"Storage mishaps"

Judy and Nick were inside a storage shed outside of the police district. Nick reached for the top shelf, trying to grab a small box full of batteries. He clawed the air, unable to reach. Standing on tiptoe, tongue lolling between his teeth, he was finally able to reach the box and bring it down.

"Oh thank you, Nick." Judy smiled, taking out four small double AA batteries."I wouldn't have been able to grab it by myself."

She slipped the batteries into her taser and snapped it on. She clicked it on and heard the wonderful sound of electricity dancing.

"No problem, whiskers." Nick said, sleepily gazing at Judy. He leaned against the wall with his elbow. "How about a reward for my good efforts?" He closed his eyes, pursing his lips together. Judy giggled.

"Maybe later...at my apartment?" She said slyly.

His eyes snapped open. "Ooo, maybe over a movie too?"

She turned away from him. "That was the plan...we should hurry back to the station. It's almost time to leave anyway." She reached for the closed door handle, only for Nick to grab it first.

"Allow me." He said, making her smile.

"Such a gentleman."

Nick moved the knob and pulled. The door strained and the knob squeaked. Nick blinked and turned the knob again and pulled. The door winced as it hit the frame.

"Maybe it's toward the left?" He wondered aloud, but his efforts only yielded the same result.

"Okay Nick, that's enough. We really need to get back to the station; we might miss a call." Judy stated, becoming worried.

"Just give me a second." He pulled at the knob and let out a groan. "It just takes a gentle hand!"

"Come on Nick, open the door!" Judy demanded. The knob shook violently against Nick's palm.

"It's-!" He pulled the knob, placing one foot against the door and trying to force it open. "It's stuck!" His hand slipped and he wearily stumbled back toward Judy, falling to the floor.

She rolled her eyes, walking past him. "I don't have time for your pranks, I have to get back to the station."

She turned the knob and pulled. "What the...?" She jiggled the knob, pulled it, and then kicked the door in frustration. "It's stuck!"

"Once again your skills of perception as an officer astound me." He sarcastically quipped, brushing himself off as he got off the floor.

She whirled at him. "This isn't good, Nick!"

He put his hands up in defense. "Hey, I didn't lock the door!"

Their ears suddenly went erect once they heard the loud rings of a bell. Judy ears fell.

"That's the check-out bell..." She whispered. She desperately began banging on the door. "Help! Some animal! Please help! We're stuck! Help!"

Nick placed a paw on her shoulder and pulled her away. "Judy! No one can hear us! We're outside of the precinct in a concrete storage shed, and it's sound proof!"

She slapped his paw aside in spite. "Nick! It's Friday!"

"So?"

"No one will be here until Monday!"

His ears drooped in realization. Nick ran to the door, banging his fists rapidly. "Help! Some animal help! Help us! HELP!"

"Wait, Nick, your phone!" Judy exclaimed, pointing to his pants pocket. "You can call for help!"

"You're right, get ready to get out of here!" He grinned, shoving his paw into his pocket. He suddenly went still. Judy raised a brow at him.

"What?"

He let out a soft laugh. "Um...now don't get mad but-"

"You don't have it!?" She shrieked. He cringed and quickly tried to explain himself.

"I-it w-was on low battery and I left it charging by your desk before-!"

She slapped her paws over her face, hiding her eyes. The sound silenced him. "We're stuck." She dragged her paws down her face. "We're stuck here until Monday."

Nick's eyes widened, and he turned back to the door. With a breath, he began throwing himself against the door. Judy stood back and sighed, watching him back up before throwing his shoulder toward the solid oak door. "I can't stay here!" He shouted. Clutching his arm, he threw himself against the door again. "Not without my phone!"

Judy hit herself in the forehead, a redness starting to form in that area. She groaned and slid to the cold floor. Her head was starting to pulse from seeing Nick fling himself against the door again. It was obvious that Nick was not strong enough. Even if she did help, wouldn't be enough to pry the door open. Nick stepped back, clutching his sore shoulder. Judy rubbed her temple.

