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Mornings at the police station were usually quiet, with no emergency calls, no need to patrol, no inmates to book… The only activity was paperwork or the arrival of dozens of donuts in the cafeteria. Many people have a misconception about the police force, but there is one image that is true, or at least that several officers embody. There was always the belief that police officers gorged themselves on donuts when there was nothing to do, or whenever they could and it didn't bother them. Many of his colleagues fit that description; for example, the former spy and current police officer, Thomas Reed, better known as Tom.
A man with jet-black hair, a muscular physique, and scars adorning his face and other parts of his body was clocking in at the police station, as he did every morning. He greeted everyone with a smile, always brimming with energy and eager to see what the day would bring. He was certain he'd be patrolling with his partner, also known as his boss, since rookies had to train with a superior, and he'd been assigned the head of his precinct. Anyone else would be worried about having a supervisor, a chief or someone of high rank, but not this man. Having someone in such a superior position under his command filled him with energy. He loved the chance to prove himself and wanted to impress his boss with his skills. After all, being a police officer couldn't be that difficult after being a secret agent—or so he thought. He hadn't been in the police force for very long, and therefore his boss only accepted simple reports. She knew what her rookie was capable of after hearing some comments from the rest of the department about the program the raven-haired man had been in, but she wanted to judge for herself the determination the boy might have.
"Well Thomas, today we'll accept some more interesting notices. You've been here a couple of weeks now and you've shown me I can raise the bar with you." A young woman with dark hair spoke while reviewing the paperwork that had arrived that morning.
"I won't let you down, I'll be prepared for any situation." He replied, adopting an upright posture.
“We just got a 911 call asking us to control a frightened crowd. Our job is to try to guide the crowd to prevent further accidents. Understood?” The raven-haired woman lowered her sunglasses to get a better look at the rookie.
“Understood, boss. I’ve never managed so many people before, but I’ll do my best.”
After their brief conversation, they prepared the patrol car with everything they needed to go directly to the designated location. Once in the car, Tom drove with some nervousness; he was used to working alone or with very few people, but he had never had to control a crowd to prevent aggressive behavior caused by panic. As they drove through the streets, the road began to feel familiar; he knew he had been there before, and as they passed the gate of what appeared to be an old camp, he understood where he was going. Camp Tipiskaw had a dense forest where he had discovered several picnic tables and some rather nice spots to spend the day, but on the other hand, any accident that could happen in that forest was extremely dangerous, as it had paths full of rocks and roots that made walking difficult, deep lakes, and dense foliage that could easily catch fire. Knowing this, the raven-haired man was worried about what could have caused the stampede of people fleeing the woods, but his thoughts were interrupted by the sight of a large plume of smoke rising from the area where the fire trucks were parked. Upon arriving, both he and his boss got out and approached the driver of one of the fire trucks for instructions. Apparently, a group of teenagers were having a drinking party while making marshmallows, accidentally kicking their makeshift bonfire and causing an uncontrolled fire. Tom couldn't believe how irresponsible young people could be these days, as he had been to those parts of the woods several times and had never had any problems. However, he was more concerned about the people being injured by the panicked crowd as the fire spread rapidly. Because of this, he didn't hesitate to rush to help those on the ground or who needed assistance getting to a safer place so paramedics could treat their injuries or perform medical checkups. People continued to panic even though they were far from the fire; it seemed that just seeing the smoke was enough to trigger panic, complicating the work of everyone trying to help. Meanwhile, Lucía, Tom's boss, was trying to secure the perimeter, directing the population in two specific directions to facilitate monitoring everyone leaving the forest or in the surrounding area.
"Help! Please, help!" Tom heard someone shouting almost at the edge of the forest and could see a couple of shadows running towards them.
"We need help, please!" Both were coughing from inhaling smoke until they had to stop to get some fresh air.
The dark-haired man approached them cautiously and called for a paramedic to treat the two people. Apparently, they had been inside the forest and had helped everyone else escape, but their friend, the forest ranger, whose area was currently ablaze, had fainted. According to the injured, they had been trying to rescue a group of people when they heard their friend collapse, having fainted from inhaling a large amount of smoke. His friends had gone out to find help, as they too had been inhaling smoke for a long time. With this information, Tom didn't hesitate to venture into the increasingly thick smoke. As he went deeper, he radioed his superior so she could provide security by using the firefighters to contain the intense flames approaching the area where the ranger was located. After searching for a while and trying to call out to the boy he was looking for, he spotted a figure lying on the ground and assumed it was him because of the uniform he was wearing. So, carefully watching his step and seeing how the smoke was diminishing thanks to the controlled burn, he pulled the boy out of the woods and took him to the nearest ambulance, listening to the thanks of the ranger's friends. Tom felt fulfilled and proud of his actions; he liked the feeling of being able to save people in their worst moments, even though it meant a reprimand from his boss for reckless behavior, since protocol forbade rookies from performing such feats. But he didn't care; he felt accomplished after saving a life, and that was what truly mattered. The raven-haired man wasn't one to mince words. If he could save someone, he'd do it without hesitation, even if it meant suffering terrible injuries. Hence the numerous scars that adorned his body. But some say that every scar tells a story, that we would be nothing without the marks on our bodies that teach us and accompany us on our journey of learning. Reed was one of those who held this belief, though now he had to be aware that he couldn't be as reckless as before, since he could now put more lives at risk. Nevertheless, the warmth of the gratitude he felt from the people present was enough to calm his nerves and fears, making him even more eager to see what the days at the police department held in store for him.
