A/N: Happy New Year! :D I wish you all an amazing year 2013!
Beta&Co-Author: Ca11iope ^^ I don't think I will ever stop from thanking you :D Once again, thanks for a wonderful job done ^^ and thanks for the title XD At least when you do write them, they are longer than one word ^^°
Chapter 35: The Beans and the Bombshell
Still Day 21
Roy looked at the man underneath him.
And the words stuck in his throat. Suddenly, the whole situation around the bet seemed completely ridiculous. Ed appeared increasingly uncomfortable while Mustang contemplated how to begin explaining this.
"Roy?" The blond man's voice broke through the Colonel's thoughts, and yes, Ed definitely sounded uncomfortable.
The older man wondered what he might think if he were in Ed's position, a potential lover slamming on the brakes in the middle of a heavy make-out session, then hesitating to explain why. It wouldn't be anything good, that was for sure.
Shit.
True, Roy could definitely be an asshole sometimes. A manipulative Bastard, as Ed liked to call him. But he was not a coward. He could do this. He just needed a suitable starting point, though blurting out, 'There's a bet going on' probably wasn´t it.
For a moment, the Colonel considered dodging this by using the old 'I want to take it slow' escape clause, but immediately thought better of it. Edward knew him, knew who Roy was, knew his reputation, and Roy knew that kind of copout would blow right back into his face.
Unless he had a decent excuse to tack on to it. One that would not give Ed the impression that Roy's intentions were more serious than they actually were.
Damn. This was complicated, and complications made everything more dangerous.
When lying, there were a few things to avoid at all costs. Improvising was fine, as long as it was kept simple. But inventing a complicated story on the spur of the moment for someone as intelligent as Ed… bad move. Time had to be taken to construct a plausible tale, which was not an option here. Ed wasn't stupid. He would question the details, particularly if they seemed contrived. Roy would be better served by opting for some short-lived lie. It could work, as long as he could concoct a believable reason for his lie. It would at least give him time to come up with something better later.
But when building a complex series of lies, the most important rule of all was to either keep the number of people knowing about it small, or to have a large group of people ready to back the story up if necessary.
So, how many people knew the truth of the matter?
Breda. Havoc. Fuery. Falman. Hawkeye. Hughes. And the rest of the fucking military.
How many people could he count on to back up his story?
. . .
Maybe spilling the fucking beans was his best option after all.
Roy cleared his throat before speaking. "I need to explain something to you, so please hear me out first before you –" What? Before freaking out? Before kicking his ass and throwing him out? Before wanting nothing more to do with him? Roy uncomfortably swallowed the lump in his throat. "-make a decision."
One blond eyebrow arched up, then golden eyes narrowed.
It took a few moments before Ed slowly nodded.
The moment Roy opened his mouth to begin, there was a knock at the door.
He froze.
No way.
The knock repeated.
Roy groaned.
Roy wanted to burn to a crisp whoever was writing the shitty script that was currently his life. Things like this didn´t happen in real life. This was what happened in a miserable, character torturing novel written by some sadist who got their kicks by putting the protagonist into the most awkward situations imaginable.
"Ignore it," he told Ed, pleadingly. Whoever it was would go away if they though no one was at home.
"Yo, Roy!" Maes voice was clear through the door.
Mustang closed his eyes in defeat while Edward sighed. Both men knew that Maes Hughes wouldn't give up until he found a way in, and a locked door would not stop him.
The older alchemist took a deep breath, then lifted himself off the younger man. Ed blinked in irritation and looked down towards Roy's lap. The eyebrow rose again.
It figured. The general was not at all impressed with the situation and had decided to ignore everything that had happened since the moment Roy had decided to talk to Edward about the bet. Despite the fact that the change of mood had pretty effectively killed Ed's arousal, Roy's own boner was refusing to back down. And while Roy himself had come to terms with his body's reaction to the lack of sex, Edward appeared both irritated and intrigued by the fact that even the imminent, unwanted arrival of the nosiest, most meddlesome man in the Amestrian military – no, make that all of Amestris - had done nothing to diminish Roy's erection.
"I´ll send him away," Ed said, getting up and pulling his own clothes into place. "And then we´ll…" his eyes wandered down towards Roy's lap and he bit his lip "..talk." The blond's sour tone told Mustang exactly who he blamed for talk being necessary at all.
Roy grimaced the moment Edward turned away.
Right. Talk. As if he wouldn´t prefer to be doing something else. But with this damn bet in the way, there was nothing else to be done but deal with it.
Sighing, Roy looked down. He was not going to be able to close his pants in his current state of arousal and –
Hughes burst into the room, closely followed by a clearly pissed Edward Elric. So much for sending Hughes away. He should have known.
