She rushed to his side to assist him in holding the vomit bowl while he emptied the content of his stomach. She rubbed a gentle hand on his back as he spitted out the last remaining speckles of vomit. She grabbed a tissue and wiped his mouth clean, after which she poured a glass of fresh water that she had brought in earlier.
"Only sips now so that you can hold it down."
Once he was finished, she gingerly eased his head onto the pillow and readjusted the bed sheets over his chest.
"I'm sorry, this may seem like I didn't enjoy your supper last night. I did. It's just that my stomach is a bit queasy."
"I know. Perhaps it's my fault. I did give you a large portion and I should have known better you'd clean up your plate despite feeling sick."
"I hate feeling this way," he bemoaned.
With a caring smile she began rubbing his arm. The motherly touch provided a lull of comfort in a sea of torment. She leaned in and gave him a peck on the forehead. She frowned at the unusual clammy, warm skin that lingered on her lips. She then reached for a facecloth that she dunked in the basin of cold water sitting on the night table. She wrung it of excess water and placed it gently on the SEAL's forehead.
He closed his eyes at the soothing sensation the cool cloth provided. She smoothed back his hair and lovingly rubbed his cheek. "You want to try to get back to sleep?"
"I'm tired of sleeping."
"I know but you look like you could use another hour or two. Take advantage of Danny's absence to catch a few more winks. When he returns you both can go outside for a walk to stretch your legs."
He smiled at her solicitude that warmed his heart and nodded. "Okay."
She placed a light kiss on his cheek and stood from the bed. He closed and eyes and let sleep claim him once more.
Her smile morphed into a concerned frown. She bit her lip and swallowed the emotional lump in her throat as tears pooled into her eyes. Danny had often spoken of his crazy, super kicking-ass SEAL friend and although his tone often bordered on aggravation and exasperation, she could sense the underlying admiration and respect he held for a dear friend; a man who wouldn't waver in diving head first into danger to save her Daniel, and for that reason she was grateful that her son had such a guardian angel at his side.
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It was some time later when Danny returned from dropping off Rachel and Grace at the airport. He shed his winter attire and scanned the living room looking for Steve. Finding the room empty he headed to the kitchen where his mom was busy making an apple pie.
"Hi mom."
"Daniel! Did Rachel and Grace get off all right?"
"Yeah. Smooth take off. Where's Steve?"
"He had a rough morning so I let him sleep?"
Danny's concern spiked up a few notches at the news. "Rough? What do you mean?"
"He vomited the remnants of last night's meal and his temperature was up a bit. I went back to see him an hour later and his fever hadn't broken. It's still at one hundred."
"Did you call the doctor?"
"No I didn't. Hasn't he said that this was normal in his present condition?"
Danny reached into his pants pocket and sped-dial Dr. Granger's number. "Nevertheless I want to be sure." His anxiety grew with each ring unanswered. Finally after the seventh ring..." Doctor Granger? It's Danny Williams (...) Yeah, he vomited early this morning and his temperature is at one hundred. (...) Uh huh (...) uh huh (..). Okay, will do. Thanks doctor. Sorry for bothering you. I needed to hear you say it. What? (...) Oh that's good news," Danny's face lit up and he glanced up at his mother who wore a puzzled expression. "Okay (...) yes I will. Thank you." He pressed 'end call' on his cell and exhaled his relief.
"He said if the fever doesn't wind down in the next two hours to call him back. He gave me the results of my tests: they show that I'm a perfect match for the bone marrow."
"That is good news, son."
"He wants to see us this afternoon to assess Steve's condition and they'll schedule the transplant."
Danny flumped down on a chair and buried his head in his hands. Clara refrained from speaking and instead allowed her son a moment of silence to cleanse his body and soul of the emotional strain he'd been under.
"I'm making Steve a glass of lemon-water with a dash of sea salt just as the doctor recommended to keep his levels of hydration constant."
"Thanks mom. Here," he held out his hand to take the glass," I'll bring it to him. See if he awake. If he feels up to it I'll try to get him out of bed."
"That's a good idea. Later on if he's hungry I'll make him some broth or ginger tea to help with the nausea. Solid food in now out of the question."
