The Rally

Rookie Starsky is left unsettled after policing an anti-war protest.

As a rookie in uniform, Starsky knew that there would be days when he would be assigned tedious jobs (like guarding a crime scene or going house to house asking questions) or seemingly trivial jobs (like escorting an elderly witness back out of the building after reporting a crime). These mundane tasks were a necessary part of the job so he just got on with them.

However he was starting to realise that, when someone was having a bad day, giving them a sympathetic smile and listening as they poured their heart out seemed to go a long way to making them feel better. So maybe there was a way to still do something mundane well, maybe even better than others did.

Accepting that these boring tasks were his duty was fine. What he hadn’t figured on was having to do crowd control at large public events quite so often. It was incredibly tedious and yet he had to stay alert, just in case there was that one person who wanted to start trouble. Last week, it had been the first speech by the new Mayor. The week before keeping the crowds back as some new rock band played at an open air concert.

But today had brought him up short. Policing an anti-war rally just didn’t sit well with him but he knew he had to do his duty whatever his personal feelings might be. He was relieved when the rally was over and he could go back to the precinct and change into his own clothes, ready to head home. He felt unsettled, disturbed by memories that the rally had brought to the surface. He wanted a beer. He didn’t want company but he didn’t want to be alone with his thoughts either.

He drove away from the precinct not sure where he was headed until he turned right at a junction instead of turning left. Hutch would be the undemanding company that he needed. As he arrived at Hutch’s place, he saw his friend just coming out. He pulled up and wound down the window, trying to hide the disappointment he was feeling.

“Hey, you headed out for a date?”

Hutch looked slightly embarrassed as he said, “Um no…on my way to see you actually.”

“Oh? Why?”

“Heard you pulled crowd control…Figured you might need company…”

Starsky swallowed down a lump in throat as he turned the car engine off. He nodded at Hutch.

Hutch nodded back. “Come on in. I’ve got plenty of beer and we can find something to watch.”

And that was all that needed to be said. Starsky couldn’t vocalise his thanks but he patted Hutch’s shoulder as they entered his home and Hutch heard what wasn’t said.