Then Maes noticed Roy's state of undress and the very prominent reason for it, pointing straight at the Investigations officer like an accusing finger. He stopped as abruptly as if he had run into a wall.
"Oh." Maes said.
Roy scowled back. Without any effect.
Hughes grinned. "Morning, Roy!" he said cheerfully. He didn´t greet the general as well, although Roy could see the mischief in his friend's eyes. "Bad timing?"
"Hughes." Edward growled behind him, quite livid. Uh oh.
Hughes only lifted his hands defensively. "Don´t worry, Ed. We shared a dorm in academy. That´s nothing I haven't seen before."
Oh yes, that he had. Sending a dark look in his friend's direction, Roy attempted to stuff his package back into his pants. Edward was radiating murderous intent right now, all directed towards the Investigations officer.
"I don´t care about that! You don´t have to -" Ed bit his lip, cutting his own sentence off.
Now, wasn't that just a delightful note of jealousy in his voice? Roy couldn´t help but smirk, even though his attempts to get fully dressed were beyond uncomfortable.
Once he managed to wrestle his manhood back into his pants, Roy hesitated. Jealousy had not been the only thing he had heard in Ed's tone. There also was a rather heavily weighted bit of pure possessiveness there. Roy noticed that he had stopped wondering over the fact that he did not mind at all.
But Hughes obviously deemed it worthy of notice, because his eyes moved away from Roy and looked to Edward. Who stared right back stubbornly with a hard and demanding gleam in his golden eyes. For a few seconds, the two stared at each other down, and although he should see to it that his pants got closed, Roy couldn´t help but observe the encounter with all his attention.
Maes' green eyes narrowed, but the blond alchemist was not about to back down. At. All. Roy was pleased that someone else had to deal with Ed's stubborn nature, and was particularly pleased that it was the man who had interrupted a rather important discussion. Come to think of it, Maes was also the reason why a discussion was necessary to interrupt other, more pleasurable activities in the first place.
The Investigations officer finally caved and turned his back towards the couch, giving Roy the not really necessary privacy Ed was demanding, and the Colonel couldn´t help but chuckle.
Ed's eyes shifted back to Roy, and Mustang quickly returned to the dreaded task of getting his pants closed. To describe the process as uncomfortable would be like saying Riza kind of liked guns, phrasing it away to harmlessness. There was a throbbing ache in his lower stomach similar to cramps, and the pressure his closed pants put on his manhood actually hurt his balls. Getting the fly up and the button closed felt like the first stage of thumbscrew torture - not yet really painful, but still far from enjoyable.
The corner of Ed's mouth twitched, betraying a hint of amusement over the amount of trouble Roy had in becoming decent.
"So… I´ve obviously interrupted something," Maes stated to the wall. "Just how far did you two…"
"There is nothing you need to know," Roy cut in quickly, then wondered why he didn´t just outright tell Hughes that he had not lost the bet. After all, just a moment ago he was about to tell Edward what was going on. This was not the way Roy wanted the blond to find out about the ongoing wager however, so that bombshell would have to wait until later.
Roy finally finished packing himself away and pointedly cleared his throat as a signal for Hughes to turn around again. When the man did, his gaze instantly shifted to Roy's now trapped but thankfully calming boner.
"What the hell is with you people?" Ed muttered darkly. "Why the fuck does everybody around here think it's okay to stick their noses into things that are none of their business?"
Instantly, both Hughes and Roy perked up.
"Everybody?" Maes voiced the question on his friend's mind as well. 'Everybody' definitely implied more than just Hughes, and the Investigations officer got a hint as to why Ed had suddenly been reluctant to accept his job offer.
Ed just groaned, realizing his slip had set him up for a grilling.
"Who exactly is 'everybody', Ed?" Roy wanted to know.
The blond just rolled his eyes. Clearly he was not willing to discuss the matter. Ed turned to square off against Hughes once more. "Why exactly are you here?" The blond bluntly changed the subject.
There was a moment of silence, and Roy could almost hear the wheels turning in Maes' head as his friend contemplated what to do. Finally he decided to let the current matter drop and return to the reason for his presence.
"I need to have a talk with Roy," Maes stated. "In private." And when it appeared that Ed was ready to lose his temper over one of the many reasons he could lose his temper over right then – the time, the interruption, the invasion of his home – Maes quickly added, "It´s urgent."
Ed's golden eyes shifted toward him again, and Roy knew he was in a tight spot. Roy didn't have to wonder what the younger man was probably thinking right now; Roy saying 'There is something I have to tell you' was probably rocketing through his mind. Hughes' timing was beyond bad.