She watched her overwrought son walk to the guest bedroom with a pained look of her face. Danny had forged many friendships over the years, but none such as the ethereal bond he shared with Steve; it baffled definition and reached beyond anything she had ever witnessed before. It was heartwarming and yet frightening that should the tie be severed, it would bring them both down.
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Days later Steve was admitted to the hospital for a conditioning treatment prior to the stem cells transplant. This procedure of administering high doses of chemo, designed to destroy all of the remaining cancer cells and suppress the patient's immune system to lessen the chance of graft rejection, was making Steve weaker and sicker. Every fiber of Danny's being screamed in agony at the sight of Steve retching his guts out, and he wondered how a tough-as-nail guy like SuperSEAL had such trouble handling the chemotherapy. The oncologists were quick to point out that each individual reacted differently and that it was virtually impossible to predict their reaction to the treatments.
Once the patient had settled to sleep following the myeloablation, Danny momentarily stepped out of the room to unwillingly break a promise, which was to contact Chin and Kono. Their vacation drawing to an end, he and Steve were originally due back in Hawaii the next day but circumstances being what they were, they needed to remain in Jersey a while longer. The governor had extended their leave of absence and left it to Danny to inform the rest of the team.
"It's bad," Danny choked on the phone to the two cousins sitting in Chin's office at Five-0. "We're hopeful the transplant will be successful. Doc says there's a sixty-forty chance that Steve will make a full recovery, but looking at him now - guys I've never seen him so weak."
"Danny me and Kono'll catch the next red-eye out to Newark. We'll be there tomorrow. You don't have to go through this alone, brah. We're Ohana remember?" an emotional Chin stated, glancing at an equally distraught Kono who nodded her approval.
"Steve made me swear I wouldn't tell anyone but seeing how we were due back tomorrow and that Governor Denning was going to find an interim leader for Five-0 in our absence, you guys were bound to ask questions."
"I can't believe you kept us in the dark this long, Danny."
"Believe me it wasn't my decision. I promised Steve not to spread the news. Even Denning was under oath."
"We're his friends," Kono claimed with a hint of annoyance.
"That's precisely why he didn't want you to know. Heck he didn't even want me to help him through this. I fought him tooth and nail and eventually he relented."
"Five-0's officially on stand down until Monday and as you say the governor will appoint an interim leader until Steve is fit to return to active duty. I'll speak with Denning and ask that we be allowed extra time off until the unit's reactivated. We can be there to support you and Steve."
"I dread his reaction if he sees you both here. Perhaps it's better if you hold the fort while we're here."
"And how long will that take? Weeks? Months? No way, Danny. We're coming." Chin was adamant, leaving no room for rebuttal. "Sure he might be crossed with you for breaking your promise but once he learns why you did it, he'll forgive you. Steve never holds a grudge."
"That's true," Danny sighed tiredly. He knew how futile it was to attempt to sway the cousins' decision, nor did he have the energy to argue. "Okay. Send me your ETA and I'll meet you at the airport."
"Brah, you stay with Steve. WE'LL meet you at the hospital."
"Okay. It's Robert Wood Johnson Hospital. North Building, Bone Marrow Unit, fourth floor."
"Got it, You hang in there, Danny. We'll be there to help you both through this, okay?"
"Yeah. Thanks guys. I'll see you tomorrow."
Danny ended the call and heaved a shuddering sigh. He leaned his head against the head rest and closed his eyes in utter despair. A few deep cleansing breaths later, he ran a hand across his face to wipe the gloom etched in his features and stepped out of his car to head back inside.
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The next day, Danny kept a bedside vigil on Steve while he slept. To prevent infections due to a complete depletion of Steve's immune system, Danny was required to wear an isolation gown with hat and mask. He dared not breathe near his friend for fear of transmitting germs and risk delaying the bone marrow transplant.
He glanced at his watch indicating that it was nearly time to meet Chin and Kono at admission. He stood on his wobbly legs, rubbed the cramps out of his sore muscles, cracked his neck to remove some stiffness and headed out the door. Outside he removed his medical apparel that he threw in the bio-hazard bin and with a heavy step, ambled down to the dispenser to pour himself a cup of black coffee. He took a sip and scanned the area for any sign of his two friends. He then moseyed on down to the waiting room and waited.
