Have you guys heard of the Polar Bear Plunge? Its a voluntary(!) dip in a frozen lake that happens every year up in the northern states. Oh my God! I think I would die! O.o
Mike started to show some signs of life after about an hour. His muscles twitched slightly, contracting experimentally as they gradually warmed back up. He shifted ever so slightly against Harvey, not bothering to open his eyes but trying to assess his situation by touch alone.
Harvey, who had been just to the point of falling asleep, jolted awake instantly and looked down at the younger man still bundled in his arms. "Mike? Hey kid, you back with me?"
Slowly, very slowly, Mike opened his eyes, blinking half-lidded for a few seconds at the frayed edge of the quilt that was hanging just in front of his eyes. His eyelids were still a bit discolored, making his look like he had two shiners forming beneath this eyes. His lip was a bit swollen, the blood having dried and pooled under the skin to make it look darker. Simply put, he looked like hell. Mike opened his mouth to speak but no words came out. Swallowing forcefully, he cleared his throat a bit and tried again. "Harvey?"
"You got it."
"What-" his voice cracked, raspy and dry from disuse. He cleared his throat again, eyes squeezing shut slightly in effort. "What happened?"
Harvey forced himself to keep his voice calm, the urge to start reaming the younger man for being so stupid and scaring him half to death on the tip of his tongue. Instead, he took a slow breath and let it out as a sigh. "You decided to take part in the Polar Bear Plunge a little early this year."
Mike shivered a bit in response, his voice still weak and soft. "Can't think…too cold…"
"I mean you fell through the ice out on that lake," Harvey elaborated, translating the reference into a blunt statement.
Mike's eyes widened a little and he looked at Harvey with an expression that was part confusion and part shock. His eyes shifted to himself unintentionally and he cleared his throat again. "Is that why I'm naked?"
The older man refused to meet his gaze and instead contented himself to staring at a space above Mike's head. "You were hypothermic, if I didn't do something you were going to die."
Mike was silent for a minute, blinking slowly as comprehension broke through his thoughts like a figure emerging from a thick fog. "You saved me?"
"Of course I saved you," Harvey snapped back, his words coming out a bit harsher than he meant them to. "Do you know the kind of shit Donna would put me through if I left you out in the lake? Not to mention your grandmother."
Mike smiled faintly, his skin still far too pale for Harvey's liking but he'd regained a little bit of color over the past hour and no longer sported the sickly grey complexion he'd had out on the lake. He shivered again, unconsciously ducking his head toward Harvey as the older man was still much warmer than he was. "Thank you," he said softly, his voice nearly muffled by the blankets.
Harvey simply nodded in response, a heavy silence falling between them as the wind and snow continued to rage outside. The storm had slowed just a bit since they'd been inside but several inches of snow had now piled up along the window sills and door. There was enough firewood to last them the rest of the night and into the next day as long as the storm didn't getting any worse.
Mike winced, eyes squeezing shut a bit, and Harvey frowned at him worriedly. "You okay?"
The younger man shook his head after a second, a wince still pinching his features. "No…everything hurts…I feel like my entire body is cramping…"
Harvey nodded sagely and tightened his arms around Mike a bit more, not bothering to be concerned with the intimate position anymore. The intense cold had caused everything to go rigid and now that Mike was beginning to warm up again, his body was going into overdrive. Harvey had only experienced hypothermia once and it had been a very mild case. Still, he remembered the tight, sharp pain he had experienced as his body re-warmed itself and he went along for the ride.
"How long have we been here?" Mike asked, his voice still a bit tense and strained against the onslaught of cramps that was assaulting him.
Harvey glanced back toward the window like a clock was somehow hanging in the glass. He frowned, estimating the amount of time he'd been laying in that bed with Mike huddled up against him. "About an hour and a half? Two maybe? It's starting to get dark outside…" Mike shivered unintentionally and Harvey realized that despite the warmth of the room, there was a bit of the draft coming from the iced over window. He looked down at the younger man and heaved a silent sigh. "Think you'll be okay for a minute?"
Mike frowned slightly and looked confused. "Where are you going?"
"To get some more wood to put in the stove," he said, sliding out from under the blankets and tucking them in around Mike once he was out. Mike shuddered and curled into a ball under the blankets, the absence of Harvey's warmth making him start shivering all over again. The older man frowned, taking note of this, and quickly walked into the living room to retrieve a few logs from the basket next to the fire place. He walked over to the kitchen table, rummaging around in Mike's duffle bag and finding a faded pair of flannel pants.
Harvey actually welcomed the draft for a minute, the cooler air feeling amazing on his overheated skin. He'd been almost uncomfortably warm with Mike pressed up against him underneath the heavy quilts on the bed but he refused to move, knowing the younger man needed every ounce of heat he could get. Seeing him start shivering all over again just reminded him of that fact even more and he made his way back into the humid bedroom, deftly tossing the logs into the potbelly stove and moving back toward the bed. He held the pants out to his associate but the younger man just blinked at them in confusion. Smirking just a bit, Harvey elaborated. "They're called pants, kid."
"I know that," Mike mumbled and with that split lip he almost looked like he was pouting. "I don't remember bring those..."
Harvey didn't question it; confusion was a classic trait of hypothermia and Mike was still probably a little rattled from the fall he'd taken earlier. While he'd been unconscious, Harvey had taken it upon himself to check for broken bones or abnormalities Mike might have sustained from his plunge off the bridge. Other than being disgustingly skinnny like he always was (something Harvey would helpfully pass along to Donna so she could fix if it was the last thing she did), he didn't find any hidden injuries other than the small wounds on his face. Mike had been extraordinarily lucky and Harvey was all the more grateful for that. He took a step closer, holding the pants out to his associate once more. "Put these on, it will help you retain a little more heat."
Mike nodded mutely and reached out from under the mountain of blankets to take the pants. He was still shivering and his hands were uncoordinated as he struggled with the soft fabric. He wiggled and squirmed for a minute before finally getting both legs into the correct spot but by the time they were on, he was out of breath. Who knew putting on pants could be as challenging as solving a Rubix cube?
Harvey smiled a bit. "Better?" Mike nodded again, shivering a bit less than he had a few seconds previously. Satisfied with the answer, Harvey flipped back the quilts and sat on the edge of the bed. The minute he'd climbed back under the blankets, Mike was pressed up against him once more, completely unashamed by the intimate proximity and the fact that this was not only his boss but another man as well.
Harvey felt a small smile tug at the corner of his mouth and carefully wrapped his arms around Mike again, offering him as much warmth as he could. The younger man's skin was still a bit cool against his own, at least it felt cooler compared to the sweltering heat Harvey was feeling underneath all the layers of bedding. Harvey let his hands travel up and down Mike's shoulders slowly in a semblance of comfort.
He supposed he should have felt self-conscious about the position they'd found themselves in: both half-naked and both tangled in a mess of limbs and blankets to keep warm in the wake of a snow storm. Had it been anyone else, Harvey would have faltered in his composure on more than one occasion. But it didn't feel like that at all with Mike; with Mike it felt normal, and protective, and right. He was glad he was the one taking care of him at that moment and not someone else. Mike had become Harvey's responsibility and he'd be damned if he let anyone take that job from him now.
"Harvey?" Mike's voice was soft, just on the verge of sleep once more.
"Hmm?"
"Thanks again…for everything…"
Harvey smiled to himself and simply tucked Mike's head beneath his chin. "Anytime kid, anytime."
Awww, woobie!Mike is so freakin' cute! XD
