A/N: Hello dear readers! Here is chapter fifteen and the wrap up of Emilie's story. I never dreamed how this would all play out as it did and I am so grateful to have had this experience. I would not have been half as invested if it weren't for all the lovely people out there reading along the way.
Thank you so so so much to everyone who reviewed and shared their thoughts with me from chapter to chapter. It was so helpful and encouraging. Thank you to Carolina (guest), Rose4Darvey, ematutina, Andelin and cicia724 for the reviews on chapter 14. I just can't explain how my heart swells with gratitude for all your thoughts and feelings and kind words!
As I said previously, I am having a hard time letting go of Emilie and Harvey but I know this story had to end. That being said, I'm not marking this as complete just yet. For now, yes. But there might be something else swirling around in my mind so I can't let this be completely complete.
Anyways, thank you again, from the bottom of my heart.
Less than a week later, Jason Moore was in NYPD custody again.
In fact, he had turned himself in.
Finn had kept most of the details about the arrest and entire situation to himself, even though Emilie wanted to know more. She was grateful he was trying to rid her of any extra stress over the situation, but she felt it was her right to know.
Jason Moore would remain in police custody for a few days until he got in front of a judge.
The Monday before Thanksgiving, Emilie was feeling defeated. She thought there might be a sense of relief in knowing everything was finally over but she felt like everything hit her at once. She was drained. She skipped her Monday morning class, much to Harvey's annoyance. He let it go - even though he knew she knew better.
Harvey came home Monday night to find her wrapped up on his couch, staring at the television.
He was relieved to know Jason Moore had turned himself in. It didn't undo the frustration that still lingered about the entire situation, but there was a shred of comfort in knowing that justice would be served soon enough.
He was also pissed. Jason Moore had only turned himself in under the guise of getting a deal - he was placing the blame on his own brother instead and thought he should avoid jail time. It was a mess. And if it went to trial again, Emilie would likely have to go on the stand again. Both Harvey and Finn decided they would keep that detail to themselves until his preliminary trial.
"So, Katie told me she's relieved she doesn't have to cook on Thursday," Harvey said to his sister was he walked in, taking a seat on the arm chair.
Emilie picked her head up from the pillow it was laying on and smiled, then turned her head back to the TV.
"Your class was canceled today?" Harvey continued the conversation, although it seemed like his sister was not interested.
"Mmm hmmm," Emilie mumbled out.
"Seems strange this late in the semester."
Emilie sighed. "Well, my professor has the flu so he couldn't make it in." She was lying. Harvey knew she was lying. Emilie knew he knew.
Stupid Harvey senses.
"Talk to me, Em." Harvey grabbed the remote and turned off the TV.
Emilie just groaned and flipped over on the couch so her face was buried. "I have nothing to say."
"You know, I don't care if you skipped class and stayed home because you need some time to work through all this shit. But I don't want you to lie to me about it."
"Can you just leave me alone?"
"Did something happen with Finn?"
Emilie wanted to die at that question. "Oh my god, no. Please stop."
Harvey sighed. "Have you eaten anything today?"
She didn't respond.
"I'm ordering dinner and we're going to go sit at the table and eat together." Harvey's words came out like an order, not an option. An hour later, Emilie dragged herself off the couch and sat at the table with Harvey. They sat quietly. When they were done, she said she was going to read for what she missed in class then go to bed.
Harvey sighed. He really thought they were past these messy parts but Emilie was still going through the paces with empty eyes more often than not. Maybe talking her through it wasn't helping anymore. She needed someone better, a professional even. And maybe, she needed some tough love.
The next morning Harvey was banging on his sister's door to get her up. "Em, c'mon. I know you have an 8:30 class."
He opened the door to see her still curled up in bed.
"It was cancelled," she mumbled out, readjusting and turning away from him.
"Bullshit." He turned the light on and stood over top of her bed, arms crossed. "I'm not going to let you do this anymore."
