My Name is Gladiator
By: Dean's Leather Jacket
Chapter Two: An Awkward Conversation
Disclaimer: I do not Hawaii Five-0… if I did… Steve's SEAL nickname would have been Maximus… and not Smoothdog.
Pen was WAY too content in her cocoon of warmth to be woken up by Steve stirring and rising from the bed. The man seriously was a machine though, like a Terminator or something. They had fallen asleep about ten o'clock in the evening and here he was getting up at five in the morning to do whatever it was he did to get his circuits back up and running. She vaguely remembered feeling lips brush against her forehead before she fell back asleep.
She came too again when the alarm clock on her cell phone blared loudly and very annoyingly. Time to rise and shine to enlighten the minds of tomorrow! Pen rolled over and found emptiness. It worried her for a second or too before she remembered that Machine Steve had gotten up at the ass crack of dawn as per usual. She reached up to bring his pillow to her face to inhale his scent. He smelled wonderful, something strictly Steve; a combination of Old Spice and the after shave he used sometimes.
Clacking of paws sounded on the hardwood flooring outside the bedroom, and then a furry body flung itself onto the bed and into Pen's side.
"Ow, Ramses!"
In return, the dog barked once and began licking her face. She tried to bat him away, but he kept coming back.
"Come on, dog!"
"I think Ram is just excited to see his mom this morning," Steve said from the doorway to his bedroom. He was leaning against the doorframe, usual cargo pants, t-shirt and combat boots combo on, taking in the scene. Pen's hair was all over the place from when she had tossed and turned during the night, which she did sometimes. Steve found the sight to be incredibly sexy… even if her hair wasn't tousled due to other activities than sleeping.
Ramses had finally ceased his assault when he realized his mom was now awake, and hopped off the bed to join Steve by the door. Pen, finally able to sit up, rubbed her sleep filled eyes.
"Morning, Sunshine," he greeted, as he did every morning.
"Morning," Pen grumbled. She threw the covers aside and set her feet on the floor. The hardwood was cold to the touch for a moment, and it sent a "wake up!" jolt to her brain. It worked.
"I just went out to get you coffee," Steve told her, as she stretched her arms up to loosen the muscles in her back.
"You are a god," Pen praised. She could really use the coffee this morning.
"I know," Steve deadpanned. "Hurry up and get ready, or it'll get cold."
Then, he turned and retreated back downstairs to let her do her normal morning routine; Ramses close at his heels.
Once Pen had showered and dressed, she hurried down the stairs. That Kona coffee from the Hau'oli Café was calling her name. The Hau'oli Café wasn't too far from where Pen's office was, and she often went there to get lunch. They had the best coffee in the world, no joke. She would swear up and down that it was truly the Elixir of the Gods.
"Mmm," she groaned in delight after taking a sip.
Steve and Ramses came in from the backyard where he had been throwing a tennis ball with the dog. He smiled when he saw her and gave his usual good morning kiss. He would do it right when she got up, but she was so paranoid about morning breath. Whatever.
"I was thinking… maybe I could take Ramses with me for the day," Steve stated.
"Really? Wouldn't he be a bother?" She asked.
"No, not Ramses. He can hang out in my office, and if we have to go out somewhere, he can come along."
"Danny will never allow him in his car," Pen pointed out.
As if Ramses knew whom they were referring too, he let out a little growl. Steve patted him on his head to soothe him.
"It'll be ok. Danny will survive."
Pen wanted to be the proverbial fly on that wall. Her best friend was going to freak the Hell out if Ramses got in his car. Which made Pen's insides squirm in delight.
About twenty minutes later, Steve was dropping Pen off at her office building so she could prepare for her classes for the day. Before she could hop out of the truck, she was stopped by Steve.
"Where do you think you're going?"
She laughed and leaned over to give him the kiss he wanted.
Once she stepped out onto the street, she turned back to see that Ramses had already taken the passenger seat. She gave his whole head a rub down, which he loved.
"You be a good boy, Ramses," she told him. He licked her face in reply. "Don't let me hear from Steve that you didn't behave yourself."
"He'll be fine," Steve said. "Ramses and I will have some bonding time today."
"If you need me to come get him, just let me know," Pen said. "I don't want him to be too much trouble for you."
"Seriously… Ramses is going to be fine!"
"Ok, ok! I'm just worried about him… and you… that's all," Pen replied, defensively.
"Get outta here," Steve grinned at her.
