"Well guys, it's taken several hours, but we've finally poured syrup over the world's biggest pancake. Now let's dig in!" I say, hungry and excited.

"Yay…" Nick says, exhausted.

"Woo hoo!" Pearl cheers, then says "But Mystic Maya, I can't eat pancakes without a knife and fork."

I turn to Detective Gumshoe. "It was your job to get the forks, where are they?"

"Oh, was that my job? I thought you said detective Dumbshoe had to get the stuff. Although Gumshoe would make more sense…" The detective sighs and shakes his head. Everybody groans.

All that work…and we can't even eat it!?

"NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!"

---

March 9th, 2019

Wright & Co Law Offices

8:23 AM

Maya

---

NOOOO-oh. It was a stupid nightmare. Never mind. That pancake was so close I could smell it. In fact, I still smell it. Wait a minute…

I hop out of my bed and head to the kitchen, where on the table there's stack of pancakes, some orange juice, and some flowers.

"Oh, hey Maya." Nick says from the kitchen, cooking more pancakes.

"Hey. Did you make all of this for me?" I ask, sitting down at the table.

"Well yeah. I figured it would be a nice thing to do" Nick answers as sits down at the table.

"Wow! I was just dreaming about pancakes, and then I wake up and find this! It's like you can read my mind!"

"You always like pancakes for breakfast on Saturdays. Well, that or burgers, but I figured it would be best if we had pancakes, so I made these."

I smile at Nick. He knows me so well! I can't believe he went through all the trouble though. I mean, he got me flowers too! What's up with him today?

"Well, thanks Nick. But what are the flowers for? Don't get me wrong, I love them, but it's just so…random."

"Well, I felt bad for going on a date and not telling you about it beforehand, especially since we usually hang out on Fridays. I didn't mean to blow you off-"

"You didn't blow me off, you just had… prior engagements."

"Either way, I'm going to make it up to you. Today, we'll do whatever you want to do." Nick says.

"Anything?"

Nick thinks for a minute. Letting me do anything in the past didn't always end up very well. "Anything." He confirms. A light clicks on in my head.

"Well, since you left me so you could go on a date, I think it's only fair that you take me out on a date tonight." I say, making up my mind.

"Oh…ok…Alright then." Nick says, sounding a bit timid.

"Why Nick, you're not nervous are you? Don't tell me that the great Phoenix Wright is afraid of one date with his pretty little assistant." I tease.

"N-no! I…I was just wondering where we should go. For burgers, I guess?"

"No, no. We go for burgers all the time. Tonight's got to be special."

"Then where are we going?" Nick asks.

"Oh, you'll see. I've got it all planned out..."

---

6:04 PM

Phoenix

---

"Paul's Pizza Parlor? This is your idea of 'classy'?"

"Hey! There's nothing wrong with this place! They've got good food, cool chairs, and they've got TVs! If they put in a couch, I could totally live here." Maya says, pointing to the TVs around the room. Unsurprisingly, the Diamond Samurai is on.

"Hey, whatever you say." I tell her, laughing.

"It's not funny! And besides, this place is very important to me. Right after my sis won her first case, some college murder trial, I think," I wince at the mention of that case I was involved in, but Maya doesn't seem to notice. Mia probably never even told her I was the defendant. "I came down to visit her, and we went out for pizza here. The TV's were playing 'Samurai Summer', the best Samurai movie ever, and I totally got hooked. And I've been in love with the Samurais ever since."

"So what you're telling me is that this place is the reason you're obsessed with the Samurai series?"

"Uh huh." Maya turns her attention back to the nearest TV.

"Note to self, leave very small tip." I mutter, just loud enough so that Maya can hear it.

I notice that Maya's become very quiet, and she's looking down at her sandals. "Is something wrong?" I ask.

"Uh…well I just realized it's my first date." Maya admits shyly.

"Seriously?? I figured a girl like you would get tons of dates."

"Well, there aren't many guys in Kurain, and most of them are jerks, so I never had the chance. In fact, you're my first boyfriend. I mean, boy that is a friend." Maya stutters with her words, unsure of how to phrase them correctly. She looks away shyly, trying to hide her embarrassment and failing. I find it very cute, to be honest.

"Well for me, this date is definitely going a lot better than my last one." I tell her, trying to calm her down.

"Really? Why?" Maya asks anxiously.

"Well for starters, it's been 5 minutes and you haven't left," I say, causing Maya to laugh, "And you're prettier too. Plus we have a lot more in common."