The urge to prevent Edward's thoughts from running further down a track Roy did not want them to go was almost overwhelming. Mentally, he cursed Hughes, and for a moment he was quite tempted to call the man out and insist that they have the discussion Maes deemed urgent right now, in front of Ed. At least that way the younger alchemist wouldn´t have to second guess what was going on.
But there were too many ways that course of action could go wrong when the Colonel didn´t know what it was Hughes wanted to talk to him about.
Roy stood up and moved to the door. "I´ll see you soon," he promised, as the blond man silently watched him get ready to leave. And when they did see each other again, both of them knew that explanations were in order.
It felt uncomfortable to leave like this. Edward probably didn't think very highly of him at the moment. The young blond knew his former superior was keeping something from him, and after all Roy had done to gain Edward's trust, leaving with Maes for a private discussion was bound to be a major setback. And that didn´t even take into account the fact that Roy Mustang, the infamous ladies man of Central City, had stopped them before they could sleep together. He really hoped Ed wouldn´t connect Maes' behavior to Roy's, and instead view the two situations as separate events.
Roy expected Ed's reaction to him under the current circumstances to include anything from being suspiciously observed, ignored, thrown out, or result in perhaps a stubborn refusal to let Roy and Maes leave without some sort of explanation.
He certainly did not expect the blond to pull him in for an intense good bye kiss.
There were absolutely no words to describe the relief Roy felt when the younger man's lips caressed his own. By some miracle, Ed was not angry. Suspicious, oh yes. But he was obviously not about to cut everything off without giving Roy a chance to explain. The Colonel was extremely grateful that Ed had grown up a good bit while away, because a few years ago this scenario would have ended very differently.
"I´ll stop by on Monday at your lunch break," the younger alchemist said.
Nodding slightly, Roy leaned down to kiss him again, suddenly on no hurry to leave. Ed was willing to hear him out. He could work this out. The last thing he wanted to do right now was let go.
And while Hughes pointedly cleared his throat, the younger alchemist wrapped his arms around Roy's neck and returned the increasingly passionate kiss. Huh, maybe Maes could wait a bit longer. Outside the building, where he wouldn´t bother them again anytime soon.
"Roy."
Something about the tone the Lieutenant Colonel used finally caused the Colonel to break off the kiss. Looking down at the slightly panting blond, he noticed a slightly mischievous smirk on the younger alchemist's lips. Ed used his hold on Mustang's neck to draw him back down. Roy could literally see the mischief in Ed's eyes and knew that if he didn´t leave now, the blond would do his very best to see just how long he could drag this out. And in light of Maes' recent behavior, making the Lieutenant Colonel wait would probably be considered a nice side effect.
And damn, Ed was very eager to make Hughes wait. The way he slightly nipped at Roy's bottom lip before pressing his lips against the Colonel's mouth was more than just enjoyable, and Mustang found himself unwilling pay attention to anything but the blond.
Hughes at least had enough patience to wait another few moments before he called out Roy's name again, but when he tried to pull back, mismatched hands buried their fingers in his dark hair. Ed opened his mouth to let Roy's tongue in, and for a few seconds, the blond let him explore the warm mouth before attempting to regain control of the kiss. Oh, Roy liked the resistance. He was more than happy it was back. Unfortunately, a certain part of Roy's anatomy still had not completely recovered from the last time Ed had kissed him like this. And that particular part of Roy's body was clearly demonstrating its delight at getting Edward's attention again.
There was no way he could handle yet another hard on he wouldn´t be able to satisfy so quickly after the last one, and he was well on his way to getting one. Roy let go of the smaller man and sighed in regret.
"I´ll see you tomorrow," he said.
He could feel Edward's eyes on him as he followed Maes out of the apartment.
In the small hours of the morning at Central Headquarters, one man entered an office, while another stood outside the slightly open door to keep guard. Both men had volunteered for guard duty this weekend, and a few clever changes in the duty schedule had brought them exactly where they wanted to be.
"Can´t that guy make anything easy?" the lower ranked man cursed as he sifted through various lists. It was fortunate that the list they were after wasn't very long, and the soldier was grateful that the higher ups were usually lazy bastards.
"A freaking Monday. It just had to be a damn freaking Monday," he continued to mutter under his breath. "What´s wrong with Tuesday? We could have done this on a regular work day instead of having to come here on a Sunday."
"Stop whining," the other man quietly told him. "You should be glad it´s Sunday. Imagine trying to do this, write the memos and deliver them without anyone noticing, all on top of our regular work? That would have sucked."
The lower ranked soldier grimaced. "Don't talk about… " he broke off with a shake of his head. "I don´t even want to think about it." He shuddered.
