This is my third EdWin one-shot (heehee) there's just so many things one can do with this pairing.

Also, my friend Bec mentioned one time how Ed and Winry spent two years together in Resembool knowing how they felt and not doing anything about it, well, he was kinda proposing to her at the train, so... it's possible that they had kinda been dating for a bit before that, y'know?

At least, I'd like to think that's what happened.

Anyway, enjoy the EdWin

I don't own the characters, the anime or the shipping

EdWin Romance:

It had been four weeks since the Promised Day, Ed and Al were slowly getting used to their new circumstances, and they were both enjoying being able to spend time back in Resembool again.

"It's so strange, all the feeling and smells and sounds and sensations, it's all just so overwhelming!" Ed chuckled at his younger brother's enthusiasm, "Al, you've been saying the exact same thing over and over, ever since we got back to Resembool." Al crossed his arms stubbornly, "well it's true."

Ed sighed, shaking his head good-naturedly, inwardly amused and delighted by his brother's antics; he couldn't even begin to explain how happy he was to have finally gotten his brother's body back for him and he sincerely hoped that Al would be able to live a more normal- and happy- lifestyle.

Al clearly wasn't satisfied letting the topic drop, "what about you? Don't tell me you're used to the changes already?" Ed shrugged, "not really I guess, for one, I can't shake the feeling that we have somewhere to be, almost like we're not meant to be staying in the one place so long, though I know that's silly, old habits die hard, I suppose. Though I am happy and content here, that's for sure, being able to relax, not worry about any evil scheme or corruption or legends or anything like that, though I still find myself sometimes on edge, it's hard to just put down my guard completely I guess.

"It's great having my arm back, the automail was sometimes a bit much to handle, so I missed my regular limbs. Not to mention, the biggest shock is still the loss of my alchemy, it makes some things harder I guess, and sometimes it's weird that I'll never be able to transmute something again, but that's just the price I had to pay I guess."

At this, Al looked contrite, glancing away from Ed and shuffling his feet a little guiltily, noticing, Ed hurried to reassure the boy, "oh! I don't mind, you know, it's different, but not having alchemy is, in its own way, relaxing. Besides, alchemy doesn't solve everything, and as I learnt, it's foolish to rely on it for everything, then be disappointed when it doesn't help you. Besides, now I'm learning to do things the 'old-fashioned way' I'm handy with my hands in a completely different manner now!" he grinned at his brother.

Al didn't look appeased, instead, glancing at Ed's automail leg and sighing heavily, Ed sighed too, for a different reason, "look Al, I don't mind not getting my leg back either, you know. Personally, I think it serves as a good reminder of what happened, of the lessons we learned together, don't you?" He grinned mischievously, "Besides, I don't think Winry would give me the time of day if I didn't still have at least one automail limb for her to work on."

Al gazed at his brother for some time before grinning, "I'm sure you would be incredibly disappointed if Winry lost interest in you, Brother." Ed started, partly wondering at the sudden subject change he stared at Al who was smiling deviously before leaning against the kitchen table, faking nonchalance, "I-I'm not sure I know what you mean by that, Al," he told the boy who simply smiled wider.

"What indeed, Brother?" Ed raised an eyebrow at Al, since when was the younger teasing the older? He wondered to himself privately.

Al leaned against the bench, looking at Ed curiously, "you do like her though, don't you, Brother?" Ed felt a blush rise to his cheeks and he cleared his throat noncommittally, "like who?" he asked, feigning ignorance and low interest. Al simply smiled, not fooled for a moment, "you know who I mean, Win…" he trailed off, looking at something behind his big brother, before glancing back at the blonde, eyes widening.

Ed didn't notice the pause, fidgeting uncomfortably, "okay, Al, I mean, I suppose it's okay to tell you, since I know you won't tell anyone else," he paused, closing his eyes as he fortified his resolve, after all, the boy had already realised, Ed knew of his feelings for that Mei girl, so it was only fair that he told him about his feelings, right?"

He didn't notice Al's attempt to discreetly signal him to be silent, nor did he notice the growing panic in the boy's eyes, "about Winry, I… like her… a lot, rather, like isn't a specific enough term, I… love her," he turned to Al, "I'm in love with Winry."

Because he was now looking at his younger brother, Ed realised that Al wasn't actually even looking at him anymore; rather, he was looking behind him. Dread settled in the bottom of his stomach and he turned apprehensively, praying that it wouldn't be, but just knowing that it would.

And sure enough, there, with her hand on the doorknob, a look of absolute shock on her face- was Winry.

Pinako Rockbell was sitting on the back porch, smoking her pipe and staring thoughtfully off into the distance. She heard a scream come from the kitchen and turned to Den, "that sounded like Ed," she sighed, shaking her head, "kids are so noisy these days," she muttered before inhaling once more from her pipe.

Winry stared at Ed, 'okay, I can understand him being surprised, especially after saying something like that, but he didn't have to scream,' she thought- well, part of her thought, most of her was trying to understand what he had said prior to his screaming and jumping away from the kitchen table to the other side of the room, leaving him standing next to the door out to the front porch.

She opened her mouth to say something, then stopped, what could she say? A sudden unexpected confession, but was it actually a confession? She hadn't heard the entire conversation, maybe they were talking about sisterly love? Her heart constricted painfully, she didn't want to believe that that was it.

