Disclaimer: Ideas are fictional; not making any money on this. Hawaii 5-0 belongs to CBS. That's okay because none of this would work on TV.
Family Life, Chapter 12
February 2022
Danny awoke on Monday morning with a sense of dread. It was TKR day for him (what he called his surgery in his head). He was stiff and a little sore from lying in the same position all night. It was a little hard to move with a big super-SEAL wrapped around him.
Steve woke too despite Danny's attempt to extricate himself without disturbing his husband. "What time is it Danno?" Steve's voice was thick with sleep.
"It's a little after six. Mom is already downstairs fixing coffee and the boys will be up soon. I thought that I would take a quick shower and go down to spend a little extra time with the boys. Why don't you go for your morning workout while you can?"
"I will but can you stay for a few more minutes. I just want to be with you a little longer while I can."
The couple cuddled in the big bed until unexpectantly Jack and Jesse flew through the door.
"Danno, Jack thought that you might already be at the hospital but I told him that you were still here. Is it okay if we come in?" Jack had been restless all night and woke with a nightmare first thing this morning. Jesse knew that Jack was just as worried about Danno as the rest of the family and hoped that a morning cuddle in bed might calm Jack down.
"Come on in boys. I think that's a great idea." Danny and Steve made room for their sons to settle between them. They had a little family time until Steve calculated he had just enough time to work out. Danny let the boys stay with him until it was time for them to get ready for school.
The plan for the day was carefully choreographed. Steve had a quick breakfast with the boys and took Danny to the pre-op floor of the hospital. Mom and Dad took the boys to school and reminded the office that the boys might be a little distracted and upset that day because of Danny's surgery. The principal promised to deliver an update to the boys once Danny was out of surgery.
Mom and Dad would meet with Steve in the waiting room and keep him company. Steve stayed with Danny until they took him to the OR. Mom packed a little survival kit for the wait. It included bottles of water, some energy bars, a deck of cards, extra batteries for the electronic gadgets, and the current issue of 'Guns and Ammo'. The last item was Danny's suggestion and he knew that Steve would get a little laugh at the inside joke.
Danny was quiet for the short drive to the hospital. Steve let the valet park the car and carried Danny's bag to the pre-op ward. Danny was given once of the standard gowns to wear and was ordered to put all of his clothes into the plastic bag. It didn't take long to change since Danny was simply dressed in boxers, sweatpants, a t-shirt, and slippers.
Steve held Danny's free hand when the tech came in to draw blood and put the IV in. The anesthesiologist was next. She asked Danny several questions before injecting a sedative into Danny's IV line. She didn't necessarily pre-medicate all of her patients but Dr. Lee had alerted her that Danny was quite anxious about his surgery. A little 'happy juice' would calm him enough to facilitate the drugs administered in the OR. Danny was scheduled for an epidural so the surgery would be pain-free even if Danny wasn't completely out.
Steve sat quietly as Danny finally calmed down but he continued to hold or touch Danny until the orderlies came in to wheel Danny away. Steve stood briefly by the gurney and stroked through Danny's hair. "Babe, it's time. I'll be waiting for you with Mom and Dad. You know the drill. Follow their instructions and you'll be in recovery before you know it. We'll see you again when you get to your room." Steve leaned over and kissed Danny.
Danny roused enough to savor the kiss and managed a quick "love you babe" before the gurney was out of sight. Steve stood in the doorway with his eyes closed and his head rested on the doorjamb until a nurse came over to talk to him.
"Mr. McGarrett-Williams, you can wait for your husband in the surgical waiting area. It's on the third floor. You can follow the signs. He'll be fine, you know. We do this every day, and your husband is young and healthy."
Steve sighed. "I know but Danny and our sons are my life. I don't know what I would do without him. He's the only one who can help me when I'm trying not to be myself." Steve knew how stupid that sounded from the puzzled look on the nurse's face. He tried to explain again.
"I have a little ADHD problem aggravated by some advanced combat training. Danny reminds me to observe a little basic mammal-to-mammal communication and not to be a Neanderthal."
A look of understanding crossed the woman's face. "Oh, I'm sorry Commander. I didn't recognize the name at first. You and your husband are part of 5-0. You always make interesting reading in the paper."
This made Steve smile. "We're happy to oblige. Which way is it to the elevators?"
Steve found Mom and Dad waiting for him. He was relieved that he wouldn't be alone. Chin and Kono offered to come too but Steve thought that their time would be better served at the Palace. As senior team members, both were capable of leading the team in Steve and Danny's absence. Steve promised to call when Danny was out of surgery and they would spread the word. Visitors were limited to the immediate family for today because Danny was a terrible patient when coming out of anesthesia.
It was almost two hours later when Dr. Lee came out to talk to Steve and the family. "Danny's fine. They're moving him to the recovery room now. He'll be there for an hour or so and then you can meet him in his room."
Steve felt some of the pressure ease at the news. "So there were no complications?"
Dr. Lee laughed. "The only complication was that Danny was so nervous. He wasn't completely out and ordinarily that would be fine. But Danny started talking and he wouldn't quiet down. When he started asking questions, I had the anesthesiologist put him under or else I would still be standing there answering questions."
Now Steve laughed too. "Yeah, that's Danny. I'm sorry if he gave you a hard time."
