Before anyone says that my prologue is ridiculously long, I realize that. I just wanted to introduce my character as a thirteen year old and then as a seventeen year old!

Prologue

September 2001

Sarna Porch in Manoa, Hawaii

A young, thirteen year old pale blonde girl sat on a swinging bench on her aunt's porch in Manoa, Hawaii. The setting sun on the horizon didn't make her smile, but, rather, scowl. To the young girl the sunset was just a reminder that she had done absolutely nothing with her day, but she knew that it could have been prevented… if only her brothers had taken her out with them and their friends.

"Alexandra," the girl's aunt, Krystyna Sarna, brought attention to herself.

"Yes?" Alexandra Sarna asked hoping to conceal her sadness within her. Not only was she forced to stay at home, but she was forced to stare at her beautiful aunt; she was tall, thin and had envious, curly, honey blonde hair that reached down to the middle of her back. Not only that, her heart was bigger than the entire world. This made Alexandra feel like a gnome when she stood next to her aunt. Sure, she did have pale blonde hair, but she also had pale skin and wasn't exactly like every other Hawaiian girl… meaning she wasn't as thin as the other girls or Krystyna.

"What is the matter?" she asked in Polish, trying to make Alexandra more comfortable.

"Josef and Max want nothing to do with me," Alexandra spilled wanting to kick herself in the butt. She didn't want to tell her aunt anything, especially worries (that had been something she used to do with her mother, who was now dead because of him).

"Oh I'm sure that's not true," Krystyna replied reminding Alexandra of her mom.

"Josef is out with Leah, didn't bother to ask if I wanted to go to the beach. Max is out with…" Alexandra's voice drifted off as she almost blurted out the name of Max's best friend, Steve McGarrett.

She didn't want anyone to know that she perked up every time he passed by, that she became more optimistic when he smiled at her and wanted to hang out with him every time he was in town (for some reason his dad sent him to the mainland when he was sixteen, three years ago, and he joined the Navy).

"Max is with who?" Krystyna broke Alexandra's thoughts making her blue eyes widen.

"With Mr. McGarrett's son," Alexandra answered, casually avoiding saying "Steve McGarrett".

Alexandra noticed Krystyna slightly smile, which made her think that her aunt knew something.

"What?" she questioned turning pink and tugging at her jean shorts.

I hope she doesn't know I like Steve

"I don't know if you're ready."

Alexandra was instantly interested in what her aunt didn't want to tell her, but she didn't want to seem too interested because then her aunt wouldn't tell her.

"Okay, sounds fair," Alexandra replied standing up from the bench and walking towards the steps.

"Hey, come back, Josef is going to propose to Leah today!" her aunt shouted after her to make her turn around.

Alexandra smiled deviously and then faced Krystyna.

"Really?" she questioned with real surprise. She truly had no idea that Josef wanted to marry Leah, he never had been the type to hold on to a girl before, or ever. He had gone to an all boys' school when their parents had been alive, so he didn't date there, but in college he met Leah and Alexandra assumed she would just be the first of many.

"Yes, he feels that he's ready to make that commitment," Krystyna chuckled as a blue 1960's Mustang pulled up in their driveway.

Alexandra thought it was only her second to oldest brother, Max, but she noticed that he was accompanied by Steve. She ran up the steps of the house and tried to squeeze past her aunt who wouldn't let her through.

"Krystyna, please, I have to go," Alexandra pleaded. She didn't want Steve to see her the way she looked at the moment.

Her hair had been thrown up into a giant mess atop her head, her makeup included only mascara and she was wearing an ugly hot pink shirt with her jean shorts over her pale, pale, pale legs.

"Please, please please..." Alexandra squeaked as she heard to footsteps of either her brother or Steve on the stairs.

"Hi boys," Krystyna welcomed as Alexandra tried hiding her face in Krystyna's shoulders (she decided a fake hug would look better than her trying to shove her way into a house) because she knew it was red.

"Hey vanilla ice," Max greeted patting her shoulders.

"Hi," she replied in a muffled tone still not facing the boys.

I hate it when you call me vanilla ice! I'm not clear like ice! Alexandra screamed in her mind.

"Hi Alexandra. It's nice to see you," Steve said making her melt inside as he stepped inside. The nineteen year old recognized her! He said hi! It was an accomplishment!

When the boys were out of sight and out of earshot Alexandra darted to the swinging bench and Krystyna gave her a very skeptical look, coming to sit next to her.

"My dear, little, Ali," she began. "Steve McGarrett is a very good guy for a girl to have."

"Oh God," Alexandra sighed.

"But, you should wait until you are of age," Krystyna advised standing back up and heading inside.

Suddenly Alexandra had an idea; what age did Krystyna consider "of age"?

"You mean like fifteen, right?" she shot up following her aunt.

When she heard no reply she ran up closer and offered, "Sixteen? Seventeen? I'm not going any higher than seventeen!"

Krystyna simply rolled her eyes and went into the kitchen leaving Alexandra in the living room with hope for the future.

June 2005

Honolulu International Airport

Alexandra watched the suitcase carousel dumping more and more suitcases of other passengers, but not hers. She watched it anxiously and feeling annoyance take over the zen mood she was in earlier.

I did not leave sophomore year for this, she complained to herself. Come on, I just graduated, I'm seventeen, about to be eighteen in five months, I don't need this!

