Elevator Music

'45.. . . . .46. . . . .47. . . . .47. . . .'

Phoenix had been lying wide awake in his bed, spending the last couple hours counting ceiling tiles after running out of sheep. Now, he was squinting at the last tile he had counted, trying unconsciously to pick out the strongest features of his biggest rival from the textures of the tile.

"Argh!" He huffed to no one in particular as he rolled over on his side. His alarm clock mocked him as the red neon numbers seemed to burn the time into his retinas.

3:27

"Dammit!" The silent curse almost seemed to echo in the empty silence of his small dark room. "It's too early to get up and get dressed, but I still can't sleep."

He groaned and pulled his dark blue comforter up over his head. 'I have to be at court tomor- well, at this point today, by ten. Not only am I going to be sleep deprived, but I'm also going up against him!' He rubbed his eyes and the handsome pale face appeared as if summoned.

Phoenix let out a very long, tired breath and heaved himself out of the confines of his bed. He crept slowly out of his room, trying not to wake the sleeping Maya and Pearls in the next room, and turned the coffee maker on.

"I'm going to need the whole pot today." He sighed.

'What a day to not find a parking space near the courthouse!'

An irritated Miles glanced at his watch for the third time since exiting his vehicle. Never in his career had he been late for a trial, and he intended to keep his record. He slowed to a brisk walk as he approached the steps leading up to the ornate doors of the courthouse. As he ascended the stairs, he fought the urge to break into a sprint. Peering at his watch, he threw open the heavy door and entered the large foyer. Miles was across the main lobby before the doors even shut.

However, his forward progress was halted when he read the sign that cautioned him that the stairs were closed due to remodeling. Miles' normally composed face broke into one of pure horror as a thin sheen of sweat formed on his brow.

'What?' He thought to himself. 'That means that I have to use that accursed machine!' He slowly turned to face his greatest nemesis, the elevator. The tall steel doors made Miles's reflection look like a fun house mirror; his face was twisted in fear. He swallowed hard. The buttons seem to be blinking, as if mocking him. He brushed his bangs out of his face and drew in a deep breath, willing his being to calm down.

Phoenix opened his eyes slowly and took in his surroundings, feeling a bit disorientated.

'Oh yeah, I came to the courthouse early because I couldn't sleep.' He sat up and rubbed the kinks and knots out of his shoulders as best he could. Then, stood and stretched, feeling and hearing his joints pop and crack.

'I suppose I should just go to the courtroom now.' He thought as he bent to grab his briefcase. He winced as his back complained at the awkward angle he put himself in. 'I guess I'll finally see what it's like to be there on time.'

As Phoenix turned towards the elevator, he took a double take. A certain "Demon Prosecutor" was standing in front of the elevator, fidgeting nervously with his cravat.

'I would have to run into him before the trial,' Phoenix cocked his head in curiosity and rubbed his chin. 'Wait...What's he doing? I thought that Miles was deathly afraid of elevators.'

"Hey Edgeworth!" Phoenix said aloud as he walked up behind Miles.

"Ph- ah- Wright?" Miles started as he turned to face the dark-haired man. He cleared his throat to regain his composure.

"Why are you taking the elevator? I thought you didn't like them. " Phoenix commented as a small grin crossed his lips. He scratched his neck sheepishly.

"If you absolutely must know, the stairs are being renovated and so I am unable to use them." Miles shifted nervously.

"Oh, I see," The prosecutors nervousness was starting to get to Phoenix and he reached out to push the button marked up. He thought he heard Miles' breath quicken and tried to ease the tension with small talk. "Say, aren't you usually here an hour earlier than court starts?"

"Yes, Wright, I usually am." The silver-haired man said shortly. Then turned narrowed gray eyes at the man standing next to him. "I believe the real question should be directed towards you. Why are you here on time?"

"Well you see," Phoenix scratched the back of his neck again. "I kind of couldn't sleep so I just came in early." Miles kept his steady gaze on the other as the elevator dinged it's arrival to their floor. The doors opened to a very chatty pair of women and a bored man that walked out of the elevator. Miles nodded briefly to the people and hesitated as Phoenix stepped in. He held his breath as he walked over the threshold of the elevator.

'God, Miles looks like he's going to faint any second now. I wish there was something I could do to help him. I would love to reach out and grab hold of his rigid body. Just hold onto him, let him know that he's not alone in this world. . .' Phoenix shook his head and glanced at Miles to check to make sure he really wasn't going to faint before the doors even closed. "Um. . . Are you sure you're gonna be okay? You look kind of pale, well more so than normal."

Miles ignored the question as he fought the extreme urge to fall to the floor and roll into the fetal position. 'It's only a few floors, it's only a few floors, it's only a few floors.' Miles continued chanting this to himself. He was concentrating so hard that he didn't even notice that he had started to chant out loud.

"Miles calm down. It's going be fine." Phoenix forgot about the names they had agreed to use in public. He gently grasped Miles forearms and at that moment the doors closed and the elevator began it's slow accent upward. Miles' eyes grew wide and his chest began to heave as he breathed faster.

"Miles, look at me," Phoenix said sternly as he caught Miles' fearful gaze. "Now, just keep looking at me, keep your concen-"

Suddenly, the elevator made a jerky movement and stopped somewhere between the first and second floor. The lights went out and threw the pair into complete darkness before the emergency back-up light came on. Phoenix had let go of Miles in the darkness and now with the lights on he could see that Miles had given into his instinct. Phoenix knelt beside his friend and for the first time since they were kids, he was witnessing the human side of Miles Edgeworth.

