In case you guys aren't sick of these yet... This one makes a lot more sense if you've read A Little Something Sweet, which can be found on AO3.
Chapter 7: A Little Something Sweet
Dinner's a riot.
The look on Isaac's face when Tutu calls Danny and Kalea in to help set the table – a tradition: the cook doesn't set the table; and Danny's not sure Isaac is physically capable of not helping – and he sees the food already out on the table is priceless. Danny can practically hear the Hallelujah Chorus, and Tutu's not even done yet.
She just keeps appearing more food out of different places in the kitchen, and each time, Isaac's eyes get a little wider. So does Danny's smile, because he's actually really looking forward to this. No-one so far has ever been a match for Tutu's cooking, but Isaac pretty much skipped lunch, and Danny's sure that black hole's got to be feeling pretty empty.
Should be fun.
"Danny, could you bring in a couple extra chairs from the lanai?" Tutu asks. There are only four around the kitchen table, and there are six of them. And somehow, Danny thinks volunteering to sit in Isaac's lap might not be taken with quite the humor it's intended, so he nods.
Out of the corner of his eyes, he sees Isaac about to volunteer to do it, but he flashes him a look like, 'down boy, I got this' and Isaac huffs and tries – and fails – to look annoyed as he goes back to carrying plates to the table. He's barely made it out to the back door, though, out to the lanai, when he catches Isaac watching him with a smile.
Seems Danny's not the only one that can't hold a grudge.
He does take pity on him when he gets back inside with the chairs, passing off one to Isaac so he can put it on the right side of the table. It'll be a bit of a tight fit with six, but it won't be the first time. Tutu just tells everyone to act like they love each other, and no matter how cranky they are from the flight or whatever the heck else, they do, because, well, they do. That's the thing about Danny's family. They can be at each others' throats, like, sixty percent of the time, but they do love each other. Tutu's got a knack for making them remember that.
"That should do it," Tutu says as she sits a fruit platter down in the center of the table. With mango, pineapple, kiwi, strawberries, papayas, lychee, and a few ginger flowers for decoration, that's her idea of a center piece. She says vases are too distracting and just get in the way; fruit platters are practical. And it makes Danny smile, seeing the strawberries, because they're a new addition. Tutu makes the platter herself, out of everyone's favorite fruits.
Strawberries are Isaac's.
It's probably a good thing Tutu speaks when she does, because otherwise, Danny might've actually gotten a little bit emotional. And as understanding as Isaac is, it probably would've been hard to explain why he was getting mushy over strawberries.
"Okay, kiddies – someone go fetch the parentals!" His parents were napping, unwinding from a stressful day of transit.
Danny starts to say he will, but then Kalea bounces up and goes sprinting out of the room.
"Someone's eager to help," Tutu says.
"Someone's eager to eat," Danny amends. Isaac's still the king of appetites, but Kalea has to be going through some sort of growth spurt, because she seems to be hungry all the time. He remembers those days.
And then there are those that still haven't grown out of them. CoughIsaacCough.
"And she's not the only one," he adds, looking pointedly at Isaac, who's standing there with his hands in his jean pockets, staring at the food like he's willing it to be in his stomach, like, now. At Danny's voice, though, he looks up, and his lips curve up into that crooked smile, and he shrugs unapologetically.
"Well, we'll just have to change that, won't we?" Tutu says, flashing Isaac a wink and slipping past him to hang her apron up on the hanger. It's kind of weird, he thinks, for her not to follow something like that up with a pat on the head or a pinch on the cheek, because that's…that's Tutu. But he knows she's doing it on purpose, for Isaac's sake. In their last call before they came up, Danny kind of…he doesn't want to say warned, because it wasn't really a warning. There were just some things he didn't really want Tutu bringing up in dinner conversation – Isaac's family, for instance – right off the bat. He didn't mention any specifics, but then, he didn't have to. Tutu's got this weird sort of sixth sense about people. She just knows what to do. She doesn't press to hard, doesn't overstep; she just knows.
Danny told Isaac that once, and nearly laughed when Isaac said now he knew where Danny got it from. He tries, and okay, maybe he's pretty good with people, but he's no Tutu.
It was a heck of a compliment, though.
A few minutes later, Danny's parents wander in, and everyone sits down. They've got the dogs put up in Tutu's room so that they can eat in peace, and the dogs know better than to pitch fits – they know by now that they'll get scraps when they're cleaning up, so there's really no reason to bother – so the only noise is the patter of the rain outside, the occasional rumble of thunder, and light, pleasant conversations.
Inevitably, though, the conversation turns to Isaac.
"So, Isaac, tell us about yourself," Tutu says.
Danny groans and rolls his eyes. "And so it begins."
"I'm a grandmother, Danny; it's my job to ask that question. Honestly, it's practically an obligation."
Isaac, to his credit, just chuckles. "It's fine," he says. He's smiling, which Danny thinks is as much for everyone else's benefit as Danny's, but the knee that nudges his under the table is definitely for Danny's sake. Down boy, it says, I got this.
Touché.
"Well, I'm sixteen, going into my Junior year in high school. I'm a first line defender for the lacrosse team, I'm an okay student—"
"Better than okay," Danny interjects, and when Isaac glances over at him, he raises his eyebrows. "What? You are." He worked his lovely ass off the whole last quarter, made all A's in his classes except for a B in chemistry. If that's not better than okay, Danny really doesn't know what is.
Isaac chuckles, but he smiles at him, and under the table, he gives Danny's knee another affectionate nudge.
Meanwhile, across the table, Kalea's making gagging noises, until Leila tells her to stop with a very sagely, "One day, you'll understand."
"What about hobbies?" Tutu asks.
And the interrogation continues.
Isaac finishes chewing the bite of loco moco he'd just taken and takes a drink of water before he answers. "I like the outdoors," he says, and Danny has to cough so he doesn't laugh. He guesses that's a very euphemistic way of putting what he and the other wolves do. "You know…running, hiking, sports." He shrugs and takes another drink of water. "I play a little piano, read. Been helping a friend rebuild his house."
Which, can Danny just say, is better than cable television. Everyone gets together in the morning, all in varying versions of work clothes – Isaac, Scott, Stiles, Derek, and, oddly, Allison all show up in jeans and wifebeaters or t-shirts, whereas Lydia and Peter tend to show up in designer plaid – fixing up the place room by room once the professionals have done the stuff they dare not DIY. Peter spends half the time antagonizing Derek with little "helpful" suggestions that are probably just meant to tick Derek off. The fact that they usually are, in fact, helpful, only really makes them that much better. Meanwhile, Danny, Lydia, Allison, and Stiles spend half their time admiring Derek, Isaac, and Scott at work. Because seriously, wow…just wow.
But he digresses.
Danny takes a drink of water to disguise his literal gulp, and tries to focus on the conversation-slash-inquisition going on at the table. To her credit, Tutu's keeping it casual, and she's yet to ask him anything really pressing. Just stuff Isaac doesn't seem to mind answering. He has no doubt she knows exactly what that is, too.
