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0nerd-at-heart0 · 4 months

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The Stress of a Case

Harvey Specter x Female Reader

Please Read: Hello! It's been a hot minute since I have published anything. Have been currently studying for my LSATS and have been a busy bee but after being obsessed with Suits for the past 2 years and waiting for more Harvey stories to be published I decided to create my own little storyline. What started off as a storyline in my head is now on paper. I have this idea to create a mini-story/universe: how the reader got hired, when she first met Mike, her first case with Harvey, her first date with Harvey, etc. I guess I just want to see if people are interested. It's been a while since I had written anything that wasn't an academic paper and my writing skills have changed drastically. This is one of the first the fics of the universe I am building in my head that I have written so I decided to publish this. I hope yall enjoy it, please give feedback.

Warnings: Talks about not eating (due to stress), food mention, panic attack details, fainting, Harvey being an ass, cursing I think? if I am missing anything please let me know

Word count: 5.6k

Taglist: @happy74827 @princessvader15 @hashcakes @yiiiikesmish @malfoys-demigod

I tagged those who commented under my last post I hope that's okay and if you aren't interested in being tagged let me know and I will remove you sorry.

As you entered the corridors of Pearson Hardman, they were alive with the usual buzz of legal minds at work, but this time, a distinct tension hung in the air. You didn't even get a few steps into the associates area before hearing the straining voice of Louis Litt yelling that there was an emergency meeting.

You scrambled behind, stuffing your mouth with the banana nut muffin you thought you would eat peacefully at your desk this morning. You knew what this meeting was about, everyone knew. The case against Amir Jackson, the firm's ex-lawyer turned adversary, had everyone on edge.

The briefing room was filled with hushed whispers as everyone settled in, and even the confident strides of Harvey Specter and Louis Litt carried a subtle weight.

Harvey, impeccably dressed as always, stood at the head of the conference table, his piercing gaze flickering between Jessica Pearson and the gathered associates, and maybe it was your imagination but it might have lingered a little longer on you. Snapped out of your imagination when he spoke, "Listen up, people. This case is different. Amir Jackson knows us inside out, and he won't hesitate to use that knowledge against us. He's playing dirty, and we need to be ready for anything."

You never got to meet Amir Jackson, but oh the stories. The firm had no problem doing what they needed to do to be successful, but there was a line they never dared cross and Amir crossed it.

Jessica leaned forward, her hands planted firmly on the table. "Amir's betrayal when he left this firm was bad enough. Now, he's trying to take a piece of us with him. We can't let that happen."

Louis chimed in. "I've seen my fair share of dirty plays, but this guy is in a league of his own. We need to be one step ahead, or he'll bury us."

The gravity of the situation was sinking in, associates exchanged knowing glances. They understood the magnitude of the challenge ahead. Amir Jackson wasn't just a legal opponent; he was a former comrade who knew their strengths and weaknesses intimately. The fact that there was a meeting needing to be held just told how much this case was about to get tricky. Usually the inner circle dealt with these cases: Harvey, Louis, Jessica, Mike and maybe sometimes Rachel.

Your role as the go-to person for legal paperwork kept you in the thick of it. While Harvey Specter had his famed right-hand man in Mike Ross, he knew he could rely on you for drafting contracts with a precision that went beyond mere proficiency.

You might not have been Harvey's drinking buddy or his confidant like Mike, but there was a unique dynamic between you both. It was a quiet understanding that transcended the formalities of the workplace. You knew you would never be his protege, and that was perfectly fine with you. What you brought to the table was a specialized skill set that complemented Harvey's legal prowess, if you do say so yourself.

His voice thundered through the briefing room as he adjusted his cuffs, “I am building a specific legal team to help bring down Amir Jackson”.

Of coure Harvey was going to pick Mike Ross, Mike was worth more than 8 associates. How much more help does he need? Who else could he need? Harvey's eyes scanned the room filled with associates. His gaze settled on you, and he flashed a sly grin. "You, Y/N. You're on my team for this one.”

Harvey and you had worked together various times. He always knew he could count on you for legal paperwork. As much as he depended on Mike Ross, there was one thing you were that Mike wasn’t and that was that you had a talent when it came to drafting contracts. But I believe that there was some respect, one might even say in a blossoming friendship between you and him. You got a spark of it when he teasingly picked you out of the bunch of associates to be part of his team for his takedown of Amir Jackson.

“You know, Y/N, if paperwork were an Olympic sport, you'd be a gold medalist," Harvey remarked with a wry grin, “And I expect you to bring the gold home for Pearson Hardman”

“I won’t let you down Sir”, you gave a weak smile as all eyes were on you.

You hated the attention, yet you couldn’t help the small heat you felt on our cheeks as Harvey stared at you. Drawn to playing with the bracelet you wore as you slightly cringed at yourself for the words that came out of your mouth. Sir? Really. Stupid, you thought.

Harvey moved past it and called out the name of 2 more associates and asked if anyone else wanted in on the case had to draw up a proposal. He only wanted the best of the best and trust him, he would get the best of the best.

You made your way to Harvey’s office as the meeting was dismissed. And you reminisce on the first time Harvey complimented on your legal work.

“ Are you a sorcerer”, Harvey asked as he made his way to your cubicle. It was late one night and you were stuck on an email. You had this need to overachieve and be perfect and it showed in everything you did. But if you were being honest it was exhausting.

You glanced up, raising an eyebrow. "Well, Harvey, someone has to make sure the i's are dotted and the t's are crossed. Can't let you walk into a negotiation with a misplaced comma, now can we?"

You don’t know what has gotten into you. Maybe it's the lack of sleep or the fact that you had 4 coffees. But the confidence was there and to your surprise, Harvey chuckled.

You swear you saw a twinkle in his eye as he responded, "You're practically the Mozart of legal documents. I half expect those contracts to start singing a symphony when I open them."

You smirked, setting aside the email you were currently writing, swiveling your chair to face him, "If you want a soundtrack to your legal victories, Harvey, I'm sure I can find a way to make that happen."

He tilted his head, a playful glint in his eyes. "Now that's the kind of innovation I like to see. Who needs background music at a negotiation? Just cue in Y/N legal masterpiece."

You couldn't help but laugh at the absurdity of the idea. "I'll be sure to add it to the list of services I provide, Harvey. Background music, legal counsel, and a dash of flair."

Harvey straightened up, his signature confidence in full force. "Flair is your middle name, isn't it? The 'Legal Maestro with a Touch of Flair.' Has a nice ring to it."

You rolled your eyes, feigning exasperation. "I'll have to update my business cards. But let's be honest, Harvey, you appreciate the flair. It's what sets my paperwork apart from the rest."

Harvey smirked, leaning in. "You're not wrong. But don't let it get to your head. I can't have you drafting contracts with a crown on, declaring yourself the Queen of Legal Documents." He turned to leave right after and you could have sworn you were asleep and that any moment now you would wake up from this dream.

You yelled out, “Don't worry, Harvey. I'll keep the royal proclamations to a minimum. Wouldn't want to overshadow your crown as the King of Closing Deals." And you could have sworn he let out a hearty laugh from down the hall.

“Y/N, nice of you to join us”, Harvey said. Jessica and Mike were already in the room as the other associates were already screaming. They had been given their assignments and were off to work.

“What can I do”, you spoke above a whisper, feeling small as the eyes were all on you. Jessica knew your history, she knew you struggled to be the shark of a lawyer you could be. But she hired you anyway, your interview with her wasn't the best. But she saw something in you, something that reminded her of herself when she was starting off. She was gonna build and mold you to a shark. But for now she let you be. A shark wasn’t born overnight.

“ I need one of your flawless contracts for Amir. I need no loopholes. Nothing he can use against us”, Harvey spoke in a harsher tone then he meant.

All you could do was nod your head and swiftly leave the room to do the research needed. Leaving Mike, Harvey and Jessica to chatter. As you walked down the corridor you saw Louis making his way to Harvey’s office with Rachel in tow. All hands on deck indeed, you thought to yourself.

The first night working on that draft through the dim glow of the late-night office lights illuminated your determined face. The rhythmic tapping of the keyboard was accompanied by the occasional crunch of Hot Cheetos.

Proud of your work, you compiled the neatly typed pages and confidently walked over to Harvey Specter's desk. As you placed the document in the designated spot, you felt relief wash over you. It’s currently 2:00 am, no one is here but you but you really wanted to prove your worth.

With only 5 hours asleep, the next day, you walked into the office, a little pep in your step. You made yourself some crappy coffee. And were about to head into the bullpen.

Harvey, engrossed in his own work the minute he stepped into the office, took a moment to glance at the papers. His stern expression, usually unreadable, twisted into a scowl as he noticed a small Hot Cheeto stain near the corner of the document. And called you down to his office. Your pep was gone once you heard his tone of voice as he called your name. Turning on your heel you headed towards his office. Donna was expecting you and let you by. One foot through the door is as far as you got before Harvey had something to say.

"Do you see this?" Harvey's voice was sharp pointing at the small stain.

Panicking slightly, you stammered, "I'm sorry, Harvey. I must have missed that." It was an easy fix, just print another copy, you thought to yourself making a mental note.

Harvey's gaze shifted from the stain to the content of the contract. He began circling errors with a red pen, his frustration apparent. "And these mistakes? This is what you place on my desk and yet it isn't up to my expectations”.

As he pointed out the errors, your pride in their work crumbled. The Hot Cheeto stain seemed to just make Harvey go on a power trip.. Each correction felt like a blow,"I expect better from you," Harvey remarked, his tone cold and unforgiving.

You nodded, unable to muster a response. Maybe the growing friendship you thought of was truly in your head. As Harvey returned to his own work, you retreated to their desk, determined to rectify the mistakes.

You admit your first draft wasn't the best. And you shouldn't have eaten near the paperwork. You were currently starving as you finished up the last paragraph. It’s been 6 hours since Harvey scolded you but this draft was perfect. And after you turned it in you were going to treat yourself to a nice dinner. Probably the Mexican place down the road. You were zoned in for the past 6 hours. This was the only case you were working on and it needs all your attention. But your attention was quickly zoned into the associate that was stumbling through the door.

Mike comes waltzing in, barely having any balance. You and Mike haven't really talked much. But he didn't look well.

“ Hey, Mike. You okay?" you asked, concerned in your voice.

Mike attempted a nonchalant smile, but the wavering balance gave away his inebriated state. "Yeah, just...you know, a little tired."

Observing Mike closely, you couldn't shake the feeling that there was more to the story. "Are you sure about that?"

Mike hesitated before confessing, "Okay, fine. Maybe a bit more than tired. Harvey and I went to meet someone about the Amir Jackson case, and things got a bit...out of hand with the drinks"

Your concern shifted to a mix of annoyance and frustration. While you had been tirelessly working on the second version of the contract, Harvey and Mike were out getting drunk. "Seriously, Mike? We have a case to win, and you two are out here partying?"

Mike scratched his head, a sheepish grin on his face. "We thought it was a good idea at the time. Maybe it was a bit impulsive."

Determined to express their frustration, you headed towards Harvey's office, the door slightly opened,. Knocking lightly, you entered and handed Harvey the second draft of the contract. The faster you gave it to him the faster you could leave.

"Here's the updated version, Harvey," you said, trying to mask your annoyance. After all, he is still the boss.

You sped walked out of there and back to your cubicle. Mike was there still, with his head on his desk.

“Go ask Donna for some pain killers, you still have a long night ahead of you”, you told him.

Mike just nodded and stumbled as he stood up to go to Donna. You were packing your bags, ready to call it an early night. When your computer dinged. You sat down to respond to an email quickly when you felt the tension of the bullpen change drastically.

“What is this, Y/N ?" Harvey's tone was sharp, his blue eyes piercing into mine.

You frowned, confused by the unexpected hostility. "It's the contract you asked for, Harvey. I double-checked everything, and it's all in order."

He scoffed, he took out a red marker from his pocket and started circling stuff with his red marker again, "This is subpar, even for an associate. I don't have time for amateur hour."

You felt a knot tighten in your stomach, a mix of frustration and disbelief. "Harvey, I don't understand. I followed the protocol, and the contract is flawless. What's the issue?"

He leaned in, his voice dropping to a low, cutting tone. "Flawless? If this is your definition of flawless, we're in trouble. I need precision, not this half-baked attempt at legal work."

The comments were like a punch to the gut. Harvey's relentless standards were known, but this seemed different. You couldn't fathom what had triggered such a harsh reaction. Was he too tipsy? Doubt crept into your mind, questioning your abilities despite knowing that the document was, by all standards, impeccable.

As you scrambled to gather my thoughts, Harvey continued. "If you can't handle the basics, I don't know why I bother keeping you around. Maybe it's time for a reality check, Y/N."

His words hung in the air, a heavy weight on my shoulders. The bullpen fell silent, and your colleagues exchanged uneasy glances. You knew how people judged women for being emotional in the workplace but you could not help the tears welling in your eyes.

Harvey turned on his heel and walked away without a second glance, leaving you with a sinking feeling of inadequacy. You stared at the perfectly crafted document, now dismissed and devalued by Harvey's cutting words. It was a moment of doubt, a crack in the confidence you had built in your work. Goodbye nice dinner, you thought to yourself as we sat at your cubicle, back to square one.

It's been about a week since Harvey yelled at you. You couldn't sleep, you couldn't eat. Doubt was eating you. You were always proud of your writing skills, that was what you were known for. This is what got you hired at Pearson Hardman. What if you weren't good enough for this job anymore? Did you speak? Your mind was racing and you were lucky enough to talk yourself down. You were currently working on your fifth version of this contract. Every draft before that had him taking out his red marker. A part of you could have sworn he was just circling things at random, but who are you to question the great Harvey Specter. It was 2:00 pm and you thought maybe you deserve a snack so you headed to the breakroom. Who do you happen to run into Mike Ross? He had no faults but just happened to be the unwitting recipient of your frustration.

You stormed up to Mike barely containing the anger that had been building for weeks. "Mike, we need to talk," I blurted out, not bothering to hide the frustration in my voice.

Mike looked up from his sandwich, surprised by the intensity of my tone. "Sure, Y/N, what's going on?"

You took a deep breath, struggling to find the right words. "It's just... Do you ever feel like you're stuck in someone's shadow? Like no matter how hard you work, you're always one step behind?"

Mike furrowed his brow, sensing the gravity of my emotions. "What happened? Is it Harvey?"

You nodded, my frustration bubbling over. "It's always Harvey. He treats you like a partner, his drinking buddy, his go-to guy for everything. Meanwhile, I'm drowning in his shadow, drowning in rewrites and unreasonable expectations."

Mike leaned back, a sympathetic expression on his face. "I get it. Harvey has his moments. But you're great at what you do. Maybe he just doesn't see it."

"That's the problem, Mike. He doesn't see it. I'm just the person who writes and rewrites, constantly trying to meet his impossible standards. Did you know I can't even eat at my desk because once there was a Hot Cheeto stain on one of the drafts, and he lost it?"

Mike's eyes widened, realizing the extent of my frustration. "That's harsh, Y/N. Look, I know I have a different dynamic with Harvey, but it doesn't mean he values you any less. Maybe you should talk to him about how you're feeling."

"It's not that easy, Mike. I'm tired of being the one in the background. I can't handle the pressure anymore." you confessed, your voice laced with a mix of anger and vulnerability.

Mike sighed, understanding the weight of your words. "I can't fix everything, but I can listen. And I am truly sorry"

“NO, NO, no I am sorry Mike, I am not mad at you or at Harvey. I guess I am mad at myself. I am just going back to work on my fifth version of this document”, you said as you felt the hunger take over. But you pushed through. You had to push through.

As you walked out of the break room, Mike became an unexpected ally. He went to his binder Harvey put together and looked for the fourth version of the contract knowing Harvey had put it all in the file to look over. The document was perfect, no one could have done it better.

Mike took in your look when you came bargaining in here. You looked awful. And what it was barely a week working on the case. Mike had heard about Harvey yelling in the bullpen but it had caused you so much disarray that Mike knew Harvey took it too far. He knew you and he didn't talk as much but Rachel adored you and he had to do the right thing and get Harvey to apologize.

Donna saw Mike striding towards Harvey’s office and knew what was coming. Donna knew Harvey was wound tight. That this case was getting the best of him and taking it out on the lovely Y/N but lord forbid she say anything. The last time she tried she nearly got her head chewed off too and Harvey right now needs to know he isn't alone in this case.

"Harvey, you're being too hard on Y/N. The contract she wrote was perfect, and every draft since then has only improved upon perfection. You can't keep circling random stuff just to make her rewrite it," Mike asserted, his tone firm as he entered Harvey’s office. The fourth version of your contract in his hand.

Harvey shot him a sharp glance. "I demand the best, and if she can't deliver, then maybe she's not cut out for this."

Mike shook his head. "It's not about delivering, Harvey. It's about you being stressed out over the case and taking it out on her. She's doing her best, and you need to acknowledge that."

Before Harvey could respond, Donna chimed in. "Mike's right, Harvey. I've seen the way you've been treating Y/N, and it's not fair. You've always had a soft spot for her, even if you won't admit it.”

Harvey raised an eyebrow. "A soft spot? Donna, you're reading too much into it."

Donna crossed her arms, "Harvey. I am Donna and I know everything. I also see everything. Harvey. Remember the time she was sick, and you made sure she had everything she needed? Or how you personally chose her for the team during the Jackson case? You compliment her skills and skip past everyone else you named for your team. You've got a soft spot for her, whether you admit it or not”

Mike nodded in agreement. "You can't deny it, Harvey. There's something about her that you can't ignore. Maybe it's time to acknowledge it and cut her some slack."

Harvey sighed, he didn't appreciate Mike and Donna ganging up on him but the fact that they were meant they maybe had a point, "Fine. Maybe I've been too hard on her. But she needs to know that mediocrity isn't acceptable."

Donna shook her head. "Harvey, there's a difference between pushing for excellence and being unnecessarily harsh. You owe Y/N an apology."

Reluctantly, Harvey nodded. "Alright. I'll talk to her. But this doesn't mean I'm going soft."

Donna smirked. "We wouldn't want that, Harvey."

Harvey made his way to find you. While Donna and Mike exchanged a knowing look. He made his way down to Rachels office, knowing that's where he will find you at these hours. He was taking the elevator and he thought about the last time both of you were in the elevator. It was the day the Amir Jackson case got handed for the first time. Harvey was on his way to meet with Amir for the first time in a long time to talk over the case, get under his skin.

The elevator doors closed, enclosing Harvey Specter and Y/N in a small, confined space. The tension from the Jackson case was already weighing heavily on Harvey, evident by the way he impatiently tugged at his perfectly knotted tie.

"Harvey, relax. You're going to strangle yourself with that tie if you keep pulling on it," you quipped. You realized the stress coming off him and the words just flew out of your mouth before you could think.

Harvey shot them a sidelong glance, his usual stoicism momentarily replaced by a flicker of amusement. "Maybe I'd be better off without it."

A small, unexpected laugh escaped Harvey's lips, surprising both him and Y/N. It was a rare sight to witness Harvey Specter, the embodiment of seriousness, letting his guard down even for a moment. Specifically with you.

" This isn't your first time easing the tension, I see the way you calm Rachel down when she gets in over her head. You always find a way to lighten the mood. What's your secret?" Harvey teased, a hint of a smile playing on his lips.

You shrugged, a smile forming as you too let down your guard "Maybe it's just my superpower. The ability to make even the mighty Rachel and even the mysterious Harvey Specter crack a smile."

Harvey's expression shifted back to his usual cool exterior, but a subtle warmth lingered in his eyes. "Careful, now you might start thinking you're irreplaceable."

As the elevator continued its ascent, the banter between you quieted down and Harvey and you started to go back to normal. Back to the quietness and coldness.

But before the elevator opened to the floor, Harvey sneaked in, “Well, don't let it get to your head. You're not the comedian Pearson Specter, just the document wizard.", his smile lingered a little before the face of the closer returned to its hard exterior.

If you were there longer than Rachel or she was busy running around the office she allowed you to work in her small office room. It was currently 4:00 pm but Louis had yelled at all the associates and dismissed them for the day for being useless. Only those working on the Amir case were still here, plus Donna and Rachel. Rachel was off trying to get the emails of old associates of Amir. You thought that Mike probably went off with her after your little breakdown to him. You knew Harvey was in the office and that you were typing on your keyboard like there was no tomorrow. You meticulously worked on the revised legal document, determined to prove to Harvey Specter that you could meet his standards and trying to prove yourself that you could melt your own standards. The door swung open abruptly, and you hooked up to see Harvey's stern expression.

"Y/N, we need to talk," he said, his voice surprisingly gentle, yet you couldn't shake the feeling that another reprimand was imminent.

Your pulse quickened, and your breath caught in your throat. The anxiety that had been simmering since Harvey's earlier criticism surged to the surface. You felt a tightness in my chest, your hands trembling as you tried to compose myself.

Harvey noticed your distress, as his expression softened, and he took a step closer. "Hey, relax. I just wanted to talk about earlier. I think I may have been too harsh."

The words barely registered as your panic escalated. Your mind raced, and suddenly, you found it difficult to breathe. The walls of the office seemed to close in on you. Before you could respond, the edges of your vision blurred, and a wave of dizziness overcame you as you sat at the desk, gripping on to the edge for support.

Harvey's concern deepened as he watched you struggle. "Hey hey hey, whoa, take it easy. You are okay, everything is okay”

But you couldn't catch your breath, and panic tightened its grip. Your hands shook uncontrollably, and you gasped for air. In the midst of the chaos, Harvey acted swiftly. He made his way around the desk kneeling down to be at eye level with you.

"Deep breaths, Y/N. In and out," Harvey instructed, his voice a soothing anchor in the storm of panic.

As you continued to struggle, Harvey, without hesitation, he took your hand and placed it over his heart. "Feel my heartbeat? Match your breaths to it. In, and out”

His heartbeat served as a rhythmic guide, and slowly, your breaths synchronized with its steady cadence. The panic began to subside, replaced by a sense of calm that washed over you. As the storm within you quieted, exhaustion set in, and the world around you blurred into darkness.

Harvey caught you as you passed out. Guilt swept over him because he knew he was the cause of this. He can’t remember the last time he saw you smile, the last time you ate, the last time you lit up a room. You were giving your all in this case and by doing so you were giving away parts of yourself too. He moved you onto Rachels couch so you could lay down properly. He knew you passed out because of panic and the lack of eating, he noticed these things about you. He noticed a lot about you actually, damn it Donna, he thought.

He took his pocket square and wet it with your water bottle. He adjusted himself to the couch, moving so that your head was on his lap as he placed the cool rag on your forehead.

The aftermath of the panic attack had left both of you in a vulnerable state. Yet Harvey couldn't deny the flutter in his chest as he gazed down at you. Was it concern for your well-being, or was it the proximity that had him on edge? He shook off the thought, focusing on steadying his own heartbeat.

In the midst of the stillness, the door creaked open, and right on cue Mike Ross cautiously entered. He took in the scene, the concern etched across his face.

"What happened?" Mike asked, his eyes shifting between Harvey and your unconscious state, ready to fight Harvey if he did you any physical harm.

Harvey, in his usual commanding tone, snapped, "Go to the Mexican restaurant two blocks down and get two number 5's."

Mike, taken aback, stammered, "But—"

"Just do it," Harvey insisted, his gaze never leaving you.

Mike quickly exited, leaving Harvey alone with his unconscious colleague. He had so many questions but Harvey’s tone told him everything he needed to know. Minutes later, the door swung open again, revealing Mike with bags of Mexican takeout in hand.

"Here," Mike said, handing the bags to Harvey. "I'll take off early for the night. Rachel and I were thinking about grabbing dinner. You got this, right?" A little weary to leave you, feeling like he should tell Rachel, Donna or even Jessica. But the look in Harvey’s eye told him he had nothing to worry about.

Harvey nodded, a silent acknowledgment of Mike's understanding. As Mike left, Harvey couldn't help but feel a mix of gratitude and guilt. He knew you hadn't been eating well, and by the looks of your under eye bags you also hadn't been sleeping and the panic attack had been triggered by the stress of the Jackson case, a burden he bore on both their shoulders.

As you began to stir, Harvey glanced down at the bags of Mexican food. The aroma filled the room, and he hoped the gesture would, in some small way, make up for the turmoil he inadvertently caused.

"You're awake," Harvey remarked as you slowly opened their eyes.

You ignored everything around you as you slowly sat up with the help of Harvey. A blush rushing on your face realizing how close you were to Harvey. But all that faded when you saw the food, "How did you know this is my favorite?"

“That’s the first thing you ask?’Harvey raised an eyebrow.

Your body slowly turned to face him.The headache and body sores had you wincing in pain. Harvey’s eyes held much guilt and sadness in them even as he tried to suppress them and act strong in front of you. This was about you and not about what he was feeling.

“I am a simple girl. I get easily distracted by food”, you let out a small laugh even though you are exhausted, “Now answer my question”

Harvey hesitated, the words lingering on the tip of his tongue, he wanted to say that it's because he knew you. But Instead of admitting the depth of his knowledge about you, he chose a simpler response. "Who doesn't love Mexican food?"

You hummed as he moved the desk closer to you so you wouldn't have to get up from the couch. The food was spread out and he took a seat next to you. A silence took over the room as you both began to eat. The atmosphere was heavy with unspoken tension, the events of the panic attack still lingering in the air.

Harvey cleared his throat, breaking the uneasy silence. "Look, Y/N, I wanted to apologize for the unnecessary pressure I put on you. It was out of line, and I shouldn't have let it escalate to the point of causing a panic attack."

You glanced up from your plate, a mixture of exhaustion and forgiveness in your eyes. "Harvey, it's not entirely your fault. The case is stressful, and I should have handled it better."

Harvey's expression softened at your words. "That doesn't excuse my behavior. I should have been more considerate. I don't want you to feel like you have to carry the weight of the case alone."

You sighed, pushing the food around on their plate. "Harvey, I forgive you, but on one condition."

Harvey raised an eyebrow, silently urging you to continue.

" I can't keep being treated like an outsider, I know I only got hired because of my writing skills but I want to do more, be more. I want to be more than just the person who drafts contracts. I know I can be a kick ass lawyer if given the chance."

Harvey took a moment to absorb your words. The realization of the impact of his actions sank in, and he nodded. "You're right”

“Did those words really just come out of your mouth”, your eye grew wide as a smile danced on your lips’’

“Just, can you just shush for a moment”, he said as he placed his fork down.

“ Jessca told me when you were hired that you were born to be a shark. I guess I got so caught up in your skills that I haven't really even given you the chance to dominate the courtroom. I shouldn't have overlooked that."

You saw something in his eyes you had never seen before. Was it hope?

You both continued to eat in subdued silence, the tension in the room shifted. The unspoken feelings between both of you simmered beneath the surface. This was forever changing the dynamic of your professional relationship.

So where do you all go after this? The case of Amir Jackson isn't over, there is much more left for you both to do. This isn't the end. This is only the beginning, leaving both Harvey and you to navigate whatever comes next.

