AN: I was given the pairing Roy/Riza (333) and the prompt "bear your chest," a reference to Lovely Complex (if you haven't heard of it, you should go check it out!) This is a lot longer than I intended, and for that, I apologize m(_ _)m I'll shut myself up in the future. Enjoy!

"You didn't know?" Riza Hawkeye asked tenderly. Next to her on the couch, Winry shook her head. With a sympathetic sigh Riza put her arm around the girl. "Those boys don't tell you much, do they?"

"They don't tell me anything," she said quietly. "I try to be supportive of them, but… I don't know how much longer I can do this."

"I know, it's hard, especially when it's someone you care about…right?" Riza made the question sound light and casual to hide her real curiosity. She was rewarded with a nod from Winry.

"Sometimes you just need to go…confront him, and tell him what you're feeling," she continued. "Men…aren't always the brightest creatures."

Winry gave a weak laugh but paused thoughtfully. "You're right," she said with conviction, raising her head for the first time. She wiped her eyes not-very-discreetly and turned to face Riza. "You're absolutely right. I need to say exactly how I feel."

Riza was relieved. "That's the spirit. Take charge and tell him to stop fooling around and be a man."

"That's right, I'm going to make him realize how important I am!" Winry agreed. "Just like you and Colonel Mustang."

Riza's words of encouragement to her first sentence were hastily pulled back after her second. The First Lieutenant took a deep breath as she searched for a way to explain the situation between her and Mustang without explaining the situation.

Apparently she hesitated too long. Winry gave her a reproving look. "I may be young, but I'm not blind."

"Colonel Mustang is my superior," Riza began.

"That doesn't make him better than you," Winry interrupted. "Even I know about his… reputation. You shouldn't let him walk all over you like that!"

"I'd rather not get into this," Hawkeye said curtly, withdrawing behind the emotionless military mask. Winry looked hurt and frustrated, but Riza knew better than to show weakness now. She and Roy had an understanding that she would rather not disclose to the childhood friend of a State Alchemist, even a sweet one like Winry.

"You should at least make sure you are both on the same page," the girl continued, pouting. "You may think you understand, but he might understand it differently."

"True…"

Winry took advantage of this lapse in Hawkeye's cool stoicism. "It is true, isn't it? That's why you have to go bear your chest to him!"

Riza's cheeks flushed slightly. "B-bear my chest?"

"Yes!" Winry nodded emphatically. "Tell him everything you're thinking and feeling, and he will have to listen to you!"

"Right, well, that's a little—"

"Come on, we'll bear our chests together!"

And suddenly Colonel Mustang was standing at the open door, staring at them in a way that indicated he had only heard that last sentence.

Winry turned bright red and stood up abruptly. "I'll be going now!" she announced, whispering to Riza, "Good luck!" Quickly she rushed to the door, slipped on her shoes and fled the house.

A bit surprised, Roy Mustang shut the door after her.

"Take your shoes off," Hawkeye reminded a little sharply. Winry's comments had put her on edge.

"I'm not a child," he defended, kicking off his boots and loosening his uniform. "How was your day off?"

"Fine." Riza remained seated on the couch, afraid of what would happen if she stood up. She was still debating the merit in, well, "bearing her chest." If it killed whatever they did have, would it be worth it?

"What's wrong? You shouldn't be so stressed on a day you don't have work," Roy said in that smooth voice laced with enough charisma to charm a woman out of her clothes. How many times had it worked on her?

He was nearing the couch. Riza was running out of time. If she was going to say anything, the time was now…

Lieutenant Hawkeye stood up suddenly and saluted. "Permission to speak frankly, sir!"

This had been the last reaction Colonel Mustang expected. Even at work Hawkeye often spoke her mind without so formally asking for permission; she was one of the few who could get away with it. And here, in her house, no one was watching, she wasn't in uniform, and he wouldn't be for much longer…

"U-uh, Riza, what—"

"Sir!"

Clearly unhappy at the less-than-cozy mood such distantly polite talk produced, Mustang obliged, "Granted. What is it?"

