Maintaining the Distance, Part 4/9
Title: Maintaining the Distance 4/9
Characters: Steve McGarrett/Adam Noshimuri, Kono Kalakaua/Adam Noshimuri; also featuring Danny Williams and Chin Ho Kelly.
Rating: M
Beta: The always generous siluria, who probably doesn't know how much she helps me! Thanks, babe!
Word Count:This part: 1,286 words of 16,162 for the total fic.
Disclaimer: Don't own them, haven't a hope in hell of any of this story being canon.
Warnings: Angst by the bucketload, an emotionally challenged Steve, and a little unable-to-resist-each-other cheating in one chapter, so if that kind of thing isn't to your taste, you may not want to read any further. Also be aware that there is no real Happy Ever After here, although my muses tell me a third instalment should be written. It has been started but is not progressing very quickly.
Summary: Adam is back in town, and Steve finds out that Kono and Adam are now together. He's not sure how he feels about that considering what Adam and Steve were to each other last time Adam was in town.
Author's Notes: This is the very late sequel to Blinking Against the Distance, about a short-lived relationship between Steve and Adam that happened around the time Adam's father was missing, presumed dead.
In this chapter: Steve confronts Adam.
Previous Parts: One | Two | Three
Can also be found here on AO3
Knocking hard on the door to Adam's place - at least Steve hoped he still lived there after his time in Japan, as he hadn't heard anything different - Steve took a step backwards and waited, a deep frown in place.
The door opened after a moment, and Steve recognised one of Adam's bodyguards from the last time he was here. "I need to see Adam."
The man looked at him suspiciously, but gestured him in without a word and pointed towards the living room where Steve had waited last time, before heading down the corridor of the house. Steve could only assume the man had gone to find his boss.
Looking around the room, but feeling unable to sit, he moved about nervously, and then went to pick up a photograph on a shelf. It was of Adam with another man, someone he was clearly intimate with, going by the smiles and the arms around each other's shoulders. The stranger was Asian too, tattooed heavily and almost as attractive as Adam. Steve swallowed hard, anger buzzing lightly behind his eyes. Who was this guy? Someone else Adam was involved with - someone he hadn't told either Kono or Steve about?
"Steve."
At the sound of his name, Steve spun around, the picture still in his hand. His first instinct was to yell at Adam, but he bit it back, keeping control of himself, but just barely. "You didn't talk to Kono like you said you would."
Adam stepped further into the room, his bare feet drawing Steve's eyes in a way that reminded him so strongly of the last visit he'd paid to Adam here, so that he almost forgot what he was saying.
"I'm sorry," Adam said, sadness filling his deep brown eyes. "I meant to, I really did, but she… this morning she arrived for breakfast before I had prepared what to say, and then she was so excited about… about us being back together and what I'd told her about staying and making my father's business legitimate… the moment wasn't right."
"Did you sleep with her?" Steve couldn't help asking. He knew it made him sound like a jealous wife, but he couldn't stop himself from feeling threatened.
"Of course not!" Adam looked affronted. He came closer to Steve, glancing at what was in his hands. "What are you doing with that photograph?"
Steve relented in his anger for a moment, but the reminder of the picture he held stirred it once more. "Who is this guy? Are you seeing him too?"
Adam, unexpectedly, let out a soft laugh. "That's my brother."
"Your brother?" Steve asked stupidly, looking at the photo again. Studying it, he could see something of a similarity now he had been told. "Oh."
"His name's Michael. He…" Adam faltered, his face looking pained. "He's in prison at the moment, but he should be getting out soon."
Steve met Adam's eyes and then looked back at Michael's image. "I feel pretty stupid right now. I'm sorry." He walked back to the shelf where he'd found the photo and replaced it.
"It's okay," Adam told him as he turned back. "It's not your fault. I should have tried harder with Kono this morning."
"No." Steve shook his head, taking the few steps back to where he'd been in front of Adam. "I should learn to be more patient. I know it can't be easy. I just…" He stopped, biting at his lip, feeling incredibly foolish and immature.
"I know," Adam murmured, wrapping himself around Steve and holding on tight. "I'd feel the same in your position, Steve. I can't imagine someone else being near you, I'd want to tear their head off."
Relaxing out of the hug slightly, but still holding Adam loosely, Steve asked, "You would? I thought it was just me being overly possessive."
Adam laughed again, the sound of it sending a low thrill right through Steve, and he smiled involuntarily. Adam leaned in and they kissed, lips softly caressing each other, until need drove Steve to open his mouth, letting Adam inside. At that moment, Steve's cell phone rang.
"Oh God," Steve gasped, drawing back and reaching into his pocket for the offending item. "Jesus… it's Danny."
Adam was watching him warily, his skin slightly flushed, and Steve could see the pulse of his excitement in a vein visible on his neck near the opening of his shirt. "Are you going to take it?"
