I do not own Hawaii Five-0 or any characters. No copyright infringement intended.

Notes: Busy week and arguments with the muse on a proper closure. Thank you to all and to those guests I can't respond to. Phoebe, I hope you enjoyed your story!

H5O* H5O* H5O* H5O* H5O

"Did you hear him before? In the doctor's office? With Morris," Steve asked as Danny all but shoved him towards the bed. Shove was actually the wrong word, but Steve would never admit to that and perhaps he played it up just a bit, hoping Danny would follow him. Which he did. So Steve stumbled backwards and landed as he'd planned it out: half-sitting on the edge of the mattress, staring at Danny - specifically at his lips - as his friend tugged his shirt over his head.

"So did you?" Steve pressed on. "Charlie?" He raised one arm and then the other. He lost sight of Danny as that shirt came off, only to lose it once again when a clean, light-weight tee-shirt was pulled on over his head. He reversed course to raise each arm again, managing to yank the hem down by himself. All the while staring into Danny's face.

"Yeah, I heard him. Help me out, Steve," Danny said patiently, ignoring Steve's lopsided yet somewhat lewd grin as he unzipped Steve's jeans next. "Now stand up and get these off ..."

"Make up your mind, Danno," Steve tried for innuendo, his voice dusky more from drugs than actually what one-quarter of his brain seemed up for. He evidently failed all around when their fingers collided over the material of his jeans. For a minute they got nowhere at all and Danny rolled his eyes towards the ceiling as he switched course to heave Steve to his feet.

"Clothes ... or no clothes?" Steve tried again. Forcing his knees to lock, he ran his fingers lightly over Danny's arms, head bobbling. Alluring never felt so damnably difficult and all he wanted was a taste of Danny's mouth. One tiny kiss. Or ... a few kisses. He wasn't being all that greedy, was he? Besides, if he was sick, shouldn't he get what he wanted? If it wasn't a law, it should be one. Steve was sure that it worked that way.

"Bed ... or no bed? How about ... bed, huh? How about you ... sleep with me?"

"How about a little bit of both ... but not what you think you're trying to say," Danny stated firmly. "Knock it off before you fall down," he said as he slapped Steve's hands away from his chest in order to pull Steve's jeans down over his hips and then bent over to manage the rest.

"Foot," Danny demanded, all business as he tugged so hard that Steve lurched forward into him. "Pick up your foot, Steven!"

"Geez! Danno! Give a guy a break, would-ya!" Steve complained as he planted both his hands on the broad part of Danny's back to keep from falling while he lifted one foot and then the other for Danny to yank the rest of the material off his legs. He grinned as Danny's muscles bunched under his hands. He rubbed his hands across Danny's shoulder blades, enjoying their flex and envisioned capturing Danny's face on the upswing until ... the tides were unexpectedly turned.

"Hey!" Steve practically squawked as he was firmly and without preamble, piloted backwards until the mattress hit the back of his knees. Without even time for a glance, Steve suddenly found himself stranded on his back in his own bed with Danny efficiently taking the time to tuck him in. Confused and fighting through a small bout of nausea, Steve blinked fuzzily through a faint dizzy spell, swallowing hard.

"Now, stay there and close your eyes," Danny said. "Be a good boy, for once, and just go to sleep." His eyes were daring Steve to do anything but that even when Steve purposefully eyed Danny's mouth, his tongue darting temptingly over his own lips.

"But," Steve started to say. "I thought ...maybe ..." However, Danny shook his head because, if Steve had any other ideas - or at least that one-quarter of his brain thought he did - Danny most certainly was not on board for any of them.

"But nothing. Sleep," Danny interrupted. "You're practically cross-eyed you're so tired ... you're toast."

Though he sounded stern, his own eyes were sparkling with humor as he gauged what he'd do next. Even on strong meds, Steve could see the mental wheels churning inside his partner's head. Danny's hands were planted on his hips now as he stood over Steve looking around the room. Eyes narrowed, he aimed himself towards the windows to draw the blinds against the brightness of the afternoon sun.

