And we're almost back at Christmas so this is really rather fitting. And not almost a full year behind :)
Enjoy...
/ / / It's Beginning To Feel A Lot Like Christmas \ \ \
"Right," Steve said. "Malia is dropping the food off at our place, I'm going to get the tree and you're going to get Grace."
"Yes," Danny said, typing without looking over at Steve.
"You don't seem as excited as I thought you would be."
"I am, I'll be even more so later when I get Grace. For now I'm just busy. And Hannah called; Eric's getting here on Monday."
Steve nodded. "It's going to be fine."
"He's a little shit."
"He's a teenager and your nephew – he'll be fine."
Danny did not look convinced but he reached out and squeezed Steve's wrist. "Thank you."
Steve beamed at him and turned around. "We'd better get finished."
Danny sighed and went back to his work. They worked straight through lunch, Danny hoping every time he paused between reports that nothing that needed Five-0 would come up. He wanted a win – he wanted this whole weekend with his Hawaiian family so that they could celebrate together. To Danny it wasn't even about Christmas it was just a chance for them to spend some time together and know, without having to say anything, how important they were to one another.
Danny's phone buzzed at him loudly telling him it was time to finish his last report and pack up to go and get Grace. He entered the last few details, lodged the report and shut his computer down just in time to see Steve slipping into the supplies closet. Danny knew, knew, that whatever his partner was doing it would be something that Danny wouldn't be impressed with but he decided to simply pretend he didn't see it as he grabbed his things and called out that he was leaving. He didn't get a response but the door to the supply closet slid a little more closed than it had been and Danny knew he'd been heard.
As he drove away from work, and towards Grace, he couldn't keep himself from smiling and allowing himself to get excited about Christmas. He turned into Rachel's driveway and parked. He was about to slide out of his seat when the front door opened and Grace appeared.
"Wait, Danno!" Danny froze, looking at Grace. "You have to stay there and you have to close your eyes and open the trunk."
Danny frowned at her.
"And…Mum wants to know if there are any weapons in the boot."
Danny looked up, trying to think. "I'll check." He climbed out of the car and checked, finding nothing out in the open so he assumed that Steve had grown better at hiding them. "You're fine."
"Then you're going to have to close your eyes, Danno."
Danny nodded and returned to his seat, closing his eyes as he listened to Grace walking out to the car, putting things in the boot and then returning for more.
"What are you doing?" Danny asked.
"It's a surprise," Grace told him, making one last trip before she stopped in front of him and threw her arms around his neck. "Hi, Danno."
"Hello, Grace," Danny said, assuming he was allowed to open his eyes as he wrapped his arms around her.
"It's almost Christmas," she said, conspiratorially, with a wide smile.
"I know."
"I have to grab my bag."
Danny nodded and pulled himself out of the car, walking over to the front door where Rachel was standing, Charlie on her hip.
"Rachel, I hope you had a pleasant Christmas."
"I did, your family is well?"
"Very."
Danny smiled and shoved his hands into his pockets. He would prefer, at the moment, to not speak to Rachel at all but he was determined to keep polite for as long as he could. Grace reappeared at the door before either of them felt that they had to say anything else.
"You ready for Christmas, Monkey?"
"Yes!" Grace said loudly, and grabbed his arm, throwing a quick arm around Rachel as she passed. "Bye, Mum."
"Grace," Rachel said, sharply. "Come back and say goodbye probably."
Grace sighed but let go of Danny's hand to turn around and go back to hug her mother and brother properly.
"What do we have to get? What are we going to do? When is everyone coming over?"
"Grace," Danny interrupted, "Stop. Breathe. And calm down."
"But," Grace whined.
"We are going straight home, where Steve may or may not be waiting for us, then we are going to decorate ready for tomorrow. We'll get up and you and Steve will swim and I'll make you breakfast then we will open one gift each. Then everyone will come over and we can have lunch and Santa will come."
"Did you get the proper costume from Nana?"
Danny smiled at Grace but didn't answer.
"Where is Steve? Why might he not be at home?"
"He's out getting the Christmas tree."
Grace's face lit up. Danny turned into their driveway, and was about to climb out of the car when Grace grabbed his arm.
"Yes, Gracie?"
"I have to get everything out of the trunk."
"Okay."
"And you're not allowed to look."
Danny huffed out a laugh and dropped his head back against the headrest. "Should I wait here with my eyes closed?"
"You have to get changed, don't you," Grace suggested, eyes wide.
"I'll pull into the garage then, I don't want you out here alone."
Grace nodded and sat back in her seat. Danny jammed his car in near the Marquis where he felt that Grace would be safe getting whatever it was out of the trunk and into the house while he was upstairs. He went up the stairs to his room, securing his gun and changing, washing the office smell off his face and hands. He spent a moment, standing in front of the mirror, being nostalgic about the cold, snowy winter he had been in only a few days ago. Christmas was not meant to be hot. He knew it wasn't the real Christmas day but it was the only one with his daughter and he wished it was the one he had just had with his family.
"Danno," Grace screamed from downstairs. Danny sighed and wiped his face off, he would take the Christmas he had – and be happy about it.
"I'm coming, Grace."
"You're not allowed to open my closet door.'
Danny rolled his eyes and left the bathroom to find Grace sitting on the corner of his bed, swinging her legs. "I won't go near your closet."
"And you have to tell Steve too."
"It's not a surprise just for me?"
Grace shook her head happily. "Where are we putting the tree?"
"Lounge room."
Grace was almost bouncing on the bed. "How long is Steve going to take?"
"I'm not sure."
Grace sighed and stood up. "We should make dinner then."
"She says with such glee."
"We have so much to do."
Danny smiled. "We don't have to put up the tree."
Grace looked at him, scandalised. "We have to have a tree."
