Pehea wau i ʻike ai i kou makuahine
Based on the characters and stories of Hawaii Five-0.
Hawaii Five-0 is owned by CBS and their respective creators.
"Steve…" Catherine sat on the edge of the bed and nervously fiddled with her thumbs. "Please say something." She whispered.
Steve sat beside her with an expression of absolute shock on his face. "I mean…" He rubbed his palm down his chin. He shook his head in disbelief. "We weren't even trying…"
The excitement in Catherine's heart was slowly crushed and replaced with a mix of guilt and dread. "I'm sorry…" She whispered as tears welled up in her eyes. "I know we didn't exactly plan on this one…."
His head snapped over when he saw a single tear roll down her cheek, "Catherine!" His hushed exclamation startled her. He wrapped his arms around her waist and cradled her head against his shoulder as she cried. "Cath, this is…. This is great!" He chuckled, "I'm surprised!" He grinned, "Surprised, but… God, Cath, this is amazing!" She looked up from his shoulder and tried to wipe her tears away, but they just kept falling. Steve held her face in his hands and kissed her. "What's wrong?" He whispered.
"I'm just... hormonal." She laughed. "And I thought… I thought you were mad…"
Steve fervently shook his head as he hugged her. "I'm excited." He grinned and pecked her lips. "When'd you find out?"
"When we got back from D.C." She smiled.
Steve placed his hand on her belly and murmured, "Why'd you wait so long to tell me?"
"I just… I couldn't find the right time and...I dunno… old habits?" She sighed, "It's just… we're in a completely different place from where we were a couple years ago, you know? I just, I never thought that we'd be here and I mean, for a while neither of us really thought we were ever gonna settle down, and we finally did… And things are good! I mean, they're really good and I'm happy and I want you and me - I want us to be happy and this - it just wasn't planned and…."
He held both of her hands in his and stared into her eyes, "Cath, we're good. You and me? As long as I've got you - we're, we're good. Don't ever doubt it. Okay?"
She smiled softly and nodded, "Okay."
Steve laid her down on the bed and gently lifted the edge of her shirt. "God, I'm so excited." He grinned as he peppered her belly with kisses.
Catherine giggled and grabbed his collar. "Come 'ere." She mumbled as she pulled him into a kiss.
"Hey, Sailor." Catherine smiled as she heard Steve's typical greeting of 'McGarrett' over the phone as she sat at a table and set down her stack of files.
"Hey, yourself." Steve chuckled, "You're uh, you're actually calling me on your cell phone. Where are you? You on land?"
Catherine laughed quietly, "D.C. actually, I'm uh, I'm here for an intel briefing with homeland security."
"Seriously?" Steve groaned. "Shit, I was in Norfolk last week. Of course I'd have to leave as soon as you get there."
She sighed. It had been a quite a while since she had seen Steve in Hawaii and in all honesty, she was missing him. They'd had a few quick phone calls here and there, but no meaningful conversations. Nothing except the constant reminder that they couldn't actually tell each other anything about what they were doing. "It was kind of a last minute thing."
"Proud of you." He grinned. "How's it going? Running the unit."
"Good." She exhaled. "It's, uh, stressful. You made it look so easy."
Steve chuckled, "That's because I had you."
"I miss you." She admitted. "It's hard… having you, but not having you around…"
He sighed, "I know."
Catherine chewed on her lip, "Where are you this time? I mean, if you can tell me… I just figured 'cause it seems like we're in a similar time zone and you were able to answer on your cell phone..."
Steve hesitated. "I can't…" He was mentally kicking himself. He hated the secrets. "Cath, I-"
"I get it." She stated dismissively. "I understand... is, is what I meant." Catherine looked at her watch. "Steve, I gotta go. I don't wanna be late."
Steve stared at the chain-link fence surrounded with razor wire and the sign that read CAMP DELTA: JTF GUANTANAMO. "I'd say I wish you were here, but I really don't." He confessed. That was always the line he used as a way to drop her a breadcrumb. "Stay safe."
"I got your six, Commander."
"See you soon, Cath. I miss you."
