"Hold it".

Pete, who had picked up the form and was heading towards the door, spun on his heel to face Dr. Franks again.

"I thought we were done", Pete flashed a bit of that Irish charm, "Oh, I forgot to thank you."

"Nice try Officer Malloy. Take a seat. We're got some more business to attend to."

Pete sighed, "I knew it couldn't be this easy."

Over the next half-hour, the two discussed restrictions on the type of duty Pete would be allowed to do, physical therapy requirements and the medications that would be prescribed. Dr. Franks had lowered the dosage on both the pain medication and the steroid he was taking. He had expected those, but Franks ordered more antibiotics, "as a precautionary measure"; annoying, but not a total surprise either. The one Pete wasn't expecting, well, was hoping not to get, was a prescription for iron supplements due to borderline anemia. Was it his fault that he couldn't stomach the liver, tofu, Lentils, or broccoli that Sally kept trying to feed him?

O~O~O

Pete did the right thing in resisting the urge to sneak out the side door and take a bus home. Instead, he strolled down the hall to where Jim sat waiting. It wasn't that he didn't want to let Jim know about being returned to duty, he was merely in the mood for some alone time. These last six months had been hard on Pete, who still had that independent streak inside.

Jim popped out of his seat like the clown in a Jack-in-the-box, knocking over the chair he had been sitting on. Pete braced himself for conversation he knew was coming. He thought, "No matter how much I try to tamp down Jim's expectations, he's not going to like it."

"Finally, I was worried that I'd have to leave for watch before you got done." Jim used his chin to nod to the large brown envelope Pete was carrying. "Is that it? Did he clear you to work again?" Jim was bouncing up and down like a kid who had to pee.

"Yes, but…", Pete paused until Jim settled down, "for light duty only and on restricted hours."

The two men started walking to the parking lot. Jim peppering his friend with questions.

"You don't have to be at the station for two hours. At least wait until we get in the car. I'm hungry, so let's stop somewhere for lunch and we can talk." Pete slid into the front seat of Jim's corvette, closed his eyes, and prayed for some quiet time to get his thoughts together.

"Where do you want to take seven?"

"Lunch and I don't care, just pick a place."

"No, really Partner, pick a place, this is a special day."

Pete lifted his head slightly then let it thud back on the head rest.
"Jim, you're paying, so pick the place."

"Um, eh, yeah, okay. Mike's is closest. I'll go there." Pete chuckled silently. Sometimes Jim was way too easy to be wrangled into paying for lunch. If Pete had thought more clearly, he would have chosen the place; any place he wasn't well known.

"Look, it's Malloy!"

"Make way for the hero!"

"Great to see you Pete. How are you feeling?

People clapped, people cheered and Pete wanted to crawl into the woodwork. "Your partner here says that you're getting a big, fancy medal…."

"Stop", Malloy said it a little louder than he should but Pete was never one to seek the limelight. He got all the attention he needed by doing his job right, not the hype that seems to still be stuck to him. "Can we have a table in the back, please?"

"Oh sure, too much for you." Mike, the owner waved over a very pretty waitress who tended to flirt with Pete. Jill, the waitress arrived with big mug of coffee and took their order. Reed watched as his friend whispered something to the waitress, who winked at him, then ran her fingers through Pete's hair as she went to place the orders.

"Are you going to tell her or can I do it?" Rarely had Malloy seen Jim with a wicked grin.

"Tell who, what?

"Jill! The woman you just flirted with." His friend seemed way too eager to spread the news of Pete's engagement to the waitress.

"No, you can't. Didn't you brush off your share of girls in your own life? Oh, wait, forget the question. You were born married." The older man blew on his coffee, peering over the rim at his partner.

"Okay, I'll tell Sally how you let Jill run her fingers through your hair." Pete wasn't biting.

"Go ahead, Sally trusts me." He took the manila envelope, handing it to Jim to read, Pete leaned back against the back of the booth and drank his coffee in peace.

"Ah, now that's a lunch." Pete thanked Jill as she set before him a double burger with Swiss cheese, bacon and mushrooms, a large order of salty fries and refilled his coffee mug. Jim was given a turkey sandwich on white bread, mayo, and a side of fruit instead of fries.

"This isn't right. You got all the things Sally doesn't want you to eat and I get ….You switched the orders on me when you whispered to that waitress, didn't you?

Pete grinned, took a big bite of the burger; taking his time to savor the taste. "You accuse me? Your partner? The man who saved your life of switching lunch orders with you?" He shook his head, muttering about having his honor questioned.

The two men went over the papers from Dr. Franks. Jim wasn't happy with the conditions and restrictions put on Pete. It had to be a desk job or one requiring a minimal amount of standing and required a ½ hour break after working four hours. When Jim suggested going to the captain to try and get Pete more leeway in what he's allowed to do, Pete did broach the subject of teaching classes at the academy for part of the time. Jim was livid.

"You can't join the Academy Staff. You need to be in the station. That's the fastest way to get back on the street."

"Jim...Partner. We have to take this slow. If I push too hard, I can hurt myself and would blow any chance I have of working anywhere but the Academy." Pete paused along enough for that to take root in Jim's brain. "Let's see what the brass says, Okay?"

"We have an hour before change-of-watch, let's go now. I know the guys want to see you." There was no way In hell that Pete would show up at the station with two shifts colliding. He intended on easing himself back into the station. After all these years, you'd think that Jim would know better than most that he hated being the center of attention.

"Take me home Jim. I have to discuss this over with Sally.

O~O~O

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