Benny gave Bad Cop directions to the construction site and told him that he'd meet him there. Then he slid out the window and was gone.
Bad Cop stared at his closet and wondered what would be appropriate to wear. He decided on jeans and an old white T-shirt, and inspected himself in the mirror. Uncomfortably, he tugged at the hem of the shirt. It had been so long since he'd really worn anything besides his uniform in public, but that was definitely not something he should show up in. He'd just have to get used to it.
He grabbed his aviators, locked his apartment door behind him, and took the stairs. Then he reached the parking garage and realized the only car he had was his patrol car. Fiddling with his keys, he considered his options – he could show up to a gathering of Master Builders in a police cruiser, or he could take public transportation. The bus trip to the South Side would take an hour at best, and he would be crammed in with other commuters who probably knew him and probably hated him. They might be less likely to recognize him in civilian clothes, but… he wasn't sure he wanted to take that chance. Maybe a cab? He doubted any of them would stop for him.
The cruiser it was. Inspiration struck, and he realized that he could just park a few blocks away and walk the remaining distance. Feeling much better, he got into the car and started the engine.
The apprehension began to creep back the closer he got to his destination. He didn't know much about construction work. He would be surrounded by people who were unhappy with his presence.
But he'd promised Benny he would. Besides, what better way to begin making amends?
There would be a lot of pressure, a lot of scrutiny, lot of vitriol directed right at him. He'd be under a microscope.
He wasn't sure if he was ready for that just yet.
Still, he'd promised.
He parked a few blocks away, got out of the car, and began to walk, hands stuffed into his pockets and head down. He hoped Benny had gotten there first.
The walk was only a couple of minutes long, which felt like an eternity when left to stew in anxiety. By the time he reached the construction site, he thought he might puke.
The site itself took up half a city block, where the fight between the citizens and the micromanagers had managed to take out a huge chunk out of a skyscraper. Bad Cop loitered on the very edge, staring up at the broken building. Its bared framework was crawling with workers, and the sound of industry rang through the air.
"Hey, Bad Cop!" said someone next to him.
Bad Cop nearly jumped out of his skin.
It was Emmet, grinning and sweat-slicked. "Benny told me you'd be coming! I'm glad you did."
Bad Cop glanced around. "Is he here yet?"
"Almost," Emmet replied. "C'mon, let's get you geared up. I'll have you work on the ground floor since you're new."
Bad Cop let Emmet lead him through the site, listening carefully to Emmet's instructions. It was almost a relief to have orders again. Orders meant a clear goal, and a clear goal meant stability. Perhaps this hadn't been such a bad idea after all.
It got much louder once they entered the skeletal frame of the building. "Hey, Lucy!" Emmet shouted over the din.
A few yards away, Wyldstyle was bent over blueprints spread out on the rickety table in front of her. She was talking to a worker beside her, gesturing at different points on the sheet. At the sound of Emmet's voice, she looked up and smiled. Then she caught sight of Bad Cop hovering behind him, and her expression hardened. She muttered something to the worker, who was glaring daggers. He nodded at whatever she'd told him and hurried off. Coming around from behind the table, she walked up to Emmet and gave him a hug and a kiss on the cheek, then stepped back and looked Bad Cop up and down. He suddenly felt very conspicuous in the bright orange vest Emmet had given him.
"So you showed up, after all," she said.
Bad Cop nodded wordlessly.
She looked like she was about to say something else, but a loud roar cut through the noise of the construction, and the three of them jerked around to look.
"Oh for the love of the man upstairs," Wyldstyle groaned.
There was a smallish spaceship landing in the middle of the street. She ran towards it, waving her arms furiously. The ship touched down, and the hatch popped open. Benny hopped out.
"Benny!" Wyldstyle yelled as she stormed at him. "What did I say about bringing spaceships?"
"This one's smaller," Benny said defensively.
She closed in on him and jabbed a finger into his chest. "I said not to! Now-"
But Benny wasn't paying attention anymore. He'd just caught sight of Bad Cop, and his face broke out into a huge grin. "You came!" he said, attempting to dodge around Wyldstyle.
She grabbed the back of his space suit, jerking him to a halt. "Oh no you don't," she said. "You're going to move that bucket of bolts out of the way and put on a work vest. Then you can say hi."
"Hi!" Benny called, waving at Bad Cop.
Bad Cop gave a small wave in return, and Wyldstyle gave him a look that told him he'd just lost major points with her.
"Do it," she snapped at Benny.
Benny clambered back into the spaceship and took off. Wyldstyle strode up to Bad Cop, stopping within inches of him. He had at least a foot on her height-wise, but she still managed to be very menacing. "I swear," she said through gritted teeth. "Benny can be hard enough to control as it is. Helpful or not, if you make it worse, you are out of here."
Bad Cop nodded and wished she would step back a little. He was suddenly becoming very aware of his personal space and he didn't like the feeling at all.
She yanked his aviators off his face and he nearly went blind with panic. Unaware of the effect her action had, she shoved them into his hands and snapped, "Get some proper protective goggles on," before brushing past him to return to the blueprints.
Bad Cop felt nailed to the spot and struggled to breathe, to not shake. He hadn't realized until just then that he'd been relying on his sunglasses as a shield, a protective barrier between him and the world, and he had just had them ripped away without any permission or even any warning.
When had he become like this?
Someone put their hand on his shoulder and he inhaled sharply, whipping around.
It was Emmet, his face creased with concern. He was holding out a pair of safety goggles. "You okay?" he asked.
"Fine," Bad Cop replied tersely, snatching up the goggles. Cursing the tremors in his hands, he pocketed his aviators and slid on the goggles. "Where do you want me to start?"