A/N: I'd only planned for this fic to be a oneshot but it's kinda spiraled out of control. I haven't even gotten to the scene I first imagined when I decided to start writing this thing. It probably won't be more than 1-2 more chapters but watch me unintentionally end up with an epic or something ;;;

Warning for excessive drinking in this chapter, and a small spoiler for Apollo's backstory from Spirit of Justice.

Chapter 2: Loose Lips Launch Ships

2/14/2027 8:15 PM

PUBlic Affair

It wasn't until they entered the pub and the hostess showed them to their table that Apollo began to question his choice of restaurant. Klavier had asked him to pick, saying that he wanted to try somewhere new, but maybe this sort of place was too lowbrow for someone who led as glamorous a life as Klavier did.

"Here you are, gentlemen, and I'll be right back with some water for you!" The hostess said with a bright but nervous smile.

Her eyes lingered on Klavier as the prosecutor slid into the booth. He noticed, and flashed her a dazzling smile.

"Danke shön, Fraulein."

The hostess immediately went bright pink, and Apollo just barely suppressed the urge to roll his eyes.

"D-de nada!" she stammered, and quickly made her way back to the kitchen.

Klavier chuckled as she vanished through the swinging doors.

"Doesn't that get old after a while?" Apollo asked flatly, his spiked bangs drooping with exasperation.

Klavier at least had the good grace to look sheepish. "Entschuldigung, it's a force of habit, I'm afraid. I assure you, I only have eyes for you."

"Hilarious," Apollo mumbled grumpily as he pretended to study his menu. He'd been here enough times before that he already knew what he wanted.

The hostess returned with their waters, took their drink orders, and squeaked something about giving them a moment to decide on their food before scurrying away.

"I appreciate you agreeing to come out with me tonight, Herr Forehead," Klavier said over the top of his own menu. "I really did miss you while I was away."

Klavier's tone was puzzlingly earnest considering the part Apollo had played in the events that had no doubt led to his leave of absence. In light of this, Apollo couldn't bring himself to be anything but honest in return.

"Yeah, I um… it wasn't the same without you." He could feel himself blushing. "I faced off against other prosecutors, but… I don't know. It just never felt like a team effort the way it did with you. Less rewarding, I guess? I don't know what I'm trying to say."

Klavier didn't reply, and against his better judgment, Apollo glanced up at him. The prosecutor's head was bowed slightly, his bangs obscuring the majority of his expression, but Apollo could see that he was smiling softly, twirling one of his silver rings absently on his finger. Apollo gulped, fighting the impulse to try to analyze what that look could mean. Instead he cleared his throat awkwardly and turned the page of his menu.

"Th-this probably isn't the kind of stuff you'd normally eat, but hopefully there's something on the menu that you like. The, uh, the fish and chips here are good," Apollo rambled. "My friend that I usually come here with swears by the stuffed pub burger, though, and Trucy likes their French onion soup."

"Believe it or not, I have been known to eat pub food on occasion." Klavier grinned. "But I'll follow your lead, Herr Forehead. You've already proven yourself to have good taste… for an American."

He took an approving sip of the craft beer that Apollo had recommended. The defense attorney gave him a flat look.

"Nice try, Mr. Wannabe Euro Rocker, but you already admitted that you only studied in Germany for a few years. You might as well accept the fact that you're just as American as I am."

"Ach, busted," Klavier replied, his shoulders shaking with laughter.

Apollo scoffed but found himself smiling too. Secretly he was kind of glad that he'd agreed to come out with Klavier tonight. He just had to try not to dwell on the fact that it was Valentine's Day. It made him feel… awkward.

The two of them ended up both ordering fish and chips. Apollo hadn't really pictured Klavier as the type who'd ever enjoy oily fried food, but maybe Klavier wasn't as diet conscious as his perfect physique seemed to suggest. They took their time with their meal, ordering more and more beer as the night wore on, making surprisingly enjoyable conversation about what they'd been up to since they'd last seen each other in court. It wasn't that Apollo never drank, but his small stature and the fact that he hadn't done any serious drinking in a while meant that he was feeling quite fuzzy-headed and relaxed by the time he'd polished off his fourth beer. He couldn't even find it in him to be annoyed by the fact that Klavier still seemed mostly unaffected by the alcohol, at least compared to Apollo.

