Fandom: Fullmetal Alchemist
Title: Calculated Risk
Pairing: HavocxRoy (and the occasional RoyxHavoc)
Rating: varies by chapter, R/NC17 overall
Timeline: AU, may mention specific events of the first anime
Summary: Roy and Jean traverse the pitfalls of their new (and secret) relationship...
AN: I'll be the first to admit that the first anime doesn't do Havoc a whole lot of justice. Although I'm not toofamiliar with his character outside of the first FMA just yet, I do know that there is a depth to him that I look forward to exploring here. I don't really have an ETA on this story. I know how it will end; I think I'm just going to sit back and have a good time getting there. Except for the angsty bits. .

Calculated Risk
Chapter 1
"Unlikely Opportunity"

For Roy, drinking without Maes was boring. Not boring enough to forgo imbibing altogether; he would never be thatbored. But he didn't realize just how accustomed he had become to his friend's endless ranting about his darling Elysia until the habit was removed from him, leaving only the muted sound of the bar's other patrons to keep him company.

He supposed it couldn't be helped. Although Roy had little in the way of immediate kin himself to speak of, he understood that every now and then the man's family had to take priority over their after-work ritual. It was what it was. Still, it was a pain to drink by himself. Drinking alone always seemed to invite a plethora of unwanted attention from observing eyes; not that Roy cared about such things per se, but it could be a bother if left unchecked, moreover if said bother came in the form of a female looking for company. And an officer drinking by his lonesome in bar was the right kind of company to many women. Contrary to popular belief- which Roy admittedly fueled by a strategically implemented dating routine that was, at its core, undeniably platonic- the opposite sex held little interest to him. The reason was simple, if wholly unbelievable, enough:

Roy loved men.

To be more accurate, he loved cock.

Boy, did he ever.

Maes was the only one who knew the truth, aside from the all too few and far between one night stands he had dared to chance, those men with nameless faces writhing desperately above or below him, their intertwined bodies a sweat and cum-slicked ball of fury on a dingy bed in a rented room. It wasn't necessarily the way Roy wanted it, but it was the way that it had to be. Because, as Maes so witlessly pointed out to him time and time again, he would never be able to get to the top of the military if they found out that he liked to top men. While there were still certain things that Roy would never again compromise in the name of duty, his personal life, unfortunately, did not apply. He had made his peace with that choice long ago. As much as was possible.

Sure, Roy sometimes thought it would be nice to have something more. A relationship, however discreet it had to be, sounded like a welcome change from the rat race, both of having to drive endless miles for random sex and of having to pretend he was even remotely interested in the women he "dated" to keep up appearances. He had pondered more than once during Maes' endless fawning what it might be like to have someone waiting at home for him, to anticipate a warm smile greeting him at the door as opposed to cold silence.

He shook his head and took a sip of his drink, chastising himself for such folly. Domestic bliss was hardly an option for a man like him. Besides, even if it was a worthwhile aspiration, it wasn't as if the perfect man was just going to fall into his lap and say-

"Hey there, Chief. Mind if I sit down?"

XXX

He had always known that Jean Havoc could be, well, a bit of an idiot. But to be fair, it seemed that he was only an idiot where the opposite sex was concerned. Luckily, now was not one of those times.

Roy had to admit that there were far worse ways to spend two hours besides speculating- rather outlandishly- about the root of Breda's fear of dogs and whose ass Hawkeye couldn't kick. At least he was spared from having to suffer a photograph of a certain pigtailed princess being shoved in his face every five minutes. Of course, it could have been the alcohol; by that point, they had both gone through a somewhat generous amount of the stuff. But be it by design or enhanced by some good old fashioned 120-proof, Roy found himself lamenting the fact that he ultimately knew very little about one of his most trusted officers. Sure, he knew that Havoc had a proficiency with guns matched only by Hawkeye, but he had never taken the time to notice just how damn clever the man really was. The opportunity rarely ever presented itself at work, this was true, but to think he had been missing out on things like the subtle curve of his lips upon uttering a keen observation; those eyes, ever so blue, gleaming wickedly over a sly remark; the soothing sound of his hearty guffaw, which required a smile in response, at the very least.

All of it, all of him, right under his nose all along.

Wait... what the hell was he thinking about? Underno circumstance, for entirely too many reasons to count, should he have been ruminating about Havoc. Not in that way.

Even if he was.

"...with you?"

Roy blinked at Jean. "I'm sorry," he said, cursing himself for becoming distracted, especially by thoughts he had no business thinking. "What did you say?"

Jean narrowed his eyes in amused suspicion and smiled knowingly.

But what exactly was it that he knew? If Roy didn't know any better, he would have sworn Havoc was... nah. Impossible.

"I was just asking if Hughes normally came drinking with you," he repeated before taking a deep drag from his cigarette. The man smoked like a chimney; Roy was amazed that he was in as great a shape as he was. Not that he was thinking about Havoc's shape... or form... or body... Much.

"Yes." Roy polished off his... well, he had lost count of precisely how many drinks he'd had, which really wasn't helping matters, not when his coherency had become so lax that he was visually sexing up Havoc.

Havoc, of all men!

"We usually have a few together after work," he continued, calmly waving off the bartender's offer for a refill. "It's something we've done for quite a few years now."

"You've been friends for a long time," Jean observed.

Roy nodded. Out of the corner of his eye, he spotted Havoc pulling another cigarette out of its pack and willed himself not to turn and look at the man's hands. Some men were ass men, some men were cock men. Roy was, interestingly enough, a hands man. He loveda nice pair of hands, preferably roaming all over his body. Granted, he'd seen Havoc's a thousand times before, but never this close. And never while wondering how they might feel against his bare skin. He ran his own hand across his eyes and tried to blink himself back to some semblance of sobriety. That was, however, the least of his problems at the moment.

