This story was Eli's idea. Its her fault - she started it! But then she gave it to me. All credit should go to her - I merely put words to the idea.
This story is a thank you to the ladies out there who so generously give their ideas to writers, encourage, cajole and drive us, but fequently get forgotten in the credits. So to Eli, Brook, Jan and Angie - step up and take a bow!
Disclaimer: I don't own the guys unfortunately - but I always like to damage them a bit.
Feedback: As always is craved, desired and cherished. Be kind, but not too kind and remember - its only a hobby!
Chapter 2
Friday passed by fast and for Hutch there was anticipation tinged with something else - panic. Just what had he let himself in for? Soon, the last afternoon's class was over, and a bunch of boisterous cadets began to get ready to spend the weekend at their homes, if they lived close enough, or to enjoy some free time out of the Academy and in the city.
'Hey, Blondie! You aren't going to hit any nightclub in your uniform are you?' Starsky asked seeing that Hutch hadn't changed into his civilian clothes yet. The dark-haired guy had found his classmate in the library. By then, Starsky wore a white shirt and faded jeans that wrapped his lower body as tightly as a second skin. His attire was completed with a pair of blue Addidas sneakers and a black leather jacket that was well worn and a little out of style.
'Oh hi….erm….I'm not sure Starsky' Hutch hesitated. 'Maybe I should stay here and study a little…Its not like you don't have other friends….'
'Aw, come on, Hutch; knock it off, will ya?' Starsky interjected briskly. 'Yesterday you told me that you were coming with us, and I am not gonna let you off the hook that easy. The other guys have all kinda paired off. So ya see, I need you tonight! I'll be fun, you'll see'.
'Ok, ok' Hutch gave up with a sigh, secretly pleased that Starsky had taken the trouble to "persuade" him. He closed the book he was reading and got to his feet "Who's the rest of us, anyway?"
'John Colby and Micky McFarland. I don't know them too well but they seem to be fun to be around' Starsky said with a shrug of his shoulders. 'By the way. Are you going home for the weekend?"
"Guess so" Hutch said rather unenthusiastically. Actually, and after being part of the lively environment of the Academy for the last five days, especially with a budding friendship, the prospect of spending the weekend in his lonely apartment, surrounded by the memories of the few happy times he had enjoyed there with Vanessa and the many bitter days that came afterwards didn't appeal him in the least.
The brunette saw the sparkle go out of the ice blue eyes.
'Forget it. You're coming with me for the weekend'. Starsky stated.
'With you?...Where? Where are you going to spend the weekend?' Hutch said taken aback. Actually the blond guessed that there wasn't much he'd be able to do to turn the invitation down, but he was curious.
'At my Aunt Rose and Uncle Al's place. 'They'll love having another guest'
'Yeah, sure'. Hutch mumbled under his breath, thinking about how his Mother would have reacted to people turning up unexpectedly. Out loud he asked 'Tell me something Starsky …Can I refuse your offer?'
'Nope. Not, unless you have a better plan, buddy. And by a better plan I mean a hot, good-looking lady to spend the weekend with. Preferably horizontal, ya know' Starsky wiggled his dark brows as Hutch tutted and looked skywards.
'Ok, Blondie, you better get back to your room and get into some decent civilian clothes and pack some stuff for the weekend. Colby and McFarland must be already waiting for us in the hall'.
OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO
That night in the city, and despite his shyness, Hutch had more fun than he had expected. Firstly, the small group of cadets went to a diner to get something to eat and a few beers and right afterwards all four headed to a disco.
At first, the blond was feeling much less at ease with the others than Starsky seemed to be, though, partly with the help of the alcohol he imbibed, eventually, he managed to relax and enjoy the evening. On the other hand, the brunette, showing an endearing self-confidence, seemed to be the king of the dance floor. He was there to have fun, and fun was what he was getting. He didn't seem to care at all about petty details like the fact that the clothes his three fellow cadets wore were obviously more expensive, newer and trendier than his. For Starsky, life wasn't about what people owned, but about what people were. He oozed self-confidence. And that attitude was one of the most outstanding facets in his outgoing personality.
For a while, all four cadets enjoyed themselves, both chatting by the bar while having a drink and then dancing. All the while they good-naturedly ribbed Starsky about the small group of girls that, from a table by the dance floor seemed unable to take their eyes off of him. They'd had their eyes on his tightly wrapped ass for as long as he had been dancing, which was a long time, and they giggled behind their hands and nudged each other suggestively.
Finally, flushed and starting to feel tired, the group of young men, drinks in hand headed to a table to rest a little. At first, they talked about trivial subjects. Then, Colby brought the others' attention about a much more serious matter.
'Hey, guys…Have you heard about the "Red Roses killer?"' he asked sipping his beer.
'The Red Roses killer? What's that? …The title of a gory B rate movie?' Micky asked giggling drunkenly.
