Steve and Brian spent a restless night at Sophia's bedside. Sedatives had given her an advantage since she seemed to sleep considerably well.
Rosa walked in to her daughter's room at 7 a.m. and smiled at the scene in front of her; All three of them were sleeping.
She loved these kids, and although she acknowledged they were actually grown adults, they would always still be "her kids".
Brian looked incredibly uncomfortable trying to sleep in the chair at Sophia's bedside even with the pillow he was holding and resting his head against. He was a big man, after all, and was noticeably bigger than the chair he was awkwardly curled into.
Steve was on the bed with his arms wrapped protectively around Sophia as he held her close to him. Rosa's heart swelled at the sight. Who would have thought so many years ago that her son's best friend would one day fall in love with the 'little sister'?
Of course, Rosa had been aware of Sophia's crush on Steve McGarrett from the beginning. Sophia may have hidden it from Gio and Steve, but she'd never fooled her momma.
Steve was handsome….smart….motivated…strong…and had a smile that could reduce nearly any woman to a puddle of goo. (At least that had been Rosa's interpretation as she watched her son and Steve together.)
Steve also came from a good family and had integrity. He was "good people", as some would say. A mother could sense those things, and Rosa had always been happy about her son's friendship and 'brotherhood' with Steve.
There were many times she'd watched her precious Gio and Steve together and thought, "God help the women who cross their paths….They won't stand a chance!"
The age gap between Steve and Sophia may have seemed insurmountable and inappropriate when they were younger, but now everything was coming together.
After losing Gio, Rosa was relieved when Steve stepped in without question to look after her daughter. Having Steve and Sophie fall in love with each other was a bonus. Although neither one of them had talked about "love" to Rosa, she saw it in the way they looked at each other.
It was also obvious in the way he was holding Sophia as he laid behind her with his arms wrapped protectively around her. She was pulled close to his body and enveloped in his arms. Rosa couldn't help but say a silent prayer of "thanks" as she realized Steve had moved from family friend to the man who was in love with her baby girl.
And she couldn't be happier about that.
Looking at them, Rosa was certain Steve had taken on the role of Sophia's 'protector'. She could breathe a sigh of relief as a mother knowing confidently that he would find the men who had hurt her precious Sophia and bring them to justice.
Brian opened his eyes. "Rosa….." he sat up in his chair and winced a little at the crick he felt in his neck after sleeping in such a position. Then he gave her a sleepy grin. "Good morning."
She smiled at him and whispered, "Good morning, mio cara." She held up a basket. "I brought you all some breakfast. "
Brian took the basket from her and chuckled quietly when he peered inside. "When did you have time to do this?"
"Not to worry, sweetie. You boys took care of my Sophia last night….Now I will take care of you."
The basket held fresh fruit, homemade muffins and juice. She even included a thermos of hot coffee.
"You're the best, Momma Rosa! I'm starving." Brian stood to put an arm around her and pull her in for a hug as he kissed her cheek.
Rosa blushed in spite of herself. "EAT, child. You must be very hungry."
Steve started to stir. When he saw Rosa standing there, he started to get up off the bed until she put a hand out to stop him. "Stay," she whispered. "Keep holding her."
Steve used one hand to rub his eyes and try to wake up more fully.
"She brought breakfast," Brian whispered. "And coffee."
"Oh thank, God," Steve breathed. "Hospital coffee is the worst."
"You don't have to tell me that! I drink hospital coffee every day. Remember?" Brian chuckled.
Steve grinned and looked back at Rosa. "Thanks, Momma. We owe you."
"No, no bambino. I owe you."
The door opened and Dr. Jeffries walked in. Steve was still holding Sophia and the doctor gave him an appreciative gaze. As a doctor in the emergency room area, he'd seen his share of trauma victims over the years. Those who faced traumas like what Sophia had been through normally experienced at least some form of PTSD. He was happy to see that she would have a Navy SEAL and an experienced trauma surgeon at her side during the recovery. The psychological effects were often much worse than the physical, so a support system was crucial.
"Good morning, Doctor. I was just…..uh…." Steve stammered as he tried to sit up.
"…..You were holding her while she slept…..and keeping the nightmares away," Dr. Jeffries finished for him in a hushed voice. It was obvious to him that this Navy SEAL may have experienced his own PTSD and knew exactly what to do to help her.
"Yeah," Steve smiled relieved that the doctor understood.
"That's some of the best medicine for her, Commander." Dr. Jeffries continued to whisper. "But we need to wake her so I can exam her once more and try to get you all out of here in the next couple of hours."
Steve didn't need any more motivation. He wanted to get her home….In his house, in his bed, in his care.
He leaned down to whisper in her ear. "Wake up, babe. Dr. Jeffries is here to see you."
Sophia grumbled sleepily and tried to snuggle back into the pillow.
"Do you want to go home today? Come on, Soph….Wake up so we can get out of here."
Sophia reluctantly opened her eyes and was surprised to see Brian, her mother, and Dr. Jeffries standing by the bed as well.
"Good morning, Miss Manetti. How are you feeling?" Dr. Jeffries asked.
"Okay," she answered even though she winced as she sat up beside Steve. "I mean….I'm a little sore…..but I feel okay. Can I go home, Doctor? Please?"
"That's what we're going to shoot for," Dr. Jeffries said as he stepped towards the bed. Steve got up to give him the room he needed. After a few minutes, the Doctor made some notes on her chart before smiling at all of them.
"I'll get you out of here. Give me time to work on the discharge papers and I'll try to get you out of here in the next hour. Sound good?"
"Sounds GREAT!" Sophia beamed at him.
Dr. Jeffries left the room and Brian gave Steve a pointed look. "Wanna get some coffee with me?"