"Harvey, I'm not lying this time," she sat up and grabbed her phone. She handed it off to him, showing off an email from her teacher about class. "I still have an assignment that I already handed in. Which means I can lay in bed until work."
Harvey glanced at her phone and let out a breath. "No, you're getting out of bed right now."
She gave him a confused glance then laughed. "No, I'm not."
"Yes, you are." He reached down and threw her blankets onto the ground.
"Oh my god," she exclaimed to him, "What is wrong with you?"
"We're going to the gym. C'mon. Get up." Harvey pointed at her. "Let's go, Bryant."
"When you say my name like that you sound like a warden," Emilie fell back into her pillows. "So, pass. Also, don't you have to be at work in like an hour?"
"I'm going in late. So, get up." He reached down again and pulled the pillow out from under her head. "You have ten minutes to get ready." He grabbed her bedding and headed out of her room. Emilie groaned again.
She wasn't sure what had gotten into her brother but she was annoyed. Why couldn't he just let her wallow? She wasn't sure what was still leaving her feeling so broken but she wanted to just stay in bed and figure it out herself.
Less than a minute later, she could hear Harvey hollering her name again.
She sighed. "I'm up! You can stop yelling, please."
An hour later, Emilie and Harvey were standing in a boxing ring. Emilie had to admit that when her brother said they were going to the gym, she didn't think this is what he meant. She had some recollection that Harvey boxed but she didn't realize it was something he still did recreationally.
As she tied her hair into a ponytail, she watched as Harvey talked to someone at the side of the ring. He came back with a pair of boxing gloves and some of those practice mitts.
"Is this all necessary?" Emilie said to him with her eyebrows raised. Harvey extended the gloves to her. She took them from him but just held them in her hands.
"Em, I know you're feeling a lot of things about this mess and -
"I don't want to talk about my feelings anymore, Harvey."
"Yeah, I can understand that. But you still have to do something with them. You can't just ignore them forever. We're in the homestretch of putting your piece of shit landlord in jail and you can hardly even stand upright these days." Harvey sighed. "You've haven't smiled in a week."
"Well, literally no part of me feels positive these days," Emilie said quietly, staring at the gloves in her hands.
"Just put them on," Harvey said as he stretched his arms.
"Then I get to punch you?"
"Well, not my face or anything. This is the money maker." Harvey pointed at his face and smirked at his sister, hoping to elicit a response.
Emilie rolled her eyes.
"Just one punch, okay? I promise you'll feel better."
Emilie sighed. Her brother was annoying her but at least he was trying. Months ago, this would have been a foreign concept. In fact, months ago they weren't talking. Months ago, Emilie didn't give two thoughts to her brother and his life. And Harvey probably didn't think about her, either.
But here he was, giving up time at work to try to help her. And she wasn't making it very easy.
She slipped her hands into the gloves and reached out to Harvey to tighten them on her wrists. He smiled at her as he did it, starting to spout off a few basic boxing techniques.
"It seems pretty straight forward, Harvey," she said to him, moving her hands around to get used to the feeling of the gloves.
Harvey watched her as she moved, then slid his hands into the practice mitts. He held them up in front of him and raised his eyebrows at her.
She threw a punch forward and hit one of his hands.
"C'mon, I know you can do better than that," Harvey commented. She threw a few more punches, this time with a bit more force. Harvey smirked, nodding. He took a few steps to the side and she followed him as he moved.
She was steady in her punches and Harvey watched as her determination grew with every hit. She was taking slow, controlled breaths as she did.
"So, tell me why you're upset," Harvey said, watching her closely. She stopped and pulled her hands down.
"I'm not upset," she replied.
He motioned for her to keep punching as she talked. She rolled her eyes and punched his hands again. "I'm not upset."
"You are." Harvey was pushing her on purpose. He didn't want her to sugarcoat things anymore.
"Harvey," she said his name as if to try and shut him up.
"It's over, Em," Harvey continued, "They arrested him."
