Reflections -Chapter 1
It had been a quiet afternoon so far, but it was only an hour and a half into their shift. It was another beautiful day in New York City, with a blue, cloudless sky and a light breeze to keep the 78-degree day pleasant.
"Why can't summer be like this all year round," said Faith, taking a deep breath through the open window of their cruiser, feeling the sun on her face.
"Because then everyone would be happy, there'd be no fights and we'd be out of a job or bored all the time, like right now," he said back to her, swerving around a driver that had pulled away from the curb without looking for oncoming traffic. "Moron," he grumbled under his breath, displaying a false smile to the driver who was sheepishly waving his apologies at his error.
"Well, somebody certainly woke up on the wrong side of the bed this morning," said Faith, looking at her partner and noticing the tired look in his eyes. "Want me to drive today?" she offered.
"You have to have SLEPT in order to wake up on the wrong side of the bed," he replied. "And no, I don't want you to drive."
"What, you couldn't sleep again last night?" she asked, thinking that he had been looking tired for the last couple of nights. He shrugged, "Yeah, but it'll pass." "It always does," he thought to himself, realizing that he had been restless ever since that night after the ballgame when he took Faith home because she was tipsy.
"So, you're looking better lately," he tried to change the subject. "Sleeping better now that you have a bed to sleep on?"
"Yeah, I am. And you were right, Bos, now that the apartment is put together and the kids have been over a few times, it is starting to feel like home. And, there's a couple of kids down the hall that are the same age and we've been to the park at the end of the street a couple times," she said, brightly.
"Great. So, have the kids said any more to you about you and Fred splittin' up?" he asked, knowing that they were pretty hard on Faith when she had made the decision and first talked to them about it.
"You know, we've had a couple of really good talks. Not all together, but I think they needed to let me know how they were feeling without having to worry about upsetting each other. Emily is still a little pissed at me, but Charlie seems to be doing better with it. They like that Fred and I aren't fighting all the time," she smiled.
"Well, Charlie always was pretty easy going. He got that from you," Bosco said, looking over at Faith. "I mean look at what you put up with from me?"
"Yeah, well, you're not as bad as people think," she started only to be interrupted by Bosco.
"Whatta you mean, not as bad as people think?! People have a problem with me? What people?!" he said defensively.
"Relax Bosco. I just mean that people don't know you as well as I do. I know what makes you tick and I know what ticks you off," Faith explained. "Boy, you really do need to get some sleep. Wanna talk about it?"
"Nah, I've just been really restless for the past couple nights," he downplayed to Faith.
"Maybe you should try some of that nighttime pain reliever stuff. Works for me," she suggested.
He nodded and was about to answer when the dispatcher came over the radio.
"55-David, take a call for a woman in distress at 755 West 55th, Apartment 7C."
"10-4, Central. 755 West 55, Apartment 7C," confirmed Faith as Bosco leaned over and flipped on the lights and siren.
They arrived at the location quickly and were greeted as they got out of the RMP by an elderly woman wringing her hands nervously. "Please Officers, my daughter, she's very upset. She won't let me in and I'm afraid of what she might do."
"Slow down ma'am. What's your daughter upset about?" asked Faith. "She and her boyfriend have been having trouble. Please try to talk to her," pleaded the woman.
"Ah, man. I hate these calls," said Bosco under his breath as they turned to head into the building. "Does she have any weapons in there? Do you think she'd hurt herself?" asked Bosco, trying to get more information before they went to the door.
"Oh!" exclaimed the woman, crossing herself. "Do you think she might do something?"
"No, no, ma'am," explained Faith, trying to calm the woman. "We just need to know what we are dealing with so we can help your daughter. What's her name?" Faith looked over and gave Bosco a look that said, "Could you upset her any more?"
"What?" mouthed Bosco, oblivious to what he had done wrong.
"Her name is Maddie, short for Madeline," answered the woman.
"Okay, you wait right back here and we'll see what we can find out," said Bosco to the distraught woman.
They reached the apartment and knocked on the door. Faith said, "Maddie? My name is Faith and I'm a police officer. Could you open the door?"
"Police? What are you doing here?" asked the woman through the door. "Well, Maddie, your Mom is a little worried about you. She said that you wouldn't let her in and we just want to make sure you're okay," said Faith in a calm voice.
