Chapter 4: Rainy Rendezvous
As Phoenix gazed outside the bus windows, rain drops began to fall, hitting the side of the windows on an angle and gently rolling down until out of sight. It's Friday, three days before the murder trial was set to take place. Edgeworth was kind enough to give Phoenix case files related to the current trial, and these files lead Phoenix to believe the next step was to contact one of the deceased victims. He was riding the bus to the train station, which in turn would bring him to Kurain village. There, mystic and old friend Maya Fey could assist him in speaking with one of the victims.
Phoenix recalled their conversation on the phone the day prior. "Hey, Nick! It's been a while, you need to call me more! You can come out here tomorrow, I don't have much training to go over with Pearl so we will have time to do a channeling. Bring Edgeworth if he can come, I need to talk to him about the newest season of Steel Samurai. And that way someone can pay for our ramen that isn't you for once."
"Maya, there's no way he'd say yes. It's a two hour train ride, and that's only the one way trip." Phoenix's stomach churned a bit at the thought of sharing a day trip to Kurain with Edgeworth, but there was no way the eternally busy lawyer that is Miles Edgeworth would leave his work solely to talk about Steel Samurai with Maya and spend money on his less fortunate friends.
"Oh. Right. Well, he'd probably like to come to see Franziska. . . she is staying with me right now."
"Franziska staying with you, and Edgeworth doesn't know? Interesting. Why don't you or Franziska tell him yourself so I don't have to break him the news that his own sister prefers you over him?"
He heard Maya sigh over the phone. "Fine, we'll tell him. But really, bring him. He needs to get away from his work sometimes, y'know? Man's a workaholic to the extreme. I'll tell him after we get off the phone, but you text him in a little while to make sure he actually takes the day off. See you tomorrow, Nick!" The phone clicked and Phoenix closed his flip phone.
As the bus neared the train station, Phoenix pulled the cord near the top of the window and stood up, positioning himself by the exit door, a small line forming behind him. Although the rain was now quite heavy, the train station had a large awning covering the bus stop. Phoenix stepped off the bus and waited near the entrance for Edgeworth, who, surprisingly, had agreed to accompany Phoenix on the grounds that he had business to settle with his sister regarding the Von Karma estate.
—
Edgeworth drove his red sports car to the train station, watching the dark clouds above looming closer and closer. As he pulled into the parking lot, small drops splattered across his windshield. The parking lot was quite full, it was Friday and many of the city dwellers took the train out into the suburbs or the country to take a break or visit family. Edgeworth finally found a spot to squeeze into and put his car into park. Taking out his keys from the ignition and placing his hand on the car door handle to exit, the rain suddenly grew in intensity to a heavy downpour. In a desperate attempt to avoid getting his suit wet, Edgeworth searched his car for a spare umbrella. I had one in here at some point. . . Shoot. He remembered then that he gave it to Gumshoe the day the detective had a date with Maggey, and with their luck there was a torrential downpour and no umbrellas on either of them. Edgeworth huffed. He was about one hundred feet from the train station, and the rain was not letting up.
Mentally preparing himself for his suit to be a disastrous mess, Edgeworth quickly exited his car, swiftly locking it and then running to the train station. Why me, on this day, in which I have to share a two hour train ride with Wright? Even holding the briefcase over his head did not protect him from the diagonal pelting rain. He was soaked in seconds.
—
As Edgeworth staggered to the train station entrance in the downpour, Phoenix caught the glimpse of magenta flailing in the distance and could not help but feel a pang in his chest. Once he realized his friend's predicament he started chuckling, quickly opening the small umbrella he packed in his briefcase and running over to Edgeworth to save him from the rain. "Edgeworth, you of all people were unprepared for the weather?" Edgeworth huddled next to Phoenix under the small transparent umbrella. "Hmph. Some of us donate our spare umbrellas to the less fortunate." It was a bit too late to save Edgeworth from the rain, and Phoenix's legs were damp from running so fast.
