Wrightworth Oneshots

Complicated

The doorbell rang, making Phoenix jump. He knew it was just Miles, but his heart was pounding.
They'd been hanging out outside of work a lot more lately; Miles had even come to a few of Trucy's magic shows.
But even though they'd become rather comfortable around each other, Phoenix still got nervous. Especially now that Miles was becoming a bit of a father figure for Trucy (yes, another one. This girl could never have enough dads) which was something both Phoenix and Miles had been wildly unprepared for. It created a weird tension between them, both of them scared the other one would be uncomfortable with the situation.

Phoenix got up and opened the door.
"Hi," Miles greeted him. Even now, Phoenix still got startled by how casual he was. In the courtroom, Miles would always wear his expensive suit with that frilly cravat, but when they hung out, it was chinos and a polo shirt. He looked like a rich dad. Now that Phoenix thought about it, in a way, he was a rich dad.
He also spoke a lot more casually outside of work. Phoenix still remembered a time when Miles had kept up that put-together preppy facade in front of him. But by now, Phoenix had seen the real Miles. Still, it took some getting used to.

"Hi, Miles," Phoenix replied and let him in.

Miles looked around. "Is Trucy here? I brought her something." He was holding a small package.

Phoenix shrugged. "She dragged Apollo along to see a movie, but she should be back pretty soon. You can just put it over there." He pointed at the coffee table.

"Speaking of movies," Miles started while setting down the present, "there's a new one on Netflix that I think you'd like."

"Say no more," Phoenix replied, already reaching for the remote and plopping down on the sofa. Miles sat next to him, sinking back into the soft cushions.
"I bet it's this one," Phoenix guessed, selecting a movie that Netflix was recommending to him. "I already saw that it came out yesterday, but I wanted to wait because I was sure you'd wanna watch it with me."

Miles nodded. "That's the one," he confirmed, smirking slightly. "You know me too well," he joked.

"Not really." Phoenix laughed. "I just know that you know me too well."
Not having pressed 'play' yet, he got up. "Popcorn? Chips? Something to drink?"

Miles thought for a second. "Uh, popcorn sounds good. And water is fine, thanks."

While Phoenix was in the kitchen making popcorn, Miles closed his eyes and let his head fall back against the sofa. It was still hard for him to completely relax around other people. Sometimes, he almost had to force himself to be more casual, as if to tell his brain that 'it's fine, you can relax and be comfortable.' He blamed his strict upbringing after his father's death for his inability to let his guard down. But he was determined because these people were worth it; this family was worth it.

He heard the microwave ding. Seconds later, Phoenix reappeared with a bowl of popcorn and a glass of water. He set both down on the coffee table in front of Miles and sat back down.

As they started the movie, Miles' brain kept switching between "be really damn careful not to touch his hand when you both reach for the popcorn, we don't want this to get weird" and "relax, it's only weird if you make it weird."
But eventually, Miles forced himself to act as natural and comfortable as possible. If I don't make it weird, it won't be weird.

Miles yawned. It had been a long day. Even though the movie had only started, he was trying really hard not to doze off. After fighting it for a few minutes, he eventually gave up and let his head sink. After what must have been a few minutes, Phoenix's voice woke him.

"Miles?" He chuckled. "Did you fall asleep?"
Miles' eyes flew open. It took him a few seconds to realize his head was fully resting on Phoenix's shoulder. He was mortified. To hell with 'don't make it weird.' Phoenix was probably not comfortable with this.
"Miles?"
Miles couldn't tell by Phoenix's reaction whether it bothered him. He panicked, sat up straight, muttered "I gotta go," got up and stormed out, almost running into Trucy, who was just coming home.

Phoenix sat on the sofa, dumbfounded.

Trucy shook her head.
"What the hell was that about?"

"I have no idea."

~~~

A few days had passed when the doorbell startled Phoenix again. This time, he wasn't expecting anyone.

Miles hadn't answered his calls or texts ever since that weird moment. By now, with Trucy's help, Phoenix had managed to piece together why Miles had acted so weird.
And the implied possibility of Miles returning his feelings made his behavior even more frustrating.

Now, every time the doorbell rang, Phoenix's heart raced with a hopeful sting. Maybe this time...
He shook his head.

He opened the door and couldn't believe his eyes.
It was Miles.
But not the real Miles. Not the Miles he'd grown to know and love.
It was the serious, put-together, expensive-suit-and-cravat Miles that he'd never wanted to see again out of the courtroom.
It felt wrong.
Almost like an insult.
It hurt.

"Mi-"

"Wright," Miles greeted him, stone-faced.

Ouch. Phoenix never would have imagined it would hurt this much to hear Miles call him by his last name again.

"What the hell, Miles?" Phoenix threw his hands up. "You don't answer my calls, you don't answer my texts, and now you just... show up? You gotta help me out here, I don't understand what's going on."

"May I come in?"
Miles' polite tone sounded so fake. So forced.

Phoenix stepped back and let him in.
He crossed his arms. "So?"

Miles lowered his gaze to the floor.
"I came to apologize."

Phoenix raised an eyebrow but decided to let Miles speak.

"I believe I... I believe I crossed a line. Trying to squeeze myself into that little family of yours, pretending... pretending to belong somewhere I clearly don't... I- I think we should stop-"

He was interrupted by Phoenix grabbing his shoulders and shoving him against the door. Air escaped his lungs when his back hit the wood.

Phoenix couldn't listen to this self-pity anymore. Every word felt like a slap in the face. I'm gonna show him where he belongs, he thought.

Without hesitation, he leaned in and kissed Miles, still pressing him against the door.
The kiss was hard and aggressive and desperate, filled with emotions that Phoenix couldn't name.

Miles let out a confused noise before giving in, softening under Phoenix's touch.

"Miles," Phoenix sighed between kisses, "why do you always have to make things so complicated?"

He pulled off Miles' expensive jacket and cast it aside carelessly. Then he did the same with the frilly cravat.

He stopped to look him in the eyes, one hand on either side of his face.
"Look at me. You already are a part of this family. This is where you belong. So stop pretending to be someone you're not. We love you the way you are, I love you the way you are, Miles. What will it take to get that through that thick head of yours?"

"This," Miles sighed. "This is what it took." He let himself fall forward into Phoenix's embrace, wrapping his arms around him. "I'm sorry."

Phoenix chuckled and pulled away. "Don't apologize."

"But Ive been a total-"

"Shhh...", Phoenix interrupted him.
He gently placed his finger under Miles' chin and kissed him softly. "Just don't scare me like that ever again."