A Heart Made Fullmetal
His thoughts stopped wandering as he neared the station at Central. A few hours ago, he had just promised Winry that he would giver her half his life, and she promised to give him 85% of hers. Out of all the proposals in the world, I think ours may be the weirdest of them all. He chuckled to himself. His stop over in Central would last a day, as no other scheduled trains to the West would leave until the next day. I guess I could pay the bastard a visit. They all caught up on old times, and Ed was reluctant at first, but wanted to ask a favor from Roy. "Hey, Fuhrer idiot, I have a favor to ask."
"You never respect me, even now that I'm the leader of this country, and you have the nerve to ask me a favor? What the hell has gotten into you, Fullmetal?" Old habits die hard, and even though Ed was no longer a dog of the military, his nickname would be forever stuck with him.
"I did help save this country, and get you into your position." Ed smirked, knowing that Roy knew this.
"Fine. What do you need?"
"I'm going to be travelling around in the west, and in my travels, I want to have a little something to take back home to Winry. To let her know that she's always in my mind."
"Getting a little soft, aren't you Fullmetal?"
"Leave him alone, Roy. I think it's quite romantic" Major Hawkeye interrupted Roy.
"Anyways... I'm gonna get some coal from all these different places."
"Coal?!" Roy and Riza simultaneously asked.
"Yes. Coal. With your help and Colonel Armstrong's alchemy, I want to make a wedding ring. Using your fire, and Colonel Armstrong's strength, you can put enough pressure on the coal to create a diamond. It'd be easy to just transmute it, but I want this to be special for Winry."
Roy agreed, and Ed got his sleep. The next day, Ed continued on with his travels, and gathered the coal he needed to make Winry's ring.
Winry kept herself busy with customers and orders needing to get done. Her social life, however, was not as peaceful. A man in town was always trying to court her. "Why don't you give me a chance, Winry? I'll treat you good, you know I will."
When is he ever going to stop? Just then, she remembered her promise to Ed. "I'm sorry Joey, I'm..." How do I say this? "Engaged." I guess that's sort of true. I mean, we didn't really have time to talk about it, but we did promise each other. So yeah, I guess we are engaged. This thought brought a smile to her face.
"Engaged?! To whom?!"
"Edward Elric."
"That guy?! Isn't he always leaving? What kind of man does that to his fiance'?"
"He might always leave, but I'll always wait for him. Besides, men who stay and don't do anything are boring." It seemed like this was finally the thing to drive Joey away, as he didn't come to see her for weeks.
Ed met a young woman who was interested in alchemy through his travels. Her name was Diana, and while she couldn't perform alchemy, she wanted to know everything there was to it. So Ed agreed to take her with him on his travels. He taught her everything he knew, and she listened eagerly. "Hey, I've noticed that whenever we stop at a places, you always get a sample of coal. What's the deal with that?"
"Oh, hehe it's nothing really. Just souvenirs for my..." Hm, what do I call her? Is she my girlfriend? Maybe I can say Winry's my fiance'. I guess that's true.
"For?" His silence left Diana curious.
"Oh sorry. They're for my fiance'."
"Awww, how romantic. Whoever she is, she's very lucky to have someone like you."
With that, Ed told her all about Winry, and his journey with Al from trying to transmute their dead mother back to life, and finally defeating Father.
It has been a long year since Ed left Resembool, and Winry missed him. "Oh hey, Winry! What brings you into town?" Joey wasn't his usual flirtatious self with Winry, and she actually liked this side of him better.
"Hi, Joey! Oh just getting some stuff. Today marks a year since Ed left, and I just wanted to cook his favorite things just to remind me of him." It also marks our engagement anniversary, if there is such a thing.
"Do you mind if I keep you company? I have nothing else planned for today."
"Oh, no not at all Joey." The 2 talked and caught up while she ran her errands.
"Wow, one year huh? I bet you miss her like crazy!" Diana was excited for her friend.
