw in the air above him as if reprimanding any higher being willing to listen. He then took the second coffee from its stack on his own and offered it to the offending rabbit that now narrowly held his playful, sarcastic glare. This time she failed to stop herself when a small chuckle escaped her, Nick all the while was already relaxing back into his seat, letting the heater work the chill out of his fur. She placed the gifted cup of coffee in its respective cup holder just aside the center console.

"That's an astute observation you have there Officer Wilde," she said sarcastically with a pause. "Is this about as much functional brain power as I should expect from you today?" She chided quizzically.

His own expression shown a concerted effort to think over the question as she pulled the vehicle into drive on the quieted rainforest street. Eventually his expression evened out as he nodded, "Gaah!", Judy was openly laughing this time.

"Stop that, not while I'm driving!" She added with a final snort before swatting her paw at the fox who was now chuckling to himself at his accomplishment.

"Alright, alright, eyes on the road Carrots." He breathed a sigh of relief as he took a sip of his own sweet, caffeine infused drink, the liquid doing the work of warming him from the inside while the cruisers impressive heaters worked from the outside. "Can't wait till this winter crap is done." He groaned as seriously as he could.

"I thought foxes liked the winter? Didn't get your coat this year?" She mocked, the car slowing to a stop at a red light.

"Snow yes, heck even the rain in spring is nice but this in between crud is just… Uuugh." he flourished again, "Too cold to evaporate and not cold enough to be straight snow resting on the upper layers. It's only like this a couple weeks of the year but it still sucks." He slumped into his seat with a relieved sigh. Watching his partner out of the corner of his eye he began reaching for a small box in the front pocket of his jacket that he had picked up while buying coffee. "So, Carrots do you know-", he was cut off by the sudden smell that assailed his now defrosted olfactory sense. Judy remained just watching him out of the corner of her own vision, smiling all the while he took another blatant sniff of the air, waiting for him to catch up. "What?", he took another long whiff, his paw suddenly froze over the modest box of candies in his pocket as he he looked to the back seat. He finally noticed it, a large, vibrant bouquet of assorted, colorful flowers with familiar company markings and unique wrapping sitting in the seat just past the metal mesh divider that separated them from the place they put their 'perp' as it were.

"Flower...s?"

She shrugged with barely a care to respond, "Come on Nick, even you have to realize it's Valentine's day." She rolled her eyes as the street light switched over and the car kicked back into action moving forward, it wasn't much further till the district separating tunnel set beside a huge waterfall that would take them into the heart of Zootopia. The mid February season still meant slightly longer nights that lacked the morning sunlight to help Nick keep up with their hours.

"No way, you really forgot?", she mocked. Their banter had gotten to that same point where the morning greetings and its subsequent antics slowed down, neither of them having enough coffee to continue in any long winded discussion just yet.

"Who're they from?", he asked after a while, trying his best to seem disinterested as their vehicle came to a stop in the parking lot of precinct one, the more moderate temperature of the downtown area having worked the brake pads back to their usual dry, quiet.

"Secret admirer," Judy air quoted as they made their way up the steps of the side entrance. Her calm, nonchalance at the subtly smelling gift in the back seat causing more than a little confusion to him. "Not that it's really much of a secret, I mean come on, pretty obvious don't you think?" She chuckled adding a small pep to the last couple steps. The now defunct box of chocolate growing more and more pathetic when compared to the more extravagant gift.

Nick took more than a couple silent moments to think over the seemingly blatant revelation. "Obvious?!", he began thinking it over. Knowing that Judy had been and likely would remain the poster child of the ZPD with a friendly and approachable demeanor that worked well on recruitment posters. But also that this 'secret admirer' was not only something she was so nonchalant about but someone she knew about made him feel... odd. Judy didn't seem to miss the confused look, offering a challenging smile before Nick steeled his expression, poorly pretending indifference .

"On your left!" The loud, taller voice was the usual warning for the smaller mammals as they moved out of the way. The large zebras steps clacked across the marble floored lobby of the precinct, dressed in a brown uniform with a flower embroidered on the back. Once the large bouquet he was holding was noted it was nearly impossible to mistake the delivery mammal.

"Oooooh, another one!?" the proud, portly voice of the desk cat himself; Clawhauser jubilantly played out as the delivery zebra set the flowers down beside a large almost pile of others, quickly consuming the cheetahs available counter space.

