Notes: Mari and Sammy – thank you for the absolutely awesome feedback on this story as I sent it scene by scene. By scene by scene. By scene. You two are the best, anytime day or night. Thank you for being so enthusiastic about this one and for all the fantastic suggestions!
Esther – You know I have to thank you because I know you'll see this, even if you can't read the story yet :-). Thank you for your always enthusiastic support!
Mom – Thanks for the help and for your years as an undeniably amazing teacher. I may be a little biased, but I happen to think you were the best. And thank you for always supporting me. Glad I could take you down memory lane.
Readers and REAL McRollers – your enthusiasm and excitement are contagious and inspiring. Thank you for your continued support of the REAL World. It is appreciated more than I can say. Which could explain why I'm so behind in review responses. Please know I really do appreciate every word!
The first Operation Influenza still has my personal record for longest story, but this came close. Thank you to everyone who asked for and about this story; I had an absolute blast writing this. It was so much fun incorporating actual interactions I have had with kids into this story. I may just have to do it again sometime!
Hope you enjoy!
Commander McGarrett Goes to Kindergarten (A McRoll in the REAL World Story)
Catherine reached for the doorknob of Jacob's classroom but stopped and turned to Steve behind her.
"You ready for this?" she asked.
" 'Ready fo–' " He gave her a look. "Catherine, they're kindergartners. How tough could it be?"
"Nothing prepares you for a room full of six-year-olds, Steve."
He scoffed. "I'm sure I'll be fine."
"Okay," she said, smirking at his breezy confidence.
He reached past her for the doorknob and opened the door. They stepped inside the bustling classroom and were immediately spotted by Jacob.
"Lieutenant Catherine!" he said and jumped up from his seat to run toward her, causing most of the other eyes in the room to turn toward to the door.
Jacob threw his arms around Catherine's waist and she laughed, returning his hug.
"Hi, Jacob," she said brightly.
"Commander," Jacob said with a broad smile, looking up at him with his arms still wrapped around Catherine's waist. "You came!"
"Hey, Jacob," Steve said and ruffled the boy's hair. "You bet I did. You invited me."
Two other children with excited smiles joined them.
"Hi, Lieutenant Catherine," the girl sing-songed, pulling on the heart pendant around her neck.
"Hi, Sophia," Catherine said with a smile. She looked at the boy. "Hi, Keone."
"Who's that?" Keone asked, pointing at Steve.
"That's the Commander," Jacob said, turning to them. "He's Lieutenant Catherine's boyfriend. He took me go-kart racing and he catches bad guys. See his badge?" He pointed at Steve's waist. "It's like Lieutenant Catherine's."
"You look really strong," Sophia said. "Are you strong?"
"Can you pick me up with one hand?" Keone asked without waiting for Steve's answer.
"Me first!" Sophia said, raising her arms.
"I uh . . ." Steve started, looking at Catherine who gave him a knowing smile. He looked back at the kids. "I don't . . . think I should do that . . ."
Mrs. R reached the group and said, "I spy several of my kindergartners who are out of their seats without permission."
Jacob gasped.
"Oops," he said with a sheepish smile.
He ran back toward his table, followed by Sophia and Keone.
"Walking feet," the middle-aged teacher called after them. She sighed with a little chuckle as she turned back to Steve and Catherine. "Hi, Catherine." She smiled warmly and looked at Steve. "And we finally meet the famous Commander."
"Steve McGarrett," he said and offered his hand.
"Welcome," she said, shaking his hand. "I'm Mrs. R, as I'm sure you already guessed. Sue Rothenberger."
"I've heard a lot about you," he said. Flashing a quick smile at the woman beside him, he added, "Not just from Jacob."
Mrs. R smiled. "And I've heard a lot about you. Mostly from Jacob," she teased.
Steve and Catherine smiled.
"Thank you for letting us come in," Catherine said.
"Of course. I'm actually really glad you could come today. I have to administer a few reading assessments, and we've got Earth Day projects to work on. My usual room helpers couldn't make it so this was perfect timing."
"Sounds great," Catherine said. "We'll help with whatever you need."
"Wonderful. Let me introduce the Commander to the class." She looked at her students who were all seated at their tables and who all had their eyes on their guests. "Friends, as you can see, Lieutenant Catherine is back to visit."
"Yay!" a girl with braided hair said as she bounced in her seat.
Mrs. R smiled. "I know we all share your enthusiasm, Takisha. We're always happy to see Lieutenant Catherine. And you can see that she brought a friend today. This is Commander Steve McGarrett."
Steve smiled and nodded at the kids.
"They're going to help us with our Earth Day projects," Mrs. R continued. "Who remembers what we're doing for Earth Day?" She paused as several students raised their hands. "Yes, Owen?"
"We're making art with bottle caps," he said.
"Exactly right. And what else?"
"We're writing papers for the hallway–" Keone started before wincing. "I mean . . ." He put up his hand.
Mrs. R smiled. "Yes, Keone, go ahead."
"We're writing papers for the hallway about helping the Earth," he said.
