Hey, guys. So I'm cutting it very close to that one month mark here. I didn't really have any inspiration for this fic seeing as H50 wasn't fun anymore. That is, until Catherine came back. YES! Who else squealed in joy when she did?! I can't believe they just left us like that. Without Kono and Adam's wedding happening!

Anyways, here's where I shamelessly plug my other story. It was something I wrote when I couldn't find any ideas for this one. (Yes, it's McRoll.)

I hope you enjoy~

Disclaimer: I do not own the characters of Hawaii Five-0 that are mentioned in this fic, except for Mickey, Lasker, and Reeves.

Steve,

I've been gone for a very long time and I might be gone for much longer. There's certain secrets I have to keep. But I don't know how long it will be until by reservoir of luck runs out, but I know it's going to be soon. I wish we had more time. I wish we had done things differently, but I don't regret any of it. Except maybe this. But I have to do this. I have to protect our ohana and I have to protect you. I hope you can forgive me one day and if you're reading this…

I love you. Goodbye.

Steve sat on one of the Adirondack chairs that decorated his back porch as he looked out onto the horizon, night had fallen and the moon's reflection on the water, illuminated his private beach. He held a letter in his hands – not his mother's, he would save that for another time. His former brothers in arms had dropped off this letter they had found in her personal effects she had had on her when she was rescued. The envelope had been torn and stained with blood, but the letter was fairly intact, enough for him to be able to read it. It looked as if it was written hastily, the messy scrawl contrasting from her usually neat handwriting. His thumb ran over the crinkled circles and smudged ink where he assumed her tears had fallen.

The bright side, he surmised, would have to be that he knew she was still alive while he was reading this. And the thought of her gone without so much of a chance to say goodbye to her devastated him.

He had spent the whole day just pacing back and forth anxiously, trying to figure out what to say to Ellie. That is until Mickey, Lasker, and Reeves came over. And now, with the letter and the necklace in his hands, his decision was even more fermented. But, to execute that decision was so much harder to accomplish.

He heard the door to the front entrance close shut and he knew it was now or never. Pocketing the necklace and tucking the letter safely in one of his many pockets of his cargo pants, he bravely walked towards the living room.

He hadn't seen Ellie in a couple of days because she was too consumed at work, but he had managed to get her here so that they could talk.

"Ellie?" He called out. As he entered the living room, he found her sitting on the couch, eyes red-rimmed and hurt etched into her features. Sighing, he took a seat on the couch next to her. "You know, don't you?"

She gave a slight nod. "I was with Catherine after her deposition. I told her to tell me. I needed to know."

He bowed his head, "I should've told you. I'm sorry."

Taking a breath, she looked up at the ceiling, "I should've known. Maybe my subconscious knew, but I chose to block out all the warning signs."

Steve looked at her, "It's not your fault. It's mine. And I'm so sorry that I hurt you. I never meant to hurt you. I didn't know this was going to happen. If I did, maybe I would've done things differently. Maybe you would've been spared from this hurt."

Sniffling, she nodded, "Yeah, me too."

"I'm sorry, Ellie," he apologized. "I'm so sorry."

.

"Is Catherine here?" Steve was greeted with the sight of his former team as he stood on the doorway to Catherine's home.

Mickey gave a little smile, "Yeah she's just in her room." He stepped aside to let him enter.

Lasker gave a comforting pat to his back as he said, "We'll leave you two alone." He pulled Reeves and Mickey out of the house with him, closing the door shut.

"Who's at the door?" Catherine's voice drifted into the room as she stepped out from her bedroom. "Steve," she breathed. "Um, wha-what are you doing here?"

He didn't respond to her, so they stood like that in the silence for a few moments. He watched her as she shifted uncomfortably in her spot.

"Erm, would you like some tea? I have green tea and I know that's your favorite, so I could make it for you if you wa-"

He let himself smile as she rambled on. Taking out the letter, he cut her off, "The boys came over yesterday and gave me this." He stepped forward and shrugged, "I guess they saw it in your personal affects and thought it would be best if they gave it to me. I'm sorry if that's not what you wanted, but I mean it was addressed to me, so I guess that's what they assumed…" He trailed off, noticing that she was reaching for the letter.

"I'm really glad you didn't die."

