DISCLAIMER: I do not own the show "Hawaii Five-0" or any of it's characters.
AUTHOR'S NOTE: Here is Chapter 4! YAY! I have written almost all of chapter 5 (just have a tiny bit more to write), which is where Steve and Maddie see one another. It was originally part of Chapter 4, but I thought I'd make it two chapters. I assume you guys would rather have more updates with shorter chapters instead of longer chapters and infrequent updates.
Anyway, as always... thoughts are in italics.
PLEASE PLEASE REVIEW! I'm getting a ton of hits and readers asking to be alerted when a new chapters up, but not many reviews. It really motivates me to get the chapters out sooner. It takes me a while to write each chapter because I'm such a perfectionist, so it's nice to know what you guys think. Good or bad!
Anyway, thanks for reading!
xo,
Laura
CHAPTER 4
Her show had gone better than she expected given how tired, distracted, and upset she was. Maddie had been kicking herself for calling Steve. A moment of weakness, she thought to herself as she headed out of the arena to board her tour bus. Normally after shows she was wired and bouncing off the walls due to the adrenaline from performing, but the last few months she was so exhausted she could barely take a shower before climbing into bed. Maddie used to hang out with her band and dancers on their bus after the show, but now she always just went straight to hers. The stress of the last few months had caused her to become a bit antisocial. A bit of a loner. Whatever. It is what it is, she thought as she walked up the steps of her home on wheels and headed towards her room in the back. Slowly peeling off her sweat drenched stage costume Maddie stepped into the shower. How could I have called Steve? I'd been doing so well. I mean, it hasn't been easy at all to ignore his calls let alone the voicemails he leaves me begging me to call him because he misses me and is worried, but I was handling it. Well if he was worried before today's incident, he's….I don't know a word for how concerned he must be now. Knowing him he must be freaking out, she bit her lip at the thought, rinsing her hair one more time before getting out in case she missed any shampoo or conditioner.
Flipping off the water she reached for the towels she'd laid out for herself. Wrapping her long, wet, reddish brown hair in one she stepped out of the shower and onto her rose pink bath rug, careful not to drip water on the soft cream carpeting of her room. Using the second towel she dried her dripping wet body before wrapping herself up in it. Maddie walked towards her sink and stared at herself in the mirror. "God, I look awful," she said to herself. "Thank God I won't be seeing Steve anytime soon. He freaked out at hearing me sob on the phone, but he'd completely lose it if he saw me looking like this," she sighed. Her normally beautiful glowing skin, which was more on the fair side, but was still able to tan a bit, looked dull with a grayish tint to it. Her usual gorgeous, sparkling bright blue eyes looked to be almost a gray blue and they definitely weren't sparkling. Underneath them were huge dark circles from not getting any sleep and her eyes appeared to be half open out of pure exhaustion. I can't remember the last time I got a complete night's sleep, Maddie thought as she brushed her pearly white teeth.
Giving herself a sad, pathetic smile she turned away from the mirror grabbing for her favorite pajamas. With the black leggings and white socks on she picked up the oversized shirt lying next to her. Burying her face in it Maddie breathed in wishing that it still smelled of him. Sighing she threw Steve's Navy Seal t-shirt over her head, the one she'd stolen from him a couple years back. Just as she was ready to climb into bed someone knocked on her bedroom door. Shoulders slumping, Maddie sighed and said, "Come in!" Pete walked in, a folder in his hand.
"Hey Mads! Don't you look comfy?" Pete told her, noticing she was wearing Steve's shirt again. She must really miss him, he sadly smiled. She's worn that almost every night the last couple months.
"Yep. You know me. All about being comfy!" Maddie managed a small genuine smile through her fatigue.
"Well I can tell you're pooped, so I'll be quick. I just wanted to give you your revised schedule."
Maddie groaned. "Revised? Seriously? They added more to my already overly busy impossible schedule?" She reached for the folder and opened it. Pete was unsure of how she was going to react to going home in a little over a day.
"Nothing was added Maddie."
"I can see that…." Maddie bit her lip before saying, "I'm going home….in…basically a day. How'd that happen? I wasn't supposed to be in Hawaii for another 3 weeks." She looked up, staring directly at Pete. "You did this, didn't you?" She didn't seem mad, but she also didn't seem happy about it either.
"Yeah, I did. I just think it'll be good for you to go home for awhile. Relax. Get some sleep. Hang out with some friends."
