June 8th, 1987

Ian watched the actors in front of him with an intense concentration. Three...two...one… "And cut."

Stella and Carlos stopped gazing into each other eyes, and stepped apart, no longer desperately angsty teen loves, but once again the professional actors that were seeing other people. They stood expectantly, waiting for his word.

Ian smiled. "That's a wrap. Nice work."

The two teens grinned and moved off-set towards wardrobe. The rest of the crew went back to their jobs, finishing up after a long day of filming yet another episode. Season two was definitely heating up.

Ian was feeling good about this particular episode arc, which he was directing the entirety of, given how pleased Tanner had been with his assistance last season. He was grateful that he had been given the opportunity to direct. It was satisfying, challenging work that also kept him in Central far more often.

Today he didn't have any projects of his own to shoot, so he was done for the day as well. The Elrics film had wrapped up months ago and now it was in that stretch of interminable waiting between filming and release consisting of all post-production work. Ian was looking forward to it coming out in the fall. He was fairly certain it would be a big hit. If it was, it was the type of film that could boost his career to the next level. It would be nice to have his pick of roles, and higher paying offers. They would also take him seriously for roles that didn't involve him half-naked.

Ian had been standing in his trailer for several seconds before he realized he wasn't alone. There was someone in the doorway behind him. He sighed, hoping it wasn't going to be complicated. "Who's th—"

He stopped as he turned around, and his concern was replaced by elation.

Bonnie stood in the doorway, still in traveling clothes. She had spent the last three weeks in West City, costuming another movie. Three very long, lonely, dateless weeks. She was smiling at him. "If you're going to gaze at me like that, maybe I should go away more often."

"No! No, I'd really rather you didn't." Ian chuckled, and crossed the short distance between them to gather her in his arms. She wrapped hers around his neck, and kissed him, long and slow. Ian returned it with all the pent up feelings of loneliness and missing her that had filled him while she was gone, which had no room in him with the heat he felt in her presence. "I have missed you so much."

Bonnie smiled, and stayed against him for several more seconds before loosening her grip on his neck. "I missed you too. Are you done for the day?"

Ian nodded. "I'm all yours. Can I treat you to dinner?" She looked like she had come right from the train, so he doubted she had eaten anything recently.

"Dinner sounds great," she nodded. "Can we swing by my apartment first? I'd like to take a quick shower and change into something more appropriate."

While Ian would have said anything was fine, and he knew she wasn't vain enough to think that this required formal date attire, he knew the shower was the critical thing. "Of course," he agreed. "I'll drive you home." He gestured to the door, and they left together. This was perfect, given he also had something he wanted to discuss with her.

The stop at her apartment didn't take long. Ian waited patiently in her living room while she showered, and changed into a casual, comfortable summer dress of light blue that he hadn't seen before. It had a very classic line, very 1940s, with a collared v-neck, and a cloth matching belt at the waist. On Bonnie, it was very flattering.

"You look amazing," he grinned, standing up from the couch as she entered the room. What I wouldn't give to get it off of you. "Where would you like to go to dinner?"

"Well I'm pretty tapped out on Cretan and western Amestrian home-cooking," Bonnie smiled. "How about Xingese?"

Ironically appropriate. Ian nodded. "You know me, I'm always up for Xingese."

By the time they were sitting at his favorite table at their favorite restaurant, he had already filled her in on filming for the past three weeks, and she had already told him most of the interesting stories about West City. "My parents say hello," she added at the end, as she fiddled with the straw in her glass. "I had dinner with them last week."

"And how are they?" he asked as he picked up an eggroll.

"Doing well. The farm is the same as ever."

"And your sister?"

Bonnie chuckled. "Seventeen and endlessly busy. Though you'll be interested to know that June has a boyfriend now, and he doesn't look a thing like you."

"So ends the teen crush," Ian pressed his hand dramatically to his chest.

"I can see you're heartbroken."

"Completely." Ian nodded. "Have you heard anything from your brother?" He had only met Jerry once, mostly because he had moved down near South City before he had first visited her family, and had only been home once at a time when Ian and Bonnie had been there.

"Jerry and Nicole are doing great." Bonnie picked up a piece of sushi with her chopsticks. "They've had a very good crop of calves this year on the ranch."

"And theirs?" The last Ian had heard, Jerry and his wife were expecting their first baby. He knew they'd had a girl, Daphne, but he didn't remember how old she was.

Thankfully Bonnie didn't seem to get upset when he couldn't remember all the details. "Six months old and sitting up." She paused to eat a bite. "Jerry mailed my parents a whole pile of photos. They let me take one." She bent over and pulled one out of her purse. "I warn you, she's a cutie."

Ian took the picture, which turned out to be of all three of them, though the smiling, curly-haired baby in the center dominated the image with her happy smile. "She's adorable," he agreed. "Looks a lot like the photos your Mom has of you and your sister all over the house."

"What can I say, babies in our family are cute," Bonnie chuckled.

