The challenge On Mag7's Lighter Side List : Use the phrase "My-give-a-damn's busted" or a  variation of it ('His' or 'her', rather than 'my') in a drabble or  fic. . . 

No Good Deed

By Purple Lacey

“Aww, come on, Buck, please!”  JD Dunne’s imploring voice filled the break room as he stood next to his friend and room mate who was calmly pouring himself another cup of coffee and didn’t bother to look at the pleading young agent standing beside him as he shook his head and laughed.  “Nope,” he said gleefully.

“But Casey’s gonna KILL me if I miss her Birthday party.   I gotta be there.  Plllleeeaasssse, Buck!”

The larger agent just shook his head and grinned evilly as he answered, “Uh-huh.”

“Don’t you care if Casey tells me to take a hike for missing her birthday?  Don’t you care if I spend the rest of my life lonely and alone?”  JD tried playing the pitiful card.

Seeing through the obvious ploy, Buck chucked as he glanced at JD and he turned around to head back to his desk, “Sorry, but my give-a-damn’s busted, kid.”

“But Buck...”

“I told you about Gunderson,” Buck stated, his amusement for the young man’s situation very evident.  He sat down at his desk, placed the coffee mug on the desk blotter and turned back to the report on his computer.  “I told you the best thing to do while he was here was just to sit there with your mouth shut.  I told you what happened to the last guy to speak up.  Vin told you.  Nathan told you.  Even Josiah tried to warn you, but did you listen?  Nope, not you.  You decided you knew better than all of us.  So guess what, you got yourself into it and you’ll have to get yourself out of it.”  Buck gave JD one last smirk then focused his attention on his keyboard and monitor and completely ignored the young agent’s begging and whining.

JD sighed in despair then trudged back over to his desk and plopped down dejectedly in his own chair.

It wasn’t fair.  He had just been trying to help when he had suggested to the visiting Director that his fellow agents needed to brush up on their computer skills.  He knew Buck had warned him that the best way to get through the man’s inspection visit was to keep quiet and not draw attention to himself.  Josiah and Nathan had agreed wholeheartedly with that course of action.  Vin had told him about the last guy that had thought to give a suggestion and how he wound up leaving the agency, and still he had felt the need to open his big mouth and tell the Director that the computer skills of most agents were laughable.   He thought he’d been doing the right thing. 

Buck was right.  He was always saying that no good deed went unpunished, and JD was paying for his now.  The Director had listened attentively and agreed with his opinions wholeheartedly.  He made a decision on the spot to have his agents brush up on their computer knowledge with a few classes.  How the hell was JD to know he would assign JD himself to teach them!  Or that the first class would start the very night of Casey’s long anticipated birthday bash. He was dead meat and his so called friends were laughing their butts off about it.

JD sat slumped at his desk with his head in his hands wondering when life had gotten so complicated.   He wondered if you had to have special training to be a goat herder in Australia.

The End

February 10, 2005