'Oh, come on, Micky! What hole did you crawl out of?' Starsky chided 'Don't ya read the papers? Some flake has raped and killed two girls in Bay City in the last couple of weeks. According the news, one of the murders has been committed in the West Bay City Park, and the other one in a small forest on the northern outskirts of the city. Both at night and in both cases the girls' battered bodies had a red rose between their teeth and a note by their side that read 'She was beautiful. And beauty must die.'
'Wow!" Micky said merrily 'Wouldn't it be cool to work a case like that?'
'Well, if the gruesome murder of innocent girls is which you call cool, then, yes. It would be, I guess'. Starsky retorted with unexpected snappiness. He couldn't help it. Insensitivity, especially coming from a future police officer grated on his nerves.
'Hey Curly, take it easy, will ya?' Colby jumped in. 'Micky didn't mean it to sound crass, Jezz. What rattled your cage huh?'.
'Yeah, okay, okay' Starsky said tersely draining the last of his bourbon. He made a snap decision that Colby was not one of his favorite guys after all and wanted out of his company. But at that moment Hutch realized that, when the day finally came, the curly-haired young man would take his duty of protecting innocent civilians from harm very seriously. Good. He thought I hope that, whoever I get as a partner after my graduation will take the commitment to his badge as seriously as this guy seems to want to. And then he paused. With a warm rush of sentiment, Hutch found himself wishing to have as a partner not a guy like Starsky, but Starsky himself.
Well, let's see Hutchy…a lot of things gotta happen first.. Oh my god! He's getting to me. I just called myself Hutchy!
By then it was near midnight, and all four cadets were starting to really feel the tiredness of the day, besides the effects of the alcohol they had flung down in the last few hours. They all wanted to call it a night and go to bed, so in matter of minutes they were jacketed and staggering out of the nightclub. Despite Starsky and Hutch's better judgement, Colby stated that he was clear-headed enough to drive and give McFarland a ride to his place too. The other two men though preferred to take a walk around the area to sober up enough before driving or perhaps take a cab to Aunt Rose's place. They were very aware that a traffic ticket or even worse, an arrest for driving under the influence of alcohol couldn't look good on their records in the Academy. The chance of a car accident was something they didn't want even to consider so, after parting ways with Colby and McFarland, Starsky and Hutch headed off to take a walk in the rather empty streets.
'Do you think they'll make it home safe?' Starsky asked Hutch once Colby had charged off the street, leaving the smell of burnt rubber and the sound of squealing tyres in his wake.
'Hope so, its early in their career to be pensioned off' the blond muttered. He stumbled and looked back at the brunette.
'Let's go, Starsk. I really need a walk, clear my head'.
For a few minutes both young men walked in silence, soaking in the quietness of the moment and each other's company.A bright full moon shone in the clear night's sky and a crisp wind groomed the street. Perhaps the night was a little too cold to take a walk, but it was good enough to wipe the lingering effects of the alcohol out of their systems.
'Have you heard it Hutch?' Starsky asked then, halting in the middle of the street
'What?...I didn't hear anything'.
'Dunno' The dark-haired boy said looking warily around… 'A noise. Something like…..' His words were cut off short by the spine chilling wail of a stray cat, as it sat on its perch on a nearby trashcan frightening away a rival in its quest for food.
"Aagh!" Starsky yelped startled, as the retreating cat ran past him, almost stepping on his Addidas clad-feet. To Hutch's amusement, the brunette had fallen on his butt and was staring up from the sidewalk.
"Jeez! That damn thing could've given me a heart attack!" His complaint was rewarded by Hutch's laugh.
"You okay Starsky?" He said chuckling, reaching out a hand to help his friend to his feet.
"Yeah, yeah" Starsky said grumpily grabbing onto the proffered hand and glaring at Hutch 'Not funny!…what colour was it anyway? Did you see it?"
"Huh?" The question took Hutch off guard.
"Was it black, maybe?" The brunette questioned again, while dusting off the back of his tight fitting pale blue jeans
"Not sure Starsky. It ran too fast past us…Who cares about its colour any…..?" Hutch halted in mid sentence. Realization had hit him. "Let me guess. Oh my….. You are superstitious aren't you?"
"No!...Well, I don't know…a little maybe" Starsky admitted reluctantly. "Anyway what if I am, huh? What?" he asked with a tad of defiance meant to hide his embarrassment.
"It's okay, Starsk…It's okay. Your deadly secret is safe with me. I won't tell a soul'. Hutch, good-naturedly appeased the curly haired guy.
"You better don't" Starsky warned as his forefinger tapped a couple of times at Hutch's chest.
"Rest assured, buddy. My lips are sealed." Buddy? I've called him buddy? Hutch mused for a moment. He had never ever addressed any of his new acquaintances that way before. But then I guess I had never felt as much at ease with any other new person as I feel with this guy. Hutch concluded.
