A/N – Thank you very much for the kind reviews I appreciate it a lot, I've thought about it and yes I realize now that it is slightly weird of Steve not to bring Danny to the doctor but in my defense it is fanfiction and it just really suited my story along with all the other medical stuff. I have no idea on what the right procedure is for everything and anything I wrote down therefore is not according to medical advice – purely my own fantasy!
Now enough babbling, enjoy the last chapter.
# #
"All secrets are deep, all secrets become dark that's in the nature of secrets..."
~ Cory Doctorow
# #
This time he did wake from his alarm clock, he was a bit surprised normally he awoke before the alarm clock could go off but normally he wasn't lying in bed with his partner after a tremendous good experience.
Brought on by a bad experience.
He thought back on the kiss and smiled, it had turned out better then he could've hoped.
He frowned slightly, he was supposed to have done concussion checks instead he had crawled into bed with his partner then the second time he had kissed said partner senseless.
Not exactly a good concussion check.
"Danny" he nudged the detective slowly, making sure not to poke him on the bruised side "Wake up" he said a little more forcefully.
Danny didn't react much only gave him a groan "Luke?" he heard Danny vaguely mumble and the situation just got all the more confusing for him.
He tried not to over think it, perhaps it had been a friend, former lover or maybe a relative? A lot of ways to cover that name…
"Danno, wake up" he tried again, gently poking his partner in the arm – this time Danny did wake up.
Danny's eyes were wide open just like the last time and he now wondered if this 'Luke' person had anything to do with his partner's nightmare's.
"Hey" he huffed, it got Danny's attention and that was exactly what he needed now "Who's Luke?" now he couldn't let it go, he saw Danny's shift again – looking down.
"Danny, please?" perhaps it was the word 'please' that got Danny's attention, perhaps it was his worried tone or maybe Danny was already planning on telling him it and he had been too impatient.
He didn't know, and he didn't care.
"Someone I couldn't save" Danny shoved his face down into his chest and refused to look at him and now he was unable to look at the detective's handsome visage, he pondered for a moment but decided to let it go.
For now.
# #
He felt eyes on him, it was something he had inherited from the SEAL's, they used to try and sneak up on each other therefore he had naturally developed a weird habit – he just knew when someone was watching him.
He cautiously opened his eyes only to find a certain blonde detective looking at him with an amused smirk.
The sun was shining slightly through the blinds and one stray of sunlight hit Danny in the face, he was stunned, he was pretty sure he'd never seen anyone look this gorgeous before.
He wrapped his arm around the detective's waist and pulled them close, he registered the second-shocked face before it relaxed into the familiar small smile Danny got when he was happy, then planted a tender kiss on the blonde's lips.
"Morning" Danny mumbled vaguely against him, he wrapped his arms more securely around the detective and studied his face – Danny's eyes were still a bit dulled but a lot clearer than last night, he moved his hands across Danny's face all the way back to the wound on his head.
He gently caressed it careful not to hurt Danny then kissed the man again, this time with more emotion – the kiss started out soft but soon turned out more passionate.
Eventually he reluctantly pulled back "Morning" he huskily whispered back, then Danny led out a low chuckle.
"Is this how you normally wake up?" Danny huskily whispered against his throat, sending shivers up his spine.
He planted another kiss on the detective's mouth "Only with a certain former Jersey detective" and god he didn't care if he sounded like a sap now, Danny had scared him.
"Now detective, can you tell me your full name?" he smiled ruefully at Danny knowing the other man was gonna mock him for being a sap.
"Daniel Williams, sir" he grinned in approval and he would've showed his approval for Danny some more if his phone hadn't decided to ring at that moment.
Already irritated he barked "Mcgarret" into the phone without looking at the caller ID, however his mood softened a bit when he heard a very female and defiantly amused chuckle ring through the phone.
"I'm sorry to have to interrupt your beauty sleep but we were merely curious to know how Danny was doing" he later would furiously deny that he in fact had turned red, "Kono" he spluttered causing Danny to chuckle at him.
