Notes: Mari and Sammy – the last couple weeks have shown me the true depth of our friendship and I am amazed and grateful at how it's grown.
Readers and REAL McRollers – thank you for your never-ending support and feedback. It is just as appreciated now as it was on Day One.
I hope you enjoy the story!
Shop with a Cop (A McRoll in the REAL World Story)
Friday
"Absolutely we'll do it, Duke. No question." Steve was at his desk finishing a phone call with Duke Lukela. "Email me the details."
"Thanks, Steve," Duke said. "I really appreciate this."
"Don't mention it. It's a great cause."
"I'll get you the details right away."
"Thanks." Ending the call, Steve stood and walked out of his office.
Catherine and Kono were at the smart table closing out case details. Steve walked toward them, whistling in the direction of Danny's office and waving Danny and Chin out when the two men looked up.
"What's up?" Danny asked as he and Chin joined the rest of the team.
"I just got off the phone with Duke," Steve said. "You all know HPD's Shop with a Cop program?"
"Sure," Chin said. "They've been doing that for years. I even got to participate a few times. So did your dad."
Steve nodded.
"Duke says this year's event is going to be their biggest yet."
"Do they need more donations?" Kono asked.
"No, they need more cops. They heard about this family of five kids who lost a lot in a fire last month. The organizers really want them to be part of this year's event, but all available off-duty officers have been paired up with kids already."
"There are five of us," Catherine said. "And our case just wrapped. Sounds like perfect timing."
"That's what I was thinking," Steve said.
"When is it?" Chin asked.
"Tomorrow. Duke's emailing me the details." Steve pulled up his inbox on his phone and opened the new message, scanning it as he spoke. "The kids get bused over to Walmart at 9am to pick out clothes, school supplies, and presents for their family members. Then breakfast and a visit from Santa." He looked up. "Everybody in?"
"Definitely," Danny was the first to say.
Catherine and Chin nodded as Kono said, "We're there."
Steve's mouth twitched up in a smile. "I figured as much." He pocketed his phone and put his hands on his hips. "It's getting late. Are we ready to call it a day?"
"Basically," Chin said.
"Yeah," Catherine agreed. "We're good."
"All right. Let's pack it in." He looked around at the others. "See you at the Ke'eaumoku Walmart in the morning."
The team began to disperse to finish a few tasks before leaving.
"Danny," Steve called after him. "Duke said some of the officers bring family, so if Grace wants to come . . ."
"Just try and keep her away," Danny said proudly.
Steve smiled his agreement.
Saturday Morning
Two school buses arrived the next morning outside Walmart where around fifty off-duty police officers and military personnel were waiting along with a handful of family members. A retired officer was dressed as Santa Claus, a role he had performed for the last several years.
As the kids stepped off the bus, he greeted them with an enthusiastic, "Ho Ho Ho!" and directed them to where Duke stood with the other organizers who would pair each child with their shopping partner.
The last group to disembark were clearly siblings and after checking them in, Duke led them to where Five-0 was standing along with Grace.
"Commander, these are the Allens." He pointed to each as he introduced them. "That's Cody there. He's fifteen. Then we have Casey who's twelve and Dylan is ten. Kaitlyn is eight. And Jacob here is five."
"I'm six!" the young boy said. "My birthday was last week."
"Oh, I'm so sorry," Duke said genuinely, squeezing his shoulder lightly. "That is my mistake. Jacob is six years old." He looked at the team. "I'll let you all introduce yourselves. You've got the gift cards. Santa will be at the front of the store the whole morning and there's breakfast at L&L's as soon as you're done." He smiled at the group. "Have fun!"
"Thanks," Steve said before Duke turned to head inside where the rest of the officers and children had gone.
Steve surveyed the kids in front of him and his team. The youngest, Jacob, was looking around with a slightly awed expression. The three middle children were more guarded and stood close together. The oldest, Cody, remained behind his siblings with his hands in his pockets, shifting awkwardly.
Steve looked briefly at the members of his team and then smiled at the kids.
"Okay, here's the plan. Jacob, this is Lieutenant Rollins." His motioned toward Catherine and his hand touched her shoulder briefly as she stepped up beside him. "She's gonna help you pick out some nice stuff today, okay?"
"And then can we see Santa again?" he asked, looking between Steve and Catherine.
