Notes: Thanks to Mari and Sammy for the wonderful feedback and constant support. I've had quite a few "best days" with you two and look forward to many more!
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Moving Day (A McRoll in the REAL World Story)
"Moving Day, Moving Day, Mooooooooving Day!" Jacob's voice rang out as he jumped onto Dylan's twin bed. "Get up, Dylan, it's Mooooooooooving Day!"
Dylan groaned and buried his head under the covers.
"Did you hear me?" Jacob asked, tugging on the blanket. "It's Moving Day!"
"I heard you," Dylan said and burrowed farther down. "But it'll be Moving Day in an hour, too, you know."
Jacob jumped off the bed and flung open their bedroom door. "We gotta hurry, Dylan, or they might give our house to someone else," he said and stepped out into the hallway as Casey was coming out of the bathroom.
"For the hundredth time, Jacob," Casey said. "They're not gonna give our house away. Mom signed papers."
"Oh yeah," Jacob said. "With Mr. Sam."
Cody appeared from around the corner and said, "That's right."
"Cody!" Jacob exclaimed. "It's Moving Day!
"Yep," his brother said with a smile. "So hurry up. Everyone's gonna be here soon, and we still gotta eat breakfast."
"Oh yeah!" Jacob said and bolted into the bathroom a step before Dylan who had emerged from their bedroom and made a dash for the door.
Dylan groaned and leaned against the wall as the bathroom door shut on him.
"This close," he said, holding up his fingers an inch apart.
Cody laughed and placed him in an affectionate headlock to guide him down the hall.
"Come on," he said. "We're making eggs."
"Woo!" Dylan whooped, sliding out from his brother's loose hold. "With ketchup?"
"Ugh," Cody said with an exaggerated gag. "I don't know how you eat that."
"Ketchup tastes good on everything," Dylan said as they entered the kitchen.
"Not on Twinkies," Kaitlyn said from her place at the counter where she stood on a stool beating eggs in a small bowl.
Dylan shrugged. "I'd try it."
"Of course you would," Jenna said with a smile. She stood by the stove top, scrambling eggs in a pan. "Now, what do you say, Toast Man? One more breakfast mission in this kitchen?"
"Never fear, Toast Man is here," Dylan said, posing with his fists on his hips, and Kaitlyn giggled. "What are you laughing at, Egg Woman?"
Kaitlyn stopped laughing suddenly and looked at her mother with worried eyes. "Will we still be Egg Woman and Toast Man at the new house?"
"Of course," Jenna reassured her. "We'll still need Egg Woman and Toast Man and Captain Juice." She nodded at Cody who was pouring orange juice into paper cups since their glasses had been packed away. "And the Butter Whiz and . . ."
"Cheese Dude!" Jacob yelled as he ran into the kitchen followed by Casey at a more sedate pace.
"Where have you been, Cheese Dude?" Jenna asked.
"Yeah, the Scrambler thought she was going to have to add the cheese herself," Cody said and handed Jacob two slices of American cheese from the nearly empty fridge.
"But it wouldn't have tasted nearly as good," Jenna said and smiled at her youngest son.
"Here you go, Jacob," Kaitlyn said, hopping off the stool.
Cody moved it closer to Jenna at the stove top, and Jacob climbed up.
"Ready?" he asked, looking at his mother.
"Ready," she said.
Jacob tore the Kraft singles into strips and laid them across the scrambled eggs. Jenna stirred them together as the cheese melted, then lifted the pan to distribute eggs onto three paper plates.
"Perfect," she announced, and Jacob beamed.
The toaster dinged, and two pieces of toast popped up. Dylan put them on another paper plate and passed it to Casey who took the plate to the table to butter the toast.
Jenna started on the second batch of eggs as Cody, Kaitlyn, and Jacob carried the plates of eggs to the table.
"Dig in while it's hot, you three," Jenna said. "These'll be ready in a minute." She indicated the pan.
"Casey, do you wanna . . ." Cody motioned to the plate he had set down.
"The Butter Whiz is waiting for more toast from Toast Man," his sister replied as she put a piece of freshly buttered toast on Kaitlyn's and Jacob's plates. "Eat. You need the protein."
