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 bounced Shelby on his knee, "Mel running late?"
"Yeah," Catherine swayed as she rocked Will in her arms, "Her last appointment is running a little long." Catherine had agreed to talk to Mel regularly on two conditions. One being that Mel would never call her a 'patient', and the other being that her appointments were over chips and salsa and margaritas. Mel had coerced her into coming back for a second appointment with the promise of tacos. The third and fourth appointments happened at a picnic table at their favorite taco truck. Appointment number five turned into a full on girls night out. Now, it was a bi-weekly tradition.
She slept a little more peacefully and Steve felt like he had his wife back. Still, he couldn't help but notice all the little scars she had acquired over the years. Some, he knew their origins. Kabul, Mosul, Cadiz. Some, when he asked about them, Catherine would just shrug and chalk it up to an occupational hazard. By virtue, Steve was a patient man. What patience he had that wasn't innate, he chalked up to the SEALs. After all, one doesn't become a sniper without the ability to sit and wait for a long stretch of time. Patience, McGarrett, Mel had chided. She'll tell you when she's ready.
Steve had even tried to pull her action reports from her time with the CIA. If she wasn't ready to open up, he could at least meet her halfway. Unfortunately, what he had been able to get his retired hands on had been redacted beyond his clearance.
Catherine stared at the framed newspaper article hanging on the wall of Steve's office. She cocked her head and read it again. "When was this?" She asked, tapping her finger on the glass frame.
"You don't get me. You non-operators, you sit on the sidelines and you judge us in the field. You have no idea what it's like. The hard decisions we have to make every day going downrange, and the consequences that we have to live with forever.
I'm speaking for anyone who's ever had to do this job."
Lieutenant Commander Steve McGarrett, State of Hawaii Five-0 Task Force
Steve looked up from the client file he was reading and chuckled, "That, uh, that reporter that was hounding Grover all those years ago…. I think you were on Five-0 back when that happened. Grover - he, uh, tracked down a copy of the paper and gave it to me a few years ago."
She squinted and read the date, "Yeah, I was… Oh! That's when I had to go to DC to testify in a FISA hearing." Catherine read the quote from the article again. "I like it."
He stood up and propped Shelby up on his hip. He stood behind her and pressed a kiss onto her shoulder. "You get it."
"Mhmm." Catherine nodded. "Not everybody does." A fleeting smile cracked on her lips, "But that's why we have each other."
"To understand each other." Steve nodded.
Catherine smiled, "To fight for each other."
He rested one hand on her shoulder while he leaned over and kissed her temple. "To save each other."
Steve toweled off from his early morning paddleboard workout. It had become sort of a ritual of theirs. Steve would hit the water, Catherine would go for a run, and then they'd meet back at the house and have breakfast or go to the Wailana before reporting to HQ at 0900 sharp. Their routine had become a comfort to him. Catherine had moved into his house, but they respected each other's space. Living in close proximity on board the Enterprise had thoroughly prepared them for living with each other under the same roof.
The comforting routine, however, didn't ease the trepidation he felt that morning. It was like feeling the electricity in the air before a storm. There's no way to know what's coming, but you know something's going to happen.
Danny sauntered out of the house and met Steve in the grass, detailing his rather eventful morning where Grace accidentally met Amber, who happened to be in his kitchen sans pants. Steve's phone rang, "Yeah, McGarrett…. Uh huh. Copy that. We're on our way." Steve cleared his throat as he grabbed his towel and headed for the door. "JC Dekker wants a sit down. Says he's got information on a gun deal going down and it's on a clock. We gotta go to Halawa, call Chin and Kono and have them get the op gear ready. I'll call Catherine and have her run names as soon as we get them and then rendezvous wherever the deal's going down." Danny's hesitancy was evident, but the timeline was short. It was a now or never situation. Steve didn't like flying blind, but when the chips are down, you just have to hope your cards give you the win.
He jogged inside and threw on jeans and a navy button up. Steve paused. He saw the polaroid sitting on Catherine's nightstand. Picking it up, he smiled at their younger selves. Then Steve did something he hadn't done in months. He tucked the polaroid into his shirt pocket and fastened the button.
There was that damn feeling again. The pulse of electricity. The hairs standing up on the back of his neck. A skittering across his skin. Steve rummaged through his sock drawer until he found it. The dog tags. His and Catherine's side by side on his chain. He gave her tag a chaste kiss before throwing the chain around his neck and tucking it under his shirt. A little extra luck couldn't hurt.
"Hey, Sailor." Catherine eased towards him, her whiskey eyes dark with lust.
Steve looked around. Everything was just a little fuzzy. Clouds of smoke covered his body. Coughing, he asked, "Where am I?"
"On the Enterprise, silly." She giggled. Her bare feet tiptoed across the floor of the fantail. White linen flowed off of her shoulders and brushed the ground.
He coughed again, "What's with all the smoke?"
Catherine took his hand and danced like she didn't have a care in the world, "Oh, there was an explosion." She said rather nonchalantly with the sweetest smile on her face.
