For the two weeks that Riza had to stay in the hospital to recover, Roy visited her every morning before work and immediately went to her in the evening after work, making sure to get all his paperwork done on time so he could see her as soon as possible. Sometimes the nurses would even overlook the times when he stayed with her all night, sleeping with his head resting on his folded arms on the side of her bed.

They certainly did not overlook it the second night he tried though. The hospital staff had given him leeway the very first time he stayed the night since he had been nothing but trouble trying to get back to Riza's room, what with the scaling the walls nonsense. But when he refused to leave the next night too, the hospital staff threatened to call his superior officer, General Grumman.

That did not go as well as the staff had hoped. Grumman didn't have much to say on the matter, telling them to leave the colonel be, that it was his order to Mustang that he stay with Hawkeye to make sure she was well guarded in case the people that attacked her came back. The staff didn't need to know that was mostly a lie and they'd never be the wiser that Grumman and Mustang were in cahoots, even without having to communicate anything to each other. Grumman would always support Mustang and vice versa so there was no point in the hospital staff trying to threaten Roy through Grumman.

Grumman had seen the way Roy and Riza looked at each other, and like Madame Christmas, he secretly supported them, hoping they'd realize their feelings and get together sooner rather than later, so of course he had no problems with Mustang wanting to stay with Hawkeye as much as possible while she recovered.

Riza woke that second night to see a familiar mop of black hair on the hospital bed near her shoulder. She smiled softly down at Roy, thankful she had been able to protect him, and tentatively reached to touch his hair. Her fingers barely skimmed the tips of the dark strands when he moved in his sleep and she retracted her hand quickly.

Roy woke up moments later and lifted his head a bit, groaning quietly as he stretched his back. Sleeping while sitting in a chair and leaning to rest his head on the hospital bed wasn't the most comfortable thing. He turned to face Hawkeye and when he saw she was awake, he gave her a tired grin.

"Hey," he said, his voice rough from sleep.

"Colonel," Riza replied and nodded in acknowledgement, her voice just as raspy as his. She glanced around and noticed the time, raising a brow when she looked back at Roy. "How did you manage to convince them to allow you to stay?"

Mustang chuckled and propped his head on his hand, elbow nestled on the mattress at Riza's side.

"I must just have a commanding presence," he replied, to which Riza almost scoffed. "No one can force the king to remain idle when his queen is in danger."

Riza rolled her eyes at that, but a smile tugged her lips up slightly. He was so ridiculous sometimes.

"Oh, I never got a chance to tell you," Roy spoke again. "Remember last week when I mentioned I had to leave your place early because I was expecting a call from Hughes? Well, he was calling to tell me that Gracia is going to have the baby in a couple of months and they want us to be there."

"Really?" Riza said, a small smile adorning her face. "That's wonderful news. But why do they want us there?"

Roy shrugged.

"Don't know, but we should go, so get better soon, okay?"

Riza nodded, moving to get more comfortable, but grimacing when pain shot through her chest.

"I'll try," she sighed, giving up on trying to get comfortable.

They sat in silence for a few moments, just enjoying the others' company before RIza spoke again, the smile now gone from her face, replaced with a look of concentration and seriousness.

"Sir," she asked, sounding unsure about what she wanted to say. "Did...Did you…?"

Roy looked at her curiously, wondering why she was hesitating. She rarely hesitated.

"Hm?" he hummed, trying to encourage her to say whatever it was she was attempting to.

Riza stared at him for a few moments before shaking her head.

"Nevermind," she mumbled, turning to face away from him.

"You okay?" Roy asked, his scrutinizing gaze was laced with concern.

"Yes, I'm just tired."

Roy nodded at that.

"Get some sleep then, Lieutenant," he said quietly. "Good night."

"Good night, sir."

Roy folded his arms on her bed and soon they were both fast asleep again.

Riza slept quite a bit the next few days, which the doctors explained was completely normal while her body tried to heal, but after just one week, she was able to get up and walk around her room by herself without being in too much pain, though she still felt faint if she stood for too long. The doctors and her team were all impressed with her progress, but to her, she wasn't healing fast enough. It wasn't that she didn't trust her team to watch Roy's back, but she would feel a lot better if she was back at work resuming her bodyguard duties, and she would continue to feel frustrated that she was stuck in the hospital, until the Drachman arms dealers were caught, anyway.

At least Roy visited her all the time. Being able to see him reassured her that he was still unharmed, which helped alleviate her worries to an extent.

