Title: Unconsciously Drawing You Closer to Me

Summary: Missing scenes from 3x03.

Disclaimer: I own nothing.

Author's Note: Steve and Kono drove to the house together near the end of the episode, so of course I had to write a missing McKono moment for the car ride. There's a reference to a few lines they shared in 2x17. ("You listened to your gut." "I learned it from you.") Thanks to Tiana-P for reading and encouraging.

They rush out of HPD for the Burgess' house in a whirlwind and it's only when the vehicle starts to move that Kono realizes she's in it with Steve. They're not partnered together that often, but Chin and Danny must have been a second behind them and she slipped into the passenger seat first. He glances at her for a second, as if in surprise, but then his eyes are back on the road and she's sure she only imagined it.

"So, you cuffed the guy yourself and Chin was hanging off the building? How'd that happen?" Steve asks, his tone too casual for it to be casual and she bristles immediately at the question.

Kono sighs. This has been on her mind all day, and she's sure it's on the minds of everyone else too, although no one would dare say anything out loud.

Except Steve, of course.

After all, he is their fearless leader.

"Yeah. I messed up," she admits. Steve glances at her and nods at the statement. He's not one for making anyone feel guilty. His leadership style isn't to dwell on the mistakes - that's Danny's forte. He accepts the apology and moves on, back to work, next case. If he's learned anything in life, it's that people learn quickly from their mistakes thanks to their own guilt rather than being criticized by an authority figure. That's how he went into every mission - learning from the mistakes of the previous one.

"It happens."

"We disagreed about something personal and I got mad and left the car for some air. Stupid, I know," Kono says, rolling her eyes at herself and fidgeting uncomfortably in her seat.

"Let me guess. Adam Noshimuri."

Kono turns and looks at him in silence, her brows raised. She holds his gaze, not giving anything away then turns back to the road, the siren blaring in the quiet of the car. But they're still a good seven minutes away from the suspect's house (well, more like three since Steve's driving), and the silence is deafening so Kono looks back at him and nods.

"Yeah. How'd you guess?" she asks. She hasn't mentioned Adam to Steve or Danny, and despite Catherine visibly hanging around lately, their dating lives have always been private until they're willing to share. Or until it's forced to be the unwanted center of attention like Malia's death.

"Well, I know he pulled you out of the water since Chin couldn't get there in time," Steve says as he swerves by a mini-van stopped at a red light. His eyes shift to her, run up and down her body in a mere millisecond as if searching for signs of visible damage. "So I figured there had to be some personal connection if Chin trusted the guy enough to rescue you when he couldn't be there. Not to mention the scene at the airstrip when I flew in."

He smirks at her almost boyishly as she continues to stare at him. "I'm smart, you know. I solve crimes for a living."

Kono has to scoff and roll her eyes at that as he grins wide.

"Plus, Chin seems kinda pissed lately," he adds as an afterthought, his lips still curved in a lopsided smile.

Kono lets out a chuckle. "Yeah, that's me. Pissing Chin off with the guys I've been dating since the mid-90s."

Steve just grins at her again, his eyes flicking back to the road in time to honk at a sedan that won't move out of their way. "That I can believe. But look..." He looks over at her again, his face turning serious as he gestures at her vaguely. He's starting to talk with his hands like Danny does, though he'd never admit it. "I'm not gonna give you a lecture or whatever-"

"Good," Kono snaps, waiting to see exactly what he is going to give her.

Steve ignores her and continues talking.

"All I'm gonna say is be careful. Okay?"

"Okay," Kono echoes. Steve continues to look at her, as if that's not the answer he was looking for. He's staring at her and not the road, and Kono glances out the window to make sure they're not heading into a twenty car pile-up. (Or more like causing one.) "I said okay," she repeats with more emphasis, hoping he'll finally turn his gaze from her to the road because his eyes seem to be searching hers for all the hidden feelings toward him she's not willing to admit yet, even to herself.

"Okay. Trust your gut," he tells her, his eyes brightening as if recalling their lines shared at dinner a few months ago when she'd followed her instincts on a case and he'd commended her on it.

"Yeah, yeah, I learned that from you," she says again as she had that night, and gives him a soft smile as he swerves into the gated housing community.

He flashes her a quick, almost shy smile. "And don't leave Chin again, no matter how pissed you are. If we could do that, Danny would ride alone all day."

Kono laughs outright at that. And they say Steve doesn't have a sense of humor. He does fine with her, she's even laughed a few times. "Yeah, I got it. I messed up. Won't happen again."

He nods and lets the subject drop, knowing she's beaten herself up enough about it. They begin to look out their respective windows, searching for the house number, and pull into the correct driveway, HPD police cars assembling in a line behind them.

"You ready?" he asks, turning off the ignition and quickly checking his gun and vest as she does the same with her equipment.

"I'm good," she replies. He opens the car door and swings a leg out, but turns back as he hears her voice say, "And thanks."

Steve simply nods again, his eyes warm as they trace her face almost a second too long to be considered polite and professional. (Those inappropriate thoughts flare up again and she beats them down to a corner of her heart she doesn't visit very often.) But maybe she only imagined it because the sound of the car door slamming shakes her out of her thoughts, and they're headed for the house, senses alert and guns drawn, anticipating the worst but hoping for the best.

"Well, that sucked," Kono says standing in the Burgess' driveway looking out at the flashing police lights in front of them. Max has taken the wife's body away, police have taken in the sister, and the crime unit is inside assessing the scene. No one thought it would end the way it did, but they come across a lot of surprise endings on this job.

Steve nods, his gaze dark and his mouth set in a grim line as he thinks of the scene he and Kono encountered when they entered the house. "Yeah," he agrees.

"Another one dead," she murmurs. "Well, it was gonna be life in prison for her anyway. But now the sister gets that."

"People don't think when they're mad. That's why they call it a crime of passion," Steve says with a sigh. But some kinds of passion only lead you to trouble in the end, he knows that better than most.

"Don't take this the wrong way, Boss," Kono begins, tilting her head up to look into Steve's stormy eyes, "but sometimes I really hate this job."

He releases a breath that almost sounds like a laugh at her comment but nods at her remark. "I know."

Danny approaches from the house with Chin trailing behind him. He points back at the crime scene behind him as he begins to talk. "What'd I tell you? Damn pre-nup. Another family ruined." He shakes his head in disgust. "I really hate this job."

"So I've heard," Steve says dryly as he heads toward the car now that Five-0 is no longer needed at the scene. "Let's clear out." He nods toward Kono slightly as he walks, in a let's go gesture but she doesn't follow him as expected.

"Uh, I'm gonna ride back with Chin, Boss," she says almost hesitantly, like she doesn't want to hurt his feelings by turning down his offer for a ride back to headquarters.

Steve nods and feels silly for the pang of disappointment that runs through him. It was nothing. It's just a car ride. "Yeah, yeah, sure. Let's go, Danno."

As the cousins make their way to the vehicle, Danny calls after them. "Hey, Kamekona's on Sunday around noon. We're gonna feast on my first tuna."

"Sounds good, brah," Chin says.

"I'll be there," Kono says as her gaze connects with Steve's before he slips into the car and disappears from sight.