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Peja's Wonderful World of Makebelieve Import
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Published:
2020-11-05
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714
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1/1
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13
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The Deal

Summary:

Summary: Hutch finds an underage kid in a sleazy joint...

Notes:

(See the end of the work for notes.)

Work Text:

The Deal
by romankate

 

The kid's eyes were dark and suspicious under his curly bangs, and Hutch sighed. There was no way he was old enough to be working, no matter what the greasy owner of this two-bit dive was trying to tell him.

"Look, shut up, willya Doone?" Hutch told the fat man, raising a hand. "I know your liquor license isn't worth the paper it's printed on, and up til now, me and my partner have looked the other way because of the times you've helped us out. But after today, I've got some concerns, and I think you'd better come for a ride with us and have a chat. Starsk?"

"Good idea, Hutch." Starsky stepped forward, grinning genially and dropping a heavy hand on the owner's shoulder. "C'mon, bud."

Hutch didn't watch as Starsky herded the protesting man out the door and into the waiting Torino. He knew his partner was more than a match for that low-life. Instead, he turned his attention back to the boy behind the bar.

"You gonna arrest me, too?" The kid was small, Hutch thought, but game, looking back at him with his shoulders squared and head up like an outmatched fighting cock, ready to brazen this out if he could.

"Not unless you make me." Hutch regarded the kid levelly, taking in the fear just below the surface of the wide blue eyes. "What's your name?"

"I don't have to tell you." The fear leaped higher, closer to the surface, and Hutch sighed and ran a hand through his shaggy blond hair. He hated having to deal with kids like this one, kids who likely had nowhere to go, no-one who cared if they lived or died. There were too many people out there who'd use a kid like this one for their own ends, and he had an idea the guy Starsky had just shepherded to the Torino was one of them.

"Kid, I hate to break it to you, but you do have to tell me," he said patiently. "If you don't, only thing I can do with you is take you downtown and hand you over to Juvie until I figure out who you are."

All the color drained from the kid's face, and Hutch felt a pang. If he could avoid it, he'd never hand a kid over to Juvie or Child Services, but sometimes they were better options than the fucked up dumps they called their homes. "C'mon," he said quietly. "Have a seat, and let's chat, okay?"

The kid nodded hesitantly, and followed Hutch to one of the small tables in front of the bar. He folded himself into the seat, all wiry limbs and wide, worried eyes.

"Where you from?" Hutch asked gently, and the kid shrugged one narrow skinny shoulder.

"Round an' about. Me and my Mom, we move around a lot," he said, raising a hand and shoving his long dark curls back. "That's why... that's why I took this job." He turned his eyes to Hutch's. "My Mom thinks I'm down at the beach surfing, but there's this program at the high school... it's extra credit, and it costs more than she can afford. I figured if I made some cash... and Mr Doone told me he'd give me overtime too -"

"Trust me, kid." Hutch raised both hands, shaking his head slowly. "You don't want any part of the overtime Doone's offering you. None at all. Now, what's your name?"

"You wont tell my mom?" All of a sudden, the kid looked incredibly young and vulnerable.

"No, kid." Hutch smiled at the boy, at the innocence in his eyes. He thanked his lucky stars he and Starsky had decided to pop in to this joint today and saved the light in this kid's eyes. "And if you tell me a bit more about this extra-credit program, I'll see what I can do, huh?"

"Really?" The kid sucked in a deep breath, puffing out his cheeks, and his eyes lit up. "Blair. I'm Blair Sandburg."

"Well, Blair," Hutch grinned. "You come with me, huh? And I'll sort out your school, long as you promise me to stay out of bars til you're legal. Is it a deal?"

The kid grinned back, face alight. "Deal!"

 

end

Notes:

This orphaned work was originally on Pejas WWOMB posted by author romankate.
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