Chapter Seven

She honestly had not missed school.

Sitting at her usual spot, in the back, Dahlia mindlessly twirled a lock of hair around her finger. The habit had grown increasingly prominent as of late, but she didn't mind. It didn't do damage to her hair. Letting a soft sigh leave her lips, she doodled on the cover of her notebook. It was random things, mostly: a butterfly, the sun in the corner, a flower... and quite possibly Iris being be-headed. She snickered to herself, flipping the cover around to the back so no one could see it. That'd be annoying.

So far, everything was fine again. Iris had gone back to the Temple (for the time being, because Dahlia had no doubt she'd need her twin again in the future) and Phoenix and Dahlia were still dating. She was still in the clear with Hannah, and Jordan seemed to have become a close friend. Doug was nowhere to be found, and Max had called up a few times speaking about meeting up if he's in town. But there was still no blue-glass bottle necklace in Dahlia's hand yet.

That was something she needed to work on, and quickly.

The bell rung, and Dahlia, overjoyed at the prospect of getting back to her apartment for the rest of the evening, hurriedly stuffed her books in her bag. She was just about to sling the bag over her shoulder when someone tapped her shoulder, stopping her. Resisting the urge to sneer, she turned, plastering a smile on her face. "Yes?"

"I came to return the book you let me borrow," the male who'd tapped her said politely, passing her a book she didn't recognize. "I know I meant to return it yesterday, but I didn't manage to finish it until this morning."

"That's... perfectly fine." She smiled and placed the book in her bag, alongside others. "I hoped you enjoyed."

"I did, exactly like you said." Pushing his blonde fringe from his eyes, the man nodded. "And anytime you'd like to meet up to discuss it is perfectly fine. I can't thank you enough for helping me."

Clearing her throat, Dahlia smiled again. "Oh, it's no problem! I'll tell you tomorrow if I think of a good time, alright?"

"Alright." He smiled at her again. "Goodbye, Dahlia."

"Bye." She turned on her heel without another word and stormed off towards her apartment. Taking the phone forcefully from her bag, she dialed Iris' number and pressed it to her ear, stomping her foot on the ground. She answered after a few rings.

"Hi, Dahlia! How's everything been?" her cheery voice asked.

"Oh, just fine," Dahlia answered blandly, rolling her eyes. "I just have a question for you."

"Okay, what is it?"

"Who's the man who borrowed the book from you?" She ran her fingers over the worn cover of the novel, trying to remember if she knew the book. "I don't seem to remember him from any classes..."

Iris giggled. "That's because you didn't pay attention to the people in the classes. That was Kristoph Gavin! I only started talking to him because we held the same interest in crime - or at least, you do. We became friends, I guess. About a week before you returned he asked to borrow my book, and I let him. He also asked if I could help him write the assessment on it... Oh, I forgot to tell you that."

"Forgot to tell me?" Dahlia muttered. "I don't want to have to go over some book I don't even know with him!"

"You haven't read The Great Gatsby?" Iris sounded shocked. "And you're a literature student-"

"Oh." Picking up the novel again, Dahlia could now see that the two previously thought raindrops were two eyes, and she could faintly see the name. "The book was in such horrible condition that I didn't notice- but that's not the point. Do I have to go help him? It's such a simple book."

"But I promised, Dahlia!" Iris said. "You can't back out of that!"

"Why must you make my life so difficult?" Without saying goodbye, Dahlia closed the phone and tossed it on the couch. She huffed, placing the novel next to it as well, and decided she'd get the assessment over and done with. They'd go tomorrow, then.

Crossing her ankles, Dahlia flipped through a few pages in the book. Most were dog-eared, and some were ripped, but she could still see the text, which was all that mattered. "So, let's see..." Honestly, the movie was coming out in a month... couldn't he just wait until then? Sighing, Dahlia brushed her hair from her shoulder. "I'd say you should do the essay on Daisy."

Kristoph looked at her. "And why's that?"

"She's the most easily confused character," Dahlia pointed out, feeling annoyed. "Most people think she's automatically in love with Gatsby, when in reality, she just wants money. She has the choice to stay with him, but instead she leaves with Tom!" Feeling slightly flustered, Dahlia's cheeks lit up. "I... It just bothers me that so many people don't see this."

Kristoph laughed, much to her dismay. "I see your point. I didn't think of it that way."

"You were one of the ones to see Daisy as some pure, innocent girl who was madly in love with Gatsby?" Dahlia chuckled, and inwardly cursed herself. Don't be so soft, idiot! Ever since she'd starting talking to Phoenix on a daily basis, she had been... laughing openly a lot more than she had before. And it killed her to know that, without meaning to, that stupid boy was changing her.

But anyways, she was getting off topic.

Scribbling some notes down, Kristoph nodded at her while writing. "So, how've you been?"

"Well, I suppose," she replied, leaning her chin on her hands. "And yourself?"

"Just fine." He wrote down some more and then put his pencil away, pushing the papers in front of him into his bag. Dahlia did the same, pocketing her book and swiftly standing. "And, Dahlia, what I said before... I still think you'd make an excellent lawyer."

Laughing, Dahlia shrugged. "I... don't know. I think the odds of that happening are the odds of you forging evidence or something."

Kristoph shook his head. "I highly doubt that."

"Think what you will," Dahlia told him, smiling tightly, "but I'll see you in class tomorrow. Good luck on your essay."

"Thank you."

Dahlia was frustrated. In all her life, she could never remember a moment of being purely happy. She'd come close to it - when she successfully shipped Iris off to the Temple, when she got the diamond from her father, when she got rid of Terry Fawles... There were so many moments when she had come close to happiness, but there had never been a moment when she was truly happy.

