AN: sooo... i was reading waddiwasiwitch's drabble fic and on chapter two in the notes i saw the word "jealous" and this popped into my head

also these teenage royai fics are also all kind of in the same universe (apart from the aus, obvs) so there will be some throwbacks to previous oneshots

enjoy!

jealousy

"Why did you say that to him?" Riza whispered furiously. Her eyes burned with an anger Roy had never seen before. She was always so mild mannered, quiet, and shy. Anger was not an emotion he would have associated with Riza Hawkeye, yet here she was, looking like she was ready to start spitting feathers.

"Because...!" Roy trailed off, brain failing to provide an adequate excuse. Riza waited impatiently for him to continue, becoming irate when said excuse failed to make itself known.

"That's not a reason!" she finally yelled. Roy jumped at the sudden volume. Riza never yelled. His heart sank as he realised that he may have totally screwed up here. "Why did you say that, Roy?" she demanded, pulling herself up to her full height. She stalked up to his frozen form, getting right in his face. She was a foot smaller than him, but the height difference made her no less terrifying. He begun to sweat under his shirt.

"Because..."

"If that's all you've got to say, I'll punch you in the face!" she threatened. It was in this moment he saw just how much his dumb comment to the boy she had been talking to affected her. Tears pricked at the corner of her eyes, but she made no move to wipe them away.

And that's what it had been, a dumb comment. Riza had never mentioned seeing a boy before. He was in her class at school. He was handsome, in a country sort of way. His muscles were defined under his school shirt, a sign of his work on the nearby farms. His sun kissed skin glowed in the afternoon light, making his eyes dance as the sun begun to sink lower in the sky. His blonde hair was long, sweeping over his ocean blue eyes that made most of the girls in the village squeal over. Roy knew, because he has heard them, and when he saw the boy talking to Riza an emotion surged within him, his brain telling him to get that boy away from her.

So, Roy, in his infinite wisdom, had sauntered up and slung his arm round Riza's shoulders with a grin. She had jumped in surprise, looking shocked he was even there to meet her. Roy never normally met her outside of the school gates. He waited down the lane but when he saw Riza talking to him, he approached them both with renewed purpose. Riza appeared to be flustered and that was probably because of the physical contact between them, something they never normally shared. They were friends, but Roy knew that Riza wasn't one to accept anything past a handshake. His intuition told him that in the way she held herself and how she shied away from almost everyone.

Part of his brain said he was doing her a favour, saving her from speaking to this guy who was getting really friendly. The other, smaller, and quieter part of his brain said he was being an asshole.

Because he was jealous.

Safe to say Roy didn't acknowledge that part.

In front of the school, Riza nervously asked why he was there, eyes darting between Roy and the boy. With a lazy grin he had told her he was there to walk her home like he always did, and that he was looking forward to spending time with her that evening after finishing his work with her father, all the while shooting a pointed look towards the boy, hoping he would get the message.

Oh, he did.

With a nod and a mildly disappointed look, he bid Riza farewell and ran to catch up with his friends. Riza watched, frozen under Roy's arm as a girl pounced on his arm when he arrived, wrapping her hands around it possessively as she tossed her hair in a bid to get his attention. She shot a look at Riza behind her before laughing at something the boy said. He then proceeded to wrap and arm around the girl's shoulders, Riza apparently already forgotten about.

Roy knew Riza heard what the girl said, because he heard it too.

"I don't know why you'd want to spend time with that weirdo. I've heard the whole family is..." She lifted a hand to the side of her head, twirling her finger in the air to pantomime that she thought Riza and her father were crazy. The boy's friends laughed, but he didn't. Anger spiked within Roy as the boy offered no reply, he just walked off with them without sticking up for Riza.

Speaking of, the subject of his thoughts growled in frustration. "You are the worst!" she cried, stomping away from him towards home. She dipped her head, her bangs falling forward, but Roy saw the way her face crumpled and heard the hitch in her voice.

That was when his stomach really clenched.

