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Chapter 3: Common Sense
May 31, 2010
Danny William's Camaro
As the sun was shining brightly overhead, Alexandra found herself really wishing she had a cigarette… or a gun. With a gun she would be able to end both Steve's and the blond detective's life and still walk away without anyone knowing that she pulled the trigger. The blonde detective, Danny Williams, was the third team member. He was from New Jersey, had a very low breaking point and was currently yelling at Steve for an incident involving him getting shot.
"Was it when a bullet was tearing through my flesh! Was that when I seemed sensitive to you?" she heard Danny scream at Steve who was sitting in the passenger's seat trying to think of what to say.
When team members couldn't get along in the CIA, Alexandra was used to be reassigned to new teams. If a team wasn't able to function as one unit, then it compromised the mission and the agents' handlers would discuss what course of action they should take concerning the team. Most of the time, the decision to tear the disgruntled team apart was the best one. However in this situation, Alexandra saw something in both men, something that let her know everything would work out… even if Steve was the reason Danny took a bullet.
"You know I am really happy you are not afraid of anything. I'm glad that you have that G.I Joe, thousand yards stare from chasing shoe bombers from around the world," Danny continued to argue, "But in civilized society we have rules. It is the unspoken glue that separates us from jackals and hyenas!"
"Jackals and hyenas"? Steve asked incredulously as Alexandra became more engrossed in their argument.
Jackals and hyenas? Alexandra thought about Danny's point.
"The animal planet, whatever. The point is, rule number one, if you get someone shot, you apologize!" he shouted as Steve mumbled something Alexandra couldn't make out, "You don't wait for a special occasion, like birthdays or freaking Presidents Day-"
"Hey man, I'm sorry, I'm sincerely sorry, that's what I was trying to tell you, when this conversation first started, last year." Steve apologized as Danny looked over.
Alexandra couldn't help but smile at the exchange the two men had. Danny was probably going to suffer some type of aneurysm from snapping so spontaneously and Steve sat there listening to the angry detective. She had to applaud both of them, they knew how to argue like two women who wanted the same pair of shoes.
"Your apology is noted, acceptance is pending." Danny said.
"You let me know now."Steven said cuing Alexandra to state her opinion on what they should do next.
"Now that we all know how we all feel, gentlemen, would it be possible to, oh I don't know, try and find Victor Hesse?" she asked trying very hard not to tell them how ridiculous their argument was.
"We need to make a stop, turn left here," Steve informed as Danny turned on his blinker.
Alexandra slumped back down in the backseat and looked out of Steve's window. By chance she caught his eye in the side mirror, making her heart rate go out of control. She knew she was blushing, but she didn't want to look away. Looking into Steve's eyes (or the reflection of his eyes) made her remember all the heart spilling conversations she had with him that long time ago; the way he made her feel like she was the greatest girl in the world…
As Alexandra laid on her green towel on the beach of North Shore, the sun's rays were beating down on her. She was wearing jean shorts and a loose, white V-neck in order to avoid criticism over her body (she was pale and her bikini wasn't exactly the most flattering piece she owned).
She thought of why she had driven so far away from home. She needed to get away from the craziness that her aunt was putting her through. Not only that, but her sick sister in law (honestly, sick in paradise?) and her brothers… who currently thought that a nice welcome back home gift would be to put Alexandra through listening to them argue. The heat made everything ten times worse for her.
This heat is ridiculous, she thought as she sat up only to be greeted by the image of Steve McGarrett walking towards her in red swim trunks.
Her heart began to beat faster as she realized Steve was here, at the same beach as she was at. She put her sunglasses on, laid back down and thought of all the possible ways that could have made this situation happen.
"Alexandra?" she heard Steve's voice.
She heaved herself onto her elbows and took off her glasses.
"Steve?" she asked, still surprised that he was at North Shore. "Are you here alone?"
"I came here with my dad," he explained. "He wanted to go swimming."
Alexandra furrowed her brows, "Don't you have a beach in your backyard?"
