- "Hi, Steve." – They said, a smile on their lips, leaving Steve completely speechless.

In front of him was the last person he thought he would ever see again. Someone he had vowed to completely erase from both his mind and heart.

- "Catherine?" – Steve couldn't believe his eyes. It had been a couple of years since the last time he had seen her.

- "Long time no see, sailor."

- "I could say the same thing. What are you doing here?"

- "I moved back to the island. Aren't you going to invite me in?"

- "Sure, sorry. Come in." – Steve said. Suddenly his phone rang. Looking at the caller ID, he saw that it was Summer. He hit the decline button, feeling guilty about standing her up. – "How long have you been back?"

- "Not long. Just a couple of days. Just long enough to unpack and get settled in."

- "Sorry. Just give me a second." – She was looking at his phone as it started ringing again. He quickly typed a message and turned his attention back towards her. – "How've you been?"

- "Good. You?"

- "Good." – The awkwardness in the room was palpable. – "I gotta ask, Catherine. Why are you back?"

- "You."

- "What?"

- "You. You're the reason why I'm back, Steve. I had a lot of time to think about it and to realize that I screwed up. You're the only man I've ever truly loved. And I thought that maybe, just maybe, we could try again. I know I have no right to ask you but I still love you and I really would like to see where we could go."

- "Catherine, I… I don't know what to tell you."

- "Just think about it. My number is still the same, so, call me whenever you want." – Catherine kissed him on the cheek and walked out towards her car, leaving a confused Steve behind.

He knew he should have said that he was with Summer, that he was happy with her, but if he was being honest, seeing Catherine again brought back old feelings. Feelings he thought he had overcome and put behind him. She had had his heart for so many years and knowing that she was back on the island and that there was a chance that they could have a future together was confusing him.

He had fallen for Summer and he had fallen hard, but he wasn't sure if what he felt for her was love or just longing. The longing of wanting someone by his side, of wanting to recapture what he had with Catherine. He knew none of this was fair to Summer and he knew that no matter what he decided, someone was gonna get hurt. He could only hope that, no matter what his decision was, it would be the right one.

Steve looked at his watch and realized he was beyond late for work. He locked the door behind him and got in his truck, making his way towards the palace. The conversation he just had with Catherine was replaying in his mind, every word she said, every word he should've said and didn't. He needed time to sort this out, to sort his own feelings out.

Steve arrived at the palace and before he could walk into the building, he saw Danny walking out.

- "Hey Danny."

- "Hey sleepy head. Glad you could join us. Come on, we got a case."

- "Okay." – That's all he said before getting behind the wheel of Danny's Camaro.

- "Alright. What's going on with you?" – Danny asked, a few minutes later, while still in the car on their way to the latest crime scene.

- "Nothing."

- "Nothing, right. You really expect me to believe that?"

- "Danny, what do you want from me?"

- "The truth would be nice. I mean, you show up late, which you never do, and you look like someone just broke your favorite grenade launcher, so… I ask again, what's going on?"

- "Catherine's back on the island."

- "Whoa. Really?"

- "Yes, really. She showed up at my place as I was leaving and that's why I was late."

- "What did she want?" – As much as Danny didn't want to, his hatred towards the woman was blatant in his voice. Every time she was in Steve's life, it always ended up with him being broken hearted, leaving it up to Danny and the rest of the team to help him pick up the pieces.

- "Do you really wanna know?"

- "Yes, yes I do. Very much so."

- "She wants me back. She wants us to give it another try."

- "Please tell me you're not seriously thinking about going for it, are you?"

- "I don't know Danny. I haven't really thought about it."

- "There shouldn't be anything to think about. Every time the two of you are together, it always ends up the same way: her leaving for another job or whatever and you being left behind with a broken heart. So, please, tell me, what is there to think about?"

- "It's not that simple Danny. We have a history together. And…"

- "And?"

- "And… Seeing her again brought back some old feelings." – Steve knew Danny wouldn't agree to this, for more than one reason. He wasn't blind to the hatred that he felt against Catherine, but he knew that if he decided to be with her again, Danny would be supportive, no matter how much he didn't agree with his decision.

- "I don't even wanna talk to you about this anymore. Just make sure you know what you're doing. Make sure she isn't just playing with you."

- "I will." – That was the last time they talked about it.

