pairing: ed/winry
rating: k
summary: in which our bumbling idiot becomes, well, see title.
a/n: i haven't written anything - anything - in nine months. my vast and sincere apologizes for this development but it is with my utmost hope that you enjoy this short little anecdote.
a/n2: also i have not proofread this. my apologizes again for any spelling/grammatical errors that may ensue.
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They say that out of the millions of billions of things going on around us, all those little notes and notices absorbing into our cranium, our brain only actually registers some 40 odd events at a moment. It's not necessarily to blame on one's oblivious nature; our brain only takes in the good stuff, after all.
However, some are simply less… aware of what's going on around them, too, which leads to an even less observant person in general.
Edward Elric would, of course, vehemently protest in shock and irritation; boasting of his sharp and acute senses. Sure, maybe he wasn't at keyed in as, say, Hawkeye, but he didn't just let things slip on by!
…At least, not as of late.
There was, of course, a perspective shift when Ed and Al returned home from a long-winded, perilous, and exhausting journey that greatly improved the brothers' flesh-to-metal ratio. After spending the last odd years of your life living out of suitcase in a world where running from the law may not be the very worst of your trouble, settling into the quiet, picturesque countryside was a bit of a culture shock.
They traded their train tickets for tickets to be served by the local butcher. Instead of battling murderous foes, they (un)successfully vanquished the various housekeeping tasks the Rockbell women had set out for them.
Shifting from a world where you're trying to pick up hidden alchemic notes and formulas and hints to one where you're just trying to figure out how to fix a squeaking door hinge or whip up something half-eatable definitely took some time for them, and for Ed in particular.
And to his credit, he'd adjusted fairly well to a different life. This 'acute sense of observation' had picked up on how to polish the dull, wooden table; how to reupholster the automan that had mysteriously gotten coffee stains (certainly not from him!); how to bake a (lopsided) cake (that didn't poison anyone or burn down the house!) for Winry's birthday.
Winry. That was the other side of this newfound awareness. And this part wasn't a walk in the park, either.
For as far back as Ed could remember, Winry had always been there. There was a lack of certain event or a shift wherein she began the enigma, the force, the friend that she remained. No first playdate or meeting; she simply rises out of his memory along with other foggy childhood recollections.
He had always been aware of her presence and her actions (even if he didn't/doesn't fully comprehend them), but somewhere along that long and strenuous journey, something profoundly shifted.
Again; he failed to pinpoint a precise instant when it began.
But one summer evening Al, body still frail but no longer skeletal, was relaxing under the cool shade of a large oak with Ed and Winry watching carefully from the creaky porch steps. After a long day of repairs and adjustments, Winry fell prey to the contagious drowsiness floating in the breeze, and without a moment of hesitation, nestled her head into the crook of Ed's neck.
Almost instantaneously, Edward's body froze while his chest pumped and face grew the color of the blush sunset. Granted the motion wasn't completely foreign; all three of them have dozed off into heaps on top of each other ever since they were children.
Yet something unique occurred. Perhaps it's the untouchable bliss surrounding the whole scene. Perhaps it's the uncanny way she fit into his chest. Perhaps it's any of the numerous hints she'd been practically throwing at him for years. But something in this instant occurred.
He realized he loved her.
An instant later it occurred to him that's he wasn't just now feeling love. For God knows how long it had just been a nameless sensation that overlook him when she smiled, or her named was dropped, or she gave him her earrings, or she declared her support of him all those years ago.
He realized he'd loved Winry Rockbell for a long time, perhaps too long to fathom, yet he just now realized it was love.
Without a moment of hesitation and a very red face, Ed rested his head on top of hers.
And in that moment, Edward Elric became aware.