"Yeah," Dylan agreed with a laugh as he waited for the next slices of toast to finish. "You're gonna be lifting the heavy stuff with the grown-ups."
"Because it's MOVING DAY!" Jacob cried and held his plastic fork up in the air triumphantly.
After breakfast, Casey and Dylan quickly washed and dried the few dishes they had used and put them in the box with the other kitchen supplies.
There was a knock at the door, and Jacob's voice could be heard from his bedroom.
"They're here!" he shouted.
Stampeding feet followed as both Jacob and Kaitlyn ran down the hallway.
Jenna unlocked it to reveal Steve, Catherine, Danny, Grace, Chin, and Kono in the hallway.
A cacophony of excited greetings were exchanged as they all crowded into the small living room and stood in an approximate circle.
"Okay," Steve said with a clap. He rubbed his hands together and looked around. "Let's review the plan." He pointed around the circle as he listed off jobs. "Jenna and Chin are going to pick up the U-Haul for the furniture."
The two adults looked at each other and nodded.
"In the meantime, Gracie, Kaitlyn, and Jacob are going to make sure all the boxes are labeled," Steve continued.
The three kids nodded seriously at their assignment.
"Catherine, Kono, Casey, and Dylan will carry those down and pack the vehicles while Cody, Danny, and I start getting the furniture downstairs and ready to put in the U-Haul as soon as it gets here."
The remainder of the group nodded in acknowledgment.
"Once everything's at the house, Cody and I will pick up Jadon and go to the ReStore for the new stuff while everybody else is unpacking. Clear?"
"Clear!" Eleven voices confirmed.
"Okay, hands in," Steve said and took a step to put his right hand in the center of the circle.
Everyone else followed his lead.
Steve looked at the youngest Allen and asked, "What should we say, Jacob?"
"Um . . ." He tapped his chin in thought. His eyes lit up suddenly. "I know! Let's move!"
"Perfect," Steve said, smiling. " 'Let's move' on three. One, two, three . . ."
"LET'S MOVE!"
Jenna and Catherine made one last pass through all the rooms in the empty apartment to check they hadn't left anything.
Catherine entered the living room from the hall. "Bedrooms and bathrooms are clear." She stopped upon seeing Jenna standing still in the room, her arms wrapped around herself and a distant look on her face.
When Jenna sighed, Catherine reached out and put a gentle hand on her arm. Jenna looked at her and smiled, dropping her arms.
"You okay?" Catherine asked.
Jenna sighed again. "It wasn't much, but it was home for a few months."
Catherine smiled softly and nodded.
"I understand that feeling."
Jenna looked at her curiously.
"I've done a lot of moving around in my life," Catherine said. "My dad was in the Navy so we moved . . . often. And then I joined the service and continued moving." She smiled. "But each place . . . did come to feel like home. And eventually I realized that it wasn't the place, so much as the people. I've never felt that more strongly than here on the island."
Jenna smiled at her, then her eyes drifted again around the apartment.
"We were so lucky to find this place so quickly after the fire," she said quietly. "The people at the emergency shelter were wonderful, and we were so fortunate they had room for us. I was worried that Cody would be too old." She swallowed, tears pricking at her eyes, and her voice caught. "I wouldn't have been able to handle being separated but I don't know what we would have done if . . ."
She sighed, closing her eyes briefly, and Catherine reached over to squeeze her hand. Jenna smiled gratefully at her and squeezed back, taking a deep breath.
"But we weren't," she said. "And one of the volunteers knew this place had apartments available and even made contact with the office for me. The kids hardly missed any school and not even a month later we were having Christmas morning in this room. With the tree Cody got from Wal-Mart at the Shop with a Cop event." She shook her head. "That morning still seems like a dream. After losing almost everything . . . I couldn't stop looking at my kids. Safe and healthy and happy and bursting with excitement . . . even after everything."
Catherine smiled. "They're amazing," she said, her voice full of sincerity. "And so are you."
Jenna wiped at the tears on her cheeks.
"And now we're moving on," she said with a smile. "But I'll never forget this apartment. I've always known my kids are special and can handle . . . well, more than they should have to. But it was here I learned just how incredible they really are."