His partner grinned ferally. "See, that´s why we´re doing this. We've been planning this for a long time. Can you image what would have happened if we never found out? Would you ever have guessed-"
He broke off in the middle of the sentence when voices were heard down the corridor. Quickly, the two pocketed the whole schedule and left the office, just before another patrol, one male and one female soldier, turned the corner.
The three men and one woman greeted each other with slight nods. The moment the woman and man rounded the corner at the other end of the hall, the schedule was pulled out again. The higher ranked of the pair ran a finger down the list, grinning when he found the name he was looking for.
"And you thought this wasn't going to be easy. The timing is perfect." The man beside him grimaced again but said nothing. The ranking officer checked the other two names in the same time slot. "A private and a corporal...that´s all? Damn, our guys really are lazy." He shook his head. It was pretty obvious that most soldiers didn´t know about being able to book the gym during working hours.
The other man looked where his superior was pointing. "You´re right, it's almost too easy," he hummed in satisfaction. "These two won´t ask questions when they find these little guys in their mail." He waved a small block of military memos in his partner's face and smiled in satisfaction.
Roy actually winced when he sat down in the passenger seat of Hughes' car.
Goddamn it. This was just no longer natural. His dick should have calmed down by now, but being as stubborn as its owner, the boner refused to listen to anything that did not fit its agenda. The slight frustration Roy had felt when he left Ed in his apartment was increasing with every step he had to take while his body continued to remind him that he used to be a very sexually active man and his needs had not vanished with a signature on a bet. The thumbscrew feeling was back, and it was slowly driving him nuts.
Hughes actually had the nerve to send a sympathetic glance his way. "The bet is really messing with you, isn´t it?" Maes observed.
If it weren´t for the caring tone in his voice, the Colonel would have glared at him. After all, Hughes was one of the people who had initiated that damn thing.
Neither man spoke.
Looking at Maes, without anything to distract his mind, Roy instantly remembered his recent dream. And what it had dug out of his memory.
And once again he found himself conflicted. While he watched Hughes start the engine, a part of him urged him to forget about the whole thing. It's been years. Maes was married. Nothing had ever happened after that night, and clearly it had no impact on their friendship, so why bother bringing it up now? Was there anything relevant about it anymore? The matter was done. Over.
When all was said and done it had really just been another one night stand, hadn't it? Sure, Roy didn't usually become friends with his flings, or have flings with his friends, but…
He could not forget those tiny three words Hughes had uttered to him. That damn confession of love...
But after all this time, what did it matter? It was all in the past, old news. It was clear that Maes loved his fucking wife. Who he was married to. The mother of his child.
Yes, Roy was an anal and controlling bastard, and yes, finding out about that disconcerting twist to their shared past had thrown Roy off balance. But would it really hurt so much to just let the matter rest in peace?
Luckily, before his mind decided to become schizophrenic, his friend started talking.
"Roy, I admit I had not expected this whole bet business to influence you so much, but you haven't exactly been acting like yourself the past few weeks."
Sighing while he adjusted his seat so he wouldn´t have to sit up straight, Mustang muttered absently, "You have to be more specific, Maes."
When the seat was adjusted, he sighed in relief. And as his member once again surrendered to the lack of stimulation, the tightness in his pants finally eased a bit, although it didn´t completely vanish. In addition to that, the uncomfortable aching in his lower stomach remained, and the frustration was making him decidedly cranky. He shifted uncomfortably in the seat.
Besides him, Maes still hadn´t pulled away from the curb. Instead, the man sighed.
"I´m talking about this… thing you have going with Ed," Hughes stated more precisely.
The alchemist immediately felt annoyed. "This thing?" he repeated, putting emphasis on the vague word. The irritation was very evident in his voice, and of course Hughes noticed, and frowned.
"Whatever it is you're doing." Maes elaborated with a sigh. "Roy…" he stopped and took a deep breath.
Mustang just glared. He was the one who had said that he and Ed were not in a relationship, but calling it a 'thing' still felt wrong.
Maes finally continued. "Look, I understand that you're off balance right now, but you´ve never been someone who avoided looking at the big picture. You always plan for the long run." The Lieutenant Colonel cast a penetrating gaze at his friend, and the alchemist became wary. "So what exactly are you doing?"
Well, it was true that Roy usually planned things down to the last, fine detail. But it was also true that this 'thing' with Edward had been anything but planned. And other than making basic plans for a date or their next meeting, Roy had actually stopped depending on prearranged plans and possible outcomes when it came to the blond.
Plans and Edward were simply incompatible.
Even when Roy's schemes actually worked, the younger alchemist still usually turned things in a completely unpredictable direction.
