Summary: It was his birthday, but Danny wanted to forget it. After all, what did he have to celebrate? It wasn't long before he had a bigger problem than trying to find an apartment - like simply staying alive. both Danny and Steve get whumped in this fic, with plenty of angst for the other main players.

Warnings: A little bad language.

Disclaimer: H50 isn't mine...unfortunately!

A big thanks to my pal and fabulous beta Sherry 57 - you rock hon!

And a very, very happy birthday to my friend angstydaydreams. This is for you hon. I hope you enjoy it and that you have a great day tomorrow!

Hau'oli la hanau.

(Happy birthday in Hawaiian. It's pronounced How-o-lee laa Haa-now)

Chapter 1

"Happy birthday, Danno!"

Danny blinked the sleep out of his eyes as Gracie launched herself into his arms. The surprise greeting had caught him unawares. Rudely awoken his instinctive response was to give the owner of the house where he was staying a suitable gesture. However his frown quickly turned into a smile as Gracie gave him a kiss and snuggled against his shoulder.

"Wow…that's the best birthday gift ever, Monkey." Danny gave his daughter another hug and the small tummy a tickle. Gracie's giggles filled the room.

Steve stood watching them with his arms folded, smiling. "Sorry for waking you up, but I figured you wouldn't mind a visitor - especially on your birthday. Why didn't you tell me?"

Danny threw him a warning look as he eased himself into a sitting position on the couch. He pulled Gracie to perch on his knee. "Because…"

Grace was beaming as she pushed a small brightly colored parcel into his hands. "This is for you - I picked it myself."

"A present…thank you, sweetie!" He grinned as he took the proffered gift. Danny made a show of shaking the slim red parcel at his ear. "Let's see…it doesn't rattle."

Danny squeezed it next. It was soft. "Um…I wonder what it could be?"

Grace rolled her eyes and made a face at him. "Just open it, Danno!"

"Gracie is right. Just open it...Danno." Steve said. There was a glint of amusement mixed along with curiosity in his eye.

"Yes, Daniel…I need to get Grace to school. She insisted on coming to give you your gift first thing."

At the sound of Rachel's voice Danny became aware of his disheveled state and blushed. His hair was sticking up. His tee was half way up his back. This wasn't the way he liked to meet his ex-wife – unprepared. Danny glared at his partner. "So…when was it you decided it would be a good idea to invite the whole neighborhood to see me in my pj's?"

A smile grew on Rachel's face, and she drew him a look. "Don't blame Steven. I thought you'd be awake. Besides…there isn't anything there I haven't seen before."

Danny felt himself going even redder. He hated not having his own place. Hated, having to live like a down and out in his partner's pad, with Steve's dumb super SEAL rules. Right now there wasn't a whole lot about his life he did like. With one exception - the little girl sitting on his lap.

With Rachel watching him, he tried to blank out everything but the child and the brightly colored gift. He really wanted to run away and hide, but his sweet Gracie had bought him a present. Danny kept the grin firmly on his face as he carefully opened up the parcel. "This is great! Thank you, babe – you couldn't have got me anything better."

Steve was peering over so Danny showed him his new mouse mat. It had ALOHA written across the top, with hula dancers in yellow grass skirts dancing under bright green palm trees.

"I thought you could use it at work." Gracie smiled, suddenly looking a little unsure.

"And I will," he gave Gracie another hug, and kissed the pale pink cheek. "Every time I use it, I'll think of you."

"We need to go now, Grace…"

The little girl's face fell, but she nodded to her mom. As she started getting off his lap, Grace threw her arms around Danny's neck and gave him a kiss. "Happy Birthday, Danno."

Rachel smiled as she waited for her daughter to take her hand. "Yes, Happy Birthday, Daniel. I hope you have a good day."

There was a lump in his throat as Danny watched Gracie leave much more silently than she'd arrived. He missed his kid. He missed his old life. Instead of waking up in his own home and spending the day with the two women he loved, he was camping out on a friend's couch with nothing to make the day special. Danny tried to shake off the blues by taking the opportunity to jump into the shower while Steve saw them out.