The days passed uneventfully. The people they had rescued were recovering without any problems, and the ranger was well enough to be discharged. He was so healthy that he went to the police station where the dark-haired man worked, hoping to find him. Days earlier, his friends had explained that he had been rescued in the arms of a rookie officer, and shame was eating him up inside. He felt indebted to him; both were people whose jobs involved caring for and helping others, just in completely different circumstances, and he felt that if someone had saved his life, he should return the favor somehow. He went into the station asking for the dark-haired man until he found him around the corner from one of his patrol cars. Nervously, he approached him when he saw one of his colleagues say something to him while pointing, understanding that they were informing him of his presence.
"Hey, you're the ranger from the fire the other day, right?" Tom spoke with a big smile; he was pleased to see that everything was alright with the boy.
"Y-Yes, yes, it's me. I'm so sorry you had to save me from there, I'm actually quite embarrassed. I was supposed to be the one helping people out, and in the end, you were the one who helped me." He spoke nervously and hesitated in some parts.
"Don't worry, people weren't badly hurt for it to be such a serious situation, and you yourself were rushed to the hospital. According to your friends, you tried to save them, and that's why you got trapped in the smoke." The dark-haired man tried to calm the boy; he understood his concern but didn't want everything to fall on him.
“You’re very kind, and now I’m even more embarrassed to tell you this. You see, I wanted to see if you were free for a coffee or something to make up for it. I feel a bit indebted to you, and it occurred to me that I could treat you to something.” He wasn’t aware that his words could be misinterpreted until he said them, but he didn’t care when he saw the slight blush on the raven-haired man’s face.
"Well, I'm busy right now, but we could do it another time. If you want, you can give me your number and I'll let you know as soon as I have a moment." Tom took out his phone and opened the contacts app to save the boy's number.
"Oh, sure, no problem. By the way, you can call me Forest, that's what my friends call me..." He was aware of the rookie's name but wanted to make a good impression, hoping the rookie would tell him while he saved his number on his phone.
"Thomas, you can call me Tom." With a smile, he put his mobile phone in his pocket and accompanied the gamekeeper to the exit of the police station while they talked about some trivial matter.
Saturday night arrived, and with it, Thomas's first date in years. He was at his apartment finishing getting ready when he received a message from his date saying he was already at the restaurant. Nerves on edge, Tom quickly got ready and headed straight to the restaurant where he was about to have one of the best evenings of his life. He was surprised by the restaurant they'd chosen; he swore he'd never seen a French place in the city center, but it seemed new and had excellent reviews, so he gladly accepted, looking forward to enjoying the food and the company.
It didn't take long to arrive by car, as parking was nearby, but the queue to get in was unusual; it seemed they'd been lucky enough to get a reservation, judging by the restaurant's popularity. Feeling hopeful, he entered and scanned the room for his date, finding him at a table by the window. He hadn't stopped to appreciate the young man's good looks, especially his orange hair, which had a peculiar sheen under the restaurant's lights. He swallowed hard and approached the table, greeting him and taking off his leather jacket, which he draped over the back of his chair. Nervously, he warned Forest that it had been a while since his last date, but the orange-haired man simply chuckled gently and told his to just be herself. Eventually, they both relaxed and began a calm conversation. They had already texted several times during the week and exchanged a few trivial things, but they both enjoyed each other's company, observing the facial expressions they made as they shared anecdotes. Dinner was filled with laughter and sharing strange experiences they had witnessed at work, like Forest saying how he once surprised a couple having an intimate encounter in the woods, or Tom recounting how a man fled while losing his pants along the way. They both ordered their dishes, with Tom letting his date guide him, as he had tried some French cuisine and, thanks to that, found herself eating a coq au vin and Bœuf bourguignon because neither of them could decide whether they wanted chicken or beef; to Thomas's surprise, both dishes were extremely delicious and flavorful, completely satisfying his hunger in a whirlwind of tastes that thrilled his taste buds. It was clear that all it takes is a good meal to win a man's heart, as Forest could enjoy seeing the sparkle in Tom's eyes as he ate, and even more so when they were able to share a meal together.crepeChocolate filling with strawberries, the perfect combination for a touch of romance.
Even though dinner had come to an end and they had shared dessert, the icing on the cake was Forest's boldness at parting. Both had left the dinner completely satisfied, even leaving a generous tip for the excellent service. Neither wanted the evening to end; they were delighted with each other's company and even wanted to see if they could extend the date as long as possible, but their schedules made it impossible, even though it was the weekend. Not one to let this go, the game warden wasn't going to sit idly by. After a sad farewell with a hug, he took advantage of the closeness to lean in and kiss the policeman, hoping for a response. Despite the dark-haired man's surprise, he returned the kiss, feeling the sweetness of the chocolate and strawberries melt on his lips, giving a sweet, soft, tender, and hopeful kiss. Tom gently caressed Forest's face, sliding down to the nape of his neck to tangle his fingers in his orange hair. Meanwhile, Forest clung to the other's muscular body, feeling as if he would fall if he let go. With the stars as their witness, they both enjoyed that physical touch for a long time, until they had to separate because their lungs were too dry, having been so focused on savoring the sweetness of each other's lips. They smiled at each other, a blush rising to their cheeks, and said goodbye with a small kiss, hoping to see each other again soon.