I do not own Fullmetal Alchemist or any of the characters, I just love it and the unspoken relationship between Roy Mustang and Riza hawkeye. This chapter is very "fluffy" but rated M because the next chapter will be very smutty. thanks for reading please let me know what you think!
Untying her Military issued boots Riza looks around the large empty locker room, she sighs taking solace in the quiet that surrounds her as she checks her watch.
"7:08 I'd say most everyone has left by now," she says patting Black Hayates head "Now I Want you to stay right here, I'll only be a few minutes."
The black dog turns in a circle before curling in a tiny ball under the bench his owner was sitting on. Riza smiles at her faithful companion before setting her boots beside him and standing to strip out of her Amestrian uniform. As she neatly folds her clothes a nauseous ball starts to form in the pit of her stomach and she takes a deep breath as the battle in her head begins, a precautious side of her reminding her that anyone could walk in the showers and see the tattoo displayed across her back, while another logical side argues that she can't just not shower for a couple weeks. Noting the smell of gun powder and ash staining her skin from target practice with her team, she decides she really only has one option as she wraps the towel around herself, and steps into the stall lined with 10 shower heads only a few feet apart.
Riza turns the water on the shower head closest to the exiting wall and snags her towel on the hook on the other side. She winces in shock as the hot water strikes the scarred skin on her back. She leans her head back letting the water soak in to her hair and the tension from the day starts to flow down the drain like the dirt on her skin.
Outside the shower stalls Roy Mustang walks in to the locker room, his thumb and index finger massaging a headache through the bridge of his nose. He sighs as he realizes he's not alone by the sound of a running shower and a uniform folded on a bench. Still he strips off his uniform and throws it lazily on the bench across from the occupied one.
"Good evening." Roy says, he marches into the showers, avoiding looking at the other officer as he fiddles with shower knob trying to find a comfortable temperature.
A look of horror spreads across Riza's face as she hears a greeting drowned out by the water pouring down her ears. She quickly turns her back towards the shower spray, hoping her new shower mate hadn't yet spotted her tattoo.
"Colonel?!?" she says as her jaw drops seeing the to familiar shaggy black hair and the large abdominal scar before averting her eyes feeling the inappropriateness of the moment.
"Lutenient Hawkeye?" He says in a concerned voice. The small glimpse of her as her opens his eyes is enough to fill his cheeks with a bright pink blush before looking to his other side and running his hand through his hair uncomfortably.
Riza quickly turned her tattooed back to him as a blush starts to fill her cheeks as well.
"I'm sorry Lutenient; just you are the last person I expected to see here." He says hoping she hadn't found his udder shock rude.
"Nothing to be sorry for sir, I had just assumed everyone had gone home for the night. To be honest my biggest concern tonight was that someone would see my back, so I'm relieved it's just you." A small smile of relief crosses his face before he sees the scars he left on her back from the corner of his eye and a flood of emotions overcomes him .He closes his eyes in an attempt to quite them.
"May I ask why you're using the communal showers? Don't you have a shower at your apartment?" Roy asks.
"I could ask you the same thing sir." Riza snaps back uncomfortably.
"That's fair. I had a date tonight, well I have a date. I was supposed to meet this girl at the theater at 7 and I was ready to leave at 5:30 to get ready, but you made me stay late to finish that paperwork, long story short I fell asleep at my desk and when I woke up it was 7 and I figured I should clean up a little since I'm going to show up late anyways." He laughs telling the story.
"And did you finish those documents sir?" She asks as she rinses the shampoo out of her hair.
"You're avoiding my question Lutenient." He waits patiently as a moment of silence passes.
"I do have a shower at my apartment, but a main pipe busted and my entire apartment flooded, so it's not really an option right now." She confesses
"So that's why you've been in such a poor mood today." He laughs "Are you staying in a motel or is it just for tonight?"
"No, I was going to get a motel but nowhere would let me have Black Hayate so I got it Okayed to keep him with me in the barracks."
A look of shock and concern spread across her commanding officers face.
"Why didn't you ask me, I could have kept him for a couple days for you?"
"I can't ask you to do that sir." She says closing her eyes with a look of shame "Plus it's not just a couple days, I've been quoted 2 to 4 weeks."
Roy lets out a long sigh. "Well I can't let me favorite subordinate bunker down with the savages in the barracks, I have an extra room at my place, so I guess you'll both have to stay with me until yours is fixed. Grumman has already gone home for the night, but we can get a temporary flat mate form from him in the morning."
"Sir, no, I can handle myself down there, staying with you would be completely inappropriate."
"Do I need to make it an order?" He smiles half-jokingly.
Riza gives him a tired smile "Of course not sir. Thank you."
"You know if you're feeling grateful you could agree to make us dinner tonight."
"I'm really not much of a cook sir. Plus don't you have a date to get to." She turning off her shower and wrapping her towel around her.
"I HAD a date. You made late for it twice now" He jokes dramatically "Plus if I show up now I stand a good chance of getting popcorn thrown in my face and I think helping you make dinner sounds like more fun than that. "
Riza laughs as she leaves the shower stall to get dressed and Roy rests his head against the shower tiles as the water hits him and large grin fills his face with sincere happiness and relief.