Author's Note: I'm sorry for the delay. I wanted to update yesterday, but it was a Bad Health day for me, so I ended up lying in bed, texting back and forth with the Board at work, and watching my husband play Hades. Let's see if I can get this chapter back on track before work tonight.

Chapter Nineteen: Never Gonna Dance Again, Part Two

October 23, 2029

Miles Edgeworth's Home

In the middle of the night, Edgeworth woke up in agony. He pushed his fist hard against his chest, trying to staunch the pain as silently as he could, holding himself still and rigid in the bed and taking short, shallow breaths.

In the back of his mind, he could still hear, or rather feel the echo of a nightmare. He'd been dreaming ludicrously of an unusually large and strangely proportioned Phoenix Wright. The Dream Phoenix had pointed his accusing, attorney's finger directly at Edgeworth's aching chest, shouting, "YOU PROMISED. YOU PROMISED. YOU PROMISED," over and over, louder and louder as Edgeworth's chest throbbed more and more intensely in time with the screams.

"Gah," muttered Edgeworth, curling in on himself, willing the dream vision to go away and leave him in peace.

"Mmm?" Beside Edgeworth in the bed, the real Phoenix stirred. "Miles? What's going on? What's wrong?"

"It's…it's nothing," mumbled Edgeworth through gritted teeth. "I'm fine. I'm sorry to have woken you. Go back to sleep."

Phoenix blinked at Edgeworth in the dark, letting his eyes adjust. Then he frowned.

"You're obviously not fine," he said, "You're in pain. What is it?"

Phoenix reached out and covered Edgeworth's fist with his hand, then gently pried it away from Edgeworth's chest. Edgeworth flinched, and Phoenix sucked in a worried breath.

"I'll get an ambulance," declared Phoenix, now obviously fully awake and in crisis mode. "Hang on, Miles. Keep breathing. It's going to be alright." Reaching for his phone, Phoenix began frantically pressing buttons. "We're going to get you some help, don't worry." Edgeworth thought he could hear Phoenix's voice shaking.

"Wait coughed Edgeworth. "Stop. Wright. I don't…need a doctor. Aspirin."

"What?" Phoenix stared at him. "What are you-?"

"There's aspirin on the desk," managed Edgeworth. "Please."

Phoenix shook his head. "I'll get it for you as soon as I've called the hospital."

"No." Grabbing Phoenix by the arm, Edgeworth met his gaze. "Doctors can't help. It's…it's called angina, it's merely a symptom, not life threatening. I'm fine, it's only pain." He gritted his teeth. "I'm not…please, I need aspirin."

Phoenix stared at him for an alarmed half-second, then nodded, hurried over to the desk, and retrieved the bottle. He tossed it to Edgeworth, who immediately downed two pills, dropped the bottle over the side of the bed, and curled up on his stomach against the pillows, still writhing in pain.

"Hey." Phoenix sat down beside him on the bed. "Miles. Come here."

Edgeworth twisted his fingers into the blankets, trying not to scream.

"I'm…sorry, Wright," he mumbled. I'm sorry."

"Stop it," commanded Phoenix, angrily.

Edgeworth flinched.

"Please." Phoenix's voice softened. "Sorry. I'm just…look, please come here."

Edgeworth didn't move. Phoenix lay back down on the bed, wrapped his arms around Edgeworth and pulled him tightly against his chest. Edgeworth shut his eyes and clung to Phoenix, focusing on the sound of Phoenix's breathing, feeling every inhale and exhale and trying to match them with his own.

He couldn't tell exactly how much time passed, but eventually, the pain did subside, and his breathing came more easily. Feeling foolish and childish in Phoenix's arms, Edgeworth was both ashamed and yet reluctant to pull away. Clearing his throat, he forced himself to sit up in the bed.

Phoenix was watching him quietly.

"Wright," began Edgeworth.

"I think I already knew," interrupted Phoenix. "I mean…the signs were all pretty clear, but it was a scary thought, so I didn't let myself think it. Athena knows, doesn't she?"

Edgeworth just nodded.

"How's the pain?" Phoenix frowned. "Any better?"

"Yes," mumbled Edgeworth. "Much. Thank you."

Phoenix let out a short sigh of relief. "That's good," he said. "Yeah. That…that was really scary. I'm glad you're alright." Suddenly, he looked very, very tired.

Again, there was a brief silence. Edgeworth glanced over at the clock and saw that it was three in the morning.

"You should try to get some sleep," he suggested. "I meant not to wake you."

Phoenix just shook his head. "Please," he begged. "Please tell me."

He stroked his fingers comfortingly through Edgeworth's hair. Edgeworth was quickly discovering that he loved that feeling, and that having his hair played with was becoming something of a weakness for him. Phoenix seemed to know it, too.

