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Title: The Way We Were
Fandom: Hawaii Five-0
Characters: Steve, Grace
Rating: G
Word count: ~850
Summary: Grace comes home to get married, and have a conversation with Steve; contains past main character death
This is part of what's fast becoming its own universe:
Three Times...
Shore Leave
Crisis Response
Coming Home
The Way We were
Steve knew Grace was coming back to the islands a week before her wedding – he and Rachel talk all the time now that Danny's gone, Stan and Rachel are divorced and Charlie's at college in California. He's still a little surprised when she appears on the beach behind his house, a little after dinner.
"Gracie!" He pulls himself to his feet, awkward in the sand when his leg doesn't take his weight straight away.
"Hey, Uncle Steve." Grace throws herself carefully into his arms, her head against his shoulder – he still can't believe, even now she's in her early twenties, how tall she is. She pulls back, grins at Steve when he holds her in place with a hand on her shoulder.
"Look at you. Happy to be back?"
"That your way of saying you missed me?" Grace asks. She sounds like Danny, looks like him when she smiles. Steve won't ever not hurt when he thinks that, but at least now he can keep smiling back at her. If that's as good as it's ever going to get, he'll take it.
"Nah. That's what the bottle of cider in the fridge is for."
Grace is darting away before Steve's even finished speaking, shouting, "I'll bring two glasses," over her shoulder.
Steve lowers himself carefully back into the chair, grinning out at the ocean. It's good to have her home.
*
They probably drink too much – they watch the sun sink below the horizon, and Steve loses track of how many trips Grace makes back into the house in between chatter about everything she's got to do before Sally flies in for the wedding in three days. Plus, his damaged leg isn't aching, despite how long they've been sitting on the beach, which almost certainly means he's drunk enough not to be feeling it.
It's as good an explanation as any for why, when Grace says, "Can I ask you something, Uncle Steve?" soft and quiet, Steve says, "Sure, honey."
"Do you remember Hannah?"
Steve nods – Hannah transferred to Grace's school when she was fifteen, a sweet, shy girl who became Grace's best friend and sole topic of conversation within weeks.
"I asked Danno whether I should ask her out, because we were friends." Grace picks at the label on an empty bottle, not meeting Steve's eyes. "He said I had to be careful, so that I didn't hurt her."
"Gracie," Steve says, not at all sure what he can say.
"He said he was – that he screwed up, he hurt someone he cared about. I thought he was talking about Mom." She puts the bottle down and twists round to look at Steve. "Except then you started seeing Uncle Mike."
Steve wishes, sudden and sharp, that Mike was back from Washington already. They've been living together for five years, known each other since they were younger than Grace, and the house doesn't feel like home without him any more. "Grace..."
"He was talking about you, right?"
"I don't know." Steve can't quite look at Grace, but he still feels her roll her eyes. "I don't, Grace. Maybe, I don't know."
"Something happened, though. You promised me I could always ask you anything – you said..."
I know I can't ever replace Danny, but if there's ever something you need that you can't go to your mom or Stan for, I'll always be here for you.
"You know I didn't mean my-" Steve stops himself from saying sex life. "You remember the year Charlie was born, when Aunty Jenna and I were hurt?"
Grace nods.
"Danny – we were all having a hard time, your dad thought I'd been killed. Do we have to talk about this, Grace?"
Steve feels too cold, though the night's warm. He still has nightmares about waking up after the accident, looking for Danny and being faced with Kono's red-rimmed eyes, Chin's voice cracking as he explained that Danny'd been killed.
"I wish Danno was here," Grace says softly.
Steve leans over, wincing with the movement, and wraps an arm around her shoulders. "I wish he was too."
There's a part of him that's always going to think he should have been the one to die, when Danny had Grace and Charlie. It's the same part that wishes he'd died along with Danny, that will never get used to Danny not being here.
Grace sniffs a bit, then pulls away, wiping her eyes with the back of her hand. "Kono and I are going surfing in the morning. You should come."
"I can't surf any more," Steve points out.
"Mom's coming to watch us, I meant you should come have coffee with her. She's having another baking phase, she's got chocolate muffins."
Steve reaches over to tug at a lock of Grace's hair, smiling when she bats his hand away. "How can I resist your mom's chocolate muffins?"
Grace leans over for another hug. "Love you, Uncle Steve."
"Love you too, honey," Steve says, and if it won't ever be quite right, Grace without Danny, if this is as good as it ever gets, he'll take it and be glad.