"M-Miles?" The defense attorney rubbed the others back gently. Miles rocked a couple times, then, out of the blue wrapped his arms around Phoenix. The dark haired man was so taken by surprise that he was knocked on his behind.

"Miles! Don't worry, I'm sure that someone will come and get us out soon. Just hold on." Phoenix had never been hugged, or hugged, the adult Miles and he couldn't help but blush at some of the thoughts that were running rampart in his brain. 'Who knew that he was so muscled under this pink suit? He must work out. . . I wonder what he looks like with out his- No!' Phoenix shook his head yet again to stop his thoughts from going where he knew they were heading for.

'I wish I wasn't afraid! I wish I was- . . . wait. . . . I actually felt a little bit calmer when Phoenix was talking.' Miles moved his head to look up at Phoenix's compassionate face. He swallowed hard. "Pho-enix . . . just keep talking."

Phoenix cocked his head in confusion.

"Miles-" 'Wait did he just say my first name?' "I don't . . . I don't know what to say. Um. . . .I guess that we could talk about the case?" Miles shook his head. "Alright. . . oh remember that song we use to sing when we were kids? Oh, how did it go?" Phoenix cleared his throat and began to sing.

'Who's in the forest strolling?

The birds and the bees sing Momiji.

The frogs in the pond are calling:

Momiji, yes it's true!'

'He would remember something so trivial. Maybe that's why I care about him so much. . .If only he felt the same. . .' Miles looked up at Phoenix feeling much more relaxed and smiled slightly, but for him it was out of the ordinary. Miles' body must have been acting on it's own as his hand reached out to stroke Phoenix's cheek. Phoenix's eyes widened at the soft touch from the man that he thought could never return his feelings.

Just as Miles was realizing what he was doing and took his hand away, Phoenix leaned in towards Miles. Their lips met, but Miles was so surprised that he didn't respond at all. Phoenix quickly pulled away from Miles' lips and blushed furiously.

"I am so sorry Miles! I guess I just saw what I wanted to see. . ." He raised his hand to cover his face in shame. "It's just that I've had a crush on you for most of my childhood and then the first time I saw you in court. . . you had grown so much and you were so handsome. I guess that was when I . . . fell in love." Phoenix was choking back sobs by the end of his impromptu declaration of adoration. 'I can't let him see me cry. . . Not after I just told him that I love him.' Phoenix's arms fell to his sides and began to get up.

'Wait! Did Phoenix just kiss me and then profess his love?' Miles almost jumped on Phoenix. He wrapped his arms around Phoenix's neck and kissed him passionately. 'I can't believe it! I'm in an elevator making out with Phoenix. . . Either this is a nightmare or the best day of my life.'

Phoenix hesitated, but only for a second as he pushed his tongue against Miles' lips demanding access.

Miles parted his lips to let Phoenix in as he softly placed his hands on both sides of the dark-haired mans face. Phoenix in the meantime was making quick work of Miles' jacket as he unbuttoned it and snaked his hands underneath, feeling the heat emanating from the others body through his shirt. He pulled Miles closer and the prosecutor hummed his approval. He dropped his arms to the front of Phoenix's jacket and hastily unbuttoned it. He ran his hands up the others back and down his sides as Phoenix shivered. With both of their coats laying on the floor, Miles tugged on Phoenix's shirt and found the warm skin underneath. The defense broke the kiss to move to the now-exposed skin of Miles' neck and the other gasped at the new sensation. Not wanting to loose the tingling sensation, Miles stepped back hesitantly and practically ripped the others shirt off. Phoenix made a noise of surprise and looked wide-eyed at Miles as he ran a hand over the defense's taut stomach. He noted that he was a couple of shades paler than his friend.

"You. . .you have such a beautiful body." Miles realized what he said and instantly grew a dark shade of red. He started to turn his head, but the other took his chin and turned him back. He captured Miles' lips in small butterfly kisses.

Suddenly, the elevator gave a violent jerk, and the lights flashed a couple times and came on.

Miles and Phoenix stared at each other in absolute horror.

"Shit! We only have a few seconds to get our cloths back on!" Phoenix exclaimed as he bent to grab their discarded jackets. Miles shakily retied his cravat and re-buttoned his shirt. He accepted his jacket from Phoenix and slipped it on over his shoulders. Miles helped Phoenix with his shirt, but to his horror, found that he had actually taken one of the visible buttons off.

"Oh, Phoenix, I'm sorry about your shirt. Here, maybe your tie will help to cover it?" The prosecutor started to adjust the others tie as the bell signaled their arrival at their destined floor. Phoenix quickly ran a hand through his own hair, trying to recover the spikes as best he could.

The doors parted to a small crowd of lawyers and business people who paused to take in the sight of the pair of disheveled men who were supposed enemies of the court. Miles hand froze momentarily on the defenses tie as a collective mumble came over the crowd . Miles straightened up and grabbed Phoenix's shoulder and hurriedly lead him out of the throng of people towards the bathroom to get cleaned up before they entered the courtroom.

"I'm sorry about that event back there. I didn't mean to start any gossip-" Phoenix began, but Miles silenced him by kissing him right there in the mens restroom on the fourth floor of the courthouse.

"Never apologize for something that should have happened a long time ago." Miles smirked as he pulled away and finished gathering himself. "We are going to have to finish this tonight after I beat you in court." He pecked Phoenix on the cheek and cleared his throat.

"I will see you there, Wright." Then turned haughtily on his heal as Phoenix watched him leave with his mouth agape and frozen in shock in the restroom.

"I should come to court on time more often."