A/N: This is my first story in this new world of fan fiction. I have been so impressed by the amazing writing, I thought I'd dip my toe in the water. Much respect to all of you who do this and thanks for your hard work! To readers in the law enforcement or medical fields (THANK YOU for what you do), I don't know anything about your stuff. I just try to make it entertaining. Sorry if it's incorrect or doesn't make sense.
Disclaimer: I don't own anything that is a proper noun. No copyright infringement intended.
Just Another Day for Five-0
Danny got out of the Camaro in Steve's driveway. He didn't even make it to the sidewalk when he saw Steve step outside his door and check the lock. He was tucking in his tee shirt under his open button-up and adjusting his holster as he was walking. He had a slight scowl on his face and didn't even acknowledge Danny's presence until he saw the keys being tossed at him. He caught them with his fingertips and headed for the driver's side. Danny obligatorily rounded the front of the car and headed to the passenger side.
On the road now, neither had said a word. Steve glanced over at Danny who was facing him at an angle and staring. Steve did a double take.
"What?" Steve huffed and gave a moment for Danny to reply. Danny just continued to stare. "What is it, Danny?"
"Are you kidding me right now?" Danny waved his hands back and forth, palms up, in a questioning manner. "What is this?"
"What is what?"
"What are you wearing?"
"What do you mean, what am I wearing? I'm wearing what I always wear."
"Exactly!" Danny exclaimed, exasperated.
"What's wrong with what I'm wearing?"
"Well, nothing if you want to look like a frat boy going for a job interview at the local rock climbing school."
"What? Did you expect me to wear my dress blues? I didn't want to come across as too stuffy."
"Well you, my friend, will not be seen as 'stuffy'." Danny turned and looked out his window. He could tell by the silence that his statements were eating at Steve and he grinned to himself.
Not to be outdone, Steve finally spoke. "Well what about you?"
Danny turned in his seat again to face Steve. "Alright...what about me?"
"Your socks..."
"My socks?" Danny glanced down to remind himself what socks he was wearing. He looked back at Steve, raised his eyebrows, and tilted his head. "What's the matter with my socks, pray tell?"
"'Pray tell'? Really?" After pausing with a condescending narrowing of his eyes, he continued, "It's your socks with those...stripes…and your loafers...your whole getup." Pleasantly satisfied, Steve was sensing he was now getting a rise out of his partner and it was his turn to grin.
"I'll have you know I am appropriately dressed for the occasion."
"You're going to look like a dad."
"Um, ok, is that a bad thing? At least I'm not trying to make up for missing out on the college experience like some people."
"It's fine, Danny. I'm fine. No one will care what I'm wearing...except you."
Danny shrugged, resigned to the fact it was out of his hands. "Whatever."
~~~~~H50~~~~~
Steve had not voiced his annoyance directly to the Governor regarding his "request" for Steve to speak to the criminal justice class that the Governor's niece was taking. However, since last week's request, Danny and his whole team had heard about it...repeatedly. Danny was glad the day had finally come so they could get this behind them.
Minutes after arriving, the duo walked to the behavioral sciences building at Chaminade University. Steve was in front and his ever-present, in-house backup, Danny Williams, was in tow doing the duty of providing the moral support, and as Steve found out earlier, acting as his personal "fashion police" as well.
Going through the door, Steve literally ran into a couple of co-eds that were exiting. He turned red and mumbled, "Oh, sorry."
One of the girls readjusted her backpack and looked down and saw Steve's gun. "Is that real?"
"Uh, yeah...I mean yes, it is." Steve placed his right hand on the grip of his P226 and half covered the object of their attention.
The girls giggled to themselves and continued on their way.
Danny held the door for the girls and gestured for them to exit before entering himself. "Ladies..."
Once Danny caught up to Steve, he couldn't help himself, "Are you going to be okay? Should I have brought some smelling salts with me? I didn't think robots got flustered."
Steve's face showed his disapproval with Danny's comments as Danny's face lit up in a big smile.
Upon entering the lecture hall, they were warmly greeted inside by the class' professor, Dr. Jac Vanderkooy. After introductions and handshakes, Dr. Vanderkooy expressed his appreciation to the men for coming. He then approached the podium and called the class to order.
Danny took a seat at an empty desk on the far side of the room by the windows. Steve stood to the right awaiting his introduction to the students. Steve could face the most daunting foe or dire situation without blinking an eye, but for some reason, this room full of young people gave him unfamiliar feelings of dread. He could feel it in his increased heart rate and the clamminess of his hands.
