Summary: The Promised Day had come and gone. The next morning, Riza wakes up in the hospital and it's up to her to be there for her Colonel once again. Also submitted for Royai week's prompt "Blindness".
Disclaimer: All characters belong to Hiromu Arakawa.
Please enjoy!
It were the gentle rays of the sun rather than an impertinent alarm clock that woke Riza Hawkeye this morning. The sun was warm on her face and a faint, familiar scent lingered in the air that made her relax instantly before the demons came back.
A dark hallway. A monster, big and green, burnt to ashes, fueling the rage of the Colonel, turning him into the monster he had feared for years.
Another dark room. A white circle drawn with chalk, only sullied by bright, red blood – her blood.
Her willing her hand to draw the weapon concealed on her thigh because her Colonel, the one they had just talked out of his revenge, was seriously considering human transmutation for her – and not being able to move a single finger, let alone being able to stop shaking from the stress and pain in her arm and neck.
Warm arms and a warm breath on her face. Black eyes that stared at her, finally calm and somewhat peaceful, not mad and anguished.
Darkness again. But not for her – for the one person who wished to see the world change into a better place.
Sweat accumulated on Riza's face and she tried to sit up startled, but was forced to stay on her back because of the weight on her chest. She opened her eyes frantically and felt relief wash over her when she caught a glimpse of a black, tousled mop of hair. Her hand shot down to it on its own accord, lower to his neck to feel for a pulse. As soon as she felt the strong flow in his artery, she sighed and her hand went up to his forehead, taming the stray hairs of Roy's bangs while her heartbeat slowly calmed itself. Only now was she able to feel the rise and fall of his chest on her stomach and the soft puffs of air against her chest, caressing the hospital gown she was wearing.
He had asked her to come to his bed in the night. After the Promised Day, both had been admitted to the hospital and it was for the pleading and pulling ranks (something he normally despised) of the Colonel that they ended up in a private room together.
She still saw his gray, lifeless eyes in front of her own as he pleaded with her, afraid to wake up to a world of darkness on his own.
He never heard her answer – her neck ached too much from talking – but he instantly heard the ruffle of bedsheets, slow, timid steps on the cold tile floor of the hospital, and then he felt the added weight on his bed right beside him, the brush of a pair of lips first over the right eye and then over the left, and as soon as both settled in the small bed, the warmth of her body had lulled him into sleep almost instantly.
Now, when her heart rate had returned to normal and his bangs were smoothly brushed back to free his forehead, her hand started wandering again. First to his forehead, feeling for a fever. Satisfied that he felt normal, she gently brushed over his closed eye, down to his cheek.
The pain in her chest returned when she felt something wet. She brushed it off, gingerly, and stroke his cheek tenderly with the back of her hand.
She instantly felt him tighten the arms around her torso now, surprised that she hadn't felt them earlier upon waking up. She couldn't see his face, but he buried it deeper in her chest and the slight tremble of his arms revealed that he was either about to wake up or suffering some nightmare.
Riza wound her free hand around Roy's back, rubbing it with a delicate touch, while she willed her voice to be strong enough just now.
"Shhh, Colonel. It's okay. I'm here with you. You are not alone."
"Lieu-Lieutenant?"
She nodded once, wincing when the pain in her neck returned, and wanted to hit herself for the unnecessary act.
"Yes, sir," she croaked out now, the strain in her voice clearly distinguishable now that she spoke louder.
"It – it was not a dream."
He didn't ask her. She didn't know whether this hurt more than a question would have.
"Yes, sir," she answered him, still, and he buried his face into her chest again, drawing a long breath.
She feared what might bubble up in him right now, now, that the adrenaline was gone and she pushed herself to keep the conversation going.
"It'll be alright, Colonel. Everything will turn out alright. You are not alone. We'll be here, I'll be here..." She trailed off. She knew she was kidding herself, she knew that this was the worst that could have happened to his career, to him as a person, and she took some seconds to realize that he had risen from her body, supporting himself on his elbows on each side of her torso, staring into her eyes with unseeing gray eyes.
The thought alone made her shed a silent tear.
"Thank you for staying the night. Thank you for being here right now. Thank you – for everything."
He clumsily brought himself into a sitting position (Riza quickly drew her legs back to her so he wouldn't fall off the bed in trying not to sit on her) and looked back at her, his eyes ironically focused on the bandage on her neck.
"Thank you for being alive," he murmured and he, also, shed a silent tear.
She grasped his hand and was amazed that their silent communication was working even though Roy was blind. He slowly stretched out his hand, feeling for her cheek in the air cautiously until he hit it, and he pulled her towards him as slowly as he could to avoid hurting her neck further.
Their foreheads bumped together and they reveled in that feeling, closing their eyes subconsciously as their hands intertwined.
Yes. They were alive. And that was all that mattered in this moment.