Chapter Text
At almost thirty years old, Miles Edgeworth was still not completely in tune with his sexuality. Growing up in the Von Karma household, love and desires weren’t subjects encouraged for exploration. Not to mention lust towards the same gender. For most of his teenage years, he did not have much time to let his mind wander or think about his sexual orientation; his life was a constant marathon to perfection. He was shaped by Von Karma, constantly pushed towards goals and expectations. Sacrifices were made, but it was all worth it to him when he proudly passed the bar exam at twenty years old, surpassing his father’s results.
Nonetheless, there were some clues here and there that indicated that he probably wasn’t attracted to women. In his private school, full of boys going through puberty, some erotic magazines were being passed around secretly. One day, he and his friend managed to put their hands on one of them and decided to take a look at it during the night. As they went through its contents, Miles was struck by his friend’s reaction, obviously aroused by the images. Looking at his friend, he started to feel lightheaded. He wasn’t paying attention to the magazine anymore, he was instead captured by the proximity with his friend, the sounds he made and his facial expressions.
At university, when studying for the bar, he was hit on by a few women, who he politely rejected. But something shifted when at a party organized by the oenology association, a well-dressed man flirted with him. Drunk on the scarlet drink, he let himself be guided and for once in his life, gave in to temptation. It was his first experience and it confirmed his attraction to men. But after all those years of conditioning by Von Karma, he drowned in shame and immediately repressed any sexual craving. And things were left at that for years, until a fateful day.
His childhood friend, Phoenix Wright, appeared in court. Miles was transported back to the past, when his father was still alive, when he wanted to be a defense attorney, when life shone brighter. It felt like a knife was stabbed into his heart and old memories were bleeding out of his body. After losing to Phoenix, he felt anxious and hesitant; everything he knew and built as an attorney was crumbling but he admired his devotion and resilience; when Phoenix loved, he loved hard. Miles repressed his feelings all over again. After everything he knew fell apart, he needed time to reconstruct, away from Wright. They were friends, strangers, rivals, partners, enemies again, until they reunited and worked together to free Maya from her kidnapper.
Since then, their relationship has evolved to friendship but Edgeworth felt there was some unresolved tension between the two of them. They would spend a lot of time together, at each other’s place, leisurely letting time pass. Phoenix was touchy around him, going far as holding Miles’ hand once after they drank way too much wine. Following the Hazakura case, they even hugged to sleep after trauma dumping, at Phoenix’s insistence. His friend also confessed to finding him handsome after another night of drinking. Miles kept wondering if it only was a product of his imagination. Was it real? Or did he want it to be real? Since then, Phoenix got disbarred, the tension died down and they were almost back to strangers again. He was putting people at arm’s length, like Miles used to do.
Miles was letting his mind wander while sipping on a martini. He was at a club, but not any club: a high-end male strip club. The first part of the evening consisted of two or three shows, during which a member of the crowd was given a lap dance by one of the dancers. After these, “part two” started, which was strictly reserved to regulars of the club. “Part two” was basically an auction to spend the night with one of the dancers – rich men and women engaging in male prostitution. Miles never participated in or even saw these auctions, he wasn’t enough of a regular customer for that but he heard the rumors.
He usually came on Saturdays, though sporadically. He first started to come here out of curiosity, then it became a way for him to rekindle all the desires he repressed. Edgeworth wasn’t even particularly turned on by what he saw, but he liked seeing confident men toying with people’s lust and thirst. He was the polar opposite and the enormous gap between him and the dancers fascinated him. Did he want to be with them or to be them?
This place became the only safe place for him to express his sexuality, even though internally. He liked the anonymity, no one was paying attention to each other, everyone had eyes only for the men on stage.
Edgeworth was back in Japan for a month. It was Friday, not the usual night for Miles but he needed to blow off some steam and Fridays had other performers. Miles liked routine but his curiosity encouraged him to push the door of the club that night. He sat at his usual spot, far from the stage, at the end of the bar. He ordered a second martini.
Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to the Before Sunset! Tonight, our first performer is the one and only Ash! Please welcome him to the stage!
Miles turned back around. Ash… He did not know that dancer as expected. Red lights turned on and revealed a prop desk and a chair placed at the back of the stage with a man sitting behind the desk, acting as if he was working. The performer was dressed neatly: black suit with a black tie and glasses that really tied the whole look together. Edgeworth’s interest was piqued, he always enjoyed a well-dressed man. The performer then removed his glasses before standing up.
