Notes: Continues the "Firsts" theme from Anniversaries, Conspiring, Firsts, and Morning After.
I am thrilled so many are enjoying these flashback scenes. Thank you, REAL Worlders, for the absolutely incredible feedback!
Mari and Sammy – thanks for being your off-the-charts awesome selves each and every day. Write and rock on! No one I'd rather be in the REAL World with than you two!
Esther – thanks for your expert advice and much appreciated enthusiasm. You make me a better writer.
Enjoy!
Some Things Never Change (A McRoll in the REAL World Story)
Steve laughed with the rest of the team seated at the restaurant table as Chin finished his story.
"And I told you I'd never let you forget it," Chin said, pointing at Danny.
"I can't help my allergies," Danny protested. "How was I supposed to know the woman had about fourteen cats living in her house?"
"I would have paid good money to watch you book her grandson while you tried not to rub at your eyes," Steve said with chuckle.
"Yeah, do you think maybe that was one time someone else could have done that?" Danny asked, with a look toward Chin and Kono.
"At least you weren't sneezing," Kono said. "Would have been a lot tougher to get the cuffs on him."
Her comment elicited another round of laughter.
Once she had stopped laughing, Catherine said, "I'm glad I wasn't around for that particular arrest. I'd have had the same problem."
"Hey, Cath," Kono started. "You got a little . . . um . . ." she winced and motioned to her own face.
"Jeez, Cath," Danny said with a laugh. "Can I get you another napkin? Maybe a roll of paper towels?"
"Why?" Catherine asked, her expression unselfconscious. "I'm not done."
She brought a rib slathered in barbeque sauce to her mouth and took a bite, smearing more sauce around her mouth in the process. She smiled at him and licked the sauce from two of her fingertips.
Chin laughed and said, "Can't argue with that logic."
Danny looked to Steve seated beside Catherine.
"I assume you knew about this particular eating habit as well?"
Steve nodded once in response, though he kept his attention on his own food.
"First time Catherine and I had dinner she ordered an entire rack of ribs," he said, cutting a piece of the steak in front of him.
Catherine cleared her throat loudly.
"Because I implied she wouldn't be able to eat a whole rack," Steve continued with a slight roll of his eyes.
Kono smiled and asked, "Aww, first date?"
Catherine was bringing her beer to her mouth while Steve had just taken a bite of his steak, but both answered, "It wasn't a date."
They looked at each other and shared a smile.
"Ah," Danny observed. "Back when you had a 'thing.' "
Steve swallowed his food and shook his head. "No, before that. Day we met," he said, taking a drink of his own beer.
"He owed me for a favor," Catherine explained.
"Wait, wait, wait," Chin said, his smile broad. He motioned between the two. "You owed her for a favor the day you met?"
Steve shrugged and said, "It was kind of our thing."
After a short wait, Steve and Catherine were led to a table near the back of the restaurant they had chosen after leaving the diner.
"Thank you," Catherine said to the host who had pulled out her chair. As she sat, Steve stepped up behind her.
"Thanks. I got it," he said pointedly to the man, who quickly set the menus down on the table and retreated with a nod.
Catherine glanced back at Steve with her eyebrows raised as he pushed in her chair.
"Thank you," she said wryly.
He nodded, unable to keep the slightly satisfied smirk from his face even as she shook her head with a bemused expression. He took his seat across from her, picking up both menus and handing her one.
"Order anything you want. I owe you," he said.
"Yes, you do," she said and opened the menu. "Saved you from having to be your roommate's wingman."
"Hey, I did like you said," he said. "I told Freddie I didn't want to go out with him and his girlfriend and her cousin."
"You did," she acknowledged. "Full credit, sailor."
He nodded toward her menu. "So what looks good?"
"I heard they've got great ribs here," she said as she scanned the selection of entrées.
Steve nodded his approval, looking at his own menu. "Yeah, looks like a nice half-rack deal here with a baked potato and salad."
Catherine scoffed. "Half-rack?"
"What?" he asked, raising an eyebrow.
"I thought you said you owed me."
"Yeah?" he said warily.
"I'm getting the whole rack," she said, her tone matter-of-fact. Closing her menu, she set it in front of her.
"Wh–?" he started in surprise. The corner of his mouth started to lift in a smile. "You can't possib–" He stopped at her serious look and scratched the back of his head. "I mean, you . . . you're telling me you can eat an entire rack of ribs," he said, his tone incredulous.
"That is what I am telling you," she said, holding his gaze.
Steve paused, regarding her, and then finally said, "All right, this I gotta see."
A waiter approached their table and said, "Good evening. My name is Cole and I'll be taking care of you tonight. What can I start you two off with to drink?"
Steve looked across at Catherine with raised eyebrows.
"Just water for me, please," she said.
"Same for me," Steve said. "And I think we're ready to order dinner, right?" he asked, giving her another questioning look. "If you're sure about this whole rack thing . . ." he challenged.
"Oh, I'm sure," she said, a twinkle in her eye.
After they placed their order and their waiter walked away, Catherine turned to Steve.
"So, where'd you grow up?" she asked.
Steve paused for a fraction of a second and said, "Uh, Hawaii."
Catherine appeared surprised and genuinely interested. "Really?"