"That's right. You're going to think of what you can do to help the Earth and draw a picture illustrating that. Then we'll have . . ." She looked between Steve and Catherine. "How about we have Lieutenant Catherine write your ideas on your paper since she's done that before?"
Catherine nodded with a smile.
"Okay. We'll have Tables One and Two work on their papers with Lieutenant Catherine first, and Tables Three and Four will work on their art projects with Commander McGarrett. Yes, Sophia?" Mrs. R asked when she saw the girl's raised hand and knitted brow.
"If she's Lieutenant Catherine, then shouldn't he be Commander Steve?"
Catherine looked over at Steve, trying to hide a smile. She raised her eyebrows.
"Well . . ." Mrs. R began.
"I guess I should," Steve said. "Sophia, right?"
The little girl nodded.
"Thank you for clearing that up, Sophia," he said, and she beamed.
Catherine smiled at him, and Mrs. R nodded approvingly.
"Commander Steve it is," she said. "Who are my classroom helpers this week?" She looked at the colorful bulletin board by the carpet and consulted her 'Helper List'. "Kalea, will you show Commander Steve where our boxes of bottle caps are? He can move them closer to the tables. And Jacob, will you get enough lined picture paper for your table and for Table Two?"
"Yep!" Jacob jumped up and went to the counter.
Kalea walked over to Steve and waved her hand at him.
"Over here," she said.
Without waiting, she grabbed his hand and pulled him to the other side of the room where several shoe boxes holding different sized bottle caps sat on the floor.
She looked up at him. "We've been sorting them by colors, see?"
Steve nodded, his hands on his hips. "I see that. Very nice."
"Maybe you could carry one and come back for the other ones?" she suggested.
"You know," Steve said, piling the boxes on top of each other. "I bet I can carry them all."
"Whoa," she said as he picked them up. "You're strong like my daddy."
"Is that right?"
"Yep, he can carry me when I'm upside down!"
"Impressive." He motioned with the boxes in his arms. "You wanna show me where we're going with these?"
"This way!" she said and led him toward the center of the room. "My table is Table Three. My nametag is on it. By Ameera's. She's my best friend. Our table was the quietest before lunch so we got to line up first."
He fought a chuckle. "That's . . . that's good. Good job."
Steve glanced over and saw that Catherine was already at one of the other tables helping spread out crayons as Jacob passed out papers.
Mrs. R met Steve by Table Three and pointed. "Why don't you set them up behind the tables there?" she said.
"Okay." Steve moved to set the boxes down where she had indicated.
"And we'll need a chair for you . . ." Mrs. R started.
"He can have my chair!" a boy offered, standing and pulling out his chair.
"That's very nice, Jeremy," his teacher said. "But I think the Commander might be a little big for your chair."
As Steve stood, Jeremy looked him up and down in an appraising manner and finally nodded his agreement.
"Yeah, he is pretty big."
Steve chuckled.
Mrs. R looked at him and motioned behind him. "Why don't you grab the chair from behind my desk?"
Steve looked at the set-up and said, "I don't think I'll need it. I can move between the tables more easily without a chair in the way."
She nodded. "If you change your mind . . ."
"Thanks," he said. "What exactly are they making?"
"Whatever they'd like. Here are a couple examples from my class last year." She grabbed two shoe box lids from a side table and showed him the samples.
One was an ocean scene with different color bottle caps serving as the bodies of the fish. The other was a garden with bottle caps positioned in the shape of flowers and stems.
Mrs. R pointed to a large, shallow box on the side table. "They can use anything from the scraps box. Crayons, markers, and glue are at their tables. They already have their shoe box lids. Any questions?"
Steve looked over the tables, his hands on his hips. "Nope, I don't think so."
She smiled. "Okay, have fun." She looked at the boy next to Steve. "Jeremy, since you're still standing, come over with me first to do your assessment."
Jeremy looked between her and Steve.
"Then I can come right back?" he asked Mrs. R.
She smiled. "Then you can come right back."
"And you'll still be here, right?" Jeremy asked Steve.
"I will still be here," Steve said with a nod. "Promise."
Jeremy pointed at the boxes. "Don't let anybody use all the blue ones. I need them for my picture."
Steve nodded. "Okay. Looks like there's plenty of blue, so I'll think you'll be fine."
"Come on, Jeremy," Mrs. R said, leading him to the other side of the room.
Steve was still in front of Mrs. R's desk when Catherine came over to find a Sharpie.
"Is she your girlfriend?" the girl sitting next to Kalea asked. "Jacob said."
"Uh, yep, she is," Steve said with a smile in Catherine's direction.
" 'Cause you gotta be extra nice if she said she'd be your girlfriend."
Catherine fought to hide her grin as she looked at Steve.
"Extra nice, huh?" he asked, folding his arms.
The girl, whose desk tag read 'Ameera,' continued, "Like you gotta get her gummy bears and stuff."
Steve shot a quick glance at Catherine and winked. "Would lemon drops do?"
Ameera thought for a second. "No, I think it has to be gummy bears."