"You got it," Catherine said with a warm smile. "But first let's go find some presents for your family, okay?"
Jacob glanced over at his oldest brother with a hopeful expression. The teen gave a small nod and Jacob beamed. He turned back to Catherine and reached for her hand.
"Now I bet you are in kindergarten," she said as they started for the front door.
"Yeah," he said.
"What's the name of your school?"
Jacob paused and said, "Kindergarten." He pointed at Catherine's waist. "Can I see your badge?"
They disappeared inside, and Steve turned back to the group.
"Kaitlyn, this is Detective Williams and his daughter Grace. Would you like to go shopping with them?"
Kaitlyn nodded with a shy smile at Grace.
Danny smiled. "That is good because we are going to have an outstanding time." He placed a gentle hand on Kaitlyn's back and guided her toward the store.
"And don't worry because my dad doesn't mind looking at girl stuff," Grace assured her. "He's taken me shopping lots of times."
Steve looked at the remaining kids.
"Dylan, this is Lieutenant Kelly," he said.
"Glad to meet you, Dylan," Chin said, holding out a hand to the boy.
Dylan's eyes widened and he shook Chin's hand slowly.
Chin smiled broadly and nodded toward the store.
"Let's go."
He and Dylan walked side by side to the front door.
"And Casey," Steve said. "This is Officer Kalakaua."
"Hi, Casey," Kono said with a smile. "I think we're going to have a great time." She gestured toward the store. "Are you ready?"
Casey glanced quickly at her brother before joining Kono.
"I don't really know what I'm supposed to get," Casey admitted as they walked toward the door.
"That's okay," Kono said. "I think between the two of us we'll figure it out."
Steve looked at the teenager who was left. Cody had shoved his hands further in his pockets, and his gaze was on the door where his siblings had gone.
"That leaves you and me," Steve said.
Cody turned and looked Steve over from head to toe.
"You're a cop?" he asked. "Where's your uniform?"
"I'm not that kind of cop," Steve said, folding his arms.
Cody's eyes widened slightly. "Wait, I know who you are. You're that crazy dude who's in charge of Five-0."
"That's me."
When the teen didn't say more, Steve nodded toward the store.
"We going inside?"
Cody shrugged. "I don't need anything. I just came to watch out for my brothers and sisters."
Steve put his hands on his hips. "Well, they're with my team. So they're in pretty good hands. You get the morning off."
Cody again stayed silent.
"We could at least get out of the sun," Steve suggested.
When Cody shrugged noncommittally, Steve moved toward the front doors. Cody followed slowly.
"I mean, we could just sit around and eat," Steve continued as they stepped inside. "But there is this $200 gift card burning a hole in my pocket."
"I guess we could look around," Cody said finally. "See how everyone else is doing."
"Okay. Do you want to get a cart?" Steve asked, motioning at the rows of carts that were visibly depleted as all the other shopping pairs had grabbed theirs. "Just in case?"
"I told you. I don't need anything," Cody said defensively.
Steve held up his hands. "All right."
"You don't have to come with me. I don't need a babysitter. I can walk around Walmart by myself."
"I'm sure you can," Steve said. He faced Cody with his hands on his hips. "And I'm not your babysitter. Now I am responsible for your safety while this program is going on, and I'm willing to help you if you want to look for some stuff for your family or yourself. Or if you want to check up on your siblings. We can do that, too." He folded his arms. "But you're not getting rid of me for the next couple hours, so what's it gonna be? Are we gonna stand here and argue the whole time or are we going to get something done?"
Steve held Cody's stare until the teen finally shrugged.
"Whatever," he said. "Just . . . no cart."
"No cart," Steve agreed.
"And I want to get Star Wars LEGOs for Dylan, and a Elsa doll for Kaitlyn, and a soccer ball for Casey 'cause she said she'd teach me how to kick it really far, and a new backpack for Cody because his has a big hole in it and even though he says it's fine I think he should get a new one, and a big, big bottle of perfume for my mom."
Jacob took a breath and looked up at Catherine expectantly.
"Wow," she said. "You've thought a lot about this, haven't you, Jacob?"
"Yeah, Mom said I take a long time making decisions so I should decide before I got here so I did."
"Okay, well, let's head to the perfume section first," she said. "It's up front."