Today he felt like taking his time and damn Steve's stupid rules. He didn't feel like taking a regulation shower, so Danny lingered under the hot spray letting the fierce jet make his skin tingle. If Steven dare utter a word, he would have something to say to the control freak. Besides, it was his birthday. Surely that entitled him to an extra few minutes.

Instead of the expected lecture Steve was grinning when he finally appeared in the kitchen twenty minutes later. His partner handed him cup of coffee. "Happy birthday, partner. So…why the big secret? Is it a special birthday?" Steve's snapped his fingers and his grin got wider. "Of course, that's it…you're -"

Danny grabbed the cup and winced as he spilled the hot liquid over his hand. "No…wise ass - it's not a special birthday. It's just another day in the pathetic existence of Danny Williams. I don't have anything to celebrate. Turning another year older just puts a frigging cherry on the cake. So...can we just drop it…please?"

Steve's smile faded and he put his hands up. "Fine…if that's what you want."

"It is…and I'll thank you not to say anything to Chin or Kono." Danny muttered as he fiddled with the last button on his shirt.

Steve drew a finger over his mouth. "My lips are sealed…but I don't get it, Danny. What's wrong with birthdays? Don't you like cake?"

"Of course I like cake – who doesn't? And I don't hate birthdays…I just don't find anything to celebrate about mine." He saw Steve's mouth open and knew his partner was about to give him a pep talk. He wasn't in the mood so Danny gave him a look. "C'mon, Steve…what has turning a year older done for me – huh? Seriously, man…what do I have? Nothing – that's what. I've no home, I'm sleeping on my partner's couch and...I'm stuck in a pineapple infested hell-hole just to be close to the only good thing in my life. Who…by the way, I only get to see by freaking appointment."

There was an uneasy silence for a moment before Steve replied. "Okay…I get it – you don't want to celebrate. But how about if two friends grabbed a couple of beers after work?"

Danny was about to refuse, then shrugged. "Okay…but I'll only let you buy because it's your turn to pick up the tab."

Steve smirked as he walked out the door. "Hey…I didn't mention anything about buying."

ooooOoooo

Out the corner of his eye Steve saw the sour expression on his partner's face, and cursed himself for not thinking.

He'd picked up the keys of the Camaro by instinct. It was Danny's car, but he hated being a passenger. Steve knew it was a control issue. Not that he would admit that to anyone, especially not the guy sitting next to him. Up till now Danny had griped about it. Made pointed remarks about not being able to drive his own ride. He'd ignored them. Steve had genuinely believed that underneath the edge Danno wasn't too bothered, but today his partner looked furious. Danny was sitting rigidly in the seat, his blue eyes staring out the window at the road ahead and his mouth set in a thin, tight line. His partner had already been pissed to start with but now - he was livid.

Steve toyed with pulling over and letting Danny take over the driver's seat, but dismissed it. The gesture would smack of pity, worse condescension, and would probably make matters worse. He was just trying to think of something to break the heightening tension when the radio went. It was an all points bulletin.

"A robbery is in progress at FRANK'S LIQUOR STORE on the corner of tenth and vine. The unit in the area requests backup."

Steve immediately turned left at the next intersection.

"What the hell are you doing?" Danny asked. "FRANK'S is about ten blocks from here. Don't get me wrong…normally I am more than happy to assist the HPD, but there's a station house just round the corner from there. By the time we get to the scene half of Hawaii's finest will already be in attendance. In any case we're supposed to be on our way to a meeting with the Governor. You know…the guy we're already on shaky ground with - or have you forgotten?" Danny's expression was incredulous as he rolled his eyes.

Steve shrugged. "Don't sweat it, we have plenty of time. I'll just drive by and see what's going on…Look, that blue pickup just went through a stop sign."

"So…what are we now – the traffic division?"

Now it was Steve's turn to narrow his eyes. "The car's coming from the direction of the robbery. I think we should check it out."

Danny picked up the radio.

"What are you doing, Danny?"

