Outside on the balcony, Phoenix breaths in the night air. He wouldn't exactly call it fresh air given they are in the city and on the second floor, but it could be worse. He's just glad his office isn't in one of those huge fifty story high rises, or he doesn't think he'd be able to stand out on a balcony like this. The second floor isn't too bad though; when he looks down at the sidewalk he can clearly see the faces of people walking by, so his fear of heights won't act up.

Maya steps up to the railing and rests her elbows on it, peering down at the street below. There's not much of a view, given the Gatewater Hotel directly across the street blocks much of anything, but it's easy to people watch from up here.

He takes his spot beside her, resting his own arms on the railing, standing close enough that their forearms touch lightly. He clasps his hands together as they hang over the rail. Maya turns her head slightly to peek at him. "So what's up, Nick?"

Now his stomach really is in knots. How do you even start the type of conversation he wants to have? It's not as simple as just asking her out as if she's some woman he's just met in a bar or a cafe somewhere. It's Maya. They have history together. If it doesn't work out… well, he's not sure he's fond of risking their friendship for the sake of romance, but he knows he'll regret it if he doesn't at least give it a shot. Maybe something will come of it.

He shrugs, still needing to build up more courage before jumping straight into that conversation. "Nothing really."

Maya raises an eyebrow. "Then why did you bring me out here?"

Another shrug. "I don't know. I guess I kind of wanted to be alone. It's probably a little selfish of me since I'm sure you want to see your other friends while you're here, and it was my idea to throw this party and invite them over in the first place, but I want to spend as much time with you as I can before you go back to Kurain next week. I want you all to myself," he says, rubbing the back of his neck.

Maya smiles. "You know, it's only two hours away. That's nothing compared to the last two years. We can visit each other whenever we want."

"I guess so, but we're both so busy all the time. I'm not used to Maya Fey: Kurain Master yet. No offense, but it's kind of strange for me knowing that you're this respected leader of an entire village with all this responsibility now."

"Trust me, Nick, it's strange for me too. You think I'm used to all of this already? No way. I constantly make mistakes. The Elders help me make a lot of decisions and Pearly does so much work. Probably more than she should. If not for them, Kurain would have burned down already with me running it."

He chuckles. "You're probably doing better than you give yourself credit for."

She shrugs. "It's just a job to me. It's important to me but it's never been something I've particularly looked forward to doing. I think you know that. It's not like you and being a lawyer. I could quit tomorrow and as long as I knew Kurain was in good hands and there were no more hidden conspiracies or anything, I'd be fine with it."

"Really?"

She nods. "Mhm. I've sometimes found myself wondering what it would be like to be normal, you know?" She smiles ruefully. "When I was in Khura'in and having a bad day I would sometimes fantasize about being your assistant again."

He smirks. "Fantasize, huh?"

She turns away, and it's too dim to see whether or not she's blushing. "Not like that. I just mean, I wished so badly sometimes that I was here, helping you, being your assistant again. That's what I've always loved."

He moves his hand, holding it out and nudging hers with his knuckles. Maya lets him entwine his fingers with hers. "I'll admit that during those two years, sometimes I fantasized about the same thing."

Her fingers move in his hand, tightening their grip. "Really? But you had Trucy, and Apollo, and Athena to keep you company."

"Yeah, and they're all great. But they're not you. Trucy's my daughter, Athena and Apollo were my employees. I like to think that I'm a pretty laid back boss but technically I'm still their superior. We can be friends, but not equals, not in a work environment at least. But with you, that's different."

"But if I'm your assistant then technically you're still my boss."

"I don't see if that way. Me and you were partners, Maya. You ran this office better than I ever could. And without you there never would have been an 'and Co.' part of Wright and Co. Law Offices."

Maya smiles, nudging him with a shoulder. "Stop, you're making me blush."

"Sorry."

"Nick, I'm kidding. It's nice to know you thought that. I always felt like a little kid that you were just putting up with half the time. I swear I didn't mean to be so annoying."

