Author's Note: No proofing. Expect typos. Many typos. Rushing to try to get updates out a little more consistently though. Thanks for all the encouragement. And for the extreme level of enthusiasm.
Mike can't stop smiling. He can't believe it's all actually over. Everyone's out at the bar celebrating and Mike marvels once again how in such a short period of time he's come to care so much for these people he lives with.
He's had one shot and is on his second beer, and is starting to feel pleasantly buzzed. That may just be his mood and the fact that Paige is standing beside him, though. They're watching their roommates partake in some drinking game Mike doesn't understand, and he's pleased that she's been glued to his side tonight rather than off flirting with other men.
"What are they doing?" Mike asks, leaning in to Paige, watching as Johnny punches Briggs in the arm. Jakes and Charlie are standing on either side of them, cheering them on, and refilling their glasses as they drink.
"They're 'boxing'," Paige explains, "It's a drinking game where you roll the die and whoever gets the lower number takes a drink."
"Why are they hitting each other?"
"We play a modified version where you can choose to get punched in the arm instead of taking the shot. Makes the game last longer."
"I see." Mike grins at the immaturity of his friends. These idiots are the most skilled agents the government has to offer.
"You want to go next round?"
"No, I've been warned about you." Mike laughs taking another sip of his beer, looking down at the beer in her hand he tries to sound casual as he asks, "So you're drinking tonight?"
"You won your hearing. I think that deserves a toast." She grins back at him, her twinkling eyes matching his. The two of them clink beer bottles, both enjoying the electric anticipation in the air. This could be the night. Everything seems to be adding up. The alcohol is lowering both their inhibitions and they've been exchanging lingering glances and shy smiles all night.
Looking Mike up and down, Paige says with a coy grin, "Better yet, I think I owe you a shot."
He groans, but she takes his hand and leads him across the floor to the bar where she immediately attracts the bartender's full attention.
"Can we have two screaming dead nazi's please?" Paige orders, shooting Mike a mischievous grin as she does.
"Wait, what did you just order?" Mike asks. He's beginning to understand why Briggs was warning him about Paige. The name alone sounds terrifying.
"You'll like it," Paige says simply, while she watches the bartender to make sure he's preparing them properly. "It's mainly jagermeister and bacardi. Plus the rumple minze makes your breath minty."
"So that's what, 100 proof?" Mike tries to push fantasies of her mint tasting lips from his mind, and focuses instead nervously on what the bartender is doing.
"106 actually." Paige grins as she watches the shots prepared, leaning over the bar with giddiness.
"106 proof?! Wait, is he setting those on fire?!" Mike is starting to wonder what the hell he got himself into.
"You blow it out before you drink it. Don't be a pansy Mike." Paige teases him, bumping him playfully with her hip.
The bartender brings them their shots and Mike stares at it with trepidation. Paige, picks up the shot, and Mike watches, fascinated, as she purses her lips in a pink o to blow out the flames. He watches as she then throws back her head in a blur of blonde hair and watches the way her throat moves as she takes the shot in one smooth swallow. When she's done, her eyes slightly watery and her cheeks flushed, she gasps for air and her eyes lock on his. She leans forward to blow out the flames of the shot in his hand, watching as he brings the glass to his lips and swallows the liquid which burns it's way down his throat.
The moment feels intimate, and he watches her lips as her tongue peaks out to moisten them. He wants to lean forward and taste the mint on her breath, but he holds back. The night is young, and he's not quite drunk enough to start making out with her in the middle of the crowded bar, though he has no doubt once the shot kicks in he might be. Instead he simply gives her a smile, unable to look away from her green eyes, and sets the glass back down on the bar.
"You're right. I liked it." Mike grins down at her.
