PUNCHING BAG
Mike's bones ached as he hobbled towards Louis's office. The stack of heavy briefs he was carrying – practically juggling – weighed him down, causing him to break a sweat from the very effort. He wheezed and stumbled down the hall, plopping the completed briefs on Louis's desk.
"Goodnight, Louis." He mumbled, trying to leave. He turned on his heel, hoping, praying...
"Wait." Louis ordered, holding up a hand.
...that wouldn't happen. Mike turned around slowly, trying to control his breathing. He couldn't have a panic attack in front of a senior partner. He'd lose his job in a heartbeat. Weakness is 'unbecoming' in a lawyer.
"What do you want, Louis?" He sighed. Louis unbuttoned his jacket, and stood up from his chair. He stepped and around his desk before stopping about a foot away from Mike. Mike flinched under Louis's scrutinizing gaze, feeling a strange need to cover himself.
"Tell me what happened." Louis's voice was soft, smothering the direct order in caring. Caring... Mike never thought he'd ever miss something so ordinary.
"I d-don't know what you're talking about." Mike wobbled on his feet a little, clutching his side protectively as Louis stepped closer.
"I'm talking about your face. Namely, the black eye you didn't have yesterday." Louis brushed his fingertips against the skin underneath Mike's eye. Mike held his breath. "Sit down."
Louis stepped away, and Mike shivered at the loss of touch. He liked Louis. Not like that, of course not. He liked the fact that Louis genuinely cared. Not like Harvey, not with his fists. Harvey's fists... Something, Mike remembered, he'd get fairly reacquainted with if he wasn't home – Mike looked at his watch – ten minutes ago. Oh shit. He'd left his phone in the bullpen. Harvey's going to go ballistic.
Mike bolted upright, almost collapsing from the sharp pains that stabbed their way up his spine.
"Uhn." Mike breathed in sharply, "L-Louis. I h-have to go." Mike clenched his teeth, waiting to ride out the pain.
"Mike, wait."
Mike paused, not because Louis told him to, but because he may have mistaken Louis Litt's tone for concern.
"Please, Louis. I can't take much more of it." Mike admitted, "I have to go. He'll hurt me if..."
Louis nodded, "I understand." Louis handed Mike a post-it note. He refused to mention Harvey's name if Mike wouldn't do so first. Louis truly cared for Mike, and couldn't stand to see him hurting. He pointed to the note in Mike's hand, "That's my cell number and address. If you ever need to get away, just come and see me. Anytime."
"Thank you." Mike whispered, letting a small smile tug at his lips, before leaving the softly-lit office.
A/N: I preferred this version. While this is a stand-alone piece, I may continue ~sometime~ in the future. Thank for taking the time to read this, and if you enjoyed it (or didn't), please leave a review! :)