First of all, a big "SORRY" to keep you all waiting for so long. Somehow real life got decidedly real a few months back, shortly after I posted the last chapter, and then I fell a bit out of love with the 5-0 fandom (nothing serious, I just got distracted by some other shows). Anyway, I still at least owe you the "luau" chapter (FINALLY!).
Also, I am still writing on this, even though it's very slow, so there should be more updates in the future. No promises as to when those might happen though.
And finally: THANK YOU ALL for the favourites, follows, and reviews. It means a lot!
Two hours later Danny pulled his car up near the driveway. Near to it, because there was no way he could get closer, half the street was filled up with parked cars already. Hadn't Chin said it was supposed to be a 'small' party? It looked like the car park of the Yankee stadium out here!
He walked up to the front door and was about to knock when it opened and Chin greeted him, smiling, and wearing a shirt so bright and flower-y Danny thought it might hurt his eyes. "Hey partner! Glad you made it. Come on through."
The house and yard were filled with voices and laughter, the smell of the BBQ filling the air. Danny saw what must have been at least 25 to 30 people filling up the space, grown-ups and children, men and woman, haoles and kama'ainas (and wasn't he proud that he had already learned a few Hawaiian words?). Chin led Danny towards a large table on the lanai, where huge bowls and trays of food had been arranged. A woman stood next to it, cutting a cake.
"Malia, this is my partner, Danny Williams. Danny, my wife Malia," Chin introduced them.
"Pleasure to meet you," Danny greeted. "That's a nice house you have here."
"Yes, we were very lucky to find it. So, how do you like working with Chin? I hope he's not working you too hard." She glanced at her husband, who just shrugged and then clapped Danny on the shoulder and left, as he was called over to the pool by one of his cousins.
"Well, he's got me on a pretty short leash for now. But I guess he can make up for a lot of it by this invitation. It'll be nice to meet someone else on this island other than members of the Honolulu PD."
"I'm afraid I'll have to dampen your enthusiasm at least a bit. About half of the people here today are members of law enforcement in one way or another," she laughed.
Danny turned around to take a closer look at the groups of people VERTEILT across the lawn. And she was right – even at first glance he recognized quite a few of the men and women. There was Detective Lee from narcotics, Sergeant Miller and a few officers he only knew by sight. And Akoni manning the BBQ flirting with – oh God, was that Kim Kahala from forensics?
"Beer?" Malia held up a bottle.
"That's great, thank you."
"If you want anything to eat, just grab a plate. We should have enough seats around, just mingle with the others and have a great time, all right? Sorry to just leave you here, I got to check on something in the kitchen. I'll be right back though."
Danny took a sip from his bottle and looked around, looking for a group of people he might want to join for small talk. Best just walk around a bit, he thought, making his way down onto the lawn with his beer in hand.
"Danny!" he heard a female voice, and a second later Kono Kalakaua appeared behind him.
"Kono? What are you doing here?" Danny was surprised. He certainly hadn't expected to see his daughter's surf instructor here. The young woman looked fantastic, with her hair in a ponytail and wearing shorts and a tank top. She was carrying a beer and a plate with some finger food on it.
"Chin's family. A good chance to meet everyone once in a while," she smiled at him. So, did you bring Grace, or is she with her mother this weekend?"
"It's Rachel's weekend. I think they wanted to go to Wet'n'Wild park today. Grace has been talking about it all week on the phone." He didn't sound convinced of the whole thing.
"It's mostly a tourist thing." Kono shrugged. "One of my cousins went there once. He liked it, but still preferred the beach over all those pools and stuff they have there. Good for us, cause the entrance fee is pretty high."
"Not a problem for Rachel and step-Stan," Danny mumbled into his beer.
"Hey Kalakaua! I can hear you, you know. If you keep hanging on to my dinner any longer, I might starve here." Danny looked up from his beer. That voice was familiar. He turned to his left and tried not to show his surprise too openly. On a bench next to a palm tree sat Steve McGarrett. And he looked gorgeous, in cargo pants and a very well-fitted t-shirt. Danny's eyes were drawn towards McGarrett's face – he almost didn't notice the faint scars, even though he knew they were there. Instead his eyes were drawn to those awesome eyelashes, dark and long, and the the beautiful mouth and jawline. The blonde man's heart did a little skip and he was certain his ears felt a little warmer than usual. He quickly looked back at Kono, trying to look inconspicuous. She smiled at him and winked. "Come on over. I need to bring Mr. Grumpy his food."
