xtremeroswellia

Title: Modern Day Joseph
Authors: NYPDBosco and Xtremeroswellian
Rating: Fun for everyone
Category: AU

Summary: Officer Boscorelli meets a stranger on Christmas Eve.

***********

It had been a long day, a very long day. Have nothing better to do on Christmas Eve he'd volunteered to work a double to make some extra money. Starting at seven in the morning and finishing up at eleven that night. Now that the day was over he was shuffling through the snow, his hands stuffed deep in his pockets, his stocking cap pulled down past his ears. It was cold out, the temperature was steadily dropping and it had been snowing for the last few hours. Having had to be at work early in the morning and not having enough time to properly warm up his mustang before driving it to work he'd decided to walk, and now he was starting to regret it.
______________

She was sitting huddled in a bus stop, her arms wrapped around herself protectively as she shivered despite the fact the glass kept the wind from assaulting her as badly. It was the only shelter she'd been able to find, after having gone begging at every motel and hotel within three miles, until she'd been too tired to keep looking.
______________

He kicked at a dirty clump of snow and let out a breath as he approached the curb preparing to cross the street. Glancing over to the bus stop he gave a small nod to the woman huddled in the corner.

She glanced up briefly, but looked back down, pressing herself back farther into the small shelter as another man stepped inside and seated himself a couple feet from away, leering at her.

His eyebrows furrowed slightly as he gazed at the woman, unsure why he was drawn to her. When the pedestrian signal turned to walk he carefully crossed the street and headed into the cafe that was open so he could get some coffee to warm up a little before heading the rest of the way home. There was hardly anyone in the cafe and as he waited for his coffee to be made he turned around and looked out the window in time to see the bus pulling away from the bus stop, but the woman still sitting there.

She had managed to pull her knees up to her chest, though not as well as she used to be able to from her growing belly. She rested her forehead on her knees, crying softly.

As he gazed at her he shook his head slightly. "Hey," he called out to the waitress behind the counter. "Can I get a cup of hot cider, too?"

"Sure thing, honey." The older woman smiled at him, reminding him briefly of his mother. A moment later she handed him a cup of coffee and a mug of cider.

"That lady at the bus stop..." He nodded across the street. "You wouldn't happen to know how long she's been there would ya?"

She glanced out the window, following his gaze. "A few hours." She yanked her thumb over her shoulder. "I was gonna tell her she could come sit in here, what with her condition and all, but my boss is a real jackass. Says the homeless people run off the paying customers."

His eyebrows furrowed. "Her condition?"

The woman nodded. "She's pregnant. At least a few months along. You can't see it so much from the way she's sitting now, but...when she was standing up..."

"Damn." He took a drink of his coffee. "You think she likes cider," he questioned though he knew the woman wouldn't have a clue if the other lady did or not.

"Out in this cold? I'd say she'd drink anything warm."

He dug into his pocket and pulled out some money, tossing it onto the counter. "Merry Christmas," he told her softly as he picked up the cider and headed for the door.

"Thanks, honey. Merry Christmas to you too." She smiled faintly and began to wash down the counter.

Standing on the street corner once again he took a deep breath as the signal turned to 'walk' and then hurried across the street toward the bus stop.

She didn't look up as he approached, too cold to really care.

"Uh...hey there."

She slowly lifted her head to look at him wearily.

"I thought you might like some hot cider," he told her softly, holding up the cup.

Her eyebrows furrowed a little and she swallowed hard, looking from him to the cup.

"I noticed you didn't get on the bus, and you looked cold. Thought you could use something to warm your insides."

Reaching out hesitantly, she took the cup from him with cold fingers. "Thank you," she murmured.

"You're welcome." He looked at her for a moment and took a drink of his coffee. "So uh...the lady at the cafe she said..."

She sniffed a little, then took a sip of the cider, closing her eyes.

"How pregnant are you?" He questioned then bit his lip, cringing as soon as the words were out of his mouth. She probably figured he was an insensitive jerk.

She flinched a little. "Five months," she murmured, not looking up.

He nodded his head. "So...was that not the right bus," he questioned.

"I don't have any money."

"Oh." His eyebrows furrowed. She didn't look like someone who didn't have any money, and she definitely didn't look homeless.

"Thanks for the cider."

"I wish I had my car. I could give you a ride wherever you're headed." He glanced up at the falling snow. "It's freezin' out."

She couldn't disagree with that. She could no longer feel her legs and she was pretty sure she would have frost bite before the night was over. "It's okay. I don't have anywhere to go anyway," she admitted very softly.

He swallowed hard and glanced across the street. "That cafe's open. You wanna go over there? It's warm inside."

"I don't think they really take too much to loiterers."

