2019-11-03 - Coffee, Coughing, and Conversation

It's been a busy time in Gray Harbor with the Masquerade going on, which has looped in locals and tourists alike into any number of events, events which have ended up requiring police response at least a few times over the course of the festivities. Fortunately, for the moment, things are quiet in the early Sunday evening hours as Carter stops in to grab a bite and a cup of coffee, the cruiser parked outside in the parking lot. He's in his patrolman's uniform as he sits at a table by the window, having just settled down with half a sandwich and a large cup of coffee to help him get through the remainder of the day.

Devlin comes into the shop, his appearance suggestive of one that has been working out this morning. A blue t-shirt with a 1/504 PIR logo on the front and on the back shows SSG McCloud is worn along with black basket ball shorts that has a Yin-Yang logo with a tiger and dragon on it. He looks a little greenish about the gills and may be has the sniffles for a guess. He sees the patrol man and gives a freindly greeting, "Morning Officer." He then ques up to order a black coffee along with a banana nut muffin.

Carter glances up from where he'd just settled down with his sandwich and gives Devlin a nod, taking a moment to place him. He, himself, is fairly new in town, only having lived there for a couple of months, but he's been around the precinct and has met Sutton and the other GHFD and EMT members, so he recognizes the new guy. "How's it going?" He notices the greenish tinge and says, "Hope you're not coming down with that bug that's going around. I've heard it can be pretty rough."

It takes a moment for Devlin to place Carter, one might get the impression that he may have slown down a bit in this fog of ug he is dealing with. "Oh.. the walk around at the department.. or should I have called that a run?" He pays for his coffee and muffin. "Devlin..," he offers, "Hell of a lot of names in a hurry for me to try picking up on that day. And yes, been feeling like shit. Still getting around ok.. sucks when you need to find a place soon .. well yesterday.. and start working on those state certifications they want."

"Carter," he introduces himself with a grin and nods at the table that he's occupying, inviting Devlin to take a seat if he wants to, and pulling his sandwich and coffee a little closer so that he's not sprawled out across the entire surface. "Sounds like you've got an awful lot going on all at once." He chuckles. "Sounds like that week when Claire and I first got here. There was dealing with the house we'd never seen, and then me at the PD, her working with Emergency Response to get her job set up, trying to get settled in and start work and meet people all at the same time. What sort of place are you looking for?"

Devlin comes over to take a seat. Before he sits, he sets his coffee and muffin down then reaches out to shake hands, "Good to meet you, Carter." He then settles, "Yeah.. one huge Charlie Fox...so far. Then again, that shit storm in LA didn't help me either." He takes a breath and then takes a long pull of his coffee, "Oh yeah.. that will break shit loose."

Carter gives Devlin's hand a firm but friendly brief shake and then sets about unwrapping his sandwich, "So you're from LA? Claire and I came up from San Francisco." He nabs a bite from the sandwich, letting out a sigh. Had he even eaten breakfast? He can't remember. There's a grin at the comment about the coffee and says, "I don't drink a whole lot of coffee but this week definitely has me considering picking up the habit."

Devlin chuckles over his muffin, "Army brat really. Was in LA to earn a spot as a SWAT medic. I discovered the hard way that LA has a political triage. I didn't use it a politician took it personally." He takes a breath and takes another sip of the coffee. "As to where to live, would be nice to find a place where I can have a studio to work out in for Tai Chi and Kung Fu. And a good spot where my Rubicon can be parked of course." He clears his throat and coughs into a napkin. "Yeah.. I think I got what ever is going around."

"I've been fortunate. I think I'm immune to it, since everyone around me's been sick but I've managed to dodge it," Carter says, which is probably why he is brave enough to be sitting across from Devlin despite his coughing and green-ness. He takes another bite of his sandwich and then after finishing the bite says, "So you're looking for a place with some space. There are some houses on Spruce that are for rent that would probably have space for a studio in them. I know ours has a full basement.. but we haven't even begun to tackle exploring and clearing that out yet." He smiles faintly. "No idea what to expect."

Devlin nods, "Lucky, It's hammering me some but so far got a handle on it. Basement surprises.. mom always loved those when Dad had to move. As to me.. 12 years with the 82nd as a sixty eight whiskey. Two tours each in Iraq and Afghanistan." He smiles, "Sutton and her friend seemed to imply that Gray Harbor might be more than I could handle..," a bit of a chuckle follows.. as if an American town can be rougher than what he's dealt with.