She glanced at the blonde again, he looked as though he were about to have some kind of seizure, his whole face was red and panic was clearly displayed as one of the prime emotions, 'judging by that reaction, he wasn't talking about brotherly affection' she felt her hope rise.

She stepped towards the older Elric brother, "Well, sorry to just walk off, but I better go check up on mum and dad's grave (1) I haven't visited them in ages, they probably need some maintenance," he shot them all a grin- that was clearly forced- before practically running out of the room," "Ah! Edward!" Winry called after him, raising a hand, he didn't reply, and had vanished within a minute.

She turned to Al who was staring at the ground guiltily, clearly he hadn't intended for Winry to hear that until Ed had been ready to tell her, "Al?" she said softly. He looked up hesitantly, meeting her eyes, they both sighed, Ed had only been to his parents' grave yesterday.

Ed was well down the path before he stopped to think rationally… well… it wasn't exactly rationally, but with a bit more foresight, 'I can't go to their graves in case one of them decides to come after me…' he thought for a moment, 'ah! I know!' he ran off again.

He refused to think about what would happen when he would have to return, maybe he could go live out the duration of his life in Xing? That squinty-eyed prince sure as hell owed him for all the trouble the guy caused him when he came to Amestris. He shot that option down almost as soon as he thought of it, there was no way he was going to spend the rest of his life putting up with him, or that bodyguard of his that seemed to have it in for Ed, and as fond as Al may be of her, Ed was not going to be able to up with that little Xingese girl, Mei and her panda, they were beyond intolerable.

The ruins of his old home came into view, 'I can stay here for a little bit at least' he decided 'at least until I can figure out a way to explain things to Winry.'

Ed was simply gazing off into the distance, he knew that he should be thinking of some kind of explanation for Winry, but his mind came up with absolutely nothing, and all he could think about was what Winry would do when she found him.

He doubted that he would walk away from that confrontation unharmed, but in truth, he could handle being beaten up with her wrench, 'what I won't be able to handle is if she refuses me, I don't think I could bear to lose her.'

He heard footsteps crunching on the dirt and gravel path behind him and turned to see Winry now standing there, gazing at him passively.

He involuntarily drew in a sharp breath, before looking away; he could hear her walking up behind him, but he stayed still, it was better to just get it over with he decided, putting it off would do nothing to change the end result.

Winry sat on the ground next to him, and he glanced at her, her face was expressionless, giving nothing away, and yet, he couldn't help but thinking, despite the completely inappropriate timing, how pretty she was- her hair seemed just perfect for running his fingers through, her eyes were the type you could lose yourself in, her lips seemed to be meant for him to kiss, and her muscular, yet slender frame seemed just the right size for him to wrap his arms around in an embrace.

"You know," she spoke softly, breaking Ed out of his fantasies, he blushed and looked away again, "there's this boy I like," Ed's eyes widened, was she really telling him this? Did she not understand what she had heard? Did she not realise how much it would hurt for her to tell him something like this?

Regardless of Ed's lack of reaction, the young woman continued on determinedly, "he's got golden hair and eyes; I've always secretly thought those eyes of his to be absolutely beautiful. He's really quite short, but he has started to grow a little lately, though he has always been incredibly touchy about his height. I always thought it was cute how irritated he got with people teasing him about that sort of thing, he didn't hesitate to get angry at even incredibly important people, like members high up in the military, or if he was in a serious situation, he'd still react in that way, and he has been in situations like that, and met many important people like that, because he was always a bit of an important person, a lot of people respected and admired him. He's stubborn, has a bit of a short temper, and sometimes isn't the most tactful person. He absolutely hates milk, refuses to drink it," at this she gave a small, fond laugh, "he has always been incredibly dedicated to the people he cares about, refusing to desert others. Even when fighting, he had a rule to not kill, even if the person he had been fighting had been trying to kill him. He has a tendency to blame himself for things that aren't his fault, and takes responsibility for people, always doing his best to help them. He made a big sacrifice to get his little brother back to normal, and had dedicated many years of his life, giving up his childhood to get to that point." She leaned back, hands wrapped around one knee, staring up at the sky with a small blush on her cheeks, by this point, Ed was staring at her in disbelief, and hesitant hope, yet she continued determinedly, "I didn't get to see much of him for some time, he only came back to visit with his brother, when he needed repair for his automail, and he rarely stayed long when he did come to visit. Recently, he's fought against homunculi, made friends with a Xingese prince and princess, and… well… he saved Amestris, and he saved me, multiple times."

At those last words she turned to Ed, hesitantly reaching forward and taking his hand, "I like him a lot, rather, like isn't specific enough, I love him," Ed smiled slightly at her using his words, "I'm in love with Edward Elric, former Fullmetal Alchemist, saviour of Amestris," Ed blushed slightly at her words, "I didn't really do all of that by myself," he whispered, before leaning forward and hesitantly kissing her, effectively stopping the girl from rebuking his statement.

They stayed like that for some moments, holding hands and smiling at each other, before something Winry said came back to him, Ed frowned before turning to the girl in indignation, "Winry! How many times have I told you?

"I'm not short!"

(1) Heehee, yes, Ed refers to Hohenheim as dad now (at least, in my world of head canons he does), isn't it sweet? ^.^