"So, when did you decide you liked our Danny here?"
Or, you know, she could just ask something totally mortifying like that. That works, too.
But for all Danny's dying of embarrassment, Isaac just kind of smiles around another mouthful of rice – his second helping, Danny notices, and he's still going strong – chews, swallows, takes a drink, then answers. "I guess it was around Spring Break that we started getting close," he says. Because nothing brings people together like a supernatural killing spree and the cruel manipulation of Danny's best friend, who his current boyfriend nearly had to kill, and wow, the more Danny thinks about it, the more he realizes he will never ever tell his parents any of this. Not until they're too old to have him committed, at least. "But there wasn't really a lightbulb moment or anything. He was always kind of there, you know?"
And oh, that's new. Danny didn't know that. He just thought it was…recent. He means, Isaac was always kind of in his periphery; he didn't know it was a mutual thing.
Tutu's smiling and nodding, though, like she already knew the answer. Which gives Danny a really weird thought: maybe Tutu's psychic. That would explain the sixth sense thing, and coming from the boy who's currently dating a werewolf, stranger things have happened.
But no, he's pretty sure that's not the case. Tutu's just Tutu. She works in mysterious ways.
"Sometimes, that's just the way things are," she says, nodding. "That's how it was with Danny's grandfather. We grew up together, and one day, we just decided to get married." There's a smile on her face as she says it, warm and fond, and her face doesn't reflect any of the sadness Danny still feels spike in his chest when he thinks about Kuku.
A hand suddenly closes around his on his lap, and Danny glances over just in time to catch Isaac's gaze, just for a second, before he goes back to eating. When Danny starts to do the same, it's Tutu's eyes he catches, and she's got a knowing look to go along with that smile, now. He feels his cheeks heat up, and very pointedly goes back to eating.
Tutu seems to be satisfied with that, because she goes to asking Danny's dad about his work and the latest journal he's working on publishing. The rest of dinner passes like that, with light conversation, some jokes, and a frankly gratuitous amount of teasing from all parties.
When dinner's over, dessert included, Isaac has once again secured his victory in the battle of Man versus Food. Even Tutu seemed impressed after Isaac wolfed down – pun intended – a third helping of loco moco, and still had room for a very generous slice of Tutu's famous chocolate haupia pie. Danny was going to explain to him that it was essentially a chocolate and coconut pie, except a little more like heaven, but then he realized Isaac had already taken a bite, and didn't seem to need any explanation.
"It's good to see a boy with a healthy appetite," Tutu says as they work on cleaning up after dinner. It's just her, Isaac, and Danny; his parents and Kalea are in the living room, getting a head start on their food comas.
Usually, it's just Tutu cleaning on the first night, anyway. She'd chase them out with a spoon if they tried to help; it's the big dinner where everyone gets Shanghai'd into service. But as soon as everyone started getting up, Isaac started stacking plates to carry to the sink, and Tutu didn't say anything, just flashed Danny another one of those knowing looks and a nod. Clearly, Tutu approves. And Danny is incredibly relieved about that. "Kids today are always starving themselves."
Isaac comes up to her at the sink, balancing dishes on his arms like a pro. "Can't let food this good go to waste," he tells her as he sits them all down on the counter and goes back to get some more. Danny passes him on the way, and if his hands weren't full with casserole dishes and plates, he would totally fist bump him. He's definitely racking up the brownie points, and the best thing is, he's not even trying to get the brownie points; he means every compliment he gives, and all the stuff he's doing is stuff he does normally. Which is good, because if he was just sucking up, Danny has no doubt Tutu would smell it from a mile away.
As it is, she just grins one of her warm grins and glances over at Danny when he gets to the sink. "Ooh, I like this one, Danny," she says. "We might just have to keep him around."
"That's the plan." And as he's walking back over to the table, he catches Isaac grinning at him like a fool.
He grins right back, until a scratching at the door into Tutu's bedroom –it is indeed attached to the kitchen – kind of ruins the moment. Isaac's head snaps around at the sound of soft whines from behind the door.
"Oh, hush, Nani," Tutu chides, but then she sighs. "Would you boys mind handling this so I can take the dogs out?" At Isaac's confused look, she explains. "Poor old girl won't go out in the rain; I have to take her out with an umbrella before she'll leave the lanai."
And this time, when Isaac goes to volunteer, Danny doesn't stop him, because he was just about to do the same thing.
"I can take her out," he says.
Tutu cocks an eyebrow, one sudsy hand going to her hip. "You're just determined to be put to work, aren't you?" At which Isaac simply shrugs, earning himself a sigh from Tutu that doesn't sound nearly as exasperated as Danny thinks she's shooting for. "Alright," she says. "Just try to keep her over by the tree line. I like being able to walk out to the beach without going through a mine field, if you know what I mean."
Isaac must, because he chuckles and nods. "Yes, ma'am." And then he walks over to the door and lets the dogs out. Danny watches him take a knee as Nani and Kekipu come tearing out, and instantly, he's everybody's best friend. Isaac smiles, but—maybe it's just Danny's imagination, but he could swear he sees him frown, just for a second, before he pats Nani on her fawn-colored head and pushes himself to his feet. "Come on," he tells them, and they both trot behind him dutifully.
"Umbrella's outside by the door," Tutu calls after him as he slips outside, and a few seconds later, Isaac's opening up the umbrella and walking out barefoot in the yard.
Kekipu wanders out a bit, but Nani stays right with him, under the umbrella, and Danny thinks he might be walking a little slower, and he wonders if Isaac somehow knows about her.
"He's a sweetheart, that boyfriend of yours."
Danny starts at Tutu's voice, tearing his eyes away from the window to look at his grandmother. She's watching Isaac out the window over the sink, and the smile on her face looks kind of…sad.
He swallows thickly and nods, turning back to look at the window. He doesn't know how he knows it, but he knows Isaac's not listening. Respecting Danny's privacy. "Yeah, he is."
"Somebody hurt him along the line," Tutu goes on, voice soft, tone somber. The sound of rain and the soft clink of dishes fill the heavy silence. "Somebody hurt him badly."
For the second time that night, Danny feels his eyes start to burn. Just thinking about it, about everything Isaac's dad did to him, about everything he's been through, everything he's still going through, with the wolves, it makes him so angry and so sad and so sick all at the same time.
And then he looks out at him, spending extra time in the pouring rain with a dog because she's sick and old and hates the rain, or smiling like a big goofball when Kekipu comes up and plants his two wet, dirty feet on the front of his shirt, and he's just so freaking good.
"You've got it bad for him, don't you, kiddo?" It's not really a question; Tutu already knows.
Danny nods anyway. "I love him." He doesn't really mean to say it; it just kind of slips out. He hasn't said that to anyone but Isaac, but it just…it feels right to say it. And he thinks, if anyone's going to understand it, that it's not just some stupid teenage crush, it'd be Tutu. She married his grandfather when she was sixteen. She knows.