"Woah buddy, quite the sought after kitty arncha?" Nick began with his trademark smirk as the two made their way to the front, just passed the quickly leaving zebra.

"Wow Clawhauser, really giving off an impression huh, and to think for even a moment they didn't want to have you as the cat that we all see when we walk in!" Judy offered with a similar excitement.

"Oh Judy, Nick. Morning you two," he began looking over at the floral arrangements. "Oh! There aren't for me silly, they're yours." He pointed clearly towards Judy, she slowly pointed at the flowers then to herself.

"Mine?" she meekly questioned in surprise, earning an ear to ear smile from the large cheetah as he nodded enthusiastically.

"HOOOPPS!" the whole of the busy front of the precinct came to a screeching stop suddenly looking up to their loud, enraged chief at the overlook above and to the left, Bogo did not appear pleased. "MY OFFICE, NOW!" He finished before vanishing back into his office with the loud slam of his door. Judys already surprised expression sank further as she looked from the closed chiefs door back to her two friends. But her mouth just hung open uselessly, searching for something to say but instead just resigning in defeat. Pointing in the direction of the stairs she began her trek to whatever reprimands waited at its end. The two remaining predators just watched her march with visible sympathy as she walked that death row like distance.

"Wow, Chief's pretty mad, already had a few officers take other flowers to your guys cubical." Clawhauser chuckled sitting back.

"There's more?!" Nick stumbled with the word.

Clawhauser rotated back around in his chair to face the fox with his usual, bright and sunny attitude. "Yea, pretty crazy huh? A lot of stand alone valentines from children through the school districts here in Zootopia that sent cards to their heroes, even Chief got a couple but no one got nearly as many as she did. I signed them all in from delivery, some from around Zootopia, bucks that seem to admire our little rabbit officer. But after a few, several more large bouquets arrived from the Burrows, seems she's quite the bachelorette now," he ended in a singsong tone. "Must have paid a mint to afford shipping it this far from the city, crazy huh?"

Nick looked continually dumbfounded, barely a manageable thought in his head as the con-artist in him tried to figure the logistics of that kind of cost to transport already expensive floral arrangements tens if not hundreds of miles from their original place. He had to agree with the cheetahs assessment, it wouldn't be cheap, that kind of disposable income to send something that intimate to a rabbit they likely had never even met.

"Yea, she had one in the car from a secret admirer too." Nick let out a pathetic laugh that died on its way out of his throat. Instead of a sympathetic look, Clawhausers expression lit up.

"Wait she already had one on the way in?! That means she had to have got it at home, like from her apartment complex, that means someone close to her. OOOOOoooooh!" The shrill sound of it caused Nick's ears to fold back on his head at the loud, ecstatic sound the once dangerous looking predator managed. "A secret admirer, wonder who it could be," a quirked brow began on the cheetah's face as he eyed the confused looking Nick who returned a look that somehow instantly killed off his smarmy expression. "Wait, you don't know who its from?"

"No idea, she said it was pretty obvious, but I dunno!" Nick responded faster than he had expected and lacked any of his usual cocky tone, the whole of the mystery getting more and more at his tenuously held nerves.

"Oh, we have to figure it out. Did you see a card or a logo or anything? Maybe we can narrow it down?" And just like that Nick's mind was quickly looking back through the information available to him. He had to admire the mammal who had selected the very nice arrangement that seemed to be very fitting alongside the image of his partner in his head. Some bellflowers and other purple buds with an earth smell, nice colors, vibrant but down to earth in general, all neatly tied at the base with some cliche carrots, the company logo of-

"Otterton!" Nick snapped his finger at the realization.

"Otterton?" Clawhauser was confused for a moment before catching on to the same thing. "The florist! That's in the Savannah Central, it's pretty close to where Judy lives, which means they live nearby!" Whatever short lived victory Nick had was quickly slipping away. This unknown admirer had quickly developed an impressive resume whoever they were. Unlike the nameless dozens of bouquets, he knew flowers that smelled good without being overpowering, allowing her own smell to come through, they lived close by and even knew her well enough to have the flowers sent directly to her. Worse still, Nick realized that whoever they were, the act of sending flowers directly to her didn't alarm her in the slightest. Her district as he knew had a large number of prey species, rabbits especially taking to the tepid environment with ease. Herself even informing him of a few rabbits on the lower floors of her complex.

