The next day Catherine was discharged from hospital and Steve took her home. Mary was in the kitchen and Meredith was sitting on the porch while Joe played in the front yard and Joan and Debby watched TV in the living room.
"Mommy!" Joe ran to Catherine when he saw her get out of the car. He stopped at the gate while trying to open it without success.
"Hi, my baby! Let me open the gate for you," Catherine told the boy. She opened the gate and took him in her lap. Joe hugged her and she smiled. "I missed you so much, my baby." Catherine kissed him and stroked his hair.
Steve walked in and closed the gate as Catherine walked toward the house. "Hi, Mom. What's up? Did my boy give you a lot of trouble?"
"Hi, daughter. No, Joe's a sweetheart. He's very quiet, and so is Debby."
"That's nice," Catherine answered.
"How are you, daughter?" Meredith asked.
"I'm fine, Mom. I'm just a little dizzy from the medication, but I'm still going to have to take it and decrease the dose progressively.
"I'll put your bag in our room," Steve told Catherine.
"Okay," Catherine answered.
Steve walked into the house and Debby asked him about his mother. "She's outside, Debby. Go give your mom a hug."
Debby got up quickly and ran to the porch. Joan also got up and went after Debby.
"Mommy! Mommy!" Debby screamed from the living room till the porch.
"Hey, my love." Catherine smiled at Debby and sat her on her leg while Joe was sitting on the other.
Debby kissed Catherine's face and hugged her. "I'm so glad you're back, Mommy! You're not leaving anymore, are you?"
"No, my love. I'm not going to the hospital anymore. Okay?"
"Okay," Dabby answered happily.
"Hi, Aunt Cath. I'm glad you're okay," Joan hugged her, too.
"Thank you, dear. I love you," Catherine told Joan.
"What about me, Mommy?" Debby asked.
"Oh, my love. I'm so sorry. Mommy loves you too, and Joe too." Catherine kissed both their foreheads and spent some time on the porch with them and her mother.
"Catherine's at home," Steve told Mary in the kitchen.
"Great, Steve. Now be patient with her, just like she is with you," Mary told him.
"Okay, Mama Mary," Steve answered.
"Are you mocking me, you idiot?" Mary smiled and threw an onion at him.
Steve grabbed the onion and threw it back to her. "Hold it!" Mary grabbed the onion and he went to the bedroom. He took a shower and got dressed to go to his appointment with the Navy psychologist.
"Cath, I'm going for the appointment with the psychologist. I don't know what to say to him," Steve said to Catherine as he passed her on the porch.
"The important thing is that you go. As for what you're going to say, you'll figure it out," Catherine replied.
"Okay," she said. Steve kissed her head and the kids' heads and left.
"I think he wanted you to go with him, daughter," Meredith said to Catherine.
Catherine sighed. "But today I'm in no condition to accompany him, Mom. Let him go alone. He has to feel that I'm needed."
"I thought you guys made up, Cath."
"And we did, Mom. But that doesn't mean I forgot," Catherine answered. She still had Debby and Joe sitting on her lap. "Mama missed you so much," she said to both of them.
"I think I'll bake a cake to celebrate that you're home. May I, Cath?" Meredith asked.
"Sure, Mom. Make yourself at home," Catherine answered. She stood the children up and stood up. "Shall we go inside, my loves?"
"I'm going to see Grandma bake cake," Debby said to Catherine.
"Okay, honey," she said to Debby.
Steve went to the psychologist and then decided to go to headquarters. Danny was there, in the office, and was talking to the staff on the phone. 'Okay, call me if you need any help," Danny said to the team as Steve arrived.
Danny stood up. "Hey, Steve! What a surprise!"
"Hey, Danny. I went to the psychologist, and then I felt like coming here, talking a little bit, clearing my mind."
"Sit down," Danny pointed the couch to Steve and sat down, too.
Steve sat down and looked around. "I miss it here," he smiled sadly.
"I'm sure you do," Danny answered and Steve sighed.
"Is there a problem?" Danny asked.
"No, Danny. I mean, I feel a little lost. One day I sleep single, and the next day I wake up married with two kids. Right now there are six other people in my house besides me."
