First of all, let me say thank you for all of the reviews, alerts, etc. It made me feel so warm and fuzzy, and that is just wonderful! :) Of course now I feel some added pressure to not disappoint you all. So here is chapter two. I truly hope you enjoy.

Same disclaimer as before: I own nothing related to Hawaii Five-0.

*-H50-* *-H50-* *-H50-* *-H50-**-H50-**-H50-*

Danny should've run when had the chance.

He knew something was wrong, even before Steve had yelled out. One look at his partner, and Danny should have bolted…. should've sprinted straight for the door. But he didn't. He had stood there, body frozen in place despite his racing adrenaline.

In that final moment, his life didn't flash before his eyes. No, the only thing that went through his mind was regret. Regret at not getting the hell out of there when he could have. Reality told him that he probably wouldn't have made it far anyway, but his stubbornness told him otherwise.

Still, when the explosion rocked his foundation and he found himself grasping helplessly at the air to steady his falling body, he stubbornly clung to that final thought. Why hadn't he run? Was it out of fear? Fear of leaving his leader, his friend, behind? Fear of looking like a coward and running away in the face of danger?

He supposed it didn't matter now as his world came crashing down around him.

Danny felt his body slam to the ground with a force he was sure would break several important pieces of him. He thought he cried out, but his voice was swallowed by the roar of the explosion tearing into him from all angles.

This is it, he thought. This island has finally killed me.

Danny desperately wanted to yell out an "I told you so!" to his partner, but didn't get the chance. His head snapped back and crashed onto the floor, causing his vision to fade and his mind to go blank.

*-H50-* *-H50-* *-H50-* *-H50-**-H50-**-H50-*

Danny had no idea what was going on. It was a vulnerable feeling and he hated it. He had been dreaming, he thought… but he found his mind was slow to catching up with his body so he couldn't be certain. He had heard his name being called, but the silence now was his only companion. Opening his eyes, he took in his surroundings.

He wasn't a stranger to waking up disoriented. His first month on Hawaii had been filled with waking in the middle of night, not recognizing his own apartment. He had even had problems while vacationing with Rachel - startling himself awake in a random hotel room, scaring his wife.

Ex-wife, he reminded himself sourly.

The first thing Danny noticed was that he was lying on his back, staring up at a high-arching ceiling. Not a single light remained intact. Exposed wiring dangled carelessly from the walls, swaying in a non-existent breeze. He could see dust and fragments of God knew what else floating in the air surrounding him. He sighed.

He was definitely not in his apartment.

His head throbbed and his whole being sent sparks of pain across his body with each pulse of his heartbeat. His left shoulder felt as though it was being ripped away from his body and he turned his head to see that he had fallen awkwardly on top of it. Holding his breath, Danny tried to roll his body to the right to free his pinned arm. The pain was excruciating but he managed to slide his arm out and it lay limply now beside him.

With a great deal of effort, Danny picked his head up slightly and looked downward at the rest of his body. What he saw caused his heart to drop.

The Five-0 workstation had toppled over in the explosion. The screen that had once been used by Chin or Kono to compile evidence in countless cases was shattered – it's pieces scattered haphazardly on the floor. Danny had never really bothered learning how to use it, choosing to allow the veteran and rookie members of the team utilize their expertise. Kono often teased him about his lack of technology knowledge, but Danny didn't mind. It's not that he didn't know how to use it, he just chose not to.

And it looked like he wouldn't be learning anytime soon, considering its current state.

This, however, was not the cause of Danny's alarm. No, the workstation on which the vibrant screen was once housed had fallen right on top of him. It lay quite rudely across both of his legs, situated slightly above his knees. His eyes widened at the sight and he tried not to panic. The idea of surviving a large explosion at Five-0 headquarters was one thing, but now being trapped in said building was a whole new situation. He tried to move his legs, but the effort was fruitless – they didn't budge. He pulled himself up with his good arm, propped onto his elbow and tried again. Nothing.

The exertion caused his body to break out in a sweat, and he slowly lowered his head back down. He absentmindedly rubbed his face with his hand, trying to come to grips with his current condition. He was quite certain he wouldn't be getting out of here without help. His hand came away wet and sticky – sweat mixed with blood. He located his injury quickly, finding a cut on his forehead near his hairline. It seemed to be clotting well, he thought, and he wiped his hand clean on his shirt.

He took in a shuddering breath, realizing that something more was wrong with this situation – if that could even be possible. However, his throbbing head and general bad mood about being trapped on the floor was preventing him from figuring out what. Danny's mind wandered aimlessly, trying to pinpoint the origin of his anxiety. He could handle the fact he was hurt. He could handle the fact that his place of work had been demolished. He could even handle the fact that he was pinned down on the unforgiving floor.

What he didn't like was that he was alone. And he knew he shouldn't be. He hadn't been in the office alone today, so why did he feel so alone now? Where was Steve? And what about Chin and Kono? If his muddled memory was working properly, he knew they were on their way out of the office when all hell had broken loose. But did they make it? Were they still here, someplace, trapped like he?

Or worse?

He pushed the horrible thoughts aside as best he could. Contrary to what Steve thought, Danny could be a positive person on occasion.

He couldn't see much in his current position, but since he couldn't exactly change that, he opted for the next best thing. Yelling.

"Hey!"

