Work Text:
Maya glared at Phoenix, trying to get him to budge in any capacity. Unfortunately, her nose started to tickle. The sensation crept up her senses, ending in a familiar ah, ah-achoo! Maya’s eyes shut tight as she sneezed into the back of her elbow. Phoenix sighed in relief, chuckling to himself as he blinked exaggeratedly.
“...Dang it,” she pouted. Maya lost the staring contest.
“I’m not doing best two out of three,” he warned, reaching over and grabbing a french fry from her tray.
“Fine,” Maya said, crossing her arms. She tilted her head and looked up at him. “Nick, were your eyes always super pretty?” she asked casually.
“What do you mean?” he asked, raising an eyebrow. “If this is you trying to flirt, I can’t say it’s working.”
“I wasn’t,” she said, and stuck out her tongue at him. “But your pupils are different colors. How’d that happen?
“Iris.”
“Hawthorne? But she’s the good twin!” Maya’s jaw dropped in shock.
He snickered at her confusion. “No, I meant the iris is the colored part of the eye.”
“Ooh, science lesson from a lawyer,” Maya said, taking a bite out of her hamburger. “Teach me, then professor.”
Phoenix groaned internally. This girl was out there sometimes, but her curiosity made him smile.
“Can’t say it’s too interesting, I’m just unlucky.”
“Why? It’s cool,” Maya said, squeezing a ketchup packet into the tiny paper cup.
“Y’know how Godot had to wear that visor thing?”
Maya nodded, chewing notably slower so she could hang onto his every word.
“I’m kinda glad your sister never told you this, but… It was the first time I ever met Chief. I was in college, and during the trial, I drank some of the same poison that put him in a coma.” He scratched the back of his head, unsure if he wanted to tell the story anymore.
“So it was the evil twin,” Maya said, leaning forward.
Phoenix cringed, but nodded in agreement. The Hazakurain incident was just a few weeks ago, and bringing up Dahlia in any capacity still made him tense.
“Yeah. It was a very small dose, and possibly expired,” he replied, glossing over the details.
“Did you go into a coma?” Maya looked sad when he gave her more details.
“No. I guess I’m lucky in that sense,” he said. “Getting my stomach pumped because of the glass was worse.”
She blinked a few times, unsure if she wanted an explanation.
“Thank god you’re okay, though,” Maya added quietly. She looked up at him, with a genuine appreciation in her eyes. “Plus, like I already said, it’s cool. You’re like a cat. Or an anime character.”
He smiled sheepishly before taking a bite of his own food. “Really?” Phoenix asked between bites.
“Mhmm,” Maya said, happily. “Kinda glad I get to pay attention to ‘em now.”