Author's Notes: Hello again everyone! I'm publishing another FMA fic while I'm still working on my main story, Destiny to come. If you like EdXWinry pairings, you should check it out ^^. Anyway, please enjoy Love Debt! (though I think it's a bit cheesy...)

Disclaimer: Arakawa-san created FMA, so it's not mine in any way. I just love Ed and Winry so much, I wanna see them getting together in as many ways as possible.

Ｌｏｖｅ Ｄｅｂｔ

"She's going to Rush Valley"

Edward's heart stopped. Eyes wide. No words. No nothing.

"Mr. Garfield has asked her to become his right hand again. Apparently, a lot of costumers miss her back there." The tea pot whistled. Pinako got off the chair and went to get it. "She's leaving tonight."

A gush of wind made his senses remember he needed air to live; air he hadn't been breathing. "Tonight? But she didn't say anything! What kind of person leaves without notice?" He was outraged

"You mind asking that again?" Pinako stared at him, implying things he didn't get.

"Wh-what d-do you mean, Auntie?" She was making him nervous.

"Have you not realized she might not want to say good bye because she won't stand it? That she won't put you two through a sad moment again?" She wasn't angry; her voice was even gentle.

"Well, she should know better. If she's going, I want to see her off! This is just selfish of her!" His mind was racing. How could she?

"Is it selfish, really?" Her implying eyes were back. "May I remind you of a young boy who would leave in the middle of the night?"

Oh, right, now he was getting the meaning in her eyes.

"He would try not to say good bye because he didn't want to see his best friend cry." She continued.

Self kick! Self kick!He stayed quiet.

"I wonder if he did it because it was too troublesome for him to comfort a young girl, or because he thought that way it would be less painful." She looked up at the ceiling, as if in thought. "What do you think, Edward?"

"Err… I…" his body lost its strength and he leaned on his legs, utterly defeated. Sigh. "I get it." His hands balled into fists. He wasn't ready to give up yet. "I know I made so many mistakes. I know that we- that I- hurt her." He looked up. "But I'm not about to let it happen again!"

Pinako smiled knowingly. "Well, if you really want to see her off, you better hurry because her train is leaving in twenty minutes." She crossed her arms on her chest and waited.

"WHAT? Twenty minutes? You said she was leaving tonight!" This was bad. He had to run to catch her before she left.

"Well, 'tonight' technically starts at 6, SHRIMP!"

"Uuuugh. I have no time to lose here arguing with you. If Al asks, tell him where I went!" SLAM! The door closed behind him in two seconds. He would have to be faster than ever in his life.

And he was. Ten to six. He had made it to the station in record time. Panting like crazy, he hurried to the platform looking for her. "Winry!" Damn it! Where is she? The noise on the platform was too loud. The train whistled. "WINRY! WINRY ROCKBELL!" the crowd was closing in on him. He would have to take desperate measures.

Finding the tallest spot, he climbed a lamp post with dexterity and looked around. His heart pumped harder when he saw her blond ponytail near the train's entrance. "NO! No, no, no! Wait!" He jumped off the post and landed on a free spot on the ground. Everybody turned to look at him, but he could only think of running towards her. Why is it burning me like this? Winry, please don't leave.

She wasn't at the door anymore, so he tried to go in. "Mr., your ticket please." The tall doorman raised a hand in front of him.

"Ticket? No, you don't understand, I need to talk to someone in the train. Let me in!" He tried to break his way in, but the man was too thick.

"I'm sorry, if you don't have a ticket, you can't go in." He didn't budge.

"Damn! Ok, ok… "He ran down the platform yelling. "WINRY!" Window by window, the people inside the train turned at him. None of them was the one he wanted. Winry, please! "WINRY!"

"Edward?" She was putting her suitcase up in the compartment when she clearly heard her name coming from outside the train. She shook her head. No, I must have imagined it. He doesn't even know I'm here.

"DAMN IT, WINRY! WHERE THE FUCK ARE YOU?" The people of Resembool covered their children's ears and glared at him.

It can't be… Winry walked to the window and looked outside. Sure enough, there was Edward Elric, running like a mad man along side the train, cursing and yelling. She started hitting the window with all her might. Tap Tap Tap "EDWARD! HERE!"