"I AM okay. I TOLD her I was okay. Who's 'we'?" she asked cautiously, sounding closer to the door. "I'm here with my partner, Officer Boscorelli. Could you just open the door? It's easier than talking through the door and that way we can see that you're alright, Maddie," she tried to convince her.
"Okay," she answered after a moment, turning the deadbolt on the door. "But don't let her in," she whispered through the door. "She's making me crazy."
Bosco stifled a chuckle as Faith poked him in the ribs. "No problem Maddie. She's down the hall. It's just me and my partner," explained Faith.
The door opened slowly and both Bosco and Faith simultaneously took in the darkened room and automatically looked to see that her hands weren't hiding anything behind her back.
"Hey Maddie," said Faith, smiling. "Can we come in for a minute?"
"Yeah, sorry for the mess. I just haven't felt like doing much lately. I haven't been sleeping too well," she explained nervously.
"I hear that," Bosco said walking over to the curtained windows. "I've been having that same problem. Is it okay if I just open these curtains and let some light in? It's a beautiful day," he said sliding the curtains open to let the sun in while looking around to see if the daylight revealed any hazardous items located within the apartment.
The apartment was disheveled, but not what you would call dirty. There were a few dirty dishes in the sink and some dirty laundry in a basket by the door. Faith was trying to talk to the woman while Bosco finished looking around the apartment to make sure everything was okay. He came back into the living room to hear the woman saying, "There isn't a boyfriend. Just a friend that I have realized that I have real feelings for. I don't know if he feels the same. You see, we're really close and I don't want to ruin that by saying something stupid if he doesn't feel the same way. So, I haven't been sleeping well. I had some time saved up at work and thought I'd just take a couple days off to kind of catch up on sleep and stuff. Well, she called me at work and was told I had taken sick time. My mother, she means well. It's just that she's just, I don't know...." she said, clearly embarrassed. "I'm sorry she dragged you over here for nothing."
"It's no problem. That's what we're here for. It's just that your Mom said you wouldn't let her in," started Faith, before she heard the woman coming down the hallway toward the apartment. Maddie looked surprised. "What? Of course I would have let her in. She must have knocked when I was upstairs on the roof. Some of the tenants made a nice little patio up there and I was sitting up there having some tea and getting some sun," she explained.
"Maddie, honey, are you all right?" she was calling down the hall. Faith and Bosco could see that the young woman was getting upset and more embarrassed. "I'll go talk to your Mom and let her know you're okay and just need some time to yourself," Faith offered, obvious relief coming over the woman's face. "Thank you Officer," she said as Faith headed out into the hallway.
That left Maddie and Bosco alone in the apartment. She looked up at him from under her bangs and caught him looking at her. She blushed and said, "I suppose you think I'm a real nutcase."
"No, not at all. So, have you known this guy for a while?" he asked, trying to pass the time until Faith got back.
"Mitch. His name is Mitch. I've known him for about 7 or 8 years. We work together. He's a pretty complicated character. Not understood by a lot of people we work with. They think he's hard, unsympathetic, and a glory hound," she lit up just talking about him.
Bosco said, "Yeah? Well, have you told him how you feel about him? Maybe that would help. Who knows, maybe he feels the same way."
"I've thought about talking to him about it, but what if he doesn't feel the same way. I wouldn't want to ruin a really great friendship. He's been through so much...." she trailed off.
"What do you mean 'through so much'?" asked Bosco. Maddie went on to explain about Mitch's tough times growing up, he came from an abusive family, always trying to take the hit to protect his mother. Bosco walked over and sat down across from Maddie. She went on to tell him that he had opened up a little to her while they were working on a project together for work. They were working late one night and he had seemed really -"lost" - for want for a better word. She had asked him if he was all right and she must have caught him off guard because he had told her some things. "It just made me want to get closer to him, show him what life could and should be like," she finished.
Faith had finished talking with the woman's mother and was heading back to the apartment. She heard Bosco and Maddie talking and pulled up short just outside the door. She had heard all of it and realized that Maddie was describing Bosco. "I wonder if he realizes himself in this story," Faith thought to herself. She felt a tightening in her stomach, seeing herself in Maddie. Listening to the woman had made her realize that her restlessness these last couple of years in her marriage and particularly since she and Fred had split up were because of her feelings for Bosco. She swallowed hard, thinking how complicated this could make things. "Should I talk to Bosco about this? What if he didn't feel the same way? How would it affect our friendship - our partnership?" she was thinking to herself when she was brought back to the present by the sound of Bosco's voice.
