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 14

February 2022

Steve returned to the hospital somewhat refreshed after a shower and a two-hour nap. He brought more of Mom's chicken soup and some fruit for Danny and sandwiches for Chin and himself. Chin was on his phone talking to Kono about a case that came up that morning while Danny was looking at some surveillance tapes that Kono sent to his tablet.

Danny was able to manage his pain on oral medication so the IV was gone. He still seemed tired but otherwise okay. The ice-water sleeve on his knee provided a lot of relief as well as helping with swelling. Steve and Chin chatted over lunch. Danny's appetite was still a little off but he was eating enough to satisfy Steve.

Chin left after lunch so Steve took the opportunity to get Danny up for a walk in the hall. Danny protested because he was pretty comfortable in his chair, but he knew that mobility was his friend after surgery. The pain medication can be constipating and Danny did not want to go down that road.

Kono met them in the hall as they were returning to Danny's room. She brought them shave ice from Kamekona. Kono didn't stay long but she really needed to make sure that Danny was playing nice with Steve and the staff.

Then it was time for physical therapy again, this time a private session in his room. The therapist asked questions about their home and whether Danny would have help when Steve went back to work. She was satisfied that Danny would be in good shape at home. Danny repeated the exercises from the morning and was gratified to see that he could lift his leg a couple of inches.

Then Danny had time for a short nap before his parents brought the boys in. From Danny's point of view, Day 2 was going much better than Day 1. He was wearing real clothes, and he didn't have any tubes or wires attached. He felt an overwhelming sense of relief that surgery was behind him although he had no illusions that recuperation would be a piece of cake.

Danny perked up when his sons came in with his parents. He spent time cuddling with each boy. Jack didn't seem to be quite as high-strung, and Jesse whispered to him that Jack had a better day at school. While the boys spent some time with Steve, Danny talked his Dad. He was concerned how the boys did last night with neither parent home.

"Mom indulged in a long soak in the Jacuzzi tub after the boys went to bed so I kept a close eye on them. I was reading in our room and I could hear the boys talking for a while. They were discussing how you looked during their visit. You were in rough shape yesterday and they were both concerned. I went back in and we talked for a while and I finally got them settled down."

"Thanks Dad. I really appreciate your help. Steve and I both love having you and Mom here, and Jesse and Jack are over the moon at having Nana and Poppa here."

"It's always nice to hear that your kids want you around. I want to talk to you about something and then you can decide if you want to talk to Steve about it."

Danny leaned forward; his investigative skills warned him that something important was about to happen and he wanted to make sure that he got all the facts right. "Okay Dad, spill it."

Dad took a deep breath and started in. "Well, you know how brutal the weather has been back in Jersey the last few years. For the most part, we're stuck inside from the first snowfall until spring. Mom took a bad spill on the ice last month and we were afraid that she broke her hip."

"Wait, and I'm just finding this out now why?"

"You were busy scheduling your surgery and we didn't want to interfere with that. She was fine Danny. Anyway, my point is that we look forward to our trip here every winter. We noticed that the house next door was for sale when we were here for Thanksgiving. I had a fine chat with Finn and Cliff at Thanksgiving dinner. They were complaining about the problems they were having with building inspectors on some of their upgrade projects. Most of the problems were related to the fire code."

"So are you thinking about helping them out?"

"Actually, they offered me a consulting job. It would pay enough that we could sell the house in Jersey and move here full-time. The listing agent for the house next door told me that she was having trouble selling the property because it was next door to the 5-0 couple, as she called you and Danny. The price has been greatly reduced and will be affordable for Mom and me. Finn has offered to pay for relocation."

"Are you sure Dad? I had a terrible time moving here from Jersey. Is Mom on board?"

"Danny, you were still hurting from your divorce. You were forced to leave the rest of your family and a job you loved and move here so you could see Grace for a few hours a week. This is something we want. Your sisters and their families don't come by very often. They're busy doing everything and anything and that's fine. They don't owe us anything. But your boys are still young and I have to tell you that I have a real soft spot for them."

"Dad, I love the idea. Leah has been telling us that she would like to work less, and Rachel is busy with their two boys. It's always a struggle when we're called out in the middle of the night or on weekends."

"Well, I know that you're not in any condition to make a serious decision so you can take your time. The offer has been open for a while and I've been doing some work for Cliff from home. If you think that it's something you can live with, talk to Steve about it."

"Dad, I already know how I feel and I know Steve well enough that he would love to have parents around. But I'll think about it some more and then talk to Steve about it. It wouldn't be right for me to decide alone. That's one mistake that I haven't made in this marriage. You know that I don't want you here just to help with the kids. You know that I would love to have you here for me. I felt like an orphan when I moved here. The mainland is so far away, and then you and mom are at the other end of the country. It helps that you come to visit every year but this would be so much better."

"Just let me know. Now I'll go rescue Steve from the boys and we'll be out of your hair. You're looking better today."

"Mom's chicken soup helped. What are your plans for tonight?"

"We're taking the boys to Kamekona's shrimp truck for supper. We love eating outside this time of the year. Then Mom and I thought that we would take the boys for a walk before getting them ready for bed."

