The Rookie & Tom Hanson: A "21 Jump Street" Story

Chapter 7: "Tom Meets the Family"

Hi Everyone,

I'm making video analyses of each main character in every season of 21 Jump Street. I hope you enjoy it, and many thanks to storiesRrandom for inspiring me to do them.

Tom and I managed to get changed in a hurry to attend Shabbat Dinner with me at Rabbi Solomon's home . I could tell that Tom was a bit nervous about having to go to my brother's house for dinner with my parents and brothers. To be honest, this is the first time I'm glad Solomon isn't married yet because I feel that having more people present would have freaked Tom out. The good thing is that we are going as friends and not as a couple because, let's face it, we've only known each other for a week. Plus, if I'm gonna get in trouble for all of my new piercings, the least Tom could do was explain why I got them in the first place.

We arrived at his home, which was located in the Jewish neighborhood and next to the Synagogue managed to find a good parking space.

***

As we were walking towards my brother's house I noticed that Tom kept glancing at me.

"I've never been really religious," Tom said, "but I've been to a few Catholic services because my former captain, Captain Richard Jenko, was a Catholic despite being a hippie."

"Did you enjoy the ceremony? What was it like?"

Tom stopped walking abruptly and looked down sadly, "Actually, I don't really remember because it was his funeral."

I stopped walking and looked at him in concern.

"I'm so sorry, Tom," I said.

"It's okay, it happened three years ago."

"But I can tell that it really hurt you."

"So what's it like being Jewish" he said, changing the subject. I can tell he is not comfortable with his emotions.

"Yeah, well it's like being in a community is very important to us Jews because all we've had really was family and community, just like we had back in Europe and even in ancient times. It also doesn't help that my people have been victims of various hate crimes and other acts of antisemitism throughout history. "

"My only family is me and my mom, especially after my dad died," Tom said. "But I like the saying that family is everything and that it's important to your community."

"Yeah," I said.

"But I do remember that a month before my dad died, he brought me to a Holocaust museum and I got to see all the horrible things that happened and I was appalled that someone could inflict all that suffering to other people just because they were different."

"And not only us, they also did that to the Roma, Gypsies, Jehovah's Witnesses, Disabled people, and Homosexuals just because they were different."

"That's horrible."

"That's the power of hate," I said as I approached to grab the door knob until my mom opened the door.

"I agree," My mother, the eavesdropper, said as she approached us. "Where were you, Rebecca? You're ten minutes late. You're never ten minutes late."

"Yes, I know that, Mom," I said in a monotone voice.

"Then if you saw that, why didn't you say anything? Your father and I were very worried that something had happened to you," she said.

"Mom, today was my first assignment at my job, which I had previously told you about," I said. "Plus, I brought evidence to show that I'm telling the truth. Mom, this is my colleague Officer Tom Hanson, Tom, this is my mom, Miriam Asher."