Golden eyes blazed as they raked over him, taking in every feature of this aged man with scrutiny and Hohenheim couldn't suppress the chuckle that left his lips. A scowl was thrown his way and he just smiled despite it all because this was his son. No matter what he may think, no matter how much either of them had changed or gone through, Edward was still his son, still family. The thought warmed him, his smile becoming softer and Ed raised an eyebrow in question.
"So, how've you been Edward?" Really, it was such an innocent thing to ask his son, so simple. Edward's lips curled back in disgust as his eyes blazed once more and his fists clenched at his sides.
"You can't just come strolling back into our lives like you never left! Do you even know half of the shit Al and I went through while you were gone?"
Hohenheim's expression stayed neutral as he pushed his glasses up on his nose. "Only what I've heard through the rumor mill. Something about two boys who tried to transmute their dead mother and were looking to return to their original bodies. Odd thing is, Alphonse is still flesh so what of that Edward?"
"How dare you fucking talk about it like it's fucking nothing! You have no fucking right to come in and ask questions after you weren't there! We scraped, fucking scraped, our way out of hell and I got Al's body back on my own." Ed was red faced with anger, fists clenching painfully at his sides and digging into the flesh of his hips.
"And how, may I ask," he said, face still the picture of calm as he pushed his glasses up again. "did you accomplish that Ed?"
"It's none of your business. Now get the hell out of here. We didn't need you back then and we sure as hell don't need you now."
Hohenheim sighed, scratching at his head. "I'm not leaving this time Edward."
Ed looked like he hadn't been anticipating this response, his eyes a bit wide and he was, for once, at a loss for words.
"I already left you boys behind once and I wasn't here for your mother as I should've been. Though it might be too late, I want to try and be something of a father to the two of you while I still can. I regret not being with my family but there were things I just had to take care of on my own. I am unhappy with the result of my leaving you behind but really the alternative was much worse."
"So letting mom die was better than being here for her? What kind of fucked up logic are you using?"
"Had I stayed, you all would've been in worse danger. So tell me Ed, would you rather I'd have stayed and risked your lives in the process or leave and do what I could to save them?"
Ed's jaw tightened as he grit his teeth, looking torn between the two. Sure, he was still pissed beyond that belief that his father just abandoned them and even more so that he'd come waltzing back like nothing had ever happened, wanting to be in their lives again. On the other hand, what he said made sense and if it'd been Ed, he knew he would've made the same decision. If saving his family meant leaving behind his own happiness then so be it. Either way there was still that nagging in the back of his mind that reminded him of how their mother suffered because of this man and because of him, she looked so alone even though her sons were still beside her.
"You can't fucking do this. Just leaving and coming back and throwing this shit at me. It's not fucking fair. We watched our mom die godammit and did you even fucking try to come see us before that could happen? I almost lost Al too because I was so fucking stupid but what the fuck were we supposed to do? We had no fucking parents anymore! As far as we knew you were fucking dead!"
"Edward-"
"No! Let me finish!" Ed took a deep, shaky breath, needing whatever energy he had to finish what he knew he had to say. "Every fucking day after you left I looked at that chair in the kitchen, waiting. Alphonse never stopped asking about you! What the hell else was I supposed to do but give up on you ever coming home? It only caused me more pain to hope when there was nothing left to hope for!"
And that was the root of it, the base of all his hatred towards this man. Edward screwed his eyes shut, moments away from tears and he'd be damned before he let Hohenheim see him cry. He hadn't cried most of the time he and Al had been on their journey and he was sure as hell not crying because of some stupid asshole who thought to call himself their father. He would not fucking cry.
His eyes widened and his breath caught as strong arms wrapped around him, pulling him close as the man sighed. A large hand rested on top of his head as well as a bearded chin and Ed was again at a loss for words.
"I'm sorry Edward. I am truly sorry for all the pain I've caused you. I can't take back those years you two spent alone and for that I will apologize for the rest of my life," Hohenheim said, voice a bit shaky and if Edward didn't know any better he'd say the old man was crying. "What I can do is be for you two now and try my hardest to give back everything I took from you two."
Ed's control slipped just as a few tears did and after that it would've been impossible to stop him. His face burrowed into his father's shoulder as his flesh hand fisted in the back of a white button down shirt. Why the fuck was he crying? He barely cried for anything, barely showed this weakness and let his walls down but somehow this man had done it to him. This man had turned Edward Elric into a sobbing child.
"I fucking hate you," he murmured, sniffling and choking back a few sobs. "You're a fucking jerk."
Hohenheim sighed, nose pressed to bright blond hair. "I know son, I know."
On a front porch stood a lone figure, smiling down at his brother and father, glad Ed finally just let it all out. After all, all he'd really wanted was for their father to come home and give them some semblance of a family. Now they could have that and now they could be truly happy.