"Lemon drops are okay if she likes them," Kalea said. She looked at Catherine. "Do you like them?"
"Very much," Catherine said.
"I still think you should get her gummy bears," Ameera told Steve.
"Lieutenant Catherine!" Jacob called from his seat. "I'm ready!"
She gave Steve a knowing smile. "Have fun," she said, patting his stomach twice before turning.
"How long are you Lieutenant Catherine's boyfriend?" Ameera asked.
Steve heard Catherine snort as she walked away.
He turned back to the girls and said, "A long time."
"Like a week?" a boy whose desk tag read 'Matthew' asked.
"No, more like . . . sixteen years."
"Whoa," Matthew said.
"Did you kiss on the lips yet?" Ameera asked. " 'Cause that's allowed if you're her boyfriend."
Steve put his hands on his hips, looking down at her. "You seem to know a lot about this."
"My sister has a boyfriend," she explained. "If she goes out with him, she has to be home before the news comes on TV. Her name is Amani. She goes to high school. What time does Lieutenant Catherine have to be home?"
"Well, we live in the same house so . . ." Steve started.
Ameera and Kalea gasped, exchanging a look.
"Do her mom and dad know?" Ameera asked him.
"Yes, they do." He shifted. "You know, I think we need to get started on those pictures or the other tables are gonna be way ahead of us." He looked at the nine kids who were staring back at him. "Does everyone know what they're making?"
He realized his mistake instantly as several voices called out in rapid succession.
"I'm making a caterpillar."
"Can I build a robot instead?"
"I don't know what to make."
"But I was gonna make a caterpillar!"
"I'm making a shark!"
"Can we go outside?"
"Matthew always makes sharks."
"So?"
"Kalea and I are making the same thing."
"Yeah, flowers."
"Okay, okay, okay." Steve held up his hands for quiet. "How about this? Girls, go get the bottle caps you think you're gonna need. Remember, you can always go back for more. Then the boys will get theirs."
The five girls stood and went over to the shoe boxes. As they were digging around for the bottle caps they wanted, Steve walked around the table.
He felt a small hand tug his pants as he passed. When he looked down, a boy with big brown eyes looked up at him.
"You know my brother," he said quietly.
Steve smiled and knelt beside him.
"You must be Reggie."
Reggie beamed and nodded.
"I do know your brother," Steve said. "You look a lot like him."
Reggie smiled.
Steve nodded toward the shoebox lid on the table. "Do you know what you're gonna make?"
Reggie shook his head.
"Come on, you gotta have some idea," Steve said. When Reggie started to look worried, he continued, "Well, let's think about what you're gonna do with your picture. Are you gonna keep it in your room? Are you gonna give it to someone?"
"I wanna give it to my mama," Reggie said.
Steve smiled. "Okay. That's nice. So what does your mom like?"
Reggie bit his lip, thinking. "She got a big sun hanging up in her room. And a little one hanging on the fan."
"Okay," Steve said with a nod. "I saw a lot of yellow and orange bottle caps in the boxes. Maybe you could make a nice sun for her."
Reggie smiled. "She could put it on her dresser."
"I bet she will."
Steve looked up and saw that all but one girl had returned to their seats with handfuls of bottle caps.
"Okay, boys, your turn," he said.
He patted Reggie's shoulder and stood as the boys went to the boxes. Looking over at the other tables, he saw Catherine listening, Sharpie in hand, as a girl talked. Catherine nodded encouragingly at the girl and asked a question. She caught Steve looking at her and smiled quickly at him before refocusing on the little girl beside her.
Steve smiled softly as he watched, then his attention was caught by raised voices at the table behind him.
"But I'm makin' a caterpillar," a girl was saying. "You just wanna copy."
"Nuh uh!" the boy beside her protested. "It was my idea. I said it first."
"You're always copying–"
"I'm not!"
"Hey, hey, hey, what is happening here?" Steve said, standing between them with his hands on his hips. "What is the problem?"
Both kids started talking at once.
"He always copies my–"
"I said I wanted to do a caterpillar first–"
"Hang on, hang on," Steve said, squatting between them. "One at a time." He looked at the desk tags. "Alani. What's going on?"
"Nolan always copies," she said. "I said I was gonna make a caterpillar and then he said he was gonna make a caterpillar."
"I said it first!" Nolan protested.
"No, you didn't!"
Steve held up a hand. "Okay, first of all, one of you isn't being 100% truthful here. 'Cause unless you said it at the same time, someone said it first. Now who came up with the idea?"
"I did," Alani insisted.
"I did," Nolan said.
"You did not!" Alani said.
"Okay, okay," Steve said and looked between the two of them. "The truth."
Nolan's shoulders finally slumped, and he looked down.
"But I want to make a caterpillar, too," he said plaintively.
"Told you," Alani said. "He's always copying."
"Okay," Steve said. "Alani, I can see that makes you upset, but it's not really helping to solve the problem right now."
She huffed a sigh.
"Nolan?" Steve said. "I think there's something you need to say to Alani."