And since when had she started to wear her fringe like that, across her face? Her bangs weren't quite long enough yet for her to have proper bangs but whenever she did brush her fringe to the side like this, Roy noticed. He noticed, because he liked that look on her very much.

Had she worn it like that for that boy?

"Riza?" he called after her. No response. Her shoulders only hunched further, and she began to run.

She ran away from him.

He was such an idiot.

As he trailed home behind Riza he thought about what that girl had said.

Did her peers really think her father was crazy? Yes, he was eccentric, but he was a brilliant man. The knowledge he held for alchemy rivalled no one. Roy had never met somebody so passionate about the science before. He thirsted for knowledge just like Roy did and his alchemy skills were unmatched, that's why Roy had asked his aunt to seek him out for tuition.

But Riza… She was the sanest person he knew. Isolated, sure, but Roy still wasn't sure if that was by choice or not. He had studied with them for over a year, but he had still yet to find out everything about his friend. Riza never brought up her childhood and when Roy ventured in that direction, she always steered it away.

Sympathy filled him once he realised that this guy appeared to be genuinely interested in her. If her classmates saw her as a "freak" then she would be elated that somebody wanted to be her friend.

Roy had taken that away from her.

Groaning loudly at his stupidity and rash decision, he walked home, alone, while the picture of Riza crying tortured him in his mind.

Riza never cried.

"Riza?" he called upon entering the house. A door upstairs slammed loudly in response and Roy sighed. He debated what to do but realised he couldn't put this off. Roy had hurt her, and in his eyes that was unforgivable. An apology wouldn't cut it, but he would try.

He knocked on her door and the sniffling stopped. His heart clenched painfully in his chest.

All because he had been fucking jealous.

Dumbass.

"Go away," a small voice called back to him.

"Riza, can I talk to you for a minute?"

"No!"

"Riza…"

The door wrenched open and Roy jumped in surprise, heart racing. "What?" she barked angrily. Tears had tracked down her cheeks, leaving trails of water down her face. They were smudged as she wiped her tears away. The sight of her red eyes made his heart clench again.

"I'm sorry, I –"

"I don't care," she retorted, opting to slam the door in his face. Instinctively, Roy stuck his foot in the way and hissed in pain when the wood contacting his foot roughly. Pain flared there and something clicked angrily.

"Please, can I just –"

"No, you can't."

"Then why did you open the door?"

"To tell you to leave me alone."

"Riza," he commanded her attention, bracing a hand on the door when she tried to close it once more. He wasn't sure if his foot could survive another beating like that without a bone breaking. "I'm sorry –"

"That's not going to cut it. Why don't you get that?"

"Let me explain!" he finally cried in frustration. The door opened further in her temporary surprise and Roy took advantage, edging himself further into her room. He had never really been in here before. They usually worked in his bedroom. He noticed just how… empty it looked. There was nothing on the walls, no personal mementos on the vanity or windowsill like in his sister's rooms. The bed was plain on the left wall, devoid of any cushions or childhood soft toys. The only thing sitting out was on the surface of her dresser, and it was a hairbrush conveniently placed next to her mirror.

Drawing himself back to the conversation, Roy continued. "I'm sorry, I was an ass. I thought he was bothering you so I thought I would help."

"If you thought he was bothering me why did you make a point of insinuating we were together?" she raged. A light blush crossed her cheeks, mirrored by Roy. That option had crossed his mind once, but he knew it would never happen. Riza didn't seem interested in the slightest and she kept to herself all the time, only sitting with him after a fair amount of coaxing. It was only once he saw Riza talking to another guy that he realised he didn't like that. He wanted Riza to talk to him instead. He wanted Riza to laugh in that carefree way with him.

He had been jealous.

"That makes no sense!" Riza stated.

But that wasn't fair to her. Riza owed him nothing. She wasn't required to spend time with him. Late one night she had confessed how much she hated this house after her mother passed away. No wonder she didn't want to associate with him so readily. Roy reminded her of her father and a place she loathed. Why wouldn't she want to escape with that guy?