Catherine nodded. She squeezed Jenna's hand again and said, "Now let's get those incredible kids and their incredible mother moved into a new house."
Catherine and Jenna exited the apartment building and joined the rest of the group in the parking lot.
"Good to go?" Steve asked.
"Yep," Jenna confirmed.
"Okay," he said, turning to the group. "Objective one – empty the apartment – is complete. Moving on to phase two: transport. Chin's driving the U-Haul."
"Right," Chin said.
"Kono, it looks like you've got just enough room for Casey in your car," Steve said.
"Yep," Kono said and was echoed by Casey.
"There's not a lot of room left in the Camaro, so Gracie's riding with Catherine," Steve said, nodding toward the red truck Catherine had borrowed from John for the day. "Dylan, Kaitlyn, and Jacob you're in the van with your mom, and Cody's with me."
The remaining Allens nodded.
"Okay, meet you at the new house," Steve said with a smile.
"And remember, it's not a race, Steven," Danny said.
"I wasn't gonna–" Steve rolled his eyes. "I was actually gonna wait and make sure everyone else left okay."
"Sure you were," his partner grinned, heading for the Camaro.
The group dispersed to their vehicles and one by one, drove off.
Cody stood in the parking lot, looking across the street at the basketball court he'd used so often. With Steve, with friends, with his siblings, and by himself.
There was a younger teen, about fourteen years old, standing by the empty court, kicking at the dirt next to the asphalt. Cody recognized him from the apartment building. He and his mom had moved in the previous week.
Cody walked toward the truck purposefully as Steve finished checking that the items in the back were secure.
"You ready?" Steve asked.
"Just a sec," Cody said, opening the passenger door and taking out the basketball and pump given to him seven months ago by a tenant who was leaving the building.
Steve watched, his hand shifting to his hips, as Cody walked across the street and approached the other boy.
"Hey," Cody said. "Antonio, right?"
"Yeah," the boy said, looking Cody up and down.
"Here." Cody held out the old, beat-up ball.
"What?"
Cody gestured with the ball. "Take it."
"You just givin' me this?" He nodded back toward the truck. "You movin', ain't you?"
Cody glanced back in that direction and then turned back to Antonio. "Yeah. But I think the ball's supposed to stay with the court."
Antonio took the ball, rolling it over in his hands and looking at the faded lettering and the spots where the bumps had worn down smooth.
"It's old," Cody admitted. "But it'll still go through the hoop."
Antonio looked over at the rusty rim and the faded backboard. He turned back to Cody and nodded, bouncing the ball once on the court.
"You might need this, too," Cody said and handed him the pump.
Antonio took it, and Cody turned to walk back across the street.
"Hey," Antonio said and bit his lip.
Cody turned back.
"Thanks, man."
"Yeah," Cody said with a nod.
He crossed the street and joined Steve at the back of the truck.
"Now I'm ready," he said.
Steve nodded approvingly. He tossed Cody the keys.
"Then let's go."
A man in his late forties was pulling a few weeds in front of a brown house with tan trim. He straightened as the caravan of vehicles approached.
"Hey," he said as Jenna, Dylan, Kaitlyn, and Jacob piled out of their van.
"Hey, Mr. Sam!" Jacob said. "Guess what? It's Moving Day!"
"He knows," Dylan said with a slight eye roll.
Sam smiled. "That's a big day, huh, Jacob?"
"So big! We even got that big, big truck. See?" Jacob continued, pointing at the U-Haul as Chin climbed out.
"Nice," Sam said. He smiled at Jenna. "Just wanted to make sure you got in with no problem. Looks like you've assembled quite the team for Moving Day."
"You can say that again," Jenna said as Danny joined them.
"Sam Axelrod," he introduced himself and offered his hand.
"Danny Williams."
"Good to meet you."
"You, too."
Jenna gestured as the others joined them. "And this is Kono Kalakaua, Chin Ho Kelly, Danny's daughter Grace, and you've met . . . well, not exactly met, but talked to Catherine Rollins."
"Right." Sam shook hands with the three adults. "Nice to meet you in person, Lieutenant."
"You, too," Catherine returned.
"No Commander McGarrett today?"
"He was a few minutes behind us," Catherine said and looked down the street. "That's him, now." She nodded toward the blue truck that was approaching.