There was a pause, and Steve ducked his head to try and catch the boy's eyes.
"Sorry," Nolan mumbled, still looking down.
"For . . .?" Steve prompted.
"Sorry I said it was my idea."
"You know, I've found that apologies are better when you look at the person you're apologizing to."
Nolan looked at him. Steve gave him a little nod, and the boy turned to Alani.
"Sorry, Alani," he said.
She twisted her lips, but nodded.
"Now, that was first of all," Steve said. "Second of all, why exactly is it a problem if you both make a caterpillar? I bet you'd both do a good job."
"But it was my idea," Alani said.
Steve looked between them as he thought.
"Okay, how about this?" he said. "What does a caterpillar turn into?"
"A butterfly," Nolan said.
"Right, or a moth," Steve said. "So, Alani, how about you make a caterpillar, and Nolan makes the butterfly or moth that it turns into?"
The two kids looked at each other.
"That way your pictures will work together and tell the whole story," Steve said.
"Yeah," Alani said. "And they could match."
"Yeah!" Nolan agreed.
"We need more colors," Alani said as she looked at the bottle caps on their desk. "For the butterfly."
"Yeah," Nolan said.
"Nolan," Kalea said as she came over to him. "Mrs. R said it's your turn for the letter test."
Nolan looked at Alani.
"Don't start without me, 'kay?"
"I won't," she promised. "I'll just get some more colors."
"Okay." He jumped up. "I'll be right back."
Steve stood and exhaled, rubbing the side of his face as Nolan hurried over to Mrs. R and Alani went to get more bottle caps. He saw Catherine looking at him and returned her smile.
Steve turned back to his tables and his eyes widened as he saw a boy squeezing out a pool of glue into his shoe box lid. Steve hurried over and knelt beside him.
"Whoa, whoa," he said, tilting the glue bottle up. "That's a lot of glue there, buddy."
"I gotta make the bottle caps stick," the boy, whose desk tag read 'Oliver,' said.
"I know. But you don't need that much glue. It's gonna take longer to dry, and it'll be kinda messy. Plus you won't be able to color 'cause there'll be glue everywhere."
"I don't need to color. I'm making a robot."
"A robot, huh?"
"Yep." He motioned at the lid. "I'm gonna fill up the whole thing and his eye will go right here and his other eye will go right here and his mouth will go right here . . ."
Steve felt a tug on his sleeve. He looked on his other side and saw a boy with a vaguely pained look on his face.
"I gotta use it," he said.
"You gotta . . ." Steve registered the way the boy was bouncing in place. "Oh! Well, what are you waiti-"
"Can I go?" he asked, pointing to the corner of the room where a bathroom door stood open.
"Yeah, yeah, go," Steve said hurriedly, and the boy took off.
"We gotta ask permission before we go to the bathroom," Alani said, having retaken her place at the table.
"But I bet you could go without asking Mrs. R first if you gotta go," Oliver said. "Do you gotta go?"
Steve quirked an eyebrow. "I'm . . . I'm good for now. Thanks."
"You got tattoos," Ani, the other girl at the table, said, pointing at his arms.
"Yeah," Steve said.
"Can I see 'em?" Oliver asked, already pushing up Steve's sleeve. "Did you get 'em out of the machine at the grocery store?"
"I . . . no, they're–"
"Look, I got a tattoo," Ani said, putting her leg up on the table to show the temporary tattoo on her shin. "It cost 100 tickets."
"How many tickets was yours?" Oliver asked.
"No tickets, they're–"
Ani gasped. "They're real?"
"Yeah."
"Sometimes I make tattoos with markers," Oliver said. "My mom doesn't like that."
"Well, she–"
"Look at my tattoo, Commander Steve," Ani said, pointing at her leg.
Steve leaned over for a better view. "Who is that?" he asked.
"It's Elsa!" she said.
He raised his eyebrows in question.
She rolled her eyes. "Frozen!"
"Right." Steve nodded. "With the . . . song."
"I know all the words. Wanna hear?" Without waiting for an answer, she sang, " 'Let it go, let it goooooo! Can't hold me back anymooooooore!' "
Steve's eyes widened as Alani and Oliver joined in.
" 'Let it go, let it gooooooo!' "
"Friends, we've talked about the sing-alongs," Mrs. R said as she joined the table with Nolan. "Particularly with that song. There is a time and a place. And Ani, why is your leg on the table?"
"I was showing Commander Steve my tattoo," she said, but put her leg back down.
"He's got tattoos," Oliver said. "Big ones."
"But they cost no tickets," Ani put in.
"I knew they were real," Alani said proudly. "They're too big to be in the machine."
Oliver pushed Steve's sleeve up again. "Look, Mrs. R."
"I see," Mrs. R said, smiling at Steve as he stood. "How are we doing here? Looks like some very nice bottle cap pictures."
"I told Mrs. R about the caterpillar and the butterfly," Nolan said, going back to his seat.
"A very good idea," she said, putting her hand on Steve's arm and giving it a gentle squeeze.