#harvey specter x reader #harvey specter x you #harvey specter #suits #suits usa #suits tv #mike ross #donna paulsen #Pearson Hardman

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multifandomwriter56 · 9 months

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Doubts Put to Rest

A/N: Hello Everyone! This is my first ever Suits story. I hope you enjoy. I have an OC I'm working on and I'm excited to post it.

Fandom Prompt #15: "Welcome to the real world. It sucks. You're gonna love it."

Summary: Y/n Specter is Harvey's younger sister and has been an associate at Pearson Hardman for three months. After the last case she had helped Harvey with, a threat of her being fired is going around. Donna and Mike try to help, but ultimately, only her brother can put her mind at ease... even if he is part of the problem.

Character: Harvey Specter, Donna Paulsen, Mike Ross, mentions Jessica Pearson

Warnings: language

Word Count: 1,565

*gif is not mine*

"Yes, exactly. They'll never know what hit them."

Harvey swivels in his chair, facing the two sources to his headache. "Why are the two puppies so excited about today?" He asks the two associates.

Y/n Specter rolls her eyes at her brother. The annoying pet name became Harvey's favorite since she started working at Pearson Hardman.

"I don't think he's ready for the truth." Mike teases, a smirk forming at the corner of his lips as he looks at his partner in crime.

Y/n doesn't even try to hide her smirk. "I agree. Maybe we should just run it by Jessica. I'm sure she would agree with us."

Mike's eyes widen. He shakes his head in warning, trying to be inconspicuous. He should've told the young girl that Harvey is in one of his moods and they shouldn't push too hard… especially on the subject of one Jessica Pearson.

Y/n immediately regrets her words when Harvey stands to his feet, any amusement he had completely gone.

"How about instead of wasting my time, you tell me what the fuck you found." He's not shouting, but he's not far from it.

Mike immediately spills their idea, working with Harvey long enough to know when to push and when to back off.

"Put it in writing and bring it to me by the end of the day." He orders as he settles back into his chair, his focus turning to his laptop. A clear sign of dismissal.

The two associates quickly leave the older man's office.

"Why would you say that?" Donna scolds, not even pretending she wasn't listening to their conversation.

Y/n shrugs her shoulders. "He wasn't in that bad of a mood this morning." She tries to defend herself. She has to be in a certain mood to even think about attempting to piss off her brother. "What happened in between this morning and now? We're going to win the case."

Donna's scolding glare turns to the other headache. "You didn't tell her?"

Y/n immediately notices how Mike turns on the puppy eyes. She rolls her eyes, no wondering Harvey always calls him a puppy. "Tell me what?"

She watches as her brother's secretary and associate have a staring contest, waiting for one of them to cave.

She may be an associate at Pearson Hardman, but Jessica made it clear to Harvey that his sister is not at his beck and call. She is to be available for other partners, just like the other associates.

And she prefers it that way. This case had more work and Mike asked for her help.

Just as she assumed, Mike is the first to cave.

"After the last case, Jessica started questioning whether or not it's a good idea to let you work here. She chewed Harvey out for punching that lawyer."

"It's not my fault Harvey feels the need to protect me... no matter how many times I tell him he doesn't need to."

"Oh honey, you know Harvey will always protect you. Even when he doesn't need to, he will."

Y/n can't deny Donna's words. Harvey has always been overprotective of those he cares about. That will never change. She just wishes he would butt out. "So Jessica wants me gone."

"She doesn't want to fire you, but she's starting to believe she's going to have to pick between the two of you and-"

"And there's no way she'll pick the kid sister over her own protégé." Y/n shakes her head. She knew working here was a bad idea. This is her brother's firm, not hers. She wanted it to be both, but it can't be. She's second.

And second choice never gets picked by the best.

"He told Jessica if you go, he goes." Mike tells her, his voice barely above a whisper as a paralegal passes by.

She snaps her eyes closed. No matter how old, how successful she is... she'll always be a headache for her brother. A nuisance he's been stuck with since their father passed.

"I don't pay you to sit around and gossip like school girls with Donna. Get to work." Harvey snaps.

Mike huffs as he turns on his heel and heads for the bullpen, but Y/n stays where she is, her eyes bravely staring right back at the raging bull.

The siblings stare silently at each other, making Donna bit her lower lip in dread. This could end very badly if she doesn't interfere soon. "Come on, Y/n. You can help me make copies while you wait for Mike."

Y/n breaks eye contact, forcing them to meet the redhead's. "Sure, Donna."

"No."

The two women freeze. Donna tries to catch Harvey's gaze but it's solely on his sister.

Y/n's stomach drops when Harvey gesture with his raised hand for her to come into his office. Maybe he's decided it will be better if she leaves. Maybe he realized he's tired of having her around. Maybe he wants her completely out of his life.

No. That's ridiculous. Harvey loves her. He may not always say 'I love you' but he shows it. Y/n has never questioned his love for her. Not until now.

But Harvey has never been in this position; to have to pick between his beloved law firm or his sister. Y/n knows how much this firm means to Harvey. She refuses to be the reason it's taken from him.

So with her head held high and her mind made up, Y/n strides into his office; ignoring the questioning raised eyebrow he sends Donna's way.

Standing in front of his desk, she waits for Harvey to sit, before she begins speaking. "I'm officially giving my two weeks notice."

The slight amusement that was starting to rise, drops like a cannonball. Harvey had seen that determined look many times before, mostly when Y/n was in her teens. The look is classic stubborn Specter glare and it brought back memories. Memories of Y/n stating her case on why she should go camping with her friends with no adults. Or when she was determined that she wasn't too sick to go to the courthouse to watch Harvey win against an old rival before throwing up the three crackers she ate thirty minutes beforehand.

But he never thought the girl would use that look to quit... to give up.

"What did you just say to me?"

"I'm not going to let you give up your job for me."

"Who said I was giving up my job?" At her fallen expression, Harvey quickly tries to explain. "Y/n, dammit, I didn't mean that I was picking my job over you. Neither one of us are leaving. You hear me? I'm not letting you quit and I'm not letting Jessica fire anyone. We're staying."

Y/n lets go of her fake fearless act, letting her legs give out as she plops down into the chair directly behind her. "H-How?"

"Because I'm the best damn closer the world has ever seen."

Y/n groans, her eyes rolling into the back of her head. "I fucking hate that answer."

"Welcome to the real world. It sucks." Harvey chuckles when that gets him another eye roll. "Don't worry. You're gonna love it."

"Already do."

Y/n lets the comfortable silence fall over them; glad the tension is gone.

She wants to drop it, but she needs to know. "Did Jessica really want me gone?"

Harvey shakes his head, the smile disappearing. "Dammit Mike." He mutters under his breath before turning his focus back to his sister. "Jessica was angry with me. We had to settle with the lawyer I punched. She was pissed and made threats she didn't mean. Jessica would never fire you. She loves you."

Y/n chews on his words, the hurt she was feeling towards the managing partner disappearing into the abyss. But she's not fully satisfied. "Jessica is still angry with you?"

Harvey swallows his pride. He refuses to admit it, but Y/n is one (if not the only) person Harvey is willing to put his pride aside for. "I apologized and I've been assigned two pro bono cases; one for each month."

Y/n can't hold back the smile. Jessica really knows how to hit Harvey where is hurts.

Harvey points an accusing finger at her, his eyebrows raised high. "And that look just cost you dearly. I'm assigning them to you."

Y/n's smile immediately falls. "Aww, come on, Harvey. You know Mike loves that shit. Why don't you give it to him?"

"Because then I can't punish him for blabbing his mouth to you and Donna about Jessica."

"I'll tell Jessica you pawned the case off to me." She ignores the fact that she sounds just like a five year old.

Harvey smirks. "No, you won't."

Y/n crosses her arms over her chest. "Oh yeah? And what's stopping me?"

She tries to ignore the anxiety building in the pit of her stomach. She never trusts Harvey when he has that look. A look so mischievous, the possibilities of what he is thinking are endless.

"I know you and Rachel stole Jessica tea set one night and had you own little tea party."

Y/n's jaw drops. There's only one person who knew about that besides the two woman there.

"Donna!"

Forevers: @desiredposion @theseakrakence @simonsbluee

#harvey specter x sister!reader #mike ross #donna paulsen #suits #suits one shot #harvey specter

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harveyhawkscripts · 10 months

Text

[A4A] Tsundere Half-Dragon Kicks Friend Out for Scaring Roommate [Modern Fantasy] [Confession] [Roommates to Lovers]

Google Doc

Usage:

- Okay for monetization

- Please credit me as Harvey Hawk :)

- Tweaks, improv, and pronoun changes are okay! Just please do not rewrite the script completely.

Synopsis: The Half-Dragon Roommate is back! This time they have invited a friend from work, Mike, over for movie night. However, Mike purposely spooks the half-dragon’s roommate, causing a confrontation followed by truths coming to light.

Key:

[SFX and Action]

(.) Short Pause

(...) Longer pause

(Voice instruction)

Word count: 1186

—

HALF-DRAGON:

Hey bug, I’ve got a friend coming over for a movie tonight. You in?

(.)

I didn’t think you’d mind. He’s just a dude from work.

(.)

Fine, I’ll let you know sooner next time. But I’m not gonna call it off. Why don’t you join us? It’ll do you some good to actually socialize.

(.)

Great. I’ll call for a pizza and pop some popcorn. Why don’t you go pick a movie? Oh, and get your big teddy off the sofa while you’re at it. I don’t want Mike to see it and think it’s mine; I’d never hear the end of it.

(.)

Like I said, he’s a friend from work. A little rough around the edges, but he’s fun to hang out with. He’s one of the only people at my work that I can actually stand.

(.)

Well, he’s an elf, good at his job, and he has a bike.

(.)

And what? I didn’t ask for his life story. I just chill with him on breaks. Look, he’ll be here soon if you really wanna interrogate him. Anyway, have you picked out a movie yet?

(.)

The hell is ‘Danishes and Dragons?’

(.)

No. We are not watching a ‘musical romantic comedy about the unlikely romance between a smalltown baker and a big city half-dragon.’

(.)

Because it’s schlock, that’s why! Pick something else. Why not that new horror movie?

(.)

‘Spiraling Labyrinth: The Bloody Minotaur.’ Sounds pretty cool, right?

(.)

Obviously, it’s about a minotaur that traps people in his labyrinth and tortures them. Don’t you know the series?

(.)

Oh. Well, they make good standalones anyways.

[Knocking on door]

That’s Mike. Go ahead and rent that, would ya?

(Calls out) Door’s open, come on in!

[Door opens, closes. Footsteps approach]

Hey Mike! How’s it going?

(.)

This is my roommate. I just call them bug.

(.)

Because –

(.)

(Flustered) D-don’t tell him it’s short for snuggle bug! Don’t listen to them, Mike. I call them bug because they’re small and irritating.

(.)

Pfft, whatever. We’re watching ‘Spiraling Labyrinth: The Bloody Minotaur.’

(.)

(To Mike) Yeah, me too! I’ve watched the series, like, three times.

(.)

Eh, bug will be fine. Come on, let’s start the movie.

[TIME SKIP]

[Movie noises; eg yells of terror, roaring, etc]

Ha! Called it. I knew blondie would be first to die. He was way too naïve.

[Knocking on door]

That’ll be the pizza. Here, pause it, I gotta go pay the delivery guy. Be right back.

(…)

[Popcorn bowl falls, followed by hurried footsteps]

Bug! Are you okay?! I heard you scream –

You! What did you do?

(.)

What the hell? What is your problem?!

(.)

That’s not a joke – they’re terrified! Gods, you’re such an asshole.

(.)

No – shut up! Just get out.

(.)

(Snarls) I said get out!

[Slams door]

(Growl – cut off by concern for the listener)

[TV turns off]

(Gently) Hey, snuggle bug. Are you okay?

(.)

You… knocked over the popcorn? That’s okay, I’ll clean it up. What happened, anyway? Sounds like he really scared you.

(.)

He pretended to go the bathroom and then jump scared you? Yeah, sounds about right. Mike is such an asshole sometimes. I’m sorry, snuggle bug; I shouldn’t have invited him over.

(.)

Hey, you’re shaking. Come here.

(.)

Forget about him. Let’s have a movie night with just the two of us.

(.)

Of course, we’re not watching the rest of that movie. We’ll watch… Ugh, I guess we’ll watch that stupid rom com. I’ll grab some blankets and we can snuggle. How does that sound?

(.)

You want your big teddy? But you always want to snuggle me. That’s like… Our thing!

(.)

Wait, are you mad at me?

(.)

That’s ridiculous! I’m not the one that scared you; that was Mike!

(.)

It’s not like I invited him over because I knew he would do that! Geez!

Okay, I did say that, but you know I didn’t –

(.)

And I insisted on a horror movie… Okay, okay. Look, I’m sorry, alright? I shouldn’t have made you pick the movie I wanted, and I shouldn’t have called you small and irritating. I was just… I didn’t want to look like a wimp in front of Mike.

(.)

I am not insecure! I just… Look, I have an image to uphold, okay? You wouldn’t get it.

(.)

What? No, no way! I don’t like Mike – definitely not in that way. He was the one who suggested coming over; I just owed him for buying me lunch.

(.)

Wait… Were you jealous? Of Mike? Haha, that’s hilarious!

(.)

No, I didn’t mean – get back here. Look, I didn’t mean it like that. I just find it funny you’d think I have a crush on Mike of all people. Like I said, the guy can be an asshole.

(.)

Trust me, snuggle bug, you have nothing to be jealous about.

(.)

Sure, keep saying that. I bet you’re secretly glad to have me all to yourself tonight, huh?

(.)

Oh, of course, of course. But your big teddy isn’t as warm as me, is it? And big teddy can’t rub your back until you fall asleep.

(.)

Sure. I owe you, don’t I? Come on. I’ll lay on the couch, and you can lay on top of me.

(.)

There. Cozy?

(.)

Heh, good. So, do you want to watch ‘Danishes and Dragons’ or whatever?

(.)

No? What, don’t tell me you want to finish the horror movie?

(.)

You just… want to talk? Um. Okay. What about?

(.)

Oh. Um. I like cuddling you too…? What’s up, bug? You’re acting weird.

(.)

(Amused) Pft, you’re thanking me now? You were just angry at me not two minutes ago! What’s with the mood swings; have you been missing out on sleep again?

(.)

Wh – of course I kicked him out! I wasn’t just going to let him mess with you.

(.)

Because no one messes with you! Except me, of course. But that’s different. I know how far to take things.

(.)

Hm? What’s that?

(.)

You wish I would take things… farther? What’s that supposed to mean? Hey, snuggle bug, look at me. Don’t just hide your face in my chest.

(.)

Wait, you seriously were jealous earlier, weren’t you? You – snuggle bug, do you like me?

(.)

Ohhh. Ohh, so many things make sense now. I can’t believe I didn’t notice sooner!

(.)

Wait, what are you – oh, no you don’t!

(.)

Sorry to wrap my tail around you so suddenly, but I’m not letting you run from this. Did you really think you could get away with confessing and bolting? You should at least have the decency to wait for a response, you know.

(.)

Well, my response is… I like you too, snuggle bug.

(.)

(Amused snort) The hell do you mean ‘really’?

(.)

Aw, c’mon. You really think that I would tease you about something like this? I’m not that mean, you know. In fact, how about I prove it to you?

(.)

Yeah? C’mere then, snuggle bug.

[Kiss]

How’s that? Proof enough for you?

(.)

(Laughs) You’re too cute, snuggle bug. One more, then.

[Kiss]

There. You oughta believe me now, right?

(.)

Heh, thought so. So, you wanna put on your movie and dig into that pizza?

(.)

Sure. The night is still young. What do you say, snuggle bug?

(.)

Alright, then. It’s a date.

END

#script writing #writing #asmr scripts #asmr rp #fantasy #a4a #script #romance #romantic

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schrijverr · 2 years

Text

Captured

Someone is blackmailing Harvey with pictures of him having sex with other men. He tries to hide and push everyone away, but it only gets worse. A worried Mike finds him in his condo in the middle of a panic attack. After calming him down, he shows Harvey that he’s not alone, helping him fix it and teaching Harvey that being bisexual isn’t so bad if you have friends.

On AO3.

