AN: emotional support roy, i choose you! [yeets him at riza so he can give her a hug for me :( ]
i thought of spreading these chapters out a bit more but then i remembered its not like i'm doing much else so yolo
hope you enjoy!
Riza felt her entire body seize up. Her breath caught in her throat and it felt like her heart had stopped beating completely. Sweat was forming on her palms. Her fingers were now gripping onto each other like a vice rather than wringing together.
She was terrified, she realised.
This man had verbally abused her for years. He'd never neglected her, he'd always put food on the table, but he made it known how much he hated her. Apparently, she was the spitting image of her mother, and Berthold didn't take too kindly to that after losing her.
It's funny, looking back now, how he was so desolate after her mother's death. One would think he'd cherish the last remaining tie to her, especially when they looked so alike, but Berthold didn't. Riza knew he hated her because she was a reminder of what he'd lost. But, two could play at that game, because she hated him with a burning passion too.
Berthold was standing a good distance away from her, but he may as well have been right up in her face. It felt like his presence was suffocating her. His suit was pristine, but he'd let his hair and beard grow long. It looked shaggy and unkempt. Time had not been kind to his features. He looked so much older than he should be. He was so thin, too. That was the same suit he'd worn to her mother's funeral. She recognised it because she'd played that day over and over inside her head for years. It hung off him everywhere, looking two sizes too big… But Riza couldn't find it in herself to care.
However, she'd still been caught off guard by seeing him again. All the memories of his abuse came rushing back, and she was that scared teenager once more, cowering in her wardrobe, hoping he wouldn't find her to yell at her about something that wasn't her fault.
"Hey, sorry I'm late," Roy announced, breaking that bubble inside her mind. She wasn't back in that wardrobe, hiding. She was in a cemetery out east, at a funeral to honour her late friend. Roy was here with her too. "What's wrong?"
Stricken, she turned her face towards her boyfriend, noting how concerned he looked, even under the sunglasses. Another use of a disguise he'd used which worked in his favour because it was a beautiful sunny day. The perfect day to bid farewell to her old friend. Too bad her father had ruined it.
"Riza?" he asked, placing both hands on her shoulders, his eyes flicking between both of hers. She could see them moving underneath the dark glass. "Are you all right?"
The shake of her head was minute. She still felt stuck. She wanted to move but she was arrested in place. Glancing back over to her father, she noticed him glaring at Roy.
Following her gaze, Roy stood straighter when he saw the glare too. He protectively placed an around her shoulders. He pulled her against his body as he turned, angling her face away from her father.
"Come on," he murmured quietly. "They're about to begin."
Although he'd been gentle as he turned her, as they walked Roy marched them both away from her father. The more distance she put between him, the easier it felt to breathe.
"Was that your father?" Roy asked lowly as they walked hurriedly away.
One of her hands had risen to rest against his chest so she could stable herself as they walked. When Roy asked that question her fingertips gripped on tighter.
"Yes," she gasped.
Feeling was returning to her and her brain was remembering how to do basic functions, like breathing and walking. Her chest heaved with her panic as she gulped in air, feeling tears welling inside of her eyes uncontrollably.
"It's all right," he murmured, squeezing her tighter against his side. "I've got you."
They didn't get a chance to say anything else because the ceremony started.
"Breathe with me," Roy murmured next to her. His breaths were loud and exaggerated, which Riza forced herself to focus on and follow along with.
It took a couple of minutes, but Roy managed to calm her down. She returned to the funeral and tears fell down her cheeks as she remembered why she was here. Roy's grip on her was tight. Riza was pressed into the side of his body and she couldn't have been more grateful for it. After that show, she was glad for his comfort and needed it more than anything today.
Despite that thought, she was furious with herself. How could her father still have such an effect on her after all these years? How could she let him? She thought she was passed all of this but seeing him again made her brain shut down and she was back to being a scared girl. And, he did it here. She was supposed to be honouring her friend and her father had ruined it all for her.
The coffin lowered into the ground and Roy handed her another tissue. She'd gone through all of hers already. She took it with a mumbled thanks, wiping at her nose and her eyes. The minister announced the family would like to invite them all to a hotel nearby for a cup of tea or coffee to remember Mrs. Rockbell.
"Do you want to go?" Roy murmured lowly. He'd pulled her body against his, angling her so that she was almost facing his chest as they walked. Again, Riza appreciated it. She really didn't want to see her father again.
She nodded, still wanting to go an remember her friend properly. "Yes."
"All right." A kiss was pressed to the top of her head.
Once in the car, Roy pulled out of the space and they drove in silence to the venue. He was obviously worried about her. Every so often she'd catch him glancing at her out the corner of her eye. She didn't know what to say to him, so opted to turn and look out the window as the scenery sped by them.