"So what's the deal with your music now?" Apollo asked, leaning closer to Klavier than was probably strictly necessary. It wasn't his fault that Klavier smelled so good. "Like… I know your band broke up and all that but is that it? You're just throwing in the towel?"

Klavier raised his eyebrows. "I thought you didn't care for our music. Don't tell me you became a fan while I was away."

Apollo laughed a little too loudly at that. "Not on your life, Gavin! You guys ssssucked!"

His blunt reply made Klavier laugh too, and far less gracefully than he usually did. It was kind of cute, in a weird way. " Well ! Tell me how you really feel!"

He didn't actually sound offended, though.

"But…" Apollo began. He trailed off, and twisting the lid off of a fifth beer. "But… without all the other noise in the way… your voice is actually really nice. And the way you play that…" He made absentminded plucking motions with his fingers as he searched for the right word.

"...Guitar?" Klavier offered with a grin.

"Don't rush me. I was getting there!" Apollo groused. "The way you play that kitar is really cool. I can tell you're really passionate about it. About music… You look happy when you perform and… I mean, sorry if this is presum… presumptuous of me, but like… you probably need something right now that makes you happy."

Klavier's smile took on a sad edge at the mention of his recent string of tragedies. "... It… does make me happy, but… I don't know… It almost feels wrong to perform without them… without him…" Klavier's eyes were a little glassy and distant. He sipped his beer pensively.

"Him…" Apollo echoed slowly. He poked his forehead thoughtfully, trying to dig the right name out of the foggy recesses of his memory. Something with a 'D'... D… D..."Oh… Daryan, right?"

Klavier's bangs fell into his face at the mention of his old band mate's name, his smile frozen unnaturally on his lips. "The Gavinners might never have been born if it weren't for Daryan. He was the one who introduced me to our keyboard player and our drummer. He was the one who fought back the hardest when they tried to refuse us a chance to audition for Battle of the Bands where we first started to make a name for ourselves..."

Apollo's brow furrowed sympathetically and after a brief pause, he reached out and covered Klavier's hand with his. Klavier looked up at him, surprised, but then turned his hand over so that he could squeeze Apollo's appreciatively.

This is nice , Apollo thought, his body flooding with warmth. Holding his hand is nice .

"Ok, so he did a lot for your band. That's-that's great," Apollo said. "But... but! Klavier Gavin, of The Gavinners, Mr… wrote-all-the-lyrics-to-the-songs-that-sold-a-million-albums... Your talent came from you, not him, and if you like sharing it with people, then you should do it."

Klavier swirled the remaining beer in his bottle pensively. "It… sounds so obvious when you put it like that. So simple… I just wish disassociating him from my music were easier." He took another lingering drink from his bottle, not meeting Apollo's eyes. "Every time I pick up my guitar, every time I sit down to write lyrics, I remember him…" Klavier gave a self deprecating little laugh. "That last bit might be my own fault, trying to write the same type of music I did when I was the lead singer of The Gavinners, though. Maybe I need a new schtick, ja?"

Apollo frowned, trying to process what Klavier meant by that. "So like… you'd stop writing songs about legal stuff?"

"What do you think? Would my fans still be my fans if I changed my style?" the former rockstar asked.

Apollo thought about this as hard as someone as intoxicated as he was could think about anything. "Is there something else you wanna sing about?"

Klavier was silent for a long moment as he examined his feelings. "I… love singing about the law. That's why I keep coming back to it after all these years of lyric-writing," he concluded. "It's a part of me as much as the music itself."

"Then… then you gotta make new memories to connect it with!" Apollo urged. "Reclaim it! Don't let that… that dickhead take away what you love."

Klavier still looked sad, but he laughed anyway. "His hair was rather suggestive, wasn't it? He always insisted it was modeled after a torpedo, but we know the truth, don't we?"

"Dickhead!" Apollo repeated loudly.

