Darvey Drabblin'
Comfort In The Night
Author's Notes: I know I should be focusing on my other multi-chapter, but then Cassie (darveypainted on Twitter) posted a gorgeous picture of Darvey cuddled in bed. I said it looked like Harvey consoling Donna after her dad's death, and Nathalie wanted a fic. Ergo, this happened.
It's been twelve hours since they received the news.
They reach Cortland in the wee hours of the morning of the funeral. He watches Donna hold her mother tight, and later hug her sister briefly. He watches her deliver a stoic, but heart-wrenching eulogy for a father who was flawed, yet loving. He watches her comfort her father's sister and family.
Conversation between them has been perfunctory and almost stilted. Attempts to bring up her father have been rebuffed with forced assertions of being "fine". Twelve years of partnership and a year of marriage have taught him not to push it, and so he doesn't.
He just does what he does best: he put their plans into action. He takes care of their flights and their staying arrangements. He informs Mike and Rachel, and politely refuses their offer to come over. But still, Harvey feels that he's never been so useless, and every fibre of his body yearns to hold her and take away her pain.
The night after the funeral is a tense one. Donna's strained relationship with her sister nearly comes to a head over a snide remark dropped at the dinner table. However, instead of hitting back with her usual spirit, Donna merely stands up and leaves the table, heading for their room.
There are a few tense minutes before Harvey stands to follow his wife, but not before shooting the offender a reproachful glare.
She's already ready for bed, her slender frame tucked under the covers, when he enters the room.
She's still not shed a single tear.
He's worried about her. He knows what it's like to keep your grief bottled and unexpressed. He's been there. With his own father.
He slips his shirt and pants off and slips in next to her, clad only in his boxer shorts. He's debating reaching out for her, when she makes the decision for him.
She slips her right leg over his, and pulls herself fully over his chest. Her head finds its usual place under his chin, while her hand lies flat against his heart. He feels his heart rate pick up when she presses a soft kiss on his skin, before rubbing her cheek against it.
His arms go around her, his left hand reaching for her right leg to pull her more securely against him, before coming to rest under her arm. He reaches his right hand into her hair, his fingers slipping under the tresses to rub gently on her scalp, while he presses his lips into the crown of her head.
They lie like that for a few minutes. And then he feels it.
Hot tears that drip onto his chest, while her body begins to shake slightly.
His grip tightens on her, while he murmurs gently into her ears. Relief and sorrow wash over him, and he holds his wife in the darkness of her old room. Her sniffles are quiet, but each one tears at his soul, and he feels his own eyes spill over, as well.
"I'm so sorry, Donna."
She slips her hand down to his waist, and turns her face into his chest, as she continues to grieve the loss of her father.
"Thank you."
Her voice breaks him out of their shared quiet.
"What for?"
"For just being you."
"Donna, I didn't really do anything."
She raises her head, trying to catch his gaze in the darkness. The tears in her eyes catch the light from the street outside making them glow.
"You did everything, Harvey. Just by being there with me. Through all of it and here, now."
He looks at her, his expression still skeptical and uncertain.
She strokes his cheek, and shakes her head. Pressing a kiss to his lips, she says, "Don't you get it? You've always made me feel like it's going to be alright. When I'm with you, I know I'm not alone."
He kisses her forehead, then and smiles. "I'll always be there for you, Donna."
She smiles back - the first time she has after everything happened - and rests her head back on his chest, while his hand resumes its place in her hair.
They sleep.
Author's Notes: Hope you liked it. Reviewers get a night of poker with Darvey - strip or otherwise is your choice.