trace (vestiges)
Two months until it is time to go back to LA.
Two months until the prosecutor for which he is filling in is going to return.
Two months until he can sleep easy, his bed warm, his heart at rest, once more.
He cannot wait.
The moment she confirms her return date, he books a flight and settles his business. He will not linger; the moment he is out of the office on that final Friday, he shall be on an airplane back to America. Mercifully, Frederik spares the rest of the office the details, insisting that they must have a farewell dinner for Miles the day before. He claims it is because he has plans that Friday night, but as Miles' mentor, he should certainly be at his farewell.
For this, Miles is grateful. Neither of them tell anyone that Frederik's plans involve driving a certain mentee prosecutor to the airport. That is a secret that shall remain between the two of them, without sacrificing Miles' guise of being fairly stoic.
Time passes like this. He goes out for drinks with Frederik every few nights, enduring teasing and scolding both him and Phoenix for ganging up on him with photographs and secrets. Frederik buying Miles a vintage Steel Samurai poster makes him want to crawl under a rock and stay there, considering how gleeful he is when telling Miles just who exactly had shared that particular interest of Miles' with him. In return, Miles sends Detective Gumshoe the fairly enormous task of filling the Wright & Co. Law Offices with flowers and balloons and all manner of things that shall make Phoenix amused and annoyed and flustered and loved, all the while giving Maya and Pearl something to giggle over.
It is in the aftermath of these gifts that Miles finally, truly finds the words he has been struggling to say for the past ten months upon his lips. He laughs softly as Phoenix complains about finding glitter in his case files from the veritable catastrophe Gumshoe had created in his office. There is no anger in Phoenix's voice, after all- only wry, weary exasperation, followed by immediate fondness as he recounts just how happy Pearl had been when they had lugged all of the balloons and flowers up to Kurain Village.
"She's on the verge of no longer telling me that I'm Maya's 'special someone'," Phoenix chuckles between sips of coffee.
Miles snorts, his cheek snuggling further into his pillow. "All the courts in the world favour me, and yet, I am more focused on trying to win over a 9-year-old. That's my fate, I suppose," Miles replies, amused.
Phoenix's adoration cannot be hidden as he merely says, "She loves you, you know. She asks about you all the time."
The thought squeezes Miles' heart. He does indeed miss the little girl, too- although he does not miss her angry punches. She is quite strong for a near-toddler. "She'll see me soon enough," he whispers. "I'll be back soon."
Phoenix pauses, then breathes, "Yeah. Can't wait."
Then, in his half-asleep daze, Miles finally says them. "I miss you."
Phoenix's breath catches in his throat. For a moment, Miles wonders if he is choking, if he needs to holler at the detective to drive over to make sure Phoenix is alright; then, Phoenix lets out a long, hitching sigh, the sound barely audible over the phone. "Wright, are you alright?" he murmurs, alarmed.
"No, I-" Then, Phoenix sniffs, and Miles understands.
Miles hums, relaxing once again. It is strange, admitting this vulnerability. Yet, it doesn't feel wrong in the slightest. "It's true," he assures the other man. He wonders why he never said it before- it is startlingly easy to say.
With another slight, overwhelmed sniff as he holds back emotion, Phoenix murmurs, "Yeah, Miles. Me too."
Miles' heart is warm, and he sleeps well soon after. His dreams are vague, but all he can focus upon even as he awakens the next morning is a question which has haunted him for the past few years.
Is this what happiness is?
This thought is not accompanied by the stark fear and bitterness it has historically carried, however. Miles knows the answer. And for the first time, he truly feels like he deserves this joy, too.