A/N: Alright, well, my first shot at a Phoenix Wright fan fiction. I hope you find it satisfactory. Cover art used with permission from mayrazzang, please check out mayrazzang's deviantart!
Disclaimer: Phoenix Wright and its characters are copyright of Capcom.
SPOILER ALERT! DO NOT READ IF YOU HAVE NOT FINISHED JUSTICE FOR ALL!
The dark shadows of the bars preventing any escape cast dark stripes along his toned cheekbones, the clamorous snores of his cellmate destroying any hopes of falling asleep. Matt Engarde moaned as he turned over on his stomach and stared at the gray walls, discerning every scratch across its exterior. Etched near the corner was a small heart with two letters written inside of it; undoubtedly the initials of the former resident of his bunk's lover. A face flashed across his mind, causing him to frown. How long ago was that? No, he rather not think about it.
"Daddy, where's mommy?"
"She left, Matt. Just forget about her."
Wasn't she the one who started his distrust of women? The one woman who was supposed to be there for him as long as she lived? She left him when he was only a child—left him alone with his father and never turned back. Matt groaned and pulled his pillow over his head, trying to muffle the deafening sounds that his cellmate filled the cell with every night. Peace: all he wanted was peace.
"Matt… You're not listening to a word I'm saying, are you? I'd like to inform you that my eyes are up here."
Matt frowned and pulled down on the worn edges of the pillow harder, trying to block out the memories. Hadn't he said he wasn't going to think about her? Another loud gasping reached his ears, causing him to push the pillow aside in agitation. The ratty object did nothing to assuage the racket, nor did it protect him from his phantoms.
"You're incorrigible, Matt," she giggled and leaned forward to press her lips against his cheek, but he turned his head at the last second.
A fling. That's all she was—that's what he told himself. That's what every woman was, a fling, something to pass the time, someone to amuse him for a few days. But with her… days turned into weeks, and weeks turned into months. 'I'll dump her tomorrow.' That's what he told himself. Tomorrow, next week, next month. When he tried to and found himself unable, he made excuses: 'I can't dump my manager—not until I make it to the top' 'We haven't done anything yet, once we do, it's over' 'If I break up with her now, I might not get that part.' It wasn't anything serious, by any means. She was just the hottest girl he could find, and once he found someone hotter, she was yesterday's news.
She smiled and wrapped her arms around him, "Thank you so much Matt, I love you."
He never answered her. Girls confess their love to him all the time, it was natural to him. But that's when he decided it was time to end it. She was getting serious, and Matt Engarde didn't do serious. Matt Engarde was a playboy, not a lover. Love? There was no such thing.
"M-Matt? W-why?" copious tears streamed down her face as wide, glassy brown eyes stared up at him, broken. "I-I thought…"
It was over, easily enough. She cried and begged him to say it was some cruel joke—they had been so happy the day before. Naturally, she quit the very next day. Matt didn't see much of her after that. Not that he cared, he didn't love her: she was a fling, after all. Almost immediately he found another woman who was far more attractive, and quickly after that she was replaced with an even more attractive girl. Matt could have anyone he wanted; all he had to do was wink. So why did he feel so empty? Almost a year passed before he heard her name again.
"Wedding bells are ringing! The hottest star news is the engagement of Juan Corrida and his manager, Celeste Inpax!"
The news was entirely unfamiliar to him, he had no idea that she and Juan were dating. Engagement? That was… she loved him, not Juan. Matt was consumed by rage at the moment he heard the celebrity gossip reporter announce the arrangement. He glared angrily at the television as a clip played displaying Juan and his manager at the engagement party, smiles on their faces. Not only was she over Matt, she was engaged to his rival. He clenched his fists then turned on his heel, intent on doing everything in his power to keep Juan away from her. Juan wouldn't so much as touch her if he knew that she was Matt's trash. That would put an end to the nonsense of their engagement. The outcome did not reflect his intentions, however.
"The body of Celeste Inpax was found today in her home. The Police say that it was suicide—without a doubt. Her body was discovered by ex-fiancé, Juan Corrida, who broke off their engagement just yesterday—three days after the announcement."
Matt never once expected her to go as far as suicide, he expected her to be distraught, to come running back to him, begging for him to take her back. He'd shrug her off for a while then finally give in, because he was a nice guy, and couldn't stand to see a person hurt. He was Matt fucking Engarde, the whole goddamn world revolved around him. What did Juan do—say to her that made her go so far as to take her own life? It was Juan's fault after all, how hard was it to dump a woman and not drive her to suicide? Matt did it all the time—even to her, and she didn't commit suicide then. Juan might as well have been the one to kick the chair from under her feet; he had destroyed her with his words. She should have come back to him, been happy with him. She was Matt's and Juan had killed her. He lost it after that: his only goal was to beat Juan in every way possible, show him the pain that he had caused her… to exact his revenge.
"To clarify, sir, I am to kill Mr. Corrida immediately after the Grand Prix, correct?"
And exact his revenge, he did: may Corrida rest with the vermin he was. The bastard had the audacity to try and expose her one more time, try to push her death onto him. Matt would not let Juan make it look like he was the one who caused her to go so far. It was Juan who destroyed her, and he'd be damned if he let Juan make anyone think otherwise. It was unexpected that he was arrested for Juan's murder, however. A mistake that he had accepted that damn Wright as his lawyer.
"Matt wouldn't leave her alone! After breaking her heart he destroyed her happiness once again with Juan! He basically killed her!"
Adrian's words rang through his memory, the accusation they held burning his very soul. He had caused her to commit suicide? It seemed implausible. But… somehow he started to understand them, it scared him. He hadn't meant for her to… he lo—no, that didn't exist. Impossible. Matt Engarde was a playboy, and could care less as to what happened to his toys after he left them. Nothing mattered but himself, he was a god and women bowed before him. He was almost free from the mess when his lawyer told de Killer about the video. Those damning words followed by the judge's stern "Guilty", made Matt realize one thing. He was Matt Engarde, and he was a bitter man who threw away the one thing he wanted the most.
Matt rolled onto his back again and stared at the ceiling, the thundering snorts of his cellmate becoming dull in his mind. 'Perhaps I deserve to be here, Celeste…' His eyes slowly fell closed as he fell into a sleep plagued by a crying face—after all, he was Matt Engarde: a man undeserving of the peace he so craved.
A/N: The idea has been plaguing me since I finished the case and I eventually gave in to write it. I guess it's not really amazing, but I like it. Oh, and to clarify a few things, I came up with the idea while analyzing Matt's character. I theorize that Matt had experienced some form of childhood trauma—such as his mother leaving him—that made him untrusting towards women, and treating them as objects. From this I further concluded that Matt really had had feelings for Celeste, but because of his distrust towards women and his emotional detachment, he pushed her away as soon as she started getting serious. Furthermore, Matt became distraught when he found out that Celeste had fallen in love with someone else—and his rival of all people. From this rage he thoughtlessly went about whatever way he could come up with to separate them. Finally, when he heard of Celeste's suicide, he subconsciously blamed it on Juan because he couldn't mentally handle the fact that he was the leading cause. The rest is pretty much laid out. Well, I hope you enjoyed it! Please review and let me know what you think.