AA - Strangers to Love

Strangers to Love
An Ace Attorney fanfiction short by Garnet Red aka MoronSonOfBoron
Written for the Phoenix Wright Kink Meme on LiveJournal, 3 August 2008

"Beautiful." She exhaled the word from her lips, a whisper so low she could hear it inside herself. Her breath congealed into a wisp before being caught up in the cold autumn breeze. The scene she described was ordinately mundane, nothing out of the ordinary for an afternoon at this time of year. Children frolicked over the clean, newly-installed play structures, the bright patterns of their uniforms and the fruit-shaped playgrounds mingling to create a cornucopia of life and activity that hardly personified the rather pharmaceutical name for the park: Vitamin Square.
She took a deep breath as she watched the kids at play, their families watching, smiling, sitting together. She was alone at her bench, perched at one end of the dark wooden slats that drew a border of sorts between the park and a nearby French restaurant. The wintry wind teased at strands of her jet black hair, forcing her to brush it out of her view. Her slender fingers returned downwards to nest in the smooth wool of her coat, an ensemble of creamy vicuña wool that enveloped her gaunt form.
Her dark eyes were so content to rest on the scene before her, she almost forgot to notice the young man in carmine seated on the opposite end of her bench. She narrowed her gaze as she looked him up and down, smiling at the thought of the strong, lean form under the office garb. The moment he turned his head to return a look at her, though, she bashfully turned away, hiding a smirk. Eyeing him in her peripheral vision, she stole another glance at him until his attention returned. She couldn't help but giggle when they finally locked eyes. He smiled bashfully when she beckoned him over with a curled finger.
The young man obliged, the longer tufts of his chestnut hair bobbing as he sidled over to greet her. "Hello, beautiful."
"It's cute when you pretend to be a stranger." She evaded a kiss, then returned it twofold. Her voice was barely louder than it was earlier, secret words meant just for him. "I feel like a little girl sometimes."
"And what happened to the mature, independent woman I fell in love with?"
"She's right here." Her lips spread into a wide smile as he ran his fingers over her hair, his free arm reaching behind her shoulders and pulling her securely into his embrace. They observed the playground together.
"You know, speaking on the subject of strangers, how long have we known each other?"
"Over a year, I guess."
"Yeah, a year at least. Wouldn't you say things are moving kind of fast?"
"They are."
"Normally, people know each other for years before they get to this point, don't they? I mean, that's the way it seems to me, at least."
"We're anything but normal, you and I." She rested her head against his.
"Good point." He didn't budge, the muscles of his neck tensing slightly to accomodate her feathery weight.
"And it's kind of late to have second thoughts, young man." She chuckled, pulling his hand down to her waist.
"I'll have to be a man, considering." They kissed again as his hand traced the rounded swell of her belly. Words ceased for a minute as they looked into each other's eyes.
"A pregnant pause?" She broke into a chuckle.
"You're horrible." He shook his head and looked back to the park. "At least this one'll have a normal life."
"Maybe she will." She nodded quietly. "At least we'll both be here for her, right?"
"Yeah. We will. Wouldn't ever let... that... happen." His voice hushed.
"I hope my grandfather gets to see her."
"I'm sure he will. He's been looking forward to it for months, now. Even if he doesn't like me all that much."
"He respects people with filial ties. He's only leery of you because—"
"I haven't introduced you to my folks, I know. I just haven't talked to them since going to college for a reason." He nodded and shrugged. "I figure there's no point asking them to deal with this. If they couldn't do it for me then, why her?"
"They're the only grandparents she'll have."
"Does she need to have grandparents? I never met mine."
"Well, it'd be closer to normal if she did."
"And we're hardly anything but normal."
"I guess." She sighed.
"I would've loved to meet your parents, though. They sounded like good people, from what your grandfather told me."
"The headstones weren't enough?"
"That's a little... macabre for my tastes. Normally, meeting consists of, well, face to face conversation?"
"Well, we're hardly normal."
"True." He sighed. The cold air failed to penetrate the warmth between them as they cuddled on that bench near the park. "Have you thought of a name for the baby yet?"
"I have. And I think you'll love it."
"Lay it on me." They turned to look at each other.
"America."
"And I thought I had a cheesy name."
"Don't laugh! It's a real name."
"I know, that one actress. What's her face?"
"...I can't remember."
"America Justice... Honestly." He shook his head. "You are one strange woman."
"Oh, come on. It's a historied name, considering."
"You named her after a country."
"It's a real name, it's the female version of that Italian explorer's name. Italian! It has my heritage." She put her hand over her heart, and then over his. "And your cheesiness."
"You're horrible. I'll never forgive you. She'll never forgive you. Kids will make fun of her." Despite his naysaying, he couldn't hide the broad smirk on his face. "And what kind of nicknames is she going to have? Amy? Mary? Rica?"
"Rica sounds kind of sexy."
"I'm her father, I don't want to think of my child as sexy!"
"Just call her America, then. I don't see what's so hard about that." She tilted her head and pursed her lips. "Do you have a better idea?"
"...I don't." He gave her a long, hard look before daring to kiss her again. His hand still rested on her expectant belly as he leaned down, pressing his ear against it. "Hello? America? This is daddy."
"It's my uterus, not a telephone."
"I'm new at this, give me a break."
"That makes two of us." She massaged his ear, numbed from the cool breeze.
"Well, America...  Your mom and I can attest to the fact that the world can be a cruel and dark place sometimes. Sometimes I wonder what possessed us to bring you into it." He paused to take a deep breath. "I just want to tell you how I'm feeling, and make you understand..."
"Apollo."
"I am never going to give you up, never going to let you down..."
"Apollo?" Her voice became strained with something between shock and amusement.
"...and I will never run around, or desert you..." He couldn't help but finally break into song as he pulled away from the flailing mother-to-be.
"You're horrible! I'm going to kill you!" The families that had gathered in the park politely vacated the corner closest to the couple as she chased him around the bench. It didn't last long, as she couldn't move very much in her state. "You're dead to me, Apollo. You hear me? Dead."
"I love you, Viola." Apollo was laughing as he leaned over the bench.
"I love you, Apollo." Viola rearranged her hair as she climbed onto the bench seat to meet him halfway. "You're sleeping on the couch tonight."
"It was worth it." His words were interrupted by the flurry of kisses.