"Well, you know if I didn't know better, I'd swear that you were describing me," he said quietly to Maddie. "I grew up in a family that put the word 'dysfunctional' in the dictionary. My Dad used to beat up on my Ma all the time. I'd try to jump in and protect her and my younger brother - tried to be the man in the family. All I ended up getting for my troubles were black eyes and broken ribs. My Ma never left him, she said she loved him," he said, realizing that he had revealed too much of himself to this woman he hardly knew.
He stood up and said, "Anyway, I have a friend that I would trust my life with. And, she has been going through some things in her life too. I've been very restless the last few weeks, thinking about my feelings for her - trying to sort through what they mean and if she would feel the same way - not wanting to ruin a good partnership - I mean friendship. So you see, you should talk to him. If your friendship is as strong as you say, then you two should be able to talk about this stuff and sort it out. Who knows, he probably feels the same way about you, right?"
Faith couldn't believe what she was hearing. "Could it be? Does he have the same feelings for me or is he just saying that to help this girl?"
She was brought back from her thoughts again when she heard Bosco saying, "Alright. So you'll talk to this Mitch guy and get everything straightened out. And, if things don't work out, you still have a great friend that will always be there for you right?"
"You're right and thanks again for coming out. I'm really sorry that my mother over-reacted. I hope I didn't take you away from someone who really needed you," she said as they both walked to the door.
"Nah, it's been a really slow day. I'll just check on where my partner is and...." He was cut off as Faith walked around the door and right into Bosco. "Hey, there you are. I think Maddie here is gonna be fine. We had a nice talk and I really think she's okay," he said to Faith, somewhat flustered.
"Great! I talked to your Mom, Maddie and she agrees to let you have some space and work this out on your own," Faith said looking at Maddie with a certain flushed appearance to her face.
"Thanks again and I'm sorry to have bothered you," said Maddie, shaking the Officers' hands.
"Really, it was no bother. I hope we helped," said Faith as they both turned to leave.
They climbed into their respective sides of the RMP and drove off, each not making eye contact or conversation with the other.
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Well, I hope you enjoy this story. I know it's kind of , well, blah. I hope it will get better. Let me know what you think.
It had been a quiet afternoon so far, but it was only an hour and a half into their shift. It was another beautiful day in New York City, with a blue, cloudless sky and a light breeze to keep the 78-degree day pleasant.
"Why can't summer be like this all year round," said Faith, taking a deep breath through the open window of their cruiser, feeling the sun on her face.
"Because then everyone would be happy, there'd be no fights and we'd be out of a job or bored all the time, like right now," he said back to her, swerving around a driver that had pulled away from the curb without looking for oncoming traffic. "Moron," he grumbled under his breath, displaying a false smile to the driver who was sheepishly waving his apologies at his error.
"Well, somebody certainly woke up on the wrong side of the bed this morning," said Faith, looking at her partner and noticing the tired look in his eyes. "Want me to drive today?" she offered.
"You have to have SLEPT in order to wake up on the wrong side of the bed," he replied. "And no, I don't want you to drive."
"What, you couldn't sleep again last night?" she asked, thinking that he had been looking tired for the last couple of nights. He shrugged, "Yeah, but it'll pass." "It always does," he thought to himself, realizing that he had been restless ever since that night after the ballgame when he took Faith home because she was tipsy.
"So, you're looking better lately," he tried to change the subject. "Sleeping better now that you have a bed to sleep on?"
"Yeah, I am. And you were right, Bos, now that the apartment is put together and the kids have been over a few times, it is starting to feel like home. And, there's a couple of kids down the hall that are the same age and we've been to the park at the end of the street a couple times," she said, brightly.
"Great. So, have the kids said any more to you about you and Fred splittin' up?" he asked, knowing that they were pretty hard on Faith when she had made the decision and first talked to them about it.
"You know, we've had a couple of really good talks. Not all together, but I think they needed to let me know how they were feeling without having to worry about upsetting each other. Emily is still a little pissed at me, but Charlie seems to be doing better with it. They like that Fred and I aren't fighting all the time," she smiled.
"Well, Charlie always was pretty easy going. He got that from you," Bosco said, looking over at Faith. "I mean look at what you put up with from me?"
"Yeah, well, you're not as bad as people think," she started only to be interrupted by Bosco.
