The phone rang.
It was such a normal thing, that he didn't think anything of it. What he didn't know was that the caller was about to shatter his life, forever.
He answered and listened to the words the other person spoke. The words were loosely strung together and laced with pain. He felt a part of himself die inside, and dropped the phone. His knees went slack, and he found himself on the floor.
The voice on the other end of the phone called out to him, but he didn't even register it. He sat there for several long moments, breathing heavily. It's a joke! It can't be true...there is only one way to find out. Brushing his thoughts aside, he stood up and dashed for the door.
Focusing on the road proved to be a terrible feat. He had broken several traffic laws, but he didn't even notice. He only had one thing on his mind. Get to the hospital, fast.
He rushed through the doors, heading straight for the OR. He saw their crusty old doctor standing outside of the door, wiping tears out of his eyes.
No, no, no, no! He swept by him, ignoring the doctor's calls for him to stop. He wasn't going to, not until he saw – he stropped.
"Oh, my god," he whispered under his breath. The heart monitor had frozen in a flat line. He searched the body for a sign of life, any sign at all. He touched the face of the man in the bed. Cold. For the second time that day, he found himself on the floor; this time, whispering a mantra of "No, no. Please no..." and tears slowly coming down his face. He didn't care about anything or anyone who entered the room, all he could think about was that his colleague, his friend, his brother was gone, and this time, he wasn't coming back.
*H50*
He had never imagined this day would come. He always imagined that if they ever had parted, it would be do to early retirement, or a job transfer or even a physical disability. But not death. Never death. It was surreal, and unbelievable. He still couldn't wrap his head around it. Then again, he didn't want to. To accept it, meant that he finally acknowledged that his friend was never coming back.
The weather was perfect for the day's events: dark and stormy. It was one of those rare days in Hawaii, and it chose to come out on just the right day. The day they were holding a funeral and burial. He sat through the funeral service, numb with an agony he could only compare to when he had to say goodbye to the love of his life. Now, he was saying goodbye in another regard, and it was just as painful, because they were burying the person who held the most importance in his life.
He didn't hear the words of the grievers and mourners, he was lost in his thoughts, remembering every detail of the day that his friend had drowned.
*H50*
Steve McGarrett and Danny Williams were standing up in McGarrett's office, glaring at each other, daring the other to back down first. They were furious with each other, butting heads once again, something that had once been a regular occurrence, but was now more of a rare deal.
"Steve, it's stupid. We can't send him in there! He is only a rookie cop. He doesn't yet know how to handle himself in those kinds of situations. Sending him in there undercover, means we're signing his death certificate. He's too inexperienced, and he is more likely to slip up and say something that could end his life!" Danny's voice kept raising as he spoke, and by the end of his last sentence, he was shouting at Steve, trying to get him to see reason.
"And what do you expect me to do Danno? Do you want me to send you in? Someone who is much more experienced? Don't you think that Miller and his boys will see through that? The less experienced officer we send in, the better chance he will have at staying alive. Officer Ramonos is very young and inexperienced, I know that! But he is a fresh face, one that Miller isn't going to question. And I seem to recall another rookie cop, who everyone thought was too young and inexperienced, yet look where he is now!"
Danny fumed at the reference to himself. "That's different. I wasn't called in to try and infiltrate a gang – a merciless gang may I add – when I joined the force. Use another officer, I'm sure we can find another officer to use that is still a 'fresh face' but has more experience!"
"Officer Ramonos is perfect for the job. He knows the risks, and we can teach him about how he needs to act under pressure. He has already agreed to do the job, and that is the last word! I made up my mind! Besides, it isn't for another few weeks before we're going to put him put him in the middle of the gang!"
The glaring continued, until Danny finally relented and curtly replied with "Fine. I see my opinion doesn't even matter anymore. As if it ever did." And walked out of the office.
That was on a Monday. The entire week was spent walking on eggshells around each other. Steve nor Danny were still upset with each other, but neither was ready to apologize. When Saturday rolled around, Steve had given everyone the day off, including himself. HPD knew where to reach them all if an emergency came up.
Steve and Danny both were headed out to sea, one on a boat, one on a board. They saw each other before leaving for their day's adventures. Both were still upset, but Steve was the one who relented and apologized. Danny, listened and apologized as well. Just as they were about to part, Steve called out to him once more.
"Just so you know Danno, your opinion does matter to me." He gave him a small smile, and they parted ways.
Neither one knew that the day would take one of them away for good, and leave the other shattered.
*H50*
He was the last person to talk before they would go outside to the grave. He walked up to the front of the church, his legs feeling like lead.
He looked out at the crowd that had came today to mourn the death of the detective. He felt slightly disgusted that certain people had showed up. He clearly remembered many of them slamming his deceased friend when he was alive, and finding fault in so many things he did.
He began to talk. It was hard to talk about him in past tense. It really put the seal on the fact he was dead. The more he talked about him and remembered the happy times, he began to realize that it was he had a responsibility to his friend to make sure he was remembered in good nature. He needed to make sure people knew how much that the man in the casket had done for this state, and for the people who he loved so much..
It was a big responsibility, but he owed it to his friend. After all, the man had been much more than his friend. He had been his mentor, his brother, his boss.
He didn't know if he was ready for the responsibility that was now his, Hawaii Five-O. But he was going to try.
His own voice continued to carry on, and he heard the crowd laugh gently at something he had said. He paused and began his conclusion. He reminded the crowd that Steve was a man to be remembered. He told them that they couldn't forget him. He informed them that he knew he had big shoes to fill, and he was going to try and live up to that expectation, but never forget the man who made Five-O. He couldn't say goodbye yet though.
After the burial, only Danny remained, standing by the grave for what seemed like hours, before he found the courage to say one last thing before he left.
"I won't let you down. Aloha, Steve."
*H50*
A/N: As some of you may know I do have another WIP, but I haven't felt like doing anything but writing lately, so I wrote this. I hope you found some entertainment out of it.