"It's obvious your 'brute-strength' won't help." She began, ignoring Nick's annoyed glare. "I'm sure someone will notice we're missing."

"A short bunny and fox that normally gets ignored? Yeah, I'm sure every animal is frantically searching..." He snorted before sitting down across from her.

Judy slowly let out a breath. "No, no, we must stay optimistic, I'm sure the chief will notice that we haven't checked out and..." She put a strained smile on her face. "He'll find us, it won't be long now..."

Nick loosened his tie, scoffing. "Please, that donut-muncher? If we were fried food, he would sniff us out."

"Hey! Show some respect!" She scolded. "It was thanks to him that you got to join the force."

"And look how much of an importance we are." He said, extending his arms out to the side. He kicked a discarded coffee cup aside. "I bet they didn't even notice that we left."

"Someone will come for us." She crossed her arms and leaned her head back on the wall. "We just need to wait, and I would appreciate it if you stopped talking like that."

Nick let out a soft growl. "Fine, I didn't want to waste a conversation with a bunny who got us trapped here in the first place."

"Me?!" She yelled. She pointed an accusing finger at him. "We wouldn't be stuck here if you weren't playing with my taser!"

"You said it was fine!"

She snarled. "I thought you were going to train yourself on how to use it! Not get free drinks from the vending machine by zapping the mechanisms!"

"I gave it back!"

"With dead batteries! We wouldn't have needed to come here to get new ones if it wasn't for you and! And!" Her cheeks turned red with anger. "Your stupidity!"

Nick's muzzle contracted as he bared his teeth. "The only stupid thing I did was follow you, and only because you needed someone "tall enough" to reach the batteries!" He pointed to the box of batteries left discarded on the floor.

"Let's not forget that it was you that left your phone!" Judy yelled, going to her feet, Nick doing the same.

"I remember that a certain prissy little bunny was using it to locate some felons! If you had used it after we got back from this place it wouldn't be charging right now!"

"Prissy?! Ugh!" She pulled at her ears. Her face was becoming redder than a cherry tomato. "Coming from the fox who has an inseparable relationship with his phone, I find it surprising that a phone-addict like you would forget about it!"

Nick's fur went on end, his tail puffing up in anger. "At least I wasn't the one who closed the door!"

"That's enough!" Judy turned away from him, crossing her arms and effectively ending the conversation. Nick snorted at her and laid down, facing the wall and away from her.

"Fine." He said bitterly. Judy bit her cheek and laid down. They were in for a long night. She scanned around the small shed and found that the precinct kept emergency supplies, including food and water. at least they don't have to worry about starving. On the shelves there were electrical supplies but what they did have was blankets, a lantern, and a radio. Hopefully they don't need to use them. Surely someone had already started looking for them, or at least she hoped that that was the case.

The sun had gone down. Judy rubbed her arms, trying to warm herself up. The temperature in the shed had quickly gone down, and it was still falling. The night air nipped at Judy's nose, making her sniffle.

The city was surprisingly quiet, though perhaps the regular city noise had been muffled by the thick concrete walls. She sat up, unable to bear the cold. She glanced at Nick, who still had his back facing her. He didn't move. She guessed that he must have fallen asleep.

She bit the inside of her cheek. Nick being asleep gave her the chance to enjoy the peace and quiet.

She shifted through the shelf and grabbed a blue wool blanket. For a moment, she thought that the blanket was slightly large, until she realized that it was. The problem was that she thought there were two, but it turned out that there was only one big blanket.

She held the blanket against her and glanced back at Nick.

His body was curled in, and his arms were wrapped around his body tightly. It was obvious that he felt cold.

She hugged the blanket. It was very large, too large for just her. She placed the blanket over his body and crawled underneath it. It smelled like mildew, but at least it kept them both warm. She tugged her end of the blanket, nuzzling it slightly. Her eyes turned heavy as she imagined herself already in bed.

Nick slowly woke up and after a quick look around the room, let out a groan.

"No one came, huh?" He turned over to his right side. "What did I tell ya, Jud-?" He froze when his muzzle hit her pink nose. He jolted back. She was sound asleep. He blinked when he found themselves wrapped in a blanket.

