A/N: I meant it when I said this was a series of oneshots, but I didn't mean to neglect this uverse for as long as I have. Hopefully it won't be as long before there's another addition. Enjoy :)

Mike stared at the sink as if he was in a daze. The water overflowed from the pot, spilling into the sink. No matter how many times he washed it, all he could see was the sauce stained pot, reminding him of Eddie's blood splattered on the pavement.

"I think it's clean now," Paige gently said, reaching past him and turning off the kitchen faucet.

He stared at her blankly for a few seconds. He hadn't even noticed that she entered the kitchen.

"Is it?"

Paige looked at him for a moment before glancing in the sink, "The pan is."

His eyes closed as she dumped out the water and set it on the counter to dry. The clattering of the pan took him back to the chaos from earlier that evening.

Today should have been a great day.

He had been hearing about Charlie's sauce for days. He skipped his last two meals to make sure he was hungry enough to eat. He had a feeling that telling Charlie he was full from lunch and would have some the next day wouldn't go over so well. Not to mention that there was no such thing as leftovers on sauce night.

With the exception of tonight.

While part of him appreciated that Charlie set aside a plate for him, the thought of eating anything red made his stomach turn.

The memory of what happened to Eddie and his own part in his death was fresh on his mind. Mike knew that the moment Bello believed Eddie sold him out to Bobby Moi, he would kill Eddie. Yet he let Briggs talk him into it. There should have been something he could've done to save Eddie's life and keep his cover. Maybe Eddie's death wasn't his fault, but it weighed on his conscience.

A man's death was orchestrated to keep his cover.

"Hey," Paige softly said. She touched his chin to pull him out of his thoughts. "Look at me."

Mike opened his eyes and stepped away from the sink. "I'm fine," Mike insisted, immediately noting the worry in Paige's eyes. He shrugged off her concern and wiped his wet hands on his jeans. His eyes darted around the kitchen, relieved that he didn't see any sauce remnants anywhere in the kitchen, but now that all the dishes were clean and dry, he needed to put everything away. Staying busy would help keep his mind from wandering. "It's late, you should go to bed."

Paige bristled at his words, clearly catching the implication that she should go to bed without him. Technically, they weren't dating, but they had been growing closer since her birthday a few weeks ago. Spending more and more time together. The only thing missing from their relationship was the label. Now wasn't the time to deal with any of that, but Mike didn't need to deal with any of this alone.

Paige reached for his hand, breathing a sigh of relief that he didn't push her away. "I can help you finish cleaning up."

"I really want to be alone right now," Mike quietly said, gently squeezing her hand. He appreciated that Paige wanted to help, really he did, but unless he specifically asked her to leave, she wouldn't. Although, there was a chance that she wouldn't leave him alone even after he asked her to.

She was stubborn like that.

A quality he had grown to appreciate, because he was just as stubborn.

Mike stepped away from her and headed over to the dishwasher, hoping Paige would take the hint, but instead she walked up next to him, so they were side by side. She loosely wrapped her arm around his and rested her head on his shoulder.

"We don't have to talk," Paige said. She really wasn't sure that Mike should be alone right now. She remembered the first night she saw someone die up close and personal. A bust had gone wrong, and her mark pulled a gun on another agent's head and tried to use him as leverage to make a deal. A sniper from the TAC team took out the mark. Seeing him fall to the ground and bleed out in front of her haunted her dreams for weeks, but what she saw was nothing compared to what Mike had been through. She had never been in any real danger that night. The situation escalated and gotten out of control, but a gun had never been pointed at her. There was a difference between an agent shooting someone to save another agent's life, and someone killing themselves to prove their loyalty to a criminal.

Mike took a deep breath and pressed a kiss to the top of her head and pulled away. For a moment, she thought he was going to try sending her upstairs again, but instead he opened the dishwasher and started handing her dishes. The worked in silence as they put away the dishes and dried all of the pans. She thought he was going to suggest mopping the floor when he pulled her in his arms instead.

Paige relaxed in his embrace, trying her best to comfort him and reassure him while keeping her promise not to say anything. Mike was in a really fragile place right now and she didn't want to give him a reason to push her away. Not that she would pay attention, but she really didn't want to risk alienating him if she didn't have to.

Mike tightened his hold on her for a few seconds before pulling away. "Thank you."

Paige reached for his hand and started leading him upstairs, unsure what the rest of the night held for them. She wasn't looking for sex, but she didn't want him to be alone. Hell, she didn't want to be alone, but she needed to give Mike some space if that was really what he needed.

Mike tugged on her hand and led her to one of the couches, motioning for her to sit down next to him. "A man died today, because of me. We set him up to die and he did."

"It could've been you," Paige whispered with a shaky breath. Briggs gave her a full update on what happened earlier. That for a moment after the gun went off, that he thought Mike had been the one shot. It just as easily could've been Mike, if Bello had believed Eddie. If Eddie wasn't so resolute in his loyalty to Bello, that he was willing to die to prove it. It could've been Mike. "It was almost you. It's selfish and I'm selfish because I'm glad it wasn't."