"Fine!" She laughed, turning to leave, but then swung back around when she remembered something. "Oh! I forgot… Danny and I are having our weekly beer tonight. Are you still sure you want Ramses that long?"
"Yes woman! Ramses and I will be FINE!" He reiterated. "Now go teach something!"
Pen laughed and jokingly flipped him the middle finger. He just grinned and shook his head.
"Talk to you later! Bye Ram-Ram!"
Ramses, ever the smart little tyke, barked back a goodbye at his mom, as Pen walked into the Upper Bishop Building.
"Hey there, Ramses!" Kono Kalakaua, the only female in the task force, cooed at the dog who delighted in her attention. Steve had just walked into the Five-0 suite of offices, and the dog knew exactly who to go to first. Steve shook his head and went to his office to begin the paperwork he had to fill out and sign. Chin walked in not far behind Steve, and upon seeing the dog, gave Ramses' back a rub.
"What's up, bud?"
In response, Ramses licked Chin's hand.
From his office, Steve heard a low growl emanating from the main room. The subject of Ramses' ire quickly became apparent. Danny had just arrived for work. Ramses was so insulted at his presence, that he actually left Kono and Chin's attentions to hide under Steve's desk. The dog clearly didn't want to be near the detective.
"Damn dog," Steve heard Danny half-mumble before he retreated into his own office. Kono and Chin laughed.
"Don't worry about him, Ram," Steve whispered to the dog who sat at his feet. "He doesn't have a clue."
The dog yelped as if he agreed with Steve. The SEAL wondered sometimes what kind of dog Pen had brought back from the SPCA. Sometimes, he seemed almost human, like he understood exactly what you were trying to say or what you were feeling. It was crazy.
Despite being a puppy and wanting to be playful and bouncing off the walls, Ramses knew when he needed to be calm. For most of the morning and early afternoon, he stayed under Steve's desk while he made phone calls and finished reports and the like. At lunchtime they went outside and did some playing and running around, which Ramses enjoyed thoroughly. Steve made Ramses promise not to mention the fact that for lunch, Steve had gotten a sandwich and shared some of the meat with him. Pen would probably skin Steve alive if she knew he was feeding her dog people food.
After lunch the team got a call for an arson case, which was new for them but they were all weirdly excited about it. Steve grabbed Ramses' leash and clipped it on him. When Danny saw this, he stopped short.
"Woah, woah. Where are we going with the mutt?"
In response, Ramses bared his teeth at the detective. Steve just grinned.
"Ramses is coming with us."
"Like Hell! He's NOT getting in my car!"
As if on cue, Ramses started growling and snarling at Danny, adding in some barks here and there. Danny jumped at a particularly loud bark.
"OK! OK! He can come in the car… just… he gets the backseat."
Ramses immediately stopped growling and barking and trotted outside with Steve towards Danny's car. Seriously, this animal was a smart one.
"Wait… Ramses did WHAT?" Pen asked, sitting forward in her desk chair, phone squished between her shoulder and her ear. She was having her afternoon office hours and, as usual, no one was showing up. It was the end of the school year; not many people had come the whole year, let alone the last couple weeks.
"Ramses found the arsonist," Steve repeated.
That's what Pen had thought he had said, but she hadn't been sure. Steve had been telling her how they had been working this arson case for the past couple of hours, and they had a lead on who it was that had committed the crime. Apparently, they were looking for this guy in a botanical garden, and Ramses had sniffed him out. Maybe he should have been a K9 dog instead of a housedog.
"That's crazy!" She laughed, clearly impressed though. Everyday it seemed like she was learning about new skills her dog had.
"He's taking a nap now. Seems to like sleeping under my desk."
Pen smiled. Steve had sent her a picture, via phone, of Ramses sacked out in his new hidey-hole. It was the cutest damn thing she had ever seen.
"You know, I was thinking. When I want to bring Ramses to work with me, how am I supposed to top catching bad guys?"
"He could go after kids skipping your classes."
"Yeah, but that's not as exciting as catching an arsonist," Pen pointed out.
"Would you consider allowing me to use Ramses permanently? He could be my new partner. He definitely wouldn't talk as much as my current one."
Pen burst out laughing.
"Sorry, but no. Ramses will not be put in the line of fire or anything like that. He's going to be safe at home, away from any sort of bullets or projectiles."
"Damn," Steve muttered. "Sorry buddy, she isn't going for it." That last part presumably was said to Ramses.
