10_First Mission

Who hasn't had a first time

On the return journey, Jimmy and Jacob discussed some content about AP training. It sounds like 16 weeks is a lot, but it's actually quite simple. Because AP is a volunteer, most people have work to do and only attend training in their spare time. It's very flexible and not too difficult.

"Jimmy, I've never asked you, why do you want to be an AP? I heard from Jon that you're just doing a temporary job, without a fixed place to stay."

"Before yesterday, I never thought about the definition of security. Before yesterday, I wasn't held at gunpoint, detained and taken to the police station, or even thought I would die in a firefight. Even when I was homeless before, I didn't encounter so many bad things."

Jimmy raised his hands, trembling slightly as he spoke.

"I need some sense of security. When you mentioned AP yesterday, I thought of something. Maybe I need some connection with the police, and incidentally learn some self-defense knowledge. In a sense, AP is also a kind of police, right?"

"Haha, Jimmy, don't be so nervous. This is Arkansas, not California. There isn't that much crime here, but you might need a gun."

"Maybe, but I can't get a gun permit now."

"Alright, good luck."

As the saying goes, the daily routine of the restaurant is boring and busy. Jimmy moved his tent to a green park near the restaurant, settling in a secluded corner, at least not having to spend two hours commuting every day.

The day after signing up, he received a notification from the police station to start his 16-week training. It sounds long, but it just requires accumulating enough training hours. Jimmy was diligent, focusing mainly on legal training and responding to calls. For him, he had learned first aid before, and in terms of physical fitness, for a 19-year-old body, there were no issues. Working at the restaurant recently, with no shortage of food, his body had almost recovered from the deficiencies during his time as a homeless person. Combined with his daily exercise, he could now be considered a strong young man.

Originally planning for temporary work, he had now become a regular employee at the restaurant, with a slight increase in salary. After over two months of work, both Jon and others were very satisfied with him. Jon even offered to guarantee a rental apartment for him, about two blocks away from the restaurant, but it was a bit expensive. For Jimmy, a native Chinese, having no money was terrifying. Living in a tent, with the restaurant providing two meals, his expenses were minimal, just buying a few clothes and a thick sleeping bag.

Most of the wages Jon paid him had already been saved in the bank. For someone like him who lacked a sense of security, being poor was even scarier, or perhaps more terrifying. At the same time, he now had his first credit card.

...

Approaching December, during Thanksgiving, Jon gave everyone time off but left the restaurant to Jimmy. Jimmy could cook at the restaurant by himself.

Thanksgiving had nothing to do with Jimmy. He was alone in the kitchen, looking through the ingredients in the fridge. He managed to put together a braised pork dish and a tomato beef dish. Very nice. Jimmy turned on the restaurant's music, humming a recent song he had learned while cooking dinner for himself.

The restaurant's phone rang, and Jimmy hurried to the cash register to answer.

"Hi, Jimmy, it's Amy."

"Hi, Amy, happy Thanksgiving."

"Happy Thanksgiving. Jimmy, do you have time tonight? We need support."

"Today? Now? Oh my, do I have to do my first support mission while everyone else is celebrating?"

"I'm sorry, yes, today. You're the only single person registered in AP, so the others can't come today."

"Alright, give me an hour, tonight I'm yours."

Jimmy opened a second pressure cooker, threw all the ingredients in, set it for 40 minutes, then cooked rice for himself in another pot. While waiting, he also made a large portion of vegetable salad. When the time was up, the tomato beef was still good, but the braised pork was basically just water-boiled meat with added seasoning, not a big problem. He packed rice and dishes in the restaurant's food containers, waited at the restaurant's door, and then took the pre-booked taxi to the police station.

"Hi, Noah." "Hi, Jimmy."

Jimmy walked into the police station. It was Thanksgiving, so there were very few people in the station, not shift change time, with more than half of the people patrolling in various places.

"Hi, Amy, want to try my cooking? I was cooking when you called."

"Oh, sweetheart, you're so kind." Amy accepted the invitation with a smile.

Amy was the sheriff's assistant, mainly responsible for various documents and personnel management. Just to avoid misunderstanding, it should be mentioned that Amy was over 50 years old and had been at the police station for over 20 years.

Jimmy opened the prepared food containers on an empty table nearby, taking out the paper lunch boxes he had prepared for Amy and himself. Judging by the amount of food, there was probably enough for 3 more people.

"Amy, there's more, about 3 portions. Who else is on duty today? Shall we share?"

"No problem." Amy took the three portions of food and walked out of her office, returning in a while.

"The taste is good, I like this beef."

"Thank you for the compliment. What's the task for me tonight?"

"To patrol with Noah, probably for 3-4 hours."

"OK."

...

Jimmy put on the full set of equipment for the first time. The police uniform was that of the county police, with an AP badge, a pair of handcuffs, a baton, a flashlight, a pen, and a notepad, very simple.

Because AP had no enforcement powers, only providing support, including assisting in patrols, security for large events, assisting in investigations, etc., they were not equipped with guns or lethal force. Even if an individual had a gun permit, they could not use their own gun during their service as an AP, only relying on a baton for force.

At 8 p.m., Jimmy got into Noah's car, starting his first AP patrol.

Noah watched Jimmy in the passenger seat holding onto the baton and chuckled, "Don't be nervous, it's just a routine patrol. If something happens, just observe on the road, no need to chase suspects, no need to enter buildings, in short, you're safe."

"OK, I'll try to relax, no problem."

Jimmy put the baton back in its holster, trying to sit back and relax as much as possible in his seat. Responding to calls in the U.S. was different from responding to fires in his home country. Fire response focused on rescuing people and extinguishing fires, but here, the focus was on not putting oneself in danger.

"Noah, how long have you been a police officer?"

"About 8, 9 years, don't worry, I'll take care of you, no need to worry."

"Oh, what I wanted to ask was, is daytime generally more dangerous or nighttime?"

"Nighttime, of course. It's fine before 10 p.m., but if we get a call late at night, it's very easy to get into a firefight. This is the South, where guns mean life, so we usually don't assign APs to night support. It's a bit troublesome today, with a few colleagues on vacation, personnel arrangements have gone awry."

"Alright, it seems like this first patrol isn't the best time."

"Adam47, vandalism of public property, West 11th Street, multiple callers reported someone spray-painting the walls of the city hall square."

"Adam47, copy."

Noah turned on the police lights and headed towards the target location.