Title: Cargo Pants
Summary: There's a reason that Catherine hid Steve's clothes.
A/N: Hey, y'all! Here's another story for you, one that is far less sad than my previous one and hopefully, it will make you laugh instead of cry. Any positive comments or constructive criticism would be highly appreciated! Please enjoy!
Story Structure: One-Shot
Disclaimer: Let it be 'duly noted' that I neither own nor claim to own any part, person, or plot line of the Hawaii Five-0 franchise.
My story is pending.
CARGO PANTS
Catherine Rollins awoke to the sight of a bare-chested man fumbling through her dresser drawer.
She frowned. "Hey, I'm gonna call the police, you know that, right?"
"Didn't you say you kept some of my clothes here?" asked the man in a puzzled tone.
"I'm dialing...9...1..."
"Cath, seriously, where are my pants?"
"...1..."
Steve McGarrett let out a frustrated huff and whirled around. "Where are my pants?" he inquired again. She laughed at his no-nonsense face. "Maybe on the floor? Where you left them?"
"Nope, I already checked. I don't see my pants."
Smiling, Catherine drew up her knees to her chest. Her plan was working perfectly. "Did you look under the bed?" She knew he would follow her advice, and he would find...
"Jeans?" quipped Steve confusedly. He held them up questioningly. "These are men's...and they're not mine..." His eyes widened with shock. "Catherine! Are youcheatingon me?"
"Of course not! No!" she cried. "They're for you, you silly!"
"What?" he asked dumbly. He shook his head. "No...I...I need my cargo pants. Where are my cargo pants?"
Smirking slyly, Catherine crossed her arms. "If you want to leave the house with your dignity intact, you'll put on the jeans."
With a disgusted expression, Steve looked the foreign pants up and down. "No," he said. "I won't. You can't make me. I'll just stay here."
"Whether or not you're staying inside or going out doesn't matter, Steve," laughed Catherine.
"What?" demanded the SEAL, now flustered as well as annoyed. "Why doesn't it matter?"
"Well...I invited Danny and Grace over."
Steve's mouth fell open, and he blanched. "You...y-you invited..." he stammered. Smirking, Catherine nodded. "Danny and Grace over, yes. And it is totally up to you whether they see you in jeans and a button-down, like a normal human being with a wardrobe..."
"Cargo pants and a tee-shirtaremy wardrobe!"
"...or if they see you in your underwear and a bare chest, like a..."
"Don't."
"...psycho with no wardrobe at all."
Steve blinked. "I thought for sure you were going to say something a lot worse."
"I was being nice," explained Catherine. "But if you want, I could change it to something more creative."
"No, that's fine," Steve assured her with a wave of his hand. Then, he looked at the jeans, hesitated, and glanced at Catherine.
"You want Grace to see you in your undies like a-"
"Okay okay!" Steve cried, stopping her. With a loud huff, he petulantly stuck one leg into the jeans, followed by the other leg. Triumphantly, Catherine watched as he zipped the jeans and let his arms fall at his sides. "Alright. I put the jeans on, see? I'm a good guy."
Catherine pecked him on the cheek. "I know, Steve." She held up a navy blue button-down shirt. Eyeing in suspiciously, Steve frowned. "That blouse looks a little big for you, Cath."
"But not too big for you!" she grinned, shoving it at his chest. Staring at her is disbelief, Steve's entire stance screamed 'why?' "Steve, people need to know that you have clothes," she stated. "And my friends call you the Cargo Pants Guy. They think you're weird! They...they think you have mental issues," she lowered her voice to a whisper.
"Yeah, well, I don't care what they think!" steamed Steve. "I can wear whatever the hell I want!"
"Do you care if Gracie sees you in just your chest hair and jeans?"
Glaring at his girlfriend, Steve began to work on the first button. "Fine!"
Five minutes later, Steve stood in front of the mirror. "I feel like a doll," he grumbled. "You look perfect!" proclaimed Catherine joyfully. And indeed he did. The dark jeans worked well together with the navy blue shirt and set off Steve's dark blue eyes. His short brown hair had been slightly ruffled by Catherine's fingers to achieve a handsome, rugged effect.