"I do. I know that I don't call her or write to her much, but she knows that's because of who I am." He smiled towards Diana. They were headed back to Central, and Ed was excited to finally have the ring made for Winry.
"Gosh, I bet the ring will be beautiful."
I hope so too. Ed was deep in his thoughts of Winry, and he couldn't wait to see her again.
They reached Central and went their separate ways for now. It was late already, and both were tired from the journey. Ed was staying at the Armstrong's, and Diana stayed at a hotel.
A whole day had passed, and Joey accompanied Winry to her house. He carried what he could for her, as she was independent. As she unlocked her door, he asked "I thought you had a grandma staying with you?"
"Oh, she's at Rush Valley tending to my customers."
"Must get pretty scary, staying at a house this big."
"It's not that bad. I don't even think about that."
She unloaded the groceries they had gotten, and started to cook. As Joey was about to leave, she asked him if he wanted to stay for dinner. He happily accepted, and she set the table for 2. He surprised her with a champagne bottle, to celebrate her and Ed's engagement anniversary. They both drank while they ate, and exchanged stories. Before they knew it, the champagne bottle was almost empty, and they were both drunk. Joey still had his feelings for her, though he hid it the past few months knowing that she was already promised to someone else. Winry was longing for Ed's touch this past year, but he wasn't around. Drunk as they were, they acted on their temptations. They moved their actions into Winry's bedroom, and that night, she had broken her promise.
Ed was still awake in bed. It wasn't that late, only 15 past 12. Colonel Armstrong had some matters to tend to at Central Command, and only Ed was at the big mansion. The Armstrong employees had their own building, separate from the mansion. At around 1 am, Ed heard a pounding at the big front door. He got up and went to check it out, only to be surprised by a very drunk Diana. "What the hell are you doing, Diana?!"
With a slurred speech, she tried to talk to him. However, he could barely understand her. He decided to take her back to her hotel room. In the long ride, she managed to sober up a little to the point where her words could actually be understood. "Ed... I like you, like a lot!"
"You're drunk Diana, you don't even know what you're saying."
"A drunk mind tells sober truths... or something like that."
"Just get some rest, ok? We'll get to your hotel soon."
"But Ed, you haven't told me how you feel about me..."
"What? I feel like you're a good friend. You're very ambitious and dedicated."
"Not that. Like, do you like me?"
"As a friend, but right now I'm not sure how to feel. Considering the state your in."
"You mean my drunkiness?"
"That's not even a word, but yes."
"I only did it because I was hurt. All you ever talked about other than alchemy was your dear Winry. Winry this, Winry that. God I wish I was in her place. I could treat you better, like I wouldn't throw a wrench to your head. I heard your arguments with her on the phone, and I'd never argue with you like that. What do you see in her, Ed? What is it about her that makes her special? What does she have that I don't?"
Ed sighed. "You wouldn't understand."
She mumbled in frustration. There was an awkward silence all the way to her hotel. Seeing as she was having a hard time getting up the steps into the lobby, Ed got down and escorted her all the way to her room. At that time, Gracia and Elicia Hughes were staying in that same hotel. They both wanted to get out of their house for a while, and had a mini-vacation. Gracia heard the commotion outside their room, and was surprised to see Edward going into a room with a random girl. Isn't he engaged to Winry?
In the following days, a storm had hit Cental, and all trains were cancelled. Edward had finally gotten the ring made, and was very happy with the result. He couldn't wait to get back home and give it to Winry. The weather had finally cleared, and Ed made his way home. Upon arrival at the station, he ran towards the Rockbell house.
Winry and Joey awoke the following day, hungover from last night's drinking. They were both surprised to see each other, and there were no words to express the feelings Winry had. Guilt, regret, and anger were not enough to describe it. Joey, however, regretted nothing. There he was, waking up next to his dream girl. Before the 2 could say anything, the phone rang, and Winry got up in a hurry to answer it. She wanted to avoid any conversations with Joey for now. It did feel nice to finally wake up with someone next to me she thought.
"Winry Rockbell speaking."
"Winry? This is Gracia."
