"All We Are"
by KeiG
A Phoenix Wright Fanfic
Disclaimer: I do not own them. Capcom does. However, I do own the original characters here, so if you don't want me to sic Franziska and her whip on you (I have her on speed dial), please ask permission first before you use them. Thanks.
Author's Notes - at the end of each chapter.
Chapter 3: Absence
November 16
11:40 AM
Mile-High Diner
Alex lifted his eyes from his newspaper to glance at the usual diner, which was unusually deserted today despite it being the lunch hour, and then he remembered that it was a Saturday. Office workers didn't have lunch there on weekends. He shouldn't even be there today if he wasn't supposed to meet a certain defense lawyer, who was about thirty minutes late on his watch.
Just then, the lawyer in question came through the door, her bag noticeably filled with files and folders. He raised a hand to get her attention, and he could literally see her eyes brighten when she saw him and walked over to the booth where he was sitting with his newspaper and coffee. "Sorry, I'm late," she breathed as she slipped on the other side. "I didn't notice the time..."
"Big case?" he asked. Of all the times they've met since they started their weekly Saturday lunches four months ago, she was only late when she had a particularly difficult case to try. When she nodded and slumped back, he put the newspaper aside and leaned forward. "And if you hadn't checked the time, I'd be having lunch on my own?"
"I'm really sorry," she apologized again. This was the third time she arrived late because of work.
Alex shrugged. "Don't worry about it," he flashed her his most understanding smile. "I know how it's like to lose track of time. Besides, it's not like I'm in a hurry today or something."
"I wish I was a CEO," Mia grumbled, sending her friend chuckling and shaking his head.
"Be careful what you wish for, Mia," he took a sip from his coffee. "It's not all rest and relaxation, you know."
"At least you have the weekends off."
"True," he smirked as he signaled for a nearby waitress. A few moments later, they had both ordered lunch and was now waiting for their food. "Anyway, it's good that you're here," he said. "I get to have lunch with you before I leave."
Mia's eyebrows shot up in surprise. "Leave?"
"I'm going to Scotland," Alex replied and paused as the waitress arrived with their lunch. He waited until the waitress finished and left before he continued. "We just opened an office there and I have to be there for the opening and to supervise. Plus I'll be giving a lecture for the World Entrepreneur's Guild."
"I see," Mia said quietly. "How long will you be gone?"
"Two months."
"And when are you leaving?"
"Tomorrow morning."
"And you're only telling me this now?"
Alex leaned forward, resting his elbows on the table. "Because I only decided on it this morning," he explained. "The Scotland office opened ahead of schedule. If I want things to run the way they should over there, I have to keep an eye on them for a while."
The lawyer seemed to accept what he said and nodded. "I expect souvenirs."
"Of course," he grinned. "Lots and lots of key chains and rubix cubes for the defense attorney."
"Very funny, Lex," she smirked, and then took a deep breath. "Let's eat, shall we? This darn case is seriously sucking the life out of me." Picking up her knife and fork, she began to eat. Alex followed her lead, and the pair talked about her case - which she didn't really want to but he wanted to see if he could help out - and his departure. Much later, they were in the middle of an argument about who was paying for lunch when Mia's phone started ringing. She fished it out of her bag and Alex, seeing the opportunity, quickly swiped the bill from her hand and whipped out his wallet. Mia, knowing that she had just lost the argument, settled on glaring at the man in front of her before answering the call.
"That was Mr. Grossberg," she exhaled deeply before putting her phone away. "He needs me back at the office."
"Come on," Alex said as he slid off the booth. "I'll give you a ride."
As the pair walked to the door, Alex noticed that Mia kept giving him sideway glances. It looked like she wanted to say something but she was having second thoughts about it. Before he could ask her about it, she spoke in a sad tone. "So this is the last time I'm gonna see you before you leave?"
"Hey, you don't have to be sad," he said, putting an arm around her shoulders. "I'll be back by January. And I'll call when I can to tell you all about the exciting things I'm going to do there."
Mia looked up and smiled gratefully, and for a moment Alex was taken aback by how pretty she looked. He was trying to remember if he had ever seen her smile like that before when his thoughts were interrupted by an elbow to the side. "Stop making me jealous," she said, and he would've thought she was angry if it weren't for that amused grin plastered on her face.
