Disclaimer: Ideas are fictional; not making any money on this. Hawaii 5-0 belongs to CBS. That's okay because none of this would work on TV.
Friday afternoon traffic is the same everywhere even in Honolulu. Steve was impatient under the best of circumstances. Danny could see that Steve was close to the boiling point as he navigated them out of the city. He decided to try a diversionary tactic.
"What else did you do at the cabin? Where there any other families nearby?"
Danny's question snapped Steve back from a little fantasy where his old SEAL team blew up all the traffic in front of the Silverado. Steve thought for a minute. Danny wasn't sure if he had heard the question or not. Finally he spoke, almost sheepishly. "Mary and I used to run around in the woods and play He-Man and She-Ra."
Danny snorted and asked, "You mean, 'I am the Power of the Universe' He-Man?"
"Yes Danny. When I was a kid, I loved watching He-Man and Star Wars. Mom used to tell me that I attended the first Star Wars movie when I was only about a year old. She and Dad took me to the drive-in to watch it. When I was a little older, I would watch it on tape or TV reruns. I even got a Millennium Falcon for my birthday one year. I would sit on the living room floor and pretend I was Han Solo."
Danny was fascinated now. He was so different from Steve and it was eye-opening to realize that they had so much in common as boys. Once again, he was struck by how traumatized Steve had become by the death of his mother. He had effectively lost both parents and his sister that day.
"Why Han Solo and not Luke Skywalker? I liked Luke; I always pretended to be one with the force."
"Luke was such a do-gooder. Han was a rogue; he had a lot more fun and he got the girl." Steve was grinning at the memory now. He also realized that traffic was clearing and they were almost out of the city.
"Step-Steve, who's He-Man?" Grace was curious now. She knew about Star Wars but He-Man was new to her.
Steve spent the rest of the trip talking about Masters of the Universe, Eternia, Castle Grayskull, and the evil Skeletor. When Danny started filling in details, Steve looked over in surprise.
"What, you think we didn't have the power of the universe in Jersey? I was He-Man for at least three years at Halloween." Danny was talking with his hands again to Steve's amusement.
Steve had pulled the truck up in front of a hole-in-the-wall restaurant in a small town. Danny had no idea where they were going but he was pretty sure this wasn't it.
"Why are we stopping here?" Danny hoped they would get to the cabin soon. He was getting really hungry.
"This place has the best smoked chicken and brisket on the island. I spent some time in Texas training and became addicted to the barbeque there. This is the closest I've found to the food there. I'll be out in a few minutes." Steve climbed out of the truck and ran into the restaurant. About ten minutes later, he came out carrying a large grocery bag full of food.
The aromas were amazing. Danny's mouth watered now. "What did you get babe? And tell me we're going to eat soon."
Steve laughed when he heard Danny's stomach rumbling. "We're about ten minutes out from the cabin. We can bring in the essentials and eat while it's still warm. I bought chicken, brisket, ranch style beans, cole slaw, and cornbread. There's cobbler for dessert."
It was a long ten minutes with the food tempting them. Finally Steve pulled up in front of a modest wooden cabin. It had a porch that went across the entire front of the building. They all climbed out of the truck and Steve went to unlock the front door.
"Danny, I'll grab the cooler so we can stick the cold stuff in the fridge if you'll carry supper. We can come back out for the other food and our bags. Come on in Grace. I'll show you to your room." Steve was in his element now; this was like setting up camp with his team with much better accommodations than usual.
In no time, they were sitting around the kitchen table having supper. Grace had a bottle of juice while the guys had a Longboard. The food was as wonderful as Steve had promised. "This food is worth the trip alone." Danny had barbeque sauce all over his hands and face. Actually, they all did."
"We always stopped there before we got to the cabin. It was our routine every year. We liked the smoked meat so much that Dad ordered a smoker from the mainland. He spent one horrible summer trying to master the technique. Mom had to put a bunch of places that deliver on speed-dial that year."
Danny heart squeezed listening to Steve talk about his parents. Steve never laughed when he spoke of his parents, but he was laughing now. Danny realized that Steve was sharing stories about his childhood all the time now, and many were normal, happy memories. It was an interesting juxtaposition from the glimpse Danny had gotten of Steve's life as a SEAL in the Naval Situation Room.
"You know babe, you need to come back to Jersey with Grace and me. There's this place on the boardwalk we used to go to when I was a kid. They had the best Greek food on the East Coast. The owner used to be a fireman with my old man until he was injured. Then he opened his restaurant. He would fix us dishes that weren't on the menu. Us kids loved the saganaki best. That's when the waiter brings out the cheese on a metal platter and sets it on fire. Everyone yells "Opa" and then we'd eat the melting cheese on pita bread. It was great!" Danny was smiling fondly now.
"I'd love to visit your home Danny, maybe get a chance to meet your family." Steve spoke earnestly now. He had enjoyed sharing his favorite places on the island with Danny. He realized that Danny must want to do the same thing with him.
"You mean it; you would actually leave paradise and vacation in New Jersey?" Danny couldn't have been more surprised than if Steve started speaking Swahili. Come to think of it, that wouldn't be so surprising.
"Yes Danny. I know your home is important to you. I'd be proud to go with you." Steve spoke earnestly now. He wanted Danny to know that he was serious about this, about Danny.
It was Danny's turn to be earnest. He put his hand on Steve's and spoke quietly. "Babe, this is my home now, and you and Grace are my family now. But I would love to show you where I grew up and have you meet my parents and sisters."