Out of the corner of his eye, he can see Tutu's nodding, too. "And does he love you, too?"
"Yes." And it's kind of amazing how automatic that is. It's not defensive, but…instinctive. He may not know people like Tutu does, but he knows Isaac. He knows the way he looks at him, like he's the whole world, like there's nothing else that matters. He knows the way he closes his eyes after a nightmare, when he's so upset he's shaking, and lays his head on Danny's chest, because the sound of his heart makes him feel okay. He knows the way Isaac would do anything he asked, would do anything to protect him. He knows because he, Danny, would do the same damn thing in an instant.
He feels the first tear streak down his cheek, and raises his hand to wipe it away, blinking furiously. And then Tutu's there, turning him around and pulling him into a hug, and he doesn't even know why he's crying, because this is supposed to be a happy thing. People go their whole lives without feeling like this. And he is. Happy. He is.
It's just….
"I can't lose him," he chokes out against her shoulder. And it's that thought that makes his heart feel like it's tearing apart. Because…God, he still has nightmares sometimes. That night, Isaac hurt, all the blood….he can still see it sometimes. And all the nights he texts Danny, telling him to stay inside, that it's not safe outside, and Danny has to sit there knowing that Isaac's out there. And when he comes back, covered in still-healing cuts, and Danny knows that just a few inches higher, a little bit deeper, and he wouldn't have come back at all.
"Oh, honey," Tutu whispers gently, her hands smoothing through his hair, and it's like he's six again, crying into that horrible apron over some six-year-old's idea of a crisis. Only, that was different. Everything was different, before. Before Isaac, before werewolves, before the spectrum opened up and Danny saw lights he never knew existed and shadows he wishes never did.
It takes him a good minute to pull himself together, and even then, it feels frail. He leans back, wiping his eyes, and Tutu holds him at arm's length, a sympathetic, but reassuring smile on her face that somehow makes Danny remember how to breathe again. It doesn't fix things, but…it helps a little bit.
"Danny, honey, that boy literally crossed an ocean for you," she says. "And take it from someone that knows what it looks like: he loves you." And then her smile warmed, and she took a hand from his shoulder to brush affectionately over his cheek. "And something tells me he's not going anywhere."
He doesn't know what it is, but coming from Tutu, it's somehow more believable. It's somehow more…real. Real enough, at least, and he sniffs a little and wipes his eyes again for good measure. Not that he thinks it'll do much good – Isaac'll be able to tell, anyway – but it's the principle thing.
"I'm gonna go drag my boyfriend in before he drowns," he says, and he's relieved when his voice comes out sounding close to steady.
"That's my boy."
And with one last check of his reflection in the glass pane, Danny slips outside.
Isaac's sitting out on the lanai, legs stretched out in front of him with Kekipu stretched out along them, and Nani laying her head across his lap. He has a hand on each of them, and as Danny gets closer, he can see the sad look on his face. God, he thinks, between the pair of them, they might out-gloom the storm.
It's not until he's sitting down beside and a little bit behind him, close enough to touch, but far enough not to disturb Nani, that he sees the black veins.
"Isaac?"
Isaac doesn't look at him. "She's dying," he says. His voice almost sounds even, but Danny can hear it: that little bit of an edge, the sadness.
He was right: Isaac did know.
He nods, even though he knows Isaac can't see it. "Osteosarcoma."
Isaac's lip twitches, but it's not a smile, nor is it a frown. It's just kind of…ironic. "It has a very distinct scent."
Which would be amazing, that Isaac can smell cancer, because Danny didn't know that, but honestly, he's a little more concerned with the black veins creeping up the back of Isaac's hand, up his wrist, disappearing under his sleeve.
But then, before Danny can ask about them, they recede, creeping up his arm, and he sees Isaac's arm tense for a second like the muscle cramped, but then his hand relaxes back against Nani's side.
For some reason, Danny feels like he just witnessed something important. He swallows compulsively, and then, "What was that?"
Isaac still doesn't look at him. "I took some of her pain away."
"You…took her pain away?"
Isaac nods slowly. "Only a little."
"Sometimes a little can go a long way," Danny finds himself saying, and there's that twitch again, like Danny's just said something ironic, but he can't for the life of him figure out why that would be. And it occurs to him that he should be a little bit more shocked about all this, but honestly…he doesn't care as much anymore about the things he can do; he's more amazed with what he does with them. "God," he sighs, more to himself than anything, "I really do have it bad."
"If it helps," Isaac starts, and finally, he turns and looks at him, "that makes two of us."
A second passes, but then they both smile, and suddenly all the tension in Danny's chest releases, and he really can breathe again.
He shifts, slipping an arm around Isaac's middle in a half-hug and resting his chin on his shoulder. In turn, Isaac takes his hand from Kekipu's head and reaches across to lace his fingers with Danny's, squeezing them briefly. They sit like that for a long moment, just…breathing.
But then Isaac breaks the comfortable silence. "I lied earlier," he says.
Danny arches an eyebrow, once again knowing Isaac can't see it and doing it anyway. "About?"
"About my light bulb moment."
"Ah."
Isaac nods. "Yeah. I…I never told you this, but there was this one time back in the eighth grade, towards the end of the year. It was one month to the day from the day they...from the day they came to my house and said Camden had been killed in action." Isaac's voice hitched a little over the end, and Danny's breath hitched right there with it. He gave Isaac's hand a squeeze, and Isaac took a breath. "And I was just sitting there, all alone at the table, no lunch, just a Spider-Man comic, and this kid just appears next to me and starts talking about comic books. I'd never talked to him before, outside of class. I had no idea why he did it, but he just—he just sits down and he starts talking, and he's got this wad of tinfoil in his hands like it's a Christmas present."
And suddenly, it doesn't matter that Isaac's never told him, because Danny knows this story.
"Inside, there were these…I didn't even know what they were called, and he just offers me one. It…it was the first kind thing anyone had done for me since my brother died…and I wanted to tell him that. But I didn't get a chance."
Danny remembers. He remembers it all, now, so clearly. That kid sitting at the table, too-big sweater and too-wild hair, hiding a Spider-Man comic in a textbook. The kid that looked like a kicked puppy. The kid that looked like he needed a friend. He remembers the way he'd disappeared after that phone call, not just from the table, but from Danny's whole world. And suddenly, he feels a surge of regret, because he wonders if maybe he'd looked a little harder, held on a little tighter, if maybe things would've been different for Is—
Isaac bounces his shoulder, and Danny's chin with it. "Hey," he says, "this is a happy story. Stop sulking." And once he seems satisfied that Danny's back on track, he continues. "And then, there was that day in the cafeteria. We'd never really talked, even after I started hanging out with Scott and them. But you just...sat down next to me, and you had this wad of tinfoil. Andagi. I remember the name now." His shoulders bob lightly around a chuckle, and Danny can feel it echo warmly in his own chest until Isaac pulls away.