He chuckles. "Nah. I know I tried to act like the mature adult all the time but we always had fun. Even if it was something I didn't want to do at first, you'd manage to convince me, and I don't think I ever regretted being talked into anything. Aside from your sister and Larry, I didn't have many friends in that time of my life, so having you around to force me into having fun was really a blessing."

"I didn't have many friends either," Maya says. "Aside from Pearly. And you can only do and say so much with a little kid. Plus her mom never liked her hanging out with me, for obvious reasons." She smiles fondly. "Pearly was the most well behaved kid you could ever imagine, but that was one thing she never listened to her mother about. Nothing would stop her from coming to see me."

She shifts where she's standing, letting go of his hand and moving over so she can rest her head on his shoulder instead. "Then I met you. I'm so lucky to have had you in my life back then, Nick. Especially after losing my sister, who was the only other person in the world besides Pearly who I had to talk to before you. That's what made it so hard to go to Khura'in. I wasn't really scared of the training or being alone in a strange country. I just knew I'd miss you a lot." She lifts her head and turns to him. "And I did, Nick. I missed you so much."

He isn't sure what to say. Maya is staring up at him like she expects something though. "I missed you too," he says.

She smiles and moves in closer to him, wrapping her arms around his waist. He circles his arms around her, pulling her tightly against him, feeling her warm breath on his chest through the fabric of his shirt. He presses his cheek against her hair, breathing deeply.

"Maya… Do you remember anything about the other night, after you were out with Ema?"

Maya doesn't pull away, only shakes her head slightly. He can feel her movement against his chest. "No."

He sighs. Of course she doesn't. When he says nothing, she pulls back to look up at him. "Why?"

He smiles. "I kind of wanted to ask you something about it, but I don't want to embarrass you."

Her eyes widen. "Oh no. Did I do something really stupid?"

"It wasn't stupid, but it was kind of surprising."

"Ah… what was it?"

He swallows nervously. "You tried to kiss me."

She freezes, her eyes getting impossibly wider. "No I didn't."

He laughs. "Yeah, you did."

Maya pulls out of his arms and turns towards the railing to look down at the sidewalk again. "Oh God. That is embarrassing."

"You said you wanted to do it for 'practice'. Of course you were drunk so I said no, then you passed out and I brought you to bed. But that was part of the reason I wasn't too scared to ask you about breaking our no kissing rule the other day. I thought maybe some part of you… might have wanted it…"

He can see Maya swallow. She can't seem to look his way. He moves to stand beside her again, leaning against the railing, trying not to get too close now that she's embarrassed.

"I'm sorry, Nick," she finally says.

He can feel something inside of him flutter. Maybe he was wrong. Maybe he'd gotten his hopes up over a drunken mistake. "Why are you sorry?"

"Because I shouldn't have done that, drunk or not. I'm as bad as Molly."

"Maya, it was a mistake. You didn't force yourself on me or anything."

"I still feel bad."

"I shouldn't have mentioned it…"

She shakes her head. "I'm glad you did. I—I won't lie, Nick. I think part of me did want it. I've already told you I haven't had a boyfriend before and I guess maybe I was curious to know what it was like, especially after spending that night talking about stuff with Ema and the others."

He smiles. "Well, at least you finally got that kiss at the restaurant, right? I hope I lived up to your expectations. It's been a while for me too, so you know…"

She chuckles. "No. It was perfect for a first kiss." She finally manages to look at him again, her eyes sparkling in the moonlight. "Thank you. Somehow it just seems right that it was you."

He smiles. "Maya, I was thinking something."

"Hm?"

"This fake dating thing is kind of weird, isn't it?"

She raises her eyebrows. "I guess it is. But you gotta do what you gotta do."

"I was wondering… what you'd think about… um…"

She watches him struggle for words, her lips parted slightly. He takes a deep breath. "What would you think about going on a real—"

"Hey, Mr. Wright, we ran out of drinks. Could you go... Oh."

