Stolen Chances
One month was normal. One month was the getting to know each other phase and the typical amount of time needed to see if a relationship has any chance of working.
Two months was also normal. You might really enjoy a person in a relationship but this is usually the time when you figure out if this person was better off as a friend rather than a romantic interest.
Three months meant you were getting serious about a relationship. This was when you start to think ahead, planning and envisioning just how far a relationship might actually go.
Six months…well, the two people in the relationship obviously think they have something special. Too bad for the loser that sits by and watches, angry and maybe slightly jealous. He's plain out of luck. He should have made a move sooner.
A whole god damned YEAR meant the relationship was solid and there didn't seem to be signs of separation. The angry loser would remain pissed off for the rest of his life because he was too much of a chicken to say anything.
"A giant fucking chicken!" the blacksmith growled, pointing at Shirley who he was yet again baby-sitting. "I'm no better than a giant stupid chicken like you!" He really had resorted to conversing with the peco because he was ever the antisocial bully. Shirley pecked at him for the insult. Phineas swatted at her, shook his head, and went back to hammering the hot orange steel of his current project. Sparks flew as he hammered furiously. The peco watched with a bored look as she wandered around the room, exploring curiously.
"Knock, knock!" Phin heard a voice say as the door to his forge opened, "Hey Phin!" Phineas ceased hammering, used his arms to wipe the sweat from his face and looked toward the door. Holy hell. What was he doing here? Mr. Pretty boy Eric suddenly decided to drop by for a visit? Could his day get worse? Not possible. "What're you up to?" the mastersmith asked. He was just trying to get on good terms with Phin. What a stupid question, Phin thought. What did it look like he was doing?
"Out before I shove this hot sword up your ass," the blacksmith threatened. Eric's eyes widened and turned around, quickly leaving Phin's forge. There was no doubt in his mind that the blacksmith would make good of his word. He was the grumpiest, meanest person he had ever met. Truly! He really couldn't see why Areina liked him or how in the world they ever became friends. Maybe the term "opposites attract" was a good explanation for it. Much to his dismay, she requested that he really try to become friends with Phin. No one could say he didn't at least try.
Phineas had to admit that Eric, despite being an annoying pretty boy, was not a bad person. He was a nice guy and his feelings about Areina were honest. He could have been friends with him if he wasn't in a relationship with his best friend. The blacksmith set down the sword he was working on and glanced up at the clock on the wall. It was nearly five o' clock. He was supposed to meet another one of his "friends" for a drink in an hour and a half. Going early wouldn't hurt he figured and cleaned up his forge before leaving.
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"So, like I was saying, he just has no idea how to interact with women. I swear, my brother will become an old, wifeless hermit," a dark haired knight by the name of Jenny sighed. Areina just laughed and passed her friend a piece of the apple she had sliced up. They were sitting on a bench near the merchant guild enjoying the weather. The sun had begun to sink down the horizon but there was still plenty of light for a while. Jenny munched on the apple slice thoughtfully, "When a guy asks you to marry him, he needs to put some thought into it. You know, take you somewhere special and for god sake original and romantic! I'd love for a guy to propose to me in a secluded, tropical paradise."
Areina nodded in agreement, "Like somewhere around Umbala? The place with waterfalls, flowers and stuff where the cave collapsed?" She had only been there once but it was etched in her memory.
"Oh that would be perfect. I heard that there's an awesome light show by the fireflies in the summer," Jenny sighed dreamily. Areina knew from experience that it was beautiful. She always wondered what made Phin take her there. He was more thoughtful than people gave him credit for. She did know exactly why people thought he was a jerk, because he was a jerk to most people.
"Phin took me there once, to see the fireflies. It really was pretty." Jenny stopped chewing and stared at her. Was Areina really talking about Phineas?
"He what? When? What happened?!"
"Nothing happened. It was about two years ago that he took me there. He made me wait forever but the sights were worth it," she recalled fondly. She would like to go back sometime but summer was nearing its end so that trip would have to wait.
"So he didn't do anything? Say anything?"
She thought back, "No, not really. He just looked kind of, I don't know, angry. Not at me but about something."
