Her eyes once again strayed towards the monitors that were persistently displaying Danny's vitals. Releasing a soft sigh at the numbers that had changed only ever so slightly in the past few hours, she reached for her friend's arm. She swallowed the lump that blossomed in her throat each time her gaze landed on his face. This wasn't the Danny she knew, this one was too still, too quiet for her liking.
"Danny.." She couldn't quite find the right words. She gripped his arm tighter, hoping that was enough to let him know that he wasn't alone because words were failing her.
"You'll stay with Danno, right? Don't leave him alone, please?" Grace's request rang in her ears. The only request before she had left her father's side after much persuasion. The girl had gone through so much in the span of a few hours, more than any 13-year old should ever have to. From having to watch her father fight for his life to witnessing Steve's collapse. Still the girl had remained strong, steadfastly staying by her father's side, whispering an earnest prayer every now and then.
Six hours and a whole lot of convincing later, Grace was willing to leave her father's side with the promise of being 'right back'. Grace had turned to her again before walking through the doors, repeating the same words, fear shining in her eyes.
"Don't leave him alone, please?"
Kono had nodded. She had promised. Her heart clenched remembering the same promise that she had made to Danny less than a week ago.
"Hey monkey, what are you crying for, huh? It's gonna be okay, I promise you." Kono had watched in silence as he put on a brave front, a forced smile plastered on his face as he held on to his daughter. "Remember when I gave your brother my bone marrow, that went well right? It's gonna be just like that, okay? I'll be in and out in no time. You don't worry about a thing, alright?"
When Grace had barely nodded, tears still streaming down her face, Danny had held on to his daughter's hand. "It's gonna be okay. I promise." He repeated, his attempt at hiding the slight tremble in his voice was a pretty good one but she hadn't missed it. "Come here, give me a hug."
He chuckled to mask the groan that escaped as the girl crashed into his chest. If the pallor on his face and his pale lips hadn't been enough, that should have clued her in that he wasn't as alright as he insisted. But maybe it was her extreme worry for Steve that clouded her judgement. Or maybe it was the fact that she couldn't handle the truth if Danny was hurt more than he said. It was enough that one of their Ohana was battling for his life, Danny had to be fine. So she had pretended she didn't see him wince as he held on to his daughter in a tight embrace.
"Alright, no more crying. Everything's going to be okay. Uncle Steve will be okay. And I will be okay. 'Danno's 100% guarantee', you remember that?" His voice gentle, almost too soft to pass off as his.
"It's gonna be okay." He said again. She wasn't counting, but she was sure he'd said that too many times in the last couple of minutes alone. Who really was he trying to convince? Grace or himself? Maybe both.
His daughter had nodded against his chest, taking his word for it. Though of course, the girl hadn't another choice. Believing him was the only way they could get through the next few hours. And she wished she could believe him too.
"Alright, can you go wait outside with Uncle Lou? Let me talk to Aunt Kono for a bit. I'll see you real soon okay, monkey?"
"I love you, Dad."
"Hey, I love you too. Very much. Don't ever forget that." He had said, an imperceptible look in his eyes as he watched his daughter leave.
Once they were alone in the room, he looked up at her, his eyes glistening with sorrow. "Kono.. Thanks for bringing her. I..uh I need you to do me another favour, alright? Stay with her while I'm at surgery, please? Make sure she's okay. Uhh Rachel, she's taking the next available flight back. But till then, till Rach gets here, you stay with Grace, please? Don't leave her alone for a second."
She had nodded wordlessly. She couldn't quite trust herself to speak without her whole façade crumbling to the ground.
He reached out to her, holding her hand in his. She had felt the tremor in his cold grip. He was afraid too, she knew. She swallowed, trying to keep a straight face. But she couldn't. Her lips had faltered, quivering subtly as a tear fell down her cheek.
"Hey.. You okay?" He asked with the same gentleness with which he had spoken to Grace.
She had looked at him, noticing the deepening creases on his forehead. This time she shook her head. How could she be 'okay'?
Squeezing her hand, he had inhaled with a little too much effort. "It's gonna be okay. Steve's going to be fine." She had looked at him, the fear in his eyes didn't quite echo his words. "My liver is good stuff. He's going to be okay." He continued, offering her a crooked smile that never reached his eyes.
She would never know that his words were meant to comfort his anxious heart as much as it was directed to her. She would never know that he was so darn afraid that his liver wouldn't be enough to save his friend, that he wouldn't be able to keep his word to his team and his daughter. That he wouldn't be able to save his partner. And she would definitely never know that his final thought before the last bit of anaesthesia had pulled him under was that if Steve didn't make it, he would rather not wake up to find that out.