Ships: none

Warnings: blackmail, stalking, internalized biphobia, mentioned homophobia and panic attack.

~~~~~~~~~~~

Harvey is in trouble. It’s not a sentence one would often hear in relation to him and that is honestly why it is so terrifying now that it is happening.

Okay, maybe we need to back up a bit to what happened. Earlier that morning a package came in the mail for him, it was a manila envelope with no return address. Harvey had thought it looked suspicious, but it wasn’t the first time he had gotten something like it, so he had opened it without a care.

Now he is in the office, trying to breathe as he looks at a series of photo’s taken of a younger Harvey, naked as the day he was born, in the arms of another man. Underneath are more recent pictures of him in the same compromising position.

On a logical level he knows the only scandalous thing about these pictures should be the fact that he is naked. Jessica has often joked he will be the first sex scandal out of the partners. However, he also knows the society (and the part of society) he moves in and there is a reason he has never told anyone he is bisexual.

He loves women and having sex with them. He knows he gets around and is quite happy with that reputation. He just likes to indulge sometimes and apparently he should have known that was a mistake, because look where here he is.

“Fuck,” he curses under his breath, wanting to rip the pictures apart, but not wanting to leave a shred of evidence behind in his office.

His hands are shaking and his chest is being cinched by an invisible corset. He wants to move, knowing that he must look weird from outside his office, hunched over, holding something out of sight, but he is frozen to the spot.

What do they want, he wonders. How did they get these? And who are they? He’s always been so careful. God, he is going to loose his all clients, his prestige, his job, his friends even if he’s unlucky.

There’s a letter in there as well, but Harvey hasn’t found the wits to read it. He probably should, so he knows what he has to do to get this to go away. (On a logical level he also knows that doing what they want won’t make this stop and whoever send these will just continue to use these to get him to do whatever they want).

“Harvey?” Mike’s concerned voice cuts through his spiral.

Harvey startles and would have dropped the pictures, were he not clutching them so tightly that they are crinkling. It takes a second, before he remembers how to operate his mouth, then he greets back: “Mike.”

“Are you okay?” Mike asks, the frown deepening.

No, Harvey thinks, panicking that Mike is already noticing that something is up. He is sure it flashes over his face, but he’s not reacting to Mike’s expressions, covering it up with: “Of course. What did you need?”

“We were going to talk over the deposition,” Mike reminds him. “You sure you’re okay?”

“Oh, yeah. Yeah, I’m fine,” Harvey says, not so smoothly. “Go sit, I’ll grab the files.”

He doesn’t check if Mike listens, shoving the pictures back into the envelope, which he hides in his briefcase. Shoulders relax as he clicks it close, files in hand as he makes his way to the couch where Mike has made himself comfortable.

Usually Harvey will plop down next to him, but today he hesitates. There is nothing special about sitting down next to Mike. It’s just sitting and he doesn’t even like Mike like that. The kid is too young for him and reminds him too much of Markus. Mike is his friend, his brother. But those damn pictures twist everything in his mind. He feels watched, like everyone already knows and is following his every move, judging him.

Harvey sits in the chair.

Mike gives him a look, but doesn’t comment, content to let this go if Harvey doesn’t want to talk about it, much to his relief. And they set to work on the deposition.

The day passes in a blur for Harvey. He is functioning, moving like he has always done, but he is mentally far away. It’s not that he is thinking over the pictures constantly and therefore can’t concentrate, he just took a mental step back, so he won’t devolve into a panicking mess and can go about his day as best as he can.

He goes home as early as he can without suspicion, ignoring Donna’s questioning eyebrows just like he had ignored Mike’s concerned brows throughout the day.

Only in the safety of his condo does he open his briefcase and gets out the envelope. He is still in his suit, but he has no shoes on and his tie is loosened, his buttons undone. His hair is a mess from the amount of times he ran his hand through it as he sits on the couch, staring at the envelope in his hands.

With clumsy fingers he opens is again, not looking inside, but feeling for the letter that must be in there as well. No one sends someone blackmail without motive. There must be a motive.

He finds the letter and pulls it out, not sure if he wants to know what he has to do to keep this a secret.

After reading the letter he sits and stares out over the New York skyline. This person, whoever they are, is asking him to break attorney-client privilege. That is a crime. He can loose his license for that. Not to mention the malpractice that comes with it.

Being bisexual isn’t a crime, however. His reputation might get a hit, but he wouldn’t be breaking the law and he’ll get to keep practicing. The smart choice would be to not listen, to not do it and just deal with the fall out.

A small voice in his brain pipes up, you’re already breaking the law with Mike. It’s not that different from that. He can keep practicing as long as no one finds out.

But then they just have more blackmail, he argues with the small voice he wants to give in to, I have plausible deniability with Mike. Besides, you can sue them for blackmail. The letter gives you evidence.

If you do that, everyone will know what the blackmail was, the small voice tells him.

You can keep that sealed, the rational part argues.

But everyone in Pearson Hardman will know. The rumor mill will work over time, all the partners will look at you and know. Louis will know. Jessica will know. Mike will know. Everyone will figure it out and the damage will be done anyway. Who knows if someone will leak it with enough motivation.

Again the rational part reminds him that being bisexual isn’t a crime and so the arguments cycle in his mind.

Harvey doesn’t even realize he’s crying until a drop smudges the ink of the letter he’s still blankly staring at. He quickly puts it on the coffee table and wipes his eyes, hating himself for the weakness when new tears take their place.

He curls into himself hugging his knees to his chest as he buries his face between them, shoulders shaking with sobs he rarely allows himself to let out. But he needs it today. Couldn’t stop it, no matter how badly he wants to.

So, he cries.

He cries by himself on his couch with nothing but the New York skyline for company. He doesn’t have friends he can confide into, nor the ability to be that vulnerable in front of someone. He’s all alone and he has never felt it more.

When he finally manages to drag himself to bed, he still hasn’t decided what to do. He huddles under the covers, too exhausted to cry more, yet too worked up to fall asleep and considers calling in sick tomorrow.

In the end he does go to work. He is very late, which is thankfully not too much out of character for him.

That morning he agonized in front of his mirror for ages. He’s wearing a plain black suit and white dress shirt. It’s the straightest outfit he could think off that won’t set of alarm bells in Donna’s mind and he hates himself for even thinking like that, but he has to hide. He has to.

Harvey has long since learned that it’s okay for others to be queer, but not him. Never him.

He’s aware that he is a bit stiff throughout the day, but he is hyper aware of his every movement and continuously on guard. Mostly, he is just glad that he doesn’t have meetings today and Mike is busy with research.

As he works, his mind is distracted by the situation, analyzing it. The person, who send these wants him to sabotage a take over of Lemmin Inc. and give them enough inside knowledge of his client’s weak points to return the favor, as well as hand over all the weak points they found in Lemmin Inc. that they were planning to use.

If he were to give in, he would be breaking attorney-client confidentiality and committing malpractice. That could ruin his career.

But- but if he wrote in a loophole that Lemmin Inc. could use against his client, then it could just be an accident and he’ll have his plausible deniability and he won’t break confidentiality. However, he won’t comply completely and who knows what they’ll do then. Not to mention that Mike will find the loophole and point it out. What will Harvey say to him?

And if he just complies, then this can go away. Sure, he’ll have committed malpractice and broke confidentiality, which can sit on his shelve next to fraud.

Yet it will always be a threat hanging over his hand if he complies. They will know what they have is good and they can use it whenever they want, with each order getting more and more things they can use against him.

Harvey is stuck in a loop, the uncertainty of what the do draining him and making him anxious. He wants to go to Jessica, ask what she would recommend. He could tell her it’s just normal nude pictures and hear her advise without having to come out and face her opinion on that.

He knows he can’t do that, though. He has always told her that if he ever gets blackmailed with his sexual escapades, he’ll sue the hell out whoever tried and represent all the women who had to be exposed too pro-bono. Joking that all they’ll give him is free advertisement.

He can’t come back on that now. He’s alone.

The following days pass in a blur and he is sure that Mike and Donna are getting concerned for him as the time passes. He sees their exchanged glances and furrowed brows whenever he’s distracted or shrinks away from their touch. Shuts them out.

When they talk his mind drifts and he can’t stop it, when they ask him things it takes him a moment to respond, when they invite him he declines.

Harvey knows it’s obvious that something is going on with him and it’s frustrating that he can’t hide how he’s splitting at the seams. How he can’t even pretend he’s not crying himself to sleep each night, hating himself and hating that he hates himself.

His mind is making itself up against his will, but he’s tired of arguing with himself. He has worked hard for where he is today. And he vividly remembers those years at school before he was the sports star, when he was a bit of a posh kid, who the others called a poof and worse. Those were the darkest days of his life and he vowed never to be in that position again.

Besides, everyone already thinks he’s a dirty lawyer with no principles. Hell, he has committed a crime, what’s one more?

He doesn’t want to, but he doesn’t see another way.

Everyone’s eyes feel like judgments and he feels seen wherever he goes. He doesn’t go out anymore. He locks himself in his apartment, the safest place he has. And he just wants this to be done, to leave it behind and go on with his life.

Harvey loved his life, he doesn’t want to isolate himself, be upset, the feeling in his chest tightening with the second. He wants to say yes to drinks with Mike without fearing how it looks. Wants to joke with Donna without fearing she’ll know. Without others thinking of why he gets along with Donna so well, why he knows about her bags, without fitting stereotypes together into a semi-correct picture that’s Harvey doesn’t want to be forced into.

He just wants to leave it all behind him. So, he finds himself late in the office by himself, crumbling under the pressure.

Yesterday he got another package delivered to his office. More pictures. How the person keeps getting more and how long he has been watching Harvey, he doesn’t want to think about. But the message is clear: hurry up with your reply.

So, he is putting a loophole into his contract, so that Lemmin Inc. can wiggle out of it, trying to think of a reason to keep Mike away from the contract and a way to tell whoever is doing this to him that he’s complying.

When he is done, he feels empty inside. He mails Mike to focus on finding information about their opposition for the meeting the day after tomorrow and that he’ll focus on the contract. Then he goes home, crawling into bed and staring at his ceiling, deciding not to come in tomorrow.

The next day he moves through his apartment like a ghost. He’s giving up. The great Harvey Specter everyone, bending under the slightest threat. Tucking tail like a coward.

His phone rings and beeps, but Harvey doesn’t care. He only wishes to disappear and be forgotten by the world.

Harvey doesn’t know why he’s hit so hard by this. He thought he was okay with who he was, but then again, he has always hidden that side, believed himself to be subtle, treated it as a dirty secret and never said the word bisexual out loud.

He is a giant ball of over compensation and denial. And suddenly all the things he never fully accepted about himself have been dragged out into the open to be used against him.

Not only that, but he is powerless in face of it. Harvey has always prided himself on being the one to hold the power in conversations. He turns the biggest disadvantages into advantages. He is never powerless.

But here he is. He holds no power, he doesn’t even know who is leveraging this against him. He is vulnerable and weak and he hates it all.

He sits on his couch in his pajamas and his old oversized Harvard sweater he has dug up. In his lap is a pint of ice cream that he is eating, feeling terrible about his body too. However, he hasn’t been able to bring himself to go out running these past few weeks. All his outfits made him look feminine or were too gay.

Harvey thought he stopped caring about that a long time ago, ignore pimp and prissy comments about his appearance. Apparently not, though. He just taught himself to forget the judgments that come with it and it only took being reminded to slide right back.

Outside the sky brightens and darkens again, but Harvey doesn’t care. In his apartment he might be lonely, but he is also safe. They can’t get to him here.

He’s shaken out of his misery by a knock at his door. He freezes, waiting for Donna or Mike to start yelling to let them in, because he can’t think of anyone else coming here.

When neither are forthcoming, he gets curious. Cautiously he gets off the couch and makes his way to the door. He peers through the peep hole, coming face to face with an empty hallway. For a moment he thinks he has imagined it, then he steps on something.

Looking down he sees a manila envelope that had been badly shoved under his door. His hands start to shake as he opens the door to pick it up, needing to see what’s inside.

Innocently the envelope stares up at him as he struggles to open it, practically ripping it open as the contents partially fall out. His brain is buzzing as he grabs the few still in the envelope and looks at them. It is more pictures.

These pictures are different though. They’re not older pictures, but recent. Most of these were taken this week and he is clothed in all of them. He is also at home in all of them.

Blood freezes in his veins as he flips through them.

Him coming home, taking off his shoes. Him standing in the kitchen to cook. Him looking out over the skyline, phone in hand. Him crying on his couch…

Between the pictures there is a note: We can replace the camera with something else and a PO box with the date tomorrow beneath it. The deadline is before the meeting.

The fear grips him. It burns as it moves down his neck, sweat sprouting as it envelops his heart. He stumbles backwards, feeling the need to hide or flee, which one he isn’t sure yet, but he can’t focus on choosing.

Breathing is increasingly difficult and Harvey feels like he’s dying. His brain yells at him to get water for his dry throat, as if water will fix it. While another part flashes the picture of his kitchen in his mind to remind him it’s not safe there.

He stumbles through his apartment, hands thrust forwards to look for something he can hold onto that will end this.

In the end his knees give out and he hides behind his couch, huddling into himself to get away from prying eyes. His frame is shaking, he’s chocking on breaths he can’t probably inhale, he can barely see through blurry eyes and the fear overwhelms him.

‘We’re going to pass out!’ it screams. ‘We’re dying! This is it. We can’t breathe. Help!’

Suddenly there is a hand on his shoulder. Harvey can’t see and the blood rushing past his ears makes it hard to hear, so he’s defenseless as he shrinks away, waiting for the attack.

This is what they wanted, his brain tells him. They got you in a vulnerable position and now they’re coming for you and killing you.

Though his panic he doesn’t recognize the voice calling his name as Mike’s, who had gone up to check on him when he didn’t reply to messages all day, which was extra suspicious with the meeting coming up and how he’d been acting recently.

Mike, who had arrived to an open door, papers scattered everywhere and no reply to his call. Who had found Harvey curled up in a ball scared and not breathing right. Luckily, Mike knows quite a bit about panic attacks.

Slowly Harvey realizes that he’s not being grabbed and when Mike calls his name again, he recognizes him. He’s too relieved to be humiliated about how he must look that he can only say in strangled voice: “Mike?”

“Yeah, Harvey, it’s me, Mike,” Mike replies comfortingly. “I’m going to take your hand now, alright?”

Harvey nods, unable to do much more.

His hand is taken by Mike and he considers letting go. It’s a bit intimate, isn’t it? Somehow that scared thought is the only clear one between the panic. But then Mike places his hand against his chest and starts to do exaggerated breaths, encouraging Harvey to follow his lead.

Bit by bit, Harvey manages. Gasping breaths turning into shallow ones, before he is breathing semi-regularly. All throughout Mike keeps up a stream of approving comments, telling Harvey that he was doing so well and to just breathe.

“I’m fine,” is the first thing Harvey manages to say, scooting away from Mike, not seeing how it breaks Mike’s heart that he shies away like that.

“You’re not,” Mike tells him. “Please, Harvey, what happened? Stop shutting me out. You haven’t been yourself the past weeks. I’m worried about you.”

“Nothing happened,” Harvey lies, not sure why he even is at this point. Mike found him crying in the middle of a panic attack wearing sweatpants and an oversized sweater, he is beyond dignity right now.

“Your door was open and there were a bunch of papers on the ground,” Mike says. “I thought you were attacked. Please, Harvey, just talk to me.”

Again that please, so genuine and kind, just like Mike always is, those pleading eyes holding nothing but good intentions. All that can melt away. Harvey has seen it before. Mike just isn’t a friend he can risk like that.

“Let it go, Mike,” he asks, the request sounding like a plea even to his own ears.

“What are you caught up in that you can’t tell me?” Mike asks. “I know there is something, so don’t try to lie to me again. You’ve been distracted and you’re pushing me and Donna away. You weren’t answering your phone and you’re getting sloppy. I found a giant loophole in your contract. It’s what I came to talk to you about. Lemmin Inc. can nullify this deal whenever, if they want. It isn’t like you to let those things slip by you.”

Harvey cringes at Mike finding his shame. His defeat. Subconsciously he curls into himself and doesn’t meet Mike’s eyes.

In that moment, Mike knows something bigger is at play here and Harvey needs a moment, if Mike wants to convince him to talk. So, he pretends to let it go for the moment, getting up and offering a hand as he says: “Fine, if you don’t want to tell me. But you had a panic attack and I’m not leaving you alone without a cup of tea.”

He accepts Mike’s hand and tries to ignore the memory of the picture that is burned into his mind as he sits at the breakfast bar, Mike starting the kettle.

It’s quiet as the water boils and Mike takes a second to close the front door when going to the bathroom, picking up the scattered pictures on his way back. Curiosity winning out.

Harvey freezes while pouring the tea, his heart sinking as Mike reenters the kitchen holding a stack of pictures, concerned frown on his face. He meets Harvey’s eyes and asks: “What are these?”

“Pictures?” Harvey offers after swallowing thickly, setting the kettle aside and dropping to his chair, his knees a bit weak.

“Yeah, pictures of you in your apartment with a very obvious threat accompanying them,” Mike says. “What the hell is going on, Harvey? This is serious.”

The last thing Harvey wants to do is tell Mike why he found that giant loophole, but Harvey is exhausted, emotionally drained and tired of arguing. He just wants this to be done, cry some more, even get a hug if he dares to be honest.

“Harvey?” Mike prompts.

“I’m being blackmailed,” Harvey admits in a small voice.

“What?” Mike can’t stop the exclamation, hand slapping over his mouth as the word leaves his lips, though Harvey can’t blame him.

He curls into himself on the chair, cradling the cup closer. He bites his lips, then exhales, shoulders dropping as he replies: “I know.”

Mike gapes for a moment, then sets the pictures down on the counter, the one of Harvey crying staring up at him. He sits down next to Harvey and does the understanding face he uses on clients (one that is just genuine, but Harvey can never quite believe Mike does care about everyone he represents) to look at Harvey as he asks: “What do they have on you?”

“’m not telling you,” Harvey answers, only look down to the counter. “I’m not stupid.”

“I won’t use it against you I swear,” Mike promises. “One, I’m your friend and I just wouldn’t do that to you. And two, you know that I didn’t go to Harvard. You can quite literally ruin me whenever you please.”

“As you so kindly pointed out on your first day, you can take me down as well,” Harvey reminds him. “Trust me, when this,” he gestures between them, “goes to shit, your a little fish compared to me.”

Mike sighs, then tries again: “Still, I won’t use whatever it is again you. You’re in a rough spot, like I was with Trevor. Consider it returning to favor if that will convince you.”

Now it’s Harvey’s turn to sigh, burying his head in his arms. He doesn’t want Mike to know. He’s humiliated and insecure about it, maybe a bit disgusted with himself that he couldn’t stop himself from giving in to the temptation. Fuck, growing up Christian really fucks with a person.

But he’s also lonely and vulnerable. He’s been fighting this alone and all he wants is to have someone to lean on, something Mike is offering. Not only that, but Mike is Harvey’s closest friend next to Donna. He has proven himself to be trustworthy and somehow Harvey finds himself believing Mike’s promises.

“They have pictures of me with a few of my one night stands,” Harvey admits softly, hoping to obfuscate who the one night stands are if he can.

“They can’t spread those, if they do they’re violating section 245.15, section 52-B and 52-C,” Mike says. “Not to mention the blackmail and assault charges.”

“It’s not like I can just sue them,” Harvey replies. “I don’t even know who’s blackmailing me and if I do go to the police and the court about it, everyone will know what they have. I’ll be ruined, Mike.”

“Everyone knows you have a lot of one night stands. The pictures will be sealed by the courts and whoever is doing this will be locked up,” Mike argues, exactly what Harvey told himself on those nights he warred internally.

And if he wants to show Mike, why that is incorrect and he’ll still be ruined, then he will have to come clean – well, come out – about who those one night stands were. But Mike knows the law inside out, if anyone can figure something out, it’s Mike. So, he’ll just have to trust that the kid knows how to keep his mouth shut.

“It’s not like that,” Harvey starts, unable to verbalize it.

“What?”

Frustrated Harvey groans, then opens the drawer next to him wherein he has hidden all the other pictures so that he could check each morning that they hadn’t been touched. A small part of his brain knows that this is worse than just saying it, but his mouth is filled with spiderwebs and he can’t make the sounds necessary to tell Mike.

The picture he takes out is of him and a guy whose name he has forgotten. It’s a rather tame one, most of their clothes are still on. Nameless guy still has his shirt and jeans on and is busy unbuttoning Harvey’s shirt. They’re clearly kissing with Harvey being seated on the counter of the guy’s apartment, pressed back against it.

He always made sure to go home with guys, so he would be the one doing the walk of shame in the morning. It gave him the illusion from coming from anywhere, perhaps a lady. Control where he could get it.

“This is not exactly what they’re expecting,” he says, handing Mike the picture. Still unable to look him in the eye.

Next to him, Mike lets out a surprised noise as he sees what’s in the picture. Tensely Harvey waits for the other shoe to drop, the judgment that is about to come down.

“I didn’t know you were queer. What do you identify as? If you want to tell me, of course,” Mike breaks the silence in the most unexpected way.

Stunned, it takes Harvey a moment to find his words, then, for the first time in his life, he say: “I, uhm, I’m bi. Bisexual.”

Uncertainly he meets Mike’s eyes again and finds only kindness in them as Mike smiles: “Great! Me too. Thank you for trusting me with that.”

“What?” Harvey doesn’t even care that his voice is quivery and so, so small. He had never come out like that and to have Mike’s sincere thanks for his trust along with seemingly unconditional support is so much more than Harvey ever thought he would have.

“Yeah,” Mike says, not picking up on all that. “Let me tell you, Trevor as a best friend is pretty bad, but Trevor as a boyfriend is worse.”

Mike sounds so casual when talking about it, like there is no shame in being with another man. Not only physically, but emotionally too. He is comfortable with himself, confident and completely himself. He’s all Harvey never could be.

He isn’t aware of the tears that are falling again, until Mike frowns and wipes them away. A sympathetic look comes over his face. He smiles sadly and softly says: “I get it.” And Harvey believes him.

The tears turn into sobs as Harvey cries for all the things he never allows himself to have, all the ways he’s brought himself down, all the moments he didn’t take. All the loves he let go. He cries and lets himself be held by Mike as he does.

A part of him tells him this is weird. Mike is his friend, sure, but he’s also the kid’s boss and mentor, he shouldn’t be comforted like this by him. However, Mike is his equal too and Mike gets it. He isn’t alone here and after the horror that has been his life, he allows himself the bit of comfort he has been given.

Mike for his part, doesn’t complain. He sits there and rubs Harvey’s back as he whispers comforts into his hair and holds him, not caring about his shoulder getting soaked.

They sit there for what feels like hours, until Harvey can’t cry anymore and their tea has long since turned cold. As he runs out of tears to cry, the humiliation creeps in and when Harvey untangles himself, he again ignores Mike’s eyes as he leans back and crosses his own arms to create a barrier between them.

He hears Mike huff, but it sounds vaguely amused not offended or mocking. So, he risks a glance at his face surprised that he finds an easily, soft, almost expectant yet patient expression, like he is waiting for Harvey to gather his bearings.

When he sees Harvey looking up, he says: “It’s okay, promise. You have no clue how much I cried about figuring it all out. Here, I’ll make us a new cup of tea, you just sit for a second longer.”

The confusion that must be written all over his face is graciously ignored as Mike gives him his privacy while making tea. Harvey has never been more grateful for Mike than in that moment. The kid is kind and understanding without coming across as condescending or judgmental, not to mention loyal to the bone.

With Mike’s back turned, he wipes his eyes and blows his nose to get the runny, stuffy feeling away. He takes a few breaths and closes his eyes. The exhaustion of the panic attack, followed by the emotional roller coaster is starting to hit, but after stretching he feels a bit more awake.

By that time, Mike is done with the tea and sits back down next to Harvey: “Okay, so I’m thinking, we get comfortable and settle in for a long night to figure out what to do now. Are you okay with staying here?”

Harvey thinks for a moment. They can obviously follow his every move in here, maybe they’re even watching him now.

But with the deadline tomorrow, he hopes they won’t do anything yet. If they leave, they’ll know where Mike lives and he’s not letting them, nor is he booking a hotel room for them (it’s quite obvious Mike isn’t leaving and Harvey doesn’t want to admit how grateful he is for that), because he is aware of how that could be twisted in court if it comes to that.

“I’m fine here, if, uhm, if we can go to my study or something. A place with less windows,” he answers after a second of deliberation.

“Alright,” Mike agrees, getting up to follow Harvey, who leads him to his study, which has less windows to make place for all the books. As they leave the kitchen, Mike takes the threatening note with him.

All starts to feel a bit more normal again as Mike gapes at his study. He walks by all the books, eyes gliding over his spine. He comments: “Give me like, a month in here and I will be in heaven and a better lawyer, dude.”

“Don’t call me dude,” Harvey’s standard reply comes and he smirks at Mike standard pout as he launches into his standard protest of why he should be allowed to call Harvey dude.

Once they have gone through those motions and are sitting comfortably, Mike starts: “So, what do they want you to do? Like next to the giant loophole you put in that contract.”

Harvey cringes a bit when Mike mentions the contract and asks: “Did anyone besides you see that contract?”

“No, I thought the email was odd, so I read it and when I saw, I thought you were loosing it or something and didn’t want anyone to accidentally send it thinking it was the right one,” Mike replies with a shrug. “I deleted it. I could recreate it if you were really upset about it.”

“Thank you.” Harvey scares himself a bit by how sincere that was, but Mike deserves all the sincere thanks he can give him. And after all that has happened, he cuts himself some slack at the amount of control he has over his emotions.

Mike smiles. “Not a problem.” Then dives back into the previous conversation topic. “So, what did they want from you.”

“They wanted me to sabotage the take over and let Lemmin Inc. and they wanted me to give them weak points to exploit from both sides,” Harvey says, picking up the paper. “And deliver those to this address.”

“Hmm,” Mike hum as he inspects the paper, idly commenting: “So, basically make you break confidentiality and commit malpractice?”

“Jup,” Harvey sighs, slumping in his seat.

Across from him, Mike frowns at the paper. Curiously he says: “That’s odd.”

“What is?”

“I recognize that address from my delivery days,” Mike answers. “It’s a Lemmin Inc. PO box, so whoever is doing this is from inside the company.”

“Well, it’s not the CEO, he wants to sell to our client,” Harvey says. “So someone who doesn’t want that. Are employee’s being cut?”

“No, but whoever is next to take over the company will likely be pissed he’s not inheriting a successful company,” Mike replies, sitting up straighter as his eyes get the same look they always get when he’s mentally reading something over again. “Lynus Chairroot. CFO and the one to take over if the current CEO went. He wouldn’t like not running things. He has invested years in the company.”

“Chairroot,” Harvey repeats, thinking back if he remembers the man. A light goes on in his mind and he nods: “He’s the guy. I met him at a party years ago. He flirted with me, I turned him down. I thought he looked familiar.”

“Well, good call, I don’t think a guy who does this,” Mike gestures to the pictures, “would respect boundaries.”

“So we know who did it,” Harvey says. “Now what? We don’t have the time to get material against him, before the meeting tomorrow to leverage him into not doing anything with those pictures.”

“We don’t have to,” Mike tells him and he has that glint in his eyes he always gets whenever he thinks of something brilliant.

Harvey feels relief flood through his veins, that look means results, that look hasn’t failed him yet. Mike and his wonderful brain haven’t failed him yet. He prompts: “What are you thinking?”

“Blackmail and revenge porn are both a class A misdemeanor. Up to one year in jail and a fine up to 2.500 dollar, yeah? However, with this,” he holds up the threat from today, “this can be a stalking harassment case that falls under RCW 9A.46.020. That’s a class C misdemeanor punishable with up to five years behind bars and fines up to 10.000 dollar. What would you plead guilty to? We have evidence for both and it’s much better for us to file for stalking and these,” he holds up the not-nude pictures, “will be evidence enough.”

Slowly a grin appears on Harvey’s face as he gets what Mike is saying. “We just need to get him to plead guilty to blackmail and agree not to press charges in turn for all copies.”

“Exactly,” Mike says, looking quite pleased with himself.

“You’re becoming quite the lawyer,” Harvey compliments him.

Mike preens, but plays it off. “What can I say, I’m a natural.”

“Only one problem. How do we get him to sign that before the meeting tomorrow and what are we going to do if we come there without a deal, because my last one sucked,” Harvey asks.

“Well, one problem is fixed, I wrote a new deal and I was coming here to present it to you, but I got sidetracked,” Mike says and Harvey could kiss him (not like that, but metaphorically, Mike is his kid).

“Alright, so what do we do about Chairroot?”

“Uhm, it’s 11 PM now, right?”

“Yeah.”

“Not an unreasonable hour. We can just call him and tell him to meet us,” Mike suggests.

“And why the hell would he do that?”

“I don’t know, if the guy you’re blackmailing figures out it’s you and contacts you, one might be inclined to hear you out?” Mike shrugs. “You’re the expert manipulator here.”

Harvey thinks it over and has to agree with the kid, so he asks if he has a number. The kid, of course, read it somewhere and rattles it off without issue. Soon, Harvey is listening to the dial tone, Mike working on their affidavit.

It doesn’t take long for a nasally voice to greet: “Lynus Chairroot speaking, who is calling at this hour?”

“Hi, Lynus, this is Harvey Specter,” Harvey greets finding sick joy in the terrified swallow that comes through.

“Why are you calling me,” Chairroot bravely squeaks. “You’re not allowed to talk to me without my lawyer present.”

“Oh, but I am,” Harvey informs him pleasantly. “Lemmin Inc. is hired by the CEO not the CFO and I’m not here on my clients behalf, nor here for Lemmin Inc. business. We both know that. I’m here for you, Lynus, on behalf of myself.”

“I- I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

“Cut the crap, Lynus,” Harvey hisses. “You’ve been blackmailing me – well, trying to, at least – and I’m done with it.”

“You’re crazy,” Chairroot accuses in a last ditch effort.

“We both know I’m not. You have strong motive, you even gave me your address. And when I sue you, I’ll subpoena your records and they’ll show all the people you hired to follow me and how much you paid them to do so,” Harvey informs him. “So, let’s not play dumb.”

There is a silence, then a sigh, before Chairroot goes: “Yeah, it was me. What do you want?”

Harvey raises a brow at Mike, who nods. The phone is on speaker and Mike can be his witness, his amazing memory making him very reliable. They already have a confession.

“I want to meet,” Harvey says. “Central Park, Ballfields Cafe. Meet me in an hour. Bring all the copies you have. All of them.”

“Alright,” Chairroot agrees and hangs up.

When he does, Mike speaks up and says: “This guy is a fucking idiot.”

“Yeah, he is,” Harvey says, getting up. “I’m taking a shower. How’s the affidavit coming along?”

“If he signs, we’re solid,” Mike says.

Harvey nods, before going to shower. He scrubs off all the eyes he has felt on his skin, all the tears and the terrible few weeks he’s had. When he’s done he changes his sweatpants in for a suit, putting on the layers like an armor.

He’s the great Harvey Specter and he can crush whoever he likes, no matter what they think they have on him.

When he’s done, he checks his reflection one last time in the mirror, nodding in satisfaction at the confident man looking back at him. Then he takes a deep breath, before leaving the bathroom, ready to face Chairroot.

Mike is waiting for him, giving him the affidavit to look over while he hails a taxi.

They arrive at Central Park just in time and walk over to the closed down cafe. Chairroot is waiting for them, briefcase in hand. A rage comes over Harvey at the sight of him, but he suppresses it under a cold demeanor as he greets: “Lynus.”

“Harvey,” Chairroot returns the greeting. “You didn’t come alone,” he asks an unspoken question.

“Never said we had to,” Harvey informs him with a shark-like grin.

“I brought all the copies,” Chairroot offers, showing the briefcase.

“And the digital ones?”

“Deleted them all,” Chairroot says. “Except for the ones on the USB drive that’s in here.”

“Alright,” Harvey nods, he doesn’t trust Chairroot, but if this goes right, he’ll have leverage to throw him in jail, so he lets it go. “I want to make a deal.”

“What kind of deal?” Chairroot asks.

“You’ll sign this affidavit admitting you tried to blackmail Harvey, hand over all the copies and in turn we won’t sue you into the ground,” Mike tells him, presenting the affidavit to him with a flourish.

“Why would I do that?” Chairroot chuckles. “If you sue me, all these pictures will circulate and your dirty secret will be seen by everyone.”

Harvey feels his hands tighten into fists and he can barely speak through the anger. Fortunately, Mike is there and does the talking. “Because if we sue you, we’re not suing you for blackmail, but for stalking harassment, which has up to five years in prison and fines up to 10.000 dollars. And trust me when I say that we’ll ensure you’re getting the maximum sentence possible.”

“You can’t do that,” Chairroots says, starting to look scared.

“But we can,” Mike informs him with a grin he learned for Harvey. “You gave us many, less compromising pictures, of Harvey in his own apartment, not to mention a death threat. We won’t ever need to mention the other pictures at trial and if you do, we can just sue you for blackmail, revenge porn, maybe we can even make it inflammation.”

“You’re stuck, Lynus,” Harvey tells him gleeful. “Just sign the damn papers.”

“I have to discuss this with my lawyer,” Chairroot protests.

“Too bad, this deal expires when we leave this meeting,” Harvey says.

Chairroot is sweating and Mike and Harvey wait calmly for him to crack. They know how to play this game and right now, they’re holding all aces. It’s just a matter of time.

“Alright, give me a pen,” and there Chairroot breaks.

Under their careful eyes, he signs the paper and Mike snatches it back and puts it away safely, while Harvey accepts the copies. As he does he leans in close and hisses: “If you ever try anything like this again, I have you by the balls. And next time, I’m kicking your ass. So, these better are all the copies, clear?”

Terrified Chairroot nods and assures Harvey that these are indeed all the copies.

Satisfied with the deal and glad to leave the whole thing behind him, Harvey walks away. Mentally he is already deciding to invest in privacy windows everywhere, not just his bedroom, but overall he thinks he’ll be able to live in his apartment without issue in due time after this. Mostly he’s just happy that it is all over.

However, the whole thing has drained him and he falls asleep in the cab back. He wakes up after Mike pokes him a few times and furrows his brow, which makes the other laugh.

“Come one,” Mike tells him. “Donna told me once your guest mattress is the softest and I’m not about to be deprived of that.”

And it isn’t until Mike says that that Harvey can let go of the entire thing. Tonight he doesn’t want to be alone and he doesn’t have to, because Mike is there and Mike will always be there by his side, no matter what.

To make Mike smile, he puts on an old man act as he groans and stretches when getting out of the cab. It works and he’s pleased with himself.

In the condo, they gather all the pictures and Harvey puts them in a box and hides them deep in a closet, hoping he’ll never have to find them to use as evidence.

After that he loans Mike some sweats and a t-shirt to sleep in, changing back into his own pajamas too as he gets Mike a new toothbrush. They brush their teeth together and Harvey rolls his eyes at Mike attempting to talk while brushing his teeth.

It’s weirdly comfortable and Harvey realizes he’s never felt more at ease than in this moment.

He loves his father, but the man wasn’t the best in pushing something other than straight masculinity and that damaged Harvey more than he had realized. Until now, he hadn’t noticed how much of his brain was occupied with projecting the ‘right’ image. And now tired he is of censoring it all.

“What are you thinking off?” Mike asks, finally spitting out his toothpaste, thank god.

“I don’t know,” Harvey shrugs. “Just that I want to let go of all the straight toxic stuff, but I can’t, now can I? You see how that turns out.”

Mike thinks about it for a second, then says: “I mean, I get why you don’t want anyone to know. It’s not like I’m very open about it at work, but you shouldn’t have hide a part of yourself if you don’t want to.”

“How?” Harvey asks, for once inexperienced and unsure somewhere.

“Well, I would start with creating an environment you do feel comfortable,” Mike shrugs. “It’s easier if you know other queer people. I’m your friend, right? You can start there. I’ll show you the queer classic movies and you can comment on the hotness of all actors without judgment. If you’re comfortable there, I can take you to meet some more of my queer friends. After that, it’s finding where you’re the most comfortable.”

“It’s that easy?” Harvey raises a brow that tells Mike he doesn’t believe him, but it also hides how touched he is that Mike is there for him without question or hesitation.

“Nothing is that easy,” Mike smiles, “but it’s not as terrible as you will fear. Promise.”

“Thank you,” Harvey says, the word not enough for all he does want to say, but he can’t find the words for that.

“Of course,” Mike smiles, as if he gets it. And, if he’s honest, Harvey knows that Mike does get it, which is only more comforting.

Then Mike opens his arms and grins: “Come on. Lesson one, hugs are great and contrary to what society told you, you can enjoy them just as well. So, bring it in. You need one.”

Harvey hesitates for a second, then realizes this is one of the least embarrassing things he’s done this evening. So, he steps into Mike’s arms and lets himself be hugged, even hugging back after a second.

Mike is right, of course. The hug is nice and Harvey closes his eyes as he lets the stress and sadness melt away, a calming comfort coming over him.

When they let go, Harvey feels much better and he smiles at Mike, who cheekily says: “See, the world didn’t end.”

“You’re an idiot,” Harvey informs him.

“And you chose to be my friend anyway,” Mike informs him happily. “Now, I have a mattress to disappear into, so I will see you tomorrow. Goodnight.”

“Goodnight,” Harvey replies as Mike disappears into the guest room.

He knows he has a long road to go, before he will be comfortable with who he is, but he isn’t alone anymore and he isn’t scared. He knows he has someone he can rely on and that makes all the difference to him.

A/N:

Ngl, I made myself upset at the image of Harvey crying by himself, yet not alone, to be exploited and used against him. Like, bro, he already has so many trust issues (amongst others) why am I doing this to him??

I also know more about law now, so go me. This will never be useful in any other context bc I do not live in New York or America in general and likely never will.

((also for my fellow nerds both Lynus and Chair are based off roots for the word Lemon aka the word on which I based Lemmin))

For those confused about why this is a request, these were left on my ao3 in the comments. But I prefer to get them here, so I dont loose them. However, these people didn't have a tumblr, so free pass ;p

#RR writing #tw: stalking #tw: blackmail #tw: internalized homophobia #tw: homophobia mention #tw: panic attack #harvey specter #harvey and mike #mike ross #suits tv show #suits fanfic #suits tv #suits #request

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hb-writes · 3 years

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Thank you? No one has ever said that to me before.

Inspired by my 100+ lovely followers, @love-me-a-good-prompt’s “THANK YOU IDEAS” prompt list, and those fun OC questions we tried out a few weeks ago when I wasn’t able to write a thing.

Summary: After having her wisdom teeth removed, Charlie Specter is brought to her brother’s office to recuperate. High on pain meds, she ends up doing a bit of stand up comedy in the bullpen and gives Mike a compliment he will never forget.

Featuring: Mike Ross, Rachel Zane, and Charlie Specter

-----

Mike first caught a glimpse of Charlie behind Rachel’s head, just sparing her a quick glance at first before realization hit him and he took in the whole scene--the suit jacket draped over her shoulders, the moccasin slippers, the puffy cheeks, and sleep ravaged hair, all of it up on a swivel chair in the bullpen for everyone to see.

