DEBT OR NO DEBT?
AUTHOR'S NOTE/DISCLAIMER
Came about from an RP I did with someone and makes Matt's past AU. Takes place during "Professional Courtesy" and some lines are from the episode itself. Belongs to Dick Wolf and NBC.
As Kelly and the rest of the crew went to check on the passengers in the van, Matt headed for the sedan that had hit the vehicle.
"It's jammed!" an officer on the scene reported and Matt used a crowbar to get the door unhinged. Moments later, a man around Matt's age came staggering out of the car.
"I'm okay. I'm all right," he said drunkenly and the firefighter grabbed him angrily. He couldn't believe this.
"JUSTIN, WHAT THE HELL!? YOUR DAD'S GONNA FLIP KITTENS!" he shouted, shoving him.
"What, you know this kid?" the officer queried, getting in between them.
"His father saved my life," Matt responded. Damn it! What am I supposed to do? I can't betray Hank! But he's drunk as a skunk, he thought to himself. And the empty beer cans in the backseat didn't really help his case much. Then, his attention was diverted as Hermann shouted from the van. "Watch him," he growled, thrusting Justin at the officer. He then ran towards the others and helped them to stabilize the vehicle as well as get the passengers to safety. Afterwards, he came back to find the officer alone.
"Where is he?"
"He was taken to the hospital."
"What?" Had Justin been hurt more than he thought? Great. Hank was going to love that.
"He was complaining of leg pain and you guys looked swamped over there," the officer answered.
"Then he should've been C-collard and transported properly," he snapped. If anything happened to Justin, Hank would have a field day with him.
"My bad," the officer conceded and Matt let out a frustrated growl as he turned around. As he did so, he caught sight of a man talking to a small group of officers. Hank, he thought. They had to talk. He had to figure out what to do. Blowing out a breath, he walked up to them.
"Hank," he said.
"Matty, your house caught this?" Hank queried and the firefighter nodded.
"He was drunk, Hank. He could've killed someone," he responded tightly.
"I know," the detective stated quietly. What the hell was Justin thinking? I don't need him pulling this kind of crap, he thought.
"Look, I know what I saw, but say the word and I'll back your play," the younger man told him. Hearing this, the detective sighed. The truth was, he had been thinking about making this go away and blaming the other driver. But he couldn't now. Matt had already been through so much crap. He didn't need any more.
"Write what you saw," Hank said.
"Are you sure?" Matt checked. Is he just saying this or does he mean it? he wondered.
"Write what you saw," Hank repeated. "I'll bag the beer cans," he told him. Matt nodded and then went on his way.
