Title: All's Fair in Love and Cast Signing
Author: sockie1000
Disclaimers: The usual. You know them by now.
Summary: Danny finds out the real reason why Steve won't let him sign his cast. Tag to episode 1.20 "Ma Ke Kahakai".
Author's Note: The idea for this story came from a conversation I had yesterday with Cokie316. She had a brilliant theory as to why Steve would not let Danny sign his cast, which gave me this plot bunny. And like all good enablers, Cokie encouraged me to run with it. So, here it is. I hope you like it.
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"I still don't know why you won't let me sign your cast," Danny grumbled as he tipped the Hilton Hawaiian Village valet and sat down in the driver's seat of the Camaro.
Steve closed the passenger side door and shrugged. "I just don't want you to," he said simply.
"You let Kamekona sign it," Danny pointed out, pulling out of the parking lot and onto Kalia Road.
"Well, he picked me up from the hospital, which was very nice of him. So, as a 'thank you', I let him sign it."
"Some 'thank you.' He turned you into a walking billboard for Waiola Shave Ice," Danny grumbled.
Steve looked down at his cast and grinned. "Not really," he said. "I mean, yes, he did take advantage of some free advertising, but it could have been worse. He wanted to decoupage his big baby blue face on it."
Danny snorted. "That actually could have been useful last night in our little hidden basement showdown at the o.k. corral. We wouldn't have even had to come up with a ruse. You could have just whipped out your cast and let Mr. Rutherford see Kamekona's smiling face. He would have been so stunned we probably could have taken away his gun and cuffed him before he even knew what to think."
Steve grinned. "Maybe. But I'd still rather have his writing on the side instead. At least this way, when I put my arm in the sling, you can't see it. The top part is still clean."
"It wouldn't still be clean if you'd gotten your way at the restaurant," Danny said. "You were going to let our server sign it."
Steve smiled and closed his eyes, resting his head on the car's headrest. "Ahhh, yes. Sandrine."
"Yes. Sandrine," Danny mimicked, rolling his eyes. "The latest in a long line of hot women that would obviously go out with you, in a heartbeat, if you were smart enough to get a phone number."
"She was nice, and pretty, too. But Kamekona liked her, and there is no way I could do that to him. Especially not since he was so smitten he wanted to take her out 'marticulating' on the beach," Steve chuckled.
"So, you're really not going to let me sign it?" Danny asked, looking over at Steve.
"Nope," Steve shook his head.
"Are you going to make me play the 'I am your partner' and 'I saved your life' cards again? Because I will if I have to."
"Play them all you want," Steve said. "It won't change my mind."
"Ok, then. Toss me a bone. At least tell me why you won't let me sign it."
Steve sighed and then said, "I'd rather not."
Danny raised his eyebrows, tilted his head, and prodded, "because…"
"Because you won't like it," Steve said.
"And when has that ever stopped you before?" Danny questioned.
Steve sighed. "Ok," he said, "I'll tell you. I don't want you to sign it because I don't trust you."
Danny's face went blank. "What?" he asked.
"I don't trust you," Steve said again, shrugging. "You'll write something goofy on it that I'll have to live with for eight weeks, and I just don't want to have to deal with that."
"Wow, you think so little of me," Danny said, pursing his lips and nodding his head. "That's good to know. Thank you. This has been very enlightening."
"Oh come on, Danny. Don't take it that way. Look, if I did let you write on it, what would you write?" Steve asked.
"I don't know," Danny replied, making a face. "How about 'get well soon'?"
"Oh. Well, that would be ok," Steve admitted, nodding once.
"So, you'll let me sign it?" Danny asked, as turned off the street and pulled into Steve's driveway.
"Not a chance," Steve said, shaking his head.
Danny stopped the Camaro in front of Steve's house and put the car in park.
"I was going to help you get inside and see if you needed anything, but you probably wouldn't trust me to do that either," Danny said crossly.
"Seriously, Danny?" Steve said, rolling his eyes.
"Yes, seriously, Steven," Danny huffed, gesturing towards Steve's front door. "So, just go. Go take your crippled, little, gimpy self inside, along with all your trust issues."
Steve sighed, opened the car door, and climbed out. "See you on Monday," he said and then closed the door.
Danny rolled his eyes and shook his head. He watched Steve make it to the front door and then shifted the car into drive and drove down the driveway. He saw Steve close the front door in his rearview mirror and then turned onto the street.
Danny made an immediate u-turn and stopped right in front of Steve's house. He killed the ignition and turning off the car lights. He had a great vantage point of the house. The trees in the front yard and the darkness of night served as a perfect camouflage. Steve would not be able to see the car from the house, but Danny could see light in the upstairs windows through the branches.
Danny settled back into his seat and waited. He imagined he would not have to wait long.
*H50*
Steve sighed as he closed the front door behind him and locked it. He turned on the alarm and headed upstairs.
His broken arm was taking more of a toll on him than he let on. Add to that a few beers and a typically exhausting conversation with Danny, and all Steve really wanted to do was take a hot shower and go to bed.
He carefully took off his clothes and stepped into the blissfully hot water, holding his cast outside the curtain to avoid getting it wet. After a few minutes, he turned the water off, stepped out, and dried off. He pulled on a tank top and pajama pants and then climbed into bed. He was almost asleep before his head hit the pillow.
*H50*
Danny smiled. It has been less than 30 minutes. The lights had gone out upstairs a while ago and he was fairly certain Steve was sound asleep.
Danny got out of the car and walked up to the front door. He moved a rock in the flowerbed and picked up the spare key to the front door. It was the one he always used to let himself in. He silently slid the key into the lock and turned it, opening the door.
The alarm started to make a low noise, giving him 30 seconds to enter the correct code before the alarm went off. Danny keyed in the code in less than five. Steve had no idea that he knew the code, but Danny was an observant guy. He'd watched Steve enter it once and memorized it for future use, in case it was ever needed. Like tonight.
He walked to the base of the stairs and listened. As expected, he didn't hear anything. He quietly made his way up the stairs and paused outside the bedroom door for a moment. He was rewarded by hearing Steve's deep breathing coming from inside the bedroom. It wasn't quite a snore, but it was enough to let Danny know that Steve had not woken up. And, more importantly, that he was deeply asleep.
Danny pushed the door open silently and stepped inside the room. He looked at Steve sleeping and smiled mischievously.
Then he took a black sharpie out of his pants pocket.
*H50*
Steve groaned in the morning sunlight. He opened his eyes and looked over at his clock.
It was 8:30 a.m.
He never slept that late. But considering all his body had been through with the broken arm and the fall, he really wasn't all that surprised. And it wasn't like he had to get up to do his morning swim, anyway. That would be off limits until he got the cast off his arm.
He stretched his legs and then stretched his arms over his head. Something caught his eye as he moved his left arm. The arm with the cast. The arm that used to have a nice, clean, blank spot above Kamekono's shameless self promotion. The spot that always showed, even when his arm was in the sling.
Steve brought his cast into view. And then he cursed.
Apparently, Kamekona was not the only one into self promotion.
For there, on the previously blank spot, were words. Two lines of words, to be exact.
The first line said, "For a good time, call Steve- 555-3765."
The second line said, "For a better time, call Danny- 555-9766."
Fin
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A/N: I published a sequel for this story, entitled "All's Fair in Love and Cast Signing, Part II" on May 3, 2011. So, if you liked this one, please check it out. :)