"Oh hi Ms. Gracia! This is unexpected, to what do I owe this pleasant phone call?"
Gracia informed her of what she had seen last night, and Winry felt relieved. After what she had did with Joey last night, at least the guilt can be off her shoulders. Assuming Ed had moved on too, she went back to her room and cuddled with Joey. The next few days, she was excited to finally have some one be there with her.
Ed flung the door open, eager to see his fiance'. He searched the kitchen, her room, and finally her workroom. What he saw, however, was unexpected. Instead of working on automail, she was working on another man. Stunned, Ed slowly backed away from the door. Hoping they wouldn't notice him, he quietly tried to sneak away. Winry, however noticed the light coming in, and saw Ed. She immediately stopped what she was doing, and Joey was surprised as well as she suddenly ceased. "Ed?" was all she could say. Her thoughts were running, and before she could move, Ed spoke.
"Uhm, sorry for the interruption." He turned back around to leave, but Pinako stopped him.
"Where do you think you're going?"
"Back."
"Back to where?"
"Central, I guess."
"Well, there won't be another train till tomorrow. I'm sorry for what's happened here, but stay one night, for old times sake. I'd hate to see you leave like this, Ed."
Ed reluctantly agreed to stay. He went up to his room, and just lied down on the bed. His thoughts lost on what he had seen earlier. He sighed, and closed his eyes. Maybe a nap would be good for me. He dozed off, and let his sleep solve his problems for now.
Winry had sent Joey home. This is all just too much. Seeing as Granny convinced Ed to stay, even for just a day, I guess I could talk to him first.
"Winry! Dinner's almost ready. Can you get Ed so we can all eat?!"
"No problem Granny."
Winry made her way up to Ed's room. She knocked, but there was no answer. Slowly, she opened the door to find Ed sleeping. She approached him to wake him up, when she noticed a box that had slipped out of his pocket. What is this? She picked it up quietly, and opened it. She gasped at what was inside. A beautiful diamond ring, with words engraved on the inside. 'No matter how far, or how long, you're always in my heart.'
Ed awoke at her gasp, and saw that she was holding the ring meant for her. He quickly grabbed it away from her. "It's rude to look through a person's belongings you know." Ed glared at her.
She gathered herself. "It's almost time for dinner." She made her way back downstairs. Was that ring... for me? Her thoughts were still stuck on what she discovered.
Ed came down, and quickly ate dinner. It was very awkward, and he didn't want to see her face any more than he has to. Before he came up, Pinako stopped him.
"Edward, before you go, I think its best for you 2 to talk and clear things up."
"What's there to clear up, Granny? It's simple. I came home, and I'm leaving again. That's as clear as its gonna get." He continued upstairs, and took a long shower. When he was done, he packed what was left, and prepared for his jouney back to Central the next day.
Pinako and Winry were still downstairs, cleaning up. "Even though I know you don't want to, I still believe it'd be best for you to talk."
"Granny, what's the point? He doesn't want to, and I don't want to either."
"That doesn't matter. Just, please try. For me."
Winry sighed and agreed to talk to the stubborn man. She knocked on his door, and told him to come down to her workroom so she can get a chance to see his leg. This way he can't walk away when he wants to. Ed agreed, and a few minutes later, made his way to her workroom.
Geez, do we really have to do this here? Ed did not want to be in that room, the room where he had seen her with another man earlier. Winry noticed his disgusted look, and decided to work on his leg in the living room.
She disconnected the nerves, and Ed felt the sharp pain. "What the hell are you disconnecting the nerves for?! I thought you were just checking it out?!"
Winry felt a slight pleasure in Ed's pain. "That's so you can't walk away from me."
Defeated, he let out an exasperated sigh. "What do you want from me." It was more of a statement than a question.
"I want to know a few things, Edward."
"Like what, Win?"
"Well, let me finish. First of all, why are acting like this?"
"The hell do you mean, why am I acting like this? Why shouldn't I be acting like this?" He glared knives into her.
Skipping the subject for now, she asked "Second, why would you come back here?"