Maya blushes. "Well, my date's not so bad himself. He's pretty handsome, and he's paying for the food."

Boy, doesn't take much to please Maya, I think to myself, just pay for the food and we'll get along fine. I smile anyways. It looks like things are finally beginning to work out with us.

---

1 Hour Later…

"And so as the school bus with the private school girls drives by, this look shows up on Larry's face, the one that shows up whenever he gets an idea," I tell Maya as I try to remember the details.

"Oh god." She says, laughing and taking the last slice of pizza.

"Yeah, 'Oh god' is right. Anyways, so Larry turns to me and says 'Hey Nick, let's skip school tomorrow and get into the all girl's school!' Now of course, there's no way I'm going to go with Larry's plans after all he's put me through, so I tell him 'Forget it Larry, I've got a test tomorrow.' Now, I figured this was just one of Larry's dumb ideas that he would forget about by the end of the day, but when I went to the bus stop the next morning, Larry had gone to the costume girl to get a prep girl uniform, and was dressed up as a girl."

"No way!" Maya gasps, her eyes wide.

"Seriously!"

"You totally should've gotten a picture."

"No need, the image has been forever burned into my skull."

"That bad, huh?"

"Yes. So Larry actually hopped on the private school bus, and went to the all girl's school. That might have been the stupidest thing Larry did in high school."

"Did he actually get into the school?"

"Well, for a bit. Apparently his neighbor was the principal of the school, and when she was walking in the halls she recognized Larry and sent him home."
"How do you not know that your neighbor is principal of the school you're breaking into!?" Maya's having a fit of giggles now.

"It is Larry Butz we're talking about. So, wanna get going?"

"Sure."

I pay the bill, and then Maya and I leave the pizza parlor. All in all, it was a pretty awesome date. I still haven't told her that I love her yet, but I'm going to soon. As we walk, I stretch my arm over and hold her hand. She looks up at me, but neither of us says anything. We arrive in front of the office, and I look search around for the keys in my pocket.

"This was really nice, Nick. Maybe… we should do it again."

I kiss Maya on the cheek. "It would be my pleasure." I start to open the door when Maya grabs me and presses me up against the door.

"Do you like me or not?" she demands.

"Uh, what?"

"I want to know if you're interested in me! Sometimes you act like you are, like tonight, but then other times you do stuff like go out with other girls, and I'm not sure what I'm supposed to think! Are you in love with me or not?" Maya repeats.

Ok, correction: You will never have a better chance to tell her than now.

But instead, I don't tell her yes. Instead, I lean in and kiss her passionately. After all the anticipation that I've built up waiting for this moment, and after all the times I've fantasized about kissing Maya, actually kissing her is a thousand times better than I had ever imagined.

"I love you, Maya."

Maya kisses me back. "Good, because if you didn't you'd make a poor, innocent girl cry."

"What do you mean innocent? You pinned me up against the wall!"

"That just makes you a wimp." She says, kissing me again.

"Well, maybe my love for you makes me weak." I say, trying to sound romantic.

"…Nick, that's probably the corniest thing you ever said. Let's go inside, I think the cold is making you senile. I hear that happens to people as they get older."

"I'm not old!" I protest as I open the door and go inside. Maya flops onto the couch, and I sit down beside her.

"It's OK Nick, I love you anyways."

"But I-"

Maya cuts me off with yet another kiss. I can really get used to this. My arms find their way around her waist, and I pull her in, deciding there are some things more important then trying to prove you're not a senile old man.

"You're a good kisser, Nick."

"Uh, thanks. You're not bad yourself." That's an understatement. She's a very good kisser.

"I guess I'm a quick learner. So, we're dating now, right?"

"Yeah, I'd say so."

"Well, there's this Steel Samurai convention tomorrow, and I was thinking it would be great if we went as a couple."

Maya, I'm really not in the mood for another-"

Running with her luck, Maya kisses me again, intent on making me go.

"No amount of kissing is going to make me-"

Maya kisses me again. Did I mention that she's a really good kisser? Ah, what the heck. It's just one day, and I get to spend it with Maya. What do I have to lose?

"Fine, I'll take you to the convention." I reluctantly give in.

"Woo hoo! You're the best, Nick!" Maya declares, squeezing me tightly.

"Well, I guess I am pretty awesome…" I say sheepishly.

"Oh, we're going to have to get you a costume as well. I'm thinking you'd look great cosplaying the Funky Samurai."

"Wait, wait, wait. You mean the samurai with the multicolored afro?"

"Yeah, and the giant glasses!"

"…OBJECTION!"