Is Chenford truly over on The Rookie?

The Rookie just dealt a huge blow to Chenford fans. Is the cop pairing over for good? Here’s what we know! Caution: This article contains SPOILERS for The Rookie Season 6 Episode 6.

On “Secrets and Lies,” Tim’s past came up in a big way. He and his former military buddy Mark Greer discovered that their Army comrade Ray Watkins (David Dastmalchian) was still alive. Ray had betrayed their unit, killing two members in a drone strike to cover up his various illegal activities. He was now working as a freelance mercenary.

The pair tracked down Ray but he said that if they arrested him, he’d counter on how the pair falsified his death records so his family would get benefits. Tim was still determined to take Ray down and decided to do it on his own, cutting Lucy out of the whole thing.

Alyssa got involved to aid Tim only for Ray to track down Lucy for a confrontation. Tim came clean about all this, and Lucy was outraged at him for keeping her in the dark “for her own good.” Tim was able to prevent Ray from kidnapping a woman, with Ray promising to burn him back. In an official interview, Tim denied falsifying the records (yes, he lied to his bosses), and they accepted that, with Ray’s truthful statement dismissed and him arrested.

This led to the big moment as in the parking lot, Tim told Lucy they couldn’t be together, breaking up with her in order to keep her safe from the fallout his actions would have on his career. Lucy was outraged that Tim would lie to her and then use it as an excuse to break up as he walked away. So is Chenford truly over?

What happens to Chenford?

Given how close the pair have been this season, with Tim trying to help Lucy become a detective, seeing them split like this is jarring. However, it seemed Eric Winter felt it was needed to create more drama for the show. Winter spoke to TV Line about what was going through Tim’s head.

"Tim has lost a bit of who he is. He’s sort of accepting but not fully accepting the repercussions of where his past has landed him. I think that in typical Tim fashion, he’s still trying to protect those around him, even from himself. So, Tim might think he’s doing good even though it’s very hurtful."

Speaking to TV Guide, Melissa O’Neill felt the same way as many viewers, that this was a bad choice by Tim and hard for Lucy to accept. 

"It felt like a cheat in a lot of ways. These two have come up together. There’s so much trust, there’s so much that they’ve traversed, and then suddenly he comes to this moment, and now they don’t have this rapport. I personally struggled with understanding it."

The next episode looks to have the fallout and not surprisingly, the cops are going to be choosing sides on which one was responsible for the breakup. It’s also likely Tim faces repercussions for his actions as Gray suspects he was lying and has lost a lot of trust in Tim. 

Speaking to TV Line, Winter did add there’s a chance it’s not the end and the Season 6 finale might give hope for fans. 

"It’s big. There are a lot of reveals, and as far as Tim and Lucy, they have some fun stuff together — including another great action sequence that they get involved in. For Tim and Lucy, it leaves you with a nice sort of, I wouldn’t say closure or a guarantee of anything, but it leaves it in a place where there’s stuff to talk about."

The Rookie fans are thus hopeful this terrific couple can still get back together but it’s going to be a tough road ahead for Chenford followers. 

The Rookie Season 6 airs Tuesdays at 9 p.m. ET on ABC.