WriterFreak001:

Thank you to those who reviewed this story. :) It was a pleasant surprise! :D

Chapter 2

"I'm connecting your nerves now," Winry said as she aligned his new leg with its port, and before counting to three, like she usually did, Edward felt the sharp sting shoot through his body, making him cringe. "There," Winry leaned forward and pressed a soft kiss against the scarred tissue around his port before beaming widely at him, "All done."

The tingling sensation wore off quickly, and the first thing the former alchemist did was hop to his feet and kick his foot into the air. "Oh wow! There really is a difference! Too bad I can't spar with Al to test it out."

Winry rolled her eyes and chuckled as she disappeared inside her bathroom to wash the oil off her hands. "You two can spar in a few days," she called out to him as the water turned on.

Ed poked his head inside with an ecstatic smile. "Really?!"

"Mhmm!" Winry giggled quietly and splashed cold water on his face before leaning towards him to kiss his lips. "He called yesterday," she reached for her hand towel to dry her hands. "He said he was coming home for a little while. He's bringing Mei, too."

Ed's smile twisted to a smirk, and he chuckled softly. "And he said she was only a nice girl."

"Be nice," Winry playfully smacked his shoulder after turning off the faucet. "By the way," she took his hand and led him towards her bed, "Granny knows about us…"

"Well she should," Edward blinked, taking a seat on the mattress. Winry parked herself between his legs and hooked her arms around his neck. "I mean, she did catch us making out on the porch once…. I thought that would have been a sure sign that we were dating each other."

"No, silly," Winry combed her fingers through his long, golden locks and bit her lip. "I mean… she knows about us…."

Ed's grin faded, and he blanched. His eyes popped wide open as they found Winry's concerned ones. "She knows?" The mechanic nodded, her cheeks flushing deeply. His cheeks matched hers instantly. "Wha… How?! We were so careful! How'd she find out? Did she tell you?"

Winry shook her head. "No, but she seemed okay with it… I mean, she hasn't castrated you yet… A-And we're twenty, practically adults now…" The young blonde woman mindlessly twiddled her fingers behind Ed's neck. "And besides… after revealing what she knew, she only had one r-request."

"Let me guess…," Ed latched his hands behind her, "she wants us to move out and find our own place?"

"What? No," Winry shook her head slowly. Although that might not be such a bad idea... Winry's whole body was hot from embarrassment. She just wished the ground would swallow her whole now that she had opened this Pandora's box. "All she said was…," she pursed her lips, not sure she could follow through.

"Just spit it out, Winry," Ed was bracing himself for the worst. He didn't think he would be able to bear it if the old bat demanded them to wait until marriage before making love again. But… if marriage was all that was standing in the way, then… they could rectify that pretty easily…. And technically, they were engaged so it shouldn't be a surprise if they got married so quickly…

"Ed?" Winry waved a hand in front of him, breaking him from his thoughts. "Did you even hear what I said?"

"Huh?" Edward blinked and then gazed into Winry's deep blue eyes. "Did you say something?"

She sighed dramatically and smacked her head. "Granny said she doesn't want us to hav—"

"Let's get married today," Edward suddenly blurted out, causing Winry to freeze in her spot.

Her eyes widened as if it was he said the most bizarre thing ever. "Whaaaa?!"

Edward tugged her towards him, his eyes never leaving hers for a second. "You asked me earlier what I wanted to do today, and I want us to go to the courthouse and get married," his voice fell as he noticed her surprise. "You look shocked… like getting married today was the last thing you expected."

Winry's face flamed tenfold and she found herself falling backwards as she backed away from him. "Married?! Today?! Why on earth today?!"

Ed's eye twitched; this was not the response he was expecting. "Don't you want to get married?"

"Yes, of course, but why today?!" Winry couldn't believe her ears, and Ed just stared at her like she had three heads. Why on earth would he want to rush things?

It was Ed's turn to blush. His accusatory finger pointed itself at her. "B-BECAUSE YOU WERE GOING TO SAY THAT GRANNY DIDN'T WANT US HAVING SEX AGAIN UNTIL WE WERE MARRIED!"

Winry clenched her fist, wishing she had her wrench nearby. She jumped to her feet and marched towards him. "SO, YOU ONLY WANT TO MARRY ME FOR THE SEX?!" She raised her hand to slap him, but Ed easily caught it and jumped to his feet.

"NO! OF COURSE NOT!" Ed growled in frustration and inhaled a deep breath before exhaling it slowly to calm his nerves. He planted his palms on Winry's shoulders and sighed dramatically. "The only reason I suggested getting married today was because I thought you were going to say that Granny didn't want us sleeping together if we weren't married. I can see how you might think I only want to marry you for sex, but hey," he smirked a little, "we're already having sex, and we're great at it. If we get married today or in three months, it wouldn't have an impact on how I feel about you or how we live our lives."