The two males lost in their thoughts and attempts at surmising the conundrum at their feet didn't notice the quickly returning steps. "Ugh, Chief chewed me out about all the flowers," attention quickly shot back to the reappearing Judy who still hung herself in a defeated slouch before taking in a breath and shooting back into her usual defiant, determined demeanor. "Anyway, Chief wants us here today to catch up on paperwork… And mostly wants me here to receive and move any more arrangements so he doesn't have to 'waste any more of his officers time'. Two bugs one stone sorta thing so sounds like desk duty today partner!" Nick was still slightly baffled, but his partner's enthusiasm and smile always seemed to have a way of rubbing off on him.

A few hours later

"Oh this one's from a sheep in Tundra Town named Sherice!" Judy announced proudly at her thirtieth, thirty-first valentines card from children throughout the city. She was glowing with pride as she read through the small cards, ears forward and at attention as she practically burrowed her face into the latest of a series of fan made gifts.

Nick on the opposite side of their cubicle was on the other paw nearly tearing his ears out now, four or five hours into their shift. The paperwork dragged on at a sloths pace and worst still was the looming theories. "There was that hare she mentioned a week ago?" Nick began grasping at whatever straws he could think up in his innermost thoughts. "No, Judy hated the stuck up guy… did say he looked nice in his suit though, ah," Nick thudded his head against the blunt of his adjoined L shaped desk making sure the whack to his noggin was painful enough to try and straighten itself out, a bad idea but as good as any he could think of in that moment.

"Woah there Nick, no destroying city property now. Your head is hard enough." Judy mocked, Nick rotating to glare at her to find her already turned around and just staring him down. "Paperwork really getting to ya that much? I know it's not the funnest but we can't be out saving the city everyday!", She smiled and Nick honestly couldn't figure out just how she managed to always be so upbeat. He made a constant effort to stay as positive as he could, he had a lot to be happy for, thing was that like any other mammal it was never enough, he shrugged letting go of his useless glower.

Nick was a slouched mess as he took in his blessings, "Good job, good health and friends, a mammal would be greedy to ask for more." He could hear the memory of his mother playing out in his head bringing that moment a somber nostalgia. Nick smiled at just that, from hustler to blue clad bringer of justice was a heck of a one-eighty, and the academy didn't hurt either when it came to his looks. But the last part of that memory was sitting in the seat just across smiling at him, he couldn't help smiling in return with his usual cocky grin. "Wouldn't be the first time I was called greedy."

"What do you mean 'we' as I recall it you were just my sidekick when it comes to saving Zootopia, Carrots." Nick chided with an oddly more personable tone and as always, if on cue, Judy laughed.

"Oh really, if memory serves I saved both our butts from the likes of a cold, watery grave. That makes you the 'sidekick...' Slick." She retorted confidently matching his tone even towards its end, Nick fought back a shiver running up his spine at the memory of Bigs threat of death.

"A challenge hm? Well if I remember correctly, and I clearly do, it was I that saved your cottontail from the cruel hooves of Bellwether."

And they were off, shots fired at each other in a useless battle of wit and charm, one that Nick excelled at but Judy often made up for with stubbornness. "A leg wound is a small price to pay compared to, what, over ten years of tax evasion 'Mr. Wilde' hm," she shot back with enthusiasm, both leaning forward in their chairs barely blinking in competition with the other. Both of their tones had slowly changed in the course of their menial conflict… yet something else in the way they spoke slower to each other.

"Oh…" Nick sorted through his memory looking for the next of his silver tongued munitions, his eyes wandering over the oddly nice looking partner across from him, settling on the brass badge on her vest. His smirk must have been utterly disarming because as Judy followed his gaze her stout expression sank. "Blackmail is illegal if I recall, you dragged me on your dangerous adventure for truth and justice nearly getting me killed, twice," he showed two clawed fingers towards her to accent the count, he wasn't even sure when but at some point he had moved his chair closer towards her now only a couple arms lengths away. "And even in spite of all that, when Chief horns for brains tried to take his best officers badge away… I wouldn't let that happen." His words fell out of his mouth as opposed to the confident rebuttal he imagined them as, each slower and more intimate than the last as he stared first at the offending chunk of printed metal that now sat cradled in the rabbit's paws. She held it as if just the mention of that moment would make the metal deteriorate into dust. He stared for a moment longer than he had ever intended to but couldn't pull his eyes away from where it was. "Never met a mammal that deserved it more," gone was all pretense of their competition of wits. Judy looked awestruck, on the verge of tears? Honestly Nick couldn't place her forlorn like expression for anything he had ever seen before.

