A/N: sorry for the delay, the Season 7 premiere and all the SOTB excitement took over and I honestly forgot to post! I apologize for not personally answering comments this time around, but I enjoy reading every one.

I hope you like the way Danny talks things out with Grace. I know she's a little over the top, but that's just the way she developed in my mind when writing this story. I do have 2 grown daughters and a son, so I drew from experience.

Enjoy! And thanks again for sticking with me here!

CHAPTER 7

"You can stop with the tough act, Grace. I can't really see you right now, but I know you, and I know when you're scared. I don't know why you think you have to put on this front, but it's not going to work. Not with me. And I really need a hug from you, baby."

If Danny could have seen it just then, he would have known he'd hit the nail on the head. It was all an act on Grace's part. She tried to stay aloof, keeping up the "cool girl" front, but the longer her father quietly sat there with his arms outstretched for her, the more her veneer cracked, little rivulets of tears starting to stream down her cheeks. Finally, she gave up, melting slowly into her father's embrace.

Danny's strong, warm arms wrapped around her, and she felt the unconditional love pouring off of her beloved father and bathing her in comfort. He didn't say a word. He just let his love flow.

She knew then, beyond a doubt, that no one would ever love her as purely or as unconditionally as her father. And she realized, too, that taking out her frustrations on her father the way she had this past weekend, was just not right or fair, but no matter how poorly she might behave, he would accept her for who she was.

"Oh, Danno, I'm sorry I acted like I did," she breathed into his chest, "I love you so much."

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"Steve! I thought you'd be in with Danny." Lou walked down the hall towards Steve, having returned to the hospital to check on Danny. "What are you sitting out here in the waiting room for?" Lou looked hard at Steve, noticing the deeply etched worry lines in his friend's forehead. "Is everything okay?"

An hour had passed since Steve had left Grace and Danny alone. There hadn't been a peep from the room, and he was at odds with himself. He really wanted to go back in and give Grace a piece of his mind for acting like a brat. On an ordinary day, he'.d have just left Danny to deal with his daughter, after all Danny was her dad and it was his job to raise her, but considering his compromised condition, Steve was just plain worried about his partner's ability to cope was a truculent teenager.

"Danny wanted to be alone with Grace for a while," he told Lou.

"Oh, well that makes sense…"

"She went loopy again, Lou, acting like she couldn't care less about Danny, put out that her weekend had been ruined by his accident in the kitchen. I've never seen her like that, she was a real brat!

"Okay, well, she's a teenager… and a female one, at that," Lou nodded knowingly.

Steve looked at Lou at if he was nuts. "What is that supposed to mean?"

"It means that the young lady is trying to figure out who she is and what she wants to be. Trust me, a father's life is pure misery until his daughter works it all out. There's just no understanding them, and best not to even try, just to keep on guiding them towards what you want them to become, and loving them."

"Well, if this is what it's like, I want no part of it! No wonder Dad sent Mary off to Aunt Deb when she reached her teen years. If I ever have kids, they better be boys."

Lou gave out a hearty guffaw, drawing stares from the nursing staff situated down the hall. "Yeah, it's tough, but when all is said and done, my baby girl is the light of my life and I'll take her any way I can get her. I have a bet Danny feels the same way about Grace."

"You do not have to spend the night here, Steve. I'm fine!" Danny was wiped out and a little irritated with his partner for not going home and getting some rest himself.

"I know, buddy, but I…ah… just need to make sure you won't have any more nightmares." Steve knew his partner was going to wonder why he wasn't leaving. Lou had taken Grace back home with him for another night, this time with her promise to eat a good supper and get some real sleep. She seemed more like her usual self, and Steve was very relieved to see that.

But now he wanted to just spend some time with his partner.

"You go ahead and sleep, Danno. I'll just sit here awhile."

"Okay, buddy. Oh, and thanks." Danny's eyes had already closed.

"Thanks? For what?" Steve didn't feel he'd done anything worthy of thanks, but Danny was already fast asleep and never heard the question.