He pulled away from her laughing and rubbing the spot where she hit him. As he held the door open for her and they both stepped out, Alex couldn't help but wonder why it felt like his heart was breaking all of a sudden.
December 13
4:30 PM
Grossberg Law Offices
Marvin Grossberg grinned as he finished reading the case report. Mia was on a roll; ever since she successfully convicted Dahlia Hawthorne, her confidence had gone up and her string of wins became impressive. It was only a matter of time before she started her own law firm, he could feel it in his hemorrhoids.
Soft laughter coming from the adjacent office caught his ears and his smile dimmed slightly. She was talking on her cellphone with Parker again. Not that he didn't approve of their seemingly budding relationship - he wasn't sure if they were aware of their feelings for each other - but he was worried about Mia especially after what she had gone through the past year.
He should probably go talk to her.
Moments later, he was standing at the doorway to her small office space, watching in amusement as Mia giggled again. It took a while for the woman to notice him, and she immediately said goodbye to the man on the other line and put her phone down before welcoming him with a smile. "Mr. Grossberg! You've read my case report?"
He entered her office, his mustache twitching. "Yes, yes. Amazing work as usual, my dear."
"Thank you, sir," she said, the smile slowly replaced by a curious frown. "But why do I feel like you're about to cross-examine me?"
Shaking his head, he hobbled over to sit on one of the chairs. "Oh no, my dear. I just merely want to ask a question because the last time I heard you laugh like that was when you were with Diego."
A look of realization instantly washed over Mia's face and she bowed her head slightly, avoiding his eyes. Marvin nodded slowly; his assumptions had been correct. "I want you to understand something first," he started. "I have no intention of meddling in your affairs, but I'm just trying to look out for you."
"I know," she answered quietly, still staring at her desk.
"Do you love Mr. Parker?"
Mia lifted her head and looked at him, and he could see struggling in her eyes. "I..." she trailed off.
Marvin ran his fingers over his mustache. "The way I see it, my dear, is that you're afraid of admitting your feelings for Mr. Parker because of Diego." He watched as Mia opened her mouth a couple of times before she sighed and looked at him dejectedly. "I doubt he'll take it against you if you found someone else."
"I don't want to betray him..." she finally said.
"Diego's been gone for more than a year, correct?" he interrupted. "Do you really think he'd want you to be miserable when you have your whole life ahead of you? He loved you, Mia. He'd want you to be happy." Different kinds of emotions seemed to flash in the young attorney's eyes. Both were silent for a few moments before Marvin decided that Mia should have her alone time. "Well," he said as he hoisted himself off the chair. "I'll leave you to sort out your feelings before my hemorrhoids explode from all the sitting."
The smile she gave him wasn't as cheerful as the first one but at least she was smiling. "Thank you, sir. I'll do that."
The big attorney paused on his way to the door. "If you ask me," he said over his shoulder. "That boy Parker is one of a kind. Better not let him slip away." He could feel her eyes on his back as he continued on his way, and he hoped that their brief talk was enough to give her the push she needed. "Ah, those two," he murmured to himself. "They remind me of my youth..."
December 30
9:00 PM
Mia Fey's Apartment
RING RING RING
CLICK
"Hello?"
-What's up, Miss Lawyer?-
Mia smiled as she carefully put down her cup of tea on the table beside and eased herself on the couch. "Oh, nothing much. Just putting my feet up for a while."
-It's two days before the New Year. Shouldn't you be at an office party or something?-
"Shouldn't you be sleeping? If my Math is correct, it's already 2 in the morning there." She listened to him chuckle, and she suddenly had a mental image of him scratching the back of his head.
-Yeah, well, I'm waiting for something.-
"And what might that be?"
-Uh...a package.-
Mia frowned, picking up his hesitation. That usually meant he was hiding something, and for someone who was as stubborn as he was, she thought it best to press him later and changed the subject. "So what are you doing this New Year?"
-Nothing much,- he replied. -Company party here, WEG dinner there. Oh, and my phone bill's gonna sky-rocket after I call everybody at home.-
"Nice," she smirked as she reached for her cup and took a sip. "I'm going back home to visit my sister."
