A/N - Set during 6x09 in the midst of all the drama of getting Mike out of prison and based of a prompt posted by catsballeths on twitter.

The buzzing of her phone just after midnight roused Donna from her sleep. She didn't need to look at the caller ID to know who it would be. There had only ever been one person who would call her at such times.

"Harvey" she mumbled into the phone, voice rough as her body struggled to come awake fully. He didn't say anything at first, but she could hear his breathing through the phone, irregular and seeming to catch in his throat.

"Harvey, what's wrong?" she tried again. His silence continued for several more moments, Donna waiting him out, before his voice filtered down the line, sounding hollow and broken.

"I don't think I can fix it." Donna thought she could almost hear tears coating his voice, something she's not sure she has ever witnessed before. The sound pierced her heart.

She knew the cause immediately of course. Mike. Things had been difficult with the deal to get him out of jail, and Donna knew they had been walking a tightrope to make it happen. Harvey had been running himself ragged trying to fix it, so filled with guilt and completely unable to focus on anything else. Just when everything had finally appeared sorted, Frank Gallo had started causing more problems.

Harvey had represented Gallo at his parole hearing today. Donna had argued with him about it the day before, trying to remind him what sort of man Gallo was, just who exactly Harvey was working to let loose back into society. That was until he told her about the delay in Mike getting out. Donna hadn't spoken to him since the hearing and didn't know what had happened. Cleary nothing good judging by this midnight phone call and the pain she now heard in Harvey's voice.

"I'll be right there," she says, making the decision without hesitation. A call from Harvey in the middle of the night, or any hour of the day, wasn't something new. He would call her whenever he needed something or to use her as a sounding board or sometimes it seemed just for no reason at all. But he had never before called her sounding so broken. Harvey wasn't someone who often reached out in that way, rarely admitting to a need for support. She knew it must be bad for him to be doing so now.

Donna hurried from her bed, slipping on some shoes and wrapping herself in a coat, not even bothering to change out of her pyjamas, feeling a need to reach Harvey as quickly as possible.

When she reached his apartment she didn't bother knocking, instead letting herself in with her key. The apartment was quiet, an open bottle of scotch sitting on the counter surrounded by piles of files and legal books. Donna didn't see Harvey initially. Not until she moved further into the living area and spotted him sitting on the end of his bed, head hanging low and shoulders hunched. He was still dressed in his white business shirt, although the jacket and tie were gone. The shirt was rumpled and untucked, sleeves haphazardly folded up past his elbows. His hair was sticking out in places as though he had been running his hands through it repeatedly.

"Harvey" she called softly, not wanting to startle him. He looked up at the sound of her voice and she could see the anguish and worry and stress all over him. Her heart hurt at the sight. Harvey had been destroying himself trying to make things right from the moment Mike had taken the deal with Gibbs. Donna couldn't help but think he looked like a broken man, the weight of the world sitting heavily on his shoulders.

As she walked towards him however she noticed the way his hands were gripping the blanket beneath him, knuckles white with the exertion, his eyes were wide, and he appeared to be almost gulping for air. It took Donna a moment before she realised what was happening. Panic attack. She may not have witnessed Harvey having one before, but she knew how he had struggled with them in the past, feeling the burn of her own guilt over it whenever she was reminded of the fact.

Harvey's body seemed to give out under the onslaught then, sliding from the end of the bed on to the floor. Calling his name, Donna dropped down onto the floor next to him. He was tugging desperately at the collar of his shirt as though it was strangling him. Without thinking she reached for the buttons at the top of his shirt, undoing them, helping to give him at least some superficial relief.

"Harvey, it's ok, just breathe."

She grabbed hold of his hand, squeezing hard in an attempt to ground him, giving him an anchor to hold on to. The feeling of his hand in hers, his skin against hers, caused a tingle through her body she tried to ignore. His eyes finally locked on to hers, wide and troubled, stress and panic emanating from him in waves. Donna held his gaze, forcing her own breathing to slow, concentrating on the in and out motion of her lungs in the hopes Harvey would begin to mimic her, while still clutching tight to his hand.

"It's going to be ok. Just breathe. I'm here Harvey." She tried to make her words soothing, not entirely sure of the proper protocol for helping someone suffering a panic attack. They stayed like that, breathing together, for what felt like an eternity until Donna could sense him begin to calm. Eventually, Harvey's breathing began to slow, the panic dissipating from his face, although not erased completely. She saw his throat bob as he swallowed heavily and his gaze dropped away from her face.

Appearing weary, he slumped back against the end of the bed, leaning his head back. The darkness around his eyes told Donna he hadn't been sleeping, not that night or any night recently no doubt. She was vividly aware of his hand still enclosed in hers, of him making no attempt to remove it. By some unspoken agreement they didn't usually touch, it was easier on both of them if they didn't, and the feel of Harvey's hand in hers, despite the situation, was sending flickers of feelings she wouldn't allow herself to process. She shifted, leaning back next to him, their bodies almost touching, feeling the heat of him lingering in the small space between them.