He clearly needed to get laid. Fuck, did he ever. Maybe then he wouldn't go around ogling his subordinates and wondering how their hands felt all over his body... and trying not to get an erection in the middle of a bar over the thought of it.

"You know, it's a good thing he's married," Jean said. "If not, I would have had to wonder about the two of you."

Roy's teeth clenched at the accusation. It was a joke, nothing more; he knew that. But when such insinuations hit too close to home, no matter how jestful, it was only natural to become somewhat ruffled.

"Very funny, Havoc," he said with what he hoped was a natural sounding chuckle. "I didn't know you were such a comedian."

"There's a lot of things you don't know about me, Chief." Jean turned in his seat to face Roy and when did his eyes get to be so goddamn blue? "I bet you think I'm just an idiot, don't you? At least when it comes to women. Am I right?"

"No, of course not." Roy was stunned- and impressed- by Havoc's dead-on assessment, but damned if he was about to let him find out about it. "I would hardly call one of my finest men an idiot."

Jean smiled coyly. "You've called me an idiot plenty of times," he pointed out.

"Oh. I have, haven't I?"

The two men grinned at Roy's convenient lack of memory. For Roy, it proved to be just the diversion he needed to snap him out of his Havoc-stupor. Considering the man in such a sexual way, even for a minute, as well as entertaining the ridiculous notion that Havoc was purposely fueling his imagined innuendo- that was just craziness. It was time to put such ideas to rest once and for all... and perhaps take a not-so-impromptu road trip to tend to that other fast-growing issue. Very soon.

"I should get going," he announced. "I'm sure I've kept you long enough." Roy reached into his pocket and pulled out a clip of bills. He peeled off a generous amount and tossed them onto the bar.

"You've hardly kept me at all," Jean reassured him. "Say, why don't you let me drive you home?"

"... Okay."

Had he been a little more sober, Roy probably would have been able to think of an excuse suitable enough to beg off Havoc's offer without hesitation. But deep down, the truth of the matter was that he didn't wantto. Roy wanted the man's company if only for a little while longer; he liked being around Havoc like this, away from work, man to man. Surely there was no further harm to be found in an innocent car ride, whereupon he would thank him kindly for the gesture, go inside, head straight for the bedroom, fantasize about fucking him and beat himself off until both his hand andcock went numb, then sleep it all off and pretend the past few hours were nothing more than a mere act of fellowship between co-workers. Simple enough.

Until...

XXX

"Do you want to come in for some coffee?"

"Sure," Jean said, shutting off the ignition. "You can..." He snickered and tried again. "You can handle opening the door by yourself, right, Boss?"

"Oh, shut up."

Upon leaving the bar, the two men had made their way to Jean's car. Roy was still so distracted by the surreality of seeing Havoc in this new light that he had thought nothing at all of waiting at the backseat door until Jean casually reminded him that he was off-duty and, therefore, would not be chauffeuring him anywhere. What could Roy say? It was a force of habit.

He opened the car door- all by himself- and got out, trying and failing to ignore the laughter behind him. It was still quite the lovely sound. For the first time, Roy wondered whether or not Havoc acted like a wholly different creature around women, or if women were plain just stupid. Those were the only two possible scenarios he could fathom for his lack of a girlfriend, because underneath it all, the man really was just about as perfect a package as they came.

Jean extinguished his cigarette in the ashtray and stepped out of the car. He followed Roy up the steps to what was actually a rather humble-looking abode, considering the man's rank and reputed ego. Upon walking inside, he gawked at the near immaculate cleanliness of the interior; this was no den of iniquity, not by a long shot.

"Are you making fun of my bachelor pad?" Roy asked, noting his expression.

"Not at all." Jean shook his head. "It's nice. Homey."

Roy tilted his head slightly at the description. "Thanks," he said, tossing his keys on a small table by the door. He cleared his throat and tried to pay little heed to the proximity between them. The best thing for him to do now was get the man his damn coffee and get him the hell out of there...

"You know... since it's getting late, you may as well stay for dinner. If you want."

Well then. So much for getting rid of him.

He glanced up at Jean and offered him a nonchalant shrug. "I'm not the greatest cook in the world but it'll be edible, if nothing else... for the most part."

Cursing himself yet again, Roy turned to walk into the kitchen to start the coffee... when his wrist was seized by a hand that was just as strong as he had imagined it. Jean pulled him around and gazed down at him, and Roy's heart leapt into and damn near out of his throat. This... well, this just couldn't be happening! There still, even now, had to be some sort of logical, heterosexual reason that Jean was holding onto him like that and looking at him like that and leaning over towards him like that-

"I was hoping I could stay for more than dinner. If you want."

- and then kissing him like that, easing past his lips and gliding over every inch of his mouth with a skilled tongue while those amazing hands ran up his arms and shoulders and neck and sought out his face, holding Roy steady as he licked and sucked and gently nipped at him. Jean broke the kiss as quickly as he had initiated it, using the balls of his thumbs to wipe away the sheen of saliva that coated Roy's bottom lip, both of them eagerly swallowing the smoke and alcohol-infused result of one of the best, if briefest, kisses either of them had ever known.

"That was in case you were still trying to figure it all out," Jean said quietly, slowly trailing his fingers along Roy's jawbone as he drew them away and leaving him to stand there, trembling, his mind blank, eyes widened, and lips parted while he gasped for air.

The tall blonde ambled over to the couch and took a seat without a care in the world, as if he did not, in fact, just retrieve his tongue from his commanding officer's mouth.

"So, what's for dinner?"

TBC