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Fic - Validation (Donna/Harvey) pg, 1/1
Title: Validation
Summary: Years later, and the lines between wanting and actively not wanting blurs every single day. Years later, and this is where it really begins. (Or how I would very much like this show to end.)
Rating: pg
Author's Notes: 623 words. Future fic. General series spoilers. Written for Winterfest Gift Giving over at![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-community.gif)
leverageland. All mistakes are mine. These two idiots, however, are not.
For![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-userinfo.gif)
betty_mraz.
Years later, after trial runs and separations and partners that could never quite measure up, it will begin like this:
A long day on top of an even longer week and Donna will stand in the entryway to his office, hip against the glass frame as her hands bury themselves deep into the pockets of her raincoat. She will smile, and Harvey’s mouth will turn. There will be some sort of joke – the punch line won’t matter as much as the way she looks at him, the way her laughter presses into his shoulders and her mouth twists as she says his name – and he will find himself mumbling drinks despite the mountain of paperwork left to complete in front of him. Donna will nod, soft and unassuming, tell him he’s buying and she knows just the place.
On the way to the elevator, Harvey’s fingers will unconsciously find themselves settling at home near the small of her back. It will be habit now – the way his fingers reach for her out of muscle memory alone. Donna leads the way, and Harvey follows, always just a mere step behind. His smile will be small, but smug all the same when he catches her leaning into his touch for just the briefest of moments; It’s a tiny victory, but he will take it all the same. Donna will ask if they should stop by Mike’s office, invite him along. Harvey will shake his head, mumble his objection, and she will understand, and they will leave it at that.
Years later, and the lines between wanting and actively not wanting blurs every single day. This evening will be no different from any that came before it. Except it almost entirely is.
As the elevator dings to announce its arrival, Harvey will step in a beat after her, standing too close once the doors slide shut and she reaches to press the button for the lobby. His hand will brush against hers and linger. Harvey will free brazen; his affection for her will thrum loudly in the base of his skull and it will be that which causes his thumb to draw small circles into the skin of her palm before pulling away.
Drinks will be a quiet affair at a restaurant where the staff knows them both by name.
Before the end of the night, unlike so many times before, Harvey will not stop himself from reaching for her. Maybe they will still be in their quiet corner of the restaurant, or outside her door. Maybe they will even be standing on the edge of the street, waiting for Ray as the city moves around them. What is certain is that Donna will be talking and talking, and Harvey will watch her, listen to her, and find himself noting the changes in her face, in the both of them since the last time they were here, just on the precipice of something but too afraid to take the final step. They will be older, wiser; they will be changed, but underneath the changes, underneath the shifting that will have occurred over the years, Harvey will still see her, still see the same woman who stood by him and fought for him, and knew him when.
Harvey’s knuckles will brush along the line of her jaw. His fingers will catch her chin, hold her gaze to his. He will smile, unsure, but he will not ask for permission, and she will not move away. He will feel her fingers tightening around his near their sides.
When Harvey kisses her, Donna will taste of whiskey and salt. Time will not stand still when she kisses him back, but the line continues to blur until it is non-existent.
Summary: Years later, and the lines between wanting and actively not wanting blurs every single day. Years later, and this is where it really begins. (Or how I would very much like this show to end.)
Rating: pg
Author's Notes: 623 words. Future fic. General series spoilers. Written for Winterfest Gift Giving over at
leverageland. All mistakes are mine. These two idiots, however, are not. For
betty_mraz. Years later, after trial runs and separations and partners that could never quite measure up, it will begin like this:
A long day on top of an even longer week and Donna will stand in the entryway to his office, hip against the glass frame as her hands bury themselves deep into the pockets of her raincoat. She will smile, and Harvey’s mouth will turn. There will be some sort of joke – the punch line won’t matter as much as the way she looks at him, the way her laughter presses into his shoulders and her mouth twists as she says his name – and he will find himself mumbling drinks despite the mountain of paperwork left to complete in front of him. Donna will nod, soft and unassuming, tell him he’s buying and she knows just the place.
