Sammy & Ilna - you've made a summer with dreariest-weather ever sunny with your friendship and fun.
REAL McRollers - you're a ray of light every day.
Ilna thanks for the idea for this one and HAPPY BIRTHDAY EVE to you! We hope your year is filled with as much joy as your friendship brings us every day. We love you xox
HAPPY BIRTHDAY EVE
Grace Williams was smiling broadly when she entered the beach house at 9:55 a.m. She smoothed the front of her new mint and apricot floral romper in case the seatbelt had caused any wrinkles after she bent to kiss Cammie.
"Hi, Uncle Steve, I'm a little early." She greeted him and grinned at the toddler who was bouncing in his arms.
"EEEEEEE!" Angie leaned forward and grabbed for her cousin who lifted her from her father's embrace.
"EEEEEEEE!" Grace repeated and Angie giggled. "I came early to just see you, because look what I have …" She held up a stuffed Aardvark. "Her name's Angie, too, just like yours." She danced it in the air until the little hands grasped it and hugged the plush toy. "I couldn't resist," she explained and shrugged, looking at her uncle and kissing her cousin's cheek. "How could I not get Angie the Aardvark for her?"
"And she loves it." Steve tilted his chin to indicate how Angie was clutching her new friend with a huge, toothy smile and bent to kiss his niece's head. "You're the best, Gracie," he said, then glanced up the stairs as Catherine appeared on the landing.
"Happy birthday eve, Auntie Cath!"
"Hey, sweetie. Thank you. I'm all set." She descended the stairs and hugged the teenager. "Ohhhh, Angie what's that? Who do you have there?" She smiled when her daughter thrust the new toy towards her, then hugged it again.
"Mama!"
"I see, baby. Did Grace get you another present? Say thank you."
Grace kissed her cousin's cheek and passed her back to Steve. "The drama club was selling stuffed animals for their fundraiser on Friday, and that…" she pointed, "Is Angie the Aardvark."
"You're too much." Catherine gave her a proper hug. "And I love the romper. The mint's really pretty, and it fits perfectly." She knew it was mail order because Grace had texted her a picture when she was torn between two color patterns.
"Really?" Grace's eyes lit. "Thanks. It came yesterday. I was hoping it would, I wanted to wear it for brunch." She shook her head. "Danno thinks rompers look like the ones I wore when I was Angie's age."
Steve grinned. "You look beautiful as usual, Gracie."
She shared a smile with her aunt when his expression said he agreed with his partner. "Aw, thank you." She turned to Catherine, who'd worn a grey and teal jersey knit dress that draped her slim figure and swirled softly above her knees. "Your sundress is beautiful."
"Mama agh boo." Angie added while peeking over the top of the plush Aardvark.
"Once again, I agree. Beautiful." Steve confirmed what was written in his eyes.
"Well, then, thank you both, Catherine kissed him, then Angie goodbye and thanked Grace for the compliment. After giving her daughter an extra kiss and a little finger wave, she grabbed her purse from the hook near the door. Following the beaming girl outside where she was to be driven to her birthday brunch, she climbed into the passenger seat of Danny's Camaro and buckled in for the ride.
\\\
"So, am I allowed to know where we're headed or should I guess?" Catherine asked, studying her niece's profile as she drove. "Let's see, we're on Kalakaua Avenue so … brunch spots in Waikiki…hmmm."
"You never guess, you detect," Grace laughed. "And did you know when I first met Auntie Kono, I asked her if this street was named after her?" She rolled her eyes at her little-girl self and continued, "I'm just gonna tell you before you figure it out. I made reservations for an ocean-side outdoor table at Duke's Canoe." Duke's Canoe Club, a tribute to Olympic Athlete, Duke Kahanamoku, was awash in Hawaiian music, and she was happy the day wasn't too hot so the ocean side setting would perfect for her aunt's birthday brunch.
"Oh, what a great choice." Catherine clapped her hands together lightly. "And they have amazing food."