Tap Tap Tap. Ed turned on his feet and saw her behind the glass. He ran to her and clashed against the train, right below her window. "Winry…" His heart was throbbing harder and harder. "Winry, why?" His eyes were a sad amber.

Suddenly, everything around them was quiet. No people, no whistle, not even a bird. The glass was the only thing between them. Everything else didn't exist.

"I'm sorry, Ed. I thought it would be too sad to say good bye, so I figured I could leave and then maybe call you to tell you everything." Her eyes were burning.

"That's not what I'm asking." His voice was serious. He frowned. "Damn it, Winry!" He hit the window with his fists. "Why are you even leaving?" He had been thinking about it while he ran to the station. Why was she leaving them? Me? Us! He was so confused right now.

She jumped at his action. "Why? Obviously I want to try my luck in Rush Valley! I am good at what I do, Ed! I know I can be better!" She was yelling at the window.

"I know that! Fuck!" He leaned his forehead on the window. Another punch to the glass. His heavy breathing was leaving a humid stain on the window.

Winry softened her eyes and got closer to the window. "Edward" He looked up. Her blue orbs were as beautiful as they had always been. Winry put her hands against the glass, right where his fists were. "Why are you so mad?" Yeah, he was wondering the same thing too. "You've done this before, remember? It was always you and Al on the train, and you always came back." she smiled sweetly and he put his palms against the glass, wishing to touch her. "It will be alright, Eward." She giggled "I promise".

Ed's eyes brightened. The gleam in her eyes was absolutely wonderful. "Don't you dare break that promise, Winry Rockbell, 'cause I will hunt you down if you do." There was still a heavy weight on his chest, and by now, he was pretty sure of what it was.

"Heheh. Ed, you sound so cliché." She leaned closer. "But it's nice to hear you say that." If only this glass didn't exist.

Their eyes were hooked on each other. Suddenly, the train's whistle could be heard, louder and louder. Their little world was gone and the crowd was back. Ed mouthed something that Winry could not hear. A huge blush on his cheeks. The whistle was even louder now. The train started moving. "What? Ed, I can't hear you!" Ed was running beside the train. He tried to repeat what he had said, but couldn't. It had been hard enough the first time. "Ed! I will come home soon!" She waved at him.

"Do your best, Wnry! Show them!" He stopped running and raised a hand to say good bye. Her smile vanished when the train was out of sight, but he was still standing on the platform.

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When Edward got home, it had been several hours since he had seen Winry off. A void was eating him from the inside out and he was all wet. Well, of course it was going to happen if he wandered around in the rain. Even if he knew it was just temporary, the fact that she was gone was tearing him apart. Why was he feeling like this? She was right; it wasn't like he hadn't done the same thing to her a hundred times before. They had said many good byes when he and Al were searching for The Philosopher's Stone. Sure, it had been difficult, but he had more important things to think about. Recovering his brother's body had always been a priority.

"Al, are you home?" He would have to tell Al that Winry was gone. It wouldn't be a very nice surprise. He walked, completely drenched, into the kitchen, where he was sure to find at least a small towel. Which, he did. Coming out of the room, drying his hair a bit, he saw Al coming down the stairs with Aunt Pinako. "Hey, Auntie, did you tell him?" He wasn't in the mood for playing the nice gentleman.

Al and Pinako looked at each other, saying everything with their eyes, and then Al looked at his brother. "Errmm yeah, Niisan, I know." He took in the image of his brother. "You are soaking wet! Why did you not take an umbrella, or stay inside? Do you want to get sick?" Al couldn't believe his big brother. He could be so negligent when it came to his own well being.

"You better go upstairs and get dry. There's a towel in Winry's shower room that you can use, Pipsqueak" Ed twitched. Pinako kept walking to the main door and Al followed her. "We will be back soon, so don't die of pneumonia while we're gone, OK Shorty?" That did it.

"WHO ARE YOU CALLING A MITE THAT CANNOT BE SEEN EVEN IF WEARING A NEON ORANGE JUMPSUIT WITH EMBEDDED CHRISTMAS LIGHTS ?" She had gone too far. He wasn't even short anymore!

"Calm down now, and go get dry. We will be back soon." PInako and Al were gone the next second.

