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Mike had been staring at the brown stain on the ceiling for god knows how long. He’d always hated his inability to shut his brain down, but something about the monotony of prison had taught him a valuable skill: dissociation.
Was it a particularly healthy skill? Maybe not. But prison was about surviving the time — and the best way to do that was forgetting that it existed entirely. Maybe the monks were onto something with the whole meditative thing to reach Nirvana.
He still hadn’t figured that one out yet — unless it was the knowledge of what it feels like when you can’t even take a piss without a bunch of voyeurs. Or watching your back every second of the day so someone quite literally doesn’t shove a knife in it. Lifestyles of the formerly rich and currently incarcerated.
Mike missed Harvey. He missed laughing and joking with him. He missed putting their heads together to solve a difficult case. He’d never quite met someone who was able to keep up with him like his former boss. It wasn’t just the law, either.
Harvey got him on a fundamental level — between their mind-reading levels of shared intuition, movie quotes, and clocking precisely what the other needed without having to talk about it. There was a reason he and Rachel didn’t work out. You could say it was Harvey, but it was more about what Harvey represented.
Mike’s connection with Harvey proved his incompatibility with Rachel. From day one, they never understood each other and she never accepted him for who he was — flaws and all. Sure, Mike had the power play thing with Harvey, too. But when his back was against the wall, Harvey knocked the damn thing down. When it mattered, he had his back — always.
With Rachel? He constantly had to prove himself but it was never enough. She held his thing with Tess over his head when they weren’t even together and then tried to act like it was the same thing when she actively cheated on him with Logan.
Mike didn’t begrudge Rachel for not condoning his fraud, but once she chose to be with him, she constantly held it over his head whenever she needed to win an argument. She expected loyalty to her that required Mike to betray others.
Asking him to turn on Harvey was his final straw. Betraying Harvey to save himself wasn’t an option any more than turning on her would be. That wasn’t who Mike was. And he didn’t particularly want to be with someone who didn't understand or respect the core values that made Mike, well, Mike.
When Rachel asked Mike to turn on Harvey, she made it all about herself. "What about me?" She claimed that all she'd done was love him, but did she? Did she love him when she cheated? Did she love him when she belittled him? Did she love him when she acted superior and refused to acknowledge her own flaws? Did she love him when she resented that they had to have a small wedding?
Honestly, who wants their wedding to be on their birthday? That should have been the first clue that Rachel wasn't as benevolent and empathetic as she seemed (beyond the fact that she bragged about her cheating stint with Logan and how Mike 'didn't know what he was missing' before they dated). There was an intense streak of narcissism in his former fiance and he just refused to see it.
Harvey would never ask him to be disloyal to someone like that. Sure, Harvey and he fought over who should take the fall, but both of them were condemning themselves, not someone else. The fact that she couldn’t see the difference there was precisely why they never would have worked in the long run.
It may sound like Mike was simply comparing Rachel and Harvey, but whether or not Harvey felt the same way, whether or not they would ever act on anything, that didn’t matter. His compatibility with Harvey simply showed the stark contrast of his incompatibility with Rachel.
He would say it was no one’s fault, but they’d both made mistakes. Cheating on him was arguably the bigger one, but he should have let her go a long time ago when it was clear that she couldn’t handle him being a fraud. They both should have called it quits. Really, how many times can a couple postpone their wedding before it’s dead in the water?
So, here he was, serving out the sentence he brought on himself — single, alone, and constantly fearing for his life.
He wished Harvey was here.
But he also didn’t. Because he would never want Harvey to live in this hell. That was why he was here in the first place. And really, Harvey in these hideous prison uniforms? Armani-loving Harvey with his own personal snooty tailor? Yeah, he’d pay to see that. But he hoped he would never have to.
A knock on his cell bars startled Mike out of his thoughts. When he heard the word, “Housekeeping,” he whipped around. He knew that voice. But he was about to extend his prison conviction to murder if it was who he thought it was.
Mike must have been hallucinating because there was Harvey, in all of his glory, dressed in pale Danbury blues.