Manipulative attorney, thought Edgeworth, without much genuine malice.

"I saw a doctor several weeks ago," muttered Edgeworth. "I had begun experiencing these vice-like pains in my chest and arms on a more and more regular basis. Several tests determined that I have very high blood pressure, and, subsequently, that I suffer from angina, a deeply unpleasant symptom, in this case, of coronary heart disease. I have received a stern reprimand about my unhealthy lifestyle and a multi-page treatment plan containing food that I can't stomach and an absurd amount of cardiovascular exercise for which I simply do not have time."

"Then you need to make time," countered Phoenix.

"My work doesn't allow for-!" began Edgeworth.

Phoenix sat up straight and narrowed his eyes at Edgeworth. "You have to MAKE TIME," he said firmly, in that masterful, courtroom voice that he only used when he was finally fully certain of his ground. "You don't get it, Miles, heart disease is nothing to mess around with. It could kill you."

"I know," muttered Edgeworth.

Phoenix grasped Edgeworth's arm, and there was nothing gentle about his grip this time. When Edgeworth looked up, startled, into his face, he saw fear in Phoenix's eyes.

"I need you to take better care of yourself," declared Phoenix. "We're stuck in this together, remember? I don't want to do this alone. We're going to be yelling at each other across the courtroom in ten years, in twenty years, okay? The law needs you. This district needs you. I…I need you, Miles. I need you to get better."

Edgeworth swallowed hard.

"Then I will," he said quietly. "You have my word."

In that moment, it really felt that simple. All Edgeworth wanted now was to do anything Phoenix asked of him, anything that would keep Phoenix looking at him that way.

I will get better, thought Edgeworth. I meant what I said in the hospital, Wright. I will never give you cause to regret your…care for me. I have no desire to experience that fresh hell.

"Okay, then." Phoenix shrugged and gave Edgeworth an awkward sort of smile. "So..I, uh, guess we can talk about it more in the morning."

He tried to smile, but there was a strain behind it.

"Do you run?" Phoenix shook his head. "I don't, uh, run, at all, but I know it's good for cardio. We can go together, if you want, although…maybe we'd better start with walking. A long walk around the neighborhood sounds nice, doesn't it?"

"That's certainly doable," said Edgeworth. "I get winded…easily."

"Me too." Phoenix laughed sheepishly under his breath. "I guess we sit around at our desks too much these days, huh? Couple of guys in our thirties, it's bad for us both. We'll have to build up that stamina together Oh, and we can look up some heart-healthy recipes. I've been meaning to improve my cooking skills, so it'll be a, uh, fun experiment."

He didn't sound too confident, and frankly Edgeworth's limited experience of Phoenix's cooking had been harrowing to say the least.

Manslaughter by inadvertent poisoning is probably not the solution to this problem, thought Edgeworth wryly. Phoenix must have seen the look on his face, because he laughed again and relaxed a bit.

"Okay." Phoenix took a deep breath. "Let's, um, try to get some sleep. I'm exhausted." He yawned helplessly. "It's been a really long day. Wake me up if it hurts again, I'll be right here. Hey, where's that aspirin?'

Phoenix found the aspirin bottle, placed it within arm's reach on the bedside table, and then stretched out and closed his eyes.

"Goodnight, Miles," he said.

Moments later, he was snoring again.

I'm not surprised, thought Edgeworth. It's been a day full of unpleasant shocks. Sleep well, Wright. And…thank you.

For some time after that, Edgeworth lay awake, watching the clock, reveling in the absence of pain and savoring the memory of the look in Phoenix's eyes when he'd said the words 'I need you.'

At ten o'clock, Edgeworth woke up alone in the bed. For some reason, his alarm hadn't gone off, and he suspected Phoenix of tampering with it.

He dressed and went downstairs, to find the kitchen and living room suspiciously silent and empty. Trucy was sitting by herself at the dining room table with her textbooks spread out all around her, sounding like a tiny machine gun as her fingers battered away at the laptop keyboard.

Edgeworth stood in the doorway and cleared his throat to announce himself. Glancing up at him, Trucy gave him a slightly dimmer version of her usual smile.

"Oh, hi, Mr. Edgeworth," she said. "I hope you don't mind, but I had some cereal this morning before you got up. It's not as bad as Maya says it is….I mean, um ,not really."

Edgeworth nodded. "Certainly, you're welcome to it. I'm glad you didn't wait on me for breakfast. Where is everyone?"

Trucy gestured at the closed library door. "They're all in there, talking about the case. Dad said I couldn't be a part of the Wright Anything Agency meeting until I made my homework disappear, so I dropped my laptop into my magic panties, but…then he told me that he meant I had to finish writing my essay, so, here I am!" She sighed. "Don't worry, I've almost cracked it. I'm sure this draft will be the best one yet!"

