Author's Note I don't own this movie or any of it's characters.
"What?" Jim blinked furiously. Jim heard shooting and a muffled sound like somebody talking to him.
Hondo stood in front of him, shouting. What was he saying? Where was he? He looked down. He was suited out. He must have blocked out how he got here. Yay, selective memory. Jim's eyes searched the room. A broken down neighborhood in south L.A. Bullets whizzed through an open door across the street. Okay, I am supposed to be doing something. Listen, Jim, Listen.
"Jim, do you understand me?" Hondo shouted at Jim, his face was puzzled.
"No, repeat it."
"Are you okay? Will you be okay?"
"Yea, I'm okay. Why?" Confusion clouded Jim's mind.
"Jim.. Chris is dead. Are you okay?"
"What?!?! No.. No. She's not dead." Jim started to panic. His eyes wondered around the place, searching for Chris, somewhere. She was nowhere. Jim began to feel ill; nausea consumed him. He began to vomit. Sweat trickled off his forehead. "This is some kind of joke, right?"
Hondo was speechless. He had never seen Jim, or any S.W.A.T. guy, like this. All he could do his point to a car outside the room. The car was the coroner's automobile.
Jim walked slowly over to the car, through the room, out of the door, and along the little rock sidewalk to the crib of the street. He began to feel hot. Sweat now came down his face like a faucet had been turned on. No... No... this was a joke.
He walked to the back of the car. Inside he saw a body bag. It looked like a person was inside. Slowly and hesitantly, he opened the backdoor. He climbed into the back and leaned over the body. His fingers trembled on the zipper. He slowly pulled the zipper...
Jim sat up straight in his bed, as wet as a fish. "Shit!"
Was that real? What? What's happening?
Jim looked over at the clock. 2:37 a.m. Where was Chris? He looked around the room. He reached over to his phone and nervously dialed Chris's numbers.
The phone rang twice and then a sleeping Chris answered.
"Hello.." Chris managed to stumble out.
"Good. you're alive." Jim wiped the sweat of his brow.
"Who the hell is this?" Now, fully awake by that random comment.
"Hey, it's Jim. Sorry, I had a bad dream."
"Do you need me to read you a bed time story?"
"No. I was about to say that it was about you." Jim sassed at her.
"And it was a bad dream?"
"Yea, you had died on the job. It freaked me out."
"Man, that sucks. So, why did you call me?"
"I don't know. It was a pretty realistic dream. I wanted to make sure you were still alive." Jim was sincere, she could tell in his voice. This was so unlike Jim, and she liked to see this side of him.
"Well, I am still here and awake." Chris was touched yet angry. She was sleeping after all.
"Sorry..you wanna go out tonight?"
"Did you wake me up to ask me out?"
"Kinda. you interested?"
"Yea, sure, why not?"
"Okay.night."
'Night." Chris put down the phone. "Damn, that was awkward." She said to herself.
Jim hung up the phone feeling a hundred times better than when he had picked up the phone. Jim slid back down under the covers of his bed. He laid his head down on his pillow and shut his eyes, trying to sleep.
Chris stood in her kitchen the next morning making pancakes for Eliza. She flipped the pancakes with ease. Eliza awoke to the smell of pancakes and her mom's coffee. She walked out of her room, through the living room and into the kitchen.
"Hey Mama."
"Hola baby. Duermes bien?"
"Si. Pancakes?"
"Yea, I thought you deserved a treat."
"Why? I didn't do anything."
"Yes, you did. You are the greatest daughter in the world." Chris ran over to Eliza and began to attack her with hugs, twirling her around. Eliza giggled profusely. Chris also giggled at Eliza's laughter. Then, the odor of burning batter began to fill the room.
"God damn it!"
Chris walked to the pan and turned the oven off. She looked back over at Eliza, who looked sad.
"I'm sorry, baby. I didn't mean to say that."
Chris smiled and picked up a new pan and started making more pancakes. Eliza walked over to the oven. Chris smile was ever-present, even with her ruining her best pan.
"Mama, who called during the night?"
Chris's face turned all shades of pink and red.
"That was Jim, baby. He just needed to talk,"
"About what?"
"Grown-up stuff, Miss Nosey." Chris wanted to avoid this conversation like the plague. Eliza smiled at Chris.
"So.did he ask you out?"
"What?"
"Are you guys gonna go out and do stuff?" Chris laughed.
"I raised you to be one smart little lady, didn't I?" Eliza smiled triumphantly. She knew that her mom had liked this guy. She had never seen any other man in their house that wasn't a relative. She put two and two together. Well, that and with help from her abuela.