All she knew was that his words had been enough to keep her sane while two people who had carved a place for themselves in her heart were in surgery. All she knew was that he had been right after all, he had kept his word. Steve was going to be fine. His liver was doing its intended job - giving their boss his second shot at life that they weren't so sure about.
But what she also knew now, a little too late, was that Danny hadn't kept the other end of his promise to his daughter. He'd promised Grace that they were both going to be okay. Steve and him, both. But he had failed terribly at keeping his word this time. Because he wasn't fine. Not by a long shot.
To be completely honest, she hadn't once doubted that he was going to be okay. It hadn't once crossed her mind that they could lose him too. Things weren't meant to turn out this way.
Afterall, he hadn't been the one with 3 bullet holes in him, bleeding out on the floor of the plane.
Afterall, he hadn't been all that hurt. It had just been a busted rib or two, hadn't it?
Afterall, the risks to a liver donor was minimal.
Afterall, he had come out of the surgery just fine.
Afterall, they had been joking around with one another not too long ago.
He should have been okay. He was alright…
That's what she had naively believed, what everyone had believed. Likely even Danny himself. His grogginess, his moodiness, his gripes… They had attributed it to Danny being Danny, nothing more. Certainly not that he was bleeding internally or that his body was brewing a nasty infection that was actively trying to kill him.
In their relief that Steve had survived an almost signed death sentence, it was as though the memory that Danny had been in a goddamn plane wreck too was eroded away. It was forgotten that he had sustained injuries, however superficial they thought it was initially…
It was tempting to blame him for hiding the true extent of his injuries from them. But really, had she spared any effort to ask the doctors about his recovery? Had anyone really?
The only answer to that was one she didn't want to admit even to herself and it was the very reason why she was now staring at his still body fighting to stay alive.
She blinked back tears as she leaned towards him, her hand gently brushing his forehead.
"Danny.. I uhh.. this, this isn't fair. This isn't supposed to happen. You're.. You were alright.. You promised Grace that you'd be okay.. You promised, brah.." She breathed unsteadily, once again looking at the monitors for some faux sense of comfort. "The doctor says you're hanging in there... You gotta, you have to keep fighting, okay? Danny, we're all.. we're all waiting for you. You're not alone, you know. We're here by your side. You just come back to us."
He had to come back. There was no alternative.
She squeezed his hand gently, her thumb lightly caressing his knuckles that were still far too warm. She paused, her heart skipping a beat as she felt an almost indistinct twitch of Danny's fingers. "Danny?" She called hopefully.
Hope swelling in her rib, she leaned closer towards him. "Danny? Hey, can you hear me?" She called gently, her eyes fixed on him. "Open your eyes, please. Danny?" She begged, eyes glistening with tears.
Did I imagine that?
"Danny.." Her voice faltering, doubt creeping in to kill her hopes.
No, I know what I felt.
She squeezed his hand again, her fingers remaining curled around his. Please, Danny, just keep fighting. Come back to us.
And just as she convinced herself she was going insane, she felt it again. The frail grip around her fingers. "Danny!" She teared as her eyes met the soft blue gaze that she hadn't been sure she would ever see again.
…
Crawling back to consciousness was a pretty tormenting process. If he had any choice at all, he would remain in that blissful abyss of nothingness. Only, the choice wasn't up to him. Without much warning, without much consent, the voices that beckoned him yanked him right out of his oblivion, simultaneously plunging him into a world of hurt.
The deep ache in his chest was all but bearable. Breathing was an extreme torture, sharp agony blooming from his insides in an unpredictable fashion. Just as he foolishly believed that he was getting used to the pain, it seemed to laugh right in his face, returning with renewed vengeance. Like a pair of feet had been squarely planted on his rib with the sole purpose of wringing the breath out of him.
A quick retreat to his safe haven was extremely tempting. Each time, his eyelids would flutter as he contemplated succumbing to the quick relief. But each time, he resisted taking the easy way out. Each time, ignoring the flame ravaging every fibre of his being, he submitted to the clutches of agony.
There was only one reason for that. A very good one. One that didn't make the pain lessen but at the very least made it all worth it. He would go through it all, remaining conscious for however long his body could bear the agony, even if it was the last thing he wanted.
Those few minutes, maybe seconds (he couldn't be sure), of pure torture was worth it because his daughter was always there next to him. Only twice, she hadn't been there when he woke, and he had taken the easy way out relatively quickly then. But each time Grace was in front of him, he stayed conscious a little longer. To permanently etch the smile on her face in his memory.
Still, there was one face he sorely missed. One face that had been starkly absent. One question that remained unanswered.