Danny woke up with a start. His head was pounding and his chest was tight. He could still see the flames shooting out at his face. The smoke was smothering him! He felt his heart clamoring away in his chest. And his eyes! He couldn't see!

Slowly, ever so slowly, the dream faded. He took a few deep breaths, and realized there was no smoke in the air. He moved his head around to stretch out the kink in his neck and, incredibly, his eyes started to focus on shapes. The room was still dark, obviously it was the middle of the night, but he noticed light coming from underneath what must be the door out to the hospital corridor. Cautiously, he shifted his gaze again, and found a red button on what must be a machine alongside his bed. He could finally open his eyes enough to see!

Danny's sigh of relief upset Steve's slumber just enough for him to shift his uncomfortable position in the arm chair, but not enough to completely wake the exhausted man. The sleeping form shifted his head and let out a snort and a gasp of sorts, then sunk back into a deep sleep.

Danny was awake enough himself now to realize the lumpy form in the chair next to him was his partner. As his eyes started to adjust to the ambient light in the room, he had a good opportunity to just observe Steve's sleeping form, relishing in the fact that he could actually see him.

Danny had to chuckle. His partner's legs were stretched out straight in front of him on the floor, while his butt was about to slide off the chair seat. Steve's long arms were dangling down either side of the chair. His neck was jammed over the back and kinked to one side. His face was slack, with just a smidge of drool trailing down his chin.

"Oh, this is beautiful! Where's my phone when I need it? I could use a new blackmail portrait." Danny just lay quietly for a while, thinking how lucky he was to have a brilliant daughter, and a partner who was also his best friend. He was breathing much easier now than yesterday, and his skin felt less tight. If he held his own through the morning, Dr. Gardener had promised him he could go home after lunch. Well, he certainly intended to behave so he could get out of this place – he'd spent too many long hauls in hospital beds for his liking.

His thoughts shifted to Grace. They had had a heart to heart that afternoon after Grace had finally given in to her fears for her dad. She told him how scared she was about the new school year, and about being class president. She didn't know if she had it in her to do a good job. She admitted that she didn't know if she wanted to be a leader, but she did like being popular! She told him how her mother seemed pleased that she was popular in school, and encouraged her to put herself out there more so as to get noticed.

Danny had nodded knowingly. Being popular and important came naturally for Rachel, and she wanted her daughter to be just like her. She expected Grace to use her looks, and her brains, to get whatever she wanted out of life, and if someone got in the way of what she wanted, it would be okay to toss them aside.

But Grace was also a Williams. She had a deeply compassionate side to her, and she knew it was just plain right to be nice to people, and wrong to take advantage of them. That was why she had been so conflicted the last month or so. She didn't really know who she should be - the popular girl standing on a pedestal - until she fell off, which, as her dad told her, usually happens - or the sweet, caring, loving young lady who was not the one asked to all the parties, but the one everyone wanted on their team.

When she told him how sorry she was that because of her behavior that night, Danny had been hurt so badly, he tried to brush it off.

"Pfft. It's nothing, baby. I really should take some cooking lessons. It's not your fault at all."

"No, Danno, it IS my fault. I was wrapped up in my own world, wanting to do what I wanted, not thinking about how I was ruining our weekend together. I know how much you look forward to spending time with Charlie and me. You wanted to be part of my homecoming weekend, so you were angry when I didn't want you to, and I hurt your feelings. I was wrong to behave that way, and you got hurt because I was being selfish."

Grace stopped talking for a second, then, sighing, she continued in a more tremulous voice, "You get hurt a lot with your job, Danno, and I know there might come a time when you won't come back to me. But you keep doing it because you know you are doing what's right. You've always told me you do what you do to protect me from all the bad people. I know you do it to protect everyone, not just me. I'm so proud of you for doing that, and I hate it that you got hurt doing something that I selfishly wanted just so I could be popular."

Danny was dumbstruck. When did this child of his become so grown up? He had always tried to protect her from the dangers of his job, playing down his injuries as much as possible so she wouldn't be afraid. He was doing that again with Charlie who was still so little. But it was time for him to acknowledge that Grace was mature enough to understand what he did, and why he did it, and accept the possible outcome of one too many cases.