On the way to the elevator, Harvey’s fingers will unconsciously find themselves settling at home near the small of her back. It will be habit now – the way his fingers reach for her out of muscle memory alone. Donna leads the way, and Harvey follows, always just a mere step behind. His smile will be small, but smug all the same when he catches her leaning into his touch for just the briefest of moments; It’s a tiny victory, but he will take it all the same. Donna will ask if they should stop by Mike’s office, invite him along. Harvey will shake his head, mumble his objection, and she will understand, and they will leave it at that.
Years later, and the lines between wanting and actively not wanting blurs every single day. This evening will be no different from any that came before it. Except it almost entirely is.
As the elevator dings to announce its arrival, Harvey will step in a beat after her, standing too close once the doors slide shut and she reaches to press the button for the lobby. His hand will brush against hers and linger. Harvey will free brazen; his affection for her will thrum loudly in the base of his skull and it will be that which causes his thumb to draw small circles into the skin of her palm before pulling away.
Drinks will be a quiet affair at a restaurant where the staff knows them both by name.
Before the end of the night, unlike so many times before, Harvey will not stop himself from reaching for her. Maybe they will still be in their quiet corner of the restaurant, or outside her door. Maybe they will even be standing on the edge of the street, waiting for Ray as the city moves around them. What is certain is that Donna will be talking and talking, and Harvey will watch her, listen to her, and find himself noting the changes in her face, in the both of them since the last time they were here, just on the precipice of something but too afraid to take the final step. They will be older, wiser; they will be changed, but underneath the changes, underneath the shifting that will have occurred over the years, Harvey will still see her, still see the same woman who stood by him and fought for him, and knew him when.
Harvey’s knuckles will brush along the line of her jaw. His fingers will catch her chin, hold her gaze to his. He will smile, unsure, but he will not ask for permission, and she will not move away. He will feel her fingers tightening around his near their sides.
When Harvey kisses her, Donna will taste of whiskey and salt. Time will not stand still when she kisses him back, but the line continues to blur until it is non-existent.
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Thank you for reading!
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Thanks for reading!
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Thank you so much for reading!
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This is amazing. I've missed your D/H. I've missed you being inside his head.
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Ugh.
I've missed writing Harvey! I've missed Donna's snarkiness. This was much more difficult to write than I thought it would be, but hopefully I'm slowly getting back into the swing of it?
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Thanks for reading!
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Also: your icon is beautiful. Why are you talented? (that's a serious question. Not an accusation.)
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I mean really, this was beautiful! I legit had goosebumps while reading it. The way you write these two, it's so spot on, I can really see it happening
and hopefully it will someday! Thank you so much for writing this! ♥no subject
It's just so nice and soft and this was so lovely. I loved it. It was brilliant. Ugh.
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Whatever.
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(BTW. I know you've been updating the fic, and I know it's great, but I'm waiting until I a) have unrestricted time to appreciate it fully and b) can read it in full because I know as soon as I'm done I'm going to be whining at you NON STOP and all like, WHERE IS THE REST, B? And I don't want to be like that. Cuz I love ya. And I want us to still be friends and not have be nag you to death. Unless you are okay w/ the nagging & then I'll get right on it.)
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Also, Donna will nod, soft and unassuming, tell him he’s buying and she knows just the place. You're so good at word choice and including the 'unassuming' here just made this line jump out at me. I adore the idea that it's so easy and nothing out of the ordinary. Really lovely.
Thanks for sharing it :)
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I EXPECT THIS ENDING, SHOW.
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Although you don't ask for concrit here, you do for other fic and the one thing I'd say is that I spotted some typos, homonym-type things that spell checkers won't pick up, appearing quite often. There's an example here: Harvey will free brazen. It might be worth adding one final read through into your process, maybe by c/ping what you've written into another format or even getting a fresh pair of eyes to look it before posting, just to get rid of minor errors from what is high-quality writing.