"You didn't have to come" he said softly, voice weak from the effects of the attack.

She tilted her head at him, shrugging her shoulders lightly, "You needed me."

And it was as simple as that. That's who they were to each other. If he needed her, she would always be there for him and she knew the reverse was true for him as well, Donna's faith in Harvey was absolute.

They sat together in silence, time seeming to stand still, letting the quiet fill the room. Donna rested her head against the end of the bed, facing him as she watched a barrage of emotion play over Harvey's face, his eyes now closed. Fear, regret, guilt, stress, weariness. She gave him the time to work through it, giving him the comfort and support he so desperately needed, but could never ask for.

When he eventually took a deep breath and opened her eyes, turning to face her, Donna knew he was ready to talk.

"What happened at the hearing today Harvey?"

"Cameron showed up, he told the board Gallo's blackmailing me to get him parole. I tried to deny it but tomorrow they're putting me under oath." She could see his anger at the situation in the set of his jaw. "Either I perjure myself and let a murderer loose, or Gallo stays in there with Mike."

She wasn't sure whether it was the perjury or the setting Gallo free that bothered him more about the first option, neither thing would sit well on Harvey's shoulders. He may have claimed yesterday that he didn't care about getting Gallo out if it meant protecting Mike, but she knew the reality of it would haunt him forever.

"Harvey, why isn't Mike out yet?" Donna could tell there was more going on than a simple processing delay as he had tried to claim earlier in the day.

He sighed heavily before answering. "He's playing chicken with Cahill, threatening him with a lawsuit, trying to get Kevin Miller out as well. Cahill's pissed and if Mike keeps pushing him, he'll pull his whole deal." She could hear the frustration in his voice. "He's just being…."

"Mike". She filled in for him, giving him a pointed look.

"You know him Donna, he's not just gonna leave that guy in there." And she knew Harvey was right, she loved the kid, but his bleeding heart ran at an extreme level sometimes.

"Mike knows the risk he's taking Harvey."

"Gallo's not a fucking risk Donna, he's a sure thing. I don't get him out tomorrow, he's going straight for Mike." She could see the fear in Harvey's eyes, see how much he was tormented by the thought of something happening to Mike. Donna knew Harvey would never recover if anything happened to him in there, the guilt would swallow him.

"Mike shouldn't even be the one in there. It was my fault."

His words took her back to that night weeks ago when he had come to her, ready to sacrifice himself to save them all. She had always felt slightly guilty over talking him down, wanting to keep Harvey safe and out of prison, at Mike's potential expense. Even now knowing the outcome, she wouldn't have said anything differently.

"No Harvey it's not. Mike is just as responsible as you. He made his choice, when he took the job and the deal. And with what he's doing now" she said, once again trying to make Harvey see that he was not solely responsible for this burden he carried.

"I never should have done it in the first place" he said, head shaking, regret colouring his voice.

She paused for a moment, considering her response, before deciding to go ahead and ask the question.

"Why did you do it Harvey, hire Mike?" She had never asked him before, and she wonders if he even really knew the answer. Despite all that has happened Donna still truly believed hiring Mike had been a good thing for Harvey. Like she had once told Jessica, Harvey had been forced to protect Mike because of his secret, forced to care. It had changed him, and for the better. But she still never really knew what had made him do it in the first place.

"Honestly Donna, I don't really know. Just young and stupid, rebelling against Jessica's demand that I needed an associate when I didn't want one." He shrugged his shoulders, his lip lifting up at the corner in a half smirk. "It was the ultimate gamble, I guess."

"So, it was all about you, nothing to do with him?" Donna knew she was testing him a little, wondering how honest he was willing to be tonight.

"I think maybe a part of me felt sorry for him."

"You cared about him?"

Harvey scoffed at the notion, but Donna knew better.

"It's not the worst thing in the world Harvey. To care." She smiled softly at him "It doesn't make you weak" she added quietly.

He raised his eyebrows to her, clearly not agreeing with her, or perhaps questioning how she could claim that when he currently appeared so weak and broken because of just how much he really did care.

"Not weak in the way you always meant," she clarified. "It's ok to let yourself care."

She held his gaze, trying to get a read on him and she felt something building in the space around them.

"I care Donna." His words were soft but deep, and she suddenly got the sense he wasn't just talking about Mike anymore. "You know I do. I just can't..." he trailed off, eyes shutting against whatever it was he was feeling in that moment.

After what felt like an eon of time his eyes drifted back to her, locking together as she continued to watch him. They were close, much closer than they had been in years, their clasped hands having melded together so that Donna could no longer tell where her palm ended, and Harvey's began. She felt the ever-present spark buzzing between them pulsing like a heartbeat, louder tonight than usual, feeling heightened now that the walls seemed to have dropped around them.