"Tell me something Starsky" The blond spoke again.
"Yeah?"
"Back there, in the disco, you got mad, at Micky?"
"Oh well, ya know." Starsky shrugged. "The guy seemed to be taking the killing of those poor girls lightly. Too lightly for someone that supposedly wants to protect and help people."
"Yeah…You're right, I guess. Hutch agreed pensively.
They walked along in companionable silence for a few more minutes as their feet echoed against the quiet of the night, turning the corner and heading down the street towards the bay. In the distance they could see the moon shining on the dark water and Hutch stood a moment, staring at it. Starsky who was a step behind him and looking down tripped over his friend and pulled up short.
'What the?... What ya doin' You're gonna cripple me again?'.
Hutch stood and looked at the sight, pointing. 'It looks beautiful' he said softly.
The brunette followed the direction of his finger. 'Uh, it's the ocean? Ya know? Water? Ships sail on it? Fish swim in it?'
'Not in Duluth they don't. Not a whole lot of ocean in Duluth. We got the Lake, but it's not the same. You always know there's the other shore' the blond answered, tearing his eyes from the sight and plodding further on.
"Well, there's another shore to the ocean to, it just a bit further away! Hey Blinz. How about a ride up the coast?" Starsky offered "Ya know, tomorrow morning, after a good night sleep. We could….."
'What did you just call me?'
Starsky looked surprised. 'What? Blintz?'
'Yeah, Blintz. What's that; some sort of derogatory comment?'
The curly haired young man looked sheepish. 'Blintz, it's a small cake with frosting…
"I know what a blintz is, Starsky." Hutch cut off "What I don't get is what has it to do with me'
"Your hair looks white in this light. You look like the blintzes Ma used to make'… Best blintzes in all New York, all with white frosting on the top!" Starsky stated proudly "Authentic Jewish homemade recipe."
Hutch looked sceptical. 'Um…Are you…'
'Yeah, Jewish. Is that a problem?' the brunette asked defensively. He'd been used to jibes about his background all his life but really didn't want it to come between him and this awkward, dorky but oddly charming blond.
His friend smiled. 'Not at all. No skin off my nose. My folks however…well that's another story, but hey, they're back East. It's a whole new world now."
"And let me guess. As far as you are concerned they are much better back East than here near you huh?" Starsky asked straightforwardly.
"You got it, Starsk. In one. Anyway, let's drop the matter of my folks. You've guessed they're not my favourite topic of conversation. What about a coffee, or maybe food? My treat."
"Sure, if you're payin'. Let's go. There's a diner open all night not far from here."
Both men headed further down the street. On one side of it tall office buildings lined the clean, well preserved sidewalk, on the other side, the acres of public park stretched out into the darkness wrapped in shadows and mystery. Not that Hutch minded the dark. He classed himself as a country boy and he enjoyed the big skies and wide open green spaces. Somehow, he didn't think his companion was the sort to share his enthusiasm.
The park walls were tall and forbidding, standing sentinel against the blackness and both men cast glances at the shadows of the tall trees whose boughs arched gracefully over and across the walkway.
'You know I…'Hutch's words were cut off as a scream cut through the night air like a knife. They stopped immediately. 'Did ya hear that?' Hutch asked, pricking his ears to hear any other sounds in the city.
'Yeah and that aint no cat' Starsky said, trotting hurriedly across the road to the open gate of the park. Hutch followed uncertainly.
'Hey, where're ya going?' he hissed at the retreating back of the brunet. Starsky looked back at him.
'Heard a scream, gonna check it out' he said as if it was the most ordinary thing in the world. 'We are cops'.
'No Starsky. We're wannabe cops with a whole three days worth of training behind us. Who d'ya think you are, John Wayne? We don't even have guns yet an' I sure as hell don't know how to fire one. Lets just find a phone and call it in huh?' Hutch urged.
"No. There's no time." Starsky said firmly, grabbing Hutch's arms "That sounded like a woman in trouble and we're the only ones that can do something to help her."
Though his friend had a point in what he said, Hutch couldn't help it. What he'd heard back in the nightclub about the 'Red Roses killer' crossed his mind. And the idea of facing a murderer, a serial killer, without the aid of training or weapons made him shiver. He wasn't a coward by any means. But he'd prefer to be a live wannabe cop than a dead cadet hero. He had the feeling that they were about to get themselves into shit load of trouble. But Starsky had the bit between his teeth and was heading further into the dark recesses of the park. Uncertainly Hutch followed, muttering darkly to himself.
Get yourself a buddy Hutchy, go get drunk and then what do you do? Follow the mad curly guy into a dark park to check out a scream while unarmed and with no formal training. Oh cute! Real cute Hutchinson. If ya survive this, just leave the mad New Yorker alone huh?