After two weeks, Hawkeye was able to convince the doctors that she was well enough to go home, but she was still ordered not to go back to work for at least another week. She tried to argue that, but Mustang, who had come to pick her up, wouldn't hear it and promised the doctors he'd make sure she stayed home. In fact, he planned to personally make sure she stayed home by visiting her there like he had been at the hospital, morning and night, to help her with things while she continued to recover.

"This is unnecessary, sir," Hawkeye said when she opened the door the morning after Roy had taken her home to find the man standing there, grocery bags in his hands and a grin on his face that was far too cheery for how early it was.

"Nonsense, Lieutenant," Mustang replied, shifting to get a better grip on the grocery bags in his arms. "The doctors said you probably shouldn't even be home on your own right now, but I could tell you were getting antsy having to sit in that hospital room this whole time so I vouched for you. Now am I going to have to stand out here holding these bags all day or will you let me come in?"

Hawkeye sighed and stepped aside to allow the colonel to come into her apartment.

"You didn't have to do this," Hawkeye said, following Mustang into her kitchen where he deposited the bags of groceries.

"I know," he replied softly as he unpacked the bags. "But I wanted to. I don't want you overexerting yourself just to go buy food for the week. I need you to recover as soon as possible so you can come back to work."

Mustang started opening cabinets at random, trying to find where she put her groceries in the small space. Hawkeye sent an exasperated look toward the back of Mustang's head before shuffling over to show him where things went.

"You're not really helping if I have to show you where everything is," she said flatly.

"Sorry," he sighed, scratching the back of his head in embarrassment. "Look, you don't have to show me where anything is, I can do this myself. You shouldn't be standing for so long. Why don't you go back to bed and I'll make you some breakfast?"

Riza gave him a skeptical look and he glowered at her, stepping forward to grip her shoulders and turn her, gently pushing her in the direction of her room.

"Just go to bed, Hawkeye."

"Sir, this is very unnecessary, I am perfectly capable of…"

Riza was cut off when she suddenly became light headed and stumbled. Mustang caught her shoulder before she fell and smirked knowingly at her.

"You were saying?"

"Oh, please be quiet, sir," she huffed, standing straight again and pulling away from him to begrudgingly following his suggestion to go back to her room.

Riza crawled back into bed, propping herself up with a couple of pillows and pulling the blanket over her lap. The sound of cabinets banging and plates and glasses clinking made her cringe, but she trusted Roy not to destroy her kitchen too much so held herself back from jumping up to yell at him.

Several minutes later, she heard the tea pot whistle, followed a minute later by Roy walking into her room with a tray carrying a plate of scrambled eggs, toast, and a cup of tea. She met his gaze and he grinned at her, knowing she too was noticing the role reversal. When he had been an apprentice living in her father's house, she had been the one to make and serve breakfast every morning. Riza couldn't remember any time when Roy had ever cooked a meal when he lived with her father and her, and there was something worrying about him doing it for her now. Did he even know how to cook?

Roy set the tray on her lap and and she thanked him as she took a sip of tea. It was exactly the way she liked it and she gave him a small nod of approval. Roy chuckled at that.

"Just because you make the coffee and tea for the team every morning doesn't mean I don't remember how you like yours," he said, turning to leave her room to make himself some coffee.

"It's still surprising, sir," she deadpanned, taking another sip. "You never seem to remember anything else, like when your paperwork is due, for example."

Roy almost tripped and fell into the door at that.

"You always have to bring work into everything, don't you?"

A tiny playful smirk found it's way to Riza's lips.

"Of course, sir. That's what I'm here for."

Roy sighed theatrically and left the room, muttering something about her being a workaholic and him needing a break every once in awhile. He came back a few minutes later holding a cup of coffee and munching on a piece of toast and plopped himself on the end of Riza's bed, right at her feet.

"Speaking of work, Colonel," Riza said, taking a bite of her eggs that were actually very good. The fact that he could cook surprised her, but she didn't say anything about it as she ate. "Shouldn't you be getting there soon?"

Roy finished off his toast and shook his head.

"Nope, I took the day off since it's your first day home from the hospital. I didn't want you being alone until I knew you could handle things yourself."

Riza sighed and set her fork down roughly.

"Sir," she said in a harsh tone, making his head snap up to look at her. She was clearly irritated that he would take a day off just to take care of her. "You should not have called in today. I don't need you here. Your work is more important."

Roy stood and practically threw his cup onto her bedside table, nearly dumping coffee everywhere.

"Damn it, Hawkeye," he growled, annoyed that she would consider work more important than herself. She was far more important to him than anything, aside from maybe their goals. It made him angry whenever she said things that made her seem expendable. "It's my fault that you almost died, so just let me help you!"

Hawkeye blinked at him.