At a loss for words at his revelation, Roy resorted to his default response without thinking how mad it would make her. "Because…"

"Roy Mustang, I am going to fucking punch you. Get. Out. Of. My. Room."

"No."

"If "because" is all you have to say then get out!"

"No!"

"Get out!" She shoved him harshly. Roy was so surprised he stumbled backwards and Riza slammed the door after her. There was a scraping noise on the worn wooden floor and with a thud something was placed against the door.

Had she just… Locked him out?

Oh, shit. What have you done, Roy?

Was this worth it? Had his jealousy been worth it to illicit this reaction and fallout?

With jealousy, came feelings, and…

Oh… Shit.

Riza never made it to dinner that night. Roy cooked something for them both and waited, but Riza never showed. Her father had dismissed him for the afternoon with a mountain of work to complete for tomorrow, but Roy made no move to start it. He couldn't. He knew he wouldn't be able to concentrate with all this new information floating around in his brain.

He… liked Riza.

When had that happened? How had that happened?

The dining table chair scraped loudly on the tile as Roy pushed it back roughly.

Roy busied himself for the next half hour preparing a third and final meal. Balancing a plate, a tray, and a glass of water in his hands, Roy made his way up the stairs to Riza's room. With a quiet knock, he placed the food on the tray on the floor.

"Riza?" he called softly. "You don't need to speak to me, but I made dinner. I… I understand why you're mad. I was a jackass and I apologise. I'd… I'd hate for you to go to bed hungry, so here. I hope you eat something, at least."

No reply.

Roy sighed quietly to himself.

"Sorry, Riza," he added sadly.

Guiltily, he walked away from her room and to his own.

His sleep was fitful, the guilt eating at him. He ran through every possibility in his head of how to fix this but came up blank. He had fucked up, plain and simple. He had hurt the one person he didn't want to.

During the night when he finally gave up on sleep, he exited his bedroom – even his room was more decorated than Riza – and headed for the stairs to get a glass of water. He stole a hopeful glance at Riza's bedroom door as he passed, noticing the tray and glass was no longer there. Hope filled him, but Roy didn't let it get the better of him.

He was startled when he turned on the lights in the kitchen to see Riza hunched over in a chair at the table.

"Shit!" he cried in surprise, not expecting to see her there. After calming his heart rate, he apologised quickly. "Sorry, Riza, you scared me."

Her eyes never moved from the table.

"Riza?" Roy questioned, moving to get a better view of her face.

She was crying again, silently, alone in this dark room. Feet propped on the chair, Riza had her arms wrapped around her bent knees, her knuckles white as they gripped her legs tightly. Her body shivered violently in the cold but Riza either didn't notice or didn't care. Roy approached her slowly, placing a hand on her shoulder. When she flinched, he pulled away sharply, ignoring the pain in his chest.

All he wanted to do was gather her in his arms to stop her shivering, stop her suffering.

"Riza?"

"They think I'm a freak…" she whispered. "They all whisper about me behind my back."

"Riza…"

"I don't really care what people think," she replied, voice very far away from him. "I don't, but I can only take so much. I hear the whispers and brush it off, but some still stick with me."

Roy felt his anger spike. How dare they make Riza feel this way.

But he had done something similar, hadn't he? His rash decision had caused this rift between them. Roy opted to stay silent and simply listen to Riza pour her heart out to him instead. For once, he shut up and listened.

"I can only take so much," she whispered, voice quieter. Her trembling increased and her breath hitched loudly. Roy couldn't take it anymore and he wrapped his arms around her, perching right on the edge of the chair. Riza sobbed against his bicep quietly. "And when someone in my class took a genuine interest in me, you just had to come along and ruin it, didn't you?"

Her bitter words were accurate and made him feel even worse.

"I'm so sorry," Roy replied, voice hollow. He had no idea it had affected her this much. He was such an asshole.