Mike said, “I’m more of a pot guy than heroin or coke, so this isn’t a drug hallucination. Did I finally have a psychotic break?”
“Well, I can’t speak to your current psyche, but I’m pretty sure I’m not a figment of your imagination.”
Mike pulled Harvey into the cell and hissed, “Harvey. What the fuck are you doing here?”
Harvey smirked. “Wow, that's the reception I get? Prison really has hardened you, rookie.”
Mike rolled his eyes. “I went to prison so you didn’t have to, asshole. So I’m going to ask you again: What the fuck are you doing here?”
“Would you believe me if I said I just missed you?”
Mike hated to admit that he got a little whiny when he said, “Harvey.”
“Alright, alright. I’m working with Cahill on a deal to get you the fuck out of here. They were giving me the runaround about meeting you as your lawyer so I took matters into my own hands.”
Mike groaned. “Please tell me Cahill knows you’re here. Please tell me you did not just break into a federal prison with no sure way out.”
Harvey’s smug grin told him all he needed to know. “Harvey, are you out of your goddamned mind?!”
“It’s been said before.”
“Out of all of the half-assed, insane shit you’ve pulled over the years…”
“Hey, I don’t half-ass anything. I whole-ass it. And I whole-ass it well. And might I remind you that you were riding shotgun on most of my schemes for the past few years?”
“And I’m in prison for it, dumbass. But you don’t have to be.”
“I wasn’t kidding when I said I missed you.”
“You didn’t even say you missed me, dick. You said ‘What if I said I missed you?’”
Harvey chuckled. “Well, I definitely missed that memory of yours. And I did miss you, rookie.”
He did that two-finger beckoning hug thing that screamed ‘no homo,’ but when Mike didn’t obey the gesture, Harvey came to him. Harvey took Mike in his arms, giving him a crushing hug.
Mike didn’t mean for the words to slip out when he softly mumbled, “Why didn’t you hug me goodbye?”
For a second, he hoped Harvey hadn’t heard him, but he pulled away to look the younger man in the eyes.
“Because if I hugged you before you went in I never would have let go.”
Harvey didn’t even try to hide the wrecked look in his eyes, but Mike launched himself back into Harvey’s arms, clinging to his neck and inhaling the cologne he always daydreamed about when he was lonely.
Harvey hugged him back just as hard, to the point where he lifted Mike a few inches off the ground.
As much as Mike was enjoying the closeness, the tight hug was a little too rough for him at the moment. It was a real shame, though, because Mike sometimes liked it rough. “Ow, I’m a little battered over here.”
Harvey scowled at that, lifting Mike’s shirt up and finding a constellation of bruises. If smoke could come out of someone’s nostrils, Harvey would be a prime candidate.
“Gallo?”
Mike hesitated before nodding. He knew Harvey would get it out of him eventually, so there was no point in delaying the inevitable.
Harvey got that scary glint in his eye that both terrified Mike and deeply turned him on. Was that super unhealthy? Probably. He would consult Harvey’s former therapist about it, but he got the feeling that she had the hots for him herself (can you say malpractice?). That session would be super uncomfortable for everyone.
“Before you go all Rambo on the dude I have to stay in here with, can we circle back to how you got in here, and more importantly, how you’re planning on getting out?”
Harvey still had his hand resting on Mike’s waist and didn’t even seem to notice. “It’s not important.”
“Like hell, it isn’t important. I’ve got a guy gunning for my life in here and yet this is the most stressed out I’ve ever been in this dump. As much as it might be fun to share a bunk with you, I’d rather you not have to deal with this hellhole.”
Harvey smirked at Mike and said in a deliberately seductive voice, “Oh, yeah? You wanna share a bunk with me? How would we pass the time?”
Mike whacked his shoulders and asked, “That’s what you got out of that? Harvey this is serious.”
“You’re right. It is serious. Keeping you safe is serious. And if the people whose job it is to do so won’t rise to the challenge, then you’re damn right I’m gonna step in. You will not die in here, Michael Ross. They can lock me up for all I care. You’re my first priority.”