The rest of the day was spent trying to solve their latest case. The only problem was he had to see Summer all day. It was hard for him to look at her and not be reminded of how much she loved him and how unfair it was for her the whole Catherine situation. That's when he realized that he had already made his decision. Now, to tell her.

After work, he drove to her house. He knew this wasn't going to be easy, but he owed it to himself to give his relationship with Catherine one last chance. He parked on her driveway and just sat there a few minutes, trying to think about how the best way would be to tell her, without hurting her too much. Realizing that there was no easy way to do this, he took a deep breath and got out of the truck.

Walking up the two steps by her front door, he knocked and prepared himself for what he thought would be the hardest talk he would ever have with her.

- "Hey. I wasn't expecting you." – She greeted him, a small smile on her lips.

- "Hey. I need to talk to you about something. You got a minute?"

- "Sure. Come in."

- "Can we talk out here?" – He pointed to the front porch, hoping she wouldn't object.

- "Okay. What's going on?"

- "Summer, there's something I need to tell you but, honestly, I have no idea how or where even to start."

- "You don't have too. I know what you're here to tell me." – She knew exactly why he was there. The minute she found out that Catherine was back, she knew it was only a matter of time for this conversation to happen. She knew all about his relationship with Catherine, through both Danny and Steve himself.

- "Summer, I…"

- "Don't, okay? Just… Don't. I get it. You have history with her and you probably feel like you owe it to yourself and to her to give it one last try. I get it, but just because I get it, it doesn't mean it hurts any less." – Summer had tears in her eyes and it killed him to know that he was the one responsible for them.

- "Summer, I'm so sorry."

- "I know. I just wish things were different. I understand why you would do this, even if it hurts like hell. I can only hope that she doesn't hurt you like she did before. Just be sure that she's as invested as you are, Steve. That's all." - She said and turned away, walking back into the house.

- "Summer, wait..."

Steve saw the door close behind her and he felt as if someone had just punch him in the stomach. The look of pain in her eyes made him physically hurt and he was sure that it would take a long time, if ever, for her to forgive him. He wasn't sure if he could ever forgive himself for putting her through that. He walked back to his truck and drove away, the pain in her eyes still very much present in his mind.

On the other side of the door, Summer was sitting on the floor, her back leaning against it, tears running down her face. She heard him asking her to wait right before she close the door, but she couldn't. If she had, she knew she would just breakdown in front of him and that's the last thing she wanted.

She saw this coming. When Danny commented, by accident, during lunch that Catherine was back on the island, she knew. She understood why he had stood her up that morning and why he had been acting somewhat withdrawn with her during the day. Summer figured that this was gonna happen sooner or later, she just didn't expect it would happen on the same day. "I guess he loves her more than he ever loved me.", she thought, tears free falling.

Eventually, Summer got up and moved to the couch, curling up in one of the corners and wrapping herself in a blanket. She started remembering all the good times they had together: their first date; when they decided they were a couple; the silly arguments; the plans to tell Danny; and everything in between. She cried, almost as if she was grieving. But in a way, she was. She was grieving the loss of an amazing relationship and the loss of the man she loved.

Summer ended up crying herself to sleep, waking up a few hours later. Getting up from the couch, she walked to the bathroom. Turning the light on, she stood in front of the mirror and took a good look at herself. In front of her was someone she didn't recognize. Her eyes were red from all the crying, her lips chapped, her hair was a mess and she had a headache that was on the verge of killing her. Stripping down, she turned the shower on and jumped in. The hot water hit her body and, after a while, she felt her body finally starting to relax.

Even though her body was relaxing, her mind was not. Her brain kept replaying the conversation she had earlier with Steve and slowly but surely, instead of feeling hurt or in pain over it, she began feeling angry. Why did he do that? Why would he choose Catherine over her? She couldn't hold on any longer. Summer let out a scream, letting go of all the pain, hurt and anger, all in one go. She was mostly angry at herself for allowing herself to be put in that position. Afterwards, she felt relieved.

She turned the water off and wrapped herself on a towel. That's when a thought came to her mind. "What will happen tomorrow?", she thought. She had to keep seeing him every day, since she was working with 5-0 now. Will he fire her? Or will he become distant with her to the point where they can't work together? She didn't know. Either way, she was gonna do what she did best: bury her feelings and pretend everything was fine. She knew it would take time before she could say that she was okay without it being a lie.