Several other diners turned and looked at them with varying degrees of curiosity, amusement and annoyance. Apollo snorted at his own comment and that made Klavier start to laugh as well, even as he shushed Apollo. The two of them tried to stifle their laughter behind their hands somewhat unsuccessfully, and it continued longer than it would have if they'd been sober.

"You know… it was kinda like that for me at one point, too," Apollo mused, his laughter fading.

Klavier tilted his head questioningly, not understanding what Apollo was talking about.

"My first trial, right?" Apollo framed the air with his fingers like a film director setting up a scene. "I'm working under a great, well-respected attorney… super talented, frickin'... legit guy. And my client? Not just some… some yahoo off the streets, no… Phoenix freaking Wright. The Terrorabout Turn- Terrible- Turnable...Anyway, Phoenix Wright… My idol. He was like a god to me back then. Such an inspiration... And, no pressure or anything, but I know if I lose, he gets hanged for a crime he didn't commit! Can you believe that?! Hanged! For something he didn't even do!"

Apollo closed his eyes for a moment, remembering the stress he'd felt that day. Even now, months later and quite drunk, he could remember the anxious ache he'd felt in his chest, the feeling of suffocation.

"I know if I pull off a win here, I'll be… like… I'll be worthy of being a junior partner to The Coolest Defense in the West. And he picked me to join his firm out of, I dunno… like a dozen applicants. Maybe more, I don't know. He picked me, but he was always, you know… 'Don't get complacent, Justice; if you want to keep this position, you'll have to keep earning it,' or like… 'what a sloppy mistake. Are you sure you deserve to be here?'"

Klavier swallowed hard. "Yeah, that… that sounds like him alright."

"Yeah… so… the pressure was on," Apollo continued, "but I was working alongside two people I really respected… two people who shaped me as a person and a lawyer… And then…"

Silence fell between them. They both knew how that story ended.

"And then suddenly, he was a suspect…" Apollo said quietly. Mentally, he was back in that courtroom, staring down his old mentor, his finger outstretched and pointing at him accusingly. "Not just a suspect, but guilty… And I was the one who con-connemned him… I was out of a job, out of a mentor, but it got worse. I got Mr. Wright off on the murder charges, but he…"

Even now, the part that came next still hurt. It may have even been worse than finding out his former boss had been a murderer who had intended to manipulate him into getting an innocent man found guilty.

"Ah… he couldn't offer you a spot at his law firm because everyone still thought him a forger," Klavier said. "You must have been very anxious for your future."

Apollo stared at him for a moment, confused, and then it dawned on him. Klavier didn't know what Phoenix had done. Under normal circumstances, Apollo might have kept this bit to himself, but tonight his lips were loose.

"He did it, though," Apollo said, his voice cracking slightly. "For real, I mean. Mr. Wright forged the evidence that got Mr. Gavin found guilty, and he gave it to me to present."

Klavier's eyes went wide, his lips parting in shock. "You're joking!"

Apollo shook his head. "If anyone ever found out, I'd lose my badge. I… I believed in him… I trusted my client the way he always did, the way I learned from him that I was supposed to, and he… He slipped me that fake evidence, didn't say a word, just…" He mimed looking around furtively and holding out an invisible playing card. "And he knew. He knew how horrible it was to have his career ruined by a client that he… he trusted, and was only trying to help. He knew how it felt to lose everything and to have everyone think he was a liar and a cheat, but he didn't care about the risk. He just wanted his revenge, and I was just the clueless sucker who helped him get it."

"Verdammt…" Klavier breathed. "I had no idea…"

Apollo let out a shaky sigh and took a swig from his beer forlornly. "That was the third time… that a defense attorney broke me. Here I was, just starting my career as one because of how I'd… I'd admired and respected these guys and yet… every meaningful lawyer in my life had left me absolutely shattered. I didn't know if I could go back to defending. I wondered if everything I'd worked for, everything I'd accomplished… was for nothing."

Klavier squeezed Apollo's hands reassuringly on top of the table. His eyes grew distant as if he were thinking about something.

