Rising Uncertainty

Don't Lie

"I haven't-"

"Don't lie to me Phoenix! Please! Ms. Fey called asking where you had gone and you just told me she made you come here. Not to mention your body language while you were scrambling for an excuse! I'm a prosecutor, not an idiot." Miles crosses his arms and glared at him, hoping Phoenix would just crack and tell him.

"You don't understand!" Phoenix finally said. "I can't tell you what happened!"

"And why not?" Miles questioned. He was sick and tired of this. "Am I not important enough to at least tell that you're not coming?"

Phoenix didn't know how to respond. He had really hurt Miles by not showing up. He sighed quietly and hung his head.

"You are so important, Miles. So many things are going on and I'm so confused and stressed. I'm sorry that I skipped and I'm sorry that I lied," Phoenix said quietly. "I can't tell you what's going on right now but I will as soon as I'm able."

Miles hesitated before he slowly nods. "Alright... I trust you Phoenix. But if I find out that you're lying to me, I won't ever want to see you in my office again. I'm sick of people lying to me and pushing me around."

Phoenix went quiet and looked to the ground. He didn't know what to do or say anymore. Miles meant so much to him and now that he knew how badly he hurt him, he felt like shit. He had panicked last night when he was getting ready. He realized that he liked Miles a lot more then he liked his other friends. He realized he had feelings for him. Phoenix panicked, thinking that he'd some how let it slip at their dinner so he skipped. He didn't dare call or text Miles or he might've went and ruined everything. It looked like he ruined everything anyways.

Miles had only just come out to him and admitted that he was struggling with accepting himself. Phoenix felt guilty for having feelings for the man and thought that maybe he was lying to himself until he let his mind wander. He really did like Miles. He just couldn't tell the other man yet. It wouldn't be right.

"I have to get back to work, Wright. Next time show up and don't lie to me." Miles turned away from him and sat back down at his desk. He avoided looking at Phoenix and opted to focus on his computer screen.

Phoenix didn't say anything and just left, passing Gumshoe as he was about to enter the office. He waved before leaving the building and grabbing his bike, unable to shake the unbearable guilt. He should have gone to Miles' last night. Everything most likely would have been fine.

"What is wrong with me?" He muttered to himself as he walked, pushing his bike next to him. He checked his watch and grimaced. He had a meeting with O'weigh in a couple of ours. He was beginning to have doubts and he hated that. Trust is the only thing he had with his client and he didn't know if he could trust the other man. But there was no concrete evidence that he was guilty or even in the building when the crime was supposedly committed. Phoenix knew he had to be innocent. O'weigh's daughters were depending on him to find their father innocent. They were only small children.

Phoenix felt as if the entire situation was a mess and he couldn't help but feel somewhat responsible. He had asked Miles to meet up and exchange evidence they both possibly had and that's when everything started going south. Miles wasn't on his side in this one. He knew Miles was wrong, but he couldn't argue with him about it again. They'd just have to battle it out in court soon.

His mind soon drifted back to the night Miles had shown up to his house and suddenly felt off. Those men had taken his jacket and his bag, but Miles didn't seem interested in getting either of those things back. This wouldn't have stricken him as odd until he remembered how materialistic Miles could be. Maybe Phoenix was over thinking things or maybe something else was going on. Either way, Miles had ended up hurt. Maybe he was just afraid to look for those things or maybe they weren't important. Phoenix wasn't sure, but there had to be something, right? He couldn't come up with anything. All he wanted to do was help Miles. His head hurt and he was thinking too much. He couldn't stand it.

He wanted to just stop thinking for a second. He wasn't suspicious of Miles. He was suspicious of the circumstances. He couldn't put into words how he felt and it wasn't good. He couldn't explain this to Miles without Miles thinking he was suspicious of him. He would have to figure something out. And before the trial.