The drink itself was strong, and he can feel it churning in his stomach, but taking the shot with her was sexy as hell. Every second he can feel his inhibitions lowering, and his want for her rising. He's reminded of that first month at Graceland, before Abby, when they would go out drinking almost every night and Mike would watch her dance and flirt, feeling on fire every time her skin accidentally touched his. The only difference was, back then Paige seemed intent on treating him like a slightly pathetic brother. She'd constantly try to pawn him off on any pretty girl that walked by, so she could flirt with strangers. Tonight, much to Mike's delite, Paige seemed to be into him as well.
"I told you so." She smiles knowingly back up at him as if she's reading his mind. Leaning in closer than she needs to to be heard over the crowd she asks, "Do you want to do another?"
"Not quite yet." Mike says, his hand coming to rest on her hip. "I should pace myself."
"Yeah." Paige agrees with him for once, and Mike's surprised. "You don't want this night to end too soon."
He can hear the hidden meaning behind her words. He can't believe it's going to finally happen tonight. He can feel it and he knows she can too. He doesn't want this night to end. He feels alive and happy. And tonight when they go home, he knows when they go to bed together, it will be different. There's no walls up between them tonight, the trial is over, and Mike feels lighter. Like they can finally put all this behind them. Tonight they're not agents whose entire lives are lies who've experienced more pain and evil than any person should in a lifetime. It's like finally all the violence is over and they can just be Mike and Paige tonight.
Unfortunately as soon as Mike thinks this, two drunken idiots start shoving each other and a fight breaks out. Even though it's just a drunken bar brawl and nothing like the gang wars Mike and Paige are accustomed to, they both immediately snap into agent mode, and move in to intervene and break up the fight.
Mike grabs one guy, and Paige tries to step between the two to push the other drunkard away. From the corner of his eye Mike can see Briggs and Johnny rushing in to help. The next few minutes are a blur of fists and curses as the agents try to pull the two guys off of each other until the bouncers intervene and drag the two jerks out of the bar.
Once the brawl is done, Mike looks over to see Paige doubled over in pain, gripping her left side. Mike's immediately at her side, any feelings of relaxation are swept away and replaced by the familiar feelings of worry.
"Paige, you ok? Where does it hurt? Did your stitches bust open?" Mike's already got his phone out of his pocket ready to call an ambulance.
"I'm fine." Paige says, standing back up but still holding her side. Her expression is pained. "I'm just going to go to the bathroom for a minute."
Mike starts to follow her, but Charlie comes over and starts to walk with her and Mike hangs back, knowing it's not his place to follow into the ladies room. Paige seems ok, good enough to walk at least, but Mike's still worried. The guys come up behind him to make sure Mike's ok, but he anxiously is watching as Paige stiffly walks away, clutching her side where her spleen is.
"Come on Mike. The next rounds on me." Briggs says, clasping a hand on Mike's shoulder.
"I thought all the rounds were on you!" Johnny laughs.
"Look, I've been supporting your asses for years. You all are going to drink me out of house and home." Briggs says. Mike's distracted momentarily from his worrying of Paige to Briggs's sudden frugalness. The way everything wrapped up with Jangles and Odin still doesn't sit right with him.
A short while later, Paige and Charlie return to the table with the guys.
"Hey!" Paige grins, sliding into the chair beside Mike.
"Hey. You ok?" Mike's surprised by her chipperness, mainly because he's been envisioning her bleeding out in the bathroom for the past ten minutes, but he's happy to see her again.
"Never better." She smiles up at him, grabbing his beer from in front of him and taking a swig as if everything he has is hers.
"Good for a minute there I was worried he hit your spleen or something. You still need to be careful and I can take you back to the doctor if something-" Mike leans in, his tone hushed and worried.
"Mike." Paige puts her hand over his mouth, silencing him, as she leans in close as well. "I am fine. Don't be such a downer. This is your night."
Mike mumbles something from behind her hand, but Paige just leans in and kisses the back of her hand. If her palm weren't firmly over his mouth she would have kissed his lips and the glimmer in her eyes shows she knows it. She's such a tease. She pulls her hand away and rejoins the rest of the conversation of the table but Mike's eyes stay on her. She's hiding something.