"Can I push the cart with you?" Jacob asked.
"Of course."
They began making their way through the crowded store.
"Hey, what are those?" Jacob stopped and asked, pointing at a display. "They look like jelly jars."
"Those are candles. They make the room smell nice when you light them. Here." Catherine picked up one of the jars. "Smell this one."
She unscrewed the lid and held it out for him to sniff.
"Ooh, it smells like apples." He took another sniff. "Maybe my teacher would like that. She has a sparkly pin that looks like an apple. Do you think I should get that for her?"
"I bet she would like that a lot. What's your teacher's name?"
"Mrs. R."
"Mrs. R.?"
"Her name is really long so she lets us call her that."
"She sounds nice."
"She is. She always lets me play with the blocks first when we do centers 'cause she knows that's my favorite."
Catherine smiled. "So, the apple candle for Mrs. R.?"
"Yeah."
Catherine put the candle in their cart, and they kept walking toward the health and beauty section of the store.
"You know," Danny said. "It looks like a lot of people are headed right for the toys. Why don't we go look at clothes first?"
Kaitlyn and Grace nodded their agreement.
"Go ahead," he said. "I'll handle the cart."
The girls left Danny to push the cart right behind them as they walked together.
"I like your shirt," Kaitlyn said shyly, looking at Grace's sleeveless blue shirt with white polka dots.
"Thanks," Grace said.
"How old are you?" Kaitlyn asked.
"I'm twelve and a half."
"So's my big sister."
"I bet it's cool having a sister," Grace said. "I just have a brother but he's a lot younger than me."
Kaitlyn shrugged a little. "Casey doesn't really play with me too much anymore. I mean, sometimes she does, but usually she likes to play outside with her friends."
"Oh," Grace said.
"But Casey's friend Lani taught me how to make these bracelets. Look." She held up her arm so Grace could see the bracelet made of tiny pink rubber bands. "Casey doesn't like to do it so it was just me and Lani. We used pencils and she let me take whatever colors I wanted from her box."
"That's really pretty," Grace said.
"All my friends really wanted one too when they saw it. But Casey said I shouldn't ask Lani for more."
"Here we go, girls," Danny called. "Hang a right."
They turned into the girls' clothing section, and Grace helped Kaitlyn pick out a few shirts, pants, and shorts.
When Danny caught Kaitlyn looking at a Frozen t-shirt and asked if she wanted to add it to the cart, she looked a little embarrassed until Grace took it off the rack and began singing "Let It Go"and twirling around with the younger girl. Both dissolved into giggles as Danny looked on with a beaming smile.
"Okay, are you ready to head for the toy section to look for some presents for your brothers and sister?" Danny asked as Grace put the t-shirt in the cart. "Maybe it's cleared out a little by now."
Kaitlyn nodded excitedly, all traces of shyness gone.
"Come on, Grace," she said, grabbing her hand.
She stopped suddenly as they passed the clearance rack.
"Oh, look," she touched a blue sleeveless shirt with white polka dots. She glanced over at Grace's shirt and bit her lip.
Danny reached over and pulled the hangar from the rack. He smiled as he looked at the tag.
"Well, wouldn't you know? It's just your size," he said. "I think there's a rule somewhere that says if a sale shirt is your size, you have to get it."
"Danno," Grace said, rolling her eyes with a smile.
"I'm sure I've heard you and Auntie Cath say something like that before."
Grace and Kaitlyn giggled.
Danny smiled and dropped the shirt into the cart.
"So we got a necklace and earring set for your mom," Chin said as he and Dylan made their way to the toy section. "Two movies for your older brother. What's next?"
"Do you think it would be okay . . . I mean, this is supposed to be for Christmas, right?" Dylan asked.
"Well, that depends on each family," Chin said. "Not everyone celebrates Christmas. But what were you wondering?"
"I didn't get Jacob anything for his birthday last week." He shrugged. "I don't think he really noticed 'cause Mom got him a couple things, but . . . do you think it would be okay if I got him a birthday present today, too?"
"I think that would be absolutely okay."
Dylan smiled.
Chin maneuvered their cart into an aisle. "What do you think he would like?"
"Well, he really likes cars. And trucks. And planes. And helicopters."
Chin laughed. "I get the picture." He glanced around. "Looks like we're in the right aisle."
