Love on camera
- So...-, Phoenix started to say, once the camera was set and ready.
- Hello everyone, I'm Phoenix and welcome to the second episode oooof...-, he continued, interrupting himself for a moment to create suspense, -... Let's play "Top Attorney"!-, he then announced with exaggerated emphasis.
- And, like last time, I'm with...- he finished, finally giving to the person beside him the chance to speak.
- No, I'm not doing it, Phoenix-, the person remarked, referring to the whole "crying out your name with enthusiasm" thing.
- Oh, come one, Miles! Don't ruin the fun-, the other pouted, making the other sigh.
- All right-, he said, before clearing his throat, - I'm Miles Edgeworth, whooop!-, he presented himself with fake joy.
- Happy now?-, he sarcastically asked.
- See? That's the spirit!-, Phoenix said without understanding what the other really meant, before jokingly patting his shoulder.
If he had to be honest, Miles still couldn't believe to be there, recording a game with Phoenix. He didn't really have time for that – in fact he had to study for a very important and difficult exam- but his friend had insisted so much; he had said that it would have been a great occasion to test his knowledge in laws and to train as an attorney, since that was what he was studying for – even if Miles wasn't really sure that a videogame would have been really useful to improve himself.
However, Phoenix had been so desperate, and adorable at the same time, that he had to accept; it wasn't really a problem, actually: the date of the exam was still far away, he could have used some time to assist his friend.
It was also true that he had always had a soft spot for him, whom he had known since elementary school.
He had realized long ago that he even had a crush on him – and he was also being obvious about it since everyone had started teasing him for that- but he wasn't sure that he would have ever admitted it to someone other than himself.
Even if he wasn't very fond of it at first, eventually Miles warmed up to the game as they kept playing it: the cases had been very intricate and more difficult to solve than he had predicted – even though they actually didn't include the "real laws" which he was studying- and the characters were enjoyable in their eccentricity.
He found himself looking forward the days when they had to meet to record with trepidation; after all, it was also an excuse to spend some time with his dear friend without being pestered by anyone, especially Larry Butz, another one of his childhood friends. He didn't hate him, but sometimes he could be a little... obnoxious.
Phoenix's subscribers loved him, and their shenanigans during their videos were very famous, or at least that was what he had heard.
It was a mystery why his friend had asked him, and not Larry, who also loved videogames – or anything that would keep him from studying, really- to play with him; maybe he needed someone more serious to go through that kind of game.
However, like all the good things, the game was coming to an end too. The last case had been long and complicated but they had been able to solve it together.
- Wow, I can't believe it-, Phoenix said, once the trial was over, - We made it-.
- Yeah...-, was all Miles said. He was sure that he would have missed those recording session they were doing; maybe he could have asked him if he wanted to play something else together; he had never been a great fan of videogames but, in that way, they were enjoyable.
They spent some time talking about their thoughts on the game during the long end credits, when Phoenix said:
- I think this last case was my favourite-.
-Really?-, Miles asked, curious.
- Yes-, the other replied, - It was really intense, and the characters were great. I even felt bad for the killer!-.
- Well, it's true that killing someone for a loved one's sake must be a very difficult thing to do, but a murder is still a murder-, Miles pointed out.
- I also don't think that so many people would be able to do something like that. I wouldn't. Would you?-, he added.
Phoenix was about to reply but, in the end, he had to agree with his reasoning. He wasn't even sure that he would have been able to do it, killing someone, only to spend the rest of his life in jail.
- Well...-, he started, thinking aloud - I would do anything for you, but... no, maybe being a murderer would be too much-, he finished.
That simple statement left Miles speechless. Maybe he was reading too much in it, but had Phoenix really thought about him as a loved one whose sake he would have killed for?
Didn't he know that saying something like that would give people mixed feelings, especially if they happened to have a crush on him?
Only noticing his flustered expression, Phoenix understood how those words actually sounded like.
