Hello dear readers! Sorry about the delay, but I had things to do in real life and it's more important than a fanfiction story actually (to me).
SO, here is the seventh chapter, taking place two days after the end of the previous chapter.
I hope you will like it ^^
CHAPTER 7
Forty hours in Hell. This was what he had experienced until now. Locked up in this room, pacing around. The nurses already tried to get him out of here, at least to breathe some fresh air, but nothing had worked. He stayed there completely still, holding Steve's right hand, waiting almost impatiently for him to show even a slight sign of awakening. In vain so far. He didn't sleep, he didn't eat unless someone brought him a sandwich. He didn't drink except when Tani, Rachel, Lou or Junior came to check in. Almost two days without washing or shaving. He had become a ghost. A simple azure glance at him could be enough to reconnect him to reality, but for the moment, he was just a body asleep, assisted by a machine.
"You should change your clothes, Detective. Just the smell could bring a dead man back!" the Doctor joked.
"Thank you very much", Danny answered with a fake smile.
"Seriously, you should shower and get yourself cleaned. You barely left that chair since the Commander's admission."
He sighed.
"I... I don't want him to wake up without anyone by his side", he admitted. "Given his condition, he will panic."
"Detective, Danny. Steve won't wake up until I order to lower the pain medication. I can guarantee that. It is, therefore, more than certain that he won't wake up if you take a break and some time for yourself. And then, if you decide to go out a bit, I will let you know when I give that order."
Danny thought, doubtful. He knew he needed to go out and take care of himself. Having a big meal, wash and shave his growing beard. He needed to feel the warmth of the sun on his skin although in front of Steve, he admitted he didn't like the warmth of Hawaii. And even less to love the island. And yet, he had become addicted to it. When he returned to New Jersey to see his family, his only thought turned to Hawaii and his lifestyle. A lively but pleasant life, interspersed with surfing sessions, ice and shrimp dishes delicately made by Kamekona.
"Is that a promise?"
"Indeed. I can already tell you that I am more than satisfied with the assessment I have just made on your friend and..."
"Brother. Steve is my uh... What do you call it here? Kaina?"
"If he's younger than you, yes. If he is older, he is called kua'ana."
"I'm the oldest."
"So he is your kaina, and you are his kua'ana."
"And what is Kahuna then? Many members of our Ohana call him this way", he asked intrigued.
He had never dared to ask what it was about, for fear of being seen as uncultured.
"Kahuna? Oah, an ahole receiving this title is really... Impressive."
"He was born and raised in Hawaii, his family is here for three generations", Danny tried to explain, hoping that Steve would no longer be seen as an ahole by his own doctor.
"I understand now. Traditionally, a Kahuna is one who is seen as an expert in his profession. Generally, they were the wisest people on the island due to their high knowledge. A Kahuna these days is anyone who is seen as a wise man, full of kindness and respectful of Hawaiian traditions."
"That's Steve. He always yells at me when I break a Hawaiian law or break an ancestral tradition."
"Hawaiians are very respectful of tradition, including criminals. They are all afraid of the Kapus, the guardians of these traditions and our lifestyle."
"Nice to hear that. We call Kawika more often then."
"Kawika? The head of the Kapu?"
"Yeah, we uh... We had a case a long time ago involving former Kapus. He's one of the few people calling Steve a Kahuna."
"This is... This is a great mark of respect from him. This means that he considers him as a Kapu."
"I don't know, but as soon as a Kapu or a former Kapu might be involved in a case, Steve calls him first. Anyway, all this to say that Steve is my little brother in the heart."
"I understand, believe me. As I said earlier, I went through his blood tests and I think it's wise to lower the morphine dose this afternoon, let him wake up at his own pace. Hopefully, he won't have a panic attack because of the assisted ventilation."
"You don't know Steve as I do; he's not going to like it at all. I even think you should stay around, just in case it goes wrong."
"I will be in the OR for most of the afternoon but two of my men will be in the department. I will warn them to stay alert and come here every thirty minutes."
Danny smiled, thanking the leaving doctor. He approached Steve's face, delicately taking his freezing hand with his.