-Kurain Village, wasn't it?- he asked. -I'd like to go there some time. The place sounds interesting.-
"I guess it is..." she trailed off when she heard knocking from her front door, and she turned her head to the wall clock behind her. Who would come see me at this hour?
-Maybe you should go see who it is,- Alex suggested, and she realized she must've said it out loud. -I can wait.-
"Um, okay. Hold on." Mia took the phone with her as she stood up and walked to the door to look through the peephole. She then took a step back and opened the door to reveal a man in a gray uniform holding a clipboard and a flat brown box. "Can I help you?"
The man smiled and scanned his clipboard. "I have a delivery for Miss Mia Fey."
"That's me."
"Great!" He chirped, and then handed her the clipboard. "If you could just sign here?"
Moments later, the delivery man had left and Mia was back on the couch with the package on her lap. It was a flat, brown box with no other writing besides her name and address on a corner. She was turning it over and looking at it critically when she pressed the phone back to her ear. "Still there?"
-Yeah,- came the other man's sleepy voice. -Who was it?-
"A delivery guy, brought over a package for me..." she trailed off again, realization dawning on her. "Didn't you say you were waiting for a package?"
-Did I?- She could hear the amusement in his voice. -Hey, I gotta go get some shut-eye. I have an early day tomorrow.-
"Just when I was about to ask you more about this package, huh?" she said suspiciously. "But alright, I'm letting you go this time."
He laughed, and suddenly she felt all warm and fuzzy inside. -Oh, before I forget,- he said. -I have something to ask you.-
"What?"
-I'm arriving on the 11th next month,- he explained. -And it so happens that my cousins have organized an anniversary party for their parents. It's strictly a coat and tie event. I...I was wondering if you'd, uh, you know...want to come with me,- he said that last part in a bit of a rush which made Mia blink in surprise. Not only did his confidence seem to waver, but he was technically asking her out.
"I'd love to go with you," she replied quietly, a small smile painting her face.
-Great! The party will start at 7pm. I'll pick you up at 6?-
"Okay."
-I can't wait to see you.-
"You too."
-Take care, Mia. Have fun back home, okay?-
"I will. Happy New Year, Mr. Hotshot CEO."
-And to you too, Miss Hotshot Lawyer.-
CLICK
She sat there in silence, replaying the last part of their conversation in her head, her anticipation growing by the minute. Her eyes then rested on the brown box, and his vague answer confirmed her suspicions that it had come from him. Grabbing the package, she slowly peeled off the brown cover and uncovered the box.
It was a silver picture frame, the borders laden with carvings of vines, birds, flowers, and the Scottish flag. But it wasn't the frame's intricate design nor the idea of how much it cost that made her gasp; inside the frame was a charcoal sketch of herself, looking very aggressive with her left arm outstretch and pointing at an unseen courtroom opponent. She was amazed by the depth and detail of the artwork, and with how the artist had managed to capture a very good likeness of her. She turned the frame over and saw a small white envelop taped at the back. She took it and pulled out a small note written in someone's crisp handwriting.
Mia,
I haven't drawn anything in a while so please excuse the sloppiness. Anyway, here's a little something for you. If you're wondering why I chose to draw you like this, it's because I can see how much you love your job, and what better way to capture it than to draw you scaring a hapless prosecutor to lifeless goo?
Happy New Year!
Alex
Mia was smiling silly by the time she finished the note and she carefully replaced it back in the envelop. Alex had made an effort to make her a personalized New Year's gift, and the thought alone made her blush a light shade of pink. Hugging the frame which she now considered one of her most prized possessions, she leaned back on the couch and closed her eyes, thinking of what to give him until she drifted off to sleep.
A/N: My first fanfic for this fandom. It's also the first time I've posted any of my work, so yes, I'm nervous as hell. Comments are always welcome, but please be kind to a newbie. ;
I uploaded this story once before but after much deliberation, I found that I had a whole lot of inconsistencies so I decided to redo the plot and rewrite the story. I've also divided my plot into their corresponding chapters so at least now I have a better guide to finish this story. And I really do hope I finish this.
I've also started doing fanart for this, although it's taking me quite a while to finish, with real life getting in the way, LOL.
More notes!
Story – If you've read this before I rewrote it, parts of this chapter used to be chapter 2.
World Entrepreneur's Guild – Completely fictional.