These questions were irritating Ed. "Why the hell would I not come back home, Win?! These are all stupid questions!"
"Shut up. Third, why do you have the ring and who is it for?"
Now he was furious. "THESE ARE ALL VERY DUMB QUESTIONS. Why am I acting like this? Because I just saw my fiance' making love to another man. Who wouldn't act this way when their heart just got broken into a million pieces?! Why would I not come back home to the woman I love?! I promised you half of my life didn't I?! Who else would the ring be for Winry?! I practically proposed to you, and throughout my stupid travels I did my best to-... You know what? That doesn't matter anymore. I shouldn't have to explain myself to you." He tried to get up, and just fell down. I don't care if she takes my leg away, I can still crawl out of here.
Winry was very confused. She sat there dumbfounded, and she wasn't sure of what to say. It took her a while to realize that Ed was almost up the stairs. He's still determined as ever. Even if he had no arms or legs, he'd still find a way to move on. She decided to give him back his leg. She went into his room, and Ed was angrily told her to get out. "No. I'm going to re attach your leg. After all, it wouldn't matter. You'd still find a way to get away."
Ed calmed down, and lied on his bed while she re-attached the leg. He faced the wall, avoiding her gaze or any signs of a new conversation. Realizing that this was maybe the last time she could talk to him, she continued on with a new set of questions.
"Ed, why are you still going through with this? I don't want to sound redundant, but why did you decide to come back here and see me?"
"What do you mean, Winry? It's simple, I'm engaged to you, so I wanted to seal it with a ring. That's all."
"But why, Ed? I thought... you had moved on?"
"What are you talking about, Win?"
"Ms. Gracia called me a few days ago. She told me she saw you getting in a room with another girl at a hotel."
Ed didn't look surprised at all. "Yeah, I did. She was a friend of mine who I met during my trip. She got wasted that night, and so I took her back to her hotel room. Seeing as she was pretty drunk, I had to make sure she was going to be ok. I don't deny getting in that room with her, but that was all, I promise."
She gave him a look that showed she didn't believe him.
"You don't have to believe me. I don't care. It doesn't matter if we did or didn't, because the truth is YOU did with another man. Whether you forgive me or not, I could never forgive you." He was so angry that for once in his life, he didn't wince at the pain of reconnecting nerves in his leg.
They just stared at each other for a while. Gold looking into blue. He broke the silence. "If that's all Winry, then good night. I'll have your payment by tomorrow." He turned to face the wall again, and Winry left his room.
Could he be telling the truth? Gah! This is so frustrating. I guess he's right, it doesn't matter. She took a shower and went to sleep.
The next morning, Pinako got up and woke up Winry. "Wake up Ed, and tell him to get ready. The train leaves in 45 minutes, and we still have to eat breakfast."
Winry, still drowsy and sleepy, got up slowly and made her way into Ed's bedroom. She knocked, and he didn't answer. She slowly opened the door to see that he wasn't in his bed. Winry fully opened the door, hoping to see him up and getting his stuff ready. It was then she noticed that his stuff was already gone. Damn. He must've left before Granny woke up. She turned to leave and tell Pinako, but her eye caught a familiar box left on the desk. She opened it to see the engagment ring he had for her and a small note. 'I won't be needing this anymore. It was meant for you, so I guess it is yours. I don't care what you do with it.' Tears were slowly forming in her eyes, but Pinako interrupted her.
"Where is Edward?"
Wiping off her tears, she replied "I guess he left already, Granny."
"Oh," was all Pinako had to say. So much for seeing that shrimp. I have a feeling I won't see him again for a long time. "Well, breakfast is almost ready."
Winry went downstairs, and her thoughts were interrupted by the phone ringing. "Winry Rockbell speaking."
A woman's voice was on the other line, a voice Winry didn't recognize. "Hi Winry! So, how did you like the ring?"
"The... Ring?"
"Yeah. Didn't Ed properly propose yet? Oh gosh, I ruined the surprise! He's gonna kill me.. After all the work he put in it, I ruin it for you 2. I'm so sorry."