"It wouldn't be loitering if I bought you something to eat."

She bit her lip, looking down at her cup of cider. "Thanks, but..." She shook her head a little.

"How stupid am I?" He mumbled, shaking his head. "I'm Maurice Boscorelli," he told her, finally introducing himself. "One of New York's finest."

She glanced up at his hand before slowly reaching out and shaking it. "Faith," she whispered. "Faith Yokas."

"It's nice to meet you. Now...would you please come with me to the cafe? I'm freezing my ass off and I've only been out here like three minutes."

"I appreciate it but...to be honest...I'm not really hungry."

"Well..." Bosco scratched his head through his stocking cap. "You wanna come keep me company while I eat?"

Faith looked at him uncertainly. "Are you sure you wanna spend time with some stranger you literally just found on the streets?" There was a hint of dubiousness in her voice.

"If I didn't, do you think I woulda come all the way back over here to ask?" He glanced around a little. "Look, this isn't my style. I'm not usually this sensitive, caring guy, but...it's Christmas Eve."

Her gaze dropped to her cup once more. "Okay," she agreed softly.

He couldn't stop a small smirk from forming on his lips as he held out a hand to help her up. "Good answer."

Faith slid her hand into his and slowly unfurled her legs, wincing a little as they ached with the effort.

"So five months, huh?"

"Yeah," she murmured.

"Must be pretty exciting," he commented softly as he rested his hand on the small of her back.

"That's one word for it." She managed a faint smile as he led her across the street.

When they got to the cafe he pulled open the door for Faith to enter, and gave a nod to the lady behind the counter.

"Thanks." She slowly sat down in a booth, resting one cold hand on her stomach.

He sat down across from her and smiled softly. "You sure you don't want something to eat?"

She glanced at the menu that was on the table, her stomach growling involuntarily at the thought of something hot to eat.

"Order whatever you want. It's no big deal."

Faith hesitated a moment, then opened the menu, scanning over the food. Her gaze settled on the soup section. "Maybe a bowl of vegetable soup," she murmured.

He nodded his head as he looked at his own menu. "I'm thinking about a cheeseburger and fries. It's been a long day. I feel like I haven't eaten at all today."

"You're a police officer?"

"Yeah. 55th precinct. With it bein' the holidays and most everybody wantin' to spend time with their families I worked a double today. It's a good time to make some extra money. But man, it was tiring."

She nodded a little, sipping her cider. "What about your family?"

"Tomorrow I head to my ma's house for Christmas dinner. It'll probably just be me and her. My little brother isn't into the whole family dinner thing." When the waitress came over he smiled at her. "I'll have a cheeseburger and fries. She'll have a bowl of vegetable soup." He glanced at Faith. "You want anything else?"

She shook her head a little. "No, thanks."

The waitress smiled warmly at Bosco, winked and headed away.

"So what about you? Plans for tomorrow?"

"No," she murmured, quickly lowering her gaze once more.

"Really? You and your husband--"

"I'm not married."

"Nothing like open mouth insert foot, huh?"

"It's okay. I get that question a lot."

"Can I ask you somethin', Faith?" He questioned softly.

She nodded slightly, not looking at him.

"What are you doin' out there tonight in the cold, all by yourself without any money?"

Faith was silent for a moment. "I'm sure you don't really wanna hear some sob story on Christmas Eve and...I don't think it'll really make me feel better to tell one."

Bosco frowned. "I was really hoping you were gonna say something like 'I was just out for some air', but I figured that was too much to ask for."

She didn't answer, just sipped her cider.

"You uh...you been on the streets long?"

"Just since earlier today," she responded.

His eyes narrowed. "Are you serious? What the hell is wrong with your boyfriend or whoever the hell he is?"

"We had a fight," she murmured.

"About what," he questioned in a whisper, figuring the more he knew the better he'd be able to help her.

"He doesn't want the baby." Tears flooded her eyes and she tried to blink them back.

"Man, that's..." He shook his head. "So he kicked you out? It's not like this is your fault. It takes two."

"More like dropped me off on the side of the road."

"He dropped you off?! Are you even from Manhattan?"

"Brooklyn, actually."

"What an ass. You tell me where this jag-off lives and I'll--"

"No." She cut him off, shaking her head. "It's not worth it. I'll figure something out, I just..."

He raised an eyebrow, waiting for her to continue.

"Need some time to figure out what's next."

"Look, I don't mean to state the obvious or anything, but it's freezing cold outside and you don't have any money."

"I tried some hotels but..." She shook her head a little. "No room at the inn apparently."

"Have you tried any shelters?"

"No room there either." Off his worried look, she offered him a faint smile. "I'll be okay. It's not like I'm the first pregnant woman without a place to go on Christmas Eve."