She sniffed and wiped her cheeks with the back of her hand, turning away and hugging her knees tighter. Roy never let up his hold.

"I had no idea, I…" She tilted her head up, her eyes boring into his.

He could tell her, or he could brush it off as a dumb mistake.

Make your choice, Roy, but know that once the truth is out there, there's no going back.

They were close. Too close. Their breaths mingled together as Roy held her, noses just inches away from each other. Roy had never seen her this clearly before, in the dim light of her cold kitchen in the middle of the night. He gazed into her whisky eyes, trapped in them. Her bangs were ruffled, hair dishevelled overall. Her eyes were red and so were her cheeks.

He wanted to kiss them…

The realisation should have sent him into a panic, but it didn't. He didn't mind it thought at all. It felt right.

"I was jealous."

Riza blinked at him. "Jealous?" she repeated as if she couldn't quite grasp the word he was saying.

Roy nodded, his nose brushing against hers. It sent a jolt through his skin and Roy felt Riza jump in surprise beneath him.

"I was jealous. Of that boy," he reiterated.

"Why?"

"Because he was looking at you in a certain way and you were doing it back…" Riza blushed a deep red, eventually turning away. She tried to shift from his hold, but Roy held steady. He motioned for her to move over in the chair. It was too small for the two of them, but Roy didn't mind. In the moment, he didn't care. Eventually, he pulled her onto his lap, tucking her head underneath his chin. Riza froze in place while Roy rubbed circles on her back.

"Like what?" Riza whispered.

"Like…" He struggled to find the words.

"You've got to stop doing that," she replied, her anger edging back into her voice.

"You're right, I'm sorry. I couldn't think of how to reply," he placated. "I… Most of the time I don't really think before I speak, I leave it up to my actions instead," he explained. "That's why I made that dumb comment today." He took a deep breath. "I said it because I was jealous that you were looking to him like that… and not me."

Riza's eyes met his slowly.

"I wanted you to laugh that way with me… because… I… like you." Roy shifted uncomfortably in the silence while Riza simply watched him.

"You… like me?" she questioned, disbelief clouding her tone.

Roy nodded. Nerves coiled in his stomach, but he wouldn't back down now, not when they were getting somewhere. "Yes. Like you."

Riza blinked once more, her face heating up and turning pink again. He couldn't help it. He grinned at the sight of it. She was too adorable right now.

Yes, she was probably still angry at him, and she had every right to be. However, Roy had a feeling they would be all right. As Riza sighed and shifted to lean against his chest, placing her head on his shoulder, he knew he was slowly making his way back into her good books.

"While I don't approve of your methods, I guess…" She sighed again. "I think I like you too, to be honest," she mumbled quietly.

Roy grinned. He chanced his luck, pressing his lips to the top of her head to kiss it. It was a rash decision – he was making a few of them today – but he couldn't resist.

He was still incredibly sorry to hear about her school life. Riza talked it through with him and Roy offered his support and comfort where he could. He vowed he would meet her outside the school every day from now on. He would show those kids that she was a worthy friend, worthy of being liked, worthy of being loved.

The sun rose slowly through the kitchen window as they continued to talk, and Roy had never felt closer to Riza in that moment. As they parted at the top of the stairs to get a final few hours of sleep, they gazed at each other for a moment, arms stretched apart so that only their fingers were touching, holding onto the other and not wanting to let go.

"I'll see you in a couple of hours?" Roy asked, hopeful.

Riza nodded, a smile playing across her face. She squeezed his hand tightly. "See you in a couple of hours."

The door to her bedroom closed softly and Roy sighed quietly. Ever since they had confessed over two hours ago Riza had found excuses to touch him and maintain contact. Not that he minded at all. Before she had maintained distance and formality, but now it appeared as if a dam had been broken. She'd let down a wall inside of her. Roy felt privileged to have been able to witness it and have access to what lay behind it. From now on, he would do his best to protect that information and make her happy. She deserved that much.

He fell into bed with a smile on his face.

They would be okay.