"Oh, uhm. He didn't propose, in fact we called it off. His train leaves in a half hour, so yeah... Uhm, what did you mean by all the work he put in on the ring?"
Diana informed her of how the ring was made, and it dawned on Winry what the engraving meant. Her knees fell to the floor, as tears were again forming in her eyes.
"If you don't mind me asking, why did you call it off? After everything Ed's told me about you, he doesn't seem like the kind of person to just give up on you."
Through her sobs, she was able to answer Diana. "We were both unfaithful to each other. I met a man here while he was gone, and I cheated on Ed just a few days ago. I got a call from a friend in Central, saying she had seen Ed go into a hotel room with some other girl. Ed told me nothing happened, but there's no way of finding out if he was lying. Besides, it wouldn't have mattered." She could hear Diana grumble a few words on the phone. "I'm sorry, I didn't understand that last part."
"This is all my fault, Winry."
"What? Why?"
"I don't know if he told you, but we met each other while he was on his research trip. I wanted to learn about alchemy so much, and it seemed like I would learn a lot by going with him. Anyways, out of no where I started to fall for him, but he couldn't stop talking about you. So I just let it go, and decided not to interfere with his relationship with you. When we arrived at Central, I got drunk, and I couldn't control myself anymore. I went to the Armstrong mansion to seek him out, and he just took me back to my hotel. I told him how I felt, and tried to persuade him to choose me over you, but he wouldn't even start to think of it. He escorted me back to my room, and I guess that's when your friend saw us. But I swear to you, nothing happened. All he did was get me to my bed, took my shoes off, and made sure I had a throw up bag in reach. He tied my hair, and made sure I had water. I vaguely remember him calling Colonel Armstrong to send someone to watch over me, and I guess he did because someone was outside my room the next morning in a military uniform."
Winry listened to everything. She continued to cry realizing that Ed was telling her the truth. It worsened when it dawned on her that while Ed had been faithful, she had not. "Th... Thank you for your honesty. If you see Ed, please tell him to call me." She hung up the phone, and ran towards the train station. She got on the platform, and searched for the golden haired man. Having no luck, she asked one of the people who worked there if they've seen Ed. Turns out that there was an earlier train, with a stopover at East city first. It seems he couldn't wait to get out of here, even if it means a few extra hours on his trip. She went back home, and told Pinako what happened.
2 years later, May and Al were getting married at Central. Winry, Pinako, and a bunch of their friends were invited, and they were all happy to see each other. One person was still missing and his absence was like a shadow they couldn't shake. Everyone had heard what happened between Winry and him, and they couldn't believe that he wasn't going to show up for his brother's wedding. They tried to ignore that thought, and continued on with the festivities. The women had a bachelorette's party, and they all had fun. The men held a bachelor's party for Al, and while they tried to cheer him up, he was still down at the absence of his brother. An employee for the hotel interrupted the party, and asked for Al. "There's a phone call for you in the lobby sir."
"Oh, who is it?"
"He said his name was Edward."
Al rushed down to the lobby, eager to hear from his brother. Ed happily told Al he was gonna be able to attend his wedding, but asked that he keep it a secret. Al was excited at the news, and promised to keep quiet about it.
The day of the wedding had come, and everything was already set up to start. Before the wedding march had started, one of the doors by the side flung open. Everyone was shocked to see Edward, and the wedding went on better than they had all expected. Ed was the best man, of course, everyone knew that. Winry was the maid of honor, as May didn't have many female friends in Amestris. It was awkward at times for the 2, Ed avoiding her at all costs, and Winry trying to get his attention as much as she could. Their antics were starting to bother Al and May, so he finally took them both to the side and talked to them. "Look, I'm here for you, Al. I'm not trying to start anything, so don't get mad at me." Ed turned around and made his way back to the party.
"I'm sorry for almost ruining your wedding. I promise to stop doing anything related to Ed."
"Thanks Winry. If there's anything the both of you need to talk about, please do it tomorrow."