"But you came back," he pointed out softly. "You're still defending and you're amazing at it… That's… that's really incredible, Herr Forehead. Do you not still remember them and the way they wronged you when you pin that badge onto your lapel every morning?"

"'Course I do," Apollo mumbled. His free hand, the one that Klavier wasn't holding, drifted to his chest where his attorney's badge would sit if he were wearing his suit. "Catch myself thinking about it almost every day… But I can't just not do it. I can't just… jus'… walk away. There's innocent people out there who need help, who don't have anyone on their side, and I can do something about it. And I'm not gonna end up…"

He gestured sloppily as he tried to think of the word. Klavier just barely managed to move Apollo's water glass out of the way before he accidentally knocked it over.

"I'm not gonna end up murdering, and… and forging and lying. I'm gonna be the best damn lawyer anyone's ever seen, and I'm gonna do it right. And when those pointy, crooked bastards see what I accomplished in spite of them… how many people I saved fair and square… How I 'ccomplished what they couldn't without hurting people… That'll show 'em. They thought they could use me and throw me away?! They thought I needed them?! Ha!" Apollo scoffed bitterly. "I don't need 'em. Screw 'em."

Klavier was watching him as he ranted, a mixture of surprise, admiration and bittersweetness evident on his face. Apollo looked down at their joined hands on the table, a tiny, wistful smile forming on his lips.

"...And who knows," he continued softly. "Maybe someday, I'll be the one that young future lawyers look up to. And I'll be… I'll be someone worth looking up to. Then it'll be like Dhurke who? Phoenix who? Kristoph who?"

"...I'd say you're already worth looking up to," Klavier said. "I certainly do. You have incredible strength of character."

"Ssssstoppppp," Apollo groaned. "I'm nothing special I'm jus'... jus' running my mouth. I think I'm a little drunk."

Klavier smiled sadly, affectionately. "Ja, perhaps a bit. But even so, your speech just now gave me goosebumps." He took a slow gulp of beer, his eyes looking a bit misty. "'Kristoph who,' huh… I wonder if I'll be able to say that someday. Daryan who?"

"You will," Apollo said forcefully. "I believe in you, just… you gotta keep doing what you love, ok? Don't let anyone ruin it for you. You'll be saying 'Daryan who, Kristoph who' in no time. We both will."

Klavier swallowed hard, and nodded hesitantly.

"Hey…" Apollo freed his hand from Klavier's on the table and touched his cheek gently. The prosecutor sniffled wetly and scrubbed the back of his hand over his eyes. Apollo swallowed hard, his throat suddenly feeling tight with guilt and sympathy.

"Sorry…" Klavier rasped, forcing his lips into a lopsided smile. He cleared his throat and rubbed his eyes again. "S-sorry, I know this doesn't make sense. They're both murderers. You proved that, and they admitted it. But…."

"I know," Apollo murmured. He was relieved that Klavier wasn't pushing him away. "They were your friend and family way before they were criminals... It's ok to cry. It…. it hurts when someone you love throws you away… I know that from experience…"

Apollo glanced down at the bracelet on his wrist, the only token he had from a birth family who had left him in a foreign country, and the faces of his foster family who had sent him back alone to his unknown homeland, never to be heard from again, flashed painfully across his memory. The circumstances of their losses were different, but the result was the same. He and Klavier could no longer continue the relationships with these people who had meant so much to them. Apollo's heart hurt, not just for his own situation, but for Klavier's as well. He sniffled and bit his lip. Emotion was welling up inside of him and he wasn't sure he could stop it.

He didn't notice how closely Klavier was watching him until the prosecutor's knuckle was brushing gently under Apollo's eye. It came away wet. Klavier cupped Apollo's hand that was still cradling his cheek and pressed his lips deliberately against Apollo's palm. Apollo's cheeks went scarlet.

"P… Prosecutor Gavin…" He didn't know what to say. That kiss had been unexpected, but ... surprisingly nice. Could there be more where that had come from? Apollo's lips felt a little lonely all of a sudden, and he wanted to remedy that. He began to lean clumsily across the table, knocking over the ketchup bottle. The ketchup bottle hit Apollo's glass of water that Klavier had moved out of his way earlier, and the cup tipped over, spilling over the table and dripping over the sides onto the booth seats and floor. Klavier managed to scoot out of the way in time to avoid getting wet, but Apollo was a lost cause. His clothes quickly began to soak up icy water from the table he was leaning across.