Emilie nodded, pausing again. "Sure. So what? What's next? What happens now?" Harvey just looked at her, baiting her to continue. "What happens if he pleads not guilty again? What if more video footage leaks online? What if someone in his family starts to stalk me at the coffee shop? What if Ethan wants to sue me for some sort of emotional damage?"
The speed of her punches increased as she erupted. She planted her feet as Harvey stood in front of her. "What if Finn decides this was all too much? What if this stupid video follows me around for the rest of my life? What if some stranger recognizes me because he watched it a dozen times?"
"Em," Harvey knew he should stop her from spiraling. He tried to pull his hands down but she kept hitting. "Emilie."
"What if this is it for us, Harvey? You helped me out, you did your part as lawyer and brother. So what happens now? What if we don't talk for months again? What happens to us now that this is over?"
She didn't have to spell it out anymore. Harvey understood now. Despite this mess being wrapped up, his sister was scared. Suddenly, facing the next steps, the unknown of everything, was manifesting itself in fear. She was closing herself off, building up her wall, shutting him out because she was scared about what their relationship might look like now.
"Em, stop." Harvey leaned away as he fists flew. She dropped her arms and leaned over for a moment, catching her breath.
"Emilie." Harvey pulled off his mitts and reached his hands out to put them on her shoulders. She looked back up at him. She wasn't crying but she was clearly overwhelmed and nervous about how he was going to react. "A little while ago I had to decide that this goddamn mess with that finch in your old apartment had to have happened for a reason. Whatever that reason is - putting some guy in jail or the ripple effect of helping those other people."
Emilie just nodded her head. She relaxed as he talked.
He continued. "But above anything else, it brought you and I together again. So what happens now is that we both continue to make an effort and be in each other's lives. Wherever you end up living, we both have to try, okay?"
She let out the breath she had been holding and nodded. She was especially grateful to Harvey in that moment - he was putting the onus on both of them moving forward.
They had to play fair and look out for each other. It didn't have to be Emilie vs. Harvey anymore.
It was Emilie and Harvey now.
Emilie had convinced Harvey to really commit to hosting Thanksgiving dinner. To a point where their small family dinner was suddenly a dozen people infiltrating Harvey's home.
Marcus, Katie, Matt and Haley were up for the weekend. Harvey got them a suite at the Four Seasons with a view of the annual Macy's parade for Haley.
Rachel and Mike were going to join them for dinner, too. The Zane family was heading West for the holiday but Rachel had opted to stay in the city, under the guise of a busy work schedule but she was really just looking forward to a break from her family. Donna was also joining them for dinner. And because of a last minute shift change, Finn was coming too.
True to her word, Emilie spent the morning of Thanksgiving baking desserts. Harvey arranged for the food delivery and Donna came over early with some decor to help had some warmth to the place.
By four o'clock, the place was full and the food was just finishing warming up.
"So," Marcus joined his brother on the balcony, handing him a beer. "What do we think of Emilie's boyfriend?"
Harvey let out a laugh as he leaned on the balcony, glancing through the doors into the living room. Emilie was standing in the kitchen with Finn, and Haley was sitting on the stool across from them. They were all laughing.
"Finn is a nice guy. I mean, he already gets extra points for putting up with her," Harvey laughed. "She's been dealing with a lot of shit lately and he's been good to her."
"I guess there's some peace of mind knowing she's dating a cop."
"Yeah, hopefully she doesn't get arrested again."
After their boxing session earlier in the week, things finally seemed to settle in a good way for Emilie. The last thing they were all waiting for the final verdict on her landlord's prosecution. Apparently he had been in front of a judge yesterday but no one knew what happened.
Harvey had discussed their living situation, too. He pitched the idea of Emilie subletting from Jessica's cousin for her next semester. Or she was free to stay with him.