"I've no doubt," murmured Edgeworth. "May …may I take a look at your work? Perhaps I can be of some use. I understand that it's an essay on leadership and management?"

"Well, sort of," replied Trucy. "It's supposed to be about my personal leadership strengths and goals. I got through the strengths part, and that was actually kind of fun, but now I'm writing about the goals, and…it's a little hard to explain I'm not really sure how I want to say it."

"You are lucky enough to be surrounded bey some excellent leadership role models," suggested Edgeworth.

Sometimes, that is, he thought. Wright certainly has his stirring moments and he knows how to motivate his team, but he always seems to have a very difficult time saying no when it comes to just about everything regarding his agency. At least it's good to see that he's making some effort to get Trucy to focus on her studies outside of performance.

"That's true!" Trucy beamed. "My Daddy is the best leader I know! But…I don't want to just write about what I see other people doing. I want to write about who I want to be, who I am."

Edgeworth nodded. "Admirable. And who is it, then, that you would like to be?"

Trucy gave Edgeworth a remarkably good impression of Phoenix's best sheepish look.

"I'm…not exactly sure," she admitted. "I want so many things! Is it bad if my essay gets too long? Wait, that's actually good, right? It shows that I'm a diligent worker! Maybe I'll write the longest essay in the class!"

"That, er, is probably not necessary." Edgeworth coughed. "Your teacher may not appreciate the extra work."

"Oh," sighed Trucy, deflating slightly. "That's a good point. Well…okay, how about this! When I'm really struggling with something, Daddy says there's a special trick to it. He says that sometimes, I need to turn an issue around and try looking at it from another angle. So, in this case…instead of proving that I can become a great leader, I should try assuming that I'm already a great leader, and show evidence that it's true! First of all, a true entertainer, like me, al ways keeps a smile on their face, and that-!"

"It inspires people," suggested Edgeworth. "They find it both comforting and charismatic. Your father encounters that a great deal in his work."

"Exactly!" Trucy beamed at him, typed happily away for a few seconds at her keyboard, then sat back and read what she'd written, looking proud of herself. Edgeworth smiled and stood up to leave her to her work.

"Mr. Edgeworth," she said, turning to look at him. "Daddy inspires you a lot too, doesn't he? I can see it when you talk about him!"

"Erm." Startled, Edgeworth opened his mouth to say something, then shut it again, aware that he had not come prepared for such a discussion. Trucy giggled, and Edgeworth thought uncomfortably of all the times he'd heard her asking Phoenix for a "new mommy."

"Miss Wright," he began carefully, "as to your father, there's…something I'd like to discuss with you. Your father and I-!"

"Please, Mr. Edgeworth." Trucy shook her head, still laughing. "Call me Trucy, okay? I've known you most of my life and, besides, you're obviously dating my Daddy. You can't exactly call me 'Miss Wright' after you and Daddy get married, can you?"

"EH?" Edgeworth gaped at her.

M-married? He swallowed hard and cleared his throat. Trucy, of course, was now nearly doubled over with glee at his discomfort. It was, like so much of what came from the Wright family, both infuriating and delightful at the same time.

"Th-then… you don't object to your father and my, erm, situation?" Edgeworth did his best to regain what little dignity he could. "The idea doesn't bother you?"

Trucy finally stopped laughing, shook her head, and beamed at Edgeworth.

"Of course not, silly," she informed him. "How could it bother me when it obviously makes you both so happy?"

With that, Trucy returned to her work, leaving Edgeworth to stand there and watch the words rapidly materializing across the laptop screen at a really alarming speed.

It's strange, he thought, realizing that he, too, had now started to smile. I had never really thought of myself as someone who makes other people happy.

His cell phone began buzzing in his pocket. At that same moment, the door to the library swung open, and Maya came hurrying out.

"Mr. Edgeworth!" She hurried over to him, looking nervous. "Simon just called. They found Mr. Parker."

"Finally." Edgeworth sighed in some significant relief. "Where is he? I'll question him immediately. Detective Gumshoe should be made aware as well, although I doubt he's in any condition to assist me. Do they have him at the Police Department?"

Maya just slowly shook her head.

"No," she said. "No, he's…Mr. Parker's dead."

Trucy gasped.

Phoenix, Athena, and Apollo emerged from the library, somber and clearly worried.

Phoenix nodded at Edgeworth. "Morning, Miles. Um…could you join us for a few minutes? I think we all need to talk."

Author's End Note: It's going to be a busy week over here at work, but I'll do my best to keep the updates regular. Thank you so much for your patience!