---
7:44 AM – Rio’s Tacos Back Alley
The scene smelled like copper and oil.
Aaron Thorsen stepped past the crime scene tape, ducking beneath it carefully. The alley was quiet except for the buzz of LAPD radios and the buzzards of early traffic nearby. His eyes locked on the body slumped beside the dumpster — the jacket dark with blood, one arm twisted awkwardly under the torso.
He felt his stomach drop.
“…Bradford?”
He rushed forward.
“Tim?”
Lucy appeared behind him, pulling Aaron back just as he knelt down. “Wait—wait, no. That’s not him.”
Aaron froze. “That’s not Sergeant Bradford?”
“No,” Lucy breathed. “That’s Dim.”
---
8:02 AM – LAPD Dispatch
Alice had barely parked her car when she saw Nolan jogging toward her.
“Don’t panic, but something’s happened,” he said quickly. “You need to come with me.”
She blinked. “What happened?”
Nolan hesitated.
“Is it Tim?”
No answer.
That was enough.
She was already running.
---
8:13 AM – Rio’s Tacos Back Alley
The moment Alice arrived, Lucy moved to intercept her.
“What happened?!” Alice demanded, her voice already cracking.
Lucy’s eyes widened. “Alice—just wait a second.”
But Alice pushed past her.
The alley came into view. The paramedics. The crime scene tape. The body.
The man lying motionless in a pool of blood.
Wearing Tim’s face.
“No—” Alice whispered, her knees buckling beneath her. She dropped hard to the ground, hands trembling. “No, no, no—”
“Alice!” Tim’s voice called out behind her.
She spun.
There he was.
Real.
Whole.
Alive.
Alice stumbled to her feet and launched herself into his arms, nearly knocking the wind out of him.
“You’re okay,” she gasped. “You’re okay, you’re okay—”
“I’m okay,” Tim murmured, holding her tightly, hands cradling the back of her head.
“I thought—” she choked out. “I thought you were dead, Tim!”
“I know. I’m sorry. I should’ve called sooner.”
Alice pulled back just enough to stare at him, her eyes rimmed with red. “Who was that?”
“That’s Dim.”
“Who the hell is Dim?”
---
8:28 AM – LAPD Briefing Room
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Rabbit Hearts & Bulletproof Vests || Tim Bradford??
FanfictionAlice Hartwell never wanted to be a hero - just someone who could run toward the chaos and still feel the world's poetry through it. But when she joins the LAPD as a rookie and is paired with the infamously hard-edged Tim Bradford, she finds herself...