Roy was very worried about Riza. He couldn't stop himself from glancing over at her in the car to keep an eye on her. Wanting to say something, but not knowing what, Roy pressed his lips into a thin line and held his tongue. The hotel wouldn't be a place to discuss what happened, so he promised himself he'd just support and comfort her if she needed it until they got home.
Whether she'd actually tell him what happened when they got there though… Roy really hoped she would. He wanted to help, and ease her pain, but he couldn't do it if she didn't talk to him. Knowing Riza, she liked to keep things to herself, so he didn't hold his breath too much.
This was big, though. He'd never seen her like that before. When he'd asked her what was wrong, she'd looked so panicked. Her eyes were begging him to do something, but he didn't know what. When he discovered that was her father, and then saw his glare, his world took on a reddish tint. He didn't know what was said, but he'd obviously done something to affect Riza very badly. Roy wanted to march over there and confront him, but Riza needed him, so he escorted her away. She was panicking once the funeral started, so he tried to get her to breathe alongside him. It had worked, which he was pleased about, but it increased his worry tenfold.
What had happened between her and her father?
She seemed to come back into herself at the hotel. She greeted people she knew and introduced him to two teenagers, Edward and Alphonse Elric. Roy had heard about Edward before, but not his brother. Riza had told him all about Ed's shenanigans when working at the coffee shop.
Riza kept beside Edward and Alphonse mostly, not venturing to meet anyone else, so Roy remained by her side with an arm draped across the back of her chair. He'd removed his sunglasses hesitantly, but no one really paid any attention to them in the back corner. He considered keeping them on, playing it off as having a medical condition, but the sight of someone wearing sunglasses indoors would draw more attention to himself.
"Winry," Edward called over.
A teenager with long blonde hair turned and walked over to them. She looked heartbroken, which was to be expected, and her eyes were on the floor as she walked.
"Hello," she greeted them, her voice subdued.
"Winry, this is Riza," Edward introduced after grasping the girl's hand tightly in comfort. "Granny taught her music years ago."
Winry turned her gaze to meet Riza's offering her a sad smile.
"I remember when you were a baby," Riza revealed.
It drew more of a reaction from Winry. Her eyebrows raised in surprise.
"Really?"
Riza nodded. "I remember having a lesson one day and saw you walking by carting a doll behind you. Mrs. Rockbell said you loved that doll."
To Roy's horror, Winry's smile wobbled and her shoulders rounded in on themselves. She pressed a hand to cover her face as she sobbed quietly. Riza stood from her chair in an instant and wrapped her arms around Winry tightly.
"I'm sorry," Riza whispered. "I didn't mean to upset you."
"No, I'm sorry," Winry replied. "It's just… Granny got me that doll," she sniffed. Winry took the tissue Roy had offered her with a smile and wiped at her eyes. "I loved it a lot."
"You were her pride and joy," Riza stated, placing her hands on Winry's shoulders and softening her knees to meet her eyes. "She never stopped talking about you."
"Thank you," Winry smiled, shooting it gratefully at Riza before moving to wipe her eyes once more.
They chatted for a while longer then Winry excused herself, the two brothers following close by her.
"How are you doing?" Roy asked, rubbing Riza's back as she watched them both leave. Her smile dropped from her face and Roy's heart ached for her.
"I'm tired," she announced.
"Do you want to go?"
She nodded. "Yeah –"
"Riza."
Roy's gaze snapped up, seeing her father materialise in front of them once more. She stiffened underneath Roy's hand, a quiet gasp leaving her. However, Roy noticed she didn't lift her head to look at her father.
"Still practising music?" Berthold asked, disgust in his voice.
Roy's world started to look a little bit redder once more.
"I'll get you at the car?" Riza asked quietly. She lifted her head to meet Roy's and it looked like she was about to started crying.
"I'll meet you there."
Without another word she was out of her chair and walking out the room. She'd dropped her purse but hadn't noticed so Roy bent to pick it up. As he did, Berthold began to follow her as she fled, his steps purposeful as he was probably on his way to hurt her again.
There was no way in hell Roy was going to let that happen.
Riza burst out the front door of the hotel and hurried into the car park. Just as Berthold turned the corner to follow her, Roy grabbed his arm and dragged him into an empty room they'd just passed. He was very vocal about his displeasure, but Roy didn't care. It wasn't hard to move him either. The arms underneath Roy's hand was all skin and bones.
"What the hell do you think you're doing?" Berthold raged.
Roy remained in front of the door, blocking his escape. "Stopping you from seeing Riza."
"Get out of my way," he growled, moving to step around Roy, but he shifted and blocked the door handle.
"No. I won't let you hurt her."
"I've done no such thing," he glared.