Ian just nodded, deciding it was safer not to comment on that. The kids in his family were cute too. He could imagine what their own might look like… if they ever got that far.

"You have that look."

"What look?" Crap, what had he done?

"That contemplative look. Something's on your mind."

Ian sighed. "Actually, there's something I wanted to talk to you about." There was no reason to put it off. "It's important."

Now Bonnie looked puzzled, and slightly concerned. "Okay. What is it?"

Here we go. Ian tried not to be too nervous. "I've been offered a part, a big part, but I wanted to talk to you to see if I should take it or not."

"When do you need my permission to take a part, Ian?" Bonnie smiled, bemused.

"It's Golden Warrior, Bonnie. They want me for Nicholas." The movie was a period drama about a man from Xerxes, who travelled to the Xingese far east to learn the ancient samurai fighting forms as well as bringing with him untold powers.. It was highly fictional, but the legend it was based on existed and was fairly well known. Nicholas was the lead.

Her mouth dropped open. "Well then of course you should take it!" she exclaimed. "I heard the script is by the same writers who did the alchemist movie and King of Creta."

Ian nodded, smiling nervously. "I'm glad you feel that way."

"Then why do you look worried?"

"Because it means filming in the far eastern reaches of Xing on location…. For eight months."

She stilled. "I see. I would think you'd love that. I mean, it's Xing." She gestured at the surroundings. "You love the food. You have cousins there. It sounds like a great opportunity."

Ian tried not to feel frustration. She wasn't getting it, or she was purposefully making him say it. He hoped it was the former. He reached out and placed one hand on the one of hers laying on the table. "It means not seeing you for three-quarters of a year." They hadn't been apart for more than a month or two at a time since they had officially started dating. Sure filming took one or another of them out of town from time to time, and they weren't always on the same projects, but with his turn towards more directing, and her design projects, they spent a lot more time in Central. "I can't just up and leave for eight months without you being okay with it."

"This film could cement your career," Bonnie pointed out.

"I know that. But it doesn't matter if I go away for eight months and lose you."

Her brow knitted in a small frown. "What do you really think would happen in eight months?"

"Some other guy will win you over. You'll discover you're happier alone. You'll get offered a fashion career in Creta and leave the country." Ian shrugged. "I've had several nightmares about it, if you want a catalog."

"No, no, that's enough." Bonnie smiled. "The first is almost an impossibility. The second… we'll go with highly unlikely. The third would have to be an amazingly lucrative offer and isn't likely to happen given their high fashion preferences." She made a face. "I love you, and I'm not going anywhere. I admit… it'll be tough, and I'd miss you like crazy. But it would be selfish of me if I asked you to stay just because I thought you might run off with some Xingese model."

Ian blinked. He hadn't even thought of that. "I would never-"

"I know that!" she cut him off, laughing. "Ian, calm down. I think you should absolutely go for it. It's likely to be an even bigger role that playing the Fullmetal Alchemist, if you act it right. Make the studio enough money and you won't have to worry about people not taking you seriously anymore."

"You just like it because it's an action movie," Ian chuckled, the knot in his stomach easing a little. "Lots of fight scenes, next to no romance anywhere in the script."

"I do appreciate that," Bonnie admitted. "And it's not like there aren't phones in Xing, or mailboxes. I'll be right here, waiting for you to get back, and getting a lot more work done because I'm not distracted by this hot guy who keeps showing up and distracting me."

She would wait for him. That was what mattered. "I thought you liked my distractions."

"I do, but that's not always good for my work time," she squeezed his hand. "Or space."

"While I'm gone, you can use my apartment," Ian offered. It had a lot more room than her little place. "You could lay out a lot more at once that way."

"Really?" her eyes lit up. "Thank you!"

It's as much your space as mine, he wanted to say. They spent at least four of five nights a week in each other's company as long as they were both in town. Usually at his place, due to the aforementioned workshop status of her apartment most of the time. "You know, you could just stay there. I mean, it's got more room, and it's in a better location. I'm not going to need it or my car in Xing. I'll be paying the rent, though if you wanted to cover part of it while I'm gone I wouldn't complain."

"That's sweet, but what about my place?"

Ian hoped his face wasn't flushing. He hadn't planned for this now, or that the conversation would take any turns this direction. "Well, do we really need two places?" he asked, hoping he wasn't about to get smacked. He hadn't said a word about moving in together, or changing the relationship, which had been smooth and comfortable for over a year. "It saves us both money to only pay for the one. Also…. I was sort of hoping that when I got back, you wouldn't move back out."

Her hand loosened, and he felt his stomach lurch. Her green eyes were unreadable. That wasn't a good sign. "Ian…" It was all he could do not to rush, but he knew pushing too hard would be dangerous. He didn't know how much of her current security with their relationship was that it had been so consistent. "What are you suggesting?"

