Author's Note: This is pretty sappy, so I hope you are prepared! This was inspired by two things: a line in one of my favorite classic movies (Casablanca), and my favorite song by my favorite band (Of All the Gin Joints in All the World by Fall Out Boy). I hope you like it!
Perry Mason walked into his apartment, walked over to the couch and collapsed in it. It had been another very long day at the office, poring over case files and looking at past cases to help a client. It was just past midnight, and he was completely exhausted, yet he knew he would not be able to sleep. There were too many thoughts running through his mind; how he was going to poke holes in the prosecution's case, how he would present his case, but mostly it was her. Della Street, his beautiful, smart, sometimes sassy secretary, was always on his mind. He had never felt that way about any woman before, and he knew that he would never feel that way about another woman.
Perry recently admitted his feelings to her, but she turned him down. It had hurt him, because he thought that she didn't feel the same way about him. Della assured him that the feelings were mutual, but she wasn't sure that she wanted to get into a relationship with him. One of her reasons was that she had a hard time getting past the boss/ secretary cliché. She also thought that if things didn't work out between them, they would lose a great friendship, she would lose a job that she loved, and he would have to find a new secretary. Perry understood and accepted her feelings, but he wished that she could think of him as more than her boss.
Perry turned on the television, hoping to be distracted from his melancholy mood. Casablanca appeared on the screen, which did nothing to change his mood.
"Of all the gin joints in all the towns in all the world, she walks into mine," Humphrey said.
"Yes, indeed," Perry said thoughtfully. "Of all the law offices in all of Los Angeles, and all the country, and she came to work for mine. What are the odds?"
Perry decided that he needed a drink, so he poured himself some bourbon and sat back on the couch. He only watched ten minutes of Casablanca before he couldn't take it anymore; it was only making him think of her more. He shut off the television, finished his drink, put his empty glass in the sink, and was about to go to bed when there was a knock on his door. He had no idea who would be calling on him at this hour, so he cautiously walked to the door and opened it slowly. When he opened the door fully, he was pleasantly surprised.
"Della," he said. Perry wasn't sure who he expected, but it wasn't Della.
"Can I come in?" she asked.
"Of course, please come in," he replied, and stepped aside so Della could enter.
So many thoughts ran through his head at once that he couldn't think of anything to say. After a moment, he regained his composure enough to ask, "Is something wrong?"
"No, nothing's wrong. I just… I wanted to…" Della trailed off and looked at the floor. She had run through her head several times on the way over what she was going to say, but now that she was here, she couldn't think of anything. She wanted to tell him how much she loved him, how she couldn't stop thinking about him, and that she couldn't go another day with things the way they were now. She wanted to admit that it was a mistake to tell him that they should keep their relationship professional, but the words wouldn't come.
Della looked up at Perry and saw that he was looking at her. They just looked at each other for a moment; two people who usually never had a problem with words were being unusually shy. Della smiled in an attempt to break some of the awkwardness and tension, and Perry smiled back. That seemed to give Della her confidence back. She closed the distance between herself and Perry and kissed him; tentatively at first, but as Perry responded, the kiss got more heated. Della realized how badly she wanted Perry, more than she ever wanted another man. She pulled off his tie and starting unbuttoning his shirt while he unbuttoned her blouse. They reluctantly broke the kiss when neither one could breathe. After a moment, Della spoke.
"I love you so much, and I realized that I couldn't go another minute with things the way they were. That's why I came over here."
"Really? I thought you came over to bring files for the case," Perry teased her. She swatted his arm playfully and laughed.
Perry smiled and stroked her cheek gently. "I'm really glad you came over. I was worried that I ruined our relationship."
"It just took me a little time to realize that this is what I've wanted all along. I just never admitted it to myself. I'm sorry that I hurt you," she replied.
"Don't be sorry, love," Perry replied as he pulled her in for another kiss. When they broke the kiss, Perry could see his own desire reflected in her eyes. He gave her a quizzical look, and was about to ask her "are you sure?" when she smiled and started leading him toward the bedroom.
It was now past three in the morning, and Perry still could not sleep. He watched Della sleep peacefully, wondering how he got so lucky to have her in his life. She could have worked at any law office in Los Angeles, but she somehow ended up in his office. Perry was more than grateful for whatever brought her there.
Perry sighed and pulled Della into his arms gently so she wouldn't wake up. Things would never be the same, and Perry couldn't be happier.