The apartment was in Midtown and walking distance from NYU. But Emilie also knew it was well beyond her means. Harvey said she could pay what she was paying for her place in Queens and he would cover the rest. She argued with him about it briefly then finally conceded, overwhelmed with gratitude for her hot headed brother. They were going to check out the apartment the next week and Emilie would move in after Christmas.
Things were okay for Emilie. She was happy Finn had joined them for dinner and she held back while Marcus grilled him with questions after they shook hands. She knew her brothers were protective so she just let it go.
Emilie and Finn were talking with Haley at the island when Finn got a phone call. He excused himself down the hall while Emilie chatted with her niece.
"Anyway, dad said I'm not allowed to play any brass instruments in music class. Or I can't bring them home. But I don't want to play piano anymore," Haley was going on and on about her upcoming music classes, feeling inspired after watching marching bands in the parade all morning. Emilie just smiled at her.
"I think you should go for percussion, Hales. Be a drummer."
"I vote no on drums!" Katie piped up from the living room. She was sitting with Rachel, Mike and Donna. Matt was off in the corner going through Harvey's record collection.
"What about guitar?" Mike suggested as he walked into the kitchen to grab a drink from the fridge.
"Bass guitar, even," Emilie agreed. "Then you can join a band!"
Marcus and Harvey came back in from outside and joined in. "My daughter is not joining a band."
"How about starting a band instead?" Haley piped in, shooting Marcus a playful smile.
"No band!" Marcus repeated, leaning in to kiss his daughter on the forehead. "That means no band boys breaking your heart."
"Harvey," Finn came back into the room and motioned for Harvey to speak with him. Emilie followed them with her eyes and tried to listen to their hushed voices down the hall. Mike gave her a look, as she assumed they were both sharing the same thoughts at the moment.
She suddenly heard her brother spouting off a chorus of Thank yous to Finn. They both came back into the kitchen with looks of relief on their face. Harvey went straight to the oven to check on dinner as Finn slipped his arm over Emilie's shoulders.
"It's over, Em," Finn said quietly.
"What?"
She watched as he pulled out his phone and showed her a message in his email inbox. It said both Jason Moore and his brother had been sentenced and were both about to spend 3-5 years in prison for various charges ranging from filming someone without their consent, to breaking probation to perjury for lying during the first trial. The judge had rushed the verdict yesterday and denied his plea for a full trial.
Emilie felt her whole body relax as she read it. It really was finally over. She had never felt so relieved in her life.
After dinner and desserts, everyone was sitting at the table sipping their glasses of wine. Smiling. Laughing. Haley had crashed on the couch and Matt was sitting in the armchair watching videos on his phone.
"So, I was thinking," Emilie said as she looked around the table, "We need to go out and celebrate."
"Tonight?" Katie stifled a yawn as she looked at her watch. "What are we celebrating?"
"The justice system finally working in our favour." Emilie took a sip from her glass. "And I never get to see both my brothers at once. So, karaoke?"
"I mean, it's only eight o'clock. I'm down for some Thanksgiving karaoke," Mike said, glancing at Rachel who nodded in agreement.
"Well, if you guys want to go, the kids and I can go back to the hotel and crash," Katie said to Marcus. "Because I care more for sleep than I do hearing you and your siblings sing off key, half drunk."
"Hey, I sing on-key," Emilie defended herself.
"And I plan on being fully drunk," Harvey added in, smiling to himself. He looked over at Donna. "You in?"
"Only if you'll duet with me, Specter."
It wasn't very much later that their whole group was piling into Emilie's favoured karaoke bar near NYU. She was honestly shocked everyone had gone along with her idea and was even more surprised that her stone-faced, disagreeable brother Harvey was there with a smile on his face.
As Emilie sat in the booth, surrounded by this swarm of people, she couldn't help but feel a sense of happiness. The last 13 weeks of her life had been a mess. Hell, the last eight months of her life had been a mess. But she had managed to come out on the other side a bit different. Her perspective had changed, her guard had been let down, her heart had been opened. She never dreamed she could have an amicable relationship with Harvey anymore. She didn't think she could find someone who she could fall in love with. She didn't think support systems full of caring people existed. Yet, here she was.