He couldn't help but smile at her sleeping face. The warmth from her and the blanket made it comfortable against the chilly night.

He found himself stroking her cheek, feeling her soft fur against his fingers, and marveling at how her fragile whiskers seem to twitch with each touch.

Judy began to stir once she felt something cold against her cheek. Her eyes flickered open. The room was pitch dark and she had horrible night vision. She was practically blind at that moment.

"Hmm...Nick?" She whispered, feeling a thumb glide down her cheek toward her neck. His hand stopped. She felt her cheeks began to heat up.

"...sorry." He said quietly, mentally cursing at himself. "Didn't mean to wake you."

"Oh...hm," she bit her lower lip. Not being able to see his facial expressions made it hard for her to talk to him. "I-it's okay."

"Cold?" She flinched from his hot breath hitting her nose. How close was he? She felt her ears begin to burn. Sharing a blanket with her mate, who tended to be affectionate, made her turn soft with his gentle touches and made her heart race with his silver-tongued compliments, caused her to forget that she was still angry with him.

"N-no." She stammered. She regretted not taking her time to respond in an even voice.

"You sure?" He sounded concerned, but then again he could have been wearing that stupid smug smirk of his.

"I...hmm..." She closed her eyes and took a mental breath. "Yes." She felt her heart beat faster, imagining him just inches away from touching her lips. She wanted to scoot back but his hand kept her in place.

She heard him sigh. "I'm sorry..." She blinked, he was apologizing? "I'm sorry for shouting at you...I know it's not your fault."

"Oh Nick..." She breathed. "I'm sorry too. I shouldn't have yelled at you, it was stupid of me, and I didn't mean any of that stuff I said."

"You know-" Nick stopped before continuing in a gentle voice. "You know that I love you, right?"

Her cheeks went hot. She slowly nodded. "Y-yes."

She heard him snicker. "...embarrassed?" She forgot he had perfect night vision. She felt her whole face go red.

"No!" She feverishly stated. Her mouth slammed shut when his hand went down to her neck. His fingers danced underneath her chin with ticklish strokes and pets. She grabbed his wrist. "S-stop!"

He chuckled. "You're beautiful when you're shy." She felt his nail scratch underneath her chin, teasing her. She pushed his hand away in defiance.

"Stop that! I-!"

"You know-" he interrupted as he pondered. "I never got that thank you kiss."

Blinded in the darkness, she was easily pounced upon. Her back was on the cold ground and Nick's lips were on her neck. Her paws were pinned underneath his chest giving him free range. She jerked her head aside as she felt him ravishing her neck.

"N-Nick! No!" a laugh escaped from her lips. "Stop that!"

"I'll stop when I hear you say that you love me." She did not think her face could get any redder. His pressed his mouth underneath her chin, kissing her gently while rubbing his nose against her in a nuzzle. She found it difficult to control her laughter from his ticklish touch.

"N-Nick!...okay! Okay!" She slipped her paw out just in time to push his face away. "I love you!"

"Great!" he pulled her forward, making them both sit up. With a pull, she was placed against his chest as he leaned back against the wall. She smiled slightly from him wrapping the blanket around them, making sure not to lose the heat they were sharing. She rested her head against his shoulder with a paw on his tie, playing with the fabric, loosening it.

"I hope someone gets here soon." She said quietly.

"Oh, I don't know, I kinda like it here." Nick began, "Our own place, living together, sleeping together..." the last word ended with a growl. She pulled his tie, tightening it and making him choke. He coughed. "N-nevermind!"

She patted his chest, giving him a smile. "Thought so, you goof."

He rubbed his sore neck. "Ugh, I don't know why I wear this thing." he muttered, loosening his tie. Judy gave him a small kiss on the cheek, making his ears spring up.

"I like your ugly tie."

"Ugly?!"

She yawned, resting her head back on his shoulder. "Yeah...ugly..."

Nick wrapped the blanket around her tightly, watching her close her eyes and finally falling asleep. In the morning, they were found by the sloth janitor, who had been on his way to help them since last night.