Static

7. Part-Time

It was a tiring day, and in the prosecutor's office, that was getting the rest somehow. However, it wasn't the only boundary of being tired.

Like for example, Miles was still hounded by simple thoughts. Close by on his side, was nothing more than the mere thought of what he should really find. This greatly caused his forlorn expression into a frown.

"What's with the gloom look, Miles?"

He turned to his right to see Franziska with a handful of files to be arranged. He quickly reverted back to getting his composure.

"Its nothing." He muttered. "... I'm just tired, that's all."

"Thinking about something again?" Franziska plopped down the stack of files carefully as she looked at him with concern.

And him doing the opposite. "All I think about is how to properly think." He said shortly.

"Then why don't you just leave the work on my tab?" She suggested. "You're a bit of an airhead right now."

"No. I never leave my office like this." He stood up from his chair and reached for the other files. "Besides, this is my past cases after all. It is my duty to organize them."

"You're full of it." Franziska finished the files on a neat column of drawers. "I told you before, I could've moved my inventory in here just fine."

Miles shrugged as he sat down back at his chair. "It was nothing."

"Then do your business. In the manor, now. I don't leave debts unpaid."

"What if I don't want to?" He smirked mischievously.

Franziska scowled at him. "Then you'll know what will happen next. And I swear I had to do that for the sake of something so useless."

Things get a stir as Miles stood up again from his chair. His smirk faded a bit, walking a few steps away from his desk and looked outside the window.

"Very well, since you're so insistent, can you answer a bit of my curiosity so that I can go back to the manor?"

Franziska thought for a moment before glaring at him again. "Go on."

Behind his was an enigmatic mask, but his smirk stood still. Even retaining the earlier stature.

In Miles' thoughts, this is simply a game for him. He had to trick Franziska to answer those illusory questions. He also kept his promise to go back to the manor of course.

He knew he wouldn't get the direct answer by asking head-on, so instead, he had to ask about it one by one.

"I had been thinking..." He started. "... what would you do if you lost something? I didn't saw you that once."

"What would it be? If its simple as lost in navigating, then I'll find it in an instant. Then the other one... I don't know. I don't have anything like that yet, at least."

"I see." He nodded. "Then how about a little different perspective? What would you do with such empathy?"

"Think about it. I would never show that imperfection." She answered impatiently. "Did it all sum up your puzzle completely?"

"I think one more thing is missing, Franziska." Miles peered his eyes into the corner.

Bit by bit, he came to escalate to the thing he wanted to dare and ask. He swallowed a sigh as he closed his eyes for a moment, opening for back up instantly to avoid suspicion. Silence, and then...

"... do you ever felt how to fall in betrayal?"

That quickly settled things up in the room of silence. Miles shifted into a much more grim look, waiting with anticipation and patience. As for Franziska, well, that took off the safety catch.