The two walked together under the umbrella to the train station entrance, their shoulders nearly touching in an attempt to fit under the single-person sized umbrella. They were silent for a moment, both seemingly aware of their sudden closeness. Edgeworth moved his head slightly to the right, taking a peek at Phoenix, who sported his usual blue suit. The brilliant blue made Phoenix practically glow against the drab rainy landscape and cement surrounding them. Phoenix was bright, a warm fire of compassion in Edgeworth's cold world. Phoenix in turn met Edgeworth's gaze and smiled softly. Edgeworth's hair was sopping wet, his bangs flat and pressed against his forehead while small droplets fell off the tips of his hair. The two watched each other's eyes for a moment, Phoenix catching the relief in Edgeworth's normally hard eyes, a small spark igniting under the safety of the umbrella.
Lightning flashed and booming thunder caused Edgeworth to suddenly break their gaze and stop walking. Phoenix watched as a wave of anxiety washed over his friend's face for a quick moment, he became even more pale and ashen. "Come on, Miles, let's get you inside. The train station has a small cafe, let's get you some tea and try to dry off, okay? I'm right here with you." Phoenix squeezed Edgeworth's shoulder, looking up into Edgeworth's petrified, unfocused eyes. His suit felt cold and damp under Phoenix's warm fingers. Edgeworth looked away from Phoenix, shaking slightly from the stress of the thunder, the cold, being seen like this in front of Wright. He always finds me in these damned situations. Edgeworth shifted his head slightly in Phoenix's direction and muttered a soft "thank you," and they continued to walk in silence, Phoenix trying to keep himself from looking at Miles with a concerned face.
Once inside the train station, Phoenix ordered hot oolong tea for Edgeworth and a coffee for himself while Edgeworth bought the train tickets at the kiosk. Phoenix met Edgeworth by the kiosk, handing him the oolong tea and positioning himself close to Edgeworth's side to check the tickets in his hand for which platform the train would arrive at. Edgeworth scoffed and took a small step away, attempting to stifle any blush that tried to make its way across his face. "Here is your ticket, Wright. Platform 10 is where we are headed."
Once the two boarded the train, Phoenix and Miles found an empty train car, walked up the metal stairs to the top section, and settled on two seats facing each other next to a large window. Edgeworth placed his briefcase on the metal rack in the middle of the car and produced three wooden hangers. As Phoenix settled himself, Edgeworth began taking off his soaked magenta suit jacket, hanging it on the rods holding the metal racks in place. Phoenix watched from his seat without turning his head, noticing that Miles' black vest and white dress shirt clung to him tightly from the dampness. At this point the train begins to move, the conductor announcing the trip on the overhead speaker. Edgeworth undos his cravat, unbuttons his vest, then his dress shirt, peeling them off his arms and shoulders to reveal a simple white undershirt beneath the layers of clothing. Phoenix can see Miles' shoulder blades through the shirt, his shirt tightening at his broad shoulders broad and loose around his waist. Edgeworth carefully hangs the vest and dress shirt on the hangers, smoothing them out to the best of his ability. When he turns around, Edgeworth flashes an embarrassed Wright a confused face and crosses his arms, furrows his brows. "My clothing will dry faster this way," Edgeworth grunts as he sits down in the seat across from Phoenix.
Edgeworth adjusts himself in his seat, eventually settling on placing his right ankle over his left thigh, sitting up straight in his seat. Glasses in hand, Edgeworth pulls out a microfiber cloth from his glasses case and clears the collection of rain drops from the lenses. He wears only his white undershirt, magenta dress pants, and black dress shoes. The air conditioning was on in the train, and Edgeworth was still wet from the rain. He took his hand and combed through his damp hair, his gray bangs now spread across his forehead. Edgeworth leaves his hand on his forehead, palm pressing firmly against his skin and eyes firmly closed. He can feel goosebumps spreading across his skin as the air conditioning evaporates the cold water off his body.