Bosco was quiet for a moment as he ran his hands through his hair and looked down at the table as he tried to figure out how to help her. He was a police officer, and somehow he'd known that she needed his help tonight. Now he just had to figure out how he was going to help her.

"It could be worse." Her voice was soft.

He looked up at her. "It could?"

"It could always be worse."

"I don't think this is the time to be looking on the bright side."

"It's either that or crumble into despair and...that's not generally my thing."

"You must be an incredibly strong woman," he told her, his words gentle.

"You do what you gotta do, right?"

Her words struck something within him and he nodded his head. "I know some place you could stay."

She looked up quickly.

"You can stay with me."

Faith stared at him, stunned.

"It's just me at my place, so there's plenty of room."

"That's a really nice offer--"

"It's my place or jail. Those are the two options I can come up with for you, but see...for the second option I'd actually have to arrest and book you. And I gotta say, jail isn't the most sanitary place for a woman carrying a baby."

"I don't need you to take care of me."

"Who said I'm taking care of you? I'm offering a place for you to stay. You can take care of yourself while you're there."

She was silent for a moment, then looked up as the waitress brought their food. "Thanks," she murmured.

"You're welcome, sweetie." The waitress smiled at her, then looked at Bosco. "There's pie when you're finished. On the house."

"Thanks." He grinned at the woman. "I'll definitely take you up on that."

She winked at him and headed away.

"So like I was saying, you'd take care of yourself you'd just be stayin' at my place."

"You don't even know me," she murmured.

He nodded his head. "That's true."

"Why you doin' this?" Faith shook her head a little.

"Honestly?" He shrugged. "I'm not really sure, it just...feels like the right thing to do."

She was silent for a few seconds as she took a bite of soup. Then she slowly nodded. "Okay."

Bosco smiled softly, and nodded as well as he reached for his wallet. "And just so you know..." He flipped open his wallet to reveal his badge. "I really am a cop."

Faith gazed at the badge for a long moment. An angel in cop's clothing, she thought.

He put the badge back in his pocket and grabbed the bottle of ketchup off the table. "My place isn't far from here, so we can walk or get a cab. Whichever you wanna do."

"Walking's fine," she said softly.

"Sounds good." He smiled at her before he began to eat his meal, happy that she was going to let him help her.
---------------------------
Faith hesitantly followed him into his apartment, watching as he flipped on the kitchen light. She murmured a thank you as he held the door open for her, then closed it behind them.

He locked the door and motioned around the apartment. "It's nothing spectacular, but...it's home."

"It's nice," she said softly, glancing around. It was small, but neat and cozy. There was a small tabletop tree with lights on it in the living room.

"I'll sleep in here on the sofa. My bedroom's down the hall. You can stay there," he told her as he took off his jacket and draped it over one of the chairs in the kitchen.

"I can take the couch," she told him, looking uncertain.

He shook his head. "No, I'd rather you take the bedroom. I mean, you don't know me from Adam so I figure you can stay in there and keep the door locked for privacy."

Faith smile faintly, tucking some strawberry blond hair behind her ear. "Thanks," she said softly.

"Not a problem." He motioned for her to sit down on the sofa. "I've got some sweats you could wear to bed. Tomorrow we could wash your clothes down in the basement so you can wear 'em again."

She slowly moved over to the couch and sank down onto the cushions, resting one hand on her stomach.

He slouched and rested his head on the back of the sofa as he looked over at her. "So, you know if it's a boy or girl yet?"

"A boy," she said softly, not looking back at him.

"Got any names picked out?"

"Nothing for sure. I like the name Matthew. And Nicholas."

"That's cool." He closed his eyes. "Sometimes I think about what I'd name my kids."

Faith glanced over at him, studying his face. He was a handsome man. "Yeah?"

Bosco grinned. "Yeah. I mean...I've obviously gotta find the right woman first, but...I think about it. Havin' a little boy named Braden or maybe Lance. Teachin' him how to play catch and stuff."

"Braden. I like that name."

"Braden Boscorelli. I always kinda thought it had a nice ring to it." He looked over at her. "Now I just gotta find the woman to have him," he said with a chuckle.

Faith smiled faintly. "You'll find her. You're a good man."

"You don't even know me."

"I know that you took a complete stranger off the street on Christmas Eve."

Pressing his lips together he nodded slightly. "You looked like you could use a friend."

"You're right about that," she murmured.

"I know you don't want me takin' care of you or anything, but if there's anything I can do..."

"I appreciate that, Officer Boscorelli."

"Please, call me Maurice...or Bosco."

"Which do you prefer?"

"Pretty lady like you, you can call me just about anything you want," he told her with a smile.