"Well, Claire and I never knew our dad. We found out about him when we inherited the house, so I have no idea exactly what to expect. Thus far it hasn't been too creepy but, you never know," Carter chuckles. "Folks around here talk about the town like it's this crazy spooky place. And of course they're hamming it up even more with this whole Masquerade thing that's going on. But I'm pretty sure you can handle it." He grins. "I've met Sutton at the station. She's actually the first person I ran into my first day there. Took a wrong turn and ended up in the FD instead of the PD."

Devlin nods, "Ghost stories.. huh? Well, could be their way of drawing in tourists. They talking about may be handling some of the Red Cross classes for the departments and other stuff while I work on my certifications for Oregon. Some of the stuff they'd waver me on their nervous about thanks to LA." He sips his coffee, "Funny.. I have a slot with the guard over in Tacoma for Dustoff slot.. and yet.. no waivers for an EMS slot, go figure." He shrugs a little. "Ran into Sutton over coffee, interesting woman. I am looking forward to the ride a longs in the meanwhile."

"She seems pretty cool. Knew right where to find the donuts," Carter chuckles. "And where to find the Chief in relation to the donuts." He takes another bite of his sandwich, making his way through it during lulls in the conversation. "Well, I know we need EMS here, so once you get things set up here, you should be good to go, right? Or are you hoping to head off somewhere bigger, like Seattle?"

Devlin shrugs, "I have not thought that far honestly. For now, just getting through things. May be settle in for a bit before I make those kind of choices." He chuckles after taking a sip of his coffee, "The friend that helped me get that Dustoff slot.. suggested I could make serious green smokejumping.. not a lot of trained medics for those guys."

"And plenty of fires during the season," Carter says with a nod. "I don't know a lot about it, but I have heard that much." He settles back in his chair a bit, glancing out the window and watching people go by. Some are still in costumes, heading to various Masquerade events. "You gone to any of the celebration stuff in town since being here?"

Devlin says, "Not really. My timing brought me in to the middle of this. Not like I have any costumes.. and an Army Medic would not be a costume for me when you think about it." He finishes up his muffin, "I am hoping to get the certifications knocked out and just do a good job out there with the team. I feel as if I hired in to just sit the bench.."

Carter chuckles and says, "Well, that's unfortunately the beauty of bureaucracy. Gotta get all the paperwork done and all the ducks in a row before you can actually start doing anything useful. But, you'll get there, and then you'll be plenty busy before you know it." He can't help it. He's a bit of an optimist, and hasn't been in Gray Harbor all that long. He still has this kind of sense of optimism and adventure of having moved to a new place.

You can almost feel that temptation on Devlin's account to ruffle your hair for a moment. "Yeah.. I have always hated shuffling paperwork." He smiles a bit, "And yes, I have a feeling that there will be more than just milk runs and fixing boo boos once on duty. Just don't get yourself shot in the meanwhile.." He then grins a bit, "So what brought you out here? And inherited a house? Must be a story in that somewhere."

"I'll bear that in mind," Carter says when Devlin advises him not to get shot in the meantime, an amused smile on his face. "I think my sister would kill me if I got myself shot, so I've got ample motivation." When Devlin asks what brought him out he explains, "Claire and I were in the system as kids. Our mom gave us up to foster care. Once I was out, I started working until she turned 18, and then we got a place together but San Francisco's pretty expensive and we were struggling there. Then one day we get this letter from an attorney saying they'd found us on behalf of our birth father who had passed away, and he left us this house in his will with the stipulation that we needed to move to Gray Harbor and live in it. And.. since we really couldn't afford San Francisco.. we decided to give it a shot. It's not big, but it's bigger than what we could afford there."

Devlin nods, "I had a few soldiers that had that issue.. mom, sister.. someone else would kill them if they got stupid." a slight chuckles, "Now on real estate.. Yeah it can yield some big bucks.. this dick head Major I knew hit the flipping jackpot selling his parent's home in Frisco." He then hmms, "Glad it worked out for you. Though foster system... does not sound like a good time for a childhood. Looks like it did work out sort of."