Barely fifteen minutes later, he caught sight of the two cousins in a sidelong glance. He swigged down the rest of his tepid coffee, winced at the foul taste, got up, discarded the empty cup into a trash bin and went to meet them halfway down the hallway.
"Chin! Kono! Over here!" he hailed quietly with a wave of the hand.
"Danny! My God how are you, brah?" Kono asked as she fell into Danny's arms and held him in a tight hug for the longest time.
Danny buried his face into her neck and toiled to suppress his tears that threatened to engulf him whole. He sucked in a breath and reluctantly broke the contact. "I'm okay."
It was Chin's turn at clenching Danny into a brotherly hug. "You're a damn good liar, Danny Williams. You look like you're about to drop."
A strain smile appeared on Danny's face, one that didn't quite reach his eyes. "Truth is I'm a bit tired."
"When was the last time you had a decent night sleep?"
"I don't recall."
"Well we're here now. You don't have to shoulder it all. We'll help you carry some of the weight," Chin said with a friendly tap on Danny's shoulder.
"When's the transplant scheduled?" Kono asked.
"Barring any complications, Thursday morning. We'll both go in together."
"Can we see him?"
"I guess. You'll both need to wear an isolation gown, hat and mask. He's highly at risk for infections right now."
"Of course."
"And – well he's lost a bit of weight and he's starting to lose his hair, which is a side effect to chemo as you know."
"We know. Lead the way."
After donning the medical garments and washing their hands thoroughly, the three friends padded inside the room and approached the bed to find Steve resting in a semi-sitting position. Danny insisted that they keep a safe distance from the patient to avoid the spreading of germs.
Kono held back a gasp at the sight that greeted her. "He's so pale," she observed grimly.
"Yeah. That's the scary part. But his doctors say that he's holding his own. He just needs a lot of rest and plenty of fluid but since he can't hold anything down except perhaps a bit of water, they are feeding him electrolytes in an IV solution."
A small, barely audible moan caught their attention. All eyes feel on Steve as they waited for any sign of awakening.
"Steve?" Danny coaxed softly. "Steve, can you hear me?"
"Mmmmmm Dannnnny?" Steve breathed out with eyes tightly shut.
It took all of Danny's restraint not to clasp Steve's hand. "Yeah, I'm here, babe. You have visitors."
Steve frowned at the word 'visitor'. He pried his vacuous eyes open and blinked repeatedly to dispel the fog, after which he adjusted focus on the two mask-covered faces gazing at him. "Chin? Kono?" he gulped in a dry swallow and drew in a breath. "What - what are you guys doing here?"
"Where else would we be?" Chin replied with a smidgen of insolence.
"Danny, how could you..."
"Now before you jump down my throat, know that they were bound to find out sooner or later. We were scheduled to head back to Hawaii today and now that we cancelled our trip - well it's obvious." Danny's stern expression quickly switched to a deep frown at the sudden greyish color. "Steve, you okay?"
"I'm gonna be sick."
In one stride Danny grabbed the large emesis basin and held it underneath Steve's chin just as he hurled mostly bile and water. Chin took over holding Steve into a sitting position while Danny slipped on gloves, reached for a facecloth on the table and dabbed at Steve's mouth to wipe the specks of vomit.
"Want to try some water?" Steve nodded and Danny obliged. Once finished, Chin eased his head down on the pillow. An awkward silence ensued before Steve broke the momentum.
"I didn't want you guys to see me like this," out came the pathetic whimper.
"Why ? Because it shows you're human?" Kono retorted in spite of herself, but swiftly repented upon receiving a kick-in-the-face puppy look in return. "Sorry Steve, but I am a bit miffed at you for compelling Danny to keep us in the dark."
"I admit I am too," Chin chimed in. "When will you finally get it through your thick skull that we're a family and Ohana sticks together through thick and thin, in sickness and in health."
Weak and broken, Steve couldn't hold back the tears.
Danny's heart sank at the pitiful sight and quickly suggested that they cut the visit short. "I think that's enough excitement for today. We'll let you rest, babe."