"I told him that, but I guess he just wanted to be around people," Steve hypothesized with a very troubled look on his face.
"Oh," Alexandra nodded her head as curiosity took over her heart. "Steve, are you okay?"
"Yeah, I'm fine, it turns out this day might not be so bad after all," Steve replied sending her one of his half-smiles.
Alexandra blushed wishing she could tell him how much she liked him. How, when he talked to her, she felt luckier than any queen or princess. How, when he stood next to her, she could barely breathe and thought she would faint. All of these thoughts ran through her mind as Steve's dad was finally coming close to the duo.
"Making friends, Steve?" John McGarrett asked his son.
"Remember Alexandra, dad?" Steve reminded.
"Little Alexandra? The little blonde girl who got into trouble all the time?" John asked making her think of how she was always meddling in someone's affairs.
"You could say that," Alexandra stood up to not feel discomfited. "It's nice to see you again."
"It's good to see you too," John smiled. "I hope you don't get in trouble for breaking your neighbor's window again."
Alexandra winced at that memory; the neighbor was a grouchy old woman and when Alexandra accidently sent Max's soccer ball flying towards the window, the woman called HPD and John McGarrett was the officer who responded to the call (he was training a rookie… Jin or Gin, something like that).
"Oh, I don't plan on it," Alexandra laughed.
"Old lady Mana deserved it, dad," Steve interjected. "She put something one Alexandra's record for no reason!"
Alexandra was touched that Steve thought she didn't deserve the offense (which was dropped); it felt like he was supporting her, something she wanted for a long time.
"I'm going to set up shop over there, kid," John informed Steve as Steve nodded and waved his dad away.
"So what brought you to North Shore?" Steve asked.
"I wanted to get away from Krystyna being drunk, Leah being sick and my brother's arguing," Alexandra revealed. "I feel like its all my fault."
"Because you left?"
"Yeah."
"You were forced to leave, it isn't your fault," Steve comforted making her feel better about the entire ordeal.
"Yes, but I could have fought harder to stay. Like everyone says, when it comes down to it, you decide for yourself," she posed.
"Nothing would have prevented that, Alexandra," he countered as butterflies fluttered…no, pounded her stomach with their wings.
"Why can't people be more like you?" she blurted out.
She wanted to bury herself in the sand. Did she really just ask Steve McGarrett that?
"Because then you'd like them more than me," he replied as the feeling in her stomach intensified.
"Oh, you think I like you?" she …flirted?
"Well, it's common sense-"
"Common sense?" Alexandra mocked.
"Yeah. We get along so well, our conversations flow. We look great together," Steve explained jokingly. "Common sense."
Alexandra stared at him, trying to keep a straight face, but then erupted into a fit of laughter. His jokes made her wish that they were true. It felt like all that was stopping her from telling Steve was her fear of being rejected by him.
"You've been in the Navy for way to long," she laughed. "All that water is starting to mess with your head."
"My head?" he asked incredulously.
"Yeah," Alexandra replied.
"Well, it's going to mess with your head too!" Steve shouted, lifting Alexandra over his shoulder and running towards the water.
Alexandra let out a yelp when he lifted her. It was unexpected, but she loved it.
"I'm in shorts!"
"So! You're at the beach, you're in Hawaii!"
…
"Alexandra?" Danny asked breaking her out of reminiscing about the day at the beach. She saw that the car was parked in front of a gift shop for the Pearl Harbor guide. Steve was out of the car, already halfway to the gift shop.
"Sorry, I was thinking about common sense," she explained.
"Common sense would be useful, especially since I don't know why anyone would want a souvenir from Hawaii," Danny explained in a half angry-half sarcastic tone.
Alexandra smiled, "Some people like it here."
"They're delusional, like SEAL boy," Danny responded in the same tone making Alexandra laugh this time. "The water messes with his head," Alexandra informed; once again, thinking of the time she was on the beach with Steve.
It must have messed with mine too…