What Danny meant to come out as a good ol' fashioned shout came out more like a whine. He licked his lips, cleared his throat and tried again. "Hey! Anyone in here?"

There still was a dull ringing in his ears, but what he heard next made his heart skip a beat. He never thought he'd be happier to hear his partner's voice than right at this moment.

"Danny? Danny! Where are you? Are you okay? Do you see Chin and Kono? Are you hurt?" Steve's voice, somewhat strained and frantic, reached Danny and he couldn't help himself but smile.

"I'm fine babe, relax. Slow down a little, though," Danny replied, absently rubbing his face again.

"Jesus, Danny…. Why didn't you answer me earlier when I called out to you?"

Danny rolled his eyes. "I was napping. Why do you think, genius?"

He stretched his head back and to the left, trying to see where Steve was. The sound of his voice implied he was in his office, but Danny couldn't see where. The explosion appeared to have completely rearranged the layout of headquarters – nothing was where it was supposed to be.

"I can't see you. Are you alright?"

"I'm fine," came Steve's reply, a little too quickly. Danny didn't need to see his partner to know that he was lying.

"Uh-huh, sure you are. Look, you don't need to play freaking Captain America right now, okay? Just tell me. How. Are. You?"

A moment's pause, then, "I'm fine. Some bruises here and there, but I've had worse."

"I'm sure you have."

"How are you? Are you okay?"

Danny sighed. "I'm peachy. Just a typical Saturday working with you."

"That's funny." Danny could hear his partner sigh. "Where are you hurt?"

The concern in Steve's voice was obvious. Steve might be a reckless pain in the ass sometimes, but he was also incredibly loyal and cared deeply for those under his command. Danny knew that in every action they took, Steve put the safety of his team first. Danny understood that it must be killing him to not be able to see Danny or control this situation in any way.

"I got my bell rung pretty good," Danny started. "My left shoulder is dislocated. I've got some scrapes… my head is throbbing." Danny paused. "I… uh, I'm also stuck."

"Stuck?"

"Yes, Steven, stuck. Stuck. As in I cannot move."

"Ok, Danny. How are you stuck?"

Danny propped his head up once more, looking down at his legs. It was odd – his legs didn't really hurt much. He felt a great deal of pressure from the table resting on his thighs, but the pain was minimal. He wasn't sure what that meant, but he took it as a blessing for the moment. He tried wiggling his legs free once more for good measure then set his head back down.

"The table fell on me."

"Table? What table?"

"The only table out here!" Danny threw up his good arm in frustration. Leave it to Steve to ask a random question before the obvious one.

"Where did it fall?"

"On top of me."

"Yeah, Danny, I got that part. But where?"

"It fell across my legs. Both my legs are pinned."

A pause. "That's…. that's problematic."

Danny smacked his forehead, and then rubbed his chin. "Prob… problematic? I'm stuck, and this is problematic for you? I can't believe…"

"Shhh," Steve whispered, abruptly cutting across Danny's rant. "Hold on a second."

"Steve, what…?"

"Danny, please," Steve shot back with some urgency. "Stop talking."

Danny did as he was told, not moving or speaking, his good arm suspended in mid-air. He wasn't sure why silence was necessary until he heard it. It was quiet at first, but it slowly began to get louder. He couldn't quite pinpoint its location, nor what was making the sound, but he had gotten used to the relative silence in the room and this new noise was unsettling.

"Do you know what that is, Danno?"

"It's just me banging my head against the wall. You really gotta pull that Danno crap now?"

The noise continued to interrupt the stillness surrounding him. His mind wandered to what could possibly be making such a sound. Mice? He'd never seen rodents in the office, but this sounded a little bit like the scurrying of creatures in the walls. Or maybe someone a level above them was dragging something across the floor? He couldn't be sure. He just didn't like it.

"Ok Danny… you need to get yourself free. Think you can get free and get over to me?"

"What am I, Houdini? I told you I was stuck." Danny didn't like the tone in Steve's voice. What was it about this noise that was so troubling? "Why don't you and your bruised self come fetch me?"

"I may not have been entirely truthful about the extent of my injuries," Steve declared.

"Shocking."

The sound continued to get louder and Danny could almost feel it vibrating the floor. No, he corrected himself. It was vibrating the floor.

So much for his mice theory.

It began to feel like an aftershock, if this had been an earthquake. But it hadn't been. It had been a bomb. So why the hell was the floor shaking now?

The noise and shaking stopped as suddenly as it had started. Danny waited… and waited…. but nothing happened. He let out a breath that he hadn't realized he'd been holding and closed his eyes.

"You still with me, Danny?"

Danny rolled his eyes again, turning his head toward his partner's office. "Where else am I going to go? What was that?"

"I think… Danny, I think the building is unstable. That may have been a portion of it shifting or even collapsing. We need to get out of here."

"Ok. So, how exactly do we do that?"

Danny couldn't see Steve, but he knew the face he had to be making at that exact moment. He could imagine him in his office, plotting and planning a way to get them both the hell out of a building that was on the verge of falling on top of them. Which was good, since Danny had no ideas at the moment.

"Well, I think…" Steve began, but was cut off. Danny felt his breath catch, thinking it was another wave of tremors from the historic building. But it wasn't. Confused, Danny propped his head up again, this time angling toward Steve's office.

The noise was a phone ringing. Someone was trying to contact them.