"Did you hear that? Very soon, I will be able to see those blue-grey eyes of yours."
He straightened, thinking back to what the surgeon had told him earlier. Steve wouldn't like to see him as bad as he is like today.
"You know what? I will come back in a few hours. I uh... I have things to do before you wake up", he tried to explain, although he doubted Steve could hear him. "No foolish things, uh?"
He squeezed his hand a little more before letting go and finally leaving the room for the first time in two days. The nurses said nothing to see him walking down the hall, having been informed by the doctor that he was probably finally going to get out of his monk mode. The first thing he did was to go to his house to change his clothes and take a big shower. He stayed below the hot water for thirty minutes, taking the time to enjoy it and shave his beard. Then, he decided to leave for Kamekona's shrimp truck. His sinfulness had made him want to do so for several days, but he could not really indulge in this undisclosed pleasure. The boss of the truck was happy and satisfied to see him outside Steve's room and even served him a double portion for the price of one because he saw the impressive state of weakness in which Danny was. He also took care to bring him something to drink for the rest of the day and promised to bring him the garlic shrimp he loved most of all. At one in the afternoon, the detective headed for the hospital. Luckily, he was not far from the office so he stopped by to greet his colleagues and tell them that the doctor was lowering the dose of medication to let Steve wake up at his own pace, which filled Junior, Tani and Lou with joy.
He just got released from the hospital after two weeks in a damn ward with doctors looking for any problem with his new liver. Danny's liver. Steve was too proud of himself to even be able to say thank you. And he was angry at himself. He saw every passing day that it weighed on Danny's conscience to have no consideration. After all, he had saved his life, because without that liver, he would have died right now. In addition to being a brother in the heart, they were lucky enough to have the same blood type. Life had done things really well. And most importantly, after this parkour chase through the streets and rooftops of Honolulu, Steve had reopened his surgical incision. It didn't hurt too much if he didn't move. But what he feared most was the look of a Danny mad with rage, because he hadn't taken care of his liver. He had just returned from his car, bringing back a clean shirt with him because the one he was wearing was stained with his own blood.
"Hey. How's the girl?" Steve asked, trying not to think about his apprehension.
"Locked in a room for five days. How do you think she is?"
In the tone of his voice, Danny was REALLY very angry.
I am in trouble.
"Listen, you should go to the hospital and get that looked at properly, okay?" he continued.
"I'm fine."
I shouldn't have said that. I am really in trouble now.
"You're fine? That's good", she said, waving his arms everywhere. "I'm uh… I'm gonna put that on your tombstone. He said he was fine, he was wrong. What is the matter with you?"
He sighed, turning around to look at the paramedic next to him.
"Can you do me a favor, give us a second."
The EMT nodded and went back to his ambulance while Steve turned to face Danny once again.
"What is the matter with you", Detective Williams repeated.
He needed to say it. He had to say it. He had to. He placed his hand over his hip, taking a deep breath, locking his eyes and Danny's.
"I love you."
Danny seemed surprised to him because he had tilted his head back slightly, making a grimace.
"I love you too."
"Okay, then give me a break. Would you give me a break?"
It's not that he didn't like him, he loved him. But something, he needed some space and he clearly had any since the shooting took place. He needed some fresh air but he couldn't breathe properly.
"You want a break? All right. I'll step aside, watch where you get yourself killed. Is that what you want?"
Danny's boiling blood…
"I'm not trying to get myself killed!" he stated, sounding furious.
"No? You're sure? Because that's a relief. Because it seems like, for the last five, six years, that that's been the goal."
"Again, I think you're being a little uh… Overdramatic."
I shouldn't have said that either…
"Okay, you know what? Forget it. Good luck. Good luck!"
He felt bad. Very bad. He had never seen Danny is such a madness argument with him. Never.
"Hey, wait. Wait."
"Wait for what, what do you want?"
He let Danny take a few steps, but he really felt like he was being a jerk. He had to tell him what was on his conscience, what had been bothering him for days.
"Danny…"
"What?" he said, turning around once again toward Steve.