"I heard that, too." Steve replied ungraciously. "And it's Lieutenant Commander Grumpy for you." Kono just laughed and touched the back of Steve's hand with the plate, not letting go until he had a hold on it.
"Here, you Neanderthal. Chilli chicken wings on 6, coconut shrimps on 10 and fresh pineapple on 2. Eat." Danny was a bit confused, but apparently McGarrett knew what to make of this code.
Unerringly he grabbed one of the chicken wings and took a bite. "Uh, your mother still makes the best wings west of Dallas..." He licked his fingers. "Who's your friend?" He turned his head towards Danny, and how he knew where exactly Danny stood the blonde couldn't start to guess.
"I'm Danny Williams, Commander. We met last week, I was the Detective..."
"...at the bus stop! Yes, of course, now I recognize your voice. You're Chin-Ho's new partner right? Kono told me. She also," at this threw a glance into her direction that even unfocused as his eyes were clearly said 'I know exactly what you're doing', "told me she's teaching your daughter how to surf. Come on, sit down." He tapped the free space next to him, which Danny took. He looked at Kono, who just smiled and shrugged.
"Oh hey, I think cousin Hana has arrived. I've been dying to catch up with her. See you later, guys," she said and walked away quickly.
Both men kept silent for a minute or so. Steve busied himself eating the stuff Kono had brought him, while Danny was busied himself by watching everyone in the backyard except for the man next to him.
McGarrett was the first to break the silence. "I'm pretty sure Kono had planned this," he said, picking up a slice of pineapple from his plate.
"Planned what, exactly?"
"This," McGarrett gestured between the Detective and himself, "us meeting here."
Danny had guessed as much, and going by Kono's actions he thought that maybe, just maybe, there really was a chance for the guy next to him swinging his way, but he wasn't willing to act on it too openly. After years in the closet in a pretty homophobic environment at his old precinct his gaydar felt a little off. And he didn't want an angry (and why was it that straight men always got angry when you tried to flirt with them? A simple "sorry, not interested" would do just fine!) blind ex-SEAL causing a scene at his new partner's luau. His partner... another thing to consider. Oh God, if Kono had told her cousin about her little plan, how would he react? Danny didn't want to consider another incident like the one with his old partner Martin. Their partnership had essentially fallen apart when Danny had come out.
"You're not much of a talker, are you?"
Danny, who had been lost in thought for a short while, startled.
"What?"
"You're awfully quiet", Steve smiled, eliciting a snort of laughter from Danny.
"That's the first time someone said that to me!"
The dark-haired man took another bite off a chicken wing. "So, tell me then, Detective, what do you do when you're not hunting the bad guys?"
"Uh... I haven't been on the island for long yet. I've moved here to be with my daughter, Grace, so I just try to spend whatever time I can get with her."
"Hm, Kono told me a little about that. Says Grace is one of her most enthusiastic students", Steve smiled.
"I don't know about the other kids, but you certainly can't say that Grace isn't enthusiastic. I try to be there with her for the lessons as often as I can, and Kono always has a tough time getting her out of the water. Sometimes I think she can't be mine", he added, mock-grumbling.
"Why? You don't like the ocean?"
"No, I don't like the ocean."
"Who doesn't like the ocean?"
"I don't. I'm from New Jersey. I like cities. Skyscrapers, that kind of stuff. Not seemingly endless amounts of water with sharks in it, or jellyfish..."
"But you can swim?"
"Can I...? Can I swim?" Danny replied indignantly. "Of course I can swim. I just prefer not to. Not everybody's like you!" The moment he said it, Danny felt the need to bite his tongue. He had seriously hoped McGarrett wouldn't notice that apparently he had already asked around about him. But of course he did...
"You checked up on me?" he asked.
"Uhm... well, it's not as if I had run your prints or checked your drivers license, but I couldn't help to at least read the statement you gave at HQ the other day and talk to the Sergeant. A Navy SEAL, huh?" He couldn't help but becoming aware of the admiring tone his voice had suddenly adopted.
"Just for the record – I don't have a driver's license. Well, not any more." Steve stated, taking another bite.
Danny stiffened. Stupid, stupid, stupid... he admonished himself.
But instead of getting angry or annoyed with him, the dark haired man grinned. "Might be safer for everyone if I just take the bus", he teased. Danny breathed a sigh of relief, which of course the other one picked up on. "Don't worry, Detective, I'm not easily offended. Little slip-ups are allowed. Just don't walk me into a tree or something if you ever end up being my sighted guide."
Danny nodded.