Donna started their night off with a very passionate rendition of a Cher song. Emilie glanced over at Harvey, who couldn't take his eyes off of her as she sang. She felt a sudden urge to lecture her brother on his love life and how he should go for it with Donna, but she didn't want to upset him. She just hoped with enough time he would open his eyes to what was presenting itself in his life.
"Harvey! Em!"
Both Emilie and Harvey turned their attention to Marcus as he came back to the table with a pitcher of beer and what appeared to be a line of small shot glasses.
"I don't think so," Harvey held up his hand as Marcus tried to pass a small glass to him.
"Hey, this is a special occasion," Marcus replied to him, forcing the shot into his hand. "I can't picture any other instance where not only will you, me and the kid be in a bar together in the city, but where I'm feeling delirious enough to pay for tequila shots. So, when in Rome, Harv."
"You know, the first shot of tequila I ever had was from some bottle I found hiding in your old stuff in mom's basement," Emilie nudged Harvey on the arm as she joked. She took the glass from Marcus and slid over for him to sit. She was sandwiched between the two of them now, each of them primed with a shot glass.
Emilie glanced across the table and saw Mike grabbing his phone. She smirked at him, grateful he was on the same page as her.
"To clarify, this is the first and last time I am doing this with you," Harvey said to his sister, letting out a breath.
"Thanks for letting loose, old man."
Marcus looked at them both, then back to his glass. "Let's not tell Katie about this one. Ready? 3, 2 -"
The tequila shots were only the beginning of their night. It was a bit of a mess, overall. But no one was kicked out and no one threw up, at least not at the bar.
It was well past midnight when Harvey, Emilie, Marcus and Finn were walking back to Harvey's. Finn had stayed sober for the evening, in case he was called in to work, and was getting a lot of enjoyment out of the three siblings.
Emilie was hanging off Finn's arm as they walked while Harvey and Marcus were in some trivial argument about something.
"No, no, Miss Wilson was the hot English teacher," Marcus insisted to his brother as they paused at a crosswalk.
"No, Wilson was old. Like, old. Like, a grandmother old." Harvey rolled his eyes at his brother.
"Still hot!"
"Wait, did you have Wilson?" Harvey turned and pointed at his sister. "Was she still alive when you graduated?"
"I did have some old lady for English in junior year, honestly, I don't remember much of that class," Emilie added in, shrugging.
"Not surprising. We were all shocked when you graduated, Em," Marcus laughed, as they started to cross the street.
"Hey! I may have had a terrible attendance record but I still managed an impressive GPA! And I walked across the stage in that stupid cap and gown, not that either of you made the ceremony."
"I'm sure I was in court that day," Harvey shrugged at her, a smirk on his face.
Finn offered to drop Marcus off at his hotel on his way home. Harvey thanked him and preemptively apologized if he threw up in his car.
Harvey's home was still a mess from hosting dinner - dishes piled on the counter, leftover glasses of wine on the table, terrible turkey decor taped across the room. He felt a sense of peace as he looked around.
It had been a long time since Harvey had hosted a dinner for his family. In fact, he knew it was the first time he had that many people invited over for any event. He watched as Emilie grabbed a half empty bottle of red wine from the table and took a drink from it. He sighed as poured himself a glass of water.
If anyone had told him four months ago where he would be at that very moment, he would have rolled his eyes and swore to their face.
Yet here he was, happy to be sitting in the remaining mess of a Thanksgiving dinner with his little sister dropping down beside him on the couch.
He remembered all those instances of feeling such animosity and jealousy towards Emilie. He had tried so hard to dismiss those feelings over the years - it wasn't her fault that her parents marriage dissolved. It wasn't her fault their mom had created such a void of feelings in him. It wasn't her fault he had his own walls up and couldn't let people in.
