The Luck of the Irish

"Tell me that was a joke."

Baricza shrugged. "Afraid not. I don't think he knows you exists and let alone you're Irish."

A pair of emerald green eyes rolled irritated. Yes, she might just be a cadet at the Central, but she still found the whole thing being, well...ridiculous. Coralie O'Hannigan just folded her arms and stared at the taller officer in front of her.

"Irish luck is nothing to joke about. It can backfire, actually."

It was only a short statement and afterwards, she went straight back to her work again. Officers were always so busy, so much happened around and sometimes, Coralie questioned herself. It wasn't that she wasn't good at her work.

Quite the opposite.

She liked her workplace, Coralie couldn't echange it for something better and helping people has always brought her contentment in a merry way. The fact that her own father had been a CHP officer also helped. Sometimes it felt he was with her, but in reality not so much.

Coralie couldn't help feeing envious of those officers. They were so close friends, they laughed and joked together. They even had lunch together and confined in each other of personal troubles. Especially Poncherello and Baker. They were so good friends.

Something she never had.

Loneliness wasn't a strangeness for her. She's been lonely her whole life and the only memory she held onto were the few memories of her father and even if she just had him for five years of her life. Her own mother had died of sickness when she was an infant and her father had raised her until a tragic murder, shortly after her fifth birthday.

Afterwards, she couldn't remember what happened. A whole year afterwards lacked memories and she got shipped to California by her maternal aunt, not even a goodbye she left her.

A pretty sad backstory, but here she was and could actually be successful in her current profession.

Now...she regretted it.

Why would she even reflect on her thoughts when there were work to do and of course, it must exist a certain someone to distract her. Ah yes, it was Frank Poncherello she meant and who else ran around the Central, practically bragging about how he was going to win at some game show at television.

Well, if he wanted luck and here were a Irish who knew one thing or two about luck.

Speaking of which...

That "certain someone" were walking towards her in the hallway while she sorted some important files. He whistled a tune, which sounded annoying to her or perhaps she was just on a particular bad mood. While she was normally polite with a faked smile, her soul longed for friendship and the knowledge about she being nothing more than a plain, boring cadet got to her sometimes.

"Hey!" Ponch grinned and went straight to his mailbox. "Anything for me?"

Coralie stared. "Does it look like I handle mail?"

His grin didn't faded. In fact...it seemed like he just got more amused. "Well, maybe you got a pair of neat eyes who could seen something around here."

Coralie couldn't say anything against that, so she tried to concentrate on the work. But now when he was here, it was almost impossible. 'Apple blossoms...I haven't even been here for a year and this guy is always on my mind. Wonder why...' She thought while Ponch talked about something she didn't exactly paid attention to.

"-and then I told them about that little leprechaun in my back pocket. He gives me luck and I give him Spanish lessons!" Ponch continued rambling about his little inside joke earlier with a little laugh. "Now, that was funny! No one can be so lucky as me, after all!"

Alright, that was it!

Coralie turned to face him. "Don't take luck for granted. Your so-called luck can backfire, Poncherello."

Her statement made him stop laughing and instead, he stared at her with something curious in his eyes. "Almost forgot you're Irish. Maybe you got a word or two about luck then?"

She crossed her arms. "Well, if you continue brag about that game show, you won't win with a luck you can't depend on. Luck is something to not jinx around with and it can turn on against you any second."

Ponch rolled on his eyes and turned back to her. "That's it? I heard the same thing from Getraer and now you. I had hoped you had something else to add than a simple warning."

"I'm actually surprised you're even talking to me. I'm just a cadet, remember?" Coralie snorted and returned back to her files, a decision in her mind were itching to help him out. Something that caught her off guard.

Coralie knew she was right. Even if the sergeant didn't liked to say it much, Poncherello were one of his best officers and she was just a first-year cadet. She had no friends, no family and absolutely no other future than to become an old maid.

"I don't think you're just a cadet. You think it now because you're new, but you could be much more than that."

Coralie turned on her heels and watched at the officer, completely speechless. She felt how her lips turned and curved into a small smile, her cheeks burned embarrassed and her head gave a small nod.

"Close your eyes."

Ponch widen his eyes. "Wait, what...we're in public."

She glared and her gratefulness were like blown away. "You daft goofball... not like that!"

When the officer proceed to close his eyes, Coralie grasped his hand and put a certain object in his tanned hand and made him close his fingers around it. Once Ponch opened his eyes again, he opened his hand and found a long silver necklace chain, added with a small and green four-leaf clover in gold.

"Leprechauns are unpredictable and tricky, officer Poncherello. But I would trust more a four-leaf clover. Sometimes it seems to others they won't work, but creating luck takes time. One day maybe you're happy you got this as a lucky trinket." Coralie explained with a soft smile and her green eyes stared back at his own chocolate brown pair.

Ponch glanced at the Irish trinket, then at the cadet in front of him and without anymore doubts, he immediately put it around his neck with a bright grin. His eyes showed a great emotion of appreciation and thankfulness, that was before he suddenly turned mischiveous.

The red-headed didn't had a chance to react when Ponch inched forward and gave her a small, yet long kiss on her left cheek. Her voice were lose somewhere from her throat to her lips, her heart skipped a beat and she felt how her entire face flamed up as fire.

Ponch pulled away with a satisfied grin. "That's how I say 'thanks'. I'll treasure this trinket forever, Carrot."

He was almost half-way towards the break room to meet up with his partner, when Coralie called on him.

"What do you mean with 'carrot'?"

Ponch turned around a little, flashing another bright smile. "Your nickname. It fits, trust me."

He had no idea how much the trinket would mean to him nor how his actions has affected the fate of Coralie O'Hannigan. While he went back to his partner and Coralie went back to her work, neither of them were ever able to notice how Getraer has noticed and see everything with a great displeasure and awareness.

This was something he had tried to prevent and if Poncherello got involved with O'Hannigan...then, bad things could follow.

'I'm afraid...the history might get repeated again.' The sergeant thought anxiously while an uneasy emotion flared up.

Author's Notes: Yup, a hidden scene from the episode "Name Your Price" from season 1. Ponch's statement about "Irish luck" were a bit of coincidence because Coralie O'Hannigan exists and she's Irish. Meaning that there's a chance that he might get involved with her and perhaps something happens in the year Jon returns from Wyoming after season 6.

In case you want to know more, I got a series running at AO3 (Archive of Our Own) that's called "The Odd Chronicles of CHiPs". There's plenty of answers about the "O'Hannigan Curse".

I hope you enjoyed this oneshot, everyone.

~ Loopin' Lunan95