Miles narrowed his eyes. No, no… This can’t be… Did he drink enough to start having hallucinations? Ash strangely resembled Phoenix Wright. In a swift motion, the dancer slid on top of the desk to stand up in front of it. He loosened up his tie and walked towards the front of the stage while letting his suit jacket drop to the floor. The white shirt’s fitting left no room for imagination: that man’s body definitely belonged in a strip club. Each of his movements was smooth and calibrated, he knew how to build up tension and the crowd was going wild: people were throwing bills into the stage, women were screeching while trying to touch the dancer.
Edgeworth could now see the performer more clearly and it definitively was Phoenix Wright. He had to grab the bar to stay in touch with reality. Phoenix Wright? A stripper? Does he… participate in “part two”? The thought of that made Miles sick to his stomach. He felt the urge to leave but his legs were too weak to support his weight anyway. However, curiosity consumed him: they hadn’t seen each other in so long, and Miles was willing to accept anything just to know how Wright was doing.
Phoenix’s seductive gaze swept across the crowd while he removed his tie. Miles immediately diverted his face, he could not get caught in here, especially by him. The anxiety rose. What if Wright saw him? What if he brings him to the stage? So, now he knows he’s gay? Gathering his courage, he looked back at the stage. Phoenix was giving out his hand to a young woman, inviting her on stage. He smiled at the woman while he carefully swept his tie behind her and pulled her close to his chest. High-pitched screams resonated inside the club. Miles’ heart pinched: Phoenix seemed so confident, so in tune with his appearance, his body, the way he moved and made himself desired. Edgeworth was nothing like that.
Phoenix wrapped his arms around the woman’s legs and carried her to the back of the stage, making her sit on the desk. He took her hands and they slowly unbuttoned his shirt together. The woman was as red as a tomato, awkwardness all over her face. On the other hand, Phoenix seemed relaxed and serene, looking at her in a flirty way. After seeing many strip shows, Edgeworth knew it was all an act but he couldn’t help feeling jealousy at that sight.
The woman slid Phoenix’s shirt off his shoulder, revealing his back to the crowd. It was toned and well sculpted, one could tell he had spent a lot of time in the gym. He took the woman’s hands again and slowly guided them all over his own body, abs, shoulders, back and ass. Edgeworth felt light-headed and warm watching them; he was subconsciously tensing his thighs and squeezing his legs, ever so slightly rubbing himself on the stool he sat on.
The lights dimmed. Phoenix brought a hand to his hip before snatching his pants away. The pressure grew in Miles’ pants. Phoenix got on the desk before fully leaning on the woman, the crowd screamed in unison. Everything was now plunged into darkness. It was the end of the show. Phoenix accompanied the woman back to the crowd before disappearing backstage.
When the stage lit up again, Edgeworth was slapped back to reality - a reality in which Phoenix Wright is a stripper and he just saw him practically naked on a stage. He needed to go home.
The drive back felt like it lasted for eternity. Miles’ hands were tightening around the steering wheel, making his knuckles turn white and the uncomfortableness in his pants made it difficult for him to focus on the road. He couldn’t help but rub himself through his pants at every red light. What happened tonight, Miles felt like a dam broke. All he repressed, everything he contained inside was getting released. He would have whipped himself back then for touching himself in public. He did not care anymore.
Arrived home, he immediately went to his bedroom, lay on his bed and hurried to free his erection from his pants. He wrapped his right hand around his cock while using his other hand to hold his shirt up against his chest. He closed his eyes and relaxed.He was biting his lips, imagining Phoenix on top of him, looking at him with lust in his eyes, grinding his hips against his. Phoenix’s body was engraved in his brain forever. The movement of his hips, the color of his skin, the way his shoulder muscles tightened, his forearms… In his fantasy, both of their erections were rubbing against each other.
Edgeworth, you’re so beautiful like that, I’m so hard for you, holy shit. I’m gonna cum soon...
The pace intensified. His fist tightened.
Miles! I’m- coming!
Edgeworth’s whole body tensed, his hips jerked until he came on his chest. After his heartbeat stabilized, he reached for his phone and checked his last texts with Phoenix.
How are you doing, Wright?
im fine, busy with stuff
sorry edgeworth