The boy who had used the bathroom came back to the table, and Mrs. R smiled at him.
"Maurion, you're next," she said. "Come with me."
"I think we're ready to switch activities," Mrs. R said twenty minutes later. "But first let's all stand up and stretch." She put both her arms in the air. "Everybody reach up to the sky."
"Don't hit the mobiles, Commander," Jacob said, pointing to the objects hanging from the ceiling.
"Thank you for the warning, Jacob," Steve said with a wink in the boy's direction.
"And down to the ground," Mrs. R said.
She bent over but didn't quite reach the floor.
"Look, Lieutenant Catherine," Jacob said from his place beside her. "I can touch my toes."
"Me, too," she said.
"So can I!" Keone said on her other side.
"And then let's straighten up and twist," Mrs. R said, twisting her torso from side to side. "Count with me."
They counted out ten twists and then Mrs. R clapped and said, "Okay, now Tables One and Two will work on their bottle cap art with Commander Steve, and Tables Three and Four will do their 'How I Can Help the Earth' papers with Lieutenant Catherine." She motioned to a girl at Jacob's table. "Sarah, come over with me to do your assessment."
Jacob put up his hand. "Can I help bring the bottle caps over here?"
"Yes, Jacob," Mrs. R said. "Thank you for offering. And Kalea, please get picture paper for Tables Three and Four."
Catherine followed Jacob over to where Steve was collecting the boxes of bottle caps.
"I'll take the red ones!" Jacob said.
"I thought you might," Steve said with a smile, handing him the box. "Put it on the floor on the other side of your table, okay?"
"Okay." He headed off with a bounce in his step.
"Showing off your tattoos again, Commander?" Catherine asked, unable to contain her smile.
"That's very funny," he said, standing with the remaining boxes stacked in his arms.
"It's adorable, is what it was."
"Hey, we've talked about that adjective."
"I think 'Tammi with an i' would agree with me."
He shook his head, smiling at her teasing.
She grinned and indicated the tables behind her with her head. "Better not keep 'em waiting."
"Better not," he agreed.
She fixed his sleeve, and he flashed her a smile in thanks before walking away.
After getting everyone going with their bottle caps, Steve made his way around the tables to check on progress.
He knelt next to the little girl named Takisha, and she wrinkled her nose at him.
"What?" he asked.
"I think I have to bless you."
His brow knitted in confusion. "Huh?"
"I feel like I have to bless you."
"You–" he started but was interrupted as she raised her arm to her face and sneezed into the crook of her elbow. "You have to sneeze." He smiled. "Bless you."
She wiped her nose on her sleeve and smiled at him.
"Can you say your ABCs without singing?" Without waiting for a response, she said, "I can. A. B. C. D. E . . ."
"That's . . . that's very impressive," he said. "But how about you save that for your test and get going on your art project here?"
"Are you gonna marry Lieutenant Catherine?" Madison, the girl on his other side, asked suddenly.
He looked at her. "Wh–" He swallowed. "Uh . . ."
"Do you got kids?" Takisha asked.
Steve turned back to her. "No."
"Why don't you got kids?" Madison asked.
"We . . . I don't . . . uh . . . we don't, right now. But–"
"You should be a dad," Takisha said, nodding decisively.
"Is that right?" he asked.
"Yep. You'd be good." She turned to her shoe box lid and picked up a red marker. "I'm gonna make a heart."
"Okay," Steve said with a little chuckle at the rapid change in topic.
He looked across the room to where Catherine sat between Ameera and Kalea. She was talking to Kalea as Ameera took three hanks of Catherine's hair at the side of her face and tried to braid it. Catherine smiled at Ameera and spoke softly, nodding toward the paper on the table and clearly coaxing her to focus on her own idea.
Steve caught Catherine say, "Later," with a smile. As the girl picked up a crayon and hunched over her paper, Catherine looked over and saw Steve watching her. She smiled at him, tucked the partial braid behind her ear, and turned back to Kalea.
A little sigh escaped him as he watched her for one more beat before refocusing on the kids around him. Since both girls seemed to be working well, he stood and walked to the other side of the table and knelt between the kids sitting there.
"What are you making?" he asked the boy whose desk tag read 'Keahi.'
"I'm making a fish," Keahi said, gluing a green bottle cap to his lid.
"You like fish?"
Keahi shrugged. "Not really."
"Then why–"
"My mom says I'm a fish out of water when I sleep. I fall out of my bed every night." He looked up at Steve and said, "I hate falling out of my bed."
"I . . . I think we can all agree falling out of bed is usually not fun."
"Did you ever fall out of your bed?" Sydney, the girl on his other side, asked.
"Not . . ." he shot a quick glance in Catherine's direction. "Recently."
" 'Cause if you do, you could put a rail up," Sydney continued. "That's what my little sister's got on her bed."
"I don't want to put a rail up," Keahi said. "Rails are for babies. My dad moved my bed by the wall, but I still fall out."
"Well, a rail might be not be a bad idea," Steve said. "At least until you stop flopping around like a fish out of water."
Keahi sighed. "Yeah."