Eliza left her mom's side and went over to the refrigerator and pulled out the orange juice. She poured a glass. She walked over and sat down at the kitchen table. She sat patiently until her mom sat down a big plate of pancakes in front of her. She grabbed across the table for the syrup. As she reached, she quietly said, "But what are you gonna wear?"
Jim walked into the locker room. A grin from ear to ear was on his face. Deke and Mark sat on a bench next to each other, talking about their pasts.
"What's up with that face, man?" Deke said from the bench, while Jim opened his locker.
"Nothing." Jim turned his eyes to Deke, a coy smile blaring.
"Well, I guess that means: you got lucky or you're gonna get lucky." Mark said as he turned towards Deke. Deke laugh and agreed.
"No, it means you are getting any, so you can stop living your sex life through me."
"Hey, I get some." Deke interjected.
"Don't try to pretend. I know your wife."
"Funny, Street. So who's the lucky girl?"
"Why are you so interested?" Jim kept trying to avoid the subject.
"Why are you not answering?" Deke had him cornered. He had to tell them now.
"Fine it's.."
"Good you guys are here." Hondo threw open the door. Hondo had his stylish sunglasses over his eyes. Hondo always did have perfect timing. "You guys ready to train. Boxer is already outside.'
Jim threw his stuff down, closed his locker, and walked out the open door that Hondo had occupied a few second before. Deke smiled at Jim's luck.
"Man, that guy has great timing. Do you think they synchronized that?" Mark smiled at Deke as he asked.
"They must." Deke closed his locker and walked out the door. Mark followed joking about Jim's big date.
"Sanchez, you're late again." Hondo narrowed his eyes at Chris.
"Sorry. I almost burned down my house, trying to make pancakes. I was having a slow morning, okay?" Chris explained with a hostile tone.
"Fine. I am just glad you're not a firefighter. Get in there." Chris ran over to the guys, who were at the shooting range.
"Come on, Jim." Chris heard Boxer say as she walked up them.
"Come on what?" Chris asked as she was loading her gun.
"Jim's got a hot date. And he is neglecting to tell us who the girl is." Mark said raising his eyebrows as he said "hot date." Deke smiled at Chris, knowing perfectly well that she was the date. He just liked to torture them.
"Really, Street?" Chris puzzled.
"Yeah. She's pretty hot." Jim smiled at Sanchez, then to the other guys to not tip them off.
"Yeah, sure. Like any girl would want you." Boxer said from behind his mustache.
"Well, you're mom seemed to like me last night. And Boxer, that mustache looks especially good today." Jim leaned into Boxer and almost whispered it into his ear.
"Yea, your sister really liked it."
"Yes, and that would make sense since if I had a sister." Chris and Deke laughed. Chris's grin almost blinded Jim when he looked at her.
The guys started to walk back over to Hondo. Chris and Jim held back. Jim leaned into Chris and began to whisper.
"Can't wait for tonight." This made Chris smile wider.
"Me too." She whispered back and ran off to catch up with the rest of the guys. While running to guys, she turned towards Jim and winked at Jim.
"What a woman." Jim said to himself. He shook it off and ran up to the guys who were very much ahead of him.
"Street, get in here." Hondo sat behind his desk in the office as Jim walked by to the locker room. It was almost five and they were off for the rest of the night.
"Yea, Hondo?" Jim walked in with his sunglasses still on.
"Take those off. I need you to something for me." Jim reached for his sunglasses and took them off. He slid them into a pocket in his vest.
"Hondo, I told you I don't do that kinda stuff for free man." Jim rubbed his fingers together, asking for the money.
"Fuller wants us to fill out some paperwork about Mark for some stupid reason. And you're my new favorite bitch." Hondo smiled at Jim.
"I got a date.."
"I got a tee-time. I don't care you, gotta do this by tomorrow 9 a.m. You're the only man with quite a bit of experience with this stuff. Have fun." Hondo handed Jim a file with papers sticking out of it. He walked out of the room and gave Jim a look like I don't care about any of your bullshit right now. (He had golf waiting.)
"Damn it." Jim walked out of the office and slammed the door shut.
"What's your deal?" Deke walked by.
"I have to some damn paperwork. Now, I guess my date's cancelled." Jim looked at Chris, who matched with angry glance with an understanding one. S.W.A.T. shit came first. It was his job. It was also hers, so she knew that that kind of stuff tended to happen.
"Sorry, but what kind paperwork is it?" Makr joined in the conversation.