And actually, that should drive Roy absolutely crazy. Should, but didn't. It wasn't like Roy minded when the man suddenly started to talk about his former lover, right out of the blue. Quite the contrary. Roy wanted that information.
Or when Edward had initiated that first make out session on his couch. Roy smiled fondly at the memory. Nothing was as boring as a predictable lover, and well… this promised to be anything but boring.
"Good Lord, Roy." This time, Hughes voice exposed some irritation as well. "Did you hear a word I just said?"
Mustang barely caught himself before allowing a questioning 'Huh?' to betray his lack of attention, aware of the fact that he had not even noticed that Maes had continued to talk. Hell, Roy hadn't even noticed when the man started driving.
"Of course I did. Go on," Roy lied. He saw the doubt appear in Hughes' green eyes, but hoped the man was above asking him to repeat what had just been said.
Fortunately the man repeated himself anyway, just to make sure his point came across.
"As I was saying-" Hughes started with a meaningful glance that told the alchemist his lie had been wasted, "- you should consider the possible consequences of your actions. Whatever this is you´re doing, it can´t go on."
Roy froze. What the hell?
"Excuse me?" he asked, his anger building. "I don´t remember asking for your advice, Maes. Who I date is none of your business. And I actually thought you would encourage this, since you want to win this damn bet so badly."
"Who you date? Roy, this is Edward Elric we're talking about, not one of your trifling dates." The bespectacled man shook his head. "And you can deny it as much as you want, but you are leading him on. What do you expect to happen when the bet is over?"
Biting his lip in irritation, Roy glared at the man. "I'll find out when the time comes," he growled. "I´m not planning this, Maes. I just want to see where it leads."
The look Roy received spoke volumes about Maes thoughts on his friend's uncharacteristic let's-wait-and-see attitude.
"Really Roy?" Maes tone was mild, but Roy was not fooled. "It's really not that difficult to predict. Let me lay it out for you." Hughes kept his eyes fixed on the road. "When the bet has run its course, you will take Edward to your bed. And afterwards you'll realize that it's not what you expected, and that Ed's not what you really want."
If the situation was any different, Roy probably would have chuckled at the thought of putting 'Ed' and 'expected' in the same sentence. Under the circumstances however, Roy was becoming more than simply irritated by his friend's overbearing behavior.
"And maybe I'll realize he's exactly what I need," The Colonel shot back heatedly. Ignoring the exasperated look Maes sent his way, he continued. "I might not know for sure what will happen, but it's my decision whether I want to start something with Ed or not. And if it doesn't work out, it's still Edward's and my business alone. Not yours, so back off."
When he and Maes argued over a difference of opinion they generally managed to keep it from getting personal, but the Investigations officer was way out of line. This was not something Roy wanted to talk about. He did not want to analyze what might be, might happen, or what someone might think. He just wanted to go with what felt right for once. Not his usual modus operandi, that was for sure, but that didn't mean he shouldn´t do it.
And all through the current conversation, the nagging thought of his own behavior after that one night stand with Hughes came back to Roy's mind. He wondered if his cruel comments, unwittingly about Maes himself, were the reason for Maes' assumption that once he slept with Ed, Roy would callously break the whole thing off. Then he mentally shook himself. These parallels were to be expected considering the situation. He shouldn´t let the past influence the current situation. Especially not now.
"Glad to see you're still thinking about this as 'Ed's business' too," Maes said flatly. "I know about that little 'someone you like' argument you used on him in the museum to convince him to buy that painting. We both know that wasn't the only thing you were trying to convince him to do." Hughes said, making a visible effort to control his own irritation.
"I thought that guy was one of your spies." Mustang muttered.
The other man waved that aside. "He´s one of Arschloch's men, but that´s not the point." Taking a deep breath, Maes continued. "The point is that you are manipulating Ed, leading him on just for the sake of this ... this ... sexual experiment, or whatever it is. An experiment that will most likely fail, given your track record. And who stands to suffer the most when it does?"
His friend's words hit Roy like a slap in the face. He stared at Hughes incredulously.
Hughes sighed and glanced over, taking in Roy's stunned expression.
"I`m sorry. That came out all wrong," he apologized, leaving Mustang to wonder how a statement like that could come out right. "I´m just worried about you, and about Ed," Maes said after a moment. "He´s pretty much reshaping his life right now because of you, and I wonder if you´re even aware of this. I know I've been doing some maneuvering of my own to keep him in Central for my own reasons, but Roy…" Hughes shrugged. "As far as I can tell, you're doing it for purely selfish reasons. You don't want a relationship, but you don't seem to care what Ed wants. The risk he's taking is far outweighs what you have to offer. He doesn't deserve to be treated like one of your inconsequential affairs."
