A little bit longer than most. Not sure if I'm completely happy with how it turned out. 1/5 of the way there! Disclaimer applies.

Ears

It was Riza's fifteenth birthday, and she wanted something special. She had seen several other girls at her school do this, and it looked nice. Plus, it might help bring some femininity to her otherwise boyish looks and attitude.

Riza wanted her ears pierced.

Just one piercing in each, something she could fill with simple round studs or maybe even those fancy dangling earrings that people wore to formal functions. So, sanitized sewing needle in hand, Riza stood in front of the bathroom mirror, trying to visualize where the holes should be placed. Once she thought she had it, she gripped her earlobe and positioned the needle to go straight through. She took a deep breath, and—

There was a knock at the bathroom door, causing Riza to jump and gasp with surprise. "You almost done in there?" called a young man's voice, clearly Roy. "You've been in there for half an hour already, and I really, really need to pee."

Riza took a deep breath and leveled a threatening gaze at the door, hoping it showed up in her voice as well. "Why don't you just go outside? I'm not done yet." She turned back to the mirror, getting ready to position the needle again.

"Just let me in for one minute and I promise I'll be out of your way," Roy pleaded. "Seriously, if you don't open this door in ten seconds, I'm just coming in."

Curse these lockless doors. Rather than have Roy barge in, Riza moved the door open just enough to stick her head out. "I told you, I'm not done yet." Despite her threatening tone and attempts to physically block the doorway, Roy managed to open the door the rest of the way and get a look at what was on the counter. "What's all this?" he said with a smile.

Riza still stood in his way of the toilet, scowling. "It's none of your business."

Roy nodded and waved his hand in that nonchalant manner he had. "Right, right. Just let me use the bathroom." Somewhat convinced that Roy wouldn't make a big deal out of the supplies on the counter or, even worse, tell her father about it, Riza moved just outside the bathroom door. About a minute later, Roy reemerged, a knowing smirk on his face. "You know, if you wanted to get your ears pierced, there are better places to do it than the bathroom."

Riza decided to not even humor this with a response. Roy knew just as well as she did that there was no money for luxuries like getting her ears pierced professionally. She moved back into the bathroom and proceeded to close the door, only to find Roy standing in the way. "What?"

Roy grinned confidently. "I could help you with that. You never know, you might make the holes crooked."

"No, that's quite all right. I'll be fine on my own, Roy." Riza moved to push him out of the bathroom. Honestly, did her father's student always have to be so annoyingly self-assured? Roy dodged Riza's hands and pushed the door shut behind them both. Riza, determined to do this herself, picked up the needle and repositioned it next to her ear.

"That angle looks awkward," Roy's voice, unbidden, sounded next to Riza. "Maybe if you moved the needle a little bit that way"—here he grabbed the needle—"and pointed it more straight-on…" Riza let out a small yelp in surprise as Roy shoved the needle through her earlobe. "There. I think that looks better, don't you?"

Riza glared at him. "Excuse me, just what do you think you're doing?" She had been determined to pierce her own ears herself. She yanked the offending needle out of her ear and held a tissue up to catch the blood. Before she could say anything else, Roy was already lining the needle up to her other ear. "Roy, don't you dare—"

Another sharp poke, and Riza's second ear was pierced. Roy removed the needle and strode out of the bathroom confidently, almost smugly, saying, "Happy birthday, Riza. Now you've got two more holes in your head."

Her anger subsiding into something resembling playfulness, Riza ran after Roy, shouting, "And if you're not careful, I'll put some holes in your head!" As Riza passed into another year of her life, she tackled her father's student in the backyard, slowly beginning to appreciate the spontaneity and color he brought to her drab home.