Harvey held her gaze intently and Donna suddenly felt herself trapped under his stare, unable to act as she watched him tilt his head towards her, closing the small distance between them. She was frozen in place as she watched his eyes closed and felt the warmth of his lips press softly against hers. She didn't kiss him back, but she did let it linger for just a moment, briefly allowing herself to soak in the feeling of his lips on hers again after all this time. She gave herself just a second, before pulling back.

"Harvey" she whispered, trying to pull him back to the present. She knew he had only done it because he was spiralling and lost and needed to cling to something, someone, in that moment. She wouldn't let herself consider that there may be any deeper meaning than that.

His eyes popped open as awareness washed over him. "Fuck Donna I'm sorry, I just needed….." his words trailed off, unable to explain himself.

"I know." He started to protest but she squeezed his hand tightly, still held in hers. "Harvey it's alright. I understand."

He laid his head back against the bed once more, his eyes soft on her.

"You know I don't want to lose you either Donna. You told me that the night before Mike took the deal. I didn't say it then and I should have." Donna felt herself spinning a little at the surprise of his words and the lingering feel of his lips.

"Is that why you didn't go to Gibbs to turn yourself in?" She was treading on thin ice, she knew, but there is an honesty in this moment they were having that made her unable to not ask.

"I decided to have faith" he said softly after a long pause. "Like you told me too."

Another echo of time passes again as the words trickle through Donna. The push and pull of thoughts tumbling through her mind until, ever so quietly, Donna whispered the words she had always wanted to tell him after that day.

"Thank you."

He looks at her questioningly.

"For not turning yourself in. For having faith," she explained. "I know it didn't turn out how you hoped, and maybe it's terrible of me to say, but I'm glad you're here, and not the one in jail."

Donna can't remember when they were last this honest with each other, this open and bare with the things they were feeling. Probably they never had been. The barriers seeming to have fallen down around them for this one moment in time.

"Donna," Harvey's mix of emotions were all over her name, coating it like a plea and a warning all in one.

An unspoken silent conversation occurred between them, in the way only they could do. Thoughts passed back and forth that said now was not the time for them, not the right moment to explore this thing between them when so much else currently hung in the balance and their emotions were in a tailspin. But for the first time ever Donna felt the tiniest little inkling of an idea that just maybe there would come a right time.

The tension was thick and palpable around them and Donna desperately needed to pull them back from the precipice, needed a way to escape this heady moment they had suddenly found themselves in.

"So, what are you going to do about Mike?" She asked, refocusing back on their original topic of discussion.

"Don't you get Donna I can't fix this. My back is against the wall and there's no way out."

"Then break the goddamn wall down. Isn't that what you're always telling Mike?"

"That shit isn't going to work this time" he cried out, and she could see that for once he was truly and completely out of ideas. For as easy as it might be to say he should just lie tomorrow, committing perjury would destroy Harvey, as would the knowledge that he was letting a murderer out on the streets.

She tightened her grip on his hands, saw him glance down at them, as if only now becoming aware of the fact that they were still joined.

"The Harvey Specter I know doesn't let anything stop him until he's found a way. He doesn't give up." Her words were fierce and direct, an attempt to pour into him the confidence she had in him.

"I'm having faith in you Harvey, like I always do. You'll find a way to fix this."

He gave the tiniest nod, his posture straightening slightly, and she knew she was starting to get through to him, starting to pull him out of the floundering abyss he had found himself in tonight. She watched as concentration and thought washed over his face.

With a final squeeze of his hand she let go, stinging a little at the loss of his touch and stood up, muscles stiff and aching from having spent so long on the floor.

"You need to get some sleep Harvey. You can't figure it out if your mind and body are exhausted."

He worked his way up from the floor, shaking out his own stiff limbs.

"I'll see you in the office in the morning," she said with a small smile. She contemplated giving him a hug, desperate to comfort and reassure him further, but she was worried that sort of touch would push them over the edge they had been teetering along tonight.

But he nodded at her, and she could tell he had his head back in the game.

"Harvey, I'm having faith this will all work out, but even if it doesn't this won't be your fault, you're not to blame."

She knew he didn't accept her words, knew that if things went badly for Mike he would never forgive himself. Unable to stop herself Donna reached out to him, not to hug but to simply rest a hand against the top of his arm, leaving it there until he met her eyes, taking one final advantage of the broken barriers around them before they were about to return.

"Ok?" she asked, and she waited until he nodded at her, before turning to leave, knowing he needed to be alone to work through whatever new ideas were beginning to buzz in his mind.

She was almost at the door when she heard him call her name. Turning back she found him standing at the kitchen counter.

"Thank you, Donna," he said quietly, voice thick with emotion. "For everything".

She smiled and nodded, the words slipping into her bloodstream and filling her heart.

"Always Harvey. Now go and fix it like I know you can."

Thank you for reading, comments and reviews always very much appreciated.