Suddenly she saw her forest green suitcase with a light pink ribbon tide to its handle plop out of wherever the carousel brought them out of and make its way around to her. Before she could walk up to it though, she noticed some man's tattooed arm grab it and lift it off of the carousel.

She didn't look to see who took it because she started to run towards them and when she was right in front of the culprit, she saw that it was none other than her old, old crush, Steven J. McGarrett. He definitely had gained muscle and had a tattoo on his right arm, his hair was still dark and he was still taller than her.

"You?" she asked feeling rude right after she uttered the words.

"You?" he mimicked her smiling.

"I'm sorry, I was just surprised," Alexandra apologized. "How did you know that was my suit-"

"I watched you from within the crowd standing by the carousel and when I saw you walking towards the suitcase I decided to play a little trick."

"You're a jerk!" she laughed playfully punching his arm, which ended up hurting her more than (probably) him.

When he turned around she shook her hand and mouthed the word "ow", but when he glanced back at her she smiled hoping she didn't look like to much of a goon.

"So I thought my family was supposed to be picking me up," she brought up.

"Yeah, they were, but Leah went to an allergist's office, she thinks something she's allergic to is making her get sick everyday, so Josef went with her. Your aunt… she had a little too much too drink today and Max asked me to come get you, so that he could stay home with her," Steve explained.

Alexandra nodded her head; she couldn't say she wasn't disappointed, but she understood. Leah and Josef always had something to attend to and after Alexandra moved because of that happening, Krystyna started drinking… heavily and Max always took care of her.

"Hey, Steve, I know you probably didn't want to spend your vacation picking me up, but-"

"Hey, come on, your brother is my best friend and I'd do anything for his sister," Steve smiled at her making her feel a little bit better about the fact that her family had not come to see her after two years.

When they reached the parking lot of the airport Alexandra looked up at the sky. The sun in Detroit was never as glorious as the sun here.

"I've missed it here," she told Steve.

"I always miss it when I leave to the mainland," he revealed to her.

The first week home Alexandra began to reconnect with everyone she used to be friends with at Kukui High School, her siblings (Leah was her sister now) and Steve even started asking to hang out with her. He told her about a party he and Max were going to go to and asked her to go with them. She told she would go and, as usual, felt her heart soar.

At the party (which ended up being in some club) Alexandra was talking with Steve and learned that he was training to become a SEAL in the Navy, Mary (his sister) was going to school in California and that he felt a little distant from his dad. As luck would have it, people from her Kukui class were there and attacked her when they saw her, making Steve excuse himself and join the group they came with to the party.

"Oh my gosh! Alex!" one of her friends called her by the name that made her stomach cringe. "Remember we danced to this song for regionals?"

Alexandra listened a little closely and it was Lights by Ellie Golding, the song the dance team at Kukui High School danced to and won. Her friends dragged her out on the dance floor and made her dance the routine, which she could still remember to this day.

After her performance, she chatted with her friends until one of Max's friends, Mason, came up to her, drunk and high, and began to bother her. He wanted to "hook up" with her, which she found whore-ish, as she did just meet the guy.

"I told you that if you hit on my sister, I'll break your face," Max threatened coming to Alexandra's rescue.

"Oh come on, it isn't like Steve is going to ask her out!" Mason blurted out throwing his hand around Alexandra's shoulders making her cringe and look at Max with pleading eyes.

"Get off of my sister," Max said in a very demanding tone. Alexandra's friends didn't do anything except look at the entire scene before their eyes.

"What if I want to do this," Mason said forcing his tongue down Alexandra's throat. She could taste alcohol which made of think of how her aunt became a drunk.

She ripped herself away, slapped him and then Max decked him in the face.

"Stay away from her," Max hissed as Mason struggled to get up.

When he finally did he grabbed Alexandra's arm and dragged her to the other side of the club. She could see Steve making out with the girl Max brought, Catherine.

Alexandra shoved Mason off of her and hurriedly walked out of the club with tears slipping down her face. Once she was out of the club she slipped out of her shoes and started running home. When she reached her room she began throwing all of her stuff in the suitcase she brought from Detroit. She couldn't stand being by an alcoholic aunt, people like Mason and a crush who never reciprocate feelings for her. She was leaving town… For good this time.

Alexandra heard the downstairs door slam shut and Max came running into her room.

"I'm so sorry, baby sister," he told her in Polish embracing her. "I had no idea that would happen, any o-all of it."

"Max, I don't think I can stay," she cried into his shirt.

"I know, I know. I can't either," Max revealed to her. "I really got into it with Mason, I beat him up really bad-"

"Max!" Alexandra shouted.

"STOP SCREAMING!" Krystyna screeched unrecognizably from her room.

Alexandra closed her eyes, "She's drunk-"

"She's always drunk. My point is, Mason is fine, but I want to get out of here. Cath… she and I were supposed to be together, but then Steve…"

Alexandra understood exactly how Max felt, she was going to be very empathetic.

"I'll leave the Mustang at Josef's and we're going to the mainland," Max proposed and Alexandra nodded.

Despite the six year age difference between the them, Alexandra and Max always thought alike.

"The mainland, eh?" she smiled still feeling her heart shattering.

"The mainland," Max confirmed.

I am also aware that Ellie Golding's song Lights hasn't come out until 2010, but I couldn't think of a different song because I was listening to it as I was writing this, so let's just pretend, okay? I promise I wont pull something like that again O: ).