"Yes, you have. Every time she talks about you, I can see it. She told me what happened when she was child." She had, briefly, but Roy knew enough to recognise that this man had been cruel to her as a child. "I'm not letting you hurt her any more than you already have."
"And who the hell do you think you are?" he demanded.
"I'm her boyfriend," Roy snapped back at him, finally beginning to lose his composure. "And she was happy before she saw you again today."
"It's none of your business –"
"It's very much my business," Roy argued. "I can see how upset she is about the prospect of even being in the same vicinity as you. If you upset her then I'm going to do everything in my power to stop it."
"Get out of –"
"Now, you listen to me, Berthold Hawkeye." Roy's voice had dropped to low and dangerous. He wasn't even aware he was capable of speaking like that. "You will leave Riza alone. You don't deserve to talk to her after all you put her through. You don't deserve to see her again. And if you do try to contact her in the future, I'll put a stop to it."
"You will do no such thing –"
"Try me," Roy smirked. He had friends in high places. He could very easily get a restraining order of some kind in place for this madman. "Get the fuck out of her life. Leave us both alone if you know what's good for you."
Roy pulled open the door and stormed out, heading straight for his car. His hands clenched into fists by his sides as he walked, clutching Riza's purse tightly in his grip. He tried to relax his face, ridding himself of the furious look on it.
There was no sound of footsteps behind him, which Roy was glad about. If Berthold had followed him outside, Roy didn't think he'd be able to stop himself from punching him in the face. The temptation was right there, but this was still funeral. He wasn't going to start a punch up at one.
Riza's eyes were wide as she caught his approach. She said nothing as he climbed in the car, slamming the door harder than he should have. Practicing some restraint, he placed her purse in the backseat and started the car.
He was just so angry at Berthold. How dare he try to come back into her life? He wasn't even kind about it either. He'd been disgusted when he'd asked about her music, so Roy knew he had no intention of having a loving family moment with her. He was likely going to ridicule her about her choice, and Roy would not let that happen. She'd worked her ass off to get to where she was today. She'd been through hell already with him and if Roy could do something about it, he wasn't going to let Berthold put her through hell again.
"Are you okay?" she asked. Her voice was quiet as a mouse as she spoke,
"I dealt with him," he ground out, trying to keep his anger in check, gripping the steering wheel tightly as he pulled away.
"I'm sorry," Riza's voice quivered. Her hands were brought up to her face, pressing into it hard, hiding her face from him.
Roy felt his anger flush away and out of his body. He was driving, so couldn't comfort her, but pulled over at the next available space.
"It's all right, Riza," he soothed her, pulling her into an awkward hug.
"No, it's not," she argued, and Roy heard the tell tale sign she was close to crying.
Roy was out the car door and rounding to her side in a flash. His stomach was twisting inside of him painfully as his heart ached for her. Kneeling on the gravel he pulled her into a tight hug through the doorway. She wasn't crying, but she was definitely upset.
"It's okay," he murmured, rubbing her back. He swallowed past the lump in his throat, blinking away his own tears. He hated this for her. He hated how much her father still had a hold over her after all this time, however that was something Riza would have to sort out herself. He just prayed she would talk to someone about it, even if it wasn't him. He wanted to help, but it was obviously a very touchy and intense subject, and if he wasn't the right person for the job then he'd look day and night to find someone who was.
"I'm sorry I put you through that," she sniffed after some time of silence. Her grip on him intensified, squeezing him tightly.
"You didn't put me through anything," he reassured her gently.
Riza was having none of it though. "I did. I ran away like a coward."
"I don't blame you."
Her eyes glanced up at his, looking almost fearful.
"Riza, you have nothing to worry about on that front. I will do anything to help you, you know that. I just distracted him while you got away."
She bit her lip, looking down at her hands fiddling with the end of her jacket.
"What did he say to you?"
"Told me to get out of his way, mostly." He ran his hands through her hair. "That obviously wasn't going to happen. Then, asked me who the hell I thought I was."
"Did you tell him?"
"Oh, yes. I'm proud to be your boyfriend, and I was more than happy to let him know that fact."
She bit her lip again and Roy's stomach sank, afraid he'd let loose something that she didn't want her father to know, however he needn't have worried.
"I don't care about him. I really don't," she stated firmly. "But…" She sighed heavily then pressed the heels of her hands into her eyes.
"Why don't we go over this when we're at home?" he asked. The traffic was rushing past as more people left the hotel and it was becoming harder to hear her.
Riza nodded, pulling her hands away from dry but tired eyes. Before he could stand, she grasped the front of his shirt, pulling him towards her gently. Roy kissed her softly, kneeling on the gravel, hoping this would comfort her and show her just how much he was here for her.
"Thank you," she whispered.
Roy pecked her cheek, giving her one last tight hug.
