A/N: Characters aren't mine, though I have given John's mom her personality.
"The police academy?"
"Yes, Mom."
"But a cop... they die, Johnny."
"Everyone dies."
"Cops get shot. Do you want to get shot?"
"No."
"That why a police officer?"
"Look, Mom, it's my decision. I'm not changing my mind." He looked at her hard, trying to send his conviction through the air, trying to make her understand something he barely did.
Her eyes were sad. "There are so many other jobs, why not one of them? Something safe. Where you won't die."
"You could die walking down the street."
"That's not the point. Why not something like... a doctor. How many doctors get killed? Not many."
He sighed and looked away. "I don't want to be a doctor. I want to attend the academy."
"You know, when I was growing up, there wasn't much choice at all. No opportunity. And now, when you could be so many things, you say you want to be a police officer. I don't understand."
"There's nothing to understand."
Those eyes bore holes into him as she said quietly, "God helps those who help themselves."
"Well, he should be helping those who can't help themselves." Pushing back, he rose from his chair and walked over to the sink with his dishes and began running the water.
"God can't help everyone, you know that. There's too many people."
"Then what the hell's the point? If he's God, he should be able to help everyone, do anything. That's why he's a god, not human." He had turned to look at his mother angrily. What he saw was a tired woman staring at her hands on the table. "Mom..."
She shook her head and rose to take a dish he had just finished washing and began drying it. After looking at her guiltily for a moment more, he quietly took up the next dish to wash. They spent the duration of the time it took to wash the dishes in silence, neither having the courage to voice what they were thinking.
"I just want to do something. Is that so wrong?" he finally said and then left her to lean on the sink and fight back tears.