“Shit,” Mike said, stopping Rachel mid-sentence and her eyes followed his.

“Aren’t you supposed to be looking after her?” Rachel said.

“She was asleep,” he answered. “Like completely out. I thought--”

“Well, she’s certainly not now.”

Mike was meant to be watching Charlie while Harvey was in a meeting and Donna was out getting lunch, and he had checked on her, twice already, actually. She’d been asleep both times, practically comatose, entirely immune to his poking or calling her name, but still breathing. He’d double checked on that.

Donna had told him Charlie would probably sleep until Harvey finished up for the day. The girl was strongly affected by pain killers, always had been. Yet despite Donna’s assurances, here Charlie was giving impressions to the associates.

“The only time succc--succck--suck-cess comes before work!” Charlie pointed at the nearest associate, Harold, the words slurring as they came through her lips. “Is in the dictionary. I worked all day and all night and walked up hill both ways to get to the office in the snow and rain so now I’m a big important law man with a corner office. And I dress better than everyone in this room. And no one can tell me what to do.”

She showed off the sleeves of the suit jacket before bowing dramatically, like a court jester before royalty.

Mike stepped out of his cubicle. “I should, uh--”

“Handle that?” Rachel suggested, eyebrows raised as she looked to the youngest Specter, a small smirk on her face.

“Yeah, I should go handle that,” Mike said, whispering ‘shit’ once again to himself as Charlie moved on to introducing an impersonation of Louis.

Mike moved across the bullpen, stopping in front of the girl on the swiveling chair and reaching out for her hand. “Charlie, you have to come down from there.”

A smile broke out on her face, the chair spinning a bit as she jolted excitedly. “Mike! Everyone, look! It’s Michael Ross. First year associate, olympic bicyclist, grammy’s boy, teddy bear collector, an--”

“Alright, that’s enough of--” Mike started, steadying the chair.

“Mike, I’m gonna do Louis next!”

“No, Charlie, c’mon,” he said. “Come down from there.”

“No, I’m--” Mike wasn’t sure how exactly, but he pulled her from the chair and into his arms in a swift move and Charlie immediately wrapped her arms around his neck, a pout on her face.

“But I was gonna talk about prunies and bran bars and cats and mudding and...” she mumbled, an exaggerated pout on her lips. “I had a whole thing planned.”

“That was planned?” Mike asked, eyebrow raised.

“Obviously, Michael,” she said, rolling her eyes. “Wait, no. I just came up with it. I’m very spontaneous, Mike. Very, very clever. The cleverest person in the building, probably.”

“I can see that.”

“Wanna know how I’d impersonate you?” Charlie cleared her throat and attempted to sit up straighter, forgetting she was in Mike’s grasp, forgetting that the only thing keeping her from falling to the floor was Mike’s arms under her knees and around her back.

“I’m Mike. Pew, pew, pew,” she said, shooting finger guns at him. “You’re stupider than me because you’re not as smart or cool and you don’t have any skinny little ties.”

Charlie laughed to herself. “Oh! Oh! And!” She cupped her hands over Mike’s ear. “And I’m in loOoOoOove with Rachel,” she whispered, giggles erupting from her lips in between the words.

Mike’s cheeks burned as Charlie continued to giggle in his arms.

“You’re high as a kite, Charlie.”

“No, I’m not! I’ve never even heard of drugs...or alcohol! Hugs not drugs, Michael.” She poked him in the cheek. “You should listen to that advice.”

“I’ll do that,” Mike answered. “Do you even remember taking pain killers?”

“I didn’t take any pain killers.‘I’m’ ‘very’ ‘sensitive’ ‘to’ ‘them’,” she answered, a deliberate pair of air quotes assigned to each of the words. “Wait, can I take some? A pretty doctor pulled my teeth out today.”

Mike sighed as he set her feet on the ground just inside of Harvey’s office.

“Let’s just get you back to sleep.”

Mike took the suit from her shoulders and tossed it over one of the arm chairs.

“But now I don’t look fancy.”

“Well, how about I give you this nice fancy blanket instead?” he suggested, holding it up.

Charlie smiled, snatching the blanket from Mike’s hands before running and jumping onto Harvey’s couch. Mike picked up the pillow that had fallen on the floor when she pounced and dropped it on the couch beside her.

“I think I’m a little tired,” Charlie said, lowering her head to the pillow. “Stand up is hard work, Mike. You should keep your day job.”

“Thanks for the advice,” Mike answered.

“Can you tuck me in?” Charlie asked. “Harvey always tucks me in.”

“Always?” Mike asked.

Charlie nodded as Mike pulled the blanket up under her chin and settled it around her.

“But it’s a secret. He thinks I’m asleep when he does it, but sometimes I’m not,” she whispered.

Mike nodded. “Do you need anything else?”

Charlie shook her head, snuggling further under the blanket as Mike sat in the armchair beside her. Charlie mumbled his name.

“Yeah?” Mike asked.

She was looking to the ceiling or at least she hadn’t bothered turning to look at him.

“Can I tell you another secret?”

“One more, then you should get some rest.”

“You have really pretty blue eyes,” she mumbled. “Pretty like a blue... colored... pencil.”

Mike snorted, shaking his head a moment. “Thank you? No one, uh, well...no one has ever said that to me before.”

“The prettiest of pretty blue colored pencils,” she continued. “Crayola ones, not Roseart. You’re like Crayola, like a...”

“Like a what?” Mike asked, leaning forward enough to see that Charlie had passed out mid-sentence.

Charlie’s birthday wasn’t for a little over a month yet, but Mike already had a plan for her gift. Sure, he’d end up with a few extra art supplies lying around, but the idea of Charlie unwrapping a package containing various shades of blue colored pencils was simply too good an opportunity to pass up.

Suits (Lines to Live By) Masterlist

#suits fanfic #suits fanfiction #suits usa #specter!sister #mike ross #harvey specter #charlie specter #lines to live by #rachel zane #louis litt #100 follower thank you

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statusquoergo · 3 years

Text

Another prompt! No angst this time, we’re skipping straight ahead to:

Things you said while you were drunk/high

[Read on AO3]

He didn’t mean for it to happen. He didn’t plan it or anything like that. He didn’t get out of bed this morning and decide that today was going to be such a goddamn fucking nightmare that all he’d be able to think about on the ride home was rolling that joint he picked up from the coffee cart guy on his lunch break and lighting up before dinner. It just sort of happened.

But maybe— Maybe, maybe he did plan it. Maybe he planned it and he didn’t even know it. Maybe he planned it, but he kept it a secret just in case— Just in case someone at work started asking questions, because that way it wouldn’t be a lie if they asked if he was in possession of any “narcotics” or whatever, because he wouldn’t know that he was going to— Going to be in… In the future…

“Dude.” Mike raises his hand, marveling at the way his fingers pinch neatly around the twisted paper. “This is the good shit.”

Harvey smirks, throwing his arms over the back of the sofa as the light shining in through the curtains splits around him in an ethereal glow.

“So you feel better?”

He does. He really, really does.

“Good.”

Yeah.

Wait, did he— Did I— Can Harvey read minds?

Harvey cocks his eyebrows. “Not that I know of.”

Mike squints and leans forward. “Are you sure?”

“Yes.” Harvey frowns. “Do I need to cut you off?”

Mike raises the joint again and peers at it critically.

“I’ll cut myself off, thank you,” he says, dropping it on a stack of books on the coffee table.

“Uh huh.” Harvey reaches out to retrieve the smoldering grass and drop it into a mug lined with sticky coffee residue. “Make sure you sleep it off, I’ll see you at the office tomorrow.”

“Ye-ep.”

Shaking his head, Harvey heaves himself to his feet as Mike waves goodbye. It was so nice of him to come over and look out for Mike; he’s always looking out for Mike, what a nice guy. A good person.

A good person who is leaving Mike alone, what the fuck?

“Dude!” Mike flails his waving arm wildly, his heels banging against the floor as he tries to stand under his own power in the face of Harvey’s bemused gaze. “Dude!”

“What have I told you about calling me that,” Harvey mutters, stepping back as Mike finally manages to leverage himself into a more or less upright position. “What’s wrong, you need me to walk you to the bathroom before I go?”

“No,” Mike says, “no, you’re— Where are you going?”

“Uh.” Harvey looks back over his shoulder at the front door. “Home?”

“But it’s my hour of need!”

Harvey arches his eyebrows again, pursing his lips in a mild effort to hide a teasing grin.

“I can see that,” he says. “And you’re a grown man, I’m pretty sure you can take care of yourself.”

Yeah but that— That— That is so not the point!

“Uh huh.” Harvey crosses his arms over his chest. “Enlighten me.”

Sooner or later, he’ll figure out this whole “speaking out loud” thing.

Not important right now.

“The point,” he over-enunciates, stabbing his finger toward Harvey’s face, “is that you’re leaving me.”

Harvey narrows his eyes and leans away from Mike’s hand. “I’m going home.”

But he— But they— But why—

Well shit.

Mike glowers.

“You’re cheating on me.”

You thought you could get away with it, you bastard? Thought you could pull the wool over my eyes? Well, think again, because nobody, but nobody cheats on Michael James Ross!

Frozen for a moment, Harvey drops his arms to his sides as his whole body seems to sag toward the ground. Well if he didn’t want to be caught like this, he shouldn’t have done it in the first place, should he? How about that, huh?

“Cheating,” he repeats. “On you.”

“It’s Donna, isn’t it?”

Seeming to regain his bearings in stages, Harvey sets his shoulders back to right his posture and sticks his hands into his pockets. “It’s not Donna,” he says. Mike tries not to feel patronized, but come on. Would you listen to this guy?

“Scottie,” he guesses as Harvey’s smile starts to grow.

“Nope.”

“Jessica.”

“Extraordinarily bad idea.”

“Donna.”

“You already said that.” Harvey’s smile twitches into a smirk, and he shakes his head. “Look, Mike, I promise you, I’m not…cheating on you. I’m just going home, I’m going to get something to eat and I’m going to go to bed. Alone. I’ll see you at the office, we can talk about this tomorrow. Okay?”

“The romance is dead!”

“Goodnight, Mike.”

“Dead!”

---

Work doesn’t go well the next day, exactly, but it does go better, and that’s about all Mike can ask for out of this clusterfuck of a merger agreement. At least those sons of bitches from Branch & Thompson have finally started returning his calls, even if talking to them makes him want to claw his own face off. Okay, so, he’ll treat himself to a long lunch to clear his head a little. He probably shouldn’t; he really doesn’t have that sort of time right now, but who’s going to give him shit about it? Nobody who wants to risk getting pulled in on this case, that’s for sure. That is to say…nobody.

Stretching his arms high above his head, Mike screws his face up in an exaggerated yawn that earns him at least a couple of irate looks from the other associates. He offers a perfunctory wave, hauling himself out of his chair and shuffling toward the elevators.

“Good night?”

Mike squeezes his eyes shut and blinks them open as Harvey ambles up to his side.

“I’ve had worse.”

Harvey nods sagely.

“I guess I should thank you.”

Sticking his thumbs into his pockets, Mike looks at the ticker beside the elevator doors, watching the numbers climb way too slowly for a building with leasing fees as high as this one.

“What for?”

“For, you know. Forgiving me.”

Mike frowns, a vague hint of unease settling in the back of his mind around a memory made up more of mixed emotions than any concrete events or actions in which he may have partaken.

“For what?”

Shifting his gaze sideways, Harvey curls one side of his mouth into a smirk, his eyes crinkling up at bit at the corners.

“Abandoning you, of course.”

Abandoning? Mike bites his tongue. That’s… That doesn’t sound quite right, but then what…

“I didn’t say that,” he hazards.

“Didn’t you?” Harvey hums under his breath. “My mistake. You know, I think you’re right; what was it you said, you said I was cheating on you, that’s what it was.”

Mike clears his throat in time with the elevator doors opening.

“I did not.”

“Oh,” Harvey says, reaching to hold the door open, “but you did.”

Clearing his throat again, Mike fixes his eyes pointedly on the button panel and leaves Harvey to snicker to himself as they ride down. The reprieve lasts a good ten floors, but he really should have known better than to think Harvey would keep his mouth shut.

“Is it too much to ask if you’ll forgive me for forgetting our anniversary?”

Mike grits his teeth.

“Or where we went on our first date?”

They’re already on the twenty-seventh floor; this can’t go on too much longer.

“How about we try a do-over at il Buco this Saturday?”

Wait.

Mike turns his head abruptly and tries to keep his mouth from falling open.

“What?”

Harvey shrugs minutely.

“You don’t like Italian?”

“No, I,” Mike fumbles, “I…like Italian.”

“Great.” Harvey smiles again, stepping forward as the doors open on the lobby. “I’ll pick you up at eight.”

“What?”

Harvey waves distractedly as he walks toward the front doors. “See you tomorrow night!”

“What— Harvey!”

#marvey #ficlet #humor #things you said

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olehistorian · 4 years

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https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/the-interview-imelda-staunton-is-tight-lipped-on-playing-the-crowns-future-queen-pkzpb76b2

Have you watched Vera Drake lately? Obviously, you have to be in a certain Saturday-night mood to turn off The Masked Singer and choose to put on Mike Leigh’s tale of a big-hearted backstreet abortionist in the East End in 1950. But it’s worth another visit. It’s one of the great British films and turbo-boosted the careers of many a character actor. Leading the ensemble cast in the title role — in an Oscar-nominated, Bafta-winning performance — was Imelda Staunton, who would become queen of them all. And possibly even the Queen. We’ll come to that.

“Just the best, best, best job of my life,” is how Staunton reflects on Vera Drake now. “Yeah, it was very hard to continue after that.”

After Vera Drake, Staunton had the little-old-lady role pretty much sewn up. The “little” is unavoidable. She’s 5ft nothing. In the hotel sideroom in which we meet, she fidgets on the edge of an armchair, sipping a juice a similar shade of green to her blouse and trench coat, which she keeps on throughout the interview. The “old” is perhaps more unfair: she was in her forties when she played Drake. We meet the day before her 64th birthday. “I think a lot of women now don’t think about their age because it’s changed for women, hasn’t it?”

She did “harrowing” again last year in ITV’s true-crime A Confession, playing the mother of Sian O’Callaghan, the 22-year-old from Swindon who was murdered in 2011. But otherwise, of late, she’s been — in the nicest way possible — British cinema’s arch biddy: in the gay-rights drama Pride; in Nanny McPhee; in the Downton Abbey movie alongside her husband, Jim Carter, who plays the long-suffering butler Carson; and as Professor Dolores Umbridge in the Harry Potter films. It all comes back to Mike Leigh. “I wouldn’t have got Harry Potter if my profile hadn’t been upped with Vera Drake,” she says. “They might have wanted me, but I wasn’t, you know, hot enough.”

At the end of last year, it was reported that the ultimate little-old-lady part was coming Staunton’s way: succeeding Olivia Colman as the Queen in series five and six of The Crown. Netflix played it down as “speculation”. But at a charity event at the Ivy before Christmas, Grant Tucker, the Sunday Times entertainment correspondent, asked Staunton’s husband, Carter, what it was like being married to royalty. “Thankfully I don’t have to start bowing to her for another two years,” he replied, “so I have plenty of time to practise.” So it’s true? Staunton’s reply is immediate, polite and professional: “I can’t discuss anything to do with that.” Which isn’t, you’ll note, a no.

She tells me she woke up at 4am today, thinking about her next big gig — Hello, Dolly! at the Adelphi Theatre. It isn’t on until August. Rehearsals don’t start until June. But “to me, that’s 10 minutes”, she says. “I just know the process is beginning. As Jim said, ‘This is the rest of the year, is it?’ I think about it and think about it. ‘How the hell am I going to do that?’ [Past success] means nothing at all, because it’s the next challenge. The more people say, ‘Ooh, it’s going to be great,’ the more I just get so depressed.”

And what success. In the West End, she’s busted free of the twinsets to become a bona fide, big-lunged musical star — a pocket rocket with a trail of five-star reviews and awards in her wake. Her first Olivier was back in 1991, for Into the Woods. In 2013, she won one for Sweeney Todd, in which she appeared alongside Michael Ball. Stephen Sondheim saw her performance and told her she should take on a revival of Gypsy next. The 2016 Olivier followed for that.

Her dog, Molly, a terrier, appeared on stage with her in the early performances of Gypsy, at the Chichester Festival Theatre. One time, during the West End run, a mouse snuck into her costume. “I did the whole first 20 minutes with a mouse inside the sleeve of my coat, singing the song, carrying on the scene. It’s good what your head can cope with, isn’t it?” It’s not the sort of thing that should happen to a Harry Potter star, surely? “That’s what you want. That’s the reality of the glamour of the thing.”

Staunton grew up in Archway, north London, above her mum’s hairdressing shop. Her dad was a labourer. Her mum, a first-generation Irish immigrant, was a big fan of the Queen. She died just before her daughter received her Oscar nomination for Vera Drake, and before Staunton collected her OBE and later CBE from the palace. “She’d have bloody loved all that,” she says.

She went to a convent school — “a really nice one because we had a lot of lay teachers”. Her report cards read: “Imelda could try harder, but she was very good in the play.” Her elocution teacher, Mrs Stoker, pushed her towards Rada, where contemporaries included Alan Rickman, Timothy Spall and Juliet Stevenson. When she got her first job in London, in 1982, it was in a musical: Guys and Dolls at the National Theatre. Staunton, by now used to lead roles, was only in the chorus. “I was thinking, ‘I just played Electra, what am I doing? Oh God.’” But Ian Charleson, Bob Hoskins, Julie Covington and Julia McKenzie were higher up the bill. “That’s what I was doing there: learning, really, really learning. That was wonderful.”

Also in the cast, seven years her senior, was Jim Carter. They married the following year. In 1986 they appeared together in Dennis Potter’s classic TV musical The Singing Detective. But, until the Downton movie, their working lives seldom intersected. “We don’t ever try not to work together — we just haven’t,” she says. “On the Downton film, we got completely overexcited, as we went to work for three days at the same time. What was lovely was doing the publicity together: travelling, just being in a hotel. We made sure we enjoyed ourselves.”

They have had a long-standing pact not to spend more than a couple of weeks apart, a rule Staunton broke to film Ang Lee’s Taking Woodstock (no, me neither). “I think it was five weeks: I was in America and thought, ‘Yep, that’ll do.’”

She enjoyed last summer filming Flesh and Blood, a new four-part ITV drama, on the coast near Eastbourne. “The sea does do something different to you, doesn’t it? I do think it would be brilliant to have somewhere by the sea, but it’s not going to happen.” She’s happy at home in Hampstead with Carter, walking the dog, spending days at the Test match and doing the gardening: “That’s probably an older person’s thing to say. Well, f*** it, you know? It’s healing, really healing. Having a stable place to come back to is quite necessary for me and for Jim, I think. It nourishes us. It allows us to go into a place that isn’t comfortable because you know you can get back to a more comfortable place.”

Flesh and Blood is an example of good parts being written for older people, especially women. “I’m encouraged by it,” says Staunton. “Very encouraged.” It’s not so much a whodunnit as a whodunnwot. In its rather gripping first episode, there’s a mystery body on a beach and a recent widow (played by 74-year-old Francesca Annis) starting a new life with a new fella who has a whiff of the gigolo about him. Staunton is back as the little old lady, Mary, a creepy next-door neighbour with a pair of binoculars and penchant for opening other people’s mail. This primetime drama does contain scenes of pensioners smooching.

“It’s not just for the sake of it,” says Staunton. “This isn’t trying to be ‘Oh, we’re beautiful things having sex later in life.’ There’s a loving relationship developing. The fact that [in one of Annis’s scenes] the dressing gown slips off is not extraordinary.” Would Staunton ever want a crack at being the older woman getting the, ahem, action? “I don’t think that would be required,” she replies. “I don’t think so, no — not unless it was funny.”

We talk about the trial of the film producer Harvey Weinstein. What experience has Staunton had of that grim — and criminal — casting- couch culture? “None. Absolutely none,” she says. “I’m not surprised [that it goes on], but I’ve always been in situations where women are treated equally. In the rehearsal room, women behave as they wish to behave and are listened to, and that’s normal. I never thought, ‘Oh, isn’t this marvellous, somebody’s listening to me?’ I’ve never witnessed it, but I hope good will come out of this. The irony of that” — she pauses to choose the word carefully — “situation is that that man [Weinstein] has made good things happen now. Hurrah.”

It won’t come as too much of surprise that she voted Labour in last month’s election — her MP, Tulip Siddiq, has a 14,000-vote majority in Hampstead and Kilburn, Glenda Jackson’s old seat. Staunton voted for remain. She also featured in a video last year for Extinction Rebellion, organised by Richard Curtis. “It was a friend who said, ‘Could you come along, they’re just doing it today, this bit of filming.’ Well, I was doing nothing else. I’m not climbing up the side of a building, so I’ll go and do that. If I can help, I’ll do that. As much as we can all do, every little bit helps.”

Does she worry about putting her head above the parapet like that? “No, not at all. That’s the only bloody point of any slight fame: you’ve got to use it, to put it to good use.” She has also provided the voice for some polar bears for Greenpeace. “Trump is just an absolute … It’s just a nightmare, and the climate’s a nightmare and Brexit’s a nightmare. And yet I wake up thinking about Hello, Dolly!”

At 64, Staunton seems to recognise that a Vera Drake or Hello, Dolly! might not roll round again. Even Harry Potter was, she says, “a very serious piece of work, weirdly”. She feels lucky that an actor’s life goes on. So no plans to retire? “I don’t think people do, do they? Name me an actress! No, you won’t get bloody Maggie Smith retiring. It’s a very nice job, if you can get it.” Plus, she’s still hoping someone will cast her alongside her 26-year-old daughter, Bessie, also an actress. “I’d love that. Let’s keep our fingers crossed.”

I hope they do give her the Queen job. If there’s anyone who could add some plausibility and empathy to the madcap past 12 months of royal history, from Megxit to the sweat-free antics of Prince Andrew, it is Staunton. I would pay good money to watch her, in standard-issue HRH lemon-yellow frock and tight-curled wig, look up, fix her aide with a stare and utter the words: “A Pizza Express … in Woking?”

Flesh and Blood is on ITV in February

#imelda staunton #interview #new projects #jim carter #real life otp #the crown #downton abbey film

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jaawriter · 4 years

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Inevitable - a Darvey fanfic

Disclaimer: I don’t own anything. If I did I would have more money.

__________________

“Do you want to come in?”

“Not tonight.”

There is a question that she only just swallows back, that he saw on her face before she shut the door.

Not tonight. Which night then?

He can’t do that thing, that thing she does, where she conjures truth and meaning from seemingly nowhere - but he does know her as well as possibly anyone else, and it’s not clairvoyance but it could be. He knows what it means when she looks at him quietly, instead of spelling out the reality of what’s going on for him. He knows what she’s thinking when she gives that slight shake of her head, breaks eye contact, and then that pause, that silence. It’s the loudest quiet he ever feels, the loudness of her withdrawing from him because she knows if she says, out loud, what she feels and what she wants to say, she would break him - because as much as he knows her, she knows him.

She sees who he is. His fear, his clumsiness, his pretence. She sees all of it. She knows his bones and how they’re always primed, waiting for the next betrayal. She can predict the flashes of brilliance and greatness that peek out from time to time, when the chips are down and he finds himself in situations where the only thing that can happen is that who you really are punches through the noise. She knows the tension under his skin, knows he’s never truly relaxed, knows he’s waiting for the next one to leave. Knows there’s a part of him that believes they all leave. That one day, she will leave.

She knows him. Knows him like nobody else in the world.

But he also knows every fibre of her, her radiance and light and goodness, all her fabric, seen and unseen, and it’s not really fair on either of them. Because he hates the idea of letting anyone else know her the way he does, hates the idea that anybody would know her fabric so well they could unravel it with a few words if they wanted. Like he does, sometimes. Like he did a few days ago, in public no less.

He almost winces at the memory. He’d been so ugly to her.

If anyone knows about selfish, it’s you.

Your judgement sucks.

She had messed up, and they both knew it. But so had he, more times than he could remember, and where she would guide him back to something resembling goodness, he was just… cruel.

If he was being less honest he would have called it an out of body experience, claimed he was out of control, that he only watched himself tear her to shreds. Except he wasn’t out of control. It was methodical, and calculated, and shitty.

He hates that he did it, that he turned that coldness, the icy soul of a closer on her, on purpose. Because he doesn’t want anyone to hurt her. Because he doesn’t want to hurt her. But also because there’s a darkness in him he can’t quite cut out of him that whispers you can hold on to her. Because he’s fucked up and he is his mother’s son. And he knows that one day she will leave, but if it’s his fault she does, then he can still love her.

Piece of shit.

“Harvey.”

He blinks, and he’s been staring at the painting in her hallway, and she’s leaning against the door, and he’s not sure if he’s been standing there for three seconds or three hours.

“Sorry,” he says, a slight shake of his head to bring him back to reality.

She studies him for a second, then reaches out, takes his hand, loosely tugs him towards her, and says, “Just come in. You need a drink.”

———

They’ve been sitting in tense silence for half an hour, matching each other shot for shot, chasing a bottle of whisky to the bottom.

Donna only keeps whisky in case he comes over.

The only other times he’s been here have always been gentle, caring, safe. Donna’s place is a refuge, a place of peace, where Donna and Harvey don’t pretend what they are or aren’t and they can just be together, laughing and unguarded in their not-quite-together and not-quite-single conversations. They flirt, they laugh, they play as close to the line as possible before Harvey shies away and calls Ray to pick him up, and goes home to collapse in his own empty bed, palming himself under the covers until visions of red hair dance behind his eyelids and he falls asleep with her name hidden in his mind.

Donna’s apartment is a refuge and a fantasy. But this, tonight, is not that. The air between them is heated and ready for a spark. He feels the pressure of it in his gut, wonders if she feels the same.

“You’re angry.” She’s the first to break the silence. It’s not a question.

He knocks back his glass in one gulp and pours another even as the burn down his throat makes him grimace. It’s heavily peated, he hates heavily peated, hates whisky you’re meant to sip when he just wants to inhale the whole bottle and disappear into the haze for a while. “I came in, I never said I’d talk about it, Donna.”

“You got put in a position to choose between myself and Paula.” Her words are careful and measured; she is trying hard to keep the peace. She feels the tinder box as well, then. He takes the tiniest amount of perverse pleasure in that. “I’m sorry. I wish that was different.” She takes a sip and he thinks he can taste her gathering her courage, and says the next into her glass. “Even if I don’t want to take back what I did, I’m sorry for what it’s caused, Harvey.”

“I said don’t want to talk about it,” he mumbles, raising his glass to his lips.

“Harvey -“

“You once asked me not to fall on my sword for Mike.” He interrupts her harshly, head snapping to pierce her eyes with his.

She can’t hold his gaze. “I know.”

“Well, you’re asking me to do that now and why the fuck is this different.” It’s not a question, not really, because they both know why.

“Because that was about you having faith in yourself and this is about you having faith in me.”

“Bullshit.”

“I -“

“You really didn’t know about us. About me and Paula.”

A pause. “No.”

That word triggers off some absurd buried offence that he’s had locked away in his chest since she wrapped her arms and the taste of her around him, slid into his being and his dreams again. He’s not sure why he’s mad at her for this admission. Maybe one day she’ll explain it to him.

Fuck, he’s such an asshole, and chants don’t do it don’t do this to himself even as he launches off the couch, his palms spreading and his anger finding her - unrestrained, unfair, unsurprising.

“What the hell, Donna, how could you not know? You know everything! It’s what you said made you a good COO. It’s what you tell everyone. And you’re meant to know me, and you. Missed this.”

She looks up at him, battle wearied. “I don’t know everything, Harvey. I know you don’t like to think so, but I am actually human. I don’t think I wanted to know. Maybe the signs were there, but I ignored them.” She shakes her head, murmurs, “I think I wanted to be wrong.”

He’s not willing to have the tension in the room defused by her gentle admission. He wants a fight. It might be rage, or it might be the coil of desire sitting low in his belly that the whisky always seems to unleash in him, but whatever it is, he wants a fight. He’s going to get one, and he stabs his glass at the ground as he turns the force of his whatever the fuck he’s feeling on her.

“So you wanted more, and you came after partner and asked me to put you above the firm, and you told me you could hold the firm together because you know people better than they know themselves, and you told me this wasn’t about us, but clearly there’s something more going on, Donna, because if it wasn’t about us, why the hell did you kiss me? And then after you put me in the position where you made me cheat on Paula, you made me choose between you and her! Everything was finally starting to work again after Jessica and you just yanked the rug out from under me. Did you even think about what that would do to me, Donna?”

Unfair this is so unfair you asshole

“I didn’t make you choose, Harvey.” She’s keeping her voice calm, but he can hear the waver underneath the words and he hates it. “I should never have kissed you and I’m sorry, I really am, but Paula gave you an ultimatum, not me.”

“And Paula wouldn’t have had to give you an ultimatum if you hadn’t done that. Face it, you fucked up, and now you’re blaming me for having to fix your shit!”

“Oh my god, Harvey, listen to yourself,” Donna finally snaps. She’s standing now as well, jabbing the glass of whisky at him like a weapon. “You didn’t ‘fix’ anything. You ran, like you always do. Would you have ever done this to Mike? Snuck behind his back to get him a job and not had the balls to talk to him about before sending him out of the firm and his family because you found a girlfriend?” Harvey begins to open his mouth at that, and Donna raises her hand to stop him. “I know you care about her. I know she’s important to you. And I know it was me that put your relationship at risk. But Mike put us all at risk for years. You still never would have done that to him.”

“Are you kidding, I would have fired him.”

“Yeah, well, firing me would have at least taken a split second of courage, Harvey.” She wheels away from him, maybe because they’re too near to each other, too loud, too close to happening upon something sitting too close to the surface. She pours another drink and that bottle is a lot emptier than it should be considering the thin ice they’re both tap dancing across. He feels every inch of empty glass in the back of his throat and in the way the floor isn’t quite as rock solid as it should be.

“What the fuck did you just say to me?”

“I said you’re a coward, Harvey.” Her voice is wobbling but she looks at him, looks right into his soul, and her eyes are clear and furious. “You couldn’t fire me, because that would have meant actually making a decision for once, instead of manipulating people to get them to make your decisions for you.” He winces at that, because she’s right. Ever since Jessica left, he’s been veering wildly between making no decisions and making bad ones. He thought he’d been able to hide his panic. But, of course, he hadn’t really. Not from Donna.

But she’s still going, her voice gaining strength as she lays out in front of him everything he should have heard from her months ago. “You demand so much from me, Harvey. From all of us. But God forbid anybody puts you in a difficult position. You’ve always said loyalty is a two way street, but you’re letting your fear get the better of you. This isn’t you, Harvey. You used to be better than this.” She swallows and her voice breaks, just a little. “You used to be braver than this.”

She runs out of steam, and there’s a too-long silence between them. He’s out of breath, somehow, and he heaves for breath. She folds her arms and looks at his feet.

Well, goddamn it, if she wants courage she can have it.

“You know why I could never fire you, Donna,” he says. “You’re not Mike. You know you’re not Mike. Just like you know if it came down to it, it was never a choice for me. Not ever. Paula … I was never going to choose her. Because we… this -“ he waves his hand between them - “makes no sense half the time, and the other half of the time… Donna …”

She’s turned back to him now, her eyes wide. It’s so close, they’re so close to it, and she looks at him like she can’t quite believe it’s him, of all people, that’s going to say it.

“What?” she breaths.

At the same time all the fight goes out of her voice, all the fight goes out of his chest, and he lets out a breath he didn’t know he was holding onto. His glass drops to his side, sloshing whisky over his fingers, and something stings his eyes.

“God dammit Donna, I just…” And he knows, suddenly, why he’s never said it - there aren’t any words that fit. So he shakes his head, helpless, his arms spread out to his sides, and says “you’re everything,” and he barely gets the words out before her hands have wrapped around him under his suit jacket and she’s sliding her mouth over his in a kiss that jolts all the air out of his lungs.

He doesn’t even have a chance to consciously process this change of events as anger does a hard left turn into passion and his stomach flips. He drops his glass, his hands tangling up into her hair. She slides her tongue into his mouth, and he feels that deep in the core of his being. The world spins, and it’s only partly the drink, and she tastes like whisky. She nudges his bottom lip with her own, sliding her tongue across his in that lazy, loose, half-drunk way he loves, and fuck. His stomach hollows out with want and he wraps his arms around her waist and pulls her tight against him. He can’t quite believe it; can’t quite believe they’d just agreed they didn’t want each other a couple of days ago, Donna telling him she didn’t feel anything - and here she’s kissing him like the world’s ending. He has shoes on and she’s barefoot and when she presses her body against his and wraps her arms around his neck to make up the height difference he thinks he might actually die.

His hands find their way up under her shirt and the touch of her skin under his hands makes his cock twitch. She’s beautiful and he feels like he can feel the colour of her skin, feel the light dusting of freckles up her back. He remembers. He’s fallen asleep more than once with his hand stretched out across a blank space in his bed where she was meant to be. Those nights always felt like regret, but he’s here now and so is she and she’s perfect. He drops his mouth to the gap where her neck and shoulder meet, tasting her, one hand scratching up to the base of her skull. His other hand skates across her waist, dipping into the waistband of her pants. He kisses sloppily up the side of her neck, over her ear, and she turns her head to capture his mouth with hers again, her hands tugging his shirt out of his waistband under his suit jacket so she can hook her fingers into his pants and pull him closer.

She presses her body against him, instinctively grinding her hips to his through their clothes, and a guttural moan escapes him. He mumbles “fuck” against her mouth, and he remembers she likes when he talks because she groans in response. He’s too overwhelmed to take control, which works for Donna as she walks him backwards towards her bed, one hand on his chest to guide him and the other deftly unbuttoning his shirt as she does.

By the time the back of his legs hit the bed and he falls back onto his ass, she has his shirt open under his suit jacket, his shoes off, his belt open and his pants unbuttoned and he thinks she might be a magician. She climbs onto the bed after him, straddles his lap, and kisses him in the way only she can - all at once slow, longing, urgent, sensual but sweet as fuck and how the hell does she do that anyway? He grabs her waist, pushes her shirt up and over her head, dropping it behind her. Her skin is flushed and warm under his fingers, and she’s not wearing a bra so he slides his hands over her breasts, massaging and then tweaking her nipples as she settles herself on top of his cock, rolling her hips against him through his pants. She has sensitive breasts, he remembers, and she moans into his mouth as he teases her nipples into taut buds. She feels amazing, and the sounds she makes fills his frame with something akin to awe. He doesn’t quite know what he’s managed to do to deserve this, having Donna under his hands, rubbing herself against him as he flicks and teases her nipples. She’s remembered too, though. Harvey’s never been too proud in bed - he’s not self conscious about showing women he’s with what he enjoys, and she’s not the only one that finds this maddening. So she drops her head to his chest, outlining his nipple with her tongue, circling lightly, teasing, before taking it into her mouth and sucking gently and holy shit. Harvey drops his forehead to the back of her head, trying to get his breathing under control, but that goes out the window when she palms his cock through his pants and he gasps her name.

He’s straining against his pants but can’t do anything about it as he’s holding onto Donna for dear life. But Donna knows, she always knows, and quickly tugs his pants down past his thighs. In the same movement, she sheds her own pants, and climbs back over his body, pushing him, pressing his back into the mattress, and he gives in completely - he’s hers, all of him is hers, and nothing has meaning outside of her guidance and desire anymore. He lays back, pants on the floor somewhere, shirt and jacket open at the chest, and somewhere dimly he knows he must look utterly helpless, and he doesn’t care.

She follows him, covering his body with hers, covers her nipple with her mouth again, teeth teasing gently, and immediately takes him in her hand, stroking his length slowly. His head drops back and he moans towards the ceiling, tangling his hands through her hair. The feeling of her sucking on his nipple while she squeezes his head is too much and he has to focus hard to avoid embarrassing himself. Harvey runs one hand down her back blindly, nudging her body up further. As she brings her mouth to his, he runs his hands down her skin, sliding down her belly and to her pussy, and Donna must be as on edge as he is if that guttural ‘Harvey’ that escapes her lips is anything to go by. His fingers and thumb already slick from her, he finds her clit with two fingers and draws lazy circles over it. She huffs shallow breaths into his mouth and it’s messy and wanton and she’s gorgeous and how could he have ever wanted anything other than this, anything other than her.

And then she has him in hand, guiding the head of his cock to her entrance, taking a moment to rub the head of his cock over her clit. He holds her thigh, staring, lost, not just with how damn good she feels but how damn good she is. She is his better in every possible way and she has somehow found her way to him. It’s inconceivable, and when she sinks down on him, lights explode behind his eyes and everything in his world slots into place.

She sets the pace, slow and deliberate, rolling over him and pushing her hips against him, and he moans with every thrust and she almost looks smug about it. She’s gorgeous, utterly gorgeous, the dark tan of his hands contrasting with alabaster and freckles as he slides his fingers over her waist. “Harvey,” she says, mixing with his gasping recitation of her name, and she braces her hands against his chest and she strokes him in and out of her, feeling him stretch her out with each push.

It’s exquisite, its torture, it’s not quite making love and it’s not quite fucking, it’s unreal and it’s every dream he’s ever had about her wrapped up in one. She’s building, searching out her orgasm, speeding up, her thrusts needy and deep. He just hopes she finds it before he loses the last shreds of his own control. He can feel his cock stretching her with each movement and it’s too much. He slides one hand from her waist back to her clit, rubbing in tight circles in time with her thrusts, and Donna’s moans become guttural. “Fuck, Donna,” Harvey murmurs. “Holy fuck.”

She comes with a heaving sigh, her stomach muscles fluttering under his hands, and he’s right behind her, the unconscious squeezing of her orgasm wrapping around him, pushing him off the edge.

———

She’s still on top of him, a leg wrapped around his waist as she pushes her face into the crook of his neck and he can feel her smile against his skin, and he drifts, thinking that it wouldn’t be so bad to just stay here forever.

He wants to say I love you but that feels awfully like a cliche’d moment, something out of a movie, and quoting movies is not what he and Donna do.

“Well,” he murmurs instead.

“Well.”

He pushes a hand up into her hair. He thinks he maybe has a fixation with her hair. He’s okay with that.

“Hi.”

He smiles. “Hi.”

“Stay?”

He nods, and she holds him a little tighter.

end

#darvey #harvey specter #donna paulsen

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scenes-in-between · 6 years

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Empedocles (2/3)

“Sir, immediate family only. You fellas just don't listen. You have to go now.”

Mulder's been gone for nearly an hour, and all Doggett wanted to do was check on Scully’s condition. When there was no one at the nurses’ desk, he thought he would just pop into her room for a second and see for himself.

It's hard to see her looking so pale and small in that bed, pregnant belly or no, but at least she's not hooked up to a ventilator. He doesn't know if she's unconscious or just asleep, but she's breathing on her own, so that has to be a good sign.

Still, it’s enough to trigger… whatever the hell that was from his overstressed brain just now. Luke was so pale and small, too.

“What part of ‘you have to go now’ was unclear?”

Great. He’s so wrapped up in his own head that he’s kept on standing here long enough for the nurse to come back.

“I just--”

“Right. Now. I don't care who you work for, if I catch you in here again, I'm calling security.”

He swallows his protest and turns to leave. “I'm going. All right?” In the doorway, though, he pauses. “But can you at least tell me how she's doing? If there’s been any improvement or--”

“Nothing has changed since the last time we spoke. She's stable. She needs to rest. She is in very good hands. And as visiting hours are now over, I suggest you go on home and get some rest, yourself. We will call you or the other gentleman if anything changes.”

