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Could Mihawk’s day get any worse?
Life as one of the country’s top attorneys – if not the best – was never easy, but Mihawk has long learned to not let anything get under his skin. He’s always been tough and hard to read, which made him a formidable opponent to most. When other lawyers found out they would go against him in court, they’d magically find a way to settle even before they could step foot in front of a judge, eager to not have their careers completely trashed by the Dracule Mihawk.
But, as great as he was, Mihawk still had to deal with idiot associates and dumbass coworkers. The only person he ever really tolerated at his firm was Perona, a paralegal that Mihawk could often count on to get the job done, even if Perona threw him a lot of sass in return.
Today had just been completely horrible. Perona was out sick, and the associates were useless, though they were eager to help in any way they could. Mihawk had them proofreading contracts for the entire day to keep them busy and out of his way.
Then, he had a client meeting with Marshall Teach, a sleazeball of a man who all but admitted to committing tax evasion and money laundering to Mihawk, and Mihawk wanted nothing more than to just reassign the basket case to a junior partner and wash his hands off him. If he was lucky, Teach would get thrown in prison due to his lawyer’s ineptitude.
But, unfortunately, Teach was a “special case” who specifically requested Mihawk as his attorney, and since Mihawk doesn’t intend to ever lose in court, he’s had to tread carefully around this situation to find a way where he can still win and get Teach thrown in prison.
Teach apparently doesn’t care how long it’ll take, and as long as he keeps paying Mihawk’s expensive retaining fee and professional fees, then he’ll milk this cow for all its worth.
Then, his meeting with Teach went overtime, and Mihawk missed his opportunity to grab lunch at his favorite bistro as he needed to go to another damn client meeting immediately after.
It was barely 2 in the afternoon.
So yeah, could Mihawk’s day get any worse?
When the elevator suddenly jerked to a stop, and the lights shut off except for the emergency light, Mihawk found the answer to his question.
With no signal in the elevator shaft and the utter lack of awareness on the part of security to realize an elevator had jammed, even with Mihawk incessantly pressing the emergency button, almost an hour had passed before emergency services were called. It took the firefighters fifteen more minutes to get to the premises. Mihawk would need to reevaluate his staff. Surely they weren’t this stupid?
Mihawk decided also, then and there, that they were getting all new elevators.
“Fire and rescue, call out!” A voice yelled, muffled from outside, and Mihawk heaved a sigh of relief.
“Yes, I’m here,” he drawled. “Could you please move any faster than this? My grandmother c ould run around you in circles, and she’s dead.”
A loud cackle was all he heard in response. Great , Mihawk thought as he rolled his eyes, but even if he was about to be rescued by assholes, he just wanted to get out. He wasn’t claustrophobic by any means, but still, wearing a three piece suit in a certified metal death trap with little air circulating was more than a little stifling. He had removed his coat and loosened his tie somewhat, which did help, but he felt a bit…exposed, without them.
“Stay clear of the door!” The same voice said, and Mihawk jumped out of the way. Something sharp and metal jammed into the doors, and Mihawk watched, slightly amazed at how the doors proceeded to slide open. It took a few minutes of trial and error, with heavy grunts heard from the other side, but the doors eventually opened. Mihawk realized he had been stuck between two floors.
“Hello there,” the voice said above him, and Mihawk looked up to see arguably the most rugged man dressed in firefighter gear looking down at him with a grin on his face. His hair was firetruck red – ironic – and he had three scars over his left eye. “I’m Shanks! Heard you’re a bit… stuck. ”
“I’m about to suffocate and die here and you’re making jokes? I see how our tax money is being spent,” Mihawk drawled, which only earned him another round of laughter in response.
“All in good fun, gorgeous!” Shanks said with an exaggerated wink. “I’m gonna throw you down a rope and harness. Strap yourself in and we’ll pull you out.”
“Well hurry before I plummet to my untimely death,” Mihawk said with a scoff.
Sure enough, safety straps at the end of a thick rope were thrown down at him, and Mihawk strapped himself in. He checked to make sure it was all secure before he tugged at the rope. “Hey Red, pull me up!”
A cheeky “aye aye!” was all he heard before Mihawk felt himself being lifted up, and for a brief moment, he felt like a damn piñata. He made sure to keep a hold onto his briefcase and coat as the firefighters tugged him upward and to the opening. Firefighter Shanks was immediately next to him, hauling him out of the elevator shaft, a large hand grabbing onto Mihawk’s belt to reel him in. Mihawk had no idea what to think about that, and he could only hope he wasn’t displaying any sort of reaction considering there were many people – his staff included – milling around.
“There you go, sweetheart,” Shanks said as he pulled Mihawk completely out of the elevator shaft. “You okay? Any injuries?”
“No, just my wounded pride,” Mihawk huffed as he tried getting the straps off him. “Do you mind helping at least?”
Shanks moved to get the harness off him, checking him over for any injuries, humming in satisfaction when he found none. Eventually, as Mihawk was freed from the chafing rope, he figured it wouldn’t hurt to thank the men who just saved his life.
So, he turned to Shanks with every intention of doing so, and…
…he promptly tripped over the rope tangled at their feet.
It happened almost in slow motion. Mihawk felt himself fall, and before he could even register that he was rapidly approaching the ground, strong arms caught him. He found himself looking up at the redheaded firefighter who had a teasing smile on his face.
“You’re falling for me already?” Shanks cooed, and Mihawk resisted the urge to smack him. “You could have just asked me on a date, gorgeous.”
He heard a few junior associates snicker at him. Mihawk figured had about a hundred boxes of paperwork that he had subpoenaed that he would make them sort through for the rest of the day.
“I’m afraid I’m not that easy, Red. If you want a date, you’re gonna have to work for it,” Mihawk grumbled out.
To his utter surprise, the firefighter’s smile widened. “I do love a challenge,” he nearly purred. Shanks then turned to his crew. “Alright lads, let’s pack it up and head back to the station. I have a hot date tonight!”
The audacity of this man! Mihawk barely stopped himself from sputtering. “I did not agree to a date, Red.”
“Nah, but you did say I could work for it. Those are two totally different things. You’re a lawyer, aye? Shouldn’t you know that your word choice matters?” Shanks replied with a wink, and goddamnit, Mihawk found himself unable to respond to that. “So, what time am I picking you up for what is totally not a date?”
Stupid handsome firefighters and their stupid snark and stupid smiles. Mihawk wanted to throttle the man.
“Seven o’clock. Do not be late,” Mihawk grit out, to which Shanks beamed.
“You got it, beautiful. See you at seven!” Shanks exclaimed as he and his crew walked out of the building. For a moment, Mihawk took a deep breath to compose himself. When he finally looked up, he saw several associates by the door, pretending they weren’t watching the whole debacle.
“Well?” Mihawk snapped, and they all jumped. Good, at least they were still afraid of him. “I don’t pay you to stand there and gossip like teenagers. Those contracts don’t proofread themselves. If they are not done by the time I leave tonight, you will be demoted to the mail room.”
Everyone promptly scrambled out of his sight, and Mihawk took another moment to compose himself and wonder what the hell just happened.
Getting trapped in the elevator of his own office building has got to be on the top 10 most embarrassing things to happen to Mihawk in years, including the time he lost in mock trial court in law school to fucking Bartholomew Kuma of all people.
But when he nearly tripped over himself at the sight of the handsome, redheaded firefighter that came to rescue him…
Mihawk really had to reevaluate his life and the choices he made that led him here.
Still, he idly thought as he made his way to the client meeting, maybe his day just started to look up.