"But ...Danny?" Steve objected again, nearly pleading, as the room lost more than half its light. He blinked tiredly when Danny ignored him and fell back into the pillows. Half wanting to embrace the idea of sleep and yet he made a face about giving in entirely. Now he was worried that Danny was going to leave. As Steve watched Danny prowl the bedroom, folding his clothes and throwing a spare blanket or two to the foot of the bed, was there potential of Danny just tucking him in and ... leaving him to sleep himself out?

Steve must have been still frowning when their eyes met because Danny immediately put a halt to his busy activity to stare back at him.

"What's the matter?" Danny asked from where he stood at the foot of the bed. "Sick?"

Steve slowly shook his head to the contrary. "No. You gonna stay?" He asked. "Or, now that things are sort of better ... do you have other plans?"

"Hey? What? No! Charlie's sleeping for one," Danny assured him quietly, honestly surprised by the question. "We're here for the duration. I'm here for the duration! So, I'll be right here if you need anything. Besides your definition of sort of better is apparently much different from mine, babe. Do you think I'd trust you one iota to stay in bed, take your meds ... or stay out of that damned ocean if I wasn't here, Steve?"

Grinning happily, Steve relaxed with a grateful nod. All of that was very true; he wasn't at all trustworthy. Not one iota he thought merrily to himself as Danny resumed his prowl. He realized though that he'd been diverted from his very original question.

"So you did hear him before? Charlie? In the doctor's office?," Steve asked again around a gaping yawn. He found himself grinning now at the memory; what Charlie had said was really nothing. Not really and yet ... it sure was. To Steve, what Charlie had so innocently said was everything to him. Even if the boy was only five years old, Steve was pleased and proud by the most simplest of words. Plus, talking about Charlie would keep Danny around longer and besides, he'd not finished his earlier point.

"I heard him," Danny repeated as he walked silently to the side of the bed. "I did ... he said ..."

"He said: My Uncle Steve. Not just Steve; not even just plain old Uncle Steve. But his - my - Uncle Steve. When did that happen? Huh?" Steve interrupted contentedly, needing to repeat it all first. His heart swelled when Danny gazed down at him, beaming with one of his warmest, happiest smiles.

"He loves you, Steve," Danny said. "So yeah, you're his ...," he paused before chuckling, his breathing just a bit ragged as he sat down on the edge of the bed. He inhaled deeply and then dropped his eyes to his hands as if collecting his thoughts. "You're his ...," he murmured softly as he worried the corner of the blanket. " ... just like you're mine."

"You're mine, too," Steve whispered as he tapped the bed next to his side to encourage Danny to be closer. "Stay with me?"

"Needy much, babe?" Danny raised an eyebrow, his eyes still alight with humor. "You're going to get me into this bed one way or another, aren't you? This is a whole new side to the big, badass Navy SEAL, isn't it? I'm gonna have to talk to Doctor Morris about these meds."

Nonetheless and to Steve's immense relief, Danny merely tossed two of the extra pillows up against the headboards. "I'll stay for a while and then ... while you sleep and I mean sleep, Steven ... make sure you're okay. But you need to sleep this thing out. I can't have you ... tripping ... makes for a bad impression."

"Sure, Danno," Steve replied as Danny sat next to him up against the headboard, legs comfortably crossed at the ankles. Canting his head just a bit, Steve blinked through a blurry haze, even more content when he watched Danny close his eyes first, his hands clasped across his lap. Steve didn't care then. If Danny wanted to feign sleep, too, then so be it. But Steve only really relaxed when he felt Danny scrunching down even lower. Only then did he give in to sleep.

H5O* H5O

Steve woke slowly from that heavy, dreamless sleep. Buried under a mountain of blankets, he woke lying on his side, his right arm under a smashed up pillow. He smiled to himself when he sensed the soft rise and fall of his left arm which was carelessly slung over Danny's body. Still drowsy and definitely not wanting to move a single muscle, he quietly took stock of how he was feeling and tried to half-heartedly estimate the time of day. He was disappointed to realize that he didn't feel quite entirely well-rested. However, he was definitely much better overall; a huge relief after the frightening bouts of dizziness and dry heaves. His stomach was settled and vertigo apparently nonexistent. At least for the moment. But as for the time of day, he wasn't quite sure. Napping mid-day, no matter how ill he might have felt in the past, just wasn't something he'd ever done. Unless of course he was on a mission and obligated to catch a power nap. That had had a reason though - a definite means to an end. Now, without having a valid excuse in his opinion even if Danny had simply pushed him into the bed, Steve was admittedly a bit disoriented.