Given how not forthcoming she has been this entire afternoon and evening, he very much doubts she will jump right on the phone if Scully were to start going downhill suddenly. And if she does call, and she calls Mulder first, he is not especially confident that Mulder will bother to pass along the message. No, better to stay and keep an eye on the situation, himself.

“Look, if it's all the same to you, I'd really rather just--”

His cell phone trills in his pocket, and from the look the nurse gives him, he may as well have just dumped a bucket of raw sewage in the hallway.

“Sorry, I… excuse me.” He hurries to answer and silence the damned thing, turning and walking quickly up the hall, back toward the waiting area. “John Doggett.”

“John, it's Mike. Do you have a minute?”

Michael Cameron, an old buddy of his, over at the Bureau. Not that he's seen much of him since getting assigned to the X-Files, but they used to grab beers after work and stuff like that, once upon a time. Hell of a time he picks to get back in touch, after months of radio silence.

“Mike, hey. Now's not a great time, actually, I'm kind of in the middle of--”

“This’ll only take a sec. I just thought you'd want to know.”

Doggett sighs. “Know what, Mike?”

“I was just passing by Records downstairs, and I overheard old Spooky down there talking with some other agent about… well, about your boy's case, John.”

He blinks. That can't be right…

“You're telling me Mulder's at the Hoover Building right now, and he's asking questions about Luke?”

“That’s right.”

“And you're sure it was him?”

“Positive. I took another pass after I heard him talking and poked my head in the room. Couldn’t see the other agent in there, but I definitely saw him. Not sure what’s up with the jeans and leather jacket. Does he even have his badge back after… whatever happened to him?”

And just like that, Doggett’s blood is boiling. This is what was so goddamned important, important enough to bail on Agent Scully while she’s sick? Here he was feeling bad about rushing to judgment, beating himself up over not giving Mulder a fair shake, and all along the guy was running around behind his back, trying to dig up dirt on him? Fox Mulder can go straight to hell. Who the fuck does he think he is?

“Thanks, Mike,” he says through clenched teeth. “I’ll take care of it.”

He jabs the “end” button and barely holds back from hurling the phone at the wall. Now Mulder’s bullshit is going to drag them both away from the hospital. Not for the first time, Doggett finds himself wishing he and Skinner really had found a dead man in that casket.

He fumes all the way to the office, his grip on the steering wheel turning his knuckles white while his thoughts swirl cold and dark.

***

“So, you’ve known Agent Doggett a while, then?” Mulder asks lightly, not looking up from the New Orleans police report.

“Going on four years,” Reyes says. “He’s really one of the good ones, you know?”

“What, uh, what do you mean by that?” He turns a page, and the sinking feeling that’s been building almost since he got here continues to grow.

“Well you know how it is in this line of work. You can tell who’s in it because they care and who’s just interested in climbing the ladder. John probably could run the whole Bureau someday, but not because he stepped all over everyone in his path, trying to get there. He’s a good agent, and he’s a good man.”

Indeed, it’s looking more and more like Mulder was completely wrong about Agent Doggett. By all appearances, the man really has no hidden agenda or questionable allegiances, and even though Mulder’s not ready to trust him completely, he does have to admit that it’s entirely possible his own insecurities and (okay, fine) jealousy have made him see things that aren’t there.

Which makes him feel doubly guilty about leaving the hospital to look into this case.

There’s a chance he can make things right, though. If Agent Reyes really is on to something about there being a connection between this recent case and that of Luke Doggett’s murder, then helping her catch the guy would be something like a peace offering. Right?

“Oh, hello,” he murmurs, half under his breath. He reaches for the older case file and flips it open, scanning until he finds what he was looking for.

“What? Did you find something?”

He sets the files down next to each other and points, one index finger on each, finally looking up to meet Reyes’s eyes. “Maybe a connection. What are the chances this is the same Bob Harvey in both reports?”

#x-files fanfic #txf: empedocles #doggettfic #mulderfic #monica reyes

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katierosefun · 26 days

Text

tag 9 people you want to know better

thank you for the tag, @b1uetrees!

3 ships:

jwds (joo won and dong sik) from beyond evil, because like. how can they not be! i find that every time i rewatch beyond evil, i find something new about their relationship that i just adore--like, of course they have that delicious enemies-to-lovers arc, but also there's the added themes of like. mental illness and what it means to love someone whose mind might not be altogether there? and how there's like. idk. something something about love means grabbing someone and going "hey. we're getting out of this hell together. together." and it drives me insane every time!

marvey (mike and harvey) from suits, because oh man. something about how they're both objectively Not Great people, but i think there's something fascinating about the whole "i see something in you that i also see in me" and the whole "yes i know that we're committing a crime together but fuck it" and also the whole "you exasperate me sometimes but also i would rather take the hits than betray you" which makes me feel. insane.

whouffaldi (twelve and clara) from doctor who. are we sensing a theme? the theme being "ah. caroline adores ships that are just like. people who are both very insane but are also very loyal to each other and also they're not making each other better and they might be making each other worse but fuck it!!! fuck it!!!!" something about what happens when you have two people who have an insane god complex and are also stubborn as hell and it's the worst possible combination and the universe would probably implode if they kept running together--like! i don't know how you can get away from that kind of insanity.

First ship: definitely whouffaldi. every once in a while, i'll rewatch season 8 and 9 of doctor who, and every time, i have to go ".. . .. i can't believe this was the first ship i really fell in love with. i had such good taste, even back then!"

Last song: guilty as sin? by taylor swift, which i definitely think has to be one of my favorites on the new album. i've definitely been applying it to a lot of my own ships because ah, yes. when people might not have even slept with each other but still think about it and then act incredibly catholic/christian about it.

Currently reading: oh god. so many books. i'm currently re-reading the perks of being a wallflower by steven chbosky, but i'm also listening to dark places by gillian flynn and the lesbiana's guide to catholic school by sonora reyes. it's taking me forever though, mostly because i think i've hit the point in the semester where i just want to shut my brain down the second i leave class lol

Last movie: my last real movie was probably ratatouille--which is such a classic.

Currently Craving: time. i feel like there aren't enough hours in the day for what i want to do today so that's a little bit frustrating, but! such is life! we carry on!

no pressure tags: @kckenobi @l-tyrell @indigostars

#tag game #thank you!!

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darveymficprompts · 6 years

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I really would like sexy office banter with file room sex

AN: So, I'm thinking this might turn into a series of sexy file room fun moments. This is just the first part.

Special thanks to Alex for helping with the title, to Maya for providing me with the visuals, and to Etty and Michelle who listened to me whilst I wrote this and I teased them endlessly. I hope it lives up to its hype xo

“Donna and Harvey: The Sex Files”

Chapter 1: Filed Under...

He can hear the shuffling as soon as he walks in, taking advantage of the loud shoveling of boxes to discreetly turn the lock behind him. Waltzing further inside, Harvey lets his lips curl up when he hears her muttering under her breath, letting out an expletive or two. He turns the corner then, vibrant red immediately meeting him and he shoves his hands into his pockets, casually leaning against the shelves.

“Hey,” his voice is all honey when he speaks, tongue snaking out to wet his lips as he watches her head swivel in his direction.

She pauses her filing for just a moment to give him a disapproving look, “Don’t even think about it.”

“Think about what?” He defends quickly, his eyes alighting with an extra twinkle.

Donna shakes her head, “I know why you came down here.”

Harvey bites his lip, taking a cautious step in her direction before pausing again, “I was just worried,” he gives her a small shrug and the redhead heaves out a tired sigh.

She ceases her movements, hand holding onto a pile of stapled paper as she peeks at him from the corner of her eye. “Louis told you,” she murmurs under her breath, posing the question as a statement.

Harvey nods slowly, his foot shuffling a few more inches, “He said you had an outburst.”

Donna lets out another sigh, “It wasn’t- listen, it was well warranted,” she gives him a dry laugh, turning to cram the pile of papers into a file that sat inside a box, shoving the cardboard container into one of the shelves with a greater force than needed.

“Listen, you know as well as I do that Louis can get grind on my nerves, but… the man looked terrified.”

Donna snorts, turning around to lean against the shelves, her arms crossing in the process, “He was just- not getting it, okay? I’ve been working my ass off for days prepping for this case-”

“I know,” he agrees softly.

“-and we all sat down and had a meeting about it, but then he had to come in with a whole new game plan, one that I didn’t sign off on, and I just- I lost it.”

Harvey looks at her solemnly for a second, watching how her nostrils flare, the vein in her forehead standing to attention as she seethes at him.

“You’re stressed,” he states simply after a moment.

“I’m pissed off, is what I am,” she scoffs, taking a manicured hand to comb through her loose waves.

Harvey takes a step closer to her then, finally within arms reach and he tentatively rests his hands on her forearms.

“Donna,”

His girlfriend heaves out a breath, “I’m exhausted.”

“I know,” he nods in understanding, his thumbs rubbing soothing circles on her arms. A frown sets in him then, worry gnawing at him at how distressed she looked. He knew she had been dealing with a lot, moving to Chicago and moving back, but still, for her to have an outburst, it set his worries high.

Since Mike and Rachel’s wedding over a month ago, and since they had reconciled in every way possible, things have been a whirlwind at Specter Litt. Since the firm had taken on its new name, dropping Jessica’s, it had been a non-stop grind for both managing partners. Donna wasn’t far behind either- as COO who had left the firm to go work for Jessica during her strife with Harvey, and then coming back to claim the title. The three of them stood as pillars who kept the firm afloat, working overtime and weekends as new clients came and went. The fact that Mike and Rachel had also left had added to the stress and workload.

The news had come as a surprise to everyone- the newlyweds wanted to venture off on a new journey together, and decided to leave the state to work elsewhere… in Chicago, of all places. But the biggest change to hit New York’s most infamous firm was the new romance between managing partner and COO. Despite all the recent changes in their lives, the two had stuck together, coming home every night to each other, trying to make up for wasted time. It seemed to be the only current positive in their lives- especially for Donna, who had had more than her fair share of near breakdowns in the past week, her workload and cases starting to pile and she was playing catch up.

The redhead in question shakes her head, a laugh falling from her lips as she suddenly turns around. “This is ridiculous,” she picks up another box with a half grunt, looking through more files with a rivaled focus, “I’m Donna, I sure as hell can deal with a little stress,” she points to herself in a self-assured way, continuing to shift through the files in front of her.

“Donna,” Harvey echoes in her ear, his voice an octave lower than before.

“I’m fine, Harvey,” she states, her eyes trained solely on the papers in front of her.

Her boyfriend sighs, letting his hands rest on the waist of her turquoise dress, “You need to relax, Donna,” his breath is hot behind her, gently pushing her copper hair to the side to leave a kiss on her neck.

Her hands freeze, eyes staring up in front of her, almost expecting to find a mirror just so she could scold her boyfriend through the reflection, but no such luck.

“Harvey…” her voice is a warning, willing the steadiness to come through despite his low caresses on her waist.

“Come on Donna, you need to have a little… fun,” in a bold move, he lets his tongue snake out, tracing the small collection of freckles on her clavicle.

Donna scoffs, “I thought we had some fun this morning. Twice,” she emphasizes, her breath catching in her throat when he gently rakes his teeth against her skin.

Harvey chuckles against her, the vibrations setting her skin on fire, and honestly screw this man and his uncanny ability to get her riled up so quickly.

“So,” he shrugs, moving the right strap of her dress down to trail his lips to the newly exposed skin, “let’s have some more fun.”

Donna bites her lip when his lips take a journey up again, nipping her skin until he reaches her pulse point, sucking ever so slightly on the sensitive area.

“We… can’t, Harv-” her body tenses when he gently bites on her skin, immediately soothing the area with his tongue again, “we’re at work,” she hisses, both out of annoyance and arousal, “and so help me God if you leave a mark on me again…” her threat comes out weak when she lets out a full moan, the work he’s doing on her neck making her knees buckle.

“Donna,” he pauses to press a kiss to her cheek, letting his lips to linger on her flushed skin, “you need to relax.”

“You know, you really need to stop telling me- oh- that,” her eyes close out of her own volition when he palms her breast through the material of her dress, kneading the flesh with practiced precision.

“Donna, babe,” he uses his new pet name for her, the endearment having come naturally to him during their first few weeks together, and he knew she was pleasantly taken by it, “you’ve been… working yourself too hard…” his hands slide up and down her body, moving his head to pay attention to the other side of her neck, “let me help you,” he sucks on her skin without restraint, causing her to emit a low groan, “take the edge off.”

“Harvey…” her eyes are half closed now, and she knew she was sinking further under his ministrations, surrendering herself with every lick and suck he provided.

“Yes?” He hums against her, continuing to nip at her skin.

“The door…”

Harvey smirks against her, stopping his teases to stand upright, turning her body around in a flash, and if it weren’t for his hands on her waist she would’ve lost her balance. She barely flinches as the box she held falls to the floor with a loud thump, an array of papers flying out.

He rakes over her form, eyes dilated and lips parted, chest slightly heaving with anticipation. Taking a step forward, his voice is all sex when he speaks, lips curled in an all-too satisfied grin, “I already locked it.”

Before she realizes what’s happening, his lips are slanting over hers, tongue immediately sliding inside her warm wet mouth, swallowing her groan of surprise in the process. She grips onto his vest instantly, biting down on his lower lip, using her grip on him to pull him closer.

Harvey hisses in surprise at her desperation, utilizing his hand to cup her cheek, angling his head to deepen their kiss. They’re a mesh of lips and tongues, their teeth clashing every once in a while when they get just a little too needy. He feels her hands sliding down his chest, moving past his dress shirt and vest until she reaches the edge of his pants.

“Wait,” his lips part from hers in a flash, watching her forehead knitting in confusion as he cants backward, away from her touch, “Donna,” he cups both of her cheeks, using his thumb to caress her lower lip, now swollen and smeared, “this is about you,” he kisses the corner of her mouth gently, breathing her in, “let me take care of you.”

She bites her lip then, gnawing on the flesh as a fresh new wave of arousal pools in the pit of her stomach. Donna watches on baited breath as he licks his lips, chocolate eyes appearing darker under the poor light of the file room, and suddenly the air in there grew to be too thick.

“Harvey, what-” The redhead freezes when his hand sneaks under her dress, his large hand starting a slow caress from her thigh to her waist line, and down again, beginning a torturous tease.

“I told you,” he breathes into her ear, taking the lobe between his teeth to tug gently, causing her to let out a low moan, “You need to relax,” his hand plays with the edge of her panties, and he lets his lips twitch, remembering how he had watched her put them on earlier that morning after their second impromptu round. Red. Lacy. Not enough material.

“And I,” he kisses her cheek then, watching from the corner of his eye as her own set of hazel ones close at his touches, “can help you with that.” Taking one last detour, Harvey caresses her abdomen, chuckling when he feels her muscles rippling under his touch. Not wasting anymore time, he lets his hand glide under the lace, finally meeting her heated center.

“Shit,” her head falls forward on his shoulder on reflex, screwing up her eyes as pleasure shoots straight through her.

Harvey chuckles lightly, too pleased to find her already wet and wanting. He presses another kiss to her cheek, gently gliding his fingers over her folds, careful not to touch her where she needs him to the most.

“You okay?” He whispers, his voice too smug and her nails dig into his biceps, knowingly leaving crescent marks on his skin even through his dress shirt.

“Harvey,” Donna whines, lip caught between her teeth as he continues a torturous trail down her slit.

“Just relax, babe,” he breathes into her.

“You really need to stop telling me to re- oh fuck,” her growl turns into a whine as soon as he slides two calloused fingers into her, carefully avoiding to touch her throbbing clit.

He stills his hand as soon as he’s inside her, taking his other hand to rub soothing circles along her side, trying to coax her back into steady breaths. He waits until she stops contracting around him before he moves, curling his fingers slightly as he begins a gentle rock.

“That’s it,” he encourages her. The low timbre of his voice causes her to buck into his hands, and he lets out a throaty chuckle, ceasing his movements once more. “Easy, Donna, breathe,” he gently pulls her up from her current resting place, waiting until she’s standing upright against the line of shelves again before he starts to pump his fingers slowly, matching the slow rhythm of her breathing.

“You good?” His left thumb caresses her waist over her dress, and she nearly loses it when she notices his gaze trained on hers, her own eyes half hooded. She realizes then he wants to see her face when she comes under his hand, the fact alone letting a low whine escape her lips.

Donna realizes he had asked her a question, and she wills the fog in her mind to clear to answer, “Yeah,” she finally breathes out, voice hoarse.

His lips curl at her confirmation, leaning forward to press gentle kisses on her neck as he continues a slow pump into her, “That’s good,” he sucks on her pulse point before pulling back, laughing low when she lets out a groan.

Her breathing grows heavier when he speeds up the pace just slightly, twitching his fingers upwards towards that sweet spot he knows makes her shudder.

“You close, baby?” His use of the monicker makes her bite her lip, a low moan spilling out of her and all she can do is nod. He eases his fingers out slowly then, causing her to let out a long whine before pushing back into her just as tortuously.

“Harvey,” she stares at him through the slits of her eyes, mentally cursing him for that smirk he holds on his lips.

“Does this feel good?” He exhales against her, knowing his voice was the one sure way to get her to reach full bliss.

“God, yes, just-”

“What do you need, Donna?” He presses gently, taking his thumb to hover over the hood of her clit, and he grins when he lets the phalanx graze against her sensitive area, watching her eyes roll to the back of her head.

Deciding he had tortured her enough, he rubs his thumb against her bundle of nerves, continuing to pump his fingers into her, slowly building her up closer to her release.

“That’s it, you’re doing so well for me, Donna. Come for me.” And with one final curl into her a and flick of his thumb, she’s doubling over in ecstasy, his name a low curse on her lips as she grinds into his hand.

He makes sure to grab hold of her, his left arm around her small frame as he continues to slowly pump into her, letting her ride out the final wave as she quivers against him. When the final aftershock leaves her, he slowly eases out of her, waiting until her darkened hazel eyes meet his.

When a lazy smile welcomes her features, he lets his own cheeks stretch into a grin, leaning forward to peck her lightly. “You okay, there?

Donna chuckles, still high from the endorphins shooting through her, “I’m- delirious.”

“You’re beautiful,” he notes, leaning in again to kiss her fully on the lips. Her heart melts at his words and she’s sinking into him again, a sigh of content leaving her when he sucks her bottom lip into his mouth. Before she could deepen the kiss further, he’s pulling away, a still self-satisfied grin on his lips.

“What are you-” She watches with wide eyes as he brings his right hand up, noticing the two fingers that were inside her coated with her juices. Before he can bring them to his lips, however, that smug ass smile still adorning his face, she narrows her eyes and brings his hand to her lips.

Her eyes stay trained on his as she sucks his fingers into her mouth, grinning around them when his mouth drops open. With one final swipe of her tongue against him, she pulls his fingers out, watching in amusement as his eyes cloud over.

“That was-” he swallows back, “mean.”

Donna chuckles when he growls against her, and she stays her ground when he takes one step closer to her.

“Yeah? What are you gonna do about it, hot shot?” She quirks an eyebrow at him, and he tilts his head at her, already accepting her challenge.

“For one,” he breathes against her, pulling her plump lip between his teeth, soothing the flesh with his tongue, “get the taste I deserved.”

Taking advantage of her sudden perplexed expression, he drops down to his knees, using his hands to bunch the material of her dress around her waist.

“Harvey…” Donna swallows back, the rest of her words caught in her throat when she watches him pulling the material of her red lace aside, his asshole of a smile hovering over her.

“I told you,” he heaves out a breath, dark eyes staring up into her own, “I was going to help you relax.”

Before she can counter with a response, his mouth is on her and she’s gripping the shelves on either side, her knuckles turning white as her legs turn to jello. His mouth is warm and wet against her, utilizing his skillful tongue to map out the entire area he’s already recorded to memory. When his tongue flicks against her clit once, she reaches her hand out, pulling at his short strands to keep him in place.

“Oh my God,” she breathes out a laugh, dizzy with how good his mouth feels, the notion alone of where they were and what they were doing, and how he was buried between her legs, making her let out a giggle that quickly turns into a moan.

“What?” Harvey parts his lips from her, using his hands to caress her skin as he looks up at her expectedly, amused and bewildered all at once.

“Just-” Donna shakes her head, “I thought we had agreed no- fraternizing at work,” she lets out another girly giggle, blaming the current lack of oxygen to her brain for her lack of coherency.

Harvey shakes his head, his lips twitching at how adorable she sounded, but he wasn’t about to tell her that. “You want me to stop?”

Her eyes narrow down at him, the caresses she had on his hair ceasing, “Don’t you dare, Specter, or so help me-”

She doesn’t get to finish her threat, his mouth already resuming its place between her legs. Her lip is caught between her teeth again, gnawing on the flesh till it turned raw, as he hums against her, the vibrations lifting her higher and pummeling her closer to her second orgasm.

When his lips wrap around her, sucking with renewed vigor, she’s arching over, a soundless moan escaping her when she feels his tongue running circles around her swollen clit. He makes sure to keep his hands on her, slowly easing off of her as she comes down from her euphoric high.

It takes her a couple more seconds for her eyes to flutter open, letting her vision clear from the kaleidoscope of spots she was currently seeing. Heaving out a weighted breath, she looked down to his expected gaze, “You want a prize for that?”

Harvey grins at her words, full and wide as he stands to his feet, ignoring the pain the shoots through his joints. It was worth it.

“You feeling better?” He gently asks, watching how her skin emits a soft glow from her post-orgasmic haze.

“I’m-” Donna lets out a laugh, “Actually, I am.”

He mirrors her mirth then, leaning in to kiss her fully on the lips. “Then, that’s all I need,” he tells her softly when they part.

A sluggish smile overtakes her, her eyes warm as she gazes up at him, “You did fine work, mister,” she applauds, immediately falling into another set of giggles.

“What?” Harvey prods, amusement in his eyes as he watches her.

“Nothing,” Donna shakes her head, “I just can’t believe I let my boyfriend go down at me in the middle of work.”

Harvey shrugs, “There’s a first for everything.”

“You’re in incorrigible,” she notes with another shake of her head.

A boyish smile crosses over him and he’s leaning over to peck her on the lips again, “Come on,” he grabs her hands, “let’s get back to work.”

“Hold your horses, mister,” she reels him back in when he tries to pull her away with him, “we’re not going anywhere yet.”

Harvey creases his forehead, his lips parting in that way that makes her want to kiss the confusion off his face. “Why-?”

“Because,” a coy grin pulls at her, cupping his now tented pants, “you can’t walk out of here with a raging hard-on.”

His eyes turn darker at her words, the implication of them mixed with the slow caress of her hands over his clothed member making him buck against her.

“Donna,”

“Let me take care of you, Harvey,” she mimics, echoing his earlier words to her. It takes him a second too long for her words to sink in, watching in a half daze as she kneels before him, her four inch black Louis Vuitton’s resting on the floor of the file room.

“Donna,” Harvey growls in a warning, his breathing already becoming labored when her hand reaches out to unzip him, “You don’t have to-”

“Oh, I know,” she half scoffs, easing the zipper down slowly, reaching inside his boxers with determination, “but I want to,” she gives him a full grin before she wraps her hand around him, already deliciously hard and firm in her hands.

He hisses when he feels her slightly cold hands around his flesh, and she chuckles out a breathy “sorry” before taking him into her mouth.

Heaven. Hell. Harvey doesn’t know where he currently resides, the feeling of her hot and wet mouth around him already sending him off to another plane of existence, that much he was certain.

“Shit, Donna,” he dares to look down at her, and he nearly comes undone when her hazel eyes meet his, lips curling up as she watches his resolve slowly slipping. She takes her time then, using her hand to draw slow circles on the base of his shaft, her crimson nails raking just slightly across his sensitive flesh. She draws him out of mouth, holding back a grin when he groans out in protest before her pink tongue is sneaking out, tasting the pre-cum from the head before she’s encompassing him whole again.

Harvey feels his stomach clenching with every slide of her tongue along his length, heaving out a curse that mixes with her name whenever she chooses to hum around him, a tuneless song reverberating from her throat. His fists clench against his side, watching her bobbing her head over him, and as soon as her copper waves are falling over her face, he’s sliding his hands through her hair, holding her in place. He doesn’t force her pace, letting her take control, as he always does in these instances. Plus, he just needs to see her.

“Oh, fuck, baby,” he feels himself falling, falling deeper as she sucks him further into her mouth, a coy grin in the corner of her lips. “Donna, please, babe, I’m gonna-”

She only quickens her pace, telling him with her eyes that she wasn’t going to stop now. She feels his hands tighten in her hair when she moans around him, the vibrations nearly alighting him on fire as she ups her ministrations. She senses his undoing then, his thighs twitching in time with her oral movements, fingers gripping her golden manes just slightly, careful not to pull on her.

A hitched breath escapes him, and he feels himself jerking into her, spilling into her awaiting mouth with her name falling on his lips, a prayer and a plead all in one. He watches in between heavy pants as she eases him out, giving him a final taste with a twinkle in her eyes. His hands grow slack on her hair, sliding them down her silky curls before she’s standing up, smoothing out the creases on her dress in a casual manner, as if she didn’t just have him wrapped around her hands quite literally moments before.

“You okay?” She smirks up at him, repeating his earlier question as she smooths down the tangles in her hair.

“I’m-” he gulps, heaving in a breath as he wills his brain to clear of the fog that had transcended even before she had her mouth wrapped around him. “You’re-”

“Amazing? I know,” she sasses, tucking him back into his pants in amusement. He was still nearly frozen on the spot. When he feels her zipping him up again, her eyes trained on him with a quirk of her lips, he snaps out of his daze, pulling her in for a heated kiss. He lets his tongue dance around hers for a moment, groaning when he can still taste her and himself. When oxygen becomes a necessity, his lungs still screaming from earlier, he’s pulling back, the room around them echoing with the soft smack of their lips.

“You’re more than amazing,” he murmurs against her, a sigh of content leaving him.

She lets out a pleased chuckle, their eyelashes nearly brushing with how close they were standing, “Well, I had to thank you somehow. Couldn’t let you leave with Harvey Jr. standing to attention.”

Harvey snorts at her nickname, “Please tell me that is not what you call it.”

“So what if it is?” She raises her eyebrows at him, faux innocence in her doe-eyed glare.

Her purses his lips then, sensing her tease, “You’re ruthless, you know that?”

She shrugs her shoulders, giving him another coy smile before turning around, crouching to pick up the discarded files when he had started this whole thing.

“Sorry about- this,” Harvey mutters, reaching down to giver her a helping hand, sending her a sheepish smile.

Donna chuckles, “I’m not.”

They share matching grins at that, working in tandem to collect the rest of the files, a comfortable silence overcoming them. When they place the last of the folders inside the box, Donna sliding it back to its proper place, she turns to face him again.

“So,” she leans against the shelves, reaching a hand out to smooth out the invisible creases on his vest.

“So, now you’re ready to go back to work?” Harvey muses, a humorous tilt to his voice.

Donna snorts, pulling him by the tie to peck his lips one more time. “I think we’re both more than a little… satisfied now, yes.” She sets off in the direction of the door, pausing when his hand gently tugs at her wrist.

“Hey,” he whispers against her, “You’ll get into the rhythm of things again, I know you will.”

She sends him a warm smile, her chest filling with love for the man before her, still needing to mentally pinch herself every time she realizes they’re a them now, no strings, all in, together.

“I know,” she agrees softly, giving him a final squeeze of the hand before she’s turning to unlock the door. When the door swings open, they almost crash right into a familiar looking young man.

“Harold,” Donna speaks in surprise, watching the the gangly former employee looking at them with wide eyes.

“Donna, M- Mr. Specter,” Harold stutters. His blue eyes shift from one to the other, his words caught in his throat, hands gripping a set of papers.

“Harold? Didn’t he used to work here?” Harvey inquires after a beat, directing the question to his girlfriend instead to the man in question.

“Uh- yes Harv- I mean, Mr. Specter, yes. I just- Louis needed help with this case since it involves a client I’m working with and so I came here- to the firm, your firm now, uh, congratulations, by the way, and so I was just-”

“Harold,” Donna interrupts the poor man’s stumbling, trying to ease him with a smile, “You’re not under interrogation.”

He heaves a sigh of relief then, letting out a smile for the first time. It’s then that he notices the redhead’s hand was clasped onto the current managing partner’s, their clothes a little mangled.

“Does Mike know about this?”

“I- excuse me?” Donna asks in confusion.

“Mike- I know he’s married now to Zane, but last time I remember catching you with-”

Donna’s mouth hangs open, the words spilling out of her before he can continue, “You know what, Harry, Harvey and I have to get back to work,” she pulls her bewildered boyfriend by the hand, not letting Harold finish his thought as she drags them both out of the file room, turning the corner before they reach the elevators.

Harvey watches in confusion as she stands in front of the metal doors, her face stoic and unreadable.

“Donna, what-” his head swivels back in the direction of the file room, his mind running a mile a minute given their recent activities and then run-in with a former Specter-Litt employee, one he barely remembers.

“What did- what was that kid talking about?”

His girlfriend faces him then, fixing him with an innocent smile. “Oh, that’s- a story for another time.” The elevator welcomes them with its arrival, and Donna saunters in, an extra sway on her hips in the hopes of distracting him.

It takes Harvey a moment before the feeling in his legs return, following her in without question. They stay in a heavy silence for a while, both of them sneaking glances out of the corner of their eyes.

“You’ll tell me later?” Harvey asks after a beat.

Donna smirks, turning to look at him before the elevator doors open again, “Oh, you can count on that.”

That file room was never not going to get her into trouble. One way or another.

#darvey #darvey fic #author: ali #rated m #prompt #multi chapter

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anne-wentworth · 6 years

Note

You are such a good writer, I love your stories. I would like to see a story in which Donna meets Harvey's mother. 😍

I took forever with this and I’m so sorry. I hope it was worth the wait though and that you like it.

Because of You

Read on ao3

Donna had learned of the destruction of a phone call from a young age. She was nine when she watched her mother crumble under the news of her grandfather’s death. In college, she held her friend as she cried after receiving word of her boyfriend being in an accident. But something inside her had shattered the day she was told that Gordon Specter passed away. Harvey’s broken expression was one that was burned into her brain.

And on that morning, as he answered a call from his brother, she saw the same look cross over his features.

Her heart was in her hand long before he hung up and she held her breath as he stared blankly ahead.

“Mom had a heart attack,” he finally uttered, his voice distant.

The words cracked the earth in two and spurred her to life at the same time.

Instantly, she was calling Louis and telling him they wouldn’t be able to make it to work today and why. Then she delicately grabbed Harvey’s arm, leading him to the bedroom where she threw some casual clothes of his on the bed before slipping into a sweater and jeans herself. She watched as Harvey changed out of his suit, still in a daze.

Walking over to him, she placed her hands on his face, locking his gaze on hers.

“It’s going to be okay,” she said firmly, almost as if daring the universe to disagree.

Harvey was finally beginning to fix things with his mother and Donna would fight heaven and hell and everything in between if fate was cruel enough to steal her away when the hole in his chest was just starting to heal.

Staring at her, he nodded, some of the life coming back into his eyes as he drew strength from her declaration.

From her.

And then they were a whirlwind, flinging some more clothes into a bag because they both knew they wouldn’t be coming back here tonight.

As they headed out, Donna laced her fingers through his and together, they prepared to face the world.

Hours later, Harvey and Donna stepped through the doors of the hospital, still hand in hand. During the drive, Marcus called again to let them know that Lily was in stable condition but only the tiniest bit of tension had been lifted from Harvey’s shoulders.

Donna could almost see the memory of his father’s death replaying in his mind.

Nervousness continued to radiate off him as Marcus led them to her room after pulling him in for a hug.

Harvey halted in the doorway, frozen as he took her in from where he stood, so small and fragile as she lay in bed. Gently, Donna squeezed his hand, urging him on and they both made their way over to her.

Katie rose from the chair she had been sitting on beside the bed and Donna shot her a sympathetic smile as she noted the weary expression she wore.

“Harvey,” Lily said as she spotted her son. “You didn’t have to come all the way here.”

“Of course I did,” he replied. “How are you feeling?”

“I’m fine,” she answered. “But no one will seem to believe me.”

She shot a pointed glare at Marcus who promptly returned the look.

“At least I’m finally getting to meet you,” she said, turning her attention to Donna before an argument could break out between her and the younger Specter.

Even though she and Harvey had been dating for a few months, Donna hadn’t had the opportunity to meet his mother. Their lives had been a hurricane with the firm becoming Specter Litt and Mike and Rachel’s wedding and then Mike and Rachel leaving. Most days they had to steal a moment simply to take a breath.

“I wish it was under better circumstances,” Donna couldn’t help but respond.

“Me too,” Lily sighed. “Hospital beds aren’t very comfortable.”

The corners of her mouth quirked up a bit and she could see some of the light returning to Harvey’s eyes as he began to breathe again.

“You two need to leave now to get Margot ready for her play tonight,” Lily declared suddenly to Marcus and Katie.

Harvey’s older niece had gotten the lead part in her school’s play. In the midst of the chaos that was their lives, Donna had found time to FaceTime the young thespian and give her all sorts of tips and advice. She was absolutely delighted, grasping on to every word that came out of Donna’s mouth. She would be lying if she said it hadn’t boosted her ego a little but she would never admit it to Harvey who teased her endlessly. But he was looking forward to the videos Marcus promised to send as much as her.

“You’re right,” Marcus mumbled, looking at his watch.

Yet hesitation at leaving continued to linger on his features.

“Go ahead,” Harvey told him, reassurance heavy in his tone. “We’ll be fine here.”

Marcus gave a subtle nod as a look of understanding briefly passed between the brothers.

“Feel better,” he said softly to Lily.

“We’ll see you tomorrow,” Katie added.

And then with quick goodbyes they were gone, Lily waving off the last of their concerns.

“Harvey do you think you could get me something to drink?” she asked when it was just the three of them. “My throat’s a little dry.”

“Of course.”

As he left the room, the older woman motioned for Donna to sit. After doing just that, Lily reached out and took one of Donna’s hands in her own.

“Thank you,” she stated sincerely, completely out of the blue.

Confusion washed over Donna and for a second she wondered if Lily was alright.

“For what?”

“When Harvey first came to see me I asked him why he wanted to fix things. After all this time. Why now?” Lily explained. “And he told me that it was because someone very special to him convinced him that he needed to. I’m guessing that’s you.”

A small smile rested on Lily’s features but the air had been knocked out of Donna’s lungs.

That had been ages ago. She and Harvey weren’t even a couple yet. The fact that he told his mother about her, even though it was as little as three words, sent sunlight shining through every inch of her being and she basked in the warm glow.

“I didn’t know he said that,” she said quietly, more to herself than anything else.

“I didn’t know you. And I hadn’t even seen or spoken to him in years. But from then I could tell that he loved you.”

Donna’s throat closed up and she stared at her hand in Lily’s, so much like her son’s while her vision began to blur.

“So thank you. For bringing my son back to me after so long. I’ve made a lot of mistakes in the past. But now I have the chance to fix them. I get to be a part of his life again. And I will always be grateful to you for that.”

Every one of her heartstrings broke as a tear slid down her cheek. Hastily, she wiped it away, trying to find her voice.

“You don’t need to thank me. We all deserve second chances. And no one can make Harvey do anything he doesn’t want to. At the end of the day, reaching out to you was his choice.”

“Still…you played a big part in it,” she said. “I’m just happy that he listens to you. Lord knows he doesn’t when it comes to anyone else.”

At that, a bubble of laughter burst from Donna’s chest.

“Oh yeah. Your son is one very stubborn man.”

“It runs in the family,” Lily said drily. “Although I bet you’re pretty stubborn yourself.”

Her eyes glittered and Donna couldn’t suppress a grin of her own.

“Yep. We’re gonna have some really difficult kids someday.”

This time it was Lily who chuckled but before she could respond, Harvey returned with a bottle of water.

Blinding affection surged through her at the sight of him, coating her veins in stardust.

He walked over to them, carefully handing the bottle to Lily before resting a hand on Donna’s shoulder. The simple touch painted her in a shade of gold.

“If you guys leave now you can stop for something good to eat before going to Margot’s play,” Lily declared.

“Mom we’re not-”

“You’re not staying here all night,” she interrupted Harvey who’d already begun to protest.

He opened his mouth to argue but she beat him to it.

“I need to get some rest.”

“Sure. Of course,” he said quickly, concern flickering across his face.

“Stop looking like that I’m fine,” she chastised. “Just a little old.”

“Not that old,” he smiled.

He reached forward, taking her hand in his and giving it a tender squeeze.

“If there’s anything you need, call us.”

“I will.”

“We’ll see you in the morning okay,” he said as Donna rose.

“Hope you feel better,” she added softly.

“Thank you,” Lily responded. “And thank you for coming here.”

Despite her earlier words, Donna could tell that Harvey’s presence meant the world to her.

“You don’t need to thank me for that,” he said, an echo of Donna’s previous statement and she couldn’t help the little smile that appeared on her features.

It was when they were out in the hallway that Donna threw her arms around him and pressed her lips against his. He automatically responded, his hands finding her waist as he opened his mouth for her, returning the kiss.

“What was that for?” he asked when she pulled away, stars in his eyes.

“I just love you,” she said.

He stared at her quizzically, knowing her well enough to guess that there was more to it than that.

“Your mom told me about when you came to see her…back when Jessica left and everything. She said that she asked you why and you told her it was because someone very special convinced you to.”

“Well I didn’t say anything that wasn’t true,” he murmured.

Her heart swelled even more than it already was, something Donna hadn’t thought possible.

“It’s probably stupid but I don’t know…hearing that..it meant a lot to me,” she confessed quietly.

“It’s not stupid,” he assured her. “I’m really glad that you did by the way. Convince me I mean.”

“I’m glad that you actually listened to me.”

“I always listen to you.”

Donna raised an eyebrow at that.

“Eventually,” he added with that little smirk she adored.

She grinned at him, the love of her life while he gazed at her as if she hung the moon in the sky.

And between the walls of a hospital, where life ended and began, Donna fell into him for the millionth time. She would never stop falling.

#darvey #darvey fanfiction #darvey fic #donna x harvey #mine

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schrijverr · 2 years

Text

Going Under

When Harvey notices that Mike isn’t living better than before, even if he’s paid much more right now, he knows something is off. It all comes to a head on a Friday when he finds Mike surrounded by bills. And while he will deny (though perhaps not under oath) that he cares, he is there for Mike.

On AO3.

Ships: none

Warnings: money problems