"Oh my gosh, are you two alright?!"

Apollo looked numbly down at his soaking clothes, then over at their hostess, who was hurrying over with a rag to wipe up the spill.

"So sorry, Fraulein," Klavier said, trying to help by scooping ice cubes from the table back into Apollo's cup. He gave her an apologetic smile. "I think perhaps we've had a bit too much to drink."

"Don't even worry about it; it happens all the time here," the hostess assured them. Apollo frowned when he saw her gulp and glance up and down Klavier's body hopefully, checking whether he'd gotten his clothes wet as she absentmindedly mopped up the table. "I'll be back with another rag in just a second!"

"And our check, if you wouldn't mind," Klavier requested. "My friend here has had enough excitement for tonight."

"I have not!" Apollo said indignantly, brushing his hands uselessly over his wet clothes. "Not until you kiss m-"

The prosecutor hurriedly placed a hand over Apollo's mouth. "I'm fairly certain that Tomorrow-Herr-Forehead would prefer if you didn't finish that sentence, especially with all these people watching."

Apollo glanced around. There weren't that many people left in the pub, but several of the few who were had their curious eyes on the two of them. A busboy was coming over with more rags to aid with the cleanup, and their hostess was on her way with their check. He supposed the kiss would be more romantic without all these people in their way. Apollo flopped gracelessly back in his seat as the table was wiped up.

"Here you are, Fraulein," Klavier said, handing over his card to cover their bill. "I apologize for causing a scene. We'll get out of your hair."

"It was no trouble, really!" she insisted, her cheeks pink. "I'll be right back with your receipt."

Apollo glared after her as she strode away and rang them up. He didn't like the way she kept getting flustered when she spoke to Klavier. Who did she think she was, anyway?

Apollo tried to wring some of the water out of his shirt onto the floor as the hostess returned with their receipt and Klavier's card. The prosecutor signed with a flourish and added a $200 tip. The young woman's jaw dropped when she saw the amount, her eyes growing to the size of saucers.

"For your attentive service, and your discretion about our poor conduct," Klavier explained sheepishly.

"Of course, my lips are sealed!" the young woman promised squeakily, her hand hovering in front of her mouth in surprise. "Thank you so, so much! C-can I, um… I could call you a cab home if you like?"

"Not to worry; I have the number stored on my phone," Klavier said, helping a pouting Apollo to his feet and digging his phone out to make the call. "Guten abend."

"Good night! Come again!" she called after them.

Klavier helped Apollo out the door, but the defense attorney didn't make it easy. He was still determined to get his kiss. He scrabbled clumsily at Klavier's shirt, trying to pull him down to his level. The prosecutor looked down at his drunken companion with a fond smile, watching him struggle as the pub door closed slowly behind them. Apollo gave a tiny whine of frustration and stood unsteadily on top of Klavier's feet in an attempt to get a little more height.

It turned out to be a good thing for Klavier that he'd kept a close eye on Apollo during this process because a second after they stepped outside, a chilly February night wind whipped past them. Klavier noticed Apollo gearing up for a very loud, very wet sneeze and he put his hand over Apollo's mouth just in time to avoid being sprayed right in the face. He grimaced as Apollo sniffled and released a second sneeze against his hand.

"Gesundheit," Klavier said dryly, wiping his hand on Apollo's jacket. "I've seen far worse drunks in my time, but you're certainly not a good one. I think that's probably the first time anyone has dared do that to me."

"'S cold," Apollo mumbled defensively, his voice muffled in Klavier's chest. "And you wouldn't kiss me."

Klavier smiled sadly again, though Apollo missed it with his face buried in his shirt. "It would be taking advantage if I did. I know you wouldn't be offering if you hadn't had so much to drink."

Apollo sniffled and shivered. "...You don't know… what I'd do…"

Klavier was silent for a long moment. Apollo didn't pull away. Klavier was warm and soothing and he smelled so so good. If he had his way he'd never let him go.

