Pillow Talk - Chapter 4
A/N: I have to say I have been amazed at the response we have received from these little tales. I am so glad you are enjoying them because they are fun to write. And while I will admit they are a bit on the "fluffy" side, I will repeat to the reader who said we should be "Fluff-2-go" ...you know who you are… :-) that I will refuse that title! But thank you to everyone who is reading. I hope you continue to enjoy.
Cokie
Let them think we've gone soft, they will learn soon enough how very wrong they are. :-)
I am, like Cokie, overwhelmed and a bit surprised by the response to these, well, let's call them what they are, fluffy little things. Thank you all for reading... and remember... this fluffy stuff... don't get used to it.
Sam
SEALs are Human, Too
By Cokie & Sam
Steve quietly entered the bedroom and turned off the lamp before sliding into bed and spooning behind Catherine, careful not to wake her.
She sighed and reached for his hand, locking their fingers and pulling him closer. "I'm not asleep."
"Do you need anything?" he asked quietly, brushing his lips across her shoulder blade.
"A new head would be nice," she said and he could hear the smile in her voice. "This one hurts."
"I happen to like the one you have a lot. And I would hate to get rid of it."
"Yeah, well, you're not the one *in* it right now."
"Does it hurt much?" Steve asked, then leaned over and kissed her temple.
"Not as long as I don't move," Cath admitted. "My pride is hurt."
"You know what you told me once?" Steve asked. "That pride heals. And, as much as I hate to admit it, it is true."
"Yeah, sounded good when I told you that. I mean, how embarrassing is it to fall off a porch during a take down."
"You didn't exactly fall," he told her. "You were pushed by a 300 pound gorilla. And then you hit your head on concrete." He closed his eyes at the picture that was stamped on his brain and added in a lower voice, "Not to mention, you scared me half to death."
Catherine rolled over to her back and he moved with her. "Sorry. I didn't mean to."
"I need to apologize to Kono, and probably Danny too. I think I yelled at them at some point. Memory's a bit hazy," Steve sheepishly told her.
"How come?" Cath asked and turned her head to look at her friend.
"I was barking orders left and right. I think they were a bit shocked to see me like that, but I couldn't help it," Steve tried to explain how he had switched to SEAL-mode.
Steve watched in terrifying horror as the huge Samoan, who Steve had been unable to stop when he stormed through the kitchen and out the back door, threw his weight into Catherine. The two were no match; Cath went flying like a rag doll and crashed through the porch's railing. The old weathered wood gave way and Catherine hit the concrete head first with a sickening sound.
Steve felt like his heart had stopped watching her going down. He was on his knees after the 300 pound man had gone through him like one of the big line backers he had to face as a young quarterback. His ribs ached from the impact and sweat broke out when he drew in a ragged breath. But maybe that was because his girlfriend lay deadly still on the hot concrete just a few feet from him.
But it only took a second to quell the rising panic; his training took over without any conscious thought on his part. Steve was back on his feet in a second flat and tackled their suspect with brutal force from behind. Steve didn't care that he smashed the Samoan's face into the ground or that he could hear his howl of pain when his nose broke. Steve pressed his knee into his suspect's back and cuffed his hands behind his back. He made sure that he couldn't get back to his feet and then turned back to Catherine.
For a fraction of a second he hesitated, but then he was kneeling next to her. In his peripheral vision he saw Kono coming out the back door and heard Danny calling the all clear from further in the house.
He pressed his bare index finger on Catherine's neck and prayed he would find a strong pulse. Steve breathed a sigh of relief when he found a pulse; not as strong as he had hoped, but the beat was good enough for now.
"Kono! Call an ambulance," he told their youngest team member with what he later realized was his 'barking-orders-voice'. Something he had never used since he was with Five-0, and seldom before that. But now he obviously didn't care about anything else other than to get Cath help as soon as possible.
"Danny!" He yelled for his friend to get out here.