Mike couldn’t stop himself from getting teary-eyed. He knew Harvey cared about him at this point — obviously. But this was next-level.
“You really did all this for me?”
“I committed a felony for you 20 minutes after meeting you, Mike. Isn’t it obvious by now that I would do anything for you?”
Mike’s breath hitched, but he didn’t want to read too much into it. Mike stepped closer, taking Harvey’s hand without even realizing it. Harvey didn’t pull back.
Mike repeated himself. “How did you get in here, Harvey?”
Harvey sighed. Still holding Mike’s hand, he said, “I stole a uniform off the laundry cart the last time I was here. I signed up for visitation with a random inmate, waited until it was almost the end, went to the bathroom to change, and slipped back in as the inmates were filing back to the block.”
Mike gaped at him. “Are you actually insane?”
Harvey shot him a wolfish grin. “I don’t know, ask my therapist.”
Mike grumbled, “Yeah, don’t get me started on that woman.”
Harvey raised his eyebrows but didn’t say anything. They were still holding hands.
“How in the fuck did no one notice an extra inmate was walking back? Or that you never signed out? Or that a suit is randomly chilling in the bathroom? And did you really sacrifice a suit for me?”
Harvey looked at him like he was an idiot. “Did you not just hear me say that I would do anything for you? You think I’d break into prison but draw the line at a meaningless suit? You’re pretty stupid for a genius.”
“Gee, thanks.”
“For fuck’s sake, Mike. I would burn my entire penthouse to the ground and go live in your piece of shit condemned Brooklyn building if it meant getting you out of here.”
Mike’s eyes widened. They were still holding hands. Harvey let out a frustrated sigh before pulling his hand away.
“God you’re fucking stupid.”
Harvey wrapped his arms around Mike’s waist and pulled him flush against his own. He locked eyes with Mike’s lips and said, “Last chance to back out, Ross.”
Mike cupped his cheeks. “Not on your life, Specter.”
Harvey and Mike brought their lips together simultaneously. They deepened the kiss with a level of desperation that screamed that their first kiss could very well be their last.
When Mike’s hands started wandering to Harvey’s ass, the lawyer stopped him from getting carried away, slotting their hands together but maintaining a foot between them so they didn’t attract unwanted attention from the guards or other inmates.
Harvey broke the silence. “As for your question on how I didn’t get caught, first of all, ‘I’m Batman.’ Second of all, this is the most mismanaged prison I have ever seen. I can’t wait to sue the shit out of it when you get out of here. It really wasn’t that hard.”
“Okay, settle down, Dean Winchester. That still doesn’t explain how you’re going to get out.”
“Oh, you know me, rookie. I’m an ask-for-forgiveness kinda guy, not an ask-for-permission one.”
Mike let out an exasperated sigh. “This is both the most romantic and the most idiotic grand gesture that anyone has done in the history of ever.”
Harvey smirked and Mike bit his lip and timidly asked, “It is … it is romantic, right?”
Mike couldn’t handle getting a taste of Harvey and having it be a fleeting moment. He didn’t think Harvey would break that levee unless he was serious about it, but both of them had been on edge and not thinking particularly rationally during this whole thing.
Exhibit A: Harvey broke into fucking prison for him.
Harvey stroked his cheek and said, “Yes, rookie. It was romantic. I thought the kiss spelled that out for you.”
“Not to be a dick or anything, but you’ve kissed a lot of people, Harvey. I can’t do friends with benefits. Not with you. I could never be … casual with you.”
Harvey huffed out a laugh. “I watched you with Rachel for years, Mike. You asked me to be your best man. You think I’m letting you go now? Not on your life, rookie.”
Mike couldn’t help bringing their lips back together for a slow kiss and Mike finally found out what it would be like to run his hand through Harvey’s hair. This was one of those cases where the reality beat the fantasy.
Harvey groaned into the kiss and croaked, “God, the things I’m going to do to you when we don’t have an audience, kid.”