He finished his conversation with Kono, and apparently Chin, as quickly as he could but with Danny distracting him he had to use all of his willpower, Danny was slowly kissing his jawline and he could feel his focus wandering.
When he finally heard the cousins say their goodbye's he nearly growled in happiness, he tossed the phone and rolled their bodies over, lying on top of the smaller man he saw the desire in those blue eyes.
Their lips crashed together enthusiastically and slowly he began to lose himself in the sense of one Danny Williams.
# #
He was practically fuming by the time he got back to his house, fully expecting to interrogate the two suspects that had hurt his partner and were a vital lead in the investigation he almost ran to the station but on arriving there he received – from a rookie cop no less – the information that the two suspects had been sprung on bail.
He had proceeded to effectively chew the rookie out for allowing it – and he had to admit because it felt good – and then he had given the governor a call explaining what had occurred and trying to keep his frustrations from seeping into his words he had hung up with the promise that she would do anything to get their suspects back in HQ.
Only it could take awhile.
After stalking back to his car, he had called the cousins explaining what happened and ordered them to take care of it.
And of course he got pulled over on the ride back home for speeding, and of course it was again a rookie cop – he stood in front of his door and blew out a few long breaths before entering the house.
No need to wake up Danny in the process of his little tirade.
When he got to the living room he had to do a double take, firstly because he was sure he had let Danny sleep in the bedroom not the couch and secondly because his partner was unmistakably crying in his sleep.
He trotted over quickly and sat down next to Danny who was curled up, shaking from the cold it seemed, and obviously having a nightmare.
For a moment he was unsure of what to do, when he himself was having a nightmare he didn't like people touching him only a few people got away with doing that without receiving a black eye.
But sometimes he liked it very much to just cuddle with someone after a horrifying dream.
Trusting his instincts he wrapped an arm around Danny's waist and pulled him close, Danny still sleeping snuggled into him, he wrapped his other arm around Danny too and just held him whilst he whispered soothing words in Danny's ear.
After awhile he felt the shaking reduce and felt Danny's breathing change "St've?" he heard a sleepy Danny ask him.
"Yeah Danno, right here, don't worry, everything's okay" his heart was still racing, from what he didn't exactly know, he strongly suspected though that it was from the adrenaline in his veins.
He gently ran his fingers through Danny's messy hair and felt the detective relax slightly, he kissed the top of Danny's head and sighed internally knowing that what he was about to do wasn't going to be pleasant.
"Danny, I need to know what you're dreaming about." As expected Danny tensed immediately in his arms, it was quiet for a few moments before he heard a low sigh come from Danny.
"There was this kid, Luke, he couldn't swim and…" he felt Danny shudder against him, involuntarily he tightened his grip on the smaller man, a part of him wanted to hear the rest but the other part really didn't.
"This guy knew that and pushed him in…" another deep breath "the river was so strong, there was no one nearby…"
He looked around panicked now 'where the was Sam when ya needed him' he thought frustrated whilst trying to gain his breath, he'd lost the fucking guy! And his partner was gone too, just fucking great, then he heard a man cursing and trusting his instincts he ran after the sound.
They had searched after the predator for three entire weeks, the man was slippery and left a dirty trail of despair and fear behind.
Then finally after the man had taken another boy, they had found him only to be surprised that when they finally got the address it turned out to be a large dock, eventually they had found the guy holding the boy hostage but after some lost workers interrupted their arrest the guy slipped away again, so did the boy.
He had chased after the predator like a hellhound, the memory of his baby girl now three years old fresh in his mind, the rage was building in him when he saw that he wasn't the only one out for blood in his chase.
The predator was quickly gaining on the little boy, but so was the river, the kid was running out of hiding places and he was still a good fifty meters behind them.
Then he'd lost them, it had been a few frustrating and fearsome minutes but he'd eventually heard the unmistakable sound of someone loudly cursing, so he ran again ignoring the muscle ache he was already developing.