~~~~~~~~~

Harvey knows how much they’re paying Mike. Hell, he gave him the signing bonus, wrote the check himself. What he doesn’t know is why his associate still lives in his crappy apartment, why he bikes to work, why he looks physically pained when Rachel asks him to lunch, no matter how much he wants to or why he insists on wearing those cheap suits.

And if there is one thing Harvey hates almost as much as loosing, it’s not knowing.

Still, as a lawyer he knows that the direct route is not always the best route and he doesn’t think he can justify grilling Mike about his spending habits. In the end, he is just curious, not like he worries about the kid. Not that he wonders if he’s still in trouble with some bad people, whom he owes.

God, Donna will be laughing at him when she finds out. Because with her it’s always when not if and she won’t listen to his bullshit.

Luckily, he is a the best lawyer there is and he can spin worrying about Mike – which he does not – into trying to make sure he is covering his own ass. Since their mutually shared destruction hinges on no one else finding out and pulling them both under. Which someone Mike owes might be able to do.

So, before he has to listen to Donna telling him he cares and that he’s getting soft, he can subtly bring it up. Because yeah, it’s a valid concern, but he isn’t going to tip his hand by revealing to Mike that he has noticed his spending habits. That would make it seem like he cares, which he doesn’t and he doesn’t want to make that false impression.

Which is when Harvey starts commenting on Mike’s cheap suits. Mike takes it at first, but after getting more comfortable working alongside Harvey, he just rolls his eyes one day and snorts: “Oh, I’m sorry, Mr. Big Lawyer Man, I didn’t know my suit, offended you so much. I’d say bring it up to the fashion police, maybe you can make a law suit out of it.”