Maddie sat on the end of her bed and was quiet for a moment before looking up at Pete. "Thanks Pete. You're right, I need to go home," she managed a small smile as she jokingly said, "how'd you know?" causing her to slightly laugh.
This would be considered good spirits for her the last few months. Not compared to how she used to be, but I'll take what I can get. It's nice to hear her laugh. I'm glad she's okay with this…however, if she knew Steve was going to be home she wouldn't be, he thought as he joined in her laughter. "Hmm…I don't know Maddie!" he said pretending to play dumb. Sitting down on the edge of her desk he continued, "So, as you can see after tomorrow's show in Chicago we'll board the jet and head to Honolulu."
"It sounds good to even hear the word 'Honolulu'," she said as she closed her eyes a peaceful look appearing on her face.
Pete chuckled. "Yeah, I can't wait to go to the beach! …Anyway, we should arrive in Hawaii Thursday morning around 7am, give or take. Your publicist, Carol, scheduled a press conference where you'll say you'll be taking a month off to recuperate. After that you have 3 interviews and then you're done for the day. That should be around noon. How does that sound?"
"Honestly Pete? It sounds…." she hesitated and Pete got the sense that she might be just a little bit sad about going home. He guessed that it was because home reminded her of Steve. "good." Maddie bit her lip as she slightly grinned. "I'm sorry you've been stuck with all the scheduling stuff the last few days while Tina went home. It was so important that she be there when her sister had her baby. She'll be back soon and then you won't have to worry about it. I know this assistant stuff doesn't fall under your job description, nor is it your cup of tea. Just know I appreciate it!"
"No problemo kiddo! I do have to say that I never realized how much work Tina's job entails! I have a whole new respect for her! She makes it look so easy!" Pete said shaking his head.
"Yeah, she's badass!" Maddie responded.
Standing up Pete placed the folder on her desk. "I'm gonna leave this right here."
"Okay, that's great," she yawned.
"Why don't you get some rest. You look beat Maddie," he said, his voice laced with concern.
"I'm a lright, I'm just a little tired," she lied. Pretty sure I feel like I'm gonna die if I don't get into bed right now, she thought.
Like anyone would buy that line, he thought."Goodnight Mads. Sleep well. Like always, I'm just down the hall," Pete smiled standing at her door.
"I know. Goodnight Petey. Don't let the bed bugs bite!" Maddie replied taking on a bit of kid's voice.
Turning off the light for her, he began to shut the door, but before it was completely closed he said, "Hey Maddie? I'm sorry about earlier…about pushing you. I'm sure you have your reasons…just know I'm here if you want to talk."
Maddie paused. She'd been hoping the incident earlier that day could just be forgotten. As if it had never happened. Her voice took on a monotone distant quality as she said, "Goodnight Pete."
With that he shut the door as she closed her eyes hoping and praying she'd be able to get an entire night's worth of rest.
Just as she was beginning to fall asleep Maddie heard a very distinct chime, one she dreaded. Her eyes flew open in fear. "No…please no," she whispered. Very slowly with trepidation she emerged from her bed and dug around in her black leather Balenciaga purse. Taking out her white iPhone 4s she set it on the bed before returning to continue the search of the contents of her favorite bag. As she felt her long slender fingers find the chiming object she briefly hesitated. Pulling the prepaid cell phone out she looked at the screen. Maddie froze as she read the text message she'd just received from an unknown sender. "I told you no contact with him. You don't want to find out what I'm capable of."
Maddie felt her chest tighten as she reread the message over and over. Dammit! How'd he know I called Steve? she wondered completely freaked out. Goosebumps appeared all over her body to show just how creeped out she was. You idiot Maddie! If something happens to Steve it'll be your fault. You know you'll never be able to live with yourself, she thought. Just the idea of Steve getting hurt caused a sudden nausea to take over. She barely made it to the toilet before emptying what little contents were left in her stomach from throwing up earlier. Quickly flushing the vomit Maddie sat with her back against her bedroom door as tears streamed down her face. She sat there a good hour before climbing back into bed. "There's no way I'm getting any sleep tonight now," she told herself. And she was right, she laid there all night worrying about Steve and what exactly she was going to do.
Steve had spent the afternoon completing some of the list Pete had emailed over, but he still had so much to do. He contemplated calling Lori and asking if he could get a raincheck for dinner, but decided against it. He was hungry and whether or not he met Lori he'd have to eat either way. After all, Danny had offered to help him finish the rest of the list tomorrow.