"What are you talking about?" The surprise was evident in Riza's voice, though her expression remained the same, serious and calm, showing no signs of the alarm she felt at his words.

"I was an idiot and let my guard down!" he exclaimed angrily. He wasn't mad at her, but at himself, and Riza looked taken aback as he continued his tirade. "I was complaining about the weather when I should have been aware of my surroundings. Instead, I forced you, once again, to be the responsible one and look what happened? You almost died! You shouldn't have had to jump in front of me like that! You shouldn't have had to take a bullet for me!" Roy closed his eyes and growled a sigh, calming himself a bit before looking at her again, his gaze softer. "Helping you recover is the least I can do to repay you for saving my life. Again. Please, just let me do this."

The surprise was now very clear on Riza's face, her mouth hung open slightly as they stared at one another. He blamed himself for her being hurt? But she was his bodyguard, it was her job to do such things. The fool of a colonel shouldn't have been blaming himself for something she did willingly. It was her own decision to put her life on the line for him and she would do it again in a heartbeat. She could see there was no arguing with him though, so she sighed and nodded at him.

"I'm sorry," she muttered, turning away from his gaze. "Thank you for helping to take care of me."

Roy sighed picked up his coffee cup again, sitting back down on her bed by her knees this time.

"Of course," he replied, taking a sip of his coffee. "Now, finish your breakfast. You need to keep up your strength."

Riza nodded, smiling softly as she picked up her fork and resumed eating.

"And Colonel?"

"Hm?"

"Please don't blame yourself for my actions."

They stared into each other's eyes for a few moments before Roy frowned and nodded.

"Alright. As long as you let me take care of you."

"I think that's acceptable."

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The kiss they shared when Riza lay dying in Roy's arms had gone undiscussed. On Riza's part, it was mostly because she wasn't sure it actually happened. She had lost a lot of blood and thought it could very well have been a dream while she had been passed out. It wouldn't have been the first time she dreamt of Roy kissing her, though the scenario was vastly different from the other dreams she had had about the subject. Her unasked question on her second night in the hospital had been as close as they had gotten to mentioning it. But because she really wasn't positive it had happened, she chose to refrain from saying anything for fear of embarrassing herself by admitting she had dreamt of him kissing her on more than one occasion.

For Roy, he didn't speak of it because it had been a mindless, near desperate act. The thought of her dying without ever truly knowing how he felt would have tormented him for possibly the rest of his life and, not knowing how to tell her his feelings while he was in such a frantic state, he did the only thing he could think of. He showed her.

But with her surviving and the fraternization laws constantly hovering over them, he didn't want to complicate their relationship, especially with something so potentially dangerous to their goals. He assumed this was the reason she never brought it up either. Riza was always so focused on their work and the future that he was sure she was avoiding the subject so they wouldn't get in trouble. Knowing how much he cared for her, ignoring it was probably the best course of action since he didn't know how well he could keep his emotions in check around her if they admitted their feelings for one another out loud. Just looking at her he could tell she felt the same as he did, but voicing it felt like it would solidify those feelings and they'd never be able to go back to the way they were. Their mannerisms and longing gazes would be a dead giveaway to anyone who noticed.

On the fourth night after she was allowed to leave the hospital, Riza was feeling uncomfortable and grungy, having not bathed since a sponge bath given to her by one of the nurses the morning she left the hospital. She was feeling much better than she had been, so she decided to take a shower on her own.

Undressing wasn't difficult and she slowly pulled off her bandages and looked at the gunshot wound for the first time. It had healed well, but it was still very obvious she had been shot and the wound would definitely leave a small scar at the very least. She avoided touching the area as she showered, her chest still being sore if she put too much pressure on it.

Roy showed up at her place while Riza was in the shower. When he knocked and she didn't answer, he let himself in quickly with the spare key she had given him, worried something had happened to her. He stepped into the apartment and heard the shower running, breathing a sigh of relief at knowing that was why she hadn't answered the door, and he went to her kitchen to make her some dinner. Even though she was seemingly well enough to do things on her own now, he didn't want her doing too much still, being the overprotective person he was, so he planned on continuing to make her breakfast and dinner and doing all he could for her in the time he could visit before and after work.

Riza came walking into the kitchen while Roy cooked, not surprised he was there, having already gotten used to him showing up after work for the past couple of days. Her hair was wet, her feet were bare, and she was dressed in a knee length night shirt, a pink shawl around her shoulders. Roy turned and grinned as she walked in.