"It was what it was," Carter says with a slight rise and fall of his shoulders. "It wasn't terrible, just wasn't great either. We had some nice foster places, though, so it worked out alright, and Claire and I managed to do okay once we got out. Now we're here." He smiles. "I wouldn't say we made it through entirely unscathed but.. could definitely be worse." Then he says, "I can imagine that real estate in San Francisco would be worth a lot more. Here, I'm not sure what we'd get for the house even if we did try to sell it."

Devlin nods, "Yeah and for once, you have a home. Not a place." He finishes his coffee, "Doubt you'll sell anytime soon. There is something about the power of the word.. Home. So anyone I need to watch out for in the PD or FD?"

"Yeah, that's what Claire keeps saying." Carter laughs a little. "She did a whole little dance in the kitchen going.. this is our kitchen.. we can dance in it... we can dance over here... and over there.. and it's ours. It was pretty funny. There is something nice about it though. The place still needs work, though, and the guy who was going to help out I guess left town. But.. we'll get there." When asked if there is anyone to watch out for at the PD or the FD, Carter shakes his head, "Not that I know of.. but then, I haven't been here all that long, myself."

Devlin smiles at the imagery, "Claire sounds like someone that enjoy's life. Nothing wrong with hard work to fix something up. Makes it more your own over time. Every little thing you do for it.. all that jazz." He chuckles a bit, "Oh.. piece of advise.." He holds up his hand with the gold band, "If your wanting to avoid shall we say.. those who hunt stability to live off of or use.... this helps alot."

"Yeah, she's a trip," Carter grins. He takes a sip of his coffee, settling back now that his sandwich is finished, and studies Devlin across the table. When the man lifts up his hand showing off the gold band, Carter raises a brow. "I don't.. really have that problem, to be honest. So.. are you married, or do you just wear it so women don't hit on you?"

"Bing bing.. bing.. you got it on the 2nd guess. Assumptions can throw people off and manipulate things to what you want. Why mess with someone that is a leech when there are good people about worthy of your time?" He takes a breath, "Me.. just moving around to much, not a lot of women can deal with no warning deployments and not to mention my doing tours.."

"I suppose that's one way to do it," Carter says, though he looks a little skeptical. "I mean, whatever works." He takes another sip from his coffee and then says, "I mostly date guys, and I don't have the kind of money that tends to attract gold-diggers." He chuckles. "Rookie cops aren't really on the most eligible bachelor occupation lists, I'm pretty sure. Particularly in small towns in the middle of a depression."

Devlin nods, "Point.. May have to consider if this is needed anymore.." he taps his ring. "Still, did its job down in LA." He snorts, "A lot of people down there do gold dig.. but there are also those that want to shall we say, notch their belt with those they perceive as heros.. cops, EMS, Soldiers.. So as I didn't get saddled.. guess it worked there." He smiles.

"I guess I could see the fantasy fulfillment or checklist thing, maybe," Carter says. "Wasn't really an issue for me in San Francisco, either. But I was pretty focused on school, and the academy, then proving myself, and trying to take care of Claire and I to really have time for much outside of that. Most of my dating was casual short-term things." He lifts his cup and takes another sip.

Devlin nods, "Shows you can stay focused, that is a good thing. I do confess when I was active duty.. I did get a little distracted here and there when I was in. But short term stuff.. " He hmms, "Hope I am not distracting from your current duties or things that slow right now as people recover from partying?"

"I'm on lunch," Carter says and then nods toward his radio, "And nothing's coming through right now, so it's early enough that things haven't gotten busy yet. Usually it picks up after sundown. So no, you're not keeping me from anything." He takes another sip of his coffee and then nods, "Must be hard to have anything that's more than short term when you're moving around and deployed a lot. I figure that's pretty rough on both parties -- whoever's out and whoever's back home."

Devlin nods, "Yeah, seen it tear up some families.. leave some a mess. But there are those few it makes stronger. I've had to pull suicide watch for some guys over family issues." He takes a breath, "I think the families that survive the stress are ones that realize they all are a part of team Mom or Dad. I always gave the married guys a break where I could. Pulled duty on holidays to let them be with families that kind of thing."

"That's nice of you," he says with a nod. "I try to take shifts on the holidays and stuff like that since it's just me and Claire, and she's usually working 911, too. So we just celebrate before or after, depending on when we get some time off after folks do stuff with their families. It actually works out pretty well." Carter nods toward the ring and says, "So you just avoiding relationships at all entirely? Seems like those who would be undeterred by the ring wouldn't be the sort that you'd want to attract, either."