A question, that was better than a refusal. She wanted to know if he was suggesting they be roommates, or move to another level. "I was hoping, that when I get back, you would say yes to marrying me. I, I don't need an answer now," he rushed on, not wanting her to shoot him down before he finished. "I'd just like to think that maybe, by then… I might have a chance. You are the person I want to spend my life with, that I can see building a forever with. I love you, and I'm hoping you feel the same."

She had gone still, like a deer, startled in the forest but unsure if the creature in front of her was friend or predator. Except that there was no fear, or at least, she wasn't showing it. Then her lips spread out in a slow smile, and she chuckled. "So you're… not proposing?"

"Call it, an understanding? A promise? I think there used to be a word for it, once upon a time." Ian felt a little silly, but relieved by the smile. In the worst case scenarios in his head, she dumped hot sauce on his head and ran out crying and never spoke to him again. "I don't have a ring, or a fancy proposal plan, or anything. Not yet, obviously. I mean, if you want to save me the trouble later, I wouldn't say no, but I feel like you deserve more than an awkward offer in a Xingese restaurant before I leave the country for most of a year."

"I'll decide what I do or do not deserve, thank you very much," Bonnie replied. "But I think I can say, with confidence, that should a certain gentleman choose to make a proposal of marriage to me, at an appropriate time and venue, I would be inclined to approve of an official arrangement."

The swap to very formal language caught Ian off guard, until he remembered she had just spent three weeks costuming an early pre-turn-of-the-century period drama. She had just basically told him that yes, when he proposed, she would say yes. Which was as good as a yes, presuming he didn't screw things up between them before he got back. Ian picked up her hand, and kissed it gallantly. "Then I suppose a certain gentleman will have to spend a lot of time giving the manner and presentation very careful thought." And hope that filming in Xing flew by faster than the filming schedule suggested. Now, he already couldn't wait to get home.

June 9th, 1987

Franz tried to pretend he wasn't aware of the disappointment at the breakfast table as everyone got ready for work. Krista looked like she might have been crying. James was quiet and tight-lipped. As a teacher, Krista always left first in the morning. Franz waited until she was gone before he looked pointedly at his son. "What's wrong?"

For a moment James looked like he was going to insist that nothing was wrong. Then he seemed to deflate, and he shook his head, running one hand through his thick, dark hair. "Nothing new. Not really."

Franz had known for a long time that his son and his wife were actively and aggressively trying to get pregnant, and about the health issues that were causing them trouble, but after months of treatments, they still didn't seem any closer to having a child of their own. He could only imagine how frustrating that was, and could see the suffering in their eyes every few weeks. Trisha had been a happy accident, and James had been relatively planned, but it had only taken him and Sara a couple of months to conceive once they started trying. "I'm sorry," he replied, sympathetically.

"Thanks." James focused on his coffee, which was thick and black.

"I hate to pry," Franz pressed, "But you both seem even more dispirited than usual. You didn't say two words to each other during breakfast."

"I put my foot in my mouth," James replied. "I suggested that maybe, we should go ahead and look into adopting instead like we had talked about. I was trying to be supportive and positive. It backfired."

"She thought you were giving up."

"I just don't think it's any better for us to keep beating our heads against a rock. We can keep trying and adopt. It doesn't have to be one or the other." James' frustration started to bubble over, and his tone turned snappish. "A child is a child. She was much more open to the idea when we started."

It must have been while Franz was in the shower, because he certainly hadn't heard any fight. "I'm sure after she calms down if you explain what you meant, things will be fine."

"But they're not fine!" James slapped the table with one hand, making the empty cereal bowls jump and spoons clank. "Damn it, it's like we never talk about anything else anymore. Everything is about timing, and trying, and I just don't know how much more of this we can take, either one of us. It's like an obsession roller-coaster. Every month we get hopeful, and every month they're shattered. We're both tired, and short tempered, and…. I just want to find a solution before we drive each other insane."

"It sounds like you both need a break, and some time to recharge," Franz suggested. "School's out at the end of the week. You should take some time off, and go somewhere, just the two of you for a few days. Do something fun. Don't worry about schedules, or planning, or children. Just enjoy each other's company, before you forget what that feels like."

James seemed to mull it over. "I'll suggest it," he nodded after giving it thought. "I just hope she says yes." He stood, put his dishes in the sink, and headed for the door. "See you after work. I think I'm going to walk."

A good way to burn off frustration; Franz nodded. "See you later. Don't eat a big lunch, I've got a rack of ribs in the refrigerator I was thinking of smoking tonight."

"I'll bring my appetite!" James called back before Franz heard the door close behind him. That last, at least, had a hint of his son's usual enthusiasm. At least, usual until the past year or so. Franz hoped they were able to work things out, even if it meant accepting they might not be able to have a child biologically. He didn't want it to be something like this that drove a rift between James and his wife. He had seen marriages crumble under less, and thrive against more difficult challenges. They were strong, but this was a very, very personal fight. Our boy needs help, Belle. If you know anyone who can help… please put in a word.