Ed chuckled a little and dropped his head to her shoulder before closing his eyes. "I guess I sort of panicked because Granny can be… very enforcing when she wants to be…, and I was afraid she'd kick me out if we continued sleeping together outside of marriage. That's why I suggested getting married today… but we don't have to if you don't want to." He turned his head and kissed her neck lightly. Winry closed her eyes and tipped her head to the side, allowing Edward easier access to her throat. "I want to marry you for you, Win. It doesn't matter when we marry just as long as it does happen." He lifted his head and grinned, "I'll leave it up to you on when you want us to get hitched."

"That's sweet, Ed," Winry muttered quietly as she took his hands in hers and squeezed his fingers tightly. "I do wanna marry you, but I wanna also enjoy dating for a while before getting hitched. With you being gone a lot, we hardly ever went out to dinner when you were home so now that we have all the time in the world, I want to do those kinds of things first. And then, maybe in a few months, we'll sit down and discuss a date as well as figure out who we want to invite because…," Winry led Ed to her bed, and they both sat down on the mattress before she continued. "Well, I want a traditional wedding, Ed. I don't want to go to a courthouse and get married in fifteen minutes. I want to enjoy our wedding and celebrate it with friends and loved ones. I want to be able to wear a beautiful white dress and pledge my life to you in front of everyone. But," she leaned on his shoulder, "if that's not what you want, then…"

"I want that kind of wedding too," Ed cut her off quickly and grinned so hard, his jaws were hurting. "I want the biggest, flashiest, badass wedding in all of Amestris, and I want the whole damn country to know I'm marrying a Rockbell and damn proud of it."

Winry rolled her eyes and shook her head in dismay before bumping her shoulder to his. "You're such a weirdo sometimes."

He leaned backwards and stretched against her bed as he folded his hands behind his head before leaning on his fingers. "Admit it. You love this weirdo."

Winry smiled and fell backwards against the mattress before turning towards Ed and wrapping her arm around his torso. She curled her leg around his right one and pressed her cheek to his chest. She closed her eyes and melted into him as she softly muttered, "Yeah… I do."

"Damn straight," Ed's eyelids felt heavy, but he didn't let his tiredness stop him from wrapping his arm around his fiancée and pulling her closer to him.

He never slept so peacefully.

Winry stretched her arms and arched her back a little as she walked with Edward to the market later that day. She groaned quietly. "I can't believe we slept until noon! More than half of the day has been wasted."

Ed shrugged. "I was tired, you were tired; I say it was a win-win." He hooked his arm around hers and tugged her a little closer towards him before whispering, "Besides, now we won't fall asleep too soon tonight and can catch up on some lost time together."

A small smile colored Winry's pink lips as a light rosy hue painted her cheeks. "I guess there's an upside to everything…. Which reminds me, when Al and Mei arrive, you'll be bunking with me, Mei will use the guestroom down the hall, and Al will stay in the guestroom in the basement. I've already talked to them, and they're content with the arrangements. Will that be a problem?"

Ed shook his head, "No of course not. As long as Granny's okay with it."

Winry chuckled and lightly kissed Ed's shoulder. "Actually, she doesn't know about the arrangements yet. I haven't had time to tell her yet. I'll be sure to mention it today." Her eyes popped open. "Oh! I never told you what Granny said about our relationship!"

Ed stopped in his tracks and glanced at her. "What did she say?"

"She wants us married by the time we're pregnant with her first grandkid," Winry answered in a quiet mumble. "But don't worry," she quickly added, "I assured Granny we were taking precautions and ended that conversation pretty quickly." She tugged his arm towards the outdoor market and handed him the burlap sack before filling it with a few potatoes.

"Jeez that old hag needs to butt out sometimes," Ed muttered to himself and flashed a grin when Winry shot a glare at him.

"She's just showing us she cares," Winry defended her grandmother, making Ed feel a little bit guilty for his comment. He paid potato lady, and they moved onto the next vegetable.

"Okay, okay, you're right," he sighed before moving to kiss Winry's temple. "You're absolutely right."

"I know I am," Winry grinned and pointed to the bag of onions, "Now get those and drop them in the bag."

Ed reached for the onions and did as she instructed before handing another bill to the farmer. He then scratched his head and said to the man in front of him, "You might want to start a tab; we're gonna buy quite a bit."

…

Winry rose up to her feet and arched her back until it made a crackling noise before rolling her shoulders into place. She locked her fingers together and flexed them until her knuckles popped. She then turned towards her sitting boyfriend and smiled. "There's a few automail parts I need to order at the blacksmith shop; if you don't want to wait here, feel free to do some shopping on your own. It might take a while," the mechanic chuckled as she pulled out her list and presented it to Ed, "I've got a long list this time."