Phoenix turns towards the door to find Athena standing there, holding the door to the balcony open and staring at the two of them. It's obvious by the look on her face that she knows she's interrupted a moment, and that he's not too happy about it.

"I—I'm sorry, I'll go—"

Phoenix deflates. It wouldn't matter now. Even if Athena does go, he's lost his courage. Maya has turned away from him, her concentration now on Athena. "No, what is it?"

Athena looks at the ground. "We ran out of drinks and unless we get more, Trucy and Pearl are probably going to wrestle the bottle of wine away from Mr. Edgeworth."

He sighs. "Alright. I can go to the store to get some."

Maya puts a hand on his arm. "I'll come with you."

"No, it's fine. This party is for you, after all. Stay and enjoy it. I won't be gone long."

She looks away. "Okay."

He follows Athena back inside, with Maya behind him. He grabs his jacket from his desk and turns to her when he feels her hand on his arm again. "What is it?"

"Just... hurry up, okay?"

He smiles. "I will."

Suddenly Trucy rushes from the back room, cape flying. She stops short when she sees Phoenix. "Oh. Daddy."

Edgeworth emerges from the room behind her, looking a little dishevelled and out of breath. "Wright, please discipline your child."

Phoenix frowns at her. "I hope you're not trying to get your dear Uncle Edgeworth to give you alcohol."

She smiles sweetly. "Nope. But our drinks are gone so..."

"I'm aware. I'm going to go buy more."

"Oh, okay." She walks away, and before she's fully out of earshot he can hear her call to Pearl. "Sorry, Pearl! Mr. Edgeworth is stronger than he looks!"

Phoenix rolls his eyes and looks at Maya, who still looks a little disappointed. He reaches out to tap her under the chin playfully. "I won't be gone forever. You don't need to look so sad."

"O-Oh, did I look sad?" she asks. She finally smiles. "Pfft, it's not like I'll miss you."

He makes a sad face at her. "And after that heartfelt talk we just had about how much we missed each other before."

"Over two years, not half an hour," she says, pushing her fingers into his chest. "Get going."

"Yes ma'am. Did you want anything while I'm there?"

Maya taps her chin. "Hmm. Get me some of those little chocolates. You know, the ones in the fancy boxes?"

He smiles. "Sure."

There's a beat of silence. Maya is staring up at him still, waiting. He gets the urge to kiss her goodbye, to just give her a quick peck on the lips, and has to remind himself that the rules are back in place. He can't just go kissing her all willy nilly, especially if she isn't expecting it, and especially not where Trucy or Pearl might see them.

He heads to the door instead, waving at her as he goes. He'll only be gone for a bit, and when he gets back he's going to ask her out on a real date, without hesitation this time. He won't let anyone interrupt him again. Then he'll be able to kiss her whenever he wants, in front of whoever he wants. Assuming she says yes, of course.

The closest convenience store is within walking distance, so he starts down the sidewalk. Now that it's dark outside it's cooler, and people are still out and about enjoying their weekend without the sun blaring down on them. He's halfway to the store when he pats his back pocket and stops in the middle of the sidewalk.

No wallet. He sighs. Trucy, probably. She's always practicing her pick pocketing, and sometimes she forgets to give back the things she takes. Luckily she's never been the type of teenager to actually steal from him, but it can be inconvenient at times like this.

He could walk all the way back to the office, but there's a bank nearby. He has no debit card or I.D. without his wallet, but he's pretty sure his badge will suffice, plus they know him pretty well there. He's just glad he'd put his jacket on before leaving, or he wouldn't even have his badge with him.

He turns to head down a side street towards the bank. It'll only be a five minute detour so long as it's not busy, and at this time of the evening, it probably won't be.

When he makes it to the bank, there's a small line, but nothing that will take longer than a few minutes. He gets in line behind another man to wait. Not a minute later, he hears something that makes his blood run cold.

The high pitched sound of Molly Hott calling his name. He turns around to see her bouncing toward him. She's dressed more casually for the weekend, in a low cut shirt that makes it impossible to miss how her breasts bounce with each step. He can't even be sure she's wearing a bra at all, but he doesn't look long enough to figure it out.