Her laugh was gravelly as she took the small piece of paper from his hands. "Yeah, me too." She froze as he wiped away the tears that were now flowing freely from her eyes. She was so much stronger than this.

She had no idea why she was crying. Maybe because she finally addressed her capture and torture, the floodgates of emotion had opened. Months of keeping her problems inside had finally found their way to the surface.

"I'm sorry, I don't know why I'm even crying…" She placed the letter on an end table next to her couch as she wiped the tears on her cheeks with her hand.

Following her movement, he was silent behind her. Her back was towards him as she wiped away more tears. He came out from behind her and stood in front of her, encasing her in a hug. Her arms found their way around his body before she even registered it. She had missed the feeling of being ensconced in his arms.

"Don't be sorry. Ever. If you need to cry, cry until you can't cry anymore. If you need to scream, scream as loud and as much as you can until your throat is sore. If you just need someone, I'll be here."

He held her tighter and kissed the side of her head. The small and familiar action let open the rest of the floodgates. "I missed you," her voice cracked. "I missed you so much."

He let out a shaky breath and closed his eyes, finally content. "I missed you too. You don't know just how much I missed you."

This time, she held him tighter, her head resting on his chest, listening to the slightly-faster-than-normal heartbeat. "It was so bad."

"I know," he said encouragingly. He had been in her shoes far too many times before and she had been the one to pick up the pieces. And he had been to catch her every time she fell too. And he would be here this time too. "So cry. And scream and yell and laugh and everything else. I'll be right here. Everything won't be okay for a long time, but I'll be right here and we can work on it together."

He nodded against his chest. "I have this feeling that I'll be having a nightmare tonight," she admitted.

He pulled back to look at her, "You haven't had one nightmare?" She shook her head. Even he had nightmares. Of losing her.

"Cath..."

"I know."

He pulled her in for another hug. "Then, I'll be there to wake you up from your nightmares too. Just like always."

A long moment of comfortable silence and her sniffles filled the room before she pulled away from her, wiping her tears on the sleeves of her sweater. "I'm guessing this means that you broke up with Ellie."

"I did," he nodded. "It was wrong for me to lead her on like that." She nodded in response.

"Sorry about your shirt."

He looked down at his shirt, now wet with her tears. He chuckled, "It's okay. I can always buy a new one."

"So what do we do now?" She asked, her voice quiet.

"We live. We live knowing that we'll always be there for one another."

She laughed at him, "When did you become so cliché?"

Steve shrugged. "I don't know," he smiled at her teasing. He reached into his pocket and moved closer towards her. "I have another one, if you don't mind." He walked behind her and parted her hair, allowing him to clasp the necklace around her neck.

Smiling, she turned back to face him, her hand tracing the familiar outline of the necklace.

"Right where it belongs," he breathed.

She smiled at him lovingly, but in an instant, it turned into a grin. "All these clichés are making my head hurt." She walked away from him, heading towards the bedroom, acting as if she was fed up with him.

"What? I'm trying to be sentimental here!" He retorted back, his smile still in place.

"This isn't a fairytale, McGarrett!" She teased back, still walking away from him.

A second later, he pulled her flush towards him and in his best husky voice, he said, "It's our fairytale."

Cringing, she looked at him, "You did not."

He nodded, keeping his serious face as he leaned towards her, "I just did."

She laughed out loud at his acting, "I can't believe you just did. Oh my God, what am I getting into? I should just-"

Her next words were swallowed down as his lips pressed firmly against hers, sending chills down her spine. She had missed this feeling for the longest time. She pressed back, memorizing every curve and line of his mouth. Her teeth gently scraped his lower lip as she embraced him tighter.

When they parted, lips swollen and cheeks pink, she searched his eyes. "What happens next?"

He closed the door behind them with his free hand and walked them backwards towards her bed. "Now, we make up for lost time." He grinned devilishly at her and she grinned back, capturing his lips with hers again. She could get used to his clichés.

A/N: Thanks for reading! I didn't really see it ending here, but it just sort of happened. Thank you so much for the lovely reviews and support that you have given me for this fic thus far and if you don't mind writing another review... Well, you know how that story goes.

Thanks so much, again!

P.S: Oh, see how many NCIS:LA references can you catch?