"That sounds great. Kono brought us shave ice from Kamekona's stand this afternoon. Please thank him for us."

Steve and Danny got another round of hugs from their sons before everyone left. It was quiet for a while and Danny dozed off again. Steve ordered their evening meal while Danny went into the bathroom.

Danny was thinking about his conversation with his father. He couldn't come up with any reason why his parents shouldn't move here. He wasn't worried about his parents spending all their time at his house. They always had an active social life and he knew that they would find a lot of opportunities here on the island.

Steve noticed that Danny seemed distracted since visiting with his dad. "Danny is there a problem at home that I don't know about? You and Dad were having a pretty serious conversation while I was with Jack and Jesse."

"No, there's no problem but there is something we should discuss. Mom and Dad are tired of fighting the Jersey winters, and Finn and Cliff offered Dad a job consulting on some of their remodeling projects. Dad knows about all of the fire codes, and he's already doing some of the work from Jersey. Dad said that the house next door, you know the one that Catherine broke into, has been reduced to bargain basement prices. He wanted to know what we thought about them moving here fulltime."

Danny knew that he was right about Steve from the look on his face. "They want to move next door? And they would be here all the time? That's terrific. I can't wait to tell the boys. They're going to love it."

"I think so too and I told Dad that but he wanted us to think about it."

"Okay, I've thought about it and I still love the idea. Maybe we could spread our Christmas decorations over both yards. Think how terrific it would look."

Now Danny was surprised where Steve's mind went. Instead of worrying about parents intruding on their lives, Steve was excited about decorating their yard. "I know that my mind is a little clouded with some really serious drugs right now but I have to confess that I didn't see that coming."

"Not only that, we could thin out some of the bushes between our yards and have some really serious cookouts."

"Okay, you can stop now. I agree that it's a seriously brilliant idea. How about we talk to them together after I get home? You're taking next week off anyway. Maybe you could walk through the house with them and see if you can find anything seriously wrong with it."

"I have a better idea. How about it I bring one of my guys by? If your dad is going to work for me, the least I can do is make sure that he buys a good house. I'm not interrupting, am I?" Cliff poked his head through the door and waited for a reply. He hadn't meant to eavesdrop on their conversation but he couldn't help but hear as he approached the door.

Steve waved Cliff in. "No, come in. Danny and I were just talking about Dad working for you. We think it's a great idea. I know that he's been a little bored since retirement. And I'm sure Mom and Dad would appreciate it if one of your guys looked at the house."

"To tell you the truth, I'm looking forward to seeing more of Ed and Clara. We hit it off during their visit last year. And he's already helped us with that remodel job downtown. I've been hiring local people for the jobs but I haven't been able to find anyone with the kind of expertise that your dad has."

"Dad was always tops at his job. We're excited about the prospect of having them here full-time."

Cliff stayed to chat for a little longer and left just as Kamekona came in with Flippa. By the time that visiting hours were over, Danny was exhausted. Steve helped Danny change into some short sleep pants and a clean t-shirt. Danny tried to get comfortable in bed but it caused his knee to throb.

"Danny, why don't you sleep in the chair? You've been comfortable all day there. You can get up by yourself when you need to. I know the doctor wants you to keep your leg straight but the chair isn't quite as flat as the chair."

Steve helped Danny move back to the chair and tried to make him as comfortable as possible. After Steve put fresh ice in his machine and the nurse brought his evening medication, Danny dropped into a deep sleep. He woke when his pain meds wore off but went back to sleep with fresh ice and more pain meds on board. He slept until the lab woke him again at 6 a.m.

Day 3 was mostly a repeat of Day 2 except that Danny was able to move his leg more. It was with a great sense of relief when Danny was discharged on Thursday after his second physical therapy session. His main complaint was that he would have to inject himself with an anti-clotting medication for the next 30 days. The injections needed to go in his belly near his navel. Danny had to demonstrate that he could do so before he could go home. He complained about it all the way home.

Steve smiled as he drove them home. It was so great to hear Danny rant about something that a) he didn't do and b) wasn't about how much his knee hurt. Steve pulled into the driveway and stopped Danny mid-rant. "Danno, we're home."

Danny was startled to see their home already. He had so much more to say but the sight of home let the wind out of his sails.

"Danny, you know what this means. You survived the surgery and the hospital stay."

Danny flashed a quick grin. "Yeah, and the nurses didn't even give us a standing ovation when we left. What did you order this time?"

"I ordered the big fruit bouquets. Most of the staff was pretty health conscious. Mom brought them muffins yesterday."

"Well, you weren't quite a neurotic as usual this time."

"And you were pretty cooperative with them too. We must be getting old. I just wanted to take care of you and get us home."

"Me too. Give me a hand? I'd like to get settled before the boys get home."

Steve got the dreaded walker from the back seat and came around the car. He gave Danny a hand up out of the car and grabbed their bags. He had Danny settled in the recliner with an ice pack and a bottle of water by the time the boys came in with Mom and Dad behind them. He got a gentle hug from both boys before he dozed off for an afternoon nap.