Fandom: Hawaii Five-0
Characters: Steve, Grace
Rating: G
Word count: ~850
Summary: Grace comes home to get married, and have a conversation with Steve; contains past main character death
This is part of what's fast becoming its own universe:
Three Times...
Shore Leave
Crisis Response
Coming Home
The Way We were
Steve knew Grace was coming back to the islands a week before her wedding – he and Rachel talk all the time now that Danny's gone, Stan and Rachel are divorced and Charlie's at college in California. He's still a little surprised when she appears on the beach behind his house, a little after dinner.
"Gracie!" He pulls himself to his feet, awkward in the sand when his leg doesn't take his weight straight away.
"Hey, Uncle Steve." Grace throws herself carefully into his arms, her head against his shoulder – he still can't believe, even now she's in her early twenties, how tall she is. She pulls back, grins at Steve when he holds her in place with a hand on her shoulder.
"Look at you. Happy to be back?"
"That your way of saying you missed me?" Grace asks. She sounds like Danny, looks like him when she smiles. Steve won't ever not hurt when he thinks that, but at least now he can keep smiling back at her. If that's as good as it's ever going to get, he'll take it.
"Nah. That's what the bottle of cider in the fridge is for."
Grace is darting away before Steve's even finished speaking, shouting, "I'll bring two glasses," over her shoulder.
Steve lowers himself carefully back into the chair, grinning out at the ocean. It's good to have her home.
*
They probably drink too much – they watch the sun sink below the horizon, and Steve loses track of how many trips Grace makes back into the house in between chatter about everything she's got to do before Sally flies in for the wedding in three days. Plus, his damaged leg isn't aching, despite how long they've been sitting on the beach, which almost certainly means he's drunk enough not to be feeling it.
It's as good an explanation as any for why, when Grace says, "Can I ask you something, Uncle Steve?" soft and quiet, Steve says, "Sure, honey."
"Do you remember Hannah?"
Steve nods – Hannah transferred to Grace's school when she was fifteen, a sweet, shy girl who became Grace's best friend and sole topic of conversation within weeks.
"I asked Danno whether I should ask her out, because we were friends." Grace picks at the label on an empty bottle, not meeting Steve's eyes. "He said I had to be careful, so that I didn't hurt her."
"Gracie," Steve says, not at all sure what he can say.
"He said he was – that he screwed up, he hurt someone he cared about. I thought he was talking about Mom." She puts the bottle down and twists round to look at Steve. "Except then you started seeing Uncle Mike."
Steve wishes, sudden and sharp, that Mike was back from Washington already. They've been living together for five years, known each other since they were younger than Grace, and the house doesn't feel like home without him any more. "Grace..."
"He was talking about you, right?"
"I don't know." Steve can't quite look at Grace, but he still feels her roll her eyes. "I don't, Grace. Maybe, I don't know."
"Something happened, though. You promised me I could always ask you anything – you said..."
I know I can't ever replace Danny, but if there's ever something you need that you can't go to your mom or Stan for, I'll always be here for you.
"You know I didn't mean my-" Steve stops himself from saying sex life. "You remember the year Charlie was born, when Aunty Jenna and I were hurt?"
Grace nods.
"Danny – we were all having a hard time, your dad thought I'd been killed. Do we have to talk about this, Grace?"
Steve feels too cold, though the night's warm. He still has nightmares about waking up after the accident, looking for Danny and being faced with Kono's red-rimmed eyes, Chin's voice cracking as he explained that Danny'd been killed.
"I wish Danno was here," Grace says softly.
Steve leans over, wincing with the movement, and wraps an arm around her shoulders. "I wish he was too."
There's a part of him that's always going to think he should have been the one to die, when Danny had Grace and Charlie. It's the same part that wishes he'd died along with Danny, that will never get used to Danny not being here.
Grace sniffs a bit, then pulls away, wiping her eyes with the back of her hand. "Kono and I are going surfing in the morning. You should come."
"I can't surf any more," Steve points out.
"Mom's coming to watch us, I meant you should come have coffee with her. She's having another baking phase, she's got chocolate muffins."
Steve reaches over to tug at a lock of Grace's hair, smiling when she bats his hand away. "How can I resist your mom's chocolate muffins?"
Grace leans over for another hug. "Love you, Uncle Steve."
"Love you too, honey," Steve says, and if it won't ever be quite right, Grace without Danny, if this is as good as it ever gets, he'll take it and be glad.
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