She was about to thank him for cooking for her when her foot slid as she stepped onto the tile in the kitchen and she pitched backward. Apparently she was still unsteady on her feet after having been bedridden most of the month. Roy's arms shot out and caught her before she fell, holding her tightly to his chest, arms securely circling her waist. Riza grimaced and grunted quietly in pain at being held so tightly. Roy noticed and loosened his hold immediately, giving her an apologetic look.

"Ah! Sorry, sorry," he stammered, holding her away from him, but still gripping her waist gently.

They stared at one another for a few moments, Roy pursing his lips, dark eyes glancing from her eyes to her lips and back again before he swallowed loudly and spoke.

"You okay?" he muttered.

"Yes, thank you." Riza replied, eyes not leaving his.

Roy nodded and released her almost reluctantly as he helped her back to bed. Riza settled herself in a sitting position, leaning back against her pillows, and Roy tucked the blankets up to her waist to cover her bare legs. An almost awkward silence fell between them with Roy settling himself on the side of her bed and glancing from her face to the floor every few moments. He looked almost nervous about something and Riza stared at him curiously, waiting to see if he'd say what was on his mind for him to be acting so strangely.

"Hawkeye," he finally muttered, turning to face her fully. "I...I wanted to apologize about what I did that night...I...shouldn't have done that, but I thought you were going to die..."

Riza's eyes narrowed, brow furrowing in confusion for a moment before she realized what he was talking about.

"Wait...You mean you really…?"

She couldn't finish her sentence, heat creeping into her face, knowing he was talking about the kiss she thought had just been a dream.

"Yeah..." Roy nodded, having a hard time meeting her gaze. "And I'm sorry, I've made things uncomfortable I think, but I didn't think I'd ever see you again and I...I didn't want any lingering regrets."

"You would have regretted not kissing me?" she asked in a soft voice, eyes widening minutely.

"For the rest of my life."

His response was immediate and firm and it almost made her heart skip a beat. Before she could respond to his unbelievable confession, they both sniffed the air, smelling something burning.

"Oh no, the dinner!" Roy exclaimed, jumping up and running out Riza's bedroom.

It was too late for their dinner by the time Roy got back to the pan and he sighed, running the pan under hot water and rinsing the ruined food down the sink.

"How do you feel about Xingese takeout?" Roy called to Riza while he cleaned up the kitchen.

"Sounds fine to me," she called out her response, chuckling lightly at Roy freaking out over having burned their dinner, and relieved to have a distraction from their potentially problematic conversation.

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"So, you'll be coming back to work tomorrow, huh?" Roy asked during dinner on Riza's last night of sick leave.

"Yes," she answered,

"Well, it'll be nice to finally have you back, though, to be honest, I think I'm going to miss coming over here to help you out every day."

Riza smiled lightly at that.

"I think I'll miss it too, sir. I suppose we could always continue those dancing lessons on Friday nights."

Roy looked up at her in surprise.

"Really? I thought you were against me coming over for such frivolous things?"

"Well, perhaps learning to dance isn't as frivolous a skill as I thought," she said flatly. "It might prove useful the next time we're on an undercover mission. My inexperience on the subject was almost a problem the last time."

Roy grinned knowingly at her behind his glass of water. He knew she was just making excuses to try to mask the fact that she enjoyed learning to dance, but he spared her embarrassment and didn't say any more about it.

They cleaned up the dishes together quietly and didn't speak again until Riza walked Roy to the door to see him out.

"Be careful on your way home, sir," Riza said softly.

"I will, Lieutenant. I'll see you tomorrow."

Riza nodded, expecting him to leave, but when he made no move to reach for the door, she gave him a questioning look. He was gazing at her almost nervously again.

"Sir?"

"Lieutenant…" Roy muttered, unsure of how to proceed with what he wanted to ask. "Are we...Um, are we okay?"

"What do you mean?"

"I mean, will... what I did a month ago affect anything? I didn't mean for it to ruin our professional relationship and…"

"We're fine, Colonel," Riza interrupted him. "I'll pretend like it never happened, and you should do the same. We can't let something like that get in the way of our goals."

Roy nodded, outwardly seeming to be satisfied with her answer, though inside he was a mess. He didn't really want to pretend like it never happened. He didn't want her to forget about it either. If it weren't for rules and regulations and their future hopes and dreams being at stake, he would have asked if she felt the same and kissed her again and never let her go.

Instead, he acted like it wasn't anything important and would do his best to ignore the unpleasant pang in his gut from having to pretend like he didn't love her.

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Wow, this took way longer to write than I thought. Sorry for the wait. Hope you enjoyed this chapter. Next chapter will have potentially more fluff plus Ed coming to take his state alchemist exam. Thanks for reading and see you then.