Judy ran a single of her padless digits over her badge in that moment of silence as she looked at it, slowly she looked back over to her partner, "I have."

The two stared at each other for a long, silent moment, "are… we flirt-"

"Mail call!" Came from just outside their cubicle, the loud voice of their wolf colleague, Wolford echoed off the overly sized cubicle of desks for the two smallest officers on the force. They both instantly shot into the backs of their chairs and rolled back towards their respective desks at opposite ends of the small area. "These are for Judy, we're running out of space so Chief wants you to take a full hour lunch and take these home or throw them out. Doesn't care so long as we get some of our space back." He ended putting it down next to several similar ones on her desk, seemingly unaware of their moment just a second before.

More than half the floor was taken up by various baskets full of flowers and chocolates. "Nick, chief says you're behind so you only get a thirty and he wants you to use the time to catch up on your reports." The wolf shot him a comical look while waving a single clawed finger at him. It was always funny how the goofy wolf seemed to play the role of parent despite Nick himself having a couple years on the larger predator.

"Alright!" Judy responded with gusto before flying out of her chair, grabbing Nick's jacket of the back of his before picking up the latest floral arrangement.

"Hey, you have your own jacket!" Nick pouted childishly.

"I'll pick you something up while I'm out so you're not just stuck with vending machine food, still have your wallet in your jacket?" She asked though she clearly already knew from the way she patted at the very pocket that had it. Nonetheless he agreed with a nod and in much the same moment she was already heading down the hall towards the side entrance at the end of the office area. Nick had already seen the poor state their selected cruiser "Car 4-1-1," as it had been dubbed for being the rookie mobile. It now reeked of flowers and even the tinted windows didn't help the neon like cast of so many colors throughout the space they took up. Now it was just Nick and Wolford, the wolf taking an unusual care to watch Judy as she walked down the hall. The longer he stared at her with that goofy grin on his face as he leaned out of the cubicle, the more it annoyed Nick.

"Aaaaand, she's clear, alright!" Wolford cheerfully announced as he shot forward to him handing a single envelope to the surprised fox. "And from Happytown, a card for you, sorry their postal system is kinda slow. Seems our fox officer is also someone's hero. Figured you would want the moment to yourself rather than having your partner fawning over it for you, ya know?" Nick was taken aback, unable to formulate words as he stared idly at the sealed card.

"I got one… too?", he sounded almost entirely doubtful that the very thing Wolford held was even real despite it being right there.

"From one; James Brushwell from Harpat Middle-School… the address says. Like I said, you're someone's hero." Nick took it carefully, as if just touching it would make it disappear, "not impossible", he figured given his record, he was no one's role model. Nick remained just staring at it and sure enough, "James from Harpat Middle-School," he repeated back to the wolf who only chuckled.

"That hard to believe? You and your partner did save a LOT of predators from… well yea man, just... thanks." The wolf awkwardly scratched at the back of his head before making his way out of the cubical. "Now get back to work, Chief's on us today."

"Yea, hahha, will do." Nick laughed weakly as the steps of of the wolf eventually grew quiet from their distance, not taking his eyes off the envelope, "You're welcome."

He had re-read the message a couple of times, "You're my hero." he kept reading it, it felt alien the way it proudly made him sit up in his chair at the warm feeling it caused.

"Alright, enough of that, back to work." He gingerly opened the top drawer of his desk and set the card inside just on top of his cell phone and next to his small box of candy from the coffee shop that morning.

A few more hours later

"What do you mean you don't know who?" Nick fumed at his cell phone, anxiously scratching at the fur at the back of his neck as he began to pace the hall back and forth.

"Nick, I have done over a hundred arrangements today, countless others prepared throughout the week, I can't possibly remember who-" The voice on the other end responded.

"Please Emmitt, this is important. It was delivered to one; Judy Hopps, you have books and records right? Help me out will ya." Nick begged the otter on the other end of the phone call.

"Because of how busy we are during Valentine's Day most of our on the fly orders aren't put in the books, only our registers for tax reasons, sorry." He sounded sympathetic but it did little to help how the fox on the other end of the call sounded.