“Not into voyeurism, then, are we?”
“No. I want you all to myself.”
“I think that can be arranged.”
“Then let’s arrange it by talking about that deal.”
And they did. They squabbled back and forth about the details and Mike forced Harvey to agree to protect Kevin (where the hell was he, anyway?). Mike now had the power of seduction at his disposal and the promise of sex if Harvey agreed to his terms and Mike got out. It really upped Mike's powers of persuasion.
Harvey vowed, “I’m taking a week off the minute you get out of here and you’re not leaving my bed for more than ten minutes at a time.”
Mike shuddered. “Yeah, so when can we get this plan into motion?”
“As soon as I get out of here.”
“There better not be an ‘if’ in there somewhere, Harvey.”
“You know I don’t take gambles unless I know I'll win, rookie.”
“We both know that you've broken that rule more than a few times for me. But let’s hope you win — for both of our sakes. Because if you end up in here and I get out, then I’ll be the one breaking back in. And I won’t leave.”
“We are the picture-perfect example of what a healthy relationship looks like,” Harvey quipped.
“Relationship, huh?”
“Yes, relationship, dumbass. Now, I’ve gotta make a call to Cahill. Cover me?"
He pulled out the phone he'd snuck in and pressed on a contact. “Hey, Cahill, yeah. Funny story. So I broke into Danbury and you need to break me back out.”
Mike grimaced at the muted shouting he could hear on the other end. Harvey smirked at him and rolled his eyes.
“Yeah, I have a few things I need to take care of. Pick me up in a few hours?”
More shouting.
“We both know you’re going to do it, Cahill, so how about we both save ourselves the trouble and you just give in now? I’ve gotta go see a guy about a thing.”
He hung up to more yelling.
Mike pecked him on the lips. “Maybe I’m insane for thinking your insanity is so fucking hot.”
Harvey slapped him on the ass and said, “Come on Robin, time to teach Falcone a lesson.”
“Not the Joker?”
“Are you kidding me? Gallo is way too much of a basic bitch for Joker status.”
They stayed out of view from the guards, meandering closer to where Gallo and his posse liked to hang out. Luckily for them (this time at least), Gallo had some of the guards in his pocket, so they left him alone.
Harvey snuck up behind Gallo and put him in a headlock so he couldn’t breathe. When his cronies advanced, Harvey seethed, “One wrong move and I break his fucking neck.”
No one could bluff like Harvey fucking Specter. Mike and Gallo were the only two people in the room who knew Harvey’s identity. The other guys probably thought he was a random prisoner looking to settle a score.
Harvey pulled Gallo’s head back and grunted in his most menacing voice, “Listen the fuck up, you rat. You leave my boy the fuck alone, you hear me? I have people everywhere. How the hell do you think I got in here? If I see one more bruise on Mike Ross or one strand of hair that’s out of place, I will destroy you. You think prison is hard? This is nothing compared to what I can do to you.”
Mike had never seen Gallo look so terrified. “I don’t care whether it happens because he stubs his toe in the shower or you beat him in the cafeteria. I will hold you personally responsible.”
Harvey upped the pressure around Gallo’s neck and bent his wrist at a grotesque angle before Mike heard it snap.
“You better make it your life’s fucking mission to protect Mike Ross. Because if you don’t, it’s your life. But I won’t go after you. No. Not at first.”
Harvey flung a picture at him. It was of a young girl, probably Gallo’s daughter, Mike mused. “I’ll start with her.”
Gallo croaked, “You don’t have the balls to hurt an innocent girl.”
“You’re right. I’m not you. I don’t kill people. But I got your ass thrown in jail, didn’t I? I have friends in high places Gallo, and don’t you forget it. Pretty girl like that? Not sure she’ll fare so well in prison. You know what it’s like.” He shrugged nonchalantly.
Harvey kneed Gallo in the junk and kicked his legs in, forcing him to the ground. “I will turn everything and everyone you love into dust and not blink an eye. You forget, Gallo, that I play in the grey. And let me just tell you, it won’t take much for that grey to turn into black. Don’t test me.”