Well, at least they agreed on this. Roy certainly did not consider Ed some inconsequential affair, and once again the Colonel wondered just where he and Ed were heading. However, he also had to admit that he had done everything in his power to manipulate Ed into staying in Central – and he still had no concrete answer on that score. So much for planning anything Ed-related.
"Here's something else you should consider," Maes continued. "On any other day I wouldn't ask this, but given the situation and your uncharacteristic behavior of late, I feel I have to. Have you thought about what might happen when you break this thing off, if Ed is employed as a consultant for the military? Maybe even working in that position we talked about? I know you don´t usually mix your private life with your professional life, which is a good policy. You know how dangerous that can be. For both of you."
Leaning back, Roy closed his eyes. So far he had only considered how hooking up with Ed might benefit him, and that was a mistake. In all honesty Roy was not used to putting himself in his bed partner's position – they were just a rapidly changing blur of faces really, only there for the mutual satisfaction of basic urges. Edward was admittedly different in that respect, and faced with all the things Roy should have considered long ago, he knew he was losing ground in this argument. But although he knew he should just stop for a moment, step back and think everything through, part of him simply refused to accept that he should reconsider this whole… experiment with Ed.
"You don´t know Fullmetal very well if you think he´ll just screw up the whole country out of spite, like some petty jilted lover," Roy said, not sure if he regretted calling Edward 'Fullmetal' or not. And what the fuck gave Maes the right to talk as if the outcome of all this was already clear and set?
Beside him, the other man huffed, sounding almost desperate.
"Roy, this is Ed we're talking about. Ninety percent of his actions are led by pure impulse!" Hughes pointed out.
Opening his eyes, Mustang looked out at the street in front of them, not really seeing it.
He thought about yesterday, when Ed had stated he needed to be careful and not get drunk. About the way the younger man avoided displaying anything that could be taken as more than friendship in public unless he was either drunk, or Roy worked very hard to get him comfortably relaxed naturally. He thought about the years Ed had been his subordinate, and how he had always played his cards so very close to his chest. He thought about Ed's current, almost unnatural control of his explosive temper. Yes, Ed was impulsive. But he was also loyal almost to a fault. His friends and family were very important to him. And he had a natural talent for helping those in need. A more noble soul Roy had never met.
"He´s grown up quite a bit, in case you haven´t noticed," Roy told his friend.
Maes sent a quick glance his way and stayed silent for a few seconds, likely thinking about his own failed attempts to pry information out of Edward.
"He may have grown up, but still…" Hughes paused for a moment, planning his attack. "Fine, let´s talk about this rationally. He was about to move into another town. Now he wants to stay."
"You had a hand in that, too," the Colonel reminded him.
"I didn´t use his emotional state against him. I have kept his best interests firmly in mind."
For a moment, Roy prayed for his dwindling self control to hang on just a little longer. After this discussion, he would have to go and burn something. That might be the only way for him to calm down.
"Plans and priorities change, there is nothing wrong with Ed changing his." Maes looked askance, so Roy elaborated. "Of course I know that Ed will always consider the emotional ramifications of his decisions, so when giving advice, why would I avoid them?"
"Right now he must suspect that you are keeping something from him," Hughes took his next shot. "Yet he just let you walk out on him, and didn´t ask questions."
"Are you seriously holding how I have gained his trust against me? It´s not like this is any of your concern, but I am going talk with him later. Like adults do," Mustang countered, not really able to keep the biting undertone out of his voice.
"It's not just that! But it´s obvious he depends on you a great deal to help him make decisions and-"
"He doesn´t depend on me." Mustang interrupted. "He considers my opinion, and then makes his own decisions. He trusts my judgment. Just like you should." He couldn´t help but add that jab, not when Hughes seemed determined to overrun Roy's arguments.
"Should he? That much?" Hughes asked, and Roy had the sudden urge to hit his friend.
It was not like him to feel this way, especially not towards Maes. But that didn´t change the fact that Roy felt beyond defensive over this. His emotions were overriding and muddling his usually precise tactical arguments.
Maes continued before his friend's violent intent became overwhelming. "Maybe he's reading more into your motives simply because you're currently not sleeping around as much as you used to."
Mustang tried to keep himself from snapping. The equally biting tone in Maes' voice was proof enough that the lack of progress in this absurd discussion was getting on Hughes' nerves just as much as on his. Knowing that whatever he said now would not contribute to this argument in a positive manner, Roy took a deep breath and tried calm himself down.
Hughes, however, took advantage of the silence to continue.
"Have you even considered that Ed expects more that you are willing to give? I really don't see Ed as the type to get involved with someone just out of curiosity."
Maes had better not be more specific about what exactly he meant by curiosity. Roy knew he would not like the answer. And Maes would not like Roy's reaction to it.