"Phoeniiiiiiix!" she calls, waving as she comes to stand beside him. "Funny seeing you here!"

"Is it?" he asks, turning back to face the back of the man in front of him. "If I didn't know any better I'd think you were following me around."

She makes a face at him. "Of course not! Coincidence is a funny thing."

"Mmhm. Well, I'm only here for a few minutes to get some money out then I'll be on my way."

"Oh? Are you out with Maya tonight?"

"She's at home. Waiting for me," he points out.

"Ah. She didn't want to go for a walk with you?"

"We have friends over, so she's visiting with them. I just needed to come buy some more drinks, but I forgot my wallet."

"You didn't invite me?!" she says. "Aren't I a friend?"

He raises an eyebrow. "I mean, not really?"

She looks offended, and he's thankful that it finally makes her shut up. Except he's acutely aware of how closely she's still standing, more beside him arm to arm than behind him in the line. He lifts a hand to unpin his badge from his lapel. He's going to need the I.D. number from the back of it, and closes his fist around it.

"So I was thinking we should go out again, you and Maya and I," Molly says suddenly.

"Oh, what about Larry?" he asks, knowing full well she already broke up with him.

"Oh, uh, yeah, he and I didn't really work out."

Phoenix nods thoughtfully. "Interesting."

"What does that mean?" she asks.

He doesn't have time to answer her. He hears the front door bang open and sees Molly turn her head curiously to look. He follows her gaze and sees four men entering the bank. They're all wearing ski masks, which he finds odd. It rarely snows or gets very cold in L.A.

Molly turns back to him, her eyes wide, and it takes him a second to realize that something is very wrong.

"Everyone get on the ground now, please!" one of the men yells as they approach the counter. Phoenix has time to think about how funny it is hearing a criminal say please before he notices the glinting of the guns in their hands, and drops to the floor. He's the first to do so, and when the rest of the patrons of the bank finally snap out of their confusion, they all follow suit.

Molly drops down beside him. "Oh God, oh God, oh God," she keeps repeating.

"Ssh," he tries to quiet her. The last thing he needs is someone here getting hurt. He can hear the robbers demanding money from the clerk, telling her to open the vault and all the stereotypical things robbers in movies do. To their credit though, they sound organized and calm at the moment.

He starts to fiddle for his phone in his pants pocket, and Molly turns her head to look. "Stop it," she hisses. "If they see you—"

"They won't if you keep quiet!" he hisses right back. He manages to pull his phone from his pocket and press the Emergency Call button. There's no time to enter his passcode. He looks down, trying not to move too swiftly so as not to call attention to himself, and taps in 9-1-1.

He moves even more slowly, trying to bring the phone close enough to his mouth to whisper into it. He's so close he can hear the murmur of the 9-1-1 dispatcher asking what the emergency is.

He flinches when a gunshot goes off suddenly, and Molly screams. A few flecks of drywall from the ceiling fall onto the floor. He looks up to find one of the robbers pointing his gun in the air, but his eyes are staring down at Phoenix.

"Hang up the phone, sir, or the next one won't be going into the ceiling," he says.

Phoenix nods and pretends to tap the touchscreen. The robber seems satisfied and turns away. Molly shoots him a look, tears streaking down her face now. He says nothing, just hopes that the dispatcher is able to get the address somehow without him saying anything.

It's surprisingly quiet. What is only a few seconds in reality feels like hours to Phoenix. He can hear the clerk crying as she tries to tell them that she doesn't know how to open the vault, and one of the men is getting angry and starting to yell. Two others are still standing over the the people on the ground, making sure none of them are doing anything funny after the stunt he attempted to pull with his phone. Phoenix hopes no one tries anything the way he did, because he knows if someone gets shot now, he'll feel guilty for putting the robbers on edge in the first place. The last man is standing near the doors, keeping watch.

Molly is quietly sobbing beside him, and the man who'd shot into the ceiling takes a step towards them. "Shut her up," he says.