The Lieutenant slapped him across the face. She got a certain satisfaction from the sound of the smack, and knew that it had hurt.

Roy put a hand up to his face, grimacing as a red handprint formed on his cheek. "What the hell—"

"What's her name?" Riza demanded, fighting to keep her expression stern and unforgiving.

"What? Who are you talking about?"

"What. Is. Her. Name?" It was really a fight now. "I know there's someone else. Don't pretend you don't know what I'm talking about."

Roy gave her a sincerely shocked expression, but she couldn't tell if it was shock at her figuring it out or if he really didn't know what she was talking about. She chose the first one.

"Seriously, Riza, I don't know what you're talking about. You can't just go around hitting people!" he complained, rubbing his face tenderly. "That really hurt!"

"That was the point," she said angrily. "You keep dragging me along, but then you're off with other girls all the time, what am I supposed to think?"

"Is that what this is about? Shit, Riza, give me some warning—"

"So you can come up with another story?" She tried to keep her throat from choking up. Why did he have this effect on her? She could keep her cool in any situation, but when she was around him, every emotional and physical barrier came tumbling down.

Winry was right.

"I'm not doing this anymore," she said slowly, forcing her voice to stay calm. "I'm not going to wait around while you go out with whatever girl you want. I'm not doing this for convenience. I'm tired of playing games with you. I'm tired of wondering. It's time for you to decide where you want this to go. So either you say those three words you use so carelessly and mean them, or go back to her house and stop coming to my house on my days off."

For once, Hawkeye didn't have to wrench a decision out of him. If only Roy Mustang could do paperwork with so little effort.

"I don't come here for no reason, you know. But you really shouldn't insult Hughes like that, he'd take it personally," answered Roy with a soft smile.

He wasn't being as explicit as she'd have liked, but it still made Riza blush. Something in that voice could manipulate her emotions in a way she couldn't control. She knew why other girls fell for him so easily, and that was what made her jealous.

But she wasn't going to completely surrender. Yet.

"Those three words," she insisted. "Say them."

Roy's smirk was suspicious. "'At ease, Lieutenant.'"

Riza's expression darkened dangerously. "Wrong answer."

She walked past him to move his shoes to the door, an indication to leave. As she bent down to reach them, her skirt slid down ever so slightly, but he caught a glimpse of black lace.

The lengths Hawkeye went to for him never ceased to amaze.

Riza opened the door and waited beside it, looking at him meaningfully. Roy followed her to the door but pushed it shut; Riza, holding on to the doorknob, was dragged with it, and she found herself with her back against the door and Roy's arms blocking her escape.

"You take me too seriously, Hawkeye," he chastized, but he sounded more genuinely apologetic than before. "You know how I feel about you."

"I don't," she protested. He was so close. She mustered the will to resist. "You act like I'm some slutty secretary, like I'm just your lieutenant—"

"You are my lieutenant."

"I know that, Roy," she said in exasperation with a facepalm. "I guess I was just kinda maybe possibly hoping to be more than that. Like…"

Roy's voice was gentle, not teasing. "Like what?"

"Like…I don't know, something more than just a good lay."

"First of all, you are an excellent lay," he said. She could hear the smile in his voice and looked up at him. That was a mistake. Her heart fluttered. "I don't know who or what convinced you otherwise. No one makes me feel like you do."

"How about complimenting me for once on something besides my skills in bed?"

"I did," he said, surprised. "No one makes me feel like you do."

Riza held his gaze for a moment, as if to test his sincerity. His expression was no different than any other time he looked at her. "Why are those three words so hard for you to say?" she sighed, appeased.

"Maybe it's because I mean them," he answered lightly. His face drew nearer and he planted a gentle kiss on her lips, which quickly became much more intense than he was prepared for. As he finally pulled away, his grin became more mischievous. "You're not sleeping at all tonight," he flirted.

"Neither are you," she teased with a smirk. "Have you started that stack of paperwork I left on your desk yesterday?" The guilty shock on his face indicated no. "Then you'd better get started, Colonel."