"I'm going to call us a cab now, ja?" Klavier said at last. "Do… you want me to make sure you get home alright?"

Apollo clung to him tighter and shook his head.

"Herr Forehead…" Klavier said wearily. "What are you trying to say?"

"...I'm sorry…" Apollo replied thickly. "I'm sorry you lost your best friend… I'm sorry you lost your… your brother. I know they were guilty, and they had to pay for what they did, but it hurt you, and I played a part in it… I don't want… I don't want you to be alone. You don't deserve that. You deserve… you deserve… better . Way, way better."

"...Apollo…"

Ah, how wonderful his name sounded in Klavier's voice, even though it came out a little choked up. It felt so good to be in Klavier's arms, being called by name. Why was it normally so hard for him to admit that that was what he wanted when it seemed so easy right now?

"...Would you like to come home with me?" Klavier asked after a moment's hesitation.

Apollo lifted his face from Klavier's chest at last and stared up at him dazedly. Home. Home with Klavier Gavin. Was this real life? It was still cold out, and Apollo nose was running a little, but his face felt so warm.

"Just so we're clear," the prosecutor added quickly, "I'm only asking you to keep me company in the most innocent sense."

Ah, no sex, then. A little disappointing, but maybe that was for the best. Sober Apollo couldn't admit flat out that he'd missed Klavier on a personal level while he'd been in Europe. Hell, sober Apollo couldn't even admit to himself that maybe his sexual preferences were starting to shift away from women, least of all for his courtroom rival. He'd probably have a conniption once his head cleared if he let Klavier pound him into the mattress tonight. Drunk Apollo thought sober Apollo needed to lighten up like a lot. Still, he nodded in agreement.

Klavier gave him a tired but affectionate smile, pulled his sleeve over his hand and gently wiped Apollo's nose before finally calling their cab.

2/15/2027 12:13 AM

Sunset Garden Apartments

Apollo remembered nothing of the drive to Klavier's place as he dozed off against the prosecutor's shoulder almost as soon as they were seated in the cab. The next thing he knew, his arms were being tugged on and he was flopping forward gracelessly against something warm and solid.

"Oof," he grunted as his chest collided with Klavier's back.

"Sorry, Herr Forehead," Klavier said softly. "I didn't hurt you, did I?"

"No," Apollo replied, not noticing how loudly he was speaking.

Klavier winced slightly at the volume but didn't say anything besides "Hold onto my shoulders, ja? I'm going to walk now."

It took him several seconds to realize that Klavier was giving him a piggyback ride to the elevator of an unfamiliar building. In other circumstances, waking up somewhere he'd never seen before, being carried by someone he admittedly didn't know all that well would have been cause for significant alarm, but in his condition Apollo wasn't concerned at all. He trusted Klavier.

The prosecutor's pretty blond hair caressed Apollo's cheek as they stepped into the posh elevator. It looked so soft, like cotton candy. Apollo buried his face in it clumsily. It didn't smell like cotton candy, but it did have a pleasant scent. He breathed it in, trying to memorize it.

"Are we goin' to your concert?" Apollo slurred sleepily into Klavier's hair.

"You want to come to my concert?" Klavier asked amusedly. "Right now?"

"I wanna come to your concert right now," he echoed. "I wanna… hear you sing… Your voice is nice. And you smell nice. And you look really nice."

"Why, Herr Forehead," Klavier chuckled as he stepped out of the elevator on the 13th floor, "you're quite the sweet talker when you're drunk. Are you sure you won't fall asleep if I bring you to my concert?"

Apollo shook his head. "Not sleepy," he said, rubbing his eyes. Then he yawned so widely that he almost toppled backwards off the other man's back.

"Nein? Not even a little?" Klavier asked as he fished his key out of his pocket and turned it in the lock.

"Apollo Justice is fine!" Apollo shouted suddenly, startling Klavier so badly that he nearly dropped him.