"Would you rather be single and without kids?"
"No, that's not what I meant. I like the kids, I like Catherine, it's not about them, it's about me. I feel I'm only the shadow of what I was. Do you understand me?"
"Sort of, Steve."
"I wanted to get back to work," he said to Danny.
"But you know to come back you need to be okay," Danny told him.
"I know," Steve stood up and Danny wondered if he'd said something wrong.
"But you're leaving already?" Danny asked.
"Yes, Catherine will be worried if I take too long, and I'm feeling tired, Danny."
"Okay. Are you driving or do you want me to drive you home?"
"No, I have my car, which I don't remember buying."
Steve left headquarters and went home. He walked in the house and went straight to his room in silence, since everyone was in the kitchen eating the cake Meredith had made. But Catherine heard him coming. She heated up his lunch and took him to his room along with a slice of the cake.
"Hey. I brought your lunch."
Steve looked at her with a needy look and she sat down next to him. "Was everything okay with the psychologist consult?" She asked.
"Yes, it was fine," he answered.
"So what was it? Why are you sad?" She asked.
Steve looked into her eyes. "I can't explain why."
"Is it me and the kids?" She asked.
"No, Cath. No! Don't even think about it. I need you and my kids more than anything in this life," he got nervous, and Catherine held his hand. "Okay," she said.
"Don't talk about leaving again," he asked.
"It's okay. I'm not going anywhere," she hugged him affectionately.
"I'll get better, okay? I think I just need some sleep," he said and lay down.
"Okay. I'll let you sleep, but only after you eat everything," Catherine told him.
Steve had lunch and then went to sleep. When he woke up, the kids were playing in the sand while Catherine, Mary, and Meredith were at sea.
"Daddy, will you help me make a sand castle?" Debby asked him and he did not refuse. He sat next to Debby, Joe and Joan and played with the children for the rest of the afternoon.
At night, he was sleepless because he had slept in the afternoon. Catherine was sleepy, but he was not willing to let her sleep. "Steve, Mary and my mother are in the house. We can't do that today."
"Cath... come here..."
"Steve, they'll hear us," Catherine told him.
"It's just you control yourself," Steve told her.
"You know it's not that easy," Catherine replied.
"Give me two minutes to convince you..."
The next day, Catherine was in the kitchen when Mary went after the coffee smell.
"Good morning, Mary," Catherine said to her.
"Good morning, Catherine. Busy night, huh?"
"Oh, no! Again? Did you hear?" Catherine covered her face with her hand.
"I had to put some songs on my phone to distract the kids if they woke up."
"Did my mother hear it too?"
"Heard what?" Meredith asked as she entered the kitchen.
"Good morning, Mom. What do you want for breakfast?" Catherine told Meredith and changed the subject.
After breakfast, Mary and Joan went to Maui to visit a friend of Mary's and would only return two days later. Debby was sad because Mary didn't take her too.
"Do you want to go for a walk with Grandma? Let's get a new outfit, a new doll, and eat whatever you want," Meredith told Debby.
"I want to, Grandma. Will you take Joe, too?"
"If he wants to go, my love, of course we'll take him," Meredith replied.
Steve and Joe came back from the sea, and Joe wanted to go with his Grandma, too. Catherine dressed them and they went out for a walk with Meredith.
"Bye, Mommy! Bye, Daddy!" Debby and Joe waved to Steve and Catherine and drove off with their grandma.
"Obey Grandma!" Catherine shouted at them.
"Alone..." Steve said to her with a smile. He picked her up on his lap and took her inside the house.
"Steve!" Catherine smiled as he carried her.
"Now you can be yourself, there's no one to listen to," Steve told her.
"Mary heard us yesterday," Catherine answered.
"Well, Mary hearing us isn't any new," he answered as he put her on the couch.
An hour later, they were back in the room after showering. Steve turned on the TV and was watching the local news. He saw the reporter live in front of the mall, where there was a robbery with hostages in progress. He stood up abruptly scaring Catherine. "What is it, Steve?"
"Is it your car over there?" He pointed to the TV.
"Oh, My Gosh!" Catherine exclaimed.