"I wanted to keep it a surprise til today like you did when I was twelve, remember? You told me we were going somewhere fancy for dinner with Uncle Steve after you and I had the mani-pedis and went for tea." She smiled. "Oh my God, I was so excited. I packed two dresses and you helped me pick."
"And we coordinated in purple," Catherine added. She remembered the day vividly, particularly the excitement on Grace's face and the absolute joy it brought Steve that their birthday dinner at La Mer put it there. "It was such a great night. The whole weekend was so much fun for us, too."
Grace nodded. "That was probably the first time I realized you and Uncle Steve were the most romantic couple I'd ever seen in real life." She sighed. "You looked so …" She shrugged. "You were all dressed up and I could see how you were looking at each other while you were dancing to the live band." She'd stopped at a light and glanced at Catherine. "Wanna know what Danno says?"
"What, sweetie?" A tiny smile appeared as she absently touched her rings.
"That he owes Uncle Steve because you guys set the bar really, really high for my future boyfriends." She giggled. "Don't tell him I told you, but he's kinda right." Her eyes returned to the road as the traffic light went green. "Not just 'cause you're so beautiful and smart and he's all handsome and cool and everything," She clarified. "Because you … get each other. I could see that when I was like eight. You're just perfect together."
Catherine beamed. "Grace Williams, it's a good thing you didn't tell me that when I was pregnant, I'd have cried for a month." She reached to gently squeeze her niece's shoulder. "We love you so much, you know that. And I'm happy you're standards are high. You're brilliant and kind in addition to being beautiful inside and out. You deserve the best. The best relationships, the best of everything, and I know Danny teases you but he'll be thrilled if you always remember that."
"Awww," Grace smiled again. "That's what Uncle Steve said that night before we left for LaMer. I'd said something like, didn't you look beautiful in your fancy dress and he said, 'Catherine always looks beautiful, inside and out.' Even as a seventh grader I knew he absolutely meant it. I remember thinking I hope I meet someone awesome someday who looks at me like that." After a second, her soft smile morphed into a grin, "Then you can save me and check my future boyfriend out if I'm getting serious. Because if I bring anyone to meet them Danno and Uncle Steve will bring him in for interrogation, okay?"
Catherine threw back her head and laughed. "Absolutely okay."
Grace laughed, too. "Great, thanks. That way you can practice for when they try to run background checks on Angie's middle school crush."
They were still chuckling together when Grace carefully pulled into the parking lot of Duke's Canoe Club.
"Time to open your present," Grace passed the box festooned with purple and white wrapping paper and ribbon across the table. "And before you say I shouldn't have, it's something to keep," she parroted what Catherine would tell her on every birthday when she'd say their annual adventure and dinner was enough.
The accompanying card touted,
Happy Birthday to a Fabulous Aunt!
Catherine's eyes were full as she read, in Grace's familiar hand:
Dear Auntie Cath,
Whenever we're together, I love how much fun we have, how much we laugh and the memories we make.
I'm so lucky to have you and I'm proud I'm your niece because you're the best, most amazing aunt ever. I hope your birthday is the best one yet.
Love you xoxo, Grace
Stopping for a hug before unwrapping a 20 x 20 inch plaque, Catherine's watery smile lit her face at the collage varnished to koa wood nestled in the tissue paper.
Grace had created a look-back at the year she was born. The header, under a photo of a days-old Catherine being held by Joseph and flanked by Elizabeth, Grandma Ang and Joseph's father, Thomas, read:
On this day, August 21, 1978
there was … you!
Catherine Rollins.
Lots of lives (including mine) are better
because you were born.
The colorful collage featured photos Grace had gotten from the Rollins'. Interspersed with family and friends' images were photos of 1978 news events, fashions, and pop culture that Grace knew would make her much loved Auntie Cath smile, such as: NASA's first group of female astronauts; a photo of a little Steve with the caption, Your future husband, Steve McGarrett turned one year old! An illustration of the cartoon cat, noting the very first "Garfield" comic strip was published that June. A newspaper image showing Baby Louise Brown, the world's first human conceived via in-vitro fertilization who was a month older than Catherine.