The cousins started for the door with Danny in tow when Steve choked out, "Chin, Kono..." They turned around and waited for Steve to gather his thoughts. "Thanks for being here."
"There's nowhere we'd rather be right now," Chin said fondly. "You'll get through this, Steve."
"I'll be back later," Danny said, getting a weak acknowledging nod in return.
Outside in the hallway, all three fell into a group hug.
"It's so hard to see him like this. He's always full of life," Kono cried.
Danny wrapped an arm around her shoulders. "I know. It's hard for all of us but we must stay strong. If anyone can beat this it's him. It's just a little setback. Once the stem cell transplant's done, he'll gradually get better and stronger."
"I hope so, Danny."
"Say, are you guys hungry? We could go down to the cafeteria and have a bite to eat. I know hospital food's not the best but their soupe du jour is actually tasty and it goes down well in queasy stomachs."
"I'm game," Chin said and then turned to Kono.
"I'll go with you."
"Hold on a sec. I'll go advise the head nurse where we're going in case she needs to reach me."
Once the chore done, all three got on the elevator at the end of the hall and down to the cafeteria.
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Days later, Steve's condition was deemed satisfactory to perform the transplant. He and Danny had been prepped for the graft and were now lying on gurneys side by side in a pre-op room.
Neither one spoke as they tensely scrutinized the room and tried to settle their nerves.
"Well, this is it." Danny broke the silence.
"Yeah," Steve heaved out before turning to Danny. "You sure you want to go through with it? There's still time to back out."
"Ask a stupid question, Steven. Wouldn't you do the same for me?"
"In a heartbeat."
"There you go. You have your answer. How many times have your saved my ass?"
Steve smiled amusedly. "I lost count."
"Granted you put me in the predicaments in the first place, but you wouldn't be crazy, badass super Neanderthal SEAL if you didn't."
"Colorfully put as always."
"All these years you've always had my six. You're a loyal friend and," he hesitated as emotions started choking him, "the best brother a guy could ever ask for. I mean it, Steven. I'm indebted to you and this is my way to give a little something back."
Steve's bottom lip quavered as his heart swelled up with fondness towards the man he too considered like the brother he never had. "Goes double for me, Danno."
"Besides Grace would never forgive me if I let her favorite Uncle die. She loves you to death."
"She's a darling. I love her dearly."
"That is why you've got to get better. My bone marrow is good stuff. It'll help you get there."
"I hope so."
"NOT hope. You WILL."
Steve flashed a grateful smile and nodded just as Doctor Granger clad in a blue surgical gown entered with two nurses in tow.
"All right gentlemen. Are you ready?"
"As ready as we'll ever be," Danny exhaled shudderingly.
"You understand the procedure as I explained it to you?"
They look at each other and nodded back to the doctor.
"Do you have any questions?" A silence ensued. "All right. You will both be conscious during the process. The nurses will provide heated blankets to make you comfortable and appease the chills if any. We will monitor both your conditions very closely for any drop in blood pressure. If you should experience any of the side effect symptoms we discussed earlier, please let us know so we can treat them and adjust accordingly."
"How long again does it take for the cells to engraft?" Danny asked.
"Usually two to six weeks during such time the Commander will be given a combination of anti-bacterial, anti-fungal, and anti-viral drugs to prevent infections until the white blood cell count reaches a satisfactory level."
"What about rejection?" Steve asked with some aversion.
"That's always a possibility but as I mentioned before we will administer you a healthy dose of anti-rejection drugs to prevent this scenario. Besides which your partner underwent all the necessary tests and came back as a perfect match. However if your blood counts do not start going up within three to four weeks of the transplant, we will then consider treating it with a second dose of stem cells."
"Steven, why are you asking those questions? We already covered that topic with the oncologists earlier." Danny was puzzled as to the reason his partner would harp on the same grim subject instead of channeling the positive.
"I just – I just needed to hear it again," Steve stuttered and closed his eyes before heaving a shuddering breath. "Now I'm ready."
"Hey, babe." Danny stretched out his arm. "Good luck."
Steve clasped Danny's hand and squeezed it. "You too."