There was slow but progressively growing interest in the newly fabricated law firm, 'Nelson & Murdock', and whilst the set-up of the office dithered between spaciously professional and that of a vacant lot, the limited clientèle appeared quite taken in by the boy's notable expertise and charming personalities.

During a particular day; the office had been quiet. Inside the sound of pens scribbling battled with the unrhythmic tapping of an opposing keyboard, whilst outside, carried the usual hustle and bustle of everyday New York. Lazily lounging back within his seat, it firstly appeared as if Franklin Nelson was testing out his chairs strength limitations after becoming somewhat dubious after the incriminating cracking sound that echoed around the room when he first sat down.

That would have been correct if it wasn't for the random head bobbing and equally misguided hand gestures; not forgetting the spaced out lyrics of "Baby you don't know – You don't know my mind*"

This unfortunate display was to be cut short by a sudden stabbing pain cutting through his abdomen, causing the young lawyer to jerk back involuntarily and force out a silent outward breath. The ear buds fell haphazardly from his ears whilst the discomfort seemed to reappear shifting from one side to the other, loitering far longer than Foggy deemed appropriate.

–

Surrounding him, Matt could be seen to be having the lucky break, having his office located at the opposite end of the restricted space, positioned behind the two partitioning walls and, in theory, dulling the enthusiastic tone. While reality found him cringing inwardly and ducking away from view as he attempted to bury himself in his latest report. Which left it down poor Karen to be the bearer of suggestive redirection. "Fine, I guess I'll talk to him." The words were uttered in a breath as Karen rose from behind her desk, palming out the creases from her clothing and smoothing her hair back from her face. She had been told often enough it was an obvious tell-tale sign of nerves but having to tell a friend they were progressively disrupting others from their duties was not something she did every day. Particularly to a friend who in a light was also her boss.

"Hey, Foggy can you … Erm?" Peeking her head around the door frame, Karens brow instantly furrowed as she took in the pained expression. "Are you feeling okay?"

Pressing his back firmly against the dated seat, Foggy clenched his jaw, offering a subtle nod in response; his hands cradling his bloated midriff. "Yeah, I'm fine. You know me, just my stomach telling me that I skipped out on breakfast this morning." His chirpy tone barely holding up any confidence.

"But - didn't you walk in with a Danish pastry earlier today?"

"Well it obviously wasn't enough now was it?"

"Foggy … look I only came in because your singing was putting off potential clients." Stepping further into the room, the redhead offered up a sympathetic smile; sauntering closer to the central desk. "But now, you kinda look like some shit has hit the fan or something and it's got me worried, you sure you're feeling okay?"

"I'm alright, really, it's nothing a little fresh air won't fix, and I'll have you know I have a marvellous singing voice." Foggy grimaced, his knuckles turning white from the grasp he had on the chair arms as he stumbled to his feet; his balance slightly affected as he walked, narrowly missing a collision with Karen as he left the office.

"I guess I'll let Matt know you're taking a break, call if you need anything okay?"

–DD–

There was only a short corridor separating the offices from the main stairway but the shadowing provided by the poor lighting offered enough cover for the young lawyer to suffer in peace. Trapped-wind, in general, was enough to bring tears to anyone's eyes but for a proud male to showing a weakness in front of a beautiful woman was simply unacceptable. Sliding his back down against the wall, Foggy sighed finding little comfort within his own reassurances. With his arms wrapped tightly around himself and his knees drawing closer, the build up in pressure increased. "Urk, damn that blasted Danish and damn my need for all things sweet."

PPPFFFFFFTTT!

–

"Hey, Matt do you think Foggy's okay? He was all karaoke master about ten minutes ago and then … I'm not sure it's as if he got a bad message or something, all the colour seemed to have drained from his face and it was like he couldn't leave the office fast enough."

"I'm sure everything's fine Karen, you know Fog; he's always got somewhere he needs to be." Matt couldn't help the slight hint of a chuckle that arose as he neared the end of his hardly reassuring comment. A splash of colour shifted across his cheeks, highlighting the sudden smile that began pulling on his features. "Didn't I erm – hear something about him heading out for a Danish?"

"I'm sure I've missed out on some inside joke but, yeah, yeah he did and something about fresh air."

"Yeah, something tells me he's gonna need it."

[ * Hugh Lawrie - Let them talk ]