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Everything went smooth and fast and not even half an hour later one drug dealer was dead and three others in the safe custody of HPD.
Steve had been able to block out the annoying buzzing in his head fairly well during the raid but now the whispering noises were back and the headache from earlier that day was starting to bother him again for real. Wearily pressing the fingers of his right hand against his temple as he talked to the SWAT captain he opened the fasteners of his tac vest with his other hand and got rid of the heavy garment, sighing in relief when the gentle breeze cooled the back of his sweaty t-shirt.
McGarrett briefly thanked the other man with a slap on his shoulder, tiredly leaning against a wooden crate as he watched the captain walk back to his men. It took only a moment for him to gather his team and soon the black SWAT transporter left the premises, allowing Steve to throw a look at his own team.
Kono was just stowing away her own vest and her sniper rifle, a proud little grin playing around her lips. She had once again proved that she was an excellent shooter and Steve was glad to have her as a member of Five-0. He watched the young woman for a moment, squinting against the sun when the harsh light increased his headache. Throwing his vest at the crate behind him, Steve scrubbed his hands over his face and hair before he pressed the heels of his hands against his eyes. He would have rather covered his ears to stop the constant murmuring but he knew that it would be to no avail.
Dropping his hands to his side, Steve opened his eyes and took another look around, flashing Danny a reassuring smile when he noticed that the smaller man was looking his way. Steve was aware of the fact that his partner had been watching him like a hawk from the moment they had left the car, keeping closer by his side than strictly necessary throughout the whole operation.
The air in the old warehouse had been dusty and hot and Steve was glad that he was finally able to breathe in fresh air again. He took a few deep breaths in the hope of fight back the nagging headache and wiped the beads of sweat from his forehead, but his head still felt like a giant vise pressed against his temples. His discomfort was apparently clearly visible because Steve saw how Danny worriedly furrowed his brow and headed his way after quickly ending his conversation with Chin.
Briefly waving at Danny to tell him that everything was alright, Steve pushed himself off the crate with an exhausted little sigh and grabbed his vest before Danny could even reach him. He made about two steps in his partner's direction when the buzzing sounds in his head suddenly became overwhelming and he had to squeeze his eyes shut in an attempt to ride out the bout of dizziness. He couldn't fight back the hoarse groan that escaped his throat as he blindly groped around for support, swallowing convulsively against the sudden nausea.
His eyes still tightly closed Steve dropped his vest and pressed one hand against his temple when he felt a strong hand curling around his upper arm, helping him to stay upright. He noticed his partner's worried voice, yet he was unable to grasp the meaning of his words over the noise in his head that seemed to increase with every passing second.
"Danny," Steve rasped helplessly, feeling a second hand press against the back of his sweat-soaked shirt which was uncomfortably clinging to his skin. The bile rose in his throat as he swallowed again, his breath coming in short, fast gasps.
He knew that Danny was still talking to him and the grip around his arm tightened until it was almost painful, but at the same time it was a welcome anchor that gave him something to concentrate on. The whispering increased until it was almost unbearable, the noisy agony in his head causing Steve to sway on his feet – and then, from one frantic heartbeat to the next, the sound and the pain were gone, replaced by a complete silence inside his head. Gasping in surprise he opened his eyes and stared at his partner, drawing in a shaky breath as he stood up straighter.
"Steve, can you hear me?" Danny asked, his eyes bright with concern and his voice laced with uncertainty and a hint of fear. "Hey buddy, talk to me, what's wrong?" Danny's grip around his arm was still strong as the smaller man eyeballed his partner, obviously looking for some hidden injury.
"I'm good," Steve replied hesitantly, licking his dry lips. He was still staring at his friend in open wonder, not really sure if he could trust the sudden silence. "It's gone," he murmured, slightly shaking his head as he let his gaze travel around without really seeing anything. "It's gone."
"It's gone? What's gone?" Danny repeated his words, his voice getting louder as he spoke, his agitation telling clearly how much he worried for the other man. "Steve, what are you talking about? What's gone? Come on, man, you're scaring me here."
'The voices', Steve was about to reply but when he thought about that answer he realized how weird that must sound and so he just shook his head again and awkwardly cleared his throat. He hesitantly started to smile, ignoring the impatient frown on Danny's forehead while he took another deep breath and just enjoyed the comfortable silence for a moment.
"Steven, would you just please talk to me?" Danny's voice reached his ears, annoyance and worry struggling for supremacy; he still had his hand on Steve's upper arm, only very reluctantly loosening his grip.