For a second, Danny's confused, but then he realizes Isaac's just turning to look at him, and he can't really mind. Not with the way Isaac's looking at him, because it's that look. The one where Danny's the only thing that exists. The only thing that matters.
40: Do I ever get “good morning” or “good night ” texts?
41: Have I ever kissed the last person you texted?
42: When did I last hold hands?
43: How long does it take me to get ready in the morning?
44: Have You shaved your legs in the past three days?
45: Where am I right now?
46: If I were drunk & can’t stand, who’s taking care of me?
47: Do I like my music loud or at a reasonable level?
48: Do I live with my Mom and Dad?
49: Am I excited for anything?
50: Do I have someone of the opposite sex I can tell everything to?
51: How often do I wear a fake smile?
52: When was the last time I hugged someone?
53: What if the last person I kissed was kissing someone else right in front of me?
54: Is there anyone I trust even though I should not?
55: What is something I disliked about today?
56: If I could meet anyone on this earth, who would it be?
57: What do I think about most?
58: What’s my strangest talent?
59: Do I have any strange phobias?
60: Do I prefer to be behind the camera or in front of it?
61: What was the last lie I told?
62: Do I perfer talking on the phone or video chatting online?
63: Do I believe in ghosts? How about aliens?
64: Do I believe in magic?
65: Do I believe in luck?
66: What's the weather like right now?
67: What was the last book I've read?
68: Do I like the smell of gasoline?
69: Do I have any nicknames?
70: What was the worst injury I've ever had?
71: Do I spend money or save it?
72: Can I touch my nose with a tounge?
73: Is there anything pink in 10 feets from me?
74: Favourite animal?
75: What was I doing last night at 12 AM?
76: What do I think is Satan’s last name is?
77: What’s a song that always makes me happy when I hear it?
78: How can you win my heart?
79: What would I want to be written on my tombstone?
80: What is my favorite word?
81: My top 5 blogs on tumblr
82: If the whole world were listening to me right now, what would I say?
83: Do I have any relatives in jail?
84: I accidentally eat some radioactive vegetables. They were good, and what’s even cooler is that they endow me with the super-power of my choice! What is that power?
85: What would be a question I’d be afraid to tell the truth on?
86: What is my current desktop picture?
87: Had sex?
88: Bought condoms?
89: Gotten pregnant?
90: Failed a class?
91: Kissed a boy?
92: Kissed a girl?
93: Have I ever kissed somebody in the rain?
94: Had job?
95: Left the house without my wallet?
96: Bullied someone on the internet?
97: Had sex in public?
98: Played on a sports team?
99: Smoked weed?
100: Did drugs?
101: Smoked cigarettes?
102: Drank alcohol?
103: Am I a vegetarian/vegan?
104: Been overweight?
105: Been underweight?
106: Been to a wedding?
107: Been on the computer for 5 hours straight?
108: Watched TV for 5 hours straight?
109: Been outside my home country?
110: Gotten my heart broken?
111: Been to a professional sports game?
112: Broken a bone?
113: Cut myself?
114: Been to prom?
115: Been in airplane?
116: Fly by helicopter?
117: What concerts have I been to?
118: Had a crush on someone of the same sex?
119: Learned another language?
120: Wore make up?
121: Lost my virginity before I was 18?
122: Had oral sex?
123: Dyed my hair?
124: Voted in a presidential election?
125: Rode in an ambulance?
126: Had a surgery?
127: Met someone famous?
128: Stalked someone on a social network?
129: Peed outside?
130: Been fishing?
131: Helped with charity?
132: Been rejected by a crush?
133: Broken a mirror?
134: What do I want for birthday?
135: How many kids do I want and what will be their names?
136: Was I named after anyone?
137: Do I like my handwriting?
138: What was my favourite toy as a child?
139: Favourite Tv Show?
140: Where do I want to live when older?
141: Play any musical instrument?
142: One of my scars, how did I get it?
143: Favourite pizza toping?
144: Am I afraid of the dark?
145: Am I afraid of heights?
146: Have I ever got caught sneaking out or doing anything bad?
147: Have I ever tried my hardest and then gotten disappointed in the end?
148: What I'm really bad at
149: What my greatest achievments are
150: The meanest thing somebody has ever said to me
“Cut to Gutterson at home, drinking, being very impulsive with the Home Shopping Network. I think he would order a lot of vintage Super Soakers, under the impression this was a neat delivery system for alcohol. Unfortunately, in the morning, this would prove to be a gross miscalculation.”
— The alternate version of Justified’s season 4 finale, according to Jacob Pitts (x)
This is the last of it...for now. *insert maniacal laughter here...or a sheepish chuckle*
Chapter 6: Making Up (Alternatively: Scout's Honor)
Thanks to the three hour time difference, it's just a little after one in the afternoon when they get to Tutu's house. It's set back a little off the road, with a long, winding driveway and Tutu's favorite plumeria trees planted in the front, so it takes a second before the white two-story comes into view. Even inside the car, Danny can smell all of the flowers, from the trees to the freaking twenty species of hibiscus planted in front of the porch. Tutu's a bit of a gardener, especially now that she's retired from nursing. But she's good at it.
And of course, she's already waiting for them on the front porch, hands on her wide hips, and—
"Oh God."
"What?" Isaac and Kalea say in unison.
Danny buries his face in his hands. "She's wearing the apron."
At which point Kalea lets out a groan, because she knows exactly what Danny's talking about, and Isaac's left staring at them both with absolutely no idea what's going on.
"I don't get it," he says finally.
It's actually Kalea that takes pity on him. "It's one of those novelty custom aprons. We," she coughs, and it sounds suspiciously like Danny, "gave it to her for a Christmas present."
"Ten years ago," Danny adds from behind his hands.
Isaac's eyebrows tick upwards. "What's it say?"
Danny looks up long enough to exchange glances with Kalea, then sighs. "Anybody can be a grandma," they recite in unison, "but it takes someone special to be Danny, Kalea, Kai, Meka, and Lui's grandma."
"Wow." And Danny doesn't have to look to know there's one of those crooked little smiles forming on his lips, the one where he's laughing his ass off on the inside but is trying not to show it. "You…have a lot of cousins." Like that was what he was 'wow'ing over.
"Don't forget Wile," Leila chimes in, and then turns around in the seat to Isaac. "He's nine, so he wasn't born when we gave it to her, but she loves the apron so much, she stitched his name on it herself."
As Danny's mom gets out of the car, Isaac turns to Danny, and he's not wearing that smile anymore. "That's…that's really cute," he says casually, and there are like three seconds where Isaac just stares at him all straight-faced and impassive, but then his lips curl upwards. And now he's not even bothering to keep it inside.
Danny narrows his eyes. "You're a horrible person."
Isaac just shrugs unapologetically, flashes him a smirk, and bails out of the car. Which is probably smart, because Tutu's headed towards the car, and his dad's opening up the back, and he's the last one out, so it's probably time to go.
"Aloha," Tutu says as she reaches Danny's mom, a big grin on her plump face as she pulls her in for the customary greeting.
