The real life of an American police officer: Winning over others with virtue

Chapter 93 Coming of Age Ceremony

“No need,” Tifa refused.

“I can get here by myself.”

Eric didn't press the issue, but considering that Tifa didn't know how to drive yet, he said:
"At least let me call you a car?"

Tifa could sense Eric's concern and said softly and gently:

"it is good."

With the conversation over, Eric hung up the phone and stared at his still-on screen. Suddenly, he thought of a Black driver named McCall.

From his personal perspective, this black driver was a bit special; he always gave off a very calm and composed feeling, like a mountain standing still.

Overall, the first impression was pretty good; at least it's something he still remembers.

"If someone like that were a driver, it would be very safe."

After thinking for a moment, Eric used his phone to open an app.

Uber, the world's largest ride-hailing platform, covers most cities in the United States and offers a variety of vehicle types.

It also supports real-time tracking and flexible payments.

The reason for choosing McCall was that his photo showed a kind face, he had been driving for a long time, and his score rating was perfect with all positive reviews.

Below are related reviews, and the people who left these reviews are either elderly people going to the hospital, or women, children, office workers, and so on.

Their assessments were almost unanimous, summed up in one sentence: McCall was a good person and a very kind and gentle driver.

"I think I forgot to leave him a good review." Eric gave it a full five stars, then placed the order.

The result of this operation was simultaneously recorded in a black sedan. McCall, who had just parked, noticed something and glanced at the phone on the center console.

The originally black screen now displays a five-star rating.

Looking at the username below, McCall recalled the young man from tonight, and his pupils twitched.

The other party was covered in thick smoke, indicating that a major battle had taken place. He only learned what had happened today after checking online based on this information.

A fierce gunfight broke out in Koreatown, resulting in many deaths and sparking widespread discussion online.

However, the police have not yet released any information, which clearly indicates that today's incident is a major event.

Before McCall could think further, he prepared to log off and rest, but his phone pinged again.

A new order has appeared; it's from a user who just gave a positive review.

McCall hesitated for a moment, but eventually withdrew his hand, restarted the engine, and drove the car toward its destination.

Seeing that the other party seemed to be a good and dedicated policeman, I'll take on another case.

But when he arrived at his destination, he couldn't help but chuckle to himself.

Because the young man asked him to pick up a very beautiful woman.

Tifa observed the situation inside, confirmed that there was nothing wrong, and sat in the back seat.

“Good evening, ma’am,” McCall said, glancing at the rearview mirror.

Tifa responded politely, "Good evening."

McCall said, "The Bitmore Millennium Hotel?"

Tifa paused, her eyes instantly turning wary as she looked at McCall.

“I took the same order from the same client before you,” McCall explained with a smile.

"His destination was the Bitmore Millennium Hotel."

Hearing this, Tifa relaxed a little: "I see. It seems he has a good impression of you?"

"Maybe?" McCall saw that the other person was relaxed and began to steer the car back to the hotel for the second time.

During the journey, glancing at the rearview mirror again, he asked curiously, "That gentleman, who is he to you?"

Tifa seemed to recall something, her eyes softening: "A very important person."

McCall smiled and nodded.

--------

It's still the familiar main road of the hotel.

McCall watched as Tifa opened the door and got out of the car, saying, "Madam, please remember to tell him not to forget to give a five-star review."

Tifa nodded. "I will." Then she closed the car door and walked towards the hotel lobby, watching McCall see her off.

Seeing this, McCall looked away and reached out to log off, but just as he was about to touch the phone screen, a five-star review lit up on it.

It seemed as if what I had just said to that beautiful lady had been answered.

McCall smiled knowingly, realizing that the young man had been tracking the location in real time.

In a hotel suite.

Eric stood by the window and watched the black sedan slowly drive away outside the hotel before putting his phone away.

After tonight, he and this reclusive Black driver in the city should never cross paths again.

dong dong~
Just then, there was a knock on the door.

He turned and walked towards the door, deactivated the alarm, glanced through the peephole, and opened the door. His eyes lit up immediately.

Tifa looked stunning today, her features almost sculpted, her amber eyes befitting her profession—deep and lively, with a slight upturn at the corners, carrying a hint of languid allure.