Then he reached a corner and came face-to-face with the Hudson river, he spotted the predator wrestling with the boy, the predator was winning.
Then he heard a loud splash and instantly knew what had happened, he yelled at the guy cursing him all the way to hell but it didn't faze the predator who was now on his way to make another escape.
He could chase after the guy, he'd probably catch him but he could also still see the little boy spluttering against the raging river.
The choice was made for him.
Danny was whispering now "so I dove in, it took me awhile but I got him out"
The first contact with the water was terrifying, due to the cold he froze for awhile his bones and muscles forgetting what to do.
His first instinct was to breathe but he obviously couldn't, putting aside the coldness of the water and boxing it into a cornered place of his mind he looked around.
At first everything was dark, terrifying darkness, but then he spotted an even darker figure in the water.
He took his chances and swum towards it, the current was so strong and the water so cold he nearly gave up.
Instead of doing so he pictured the little boy being his Gracie, and after what seemed like four hours he reached the dark figure.
He wanted to scream in happiness when he saw that it indeed was Luke McBride the little boy, only the kid had his eyes closed and his lips were already turning blue.
He pushed those thoughts aside and grabbed the kid around the waist and began swimming towards the light knowing it would bring him towards air, lovely fresh air.
he kept on holding Danny, glad the other man couldn't see his face.
Danny alone, diving in a strong river to save a kid, god the consequences, he could only image.
"I was hypothermic when I got out and couldn't move anymore, and I saw the kid try to cough up the water in his lungs and I couldn't help him, couldn't get to him"
The sound of their body's smashing on the dry cement was deafening, the boy rolled a few meters away from him.
This time little Luke's eyes were open and staring at him with a horrified expression, he tried to crawl towards the little body but his body refused to cooperate he sunk back to the ground staring at the kid.
His lungs were on fire and his muscles inhumanly heavy, he coughed harshly feeling as if he had just coughed up a lung.
he felt how his shirt was getting wet and knew that Danny was crying, he began rubbing soothing circles on Danny's back hoping to calm him down.
"I watched him die" he swallowed harshly
He looked at the blue expressive orbs of Luke McBride, he watched when the kid began gurgling water and watched when Luke was too tired to keep fighting.
He saw the light dim in those expressive orbs, he felt a tear leak down his cheek, this was not supposed to happen…
He gazed at the lifeless body in front of him and saw black spots forming in his own vision, it did not bother him though, the only thing that bothered him right now was the fact that the little boy had died.
Had died whilst he could've done something to prevent it.
He didn't even notice it when he felt warm hands touch his neck, his face, and when his partner called out to him.
He only noticed the body.
.
"My God Danno, I'm so sorry" and he really was, he was so sorry that Danny had to go through that, he also felt some sort of anger rush through him directed at the guy who had pushed the kid into the river.
But mostly he felt sorry and guilty because he now knew why Danny wasn't that fond of water.
And he had teased the detective merciless about it.
# #
"Steve?" he didn't look from his cooking, he wanted it not to burn and knowing his cooking skills it was a pretty likeable option.
"Are we good?" this time he did look up, what a strange question he thought, weren't they more than good or didn't Danny want this?
He looked at the detective's handsome visage and pondered the question, he really didn't know the answer.
"I mean, if you don't want this…" Danny pointed between them and made a weird gesture which only succeeded in confusing him more, he looked at the red face and what seemed like a rather speechless Danny.
It took him a few more seconds before realization dawned on him, he barked out loud "Danny, of course we're good!" he exclaimed rather enthusiastically.
"Now that I've got you I'm not letting go" he said huskily, wrapping the other man in his arms, turning his back on the eggs.
"Even after…" and now he knew what Danny meant, he lowered his head and forced Danny to look him in the eyes.
"Yes, I want you with all you, and don't think I don't have my baggage,
and I do wanna hear some details about that guy though but only when you're ready for it.
But for now let's just figure this out and…
I'm not going anywhere, Okay?" he still saw the uncertainty in those blue orbs, but it was slowly ebbing away.
"'Kay"
END