"You should just stop this whole mess right now, before the damage gets out of hand," Hughes finally concluded.
While Mustang didn´t literally snap, something inside of him did.
"I will do no such thing!" he practically snarled. "And I won´t listen to this anymore. I value your opinion, but this is none of your business!" he stated vehemently. Then, with a grimace, he added: "If it were up to you, I'd have been married to some damn mousy housewife years ago, and with absolutely no offense to your preferred life style, I'd be bored to death."
Hughes snorted. "Is that what this is about? The challenge? Please don´t tell me you´re willing to mess with Ed just for a short lived adrenalin rush."
Roy took a deep breath, but Maes was already continuing, picking up the volume to show that he wouldn´t be interrupted.
"Marriage can be very fulfilling in ways your flings won´t ever be. But you won´t even consider the possibility that a wife will do you good! A woman to stand at your side, Roy! A partner! A wife who will give birth to your children one day! Until a few weeks ago, you wouldn´t even think of bedding a man, and now you're…" He huffed. "I don´t even have words for this!"
He probably had a lot of words in mind, but Roy had a pretty good idea that none of them would be very flattering. Not that he cared right now about Maes' opinion.
"And now I want to fuck Ed." He finished in a matter-of-fact-tone of voice. "So what? I´m entitled to have sex with whomever I wish."
"Of course you are." Frustration was creeping back into Hughes' voice. "I´m not saying you aren't." The man seemed resigned for a moment. "But right now, not only are you letting your lust interfere with what might be your only shot at getting a great deal of control over the State Alchemist program, you're also leading Ed, a young man who trusts you, on."
"I already told you -" Roy started again, unnerved over the circle in their discussion.
"And you´re wrong!" Hughes interrupted him heatedly. Staring at his friend, Mustang stopped short. It was not like Maes to get this emotional in an argument. "Stop acting like a fool and admit it. You can´t tell me you wouldn´t expect more of this if you were in Ed's place."
Roy knew that Maes was right, but what his friend didn't realize was that Roy wasn´t out to just fuck Edward. He wasn't exactly sure what he wanted from the young man anymore, but he rather preferred to just let things develop. So far, it had been good. So what if he was leading Ed on? Maybe he was. But he was pretty much leading himself on as well.
Roy kept silent, while the lump in his throat grew and his intestines joined the club, feeling like a heavy knot. He knew it was impulsive and stupid, but right now, he just wanted his best friend to fuck off.
The drive to Maes' house became uncomfortably quiet, the minutes stretching like chewing gum. The silence left a bitter taste in Roy's mouth. He felt like he should say something to break the tension, but was stuck at what. So he went for the first thing that came to mind, without thinking much it. Fuck Hughes for starting this anyway.
"So what? You expect me to tell Ed that I just want this to be a casual affair?" He looked over to his friend and barely prevented a disgusted sneer. "Maybe I should explain to him that what I really want is some pretty little housewife?" Now he couldn't prevent the sneer and deliberately quoted his friend. "A woman to stand beside me? A wife who will give birth to my children?" He snorted and felt a little bit of satisfaction when he finally said. "Bullshit." Beside him, Maes took a deep breath and despite the obvious effort it took his friend not to comment, Roy repeated himself. "That's absolute bullshit, Maes. Why don't you add a damn house with a garden and a dog to the picture, Hughes? A nice and sweetly wrapped boring piece of fucking shit."
"Stop acting like child whose pride has been hurt, Roy." The other man said with a sigh that got on Roy's nerve more than any words could. "It's not that big of a deal. You break off affairs all the time."
He knew he should just shut up and think for a minute. The way he was acting right now was stupid and probably dangerous, but Maes' words only threw oil onto the already hot burning fire.
Contemplating his arguments and Hughes' reactions to his current strategy, Roy quickly adjusted it.
"You know, maybe I should." He said, slowly. In the driver's seat, the Lieutenant Colonel tensed, familiar with that tone. "But since I should break off this whole… 'thing' anyway," Roy continued, deliberately using the same words his friend did, "maybe I should first get a good fuck out of it. After all, that´s what affairs are for, aren't they?"
The car came to a sudden stop and Roy barely managed to stop himself from flying through the windshield. Damn, fastening the seatbelt might have been a good idea… if a part of it wouldn´t have to be wrapped over on his lower stomach. It was a good thing Maes, focused on the discussion, was driving slowly, or else this might have hurt more. As it was, Roy's wrist was pounding painfully from his grip on the handle above the door.
He sent a glare but received one in return.
"Good Lord, Roy. Could you stop acting like the bastard Ed claims you to be and start thinking about this rationally?" The green eyed man's anger was heavy in his voice, but Roy only snorted.