The key feature is that the tight-fitting long dress clings to her skin, outlining her graceful figure, and a pair of high heels makes her even taller and more charming.

All of this was unfamiliar to him, making it impossible for him to look away. After all, the only time he usually saw Tifa was when she was working, always in that familiar long-sleeved white coat and ordinary casual clothes.

"First time meeting?" Tifa asked with a smile, looking at Eric who couldn't take his eyes off her.

Eric pulled her inside, and as he closed the door, he wrapped his arms around her and pressed his body against hers, saying earnestly, "Tifa, you look really beautiful today."

Tifa's smile remained unchanged, but her eyes brightened slightly.

Women dress up for those who appreciate them; her dressing up like this is essentially a way of hoping to hear those words.

She wanted to say something to tease Eric, but was restrained...

———————— Divider line.

afterwards.

On the huge bed.

"call!"

Eric emerged from the lingering taste; if he had smoked, one afterwards would probably have been heavenly.

Unfortunately, in order to become stronger, he didn't even smoke.

If you want to become a strong person, then you absolutely must not touch cigarettes.

In his view, excessive smoking would interfere with the normal function of the nervous system, thereby reducing reaction speed and hand-foot coordination, which would be absolutely fatal for a skilled gunman.

In a battle between experts, the key is simply who has the fastest reaction time, the quickest hands and feet, the most accurate marksmanship, and the smartest mind.

Because of the lingering warmth after venting, Eric thought a little more, looked at Tifa lying next to him with a bewildered expression, pulled her into his arms and enjoyed it together, and whispered.

"good?"

As soon as she finished speaking, Tifa rested her head on Eric's shoulder, blinked, and came back to her senses, giving Eric a glare.

"What happened?"

Eric's demeanor today was somewhat different from before, and as an expert in psychological manipulation, how could she not notice?

“It’s hard to say,” Eric said gently.

"But everything has been resolved."

"Okay, it's resolved now," Tifa said softly. Since Eric didn't want to talk about it, she naturally wouldn't press him.

Eric smiled. "What's the second thing you wanted to tell me?"

Tifa paused for a moment, then sat up, revealing a radiant glow, and looked earnestly at Eric, saying, "My sister's coming-of-age ceremony is coming up soon, and I want to take you back." "Coming-of-age ceremony?"

Eric was taken aback for a moment, but he immediately understood what was going on and met Tifa's crystal-clear eyes.

In reality, he didn't know anything about Tifa's family situation; he only knew her as a person.

In America, the coming-of-age ceremony is a very important moment in a person's life.

Especially for girls' coming-of-age ceremonies, particularly the "Sweet Sixteen" party, the ceremony is centered on the girl and symbolizes her beginning to gain more autonomy and make more independent life choices, such as voting and signing contracts.
But it's clear that Tifa's underlying intention wasn't to have him attend her sister's coming-of-age party.

It's more like bringing your boyfriend home in China. Although the United States is more liberal about relationships, the importance of relationships is essentially the same.

"If you don't want to participate"

Before Tifa could finish speaking, Eric reached out and hugged her again, interrupting her with a laugh.

“How could I not participate? I’m so glad you finally couldn’t resist and told me about your family situation so I could prepare in advance and avoid embarrassing myself and being kicked out by your parents.”

Tifa squinted and smiled, "Besides this sister who's almost an adult, I also have a younger brother, who is very likely to be your biggest trouble."

Eric chuckled, a rare occurrence, as images of his brother-in-law making things difficult for him began to flash through his mind.

"Don't underestimate him. He loves boxing and has always dreamed of becoming a professional boxer."

"It's alright, maybe I can give him some pointers?"

"It's still uncertain who will train whom."

"Hehe, so when?"

"Two days later."

"."

The next day.

Officially checked out.

Since his own car was already a war-damaged vehicle, Eric still managed to get Tifa to work by calling a taxi.

"See you."

Tifa kissed Eric. After their conversation last night, her feelings for Eric had reached their peak.

Eric said softly, "See you later. I'll come pick you up, and we'll go together."

“Okay.” Tifa nodded, opened the door and got out of the car.

Eric watched Tifa walk into the building until she disappeared from sight before telling the driver his home address.