"Yeah." He cleared his throat, shifting a little in his seat.
"That sounds . . . kind of awesome," she said.
He paused again and then flashed a brief smile.
"Surfer?" she asked.
"Of course," he said with a casual shrug.
She smiled wistfully. "I haven't surfed since my dad was stationed in San Diego."
"Your dad was in the Navy?" he asked.
She nodded and said, "Still is. And my grandfather was, too."
His mouth twitched up in a smile. "Third generation, then. Me, too."
She smiled in return.
"Your family still in Hawaii?" she asked.
Steve's smile faltered.
"Uh, my dad is, yeah." He paused and looked at her a moment. Coming to a decision, he continued, "My sister lives in California and my mom . . ." he paused again and swallowed. "My mom died when I was sixteen."
She reached over and touched his hand. "Oh, Steve, I'm so sorry," she said sincerely.
He gave her a quick nod. "Thank you," he said quietly, his eyes moving around the restaurant, not quite meeting hers.
Catherine straightened and then smiled. "So this roommate of yours . . . how often should I be prepared to bail you out?"
He looked back at her. Seeing her teasing smile, he gave her a broad grin.
They continued their conversation comfortably and once their food arrived, Steve looked on in fascination and admiration as Catherine set about devouring her rack of ribs.
His own steak long finished, Steve watched Catherine set down the last completely cleaned bone on her plate.
He shook his head and said, "Okay. I . . . I am impressed, Rollins." He smiled. "There was a minute there I thought you were throwing in the towel, but you proved me wrong. And I am man enough to admit that."
She quirked her eyebrows.
He continued, "Just . . . don't tell anyone else I did."
She smiled, leaning in as if to share a secret, and said, "The trick is not to fill up on a baked potato and salad."
He nodded. "Got it. You do know you have sauce . . ." he motioned vaguely toward her mouth, "everywhere, right?" he asked, smothering a grin.
She shrugged, seemingly unconcerned, and opened up one of the towelette packages their waiter had left at the table. She began cleaning the barbeque sauce from her fingers.
"My grandma always says you can tell a lot about a person by the way they eat," she said.
Steve paused, watching her, and then nodded. "I think she might be right."
Catherine smiled at him. "She usually is."
She picked up a clean napkin and wiped the sauce from around her mouth.
"Did you want dessert?" he asked.
She smiled and placed the wadded up napkin on her plate. "I kinda had my dessert before dinner."
"Your milkshake, yeah," he said.
"That diner had really great milkshakes. I'm definitely going to have to go back there. Often."
He paused again and then said, "Maybe I'll join you."
A small smile grew on her face at his response.
He spotted a bit of barbeque sauce on her cheek.
"You missed a spot," he said, pointing in the general area.
"Oh," she ran a finger across her cheek but missed the sauce. "Did I get it?" she asked, looking at her finger.
"No, it's . . ." he leaned over automatically and wiped the spot from her cheek with his thumb.
Both froze, their eyes fixed on each other.
"Sorry," Steve said quietly, his hand still hovering near her cheek.
"It's okay," she matched his tone.
Neither moved and the moment stretched on in silence.
"How was everything tonight?" a voice interrupted.
Steve and Catherine both started and turned to look at their waiter who stood at their table.
"What?" Steve asked.
"Can I interest you in dessert?" Cole asked. "We have a delicious brownie sundae."
"Oh," Steve said, shaking off his confusion. "No. Thank you." He glanced over at Catherine who was wiping her mouth again with a napkin. A slow smile spread on his face and his eyes remained on her as he said, "We're good."
"By the end of the meal Cath looked pretty much like that," Steve told the rest of the team, motioning toward her with his thumb. "Just in summer whites." He shook his head slightly. "Completely spotless uniform." He looked at her. "Which was even more impressive than your appetite, actually."
Catherine shrugged and said, "I had just gotten the uniform that summer." She looked around the table at the others. "It was my first year at the Academy. No way was I getting barbeque sauce on it." She smiled at the memory. "That was a really nice rack of ribs, though."
Steve smiled at her as he watched her pick up a napkin and begin to wipe her mouth clean.
"So why just the half rack tonight?" Danny asked.
She shrugged again. "We had appetizers."
Kono pointed with her fork. "And we're still getting dessert, right?"
"Definitely," Catherine said. "Split the lava cake?"
"You're on."
Catherine smiled and picked up another napkin to clean her fingers.
Danny shook his head and said, "Well, I gotta tell you, that was a sight to behold." He glanced at Steve. "I hope you know how lucky you are. I don't think I've ever been with a woman who would eat something that messy in public."
Steve looked at Catherine and smiled as he said, "I've heard you can tell a lot about a person by the way they eat."
She returned his smile.
"You missed a spot," he said quietly, reaching up and wiping a bit of sauce from her cheek. His thumb lingered on her skin and his smile grew soft. "Some things never change."
Hope you enjoyed! That was the first dinner . . . stay tuned for Friday when Mari presents the first missed dinner!
Looking for links to all the REAL McRoll stories in one place? Check out our tumblr page: mcrollintherealworld dot tumblr dot com
And you can still join the mailing list by sending us an email at realmcroll at yahoo dot com with Add me, please! in the subject line.