The stragglers took their seats and the room quieted. "Today we have a special guest speaker. Lieutenant Commander Steven McGarrett, former Navy SEAL and head of the Five-0 task force, is going to share some insight into aspects of his job. You'll have the opportunity for questions later. Please be respectful and welcoming...Commander." Dr. Vanderkooy conceded his position behind the podium and directed Steve to the front of the class with the wave of his arm.
Steve laid his notes in front of him, cleared his throat, and took a moment to absorb all the faces in the crowd, starting on his left and slowly working his way across the room. His visual inspection concluded when he spotted Danny who was sitting comfortably with his legs crossed, exposing those socks. Don't roll your eyes. His left elbow was leaning on the desk's arm rest and his hands were folded in front of him. He was intently watching his partner with one eyebrow raised and a smirk on his face due to the uncomfortable delay Steve was manifesting.
Steve scratched his upper lip with his middle finger and began to speak. His confidence grew as he superficially delved into summaries of the team's more interesting cases. He was rewarded by an attentive group of listeners. Even Danny was impressed how Steve had gotten it together, especially after witnessing his mood earlier that morning. He was proud of his idiot partner.
Steve was feeling a sense of accomplishment and relief as he felt his time running down. To wrap it up, he asked if there were any questions. He was surprised when several hands went up. Maybe I'm not almost done after all. As he was getting ready to entertain the first question, the unmistakable sound of a gunshot rang out from the yard outside.
~~~~~H50~~~~~
Screams permeated the room and surrounding area. Some students fell to the floor for cover. Others ran toward the window to see if they could witness what was happening outside.
Steve and Danny each reacted immediately. Instinctively, they drew their firearms and crouched low. Danny yelled out instructions to those that had made their way to the windows to get down. Steve was doing the same with those remaining at their seats. Steve enjoined Dr. Vanderkooy to keep the students down and lock the door behind him until they found out what was going on.
Words did not need to be spoken between the two men. Steve gave a hand signal in Danny's direction and Danny nodded his confirmation. Steve was out the door and Dr. Vanderkooy complied with his orders and locked the door behind him.
On the other side of the room, Danny was checking out the window to see if he could spot the shooter. When the first check came back empty, he once more ducked below the window and pivoted to check the other direction. From this vantage point there was shrubbery hindering his view. However, he could make out an altercation between what appeared to be two male students, one of which was holding a semi-automatic. He didn't see Steve but knew he would be nearby.
He shimmied one of the windows open as quietly as possible. He turned to the huddled students and warned them with a whisper, "Everyone STAY PUT. Do NOT move from this room." He glanced toward Dr. Vanderkooy and got the affirmation of compliance he needed before leaving. He was now appreciative of the vegetation in front of the window as it was supplying the cover he needed. He climbed through the window to go back up his partner.
~~~~~H50~~~~~
Steve ran through the same heavy metal door he had entered the building through earlier. With his gun at the ready, he looked first to his right and then to the left. Except for the lack of students milling about, he saw nothing unusual. He acted on gut instinct and turned and headed to the left. Stopping short of the edge of the building, he peered around the corner.
Two young men were facing each other. They were standing approximately 20 feet apart and the one to Steve's right was brandishing a gun. He knew this had been the source of the gunshot and thankfully he did not see any casualties. The other man was holding his hands up in submission. Both seemed on edge. Steve could now make out their heated conversation.
"No, man, you got it all wrong. Just listen. She's the one that came onto me..."
"Liar! Tell the truth!" The one with the gun was agitated and trembling. Steve saw him raise both arms to use just one of his sleeves to wipe the sweat from his forehead while still holding the gun.
Steve stepped around the corner and crept closer to the duo. He had his gun trained on the instigator. "Five-0! You need to lower your weapon now!"
From behind the gunman, a young woman was running toward the action. "Jason! What are you doing?" she angrily called out.
Steve could only watch helplessly as Jason seized and pulled the woman toward him and envelop her with his arm to use her as a shield against Steve's threat. She struggled against him until he turned the gun toward her. "Jason, stop it. Michael didn't do anything. You're acting crazy." Her comments just seemed to irritate him further. Michael fidgeted as though he thought about running but Jason pointed the gun back at him to keep him in his place.
"Whoa, man, take it easy. Nobody has to get hurt here." Steve held up both of his arms, his weapon now pointing toward the sky. As he was speaking he noticed Danny approaching directly across from him. Steve continued to keep Jason's attention so his partner could covertly make his move.