Paige blinked back tears, cursing herself for making this about her. Mike was drowning in guilt and all she could think about how was relieved she was that it wasn't him. When did she become that woman? The type of woman that freaked out on the scene the moment there was any danger to her man? That wasn't her. But she couldn't ignore the fact that Mike could have died earlier. As much as she prided herself on being tough, she couldn't pretend that it didn't affect her on some level.

Mike started shaking as he fought back tears and the moment her arms wrapped around him, he broke down. Paige held him tight, trying to whisper soothing words to him, but none of it mattered. Mike felt guilty because Eddie died. He wasn't like Briggs. He didn't see Eddie's death as collateral damage to nail Bello. Mike was going to carry this, because that was who he was.

It was her job to make sure he didn't drown in the guilt.

Paige slowly opened her eyes, holding up her hand to block the sun, before burying her face in Mike's chest. Mike was half-asleep, but he pulled her closer.

Despite knowing every inch, every birthmark and every scar on Mike's body, being in his arms like this felt strangely intimate. Almost too intimate.

Waking up in Mike's arms wasn't unusual, but last night marked the first time they slept together without having sex. It was also the first time they spent the night downstairs. They spent most nights together, but last night had been different.

After Mike calmed down, they talked for a while. Neither of them felt like moving, so they settled in next to each other on the couch, talking about everything and nothing. They talked about their childhoods. Favorite movies. College adventures. Places they wanted to visit. The only topic they avoided was work.

She wasn't sure who fell asleep first, but Mike woke up more than a few times during the night. She was sure it was nightmares, but he didn't offer to explain what woke him and she didn't ask. He apologized for waking her, but she assured him it was fine, not wanting to admit that her mind was still on overload and she was having a hard time sleeping. But each time Mike awoke, she brushed her lips over his and nestled further into his embrace, calming him down before he fell back into a fitful sleep.

Paige could hear people starting to trickle downstairs and the last thing she wanted to do right now was move. Neither of them had gotten much sleep last night and she would love to shut out the rest of the world, at least for a few more hours, but they had roommates and apparently everyone was up early today.

"I'm up early because of you, the least you could do is make pancakes," Jakes said.

"Sounds like a plan," Briggs agreed.

"I made breakfast three days this week," Johnny complained.

"Then it sounds like you have it under control," Jakes said. "Might want to get a tray together for the lovebirds."

Paige started to get up, but Mike tightened his arm around her waist.

"Leave them alone, they look cute," Charlie said.

"They have their own rooms, they don't need to be hooking up downstairs," Johnny said.

"Like you haven't?" Jakes asked.

"That was a civilian! She couldn't go upstairs."

"Hey guys," Briggs began.

Mike tensed as Briggs spoke to the rest of the house in a hushed voice, no doubt explaining what had happened the night before with Eddie. The comments stopped and everyone silently walked by them on their way to the kitchen.

Paige looked at him, silently asking if he was okay. Mike nodded and she untangled herself from him and got up from the couch. Mike immediately pulled her back to him and kissed her.

"Thank you," Mike murmured against her lips. "This isn't what you signed up for."

Paige met his eyes before quickly looking down, sensing that the talk they had been long overdue for would happen soon. "Whatever it is that we are to each other, we're friends. I care about you." They were more than friends with benefits. Maybe they were dating. She wasn't sure.

"I care about you too."

They sat in silence for a few more moments, listening to their roommates bicker over who should make breakfast. "Johnny doesn't really want to cook, maybe I'll go make breakfast," Paige offered.

"Are you trying to get rid of me?"

She smacked his chest, "Shut up. I can make oatmeal! Just a few weeks ago, I made french toast!"

Mike shook his head and silenced her with a kiss, deciding not to point out that she burned the first two pieces. He knew Paige cared about him, but her actually admitting it was huge. They hadn't really talked about relationships other than her saying she wasn't looking for one after the first night they spent together. "Tell me what you want for breakfast."

"You sure?"

"I'll be okay."

Paige stared into his eyes for a few moments before nodding, "That egg thing you make. I want that."

"A frittata?" Mike asked. Paige nodded in response. "Okay."

Paige stood up and she reached for his hand, silently leading him to the kitchen. They were both well aware that he was now the center of attention. Paige kissed his cheek before wandering across the kitchen to start a pot of coffee.

"I can cook if you don't want to," Mike offered.

Jakes patted him on the shoulder, "Don't worry about it, Levi. Johnny can make pancakes in his sleep." Jakes glanced at Johnny, silently daring him to object.

"It's not a big deal," Johnny said. He went to the refrigerator and started pulling out ingredients. "Hey, Briggs did you remember to buy syrup? We're almost out. Anyone want jam?"

Briggs reached in the cupboard and set a bottle of maple syrup on the counter. "We are all set."

"You sure you're okay, Mikey?" Charlie asked.

Mike met Paige's eyes across the room and nodded. "Yeah, I'm going to be just fine."