"But in the meantime, your bottle cap fish is looking great."
"What about mine?" Sydney asked. She held up her lid. "I'm making a 'S' for Sydney."
"I like it." He smiled. "Hey, you know what?"
"What?"
"My name starts with 'S', too."
She thought for a second, whispering, "Commander St–" She smiled broadly in realization. "Steve! 'S' for Steve!"
"You got it."
She looked around the room. "And 'S' for Sophia and Sarah. And . . ." she gasped and pulled on Steve's arm, bringing him closer. "Guess what?"
"What?"
She cupped her hand by his ear and whispered, "My teacher's name starts with 'S', too. It's Sue, but I'm not 'pposed to know that."
He laughed. "I think it's okay to know that, you're just not supposed to call her that."
She nodded.
"Okay, keep at it," Steve said. "I'm gonna check on the other table."
He stood and walked the short distance to Table One.
"Jacob, buddy, how's it going?"
"I'm all done!" Jacob said proudly.
"Hey, is that your go-kart?" Steve asked as he knelt.
"Yep! It's red, see?" Jacob held up his lid.
"That's great, buddy. But let's leave it flat until it dries, okay?" He guided Jacob's hands to set the lid back on the table. "You don't want your bottle caps to slide down."
"What do I do now?" Jacob asked.
"Well . . ." Steve looked around, thinking.
"I could draw you and Lieutenant Catherine a picture!"
From beside him, Keone said, "I want to make one, too!"
"Me, too," Sophia said. "With glitter!"
"And me!" a boy named Owen put in.
"I'm gonna draw Cammie!" Jacob said.
Steve's head whipped back and forth as he followed the rapid back and forth of the conversation.
"Who's Cammie?" Owen asked.
"That's their dog," Jacob said. "She's THIS big!" He held his arms out wide.
"Oh yeah," Sophia said. "Lieutenant Catherine told us."
"Yeah!" Keone said. "And I told her about my dog Po! I'm gonna draw them both."
"If I make a picture of Cammie, will you put it on your 'fridgerator at home?" Jacob asked Steve.
"And mine!" Sophia added.
"Yeah!" Keone said.
Steve chuckled. "I think we're gonna run out of room at this rate." He looked around the table. "Are you all done with your bottle cap projects?"
Keone nodded but Sophia shook her head and said, "Not yet."
"Almost," Owen said.
"Okay, finish those first. If we have time after you're done you can make a picture. And how about you use the paper that's in the scraps box over there, all right? We want to reuse and recycle, right?"
" 'Cause it's Earth Day!" Keone said happily.
"It is," Steve said.
Sophia looked up at him. "My mom says every day should be Earth Day."
"I think your mom is probably right."
Fifteen minutes later, the class was outside for a little mid-afternoon recess with Mrs. R and Catherine while Steve stood just inside the door on his phone.
"Hey, how are things in munchkinland?" Danny asked.
"I think I might have whiplash," Steve said, rubbing the back of his neck. "They don't stay on any one topic for very long, do they?"
"No, they do not. Beware of conversational whiplash, my friend. Substantially more prevalent when kids are around."
"And a lot of personal questions."
"Now that I warned you about."
"You did," Steve acknowledged. "Everything okay there?"
"Yeah, we're good. Kono and Chin are working on the software updates with IT, and they asked that I 'please stay in my office,' as if my mere presence would upset the precious technology."
Steve chuckled. "I think your mere presence upsets the techs more than the technology."
"I'm gonna pretend I didn't hear that. Anyway, since I've been banished, I'm working on a little paperwork the old fashioned way."
"Okay, well, Jacob's teacher asked if we could help with one other project, so Cath and I are gonna stay a little longer."
"That's fine. Really. We're good here."
"Good. We swung by Kaitlyn and Dylan's classes to say 'Hi'."
Danny chuckled.
"What?" Steve asked.
"Just . . . you. You're a far cry from the guy who once checked your weapon and then told a kid in an elevator, 'We're cops, don't worry.' "
Steve huffed a little laugh.
"Obviously this is due to my influence," Danny said.
"Hey, I like kids, I've always liked kids."
"True. But you can't deny your . . . shall we say, demeanor . . . around them has improved over the years."
"Okay, granted. But that's mainly due to Gracie."
"Well, that's a given."
"And Catherine."
"Wh–"
Steve grinned. "All right, maybe you. A little."
"Thank you. That's all I ask. A little acknowledgment now and again."
Steve shook his head, chuckling. "Okay, thanks again for covering, Danny. I'll talk to you later."
"Yep. Have fun. Play nice with the other kids."
"That's very funny."
"I know it is. That's why I said it."
Steve ended the call with an amused smile and pushed the door open to join the others outside. Most of the kids were climbing the playground equipment, and there appeared to be a game of tag going on as well.
He spotted Catherine kneeling in front of Reggie who had his foot on her thigh as she untied a knot in his laces. The boy had one hand on her shoulder for balance, and the two were talking softly.
"I said from day one she was a natural," Mrs. R said as she came to stand next to Steve.
