"He's going to be okay now, right?"

"I don't know Lace, I really don't know. I guess if he keeps eating those stone things, then it should be okay." Jean gripped his glass tightly between his hands, watching the steam rise in little waves above his mug. He looked tired and lost. I sighed and looked down at my own mug, full of hot tea. Everyone else was asleep and the house was actually quiet, unlike it had been for a while. I glanced up at Jean, he was slumped over his mug, his shoulders sagging, dark circles around his eyes. He needed sleep, but he was only sitting her because I wasn't asleep.

"You should go get some sleep Jean, you look terrible." Jean's tired eyes lifted up from his glass and looked at mine. The blue seemed so dull and unhappy and I wanted to know why. He didn't look like Jean, not my Jean anyway. My best friend.

"No, I'm good. You should go get some sleep though Lacey, I know you have to be tired. You've been nonstop for a few days." Jean smiled lightly, but it didn't reach his eyes. I shook my head quick, looking back down at my mug of tea. The nightmares had been getting worse since the brief encounter with Envy that day. Jean's hand covered mine and I looked up again, meeting his eyes. "You haven't been able to sleep have you?"

"No. They're getting worse and I just find it easier to not sleep then actually have to deal with them." I said softly, afraid that someone would hear. I wouldn't be surprised if Greed heard everything we were saying, or Rage, they have supersonic hearing, but I didn't want Al and Ed to hear. They were asleep in my living, bunking here for a few days before Ed would head out and actually go do his mission that he was sent to do about a week ago.

"Lace, you need to get some sleep. This isn't healthy for you and you know that. Come on, you're going to bed." Jean stood up and walked over by my chair and picked me up, cradling me in his arms like a baby.

"I don't want to sleep!" I groaned, but didn't fight him. I didn't have the energy to, so Jean carried me upstairs, passed my bedroom and went into Misha's. He walked over to the bed and laid me down, pulling the blankets out from under me and tucking me in and just as he was about to walk away, I grabbed his arm. "Don't go. Stay with me. . .please?"

Jean stared at the bed for a moment and a painful look crossed his face, before he nodded and climbed into bed next to me. I laid my head on his chest and Jean wrapped his arm around me, holding me close to his body.

"Thank you for everything you've done Jean. I don't what I'd do without you." I whispered, listening to his steady breathing and the rhythmic sound of his heartbeat. They were both comforting.

"No problem Lace, you know I'm always here for you." Jean mumbled and it was easy to tell he was half asleep. I snuggled in closer, slipped my eyes closed and waited for sleep to find me and finally I slipped off into a dreamless night.

* * *

"Uhmm….Lacey." I groaned and smacked away the hand that was trying to shake me. "Lacey we have a problem. Someone is here to see you and they say it's an emergency." Another harsh shake and this time I peeked my eye open. Sunlight was streaming into the room through the windows, telling me it was probably late in the afternoon. I looked up at the person who shook me and saw Ed, standing nervous.

"What's wrong?" I rubbed my eyes, trying to get myself to wake.

"Colonel Mustang is downstairs. . .he's looking for you."

"WHAT?" I shouted and Jean jumped up off the bed, eyes still closed but ready for anything. But that didn't matter to me, Colonel Mustang was downstairs in my living room, while I had a Homunculus upstairs. TWO Homunculus upstairs and one of them really still wasn't back to perfect health and would probably make a lot of complaining noises. "Shit, shit, shit, shit, SHIT!"

I threw the blankets off of me and jumped out of the bed, running to my bedroom. Rage instantly jumped up, abandoning the chair she was sitting in, next to Greed, but her hand never left his. He looked up at me too, but didn't really move. He glared and growled, "What do you want."

"Be…..nice Greed…..She helped….us." Rage said quietly and then she turned to me, a small smile gracing her lips. "He's…….doing a lot……better."

"That's great Rage, but I need you to do me a favor. There is someone downstairs who can not know you are here. If he does, bad things will happen to you and Greed. Okay?" Rage stared at me wide eyed for a few moments before slowly nodding her head and I took that has an understanding of that she knew to be quiet. Jean, slowly entered the room behind me, his hair in a messier than it usually is, sticking up in all directions on the top of his head. He looked at me and then at Rage and Greed.

"What are you going to do?" Ed must of told him about the Colonel downstairs.

"Hide them up here. I'll go deal with Mustang. It shouldn't take long, I don't know why the hell he's here. He never comes all the way out here. He usually calls." I complained as I walked out of the room and closing the door softly behind me.

"I have an idea of why he's here." Jean mumbled darkly and I looked at him confused, but didn't have time to ask him what he meant, because we had reached the stairs. Jean helped me wobble down them one by one, careful not to jolt my cast too much. When we finally reached the bottom, Colonel Mustang walked out of the living room, Ed and Al following slowly behind him.

"Hello Colonel, what brings you here?" I greeted brightly, hoping I didn't seem to suspicious that I was hiding something. I looked over to Jean for support, but he was just giving the Colonel a dirty look. I had to ask him what that was all about later, because I was really starting to wonder.