Pen hung up a few minutes later, promising Steve that she would happily make his favorite meal for dinner, and also promising a swim in the ocean behind his house. Steve had finally gotten to see her black, retro bathing suit she had gotten a few months back when Kono took her surfing the first time. She smiled at the memory of his face when she stepped out of the bathroom in it. His mouth fell open and his eyebrows rose slightly. It had been a rather amusing sight, and for the first time since Pen could remember… she had actually felt sexy. All because of how he had been looking at her.
Speaking of sexy… she had been debating, literally all day, whether to talk to Danny about her intimacy issue. At this exact moment, she still hadn't made a decision yet, but considering who he was and he being her best friend, he would be the best person to ask about it. She could talk to Kathryn, but Kathryn wouldn't be able to give the male insight that Pen needed.
One more class for the day, and Pen would be free to meet her best friend for a beer, and then return home to her boyfriend and loyal, crime-fighting puppy. Life was definitely good.
Pen should probably be celebrating with a Jack and Coke (it being Whiskey Wednesday and all) but her Guinness was really hitting the spot. She and Danny were currently sitting at the bar in silence, which after years of knowing each other really wasn't a bad thing.
The jukebox in the corner was playing a song that Pen recognized as being from The Who. Regulars were starting to trickle in and the setting sun cast its rays across the stained glass panel behind the bar. It depicted the usual: billiard balls and a mug of beer.
"It was a pretty low key day at work," Danny said. "Except for that arsonist bit."
"I heard," Pen said, amused.
"Your boyfriend and your dog behaved themselves today… for the most part," he grumbled the last part.
Pen laughed.
"Want to enlighten me?"
"Your dog stole my lunch… and Steve just laughed like it was the funniest damn thing in the world."
Pen snorted. Typical. But at least her dog caught the bad guy!
Silence fell between them again.
"Can I talk to you about something?" Pen asked. Now was the time to get advice on her little "problem", straight from a guy. She had been debating whether or not to talk with Danny about this subject all day. He was her best friend despite the fact that he was a dude. But she needed the dude's perspective in this matter.
"Of course. The wise and all-powerful Daniel is here to answer any question," he joked.
"It's about Steve and I."
"What about Steve?" Danny asked, suddenly looking very concerned.
"He's not doing anything bad," Pen quickly said to defuse anything that could suddenly fly out of his mouth. "I swear. I… I think it's me."
"What do you mean?"
"I think there may be something mentally wrong with me."
That didn't seem to help Danny's suspicions either.
"What the Hell are you talking about?"
"Steve and I… we haven't… you know…"
He shook his head. He still didn't know what she was trying to say.
"We haven't had sex yet," Pen stated in a hushed tone so none of the other patrons could hear her.
That seemed to floor the ex-Jersey cop. And it made him feel like an asshole. He was having flashbacks to when he had found out about Pen and his partner being together. He had freaked the fuck out and said a nasty thing: accusing her of "fucking" Steve, like she was a whore or something, which she most certainly was not. Clearly, his assumptions on that fateful brunch day had been wrong. And now he wondered if he was partly to blame for her reluctance to be with Steve in the Biblical sense.
"Oh Hell…" he muttered. And then said "Ok?" to allow her to elaborate.
"I just… I want it. God, do I want it so badly…" here Danny made a "too much information" face, "… but there's some kind of switch that just flips in my brain whenever the clothes come close to coming off… and I freeze. It's not Steve… dear God it's definitely not him… it's all me. I'm totally sexually broken or something."
This was probably the most awkward conversation they had ever had, and they had had some pretty awkward conversations. Danny felt for her though. He knew that Steve and Pen both really, genuinely cared for the other, and the next logical step was the physical one… but Pen couldn't bring herself to do it. Knowing her, it was probably some inadequacy feelings or lack of self-confidence, the usual Pen M.O.
"You're not broken," he told her. "You just haven't found the right moment yet."
"Well, have you found that moment with Kathryn?"
Danny actually blushed.
"Well… yeah."
"And when was your moment?" She asked.
"Week three…" Danny replied sheepishly.
"Week three?"
"Yeah, it just… kind of happened… and it was amazing… still is amazing."
Pen felt sick. Week three? She and Steve were going on month three and a half and she hadn't… Dear God. Now she felt even worse about this situation.
"He's going to break up with me… isn't he?" Pen asked.
Danny looked horrified and shocked.
