Danny opened the door to reveal a tiny brunette with a big, easy smile that made her eyes light up. "Hi, Danny? I'm Callie—Dr. Ryan? Have you talked to Steve?" She wrung her hands a tiny bit. "I didn't really expect to meet you this way."

Danny grinned, immediately liking this girl. "I did indeed talk to Steve. He was a bit, ah, surprised that I called you."

She laughed, and it may have been the cutest sound he'd ever heard. "I bet so!"

"Yeah…"

"Well, that may have something to do with the fact that I'm pretty sure he lied to me last night. He cancelled our date. He told me he was working late. I could tell he didn't sound right, and that he must not be feeling well, but he was determined not to admit it. SEALs, you know? Never admit when anything's wrong." She waved her hand and rolled her eyes.

If she hadn't already been scooped up by his partner, Danny would have been in love.

"So," Callie said, heading upstairs with her backpack, "any changes since we last talked?"

"Nope, not really," Danny replied. "Still nauseous, congested, coughing. Fever is staying around 103, even with Advil. The last time he got sick his nose started bleeding."

She gave a slight frown. "Not surprising. He has a lot of nosebleeds because of the radiation poisoning. Has he told you that?"

"He doesn't say much about it, unless he can't hide it. I've noticed that, and the vomiting and tiredness, but we don't talk about it."

"Sounds like him," she grinned. She paused at the bedroom door, a little embarrassed that Danny had realized she knew where she was going. "Hey, bud," she said softly. "How's it going?"

Two bleary, tired eyes blinked open. "Hey," Steve said hoarsely. "Fine."

"Oh, yeah, this looks like the definition of fine to me." She popped her hand on her hip sassily. "So this is why you cancelled on me last night?"

He had the good sense to look sheepish. "Yeah…I just didn't want you to see me like this." He paused. "Wow. That sounds really vain and stupid when I say it out loud."

She chuckled. "Yeah, it does, Commander. You're lucky you have such a good friend." She nodded in Danny's direction.

"I know. Danno's the best." Steve coughed weakly.

She looked at him sympathetically. "Let me look at you right quick, and then we'll get you fixed up, okay? Even if you are 'fine'."

"Sounds good," he mumbled, closing his eyes, completely trusting her. Danny watched, surprised. He knew how much it took his partner to trust someone. Obviously, this lady was very special.

"Hey, I'm going to step out and call Chin," Danny said, wanting to give them a little privacy. "Callie, you're staying, right? Chin and Kono are coming over. We're all staying here this weekend. Ohana, and all that, you know? This is just what we do when someone is sick or injured."

"Aww, that's sweet. Steve had mentioned that before, but it seems like he gets more visits than the rest of y'all. Something about not waiting for backup, I think?" She grinned. "I brought a prescription of Tamiflu for you guys, too. He can't have it because he doesn't react well, there's a note in his chart, but it should keep all of you from catching this nastiness from our sickly SEAL here."

Steve huffed, both out of embarrassment and concern about his team. "See? Told you to go."

"Babe, no. There's nowhere we'd rather be than here, germs or not," Danny said softly. "You know that."

"Of course. He's pretty cute when he's sick too," Callie teased, coaxing a tiny smile from Steve. "And a bit more manageable, although crankiness can be an issue sometimes from what I've heard at the office."

Danny grinned. "True that. Anyway, you're staying too, right?" He hoped he sounded encouraging. He wouldn't mind learning more about this young lady that seemed awfully close to being ohana already.

She looked at Steve questioningly, who gave a slight nod. "Okay. Sure. I'd love to stay the weekend with y'all. I always keep a bag in my car for the hospital….and I think I may have a few things here too." She blushed.

"Great! Chin's bringing dinner. What would you like? He's going to bring soup for Steve from his favorite deli, but the rest of us haven't decided what we're going to have. Ideas?"

"Ughhh, Danny," Steve groaned, shuddering. "Please, don't talk about it in here. I can't…" He swallowed hard.

"Crap, I'm sorry," Danny said. "Callie, hallway?"

Callie ducked out and spoke softly with Danny. "What would you think about subs or something like that? That way it wouldn't smell so much. I don't think he can handle smells right now, and I'd hate to make him more miserable than he already is."

"Great idea," Danny smiled at her thoughtfulness. She obviously cared a great deal about his partner. "I'll call Chin and let him know."

With that, Danny headed downstairs and Callie back to her very sick, but very adorable patient.

"How is he?" Danny asked as Callie came down.

"Still feeling awful, but sleeping. I gave him a shot of Phenergan, so that'll help with the nausea, and hopefully he'll be able to rest a bit. He has caught a heck of a bug though. I'm hoping there are no complications, but it makes me feel better knowing he has people here. If there's a problem, we'll catch it fast and fix it."

"Yeah. He didn't tell you how he caught this, did he?" Callie shook her head. Danny proceeded to explain all about the previous Tuesday. "He's a really, really good guy. The best friend I've ever had. Heck, he's more than a friend—more like a brother."

"You know," Callie smiled, "he said the very same thing about you."

At five o'clock, Chin called to say he and Kono were finished with work and would be on their way after they picked up food. Callie went upstairs to check on Steve. Still cocooned in blankets, he was snoring softly because of his stuffy nose. Sitting on the edge of the bed, she smoothed her hand across his forehead, not only to check his fever, but to offer a little bit of comfort as well. Even asleep, Steve turned his head into the touch, wanting more, and sighed softly. Smiling, she looked down at the man she'd fallen in love with so quickly and unexpectedly.

Years ago, she had been working as a medic when a SEAL team was brought into the sick bay after being stranded in the ocean for nearly ten hours. She was fascinated by these men as she watched her superior treat them. Special operators were just that—special. The care they received was the best of the best. All were diagnosed with mild hypothermia. Before being treated himself, the commanding officer made sure all his men were taken care of. She had heard about this man. Young as he was, he was already a decorated officer and his leadership skills were well respected by the higher ups. His reputation preceded him—hard, but fair, and a true team player regardless of his rank. He worked just as hard—harder, really—as any of the other men, and expected even more from himself than he did from them. As he and his team were treated with warm blankets and coffee, he sat on a gurney and talked with her. Though a little worse for wear at the time, he was easily the most gorgeous man she'd ever laid eyes on, and his manners were impeccable. His company was good and easy, and she enjoyed taking with him. She was disappointed when her shift ended that night. Before leaving, she told him goodbye and wished him well. He thanked her again for all that she'd done, his blue eyes sincere and honest. When she returned to the infirmary for her next shift, he was gone—he and his team had been sent on a mission. Though she thought of him often and referred to him as the one who got away, they never crossed paths again. As silly and cliché as it sounded, she'd never felt a connection like that before…or after.

They met by chance—again—at a doctor's office in Hawaii where she was working. She had left the Navy and had recently settled in Honolulu. She had looked up from the chart she was scanning when she opened the exam room door. The patient had been referred to her because of suspected radiation poisoning and had been a work-in. This man was special to the governor and strings had been pulled. She hadn't even had a chance to look at the name on the chart.

She opened the door, and a head with dark hair looked up to gaze at her with familiar blue eyes. Commander Steve McGarrett.

Fate, she thought, had brought them back together and, by gosh, she wasn't going to let him slip away again. They chatted for a minute, catching up, and she proceeded with her exam, confirming what his primary physician had already determined. After blood draws, a little talk about what this could mean for his future, and symptoms, she surprised him by asking him out. He accepted, and the rest had been a bit of a fairytale. Dinners on the beach, boat rides, lazy days at his home…the last three months had been the most amazing of her life, and she couldn't believe how lucky she was.