"Whatta you mean, not as bad as people think?! People have a problem with me? What people?!" he said defensively.
"Relax Bosco. I just mean that people don't know you as well as I do. I know what makes you tick and I know what ticks you off," Faith explained. "Boy, you really do need to get some sleep. Wanna talk about it?"
"Nah, I've just been really restless for the past couple nights," he downplayed to Faith.
"Maybe you should try some of that nighttime pain reliever stuff. Works for me," she suggested.
He nodded and was about to answer when the dispatcher came over the radio.
"55-David, take a call for a woman in distress at 755 West 55th, Apartment 7C."
"10-4, Central. 755 West 55, Apartment 7C," confirmed Faith as Bosco leaned over and flipped on the lights and siren.
They arrived at the location quickly and were greeted as they got out of the RMP by an elderly woman wringing her hands nervously. "Please Officers, my daughter, she's very upset. She won't let me in and I'm afraid of what she might do."
"Slow down ma'am. What's your daughter upset about?" asked Faith. "She and her boyfriend have been having trouble. Please try to talk to her," pleaded the woman.
"Ah, man. I hate these calls," said Bosco under his breath as they turned to head into the building. "Does she have any weapons in there? Do you think she'd hurt herself?" asked Bosco, trying to get more information before they went to the door.
"Oh!" exclaimed the woman, crossing herself. "Do you think she might do something?"
"No, no, ma'am," explained Faith, trying to calm the woman. "We just need to know what we are dealing with so we can help your daughter. What's her name?" Faith looked over and gave Bosco a look that said, "Could you upset her any more?"
"What?" mouthed Bosco, oblivious to what he had done wrong.
"Her name is Maddie, short for Madeline," answered the woman.
"Okay, you wait right back here and we'll see what we can find out," said Bosco to the distraught woman.
They reached the apartment and knocked on the door. Faith said, "Maddie? My name is Faith and I'm a police officer. Could you open the door?"
"Police? What are you doing here?" asked the woman through the door. "Well, Maddie, your Mom is a little worried about you. She said that you wouldn't let her in and we just want to make sure you're okay," said Faith in a calm voice.
"I AM okay. I TOLD her I was okay. Who's 'we'?" she asked cautiously, sounding closer to the door. "I'm here with my partner, Officer Boscorelli. Could you just open the door? It's easier than talking through the door and that way we can see that you're alright, Maddie," she tried to convince her.
"Okay," she answered after a moment, turning the deadbolt on the door. "But don't let her in," she whispered through the door. "She's making me crazy."
Bosco stifled a chuckle as Faith poked him in the ribs. "No problem Maddie. She's down the hall. It's just me and my partner," explained Faith.
The door opened slowly and both Bosco and Faith simultaneously took in the darkened room and automatically looked to see that her hands weren't hiding anything behind her back.
"Hey Maddie," said Faith, smiling. "Can we come in for a minute?"
"Yeah, sorry for the mess. I just haven't felt like doing much lately. I haven't been sleeping too well," she explained nervously.
"I hear that," Bosco said walking over to the curtained windows. "I've been having that same problem. Is it okay if I just open these curtains and let some light in? It's a beautiful day," he said sliding the curtains open to let the sun in while looking around to see if the daylight revealed any hazardous items located within the apartment.
The apartment was disheveled, but not what you would call dirty. There were a few dirty dishes in the sink and some dirty laundry in a basket by the door. Faith was trying to talk to the woman while Bosco finished looking around the apartment to make sure everything was okay. He came back into the living room to hear the woman saying, "There isn't a boyfriend. Just a friend that I have realized that I have real feelings for. I don't know if he feels the same. You see, we're really close and I don't want to ruin that by saying something stupid if he doesn't feel the same way. So, I haven't been sleeping well. I had some time saved up at work and thought I'd just take a couple days off to kind of catch up on sleep and stuff. Well, she called me at work and was told I had taken sick time. My mother, she means well. It's just that she's just, I don't know...." she said, clearly embarrassed. "I'm sorry she dragged you over here for nothing."
"It's no problem. That's what we're here for. It's just that your Mom said you wouldn't let her in," started Faith, before she heard the woman coming down the hallway toward the apartment. Maddie looked surprised. "What? Of course I would have let her in. She must have knocked when I was upstairs on the roof. Some of the tenants made a nice little patio up there and I was sitting up there having some tea and getting some sun," she explained.