The briefing room was quiet as Catherine sat and worked through a stack of paperwork. She was early for her meeting by a longshot, but being early was preferable to getting teary eyed in the courtyard of the Pentagon over the fact that she missed her boyfriend. "Lieutenant Rollins."
Catherine's head snapped up from the page she was staring at. "Ma'am?" A woman in a business suit stood in front of her. The security badge on her blazer read "Department of Homeland Security" but Catherine could have sworn she had just heard the woman introduce herself to someone in the hallway as a foreign affairs attache for the State Department. Her eyes narrowed in on the badge. "Ms. Greer."
"Look. Just so this isn't awkward." Greer's voice was professional but laced with disdain. "I heard that you're dating Commander McGarrett and I just want you to know that I am… really… happy for you." The last few words practically choked her - like she was going to vomit if she had to feign happiness for another second.
"Thanks." Catherine smiled politely. Her new relationship with Steve wasn't the best kept secret, but it certainly wasn't public knowledge - at least public enough for this woman to know about it.
Greer scoffed quietly but passed it off as a pleasant acknowledgement. "One…" She smiled. "One piece of advice, though: you might want to… temper… your expectations." Catherine set her pen down as Greer continued, "As much as we all want him to be, he's… just not the type to ever settle down." She smiled warmly, but the warmth wasn't kind. It was the type of warmth you find just outside the gates of hell.
Catherine had known Steve for many years, but he had never once mentioned this woman, whoever she was. The way her words were filled with venom and vitrole painted her as a woman scorned. Something about Greer got under her skin. She opened her mouth to respond, but the only thing that came out was, "Billy?"
Billy Harrington stood in the doorway and chuckled as he caught her shocked expression, "Hey, Rollins." He grinned.
She smiled and shook his hand politely as other members of the Department of Defense filtered into the room for the intel briefing. "I didn't know you were going to be here."
"I'm riding a desk for a few weeks." He pointed to a bandage on his arm. "Got clipped on my last op and, uh, figured I needed to take a minute, you know?" He stated nonchalantly as he settled into the chair beside hers.
Catherine nodded and glanced over her shoulder as Greer engaged in a conversation with some other poor, unfortunate soul. She sat back down and quietly asked, "Hey, what do you know about her?"
Billy followed Catherine's line of sight and tried his best to hide the smile curling up at the corner of his mouth. "You free to grab coffee after this? The stuff they have here is a little too bitter for my taste."
Catherine watched as Greer glanced back at her and sized her up. Steve had shared some of the lingo that the SEALs used to exchange information. What was 'bitter coffee' again? Right: The target is too close by to talk. "Yeah. I've got time."
Billy set a cup in front of Catherine as he sat down across from her at the coffee shop in Georgetown. "Still take it the same way?"
"Yeah." She smiled. "Thanks." Chances are, Billy would have put way too much cinnamon on top, but it was the thought that counted, right? Steve got it perfect every time, though, and that's what made her miss him even more. Everything made her miss Steve. "So... We had to come all the way to Georgetown to talk?"
He chuckled as he slid into the seat, "Overkill, probably." His voice lowered. "But she's CIA. I wasn't taking any chances. I trust her about as far as I can throw her, and considering it's frowned upon to throw people across the Pentagon, I don't trust her at all."
Catherine stirred her coffee before taking a sip. "What's her place in The Company?"
"Running ops, uh, off the books."
"How do you know all this?"
Billy chuckled, "I guess, you could say that she and I are 'workplace proximity associates'."
Catherine laughed quietly at his cryptic language, "So you've been downrange with her?"
He shook his head, "No. But I know a couple'a guys who have." He sipped his coffee and glanced at the door as a few more patrons filed in.
The puzzle pieces began to connect. "So that's how she and Steve know each other."
Billy nearly choked on his sip. "Did she bring it up or did he?"
Catherine's eyes narrowed, "She did…" The sinking feeling in her stomach began to grow.