"It's about you." Jim pointed at Mark and winked.
"Then, why don't I help? I know myself better than you. Maybe I can get you outta here in time for your 'hot date.'" Mark did air quotes when he said hot date.
"Thanks man. We better get started." Jim and Mark walked to an open room with a table and 6 chairs around it as Deke, Chris, and Boxer sauntered over to the locker room.
Jim laid out the papers he had to fill out. Mark sat down in the chair next to Jim's. Jim read the first page out loud to Mark.
"In regards to recent events, he are checking on new S.W.A.T. officers and their progress in the first weks of their training. We want only the best and that means double-checking. So, all leaders must fill out these attached sheets after the first week or two of training. Thank you, Captain Fuller."
"This is complete bullshit. 'Double-checking,' my ass. He just wants to piss everyone off."
Jim threw the piece of paper he had just read into the trash can.
"Let's just do this and go home."
"Fine, man. Okay, this is basically check the box questions. This is a piece of real work. 'As your S.W.A.T. officer been performing to his complete ability in training?'" Jim stated in his best Fuller impression.
"I'll fill out all the stuff that relates to stuff like my name and personal stuff that you would just have to dig up in my fill. And you can put whatever you want on the rest."
Over the next hour, Jim joked around about Fuller's 'check-up.' Mark made fun of the questions of his 'performance,' also commenting about his past girlfriends. He managed to slip in the phrase, 'Best sex I ever had' in about five times. Mark almost seemed to resemble himself, Jim thought. This was one good partner.
After an hour, Jim and Mark managed to finish all the paperwork and put it on Hondo's desk in half the time it would have taken Jim. They walked into the locker room, got washed and left at separate times, Jim ran out the door after a quick shower. "Bye, man! See ya tomorrow." Jim ran through the locker room with his duffle bag under one arm. "You really helped me out, Thank you," managed to be heard through the closing locker room door.
Jim ran to his car, got in, and started heading towards Chris's house.
When he finally arrived through traffic and slow moving cars, he jumped out of his car. Chris was standing in her doorway in a slinky black dress.
Jim walked up to her and kissed her.
"You have no idea how long it took to get here."
"I think I have an idea."
Jim hugged Chris and embraced her once again. "I guess you do." Chris smiled back at him.
FIN~~~~
"What?" Jim blinked furiously. Jim heard shooting and a muffled sound like somebody talking to him.
Hondo stood in front of him, shouting. What was he saying? Where was he? He looked down. He was suited out. He must have blocked out how he got here. Yay, selective memory. Jim's eyes searched the room. A broken down neighborhood in south L.A. Bullets whizzed through an open door across the street. Okay, I am supposed to be doing something. Listen, Jim, Listen.
"Jim, do you understand me?" Hondo shouted at Jim, his face was puzzled.
"No, repeat it."
"Are you okay? Will you be okay?"
"Yea, I'm okay. Why?" Confusion clouded Jim's mind.
"Jim.. Chris is dead. Are you okay?"
"What?!?! No.. No. She's not dead." Jim started to panic. His eyes wondered around the place, searching for Chris, somewhere. She was nowhere. Jim began to feel ill; nausea consumed him. He began to vomit. Sweat trickled off his forehead. "This is some kind of joke, right?"
Hondo was speechless. He had never seen Jim, or any S.W.A.T. guy, like this. All he could do his point to a car outside the room. The car was the coroner's automobile.
Jim walked slowly over to the car, through the room, out of the door, and along the little rock sidewalk to the crib of the street. He began to feel hot. Sweat now came down his face like a faucet had been turned on. No... No... this was a joke.
He walked to the back of the car. Inside he saw a body bag. It looked like a person was inside. Slowly and hesitantly, he opened the backdoor. He climbed into the back and leaned over the body. His fingers trembled on the zipper. He slowly pulled the zipper...
Jim sat up straight in his bed, as wet as a fish. "Shit!"
Was that real? What? What's happening?
Jim looked over at the clock. 2:37 a.m. Where was Chris? He looked around the room. He reached over to his phone and nervously dialed Chris's numbers.
The phone rang twice and then a sleeping Chris answered.
"Hello.." Chris managed to stumble out.
"Good. you're alive." Jim wiped the sweat of his brow.
"Who the hell is this?" Now, fully awake by that random comment.
"Hey, it's Jim. Sorry, I had a bad dream."
"Do you need me to read you a bed time story?"
"No. I was about to say that it was about you." Jim sassed at her.
"And it was a bad dream?"
