Artificial Heart

20

Scott

Night shift. Stuck in the station. Not Scott's favourite but at least he could while away the hours without having to deal with any of the usual dickheads causing mayhem in the darkened streets. He couldn't find it relaxing, however, since he had reports to do. Lots of reports. The thought made him swing back in his seat and blow a raspberry.

'Something wrong, Constable?'

Scott sat up with a start. 'Michelle.' He peered through the glass divider. The policewoman was gripping onto a stumbling, bedraggled girl with smudged makeup by the elbow. 'You're here already.' He opened his computer to log their prisoner in.

'I don't stuff around,' Michelle returned with a smirk. Her blonde hair was pulled up in a messy ponytail. Her dark eyes were looking tired.

'Where's Rick?'

'In the car, attending a call.'

Scott typed away as she gave him the girl's details. Drunk and disorderly. Property damage. Minor assault. The usual. Scott yawned again.

Michelle yawned too. 'I need my coffee.'

Scott stood, collected his card and swiped the girl into her holding cell. The door clanged shut and he slumped back down into his seat. Michelle disappeared into the staff kitchen.

'Get me one too, would ya?' he called.

Scott put his feet up on the bench and yawned again. The chair creaked as he stretched. Then Rick entered and he quickly dropped his feet and straightened up.

'All right, Sergeant?' Scott said respectfully.

'Not much going on tonight,' Rick said. He snorted. 'Surprisingly.'

He sat down in one of the seats at the front, shifting his belt and straightening out his legs with a groan. His ginger hair gleamed against the light. There was a spattering of freckles across the bridge of his nose. 'Getting too old for night shifts.'

Scott laughed.

'Here you go.' Michelle handed him his coffee.

'Thanks, darl.'

'You're welcome, honey.'

They smirked at each other. She was about to sit on the edge of the desk, saw Rick and leaned against the wall instead as she drank.

'Got an interesting email,' Rick said.

'Oh, yeah?'

'I'll send it to you.' He took out his phone and swiped through it. Scott heard a ding as his phone received it. 'You won't believe it.'

Scott stared. 'What is this? Is this from ASIS?'

Rick's eyes were twinkling. 'Yep.'

'You've gotta be shitting me.' Scott laughed. Michelle put her coffee down. 'This is not real. Good job, though. Looks authentic.'

'It is authentic. I'm not bullshitting you. It's legit.'

Scott and Michelle looked at each other. She rolled her eyes. Scott looked over at Rick again with a frown.

'I'm telling the truth,' Rick insisted.

Scott looked down at his phone again. It contained information concerning the woman involved in the so-called alien encounter in the United States. They were actually looking for her. She was real. The encounter was real. Aliens were real. According to the Australian Secret Service, at least.