Pulling up to the address Lori had texted him, Steve felt weird. It feels wrong to hang out with Lori tonight when I know something isn't right with Maddie, he thought to himself. That wasn't the only reason he was feeling off, but he couldn't pin point what it was.
As he approached the hostess he spotted Lori sitting at a nearby table. Am I late? he wondered as he quickly glanced at his watch. No, right on time. She must've gotten here early. She stood as Steve reached their table, leaning in to give him a hug.
She nearly melted as his arms wrapped around her in a warm embrace. I could get used to his arms around me, she thought.
"Hi Lori! Have you been here long?" Steve politely asked as he thought to himself, Why does this feel like a first date? This was supposed to be a casual dinner between coworkers.
"No, not at all. I got here right before you!" she answered enthusiastically.
"Great! Perfect timing then!" he smiled. "I've never been here before," he stated while taking in his surroundings. "Cool place!"
"Yeah, I discovered it a few months ago with some friends. The food was so good, so I've been wanting to come back. Thought tonight was as good a time as any!"
"Great! Well, let's see what they have. I'm starving. It's been a…" Steve paused thinking about Maddie, "…long day."
Lori wanted nothing more than to ask again about who was on the phone, but Steve seemed unwilling to talk to her about it. Maybe once they got a couple drinks in them he'd fill her in. For some reason there was something about whoever was on the phone that made her jealous and that unnerved her. "I know those kinds of days all too well," she replied effectively hiding her insecurity.
Ten minutes later they had both ordered their food and while waiting found themselves cracking up and enjoying each other's company. As they were laughing over a story Lori had just told, Steve refilled both of their wine glasses from the bottle they'd ordered.
"I can't believe you did that!" He chuckled referring to what she'd just told him.
"Yeah, I was a spitfire as a child!" Lori grinned.
"Only as a child?" he mocked.
"Hey!" she playfully cried.
"What? I mean it in a positive way," he countered.
"You better!" Wow, we are actually flirting! she thought to herself completely overjoyed.
The two coworkers continued to chat and get to know one another as they ate dinner and drank more wine.
"Wow! That was great!" Steve referred to the pasta he'd just inhaled as he leaned back in his chair. "How was yours?"
"Amazing!" Lori answered as she dabbed her face with her napkin. "You up for dessert?
"Um, I don't know. The tiramisu sounded amazing, but the helpings here seem to be incredibly large. I'd hate to waste anything," he replied.
"I love tiramisu! What if we split it?" she questioned taking a risk. Let's move this to the next level, she thought.
Steve didn't even hesitate. He hadn't worried or thought about Maddie since their dinner had arrived, something he was grateful for. It just was pointless when there was nothing he could do for her at the moment. "Alright! That sounds like a plan!" he flashed his infectious smile at her.
Before they knew it a big helping of the Italian dessert was placed in front of them along with two spoons. "Oh…my…God! This looks absolutely delicious!" Steve mumbled practically drooling over the dish.
"Yes, it does!" Having said that they both grabbed a spoon and dug in. They'd occasionally reach for the same piece causing them to smile while gazing into one another's eyes.
As the two Five-0 members finished Lori said, "I have to say…it's nice to see you loosen up a bit Steve. A little more relaxed."
He smirked, "Yeah, I'm capable of it." He laughed.
"That's not what I meant," she clarified.
"I know Lori. Don't worry," Steve assured her. "I must say it feels good." He gave her a big goofy smile as they stared into one another's eyes. Lori was drowning in his beautiful blue eyes. So completely content and happy to do so that she didn't notice their waiter drop the bill on the table. Steve was so quick to hand it back to him credit card tucked inside that she didn't stand a chance.
"Oh Steve! You don't have to do that!" she flirted.
"I know! I want to. Thank you for inviting me Lori. I really needed this!" he remarked grinning while biting his bottom lip in a way she found to be incredibly sexy.
"I'm so glad you agreed to join me. It was nice having someone to eat with," Lori replied placing her elbow on the table and her chin in her hand as she looked at him.
This has been so nice. Maybe testing the waters with her wouldn't be a terrible idea. We can just kind of see what happens. Keep it to ourselves while we see if there is even anything here, he thought.
Catching a glimpse of the clock across the room out of the corner of his eye he said, "Well, I hate to end such a lovely evening, but I gotta head home. I have a ton of stuff I HAVE to get done tomorrow."