Phoenix looks up to make sure he's the one being addressed. "W—What?"

"I said, shut her up. I hate the sound of women crying. So annoying."

That only seems to make her sob harder, and the man lifts his gun. Phoenix shifts closer to her. "Molly, please stop."

She shakes her head. "I—I can't."

"Yes, you can. You're a prosecutor," he whispers hastily to her, close to her ear to make sure the two robbers don't find out about her occupation. "You've faced criminals like this before, so stop crying. You're tougher than that."

She takes a shaky breath, but she's having a hard time getting her emotions under control. The robber has had enough, and shoots off another round at the floor beside them. Molly screeches again, and Phoenix instinctively moves to cover her with his own body to protect her. He doesn't think about it, he just does it. He can feel her shaking beneath him, her hands are over her head and her face pressed into the floor.

He has the crazy thought that this probably isn't the way she imagined his first time on top of her… until another shot goes off, to the side of them yet again. This time one of the other robbers shouts.

"Stop shooting at them, you idiot!" he yells. "We're almost finished here and you're making things worse. If you accidentally kill someone again—"

"Shut up!" the other yells back, but thankfully he stops shooting and moves away from them.

"Ssh," Phoenix whispers. "Just stay still and quiet."

Molly nods, but he can hear her whispering something. He leans down closer to her. "He said 'again'," she murmurs.

She's right. How she managed to catch that in the midst of her fear when even he didn't notice is beyond him, but it reminds him of something. Their most recent court case. Multiple robberies, one where a murder had occurred. These are probably the same men; the real culprits behind the murder his client had been accused of.

He can hear two of the men arguing, then a sudden shout from the other. "Cops!" he yells. "Someone here called the cops!"

Phoenix has never been much of a religious man but he can't help starting to pray to whatever god is out there that the robbers decide to leave before taking out their anger on him. He's the only person who's had their phone out, and unless the clerk managed to push a panic button or something, they have to know that it was him.

He flinches—and Molly beneath of him cries out—when more gun shots go off. People start to scream and he can hear glass breaking, and someone shouts "oh god damn it!"

Somehow things are moving too fast and too slow all at once. He curls his arms around Molly's face and keeps his own head down, hoping beyond hope that as long as they stay down, they'll be okay.

The excitement eventually quiets down. He can hear police shouting and people crying and the sounds of crunching glass and sirens. He only gets off Molly when someone taps him on the shoulder, and he lifts his head to find a police officer staring at him.

"Are you injured?" he asks.

"No," Phoenix answers automatically. Molly sits up and wipes at her face. Her make up is a mess and her hair is all over, but she's alive. She pats herself down and shakes her head.

"I'm okay, too."

The officer holds out a hand to help her up as Phoenix climbs to his own feet and brushes himself off. He realizes that he still has his badge clenched tightly in his hand, and drops it into his pants pocket. He's too shaken up to try pinning it back to his jacket. "Head outside," the officer tells them. "This is a crime scene now, and an officer out there will want to talk to you to get a statement."

"Did you catch any of them?" Phoenix asks.

"I'm not at liberty to say."

"Please," Phoenix says. "We're the prosecution and defense teams on the murder case that took place last week. My client was proven not guilty so we were hoping the proper culprits were caught this time, assuming it was the same group."

The officer doesn't look happy, but he obliges. "We got them this time. All of them, but only two alive. The leader was apparently related to your client from last week. His younger brother, was what I heard."

That's surprising, but he supposes it makes sense. His client had almost taken the blame for his brother's crime, most likely all part of the brother's plan.

Phoenix breathes a sigh of relief. "Thank goodness you got them."

Molly, for once, stays quiet beside him.

The officer points them towards the door. "Like I said, go see an officer outside and give a statement. Don't leave until you've been given permission to do so."

They both nod and head to the exit together, still a little shaky from the ordeal, but both glad to be alive.

A/N: And so many of you seemed to think something good was going to happen in this chapter between Phoenix and Maya. :P