Another coughing fit hit him. Steve couldn't catch his breath. A shrill ringing pierced his ear drums. Catherine's hand slipped out of his and she began to disappear into the smoke, "Wait." He looked around, "Where are you going?" Catherine just laughed and spun around in the smoke as she got closer and closer to the edge of the ship. "Catherine, where are you going? Come back." He pleaded.
"I'll see you soon, Sailor." She floated further into the smoke.
"Cath, come back!" He called out again, but she couldn't hear him over the deafening ringing, "Catherine, wait!"
"Don't worry, Sailor. I've got your six." She blew him a kiss and disappeared into the smoke.
Steve thought he was going to cough up a lung. That was, if he could open his eyes. He pushed open his heavy lids and tried to dissipate the ringing in his ears. Rumbles of thunder rolled in the distance. At least, he thought it was thunder. He couldn't breathe. A crushing weight pressed against his chest. Steve groaned and cried out as he pushed a chunk of concrete off of his body. He pressed his hands to his ears and did his best to silence the noise in his head. Everything hurt. His mouth was full of dust and soot. There was the coughing again. Steve shimmied himself up against a slab of concrete that had once been a parking deck. He felt around his vest for his flashlight as the other hand pressed against his chest. The chink of metal on metal helped steady his pulse. That girl was his guardian angel. He moved his hand from the dog tags to the pocket that held the polaroid.
Catherine.
Shit. Had she gotten out? Did she get caught in the blast? He closed his eyes and recalled what had happened before he was trapped in a maze of concrete and steel. Five-0 and SWAT raided the parking garage. Kono and Chin left first to canvas the area. Steve told Catherine to call the ATF and see if they had any intel. She left next. Grover and SWAT were last out leaving... Him and Danny.
"DANNY!" He shouted. "DANNY!"
BANG.
Danny slapped the rod of rebar against the collapsed AC unit. "Look, I, uh, I can't just stand here makin' noise and giving myself a migraine. Not to mention, the chances of us getting outta here are just shy of pigs flying."
Steve's eyes cut over to Danny, "Look, this is what we gotta do. Make noise, hope they hear us."
"I know, I know, can you just be a human for two seconds and talk about something? Please? I need a- a distraction."
He sighed, "What do you wanna talk about, Danno? Gracie meeting Amber half-naked?"
Danny rolled his eyes, "No, I do not. I dunno, uh, you and Catherine."
"What about me and Catherine?"
"I dunno. What, uh, what's the deal between you two? I mean, when, uh when she first started comin' around you kept her hidden away. Didn't even call her your girl. You never told me about how you two got together in the first place, and I'm curious, because she's way too good for you. I mean, who else do you know that's sweet and funny and looks like she does and will also tac up and raid a parking garage with you? You two are a match if there ever was one."
Steve stopped banging on the vent system for a minute, "I can't tell if you're gonna make a pass at her or if you're telling me I have good taste in women."
"I'm saying you, uh, you got a good one. I can't imagine another person on this earth willing to put up with you like she does. How… how'd you guys meet?"
"You know that. We met in the Navy."
Danny scoffed, "I know that, numbnuts. I meant HOW did you meet in the Navy."
A faint smile flickered across his mouth as Steve continued his assault on the vent, "It was the, uh late nineties. I got transferred out to the Enterprise and got assigned to her unit. I, uh, I was her C.O." He chuckled, "The first time I met her, I, uh I thought she hated me because she didn't talk to me the whole first shift. Everyone else in the unit came up and introduced themselves, kissed my ass, that sorta thing. But Catherine- she, uh, she sat at her desk the whole twelve hours and just did her job. I went and ate dinner with my bunkmate - you remember Matt, right? He was at Catherine's retirement? He and I grabbed some chow and I was headed back to my bunk and saw her still sitting there working. Since she hadn't talked to me at all, I decided to play my cards and see if I could make her crack."
Danny laughed. Steve couldn't tell if he was genuinely amused or if he was starting to lose it. Frankly, the odds were about fifty-fifty. "So she was just a, uh, challenge?"
Steve shook his head, "Nah, I uh, brought her some coffee and then I sat with her and worked through an intel package she had been assigned. I had never seen anybody be more committed to a job. I stayed up all night with her and uh, just watched her work. She's brilliant, man. She's always the smartest one in the room. We, uh, we were pretty much inseparable after that. Worked together. Worked out together. Ate meals together. I, uh…. I don't think I knew it back then, but Catherine…. She's my best friend, man."
"Sounds like love." Danny took another whack at the AC unit, "Late nineties… you two've been together a long time."
He tried to brush some of the dust off his face, but it ended up making his mouth feel like a desert. "Known each other a long time. Took us a while to actually get together."
"What about that other guy?"
"Other guy? Who? Billy?"
"Yeah?"
Steve scratched at his forehead, "He dated her before I did. They weren't together long, but, uh what she's told me about it at least, it was pretty intense. They went on a couple dates stateside and then ended up doing a deployment together. It was right after September eleventh. It was her second deployment in less than two years, I think. Not exactly ideal conditions for dating. It didn't last, but he, uh, damn… Him asking her out gave me the kick in the ass I needed to get my head right and put myself out there." He smirked, "Get this. I'm the one who introduced the two of them."