Steve gently probed Catherine's head for any bleeding wounds or palpable dents. He was happy to feel neither.
"Steve. Jeez, is Cath okay?" Danny asked when he came out the house.
"Danny, secure the perimeter. Make sure HPD takes the suspects to HQ, and keep those press people away," Steve told his partner without even looking up, he knew Danny would make sure the aftermath of the operation would go smoothly. Steve was angry that the press was already on the scene.
Steve looked up when he felt his shoulder being touched by Kono. "Steve, EMS will be here in about two minutes."
"Thank you," Steve said and turned back to Cath who had not made any sound or movement.
He again checked her pulse and breathing, but so far it looked all good. Her breathing was even and her pulse was getting a little stronger.
"She will be okay," he heard Kono say and only nodded without taking his eyes of his girlfriend.
It worried him that she hadn't even twitched yet. He was concerned about a neck injury; that was why he was watching her like hawk. Any uncontrolled movement could have devastating consequences until they could put a c-collar on. The two minutes until the paramedics arrived seemed like an eternity, but finally they were there and Steve moved out of the way, but didn't take his eyes of Catherine.
He was watching their every move and listened to the vitals they took. As far as he knew from his training they all looked good. But that didn't change the fact that the woman he loved was still unconscious at his feet.
Steve looked around and saw that Danny had the situation completely under control and that gave him the opportunity to stay with Catherine. He needed to thank Danny later for again having his back. Steve winked at his partner, indicating that he'd go with the ambulance. Steve smiled his thanks when Danny gave him the go ahead.
The ride in the ambulance was short and uneventful. They reached Tripler in just a few minutes. Catherine was wheeled into one of the trauma bays and Steve was left standing outside, holding Catherine's tac vest, gun and badge. He had taken it off while in the ambulance. He suddenly felt a little lost, but that changed when a young corporal approached him.
"Commander? Can you come with me please and fill out a few forms?"
"Can't that wait?" Steve asked and looked at the door Catherine had disappeared through.
"They are going to take good care of your team member, I promise. Sir, I need those forms filled out," the corporal insisted.
"Okay," Steve finally agreed. It might give him something to occupy his mind. Maybe it would help in erasing the picture of Catherine's head smashing into the concrete that seemed to be on an endless loop burning into his brain.
Steve sat in one of the uncomfortable waiting room chairs and filled out what he thought were at least twenty different forms with all the same questions on them. It took him more than forty-five minutes to complete it all. When he was finally done and stood up, he grimaced when pain shot into his side. He ignored the twinge and walked over to the front desk.
He felt a little dizzy and his side hurt a bit. Steve knew the afternoon's events were catching up with him. He hadn't slept much in the last two days, just like everyone else on his team. And he had been tackled into the ground by 300 pounds of pure muscle. Steve took a deep breath, which didn't hurt much, so he was pretty sure he would just be facing a few bruises.
"Do you have any news on Catherine Rollins?" He asked the corporal who was going over the forms he had handed over.
"No, but the doctor will be with you in a few minutes. They are just done with a scan," she informed him.
"Thank you," Steve said and turned when the door to the trauma bay opened.
"Commander McGarrett?"
Steve practically jogged over to the Colonel who just stuck his head out the door. "Yes, Sir. How is Lieutenant Rollins?"
"You can come and see for yourself. She was very lucky," Colonel Wilkes told Steve and led him to the cubicle Cath was in. "She has a minor concussion, no bleeding, no swelling. We're just waiting for her to fully wake up. If someone stays with her she can leave. But she should take it easy for the next two days."
Steve couldn't say anything, he just looked at his girlfriend, who was resting on the bed in the trauma bay and didn't really look worse to wear. "She's okay?" He finally whispered.
"Yeah, she will be fine," the colonel told him with a smile.
Steve tried to smile back, but his vision began to gray around the edges and he suddenly felt really dizzy and a little sick. He looked down at his hands and saw they were shaking. He felt a strong grip on his arm and realized he may have swayed to the side, but that was the last he felt before he simply crashed to the floor.