"What´s not rational about it? Ed´s a man, as you already pointed out. He will enjoy it. At least we will both benefit from this before I call it off. He´s going to be pissed anyway, so I might at least have some fun first."
Hughes stared at him, and Roy could see his temper almost reaching the boiling point. It was almost like watching a train heading towards a cliff and knowing the brakes would never stop it in time.
Roy felt no remorse for pushing that train closer to the cliff. "And since you're going to be running my life from now on, I'm sure you'll insist that I get myself a woman after this, so I think I should go out with a bang." He could see Hughes' thoughts running wild. Good. Doing his best to appear overly considerate, he added, "So what do you think? Should I let him have a chance to fuck me as well? If he's good in bed? After you've got me married off, I won´t have a chance to try that again, so I might as well give it another shot."
Now the other man lost a bit of color in his face.
"Roy… " Maes swallowed and took a deep breath. "Maybe we should talk about this another time. After that bet is over. You´re not acting like yourself and-"
"-and what?" Mustang snarled, unwilling to just brush this whole thing aside after his best friend basically put his food in his mouth, unwilling to treat the whole 'thing' with Ed as if it was just some moody side effect of the damn bet. "What the fuck tells you I won´t enjoy it?" he questioned. "Or even stay with him?" he added.
"Roy, you´re not going to stay -" Hughes began, clearly tired of arguing with his best friend while Roy obviously seemed deaf to any rational arguments at the moment.
"- with Ed?" Mustang asked. "Or with a man? Is that the real problem here? That Ed is a man? Would we be having this conversation if I was getting involved with Riza?"
"Roy, that's ridiculous," Hughes sighed. "You know I don´t have a problem with homosexuality."
"I'm asking why the hell you seem so goddamn obsessed with the idea of getting me married to a wife!" Mustang countered.
"I'm your best friend; of course I want you to be happy," the other man answered.
Observing him closely, Roy contemplated his course. He should keep this separate, because he hoped that this situation had nothing to do with the past, but he couldn´t be sure. He couldn´t be sure he if he was seeing parallels because he suspected them to be there, or if he was ignoring insights because he didn't want them to be there. He had to be sure, because he had to be able to trust Hughes. And this… this was the perfect opportunity. Asking right now would give him the chance to know without even mentioning their recently remembered history.
He needed to be sure.
"So, if I decided to get involved with Ed in a serious long term relationship…or hell, if I decided to get seriously involved with any man, to rule out that whole political point you so enjoy throwing in my face," Roy specified, knowing he couldn't give Hughes a loophole to change the subject, or any flimsy excuse to not answer, "… you would be fine with that?"
Silence answered him.
Better than any words could.
Tbc.
I admit, that chapter left me really nervous and I´ve been afraid I ruined Hughes for you. I hope his actions are reasonable for you :D please, let me know what you think ^^
Guest: I guess we have to find out later if Roy will tell him or not. Or if Ed will find out otherwise or not ^^ I hope you don´t mind ._.
Shane: Well, Roy has reached his decision ^^ let´s see how it works out :D
Ankarin: If you´re not really a person who leaves comments, then I´ll have to thank you even more for leaving one here ^^ thank you! Glad, you like it! And don´t worry about a few spelling mistakes :D You don´t want to know how I´ve mutilated the language once ^^° (Still do occasionally *cough* Thanks god for beta readers :D )
Jen: … uhm.. wow o.O … okay… ^^ … I never know what to say when someone praises this fic so much ^^° Thank you *bows* I´m really excited you love the story so much and thank you for pointing out parts you liked about the fic more ^^ (and for your forgiveness in regards to the cliffhangers XD) I also have to say, Ca11iope is doing a lot of work, so part of your praise is definetely earned by her :D Every time I get a chapter back from her, I can´t believe how much she managed to improve it ^^ That´s why I changed 'beta' to 'beta&co-author' because that definetely fits her job describtion better XD
I´m curious to see what you think of this chapter :D And I´m also very curious how much of the development you had been able to guess. Including the few bombs I still have left ^^ (So, did rereading help in guessing Hughes` reaction?)
As for your PS: I think I´d be better to first finish this fic, but if you want to print it out or have it printed, I don´t mind as long as all of it stays for free and is not breaking any laws ^^ I´ll probably make a completely cleaned version, once the fic is finished so you will get all the chapters without all the A/Ns etc. But first, the fic must be finished for that. I can´t judge my own fic and there are a lot of really awesome writers out here, so I´m honored you view the fic as so special :D I will do my best so you will enjoy the rest as well!
Thank you for the good wishes as well ^^ I also wish you a wonderful Year 2013 :D