Nick pinched the bridge of his snout in agitation. "Can you just take another look for me?", he asked as he paced that hall of the precinct just past the vending machines.

"Sure, I'll check again. Why is this so important? Is this part of an investigation?" Otterton asked while looking at his books of deliveries again. A tired sigh emanated from the other end of the conversation.

"No, just… she's my partner and someone's delivering flowers to her door instead of the precinct, it just has me a little worried. She's a celebrity at this point and I just want to make sure there aren't a bunch of weirdos and stalkers with her address?" Nick lied earning a moment of silence on the other end of the line for a moment. Dangling from his free paw was the second cup of coffee Judy had picked up during her lunch, part of a combo with a spinach sandwich she had gotten him from Crescents, though now it was down to the last couple of drops this late into the day.

"Yea, guess you're right, I'll check harder." Otterton sounded tired, Nick couldn't blame him knowing that of all the days Valentines was likely his most chaotic for a florist. "Anyway I gotta go, if I find it I'll call you immediately ok?" Otterton said on the other end.

"Yea, yea. Thanks again, tell everyone I said hi."

"Will do, enjoy the evening Nick."

"You too, have a good night Emmit." Nick conceded to their combined tiredness before he hung up.

Emmit sat there with the dial tone for several moments, he knew he wasn't a very good liar but thankfully over the phone didn't allow his poor poker face or many ticks to give him away. Letting out a breath he hadn't even realized he was holding he set the phone down with a 'click.' Looking over where his finger was resting, his recent deliveries listed in an orderly manner across the large book. The latest directly under the offending digit reading; "Delivery to: Judy Hopps, From-

"Hey, all ready?" Judy asked appearing as if from thin air, offering no sound from exiting the locker room and somehow sneaking up on the natural hunter, surprising Nick as he quickly put away his cell. "Who was that?"

"Oh, no one, just a call." He shrugged guiltily offering nothing more than that. Judy quirked a brow defiantly, ready to hold her position on the subject before surrendering at his own stubborn expression, not looking like she was about to get more out of him than that.

"Alright Mr. Hides-a-lot I won't push. Let's head home, you already clocked out?", she asked and he nodded. Trying to decipher who from anyone he knew that could be the culprit of his current puzzle in the form of thee "Secret Admirer" that continued to elude the mammal who 'knew everyone' in his own words. "It's a hit to my pride at this point!" Nick concluded, trying to justify his obsession with figuring out just who set this confusing mystery in motion.

Time seemed to just be flashing passed him as they made their way to the still flower smelling cruiser in the parking lot, filled with the last batch of delivered flowers. Judy would drop him off before taking the vehicle to her crappy little complex, being the designated driver gave her the benefit of the vehicles use but the responsibility of picking up his lazy tail each work day. "Clawhauser just messing with me? Wolford, Rhinowitz, Snarlof, that hare she mentioned?"

"Nick?"

"Swinton from booking? Does she even swing that way?"

"Niiick?"

"Franky from down the street? A friend of the family from the burrows, a childhood sweetheart or-"

"Nick!?" Judy asked again finally fishing him from his line of quarry. He looked up with a disheveled expression. "You alright? Think this might be the quietest you have ever been outside of work, you miss paperwork that bad?" She chuckled, "What's up?" She asked with that same warming smile, "Curse that dang smile." Nick glared for all of a moment before sighing in defeat.

"I give up, who was it?" He rolled his eyes.

"Give up what?"

"Oh don't give me that. Your secret admirer, I know everyone, usually." Nick crossed his arms with a furrowed brow, studying the expression on his partners face. Slowly it turned with her head just tilting in a show of confusion.

"Who?"

"You know from the flowers when you picked me up?" He flourished his paws forward in agitation much like he had in the morning.

"Oooooh, yea the flowers from the 'Secret Admirer,' those ones?"

"Yes! How can I not have heard of them? A secret boyfriend or something like that, holding out on me?!" He shot back louder than he had originally expected.

"That's what was bothering you all day?" A challenging brow returned to her countenance. It mocked Nick to no end and he knew suddenly that he was losing, he didn't know just what he was losing only that he was losing… badly.

"Yes, please tell me!" He begged sitting forward on his knees, leaning across the center console with his hands together in a pleading prayer. Instead of sympathy though, his partner was cruel.