He glanced at her before looking back at Catherine with a soft smile.
"Catherine's a natural at a lot of things."
"I've been a teacher a long time, and I've found that kids are very good judges of character." She looked at him. "And clearly you are, too, if you're smart enough to be with that wonderful woman."
"Smart enough and lucky enough," Steve said quietly.
He looked at Mrs. R and smiled quickly before looking back to see Catherine successfully untie the knot in Reggie's shoe. She quickly re-tied the lace and stood. He took her hand and led her toward the game of tag. Jacob ran over to meet them, clearly entreating both to join the game.
Steve's attention was caught by two girls running toward him and Mrs. R, one in tears.
"Mrs. R!" Sophia cried.
"What is it?" her teacher asked, concern in her voice.
"My necklace. It's gone." Sophia sniffed. "My aunt gave it to me. I gotta find it."
Before Mrs. R could say anything, Steve knelt in front of the girl.
"Hey, Sophia, do you remember what my job is?" he asked.
She sniffed again. "You catch bad guys, like Lieutenant Catherine."
He nodded. "And sometimes I find things when they're lost. So I'm gonna find your necklace, okay? But I need your help."
"Okay." She wiped her nose on the back of her hand.
"Here, Sophia," Mrs. R said, handing her a tissue from her pocket.
"Thank you," she said quietly, wiping her nose.
"Sydney, come here," Mrs. R said and motioned to the other girl who was looking at her friend worriedly.
"Okay," Steve said. "Your necklace . . . I saw you wearing it earlier. It has a heart on it, right?"
"Yeah, a gold heart. My aunt gave it to me," she repeated.
"I know that means it's very special," he said. "Now when was the last time you remember having it on?"
"I don't know," she said, her lip quivering.
"Okay," he said, putting a hand on her arm. "I want you to close your eyes and think. You had it on when Lieutenant Catherine and I first came to your classroom."
She nodded, her eyes still closed.
"And you had it on when you were working on your bottle cap picture. Remember? You had to hold the heart out of the way so it didn't dip into the glue when you leaned over to get a marker."
She nodded again.
"And you had it in line," Mrs. R said. "You were telling Sarah about your aunt giving it to you, and I asked for quiet in the hallway."
"Okay, good," Steve said, nodding. "You had it when you came outside, so it hasn't been gone very long. Where did you go when you first came outside?"
Sophia opened her eyes and turned to look behind her.
"Me and Sydney and Alani went to the big tree to play."
"Okay," Steve said, standing. "Let's go take a look."
When Sydney made to follow, Mrs. R kept a gentle hand on her shoulder. "Stay here with me, Sydney. Let's let Commander Steve do his job."
Sophia reached up for Steve's hand as they walked toward the tree.
She sniffed again. "We were playing school and I was the teacher."
"Okay."
They reached the tree and looked around on the ground.
"It's not here," Sophia said, tears welling as she gripped his hand tighter.
"No, but you didn't run from this direction," he said. "So where'd you go next?"
"Um . . ." she looked around and pointed. "To the bench. When we play school, that's the library."
"Okay, we'll try there next."
They walked to the wooden bench.
"Hey, look at this," Steve said, bending and picking up a gold necklace.
"You found it!" Sophia said, wiping the tears on her face.
"We found it," he said. "I wouldn't have known where to go if you hadn't told me." He smiled at her. "We solved the case together."
Her smile was full of joy and relief.
"Do you want some help putting this back on?" he asked.
She nodded.
"Okay, turn around," he said and sat on the bench behind her.
He put the necklace around her neck.
"This hook is a little wide. I'm gonna fix it so hopefully it doesn't fall off again today, all right?"
She nodded.
Steve pressed the end of the hook tighter. "That should help, but have your mom or dad look at it when you get home, okay?"
"Okay." She turned and threw her arms around his neck in a hug. "Thanks, Commander Steve."
He smiled. "You're welcome."
She took off running back toward Mrs. R and Sydney, shouting, "We found it! We found it!"
Steve caught movement in his periphery and turned to see Catherine walking toward him. He smiled as she reached him and sat down on the bench.
"What did I miss?" she asked. "Did you just save the day?"
"Found a lost necklace," he said.
She tilted her head. "You did save the day."
"Well, I know a gift from an aunt is pretty special," he said, reaching over and squeezing her hand briefly.
She smiled. "You're very sweet."
"So you keep sayin'."
"You know what else you are?"
He raised his eyebrows in question.
She smiled and reached up to touch his cheek, her eyes twinkling with mischief. She gave his cheek a little pat.
"You're it."
With a laugh she jumped up and ran back toward the group of kids he now saw were clearly waiting for him to give chase.
"I got him!" she called to them and was met with cheers.
"Yeah," he said quietly to himself, a small smile on his face. "You got me all right."
His smile widened, and he took off after her.
The class remained outside after their recess to make soda bottle greenhouses. Steve sat on a bench cutting two-liter soda bottles in half and poking holes in the bottom. Catherine and Mrs. R had set up a small table and were helping the kids put wet soil and flower seeds in the bottom half of their individual greenhouses before fitting the top half back on.