Steve took a deep breath, regret etching his heart. "I have to, we might have a case."
Adam nodded and turned away, moving out of Steve's reach. He itched to draw Adam back, but he knew he had to find out what Danny needed. Swallowing hard, Steve answered the phone. "Danny. What's up?" He hoped he sounded as nonchalant as he was aiming for.
"What's up?" Danny sounded annoyed. "You walk out of the office without a word and you're asking me what's up? Where are you?"
Adam turned where he stood across the room and met Steve's eyes with his own, an eyebrow raised in query. Steve frowned and looked away, unable to lie to Danny while he was looking at Adam. "I'm on my way back to HQ. I needed to check on something."
"What something? You do realise that you asking Kono about Adam and then bolting like the Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse were on your tail is suspicious in the extreme, don't you?"
"I didn't think, as the leader of Five-0, I had to explain my every move to you, especially when we're not actually on a case, but since it bothers you so much, I'll tell you all about it when I get back there. Give me fifteen minutes, I'm in traffic."
Before Danny could say anything further, Steve hung up. Adam was still looking at him, a doubtful expression on his face. "Are you really going to tell him about it, about us?"
"He knows."
"What?" Fear filled Adam's eyes.
"Not about… this time," Steve got out with difficulty. "But he knows we had a… that something happened between us before."
"You told him?"
Steve ran a hand across his head, feeling weighed down. This situation was harder than it had a right to be, but when was his life ever simple?
"He knows me, Adam. He worked it out himself; I gave him enough clues. And he'll be putting two and two together right now after the way I've behaved this morning. He's my best friend; I don't know that I can keep this from him for long."
"I need time to talk to Kono before too many people find out."
"I know you do. I didn't mean for it to be like this. After you left last night… I didn't pick up in the living room. Danny came to my place this morning when I didn't answer my phone. You left your tie behind."
Adam half-snorted a laugh and took a few steps towards Steve. "So what? He saw a tie that could have belonged to any guy, someone else you could've been seeing."
Steve let out a breath, pocketing his phone, and shook his head as he gave Adam one last regretful look. "I didn't say anything to him, but I had no reason not to say who I was with… unless it was someone I shouldn't be with."
Adam's mouth opened slightly, like he was going to say something, but then thought better of it. Their eyes held for another few seconds and Steve could see that Adam understood the implication.
Adam's smile was brief and wan. "You'd better go, then. He'll be wondering where you are."
"I'm sorry," was all Steve could say.
~//~
Part Five
Characters: Steve McGarrett/Adam Noshimuri, Kono Kalakaua/Adam Noshimuri; also featuring Danny Williams and Chin Ho Kelly.
Rating: M
Beta: The always generous siluria, who probably doesn't know how much she helps me! Thanks, babe!
Word Count:This part: 1,286 words of 16,162 for the total fic.
Disclaimer: Don't own them, haven't a hope in hell of any of this story being canon.
Warnings: Angst by the bucketload, an emotionally challenged Steve, and a little unable-to-resist-each-other cheating in one chapter, so if that kind of thing isn't to your taste, you may not want to read any further. Also be aware that there is no real Happy Ever After here, although my muses tell me a third instalment should be written. It has been started but is not progressing very quickly.
Summary: Adam is back in town, and Steve finds out that Kono and Adam are now together. He's not sure how he feels about that considering what Adam and Steve were to each other last time Adam was in town.
Author's Notes: This is the very late sequel to Blinking Against the Distance, about a short-lived relationship between Steve and Adam that happened around the time Adam's father was missing, presumed dead.
In this chapter: Steve confronts Adam.
Previous Parts: One | Two | Three
Can also be found here on AO3
Knocking hard on the door to Adam's place - at least Steve hoped he still lived there after his time in Japan, as he hadn't heard anything different - Steve took a step backwards and waited, a deep frown in place.
The door opened after a moment, and Steve recognised one of Adam's bodyguards from the last time he was here. "I need to see Adam."
The man looked at him suspiciously, but gestured him in without a word and pointed towards the living room where Steve had waited last time, before heading down the corridor of the house. Steve could only assume the man had gone to find his boss.
Looking around the room, but feeling unable to sit, he moved about nervously, and then went to pick up a photograph on a shelf. It was of Adam with another man, someone he was clearly intimate with, going by the smiles and the arms around each other's shoulders. The stranger was Asian too, tattooed heavily and almost as attractive as Adam. Steve swallowed hard, anger buzzing lightly behind his eyes. Who was this guy? Someone else Adam was involved with - someone he hadn't told either Kono or Steve about?
"Steve."
At the sound of his name, Steve spun around, the picture still in his hand. His first instinct was to yell at Adam, but he bit it back, keeping control of himself, but just barely. "You didn't talk to Kono like you said you would."