Yet for so long, it was easy to propel the blame onto her.
It was late spring and the air was warmer than usual in Boston.
Harvey was having dinner with his father and Marcus. Well, he was supposed to be having dinner with his father and Marcus. But his brother was late.
They were sitting in the backyard at Gordon's house, a few steaks on the grill. Gordon was rattling on about a new woman he had been seeing, but Harvey wasn't listening. It had nearly seven years since their family had fallen apart and even though his father had every right to move on and date around, it was still not something Harvey was interested in talking about.
Even coming back to Boston for a long weekend was a lot to ask these days but he was about to start a new job at the District Attorney's office and knew this may be one of his last slow weekends for the next while. The least his brother could do was show up on time.
Harvey was on his second beer and just about to plate their food when Marcus finally showed up at the gate in the backyard.
"Hey, sorry I'm so late," Marcus said as he joined them on the deck. He had a small bag in his hand. "Marie had the time wrong for pick up."
Harvey handed him a beer as he joined them at the table and bit his tongue to hold back from making a comment. He knew Marcus occasionally watched their little sister after school before her grandmother picked her up.
"So, how's the little lady?" Gordon turned his head to look at Marcus, a warm smile on his face.
"You don't have to do that, dad," Marcus said quietly with a shrug.
"Hey." Gordon put his beer down and shifted to look at his son. "While I hold a lot of disdain for Lily, I can't ignore the fact that she brought a beautiful little sister into this world for you two. And I'm glad you're in her life, Marcus."
Marcus gave his dad a grateful smile. Harvey remained muted as he got up to grab the steaks off the barbeque. He hated that every single dinner they had escalated into a discussion about his mother and sister. Was it too much to ask for some time with his brother and father without the stark reminder of their damaged family? Wasn't it easier to just ignore it?
"Well, in that case, Emmy did send me with paintings for both of you. I mean, she is six so I couldn't tell you what they are or anything." Marcus reached into the bag at his side and revealed two small canvases with a series of coloured swirls and designs on them.
It made Harvey's heart hurt just looking at them. Not only did his mom produce a precarious, sassy little girl but she also inherited their mother's penchant for art. His mother was inescapable.
Gordon took the small painting with a calm smile. Harvey knew his father had conflicting feelings about it but he played along.
"I think she said this is Central Park. That's all she knows about New York so she thinks you live there," Marcus joked with Harvey, showing him the mini canvas full of greenery.
"Thanks." Harvey said as he grabbed at the painting. She had even signed her name illegibly in the bottom corner. He swept his fingers over a few of the brush strokes.
"I'm supposed to take her to her gymnastics lessons tomorrow morning. If you want to come along."
Harvey put a plate down in front of his brother. "I'll pass."
Marcus rolled his eyes. "C'mon Harv, you hardly get to see her."
"Have you considered I prefer it that way?" Harvey put down the last two plates for himself and his dad, then sat across from his brother.
"Harvey," Gordon looked over at his son, "You shouldn't avoid your sister for my sake."
Harvey rolled his eyes this time. "It's not about you, dad. It's about mom and Emilie's father." He wouldn't even speak his name. "It is much easier for my to keep my distance." Truthfully, he knew spending time with his sister and building memories with her was the right thing to do. He knew that deep down. But it was just as easy to ignore that part of his life. It was easier that way, safer.
"Oh, c'mon Harv," Marcus pointed his fork at him. "You know, she asks about you all the time."
"That's great. Listen, I'm glad she's happy and well. But just because I share a mother with her, does not mean I have to be in her life. That's my choice."
Before Marcus could cast out a heated response, Gordon jumped in. "Maybe we should drop this and enjoy our dinner, boys. But Harvey, I'm going to say one more thing and maybe you won't change your mind. Unfortunately you don't get to choose your family and Emilie didn't pick hers. But she may never understand why her brother Harvey kept himself away from her life."