"I was worried about you. I was shocked to hear you checked out of the hospital so soon and I called a few times, but no one picked up, so I thought I'd stop by, but it seems you're taken care of." Roy smiled and held up a bouquet of lilies to me. "Hope you feel better soon Lacey, but I'm sure you will since Jean is here to take care of you!" His eyes flickered over to Jean's and took on a hardness and a tension filled the air and it was starting to become uncomfortable.

I took the red rose and smiled. "Thank you Colonel, I'm doing fine and yes, Jean is taking good care of me. It's nice having him around." I looked over at Jean and smiled and he smiled back, before glancing back at the Colonel. I furrowed my brows, wondering what the hell was going on with these too. I'd have to ask Jean about it later. "But is that all sir? I promise I'll be back to work soon, I just have to wait till I can get this stupid thing off."

Roy flashed his shiny white teeth and nodded his head. "That's great! I know the office can't wait to have you back."

"I can only imagine. Excuse me, I'm going to go put these in some water." I quickly shuffled away, trying to escape the awkward silence that had filled the room, causing the tension to get higher, to the point where it was getting really uncomfortable to even stand there. So I took my time in the kitchen, finding a vase, filling it up with water, and slowly arranging each of the lilies in, taking as slow as possible. I then placed the vase on the kitchen table, placing it perfectly in the center.

Without knowing of any other way to waste time, I wobbled out of the kitchen and Jean and Roy hadn't even moved, but both were staring at each other with glares, waiting for the other one to back down, but both were unwilling to back down. Their heads both turned when they saw me coming in, before quickly looking back at each other.

"I guess I'll be going then. You get better Lacey." He flashed one more another smile before turning on his heel and marching out the door, but before closing the door, he paused and glanced over his shoulder. "Oh and Jean, remember what I said." And the door closed and the room stayed quiet for a minute as we listened to the sound of Roy's car start up and a car door slammed. Riza probably drove him out here since he for some reason could never drive himself.

"What did he say?" I asked quietly, unsure if I wanted to know the answer. I looked over at Jean; he was glaring darkly at the spot where Roy was once stood. His eyebrows knitted together, making his blue eyes appear darker, his mouth was in a deep scowl. He looked. . .scary. He didn't look like Jean. "Jean, I'm talking to you, what did he say?" I grabbed his hand, trying to get his attention, but as soon as my skin barely brushed up against his, he went flying back.

"Nothing important! Just the damn truth." He snarled and stomped away, disappearing into the kitchen. I stood shocked and it didn't take long for Ed and Al to appear from the doorway, wondering what the commotion was about. I just shook my head at them and waved my hand them to not worry about it.

I followed after him, and found him leaning up against the sink, his head down and smoke billowing around him. He was smoking, I was going to yell at him, but thought against it, thinking it probably wasn't the best idea. I didn't say anything for a few moments, just stood there and watched him, he didn't move either, but I knew he knew I was there.

"Is everything okay, Jean?" I almost didn't hear my own voice, but I could tell he did. His shoulders tensed and he nodded his head, taking a long drag from his cigarette, before looking up at me. I could tell he had calmed down a bit, but his eyes told me that whatever it was inside was trying to break through.

"Yep everything is peachy keen, sorry about smoking. I just needed one pretty bad." He turned around and through the butt in the sink and turned on the water. The aroma of something burning filled the air.

"What did he say to you? What was he talking about? What do you have to remember?"

Jean stared at me for a long time, before pushing off of the counter and walking to where he was only a few feet in front of me. "He told me what I needed to know, but was too hopeful too see. That clear it up for you?"

"What's that even mean? What did you need to know?" Jean shook his head, smiling bitterly before turning around on his heel and going back to the sink, lighting another cigarette. I stared at him in shock, wondering where all this was coming from. Jean had never really kept anything from me before and I had never kept anything from him. What had made that change? Why was he being so secretive all of a sudden? What the hell did Roy told him that made him so closed up all of a sudden? "Jean, talk to me. What's up?"

"Nothing Lacey, just….just don't worry about it. Everything's fine. Roy was just joking around about something."

"No! I am going to worry about it! Something is wrong with you. You're usually a very laid back person and then he says something to you and you're just storming around pissed off and you won't even tell me why!" The room took on a deathly silence and Jean stared at me, his cigarette burning away before he even had a chance to take a puff. "I just want you to be honest with me Jean."

"Be honest with you?" Jean muttered, more to himself then to me, throwing his untouched cigarette in the sink. "How many times have I thought about actually doing that, but then backing out." He chuckled lowly and I was starting to wonder if he still knew I was in the room. He looked up at me, his blue eyes turning sad and he walked a few feet forward, until he was once again in front of me. His blue eyes bored into mine, searching for something and then he raised his hands, timidly resting them on the sides of my face, cradling it between his rough, calloused hands. "If only you knew what you did to me, Lace."

And then his lips touched mine.