Winry nodded and they rejoined the party. The night was coming to an end, and everyone finally went home. Ed stayed at a hotel, and Winry, May, and Al were staying at the Armstrong mansion. The newlyweds were leaving early the next morning to go to their honeymoon, and Winry and Ed dropped them off at the train station. They said goodbye to the newlyweds, and Ed was starting to go his separate way before Winry stopped him. "Ed! Would... Do you want to grab some breakfast?"
Wanting to avoid her, he came up with an excuse not to. He continued on his way back to his hotel to get his things ready.
Not wanting to give up easily, Winry followed him to his hotel. Before he could close his door, Winry forced her way inside. "What the hell are you doing, Winry?!"
"I need to talk to you."
"About what?!"
"Everything!"
Realizing there was no way out of this, Ed reluctantly agreed. "What do you want..."
Winry tried to think of where to start, as she had a lot of questions.
Ed, impatient as ever, scolded her. "If you want to talk, then talk! I have nothing to say to you, Win, so you just go on ahead and tell me what you need to say."
The nickname he had always called her brought a smile to her face. It had been a while since she had been called by that. "So... Uh. That girl, Diana, seems like a nice person." She forced a smile at him. "Oh, and here." She got up and handed him back the ring he left behind.
"I guess. I haven't seen her since that night she got drunk." His eyes were focused on the ceiling.
"Well, she called me the day you left Resembool, telling me that nothing did happen between the 2 of you." She was trying to read his face, but it was blank.
"Yeah, well... Whatever."
She was getting annoyed by him, and reached for her wrench. She flung it at him, only to see that he had caught it with one of his hands. He calmly dropped it on the floor. "How did..." She was surprised, as she always hit her mark.
"I have no time for this, Winry. Is that everything you needed to say?" His expression was now cold and emotionless.
"No, that's not everything. That guy you saw me with? Well we ended things."
"That's great..."
Seeing that this was going nowhere, she tried to make small talk. "It was nice seeing you again, Ed. It's been a while, and I'm happy that you made it for Al's wedding. It wouldn't have been the same without you."
"Sure..."
Frustrated, she got up and approached him, looking down as he layed on the couch. "What the hell is going on? I'm trying to talk to you, and you're just being rude! I'm sorry for not believing you 2 years ago, I really am. I'm here now, trying to make it up to you, and you're just being cold to me."
He sat up, and gazed into her eyes. "I told you it wouldn't matter if you believed me or not. In the end, I still witnessed with my own eyes you with another man. Nothing can take that away."
"I'm sorry for the pain I've caus-"
"No. I felt pain when I lost my mom. I felt pain when I lost my leg and arm, and I felt pain each time you disconnected or reconnected my nerves. I felt pain throughout my battles and fights, and I felt pain when a beam punctured me, almost killing me. All of that was pain... but what you did to me goes beyond pain, Win. When I opened that door, it was worse than all the pain I ever experienced. I saw you with that other guy, and I died..." He turned to avoid her gaze.
"I'm sorry, Ed." Tears streaming down her face.
"You're not sorry for what you did. You're only sorry that I found out." He got up and grabbed his belongings.
"You broke your promise. You said the next time I'd cry, they'd be tears of happiness."
"And you did. I don't remember promising you that you'd only cry tears of happiness from then on out. Speaking of broken promises..." He grabbed the ring and threw it on the ground. "I don't need this anymore, or your 85%. Have a good life, Win." He continued out the door, leaving a sobbing Winry behind.
She explained what had happened to Riza and Al and May, and they were all shocked at how cold Ed was. Has brother finally lost it?
I had no idea Edward could be like that. Thought Riza
I can't believe how different he's been. May wondered.
For one second, they all thought the same thing. I can't blame him. After getting hurt like that, he got his heart broken, a heart thought to be fullmetal.