Steve looked at the boy standing next to him. "Okay, Keahi, you've been really patient. Let's get your bottle cut."
"Commander!" Jacob yelled as he ran toward Steve. "Look at mine! There's flowers inside!"
In his excitement, he let go of the bottom half of his bottle and the contents flew at Steve who was holding a utility knife in one hand and a soda bottle in the other. He couldn't avoid the projectile, and wet soil covered his lap.
"Ooooooh," Keahi said.
Jacob looked at Steve with wide eyes. "Oops."
"Oops is right," Steve said, looking at the mess.
"I'm sorry, Commander," Jacob said with a contrite look.
Steve smiled and looked at him. "It's okay. Lucky we're outside."
"You're not mad?"
"Jacob, I didn't get mad when you asked Lieutenant Catherine to be your girlfriend, I'm not gonna get mad about this."
Jacob smiled, and two other kids came over to see what happened.
"Whoa," Alani said. "That's a mess."
"Yeah," Nolan agreed.
"It is. But I am pretty familiar with messes. Now let's see if we can salvage this greenhouse project," Steve said. He set down the knife and uncut bottle away from where the kids were standing.
As he picked up Jacob's bottle and began scooping what soil he could back into it, Catherine walked over.
She clucked her tongue as she picked up the knife and bottle. "I told you not to wear khakis. Come on, Keahi, I'll finish cutting your bottle."
Steve watched as she flashed him a quick smile and led Keahi away.
He looked back at the three kids standing by him. "Here's some advice: when Lieutenant Catherine suggests you do something . . . or that you not do something? You should listen."
Jacob nodded. "She's really smart."
"Yes, she is," Steve agreed.
"Do you have extra pants?" Alani asked. "I don't think any of the lost and found pants will fit you."
"Are you gonna get in trouble?" Nolan asked.
Steve chuckled. "No, I'm not gonna get in trouble."
"I'd get in trouble if my pants were that dirty."
"Well, I guess that's one good thing about being a grown-up, huh?" He handed Jacob the bottom of his bottle. "Go get some more seeds from Lieutenant Catherine, I'm not sure how many we lost." He stood, brushing the remaining soil from his pants. "And hang on to it this time," he added with a smile.
"I will. Come on," Jacob said to Alani and Nolan.
"Oh, I heard there was a little accident," Mrs. R said as she came over. "I'm sorry about your pants."
Steve waved off her concern. "It's fine. Just dirt. It'll wash out." He smiled. "Believe me, I've been covered in much worse."
"Like what?" Keone asked, and Steve looked down to see that he and Jeremy had followed Mrs. R over.
"Uh . . ." his brow furrowed as his voice trailed off.
"My dad was changing my baby brother's diaper one time and he got p–"
"Thank you, Jeremy," Mrs. R said. "We get the picture." She winked at Steve. "Something to look forward to, hmm?"
Steve huffed a laugh, and the two boys ran off.
"I really can't thank you and Catherine enough," Mrs. R continued. "You have been a huge help today."
"We were glad to do it. Really," he said. "This was fun. Even more that I expected. I'd like to come back."
She smiled. "Oh, careful what you say, Commander. I'll hold you to that."
He shook his head. "I don't say anything I don't mean."
She regarded him a moment and nodded.
"I believe you."
Later that afternoon, Steve and Catherine walked out of the school and headed for the parking lot, both with several very special drawings in hand.
She glanced at him and asked, "Well, do you need a nap?"
"Hey, I think I did good today."
"You did really well." She smiled. "I only caught the face a couple times there."
He looked at her. "What face?"
"Your 'Help Me' face."
"I don't have a 'Help Me' face," he scoffed.
"Oh, sure," she said, feigning a placating tone and rubbing his arm. "Okay. My mistake."
She lost the battle to contain her grin, and he couldn't help but return it.
"I could actually use a nap," he admitted. "They've got a lot of energy. And there were a lot of them."
"When you're ready to admit I was right, you just let me know."
He paused, but finally nodded.
"You were right," he said. "Nothing prepares you for a room full of six-year-olds."
"Thank you," she said. "So . . ." She smiled and nudged his shoulder playfully. "You gonna get me some gummy bears on the way home?"
He inhaled, putting his hand up and shaking a finger. "You know, I don't know that you ever said you'd be my girlfriend."
"I don't know that you ever asked," she retorted, holding his gaze.
Steve paused.
"Yeah, I walked into that one," he said with a small wince.
She nodded her head in acknowledgement.
He glanced at her and licked his lips.
"Hey," he said and waited until she looked at him. "At this point . . .?" He shook his head. "That's not the question I'd be asking."
The corner of his mouth twitched as she paused ever so slightly in her step before smiling and continuing beside him.
"Roger that," she said, her own smile growing.
As they walked, their hands brushed, and he intertwined their fingers.
"Now," he said. "Let's go hang some kindergarten masterpieces on our fridge."
Hope you enjoyed!
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