"Jenna was telling us you did a lot of work on the house," Chin said.
Sam nodded, folding his arms and looking back at the house over his shoulder. "Yeah, it was pretty run down when I got it. Put in some new flooring and carpet. Replaced the cabinets and countertops in the kitchen. Fresh coat of paint. Though I hear I might as well have waited on that paint job," he said and grinned at the Allen kids.
"I wanna paint me and Dylan's room red!" Jacob said.
"Dylan's and my," Jenna said.
"Yeah!" Jacob cried, his excitement undeterred.
"Red sounds like a bold choice," Sam said with an appraising look. He smiled. "But you look like two guys who can handle it."
Dylan and Jacob grinned at each other.
"The house looks great," Kono said.
"Wait'll you see the inside," Casey said with an excited smile.
Steve and Cody joined them, and Steve and Sam shook hands.
"Excellent day for a move," Sam said.
"You got that right," Steve agreed.
"Cody, good to see you," Sam said and shook the teen's hand.
"You, too, sir," Cody said.
"Well, I'll get outta your hair," Sam said, looking at the assembled group. "Unless you could use some more help unloading . . .?"
"Won't say no to another pair of hands," Steve said after glancing at Jenna for confirmation.
"Thanks," she said warmly.
"All right," Sam said with a wide smile. "Let's get you folks moved in."
They unloaded the U-Haul first so Steve and Cody could take it to pick up Jadon and get to the ReStore for the additional furniture the family had bought earlier in the week. By the time they returned, all the vehicles had been emptied, and Danny, Chin, and Sam helped them move the loveseat, dressers, bookcase, and bed while Jenna directed where to put each item in the house.
Steve and Cody had just set down the bookcase along the wall in the living room when running feet could be heard on the stairs.
"Mom, Mom!" Kaitlyn cried and ran into the room.
"What, honey?" Jenna asked the panicked girl.
Catherine and Kono came in from the kitchen at the noise.
"You packed the picture frame, right?" Kaitlyn asked, referring to the digital photo frame the kids had gotten for their mother a month ago.
"Of course," Jenna reassured her with a hug. "It's right here."
She pulled the frame from a box on the living room floor and unwrapped it. She put it on the newly placed bookcase and stepped back.
"There," she said and looked at Kaitlyn. "What do you think?"
"That's a good spot," the girl agreed, smiling.
"In fact, I think we've got some pictures to add to it after today," Jenna said, nodding to Catherine and Kono who had snapped a few shots of the move throughout the day on their phones.
"Definitely," Catherine said. "I was thinking we should get a picture of the six of you in front of the house."
"Oh, that sounds perfect," Jenna agreed.
"Knock knock," a voice called from the open front door.
They turned to see Gabby and Leilani, their hands full of bags.
"What's all this?" Jenna asked in surprise.
"We did a little grocery shopping," Leilani said.
"There's a few more bags in the car," Gabby said as Danny and Jadon came down the stairs.
"We're on it," Danny said. He motioned to the door. "After you, All Day J."
"I'm not feelin' the 'All Day' so much after carrying all that furniture, D-Dawg," Jadon said.
"What are you talking about?" Danny asked with a grin, giving him a playful push out the door. "You practically just got here . . ."
"I can't believe . . ." Jenna began, shaking her head slowly at the two women. "You . . . that's so generous . . . thank you. You did not have to do that."
Leilani smiled. "Just one less thing for you to worry about your first week here."
"Thank you," Jenna said again, a little overwhelmed. "Here, let me . . ."
She took two of the bags from Leilani as Kono took some from Gabby, and they followed Catherine into the kitchen to put the groceries away.
A half hour later, the group was gathered in the living room, exhausted, but pleased with the day's work.
"Somebody call for delivery?" a voice said at the door.
"About time," Steve said, and they looked at Kamekona filling the doorway. "We're starved."
"You can't rush culinary genius, McGarrett," the big man chided. "You should know that by now."
"I didn't ask for culinary genius, I asked for enough shrimp and rice to feed fifteen hungry people."
"Well, you got both."
The group laughed.
Danny folded his arms, smiling at Kamekona. "I notice you arrived after all the heavy lifting was finished."
