Thank you for all the reviews and favorites and encouragement! It means a lot. So several people asked for this story to be continued and I can see a lot of potential for it. This is kind of just a filler chapter while I get my thoughts together about where I want this to go. If anyone has any ideas let me know. I'll try to incorporate them into the story. Make it interactive you know? Anyway, hope you enjoy...
Harvey woke later that morning and lifted his head off of the couch, looking around the room blearily. He tried to shift his right arm and then looked over when he couldn't. Seeing Mike resting against him brought back all the memories of the night before, well really just earlier that morning; Mike calling him for help, the nightmare, Mike crying himself to sleep. Harvey knew that the kid needed all the rest that he could get and so he sat there without moving and laid his head back on the couch to stare at the ceiling.
Would he be able to help Mike through the coming days? The worry from last night came flooding back in full force now that he wasn't preoccupied with a crying Mike. Harvey had never had to take care of anybody before, not even a pet, so how would he know what to do? Well, it wasn't like Mike was unable to care for himself. He just needed a place to stay until his apartment was either fixed or he could find a new one. It would be more of a roommate thing than Harvey having to care for Mike. A roommate Harvey could deal with, he had done that in college. And he liked Mike a hell of a lot more than he liked that idiot that the school stuck him with. But still, after living by himself for so long suddenly having someone in his condo all the time would be a hard adjustment. At that moment Harvey felt Mike shift against him and snuggle a little closer. Yep, Harvey was going to have to get used to a roommate again alright, there was no way he was going to tell Mike he had to leave.
Harvey must have fallen back asleep because the next time he woke he was alone on the couch. He listened carefully to the apartment but couldn't hear anything. Slowly he got up and stretched his back and legs; he was getting too old to be sleeping on the couch like that. First he checked the kitchen, and then the bathroom, the bedroom, then the office but Mike was nowhere. Harvey was just starting to worry when he heard the door open and he walked down the hallway to see Mike coming in carrying bags of food. He let out a breath he hadn't realized he had been holding.
Mike glanced up as he heard Harvey approaching. "Oh good, you're up. I went out for some Chinese since we slept through breakfast. Hope that's ok," Mike said as he moved into the kitchen and started emptying the bags. He opened a couple of cabinets before finding the one with the plates. He started looking through the drawers for silverware when Harvey cut him off and pointed to the right drawer.
"It's the second one over." Harvey sat at the island in the kitchen and accepted the plate of food that Mike passed over. He couldn't figure out why he was so hungry until he looked at the clock on the stove and saw that it was after 1pm. The two ate in silence and then put the dishes in the sink. Suddenly Harvey's cell rang in the other room and Harvey jogged into the living room to pick it up so it wouldn't go to voicemail.
Mike sat in the kitchen, thinking. What was he going to do? He couldn't stay here for much longer, Harvey would never let that happen. Trevor was in no position to help him out at all. His grandmother was in a nursing home so she wouldn't be able to do anything. He couldn't ask Rachel for a place to stay; they didn't have that kind of relationship. Actually, Mike wasn't sure what kind of relationship they did have but he knew he couldn't ask her for help like this. In fact, Mike didn't want to ask anyone for help, he had always been the 'do it himself' kind of guy. He had only called Harvey because he really didn't have any other choice. It was his thoughts of the older man that brought him back to reality when he heard snippets of the conversation taking place in the other room.
"…yeah…he's fine for right now…I don't know what's going to happen. No, you're not coming over. I can just call you if he needs anything….You don't think I can take care of this? Do not come over…..Fine, I'll see you in an hour." Harvey walked back into the kitchen shaking his head as he put the cell in the pocket of his sleep pants. He ran a hand through his un-gelled and messy hair and then looked up at Mike who was watching him with an amused grin on his face.
"Who was that on the phone? Who would be coming over after you strictly told them not to twice?" Mike couldn't help but laugh at the look on Harvey's face.
"That was Donna. She heard about the building collapse on TV and called demanding to know if I knew anything. Then she yelled at me for not calling her right away and telling her that you're here and safe. So now she needs to come over and yell at me some more in person and check to make sure with her own eyes that you're actually ok." Harvey shook his head again with fond grin on his face. "I'm going to change before she comes over."
"Gotta make sure you look good, right?" Mike couldn't help but tease his boss as he walked out of the room. Mike chucked again and stood up to change himself when it hit him. He didn't have any clothes except the pants and shirt he was wearing when Harvey picked him up. He didn't have anything that he could change into. All of his stuff, ALL OF IT, was back in his ruined apartment and who knew when he would be able to get any of it, if he could ever get it. Mike stumbled back into the chair that he been sitting in and dropped his head into his hands. This was going to be so screwed up. He was homeless and had no possessions. The tears started again and Mike didn't even bother to hide them.
Harvey was walking back into the kitchen after changing into jeans and a dark button down shirt when he heard the sniffles. He stopped just out of view and listened to Mike crying softly in the kitchen. Lunch had gone ok and Mike had seemed to be doing well so Harvey couldn't figure out what had happened in five minutes to upset the kid. After another minute or so Harvey walked into the kitchen quietly and sat next to Mike. "You know, if you don't want Donna to come over, you're gonna have to tell her. I'm in enough hot water as it is. Plus she already didn't listen to me twice this morning."
Mike chuckled as he wiped away the tears but he still wouldn't look at Harvey. "No, it isn't Donna and I would like to see her I guess. It's silly really and this is a totally a girly comment but I don't have anything to wear."