A smile tugged at her lips. "Are you flirting with me?" she teased.

"Kinda obvious, huh?"

"A little," she told him, amused.

Bosco grinned. "Well, my friends call me Bosco. The ladies I've dated call me Maurice. So it's your choice."

Faith was silent for a moment, studying him. "How about Boz?"

"Boz?" He nodded his head. "I could live with that."

She smiled faintly and rested her head back on the sofa, gazing at his tree.

"You know, if you want you could come with me to my mother's for dinner tomorrow," he offered, shifting his gaze to the tree as well.

"I'm sure your mother would love that," she said with a soft chuckle.

"She wouldn't mind. Though I'm sure she'd ask how my girlfriend could be this pregnant without her even knowing about it."

Faith shook her head a little, shivering involuntarily.

His eyebrows furrowed slightly as he looked over at her. "You okay?"

"Yeah, just a little cold still."

"I bet." He glanced at the clock. "If you wanna go crawl in bed I'd understand. It's late and you've had a rough day."

"I'm actually not that tired. But I'll go so you can get some sleep."

"No." He shook his head. "I'm good. I'll just go get you a blanket."

"Are you sure? Because if you're tired--"

"I'm usually too wound up after work to sleep anyway." Bosco pushed himself off the sofa and headed down the hall. "I'll just get that blanket."

She watched him go, her gaze traveling to the table by his sofa. There was a framed picture of an older woman who vaguely resembled him and she guessed it was his mother.

A few moments later he came back with a couple blankets in hand as well as a pillow. He tossed the pillow on the recliner and handed her one of the blankets.

"Thanks," she murmured, quickly covering up with the blanket.

He gazed at her for a moment, biting his lip.

She felt his eyes on her and shifted her gaze to him. "I get the feeling you wanna ask me somethin'."

"Yeah, uh...nevermind." He shook his head and sat back down.

"Go ahead."

"It's uh...Are you sure?"

She gave him a look.

"Well I was just gonna ask..." He paused and looked at her. "I was just wondering if you can feel the baby move yet? Does he kick or whatever?"

A faint smile touched her lips. "Yeah," she told him, nodding a little.

"Do you think I could...I mean..."

"Of course," she told him softly.

His eyes widened. "Yeah?"

Faith nodded, gazing at him.

With a somewhat nervous smile on his face he shifted closer to her and hesitantly reached out to her.

Sensing his hesitation, she reached out and took his hand, gently placing it on her stomach.

They were both silent for a moment, and he swallowed hard as he gazed at her, surprised by how close they were. After a few moments his eyes widened and she smiled. "Was that...That was him wasn't it?"

She nodded a little, smiling. Her eyes were bright for the first time since he'd found her. "Yeah that was him."

He returned the smile as they gazed at each other, and he didn't bother moving his hand as he waited for the baby to move again. "It's amazing," he told her softly.

"Yeah, it's the most amazing feeling ever," she told him just as softly.

"I've never been around someone who was pregnant. I mean, I don't have any friends who had been, ya know?"

Faith nodded a little, her hand still covering his lightly.

"Your boyfriend's an idiot," he whispered. "To not wanna go through this with you. To not wanna have a child." Bosco shook his head.

The smile faded from her face and she looked down. "He did at first."

"What changed?"

"He met someone else." She let out a breath, suddenly looking older than she really was.

"You definitely need to tell me where this jackass lives," he grumbled.

She fell silent, closing her eyes as she rested her head back against the sofa.

His hand was still on her stomach and he affectionately rubbed her belly lightly, trying his best to sooth her somehow.

"I never really pictured my life would turn out like this," she murmured.

"Maybe it'll turn out better."

"Maybe." She didn't sound convinced.

"I don't know much about you, Faith, but I've got this feeling you're gonna be alright."

She opened her eyes and gazed at him. "Yeah?"

He smiled softly as he nodded then leaned forward to place a soft kiss on her forehead.

After a moment, she shifted and rested her head on his shoulder without speaking.

Bosco put his arm around her. "I sorta feel like we were supposed to meet," he whispered.

Faith closed her eyes, feeling safe and warm for the first time all day. "I'm glad we did."

"Me too." He rested his head against hers. "Maybe I was your Christmas gift," he told her with a grin.

"My angel in cop's clothing," she murmured.

"I don't think anyone but my mother's ever called me an angel," he said softly.

"I think it's an appropriate term."

He kissed the top of her head. "Things are gonna work out."

"Yeah," Faith murmured, drifting off to sleep. "I believe that."

Hearing her breathing even out he smiled softly as he rested his head against hers once more, his hand still resting on her stomach. This wasn't at all what he'd expected to happen tonight, but he wasn't going to complain.