Devlin nods, "True.. not all, just picky is all. And the ones that would be undeterred, you tend to see those coming if you pay attention.. The subtle ones.. those are dangerous ones. Nice to see others happy to take the undesirable shifts to let the family folk get their time together."

"May as well, right? I'd like to think that if I had a family, that folks would be willing to give me a chance to spend some time with them once in a while, too. Just seems the considerate thing to do," Carter says. He folds his arms lightly and leans against the table. "Don't trust people very much, do you?" he asks.

Devlin shrugs, "Depends on what you mean about people in that statement. I do trust a lot of people with the caveat that there are levels of trust. Till proven otherwise.. trusting those in uniform for example. Now as to a random person on the street.. depends on what you are asking me to trust them with. Now, if your asking if I did get burned. Almost did."

"Sounds like you got burned in the past," Carter agrees that that was what he was getting at moreso than just trusting people in general on the street. He finishes off the remainder of his coffee and sets the cup aside, leaning back in his chair then.

A shrug on Devlin's part is his response. "So what do you do for excitement here.." He pulls out a cough drop to suck on. "A bit boring as I am not working a true full time. Especially as I don't need to study as hard as a new EMT might have to. More just brushing up on local laws and procedures. Not a huge difference from what I did other than.. not dealing with people shooting at me on a daily basis."

"Thus far? Not a whole lot. I haven't been out much. Most of my time not working has been spent working on the house. Though I did go in to Seattle with Claire since she wanted to go clubbing. That was fun for a weekend, but I haven't done a whole lot in town yet," Carter admits. Then he chuckles and says "You going to get bored without that kind of excitement all the time?"

Devlin says, "Just need some things to do. Friends to hang with.. Found a nice pond to practice forms by in the park. May be once I get a place, I will have some projects to occupy my time with in my down time. Studying can only go so far.. and for liabity issues.. only so many ride alongs. I get the funny feeling if I showed up in my Rubicon a few to many times I might get one of those unpleasant lectures"

"Well, there are always the bars, and I guess there's at least one dance club. There's a couple of restaurants, and there's the park, and the forest, which you found if you found the pond. Then there's the boardwalk and the beach area, though the beach isn't much around here -- probably why there aren't many tourists," Carter says. Then he chuckles and says, "Then there's the freaky diner with all the bears. Like something out of Twin Peaks."

Devlin says, "I take it you have not been around enough to know how hunting season is in these parts. I bowhunt a little. I bag something each year.. turkey, deer, and once.. a boar." He nods a bit, "Bars.. check... well hope I am beyond the it's a white boy waving his arms.. and the usual. Fair enough.. but a freaky diner, sounds like a must try atleast once thing."

Carter shakes his head and says, "Can't say as I'd know, really. I mean, I know a bit about when it is and the permits required, that sort of thing. But I've only been here for a couple of months." He smiles though and says, "I liked archery when I was a kid, but haven't done it in a long time. Was never any real good at it, though. Fortunately, I'm better with my sidearm." Then he nods, "You have to stop by the Grizzly Den at least once. The service is downright unfriendly but the food is really good. Just don't get an omelet."

Devlin says, "No Omellette... ok"

Devlin nods, "I enjoy bow hunting, more of a challenge to shoot that way. I've seen what rifles do," he shakes his head, "Bow makes it more hunting than target shooting to me. Glad your good with your side arm. Me, I barely qualified in the army and thankfully the SWAT team was not looking at their medic being able to shoot. Pure take care of the wounded.."

"Well, right. Being able to shoot is a little less important to you than it is to me," Carter chuckles. "I'd much rather that you were skilled in getting the bullets out than putting them in." He does, however, glance down at his phone and notices the time. "Unfortunately, my lunch break is up and I need to do another sweep down by Addington Park. That place has been my route pretty much since the whole pumpkin prank thing before the Masquerade started." He pushes himself up to his feet and offers a hand. "Was good to meet you, Devlin. I'm sure we'll see each other around the station."

Devlin says, "Catch you around. Been fun. I better go lay down some.. and get more supplies to deal with this."

"Yeah, lots of vitamin C and fluids and plenty of rest, man. I hope you get over it quick," Carter says with a smile as he heads off to go back to work.