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It is only 8am, but Gregory Edgeworth wonders if he might fall asleep if he closes his eyes. That is unusual for him, given that Gregory always gets a full night of sleep and always feels well rested when he awakes. Well, he does when he doesn’t have a cold.
He sits up straight, trying to focus on his case file. But his head throbs and his glasses slip down his sweaty nose. Gregory stifles a cough, takes his glasses off and wipes his face with his handkerchief. He breathes slowly through his mouth, and slips his glasses back onto his face. But even with his glasses corrected, he cannot focus. His head throbs, his sinuses congested, and Gregory just wants to fall asleep.
But he cannot; he has a trial today. Despite his viral infection, Gregory investigated the crime scene to the best of his ability yesterday, wishing the entire time that Raymond would stop giving him concerned looks. And even though he feels far worse today, he needs to push his symptoms to the back of his mind and represent his client in court. He dislikes Prosecutor Payne, but he knows his client is innocent and needs to face that patronising prosecutor to get justice for his client.
However, his body seems determined to not let him do so. Gregory cannot read his case file no matter how hard he tries, and when he tries to stand up to make himself a cup of tea his legs wobble and he nearly falls over. Gregory drops back into his seat, taking in shallow breaths. His nose starts to run and he blows it, his skin sore from constantly wiping it with tissues and handkerchiefs, and a phlegmy cough escapes his throat.
Gregory gasps for breath, closing his eyes and attempting to make his head stop pounding. It does not help.
And when he stands up to make a second attempt at getting his tea, his stomach lurches. Gregory hunches forwards, breathing slowly, longing for the nausea to subside. Alas, it does not. Instead, it gets worse and worse, until bile burns his throat and Gregory realises he is about to vomit.
He stumbles through his law office, resting his hands on furniture and doorframes to keep himself upright, and finally reaches the toilet. He tries the handle, and finds it locked.
“Oh, sorry, Mr Edgeworth,” Raymond Shields, his assistant and a rookie attorney, calls through the door. “I’ll be out in a minute.”
Unsure if he can open his mouth without vomiting, Gregory leans against the wall and stays silent. He cannot vomit down his clothes or on the floor; he has to hang on.
When Raymond opens the door, Gregory doesn’t have time to be polite. He pushes past his assistant, hunches over the toilet and vomits. His knees give way and Gregory kneels in front of the toilet, emptying the contents of his stomach.
“Oh, Mr Edgeworth, you poor thing,” Raymond says, hovering behind him. “Is, is there anything I can do? Rub your back? Get you a drink? Uh…”
Holding his glasses onto his face, Gregory coughs, breathing shakily. “A glass of water… would be nice.”
“Okay, I’ll do that,” Raymond says, running out of the room.
Finally, he manages to stop vomiting. His throat aches, his mouth tastes foul and his stomach still lurches despite being empty. Gregory groans and stands up, legs wobbling beneath him. He flushes the toilet and washes his hands and face, slightly disturbed by his clammy face and swollen nose.
And then he jumps when Raymond appears in the doorway.
“Sorry, I didn’t mean to make you jump. Are you feeling any better, Mr Edgeworth? Um, I’ve got you some water in the office. Do you need help walking?” Raymond fusses over him, clutching his notebook to his chest as his forehead creases with worry.
“I should be all right,” Gregory says, voice hoarse from vomiting. “But thank you.”
Still, Raymond walks right beside him on their way back to the office, clearly worried he might fall over. To be honest, Gregory is so wobbly that he fears he might fall too.
When he sinks onto the couch, he sighs, the sound one of exhaustion and pain, Gregory slumps backwards, closing his eyes.
“Here’s your water, Mr Edgeworth,” Raymond says, handing him the glass.
Gregory nods his head and takes a sip of water, relishing the cool liquid running down his sore throat. “Thank you.”
“Are you feeling any better?”
“A tad.”
“That’s good. Hey, Mr Edgeworth, uh, are you okay to stand in court later?”
“To be quite honest, I would rather go to bed,” Gregory says, the thought of standing in court making him want to collapse. “However, my client needs me.”
Raymond sits beside him, holding his notebook tightly. “Well… you don’t have to. I mean… I could take the case for you.”
Gregory stares at him. Raymond has only been a lawyer for a month, and has yet to be anything other than co-council to Gregory in court.
“To be honest, it terrifies me, and I know I’m really inexperienced, but…” Raymond smiles. “You’re sick and I want to help, Mr Edgeworth.”
“I really appreciate the offer, Raymond. But do you think you can manage it. You will be up against a man who calls himself the ‘rookie humiliator’. Do you think you are up to it?”
Raymond does not look convincing in the slightest, but nods and smiles. “I can do this. You go home and rest, and I’ll handle it in court today. Okay?”
Gregory coughs, breathing slowly. He doesn’t want to put Raymond under pressure, and the thought of his rookie assistant taking his first case without Gregory beside him in court makes him worry about Raymond, but… he honestly can’t imagine standing in the courtroom in this state.
“Thank you, Raymond. The case file is on my desk and I give you my most sincere thanks for this.”
Raymond grins and takes a seat at the desk. “Not a problem, Mr Edgeworth. I’ll call a taxi so you don’t have to drive home.”
And as Gregory waits for his taxi to take him home, he slumps on the couch and watches Raymond study his case notes, occasionally scribbling notes and eating them in that odd way he always does.
He is truly lucky to have such a caring assistant.