Dylan picked up a box containing a black and green motorcycle.
"Whoa," he said. "It says it pops wheelies."
"You like motorcycles?" Chin asked.
"Yeah, they're pretty cool." He shifted a little, glancing over at Chin quickly and straightening. "Jacob might like this," he said with a shrug.
"Maybe you could get two," Chin suggested. "Then he wouldn't have to play by himself. He'd probably like that even more."
"Maybe . . ." his voice trailed off as he put the box back on the shelf.
"Or what about this?" Chin picked up a Hot Wheels box. "This has two motorcycles that you race."
Chin offered the box to Dylan who looked at the two motorcycles with riders. He smiled up at Chin and put it in their cart.
"Dylan!"
They turned toward the main aisle and saw Jacob dashing to the side of the cart Catherine was pushing so he could block his brother from seeing what was inside. He held his arms out to cover more area.
"Don't look!" he said.
Dylan laughed and held his hands up. "Okay, okay, I won't look."
Catherine and Chin shared a smile.
"You guys have got a lot done already," Chin observed.
"Jacob is a man with a plan," Catherine said.
Chin laughed. "I know you approve of that."
"Definitely," she said as she shifted a few of the items in the cart. "Okay, Jacob, I think it's safe. I've buried Dylan's present."
Jacob checked the cart and then nodded.
"We're going to go find Cody a new backpack now," he told his brother. " 'Cause his has a big hole in it."
"Cool," Dylan said with a nod.
"And then Lieutenant Catherine said I have to pick out some clothes. But only shirts. I don't want any pants."
He looked over at Catherine who raised her eyebrows.
Jacob sighed. "Maybe some pants."
Chin hid a smile.
"Do you think they'll have shirts with cars on them?" Jacob asked his brother. "Or maybe a motorcycle?"
"I don't know." Dylan shrugged. "Maybe."
Jacob turned back to Catherine, tugging on her arm.
"Let's go look," he said. "Come on, Lieutenant Catherine. Come on."
"Okay, let's go," she said with a smile. "Help me with this cart."
Jacob moved back to his place beside her, gripping the handle.
Catherine waved at Chin as they started walking.
"Bye, Jacob. Bye, Lieutenant Catherine," he said with a grin.
He turned to Dylan who had gone back to the shelf and picked up the black and green motorcycle again. With a smile, he put it in the cart.
"Jacob will definitely like this," he said.
"So what do you like to do, Casey?" Kono asked, pushing their empty cart down the center aisle of the store. They had been walking around for a half hour, but Casey had seemed reluctant to pick anything out.
"I don't know," Casey said with a shrug. "Hang out with my friends, I guess. Play sports."
"Oh yeah? What sports?"
Casey shrugged again. "Soccer. Basketball. But I really like–" she stopped.
"What?" Kono prompted, turning to face her.
Casey paused.
"I like to run," she said finally. "I did cross country at school this year and my coach says I'm one of the best on the team. Only–" she stopped again and looked down.
"Only what?"
"I need new shoes. But Mom says we can't right now. There's still a lot of stuff to replace after the fire . . ."
Kono smiled. "Well, then, I think I know where our first stop is going to be."
Casey looked up and gave her a tentative smile.
Her gaze was drawn to a display in the middle of the aisle.
"Wait . . ." she said, walking over and picking up a Rainbow Loom kit. "My friend Lani makes bracelets with one of these."
"Oh yeah?" Kono said.
"Yeah. And she taught my sister how to do it. Kaitlyn really liked it. Maybe . . . maybe I could get this for Kaitlyn. So she could make some more," she said, looking over at Kono who smiled.
"I think that's a great idea."
Steve and Cody were walking past the men's clothes for the third time. Steve had suggested looking at the jeans or the t-shirts more than once, but each time Cody had replied that he didn't need anything and had instead mentioned something for his mother or one of his siblings.
Both Steve and Cody each had several items of children's clothes draped over their arms. Cody was also carrying a jump rope, hair dryer, and curling iron, while Steve had a LEGO body pillow under one arm and a piggy bank that looked like one of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles under the other.
"Look, clothes shopping isn't my favorite thing either," Steve said, stopping in the aisle. "But are you sure you don't want to at least look at what they've got?"