Rosa thought it was suspicious since she'd already brought coffee for them. She hid her trepidation, however; Having raised a son of her own and being around both Steve and Brian for many years, she knew there was more to the request than just a simple 'cup of coffee'. She sensed there was something more for them to discuss…..Something that involved her daughter whom both of these men cared for.
Steve seemed to sense the same thing.
He shook his head and gave a friendly smile. "Sure…..Let's go." Then he leaned down to kiss Sophia. "I'll be right back."
Sophia looked uncertain.
"I will stay with her." Rosa said. "Go. Hopefully we'll be ready to go by the time you get back."
Sophia remained silent and watched nervously as they walked out together.
'Warning bells' were signaling in her mind. She had a daunting feeling Brian was going to share his concerns about her with Steve. Attempting to keep Brian at ease and convince him she was 'ok' had been difficult enough….If he brought Steve into the equation, she didn't stand a chance. Dealing with one alpha male was difficult enough to deal with, but two would be damn near impossible.
This was not good.
Not good at all.
There was no way they would let it go. And while she knew in her heart she needed help, her mind was screaming to STOP them from talking to each other because she just wasn't ready to feel the pain that grieving her brother's death would bring.
She wasn't ready for the pain…
….Or the tears…
…Or the 'letting go'.
She had a sinking feeling it was going to happen, however; Especially if they joined forces against her.
Sophia watched anxiously. Before closing the door, Steve turned and winked at her before following Brian into the hallway.
What the heck had happened, she wondered. One day she had both of them believing she was okay…..And a few days later, she knew with certainty they were going to 'tag team' against her.
What was she going to do?
*****************H50*****************H50**************H50****
Steve and Brian walked half the distance towards the vending machine in silence before Steve spoke up.
"So Brian…..wanna tell me what this is about?"
Brian expression gave nothing away as he shrugged. "Maybe I just wanted to have coffee with you."
Steve shook his head as he smiled half-heartedly. "Not buying it. Rosa brought us coffee….and I guarantee you it's a hell of a lot better than what we're going to get from a vending machine."
They kept walking.
"What's on your mind?" Steve asked after a few more steps.
Brian's expression was serious as he sighed. Steve could see that his heart was heavy. He could even hear it in his sigh and the way his shoulders were slumped and his eyes were dark.
"Let's find a place to sit." Brian said as he put a hand on Steve's shoulder. "We need to talk."
Steve felt his heart sink. Could it be the worries he'd felt himself could be true? If Brian was sensing the same thing he'd felt lately, there was no way they could let Sophia get away with it any longer. She needed them…..And if they needed to kick her ass to get her back on the 'straight and narrow', that's what they would do.
They made their way to a Waiting Room and were relieved to find it empty. They tried to take advantage of the privacy while it lasted and took seats across from each other in the quiet room. Steve waited patiently for Brian to talk as he leaned back into the chair and watched. Brian held his cup of coffee with both hands and looked down at the floor as if trying to figure out what to say or where to start.
"I'm worried about Sophie," Brian finally said.
"Me too," Steve admitted. "Tell me why you are worried."
Brian released a heavy sigh. "She hasn't been the same since Gio died, Steve." He took a sip of coffee and grimaced at the bitter taste before continuing. "Honestly…She's been getting worse every time I've talked to her. I can hear it in her voice."
Steve's voice was low and filled with worry. He had noticed it too. "Tell me what you've heard."
"Have you ever known someone who just completely lost their thirst for life? It's like the person they were is gone and what's left is a hollow shell of what they use to be."
Steve tilted his head in acknowledgement. "Yeah."
"Well, Sophia is trying her damnest to pretend everything is fine…That she is fine. But she forgets how well I know her."
"And you know she's not grieving Gio's death," Steve confirmed.
"No….she's not," Brian agreed. "What's worse is that I think her method for coping with it is doing her more harm than good."
"And by that you're referring to her drinking, right?"
Brian's browsed creased, "Sounds like you and I are on the same page more than I realized. So how bad do you think it is?"
It was Steve's turn to let go of a heavy sigh. "I don't know. Right after Gio died, I tried to excuse the times I found her drunk. I mean, I knew how much pain she was in and I tried to be there for her as much as I could, but there were times I knew she went too far. She would be completely wasted by the time I talked to her or saw her. Then, it seemed like she started doing better…Or at least I thought so. It wasn't until recently that I realized she was actually worse than ever."
"What happened?" Brian asked.
"A couple of weeks ago, I had a day off and she needed some things fixed on her car. I told her I would look at it, so I brought it to my house and got it into the garage. I opened the trunk for some reason…Can't remember why…but when I opened it, I found two boxes full of empty bottles; Wine, liquor, you name it. She'd probably planned on taking them out for recycling and forgot they were in there when she let me have the car."
Brian exhaled heavily. "I was afraid of that."
"So what about you?" Steve asked. "You said you've heard it in her voice when you've talked, but what is it that convinced you to come here for yourself?"
Brian looked pensive and looked down at the floor again. "The last few times I've talked to her, her words have slurred more than ever. She's also gotten increasingly angry and defensive if I bring anything up about it. She either just shuts down and won't talk to me or changes the subject."
He looked back at Steve, "I decided to give her a surprise visit to see for myself how she's doing. She's never been able to lie to my face." He gave Steve a wry grin, "Of course I wasn't expecting that she'd be kidnapped when I got here, but…"
Steve rolled his eyes and grinned at Brian before they both grew serious again.
"So now that we both realize there are bigger issues at stake, what are we going to do about it?"
"Well, first I need to get the SOB who kidnapped her behind bars. Then, we're going to save her from herself," Steve said confidently. "No matter what it takes."