It was late. They had been working on this letter for hours. He hated letters. But this was one that had to be written- it was important. Perry Mason, with disheveled hair and an unbuttoned collar, dictated his words to Della Street. Della's eyes and body were tired, and her heels were lying on the floor next to her feet, rather than on them. But her hand moved quickly with every word the lawyer spoke.
"'With these facts now being brought to your attention, I suggest that you'— no, scratch that, Della. 'I feel that the best course of action to take is to examine this case further...'" Perry abruptly stopped his pacing across the office floor, and rubbed his face in a poor attempt to wake himself. "You know, Della? I think I've forgotten what the best course of action to take is," he said with a chuckle.
She laughed at his remark. She then got up out of her seat, and stood in front of him as he ran his hand through his ruffled hair and said, "It's nothing a little nourishment and a good night's sleep can't fix." She handed him his tie off of the desk in an attempt to encourage him to go home- to take a break.
"Della," he said as he put the tie back on the desk, "you know as well as I do that this has to be done. If we put if off until tomorrow-"
"If I recall, Mr. Mason," she said handing him the tie back, "it was you who wanted to put it off until today," she said with a knowing look.
"Ms. Street," Mason began to argue, but he stopped himself. She was right. He showed defeat by throwing the tie back on the desk. They both began to laugh and the lawyer rubbed his tired face.
Della then put down her pen and pencil on the desk, and then proceeded to sit down at the edge of it. She let out a yawn, and let her mind wander to what was on the agenda for the next day, and how they were going to fit this letter into their already busy schedule. They weren't. They would be here again tomorrow - same time, same place, doing the same thing. "No rest for the weary," she said smiling as they both gazed out the window.
He smiled at her comment. His eyes then drifted to his secretary. He watched her as she gazed out the window. Her eyes were tired, her feet were sore, but her smile was always pleasant. He then slowly walked to the desk and made his place at the edge by his secretary, and put his arm around her. "Ms. Street," he said softly, "how would I ever manage without you?"
"Oh, you would," she smiled and turned toward him as she spoke. "You would just be here all by yourself. With no food, no sleep,... and with no letters answered." She gave him a mischievous grin and he chuckled as they looked into each other's eyes. Perry pulled her in closer. Their lips tenderly met.
They looked at one another and Della softly said, "Well, now what?"
"Now, we'll finish this letter and-" before he finished he looked down at his watch which read 1:30 am. "Tomorrow. We'll finish this letter tomorrow."
Della smiled as she put on her shoes. "Della, the night is still young," he said playfully. "And if I recall correctly, you and I missed dinner... what do you say you and I scavenge for an early breakfast?"
Della laughed. "Who needs sleep anyway?" she said as she handed him the tie off of his desk. He quickly helped Della with her coat and grabbed his own coat and hat off the office chair. They chased the next adventure, which tonight happened to be finding a diner that served bacon and eggs at 1:30 am in Downtown L.A., arm in arm as they always did.
The End