A year and a half passed, and May and Al were expecting a kid soon. May was a little past 8 months, so the baby was due in the coming weeks. Winry, Pinako and the couple were very excited. Al got ahold of Ed, and he was coming home to visit his nephew/niece. Winry was a little nervous from having to see the man she loved again. Al and Pinako picked up Ed at the train station, and got some groceries for that night's dinner. Winry was working on some automail in her workroom, and Ed went straight upstairs to take a shower. It was obvious the 2 were avoiding each other. In the coming days, they wouldn't be able to avoid each other anymore. They used Ed's old room as the nursery, and Ed had to sleep in the living room. Roy and Riza came visit, and Winry lent them her room. So the 2 were now sleeping in the living room, Winry on the couch, and Ed on the floor. Each night was very awkward, as he lay there being unable to sleep most of the time. Winry found the couch to be uncomfortable, and in turn wasn't able to sleep either.
One night, after the baby was finally out, they were having their usual awkward silence. Winry finally broke the silence between them. "Still awake?"
He let out a hum, answering her question.
"So, what have you been up to Ed?"
"Hm, just travelling and researching some more."
"I hope you haven't gotten yourself into any trouble."
"Its not my fault if trouble finds me."
"Geez Ed. Some things don't change, do they? By the way, how's your automail? It's been awhile since I've done some maintenance on it."
"Your automail was destroyed about 2 years ago. I had it replaced by some automail engineer out in the west."
She was sadddened at the news. After all, her automail was the only thing he had left of her. "Oh" was all she could say.
"It's not as good as yours though, Win. It's slow, stiff, and heavy. Not the same quality you produced... Uhm, do you mind making me another one?"
Her sadness was immediately taken away. "Of course Ed! It would be my pleasure. It's gonna take a week or two."
"I guess that's alright. I need a break from travelling anyways. Thanks Win."
"No problem." She was happy to hear that nickname again. It wasn't the same if anyone else called her by that, but it was natural when it came from Ed. They both easily slept after that. The following days, Winry went to work creating a new leg for Ed. It wasn't easy to concentrate, with the baby bawling every 5 minutes. The house was getting smaller, too. With the Ed, Al, May, Winry, Pinako, the baby, and their customers always taking space.
Ed was also getting tired from not getting the space he wanted. He went into town, and got some materials delivered to their old house. He set it off building his late wedding gift and gift to his niece. It wasn't easy at first, but soon enough, he got the hang of it. Getting a better quality automail leg helped him a lot too. It took him about a month to finish the project.
"Brother, what have you been doing that makes you come home tired everyday?"
"I have a gift to you and your family, Al. It's almost ready, so be patient ok?"
He had shown them their new house. It was different from the layout of their old house, but it was perfect for a small family who might eventually expand. Al was grateful to his brother, and was happy to have their own place to call home. Ed still stayed at Winry's house, and decided to leave soon. He visited his mother's grave, and Pinako told him about Hohenheim's death at that very spot. So he came back and died by her side. What a sappy old man. The thought made him chuckle. He went to Winry's parents grave as well, just to say hi. That night he couldn't sleep, even though he was back on his bed in his own room at the Rockbell house. Frustrated, he went downstairs to grab a snack. He was surprised by Winry when she got out of her workroom to get something to eat.
"How long have you been down there?"
"I think 18 hours now."
"Geez Winry, you should really get some sleep. It's not good to work all the time."
"It helps gets my mind off of things." She smiled at him. "So, I hear you're leaving again soon. Where are you off to this time?"
"Oh I don't know. Haven't really thought about it yet."
"So you're leaving, but you don't know where?"
Ed nodded.
"You are one weird man, Edward Elric."
They laughed, and an awkward silence fell on them. "Well, I better get back and try to sleep. You should rest too Winry."
Before he could walk upstairs, she stopped him by grabbing his hand. "Ed, don't you ever get tired of moving around place to place?"
"I do, sometimes, but what else would I do?"
"Maybe you could stop travelling, and settle down."
He laughed. "Winry c'mon, we both know I'm not the type of person to settle down. And besides, I have nothing. I don't have a home."
"Your home is here..."
"Win... I have nothing here. I'm only here because of Al. There is nothing here for me anymore."
