Steve yawned, got out of bed, and stretched. Today was Thanksgiving, and for once, he had plans. He was going to Danny's for Thanksgiving dinner. The words kept running through his brain. A smile grew on his face. The man he loved, yes, loved; had invited him over for Thanksgiving dinner. Grace would be there since Danny had practically gotten on his hands and knees and begged Rachel to let him take care of her earlier than usual. Rachel, in a surprising fit of kindness, had allowed it. Of course, it might just have been because Steve had threatened her with a little 'information' on Stan, but whatever.
Steve showered, dressed, and headed into the kitchen. He had promised Danny he would bring something; although, he had neglected to tell Danny he wasn't much of a cook. Sure, he could handle the basics, and steak. He was really good at steak, but making something that could actually be called part of a traditional Thanksgiving meal...well, he wasn't sure he could handle that.
He opened various drawers and cabinets, then the fridge. Beer stared him in the face. 'Hm..maybe I should go shopping,' he thought to himself. Then, maybe he could buy something to take.
He grabbed a jacket, wallet, and keys before heading out. On the way to the store, he kept thinking of ways he could seduce Danny. 'Wait, seduce? Really?' he asked himself. Steve was, of course, totally new to this. Danny was the very first guy he had ever had feelings for. He had to admit to himself that he was a bit weirded out. He had always thought himself a 'ladies man,' if you will. Hell, if you had ever told him he would be falling for a man in the near future, you would be hanging from a roof, or his car hood.
Steve wondered what his father would think of him if he ever knew. He vaguely wondered what Mary would think. He laughed. 'She would probably ask to watch me seduce him.' He shook his head. He would really have to stop using the word 'seduce.'
Danny ran a hand through his hair, wondering what else he would need to do to prepare for dinner. He had bought the turkey, already cooked, and was now preparing the mash potatoes. He had made Thanksgiving dinner before, but he was always dining alone. Usually on Thanksgiving he would just buy a turkey dinner, or pizza, and plop down in front of the TV. Things were so different now that he had people to hang with.
He wished Chin and Kono were coming, but they had been invited to eat with the family, and since they wanted to stop being social pariahs when it came to the family, they had accepted. Personally, Danny couldn't blame them, not that he would anyway. He couldn't imagine what it would be like to practically be hated by your family. Yeah, he was hated by Rachel, but at least he had Grace. Plus, that was just his wife and child. He still had parents and siblings and whoever else.
He glanced at the clock. 30 minutes till Steve was supposed to be here, and 10 minutes till he was supposed to pick up Grace. He really hoped everything went well tonight. He was still trying to keep from letting his feelings for Steve get in the way. So far, he had done pretty well. He had ignored Kono's pointed looks, and Chin's smirks. He wondered how those two had figured it out. He thought he was doing quite fantastically.
He turned off the stove, put the turkey in the oven to stay warm, grabbed a coat, then headed outside and down the stairs to his Camaro.
Kono looked at Chin. This dinner thing was going quite quickly. Maybe if they got out soon enough, they could head over to Danny's place. Chin looked over at her. "You okay?" he asked.
She nodded. "Just wondering if we could get out of here soon so we could go to Danny's."
Chin raised an eyebrow. "You would skip out on the family for work friends?"
Kono grinned. "Any day. Especially this family. Can't believe they're acting like they never had a bad thought about either one of us."
Chin shrugged. "They're trying to let go of any doubts they have about us."
Kono scoffed. "They're just trying not to make us mad. They know who we work for. They're so freaked out of Steve. It's pretty funny, actually."
Chin looked at her disapprovingly. "You would be cruel enough to sic Steve on this pack of defenseless people?"
"Well, if you put it that way, I would feel a little guilty about it, but I would still do it." Kono looked around the table. This wasn't much of a family, or rather, it was a family, it just didn't include Kono or Chin.
Chin smiled. "At least you seem to have a conscience. Let me say goodbye to mom, then we can go."
"Alright, but make it quick," Kono said with a smile. She knew that Chin would take his time talking with his mom. His mother had at least tried to make the family accept them again, but she was only one person against many. There wasn't too much she could do, especially with this family. They were stubborn, and that was where Kono had gotten her stubbornness. At least she could thank them for that.
Steve knocked on Danny's apartment door. A few seconds later, Grace opened the door. Steve smiled. "Hey Grace!"
"UNCLE STEVE!" Grace enveloped him in a hug. Well, more like she enveloped his legs in a hug. Steve laughed and bent down to hug her.