"Are you nodding? Cause I can't tell."
The Detective groaned, but Steve just laughed it off. "Come on, let's see if we can get our hands on one of Akoni's fantastic hamburgers. Best on the island. Oh, by the way, the name's Steve," he held out a hand.
"Danny."
"Welcome to Hawaii." And with that, Steve stood up, let his cane unfold, and started making his way over towards the BBQ. "You coming, Danny?"
Kono watched from the lanai. It seemed she had done some good. Steve and Danny had been sticking together for almost half an hour now. She had resisted the urge to eavesdrop, but their conversation seemed to be easy-going, both men were relaxed and held a beer in their hands.
"How's it going, cuz? Admiring your work?" Chin had approached her from behind.
"Huh?"
"Come on, you're not telling me that you didn't plan this when you introduced the two of them? You've been dying to set Steve up for a while now. But with my partner? I sure hope those two get along, otherwise it could mean trouble."
"Have not. … OK, maybe just a little bit. But you have to admit they'd make a cute couple. And it's not as if they didn't know each other, Danny's the Detective on the attack on Steve..."
"He is? How did I not know that? I'm his partner." Chin was puzzled. Partners were supposed to know what the other one was involved in.
"Ah, cuz, don't blame Danny. You told me yourself how busy the two of you were with that drug murder. He must have forgotten to tell you about it, it's not as if Steve's case needed any 'real' Detective work, is it?"
Chin sighed. "Yeah, you're probably right."
"Aaaanyway... as I was trying to say... Danny's also been on the beach last week when I met up there with Steve. And I was preeettty sure he was checking him out. Looking at the way Danny's ogling up Steve now, I'd say I was right."
"Ogling him? That might stretch it a bit. But yeah, he looks interested.", Chin smiled. "Keep me in the loop on what's happening, OK?"
"Sure thing." Kono grinned, watching her cousin heading back into the yard, entertaining his guests.
"...so when you're not hanging out with Kono on the beach or assisting the police in catching street robbers... what do you do?" Danny asked.
"Well, as I told you last week, I'm a Lieutenant Commander with the Navy. My current day job is being an administrator for one of the rehab programmes at Tripler, helping wounded and recovering servicemen and their families. Not as much excitement as the stuff I did before this", he waved a hand before his eyes, "but a rewarding job. And, being pretty much a 9 to 5 job, it leaves me with enough time for swim training."
"Working to keep in shape?" Danny asked, casting an approving look at the other man's trained body.
"Not really. It's of course a neat side effect, but actually I'm training to compete in the Paralympics next summer." Steve told him proudly.
"The what?"
"The Paralympic Games?" When Danny gave no sign of recognition, Steve explained. "It's like the Olympic Games, only for people with disabilities. They're held a few weeks after the Olympics, and my coach and I are working on getting me there."
"That's... wow." Danny marvelled. "That sounds amazing. And that's next summer?"
"Hm... only if I get through the trials though. That's what I'm training for these days. Today's the only leisure day I'll be allowed for quite a while. Tomorrow I'm back in the pool, doing laps."
"Your coach sounds like a strict guy."
"Oh, it's not just Joe. You don't become a SEAL without hard work, so I'm used to this. I actually like it. Just sitting flat on my butt all day just isn't for me, I need the exercise..."
Danny decided to take a risk. "Can't say that the result of that work doesn't suit you", he said.
'There we go. Guess Kono was right about him', Steve thought, and took the bait. "You think so?" He gave a lopsided grin into Danny's direction, who grinned back.
"Hell, yes. Those abs are... pretty spectacular. As is the rest of your body."
"Thanks. A combination of good genes and military training, I guess... I've got the impression that you're no slouch yourself."
"I'm really not, thank you very much." Danny replied indignantly. "Contrary to popular belief, the job description of a police detective does not include the consumption of ridiculous amounts of doughnuts, and running after suspects is so much easier if you subject yourself to regular training."
"I'm sure it is. So what's it you're doing apart from the weightlifting?" Steve asked.
"How much has Kono been telling you about me?" Danny asked incredulously. "I mean, how can you possibly know about the weights?"
"You forget that I already had the pleasure of holding on to your arms last week.", Steve's voice dropped to a whisper. "And I better tell you now that I really enjoyed what my hands felt there."
"Well, if that is so", Danny whispered back, "then maybe we should meet again, and get to know each other better. You know... without being watched by half of my colleagues and your friends...?"
"I'd like that. I'd really like that, Danny," Steve answered with an honest smile. All Danny could do was smile back.