Danny cackled. "That's ironic." He swung the rebar and winced as the clang pierced his ears. "So why haven't you locked her down yet? I mean, seems like what you wanna do based on what you said in my kitchen the other day."
"Alright." Steve groaned as he bent over and braced his hands on his knees. Everything hurt. He felt like he'd been hit by a train and then backed over by a truck. He coughed and wheezed as dust particles filled his lungs, "Sharing time is over. I'll tell you what. We make it out and I'll uh, I'll tell you the rest."
Catherine unzipped her bag of supplies. Slow is smooth and smooth is fast, she reminded herself. She wanted to frantically get the cellular repeater set up, but doing it wrong and having to correct it would waste more time than calming down and doing it right the first time.
"Miss, do you need some help?"
"No." She hissed.
The hovering voice cast a shadow where her hands were trying to work, "I can get someone down here who's…. Experienced. I've got a guy who can take a look at whatever that is." The man in the demolition vest pointed at the repeater.
Catherine didn't even bother to look up, "Get the fuck out the way and out of my light and if you don't walk away right now I will personally rip you limb from fucking limb." She hissed. "And that's Lieutenant Rollins to you." She clicked the last wire into place and threaded the cellular repeater as far as it would go. Then, she dialed Steve's number and prayed.
"How you holding up?" Chin stood beside Catherine and watched as the rescue team worked through different plans.
She exhaled slowly. Talking to Steve and Danny had given her an overwhelming sense of reprieve, but the thought of them being alive and then not making it out was too much to bear. "I'm uh, I'm just trying to stay positive."
Chin nodded. "You know, if anyone can make it out. It's Steve." He chuckled, trying to lighten the situation, "And since Danny's with him, he'll make it out too. That is, if Steve doesn't kill him first."
Catherine cracked a smile, "I swear, those two are worse than an old married couple." She felt the cool metal against her neck, "A long time ago, Steve and I swapped dog tags. It, uh, it was kind of a good luck thing before his last deployment. I haven't worn mine in a while, but this morning… I just had that feeling I'd need a little luck, you know? I guess he's the reason I made it out."
Chin opened his mouth to respond, but was cut off by Max showing up with patient files.
"Hi, Can I make a reservation for tonight? Party of two for eight-thirty." She waited until the hostess confirmed the table availability, "The reservation will be under McGarrett. Two R's, two T's. Thank you." Catherine hung up and nervously tapped her phone against her fingers. Steve told her to make a reservation for sushi at Sasabune tonight. That was his promise that he would make it out. Steve didn't make promises he couldn't keep. She paced along the edge of the rubble as he and Danny were walking the thirty longest yards of their lives.
Grover's hand on her shoulder as they waited by the winch and hoist system didn't make her feel any better. Seeing the tug on the line that signaled Danny was ready to come up didn't make her feel any better, but when the line went back down for Steve, she felt that fleeting flutter of hope. First she saw his hair - painted with concrete dust. Then his face. Blood, dirt, and grime had never looked so good. Then his hands. Chin and Grover pulled him up. Then he looked at her. Steve grabbed her waist and pulled her into his arms. His face was buried in the crook of her neck as he whispered barely-audible words, "I was so worried about you." He murmured into her ear. Steve squeezed his eyes shut, "God, you look perfect. Catherine, you… You're my angel." His grip on her tightened, "My angel."
"You always keep your promises." She whispered before pulling away and examining the cuts and bruises on his face, "I never worried. Never worried."
"I don't doubt it." He smirked.
Catherine pulled on that green dress Steve liked so much. Her skin was a flushed pink from the hot shower that had washed away the remnants of the day. Rather than wasting time with a blow dryer, she brushed her hair back and twisted it into a proper military bun. She replaced the dog tags with the anchor necklace he had given her before the Army-Navy gala. A dab of makeup and a spritz of perfume and she was ready.
Steve appeared in the doorway of the bedroom.
Their bedroom.
Soot and dirt shook from his body, leaving a trail of ashes with every step he took. His face was still streaked with blood and grime. His eyes tracked her like a hawk.
Catherine. Perfect Catherine. Primped and ready for their date, she didn't mind the filth in the slightest. She eased up to him and draped her arms around his neck, "I like your style, Sailor."
He cradled the back of her neck, "C'mere." Steve mumbled as he pressed a hard kiss to her mouth. "You saved me." He breathed as he pulled away. Adrenaline still pulsed in his veins. This had been one of those days that wasn't going to leave his system for a long time. "You're my angel." He cupped her jaw and kissed her again. His hand dropped from her face and grabbed her hand. He pressed her palm against his shirt pocket where the polaroid had been safely tucked away. "You saved me."
Catherine reached over and picked up the dog tags she had worn that day. "We keep saving each other."
Steve opened her palm and pressed a kiss into her hand. "I guess I'll have to pay you back soon."
AUTHOR'S NOTE
I love you guys! 4x19 is one of my favorite episodes, so I didn't want to do too much to mess with it, but wanted to acknowledge it. Same with the "non-operators" line from 4x15. One of my favorite lines from the show.
Let me know what you thought in the reviews!
XO,
-Mags-