Phoenix stares at the silent Edgeworth while his head is in his hands, noticing the slight shake starting in Edgeworth's hands and arms. Phoenix grabs Edgeworth's tea and offers it forward. "Miles, hey." Edgeworth does not move. "Here, have your tea, it will warm you up." He gazes up, trying to look underneath Edgeworth's hand to see his face. Miles releases his hand and takes the cup from Phoenix, his mouth pressed into a hard line. A faint red mark from his hand lies on his forehead. Edgeworth sighs and squeezes the bridge of his nose with his hands, eyes still closed. Even after a few sips of the hot tea, Edgeworth is still lightly shaking. He lifts his gaze from the top of the steam leaving the to-go cup to Wright's blue eyes filled with concern. Phoenix is removing his blue suit jacket, and holds it out to Edgeworth. "Here, take it. I'm warm and dry, just a little spot on the edge of my
pants took some damage. You look like you're freezing."
Edgeworth makes a disgruntled noise, looking down again. "I don't want to get your suit jacket wet too, I am perfectly fine Wright." He crosses his arms, and Phoenix can see the gray hairs on his forearms standing up from the goosebumps. "Miles, you're practically vibrating from shaking so much. Just take it, please. I won't wear it otherwise, I'm warm." Edgeworth makes eye contact with Wright and knows he cannot win this battle, not when Wright makes that face like he does when he knows he's secured the win in court. Miles takes the suit jacket from Phoenix. It is a tight fit, but the blue suit jacket provides a dry warmth. Edgeworth smells the faint scent of cedarwood on the jacket. Is this what Wright smells like? Coming to his senses, Edgeworth faintly blushes and mutters, "I look ridiculous. A blue suit jacket and magenta suit pants are barely suitable for a reputable prosecutor." Miles looks up for once, seeing Phoenix in his white dress shirt and red tie. Phoenix catches a glance at the white v-neck undershirt Edgeworth wore that allows for a few gray hairs to be seen scattered around the top of his chest.
"Well, what would you prefer: a slight fashion faux-pas or pneumonia? I can tell you, you don't want pneumonia, you remember how delirious I was in the hospital after that incident." Miles sighs, his face stuck in a semi-permanent disgruntled face. Of course Miles remembered, he thought he was going to lose Phoenix and flew from Germany to be by his side. "Miles, what's going on? It's okay, we're the only ones in this car. Plus, out in Kurain no one is going to know who you are besides Maya and Pearl anyway. You could wear a t-shirt and sweatpants for all they would care, although you might get some teasing from Maya." Edgeworth turns toward the window, watching the landscape change into the outskirts of the city into the suburbs, mountains lying beyond the towns. Rain still pelted the windows as the train accelerated.
"I can't understand why, but fate has it that you keep running into me in vulnerable situations. There were times like this before, but not this often. The past few days have been a series of embarrassing events you've had the pleasure of viewing. I suppose it might give you a nice feeling seeing your rival in such compromised positions." Edgeworth looked despairingly at his tea again, a deep frown on his face. Phoenix reflected, trying not to give Edgeworth a big smile. I've definitely enjoyed this, but that's not even close to the reason why. Phoenix places his hand on Miles' knee, looking at him with a reassuring smile. "Miles, I can't say why this keeps happening, but it's not like that for me. You're my friend. Friends help each other through these things. I wouldn't stay and help you if I didn't care." Edgeworth drops his head a bit and looks at Phoenix through the bangs hanging over his eyes. His expression was softer than before, looking at Phoenix earnestly with a small smile. "Although," Phoenix started again, leaning closer forward toward Edgeworth, "I have to admit, the image of the ever serious Miles Edgeworth sprinting in the rain, soaked, with a briefcase over your head as a sad attempt at covering yourself is going to bring me a lot of joy—" "Wright!" Miles pushes Phoenix's upper chest in jest with one hand, sending him back a few inches. Their eyes meet after, Miles looking at Phoenix with the hint of a grin on his face. Phoenix erupts into laughter, his smile shining brightly and laughter echoing in Miles' mind. Edgeworth lets out a few soft chuckles, Phoenix's laughter is too contagious not to join. It is all a bit ridiculous, isn't it?