Harvey glanced over at his sister as she kicked her legs up onto his coffee table. She still had the bottle of wine in her hand. She was scrolling through her phone with the other.
"I'm going to keep this video of you and Donna doing Total Eclipse of the Heart forever," Emilie said with a laugh, showing the screen to her brother.
Harvey smiled. "Hey kid."
She rolled her eyes. "How have we come full circle here?"
"I just want to say sorry for being a terrible brother growing up."
She sighed and leaned into him. "Harvey, we went over this a while ago. You don't have to apologize anymore."
"Yeah, well, I'm going to," he replied, reaching his arm out over her shoulders. She went to take a drink from the bottle of wine. "Stop that." He took the bottle from her hand and put it on the coffee table.
"I think we've made up a lot of lost ground over these past few months," she said quietly. "God, I can only imagine the spiral I was heading into when I came to your office in September. You really saved me, Harvey."
"Well, I almost threw in the towel a few times along the way."
"Thanks for not giving up on me." Her voice came out like a whisper.
He smiled to himself and squeezed her shoulder. "I could say the same to you, Emmy."
FIVE MONTHS LATER
"Listen, I hear you. And I see where you're coming from but frankly, you're incorrect."
"Mike, you're clouded by logic. You have to suspend your disbelief."
Emilie was sitting at Harvey's desk chair in the middle of a passionate discussion with Mike. She wasn't entirely sure how their conversation had evolved from the last end credit scene from a recent Marvel movie into a lengthy argument about time travel.
"All I'm saying is the Back to the Future time travel science is broken."
Emilie just smirked at him. "I hope I'm not keeping you from real work. I know Harvey doesn't count banter with me as billable hours."
"It's 5:30 on a Friday. I'm pretty tapped out." Mike dropped down on the couch and kicked up his feet. "Where's he taking you to dinner?"
"I don't know. Considering we are celebrating my graduation, he rejected all of my suggested restaurants."
Mike laughed, "You all ready for your internship?"
Emilie was graduating from NYU that weekend and on Monday she was flying out to San Francisco to work at a non-profit for the summer under an internship grant. She was excited about the experience but nervous. For the last few years, she dreamed of leaving the city and starting fresh on the west coast. But her life had really fallen into place in the last six months and she was sad to be leaving.
She'd miss Finn, a lot. Even though she knew he was going to have a busy summer at work and going away to a training program. It was still hard to leave this social circle she had developed.
"I'm ready as I can be. I think it's going to be a good stepping stone." She paused and looked out the door. Harvey was late from his last client meeting but he was bound to show up any time. "I haven't told Harvey yet but I got accepted into a Masters program at Columbia."
"You're kidding! That's awesome. What program?"
"Political science. I know it's a broad reach from my undergrad and the interview was tough but they let me in. I want to focus on Public Policy."
"Then Harvard Law?" Mike raised an eyebrow at her.
"I doubt it. But actually, it did cross my mind."
Before they could continue, Donna came through the glass door. "Okay, I was definitely ignoring most of your drivel about time travel -
"Are you always listening in?" Emilie turned in Harvey's chair to face Donna, a smile on her face.
"When it's interesting and important, yes." Donna matched her smile. "Does Columbia mean you're coming back in September?"
"Unless something keeps me in California, yes, I'll be back."
Donna let out an excited scream and clapped her hands together. "Wait, how have you been keeping this from Harvey?"
Emilie just laughed. Ever since she moved out in January, her and Harvey had gotten into a weekly routine. She either joined him at the boxing gym a few times a week or they would go for a morning run. It took both of them to make the effort but they managed to keep it up for the last few months. Emilie also stopped by the office every now and then or had a movie night at Harvey's.
They had both kept true to their word of staying in the other's life. It didn't help that Emilie also hung out with Mike occasionally and had been uncomfortably running into Louis every now and then when she went to see her therapist. Her and Harvey's lives overlapped now. It was nice.