Steve..
Not once had he seen his partner. Grace was always there, sometimes with Kono, sometimes with Chin and sometimes Lou. He vaguely remembered seeing Rachel once too, but it was questionable if that was real.
But Steve? He hadn't been there. Not once.
Is he okay?
He tried to ask each time. But no words escaped his stiff lips aside from a mere muffled groan. His search for his partner remained incomplete and it planted a deep worry in his heart, aggravating the physical ache in his chest.
But the worry had all vanished the next time he opened his eyes. Because he was there. Steve. Bent over in a chair next to him, hands clasped together in what seemed to be prayer (except it didn't make much sense since Steve never believed).
"S..eve." He wasn't much confident that anything would come out of his attempt. But it was a miracle. He could hear himself. The claustrophobia-inducing mask on his face was thankfully gone.
Steve's head shot up, meeting his eyes that refused to fully open, remaining at half mast.
"Danny.. hey, buddy."
Relief flooded him the same way he saw it wash over his partner. Steve was fine, he was here now. He breathed slowly, taking his time to analyse his partner's face. He didn't really like what he saw.
"Wh..ppened?" He breathed, wincing at the excrutiating effort it took to form two words.
"Don't try to talk.. You're okay now.. You're alright."
...
92 hours.
That was how long Danny had tortured him. He was convinced that Danny was doing this on purpose. There was no other reason or explanation for why he had refused to open his eyes even once in his presence.
Kono, Chin, Lou and of course Grace, who barely left her father's side, had all been lucky enough. But not him. He had missed seeing his partner awake every single time.
He would blame it on Dr Cornett's authoritarian nature coming to the forefront. As though it hadn't been enough to detain him for 24 hours, the doctor had enforced strict rules that he was only allowed to leave his room for a total of 2 meagre hours a day. Whatever it was he had threatened the nurses and his teammates with, it had worked, because they were unwilling to help him go against the strict rule. He was forced to obey, he wouldn't put it past Dr Cornett to resort to some underhanded means to make sure he stayed in bed. And honestly, the prospect of being drugged into oblivion for a second time wasn't too tempting.
If he had 2 hours with Danny, he would take it. Every second of it. Like clockwork, he would be there next to his partner for an hour in the morning and another hour in the evening every day. Just waiting. It was a long wait. But he was sure it was coming to an end soon.
The doctors had assured him that Danny was getting better, the infection had gotten under control in the past 72 hours. Danny's vitals were stable and his O2 stats were good enough for him to be off the ventilator.
It was a relief seeing the colour returning to his partner's face. The overwhelming mask replaced with a nasal cannula was a welcome change. But he still needed to see those eyes open. That was the only way his heart would finally be at peace.
He didn't have much time left. His sanctioned hours of freedom for the day was coming to a close. Maybe he had to live with the fact that today wasn't the day either. Maybe tomorrow his friend would be kind enough to finally open those eyes for him. Maybe..
"S..eve."
His head shot up. The voice, frail and barely audible was still melodious to his ears. Because he had been waiting for days. Because it was Danny's.
"Danny...hey, buddy." He swallowed, relief quaking him. His neurons were pretty clearly short circuiting. When there was so much to say, he had gone with the lame 'hey buddy'. Really, Steve?
"Wh..ppened?"
"Don't try to talk, buddy.. You're okay now.. You're alright." He coaxed.
He expected nothing more than for Danny to ignore his words. There was never stopping Danny from talking. And he was glad to hear Danny's voice, he would never once complain about how Danny talked too much ever again. But it was clearly taking too much from his partner and he wished for once that Danny would listen.
He leaned closer towards his partner, allowing Danny to wrap his fingers around his wrist. He watched as his partner's brows knitted together, slowly shaking his head.
"Y..u..Se..ve." Danny breathed. "Yo..u kay?"
A dart to his chest. That was what Danny's words felt like in that moment. Breath knocked out of him, he could only manage a pitiful grimace. With his other hand, he wrapped Danny's fingers that were still curled around his wrist.
He didn't deserve this guy, did he? Ever.
"Y..u alrig..ht?" His partner asked again, probably thinking that he didn't hear it the first time.
He looked at his partner. "I..I am now.. I'm okay, Danno."
…
A/N: Hey guys! As always thank you for reading and reviewing on the last chapter. I know nothing much happens here but I really wanted a chapter with more Kono in it because I really love her and I don't think I've written a lot of her in any of my stories. So I'm sorry if the first part of the chapter seems unnecessary. But good news is Danny's finally awake and aware enough so the healing is coming for our broken best friends. Thanks again for reading and take care everyone :)