"Nah, I'm good," Cody said. "But maybe . . ." his voice trailed off.
"What?"
"Maybe I could get a tree."
"A tree?" Steve asked. "Like . . . a Christmas tree?"
"Yeah. Jacob still believes in Santa, you know. He's been asking where the presents are going to go. We used to have an old fake one, but then the fire . . ." He shrugged. "Our apartment isn't very big, but I saw these little ones up front on sale. They already had the lights on them."
"Yeah, I noticed them, too," Steve said. "About four feet tall. Will that fit at your place?"
"Yeah, I think so."
"You know what else is up front that we could use?"
There was a pause, and then Cody cracked his first smile.
"A cart?" he said.
Steve nodded, shifting the pillow under his arm.
"A cart."
An hour and a half later, all the kids were making their way back to the buses. They had enjoyed breakfast with their shopping partners and most of the participants – children and adults – had also had their pictures taken with Santa Claus. Purchases had been bagged and labeled and would be delivered to each home later that day.
The Allen children weren't the only ones who were lingering to say goodbye to their new friends. Many of the kids were exchanging high fives and hugs with the adults who had helped them that day.
"Bye, Lieutenant Catherine," Jacob said, hugging Catherine's waist.
"Bye, Jacob," she said as he released her.
He tugged on her arm and pulled her down to whisper in her ear. Catherine chuckled at his words.
"Well, unfortunately, there's a couple problems with that idea. First, I'm way, way older than you are."
"How old?" he asked. "Twenty?"
"Even older," she said dramatically.
"Oh," he said, his eyes wide.
"And second, I already have a boyfriend," she said with a little wince.
"You do?" he blinked up at her.
"Afraid so."
He sighed but then shrugged. "Okay. But you can be my friend who's a girl, right?"
Catherine smiled. "Right," she said, hugging him again.
Beside them, Danny and Grace were saying goodbye to Kaitlyn.
"And if I ever get some more rubber bands from Lani, I'm going to make you a bracelet," Kaitlyn told Grace.
"That would be really cool," Grace said and smiled at her.
"And you, too, Mr. Detective Williams," she continued.
Danny smiled broadly. "And I would be honored to wear it, Kaitlyn. Just maybe . . . lay off the pink when you make it, huh?" he said, rubbing her on the head.
She giggled. "Okay. How about purple?"
"Purple? Purple is a whole different story. I would look great in purple."
Behind Danny and Grace, Dylan looked over at the buses and then at the multiple squad cars around the store.
"Did you drive here in a police car?" he asked Chin.
"Actually . . . I rode here on my motorcycle."
Dylan's eyes widened. "You ride a motorcycle?" he asked in awe.
"I do."
"Can you take me for a ride?"
Chin laughed and patted his shoulder. "Maybe when you're older."
Dylan gave him a lopsided smile and Chin pulled him to his side for a quick one-armed hug.
Beside them, Casey stood with Kono.
"Thanks for helping me figure out what to get everyone," Casey said.
Kono shrugged. "You didn't really need any help. Once you got an idea for your sister, the others came pretty quick."
Casey gave her a small smile. "Yeah, I guess."
"And you let me know when cross country season starts again, okay? I'll come watch you run."
Casey's smile widened and she bounced a little on the balls of her feet. "Okay."
"Hey, come on," Cody's voice cut in. "Let's get on the bus."
He watched as his siblings said their farewells to the Five-0 team.
Steve clasped him on the shoulder. "Have fun putting that tree up with your family, okay? Make some good memories."
Cody looked at him and nodded.
Steve handed him a piece of paper.
"You or your family need anything, you give me a call and we'll figure something out, all right?"
Cody paused as he looked down at the paper. Nodding, he put it in his pocket. When he looked up, Steve was holding out his hand. Straightening, Cody shook it firmly.
He started to follow his siblings toward the bus but stopped and turned back.
"Merry Christmas, Commander," he said. "Thanks."
"Merry Christmas, Cody."
Steve stood with his team as they and the other law enforcement officers and military personnel watched the buses drive away. Both adults and children waved until the buses were out of sight.
Duke was near Steve and turned as he was addressed.
"Hey, Duke?" Steve said. "Sign us up for next year."
Note: There are Shop with a Cop programs all across the country designed to help families and to build positive relationships between law enforcement and their communities.