9_Two Behind Bars

"Noah, the person you arrested yesterday was clean, no criminal record. When we found him yesterday, he had no weapons, no contraband; it seems he was just in the wrong place at the wrong time."

"What about the restaurant side?"

"The timing matches, he did leave around 10 o'clock."

Noah sighed helplessly. The events from last night, from burglary to gunfights, had escalated too quickly. Finding someone wandering the streets all night would definitely lead to misunderstandings.

"Let's go, let's send our unlucky guy home."

Noah returned to the interrogation room, opened the door, and told Jimmy, "It's all sorted out, you can go. Follow me; your backpack is outside."

Noah led Jimmy to retrieve his backpack. After checking its contents, they found his clothes and wallet intact. Jimmy put on his backpack and left the police station.

Standing outside, Jimmy glanced back at the police station. The Plasky County Police Department logo hung at the entrance. Looking at this somewhat familiar emblem, Jimmy remembered the convenience store robbery a few days ago. The patrol car that arrived at the scene also bore the same logo.

Walking to the roadside, Jimmy looked around, feeling lost. He had never been here before, with no map in hand, he had no way of finding Asher Street to return to the restaurant.

Resigned, Jimmy returned to the police station and approached the front desk.

"Hi, miss, could I borrow a map?"

"Jimmy, why are you back?"

Before the receptionist could reply, Jimmy heard his name called from behind. Turning around, he saw Officer Noah, who had escorted him out earlier.

"I don't know the way back to the restaurant, officer. Can I borrow a map?"

"Follow me, I'll take you there. You're lucky; I was just about to go on patrol."

Officer Noah led Jimmy to the parking lot. Jimmy opened the rear door casually. "Come to the front seat." Jimmy sat in the passenger seat, and Noah started the police car.

...

"Thank you, officer." Jimmy expressed his gratitude, got out of the car, and returned to the restaurant.

It was already 10 o'clock in the morning. Jimmy waited at the entrance for a while, and Jon arrived.

"Jimmy, what happened last night? The county police called me asking about your situation."

As they entered the restaurant, Jon inquired while opening the door.

"So unlucky, on my way back yesterday, I stumbled upon a police operation dealing with a burglary and gunfight. I got involved and ended up spending a night in the hospital."

"Darn, are you hurt?"

"No, just knocked unconscious. The police brought me back this morning."

"As long as you're okay, go rest first."

Jimmy changed into fresh clothes in the break room and lay down on the bench to rest.

Reflecting on the past two days, the encounters were too intense. Roaming, working, encountering a car accident once, two cases, being threatened with a gun, entering the police station, going to the hospital. Can America still be a safe place with so much chaos? His heart, forged through countless past perilous situations, was struggling. In this society with such poor public safety, it was too hard to peacefully live as a law-abiding citizen.

Jacob and Erica arrived at the restaurant. Jacob saw Jimmy and asked with a smile, "Jimmy, why were you at the police station this morning?"

Jimmy recounted his misfortunes once again. "How did you know I was at the police station?"

Jacob laughed, showing off his white teeth. "Of course, I know. I'm an AP (Auxiliary Police). I received a call from the station before I left."

"What's an AP?"

"Auxiliary police. I've been an AP for a few years now. Occasionally, I still do part-time work on my days off."

"Police can have part-time jobs? I had no idea."

"Haha, many people overlook it. APs have their own badges, and the police station has dedicated AP patrol cars." Jacob pulled out a hexagonal badge from his pocket, the same style as the Plasky County Police badge, with "Auxiliary" added in front of "Police."

"AP is voluntary, and the shifts are flexible. I only help out at the station during my free time."

"Do APs get paid?"

"APs are volunteers and don't have fixed salaries, but there are subsidies for shifts. Very minimal, as you can imagine."

"That sounds interesting. Can I become an AP?"

"Of course. I'll take you to the station this afternoon to register, and then you can attend the police training sessions whenever you have time."

"Thank you, Jacob."

The restaurant's routine was usually dull and sometimes very busy. After closing for lunch, Jacob drove Jimmy back to the Plasky County Police station again.

Looking at the police station building, Jimmy felt speechless. Entering the police station twice in one day, was he really two behind bars?

"Good afternoon, Chief James."

"Hi, Jacob, on duty today?"

"Of course not, it's not my day off yet. This is Jimmy, a member of our restaurant, interested in joining as an AP."

"OK, go find Amy to register."

"Alright, goodbye, sir."

Jimmy followed Jacob to an office. "Amy, help register an AP; the chief has approved."

"That's great, Jacob, you're thoughtful. We've been short-staffed recently."

Amy took out some files from a nearby cabinet and handed one to Jimmy. "Fill out these forms."

Jimmy took the form, sat at a nearby table, and began filling it out.

"Amy, why are we short-staffed?"

"For two years straight, we haven't had enough recruits from the police academy. You know, our salaries are relatively low here, so many choose to go to other states for training. Now we're short on county police, with many registered APs but fewer available to help out. And you, when was the last time you came to the station? It's been over two years, right?"

"Haha, as you know, I got married and needed more time to be with my family. Erica even wants to go on holiday for Christmas this year."

"Yeah, so you're like many other APs."

"Sorry, being an AP is a personal choice, and we should respect others' decisions."

"Indeed, so we end up working overtime. The station hardly has regular off days now; everyone's working extra hours."

Jimmy finished completing the form and handed it to Amy.

"Alright, Jimmy, we'll conduct a background check soon. If everything's fine, you'll need to attend a 16-week training program as required, including legal training, first aid, emergency response scenarios, physical training, and more. You can ask Jacob about the specifics; he's been through these trainings. We'll inform you of the other details later on."

"Okay."

"Great, we're done here. Let's head back to the restaurant. Amy, feel free to come over to my place sometime to try my special spicy barbecue; you'll love it. Bye." Jacob said, signaling for Jimmy to follow and then walked out of the office.