Harvey flinched as he realized why the young man was so upset. He had walked off to change without even considering that Mike had nothing. "Don't worry about your girly comments. I'm use to them coming out of your mouth by now. Let's go see what I have that you can wear for now. Sorry, I don't have any dresses but if you call Donna quick she might be able to bring you some." Mike just rolled his eyes as the two made their way back to Harvey's bedroom. The older man started digging through his closet before he came up with a pair of khakis and a t-shirt that might actually fit the scrawny kid that would be wearing them. Mike took the offered clothes and disappeared into the bathroom to change.
The knock sounded on the door and Harvey moved over to let Donna in. She breezed past him and down the hall without so much as a "hello" before moving into the kitchen and the living room. She came back a moment later and crossed her arms over her chest and glared. "Where is he? Where's Mike?"
Harvey cautiously approached his angry assistant and pointed to the other side of the room. "He's changing. I'm sure he'll be out in just a minute since he knows you're coming. And really, you didn't have to but I think it will cheer him up to have you here."
"I told you that my coming over was the right thing to do. You should listen to me more often," Donna returned as she dropped her arms. The look on her face turned worried as she asked "How is he doing? I mean really, he's not hurt or anything?"
"No, he's not hurt, just really shaken up." Harvey rubbed a hand over the back of his neck, wondering just how much he should share with the woman. Then again, this was Donna and she would just find out anyway. "He cried himself to sleep last night. He was crying again this morning. I want to help him but I don't know how."
Donna could see the anguish on her boss' face and she instantly took pity on him. She reached out and rested her hand on his arm. "You're already doing so much for him. Don't doubt your ability to help him. Just making sure that he's not alone is the best thing right now. Everything else will work itself out."
"I haven't talked to him about it yet but I've decided to let him stay here as long as he needs. We need to replace almost everything; clothes, credit cards, checkbooks, we could have his mail forwarded here for now…" Harvey had a far-away look on his face as he continued to think through the list of things that needed to be done.
Donna couldn't stop the smile that took over her face as Harvey kept muttering "we have to do this" and "we're going to do that." She glanced over to the hall that led toward the bedroom when she saw Mike start walking toward them. She squeezed Harvey's arm quick and then ran over to Mike, wrapping her arms around him and squeezing. "I'm so glad you're ok! I saw it on the news and I was so worried about you and I called your cell phone but you didn't answer and then I just became even more worried."
"Yeah, I didn't grab my cell as I ran out of the apartment last night. It's still back there somewhere," Mike answered as he returned the woman's hug. The two parted after several minutes, though the long hug wasn't the least bit awkward, and all three sat in the living room.
"We'll get you a new phone Mike. I need to be able to reach you, you know, when your more than five feet from me" Harvey grinned as he flipped the TV on.
The three made easy conversation just enjoying each other's company. As dinner time approached Donna and Harvey agreed on an upscale Italian place that the two frequented when they had working lunches or dinners. "I'll meet you two there ok? I have to go home and change. I'll make a reservation for 7pm," Donna was saying as she was getting ready to go.
"Good. We'll see you there," Harvey walked Donna to the door, since he was a gentleman, and then turned back to Mike. "What do you say we go do some shopping for you? You'll need your own clothes. Unless you want to wear mine."
Mike shook his head but was avoiding eye contact again. "No, I don't want to wear your clothes for the next who knows how long. Not that I don't appreciate you letting me borrow them. I just don't have any money right now until I can get to the bank. And I definitely can't afford that restaurant we're going to."
"Hey, look at me." Harvey waited until Mike made eye contact before continuing. "I know that you're not use to depending on people and that you've been on your own for some time. But right now? Right now is the time that you let someone else step in for you. I'm not offering to help you out here because I want to hold it over your head, or gossip about it at work, because I don't do that, or give you shit because something completely out of your control happened. If you want to repay me then we'll work something out. But until then you need clothes and a decent meal and whatever else I feel like buying you. Got it?"
Mike just stared dumbly at his boss as he processed that little speech. It was true; he had been fending for himself for a long time. His grandma was older when he moved in with her and she wasn't able to do a whole lot. All of a sudden here was Harvey offering what seemed like unlimited resources and it was a lot to wrap his head around. "If I didn't know better, I would say that you care about me," Mike grinned but Harvey caught the gratitude that was shining brightly in Mike's eyes even if he couldn't say the words.
"It's a good thing you know better than, huh?" Harvey rolled his eyes affectionately before grabbing Mike's arm and pulling him toward the door. "Come on, we've got a little over an hour to shop before the reservations that Donna is making."
The shopping trip went by quickly enough and then they were off to dinner. The company was relaxed and the conversation flowed easily. If anyone had been paying attention it would look like the three of them did this on a regular basis. After dinner, in the parking lot, Donna couldn't help but hug Mike again. "You call me if you need anything ok? Even if you just need to get away from the big guy for a bit," she said. Harvey couldn't help but scoff at that.
"Ok. Thanks for everything Donna. It was fun tonight and I needed that," Mike returned the hug before he and Harvey watched Donna move toward her car and then drive off.
"Come on, kid." Harvey had turned back to his car already but waited for Mike.
The drive home was silent but it wasn't uncomfortable. It was the kind of silence that two people who know each other well can share. Harvey could tell that Mike was exhausted again, almost asleep in the passenger seat. Once Harvey parked the car he nudged Mike's shoulder and the two walked from the garage to the condo. As soon as they got into the apartment they each got ready for bed. As Harvey walked down the hall toward his bedroom Mike came out of the bathroom. "The blanket is on the couch for you. And you know, if you need anything I'll just be in here," Harvey hooked his thumb over his shoulder indicating his bedroom. If Mike was going to have another nightmare Harvey wanted him to know that he was close.
"Yeah, thanks," Mike answered and gave a little nod to show that he understood exactly what Harvey was saying. The two separated and Mike settled himself on the couch. He grinned into the dark before rolling over and going to sleep. 'Harvey totally cares.'