Then Harvey takes it even further by even dropping off a case file at Mike’s apartment himself, just to wonder out loud how Mike lives like this.

“Well, luckily for you, you don’t have to live here, I do, your Majesty,” is Mike’s response to that, along with: “And it’s not crappy, it’s vintage. Just like you and your vinyls collection.”

He even talks to him about pit stains and helmet hair when the kid checks the lock on his bike. And to that Mile says: “First off, I don’t have pit stains, I check. And second off, if I get into an accident and my head is spread out over the highway, because I wasn’t wearing a helmet, I’m holding you responsible. So, you’re lucky that I will continue to wear a helmet, because you wouldn’t want that on your conscious. You could say I’m doing you a favor by it.”

“Just style you hair in the morning, Mike,” Harvey replies.

“Give me access to your secret gel stash you have in you desk and I might.”

“I don’t have a gel stash in my desk,” Harvey informs him with a sigh.

“Really?” Mike almost seems genuine, except for the shit eating grin tugging on the corners of his mouth. They truly have to work on his poker face more. “I thought you must have it with your slick hair. Thought it would be right next to your manicure set and your shoe polish.”

“You done?” Harvey levels him with a stare and Mike backs off. “That’s what I thought,” Harvey says, before moving on to the brief, handing Mike a big stack of paperwork, he knows will be done by the end of the day, even if it’s two days work with overtime.

It is at that point that Donna has caught on enough to comment, buzzing her intercom just to say: “Did I just hear the great Harvey Specter worry about his associate?”

“You heard him worry about his own image and that of the firm,” Harvey replies, making a valiant effort to sound like he means it.

But by the way Donna chuckles, “Whatever you say, boss,” it isn’t very effective.

Still, despite his false claims that he doesn’t care, his claims that he can read people are still true and he was right about something being off about Mike and his spending habits. So when he finds his associate surrounded by official looking documents at 10 on a Friday in the library after they’ve wrapped up for the week and have nothing until Monday, he knows something is off.

For a moment he considers not burning his fingers on this, everyone – and by everyone he means Donna – is already on his case for caring, stopping to ask what’s wrong and helping his obviously swamped associate wouldn't help his case.

However, the curiosity has been eating at him for weeks and there is no one around to find out anyway. So, he plops onto the seat next to Mike and asks: “Are you purposefully drowning yourself in work or did you piss Louis off?”

If the amount of work has Harvey worried, the way Mike startles and attempts to cover the documents he’s pouring over worries him even more.

Harvey frowns and tries to see what Mike’s working on, the frown deepening when he finds it’s unpaid bills for electricity and water. It’s Mike’s address, not a case.

“It’s not what it looks like,” Mike squeaks, trying to defend himself when it becomes clear to him that Harvey has seen what he is working on. “I was just trying to cross reference if there is a renter’s law that will help me keep my hot water. Can’t come into work looking like a slob, right?” that last part is an attempted joke in order to placate Harvey and it’s not working.

“What the hell, Mike?” he exclaims. “Where is all your money going? I told you to quit smoking, didn’t I? Can’t even listen to that?”

“I’m not smoking!” Mike shoots back angrily, before sagging. “I just need to pay a lot. It’s New York, you should know. Shit’s expensive.”

“How much debt do you even have?” Harvey asks. “Because I know what I’m paying you and I also know how I lived off that salary. And let me tell you, I had running water. So I’m giving you another chance to fucking explain yourself, Mike.”

“It’s Grammy,” Mike whispers pitifully and Harvey lets out a shocked yet relieved yet concerned: “What?” which he will deny later.

“It’s just-” Mike sighs as he cuts himself off, then groans: “I’m never getting old, it’s fucking expensive to be it. I’m never putting anyone I care about through this and I’m never taking this many pills.”

This time Harvey chokes and is glad he doesn’t have Mike’s memory, because he would like to forget that his associate ever told him he doesn’t want to get old. He is now past pretending (at least to himself) that he doesn’t care and that comment pushed him over.

Mike obviously interprets it completely wrong and quickly goes: “I didn’t mean- I’m sorry, I know I should be thankful she’s still here and I am, I didn’t mean to complain. It’s- I’m worried about her. I didn’t even know she was taking all of this until it wasn’t covered anymore. God, I would have known if I went to visit her. I’m a terrible grandson.”

“No, you’re not,” Harvey assures him before he can think about it.

“Thanks,” Mike says without sarcasm while he also gives him a look like he still doesn’t believe a word he’s saying.

Harvey knows that if he says something right now, he’ll never be able to deny that he cares. He also knows that if he doesn’t say anything, Mike will take that and run with it and Harvey has seen first hand how he can twist things in his mind. So, he sighs: “You’re not a bad grandson, Mike. You’ve been working your ass of to assure she’s fine.”

“But she isn’t fine.” Much to Harvey’s horror tears are starting to pool in Mike’s eyes as he slumps over his bills again. “I can find jack shit in here and she’s loosing it because I’m never around anymore. I used to visit twice a week, now I’m there once a month if I’m lucky.”

“Mike…” Harvey starts, unsure how to end the sentence, especially when the tears actually start to fall.

Fortunately for him, he doesn’t have to think of a way to end that sentence, because Mike is full of words that come spilling out alongside his tears. “She threw a fit today, demanding that- that they give her her grandson back. She was convinced that m- my parents just- just had their accident. She thought CPS had- that they had taken me. The- The nursing home called and I was too busy with briefs to even answer. And now- now I’m here. Trying to find something instead of facing her, because I’m a coward and a terrible grandson, who can’t even pay for her new treatment.”

He quickly looses steam through his rant and at the end he’s just softly crying, tears leaking over the bills in front of them.

However that also means the ball is now in Harvey’s court and he has no idea how to react to this. He isn’t good with emotions on the best day and a crying associate is definitely above his level. He scratches the back of his head, then pats Mike’s back as he asks: “Why didn’t you tell me you still had money problems?”

It is not the right thing to say.

While Mike had been crying before, now the silent tears and hitched breaths when he speaks turn into soft sobs and the tears come even faster.

Immediately Harvey panics and he wonders if it’s acceptable to walk off call Donna and leave her to deal with this. However, one look at Mike and he knows he can’t leave the kid alone right now, not even to call Donna.

So, his entire reputation and all the respect he’s earned from Mike goes down the drain as he slings an arm around him, trying to think of Markus, because with him it’s easier to care. Though he finds it isn’t really necessary to pretend Mike is someone else and isn’t that another revelation.

Despite his own fears and emotional turmoil about it, Mike doesn’t magically stop his crying to make a snappy comment about Harvey caring. Instead, he turns to Harvey and practically collapses against his chest, the crying intensifying.

Harvey is 99% sure he has fucked up when Mike starts crying more, but he doesn’t know what else to do. So he just awkwardly pats Mike’s back some more as he tries not to let his heart break under the obviously exhausted and emotionally drained sobs that Mike can’t hold back anymore.

After a few minutes, Mike regains himself enough to sit up, wiping away tears to reveal red-rimmed and dead eyes. He takes a few breaths, blushing as he sees the wet stain on Harvey’s ridiculously expensive suit. He nods at it and says: “I can’t pay you back.”

“You don’t have to,” Harvey assures him. He might be known for being a dick, but he’s surrounded by the proof that Mike is neck deep in red and he isn’t about to tell him that he has to give him a few thousand dollars for a suit that will probably get over it in the dry cleaning.

“No, I can’t ever pay you back,” Mike repeats, looking at him intently. “You’ve done so much for me and I know you think me a loud mouth and annoying associate, but this? All of this? I couldn’t have had this before and now I do. How on earth could I ever tell you I was still struggling?”

“Like that?” Harvey says, unable to stop the comment after Mike’s honest appreciation made him squirm slightly. “Preferably before it got this bad.”

“I’m sorry,” Mike says miserably.

“No- Fuck. I’m not good at this,” Harvey sighs. He rubs his forehead as he thinks, glad Mike is just nervously biting his lip as he shuts up. Deep down, he knows he wouldn't have reacted well to the news Mike was still struggling if he hadn’t stumbled upon it like this. He knows how there was a small part of him that saw Mike struggling and thought he wasn’t completely clean again. Hell, he reacted badly just moments before. So, with all of that thrown out of the window, he has to re-calibrate slightly.

“Okay,” Harvey says after a moment of consideration. “Here’s what’s going to happen. You are going to do all the calculations and tell me how much you need to get solid right now and how much you need to earn in a month to stay that way. I’m going to figure out how we’re going to do that and I’m doing that as your lawyer and your boss.” And your friend, he doesn’t add. “And we’re going to see you grandmother right now.”

“I- I can’t let you do that,” Mike protests immediately. “I already owe you too much, I can’t pay you back.”

“Tough luck,” Harvey tell him, finding it easier to be an asshole about it. “Because I’m sure we can get some of that medicine covered through Pearson Hardman’s insurance and with your salary and work ethic we can figure something out about overtime compensation. You won’t owe me more and you’re not going under, I promise.”

“Oh thank god,” Mike sighs. “I didn’t think solicitation would look good on my record and I was honestly starting to think about it.”

Harvey isn’t sure if Mike is joking about it and doesn’t want to think about the implication that it might have happened before. So, he pushes it into a box never to be touched again and rolls his eyes: “You’re not good looking enough to be Julia Roberts, now get yourself together, we wouldn't want the nursing staff to think I’m checking you in.”

“You’re a dick,” Mike informs him, but there’s a small smile tugging at his lips as he gathers his stuff and his posture seems a bit more relaxed.

As they walk out of the building, Mike suddenly asks: “It’s past visiting hours, they won’t let us in.”

“They’ll make an exception for me,” Harvey tells him with a smirk and after a disbelieving look, he adds: “Everyone makes an exception for me.”

“You’re not as charming as you think.”

“Tell that to all my closings. And sticking your tongue out isn’t mature, Mike.”

#RR writing #suits #suits tv #suits tv show #mike ross #harvey specter #Mike Ross & Havrey Specter #donna paulsen #tw: money problems #suits season 1 #suits fanfic

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darveyfics · 7 years

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Harvey and Donna trick or treating with Donna's niece or darvey trick or treating with a kid

Donna and Harvey have to babysit/take trick or treating his/her nephews

“Double Double Toil and Trouble”

“You need to come over.”

Donna slows her steps, feet halting in the middle of the sidewalk. She turns to look at Rachel out of reflex, watching as her friend’s eyebrows raise in question.

“Who is this?” She speaks into her cell phone, playing her best confused persona.

Harvey growls on the other end, and she sends Rachel an amused smile, pleased at her ability to get him riled up. “Donna…”

“What is it, Harvey? Don’t tell me you’re bored without me already, it’s only been-” she checks her watch, “two hours. I mean, I know I’m miss-worthy, but…”

“I just need-”

“…I don’t do booty calls, Harvey.” She throws back, catching Rachel stifling a laugh in the corner of her eye.

“This is not-” he sighs in frustration, trying his best to tamper it down, “listen, Donna, I just need you to come ove-”

Suddenly, a loud crash echoes through the phone.

“What the hell was that?” Donna asks in confusion, concern dripping from her voice.

“That was-” Another crash interrupts him, and she doesn’t miss the way he curses under his breath.

“Are you being robbed or something?”

Harvey pinches the bridge of his nose, trying to take slow breaths before replying. “No… that would be the sound of Marcus’ kids destroying my house.”

“Your brother’s there? I didn’t know he was visiting today.”

“He’s not.” She can hear the near panic in his voice, masked with just a layer of annoyance.

“Oh.”

“Yeah.” Harvey sighs.

“So, let me get this straight… you’re in your apartment, alone, with your brother’s kids.”

“Yes.”

“Wow. I don’t know who I feel sorry for more in this moment.”

“Donna,” he warns, feeling his impatience running thin, “You need to come over, okay? I don’t know what the hell I’m doing and I need your help. Please.”

Donna takes a moment, glancing at Rachel who is eyeing her with a mix of curiosity and amusement. She briefly considers teasing him more, slightly entertained by his flustered demeanor, but decides against it. He did say ‘please’.

“Okay, I’ll be right over.”

Harvey lets out a breath he hadn’t realized he was holding. “Thank you, just-” another small crash comes through, followed by twin giggles, “-hurry up.”

Donna bites her lip, trying her best not to laugh at her boyfriend in his current predicament. “I’ll try my best. You try to tame the rascals until I get there.”

Harvey scoffs on the other end. “I’ll try.”

She hangs up with an amused smile on her face, rolling her eyes. “Sorry, Rach, I’m gonna have to cut our girl day short.”

“Is everything okay?” Her friend asks, a curious tilt to her voice.

“Harvey is babysitting his niece and nephew.”

Rachel’s eyes widen. “You’re kidding.”

“Nope.” Donna smiles despite herself. She only feels partly bad for making fun of her boyfriend, then again, the fact that he couldn’t look after two small children on his own is all on him.

“I- can’t picture Harvey watching over two kids. Or one, for that matter.”

“Well, he has been left alone with Mike and Louis on a number of occasions…”

“Good point.” Rachel chuckles.

“Okay, well, I’m off to do some damage control. Wish me luck.” She raises her eyebrows comically, leaning in to give Rachel a kiss on the cheek.

“Keep me posted.” Her friend playfully demands.

“Oh, you bet.”

Donna struggles to balance the bags she held, all the while trying to fish out the keys to his apartment from her purse. She knew he was probably going to give her hell for taking so long, if the messages she’s been receiving were any indication already, but seeing as how neither expected Marcus to drop off his kids unexpectedly- something she plans on interrogating Harvey about as soon as possible- she knew she had to run a few errands before she could make her way back to his place.

She’s only a foot away from his door when the bags in her arms slither out of her hold, landing by her feet with a loud thud.

A low curse leaves her lips as she watches some of the contents spilling out, letting out a frustrated sigh as she crouches down to pick them up.

“Harvey Specter, you so owe me.” She muses to herself, already mentally thinking of the ways her boyfriend could thank her later- a few Marni bags and a couple of orgasms immediately making the top of the list.

The door to his condo suddenly opens, a disgruntled Harvey appearing.

“What the hell took you so long?” Is his immediate greeting, already crouching down to help Donna with the bags.

“‘Oh hello, Donna. Thank you so much for coming, Donna. Whatever would I do without you, Donna?’” She mimics, annoyance seeping in to her.

Once they manage to pick up all of the contents from the bags, him carrying two and her one in addition to her purse, she zooms right past him, making her way to his kitchen where she deposits the bag she held, Harvey following and doing the same.

Harvey sighs, exhaustion exuding from his entire demeanor. “I just meant- I thought you would be here sooner, is all.” He tries to recover quickly.

She purses her lips, hand on her hip. “Well, I had to stop to buy a couple of things before I got here.”

He raises his eyebrows. “You went shopping?”

Donna rolls her eyes. “I ran some errands.”

“For what?”

“For kids stuff.”

“Kids stuff?” She pushes the urge to roll her eyes again out of the way. She loved the man, she really did, but sometimes he could be so damn oblivious.

“Harvey, I don’t know if you were aware of this already, but your place isn’t exactly ‘kid friendly’. I went out and bought them a couple of snacks, a couple of options for dinner, and a few toys.” Donna motions to each bag as she described their contents.

Harvey knit his eyebrows in confusion. “I already have food.”

“Our left over Thai dinner from last night? Not exactly kid food, Harvey.” She scolds.

He sighs in defeat, the realization hitting him at once. “I guess you’re right.”

“You guess?” Donna raises her eyebrows.

“No, you are right. And, thank you, by the way,” he takes a step toward her, placing a kiss on her temple, “I wouldn’t know what to do without you.”

Donna smirks. “Flattery will get you everywhere, my friend.” She kisses his smiling lips before turning to finally clear out some of the food from the bags.

“So, you never did tell me why Marcus dropped them off last minute?” Donna inquires. She knew his brother wasn’t the kind to stop by unexpectedly, unless he wanted something. Marcus dropping off his kids without notice wasn’t a sudden attempt to make Harvey bond with his niece and nephew, that much she was certain.

Harvey rolls his eyes, a frustrated sigh leaving him. “Marcus and his wife had to leave town for the weekend,” he began, helping Donna put some of the food in the fridge, “My kid brother shows up at my door with those two and a suitcase for each- no prior phone call, mind you- and tells me that his wife’s grandfather is sick and they had to fly up to Maine. So, here I am, designated babysitter for the weekend.”

Donna resists the urge to chuckle at that comment, stopping to watch her boyfriend as he finishes up putting the rest of the food away. “When was the last time you even saw those two?”

Harvey shrugs. “A year ago, I think.”

She gives him a look.

“Okay, maybe two years ago.” Harvey corrects when he sees her glare.

Donna smirks. “That’s better. So, where are thing one and thing two now?” She muses, finally glancing over to the living room to survey the area. A few books and toys now adorned the couch and floor, a couple of Harvey’s knick knacks and pots and pans had taken over the area as well. She turns to Harvey with a quizzical stare.

“They got bored of the few toys they had. Marcus didn’t bring enough for them.” He defends.

“And where are they now? Napping? Or did you auction them off?” She jokes, noticing the eerie silence in his loft.

“Funny, and no, they’re in my room watching-”

Suddenly, two pairs of little feet tumble out of his room, making a mad dash toward him.

“Uncle Harvey!” The little girl wails. “Your iPad ran out of battery.” Her pouting was accompanied by her brother’s dramatic sigh.

“What are we supposed to play with now?” The little boy, about two inches shorter than his sister, questions.

“Well-” Harvey begins, suddenly at a loss on how to handle the situation.

“I have an idea!” Donna chimes in, a wide smile on her face.

Twin pairs of blue eyes meet hers, the two children finally taking note of her presence.

“Who are you?” The little girl wonders, head tilting to the side as she studies the older woman, her dark auburn curls falling off to the side in the process.

“I’m Donna.” She grins, glancing between the two children who couldn’t stop staring at her.

“Are you his girlfriend?” The little boy asks, eyeing her wearily.

Donna chuckles. “I am.”

“You’re pretty.” Harvey’s niece gasps, ocean blue eyes widening in awe.

“I think you have a fan.” Harvey quips.

“Shush, you.” Donna playfully slaps his chest, emitting a pair of giggles from the two kids. She crouches down to meet them at eye level. “And what are your names?”

“I’m Hailey! And this is brother Jack.” Hailey points to her brother, who only nods in response.

“Well, it’s very nice to meet both of you. Have you guys been having fun with your uncle?” She glances between the siblings, biting back a laugh when she notices them sharing a look.

“Well, we were until his iPad ran out of battery.” Jack mumbles

Donna hums in response. “Well, I’m sure we can figure something out. I actually bought you guys a couple of toys and games if you’re interested?”

Hailey tilts her head in suspicion. “What kind of games?”

“It’s a surprise,” Donna widens her eyes comically, “but first, you two have to go and clean up the mess you made.”

Twin groans followed suit. “Can’t Uncle Harvey do that?” Jack whines, glancing up at the man in question.

“No,” Donna begins sternly, “You guys clean up and then wash up for dinner. I bought you guys some Mac and Cheese and chicken nuggets....”

Their little eyes widen in surprise for a split second before eyeing the mess in the living room again. “Do we have to?” Hailey drawls out.

Donna purses her lips, standing up to tower over the kids. “No, you can leave the mess, but then you won’t get to play with what I bought you and your choice for dinner is limited to whatever left over food your uncle has stashed in his fridge.”

She watches in amusement as the kids share horrified glances, before scurrying off to the living room, picking up the remnants of their earlier endeavors with determination.

Harvey looks over at his girlfriend, mouth slightly gaping as she watches the kids with a too pleased of a smile on her face.

“That was-”

“Impressive?” Donna smirks.

“Scary.”

She snorts. “Why? Because I was able to accomplish something you couldn’t in less than two minutes?”

“Your modesty is so hot.” He jokes.

“Hmm, count your blessings, Specter,” Donna watches as the six and five year olds continue their clean-up, “You would be lost without me.”

“Oh, trust me,” Harvey leans over, pressing a lingering kiss to her cheek. “I know.”

Two hours, an almost burnt dinner, and a tantrum and a half later, the four of them were situated at Harvey’s dining table. Hailey and Jack were each downing their respective share of Mac and Cheese with dinosaur shaped chicken nuggets, while Donna and Harvey ate the pasta Harvey had decided to make on a whim.

Dinner had been mostly quiet, given the slight tantrum Hailey had given beforehand. She missed her mother and wanted to see her, now. It had broken Donna’s heart, seeing her lips trembling when she started feeling home sick, knowing it was probably the first time the little girl had been away from her parents for an extended amount of time.

Harvey had just stood by, watching, knowing Donna was more suited to deal with the issue at hand in the moment. He had watched in awe and wonder as his girlfriend soothed the girl, speaking to her firmly yet gently, making sure she never raised her voice. Eventually, the little girl had been nothing but soft sniffles, curling into Donna as she mumbled a shameful “sorry” for her recent behavior. His heart had all but melted at the action, trying his best to tamper down the sudden desire to have this with her one day. The whole package.

He had failed miserably.

And now, sitting at the dinner table with his girlfriend and his brother’s two kids, it all just felt so domestic. He never wanted this feeling to end.

“What are we going to do tomorrow?” Jack’s small voice finally filled in the silence.

The couple turned to look at each in surprise- Jack was normally the quieter of the pair.

“Tomorrow?” Harvey asks in confusion.

“Oh,” Donna suddenly realized. “Halloween.” Normally, she would never let her favorite holiday slip by, but seeing as how every party relating to the holiday had already passed- both of them attending each- she had forgotten the holiday itself was the following day. Plus, the sudden events from that day had taken over her every thought.

“Yeah,” Jack continues, voice low and timid, “Um, are we going to go trick-or-treating?” He bites his lip, glancing between the two adults expectedly.

“Mommy and daddy always take us!” Hailey pitches in then.

Harvey shifts in in his seat, looking about as uncomfortable as ever. “Oh, well, I don’t think…”

“Yes! We can take you.” Donna’s excited voice interrupts him, earning her a glare from the man in question.

“Donna…”

“Really?!” Hailey and Jack shriek, disbelief and glee written in their features.

“Of course! What’s Halloween without trick-or-treating?” Donna exclaims, finding their joy to be contagious, grinning alongside with them.

Her smile widens ten-fold as she watches the kids continuing to screech in joy. When she turns to settle her eyes on her boyfriend, she finds him giving her an annoyed glare. “Can I talk to you for a second?” His voice is low and collected, no doubt for the kids’ benefit.

Donna purses her lips, already preparing herself for whatever bullshit of an excuse he’s going to throw her way.

“Hey, your uncle and I are just going to be over there for a minute, okay?” She gives the kids a kind smile, thankful that they merely nod in response, humming happily as they continue to eat their meal, no doubt too distracted by the prospect of trick-or-treating the following day.

She makes a beeline to his bedroom, arms crossed as she stands in from of his bed, waiting for him to meet her.

“Okay, before you say anything, and trust me, I know what you’re going to say, I’m not about to crush those two kids’ hearts by telling them we can’t go trick-or-treating tomorrow.” Donna states as soon as he enters the space.

“Donna,” Harvey begins, voice low and pointed, “we can’t.”

“Why the hell not?” She barks.

“Because, we’re not their parents! It’s not our responsibility!” He doesn’t know where his outburst came from, suddenly feeling himself growing more irritated by the second.

“Would you keep your voice down?” She seethes, glancing through the small opening of his sliding door, making sure the kids weren’t looking in the direction. She sighs in relief when she sees them immersed in themselves.

Harvey takes a breath to calm himself, taking a measured step closer to her. “I just think- we should stay in, keep them occupied by-”

“By what? Sticking them in a room to play with your iPad as all the other kids are out having fun on Halloween?” She shoots back, eyes throwing daggers his way.

“Why are you so against me on this?”

“Why are you so against them having a little bit of fun?”

He huffs in his place, shifting from one foot to another as he tries to pick his battles with his girlfriend. Five months into their relationship and they had miraculously stayed away from any big arguments. Sure, they still fought at times, bickering mostly, but they rarely got so riled up. Harvey mentally curses his brother for the hundredth time that day, only feeling slightly guilty knowing that it wasn’t the kids’ fault he didn’t know how to handle a single situation with them.

“I just- you saw how they got earlier, when Hailey threw her tantrum and- you weren’t here earlier, when they were wreaking havoc running all over the place. How the hell are we supposed to handle two kids, hyped up on sugar, on Halloween?”

Donna eyes him curiously for a moment, noticing how his anger- which was mostly just frustration- had subsided, a wave of nerves taking its place.

“Harvey, we can handle it.” She responds, voice calmer now, inching toward him.

“You sure about that?” He doubts, wishing he could more or less believe her words.

She quirks an eyebrow at him. “Have I ever been wrong before?”

“Well,” He ponders for a moment, eyes drifting off in thought.

“That would be a no,” she answers for him, “Harvey, I know you’re more than a little freaked over the prospect of taking those kids out anywhere, especially on Halloween- which I know you only tolerate because of me,” he opens his mouth to respond, “I’m not finished, and you know I’m right,” she snaps, “but you need to understand that those two are pretty damn miserable here. They miss their parents, they’re already not going to be able to see their friends tomorrow, just- let them have this, okay? If not for them, then for me.” She gazes over his face carefully, eyes soft and pleading as she watches his demeanor slowly crumble before her.

“Well…”

“Come on, Harvey, we both know I’m going to win here, so you might as well give in now.”

He smirks. “You’re pretty persistent, you know that?”

She shrugs. “It’s part of my charm.”

“Okay,” he finally relents, “If you say we can do this together…”

“We can, and we will.” She states with confidence, taking a step closer in his direction, prompting his hands hands to land on her waist.

“So, you think this will earn me the cool uncle badge?” He puffs out his chest.

Donna snorts. “I’m not a miracle worker, Harvey.” She retorts.

He gives her a mock look of hurt before sobering up. “For the record? They haven’t been miserable here, at least not since you came by, even with the tantrum. They love you.”

“You think so?” She suddenly looks just short of shy, uncertainty in her voice.

“How can they not?”

“Smooth.” She chuckles, leaning up to peck his lips, a warmth settling low in her chest. She detangles from his hold then, grabbing his hand to lead them out into the living room again.

“Hey, what’s with the gloomy faces?” Worry was etched in her voice when they reached the table, noticing the way their earlier glee was replaced with sadness.

“We don’t have any costumes.” Hailey mumbles, absentmindedly toying with the spoon she held over her now empty plate.

“Daddy didn’t pack us any.” Jack adds with a frown.

Harvey watches as Donna bites her lip, knowing that a plan was already forming in her mind.

“You guys don’t worry about that, okay? Aunt Donna has got you covered.” She sends a wink their way, walking over to the kitchen island, reaching inside her purse to grab her phone.

“What are you doing?” Harvey wonders, eyes glancing over her shoulder.

“I’m ordering our costumes.” She states, immersed in the device she held in her hands.

“Wait, our?” Harvey all but shrieks.

“Well, obviously, I wasn’t going to let you be the only one who didn’t dress up. That’d be ridiculous.” She scoffs.

“Right.” Harvey rolls his eyes, not bothering to argue with her further, knowing he would just end up losing. Again.

