Julian Kent

'Did I do the right thing?'

The same thought that once deeply occupied Julian's mind reappeared again.

Nine months ago, he was promoted to be a detective from a patrol officer. Yes, he was promoted but it was not purely a happy occasion.

He still remembered the words his former captain said when he handed over his transfer letter, "You are too much of a straight arrow. In this world, if you don't know how to bend, you're gonna break".

When he first graduated from the police academy, he took proud in his occupation so much when he thought about fighting against evil. He worked hard and tried to absorb everything his seniors taught him. He was too preoccupied with the word 'justice' that he reported his seniors' every wrongdoings like accepting little bribes.

Even though he knew that he became an eyesore in some of his seniors' eyes because of his over-enthusiasm, he did not mind as long as they did not hinder with his work. Moreover, his own partner was a kind senior who always protected him. He was always patient with Julian's questions and never let his colleagues bully his little partner.

That was why Julian trusted him a lot and regarded him as his role model until one day.

That day, he accidentally found out that his respected partner was selling the drugs they had confiscated as evidence.

The naive Julian confronted his senior head-on for his actions. At that time, his senior confessed to him that it was only a one time thing and he was really in need of money for his hospitalized daughter. Julian believed him and let him off that time.

However, he later found out that his partner was still continuing his 'actions' and that he did not even have a daughter. That was when Julian reported him.

Although his senior was fired and detained, his life was not so smooth sailing either. Some officers called him 'the hero' sarcastically while some called him 'the snitch' openly. All their covert oppositions against him became more prominent and no one was happy to be his partner.

Even with all their hatred towards him, Julian never regretted his actions. He was certain that he did the right thing. Because of his righteous actions, his promotion came faster than anyone else's.

However, his resolution started to waver and he started to question the meaning behind being a police when he received the transfer letter together with his detective badge. Some of his colleagues must have filed complaints against him to the higher-ups or may be someone he offended pulled some strings.

'Was I the one in the wrong? If I did the right thing, why would they send me to the notorious crime city?'

When he asked those questions out loud, his captain answered him with a sigh.

"You would not be regarded as you were in the wrong if all people abide by the rules. You are a good lad but not smart enough and got into many people's ways. Not everyone can be perfect the way you want them to, not even me. That's why when you tried to follow perfection, you stuck out like a sore thumb. Don't take your transfer as a bad thing. You're gonna gain more experience and learn how to be more flexible."

Although Julian understood the theory behind his captain's words, he was still not satisfied. That was when he met his new captain, Ryan, and his hopes got reignited again.

Julian was still uncomfortable during his first month of his transfer because the corruption in his new department was even worse. He thought that Ryan was incapable of controlling them, just like his former captain. However, he later found out that Ryan let them be only because they were not extreme. He would immediately take action as soon as some direct or indirect harm was done towards the civilians. Although it seemed like the officers' actions were unruly, they were still operating in a set boundary.

That was when Julian realized that he and his captain had the same mindset but Ryan had the smarts he did not have. Hence, his respects towards Ryan grew by leaps and bounds and he started to learn from the latter's actions. The more he learned about his captain, the more impressed he was because he could not find any fault at all. Ryan's skills, brain, personality and attitude all pointed that the word 'perfection' still existed.

But now, Julian had to face the same disappointment again. He did not want to get hurt again by expecting too much from his senior. That was why he took a step back before his image of Ryan crumbled down completely.

The opening of the car-door pulled Julian out from his deep thoughts. He was still in front of Allen's house, sitting inside his car while trying to straighten his thoughts.

Shelly got into the passenger seat and closed the door.

"Tell me what's on your mind, kiddo" Shelly asked gently.

It was the first time Shelly used this kind of tone towards him. He did not ruin the image of an honest kid and told her about everything on his mind.

"Do you know that you're being too selfish?"

Julian was stunned by Shelly's question. 'What made her think that?'

"Your old captain was right. There's no such thing as 'perfection' in this world and we could only strive to do our best. Just because Cap was trying to do his best in everything, you took it wrongly that he would have no weak point at all and put him on a pedestal. You're the one who decided to worship him and he did not even ask for you to. And as soon as a flaw appeared, you regretted your decision and painted a new picture of him again. These things are only happening in your mind. In actual fact, Cap has not changed at all and he was still the same old Cap you decided to follow."

Shelly studied Julian's face as his expression started to soften. Even though he did not give any verbal response, she knew that he agreed with her words.

"So what if his parents were kidnappers? He's still our captain who keeps the whole police department under his rein. He's still the same detective who put hundreds of criminals of City X behind the bars. Did you respect him for those facts or for his parents? Ask yourself clearly."

"You are right," Julian nodded.

Of course, as a human being, Captain Carlos would have some faults. Right now, the faults he had were not even his own.

Without hesitation, Julian walked out of the car and went back inside Allen's house. Inside the house, Allen and Ryan were still discussing about the case. They looked towards the door when they heard it suddenly opened. When they saw Julian, they both smiled at him knowingly.

"I'm sorry, captain," Julian said.

"I was too rash and thoughtless," he added.

Ryan walked towards him and softly punched his shoulder.

"It's okay. What you said was not completely wrong either. I understand," he said with a faint smile.

"If you're all set. Let's star talking about our findings," Shelly said just after she had entered the room.

"Alright," the three men all replied in unison and took their own seat.