Jenny considered this new information and Phineas. If you looked at it right, it seemed like he was going to propose to Areina but he didn't obviously. The knight knew Areina and Phineas had never been anything more than friends, so the idea of a proposal seemed a little farfetched. Either way, she wondered if her friend had thought of the same thing, "Ehh, did you ever think that Phin was going to…you know…propose? While you were there?"
"The notion swam around before I fell asleep and nothing happened. Except that he threw a rock at me to wake me up so I'm thinking he was just doing something nice for me." She loved Phin to death but she didn't know if it was that kind of love or whether he even thought of her in such a way. Jenny was quite sure that Phin must have had every intention of asking Areina to marry him but something must have stopped him.
"Hello ladies!" Eric called. He looked to have just come from the merchant guild. He approached the two knights with a wide smile, "I need to borrow Areina for a minute, Jenny." Jenny simply shrugged and nudged the green haired knight from the bench. If she had to be honest, she liked Eric more than Phin. He was just so friendly and lovable. Phineas was not. Areina had told her repeatedly that he wasn't always so mean. She would only believe that when she saw it. Then, her jaw dropped. Eric had gotten down on one knee.
Areina was slightly dumbstruck. Her mastersmith had kneeled and taken her hand. How unoriginal, Jenny thought as she rolled her eyes. "I think you know what I'm going to ask so I just need an answer," Eric grinned.
"I wasn't…quite expecting this," Areina laughed nervously. Did she want to marry him? Well, she had been with him for over a year and she couldn't really picture herself without him around. Her decision seemed like a no-brainer. "Okay," she smiled.
"Okay yes?"
"Okay yes," she affirmed. She mostly felt it was a good answer but a small part of her felt the opposite. It was probably just nerves, wasn't it?
"Oh shit." The newly engaged couple turned to look at Jenny and figure out why she had said "oh shit". The knight clamped her hand over her mouth and shook her head. She suddenly regretted saying something. Areina eyed her friend suspiciously and turned to look behind her. No one was there.
"It was nothing. Just thinking about something," Jenny said quickly. She had actually seen something that confirmed her suspicions. Phin had walked by and seen everything. The couple didn't notice, obviously, and he made his retreat before they could see him. Jenny did see an unmistakable expression of despair before he composed himself. Phineas was the kind of person that showed emotion for only a split second before he went back to angry or neutral mode. She would have to find him and talk with him later after she pulled Areina aside.
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"Laaayne, you finally made it," came a slur of words.
The alchemist stopped and scratched his head. He hadn't come here to baby-sit but what worried him more was that Phineas was completely wasted. The blacksmith enjoyed a drink or two but he never, ever got to this point so something must have been bothering him. A lot. "Phin? How long have you been here?" Hopefully it hadn't been too long but he supposed a person didn't need that long to consume the amount of alcohol the blacksmith apparently had.
"Ahh…'bout an hour…?"
At least he could still speak mostly clearly but the glazed expression was not such a good thing. Layne hauled the blacksmith out of his chair and steadied the wobbly man. "Let's get you back home," he sighed. He had assumed they were going to meet and chat as they usually did.
The managed to make it out of the bar with minimal trouble and proceeded to make their way back to Phin's place. Oddly enough, the blacksmith remained quiet the whole way. Layne would ask him about what was troubling him when they reached his house. The moon had just risen and the streetlights were flickering on as they walked or rather, Layne walked and Phin stumbled. Finally, they reached their destination. Phineas pulled himself away from the alchemist and found his way into his forge. "Phin, what are you trying to do?" Layne asked as he followed the blacksmith inside the forge.
Phineas turned to face the alchemist, "Tryin' t'see if I c'n feel worse'n before I started…" he drifted off.
"Did it work?"
"Yeah," he groaned as he stumbled over to his desk. He yanked open one of the drawers, rummaging through it. His vision was less than clear at the moment so it was difficult to find what he was looking for. Especially in the dark.
"Did it help?"
"Fuck no." Well that answer was clear as day. Layne inched his way over to the obviously frustrated blacksmith and turned on the lamp on the desk. When he thought about it, he had never seen Phin in such disarray, drunk or not. He was mean, sure, but he never lost control of his temper or other emotions. Phin abruptly stopped his search and held a small object in front of Layne's face, "Get rid of this. S'gonna drive me crazy if it stays."