"Tell you what, if you can't figure out who they are by tomorrow's shift. I'll tell you," she looked utterly defiant in that moment. Nick just sighed in defeat before taking a moment to return his cocky grin to himself.

"You're a pain in my tail, Fluffs. Alright... tomorrow." He conceded before opening the door to escape to the cold air of his street in the rainforest district. He stopped half way out of the door, the weight, the sound of a familiar box catching his attention. "Oh, hey almost forgot," he followed sitting back retrieving the small box of chocolates, reaching over across the center console, "Here."

"What is it?" She asked taking the small box. The top piece of the small cardboard container had a folded layer not unlike a seasons greetings card, it was cheap, simple but Judy still took it with a smile. "When did you get this?"

"When I got us coffee this morning." Nick shrugged dismissively, he was mistaken if he thought it was that simple.

"So you didn't forget what day it was!"

"Me? Forget, madam I am offended, of course I didn't forget. Silly rabbit." He laughed waiting as she opened the card. A yellow dandelion, long since pressed by the card stock layer throughout the day. Judy picked it up and looked over the weed before wordlessly questioning the small flower. "Couldn't think of what kind of flower to give Zootopias best known bunny, so I just thought back to that time… you remember the day when you came back to Zootopia, coulda gone to the police, Bogo but you came straight to me?" Nick's tone was tired but whimsical as the two of them thought back to that moment under the bridge in the dead of summer, the weed like flower everywhere.

"Clever fox." She said fighting back a tear, taking a new care in how she held the small, seemingly insignificant plant.

"Have a good night, Judy." He hopped out of the car now, waving bye, she reciprocated the motion without a word. The door shut and the two parted ways for yet another productive day for the pair of officers in the big city of Zootopia.

His pace was slow and deliberate, the steps counted on the concrete allowing him time to think. He still couldn't figure out 'who' no matter how much he thought about it. As far as he knew, Judy wore her emotions on her sleeve. A secret boyfriend that he didn't know about was not only impossible for him to imagine with how much time he spent hanging out with her, but he also didn't like the way the mere thought turned his insides. The shade of the canopy having quickly cooled the air of the lower parts of the district to near freezing. Worst still was the moisture that could be felt even inside his building, though to a lesser extent. He didn't notice anyone along his path through the normally very quiet housing building as he went to his door down and to the end of the hall on the first floor. Retrieving his keys from the pocket in his jacket and inserting it into the old lock, the apartment door opened with a small amount of effort, the smell of flowers still stuck in his nose from the whole of the day making itself known again as he breached the portal into his apartment. He set his keys and wallet down on the counter just off and to the left as he entered, as if prompted the assorted pipes that bellowed and moaned to life in their rhythmic fashion. The best feeling deriving from the boilers and central heating systems that kept the space nice and dry.

It was something so many would scoff at but to him it was a lot of space, cheap and homely in a growingly real sense to the very sceptical fox himself. A constant like his new job and friends… he liked it.

His other friends, primarily Finnick likely out for a night on the town playing at his own charms and swooning vixens at some bar, he took to his own comforting habit. A cold fresh beer from his fridge and a seat for the next couple of hours before he would doze off. Time continued to flow by, "How does that saying go? When you're having fun?" Though in the end he wasn't sure if it was fun or just the content feeling he had in that moment, either way it wasn't long till he was ready to head to bed. Not so much a room as it was a space divided by a shower curtain, the welcoming of his bed would have to wait as he pulled a piece of card paper from his jacket's pocket. He propped it up there just beside his bed for what passed as a nightstand among the many repurposed furnishings he had dotting across and making up the brunt of Nick's home. He just stood there staring at it, just a couple of words in order and he just couldn't have imagined the impact they had, he never felt so proud in his life as he remained there smiling, to no one in general.

Slipping out of his uniform and hanging it on a small of loose hanging wire near the boiler, the dryest place he could find in his makeshift apartment he moved for his bed. Something was off though in how it was clean and made up. Nick took pride in his appearance but the same could not be said for his sleeping arrangements, so as he looked at it, it continued to elude him, the bedding, the blanket or the bouquet that sat on top of-

A moment… then two he stared at the familiar arrangement before his jaw dropped in realization. The purple arrangement held in place by a carrot themed wrapping with familiar logos belonging to Ottertons floral arrangements, there was no mistaking it being the very same bouquet he saw earlier that same morning. He regarded it with a lavish curiosity as he reached for it, the green stems removed of their thorns, the paper and plastic wrappings around the flowers crinkling in his paw as he lifted it from the bedding. Raising it he took the small hanging tag-

Nick smirked to himself nodding his head at the sly rabbits antics.