When he opened his eyes he lay on a gurney with his feet elevated, an IV in his hand and a nurse next to him.
"Oh, hey, you're awake again. I'll go get the doctor."
"What happened?" Steve asked and looked groggily around the small room.
"You went into shock. Don't worry, you're fine," the nurse assured him and left.
A couple of minutes later Colonel Wilkes came in, "Commander that was quicker than I thought. Nice to see you awake again. How do you feel?"
"Ah, not too bad. What just happened?" Steve asked again.
"Well, you fainted. Don't look so shocked, happens to the best of us. The adrenaline dump, I would guess lack of sleep, dehydration and severely bruised ribs would have done the trick. But the shock of seeing your partner getting injured like that did the rest," Wilkes gave Steve the lowdown of what had happened.
"I… fainted?" Steve asked disbelieving.
"Passed out? Blacked out? Do either of those sound better?" The Colonel asked with a twinkle in his eyes. "When the saline is through you are free to go. IF you feel up to it. Your ribs are bruised but nothing's broken. You were both very lucky."
"Is Catherine awake yet?"
"No, but she will be shortly." He glanced at the bag of fluids hanging above the bed. "A few more minutes and we'll take out your IV; if you feel like it then you can go and sit with her."
"Thank you, Sir."
"You're welcome."
Cath raised her head and looked at him. "You were injured? Why didn't you tell me?"
"It's nothing, really. Just some bruises."
"You passed out!"
"Not from injuries," Steve argued. It was still a sore point that he had fainted. He was a SEAL. SEALs don't faint. Damn it.
"You're human," Cath softly said, knowing exactly what he was just thinking. She laid her head on his chest. "But you can stop worrying now. I'm fine."
"You will be, but I'm still not letting you go to work tomorrow."
"Steve—"
"I'm not budging so you can save your breath. The doc said 48 hours of rest and I'm going to make sure you get it."
"Stop talking. My pillow doesn't talk."
"Huh? What the hell are you talking about?" He was suddenly worried the doc had been wrong and her brain did take a hit.
Catherine giggled. "I heard that in a movie once. 'The Back Up Plan'. It was cute… in fact, since you won't let me do anything tomorrow I might see if it is on Netflix."
"What is it? Sounds like a car accident."
"No, silly. It's a chic-flick. In fact, you kind of remind me of Stan in the movie."
"Oh, please. I would never be caught dead in a chic-flick. Trust me."
"You might like it… he marries J Lo in it."
"Well, watching J Lo might be tolerable… even for a chic-flick. OW! What'd you do that for?" he asked when she slapped his side.
"Just because. And just for that, I might make you watch it with me."
"Because I remind you of the moron in the movie?"
"No, because if I'm going to be bored tomorrow, you can, too."
"Hate to break it to you, but I need to work," Steve tried to get out of watching a movie that was probably just as stupid as the rom-com they had seen in the theater. That was not gonna happen again.
"I don't think so. May I remind you that you fainted in the hospital, and therefore have to stay home as well?"
"The doc never said anything of me not being able to work," Steve reminded her as he nibbled on her earlobe.
"Stop that," Cath wiggled a little lower away from his mouth. "Don't start anything we can't finish," she told him with a smile in her voice. "You know, I think fainting and rom-coms are a good fit. Maybe I should ask Danny what he thinks of that concept."
"You wouldn't," Steve cried out.
"Wanna bet?"
"That is extortion. I could book you for that," Steve told her.
"Uh, would that involve handcuffs?" Cath asked and playfully let her hand travel below his sleep shorts' waistband.
"Didn't you just say not to start... uh, you really wanna do... Cath," Steve whined when she let her hand wander upwards again.
"Let's sleep, and in the morning you can book me all you want, Commander."
"That's the best deal I've heard all day."
H50 - H50 - H50
