It was the first time Mike Warren met Eddie, the second in command to Nigerian drug lord Bello, and he felt like he was about to hurl onto the Southern California streets. He pretended to be a Marine - he had the look didn't he?- and Briggs had already been working on this case for practically years. Mike felt a little honored- okay, a lot honored- that Briggs would allow him on the case, no matter how insignificant his role would be.
Mike swallowed down the reflex to hurl. Briggs noticed this and patted his shoulder "You did it baby."
The nickname seemed to roll of Brigg's tongue but made Mike's body stiffen. With the ease that Briggs pronounced the words, Mike wondered if he just called everyone "baby", the man seemed to have no problem with giving the effigy to Mike, the youngest of the agents. Mike inwardly shrugged.
"Get up." Briggs commanded, giving Mike a roll of his eyes as the youngest agent looked perplexed. "Come on, just stand up and scream your lungs out, baby."
Mike raised a dubious eyebrow before compiling, standing up in the old truck with his hands grasping the windshield. He yelled loudly, his voice breaking into a vicious yawp of exhaustion, fear and relief.
He sat back down with a satisfied grin that dissolved into a look of anxiety, "Wow." He exhaled shakily, looking at Briggs in disbelief, "That was really...whoa." He chuckled and Briggs grin.
"What did I tell you, man? It's magic."
-2-
The second time Briggs called Mike Warren baby was Sauce Night before they met up with Bello and Eddie. Upon Johnny's explanation of the street names of marijuana, Mike thought Briggs might have been calling him the preferred street name of pot. Why would he do that? He's usually so chill with the nicknames. He jokingly called Charlie honey, Paige sweetie, Johnny amigo, Jakes teddy bear of angst. Was this Mike's nickname? Mike wrinkled his nose at this before he breathed in the tempting smell of Charlie's home-made ragu sauce.
Charlie was about to give Mike some pasta, scooping up the sauce and pouring it onto the spaghetti when Briggs phone rang. He answered it and sighed when he hung up.
"It's Bello, suit up." Briggs told Mike with a hit to his shoulder, "We have to go."
Mike pursed his lips into a frown, sighing as he looked longingly at the pasta.
":Another time." He muttered to the red sauce.
Charlie chuckled, shaking her head and reminding herself to save him some pasta.
-3-
The third time Mike Warren is called baby is when he returned from the five second date with Abby. Charlie and Briggs were up, acting like the parents expectantly waiting for their son or daughter to arrive late from a party.
"Did you make a heat run?" Charlie's way of being the "Did you not drink and drive?" mother.
"Of course." Mike reminded her softly with a ghost of a smile.
"Good boy." Charlie smiled at his, patting her "son" (that she had feelings for) on the back and nodded towards the kitchen counter, "Left you a plate."
"But, I thought there were no leftovers-"
By the time the words were uttered, Charlie was gone and replaced by Briggs.
"Ah, you know, Charlie likes you." He patted his shoulder and gripped it tight for a moment, almost shaking him into reality.
He didn't need to ask how it went, Mike dutifully returned to kitchen duty, washing at the red liquid that reminded him of other things.
"It's just sauce, Mike." Briggs whispered, now standing closer to Mike and placing his hand on the young agent's, "Baby..." He whispered even softer than before.
"P-please." Mike's voice broke and his face contorted into tense lines that were about to erupt, "Please, don't call me that." His hands continued to scrub at the red sauce in the pan until he dropped the stain sponge into the hot water.
Briggs bit his lower lip, "Didn't know it bothered you."
Mike turned around at this, his watery blue eyes wet with tears meeting Brigg's dark surveying eyes, "It does. I..."He paused, shaking his head and laughing hollowly, "It just reminds me that I'm a kid."
"You're not a kid, kid." Briggs laughed, hoping to get a laugh out of Mike but the young agent remained stoic except for the few tears that rolled down his cheeks. "It didn't go too well, did it?"
"He shot himself."
"Who?"
"Eddie." Mike bit his lower lip, "Bello whispered something to him, something about there only being two ways. I...I don't know what he said. He was about to s-shoot me but his face changed and he pulled the gun on himself."
Briggs's face dropped from stern lines to pity and understanding, "Mike, "I'm sorry. Y-you weren't ready for it."
"Everyone keeps telling me I'm not ready for things. I...I thought I was when you let me fly solo, it's your case, you've been working it for months and it was all going so well." He seemed terrified that it had unraveled so fast.
"These things happen. Life happens." Briggs shrugged, "Eddie knew what he was getting into when he swore allegiance to Dr. Jekyl Mr. Druglord."
Mike sighed the heaviest sigh Briggs had ever heard from the kid. He tentatively wrapped his arms around the young agent. "You'll be okay." He reassured him.
Mike's cries became audible, a stuttering gurgle of hoarse syllables and unintelligible words.
It's okay, Baby. Briggs thought.