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It was one of those warm evenings with soft breezes meant for long walks and soft conversations. The sun was beginning its descent into the sea west of the Santa Monica Pier, highlighting people taking in the sights, riding the carnival rides and enjoying the pleasant weather.
“Thanks for driving down and spending the day with me”, MacGyver said, smiling down at the strawberry blond woman whose hand he was holding.
“Well, Matty did call yesterday and gave me a head’s up”, Kaitlyn admitted, smiling in return. She stood on her tiptoes and gave him a quick kiss. “There was no way in heck I was going to let you rattle around alone in your house today”. She gently steered them towards the railing where it was less crowded. “I know what day this is”, she said quietly,”and if you were alone, your brain would just let a train of thought start up, and you’d try some experiment or something to derail it, only it wouldn’t work and you’d wind up blowing up the house”, she hugged his arm,”and I don’t think Bozer, or the neighbors, would appreciate that”.
MacGyver chuckled softly. “No”, he said, smiling, “they wouldn’t”. He let go of Kaitlyn’s hand and turned to lean his arms on the railing, clasping both hands together. He stared out over the beach, lost in thought. “It’s been a year”, he said quietly after a few moments. “I do still think about what happened, how it could have gone differently”.
Kaitlyn reached out and put a hand gently on his back and began making soft, stroking motions. “You never told me exactly what happened”, she said, “I’ve only heard bits and pieces from Riley and Matty”.
He nodded, still looking out over the beach. He took a breath. “We got a call that there was a research vessel full of college students iced in above the Arctic Circle”, he began, telling her the story. He kept his voice calm as he spoke, but she could sense he was trying to keep his emotions in check.
She listened quietly as he spoke, occasionally reaching up to brush back strands of hair that blew across his sad blue eyes. She heard his voice begin to tremble slightly as he spoke of the breach in the hull and how the water couldn’t be stopped. She heard the crack when he described standing alone in the war room, keeping the brave young woman company until the communication lines had cut, and he knew she was gone. “Angus”, she said gently but firmly, cupping his cheek in her hand and brushing away a tear with her thumb. “Angus, you did everything you could, above and beyond what anyone else put in that position could do”, she said, fixing him with her gaze. “A million things could have gone wrong, but none of them were your fault . You saved all those other kids”. She pulled him into a fierce hug, and they were silent for a few moments. When she sensed he had calmed, she pulled back slightly so she could look up at him. “You know what we need?” She asked, smiling.
“No”, MacGyver replied, returning her smile, “what?”
“Ice cream”, Kaitlyn said, giving him a quick squeeze. She looked farther along the pier from were they stood. “And look, there’s just the place for us”. She took MacGyver’s hand and began leading him. “Come on”, she urged, then added in a sing-song voice, “I’m buying”.
The couple made their way down the pier to the ice cream shop, which seemed fairly busy. They split up, Kaitlyn making her way down the row of tubs behind glass, but MacGyver stayed in front of the group of chocolate flavors.
“Come on, Mac”, Kaitlyn teased, “you need to get out of your chocoholic phase sometime. Explore”. She then noticed his expression and stopped teasing, walking over to him and hugging his arm. “Mac?” She asked quietly. “What is it?”
“Zoe told me her favorite flavor was rocky road”, he replied, not looking at her.
Kaitlyn gave his arm a squeeze.”Ah”, she said, “then I have an idea. We will make this a tribute to her”. She caught the attention of the young man behind the counter. “Two large waffle cones”, she said, “with two scoops of rocky road in each”. The order was filled, and she paid, then they walked out, making their way to the end of the pier.
There were only a few couples at the end of the pier, watching the waves and the sun begin to touch the horizon. MacGyver and Kaitlyn found a good spot, and were silent for a moment. Then Kaitlyn raised her cone as if to make a toast. “To Zoe”, she said,”we will remember you, and your sacrifice”.
MacGyver lifted his own cone and smiled. “To Zoe”, he said.