MEDAL
"Grandpa? Do you have any glue?"
The question was asked by Ollie, who was finishing a homework project at Hutch's house so that he could earn a monopoly marathon night with his best friend, Max.
"Er...left hand drawer of my desk, I think," Hutch said absentmindedly. He was busy reading up on the care of orchids, having just acquired a rather beautiful specimen.
Ollie made his way through to the den and Hutch's desk. He opened the drawer and saw a small tube of glue. As he was about to close the drawer, he noticed a small box. Filled with curiosity, he picked it up and opened it.
Inside was a medal. The card above it read: Awarded to Detective Kenneth Hutchinson: 1st January 1976. Inscribed on the silver, circular disc of the medal itself were the words Meritorious Police Duty and Bay City Police Dept and the attached ribbon was striped red and white. Very carefully, Ollie closed the box and slipped it back into the drawer.
It was only then he noticed a second box right at the back. He pulled it out and opened it up to see another medal. This one was also silver but, rather than circular, it was star shaped and had the words 'Preservation of Life' written across it and had also been issued by the Bay City Police Department. The ribbon was half blue and half yellow.
Thoughtfully, Ollie replaced the medals and closed the drawer. He wondered whether to ask Hutch about what he had found. As he headed back towards the kitchen, Ollie decided he would wait and discuss his finds with Max before saying anything to his grandfather.
"Did you find the glue?" Hutch asked as he walked in.
"Yep."
"How are you doing? Nearly finished?"
"Yep."
"Good boy. I'll ring Starsky and tell him we're on for the monopoly marathon this weekend."
"Great!"
As they set up the monopoly board and cards, Max nudged Ollie in the ribs. Ollie shook his head and whispered, "Later."
Max whispered back, "Why not now?"
"What are you two whispering about?" Starsky asked, arriving in time to see the elbow nudges.
He was laden down with bowls of popcorn, which he placed on the side table. Hutch followed, carrying a tray of drinks.
"Nothing…Except, well…" Max nudged Ollie again. "You ask."
"Why me?"
"Because you found them."
Hutch and Starsky exchanged amused glances.
"What did you find, Ollie?" Hutch asked.
"I didn't mean to be nosy, but when I was looking for the glue the other day, I saw two medals in your drawer. How did you get them, Grandpa?"
"Oh." Hutch settled himself at the table and sipped on his green tea.
"What's the red and white striped one for?" Ollie inquired.
"Well, that's the Meritorious Police Duty Award and Starsky has one of those too. We earned them at the same time. You've heard us talk about our old Captain, Captain Dobey? Well, he put us forward for that one, didn't he, Starsk?"
"Yes, that was for helping to crack a case involving the murder of a civil rights' activist. He was also a friend of our Captain's and…and it was also for keeping Dobey and his family from harm when they got threatened."
Hutch took over, making light of it: "It wasn't a big deal, really, boys. All part of the daily job. Although it was nice to be recognised for our hard work for once."
"What about the other one, Grandpa?"
Hutch blushed a little and Starsky smiled to see it.
"Yeah, what about the other one, partner?"
Hutch tried to shrug off the question.
"Oh, well, that was just a medal I got for something I did."
"I remember it said 'Preservation of Life' on it," Ollie said. "Whose life did you preserve? With a water preserver or something else?"
"Well, I just stopped some people from coming to harm," Hutch said, self-effacingly.
Starsky wasn't having any of it.
"Just stopped some people from coming to harm? How about six people, including three children? How about seeing them to safety through the aftermath of an earthquake?" He turned to the boys and added, "Hutch here is a real hero and don't let him fool you into thinking anything different. Never been more proud of my partner than on that day."
Hutch coloured up even more and cleared his throat, saying softly, "Thanks…Now how about we get on with our monopoly game?"
Max quickly counted out the money as everyone took their seats.
"Sometime, Grandpa, will you tell me the whole story of how you got your medal?" Ollie asked, with undisguised pride in his grandfather's achievement.
"Sure, he will," Starsky said. "Maybe he could be persuaded to tell you the whole story later over hot chocolate," Starsky suggested, also without disguising his pride.
As Hutch rolled the dice, he responded with: "Only if you tell them about your medal, partner. Now that's one to be really proud of."
Max's eyes went wide as he asked, "Do you have another medal as well, Gramps? What for?"
This time it was Starsky who looked embarrassed. "Oh, it was nutthin'."
And this time it was Hutch who said, "Never been more proud of my partner than on that day. He saved three fellow officers' lives, including mine and was awarded the 'Life Saving' medal, which is for exceptional bravery."
"Wow," both boys said at the same time. "Can we see your medal?"
"Yeah, all right. How about next weekend when you come over?"
The boys exchanged looks of excitement and awe.
Max asked, "Will you tell us the story of how you earned it, Gramps? After Grandpa Hutch tells his story?"
Starsky and Hutch looked at each other and exchanged words with their eyes.
Hutch inclined his head and suggested: "How about we tell each other's story?"
Starsky nodded then said, "Okay…Now, how about we play monopoly? We need to get started if I'm going to have time to beat all three of you!"
"You wish!" Hutch retorted.
"No chance!" Ollie and Max said.
Soon the battle for control of the best properties was underway.