Title: Mango

Rating: PG-13 (some violence, angst, a couple f-bombs)

Characters: Charlie Crews, Dani Reese, Kevin Tidwell, Ted Earley, a few OCs

Pairing: Crews/Reese

Summary: Crews and Reese, five years post-series. Life is changing.

Spoilers/Time Period: Set five years after One. (July 2014)

Disclaimer: Most of the characters (sans the Ayers) aren't mine, but the situation is.

Author's Note: Alright, this is the last chapter for a bit. This hiatus will last probably a month at the shortest, two months at the longest. I hope you enjoy!

Chapter Seven: Fragile

"Hey," Charlie grins warmly as he picks up Dani's call. "How's your day off?"

Dani takes a shaky breath.

Charlie immediately loses all cheer, reaching for his car keys.

"What's wrong?"

"We're going to the hospital. Daniel fell out of a tree. He…"

"Wait," Charlie interrupts, already on his feet and pulling on his jacket. "Is he okay? Are you in an ambulance?"

"I think he broke his arm, Charlie. Ted and Olivia came over; he's gonna drive us there."

Charlie leans over to write, 'Hospital. D. Broken arm' on a scrap of paper. He slides it over to Hart and then points to Tidwell's office. Hart nods and Charlie's out the door.

"I broke him, Charlie." She sounds so fragile, and it kills him. "They're going to take him away," she adds, softer.

"No," he says firmly. "No one's taking him away."

Their last vestige of Katie, but more, now their son, every day a little more theirs.

"Dani, I'll meet you there. Just hold his hand and be there for him."

"He doesn't want me; he wants Katie."

"He wants you," he reassures her. "Just be there. I'm getting in the car now. Which hospital?"

***

"Ms. Romero, this is Charlie Crews."

"Detective, hello. To what do I owe the honor?"

"We're at the hospital. Daniel fell out of a tree this morning. He broke his right collarbone. I know this is kind of thing that flags on your cases, so I wanted to be the one to tell you."

"Thank you, Detective, but that's unnecessary."

"No, I know you have to investigate these things, but Reese is really upset. She's worried that you'll take him away."

"That's a little premature. I'll come down to the hospital in the morning. Will you still be there?"

"Yes. They said sometime tomorrow afternoon they'll release him."

"Okay. I'll come down, I'll talk to Daniel, and the doctors, and you and Sergeant Reese. We'll go from there. Detective, children break bones every day."

"Try telling that to Reese," Charlie murmurs.

Ms. Romero laughs softly. "That is a good sign, Detective. All mothers are that way. I'd be concerned if you two were not upset. I'll see you all tomorrow."

***

"No," Daniel says as Lily Romero walks into his room. "No, you can't take me."

"D, shh," Dani soothes, squeezing his good hand, even though she obviously feels the same way. "Ms. Romero just wants to talk to you."

"Hello, Daniel," Romero greets softly. "How are you feeling?"

Little Danny has his entire right arm and shoulder set in an immobilizing cast, so he shrugs with his left side.

"Okay. Hurts less now."

Dani gives him a sharp look and a poke in the hip at his attitude.

"Really. Did it hurt a lot yesterday?"

Duly chastised, Daniel answers: "Yes, ma'am."

"Well, I'm glad it's feeling better. Maybe next time you'll think twice before climbing that tree unsupervised."

Reese flinches.

Daniel answers, "Yes, ma'am."

"And how's your summer going? Are you having fun? Have you done anything exciting?"

"Maamaan-bee takes me to the beach a lot. And at night, Uncle Charlie and Aunt Dani are home, so we do stuff."

"What kinda stuff?"

"Friday's movie night. Game night is Tuesday?" He looks to his godmother for confirmation. "Yeah, Tuesday. And next week Uncle Charlie is taking us to the Dodgers game."

"Oh, yeah? Do you like baseball?"

"It's my favorite," Daniel says, matter-of-factly.

"So, Daniel. I'm going to send Aunt Dani down to find Uncle Charlie, okay? I need to talk to you, and I'm sure she's hungry."

"The baby's always hungry," he intones seriously. "Mango likes fruit."

"Mango?"

Dani rolls her eyes. "It's what he and Crews call the baby."

"I see. Well, let's let her go make sure Mango is happy, and we'll have a little chat."