He can sense the questions in Isaac's head, but he's too polite to voice them. And despite his being a horrible – not really – person, Danny decides to take pity on him. "It's called a honi," he tells him quietly as he comes up to stand by him at the back of the car. Everyone else is standing, waiting for their turn with Tutu. "Like a kiss. You touch noses and inhale…I know it sounds weird; it's kind of a symbolic thing. It's like…exchanging spiritual energy. Ha, is what it's called." It's not until he tries to explain it to someone that's not used to it that he realizes just how many traditions his family has. Just how deep it all runs. It's just something they do. He hasn't really thought about it before now.
He kind of wonders if this is what Isaac feels like when he's trying to explain the pack dynamics to Danny.
But Isaac's nodding, and not just the 'I'm only pretending to pay attention' kind of nod, either. It's like he's genuinely interested in what Danny has to say, and that makes Danny smile.
God, one of these days, he's gonna learn how to be mad at Isaac for more than thirty seconds. Seriously. It's gonna happen.
Or, you know, not.
"By the way, just warning you, she's probably going to smother you," Danny tells him, right about the time Tutu squeezes Kalea in a massive hug. "And by probably, I mean definitely. She's definitely going to smother you." Because she's a hugger, and when she hugs, she really hugs.
Speaking of …while they were having their conversation, Tutu made her way through Danny's mom, dad, and now she's just finishing up with Kalea's kiss to the cheek. Which means it's Danny's turn.
When Tutu makes it to him, her smile's just as big as it was. Heck, everything's just like Danny remembers it. Her long dark hair, just starting to gray, is pulled back into a loose bun, a white plumeria flower fresh off one of the trees tucked in the band.
He, on the other hand, must've changed a lot, because when she gets to him, after exchanging honi and hugs, she leans back, holding him by the upper arms. "Look at how tall you've gotten," she says, and then squeezes his arms appreciatively. "And you've filled out, too." She says that part a little quieter, and Danny's relieved for the point five second it takes him to remember that his boyfriend, the one he has to worry about her embarrassing him in front of, has super hearing.
So…yeah. He's pretty sure his face isn't actually on fire; it just feels that way. And it doesn't help when she lets him go and turns to Isaac, because as proud and happy and head-over-heels-in-love as he is with his boyfriend, there's a certain level of anxiety that comes with introducing him to your grandmother. Especially when one's kind of skittish about his personal space and the other may actually be unaware such a thing even exists.
"And you must be Isaac," she says, and before Isaac can answer, she's reaching into the pocket of her apron and producing a lei. Danny knows she made it herself; he recognizes the white and yellow flowers from the plumeria trees.
Isaac bows his head a little when she goes to drape it around his neck, but Danny thinks that's just so she doesn't have to reach as much, not because he's flinching or anything.
"Aloha, Isaac." And Danny's a pretty mixed bunch of emotions as he watches his grandmother greet him. Anxious, because, well, that seems like a pretty normal reaction; worried, because that's an awful lot of contact with a complete stranger; but mostly, he's just kind of…happy, because it feels like it's official now. With Tutu's welcome, it finally feels like they're really here.
And when Tutu finally releases him from one of her island-renowned bear hugs, she's smiling warmly, and Isaac's smiling that charming little smile of his.
"Thank you," he says. "It's a pleasure to meet you, ma'am."
Tutu snorts and waves him off. "Please, call me Tutu. And for all Danny here talks about you, I feel like I've known you for months now," she says, letting out one of her rich-sounding laughs and pats Isaac on the cheek. "You're even cuter in person, though." And then she winks at him.
Meanwhile, Danny's wondering if it's physically possible to sink into the ground, especially when Isaac glances over at him.
Apparently, that's the end of the meet and greet, because Tutu turns and starts ushering everyone along. "Alright, let's take this party inside. Seems like you all brought a storm with you."
It's true, Danny thinks. The wind's picking up, rustling the trees, and the air feels kind of thick. Mostly, though, it's the smell that gives it away. It smells like ocean – well, more than usual, there being a beach in the back yard and all – from the wind blowing in, and electricity, and it amazes Danny how much he just wants to stand there and breathe it in.
Isaac's hand on the small of his back snaps him out of it, though, and he lets himself be steered towards the back to start unloading. His dad's already got Kekipu out on a leash, because the poor guy was losing his mind, and Tutu takes the lead from him so that they can keep unloading.
"So, you talk about me, huh?" Isaac says suddenly, and his voice is low and close, and Danny really hopes he can't feel the shiver that sends down his spine.
He manages to keep a pretty good poker face, though. At least, he thinks he does. "You might've come up once or twice," he hedges casually.
Isaac nods. "Right." And when Danny glances over at him, Isaac's not looking at him, but he's wearing that smug look that somehow manages to tick him off and turn him on all at the same time. And okay, yeah, it's kind of more the latter than the former. Maybe sixty-forty.
Okay, seventy-thirty.
Of course, then Isaac reaches over him and takes his suitcase for him with a smile, and it ends up being a little more like eighty-twenty. Seriously, one of these days…
"To make up for being a horrible person," Isaac tells him as he passes, duffel bag on one shoulder, backpack in the other, and Danny's suitcase in his free hand.
…but it is not this day.
"Danny, get the crate," his dad says, effectively snapping him out of whatever Lahey-LOTR lala land he drifted off to. And he does, grabbing the now-empty crate and closing the door before he follows the rest of his family inside the house.
Isaac's waiting for him inside, standing between the door and the sofa under the window and just kind of…staring. The rest of the family's already headed in, and Kalea's already trotting up the stairs to the other side of the door where all the guest bedrooms are. Technically, the house was only a three-bedroom, with all the bedrooms upstairs, but when Danny's grandpa's health started getting bad a few years ago, they converted the downstairs study off the living room into the master bedroom. His grandpa passed the year before last, from renal failure as a complication of Type II diabetes, but Tutu kept the room. She says she just didn't feel like moving her stuff; Danny knows it's because her knees are getting bad, and she just can't do the stairs anymore. She's just too stubborn to admit it.
"This place is amazing," Isaac says without turning, but Danny's not surprised. He knows Isaac could probably hear him coming from a mile away – literally – and to be honest, he kind of likes that thought.
He sits the crate down and closes the door before leaning up against Isaac's side. Normally, he'd worry about weighing him down, Isaac holding all that other stuff, but well…he's Isaac. And besides, he doesn't seem to mind.
"I'll give you the grand tour later," he says. "In the meantime, how about I show you where to put our stuff." Maybe it's just him making something out of nothing, but he gets a little bit of a thrill saying our stuff. He shakes it off, though, and picks up the crate before heading off up the stairs after Kalea. He hears Isaac falling into step behind him, his boots thudding dully on the wood of the stairs and, later, of the loft. It might not be a mile, but he knows for a fact that he would recognize that sound anywhere.
