Disclaimer: Ideas are fictional; not making any money on this. Hawaii 5-0 belongs to CBS. That's okay because none of this would work on TV.
Despite spending most of yesterday in the kitchen, there was still much to be done. Steve volunteered to cook the cranberry sauce while Danny snapped the green beans. Mom had a can of the jellied stuff in the fridge for the diehards who insisted that cranberry sauce must be shaped like a can. Dad helped Mom cut up fresh fruit for a salad. They all helped peel potatoes; the baby carrots just need to be rinsed before cooking.
Guests started arriving around 2 p.m. The guest list had grown to twenty-two; Wade Gutches called and asked if there was room for two more from SEAL Team 9. The men had arrived early for a training assignment due to unavailability of seats on a later flight. Steve said that they would be proud to have two more SEALs at the table.
Chin and Malia arrived first with their sweet potato casserole. Steve tucked it in a warm spot until the turkeys were done. Kono and Charlie were right behind them; Kono found a spot in the fridge for the haupia. None of the Williams had eaten haupia before, and Mom insisted on the recipe before she left for home.
Max and Lori also arrived together; apparently Max had offered Lori a ride. Steve wondered if the two were seeing each other; Lori seemed to enjoy movie night at Max's house. Max brought several bottles of assorted wine. "I wasn't sure exactly what would go with turkey, and the gentleman at the wine shop recommended these."
Steve accepted the bottles and put them in the fridge to chill. "Thanks Max. I'm sure they'll be great." Steve was relieved that Max had accepted their apology for missing movie night. Steve never knew what to expect from Max, but he knew that he could count on him for help when he needed it.
Mary came next with her friend, Rebecca. Rebecca had only met Mary last year, but they had become good friends and stayed in touch when Mary returned to L.A. She didn't have any family in the area and was grateful for a place to share Thanksgiving. Joe and Wade Gutches arrived with the guests from SEAL Team 9. Lt. Jacks, the man Steve had rescued in mid-air, was accompanied by his wife, Marina, and six months old son, Jared. Marina gave Steve a long hug, thanking for him for saving her husband.
Steve, Danny, Mom, and Dad had a long discussion earlier in the week to decide how to best accommodate the large crowd. Everyone agreed that they wanted all the guests in one area. The study was part of the large area that also included the dining room. Steve thought that if he emptied the study of furniture, it would create enough space for extra tables. Chin canvassed his extended family found a couple of extra tables and a dozen chairs for the day. They had been delivered around noon, just after the men had moved everything out of the study. When they moved the kitchen set into the large dining area, there would be enough seating for their guests.
Steve did an inventory of Mom's china cabinet and found three sets of china, much to his surprise. Mom examined the sets closely. "Steve, this set was popular when Dad and I were married. Your parents probably received them as wedding presents. These other sets are much older. I bet they belonged to your grandparents originally. They're in excellent condition and probably very valuable. Are you sure you want to use them?"
Steve didn't have to think twice. "Mom, I've never even seen these dishes. My mother was always afraid to use the good china. I don't know what she was waiting for. Our guests today are my family; they risked everything to save my life and bring me home. Of course I want to use them. Bring all of them out. We have several tablecloths in the sideboard. I want everything to look nice."
There was a flurry of last minute activity in the kitchen. The sweet potatoes were in the oven warming. Danny was finished the gravy while Dad mashed the potatoes. Mom was at the stove glazing the carrots. The turkeys were covered and sat on the counter, waiting to be carved. Steve wasn't sure how they were going to get everything finished before the hot foods were cooled.
Steve looked up to see Mary, Chin, Kono, Lori, and Rebecca standing in the doorway. Before he knew what was happening, Mary started issuing orders. The cranberry sauce and fruit salads were pulled out of the fridge and distributed to the two long rows of tables. Dad had finished with the potatoes and readied the turkeys for carving. "Steve, I'll do this one and you do the other. We'll have these birds carved in no time."
By the time that the turkey was piled on the platters, the remainder of the hot food was on the table. The bread had been sliced and the wine poured. Even baby Jared had a spot at the table. Everyone oohed and aahed when Dad and Steve carried the turkey in. Rather than assign seating, the guests were asked to take any empty seat. The 5-0 team was mixed among the SEALs who were mixed among the Williams and McGarretts. There was no my family or your family or guests. They were all just family.
Before he left the kitchen, Danny asked Steve if he could say the blessing. It had been a long time since Danny had prayed. Now, he started each day with a prayer of thanks for the blessings he had received. He wanted to share that with his family today.
As Danny stood at the end of one of the tables, everyone quieted. "Steve and I want to thank everyone for sharing Thanksgiving with us. If everyone would join hands and bow your heads please." Danny paused, then started the blessing. "Lord, we thank you for the presence of our family today. We ask you to bless those who serve our country and cannot be with their families. We ask you to bless those who will not have enough to eat today or a place to sleep tonight. Please bless this food. Amen."
Every man and woman added their amen. Then bowls and platters were passed around the tables. There were a lot of compliments on the bread and the stuffing. Danny even tried the Hawaiian stuffing and pronounced it not an abomination. It was Steve's first Thanksgiving meal in almost twenty years. He caught Mary's eye and knew she was thinking the same thing. He raised his wine glass in salute; Mary raised hers in return.
"Boss, did you and Danny really prepare most of the meal? Have you been holding out on us?" Kono couldn't believe how wonderful everything tasted. Steve often manned the grill for their cookouts, but this meal went way beyond slapping some meat or fish over the coals.
Mom answered for Steve. "Yes Kono, they did all the work. I just supervised. Wait until you taste the pies. Didn't the bread come out nicely?"