"Sh-shhhhh!" Klavier warned, though he couldn't help laughing. Hopefully Apollo hadn't woken any of his neighbors. He hurried to flip on the light and get the door shut behind them in case Apollo randomly started shouting again. The door was locked securely behind them and Klavier paused in the doorway to remove his shoes, and then Apollo's.

"Apollo Justice is fine!" Apollo repeated in a loud whisper, blinking slowly as he watched Klavier pull his shoes off for him. "Klavier Gavin… is fine…"

"I will be, I think," Klavier agreed quietly, "as long as I stick with you."

Apollo was starting to nod off again as Klavier carried him over to his plush, black leather couch. The prosecutor lowered him onto it carefully. Apollo woke himself with a snort and looked around wildly, confused by the loss of warmth and change of position. He stared hazily at Klavier as he stood up and straightened his clothing.

"Are we going to your concert?" Apollo asked again.

Klavier smiled and shook his head. "...You're really attached to that idea, aren't you?" He stroked Apollo's spikes fondly. The defense attorney leaned forward, resting his head against Klavier's hip.

"I like your voice," Apollo slurred. "...I like…"

He trailed off. Klavier waited patiently for the rest of his sentence, but the only conclusion he got was a soft, incoherent mumble.

"I wonder if you mean that…" he mused to his dozing companion. "I'll… think about it."

He helped Apollo recline on the couch and covered him up with the fleece throw he kept draped over the back of it. Apollo's lips looked so soft, so kissable, and he really didn't want to leave him… Klavier skimmed Apollo's bottom lip tenderly with his thumb, imagining how it might taste, how it might feel against his mouth. But no, as badly as he wanted to, he couldn't. It wouldn't be fair to Apollo.

"Stay… with me…" Apollo murmured.

Klavier's heart clenched. Would it be so bad if he granted that request? He desperately wanted to.

"...Klavier… stay… Missed you…"

He didn't have the strength to resist. Heart throbbing with a mixture of excitement and nerves, Klavier shifted Apollo carefully into a sitting position so that he could join him on the couch. The defense attorney's arms wound around him immediately and Klavier maneuvered himself so that he was lying on the couch with Apollo sprawled over him. As Apollo rested his cheek on his chest, Klavier couldn't help thinking that he could get used to this.

3/17/2027 6:42 PM

Hillcrest Apartment Complex

Apollo remembered reading once that scents made stronger links to memories than any of the other human senses, but he'd never been as acutely aware of how true it was until that evening when he woke up on his couch. He hadn't even lasted a full episode of the Dr. Who marathon he'd turned on before he'd crashed and somehow woke to find his jacket draped over his face. It was the same jacket he'd worn on his Valentine's Day outing with Klavier.

Apparently some scented memento of that night still clung to the fabric, because memories that he thought he'd lost in the drunken haze he'd been in that night had manifested in his dreams. Or maybe it was just some convincing possibility that his mind had produced to fill in the gaps in his memory? Apollo stared groggily at the jacket in his hands, then buried his face in it and sniffed it curiously. His heart flip flopped hard as picked up the smell. It was very faint but there was no mistaking it.

Oh god, it smells like him, Apollo realized, his face heating rapidly. It's weird that I know what he smells like, but in my defense he's always leaning in so close to me.

He inhaled again, catching the scent once more. The memory of waking up the morning after Valentine's Day with his face smushed against Klavier's sculpted pecs invaded his head. Even fast asleep, drooling slightly, his golden hair mussed and tangled, Klavier had been absolutely, overwhelmingly, unfairly—

"D-dinner!" Apollo yelped to himself, cutting that thought off before it could continue any further. It wasn't good to eat dinner too late.

He marched into the kitchen to see what he had to work with. This was stupid. He'd already decided he was going to avoid thinking about anything related to Klavier and here he was recalling the worst details of all, ones he thought he'd been spared from.

It was a dream, he told himself desperately. Just because I dreamed it, doesn't mean that's how it actually happened.

What he really ought to do was wash that jacket. Who knew what other terrible memories it might revive. Apollo dug a frozen pizza out of the freezer, grateful for the tendrils of frigid air that rushed out to caress his warming cheeks.

...I'll do it after dinner.

And then he didn't.