"A ring?" the alchemist asked as he gingerly took the ring. It wasn't just any ring though.
"Yeah, idiot," Phin sighed. If that particular thing stayed within his possession, he would only be reminded of his failure and that he no longer had a chance. Once the ring was gone, he could attempt to endure the sight of Areina and Eric…together. Actually, that thought made him sick. Literally. He darted back out of the forge and proceeded to decorate the street with his lunch. Okay, so it wasn't that thought that made him sick but it was certainly the trigger.
"Ugh, that's gross," two feminine voices said in unison. Phin wiped his mouth and glanced up at Areina and Jenny. Shirley trotted up behind them a moment later. Damn chicken was allowed to roam freely too much, Phin thought. Areina moved to the blacksmith's side to see how he was and Jenny noticed Layne standing in the doorway, "What happened to him?" Layne shrugged, not exactly sure what to tell her.
"He's drunk and upset about something I guess. Something to do with this," he held up the ring, "I think."
"You jerk, put it away'r get rid of it," came a growl from Phin.
Jenny, being closer to the alchemist, saw just what he was holding up. Her suspicions were exactly right. The question remaining was why hadn't Phin done anything? Clearly he was unhappy with the current situation and had his eyes on Areina before Eric came along. Unfortunately, now was not a good time to discuss this and besides, it was none of her or Layne's business. She could squeeze the juicy details from Areina later. "I'll go put this away until you can think clearly, Phin," Layne said as he disappeared inside. He emerged a minute later and took Jenny's arm. He knew she would stay and try to catch the gossip. "Let's go, Jenny, I think she can handle Phin."
"We'll talk tomorrow!" Jenny whispered to the knight as they walked past. Areina had indeed caught a glimpse of what the alchemist had held up but Phineas was in no shape to hold a discussion. He was leaning against her, one arm around her shoulders. He hadn't said anything for a few minutes so she couldn't be sure of his thoughts.
"Let's go inside, Phin." He grunted in response and used her for balance as they walked around the forge to his house. After they hunted his person for the keys to the door, they finally made their way inside. They both tripped over various things on the floor as they walked toward the bedroom. The blacksmith was a slob. The only place he actually kept clean was his shop and forge. It had been her experience, though, that most men were slobs. "Here we go," she pushed him lightly toward the bed. He took slow steps, looking rather zombie-like. "I'll be right back." Shirley remained in the room, staring at the blacksmith, head cocked to the side.
He felt like shit. Shit that had been stepped on multiple times and set on fire. Porings, that alcohol burned when it came back up. He lay on the bed and stared at the ceiling, trying to ignore the peco in the room. From the back of his mind, fuzzy as it may have been, he had watched the events of the night. It had been a bad, bad night. Suddenly, a vicious bright light assaulted his eyes. A string of curses came from him and then the overhead light clicked off.
"Sorry," Areina sighed, "here's some water." He sat up, took the glass from her, and took a few sips to quell the burning in his throat. She watched him for a few minutes, the dim light from the hallway illuminating his form just a bit. He looked terrible. She was interrupted from her thoughts by his voice.
"Staying or leaving?" She knew he would be fine if she left him but then again, maybe he wouldn't. While she considered the option, he kicked off his boots, took his shirt off, and flung it at the peco who squawked in annoyance. He then lay back down and rolled over, facing away from her. She had a slight reservation but she removed her shoes and armor, setting them by the door. She didn't like that things had suddenly become weird for her. She sent a glance to Shirley, wondering what her peco thought of the situation but she had already settled into sleep on the floor. Some help she was. The knight walked to the bed and lay down next to Phin.
She could only wonder how tomorrow would go. Furthermore, Jenny hadn't finished what she was talking about before they arrived here. Did Phin know that Eric had proposed? He must have known somehow. In spite of the numerous thoughts running around in her mind, she managed to fall asleep.
A/N: I COULDN'T DO IT! I tried sooo hard not to include any overly dramatic angsty things in this but it reared its ugly head xD Didn't I say I was going to make this one fluffy? I think I did.
Tellie FAILS. Ahaha X3