"I'll have to talk to the governor and see if I can get us a week off later this summer. That way we can take Grace with us too. How about we get this mess cleaned up and I'll show you around? I think we got more sauce on us than in us." They all laughed at this and crowded around the sink to wash off. The remnants of the meal were packed up and stored in the fridge.
The remaining gear was unloaded from truck and stowed in the cabin or on the front porch. The layout of the cabin was simple. The living room and kitchen were one large room. There was a fireplace in case the weather turned too cool. There were three bedrooms. Steve and Mary had been assigned one of the smaller bedrooms while his parents took the larger bedroom with the bigger bed. Grace chose the room Steve had occupied. There was no tub in the bathroom but the shower was adequate.
When Steve finished the tour, he looked at Danny and Grace expectantly. "Well, what do you think?" Steve really wanted them to like it here. He hoped they would want to come again.
"I love it Step-Steve. Do you think we can play He-Man tomorrow? Can I be She-Ra?" Danny and Steve both laughed at this. They knew then it would be a great weekend.
"Sure Monkey, we can do whatever you want. It's nicer than I expected Steve. I think this is going to be one of our favorite places too." Danny wanted to add his approval to Grace's.
Then they all walked down to the lake. It was a clear starry night with a full moon. Steve had no trouble finding the path down to the water. It was about ten degrees cooler here than in the city. There was a gentle breeze coming off the lake.
"You know, this reminds me of a place where I went to summer camp once. If I ignore all the tropical plants, it's almost like I'm in Jersey again." Danny, Steve, and Grace were sitting on a grassy area on the bank of the lake now. Grace was in her favorite place sitting between Danny and Steve. They sat like that while Steve pointed out some of the constellations his mother had taught him.
Finally they headed in for the night. Grace took her shower and had story time with her men. As it turned out, Steve was a gifted reader. Danny loved listening to him spin the stories almost as much as Grace. Finally, Grace was too sleepy to listen to any more of the story. Danny and Steve tucked Grace in with a tight hug and kiss and reminded her that they loved her.
"Love you Danno. Love you Step-Steve." Grace was asleep by the time that the men walked out the door.
Steve and Danny grabbed a beer from the fridge and headed out to the front porch. The screen door was open so they could listen for Grace. Danny hesitated and then brought up what he considered was Steve's insanity rescue.
"We need to talk about your actions from the other day. Steven, did you really have a plan when you went up in that plane, or did you figure you'd just jump out of said plane and something would come to you?" Danny didn't want to ruin the weekend but there hadn't been much chance to talk.
"Danny, I had practiced that kind of rescue in SEAL training. I couldn't let Jacks die without making an attempt to save him. I made sure that I was above minimum chute deployment altitude. You saw the SEAL team raid. That's what we do. That's who I am. I really need for you to accept that." Steve held his breath now. He wondered how Danny would react after seeing the raid. He was pleased that Danny finally had a chance to see a SEAL team in action. Maybe it would lessen some of his concern.
"I do babe. It's was just really hard for me to focus on taking Ruiz down when I knew you were going to attempt some kind of insanity. "
"It was hard for me to focus knowing you and Chin were facing Ruiz. I read some of his jacket. He was lethal. Speaking of Chin, you should know we've been 'outed' by Emelina and Ali." Steve waited for Danny's reaction to this bit of news hoping he wouldn't freak out.
"I guessed that it would be a matter of time. We've had Grace with us since we've been together. People will start to notice when we go out with just the two of us. There will be speculation and gossip. We should probably decide how we want to handle it. Maybe it would be best to just tell people as the situation arises. Rachel already knows. What about your friend, Joe?"
"Joe told me not to screw it up two weeks ago at the cookout at my place."
"I was really the last person on the island to know, wasn't I?" Danny was laughing now.
"If it's any consolation, I don't think Weston knows."
"Steven, she's only known us for two weeks. And didn't she ask how long we had been married the second day?" Danny was talking with his hands again.
"Danno, you don't want to wake Grace. Are we good here? There will be times when we're both going to worry about each other. I really am trying to be more careful. I finally have what I want: a loving family. I will do anything to keep it that way." Steve stood and gave Danny a hand up. They went in and locked the front door.
They quickly took turns in the small bath and met in the big bed. Steve had opened the window and the room was on the cool side. The men huddled for warmth and for comfort in the middle as always.
"This is a great idea Steve. The island is so small that it's hard to get away from it all. Do you think we can talk Mr. Page into letting us stay here again?"
Steve was so pleased to hear that Danny liked it here and would want to come back. "I think that can be arranged. Grace seems happy too."
"Well, she's happy any place where we are. Aren't you sure you don't mind having her this weekend? We haven't had a night without her since…since we started this thing between us. What do I call it anyway? An affair? That doesn't sound right."
"Danny, I would have Grace with us full time if it was possible. And I don't need to put a name to it. You're my partner, at work and in life now. Next year, civil unions will be legal in Hawaii. We can consider that then if we want to. For now, it's enough that we're together and a family." Steve kissed Danny softly. They exchanged kisses and touches until sleep claimed them both.
I knew I was getting older the day I realized that Steve and Danno are just a few months older than my own son, Stephen. He and his sister, Jennifer, used to play He-Man and She-Ra. And he was the little boy who sat with his Millennium Falcon watching Star Wars. It's been a trip down memory lane dredging up some of the kids' adventures to fill in my story.