And the dramatics of the fall were luckily just fragments of the past, now. Emilie's old life seemed so far away but every now and then, in the back of her mind, the face of Jason Moore appeared. She had to talk herself down in moments like that - remind herself that he was safely tucked away in prison upstate. That was over. Her life had started again.
"Keeping what from Harvey?" As if on cue, Harvey was walking into his office. He gave his sister a hard glance as she sat in his desk chair. She sighed and vacated the seat.
Donna gave her another smile as she left the room. Mike did the same, telling her a final congratulations as he slipped out the door.
Emilie dropped down onto the couch across from her brother's desk.
"How can you expect me to take you to dinner when you're wearing jeans like that?" Harvey pointed over to her and her ripped knees as he opened up his laptop. "And what are you not telling me?"
Emilie rolled her eyes. "Listen, they let Jennifer Lopez into any restaurant in this city wearing whatever designer denim she pleases."
"You're no J Lo, Em." Harvey looked up from his computer. "Now, talk."
"Well, I was going to wait and tell you at dinner," Emilie started, reaching into her backpack sitting on the floor. "But guess who got into Columbia?"
Harvey's eyes shot open, a bright smile turning up on his face. "You're kidding. That's incredible, Em. You didn't even tell me you were applying."
"I didn't want to jinx it or anything," she replied quietly as she looked down at the envelope in her hands. Truthfully, she had been doubtful she would get in. Really, she applied as a shot in the dark. Then even after they wanted to interview her, she was skeptical about the whole thing.
"Emmy." Harvey called her attention as he stood up at his desk. "Columbia will be lucky to have a smartass like you in their ranks."
"Well, thanks Harvey," she smiled and stood up the same, grabbing her things. "Does that mean we get to go to Hatsuhana for dinner instead of wherever you picked?"
Harvey rolled his eyes but nodded. "Yes. I guess it's only fair we go with your first choice. Is Finn joining us?"
Emilie shook her head. "He's working nights unfortunately. And he hates sushi. So, it's just you and me, old man."
They said their goodbyes to Donna as they headed towards the elevators. Harvey turned to his sister as they waited. "How did your last shift at the cafe go?"
Emilie sighed. "Jackie cried and told me I was always welcome back if I needed a job. Then I cried. It was a whole thing." She turned and smiled up at him. "I did give her permission to use the family gingersnap recipe. She said to tell you they'll be in the rotation for Friday mornings again."
Harvey smirked. "Good to know."
They stepped into the elevator and started to head down.
Harvey thought for a moment. "Same goes for my place, Em."
Emilie looked up from her phone. "What?"
"In September, when you start your Masters. The spare room is really just Emilie's room now. You're always welcome back."
"You know you can't bring home all your hot dates with your little sister in the next room. I mean, we could devise an elaborate system using a tie on the door knob and noise cancelling headphones, I guess."
Harvey couldn't help but laugh. "I'm serious, Em." He put his hand on her shoulder.
She resisted quipping back again. She had gotten used to casual Harvey - the brother she didn't scream at anymore or swear at under her breath, but had dinner dates with and had cathartic discussions about her future.
"Thanks Harvey, really. For everything." As they stepped out at the ground floor, Emilie hooked her arm into her brothers as they headed out into the lobby. "Now, if I'm going to be moving back in, how do you feel about painting the living room? I think maybe we could make the whole place less intimidating with a floral wallpaper and…"
Harvey let Emilie ramble on. He knew in a few days he would miss the hell out of his sister, even if she was just going to be a phone call away.
Looking back on the last year of his life, he never imagined he would be looking forward to watching his sister graduate and then see her off to go live on the other side of the country. He thought back to all the memories he had shared with her over the years, good and bad, and felt a sense of peace. Finally.
Harvey Specter was not the type to drink a fancy coffee and he was not the type to share his feelings with most people. But he would always say that growing up, he never wanted a sister. And the way Emilie landed in his life was not what he asked for. But now, he wouldn't change his relationship with her for the world.
FIN.