"What about me?" asked Catherine excitedly. With narrowed eyes, Steve took in her spotless white leggings and floaty red tank top. Sleek and shiny, her chocolate brown hair fell to her shoulders, and her deep brown eyes sparkled. Steve's heart melted. "You look great," he admitted with a smile. "Thank you, stranger," said Catherine. "Now, let's go!"
"Whoa whoa whoa...where?" Steve questioned with a confused tilt of his head. "I didn't know we were going anywhere. And anyway, aren't Danny and Gracie coming over?"
"No," replied Catherine lightly.
"But you said..." Steve's eyes widened in shock. "You lied!"
"Since you're all dressed up, we might as well go out to eat, right?" she said.
To put things short, Steve was very, very confused. First, Catherine had played him into wearing jeans and a button-down. She had made an effort to look nice as well. And now she wanted him to take her out?
"Is that what this is all about?" he asked concernedly. "You want me to ask you out?"
"What? Oh, you're...you want to go out? Good, let's go out," replied Catherine breezily. She started towards the door. Quick as light, Steve reached out and snatched her arm. "Wait, Cath..." She faced him squarely and met his puzzled stare with a look of determination and defiance. "What's going on here?" he questioned.
She didn't answer.
"Cath...why did you hide my clothes in the first place?" he asked gently. "Why the whole plot to set me up?"
Biting her lip, Catherine blinked furiously. "I wanted to go out," she murmured, sounding almost embarrassed.
Incredulous, Steve exclaimed, "You could've just asked me, Catherine! I would have taken you anywhere you wanted to go!"
"Well I just wasn't sure, okay?" Catherine finally exploded. "You've been so busy with work and all your cases; as soon as you finish one, another one pops up as soon as you do the paperwork! You're gone so often now that I never even get to see you! We went on our last date four weeks ago, Steve! We used to meet up somewhere every other day! And do you remember the last time we were just able to talk to each other...about anything?"
Steve gaped. Sure, he'd been busy, butthatbusy? That couldn't be right...and he was sure he'd taken Catherine on a date more recently thanfour weeksago... "Of course I remember the last time!" Steve scoffed. "It was...was...it was..."
Oh.
Catherine's face was lined with sadness. "See?" she cried. "You can't remember! You've been so focused on your work that I hardly even matter anymore!"
"Cath!" gasped Steve. "That's not true!"
"Then why did I feel like you'd say no?" she asked, her eyes glistening. "Why did I have to set you up, Steve?"
Mouth opening and closing like a beached tuna fish, Steve tried to think of an answer and couldn't.
The room fell into silence, and finally, Steve grabbed Catherine's hand. "Come on," he said, pulling her towards the door. "Where are we going?" exclaimed Catherine with surprise. "We're going on a date!" announced Steve. "Without cargo pants and in style. And we'll go wherever you want!"
An hour later, the couple was walking side by side on an empty beach through the shallow waves. Each held a dripping stick of ice cream, and though Steve had first complained when the messy treat dripped all over his nice clean button-down, the sound of Catherine's giggle made him smile and he eventually forgot about it. With clothes dirtied from the ice cream and their pants soaked from meandering in the water, Steve and Catherine intertwined their fingers together and enjoyed the sight of the sky, a magnificent canvas of pink, purple, and gold. "It's so beautiful," whispered Steve. He turned his head to admire the masterpiece beside him, who meant so much to him that it made his chest ache fiercely. "Just like someone I know."
Catherine's face split into a gorgeous smile. "Thanks, handsome," she laughed lightly. "I love you, you know."
With a slow smile, Steve wrapped his arms around Catherine's waist and hugged her close. Tenderly, he placed a sweet kiss on her lips. "I love you, too, Cath."
Hands together, legs touching, they continued to wander along the sand in the waning light. "We should do this again," commented Catherine with a smile.
"We should," answered Steve. "And next time, you won't have to steal my cargo pants."
THE END.