"That's okay. You should go grab some lunch while you can." Dr. Lee was still smiling when he left to scrub in for his next surgery.
Mom pulled Steve down for a hug. "Now I want you to sit down for a minute and relax. I know how hard this has been for you and I'm so proud of how you've been there for Danny and your boys. I want you to remember that Dad and I are here to help you and the boys too. It's hard on everyone when someone you love is sick or in pain."
Steve obeyed Mom's order out of instinct. He was a little shaky now and his eyes were shiny with tears. Dad sat down next to him and put his arm around him. "I have to tell you that I don't know how you do it. That son of mine is a handful under the best of circumstances. These last few days have been extreme."
"I love him Dad. It's that simple. After all these years together, I hardly notice it most days. Danny's just being Danny. It's not like I'm the easiest person to live with either. I guess we should find the cafeteria."
Before they could leave the waiting room, a woman in scrubs came out and asked "Is there a Steve McGarrett-Williams here?"
Steve stepped forward. "I'm Steve."
"Sir, if you could come with me. You need to put a gown on. We're having a little trouble with your husband. He's coming out of the general anesthetic and he's a little agitated and combative."
"Yeah, he usually has a problem when he has a general anesthetic. I can probably calm him down for you." So Steve didn't make it to lunch. He asked Dad to call the school and Chin before they went to the cafeteria while he went to see Danny.
Danny was thrashing around and talking nonsense. Steve went to Danny and stroked his hair while talking softly about how much he loved him.
Danny briefly opened his eyes and looked around. "Is it over? I made it through okay?"
Steve kissed Danny's forehead and smiled. "Yes, you're out of surgery and in recovery. I'm right here for you. You need to rest for a while and let these nice people take care of you."
Danny closed his eyes and rested peacefully for another half an hour. The nurse wanted to see if Danny could move his legs. Danny had to raise his head to see if his legs were still there. He couldn't feel anything. Still, the nurse was persistent and finally Danny was able to move a little. It went downhill from there.
Once Danny could move his legs, the pain started. It was a mild ache and got worse. He was given control for the morphine pump while someone from PT strapped his battered leg into a machine that flexed his leg every few seconds.
Steve watched as Danny's situation deteriorated. Before Steve could step in and try to soothe Danny, the nurse announced that Danny was ready to go to his room. Steve could only follow as Danny moaned in pain. Every bump was agony for Danny.
Mom and Dad were waiting for them when Danny was wheeled in. Then a nurse came in and asked them to leave while she got Danny settled in. Mom and Dad turned to leave but Steve stepped into the nurse's personal space.
"Ma'am, with all due respect, I'm not going anywhere. I'm Commander Steve McGarrett-Williams, 5-0, and this is my husband and partner, Detective Danny McGarrett-Williams. Either I or one of my team will need to be on duty with Danny until he's discharged for security purposes. You can check with your own security team if you need to. Now Danny is in a lot of pain, so could you address that issue first? It will take almost an hour for Danny to get fully medicated with that pump. I know that you can give him the dose he needs now."
Lara Kailani, RN, evaluated the situation and wished that someone had given her a heads up on this one. 5-0 had a reputation around the hospital. They were notoriously bad patients and wouldn't leave one of their team unattended unless the patient actually in an operating room. They witnessed treatments that would have broken a lesser man or woman. To make matters worse, these two are married. She knew that she would lose any battle so she decided to make the best of a difficult situation. At least the man seemed to have some familiarity with hospital routine.
"Okay, I need five minutes to take his vital signs and check him over. If he's doing okay, I'll adjust the pump to give him some relief. If after 30 minutes he is still in distress, I can administer additional medication. I'm Lara. I'll be Danny's nurse this shift. My number is on the board. You can call me from the house phone if Danny needs something. He needs fluids and it would great if he could eat a little lunch. The menu is on his tray table and you can phone down to order whatever sounds good. I'll also call down and make arrangements so that whoever from your team is here can order up a meal too."
Steve was satisfied and stepped back to give Nurse Kailani some room. "Thank you. I'm not trying to be difficult."
"I know. Now let's see how Danny is." Lara quickly evaluated Danny's condition and gave him a boost of morphine. She promised to return in half an hour to see how Danny was feeling before she left.
"Thanks babe." Danny was lucid enough to enjoy Steve's little speech on his behalf. The pain was back to a dull ache thanks to Steve the Avenger.
"Anytime, Danno. Are you doing any better?"
"Well my knee feels like someone took a sledge hammer to it as opposed to a chain saw. I'm so relieved that the surgery is over but I feel terrible."
"I know. Do you want any lunch? They have soup and maybe I could have them fix you a grilled cheese."
"I'll take the soup. Order whatever else sounds good. You know what I like, and get something for yourself too. I'd tell you to go to the cafeteria but I don't think you want to go anymore that I want you to leave."
Mom and Dad came back from the cafeteria just as the lunch trays arrived. Danny was feeling more comfortable and was a little hungry. He managed to eat the soup, a little grilled chicken, and some mashed potatoes before fatigue set in. Steve ate most of his meal which was better that he expected. He dozed for a while with Danny after Mom and Dad left to pick up the boys. They were going to take the boys home to change clothes and get a snack before coming back to visit. Mom promised to bring some homemade chicken noodle soup for Danny's supper.