"Grace, thank you. It means a lot to me that you were able to tell me how you feel about me doing my job. I promise I will always try my hardest to come home to you. You have to believe that you and Charlie are the two most important people in my life, and that for as long as I am able, I will move mountains to keep you safe. I love you, Grace."

"Love you, too, Danno."

By the way, Uncle Steve deserves a big apology, as well, don't you think, Grace?

"Yes, Danno."

"Danny?" Steve had woken himself up when his head had flopped further over the side of the head rest. Glancing towards his partner as he shifted his position, he noticed Danny was awake and looking out the hospital window.

"You doing okay, buddy?"

Danny turned his gaze on his best friend, happily aware that this was one person who would always worry about him. He had his children, and he had this goof. Life was good.

"I'm doing great, Steve."

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EPILOGUE

The following Saturday was another spectacular day in paradise. The sun was shining as the trade winds blew a gentle breeze over the azure water, cooling down the temperatures to a comfortable low eighties.

The Five-0 bake sale was in full swing at the entrance to the football stadium at Grace's school. Spirits ran high as the Eighth grade cheering squad hawked freshly baked goods to everyone entering to watch the two football teams continue their rivalry.

Grace was in her glory. "This is even better than it would have been last week, Danno! We're going to make so much money!"

"Thank your Uncle Steve, Grace. It was his idea. Who would have thought the big bad SEAL had baking skills, too!"

Danny, perched in a comfortable camp chair in the shade, looked for all the world like a pink lizard shedding its scales due to the healing taking place on his face and chest. He fondly glanced over at his team. Not only was Steve present, and nearly overrun with thirteen and fourteen year old girls giggling and taking selfies with the island's gorgeous top law enforcement officer, but Kono and Adam, Chin and Abbie, Lou and Renee, Max, Kamekona, Flippa and even Eric had all brought baked goods to sell, and were mingling with the kids and their parents.

Steve had come up with the notion to help Grace save…well…grace, with her classmates! He had brought up the idea when they were driving Danny home from the hospital. His niece had been a little despondent in the car, and it was obvious she was thinking about how her classmates were going to react to the fact that, in their eyes, she had ditched them. Steve might not know much about teenage girls, but he did know about being ostracized because your dad was a cop. Maybe it was time for Grace's classmates to find out a little about the Governor's elite task force that her father was such an important component of.

"Grace, what do you think about Five-0 putting on a bake sale fundraiser at your next home football game?" Steve asked.

Danny and Grace looked over at Steve at the same time. "What?" Danny questioned. "Why?" he continued.

"Well, Grace's class needs to make some money to put on that Homecoming dance, and Five-0 needs to work on some community outreach. Catch two birds with one stone. Right, Grace?" Steve smiled brightly at his niece, and was gratified to see her return his grin with one of her own.

"That would be awesome, Uncle Steve! The next game is this Saturday. I'll talk it over with my class advisor tomorrow."

Danny didn't say a word. He just looked over his daughter's head, and while smiling too, gave his best friend a pleased nod.

The kitchen had been restored and a new stove installed, but Danny stilled smelled smoke whenever he entered the room, half the time sending an involuntary shiver down his spine. He had mentioned the lingering nightmares, and the intensity of his reaction to smoke to Dr. Gardener at his check up. She smiled at him with her almost-ebony eyes, and told him the trauma would stay with him for a while. She again apologized for inadvertently making it worse with the sedatives she'd given him.

"Still, I'm very pleased that you are making such a quick recovery, Detective Williams."

"Danny. You can call me Danny." He didn't quite understand Dr. Gardener's response. She was laughing at him!

"What? My friends call me Danny and I'd like to think we can be friends," he said.

"Oh, of course, Danny!" It's just, well, that's exactly what Commander McGarrett said when you were first brought in to the ER. He must know you very well."

"Yeah, I guess he does," Danny blushed.

"Oh, yes." Doctor Gardener thought to herself, "There's an interesting story here."

FINIS

A/N: that's all she wrote - hope you enjoyed it! Until the next time, here's to happy trails and much whump!