"Jason, is it? Look, man, just let the girl go. We can talk this out, no harm, no foul." Steve motioned that he was going to lay down his gun. He slowly bent over and put his SIG on the ground and raised both hands again in surrender. He dared not glance at Danny to give him away but was keeping track of his approach peripherally.
Unfortunately, Michael also saw Danny at the edge of his vision and turned to look which alerted Jason. Jason rotated to see Danny with his gun pointed at him and without thinking, Jason pushed his hostage away and fired in Danny's direction. Steve took the opportunity to lunge at the shooter, but at the same time, saw his partner twist and fall to the ground with a grunt.
No, no, no, Danny Williams, do not do this to me. Before he could check on Danny though, he had to neutralize the threat. Steve hit Jason with such a force that they both fell to the ground. Jason tried to fight Steve off. Steve could now see Jason's blown pupils which confirmed his suspicions that he was under the influence of some kind of stimulant drug. Jason was able to get an elbow into the side of Steve's jaw. Steve also took a few punches to his face and side. He didn't feel any pain, though, as his concern for Danny made him numb.
He was able to restrain his opponent, but not before landing some punches of his own. He could see his friend lying motionless on the ground away from them. He had to fight against the adrenaline to hold back releasing his rage on his partner's shooter. He finally cuffed the man, and upon standing, couldn't help getting one more shove in with his foot.
"Somebody call an ambulance!" he yelled as he turned and ran toward Danny. Michael and the young woman were on either side of Danny. Danny was now alert and trying to sit up. Michael was attempting to help him when Steve pushed the man out of the way and took his place. Danny was holding both hands over a blood soaked spot on his shirt, low on his side. Steve removed his button-up and wadded it into a ball and pressed it under Danny's hands.
"Danno...hey buddy...stay still...what are you doing?"
"I'm trying to get up if you'll let me, you cretin." Danny was squirming to try to rise up to his elbows. "What happened to you?"
For the first time, Steve felt the trail of blood running from his split lip and began to feel the throb of the pounding the doped-up Jason tried to dole out. "It's nothing. I'm fine."
"Of course you're fine. You're always fine."
Steve ignored the comment and decided to do his own initial medical assessment and lifted Danny's hands and shirt from the wound. The bullet had almost missed, entering and exiting on Danny's side above his waist. Besides the obvious loss of blood, Steve relented that it didn't look that bad after all. He placed the wadded shirt back over the seeping wound and then used his hands to apply pressure. Steve breathed a slight sigh of relief. HPD was pulling into the parking lot and more sirens could be heard approaching in the distance, Steve was sure they were those of an ambulance. "Come on Danny, you need to wait for the medics."
"Nope, nope, I'm good. Just help me up."
This time Steve nodded to Michael to get to the other side. Michael obeyed and they hoisted Danny up to his feet. Danny let out a muffled moan, and Steve's brow furrowed again in worry.
"Babe, chill, it's okay." Danny was hunched slightly.
The threat had passed and neither of the men noticed the crowd that had gathered outside. Now that Danny was on his feet, someone in the crowd started to clap, followed by another, and pretty soon the entire group was applauding. From their respective safe spots, the "audience" had gotten to see the work of Five-0 in person.
HPD officers surrounded and escorted Michael and Jillian (they later learned the young woman's name) away for questioning. Steve stood supporting Danny under his arm while Danny held pressure to his wound. They each took the time to take in the faces of the applauding crowd which included the class to which Steve had just spoken. The men shared a look with each other because they didn't know what the big deal was...just another day for Five-0. They grinned anyway. Dr. Vanderkooy maneuvered his way through the throng of students and took Danny by the other arm. They began to walk to meet the medics halfway who were now there with a gurney.
"Mm, mm. Don't need that. I can make it to the bus on my own two feet."
The medics looked questioningly at Steve. "It's okay. We'll get him there."
Danny sat on the open end of the ambulance. The medics had removed Steve's makeshift dressing and were packing the wound in preparation to transport him to the hospital.
"You know," Dr. Vanderkooy started, "my class got much more of a lesson than we were expecting. You didn't have to go to so much trouble," he said with a smile.
Before Steve could speak, Danny chimed in, "Believe me, if you knew this guy like I do," pointing his thumb at Steve, "you would have been expecting something like this. He's a trouble-magnet you know."
This time Steve didn't try to hide his exasperated eye roll. "Danny, maybe you should try out that "fashion police" thing. Our "police thing" may be a little much for you."
"I'd never let you get off that easy, babe. You're stuck with me."
~The End~
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