Ed's left eye twitched. "You sure you'll be able to afford all of that? Looks expensive."

"I have a deal with Mr. Schwartz," Winry beamed brightly. "He promised to order any automail parts I need in exchange for maintenance on his left automail arm. He lost his arm in the Ishvalan War," Winry's smile fell, and her voice cracked slightly. "Did you know that?"

Ed shook his head slowly and frowned. "No. I didn't."

Winry gazed down the street and mindlessly spoke. "A lot of people here, I've noticed, sustained injuries during the war. A few years ago, that fact would have surprised me, but… if you think about it, Resembool isn't too far away from Ishval…" she paused to curl a strand of hair behind her ear, not noticing when Ed stood up and planted himself right beside her. "I wonder if my parents helped any of them…"

"It's a possibility, I guess," Ed shrugged as his right palm lifted and then landed gently on top of Winry's head. He tipped his head towards hers and closed his eyes as his hand drifted towards her shoulder. He pulled her closer to him and turned slightly to kiss her temple. "But even if they didn't," Ed smiled softly as she slightly turned her face towards him, "Your parents were badass doctors who helped hundreds of people during the war. Your parents gave people second chances to live; that's an amazing ability. Your parents, Winry," he ticked up the corner of his mouth to a smirk, "despite what anybody might say, were damn straight amazing. Just like you."

The mechanic blushed deeply, surprised by Ed's response. Instead of arguing with the last point in his argument, Winry exhaled a quiet sigh and smiled sweetly. "Thanks, Ed. That's sweet." She pecked his cheek lightly before turning to walk in the opposite direction. "I should be done in an hour, but just in case, I'm leaving the bags with you in case you need to get home before then. Don't feel like you have to wait for me if I'm not back at this bench in an hour."

"Actually, if you don't mind, I think I might go ahead and take these bags home and then come back; that should give you enough time to do what you need to do without distraction. If I'm not back here," he pointed to the bench, "by the time you're done, just go back to the Blacksmith shop and wait there, okay?"

Winry nodded, appreciative of his concern for her safety. "Sounds like a plan."

On a typical day, Ed would just walk home and walk back to meet Winry again, but he didn't have time for sauntering today; now that Winry was busy for a good, solid hour, he was finally able to do what he had been wanting to do since he arrived in Resembool. So, instead of walking, he paid a cabbie to escort him back to the Rockbell house, quickly dropped off the groceries for Granny, and hopped back into the cab to be taken back to town.

When he arrived at his destination, he pulled out his old State Alchemist pocket watch and checked the time. Great. 35 minutes to spare. As he pushed open the double doors, he couldn't help but grin stupidly. Almost too excitedly, Ed swiftly marched towards the front desk and did his best to dampen his excitement as the Front Desk Lady looked up from whatever form she was filling out.

Slowly, she pushed her round glasses up towards the bridge of her nose and presented Ed with a ghostly smile. He would have shivered if he wasn't already too damn excited for his own good. "May I help you?"

Ed nodded, still grinning. "Came to check my mail… I should have received a package for today."

She yawned and smacked her lips together loudly. "Name?"

"Edward Elric."

She nodded as she wrote down his information before looking up again. "Do you have any sort of Identification Card on you?"

Ed dug his hand into his pocket before pulling out his card and handing it to the receptionist. She took her time making sure Ed wasn't some sort of imposter, and by the time she was finished with her report, he started growing impatient. "Look, do I have a package or not?"

"One moment," the woman handed Edward his identification card and pursed her lips before walking into a door behind the office. A few minutes later, she returned with a palm-size package. She looks at the packaging label. "Can you verify the name of the person who sent it?"

"Alphonse Elric," Ed replied swiftly. "He's my brother."

"Very well, Mr. Elric," she mumbled as she placed the package into Ed's awaiting palm. While he was thinking about it, he pulled a few bills from his pocket and handed them to the receptionist. "That should cover the delivery fee. Keep the difference." Without further ado, he left and pocketed the object after taking it out of its package. With approximately 25 minutes left until Winry was supposedly done with her order, since there was nothing left to do, Ed decided to make his way towards the blacksmith shop instead of waiting for her at the bench. On his way, he spotted her walking towards him, and her eyes lit up upon recognition. She smiled happily and waved timidly as she approached him, and he grinned, but as he caught up to her, he frowned, noticing the shadow of someone suddenly disappearing down an alley.