"Before we go all Starsky and Hutch on his ass, I thought it might be a good idea to check. I don't know about you, but if the Governor asks why we're late...I don't want to tell him it was because we were issuing a speeding ticket." Danny took the edge out his voice before he spoke into the radio. "This is detective Williams. Do you have any more information about the robbery?"

A female voice quickly responded. "Two masked men have left the scene heading north in a blue Ford pickup. Units are in pursuit."

Steve smiled. "Satisfied? So what are we waiting for - let's do this!"

Danny muttered something under his breath, making a point of checking his seatbelt as Steve put his foot down. Steve noticed, but didn't say a word. Regardless of what Danno thought he was a good driver. He ignored his partner's clenched jaw as he cranked up the speed. The pickup was weaving dangerously about the road. If he didn't get it to stop soon, this high speed chase could become dangerous. Steve knew what he was doing, but one wrong turn from the pickup and the outcome could be deadly.

A car horn blasted, and an angry motorist gave him the finger as Steve edged through a gap in traffic.

"Whoa!" Danny's eyes grew wide as he gripped onto the seat. "Steve…would you please watch where you're going! Despite what I said this morning, I would like to see my next birthday."

"It's cool, man...I've got this." Steve replied automatically without taking his eyes off the road. "Look...all we have to do is keep up the pressure on until the next intersection. Once we're on the coast road it'll be easier for HPD to cut him off."

"Yeah…if we live that long." Danny mumbled.

The adrenaline kicking in was making him feel good, but Steve suppressed the smile that wanted to come to the surface.

He knew Danny hated this kind of pursuit, and pretty much thought he was reckless. He wasn't. In the Navy he'd been trained how to handle all types of vehicles at speed. To him, this was a stroll in the park. Still, Steve was happy the traffic ahead were finally getting the message that a pursuit was in progress and were pulling over far enough to leave him a clear path.

This early in the morning it was just them and the car ahead when they reached the coast road. There were no units in the vicinity, so it was time to end this before the road started to get busy with tourists. Steve had just floored the accelerator to make his move when it happened.

He heard a bang, the car juddered and the Camaro immediately started to skid towards the edge of the cliff. His shoulders were aching, his muscles straining as he gripped the wheel trying to alter course. Danny's face had gone pale as he looked at him in disbelief. There was a sheer drop on the other side, but Steve knew that a little further forward the cliff merged onto a grassy slope. It wasn't ideal but they were veering off the road. All he could do now was decide where they were going to go over.

"Steve…"

"I'm sorry, Danny – prepare yourself…"

They hit the curb hard. Time seemed to stand still as the car flew through the air and flipped, turning upside down as it began its decent. The silence was broken by Danny's sharp intake of breath. His cry of pain was like someone had thrust a knife in his heart. When the car hit the ground Steve winced as he slammed against the wheel. Stunned, he could only lie there until the red mist cleared, and the sharp fiery pain in his chest notched down to a dull ache before he tried to get his bearings. Straight ahead all he could see through the cracked windscreen was miles of green. When he saw Danny unconscious, slumped against the passenger window, instinctively he reached out. Steve yelped as the airbag activated throwing him back against the seat, sending a wall of pain against his chest.

The device was supposed to save him from serious injury, but now Steve was struggling to breathe as the white bag pressed into his face suffocating him. He was dimly aware it would soon deflate when the car started to slide once again and resumed its perilous journey. It began to tumble, picking up speed as the Camero rolled again and again, falling down the slope tossing them about like a couple of rag dolls as it went.

Steve suppressed his cries but his body screamed as he felt every bump each time they collided with the hard earth. When they once again flew into the blue, the crash that followed forced a scream from his lips. The car juddered when it came to a stop, but this time thankfully remained still. Once again he saw the green of the hillside with a view of ocean out in the distance. But this time it looked fuzzy. The colors were muted, the water more grey than blue. Steve thought it was weird as he couldn't remember it ever looking like that before - then the world turned black…

ooooOoooo

TBC

I hope you enjoyed that, and please review!