"Close the door! You're letting the cold in!" Danny yelled from the kitchen. Steve picked up Grace and headed into the apartment, which was warm and smelled amazing. Steve dropped Grace then walked to the tiny kitchen.
"That food smells almost edible," Steve said, happy to know that if he and Danny actually got together, there would be someone to keep them well fed.
Danny turned to look at him. "What are you doing in the kitchen? This place to small for the both of us, and I'm not just saying that to be funny, either." Danny scowled as he saw Steve smile.
"Danny, you're too cute." Steve's smile grew as he saw Danny's cheeks turn red, and not just from the heat in the kitchen.
"Get out before I hit you over the head with this ladle! And don't think I won't do it!" Danny waved a wooden ladle menacingly.
Steve left the kitchen, but was laughing at Danny's threat. He knew Danny would really hit him, but it was still too funny. He also couldn't get over the fact that the Jersey detective was wearing an apron that read 'I'm honestly too hot for you. In the kitchen and everywhere else.'
The next half hour was spent playing with Grace. Sadly, playing with Grace meant playing with Barbies. Truth be told, Steve didn't actually mind. He loved the little girl, and her imagination. This time, Grace was Doctor Barbie and Steve was Ken, Barbie's patient. Oddly enough, Doctor Barbie and Ken begin an illicit affair after Barbie saves his life. Steve was wondering how Grace had learned about affairs, when the doorbell rang.
He got up and headed to the door. He opened it to find Chin and Kono. He raised an eyebrow. "I thought you guys were hanging with the family?" he said questioningly.
"It finished early. You gonna let us in or not?" Chin asked.
Steve turned to Danny who was standing in the doorway to the kitchen. "Should we let them eat with us? I mean, I thought it was just gonna be the two of us, maybe a bottle of wine..." Steve smirked. Even from here he could see Danny's cheeks turn red.
"Shut up, you ass. Of course they can eat with us. We have more than enough." Danny turned and headed back into the kitchen.
Steve moved to allow Chin and Kono inside. "Looks like you guys got the stamp of approval. Now go help Danny while I begin an affair with Barbie." He turned and headed back to Grace's room, ignoring the questioning looks from Kono.
Finally it was time to eat. Danny was beside Kono, who was beside Steve, who was beside Chin, who was beside Grace, who was beside Danny.
Grace looked at Danny. "We should all say something we're thankful for," she said. Danny nodded.
"Want to go first?" he asked. She nodded, closer her eyes, and began speaking.
"I am thankful for Danno, Uncle Steve, Aunt Kono, Uncle Chin, and Doctor Barbie who saves many lives." She opened her eyes. "Okay Danno. You're next!"
Danny closed his eyes. "I'm thankful for Monkey, Steve who almost gets me killed, Kono, Chin, and ex-wives who allow for early custody."
Steve hid a smile. Hopefully Danny would never find out exactly why Rachel had let him have Grace early. Yeah, it would be much better if he never found out.
Kono was next. "I'm thankful for my new and old ohana. And for Danny's amazing cooking."
Steve's turn. "I'm thankful for everything and everyone that makes me smile. And I am being serious."
Chin smiled. "I'm thankful for friends and family, especially thankful for everyone sitting at this table, and for everything on this table."
Everyone opened their eyes. "Alright, now can we eat?" Danny asked, looking at Grace. She nodded emphatically.
Chat over dinner was mostly about family, but it got more silly as wine glasses were refilled. Sure, they all could hold their liquor, but after 5 glasses, even Steve was getting a bit mouthy. They were sure to watch what the said in front of Grace, but if one of them said something questionable, Danny would give them the evil eye. Needless to say, they watched their mouths to some extent.
Hours later, after Grace had been put to bed, Kono and Chin left. Thankfully they all had the next few days off so no one needed to worry about getting up early.
"You staying?" Danny asked, looking at Steve. Danny was sitting on the couch, looking utterly kissable. Steve forced himself not to just attack him.
"You gonna be okay with it if I do?" He wanted to make sure Danny would be alright with everything. Steve wanted to do things right, and not just try to force Danny into something he wasn't ready for. What if Danny didn't feel the same way? Oh, crap..That was something that Steve hadn't thought about. Would he be stuck having one-sided feelings? He almost groaned at the thought.
"Sure. Whatever. You can sleep in the bed with me, if you want." Danny sounded tired, and tipsy if he actually suggested that Steve sleep in the same bed with him.
"You sure about that?" It would be an understatement to say that Steve wasn't surprised. He was extremely surprised.
"Yeah, why not? Not like I have feelings for you or anything like that." Now, of course Danny knew this was a complete lie, but Steve didn't know that or he did. Danny just hoped he didn't...