"Encinho 4801".

He had already received a call in the morning informing him that the lockdown had been lifted.

Therefore, the house, which was originally designated as a crime scene and temporarily sealed off, has now been unsealed.

……

Encino 4801, the taxi slowly drove away.

Eric stood on the main road, looking at his house in front of him, and then at the trash in the front yard that hadn't been thrown away yet. He curled his lip in disapproval.

Stepping inside, the scene became even more appalling.

Eric could understand, though. After all, the police don't offer a cleanup service; their purpose is simple: to collect evidence. At best, they can only help you remove the body and take away shell casings and other evidence.

Eric went up to the second floor, looked at the mess, and said helplessly:

"Alright, let's start cleaning."

Of course, that's what they say, but cleaning it yourself is definitely impossible.

Because home insurance covers property damage caused by crime, for example, he can hire a professional company that cleans up such accident scenes.

All related costs incurred are covered by home insurance.

Thinking of this, Eric immediately dialed the phone number of the homeowner's insurance manager in charge of his house.

Since Inspector Grey had made it clear yesterday, he believed that the other party already knew the whole story.

Indeed, the insurance manager was very agreeable and promised to compensate for all expenses incurred in this case, including site cleanup, repair costs, and so on.

"."

"Please send me the detailed list when the time comes, and I will help you speed up the compensation process."

"Okay." Eric politely thanked him, hung up the phone, and shook his head inwardly.

The United States truly has all sorts of strange and wonderful companies, covering everything from the largest to the smallest.

But he was used to it.

Living here, the power of money is truly immense. As long as you have money, you can have whatever you want here.

“It’s a capitalist country,” Eric muttered, leaving his spot to do what he needed to do.

I found a company recommended by the FBI, the Department of Justice, and the Department of Homeland Security that can provide crime scene cleaning services.

The slogan is quite interesting: "Helping others comes first, business second," claiming to minimize harm to those involved in the accident, help them overcome difficulties, and enable them to live a better life.

The company turned out to be surprisingly efficient and had a strong execution capability. Shortly after we contacted them, someone came to our door and the entire cleaning was completed in one morning.

It was so clean that if it weren't for the gun holes still visible in the wall, Eric would have thought everything on the second floor was as it always was, and nothing had happened.

This pleased him greatly; professionals are indeed different.

After receiving the order, Eric saw off the professional cleaning crew and returned to the house to do the final tidying up.

"Another task completed, next is..."

Eric sat on the sofa for a short rest, then picked up the tablet next to him, turned on the screen, and began to search.

He wanted to know how far things had progressed since yesterday.

------------

Los Angeles Police Department Headquarters Building.

A report concerning the Greystone Alley Brothers' operation is being delivered by Administrative Assistant Brenda to Eswin, who is about to become the new Chief Superintendent.

Like Eric yesterday, Eswin also learned all the information about this operation through the documents.

The beginning, the process, and the result are all clear.

But as Aiswin watched, he fell silent.

The gains were substantial, enough for him to once again steal the spotlight and showcase the strength, authority, and prestige of the Los Angeles Police Department to the outside world, but at the cost of a detective.

Aside from that, the young man named Eric appeared before him again.

This time it's even more pronounced. If the report is correct, it means that without this young man, the operation could be considered half a failure.

He wasn't wrong; this young man was indeed more formidable than he had imagined.

But as Eswin looked at the detailed process described, a strange feeling still arose in his heart.

"Why is this young man always here? He seems to have a special connection with the other person?"

Noticing the change in Eswin's expression, Brenda whispered.

"The joint report from the West Canyon Police Department, Wilshire Police Department, Special Operations Bureau, and Detective Bureau all specifically excluded Officer Eric, as if it had been pre-arranged."

Aiswin put down the documents: "Let them do what they want. He's a good young man, and he shouldn't have to bear unnecessary public pressure."

Brenda nodded and continued, "Yesterday's commotion was quite significant, and there's been some discussion outside. The media and some members of the public are demanding an explanation from us."

“If they want to know, then prepare accordingly,” Aiswin said calmly.

"Proceed according to the plan."

Brenda bowed her head and said, "Yes, sir!"

(End of this chapter)