It's been nearly two weeks since I received the email from my dad's boss. I replied to him the next day, telling him I would be honoured to give a speech at the ceremony. I've spent the last week and a half on this speech. Putting my heart and soul into it. Everyone from five-0 offered to help, but I wouldn't let them see it. I want it to be a surprise for them.

Anyway, today is the day of the ceremony. I woke up and did my normal routine with Uncle Steve. We went for a swim before getting ready. I showered and washed my hair and body using my strawberry scented products. Afterwards I dried my hair before styling it.

I put my hair into a side messy, (but neat), bun. I put on my black and white dress and my black and white converse. I grab my bag and put my laptop and high heels inside. I put on a little makeup before leaving my room. It's 9am, we have to leave at 9:30 so we can be there for 10am. I walk into the kitchen and find Uncle Steve talking to Danny. He smiles when he sees me. He hugs me, before making some breakfast. I hug Danny before sitting down on the stool next to him.
"Morning kiddo, you ready for today?" Uncle Steve asks, turning to look at me momentarily. I nod.
"Yeah, I'm really nervous but excited" I say. I see Danny look down and my shoes and laugh.
"Are you actually wearing those converse to this ceremony?" He asks, earning Uncle Steve's attention. I shake my head and grab my heels out of my bag.
"Nope. I just don't want to wear them all day, they hurt my feet." I say, causing both men to laugh. We all sit down together and eat the waffles Uncle Steve cooked for us. When I finish, I put my plate in the sink before going to brush my teeth. We leave around 09:30. We get into Danny's car, me in the back behind Danny, and Uncle Steve driving. I put in my earphones and listen to music to keep me calm. It's what I've done since I was little. Whenever I was nervous or angry I would zone out and listen to music. I told Uncle and Danny, so they knew I couldn't hear them.

We arrive at the beach where the ceremony is being held 20 minutes later. Danny lets me out of the back. I grab my bag and get out of the car. When he puts the seat back, I sit in his seat and changed into my heels. I leave my bag in the car, after grabbing my speech out of the front pocket. I have memorised it, but you can never be to safe. I hold my phone and speech in one hand whilst Uncle Steve puts his arm over my shoulders. We take our seats on the front row with the rest of five-0. We greet each other and I receive a hug from everyone else. We sit talking for a few minutes before the ceremony begins.

Towards the end of the ceremony it's finally my time to speak. My name gets called out by General Ellis, my dad's boss. I walk up onto the stage. We share a quick hug, before her leaves the stage, leaving my standing alone at the podium. I lay my speech down and take a deep breath before looking around. I can see the crew from both the ships my parents worked on in the back. I smile at those I recognise. I take another deep breath before speaking.

"For those of you who don't know me, my name is Tia Ashmore. Both my mother, Lia Ashmore, and father, Kevin Ashmore worked in the Navy. I've been asked by General Ellis to speak today on their behalf, as unfortunately they cannot be here with us today." I stop, and take a breath. I look at Danny who smiles and gives me the thumbs up. I continue.
"Ohana. It's a strange word, yet it has so much meaning behind it. Part of the Hawaiian culture, Ohana means family. Whether talking about an extended sense of the term, including blood-related or adoptive. The concept emphasizes that families are bound together and members must cooperate and remember one another.
Before I came to live out here with Uncle Steve, I lived in Seattle with my dad. As a family, each summer we would come out here on holiday and live with uncle Steve for the summer. Those holidays were special for me because it was time all of us got to spend time together, as a family. As some of you know, the reason I came out here was because my dad died working in the Navy. He was on a mission when something went wrong, resulting in the death of my dad and two other Navy Seals. These men were heroes and deserved to be recognised and honoured for the work they did in protecting their country.
When I was little, we were always moving around because of my parent jobs. The job they did was risky and they knew this, but they did it because they wanted myself and other children, to have the best future possible. They always told me if something were to happen that they love me, no matter what or where they were. They told me to live life to its fullest and to act like every day could be your last because we don't know what will happen. And they were right.

At the age of 8, I grieved the death of my mother, who, like my father, died on a mission. Now, 7 years on, I have been forced to relive that horror, with the death of my father. As painful, and heart breaking as this has been, I go on, knowing that I was loved and nothing can ever change that.

At first, when I was told that I had to come and live out here, I was angry and scared. Even though I knew a lot of people out here, they weren't my family. But now, after living out here for a few months and with certain events that have happened, I am proud and honoured to call the members of Five-0 and a few others, my family. My Ohana." I look and see them all looking shocked. Kono and Uncle Steve looked like they were about to cry. Again, I looked at Danny for the support and encouragement I need to continue. I also look back to see some of those who worked with my parents, tearing up. I smiled before continuing.
"Without them, I would have nothing. I would be no-one. And funny enough I wouldn't actually be here, but that's a complete different story for another day. They were always telling me they were always there for me 24/7, day or night. I wanted to believe them, but it was difficult at first. Being away from the place I knew as my home, with the people I once called my friends. But, they were there to pull me out of the hole I had fallen into and they have stuck by my side ever since. They are there for me always, no matter what, and I want them to know that I'm there for them as well. This, is my home now. And the people around me our my Ohana. I want to thank, every single one of you for the demanding work and dedication you have. It's not easy to do a job like yours, but you do it to protect others. Words cannot describe to pride and honour I have for you and for the job my parents once did. And even though I lost both parent to the job, I want you all to that I consider you all my Ohana. Thank You for your service, and thank you for having my parents backs out there." The beach irrupts into cheers and clapping. I single tear drips down my face but I'm quick to wipe it away. I walk off the stage and straight into the arms of Uncle Steve.
"I'm proud of you kiddo, and they would be to." He says, rubbing my back. I nod, not speaking because if I did I would probably cry. I hug everyone else. They all congratulate me. I turn around a see a small group of people, all in uniform. I walk away from five-0 and over to them.
"I'm Sargent Dennis, and this is Officer Kapu, Fizz and Elliots. We worked with both your mother and father. Thank you for what you said, it was beautiful. You know they never stopped talking about you. It was Tia this and Tia that. They were extremely proud of you and we wanted to tell you how honoured we were to work side by side with them." I nod, not knowing what to say. I hug all four of them.
"Thank You" I say. The salute me before walking off. I turn around and see Uncle Steve and the others talking to General Ellis and another man in uniform. I don't walk over to them, I walk away from everyone. I walk further down the beach, away from everything and sit down by the shore line. I take off my heels and look out to see.
"I miss you mum and dad. I miss you so much." I say, letting the tears I've been holding in most of the day finally fall. I look up and see Danny walking over to me. I try to wipe the tears away quickly, but he sees them. He sits down next to me and pulls me into him.
"You did great Tia. I know you know this, but from what I saw when I met your parents, they were extremely proud of you and loved you very much" He says. I look up at him and smile. We sit for a while before he stands up.
"You coming?" He asks, holding out his hand to help me up. I take his hand and he pulls me up. We walk back up the beach to the others. Uncle Steve hugs me and thanks Danny. Danny just puts his hands in his pockets and nod his head.
"You okay Kiddo?" He asks me, obviously knowing why I walked away. I look at him and then around to the others. I smile.
"Yeah, I am now. I meant what I said before. You guys are my Ohana" I say, making them all smile. We all group hug. When, my mum died and then my dad, I didn't think I would ever be happy or have a family again. I guess I was wrong. These people are my family now, and I know that just because my parents aren't here anymore, doesn't me they're not watching over me.