D bites his lip. "Okay."

Dani kisses his forehead. "I'll be back. Be good."

"Okay."

***

"Oh god, Charlie. I let him fall; I wasn't watching."

"Shh. He's almost seven, we have the pool net up. He can be in the backyard alone. He knows better."

"I told him to stay out of the trees, but he was in one of his moods. Shit, that's why I sent him outside. What kind of parent does that?"

"A frustrated one. You two needed some time apart, and he needed a change in scenery. You didn't do anything wrong."

"I broke him. I'm not cut out for this…"

"Hey, no. You're great with him. Dani, he adores you; he listens to every word you say."

She snorts.

"Usually," Charlie corrects. "But he's dealt with so many horrible things, and he's just a little kid. He's resilient, but he's not immune. We'll get through this. I promise. We have to."

His hand drops to her rounded stomach.

She looks up at him.

"He's all we have left of her, Charlie. I can't lose him, too."

"We won't."

***

Lily Romero emerges from Daniel Ayers's room to find his guardians waiting anxiously.

Sergeant Reese is leaning forward, elbows on her knees, head turn to talk to Detective Crews next to her. Her hair is loose and curly, but disheveled, obscuring her face from Romero's side, and there's tension in her frame. Crews's hand is on her back in a rare public display of their affection. He says something softly to her, his face lighting up in the way it only seems to for her.

"Sergeant. Detective," Romero announces herself.

"How is he?" Reese asks immediately, turning her attention to the social worker.

"Same as before," she assures her. "Once I assured him that I was not going to take him away, he got quite chatty."

Reese reaches for, and squeezes, Crews's hand.

"So he can stay?" Crews ventures.

"Of course."

Romero can see the tension bleed away from the couple.

"When an injury happens this soon after a transfer of custody, we have to investigate, but your track record is clean, the doctor said the break is consistent with a fall, and Daniel himself shows no signs of abuse. Or neglect." The latter part is directed at Reese. "No parent can watch a child twenty-four/seven, nor should they. You've set firm boundaries, and he overstepped them. Hopefully, he'll learn from the experience. But kids need to be kids."

"I spent most of my summers in trees," Crews grins.

Reese looks down at her right pinky, briefly, her thumb tracing along the pad of it.

"Daniel tells me he's very excited to be a big brother. Mango, is it?"

Reese rolls her eyes once again. "Just for them."

"Are you telling him that he's going to be a big brother or has he come to this conclusion on his own?"

Reese immediately stiffens, on the defensive.

"We did."

"We decided no matter what relationship he winds up having with us, this baby will be his sibling," Crews explains. "We're a family."

Romero nods understandingly. "Bringing a newborn into a situation as new as this one can be traumatic, so I want you to keep including me and his therapist in the loop. But you seem to be going a great job right now. Bones get broken, especially with active little boys like Daniel."

Reese makes a face, obviously not agreeing but willing to concede the point for now.

"Any paperwork?" she asks.

"Just on my end. I'm going to head out and give you two some time with Daniel. Your mother is in their with him right now, Sergeant. Maamaan-bee, is it? I didn't know she was teaching him Farsi. That's a great way to include him."

"She is?"

Romero nods. "They're in there reviewing body parts, I think."

"Did you know that?" Reese asks Crews, who shrugs and shakes his head. "Why wouldn't they tell us?"

"Surprise?" Crews ventures. He returns his attention to the social worker. "Thank you very much, Ms. Romero. We'll be in touch."

They all shake hands and then Crews and Reese push into Daniel's hospital room.

D's face is screwed up tight in concentration, and before he notices them, he stumbles over, "Yes, my arm is feeling better," in Farsi.

Charlie smiles and glances at Dani from the corner of his eye, watching a grin blossom on her face. He's not sure what exactly D said, but it was apparently intelligible to Dani.

She says something slowly back, announcing their presence. Daniel beams in return.

"Hi, Aunt Dani. Hi, Uncle Charlie."

"Hey, buddy. When did you start speaking Farsi better than me?"

"Uncle Charlie, Maamaan-bee told me you only know food," D teases.

"Then I must not be as smart as you are."

"And he knows bad words. Bad words I'm not going to teach you."

"Aw, Maamaan-bee, why not?" He continues in Farsi: "I'm big."

TBC