"Ours is the last one on the right," he tells him as they head down the hall. He knows he said he'd give him the grand tour later, but he figures if it's on the way, he might as well. "The first door's the bathroom, the next one's Kalea's, and the one on the left is my parents'." They're all technically guest bedrooms, but they stay in them the most out of anybody else, so Danny's just gotten used to calling them that. "If you wanna go on in, I gotta run this by my parent's room."
"Does he sleep in that?" Isaac asks, nodding to the crate.
Danny shakes his head. "Nah, he sleeps with me, if that's okay with you." Even though Danny knows it's not really an 'if'. He knows Kekipu wouldn't have it any other way, and he doesn't think Isaac would either. They seem to get each other. "My parents just have the bigger closet." And with a wink, he ducks away to make his delivery into his parents' room.
They're already in there, and so is Tutu – like he said: stubborn – and they all three turn to look at him when he comes in.
"Just dropping off the crate," he says, and then he turns to leave, but then his mom stops him.
"Hold on, Danny."
Danny turns back around. "Yeah?"
"We were just talking about rooming arrangements, and—"
"Oh for Pele's sake, just leave them be," Tutu interjects. "We were all teenagers once. Some of us longer ago than others." The last part, she aims at Danny. "They're gonna do what they're gonna do. Separating them's not gonna do anything but make them sulk, and I don't get to see my grandson enough to have him waste all his time skulking around like a kicked puppy."
Danny skips the mortification stage – his grandma's just talking to his parents about he and Isaac having sex, no big deal – and resists the urge to point out that, if anyone's gonna be skulking around like a kicked puppy, it's probably gonna be Isaac. Danny's not that cute when he's mad.
Leila and Robert look at each other, but they must've already had some of this conversation before Danny walked in, because after a second, they sigh in stereo. "Best behavior," Leila says.
Danny holds up two fingers. "Scout's honor."
"Scout sign's three fingers," Robert says.
Danny quickly pops up the third finger, and then decides just to exit stage right before they change their minds. "Alright, so me and Isaac are just gonna unpack, then I'm gonna show him around…catch you guys later?"
"Go." Tutu shoos him off, a smile in her eyes. "You boys have fun. Make sure you show him the beach before the storm hits." And then she winks, and Danny takes that as his cue to am-scray.
He crosses the hall probably a little quicker than he should, and goes into his room, closing the door behind him. It, too, is just like he left it: queen-sized bed, a dresser, TV stand, tan walls with all sorts of original paintings Tutu likes to pick up at the markets. The bedspread's plain white – he happens to know all the bedspreads are, because Tutu just likes to "chuck it all in the wash with some bleach and be done with it" – and a light green quilt Tutu stitched herself. It's all really warm and cozy, just like Danny remembers.
And then there's Isaac.
Who happens to be standing in the middle of the room, a solemn look on his face and two fingers raised stiffly in the air.
"Oh, you're a riot."
Isaac's face cracks into a grin. "Sorry," he says.
"No, you're not."
"No, I'm not." And then he's crossing the room, slow, easy steps and a sly smile. Danny's determined to hold his grudge this time, though, so he pulls one right out of pre-school and takes a ninety degree to face the window.
Not that Isaac seems to care. He comes up behind him, slipping his arms around Danny's waist and pressing up against his back, until Danny could swear the whole room gets ten degrees hotter. And then his lips are by Danny's ear, his breath warm against Danny's cheek. "But I'll make it up to you anyway."
And there it goes.
Rolling his eyes – more at himself than Isaac, he thinks – he slips Isaac's arms from around his waist and turns around, still holding onto Isaac's wrists. "You can make it up to me later," he says, and he fully intends to hold him to that, because hey, what can he say? He is a teenager. "I promised Tutu I'd show you the beach before the storm hit."
Isaac actually whines, but allows himself to be led out of the room. He does eventually reclaim his hold on Danny's waist, though, keeping his arm loosely slung around his hips as they walk out onto through the kitchen and onto the lanai.
"And here we are," Danny tells him. The back yard is mostly grass, surrounded on both sides by a thick wall of trees, but out at the end, the grass becomes sand, and from there, sand becomes open ocean, all right there. "Come on."
He leads him out to the beach, pausing only long enough to kick his shoes off by the weathered little patio set about halfway between the house and the beach and for Isaac to do the same, before heading out to the beach.
His toes sink into the sand, and it's warm despite the wind coming in off the water, and God, he's missed this. The ocean, the sand, the trees. Even the storm clouds across the water look better here, and he finds himself smiling as he sits down, especially when Isaac sits down beside him. They've both got their knees drawn up, their arms around them, but their elbows and shoulders touch, and Danny leans his head against Isaac's.
"You like it here," Isaac says after…Danny doesn't even know how long. His voice is soft, like he's afraid to disturb something, but Danny thinks it's actually kind of soothing.
"I spent a lot of time here when I was a kid," Danny says, shrugging.
"When you weren't off being a Boyscout, you mean."
Danny bumps Isaac's shoulder. "Smartass." But he's smiling, because it's…it's nice. Sitting here like this, their easy banter, just unwinding and enjoying each others' company. "Like you're such an expert, anyway. Were you ever a scout?"
"Actually, yeah," Isaac says, and Danny glances over to see him hanging his head, and there's that blush again coloring his ears.
"No."
Isaac nods. "Life Scout."
"Which is…?"
"The second-highest rank you can get." His shoulders slump. "I had eighteen merit badges."
Having never been a Boy Scout, Danny's not really sure how to take that, but he's assuming the number's pretty high. And he can't help it: he chuckles. "Wow," he says, and when Isaac turns his head to look at him, shoulders still slumped, he's smiling at him. "That…I think that's my new favorite thing about you."
Isaac stares at him a second longer before Danny's smile catches, and he bumps Danny right back. Danny's about to complain about that not being very scout-ly of him, but before he can get a word out, Isaac's kissing him.
When he leans back, Danny bites his lip, but then, "Nope. No, definitely not my favorite thing about you." And then he leans in for a kiss of his own.
They spend a good half hour out there, occasionally trading kisses, but mostly just teasing and talking and enjoying the sound of the waves lapping at the beach and the thunder rolling in the distance.
Until it's not so in-the-distance, and then they end up in a mad rush back to the house as the sky opens up and flings buckets down on them, which would probably go a lot faster if they weren't both laughing and stumbling into each other every five seconds. And by the time they get inside, they're both dripping wet, and Danny's stomach hurts from laughing so hard, and Tutu takes one look at them from the stove and throws towels at them both, which just makes them laugh that much harder.
They laugh their way up the stairs and into their bedroom, where Danny's thinking they're going to change clothes, but before he can get to his suitcase, Isaac's got him by the hips. He spins him around like it's nothing, and Danny could swear he sees his eyes flash gold for a second before his lips are on his, and vaguely he's aware of the wall at his back, but he's way more focused on the hands sliding under his shirt, up his chest, across his skin.