Winry blinked, realizing Ed's focus was behind her. She turned slightly, wondering what he could be staring at, but when she didn't see anything or anybody out of the ordinary, she turned back towards him with a cocked eyebrow. "Ed?" She tilted her head slightly when he didn't answer. Slowly, she leaned over to the side to block his view from whatever he was staring at until his eyes finally met hers. "You okay there?"

"Maybe I'm being paranoid, but did you notice…," he paused, wondering if he should even bring it up. He didn't want to scare her, but at the same time, he knew she could hold her own and defend herself pretty damn well…, and if he didn't mention it now, then he would certainly regret it later if something were to ever happen to her in the future… "Did you notice anybody following you?"

Winry sighed long and heavy, and her shoulders slumped. "You must have seen Erik Schlimme…, you know, one of the neighbor's sons… the one who works at the auto repair shop…," her voice faded and she glanced behind her one more time, wondering if Erik was listening in on their conversation. Leaning towards Edward, she hovered her lips up to his ear and whispered, "Let's go home… I'll explain later tonight, okay?"

Ed nodded slowly, his frown still evident as he peered over her shoulder again before mindlessly wrapping a protective arm around her shoulders. "Okay."

She leaned into him and slid her arm behind his back, resting it along the small of his back. Silently and slowly, they walked home side by side, never releasing one another. The walk was long, but the reticence was almost unbearable. Without saying a word to Granny once they arrived home, they both ascended the stairs to her room, and they sat down on her bed, leaving a few inches between them.

While Ed was trying to think of all the reasons why Winry didn't tell him about this Erik bastard, Winry was berating herself for not telling him. Ed was her fiancé; technically, he deserved to know, right? Didn't he deserve to know if there were any jerks trying to get into her pants while he was away? Winry already knew that answer and wanted to smack her own self with her wrench for being so stupid. For keeping her issues with Erik a secret from him, she could only imagine what he must think. She suddenly felt the need to clear the air immediately.

"Ed?"

…

"Yeah?"

Winry couldn't bear to look at him, afraid of what he might think of her. She spotted an oil stain on her floor and stared at it, seeking comfort in the black smudge. "I didn't cheat on you…, if that's what you're thinking…."

"You thought I thou—" Ed's eyes instantly widened. She couldn't be more wrong. hopped off the bed before dropping to his knees in front of her. His fingers clutch hers desperately, surprising Winry when he dropped his face to kiss them. She smiled at his tenderness, her chest blooming with so much love for this man. His solemn eyes found hers as his fingers threaded with hers slowly. "Win, I could never… I would never think…," he cursed quietly to himself as his words fumbled and flopped out of his mouth. He exhaled deeply and tried again. "I trust you, Winry. With everything that I am, I trust you, and I'm sorry if… if my silence made you think differently. That wasn't my intention, Win. I swear."

Winry leaned forward and pressed her forehead to his, her long hair splaying over their faces like curtains as if her blonde strands were shielding them from the rest of the world. She closed her eyes, feeling the warmth of his breath caressing her neck. His palms take hold of her face gently, and he tilts his head up slightly to graze his lips over hers. They tickled like the flutter of a butterfly's wing, and this closeness... this sort of intimacy… overwhelmed her with so much emotion for the man in front of her. Her fingers braided into his long hair, and their mouths found each other again, exuding a deeper passion and longing for one another.

And when her lips slowly popped off his, Winry couldn't hold her feelings in any longer, and now that Ed was home to stay, she was no longer apprehensive of their future together. She could feel his lips feathering hers as if he couldn't survive without her kiss, and she closed her eyes, her forehead touching his again. For the first time in her life, she wasn't afraid or embarrassed of the feelings she felt for him, and she didn't shy away from them. Like velvet, her voice was soft and earnest like rose petals, the sweet words finding solace once spoken. "I love you, Ed," she repeated between their kisses as his fingers interlaced with hers.

His golden eyes bore into her blue ones as their mouths separated, and she bit her bottom lip, waiting for him to say something. Ed couldn't contain the happiness he felt; he had loved Winry a long time, and he knew she loved him too even if they had never confessed, but to hear those words… the words he had been so afraid to say for far too long… dance from Winry's mouth and feel them twirl into his heart, made him feel like the happiest bastard alive.

Without warning, his mouth crushed into hers, hard. She scooted backwards and fell into the pillows of her bed, bringing him down with her. He kissed her throat once and feathered his lips seductively along her neck and across her jaw before whispering in her ear, "I love you too, Win."

Their eyes connected, and for a few seconds, the world stood still. A new level of intimacy shocked through them, and before either one of them knew it, they collided together like two stars in the vast universe, their pent-up desire for one another suddenly spiraling out of control.

And it was about damn time.

I'm really enjoying writing this story. :)

In case you were wondering, next chapter will focus more on Winry's explanation.

As always, please review! They help motivate me to write more. :D