Wright Anything Agency

September 6 11:30 a.m.

"Boss? Are you sure we should've let him go?" Athena was teeming with concern.

"Like he said, he isn't a kid anymore, Athena." Phoenix lowered his head. "But we should have made sure he got home safely."

"You think he's okay?! I should call him!" Athena thrusted into her pocket for her phone. "Call Apollo."

The phone beeped several times before a mechanical voice, a smiley face popped onto the screen before winking, similar to Widget's answered her back, "Calling Apollo Justice."

The phone hummed, trying to establish contact on the other line. The attorney pulled the phone to the side of her face, listening for the hum to be interrupted by another voice. Phoenix watched intently as her gloved hand shook in her grasp. He too was worried if letting Apollo go home on his own, especially in his condition was the right choice. Apollo was almost as bad as his condition after the courtroom bombing minus the bandages. There was a brief silence until the call went to voicemail.

"Aw! C'mon! Pick up, Apollo!" Athena quickly redialed, frantically pressing her fingers on the screen.

Maya pressed against Phoenix's arm. Her worried expression added Phoenix more guilt on top of his rushing mind. The sleeve was pressed against her midriff as she clenched around his arm clamping it securely against her. His demeanor remained calm, but it lied to her as he stared at the spirit medium. Athena's feet were rhythmically stomping the ground, anxiously hearing the rumble from the phone once more. Her red hair flopped to the side by every step she made. Widget had a worried blue face almost turning purple, flashing itself against her neck. Yet again, the phone came to a voicemail.

Athena had enough. She darted towards the door, almost forgetting to twist the knob. "Athena, wait!"

"I have to see if Apollo is okay!" Athena threw her view at her boss, her body dangling by the handle. "Apollo is probably lying on the streets and we're here waiting!"

She stopped. Her phone was ringing. The red attorney was calling back. She almost dropped her phone trying to answer it. Her gloved fingers tapping the phone yet again like a woodpecker. "APOLLO!"

"Athena…?" A weak voice answered.

"Are you okay?! Where are you?!" Her frantic yelling was giving Apollo a headache.

"Yeah… just… not so loud…" Apollo whispered.

"You sound awful. You want me to come over? Should I call…" Athena's mouth couldn't finish the sentence. 'Junie…'

As much as she wanted to help Apollo, Junie would be all over Apollo. She winced, the thought actually bringing jealousy to mind.

"No...I just…rest." The voice was becoming more hoarse.

Athena hesitated before asking again. "Are you sure?!"

"I'm sure!" Apollo scraped through his breath.

Athena reflexed, throwing the phone away from her ear. The rejection stung more than she anticipated.

"Sorry, Apollo…" Athena muttered, her face pale.

"Sorry Athe… I'll be fine."

"Get better okay. You better! And you'll be back in this office!" Athena held back her whimper.

"Ok." Apollo hung up.

Athena heard the tone go silent before putting her head down, Widget sad as ever. "He sounds awful, Mr. Wright…"

"He must've caught a bug. But I don't understand where." Phoenix groped his finger against his chin.

"You think it was from someone last night?" She weakly placed her hands on her hips.

"Maybe…" Phoenix pondered, his view away from Athena. "Was he anywhere else beforehand?"

"I don't know... But wait. Don't you think if Apollo got it, I would've too?" Athena suggested.

"You guys were together last night?" Phoenix raised a brow with intrigue.

Athena flinched, Widget flashed yellow. "Well, yeah during the dance…" She ran her fingers through her hair nervously.

"The dance…" Phoenix remembered. Though how he gotten onto the dancefloor was something he wondered about too.

"Oh… I remember the dance!" Maya squeezed Phoenix's arm bashfully, but it switched anger quickly. "We lost it!"

Phoenix couldn't react, she was tugging at his sleeve and threw his arm before pouting. He held his temple in his fingers, 'She hasn't changed one bit…Nor has she forgotten...'

"Oh yeah. We won!" Athena blushed lightly. "The glass peacock was beautiful! The colors, the shape, but…"

Phoenix removed his hand, focusing now on the yellow attorney. "But what?"

"I... I don't remember getting home. Like, on my own." She rubbed her elbow, perplexed. "It was right there, in the box, near the door when I headed out for work this morning. Trucy and Pearl were at my place, but I don't remember settling them in."

She rubbed her neck, sucking a painful breath through her teeth, 'But what hurts the most is my neck. I must've slept the wrong angle.'

Phoenix furrowed his brow tightly, his memory just came to a blank. "I don't remember either…" He faced Maya, who's pout was weakening in its intensity. "Do you remember anything, Maya?"

The spirit medium's attitude transformed from envious to bewildered. "Gosh… wait!" The spirit medium held her cheek on her palm. The blue and yellow attorney fixed themselves where Maya was center stage. "Nope, nothing."

They slacked their shoulders, along with their hopes for an answer.

"We should ask Apollo if he remembers anything when he gets better." Phoenix replaced the mood back towards him.

'Apollo…' Athena's red bangs covered her expression from her company.

Apollo's Apartment

September 6 11:40 a.m.

A pool of sweat drenched the floor of the attorney's apartment. His clothes perspired along with him as the fever was taking its toll. The cold tile bathroom was comforting his thermos of a body. The two horns on his head practically drifted in the puddle that Apollo was uncertain if it was drool or sweat. Or both.

"Uhhhhh…"

The phone rang in his pocket. The sensitive body of the attorney felt the vibrations against the floor, sending shock waves and ripples on the puddle. His body tensed as he threw the Cold Killer X in agitation from his pocket to get the phone. The sweat created the concept of gripping the phone itself difficult. He blindly tried answering the phone to no avail, accidentally discarding the call.

The phone rang again. This time, Apollo twisted himself, viewing the ceiling now before sitting upright. The two horns slapped themselves against his forehead, bringing some of the floor's secretion back where they came from, dripping down to his nose. He heavily sighed before lifting himself from the moist tiles. The travel from the door frame to his bedroom was hectic. Before stepping out, he stumbled forward landing face first on his bed. The red attorney was quite flustered now, rotating his head to breath in fresh air from the suffocating comforter. Glancing at his phone, it displayed two phone calls were missed from Athena.

His face gained some sense of color returning back when he saw his friend call. He slid his sweaty finger across the screen, redialing the number. The phone felt like twenty pounds trying to bring it to his face, but it tumbled right next to his nose. 'Close enough…'

"APOLLO!"

The red attorney cringed. The high pitch emitting from his mobile device rang sharply in his ear.

"Athena…?" The sick attorney responded.

"Are you okay?! Where are you?!" Her yelp would cause a bat to cry from an earsplitting headache.

"Yeah… just… not so loud…" Apollo winced, gripping the blankets tightly between his finger.

"You sound awful. You want me to come over? Should I call…"

"No...I just…" He pulled back the sweaty hair from his face. "Rest."

"Are you sure?!"

By that point, Apollo became irritated. Staying awake was laborious, trying to convince Athena he was capable on his own was tedious.

"I'm sure!" Apollo strained himself.

A pause followed after. An awkward one. Minor guilt ran through his sickened body when the realization of him shouting at his friend who only wanted to acknowledge his well being.

"Sorry, Apollo…"

His lungs sucked in an unsteady breath before beginning, "Sorry Athe… I'll be fine."

"Get better okay. You better! And you'll be back in this office!"

Her worry-stricken cheery voice actually made the badly shaped attorney a little relieved.

"Ok."

His fingers smacked the phone, attempting to end the call. He believed it worked, no one answered back.

'I hope this thing passes quickly.'

Resistance to the soporific sanctity became familiar to the attorney as his eyes closed.