Danny scrambles to get a grip on Isaac's shirt, and Isaac breaks the kiss so Danny can tug it up over his head, the lei with it. Isaac peels Danny's soaked shirt off right after, and both disappear somewhere in a wet pile, but Danny really doesn't care where, because Isaac's kissing at his neck and his shoulder, and Danny's got one hand tangled in Isaac's hair and the other at his hip, pulling him closer. A gasp breaks from his lips when Isaac's teeth find that spot over his pulse point, but then Isaac's mouth is there to catch it and Danny's not sure if he's dizzy from the lack of air or the heat or what, but he doesn't care.
His fingers find the elastic of Isaac's track pants and slip underneath, his short nails scraping over smooth flesh, and Isaac lets out a low sound somewhere between a moan and a growl that makes Danny's blood rush. His hands slide down from Danny's waist to his ass, and he lifts him up without so much as breaking the kiss.
And then they're falling, and Danny's back hits something soft, and Isaac's on top of him. But Danny has a better idea, and while Isaac's still off balance, he flips them, straddling Isaac's waist, and somehow, he gets the feeling Isaac doesn't mind all that much.
"Remind me to show you the beach again tomorrow," Danny says. "And the next day, and the next day, and the next day." He punctuates each day with peppered kisses down Isaac's long, graceful neck, and when he finds that point over his pulse, the one that makes Isaac whine low in his throat, turnabout's fair play.
Isaac must not mind that, either, because he waits until Danny's satisfied with his work to pull him back up to eye level. "And remind me to make it up to you," he says, voice husky and deep in Danny's ears, and then he claims his lips again.
And Danny decides not to tell him he couldn't stay mad to begin with. Because as he's finding out…
Turns out, Isaac's plan works: he ends up sleeping most of the plane ride.
As promised, Danny does wake him up for lunch. Well, Danny's mom wakes them both up, because Danny was dozing pretty heavy there, too. The lunch is some kind of fish; it's always some kind of fish, and Danny will admit, it's pretty good.
Isaac doesn't seem to think so, though. He doesn't turn his nose up at it or anything, but he's just kind of pushing it around the tray with the fork, picking at it. Which is way different from his usual black-hole-esque style of eating, and Danny thinks that maybe, just maybe, he's found the match for Isaac's bottomless stomach.
Out of sympathy, once the attendants come by and take their plates, Danny offers him his packet of Biscoff cookies, because even if nerves have taken away his astonishing appetite, he knows he's still got his sweet tooth. He's not disappointed, either – not that he's ever disappointed in Isaac – because Isaac polishes off both packets before he settles back against Danny's shoulder and goes back to sleep.
This time, though, Danny doesn't follow him. He's pretty much slept-out, although he can't say he minds being used as a human pillow, at least not for Isaac. Usually, it's the other way around, him kicked back against Isaac's chest and Isaac with his arms wrapped around him, so it's nice to be able to return the favor every now and then.
The In-Flight movie's that new Ice Age one, and Danny realizes it's probably pretty bad how many times he's seen that movie. He'd like to say it's all Kalea's fault, and okay, some of it is. But weirdly, some of it's Stiles'. They've started meeting up at Stiles' every Friday night, while his dad's working the late shift. "Pack nights" Stiles called them, and the name just kind of stuck. It's mostly just an excuse to sit around eating junk food and watching movies: him, Isaac, Stiles, Derek, Allison, Scott, and Lydia. Sometimes, Danny feels bad for her. Lydia, he means, because they pretty much always end up pairing off, curling up with their significant others, and Lydia's is on the other side of the country. But he usually dismisses the feeling pretty quickly, because Lydia Martin's a lot of things, but 'pitiable' isn't one of them.
As he's finding out, Derek Hale's a lot of things, too. Broody, short-tempered, and totally, obviously, painfully wrapped around Stiles' little finger. Not that Stiles seems to notice, but he's pretty sure everyone, Derek included, can see the signs. After all, some of the stuff he gets away with putting in the DVD player on their pack nights is a-freaking-mazing; no way Derek would put up with it if he didn't have it bad for their resident researcher.
Not that Danny can really talk about some of the stuff Stiles gets them to watch. Aside from a few Disney/Pixar flicks from time to time, which Danny honestly can't say he minds, and the odd we're-watching-this-because-it-sucks-so-bad-it's-f unny cult classics, it's mostly superhero movies. And what does Danny do to pass the time for the remaining couple hours of the flight? He whips out his iPad and starts reading comics, like a boss. He's also trying to remember whether all the Maroon 5 songs that keep coming on his iPod are Isaac's or his, but that's neither here nor there.
He's just made it to The Amazing Spider-Man #611 – and yes, he has read 1-610, partly because, okay, yeah, it's Isaac's favorite series, but mostly because he is, like, double pretzel level nerd – when his mom reaches over the back of the seat and taps him on the top of the head.
"Look out the window," she says, and Danny does. He opens the window cover, only to close his eyes. Hours of dim cabin lights and an iPad screen are a little bit different from actual sunlight, and it takes him a few blinks before his vision clears well enough for him to really get a good look at the bright blue ocean and the islands stretched out across it. No matter how many times he sees it, it still manages to take his breath away.
Then he looks at Isaac, sleeping on his shoulder, and realizes that's not the only thing anymore.
"Has he been asleep this whole time?" Danny turns at the sound of his dad's voice to see him peeking over the back of the seat, an eyebrow raised in Isaac's general direction.
"Yep."
Robert's eyebrow arches a little higher, and he looks amused. "Well, are you going to wake him up?"
"I probably should, shouldn't I?"
Robert just shakes his head, rolling his eyes, but he's laughing as he sits back in his seat. Danny hears the distinct thwap of his mom smacking his stomach, and he thinks he hears her whisper something like 'it's cute, Robbie,' and his dad just chuckles louder.
So yeah, aside from a little bit of a rocky start, this whole vacation thing hasn't been a giant clusterfuck after all.
Smiling a little to himself, Danny powers off his iPad. He wasn't going to read that volume yet, anyway. He happens to know it's Isaac's favorite one; he let it slip once that his brother, Camden, gave a first print to him for his twelfth birthday. Isaac had laughed when he told Danny it was two months late, that his birthday was in September, and Camden couldn't get away from boot camp until the week before Thanksgiving.
It wasn't until a few weeks after that story that Danny found out he died in combat the next January.
But no, it was a happy story, and Isaac even told him that when he finally made it up to that issue – because Isaac's level of nerd is secretly the triple banana to Danny's double pretzel – to let him know, that he wanted to read it with him. And Danny knows that means something, that Isaac wants to share that with him, so he'll hold off. Maybe they'll get to it sometime this vacation.
In the meantime, though, there's something Danny wants to share with Isaac, so after stowing his iPad in his bag, he gives Isaac a soft shake on the shoulder. "Wake up, sleeping beauty," he says softly.
It's loud enough, though, and Isaac's eyes open. He looks pretty calm, all things considered, just kind of sits up straight and stretches a little, which Danny's taking as a good sign.
For the record, though, it's not fair at all how quick he can go from totally passed out to totally conscious.