"Yea, you had died on the job. It freaked me out."
"Man, that sucks. So, why did you call me?"
"I don't know. It was a pretty realistic dream. I wanted to make sure you were still alive." Jim was sincere, she could tell in his voice. This was so unlike Jim, and she liked to see this side of him.
"Well, I am still here and awake." Chris was touched yet angry. She was sleeping after all.
"Sorry..you wanna go out tonight?"
"Did you wake me up to ask me out?"
"Kinda. you interested?"
"Yea, sure, why not?"
"Okay.night."
'Night." Chris put down the phone. "Damn, that was awkward." She said to herself.
Jim hung up the phone feeling a hundred times better than when he had picked up the phone. Jim slid back down under the covers of his bed. He laid his head down on his pillow and shut his eyes, trying to sleep.
Chris stood in her kitchen the next morning making pancakes for Eliza. She flipped the pancakes with ease. Eliza awoke to the smell of pancakes and her mom's coffee. She walked out of her room, through the living room and into the kitchen.
"Hey Mama."
"Hola baby. Duermes bien?"
"Si. Pancakes?"
"Yea, I thought you deserved a treat."
"Why? I didn't do anything."
"Yes, you did. You are the greatest daughter in the world." Chris ran over to Eliza and began to attack her with hugs, twirling her around. Eliza giggled profusely. Chris also giggled at Eliza's laughter. Then, the odor of burning batter began to fill the room.
"God damn it!"
Chris walked to the pan and turned the oven off. She looked back over at Eliza, who looked sad.
"I'm sorry, baby. I didn't mean to say that."
Chris smiled and picked up a new pan and started making more pancakes. Eliza walked over to the oven. Chris smile was ever-present, even with her ruining her best pan.
"Mama, who called during the night?"
Chris's face turned all shades of pink and red.
"That was Jim, baby. He just needed to talk,"
"About what?"
"Grown-up stuff, Miss Nosey." Chris wanted to avoid this conversation like the plague. Eliza smiled at Chris.
"So.did he ask you out?"
"What?"
"Are you guys gonna go out and do stuff?" Chris laughed.
"I raised you to be one smart little lady, didn't I?" Eliza smiled triumphantly. She knew that her mom had liked this guy. She had never seen any other man in their house that wasn't a relative. She put two and two together. Well, that and with help from her abuela.
Eliza left her mom's side and went over to the refrigerator and pulled out the orange juice. She poured a glass. She walked over and sat down at the kitchen table. She sat patiently until her mom sat down a big plate of pancakes in front of her. She grabbed across the table for the syrup. As she reached, she quietly said, "But what are you gonna wear?"
Jim walked into the locker room. A grin from ear to ear was on his face. Deke and Mark sat on a bench next to each other, talking about their pasts.
"What's up with that face, man?" Deke said from the bench, while Jim opened his locker.
"Nothing." Jim turned his eyes to Deke, a coy smile blaring.
"Well, I guess that means: you got lucky or you're gonna get lucky." Mark said as he turned towards Deke. Deke laugh and agreed.
"No, it means you are getting any, so you can stop living your sex life through me."
"Hey, I get some." Deke interjected.
"Don't try to pretend. I know your wife."
"Funny, Street. So who's the lucky girl?"
"Why are you so interested?" Jim kept trying to avoid the subject.
"Why are you not answering?" Deke had him cornered. He had to tell them now.
"Fine it's.."
"Good you guys are here." Hondo threw open the door. Hondo had his stylish sunglasses over his eyes. Hondo always did have perfect timing. "You guys ready to train. Boxer is already outside.'
Jim threw his stuff down, closed his locker, and walked out the open door that Hondo had occupied a few second before. Deke smiled at Jim's luck.
"Man, that guy has great timing. Do you think they synchronized that?" Mark smiled at Deke as he asked.
"They must." Deke closed his locker and walked out the door. Mark followed joking about Jim's big date.
"Sanchez, you're late again." Hondo narrowed his eyes at Chris.
"Sorry. I almost burned down my house, trying to make pancakes. I was having a slow morning, okay?" Chris explained with a hostile tone.
"Fine. I am just glad you're not a firefighter. Get in there." Chris ran over to the guys, who were at the shooting range.
"Come on, Jim." Chris heard Boxer say as she walked up them.
"Come on what?" Chris asked as she was loading her gun.
"Jim's got a hot date. And he is neglecting to tell us who the girl is." Mark said raising his eyebrows as he said "hot date." Deke smiled at Chris, knowing perfectly well that she was the date. He just liked to torture them.