"Yeah, what's up with that?" Jadon asked from beside him, mirroring Danny's pose.
"I knew you all could handle that without my help," Kamekona replied confidently.
"You mean your supervision?" Steve retorted, grinning.
"Exactly. My talents were needed elsewhere."
"Hey," Sam cut in. "We gonna keep yappin' or are we gonna eat?"
"We're pretty good at both," Chin laughed.
"I don't think we have enough plates and silverware . . ." Jenna started.
"Not to worry, sistah," Kamekona said. "My special delivery service includes all necessary items for enjoying my particular brand of . . ." he shot a look at Steve, "culinary genius."
Steve rolled his eyes and smiled, his hands going to his hips. "All right, you need some help unloading that 'culinary genius'?"
"I thought you'd never ask."
After they'd eaten, the group posed in front of the house for a picture taken by Sam, followed by a picture of just the Allens.
Shortly after, Sam departed, reminding Jenna to call if anything needed fixing at the house.
As he was driving off, another car pulled up, and Esther emerged.
"I got it!" she said excitedly.
"Got it?" Jenna asked in confusion. "Got what?"
"We have a little something for you," Steve said.
Jenna and her kids looked around at the others' smiling faces.
Steve indicated they should walk toward Esther's car, and the group moved in that direction.
Esther removed a pot she had strapped into her backseat.
"Here it is," she said with a broad smile and held out the pot with its large-leafed occupant.
"Oh, a plant," Jenna said with a delighted expression. "That's lovely. Thank you."
"Not just any plant," Catherine said from beside her.
"It's an 'ulu," Kono said. "A breadfruit tree."
"Hey, we've got one of those at our school," Casey said.
Leilani nodded. "The Breadfruit Institute has been giving away trees to schools, churches, community groups, and families to create sustainable food sources all over the islands."
"We thought it would look great at your new house," Steve said. "A tree you can watch grow over the years."
Jenna's breath caught, and her eyes shone with tears as she looked around at the group and back at the tree in her hands.
"I asked Sam," Steve said. "He said it was fine to plant it in the yard even while you're renting."
"Then in about three years, it'll start to bear fruit," Catherine added.
"And I've got plenty of recipes," Kamekona said and began ticking them off on his fingers. "Breadfruit stew, breadfruit burgers, breadfruit stuffed ahi, barbecue breadfruit, breadfruit cream pie, breadfruit malasadas . . ."
"We get the picture," Danny said, grinning. "You're contemplating a new, non-shrimp based line of menu choices . . ."
They all laughed.
"This is . . . incredible," Jenna said, looking around. She sniffed and smiled through her tears. "Thank you. For this . . . and for helping today, for the food, for . . . just for everything. I feel like we've got this . . . this brand-new start here, and you've all done so much to help us get here."
Catherine put her arm around Jenna. "And we could not be happier for you."
"Absolutely," Steve echoed, putting his hand on Cody's shoulder. "You've worked so hard for this. We're just happy we could be here for the beginning of this new chapter in your lives."
The others nodded their agreement.
Steve squeezed Cody's shoulder reassuringly. "And we'll be here for whatever comes next."
After the U-Haul had been returned and everyone else had left, the Allen family stood in the yard looking at their new home.
"This is my best day ever!" Jacob exclaimed.
"Last week you said the 4th of July picnic was your best day ever," Dylan countered.
"And at your birthday party last year . . ." Casey added.
"And when you were in the bounce house at your graduation . . ." Cody said.
"And when we went to the aquarium with Lieutenant Catherine and Detective Danny and Grace . . ." Kaitlyn put in.
Jacob looked between them and asked, "Can't you have more than one best day ever . . .?"
"Well, technically . . ." Casey began.
"Yes, of course you can," Jenna said, ruffling Jacob's hair fondly.
Casey smiled at her brother. "Yeah."
"You bet, buddy," Cody said.
"You know what?" Jacob said after a moment.
"What?" Jenna asked.
"I think this might be the best best day ever."
Jenna looked at each of her kids in turn and then at the house. She took a deep, satisfied breath.
"I think you might be right."
For more information on The Breadfruit Institute (including recipes), check out their website at ntbg dot org backslash breadfruit
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