The Commander sighed, placed his hand over his chest and racing heart. He took a deep breath, closing his eyes.
"Thank you."
Finally, he'd been able to say these two words. It was simple. But for Steve, it was a huge step. He never said thank you the way he did for Danny before.
"You're welcome", a soft voice answered.
It was like a weight leaving the police officer's shoulders. He could feel it from where he was. Just for that, he wanted to open his eyes. After what happened to him with the suspect, Danny should be frightened, scared to death about the situation. He couldn't leave his brother like this. He couldn't leave without saying himself that he loved him. He gathered all his strength to focus on opening his eyes. He wanted to see these blue eyes, to see that smile. He wanted Danno.
Six hours after returning to Steve's bedside, he had not moved an inch. He had already asked the nurse and the two doctors under the surgeon's orders if all this was normal, but apparently yes. Waking someone up could take four to twelve hours depending on the dose of medication used. Steve's being particularly important under the circumstances, the medical staff felt that his first sign of awakening should arrive soon. A real ordeal for Danny. He had tried to stimulate him by talking to him, by gently taking his icy hand in his own, but nothing worked.
"It's time to wake up, sleeping beauty. Nap time is over now", he joked as his patience was about to expire.
Suddenly, Steve's heart rate, indicated on the monitor above the bed, became more intense, faster. Instinctively, Danny straightened up, calling his name to encourage him further. His reaction was quite different; as expected, he began to fight against the tube anchored in his throat. At first, it was just a simple and weak cough, but as the seconds passed, it turned into a very powerful gag that could be likened to a violent seizure.
The alarm went off and the detective began to worry even more. Despite his weak condition, Steve continued to struggle. To prevent him from hurting himself while the nurses arrived, he got up and gently placed his arms on the bed, paying close attention to the tube in his chest. He was in pain for his best friend when he discovered that little tear running down his cheek because the pain seemed so insurmountable. Or maybe it was the feeling of that tube in his airways, which prevented him from breathing when he coughed with all his might to clear his lungs.
In less than ten seconds, two nurses and the two doctors rushed into the room under Danny's dark eyes, the one who said 'I told you so'. But strangely enough, he didn't blame them; it was a standard procedure to keep the breathing machine until the patient wakes up. Fortunately, Emily the head nurse had already prepared everything to ease the transition. Several times, as Steve's heartbeat beat stronger and faster, she suctioned along the tube before removing it completely. The commander could not help but cough more while the second nurse applied an oxygen mask, the thin tube delivering pure oxygen being replaced by the blue tube of the ventilation machine. The coughing faded quickly as he took some unstable and irregular breaths for the first time in almost three days. Danny took advantage of his fading gag to take his hands off and sit back down, relieved that it was over and worried that his best friend still wasn't able to take deep breaths.
It took time, several minutes even, but his condition stabilized; he could take stronger and more regular breaths. Satisfied, one of the doctors asked Steve to open his eyes if he could hear him. His only answer was another cough. Explaining that they would come back when he would be fully awake to perform some neurological tests since the sailor had remained for long minutes dead, it was to see if the oxygen deprivation had had any consequences on the brain. Once he left, Danny focused again on Steve's face, trying to pierce his features.
"I know you're awake", he whispered.
And then, slowly but surely, Steve's eyelids raised. What was for him a simple shadow became less a blur and clearer. Azure blue eyes met grey-blue eyes, and Danny could only smile back at him. "Hey, welcome back."
Through the oxygen mask, the officer could see that Steve's lips were moving but not a sound was coming out.
"No need to talk right now, okay? Rest a little longer, we'll see about that later", he said, although he was intrigued by what Steve wanted to say.
A coughing fit seized Steve, who took this moment to clear his voice and try again with more strength and conviction. Only three words came out of his mouth.
"Book'em, Danno..."
Weak but here. He smiled, preventing himself from laughing so as not to wake him up since he had fallen asleep again. No need for any neurological testing. Steve was right there. He was finally back.
A/N: What do you think? You might have recognized this dialogue; it was indeed from the premiere of season seven, after Steve had chased the suspect.
Tell me your thoughts, I am intrigued!