"Morning, sunshine," Danny says, and Isaac turns to look at him. He blinks a few times, and okay, maybe he's not totally conscious. But bleary's okay. Bleary, Danny can work with, and he reaches up and ruffles loose some of Isaac's curls where they've flattened against his head before leaning back and gesturing towards the window.
"Come here, you gotta see this."
"What is it?" Only Danny's not really sure why he asks, because he's already leaning across Danny's lap to look out the window. It's not until he flinches back that Danny realizes he probably should've warned him, because it's bright, and Isaac's been sleeping for, what, two hours now? His eyes adjust pretty quickly, though, and Danny can tell when they do, because they widen, and his lips part around a quiet breath. "Is that…?"
Danny clears his throat as pretentiously as he can and sits up a little, and Isaac moves enough to let Danny see out the window, too. "If you look out the window to your right," he says in his best impersonation of a tour guide, which is honestly pretty awful, "you'll see the beautiful archipelago of the Hawaiian Islands. We are currently flying over the island of Hawaii, nicknamed 'The Big Island,' for obvious reasons." And when Isaac cuts his eyes over at him, he flashes him a wink. "Still like my voice?"
Isaac responds by rolling his eyes, but Danny decides not to take it too personally, especially when Isaac leans in to press a kiss to his neck. "Still like your voice," he says, then turns back to look out the window. "So, what's that one?"
Danny looks at where he's pointing, to the next island in the line. "'The Not So Big Island?'"
Isaac actually turns his whole head around and looks at him this time, eyebrows raised like, 'Did you really just say that?', and Danny raises his right back like, 'Yes. Yes I did.'
"You're kind of odd, you know that?" But Isaac's smiling as he says it, so it's really hard to take that personally, too.
Isaac doesn't need to know that, though.
"Just hush and go back to your window," Danny says, as close to indignantly as he can. He thinks some of the affection must slip through, though, or at least the humor, because Isaac just smiles a little wider and steals another kiss before he turns back to the window.
He points to another island, his long, graceful fingers tracing the glass. "What's that one?"
Danny leans back in so he can see which one Isaac's pointing at. "That's Molokai. 'The Friendly Isle.'"
"Why's it friendly?"
Danny shrugs. "Maybe it just likes people."
Isaac hits his head on the glass with a thunk.
"Was that somebody's head?" Leila asks over the seat. Because of course she heard the thunk. It was a very audible thunk. "You boys be careful. You'll hurt something."
Behind them, Kalea snorts. "Yeah. Like the plane," she says. At twelve, she's developed what Danny would describe as an above-average grasp of sarcasm.
He's so proud.
He's also amused, and his shoulders shake with quiet laughter as he goes back to window-watching with Isaac. Isaac glances over at him, then back out the window, nose flaring around a huff that could either be a sulk or a laugh. Possibly both.
"I'm almost afraid to ask anything else," he mutters.
Danny shakes his head. "Don't worry, I think I've reached my bad joke quota for the afternoon. Here." He reaches up where Isaac's hand is still resting against the glass and guides his finger over to point to the arrowhead-shaped island. "That's Oahu."
"The one we're going to." It's not a question; Danny's told him that much. But he nods anyway and smiles, pleased Isaac remembers. Of course, knowing Isaac, he probably remembers the freaking address. The guy's memory is just…wow.
"Yep. Tutu's house is on the windward side of the island." He slides Isaac's finger up a little to point to the right side of the island.
"Just north of Kaneohe," Isaac finishes, and he even gets the pronunciation right.
"Someone's been practicing."
He was just joking, but when he glances over, he sees that familiar blush lighting up his cheeks and the tips of his ears, and he can't decide whether he wants to laugh or melt, because that is both funny and incredibly, diabetes-inducingly sweet.
"Have I ever told you I love you? Because I really love you."
Isaac's face splits in one of those big, holy-God-those-dimples smiles of his. "You might've mentioned it once or twice," he says, and Danny's probably got a less-amazingly-dimpled – although Isaac seems to think he has great dimples, but then, Isaac's kind of biased – version of that grin on his own face, especially as Isaac slips his fingers through Danny's and brings his hand from the window to press a kiss to the back of his hand. "Love you too."
They spend the rest of the flight like that, hand in hand, staring out the window. Occasionally, Danny'll point something out. Landmarks, mostly, once they get in close enough. He remembers all the times his mom did the same for him; it's kind of part of the experience.
Getting off the plane's kind of interesting. All the people suddenly up and crowding the aisles at once, Isaac goes back to high alert. But this time, Danny's still holding his hand, and when he sees Isaac's nose begin to flare, he squeezes Isaac's hand tighter. He wills himself to stay calm, and maybe it's just his imagination, but he feels like this time, it helps.
Granted, it's a little bit tricky getting out like that.
They manage, and Danny doesn't think he's ever seen someone so happy to be in an airport terminal before in his life. It's like Isaac suddenly remembers how to breathe, and even though he keeps close enough to brush Danny's shoulders more often than not, Danny can practically feel the relief coming off him in waves.
That, in turn, makes Danny feel better, which is good, because baggage claim's a bitch. He and Isaac get stuck manning the conveyor while his mom and dad take Kalea to go get Kekipu.
After the third asshole bumps into Danny trying to get to his bag, though, it ends up being Isaac manning the conveyor, and Danny watching all their suitcases and pointing them out when he they come. Which he should probably mind a lot more than he does, because he doesn't need to be protected from freaking tourists, and he really hates being useless, but it's not Isaac's fault; he can't help his instincts, and Danny knows arguing and sticking around would just stress him out. Besides, he'd be lying if he said it wasn't sweet, in a totally unnecessary, vaguely fanatical sort of way.
The view's kinda nice, though.
It gets a lot nicer, though, when they finally make it outside of the airport. They've got a rental – an Explorer, of course, because his dad is nothing if not consistent – and he thinks it's taking every ounce of dignity and self-control Isaac has not to start bouncing the second they hit the great outdoors. Seriously, he's like a puppy, grinning at Danny every time he looks at him, and brushing up against him every three seconds, like he's checking to make sure Danny's still paying attention and knows just how awesome this is.
And Danny just laughs, because after the last five hours, he knows exactly how awesome it is. Only, as beautiful as it is, he's not really concerned about the outdoors. He's too busy looking at that smile, too busy enjoying every brush of Isaac's shoulders against his. He's too busy enjoying being there, with Isaac, with his family.
They've finished loading everything into the back, and they're all getting in the car, but Danny catches Isaac by the pocket of his pants at the back of the car. He pulls him back, turning him around, and Isaac comes willingly, sliding his arms around Danny's waist like it's automatic.
"E komo mai o Hawaii," Danny says softly, leaning his head against Isaac's, and Isaac pulls him a little closer. "Welcome to Hawaii."
Isaac hums in agreement, lips warm as they brush Danny's. "The most beautiful place on earth," he says, and Danny smiles and kisses him back.
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turnnoffyourmind
ellievsbear
stormborns