"You're wrong Ed. You have everything here. There's Granny, Den, May, your niece, Al, and... me. I don't care if you never forgive me for what I've done, because honestly I haven't forgiven myself. But I'm here waiting, even if it takes the rest of my life, for you. I promised myself to you, and I know I messed that up, but I want to redeem myself. So I promised myself that I'll never be with anyone else unless its you. This time around, I'll give you 100%. If you still can't stop moving around, then I'll go wherever you go Ed. I want to be there for you, anywhere, anytime."
"How am I even supposed to trust what you say? The next time I see you, I might see you with another man again."
Slap! Her hand had made contact with his right cheek.
"I didn't deserve that, just like you don't deserve me Winry."
He tried to pull away, but she ran to face him. She was on a higher step, and he on a lower one. He had gotten taller, but not by much, as she looked down on him. She cupped his face with her hands. "His name was Joey. He always had a thing for me, and one day I was able to temporarily get him out of my life by saying I was engaged to you."
Ed noticed that she was wearing the ring he had made for her. "Why are you wearing that stupid thing?"
"No matter how far, or how long, you're always in my heart. I broke a promise, but I made a new one. Since then I've been wearing this as a reminder of who I love. I don't care if it takes my whole life, I will make it up to you."
Ed was silent, his face still held by Winry. He looked down, and pulled Winry to him. His face in her neck, he wrapped his arms around her waist. Surprised by his reaction, it took her a while to finally wrap her own arms around his neck, and rest her chin on his head. "I don't know if I'll ever forgive you Winry. It might take the rest of my life, but I know that there is no one else I'd rather be with. While I can't forget what happened, I know that you won't ever do it again." He released her from his embrace, and lifted her up the stairs. He carried her to her room, and their emotions got the best of them. As Ed lay on top of Winry, she asked him to be gentle.
"Gentle? But haven't you done this before?"
"We never took it this far Ed. We might have slept together, but that was just it, sleeping. We were both drunk, and knocked out. Everything after that, well lets just say I'm still a virgin."
All this time, Ed had thought that her first time was with someone else. While it was still a bad memory he had of her and him, knowing this made him feel better. That night was magical to both of them. It was their first, second, third, and after a few more times, they had lost count. They layed in bed, cuddled till the next afternoon. They were exhausted, and Winry was now behind schedule with her automail work. She skipped lunch and dinner, but Ed brought in something for her to eat. He'd try to help, but realized he'd only get in her way. So he just sat there, watching her work on her precious automail. He decided when it was time for her to get some rest, and once again they cuddled that night into the morning. Their sleeping patterns now back on track, Ed kept bringing her things to eat while she worked. She finally finished all her work in the next week, and they both decided to visit Al and his family. She made apple pie, and they made their way towards the Elric house.
Al saw the 2 walking towards them, hand in hand. "Honey! I won the bet! They look like they're happy together!" He smiled. Winry and Ed informed them of what had happened, and even though they can't fix the past, they can fix their future. The day ended, and their usual sleep with cuddling was not present that night. While they did cuddle, they weren't asleep. "Did you really go through all that trouble to make me this ring, Ed?"
"Who told you about that?" He smiled
"Diana."
"Yeah, I did go through all that."
"Wow Ed. I never knew you to be such a romantic."
"Shut up Win."
They both laughed, and Winry fixed herself to gaze into his golden eyes. "I love you Ed. Always have, always will."
"I know," he said.
"What did you say?" already reaching for her trusty wrench.
"I'm kidding. I love you too. Even before I even knew what the word meant, I already knew."
"Here I thought you had a heart made fullmetal, just like your limbs."
"Hey! I can be sweet and stuff."
She put a finger to his mouth. "I know Ed. I know." She kissed him one last time and she fell asleep.
He could see her head moving along with his heartbeat. A heart made fullmetal, huh? Since your basically the one who handles my automail, I guess we could say you own my heart too. He smiled, and kissed her forehead. He, too fell asleep soon.