"Do you mean to tell me that you boys baked the bread? I thought you picked it up at a bakery. I was going to ask for the name of the place." Joe was really surprised. The whole afternoon had been a surprise. The house was immaculate; the dining room was set up like a fine restaurant with china and wine glasses. It was the best Thanksgiving meal he had eaten since his second marriage; that wife was a gourmet cook.
"Yes, we baked the bread. We made the pies. Mom was a real slave driver." Danny raised his wine glass in salute to Mom. Everyone joined raised their glasses to join him, causing Mom to blush.
Dinner lasted almost an hour. No one was in a hurry to leave the table. Many of the bowls were empty. It was a unanimous vote to delay dessert until the meal had a chance to settle. When Steve and Danny finally rose to start clearing the plates, they were surprised to see everyone help out. SEAL Team 9 insisted on washing and drying the dishes. "We appreciate the meal, sir. You said that we're family. That means we help in the cleanup." Steve couldn't argue with that.
Mom organized packing up the leftovers. She must have been a drill sergeant in a former life. It took almost another hour before the kitchen was squared away. Mary was rocking baby Jared in the living room. Steve thought that she looked like a natural with the baby in her arms. "It looks good on you Mary. Have you ever thought about settling down?"
"Actually, I thought both of us would end up old and alone. Lately, I've been thinking that if you could find someone, there might be hope for me. There's a guy I've been seeing. He says he loves me, but I just couldn't believe him." Mary looked wistful as she thought about her guy.
"Do you love him?" This was the most personal conversation he had ever shared with Mary.
"Yeah, I think I do. I was just thinking that I wished he had come with me. I want you to meet him."
"Will you bring him at Christmas? Or can he come over for the ceremony? I would love to meet him. What's his name?" Steve wanted to know more about the man who loved his sister.
"His name is Scott, and he's a financial analyst. He's a little younger than I am, but it doesn't bother him. I met him right after I went back to L.A. We have some mutual friends. Are you sure you wouldn't mind if I brought him home next month?" Mary really wanted Scott with her for the ceremony. She hated to go to weddings alone.
"Mary, if he's special to you, then he's family. We're having a planning session for the wedding tomorrow morning. Will you come and help us?"
"I'd love to, big brother. And I've already booked Scott's ticket. We're spending Christmas with his family, and then we plan on flying over on the 26th. I want to show him around the island. Can we stay here?"
"Of course you can. The Williams have booked several rooms at the Hilton. Mom and Dad want to stay with Danny's sisters, so the guest room will be open. Have you been upstairs since I fixed up our rooms? I replaced the bedding and painted the rooms." Steve wanted Mary to consider this her home, even though he had bought out her share.
"Yes, I took Rebecca up to show her my old room. You did a good job on it. It's the perfect room for Grace. I think that I'm going to put this little guy down. He's out for the count." Mary put Jared in the little travel crib that his parents had put up in the corner of the living room.
Steve looked around to see that most of the family had spilled outside. Some were sitting on the lanai. Lt. Jacks and his wife were strolling hand-in-hand down by the beach. Wade was telling Danny's parents about Steve's mid-air rescue of the SEAL. Chin and Malia were chatting with some of the SEALs. Max and Lori were discussing a movie with Kono and Charlie.
Grace was upstairs talking to Rachel and Stan. She had chatted with them on her laptop a couple of times using her new webcam so they could see each other. Grace talked to them on her cell on the other days. She loved having the house so full of people. It was like the old days when she lived with Danny and Rachel in New Jersey. They would go to Nana's and Poppa's for Thanksgiving, and the whole clan would be there. This was better because the last time they were together like that, her mommy had been angry with Danno. Everybody was happy today.
Around six o'clock, everyone magically assembled around the tables again. Coffee and tea had been brewed. The pies were sliced and distributed. Most opted for the traditional pumpkin pie, but most of the chocolate and cranberry-apple pie were gone. Kono's island dessert was a big hit. The cookies that Grace made from the leftover pie dough were also very popular. The family lingered over dessert; no one was in a hurry to leave.
Lt. Jacks and his family were the first to leave. It was the baby's bedtime, and he was getting fussy. The others left shortly after that. Mary hugged Steve tightly and promised to be back in the morning if breakfast was involved. Rebecca had to work, and she would be alone otherwise. Besides she had a wedding to help plan. Steve and Danny were on hand to thank their family for sharing the day. Finally, it was just the five of them again.
Danny sent Grace up to get her shower while the rest of them cleaned up after dessert. They shook out the tablecloths and disassembled the extra tables. Then the men moved the kitchen table back and brought the study furniture back in. I was almost nine o'clock by the time that the work was done. Mom had gone up to read to Grace, and then they all went up to tuck her into bed.
Steve brought a round of beers out to the living room where they were sprawled on the couch and the recliner. "Wow, that was amazing. I don't think I've ever been so tired or so happy. Mom, thank you for teaching us how to make Thanksgiving dinner. I have new respect for moms everywhere who do this year in and year out. Dad, we couldn't have done it without you either. Danny, we did good."
Danny clicked bottles with Steve and agreed. "Yeah, it was great. Mom and Dad, it's been great to have you here. I'm really going to miss you when you go back to Jersey. At least I know that you'll be back after Christmas."
They watched the football recaps and then some reruns. Finally, they got up the energy to go upstairs. The showers were busy, and then everything was quiet. The scent of turkey and spices still lingered in the air. The love shared by all those present that day would last much longer.
Steve and Danny were curled around each other. They were so tired, but neither wanted the day to end. Steve was stroking Danny's side, stopping every now and then to kiss Danny. Danny was almost asleep. "Love you Steve," was all Danny could say before he finally dropped off to sleep. Steve kissed Danny one last time, and then he was asleep too.