"Maddie, honey, are you all right?" she was calling down the hall. Faith and Bosco could see that the young woman was getting upset and more embarrassed. "I'll go talk to your Mom and let her know you're okay and just need some time to yourself," Faith offered, obvious relief coming over the woman's face. "Thank you Officer," she said as Faith headed out into the hallway.
That left Maddie and Bosco alone in the apartment. She looked up at him from under her bangs and caught him looking at her. She blushed and said, "I suppose you think I'm a real nutcase."
"No, not at all. So, have you known this guy for a while?" he asked, trying to pass the time until Faith got back.
"Mitch. His name is Mitch. I've known him for about 7 or 8 years. We work together. He's a pretty complicated character. Not understood by a lot of people we work with. They think he's hard, unsympathetic, and a glory hound," she lit up just talking about him.
Bosco said, "Yeah? Well, have you told him how you feel about him? Maybe that would help. Who knows, maybe he feels the same way."
"I've thought about talking to him about it, but what if he doesn't feel the same way. I wouldn't want to ruin a really great friendship. He's been through so much...." she trailed off.
"What do you mean 'through so much'?" asked Bosco. Maddie went on to explain about Mitch's tough times growing up, he came from an abusive family, always trying to take the hit to protect his mother. Bosco walked over and sat down across from Maddie. She went on to tell him that he had opened up a little to her while they were working on a project together for work. They were working late one night and he had seemed really -"lost" - for want for a better word. She had asked him if he was all right and she must have caught him off guard because he had told her some things. "It just made me want to get closer to him, show him what life could and should be like," she finished.
Faith had finished talking with the woman's mother and was heading back to the apartment. She heard Bosco and Maddie talking and pulled up short just outside the door. She had heard all of it and realized that Maddie was describing Bosco. "I wonder if he realizes himself in this story," Faith thought to herself. She felt a tightening in her stomach, seeing herself in Maddie. Listening to the woman had made her realize that her restlessness these last couple of years in her marriage and particularly since she and Fred had split up were because of her feelings for Bosco. She swallowed hard, thinking how complicated this could make things. "Should I talk to Bosco about this? What if he didn't feel the same way? How would it affect our friendship - our partnership?" she was thinking to herself when she was brought back to the present by the sound of Bosco's voice.
"Well, you know if I didn't know better, I'd swear that you were describing me," he said quietly to Maddie. "I grew up in a family that put the word 'dysfunctional' in the dictionary. My Dad used to beat up on my Ma all the time. I'd try to jump in and protect her and my younger brother - tried to be the man in the family. All I ended up getting for my troubles were black eyes and broken ribs. My Ma never left him, she said she loved him," he said, realizing that he had revealed too much of himself to this woman he hardly knew.
He stood up and said, "Anyway, I have a friend that I would trust my life with. And, she has been going through some things in her life too. I've been very restless the last few weeks, thinking about my feelings for her - trying to sort through what they mean and if she would feel the same way - not wanting to ruin a good partnership - I mean friendship. So you see, you should talk to him. If your friendship is as strong as you say, then you two should be able to talk about this stuff and sort it out. Who knows, he probably feels the same way about you, right?"
Faith couldn't believe what she was hearing. "Could it be? Does he have the same feelings for me or is he just saying that to help this girl?"
She was brought back from her thoughts again when she heard Bosco saying, "Alright. So you'll talk to this Mitch guy and get everything straightened out. And, if things don't work out, you still have a great friend that will always be there for you right?"
"You're right and thanks again for coming out. I'm really sorry that my mother over-reacted. I hope I didn't take you away from someone who really needed you," she said as they both walked to the door.
"Nah, it's been a really slow day. I'll just check on where my partner is and...." He was cut off as Faith walked around the door and right into Bosco. "Hey, there you are. I think Maddie here is gonna be fine. We had a nice talk and I really think she's okay," he said to Faith, somewhat flustered.
"Great! I talked to your Mom, Maddie and she agrees to let you have some space and work this out on your own," Faith said looking at Maddie with a certain flushed appearance to her face.
"Thanks again and I'm sorry to have bothered you," said Maddie, shaking the Officers' hands.
"Really, it was no bother. I hope we helped," said Faith as they both turned to leave.
They climbed into their respective sides of the RMP and drove off, each not making eye contact or conversation with the other.
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Well, I hope you enjoy this story. I know it's kind of , well, blah. I hope it will get better. Let me know what you think.