He saw the devastation on her face and quickly shook his head, "Catherine, it's not what you think - Look, I know about you and McGarrett. I mean, I'm kinda surprised it took as long as it did to happen, but I, uh, I know you guys are together. Like, actually together now. Freddie Hart told me."
"What does that have to do with Greer, though? Steve's never mentioned her before."
Billy thought for a moment as he trailed his finger around the edge of his mug, "When did you and Steve get together?"
"Um, earlier in the year? Right after the Army-Navy Gala." She answered nervously. "Why?"
He chuckled and shook his head, "Because I was gonna kill McGarrett if he had done something stupid."
"You thought he cheated on me with her?" Catherine stated as she silently prayed it wasn't true.
Billy shrugged. "It crossed my mind, but uh, no. They hooked up way before you guys were official."
Catherine's eyebrows furrowed. She tried her best to hide her frown by finishing off her coffee. "He doesn't do casual hook-ups..." She mumbled. Suddenly, she realized why he had gotten so defensive over her calling the beginning of their relationship a 'hook-up'. He must have felt guilty for sleeping with Greer, and Catherine using the term loosely had poured salt on the open wound.
"It was while you and I were together." He stated.
Her eyebrows raised, "Oh."
He took one last long drink from his mug, "I'm good friends with Tim Cole. We were in the same BUD/s class."
Catherine nodded, "Yeah, I know him. He's on Steve's team."
"Cole told me they hooked up after an op while I was in Kabul with you. They all knew McGarrett had it bad for you and figured he was just trying to put us being together out of his mind for a while."
"A while?"
He shrugged, "That's all I know. You'll have to talk to your boy if you want the full story, but I'm guessing that since you're here talking to me, he's out of range right now."
Catherine nodded as she chewed on her lip, "Yeah…"
Billy glanced at his watch, "Look, I'm… I'm happy for you guys. McGarrett and I are cool. I know it's been a long time coming for you so… congrats." Catherine smiled and stared down in her empty cup. He and Greer had both said that they were happy for her, but she only believed one of them. "I'd be lying if I said I wasn't a little jealous of him." He chuckled. "But you seem happy and that's a good look on you."
"Thanks, Billy." She smiled.
He pushed his chair away from the table and stood up to leave, "Are you back on the Enterprise or are you stateside for a while?"
"I'm still on the E. I just flew in for the briefing." She stated as she followed him out and flagged down a cab.
Billy opened the door for her and lingered, "Well then. Looks like I'll see you soon." He grinned before shutting the door and waving her off.
"Hey, Sailor. I was hoping to catch you before I got back on the plane, but I guess I missed your window. So, um, whenever you get this, just know I miss you. I hope we can see each other soon…." She sighed. "I feel like that's all we say to each other nowadays…. I miss you. I got your six… I'll see you soon…. I can't remember the last time we had an actual conversation..." She knew she had to hurry before the voicemail stopped recording, "I've got a forty-eight coming up. Maybe we can meet up somewhere if you're free. I'm gonna try to get a letter out soon. I'm just gonna send it to the apartment rather than your FPO since you're kind of all over the place. Anyways, um… I miss you, Steve. I hope you're safe. I've got your six."
Catherine stared at her phone as she rode in the cab back to the base to catch her flight to the Enterprise. Talking to Billy had made her feel just a little bit better, but the seeds of doubt that Greer had sown were still embedded in her mind. Then something else crossed her mind: Billy didn't trust Greer - that much she knew for sure. The question now was if she trusted Billy.
AUTHOR'S NOTE
Happy Saturday, friends! Confession: I wrote this chapter while I had an insane migraine, so my apologies that it isn't super exciting or emotional! (Currently writing this A/N with the same migraine.) I really do try my best to write a meaningful chapter everyday, but sometimes life happens! (And sometimes the chapters just need to get us from point A to point B so that we can get back to the good stuff!) But we're getting back to the big, emotional stuff soon! Don't worry! YES - I will be posting a Q and A author's note soon - I just need to be able to sit down and get through all of them and have a minute to write thoughtful (not rushed) answers!
Have a wonderful weekend, lovely people! I can't wait to read your comments in the reviews!
XO,
-Mags-