“Don’t worry,” Donna turns to glance at him, a too sweet of a smile on her face, “I promise you’ll love it.”

“Come on, tell me.”

“No way.”

“You said I’d like it, so what’s the harm in telling me what you got me?” Harvey argues. He and Donna were currently situated on his couch, a blanket strewn over them. They had gotten the kids ready for bed earlier, a task that had surprisingly been easier than expected. Although, it did take two bedtime stories each, for them to finally succumb to sleep. It took only a little bit of pouting and pleading eyes from the kids and Donna to get him to join in on the storytelling. He had even added a couple of animated voices in the process, much to his girlfriend’s delight and amusement.

Since Harvey didn’t have a guest bedroom, they had placed the kids on his bed, leaving them to share the couch- something Harvey actually didn’t mind, seeing as how they were all but sitting on top of one another.

“No funny business,” She had scolded him when he had gotten too handsy, “I’m not having sex with you when your niece and nephew are twenty feet away.”

Harvey had only pouted just slightly, knowing she was right. Still, it didn’t keep him from cuddling with her, hand caressing the small of her back as she lay half on top of him.

“You’ll see it when it arrives, okay?” Donna gazes up at him, sending him one of her many variations of the Donna look.

He sighs in defeat. “Fine. How the hell did you manage to find costumes so close to Halloween, anyway?”

“You should know by now that I have my ways.” She playfully scolds, her hand running up and down his chest in a teasing manner.

He stills her hand, knowing if she continued he wouldn’t be able to not touch her further. “You’re something else, that’s for sure.” He whispers, placing a kiss to the top of her head. A sense of calmness fills him then, closing his eyes against the looming fireplace in the distance, breathing in the sweet smell of her as she cuddles further into him.

“As nice as this is, you should probably invest in a bigger apartment.” Donna muses after a couple of minutes of comfortable silence.

“Hmm?”

“A bigger apartment, you know, so we can have more room, and not need to resort to squeezing into your tiny couch.” She clarifies.

Harvey opens his eyes, forehead knit in confusion. “This will only be a two night thing. I don’t plan on having anyone else staying at my apartment.”

Donna lifts her head from his shoulder, eyeing him carefully. “I don’t mean just for situations like this, Harvey.” She tells him softly.

“Then what-”

“Do you want kids?”

Her words take him by surprise, eyes widening in the dim light of the room. The only sounds he hears then is the crackling of the fireplace, and his own heart beating rapidly against his chest.

“Wh- what?”

“Do you want kids?” She sits up slightly straighter, trying to find a more comfortable position to look at him.

“I- haven’t really thought about it.” He swallows back the emotions bubbling in him.

“You haven’t?” Her face falls and he mentally curses himself.

Harvey clears his throat, sitting up straighter in the small space of his couch, Donna following.

“To be honest?” He waits for her to nod before he continues, “I think about it all the time.” He confesses quietly.

Donna’s features soften, a shadow of a smile on her lips.

“Then why-”

“I’m not exactly good with kids, Donna.” He mumbles.

“That’s not true.” She argues.

He tilts his head at her.

“Okay, so you struggled a bit, earlier, but in all honestly, anyone could have.”

“I’m just not sure I’d be any good at being a parent.” He shrugs.

“So you don’t want kids?” She tries to tamper any traces of disappointment from seeping out of her.

“I do.” He clarifies, catching hold of her hands. “I want a family with you more than anything, Donna.”

She lets a small smile grace her features. He feels his throat constricting at the way the light from the fire bounces off of her, creating a halo-like glow around her.

“Yeah?”

Harvey grins. “Yeah.”

She leans forward to press a kiss to his lips, parting before he could pull her in deeper. “I know you don’t believe so, but I know you’d be an excellent father.” Her hand reaches up to caress his cheek, watching as his eyes glaze over.

“You think so?”

“Please, with our kid? You’d be totally whipped.” She grins at him.

Harvey gulps. Our kid. The words send a plethora of emotions straight to his heart, and it takes everything in him not to pull her down to him in that moment, the words “let’s make a baby now” catching in his throat.

She eyes him wearily, slight amusement on her face, almost as if she knows what he’s currently thinking.

“One day.” He speaks at last, finally being able to find his voice.

Donna smiles, her eyes glimmering with a sudden rush of emotions. “One day.” She agrees, settling beside him once again.

He holds her to him just a little closer than before, their hearts steadying as they finally let sleep take over.

He dreams of a little girl with fiery red hair and hazel eyes. She dreams of a little boy with a cheeky grin and sandy blonde hair….

“I’m not wearing this.”

Donna pauses her ministrations on him to send him a glare. “You already are.” She raises an eyebrow at him, hands continuing to smooth the few creases on his costume.

Harvey sighs in near defeat, shifting uncomfortably in place.

“Can you stop fidgeting for one damn second?” His girlfriends scolds, trying her best to straighten the the collar of his suit. “Your worse than the kids.”

Harvey rolls his eyes, a childish pout on his lips that makes her either want to slap or kiss off his face. She hasn’t decided yet.

“I don’t know why you chose this as my costume.”

“I thought you liked Batman.” Donna reasons, meeting his eyes as she places her palms flat on his chest now, thumbs gently rubbing against the semi-rough black fabric.

“Yeah, in the movies. I don’t exactly fantasize dressing up as him.”

She lets her lips quirk up slightly, a suggestive tilt to her voice when she speaks. “Well, that makes one of us.”

Harvey groans in response. “Okay, you can’t say things like that when you know I can’t pin you against the nearest surface to have my way with you.”

“Wow, I’m loving the sweet talk, stud.” She sends a wink his way before stepping back from him, making her way to the dresser to put the finishes touches on her hair.

Harvey watches her for a moment, eyes glazing over her hungrily even with the modest costume she donned. He had been annoyed when their costumes had arrived earlier, a too excited smile on her lips as she she watched him unveiling his own with unbridled anticipation.

He played hardball with her for a good five minutes- a new record- declining to wear the slightly too bulky batman costume, until he relinquished control again, and put on the damn thing. His sour expression had momentarily diminished the second she had waltzed out of the bathroom sometime later, fully dressed in her Poison Ivy costume. The off-the-shoulder green dress wasn’t short, covering just above her knees, and her hair was twisted in perfect curls, adorned with a couple of vines for a finishing touch.

It wasn’t revealing in the slightest, but she was Donna. She could be wearing a potato sack and he would still be rendered speechless.

Harvey shifts in his spot then, his costume suddenly becoming too tight and overheated.

“I still don’t understand why you wouldn’t just let me wear my costume from the other night.” He grumbles, trying his best to find a suitable stance in a sea of uncomfortable polyester.

Donna snorts, putting on her earrings as a last touch. “You wore your tux and called yourself James Bond, Harvey. That wasn’t a costume.”

He walks over to her then, meeting her eyes through the mirror. “Still, you could’ve picked something else.” His hands find their way to her small waist, fingers caressing her over the fabric of her dress.

“Well, I didn’t, so tough.” She quirks at him.

He tightens his lips, stepping just an inch closer to align his body against hers. “And I don’t see why you couldn’t wear yours from the other night.” His breath is hot against her ear, her skin erupting in goosebumps in the process.

“I don’t think- that would’ve been appropriate for tonight- around kids.” Her voice is breathy when his lips find the exposed area of her shoulder blade, tongue darting out to lightly trace her freckles, somehow finding them even in the dimmed light. Her eyes close out of her own violation when she feels his lips meet her pulse point one second later.

“You make a hot cat woman.” He mumbles against her skin, now tracing his teeth lightly against her neck, feeling her shiver against his ministrations.

“Poison Ivy not doing it for you?” Donna breathes out, her eyes hooded when she opens them to watch him through the mirror. She almost loses it then and there, the temptation to drag him to the bed and have her wicked way with him too great. Her knuckles turn white with the visceral grip she has on the dresser, her knees nearly bucking when he fully sucks on her pulse point.

He chuckles against her skin, the vibrations sending a pool of desire to the pit of her stomach. She mentally curses him and herself for being too damn affected by this self-centered asshole she fell in love with.

“You do it for me.” Harvey clarifies. “I don’t care what you wear- though nothing is always preferable.” He smirks against her, his hands continuing to trace a teasing pattern over the fabric of her dress. “Have I mentioned how much I love you in green?” His voice is all honey and sex when he speaks into her ear, lips meeting her cheek and jaw, effectively causing her to tilt her head more, allowing him more access.

“Harvey- Harvey, you need to stop.” She exhales, trying to render in some semblance of control.

She might as well have been talking to a brick wall, his lips leaving a trail from her neck to her clavicle again.

“Harvey… the kids…”

His movements stop then, a frustrated sigh leaving him. “‘m sorry.” He mumbles against her, his lips still pressed to her skin, yet unmoving.

“No, you’re not.” She sneers, playfully slapping his chest.

He turns her in his arms, his hands winding around her slim figure. “I guess we should get going, then.” Though he makes no effort to move.

Donna hums in response, her hands coming up to trace his squared jaw. “We shouldn’t keep the kids waiting.”

A weird sense of domesticity hits him again- a now irrefutable pattern in the last twenty-four hours. He suddenly has visions of them doing this in the future- getting ready for holidays and birthdays alongside his beautiful wife, trying to coax her for a quickie before they had to leave, but being unable to because their kids are in the other room, waiting for their parents to drag them off someplace.

“Uncle Harvey! Aunt Donna! It’s time to go!” An impatient Hailey breaks him out of his thoughts. He swallows back the emotions that had seeped into him, turning to face his niece who was now giving him a stare he’s sure had rubbed off from Donna.

Her little foot taps against the gold boots she wore, the matching golden lasso at her waist swaying in the process. “We’ll be there in a second, Wonder Woman.” Donna gives the little girl a promising smile, watching in amusement as she turns around to holler at her brother, demanding he stop playing with the iPad now that they were going to leave.

“Come on, Bruce, you heard Diana, it’s time to get our Halloween on.” She gives him a cheeky smile, walking past him to head out of the bedroom. She pauses as soon as she reaches the door, turning to face him. “And oh, don’t forget the mask.”

Harvey groans. He was hoping she would forget about that.

…

“How much longer is this going to take?” His voice is just one octave lower than a full whine, shuffling just behind his girlfriend, the kids a few steps in front of them.

“Why? Did we miss your bedtime already?” Donna teases, her gaze on the kids as they walk swiftly to the next house in the neighborhood.

They had decided- and by they it was Donna- to drive to the nearest family-friendly neighborhood, foregoing to stay in the city to trick-or-treat. We have to give them the full Halloween experience, Harvey, and we can’t do that by staying in that stuffy building of yours, she had chastised. Now, nearly three hours later they were coming in close to their twenty-something house.

“Aren’t your feet killing you in those?” He points to her two and a half inch heels, a low grumble in his voice as his eyes follow her measured steps.

She gives him a bemused look. “They’re shorter than my usual ones, so no.”

“They look uncomfortable.”

She pauses when the kids run up the driveway of a two-story home, watching them as they reach the door before turning back to Harvey, eyebrows raised as she crosses her arm. “You don’t like them?”

“I- no, I didn’t say that.” She stifles back a laugh at seeing him flushed, his batman mask highlighting his warm brown eyes, currently staring at her in half panic, half frustration. He was starting to sound like a grumpy old man tonight, and she was trying her best not to snap at him.

The kids are by their side in a flash again, demanding that they head on to the next house already.

“Come on, grandpa,” Donna loops her arm through his, practically dragging him forward, “let’s finish off this block and then I’ll tuck you into bed.”

“Promise?” He smirks.

“I’ll even read you a bedtime story if you behave.” She quirks an eyebrow at him.

He wiggles his eyebrows over the mask in a way that makes her giggle, the noise reverberating through him a sudden comfort, and he suddenly can’t remember why he had been dreading this whole night in the first place.

They walk a calculated ten steps before they notice the kids had stopped walking, standing somewhat uncomfortably just below the steps that led to another house.

“Hey, kiddos, what’s with the faces?” Donna asks in concern, her brows furrowed as she stares at the two siblings, their hands clutching tightly.

“He doesn’t want to go to this house.” Hailey bites her lip, turning to face the adults.

Donna eyes Jack for a moment, his own eyes hidden under the slightly too large hat from his cowboy costume, practically hiding away in near shame.

“It looks scary.” The little boy mumbles, shifting in his pointed brown boots.

The couple simultaneously shift their gaze over to the mansion to their left. Its already dull gray outer-walls were covered with cob-webs, a couple of skeletons adorning the front with glowing scary-faced jack-o-lanterns that lined the front steps. The icing on the cake, however, and what both adults thought was the main cause for the scare, was the giant make-shift cemetery that took over the entire front lawn of the two-story house- complete with spooky sounding music and ominous lighting.

“What if… I walked up with you guys?” Three pairs of eyes meet Harvey, all slightly taken aback by his words.

Donna stares at her boyfriend, trying to study him behind the mask he wore. “You’re- serious?”

“Don’t sound so surprised.” Harvey tilts his head, half amused at the shock in her voice, although he can’t say he blames her. Not once during the night had he walked up with the kids during their trick-or-treating, instead choosing to stand off to the side, awkwardly waiting for them, surrounded by the plethora of all other kids and their parents celebrating the holiday. The first couple of times Donna had accompanied them, then chose to let them be, so long as they were within eyesight. Still, he hadn’t felt the need to walk up with them, already feeling uncomfortable as it was in what he still deemed to be a ridiculous costume.

“So, what do you guys think?” He turns to the kids then.

“Yes!” Hailey exclaims excitedly, already making her way toward the steps that led to the house.

Harvey eyes Jack curiously, watching the little boy as he bit his lip nervously. “What about you, Jack?” He asks softer this time.

“Will you hold my hand?” Came his quiet response.

“I’ll do you one better.” Harvey replies, suddenly lifting the boy up in arms, carefully shifting him so his candy bag wouldn’t fall. “Don’t worry kid, Batman’s got you covered.” Jack giggled when Harvey used his best ‘Batman’ voice.

Donna felt her eyes glazing over, watching her boyfriend- dressed as Batman- carry his five-year-old nephew, his hand reaching out toward his niece who wrapped her little one around his.

“Hey, you coming up?” He turns to her, a curious tilt to his voice when he sees her staying rooted to the spot.

She only nods with a smile before following him up. She never thought she would be one of those women who would melt whenever she saw a man doting around with kids, and she wasn’t- usually. But standing here now, watching her boyfriend and best friend putting on his best child-like excitement- which she knew he wasn’t faking, she knows him- trick-or-treating with his niece and nephew, she couldn’t help but let giant butterflies swarm her stomach. The cool breeze of the night did nothing to tamper the sudden warmth she felt overtake her, heart caught in her throat as she watched his smile grow ten-fold at the sight of his brother’s kids squealing in excitement when they were given extra rounds of candy.

When he turns to face her, one arm still holding a slightly less scared Jack, she feels a stinging in her eyes. She wants this, she realizes, so badly. The image already forms so clearly in her mind- Harvey holding onto a little girl with her shade of copper hair, vowing to take her anywhere she wanted to go, because he would be just that kind of dad. The kind that would always put his kids first, would make them laugh and squeal with joy whenever he got the chance. The kind that would put his own embarrassment and reservations aside just to see them happy.

“Hey, you okay over there?” Harvey’s words shake her out of her reverie then, noticing the way his lips twitch slightly behind a twinge of concern.

Donna clears her throat, swallowing past the lump that had formed a while ago. “Yeah,” she grins up at him, eyes shifting to the two kids who looked at her expectedly. “What do you munchkins say we finish up our little Halloween adventure before we head back to the city?”

Twin groans follow suit as they make there way back down to the sidewalk again. “Do we have to?” Hailey whines.

“I’ll let you guys sneak in a couple pieces of candy before bedtime if we leave soon, how’s that?” She glances from one child to another, watching in amusement as Jack climbs his way down Harvey in a rush, grabbing his sister’s hands before they scurry off to the following house.

Harvey chuckles, arm circling around her as they follow the kids.

“What?” Donna muses, her lips quirking, playfully poking the dimple that appears at the corner of his mouth.

“That’s the second time you’ve blackmailed them to get them to do something.”

She snorts. “Well, it worked.”

He shakes his head in response, a smile still present on his lips. “You know,” he watches as she turns to face him, stopping once they reached the last house on the block. “This wasn’t so bad.”

She rolls her eyes, an ‘I told you so’ caught in her throat as she leans up to give him a chaste kiss. “Your damn right it wasn’t, Batman.”

“You want me to take her?” Harvey asks Donna as they step off the elevator, walking the hallway that led to his apartment.

“No, you know the deal, one sleepy kid per adult.” She jokes, carefully shifting Hailey in her arms. They two kids had knocked out within the first ten minutes of their car ride home, crashing before their sugar high could kick in. They each had taken hold of one child, trying their best not to ruse them from their peaceful slumber as they made their way up to his condo.

“I’m either too old for this, or this kid decided to gain five pounds in the last hour.” Harvey grunts, trying his best to juggle his hold on Jack and finding the right keys to unlock the door.

Donna snorts. “I’m not even going to touch that one.”

Harvey sends her an unamused glare, his face now free of the Batman mask. He turns to unlock the door, using his foot to gently pry it open as his firm hold on Jack tightens slightly. Once inside, his gaze lands on Donna who’s still standing outside in the hallway, gently swaying and humming a soft tune to a sleeping Hailey.

He feels that familiar tightness return to his chest then. Unlike when he used to have panic attacks, this one holds a feather lightness to it- similar to how he feels every time he looks at his girlfriend- his best friend of thirteen plus years. He had felt it earlier that day when he watched her helping the kids get dressed, when she had comforted Hailey and the day before, when the four of them were gathered on the bed, laughing and telling bedtime stories….

He’s known for months- years- that she’s his future- cannot fathom a life where she’s not in it- and now, staring at her as she holds his niece with such natural, motherly care, he’s more than certain of the fact that he wants to be the father of her children someday, someday soon.

“What?” She faintly chuckles, her eyes shooting up to his when she felt his gaze on her.

His eyes softly crinkle, a shadow of a grin appearing on his face as he shakes his head. “Nothing.” He whispers.

She tilts her head at him, almost convinced it wasn’t nothing, as she makes her way inside, but chooses not to say anything in that moment.

He shuts the door quietly and they gravitate to his bedroom in silence. They work in tandem as they place them gently on the bed, each working as meticulously as possible while they change the kids out of their costumes and into their pajamas, not wanting them to sleep through the night in scratchy costume wear.

“Sweet dreams, you two.” Donna whispers when they finish, placing a gentle kiss to the top of their heads. She watches in pleasant surprise as Harvey follows her actions.

“What?” He asks quietly, catching her staring at him.

She smirks, his earlier response falling from her lips. “Nothing.”

They steal one last glance at the sleeping siblings, hands lacing on reflex when they find their way out of his bedroom together.

“God, I am exhausted.” Harvey sighs, his hand coming up to rub some of the sleep away from his eyes.

Donna scoffs. “That was barely four hours, Harvey. You really are old.”

He collapses on the couch with another loud sigh, sending her a heated look as she plops down right next to him. “I’ll remember that for tomorrow, after those two leave.”

Her lips quirk and her voice matches his low timbre. “Is that a promise?”

He grins at her before letting his head drop back against the couch cushions, eyes closing in the process. “Well, we did it.” He whispers.

She hums in agreement, slipping off her heels as she lets her head fall back on the far side of the couch, feet coming up to land on Harvey’s lap.

His head shoots up then, eyes landing on his near sleeping girlfriend. “I thought you said those shoes were comfortable?”

“I never said that, you just insinuated otherwise. I just gave you shit because you were irritating me so much.” Donna responds, eyes still closed.

He huffs in response. His gaze follows her feet then, watching as she curls her red painted toes against him. Without thinking, he starts to gently massage them, working out the kinks in her soles, effectively bringing out a low moan from her.

“Okay, now you’re just torturing me.” He practically growls at her, kneading out the knots in her muscles more tightly now.

“One more day without sex won’t kill you, Harvey.”

“I care to disagree.” He grunts.

She chuckles, the noise making his lips twitch in response.

A comfortable silence follows them, each silently basking in the peacefulness of the night.

Donna opens one eye then, watching as her boyfriend gently brings his wonderful hands to work on her calf muscles. “You did good tonight, Uncle Harvey.” She whispers.

“Hmm?” He turns to look at her, a lazy smile on her red-tinted lips.

“Tonight, the way you handled the situation with Jack, carrying him just so he wouldn’t be scared. It was- really sweet.” She tells him softly, her eyes slightly glazed, hazel eyes appearing gray against her green eyeshadow.

A grin slowly takes over his features. “So that’s what that look was for.”

“What look?” She asks, confused.

“That look you gave me when we were leaving that creepy looking house.”

She narrows her eyes. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

“Uh huh.” His grin turns into a full one hundred-watt smile.

She nudges his leg with her foot. “Shut up.”

Harvey chuckles, letting go of her feet to lean over her, planting a kiss to her full lips. She responds eagerly, her hand latching on to the nape of his neck, nails gently scratching against his short hair as she slips her tongue out to gently play with his.

A groan of protest escapes her when he pulls back suddenly, eyes hooded in desire and love as he stares down at her, gaze turning serious in a split second.

She knits her forehead in concern. “What?”

“I want a baby.”

A loud ringing numbs her hearing then, mouth gaping as she stares up at him. She searches his face for any trace of a joke, and upon finding none she still finds herself speechless.

“I- I want a bay, with you. Soon.” He swallows past the sudden need to pass out, his own words clouding his sense of clarity.

“Come again?” Donna breathes out, eyes wider than saucers.

Sighing, Harvey pulls back, using his hands on her to gently pull her up with him. Once sitting, he clears his throat, trying again. “I know I’m probably the last person you expected to hear those words from, hell, I’m kind of surprised by them too, but,” he takes a moment to breathe, making sure her gaze was on him. “This weekend- tonight- being with those kids, as stressful as it was at first, as- freaked as I had been…” he shakes his head, trying to will the perfect string of words to come together for him in that moment, “Seeing you with them, being around you with those kids, it made me realize that I want this with you.”

“Want what?” She whispers in a near daze, though despite knowing what he means, she still needed to hear him speak the words.

“I want a family with you, and I know I told you this last night, so this shouldn’t come as a total shock,” he laughs nervously, “But, I don’t want to waste any more time. We’ve already done enough of that.” He finishes quietly, his thumb now running a hypnotizing circle on her hand.

She swallows back against the lump that had formed in her throat. “Harvey-”

“I know it’s really soon-”

Donna half scoffs, a laugh on her lips. “Well, yeah. We’re not even engaged.”

“Yet.” Harvey clarifies.

She raises an eyebrow at him. “Is this your way of proposing?”

“No,” Harvey laughs, “And yeah, it’s a little fast, and I don’t want to pressure you into anything, so if you want to wait, I totally understand, I just- I do really want this with you,” his voice lowers then, eyes searching hers, hoping she sees his commitment to this, to them, “I know you’re it for me, and I know you feel the same way. I just don’t want to waste anymore time. We’re not exactly getting any younger here.”

“Speak for yourself, grandpa.” She jeers, playfully slapping his leg.

He tilts his head at her, “I’m just saying… I don’t want to wait too long, risking against any chance of us having this, a family.”

Donna slowly nods, not trusting herself to speak in that moment as her vision suddenly blurs.

“Again, I know I was more or so losing my shit earlier, but, you were right. We did it. Together. And I know this won’t be easy, but I know we can do it.”

She doesn’t think she’s ever heard such confidence in his voice before, not counting the time months before, when he finally got his head out of his ass and confessed his love for her. She suddenly felt dizzy, the reality of the situation overwhelming her just a little too much.

“Hey, hey breathe,” Harvey nudges her softly, eyes locked on hers in concern. “This isn’t me pulling an ultimatum, or pressuring to make a decision now, or any time soon, I mean I would, like for this to happen soon, but it doesn’t have to, not if you’re not ready,” he was rambling now, rushing to explain himself further, “I just wanted you to know that I am ready, I mean sort of, mostly, I don’t think one can ever actually be ready for this sort of thing, but I think I’m as prepared as ever, I mean I survived a weekend of babysitting my brother’s kids, so that has to mean something, right? Granted, it was only because you came to save the day, so it was feasible, which brings me to the point that I know I can do this because I’d be doing it with you, but still that doesn’t mean that we absolutely have to have a baby now, I just wanted-”

Her lips are on his then, completely bruising and demanding, making him nearly fall backward on the couch. His arms circle her in reflex, gaining some semblance of control back.

She suddenly parts from him, lips swollen against his own. “Okay.” She whispers.

“Okay?” He whispers back, mind still in a full daze.

Donna nods. “Let’s have a baby. Soon.” Her eyes are boring into his own, watching as his forehead remains creased.

“You’re sure?” He brings his hand to caress her cheek, thumb gently rubbing against her lower lip.

“You’re right, we should’t waste any more time, God knows we’ve done enough of that.” She shifts against him slightly, folding her legs under her as best she could in her Poison Ivy dress.

“I don’t want to pressure you into this, Donna. I know I sprung this up on you suddenly.” As much as he does want this with her, he suddenly realizes that maybe he was a little too eager in his confession.

She smiles softly at him, a sudden excitement bubbling in her. “I know. That’s why I’m saying yes.”

“So,” he swallows against his dry throat, “you want this, then? With me? Soon?”

Donna nods, “Let’s make a baby, Harvey.”

He thanks his lucky stars he was sitting down in that moment, knowing that he would’ve collapsed had he been standing. “I love you.” He whispers before bringing his lips down to hers. What he meant to be chaste kiss, turns into a full passion frenzy in a mere two seconds. Their lips chase each other as he lays her back down against the couch, tongues sliding and dueling, hands groping and trying to cover as much ground as possible.

“Wait,” her lips part from his without a loud smack.

“What?” He breathes out, concern written on his face as he searches hers for answers.

“We’re not conceiving our first born while you’re dressed as Batman.” She gently pushes him from her, earning a low growl from him in the process.

“I thought you liked Batman,” he playfully throws back her words from earlier, “Thought it fulfilled some deep fantasy of yours.”

She throws him a glare, trying to fix her dress in the process. “Okay A, that fantasy doesn’t include us having sex on the couch, twenty feet away from your niece and nephew,” she reminds him, “and B, procreating whilst dressed as two characters from a comic book? Not on my current to-do-list, Specter. We’ll try tomorrow night.” Donna takes his hand in hers then, her eyes suddenly softening.

He scans over her face, lips swollen from their recent kiss, hair disheveled from the way his hands had raked through her red curls. It sounds cheesy even in his mind, but he doesn’t think she’s ever looked more beautiful.

“What?” She asks, suddenly feeling uncharacteristically insecure.

“Nothing, I just- I can’t wait to have a baby with you.” He tells her softly.

She mentally curses herself for the few tears that accumulate in her eyes then, gently cupping his face to bring his lips to hers again. She pulls back to see his own eyes glossed over, her voice hoarse with emotions when she speaks, “Ditto.”

#darvey #darvey fic #donna x harvey #suits #author: ali #prompt #halloween #holiday #one shot #rated t

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