"Oh I remember my mom singing that all the time," Catherine observed, when she saw the number one song on her birthday was Three Times a Lady by the Commodores.
They both laughed at the average costs in 1978. "A new house was $54,800.00. Wow." Catherine shook her head.
"Look how cheap gas was," Grace, the brand-new driver pointed out the sixty three cent price.
"True, but the average Income was only 17,000 a year," Catherine noted.
As she took in all the images and captions and smirked at the baby photo Carrie had supplied of herself amongst a sea of bubbles for the caption, your bestie joined you in the world, Catherine blinked back a tear.
"I don't know what to say, this took so much time, it's so beautiful and thoughtful. Thank you, sweetheart." She ran a gentle hand over the glossy, shellacked surface. "I love you, Grace. Thanks again for the wonderful day, taking me to brunch, and this incredible collage."
They hugged for a full 30 seconds as Grace gushed, "I'm so happy you like it. I got the idea when I saw a birthday card Danno got that said, looking back at the year you were born, and I thought this would be a perfect thing to make for your birthday."
"It's absolutely is perfect. I can't wait to show Uncle Steve." She smiled. "And my parents and Grandma Ang, and Carrie …" She laughed. "I sound like Jacob, but you know what?" She touched Grace's hand and gave a gentle squeeze. "This is one of the best gifts, ever."
Steve sighed as Catherine snuggled against him on the sofa. She'd changed into shorts and a tank when she'd returned from brunch and after he'd marveled at Grace's usual thoughtfulness, innovative birthday idea and her handiwork, they'd played with Angie until she went down for a nap and Grace went home. Their niece had been all smiles when she left after texting Danny she was on her way.
"Ohhh, look at that." Catherine circled two fingers in the air, indicating his expression. "That's an Uncle Steve face if I ever saw one." She patted his thigh and kissed his cheek. "Grace seemed more grown up than ever today, hmm?"
He moved the monitor to the side table and shifted them both to a more comfortable position. "She's not only driving, she picked you up, Cath. Like an …"
"Actual adult?" supplied with a hand slipped into his where it rested on her tummy. She felt his nod from her position spooned against him.
"Exactly. I can't believe it went so fast. When she got out of the Camaro this morning, I half expected Danny to be behind the wheel, even thought I knew a big part of her plan for treating you to lunch was driving you there herself."
"That was definitely a huge deal for her." She shifted her legs and relaxed. "I remember the first time I drove mom somewhere, and picked Dad up after deployment. On Gram's first visit after I got my license, I drove her to bingo and felt very grown up."
"Pretty soon she'll be getting a car." He played with Catherine's fingers before stilling their hands again. "Gracie having her own car. I feel like I just picked her up from school for the first time." He shook his head. "That was 2010."
"If I remember that story right, you used the cherry lights." She chuckled.
He shrugged but was grinning. "There was a huge line."
"And she asked you not to cut the line if it wasn't an emergency next time, because Grace is … Grace."
"Exactly. She looked up with those eyes and that little face and I actually promised to wait behind fifty cars next time I picked her up."
"And you still can't say no."
"Pretty much." He grinned.
"So wrapped," She teased and turned over to kiss him lightly.
"Maaamaaaa Dada!" Angie called over the monitor and they laughed simultaneously.
"Speaking of …" Catherine pushed up and slid her legs to the floor. "I've got her."
"I'll go, you wanna get her snack?" He stood, too.
She nodded and stretched. Seconds later, Steve's voice wafted over the monitor. "Hey, beautiful. What do you want to eat? Daddy will get you anything, you know."
"Dada uh!" Catherine pictured the little arms gesturing to be lifted and smiled.
"Okay, here's the sit-rep, Mommy's getting your snack ready and Daddy's got bedtime tonight so how about we read an extra story?" The sound of him kissing Angie's cheek was punctuated by Cammie's 'woof'. "See Cammie agrees. You can do one thing for Daddy, okay?"
"DaaaDa. Da da dada," she chanted happily.
Steve's voice softened and Catherine smiled at his words. "Don't grow up too fast."
# End thanks for reading
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