McGarrett was just about to say something when the buzzing started again in the back of his mind, almost inaudible at first like the soft rustling of leaves in a gentle breeze. "No," he whispered desperately, and then the breath caught in his throat when he clearly heard someone calling his name. Steve instinctively turned toward the familiar voice he had thought he'd never hear again; looking around for the origin of that voice, he was dimly aware of the fact that Danny followed his movement, his partner a constant source of strength by his side.
A loud bang disturbed the silence, the sound eerily reverberating in the canyon between the old warehouses and for a moment Steve felt nothing but a pressure against the right side of his chest as he slightly stumbled backwards. Slowly turning his head he stared into Danny's blue eyes, frowning in confusion when he saw the horror on the other man's face.
Steve blinked sluggishly and suddenly the pain hit him full force. Groaning hoarsely he couldn't prevent his knees from buckling as he slumped to the ground, his plunge only slightly delayed by Danny's grip around his arm. The blinding pain drowned out almost every other thought but his muddled brain provided him with a few details so that he was finally able to categorize the sound – gunshot, large caliber, probably a sniper rifle very similar to the one Kono had been using.
Coughing weakly, Steve tried to stay awake but the world around him suddenly started to lose all its color. He saw his partner kneeling by his side, Danny's mouth frantically moving but all Steve could hear was the sound in his head. The buzzing and all the noise had finally faded until only one voice was left behind, so familiar and comforting that he couldn't help but start to smile.
"Da…" he tried to say, the rest of the word swallowed by another pained cough and suddenly the simple task of breathing and keeping his eyes open seemed far too exhausting. A soft breeze tousled his hair, the cool air drying his sweat-covered face. The ghost of a smile still on his lips as he followed the voice into the darkness of his mind, Steve wasn't aware of the hectic activities that erupted around his body and with a soft sigh he allowed his eyes to slip shut.
Danny knew that he should look out for more bullets and better seek cover but his eyes and his whole attention were only fixed on his partner, leaving it to the capable hands of the other officers to secure the premises and find the shooter. Danny instinctively knew that something terrible had happened when Steve slightly stumbled backwards; he had literally felt the bullet, the force of the impact travelling through Steve's body and down Danny's arm.
His gaze flickered down to Steve's chest and his breath caught in his throat when he noticed that the gray fabric of his T-shirt was already beginning to turn red. "God, Steve," Danny stammered, tightening the grip around his friend's arm. He looked up, directly into Steve's wide eyes that showed nothing but confusion. Time seemed to stand still for a moment but then Steve blinked once and without further warning he slumped to the ground with a hoarse groan, just like a puppet whose string got cut.
Surprised by the sudden movement Danny could do nothing but follow down, trying to ease Steve's fall to the best of his abilities. "Steve," he repeated once more in a strained whisper before he jerked his head around. "Officer down," he yelled desperately, loud enough for everyone to hear.
Trusting that the other people knew what to do he turned back to his partner, his hands for a moment hovering over the bleeding hole in Steve's chest before he gritted his teeth and pressed down hard, swallowing forcefully against the lump in his throat when Steve did not even flinch from the touch.
"Stay with me, Steven," Danny groaned out, fighting back a bout of nausea when he saw the amount of blood that unstoppably seeped between his fingers. "Hey, stay awake, okay?" he added, frantically trying to draw Steve's attention.
A small rivulet of foamy blood trickled from Steve's lips when the dark-haired man coughed weakly but what was really freaking Danny out was the fact that his partner suddenly started to smile. "No, no, no, Steve, stay with me," Danny begged, a cold shiver running down his spine when he saw the expression of pure happiness that slowly crept across Steve's face. "Don't do that, do you hear me? Stay awake, Steve. Stay with me."
"Da…" McGarrett gasped out, the whispered word interrupted by another cough. A fine spray of blood covered the front of Danny's dress shirt and somehow Danny had the strange feeling that his partner hadn't been trying to say his name.
A gust of wind swept across the concrete pavement, tousling Steve's dark head of hair as well as Danny's blond one. The cool breeze was eerie and comforting at the same time and suddenly Danny knew for sure that he was no longer alone at Steve's side. It was the same feeling that he'd had earlier that day and he could almost feel a firm hand on his shoulder, urging him to stay close to his partner.
Danny had been blocking out all the activities around him but now he could hear rapid footsteps behind him and without turning around he knew that help was finally on the way. He silently begged Steve to hang on when the pool of blood beneath his friend's body was constantly growing with every passing second, and Danny knew that they were slowly running out of time.
"Steve," he whispered again but despite all his efforts to keep his partner conscious Steve's eyelids finally closed, the soft, content smile still playing around his blood-covered lips when he breathed out a soundless sigh and went limp beneath Danny's hands.
(tbc)