CHAPTER SIX
"It's beautiful isn't it?" Clint asked without a hint of sarcasm. In fact there was a slight tinge to his voice, like he was choking, that suggested he was on the verge of tears.
"Yeah it's... it's something," Olivia agreed, not too sure what response he was after but knowing that the moment was too serious a one, for Clint at least, for her to make a joke.
The two were currently on a walking tour of the USS Arizona in Pearl Harbor. Of the eight battleships attacked during the attack on Pearl Harbor, all but one sailed again. The USS Arizona was struck in the hull by a torpedo, causing an explosion that was said to have lifted the great hunk of metal fifteen feet in the air before sending it to the bottom of the harbor. In commemorance to the fallen and the attack in general, it was decided that the ship would be left where it sunk. Now it acts as both a tourist attraction to those visiting the harbor and a constant reminder of what the soldiers were fighting for.
Two days after their training session on the beach, both Olivia and Clint took a helicopter ride to Pearl Harbor. Clint went because that was where he was stationed. He had only gone across to San Diego to meet with Olivia, and that was only because of the charges he was brought up on. Olivia on the other hand went because she had to follow through with the next part of her investigation, that was interviewing the memebers of the Coast Guard that were present during the submarine incident.
The two days before Clint and Olivia had left, had been spent entirely together. By day Clint would train Olivia and by night the two would catch up on lost times. In fact, as Clint had no official residence, he opted to move in with Olivia. When he asked her if he could it had caught her off guard – yet another act that suggested he was after more than just a casual romance. She was going to deny him at first, not wanting to put herself in a position where he could hurt her again. But eventually relented. She was only human after all
In the end, those two days were the best in Olivia's recent memory. Sure, each day she was pushed to within an inch of her life; even throwing up on several occasions. But she couldn't remember a time when she had been so happy. And it wasn't just that she felt as if she were coming closer to her goal either. It was because of Clint. The two had fallen back into their old rhythms and every day she was reminded of why she had loved him so fiercely in the first place.
Her only fear was that he didn't feel the same about her. For all she knew he was just using her to kill time while he was in San Diego and the moment he went back she would be forgotten. This was a fear that raged inside of her right up until their first day Pearl Harbor.
"When are you meeting with Brian?" he asked as they got off the chopper. He had even opted to carry her bags. It was unnecessary but appreciated.
"Tomorrow," she responded. "Today I'm going to inspect the rig you were on and the equipment you used. Plus I need to look at tidal charts and --"
"Is there any chance that can wait for tomorrow too?" he asked. There was an air of excitement in his voice, and Olivia sensed that something was up.
"Probably. Why...?"
"I have something I want to show you." That was all he would say on the matter too. Even as he helped her to her room. And even as he watched her get changed out of her Navy whites, he kept his mouth shut. All he would say was that he had something he wanted to show her. From that simple exclamation he could not be budged.
It was because of that that Olivia later found herself on the USS Arizona. The great battleship was meant to be closed for the day but Clint managed to get permission for the two to walk through it. Or at least he claimed that he had permission. For some reason she got the sense that he had just snuck them on, not caring what would happen were they discovered.
The moment they were on the battleship though, Clint's demeanor and personality in general totally changed. He was no longer buoyant and carefree. Rather he become stoic and even a little emotional. It was a side of him that she had never seen before.
"Did I ever tell you why I joined the military?" Clint asked. They were standing in the center of the great structure, with the sunken the ship directly below their feet. Clint had stopped moving and was staring down at the hunking mass of metal.
"No actually... I don't think I ever..." It was odd, but Olivia had just realized that she had never asked him why he had. She joined the Navy initially because they offered the best scholarship, only falling in love with the ways of the military after several years. She had assumed Clint was the same.
"My grandfather was on the Arizona when it was hit." He spoke barely above a whisper, as if he were talking to himself rather than her. "It was my father's tenth birthday. The ship went down before 9am. He never even had a chance to call or send a letter or anything. He was never given a chance. My father never joined the military because of that. He blamed the US, you believe that? Me though, I knew who the real enemy was. And it wasn't just the Japs. And it isn't now. It's anyone who threatens our way of life. Anyone who stops a father seeing his son on his tenth birthday. You know?"
"Is that why you joined the SEAL's?" Olivia asked. She too spoke in a whisper, not sure what else to say. Clint's voice trembled as he spoke, indicating he was on the verge of tears. She had never seen him so vulnerable.
"I remember there was this kid in my class who was bragging one day about how if he got good enough marks he would never have to see battle. Like that was a point of honor or something? It was because of that... that was when I realized that I was in the wrong place. The next day I dropped out and joined the SEAL's. At least as a SEAL I can make a difference, a real physical difference. Even if I don't have the title. I've never once regretted my choice either."
"Never?"
"No, not never. My only regret was leaving you." He had stopped looking down now, his body turned to face Olivia. There were tears in his eyes and Olivia couldn't think of a single time she had ever seen him cry before. "I made a choice that day, the military over you. It was the hardest thing I've ever had to do. Hopefully... hopefully it's one I won't ever have to make again."
If there was any doubt as to how Clint felt about Olivia, it was vanquished in that moment. As she watched him, tears near brimming in his eyes, she didn’t know what to say. Or if any words would do. So she said nothing. Instead she walked up to Clint, threw her arms around him and hugged him. And he returned it, holding her in his strong embrace.
And there they stood for an immeasurable length of time. It may have been seconds. It may have been minutes or even hours. It didn’t matter. She was happy to hold him and clearly, he was more than happy to hold her right back.