By the Beach, Friday, August 20, 2021

[grenadesandohana]

Steve had finished up at paintball and decided to take the long way home. Strange dreams seemed to have been going around--he hadn't mentioned it to Danny or anything--and his had left him twitchy and restless. A trip to the water always calmed him down and he could feel his spirit settling just from the sound of the crashing waves, even if they weren't as impressive as the ones he saw from the beach at his house at home.

He took his shoes off so that he could walk along with his feet in the surf, and froze when his casual glance to the porg condo that had become of the chairs that had appeared with him from Hawai'i had someone sitting in them.

"Holy shit."

Comments

[hawaii_5ohana]

Well, they were his deck chairs originally. Even if they had way too many strange little birds on them.

"Hey, Steve," John said, trying to not, you know, spook his son with being there and all.

[grenadesandohana]

Steve stood frozen like an idiot with feet getting hit by waves. "Dad?"

Had he been kidnapped and tortured again?

[hawaii_5ohana]

Oddly enough, no!

"It's me," he said in that one 'it's okay, I'm a cop' tone. Because caring dad tone was harder for him to do.

Unless it was with Chin.

[grenadesandohana]

"I don't understand," Steve said, staying right where he was. "You've been dead for six years in a month."

Of course he knew how many days it was until then.

[hawaii_5ohana]

Yeah, that sounded like Steve.

"I know," John said, because he definitely remembered the dying part. "This is a sort of chance to get some closure."

Which was just hilarious for the McGarrett family.

[grenadesandohana]

Steve snorted. "No, but really. What are you here for?"

[hawaii_5ohana]

"I'm trying here, Steve," John said with an annoyed little exhale. "I know... I know it won't be enough to make up for things, but I want to try. While I can."

Maybe drop some cryptic shit to mess up your life for years to come. WAIT NO, THAT WAS DORIS.

[grenadesandohana]

Steve bit back a retort about how showing up six years post-death was almost the definition of too little, too late, so he was growing as a person. Maybe.

"Uh huh," he said instead, dropping into the other chair and frowning. "So try."

[hawaii_5ohana]

Something like it!

John let out a relieved little sigh that Steve had at least sat down next to him. "I see you've moved to the mainland," he said because emotions were hard and repression was all he knew. It was all he knew!

[grenadesandohana]

"Sort of," Steve said. "I work here and with the task force the governor set up in Honolulu after you died. Jameson was working with Wo Fat--did you know that?"

[hawaii_5ohana]

Did he? The show couldn't keep anything straight.

John let out a disappointed sigh. "I had begun to have my suspicions. You... know about Wo Fat?"

[grenadesandohana]

"Probably more than you do," Steve said. "He's dead, too."

Thank God he hadn't shown up. Steve would've had to kill him again and ruin the whole spirit of the weekend.

[hawaii_5ohana]

But they were brothers!

John nodded in understanding at that. "And your sister...?"

[grenadesandohana]

"Not dead," Steve said, then turned momentarily helpful. "She's fine. She adopted a little girl now named Joan."

[hawaii_5ohana]

"You're an uncle," John said, expression turning wistful. "That's good. Never really expected to have any grandkids."

[grenadesandohana]

"You didn't think I'd have kids?"

Steve, stop picking a fight.

[hawaii_5ohana]

"I thought you were more focused on your career in the Navy." But basically, yes.

[grenadesandohana]

"There are SEALs with kids, Dad. Freddie had a daughter."

He didn't ask if his father had run into Freddie...wherever he'd been hanging the last four years.

[hawaii_5ohana]

"I know that, Steve. I'm just saying that you're more... career focused." Than, you know, family focused.

He didn't say 'like your mother' but...

[grenadesandohana]

"Wonder where I might've learned that from," Steve said, giving him a side-eye.

[hawaii_5ohana]

"Yeah, I know," John said, deflating a little. "Do you have any pictures?"

Yes, show him the family he was missing out on.

[grenadesandohana]

"Of Joan?" Steve pulled his phone out, slid past the lock photo of him and Danny at the aquarium and flipped through what he'd saved on his phone.

"Here. She's walking. You can hear Mary cheering her on. There's more photos before and after. Mary sends tons."

The Joan pictures were interspersed with pictures that Grace had sent him from Honolulu, too, and photos of the task force.

[hawaii_5ohana]

John's expression lightened up considerably at the little video and then at the task force. "You're working with Chin? That's good. It wasn't right what they did to him."

[grenadesandohana]

"He's a good man," Steve agreed. "Speaks well of you. That's his cousin Kono, and that's my partner Danny Williams. The one in the back is Lou Grover, transplanted SWAT from Chicago."

[hawaii_5ohana]

"Your partner," John repeated under his breath, remembering that lock screen. "It's good that you have a team behind you."