"God NO! Steve cares about you a lot Pen. He's not going to break up with you because you're not putting out," thank God Danny had lowered his voice at that last part. A quick swivel of her head relieved Pen that no one had been listening in.
Awkward. Hella awkward.
"Is he… going to look elsewhere?"
"No! And if he does… he'll wind up dead, partner or not!"
Pen looked pale. She was really worried about this. Danny had learned early on in their years of knowing each other that Pen had this thing about never wanting to disappoint someone, because she felt like a failure if she did. She was legitimately feeling like a sexual failure right now. If she didn't look so damn heart broken, he probably would have been laughing.
"Pen, your past experiences are defining your present actions. That fucktard Chuck really did a number on you, but you've already made leaps from where you were. So, just wait for the right moment, relax, and let it happen. And don't worry about Steve… he's a sailor, he's got to be used to long, dry periods."
That was meant as a joke, and he got the desired response when she chuckled. They sipped at their beers for a minute before someone spoke again.
"So… you and Kathryn," Pen stated with a smirk.
"Yeah! What of it?"
"Nothing, I just had thought I would hear this news from Kathryn before you would ever tell me."
"Maybe she sensed the awkwardness that would come of it."
"True."
Danny's cell went off, and he answered it with his usual gruff tone whenever it was work related… or Rachel. Whatever it was, it didn't sound good. He sighed when he hung up and pulled out his wallet.
"I got to go. Floater was found and we're on the case. Figures."
He motioned to the bartender and handed the man some bills for his drinks.
"Want me to give you a ride home?" He asked her.
"No… thanks though! Tell Steve if he needs me to get Ramses to let me know. I don't want him in the way of a murder investigation."
"I will. I'll talk to you later?"
"Of course. It was good to see you," they hugged.
"Seriously though… don't worry about your thing… Steve's never going to force you to do anything you don't want too. And he's not going to break up with you or seek it elsewhere. I swear… when the moment is right though… you'll know."
"Thanks Danno," Pen smiled.
"Eh, it's what I'm here for."
He smiled at her and left.
Pen felt slightly better about her situation now.
Steve could tell that Ramses was stoked for a murder investigation. Danny had passed the message on about Pen offering to take Ramses, but Steve had called her to tell her that he and Ramses would be home later, promising that he wasn't in the way. If the dog could catch an arsonist, who knows what he could do with a murderer?
The Honolulu P.D. detective that had been assigned to this case was a native Hawaiian by the name of Keanu Pika. Keanu had called up Steve, expressing how he felt that Five-0 might be interested in this dead body that had washed up on shore at a private beach.
Steve immediately took the case, and promised the detective his team would be there soon. He hated to pull them back into work after they had just gotten off, but they needed to get their preliminary information and make sure that nothing on the body was compromised.
As he pulled his blue truck into the driveway of the house where the private beach was, Danny was pulling in as well.
"Dog," Danny said, in acknowledgment.
Ramses ignored him this time and followed Steve into the house. Kono and Chin were already out in the backyard. An HPD uniformed officer stood guard to the house. Steve and Danny nodded towards the man, and he nodded back when he recognized who they were.
Kono and Chin came up to them before they got close enough to see the body. Keanu Pika, a rather tall, built, handsome detective, followed with them, and after some introductions and shaking of hands, Steve asked for the low down.
"Central got a call about an hour ago from the owners of this house. A big object had washed ashore onto their beach, and they weren't sure what it was. They weren't expecting a dead body, that's for sure."
"I'm just curious… why did you think that we would like this case?" Danny asked Keanu.
"Well, word got around through all the precincts about your smuggling bust a couple months ago with all that old stuff. When I got a look at the body… it seemed right up your guys' alley."
Everyone's interest was piqued now, and Keanu motioned for them to check it out. Steve kept Ramses close so he wouldn't go off and mess with the body or anything.
Two other uniformed officers were guarding the body which had a tarp laid over it, just waiting to be picked up by Dr. Max Bergman, the medical examiner. Keanu nodded towards the officers, who then took either side of the tarp and lifted.
It certainly seemed like something they would be interested in all right… for the dead body was a hulking man… dressed in Roman style armor.
A/N: WOW! The response to the first chapter is overwhelming! I love it! Thank you to all of those that have reviewed and alerted this story! I think I noticed some new people and that always makes me feel good, hahaha! And, thanks to my partners-in-crime, Gizzi1213 and rice117!