Lori was disappointed, but didn't let on. She had hoped the evening might end with a nightcap at one of their homes. Oh well, she thought. There will be other opportunities for that. "I completely understand." Steve rose from the table and walked around pulling out her chair and helping her into her jacket. "Look at you! What a gentleman!" Lori teased, however inside she was ecstatic.
Steve's only response was a small chuckle as they headed outside together. Escorting her to her car he said, "I really had a wonderful time tonight Lori….Would you like to do this again sometime soon?"
"Of course! I would love to!" She smiled at him.
As they arrived at her car they stopped and caught each other's eye. Steve leaned in and gently kissed her. Not too long, but not too short. It wasn't a passionate stick your tongue down her throat kind of kiss, but not a mere friendship one either. It was very appropriate for the evening they'd had.
"Goodnight Steve," Lori whispered as she pulled away and got in her car.
"Goodnight. Drive safe!" With that he walked away. She watched to see if Steve looked back at her, but he didn't. He got right in his car and drove away.
Hmmm…well that's interesting. Normally if a guy is really interested in you he'll look back at you as he's walking away. Oh well, not every guy is like that, she thought to herself as she drove home.
Just as Steve walked in his house his cell rang. "Hello?" he answered.
A whispered voice greeted him on the other end of the line. "Hey McG."
Surprised to hear his good friend on the line he stopped in his tracks. "Pete! Is everything alright? She okay? You guys are 5 hours ahead. It's gotta be what? Close to 3am there?"
"Yeah, close to that. We're fine here, I just wanted to give you an update."
Steve calmed and headed up the stairs to his bedroom. "Ok. Thanks! What's going on? How'd the show go?"
"Um…it was alright…not her best, but she pulled it off."
Steve's forehead wrinkled in curiosity. "How so? What happened?"
"It was obvious she was distracted. Not to mention tired. Maddie stumbled a couple times during songs that had a lot of dancing and moving around."
"Stumbled? Like tripped? Over what?" He asked.
"No, like she almost fainted on me. So she ended up cutting out a bunch of her choreography for the rest of the show."
"Fainted? Man…" He sighed wishing he was with her right then. "Where is she now? And by the way, why are you whispering?" Steve questioned.
"She's in her bed, hopefully, at the back of the bus. I'm getting ready to head to my bunk, but wanted to call you first. I'm sitting towards the front of the bus with our driver, Ron. I don't want her to hear me talking to you." Pete continued to whisper.
Steve's heart sunk a bit. I miss the days where I'd be on the phone with her right now, he thought. "I understand. So, does she know she's coming to Hawaii?"
"Yeah, I gave her the news a little while ago."
"And? How'd she take it?"
"Surprisingly well. Maddie seems to want to go home for a while."
"That's good. So it wasn't a battle or anything," Steve said quietly as he sat hunched over on the edge of his bed, his elbows on his thighs as he held the phone to his ear using his right hand.
"Yeah. I really hope you can get to the bottom of things. I miss…" Stopping midsentence Pete whispered, "hold on one second," as he tiptoed towards Maddie's door.
McGarrett quickly sat up straight. "What? What is it?"
"I think I hear her."
"What's she doing? Put me on speakerphone. I'll be quiet. I won't say anything," Steve requested.
Pete did as his friend asked. They could make out Maddie shuffling around and then it sounded as if she ran to one side of her room. It was then they heard her throw up followed by the toilet flushing. Pete thought about knocking on her door to make sure she was okay, but figured she'd only shut down on him. Maddie knew that if she needed him he was there. Right before taking Steve off speaker phone they heard her crying. Quietly making his way towards the front of the bus, Pete brought the phone back to his ear. "You hear that?"
Thank God he was alone this time because Steve just couldn't keep the tears from rolling down his face. Clearing his throat he answered his old buddy, "Yeah, unfortunately I did…..Thank God you're bringing her to me Pete. Thank you."
"No problem McG. It's where she needs to be. Anyway, I better go. I'll see you soon."
"Alright. Later. Thanks for calling."
"Later," and with that Pete hung up. Putting his head in his hands he prayed that Maddie could make it through one more day of this. With that he got up and walked to his bunk in hopes of getting a good nights sleep.
Lori Weston was the furthest thing from Steve's mind as he wiped away the few tears that had fallen down his face. Stripping down to his boxers he climbed into bed hoping the calming sound of the waves crashing outside would distract him from worrying about Maddie and lull him to sleep.
Thank you all for reading! Don't forget to leave a REVIEW!It literally only takes a couple seconds. PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE let me know what you think! Thanks guys!
xo