"Really, Street?" Chris puzzled.
"Yeah. She's pretty hot." Jim smiled at Sanchez, then to the other guys to not tip them off.
"Yeah, sure. Like any girl would want you." Boxer said from behind his mustache.
"Well, you're mom seemed to like me last night. And Boxer, that mustache looks especially good today." Jim leaned into Boxer and almost whispered it into his ear.
"Yea, your sister really liked it."
"Yes, and that would make sense since if I had a sister." Chris and Deke laughed. Chris's grin almost blinded Jim when he looked at her.
The guys started to walk back over to Hondo. Chris and Jim held back. Jim leaned into Chris and began to whisper.
"Can't wait for tonight." This made Chris smile wider.
"Me too." She whispered back and ran off to catch up with the rest of the guys. While running to guys, she turned towards Jim and winked at Jim.
"What a woman." Jim said to himself. He shook it off and ran up to the guys who were very much ahead of him.
"Street, get in here." Hondo sat behind his desk in the office as Jim walked by to the locker room. It was almost five and they were off for the rest of the night.
"Yea, Hondo?" Jim walked in with his sunglasses still on.
"Take those off. I need you to something for me." Jim reached for his sunglasses and took them off. He slid them into a pocket in his vest.
"Hondo, I told you I don't do that kinda stuff for free man." Jim rubbed his fingers together, asking for the money.
"Fuller wants us to fill out some paperwork about Mark for some stupid reason. And you're my new favorite bitch." Hondo smiled at Jim.
"I got a date.."
"I got a tee-time. I don't care you, gotta do this by tomorrow 9 a.m. You're the only man with quite a bit of experience with this stuff. Have fun." Hondo handed Jim a file with papers sticking out of it. He walked out of the room and gave Jim a look like I don't care about any of your bullshit right now. (He had golf waiting.)
"Damn it." Jim walked out of the office and slammed the door shut.
"What's your deal?" Deke walked by.
"I have to some damn paperwork. Now, I guess my date's cancelled." Jim looked at Chris, who matched with angry glance with an understanding one. S.W.A.T. shit came first. It was his job. It was also hers, so she knew that that kind of stuff tended to happen.
"Sorry, but what kind paperwork is it?" Makr joined in the conversation.
"It's about you." Jim pointed at Mark and winked.
"Then, why don't I help? I know myself better than you. Maybe I can get you outta here in time for your 'hot date.'" Mark did air quotes when he said hot date.
"Thanks man. We better get started." Jim and Mark walked to an open room with a table and 6 chairs around it as Deke, Chris, and Boxer sauntered over to the locker room.
Jim laid out the papers he had to fill out. Mark sat down in the chair next to Jim's. Jim read the first page out loud to Mark.
"In regards to recent events, he are checking on new S.W.A.T. officers and their progress in the first weks of their training. We want only the best and that means double-checking. So, all leaders must fill out these attached sheets after the first week or two of training. Thank you, Captain Fuller."
"This is complete bullshit. 'Double-checking,' my ass. He just wants to piss everyone off."
Jim threw the piece of paper he had just read into the trash can.
"Let's just do this and go home."
"Fine, man. Okay, this is basically check the box questions. This is a piece of real work. 'As your S.W.A.T. officer been performing to his complete ability in training?'" Jim stated in his best Fuller impression.
"I'll fill out all the stuff that relates to stuff like my name and personal stuff that you would just have to dig up in my fill. And you can put whatever you want on the rest."
Over the next hour, Jim joked around about Fuller's 'check-up.' Mark made fun of the questions of his 'performance,' also commenting about his past girlfriends. He managed to slip in the phrase, 'Best sex I ever had' in about five times. Mark almost seemed to resemble himself, Jim thought. This was one good partner.
After an hour, Jim and Mark managed to finish all the paperwork and put it on Hondo's desk in half the time it would have taken Jim. They walked into the locker room, got washed and left at separate times, Jim ran out the door after a quick shower. "Bye, man! See ya tomorrow." Jim ran through the locker room with his duffle bag under one arm. "You really helped me out, Thank you," managed to be heard through the closing locker room door.
Jim ran to his car, got in, and started heading towards Chris's house.
When he finally arrived through traffic and slow moving cars, he jumped out of his car. Chris was standing in her doorway in a slinky black dress.
Jim walked up to her and kissed her.
"You have no idea how long it took to get here."
"I think I have an idea."
Jim hugged Chris and embraced her once again. "I guess you do." Chris smiled back at him.
FIN~~~~