Danny rolled up his sleeves as he came down the stairs, feeling much more awake now that he had showered, had his coffee and dressed than when his alarm blared at him an hour earlier, and smiled as he heard Steve's voice trickle from his bedroom as he walked down the corridor.

Playing with his toys again, He thought, gently wrapping his knuckles on the door.

"Morning, buddy." Danny said as he stepped into the room, being careful not to step on the giant jigsaw puzzle that they had been working on the night before. As he approached the bed he noticed that Steve seemed to be playing with almost all of his stuffed animals.

"Danno!" Danny's heart fluttered at Steve's smile, like it did every morning when he came down to see him. He would never grow tired of seeing that happy expression on his face.

"Sleep well, champ?" Danny asked as he sat on the edge of the bed. The stuffed animals surrounding Steve tumbled down onto the covers that pooled around his lap as he managed to pull himself into a sitting position with a little help from Danny, swaying a little as he tried to support himself.

Danny instinctively reached out to steady him, but pulled back at the last minute. Steve has to do it himself if he can, he reminded himself of what the doctors at the hospital told him after they left following Steve's stroke a few months ago. The rehab had been long, but Steve had managed to regain some of the mobility that he'd lost. Not as much as Danny would have liked, but these days he was grateful for anything, telling himself that it could have been much worse.

Steve successfully got his balance and beamed proudly at Danny. "I not fall, Danno!"

"I saw, well done buddy!" Danny grinned at his accomplishment and pulled him into a hug. Steve sighed happily into Danny's neck, which only made the blonde man even more pained to gently pull him away. "Right, come on. We need to get you ready."

Danny ignored the pull in his back as he carefully pulled Steve to his feet and walked behind him as he slowly trundled to the bathroom, his arms braced and ready to catch him if he stumbled. He sighed in relief when they made it across the hall, and Danny made quick work of washing Steve before walking him back to his bedroom to get dressed. Which was not as easy as it used to be.

Pants and socks? Danny had them down. Shirts proved less easy since Steve's right arm was mostly cradled to his side, the muscles now weak and stiff. It wasn't easy, but Danny had finally figured out a way to get Steve dressed that caused him minimal discomfort.

Danny grunted as he hauled Steve up off the bed and into his wheelchair, before taking him into the kitchen. He subtly tried to stretch his aching muscles as he sorted out breakfast before sitting down and spooning porridge into Steve.

Danny smiled when Steve made a happy noise that instantly warmed Danny's heart as he noticed the blueberries that he'd mixed in. It saddened Danny that he had to do this for him, along with many other things now that Steve was unable to. But yet again he reminded himself that Steve was still here, and that while he was Danny would do anything that Steve needed.

"How you get some on your face when I'm the one feeding you I'll never know, babe." Danny shook his head with a sigh when he finished, and Steve giggled and moved his head as Danny ran a wet cloth over his chin.

"Danno, tickles!" Steve exclaimed, feebly trying to push Danny's hands away with his good arm, his trusty stuffed cat tucked into the crook of his right elbow.

"Alright babe, I'm done." Danny paused to look at Steve. He was happy and content, smiling down at his cat as he toyed with the fur with his chin tucked against his chest. Danny could have stared at him all day, but his cell phone ringing startled him out of his daydream. Danny frowned at the unknown number, but still accepted the call.

"Detective Williams." Danny's face froze as he instantly recognised the voice at the other end, his mouth going dry. "What do you want?" He went to get Steve's trainers from the closet down the hall as he listened to the person on the phone speak.

"I thought I made myself perfectly clear last time." Danny said, his phone wedged between his shoulder and the side of his face as he knelt down to put Steve's feet in his shoes. "What makes you think you have the right to make that decision? I- it doesn't matter that you're his mother," He whispered the last part. Danny wasn't sure if Steve remembered who she was after the last time he saw her, but he wasn't taking any chances. "I have all the legal rights. And, more importantly, I'm the one that's here every day!"

Steve cringed and held his toy closer to his chest as Danny raised his voice.

"No, I- Look, I'm not having this discussion right now. Or ever, for that matter." Danny finished tying Steve's laces and pressed his phone to his chest, apologetically up at Steve.

"I'm sorry, babe. We'll go soon, okay?" He said quietly.

Steve didn't say anything. Instead he drew his bottom lip in between his teeth and gazed off to one side. Danny stood and raised the phone back to his ear, the last of his patience vanishing away as he saw that Steve was getting anxious at his raised voice.

"I'm going now. Why? Because I had enough of this conversation before you even rang me. And because I have far more important things to do than listen about how you want to move him again, when we're managing perfectly fine!" Okay, so the 'perfect' part wasn't quite true, his body was seriously aching from manhandling Steve as his mobility was decreasing. But he knew better than to reveal that bit of information right now.

"Face it - it's not going to happen! He's staying with me! " Danny stabbed the 'end call' button before pocketing his mobile. He took a deep breath in, letting it out slowly as he counted to ten in his head.

"Danno? You 'kay?" Steve stared up at him. His eyes seemed even larger thanks to the hint of worry in his voice. Danny smiled and placed a hand on his shoulder.

"Yeah, babe. I'm okay, sorry if I scared you."

Danny let out an 'oof!' ' as Steve suddenly flung his free arm around Danny's waist and buried his head in his stomach.

"Steve loves Danno." He mumbled, his fingers twisted in Danny's shirt. Danny felt the tension literally fall out of his body as he toyed with Steve's hair. "Lots."

"Danno loves you too, babe." Danny pressed a kiss to the top of Steve's head, before gently pulling him away. "Come on, let's get you strapped in and get your bag. The bus will be here soon to take you to your school."

Danny was so preoccupied in making sure that Steve had everything he needed for the day and that he was on the bus safely, that he didn't notice the car parked at the end of the road. Or the woman sitting in the driver's seat speaking into her cell phone.

"He's getting on the bus now. Where are you?"

"Just left. I'll get there, don't worry."

"I hope so, this place hardly ever uses agency workers. I won't get another chance like this for a long time."

"Hey, I said I'll get there!"

"And remember-"

"Yeah, yeah. I know; get him to like me, otherwise he won't go."

"Good. Message me when you're ready for the pick up." Doris then hung up her phone and watched as her son was driven away. Her eyes then drifted to watch Danny get into the Silverado and drive off to work.

If he thought she'd give up her son without a fight, he was dead wrong.