DISCLAIMER: Don’t own anything associated with the
show… I just like playing with the characters in it from time to time. Dance
Monkeys! Dance!
RATING: T for Teen
PAIRINGS: None
SPOILERS: None (Way into the Future)
WORD COUNT: 975
PROMPT: Picture
#12 - 1Hour2Write
Monthly Picture Challenge (March)
SUMMARY: Starting off at a new job brings forth strange thoughts for
Greg. 1Hour2Write
Monthly Picture Challenge Response
A/N: This photo just jumped out at me, but it wasn’t
until I was working on next month’s challenge that I remembered it again. The
moment I looked at it this time the story just sprung to life. Unfortunately,
this one is totally un-beta’d. I apologize in advance
for any mistakes that may remain.
REVIEWS: Reviews are the way I know if people are
enjoying the work or not. So, if you leave one, THANKS! And if not, I hope you
found at least a little something to brighten your day, and thanks for taking
the time to read.
JUST A KID
At first, I
merely step on the train and ignore everything around me, just like everyone
else. I don’t want anyone to know I don’t really belong here. They all say
that’s the fastest way to get into trouble. And I don’t want any trouble. But I
can feel a presence, someone’s gaze bearing down on me, and I look up from my
folded paper.
Just a kid.
How many
times has that phrase been used to describe me over the years? Who is that kid? What’s wrong with that kid?
Don’t mind him, he’s just a kid.
I soon
realize he is not staring at me, but just off in space. A
lone soul in a sea of everyday commuters, sad and solitary among the other
faceless masses. Am I one of those masses now?
Was that
me, not so long ago? Another lonely soul out in the world with
no direction or purpose?
No, it
wasn’t ever me. I always had a direction, even if it was going in a million
directions at once. I knew what I wanted, I just
didn’t know how to get it. I just needed that one guiding hand to show me the
way.
Who will be
this kid’s guiding hand? Will he find his way, or will he get lost?
Strange thoughts to be having as I ride the elevated train through the
city of
Before I
can further contemplate the great mysteries of my existence, the speaker
crackles, announcing my stop. As I struggle to make my way to the platform with
the crowd, I lose sight of the boy and with him the thoughts of melancholy he
inspired in me. But his haunting face never leaves my mind.
After
spending an entire week going through paperwork and briefings with the
department captains, I am really looking forward to finally getting down to
business in the forensics lab. My lab.
It has
taken a lot of years, and many twists and turns, but I am really here. I have
finally arrived. The student truly has surpassed the master. I would be nowhere
without their instruction, but I have also learned from their mistakes, as well
as my own.
My meeting
with the commissioner is gratefully brief, and we make our way to the lab for
the final introductions. I meet the shift supervisors, each qualified and eager
for new leadership. Their teams all smile and nod, still unsure what the new
guy will bring to the table. I remember being one of those skeptics, and it
makes me smile.
The
commissioner escorts me to my new office and points off in the direction of a
sealed door. “That’s the lab, but we’ll have the section supervisors come in
for a meeting this afternoon. There’s no need to get lost in that zoo just
yet.” I smile at his description of the lab. I wonder if he knows that I used
to be one of those zoo animals.
Settling in
to my office, I begin by going through all the personnel files. It’s important
to know who’s working for you, and unlike a predecessor, I’m not doing it to
dig up dirt. I sincerely want to know who I will be working with, what I need
to look out for, and who might need some special attention.
The chime
on my watch sounds off, and I know the work day is drawing to a close. After
making sure the duty assignments are ready for the overnight shifts, I decide
to take a little stroll, and see what’s going on around here.
The shift
supervisor immediately jumps to see if I need anything, and I can watch each of
the investigators double checking that everything is in order as I pass by
their stations. It’ll be some time before they feel comfortable around me, but
if I make these walks a daily occurrence it should help to quell the paranoia.
As I round
the corner to return to my office, I remember there’s a zoo that still needs
viewing. I quickly pull the lab coat from out of my office and slip it on as I
punch in the numbers on the keypad. When the door swings open and I step
inside, it’s almost as though I can feel the air being sucked out of the
building when everyone looks up and draws in a gasp.
The section
supervisors struggle to swarm around me, each worried I am only here to eliminate
their functions. When it becomes too much, I sit them all down in the break
room and try to put their minds at ease. It doesn’t take long before my lab rat
roots show through, and the DNA jokes start flying around the room.
Satisfied
that everyone once again feels safe in their jobs, I slowly make my way out of
the lab. But apparently it’s a little too slow when a young tech slams into me
from behind.
“Oh God!
I’m so sorry, I wasn’t um, paying attention, and ah, I’m like um…”
The
microscopy section supervisor rushes to my side, and immediately begins to
berate the young man. “
“No, sir.
The slides are fine, I just pulled them out of cold
storage, so they’re still in the case and…” The kid stops cold the moment our
eyes meet. He’s… Just a
kid.
Smiling, I
leave our eyes locked for a moment and stop the supervisor’s tirade. “No harm done, Millner. And I like to see
my people enjoying their work.” I looked briefly to Millner
and then ask the kid, “You are enjoying your work…
“Yes, sir.
I mean, sort of, sir. I mean, it’s Nicholas…
“That’s
what I like to hear. Keep it up, then.” When I see the boy’s nervous smile, I
add a little more. “Just try to keep your eyes up next time, okay?”
“Yes, sir… Definitely, sir.” Millner stalked
off the moment he realized he wasn’t needed and the young man’s spirits were
lifted as he turned away. It made me feel good to have a connection with the
kid, but there was something still tickling at the back of my mind.
“Ah,
The kid
blushed with my question, and it intrigued me all the more. “It’s ah, nothing
special, really.” When he saw I wasn’t going to budge, he finally nodded and
answered, “Restriction Fragment Length Polymorphism; Enzymatic Digestion of DNA
and its uses in Forensic Science.” He shrugged at my careful smile. “I don’t
always have time for actual reading, and if I listen to the lectures while I
work I don’t get distracted with everything else going on in here.
“Sounds
good to me…” I give him just enough time to think the conversation is over
before adding, “But you should really try Dr. Simms’ other lecture series, ‘Mitochondrial
vs. Y-Chromosome Technologies: The Battle of the DNA Sexes.’ She’s got some
great one-liners in that one.”
His smile
grows to cover his entire face. “Thanks, Dr. Sanders! I’ll definitely check it
out.”
Walking
through the doors of the lab, I have to smile. He might have been just a kid, but at least he knew he
wasn’t alone anymore. They both did.