Adam stepped further into the room, his bare feet drawing Steve's eyes in a way that reminded him so strongly of the last visit he'd paid to Adam here, so that he almost forgot what he was saying.
"I'm sorry," Adam said, sadness filling his deep brown eyes. "I meant to, I really did, but she… this morning she arrived for breakfast before I had prepared what to say, and then she was so excited about… about us being back together and what I'd told her about staying and making my father's business legitimate… the moment wasn't right."
"Did you sleep with her?" Steve couldn't help asking. He knew it made him sound like a jealous wife, but he couldn't stop himself from feeling threatened.
"Of course not!" Adam looked affronted. He came closer to Steve, glancing at what was in his hands. "What are you doing with that photograph?"
Steve relented in his anger for a moment, but the reminder of the picture he held stirred it once more. "Who is this guy? Are you seeing him too?"
Adam, unexpectedly, let out a soft laugh. "That's my brother."
"Your brother?" Steve asked stupidly, looking at the photo again. Studying it, he could see something of a similarity now he had been told. "Oh."
"His name's Michael. He…" Adam faltered, his face looking pained. "He's in prison at the moment, but he should be getting out soon."
Steve met Adam's eyes and then looked back at Michael's image. "I feel pretty stupid right now. I'm sorry." He walked back to the shelf where he'd found the photo and replaced it.
"It's okay," Adam told him as he turned back. "It's not your fault. I should have tried harder with Kono this morning."
"No." Steve shook his head, taking the few steps back to where he'd been in front of Adam. "I should learn to be more patient. I know it can't be easy. I just…" He stopped, biting at his lip, feeling incredibly foolish and immature.
"I know," Adam murmured, wrapping himself around Steve and holding on tight. "I'd feel the same in your position, Steve. I can't imagine someone else being near you, I'd want to tear their head off."
Relaxing out of the hug slightly, but still holding Adam loosely, Steve asked, "You would? I thought it was just me being overly possessive."
Adam laughed again, the sound of it sending a low thrill right through Steve, and he smiled involuntarily. Adam leaned in and they kissed, lips softly caressing each other, until need drove Steve to open his mouth, letting Adam inside. At that moment, Steve's cell phone rang.
"Oh God," Steve gasped, drawing back and reaching into his pocket for the offending item. "Jesus… it's Danny."
Adam was watching him warily, his skin slightly flushed, and Steve could see the pulse of his excitement in a vein visible on his neck near the opening of his shirt. "Are you going to take it?"
Steve took a deep breath, regret etching his heart. "I have to, we might have a case."
Adam nodded and turned away, moving out of Steve's reach. He itched to draw Adam back, but he knew he had to find out what Danny needed. Swallowing hard, Steve answered the phone. "Danny. What's up?" He hoped he sounded as nonchalant as he was aiming for.
"What's up?" Danny sounded annoyed. "You walk out of the office without a word and you're asking me what's up? Where are you?"
Adam turned where he stood across the room and met Steve's eyes with his own, an eyebrow raised in query. Steve frowned and looked away, unable to lie to Danny while he was looking at Adam. "I'm on my way back to HQ. I needed to check on something."
"What something? You do realise that you asking Kono about Adam and then bolting like the Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse were on your tail is suspicious in the extreme, don't you?"
"I didn't think, as the leader of Five-0, I had to explain my every move to you, especially when we're not actually on a case, but since it bothers you so much, I'll tell you all about it when I get back there. Give me fifteen minutes, I'm in traffic."
Before Danny could say anything further, Steve hung up. Adam was still looking at him, a doubtful expression on his face. "Are you really going to tell him about it, about us?"
"He knows."
"What?" Fear filled Adam's eyes.
"Not about… this time," Steve got out with difficulty. "But he knows we had a… that something happened between us before."
"You told him?"
Steve ran a hand across his head, feeling weighed down. This situation was harder than it had a right to be, but when was his life ever simple?
"He knows me, Adam. He worked it out himself; I gave him enough clues. And he'll be putting two and two together right now after the way I've behaved this morning. He's my best friend; I don't know that I can keep this from him for long."
"I need time to talk to Kono before too many people find out."
"I know you do. I didn't mean for it to be like this. After you left last night… I didn't pick up in the living room. Danny came to my place this morning when I didn't answer my phone. You left your tie behind."
Adam half-snorted a laugh and took a few steps towards Steve. "So what? He saw a tie that could have belonged to any guy, someone else you could've been seeing."
Steve let out a breath, pocketing his phone, and shook his head as he gave Adam one last regretful look. "I didn't say anything to him, but I had no reason not to say who I was with… unless it was someone I shouldn't be with."
Adam's mouth opened slightly, like he was going to say something, but then thought better of it. Their eyes held for another few seconds and Steve could see that Adam understood the implication.
Adam's smile was brief and wan. "You'd better go, then. He'll be wondering where you are."
"I'm sorry," was all Steve could say.
~//~
Part Five