He moved his head just enough to look at the window and stifled an unhappy groan. He had to squint almost painfully against the light as a few rays of sun cast themselves across the floor. Based on their slant, it was still early at least. And with the house as quiet as it was, Charlie still had to be napping, too. There was no need to go anywhere or worry about anything and Steve decided right then and there to just go with the flow. If not for himself, than for Danny who sometimes seemed rarely able to sleep. Steve raised himself almost delicately onto his elbow to carefully tuck closer into Danny's back, cocooning the blond into his chest even though Danny had fallen asleep on top of the covers.

He grinned at the resulting soft murmur of protest, followed by the briefest of fidgets, all of which he then gently shushed.

"Go back to sleep, Danno," Steve murmured, pleased when Danny's movements completely subsided. He'd stayed and fallen asleep. Steve felt a tiny pang of some guilt for all the running around Danny'd done on his behalf. His having fallen asleep proved that Danny also needed a decent excuse to get some rest and enjoy some down time. Besides, as Steve was fast learning, if the kids were quiet - if Charlie was otherwise safely preoccupied - that was an advantage well worth taking. Still balanced on his elbow, Steve studied Danny's facial expression, his gaze focused on those now slightly parted lips.

Danny's mouth was intriguing. But as Steve watched him sleep, he noticed more. There wasn't a single stress-line or crease across Danny's brow. Nothing showed on Danny's face except for an utter peace which Steve wasn't sure he'd ever actually seen before. Hardly breathing now, Steve really looked, cataloguing, memorizing and comparing his usually animated partner to this quiet version. For a second though, Steve felt a pang of fear. A remembered feeling of helplessness when Danny had been shot and had nearly died. Danny's face had been devoid of expression then, too, and now, Steve tilted his head slightly to press a kiss against Danny's temple. He was warm and vibrant under Steve's lips. Safe under Steve's arm and most importantly safe within Steve's home.

Unable to help himself, Steve closed his eyes as he sighed another soft kiss against Danny's cheek, continuing along that high ridge and breathing in everything that was Danny. He reveled in the experience able to selfishly just enjoy having Danny there while covertly investigating the lines of his face. Balanced on his elbow, he trailed his fingertips lightly over Danny's arm, lingering over muscles lax in sleep. His strength was as obvious as his tenderness. Danny was a fascinating mix of hard lines and muted edges; it was nearly impossible to tell where the delineation might be and Steve soon forgot that bit of fear as he gazed at Danny with a fond attentiveness.

"I love you buddy," Steve whispered. With Danny here and Charlie in the next room, nothing ever felt so right to him. Having Danny here with him didn't feel strange or weird. There was nothing uncomfortable when he resumed that feather-light drag of his fingertips across Danny's arm, once again marveling in the freedom Danny's deep sleep was affording him.

Steve pressed a soft kiss to Danny's shoulder when he stirred and then stayed under, his lips twitching upwards before falling lax. Why should any of this be odd at all? Far too much had been foisted on them in an extremely short period of time. Of anyone in their lives, they always came back full circle for one very simple reason: trust. It was the strongest part of their foundation which this love was so solidly built upon.

Still though, Steve was in awe as he brushed another dry kiss along Danny's bare arm, aching for his mouth but accepting what he could reach as Danny slept on. Neither of them honestly could have guessed this interesting development in their relationship. It seemed to have crept up upon them both as a slow and steady progression and maybe that was why this - he and Danny as one whole - wasn't such the oddity it might have been in some other universe. On impulse, Steve dropped off his elbow, snuggling even deeper into Danny's body. Eyes closing peacefully, he buried his nose in Danny's hair and sighed in contentment.

~ End. ~