"From: Secret Admirer"

"To: Dumb Fox."

Bonus Ending -

Finally arriving home, setting the car into park just under the street light a few blocks down the busy street. Judy could feel the tense excitement coursing through her every nerve.

"Nick has to find out soon." She snickered to herself at whatever his reaction would be, disappointed she wouldn't be there when he realized that the admirer was her the whole time and that she had been yanking his chain all day. Looking over to the small box still sitting on the center console a whole different giddy feeling kept in the core of her stomach, causing a warm smile to appear on her face every time she looked at it. She hopped out of the car grabbing another one of the many remaining flower arrangements on her way up to her apartment.

"Stupid… Steven, Fairchild." She huffed at the tag of the latest in a line of inappropriate gifts. She was surprised at just how many she had got, several from rabbit she knew from nearly a decade ago in Bunny Burrow. Rabbit that made the mistake of thinking she forgot about their mockery whenever she told them about her dream. Ironic that now she had achieved it as the first rabbit officer in Zootopia on top of being a very successful one sure had them them singing a whole new tune. It wasn't the biggest display or the most expensive one but instead that same small box of chocolates that became her favorite, well thought out, from the heart and actually appreciated the gesture. Slowly and with a little difficulty given the large flower display she eventually managed to reach her door, the balancing act of everything she had and trying to open the door was her newest challenge.

"Stupid… thing." Another gruff kicking sound and the small apartment door flew open with a loud thud. "Sorry." She said seemingly to no one and at the same time everyone in the thin walled 'Grand Pangolin Apartments'.

She barely fit through the door of her already small space, added with her latest arm full of flowers that she brought up from the cruiser. Entering the small living space she set it down alongside a bunch of others that she had brought home during her lunch break.

"Finally, home."

She started her own end of day routine, hanging her uniform just beside the door on a small set of hangers. An orange vest that thankfully hadn't seen use for a long time. It was a welcome routine that made life a little more relaxed. A well needed, but never satisfying meal that came from the best efforts of her old microwave and a video call to her parents. The holiday came with it several subtle hints from her mother to find a nice buck to settle down with. Finally the day was coming to a close, having already long since become night she found herself sitting on her bed. A small yellow flower being rolled slowly back and forth between her padless digits. A reminder of one of the worst and best days of her life, pouring her soul out to her first real friend in Zootopia. The same day the pair became the dynamic duo that saved countless innocent mammals. Now as she readied to go to sleep, it caught her eye, a small carrot like pen that also had a built in recording device.

"Alright gotta be quick." Judy knew she had at best thirty minutes remaining from her lunch hour. She began quickly closing the door behind her, Nick's keys swiped from the pocket of his jacket, all part of her master plan. The mysterious arrangement in her paws, purple flowers wrapped in carrots by her friend Emmitt earlier that day.

First she moved to place the flowers on the counter just off from the entrance, "No, not there, too obvious. It has to be a surprise, hmmm." She continued to think on it before snapping her fingers. "His bed, just before he goes to sleep!" She concluded, the most obvious choice being the only room that had a seperator. Judy quickly ran over to the small room.

"Really Nick?" She shook her head back and forth at the disappointed state of the makeshift bed. A large mammal pillow acting as the mattress inside a massive filing cabinet for rhinos. It was a mess, Judy being the overachiever she was went to work cleaning up the bed for its final presentation.

'Tic'

The small sound echoed off the floor as she put the pillow down. At her feet she saw it, her small carrot shaped recording pen. Missing, she realized since new years, when she made the last minute decision to hang out with her closest friend over her family. She didn't have much time though as she set the flowers down, collected the pen and hurried out of the building having set her surprise.

Two months since she last had the pen and memory muddled by the amounts of alcohol the two had consumed on that night she couldn't recall almost anything. Breakfast in the morning and back home the following day, Nick said he couldn't remember much of their new years either.

"Hm, I wonder"

She rolled it around in her paw till the 'playback' button faced her, a moment or two of curiosity... she pressed it-