Damn him and his habit to speak without thinking first.
- I mean...-, he started to say, - I love you... but more like a brother, you know. Uhm... we've been together since elementary school... no, ok, that sounds wrong-.
- What I'm trying to say-, he tried again, -... Is that you are very important to me-.
- As a friend, of course-, he added with a nervous laugh.
As he went on and on, making excuses, Miles was trying to decipher the meaning of his words, if they had one.
The options were two: he had, somehow, lost his mind during that particular moment, or he was hiding something.
Thinking about it, his dear friend was acting almost exactly like himself when he had tried to convince her annoying German cousin, Franziska, that he didn't really have a crush on Phoenix and that her reasoning were wrong, when he went to Germany for her birthday.
Could it be that, all that time... his feelings were reciprocated?
If that was really the case, then they had been two fools for not noticing it earlier and not having the courage to do anything about it.
No, he was jumping to conclusions, there had to be another logical explanation. However, under that new light, a lot of things Phoenix had said or done had started to make perfect sense.
Now, the real problem was: how could he have brought up the subject without it being awkward and uncomfortable for both of them?
He still hadn't found an answer to that question when Phoenix's voice brought him back to reality.
-... You-.
- Mmh... What?-, Miles asked, taken by surprise.
He had been so focused on his internal monologue that he had stopped paying attention to his friend's rants.
- Wait a second...-, he said, in fact, -... You mean that I basically confessed my love for you, "real love", not "brotherly love", on camera, and you weren't even listening?!-, he exclaimed, looking really incredulous and disappointed at the same time.
Miles didn't know what to say, but he knew that he had to come up with something; the whole situation was so embarrassing and it almost didn't feel real, even though it was.
He was right, then: they had really been two fools for all those years.
- Uhm... could you repeat?-, he hesitantly asked, regretting it almost immediately.
Good job, moron; that was really a smart thing to say to lessen the tension.
- ... Sorry-, he said, then.
He really hoped that Phoenix would have had the heart to cut that part before publishing the video. If he wouldn't have done it, he was a dead man: his youtube channel was a very popular one, with millions of subscribers; how could have Miles even shown himself outside knowing that so many people now knew how pathetic they were?
He couldn't see himself, but his face had become red as a tomato, and that unexpectedly adorable sight calmed down the other, a bit. He still couldn't believe that he had found the courage to confess to his long-term crush and that he even hadn't been listened to, but now he was really curious about what he was thinking about while he was ranting on and on to cover his mistake, at first, and then tried – with poor hopes in succeeding- to make a declaration of love worthy of that name.
- Don't worry, we'll talk about it once we'll finish recording-, he said, trying to hide the turmoil he was having inside.
- You have some spare time, right?-
- For you, always-, Miles replied, his lips curling into a shy smile.
Of course Phoenix didn't edit the "confession" part out of the video – and Miles was still angry about it and he had made a point to scold him for that every time he had the occasion.
Needless to say, they became one of the most famous couple on the internet.
For the joy of the fans who, surprisingly, were being very supportive of their relationship, they started doing more videos together. Phoenix often joked about the fact that it looked like that the fans liked Miles more than him, but he wasn't really angry about it; after all, he liked Miles too.
"Wrightworth". That was the official name of their ship; Miles thought it was ridiculous while Phoenix enjoyed it very, very, much. He insisted that it sounded good but, in the end, as long as they were together for real, and not just in the minds of some rabid fangirls, he didn't really care about their ship's name or any other nonsense, and so did Miles.
By the way, he passed the exam he was so afraid of.
Author's note: hello! Thanks for reading this fanfiction, I hope you liked it!
The inspiration came from a post by otpprompts, and I actually wanted to do it for a long time, but I had never found the right couple. Then, I thought that it would have been a cool thing to write it with Narumitsu, and I'm happy with how it came out, even though I had to rewrite it a couple of times.
Well, let me know what you think about it. See you next time! - Feeldespair