This would mean she hadn't actually experienced it, right?

Breathing in, she turned on her side. She concluded that she must have mixed up her emotions earlier, and she had not been happy. She had been... laughing, yes... but the warm, fuzzy feeling in the pit of her stomach could not be happiness. Nope. Dahlia Hawthorne would not be experiencing happiness. Not when it involved Phoenix Wright. Especially not then.

But... then what was it? What was she feeling?

It started off horribly. Receiving the phone call had ruined her whole day. She had decided that she'd spend her day curled up, making phone calls to see how fast she could get out of the state once the term ended. In the middle of talking to Max about changing her identity (he could do things like that, as he'd just recently revealed to her) she got another call, and switched over.

"Hello?" she asked, confused.

"Dollie!" Phoenix's annoying voice rang through, making her wince. "Wanna hang out?"

She sighed. "I... I don't really know, Ph- Feenie." Iris' stupid nicknames made everything ten times worse. "I have homework, and that essay for class to finish..."

"We haven't seen each other in forever," he whined, making her roll her eyes. "Just a short visit! I just want to take a walk through that new park they just built. It'll be quick, I promise. Please?"

Rubbing her fingers on the table, she shook her head. "Fine. Just a quick walk though."

"Alright! I'll be there in a few!" He hung up and Dahlia groaned.

Why did I say yes?

After brushing her hair and pulling a cardigan around her shoulders, Dahlia smoothed her skirt and waited for Phoenix to arrive. Once he did, she gave him a short smile, telling him they better get going before it got too dark. He took her hand as soon as they started down the sidewalk, and for once, Dahlia didn't immediately go to wrench her hand free. And then the realization of that made her a bit sick.

"So, how's school been?" Phoenix questioned. "You've been awfully busy."

"Hard," Dahlia told him, nodding. "Pretty hard. I've been studying a lot... and helping other people," she added, remembering her few other visits with Kristoph.

"Sounds tough," he said. "You must be tired."

"Like you wouldn't believe."

By the time they made it to the park, Dahlia was feeling worn out. One could only handle Phoenix Wright for so long... or maybe Dahlia just didn't feel up to talking to people. "This park... is new," Dahlia commented, glancing around the pretty trees and the swing set that had been overtaken by small children. Dahlia didn't care much for children - they annoyed her to no end, even more so than older people.

The two opted to take a walk around the park, through the newly planted cluster of trees. Dahlia wanted this "date" to end, but the minutes seemed to tick on.

"This is our thirteenth date," Phoenix proclaimed proudly, suddenly.

"You've been keeping count?" Dahlia asked, shocked, raising an eyebrow.

"Yeah." He grinned at her, looking slightly embarrassed. "And I think I really like you-" In one quick motion, he had slipped, falling on his back on the ground. Dahlia jumped, surprised, and then started to laugh, eyes fluttering shut and arms wrapping around her stomach. The noise was quite pleasant, and even Phoenix laughed along with her.

As she was profusely giggling, she reached out a hand, allowing him to take it so she could help him up. A tear had rolled down her cheek, and her mouth was starting to become sore. How long had it been since I've laughed like this? Trying to keep herself from bending over, Dahlia attempted to stifle her laughter.

"I'm glad you find my pain funny," Phoenix told her, but he was laughing too.

"I-I'm sorry," she said between giggles, shaking her head, "but your face-"

Smiling at her, he shrugged. "I know, I know. Priceless, huh?"

"Yes!"

And that was the end of her laughter. She slipped back into her facade, lips pressed tightly together. Now, with the mirth gone, she felt hollow... sick. While she was laughing, she had distinctly noticed the horrible feeling that had lodged itself into the pit of her stomach. It felt like butterflies, and it had been warm and- She didn't know how to describe it.

Back at her apartment now, she mulled over the scene and sighed.

He was changing her, damn it!

Clenching her fists, Dahlia threw a pillow against her face and screamed. She screamed until her voice faded to nothing more than a scratchy whisper, and tossed the pillow on the floor. Breathing deeply, Dahlia rubbed her hands across her cheeks and shook her head. No one changed Dahlia Hawthorne and got away with it!

Sinking back into her bed, she fell asleep... and dreamed of Phoenix.

"Dahlia, I don't think-"

"No, no!" She sounded excited now, rising up on the edge of her seat. Her chin was being held in the palm of her hand, and her brown eyes were alight with amusement. "Is it true? Could you actually change my identity if I wanted you to?"

"I... I could." Max cleared his throat. "But it comes with a price, Dahlia-"

"I don't care." Her lips curled into a grin. "I want my identity changed as soon as possible, please. Right away."

"Dahlia, I... I don't know-"

"Oh, please!" she whimpered. "I'll do anything. I'll... I'll finally go out with you, like you've been asking for so long."

Silence. "...Will you?"

"Yes," she replied, slightly annoyed. "I will."

"Then it's done." He grinned. "Say goodbye to Dahlia Hawthorne."

Firstly, you guys have such great suggestions! As you can see, most of them have been put into use in this chapter! Kristoph's in here, and so is Max... And there was foreshadowing in here... quite a lot!

And yes, the trial with Phoenix/Doug/Dahlia/Mia will still be happening... it has to, for Phoenix to become a defense attorney. But it'll be changed... greatly, I think. So look forward to that!

I also really, really wanna write a story about Vera Misham... and Apollo.

Would anyone be interested in that?

-Emilie