Ed shivered and so decided it was a good idea to go get that towel, after all. He walked to Winry's room, and when he opened the door, he froze. Standing near the balcony's window, a blonde miracle was staring right at him.

"Winry…" Step. Step. Stop. "What are you doing here? I though you would be at Rush Valley by now." He was trying to cover the fact that he had to remember to breathe every two seconds.

Step "Well, I thought I can go any day I want" Step "but then, I had to talk to you" Setp. Step "and that had to be today, so I got off the train on the first station and came back." Stop. "I gotta say, you took a long time to come home. Where were you?" She was standing a few feet away from him, smiling.

"I…" What was he supposed to tell her? That he had roamed like a stray dog around Resembool after he'd seen her off? That he got drenched before he could notice it had started raining because his mind had left with her on that train? That he couldn't bear coming home without her there? He shivered again.

"Oh, Ed, you're dripping! Let me get you a towel." She ran to her shower room and brought him a towel, which he took and then started drying his arms and torso. She giggled when the towel got stuck with his belt and he tried to pull it free, failing miserably. "Here, let me help you" Her dexterous fingers got the fabric free from the hook of the belt and she took the towel to help him dry his neck, then moving to his chest and shoulders. His eyes fixed on her all the time.

"Thank you" Really? Is that all you wanna say to her? His body was very still.

She giggled again. "You really need me here, don't you?" Her eyes were staring at his ripped body. When had he become so strong? Looking at the scar around his shoulder, and then at his restored arm, she got mixed emotions. He had endured so much at such a young age, it made her somewhat sad, but also very proud of what he had become.

"Yeah, I really do" In a spurt of bravery, he took a hold of her arms. Her hands stopped moving the towel and her blue orbs looked into the golden amber of his eyes. He took a deep breath "Winry, I really need you here." His thumb was stroking her arm. "And it's not for you to help me dry" He let go of her arms to grab her hands on his chest "or to keep my leg working" he squeezed her hands "or to cry for me." She couldn't move. "I need you because you are the best friend I ever had" Her eyes became teary. She bent her head down. "Now that Al is alright, and the danger around me is gone" He put his hand under her chin and lifted her face, leaning on her at the same time "I can finally tell you that I can't imagine my life without you."

"Because we are best friends, right?" A single tear escaped from her eyes.

Ed shook his head. "Winry, listen carefully 'cause I've said this before, but I don't think you got it, and it's really hard for me to say it." Damn train and damn people for making so much noise! "I…" Come on! Say it! Inhale, Exhale… "Winry, I need you with me because I owe you my life." His face was all red and his lips were pale. "So I have to be where you are." He chuckled and turned his face to the ceiling "I thought about it out in the rain. If you go to Rush Valley, then I'll go with you."His hand returned to hold hers.

"Edward…" Winry was in complete shock. New tears came down her face. "Will you insist on being my protector forever? I'm a big girl, you know?" Sniff.

He chuckled again "Winry, you are getting it all wrong again." He looked down and stared into her blue mists. With both hands, he cupped and caressed her face, drying the residues of her tears. I'm so glad there is no glass anymore. His face moved closer. He brushed his lips against the angle of her mouth and felt her gasp. "I owe you my life" He moved back to see her eyes again, but stayed as close as to feel her breath. "and I intend to pay you" His eyes were as serious as the day he had promised never to make her cry again.

She replaced her tears with a giggle "Then I accept you payment, geek" Slowly, still staring at him, she closed her lids, inviting him. He smiled.

"You got it, mechanic junkie" Edward leaned down and kissed her soft lips, feeling complete for the first time in years.

When that first, innocent kiss was over, Ed pulled an inch back. Winry then put her arms around his neck. "I love you, Edward" She was deeply lost in his golden irises. She kissed him softly again. "I always have."

"I love you too, Winry" He hugged her tightly and hid his face in the crook of her neck. "I always will" he whispered. She sighed. Finally, after all the pain, they were happy. None of them let go of the other all night, both lost in the truth of their feelings.

Walking in the rain, using an umbrella to cover from the water, Al and Pinako smiled. This was the best excuse to go to the market: give those thickheaded fools some time alone.

Author's notes: Yes, it is short. Yes, it is sweet ^^. Yes, it may have some things left in the air, so let's say it's leaving room for a sequel. Let me know what you think!

Review please ~ Thanks!