"Of course we do," Steve said, voice coming out of nowhere.
Grace turned but Steve wasn't standing in the doorway. "Steve?"
Danny frowned and left the room, he couldn't see Steve anywhere. He sighed and looked back at Grace. "I don't know where he is."
Grace's face lit up. "We're just going to have to find him then."
Danny nodded and followed Grace as she hunted through the house for Steve until they found him sitting on the floor of the lounge room under the largest, most ridiculous pine tree Danny had ever seen. Obviously Steve had been putting his nefarious SEAL stealth skills to use.
"What is that?" Danny asked.
"A Christmas tree," Steve said.
"It's the best Christmas tree, ever," Grace said, eyes wide with excitement.
Danny wasn't sure which one of them was going to be more ridiculous about Christmas, Steve or Grace. Steve looked like a little boy sitting under the giant tree – Danny wasn't even sure how he'd managed to get it into the house without he and Grace hearing him or without help.
"How did you get the tree in here?"
Steve grinned at him.
"I don't think we have enough decorations for this tree," Grace told him, barely taking his eyes off the greenery.
"Neither do I," Danny said with a smile, "but, we'll do the best we can."
Grace grinned at him widely and went for the plastic box of decorations.
"Steven," Steve looked up at Danny with wide eyes. "Is the Christmas tree secure?"
Steve nodded.
"Are you going to tell me how you got it into the house silently?"
Steve shook his head, smiling.
Danny sighed with resignation. "Okay, I bought some new lights; they need to go on first."
Grace pulled the box out triumphantly and handed them to Danny so that he could pull them out and untangle as needed before he handed them to Grace as she circled the tree to put them up. Steve was sitting back watching her but he also looked eager. Danny hadn't realised that Christmas would be one of the things that turned Steve into an excited little boy. Christmas, guns and explosions were apparently the ways to make Steve's eyes light up in that manic way. He hadn't been as exuberant when they had been in New Jersey but Danny, supposed now that he thought about it, that it might have been the overwhelming presence of Danny's family that was keeping the little boy excitement at bay. Danny knew it was going to be a long weekend.
In the end, Danny sat back and watched Steve and Grace decorating with barely restrained excitement. After the tree was done but before they started on the windows Danny left them to it to make dinner.
"What the fuck," he whispered to himself when he opened the fridge to find it full to bursting with food.
"What?" Steve asked, walking into the kitchen behind him.
"I didn't mean to say that out loud."
"I was coming for water," Steve said, crowding Danny back into the fridge door.
"Our fridge isn't designed for this."
Steve smiled and kissed him quickly before turning around and getting two glasses of water.
"We have too much food."
Steve rolled his eyes. "We're having Christmas."
"We have too much food."
"Your mother would wash your mouth out with soap."
"I knew introducing you to her was a bad idea."
Steve grinned at him and walked past Danny who reached in and went looking for food that he could actually cook for dinner.
When all of the decorating had been done and they were all showered and in pyjamas to watch 'The Grinch Who Stole Christmas' Grace collapsed between Steve and Danny with her plate of chicken and salad. "We're done."
"You sure?" Danny asked.
Grace looked around the room seriously and then nodded. "We're ready for Christmas tomorrow."
"Good," Steve said, "eat your dinner."
Grace nodded and started on her food. Danny turned the movie off as soon as Grace started to lag – he could only take so much Jim Carrey even for Grace. "Bedtime."
Grace looked at the tree with sad eyes and then nodded, twisting around to kiss Steve on the cheek before she stood up. "Goodnight, Steve."
"Goodnight, Grace," Steve said, with a broad smile on his face.
"It's Christmas in the morning," she said conspiratorially, "Are you excited?"
Steve nodded. "This will be my first family Christmas in years."
Grace climbed back onto the couch to hug Steve tightly. "It will be great."
"Teeth and bed," Danny said, breaking the sad moment.
Grace nodded and walked off to brush her teeth, crawling into bed after hugging Danny at her door. "Goodnight, Danno."
"Goodnight, monkey, go to sleep so Santa can come."
Grace rolled her eyes like a true Williams and went to bed.
Danny walked out into the living room to find Steve eating a chunk out of 'Santa's' biscuit and holding the glass with milk in his other hand. The carrot for the reindeers was already gone.
"No moss growing on you," Danny said.
"Nope," Steve said, with a smile…and a milk moustache.
Danny went into the study to get the gifts from Santa and the things for the stockings, handing the smallest items to Steve so that he could fill Grace's stocking. When Danny was done under the tree he pulled a small wrapped box from his pocket and slipped it into Steve's stocking.
"What was that?"
Danny shook his head. "Do you not understand how Christmas works?"
"What else?"
Danny paused for a moment and shook his head. "Nothing. Want to sit outside for a while. I'm not tired but I really don't feel like watching TV."
Steve nodded and led the way outside where they sat for a few hours, talking about nothing much, until Danny decided they would need to go to bed if they were ever going to get up early and have enough energy to do Christmas tomorrow.
/ / /
Danny woke with a start and reached for his gun.
"Don't," Steve whispered, reaching out of his wrist.
"What?" Danny asked, sitting up.
"It's Grace. I'm not sure what she's doing but she keeps sneaking between her room and the lounge room."
Danny slumped back into the bed. "She's got something in her closet that she won't tell me about. Some Christmas surprise for the two of us."
Steve pulled Danny over until they were curled together. "Her alarm woke me."
"Surprised it didn't wake me."
Steve shrugged under Danny's jaw. "It wasn't very loud."
"SEAL ears," Danny yawned.
"Go back to sleep."
Danny shook his head but he fell asleep anyway.
/ / /
I haven't written Doris in ages but I'm looking forward to her visit next chapter.