DISCLAIMER: I do not own nor have rights to Hawaii Five-0, its character, or its stories.

NOTE: Okay, so primarily I created this account so that I could post this. They released the little summary for the New Jersey flashback episode the other day and I McDanno'ed it. And since it will be irrelevant when the episode actually airs, I thought I'd put it out there now.


"Danny, don't!" Steve cried out at his partner as he stepped directly into a wire stretched across the entrance to the storeroom that the suspects had abandoned when 5-0 burst into the warehouse. But it was too late. When Danny's leg pressed against the wire, a loud beep sounded and Danny froze mid-step.

Steve sprinted to Danny's side and carefully bent down to gaze at the booby trap. He inhaled sharply, his fears confirmed as he saw the intricate wires of a bomb that Danny had triggered on the other side of the doorway. "Steve," Danny said softly, barely a whisper.

"Chin! Get the bomb squad in here, now! And clear everyone out of here! Including you and Kono," Steve said sharply. Chin hesitated, looking toward his frozen teammate, but the ferocity in Steve's eyes told him that it was best not to fight this. The best way to help Danny was to let Steve help him.

Soon it was just Steve and Danny in the warehouse. The bomb squad was on the way, but it would be several minutes before they arrived. Danny hadn't moved for fear of detonating the bomb that only the angle and pressure of his leg was preventing from going off and killing them both. "Steve," Danny said again, the sudden loudness of his voice startling both of them. "Tell Gracie—"

Steve shook his head violently. "No. We're not doing that. You can tell Grace whatever the hell you want when you pick her up from school on Friday. It's your weekend, right? And you're bringing her over to swim, right?" Tears were shining in Steve's eyes.

And that's all it took for Danny to start crying himself. He swallowed around the lump in his throat and nodded stiffly. "Yeah," he choked out. Danny took a deep breath and got himself under control. He closed his eyes and they stood there in silence for a few moments.

"Kiss me." Danny said finally.

Steve managed a laugh. "Right now, Danno? Is this really the time to out our burgeoning relationship?" But the seriousness in Danny's eyes let him know that this was the time. And so he obliged. Standing as close to Danny as he could without their bodies touching, Steve leaned down and kissed Danny deeply. He pulled away to find tears in Danny's eyes again. "Ouch, you could hurt a guy's feelings," Steve said with a failing attempt at lightness.

Danny took another deep breath. "Please get out of here."

Steve took a step back. "No."

"Steven…"

"I'm not leaving you," Steve said bluntly.

"I don't want you to get blown up too. I can't be the reason that you—"

"Danno." Steve reached out and grabbed Danny's hands in his own. He waited until Danny looked him in the eyes. "Danno, what you don't understand is that I didn't mean just now. I meant ever. I'm never going to leave you. I love you. And I'm going to wait with you, holding your hand, until bomb squad disables this bomb. And then we're going to walk out of here. Together. Like we always do. Understand?"

Danny wasn't even breathing.

"Danny?"

Danny exhaled suddenly and gripped Steve's hands. And despite the cramp starting his leg and the direness of the situation, Danny felt his fear start to melt away. It was fading away and was being replaced by a warmness that Danny could only attribute to Steve's hands and Danny's unwavering love for the man in front of him. "Understood babe."

Steve smiled, and despite their current predicament, he looked one hundred percent happy for maybe the first time in his life. "Now, while we wait, why don't you tell me a story."

"Tell you a story? Now you sound like my daughter."

"Tell me a story about Grace then."

"You know all of my Grace stories."

Steve shrugged. It was true. "Oh, I know. Tell me a Jersey story." He grinned and Danny cracked a smile at the excitement on his face.

Danny thought for a moment. Steve's hands had grounded him and he was no longer thinking about the tripwire or the bomb, he was just thinking about making Steve happy. So he would tell him a Jersey story.

"Have I ever told you about my toughest case as a cop in Jersey? It was before Grace was even born…"