Harvey turned his finger into a gun and aimed it at Gallo’s forehead, making a 'pow' sound. “I own your ass, you scumbag. You better watch your fucking back. But first, make sure you watch Mike’s. Because whether or not you’re alive, if anything, and I mean anything happens to my boy? I will burn your fucking world down.”
Harvey slightly eased up his hold and asked, “Are we fucking clear?”
Gallo unintelligibly mumbled his response.
“I said are we fucking clear?”
Gallo glared at him but seethed out a, “Yes.”
“Great! Now apologize to Mike.”
He mumbled a sorry and Harvey sniped, “I don’t think that was sincere, do you, Mike?”
Mike didn’t answer, but Gallo got the memo. “I’m sorry.”
“You’re sorry, who?”
“I’m sorry, Mike.”
“And what are you sorry for?”
“I’m sorry, Mike, for putting a target on your back.”
“Good, now what will you do with his back in the future?”
“Watch it.”
Harvey slow clapped and said, “Well, it looks like my work here is done.” After a beat, he added, “Oh, wait. I almost forgot.”
Harvey turned to Gallo’s crew and said, “In case you were wondering, Gallo only isn’t in supermax because he snitched on his former inmates. Loyalty, huh? It’s so hard to come by these days. And just so you know, these threats extend to you. Say hi to Sofia, Maria, and Giana for me, will you?”
Mike noticed the color drain from all of their faces as Harvey grabbed Mike, and gave them a condescending wave. Harvey threatened, “Be seeing you, boys. And your lovely ladies.”
When they were out of view from Danbury’s most pathetic gang, Mike pushed Harvey against the wall and attacked his lips. “Fuck, Harvey, that was so hot.”
Harvey grinned and ground their hips together. He squeezed Mike’s ass and whispered, “That ass of yours has been begging to get bent over my breakfast bar. And then, I’m going to hold you up against the wall and fuck you into oblivion.”
Mike shuddered. “Promise?”
“Well, rookie, they don’t call me the city’s best closer for nothing.”
“Does anyone but you actually call you that?”
“Careful, puppy. You don’t want to earn a spanking, do you?”
“And if I do?”
“Then I’m sure you’ll find a way to misbehave and find out.”
Mike licked his lips and then licked Harvey’s. They pulled away too soon and Harvey said, “You got a deck of cards? Let’s play some poker.”
He scoffed, “What are we gonna bet, commissary credits and Raman?”
“I have a more interesting proposition. Every winning hand gets one night of the loser at their mercy. Surface to be determined by the winner.”
Mike sucked in a breath. And if he lost twice on purpose, who had to know? He was ready to suck something more interesting anyway. In a few days, he should be free to do just that.
When they heard Cahill’s voice down the hall, Harvey gave Mike a quick kiss and said, “Looks like it’s time for my jailbreak, kid. You gonna be okay?”
Mike shot him a smitten smile and said, “I am now.”
Cahill barged into Mike’s cell with a guard in tow. He turned to the guard and said, “I’m here to collect this inmate for transport.”
“Sir, you can’t just take a prisoner without proper paperwork?”
“Do you know who I am?”
Cahill flashed his ID and badge at the now-cowering guy. “Would you like to tell the warden that you stopped me from getting a key witness into protective custody when he has an active hit out on him?”
The man stuttered but didn’t say anything. It was pretty brilliant, really. No one had clocked Harvey’s identity and he wasn’t in the prison system. There would be absolutely no trail to follow, but no one would know what happened or who Harvey was.
Mike would bet anything that the prison wouldn’t volunteer that they let some unknown prisoner they had no record of walk out of the building. Mike just hoped Cahill wouldn’t give him too hard of a time.
Mike mouthed “I love you” to Harvey and the asshole had the audacity to mouth back, “I know.”
He rolled his eyes but he couldn’t take the goofy grin off his face until he was back in Harvey’s arms and outside of the prison gate. And then he grinned for another reason.