AN: thank you 2ndlt-rebecca-catalina on tumblr for the prompt

Jean closed his front door with a dejected sigh. Movement came from inside his apartment, so he knew she was already here. His eyes closed briefly, an attempt to collect his thoughts and steel himself for the upcoming conversation. It would be hard as hell.

"Hey," Rebecca greeted him, popping her head into the hallway to offer him a beautiful smile.

Turning, he hid his forlorn look and paused, taking in her bright expression upon seeing him and the way her dark hair tumbled over her shoulder. An apron clung to her body and was dotted with red splashes of sauce. She was in the middle of cooking them dinner.

Jean's chest tightened but he forced a smile through it, returning her greeting.

"I'll be back in a few," he stated. One of his hands lifted to grasp her waist lightly as he pecked her cheek. "I'm going to get changed."

Rebecca said nothing but he could feel her eyes on him as he left her in the doorway to his kitchen.

"Okay…" She knew something was off, but then again he'd never been perfect at hiding his emotions. By God, did he try, but when it hurt this much it was hard.

Changing out of his uniform took far longer than it should have, mainly because once he'd changed, Jean sat down on his bed and didn't move for ten minutes or so. He just stared at his bedroom wall, trying, and failing miserably, to come up with the words he needed to tell Rebecca he was being transferred away.

They were in the Academy together with Riza. The two of them had hit it off right from the start and he'd been smitten with her for years. They'd fooled around more than once… Multiple times. It was all fun and games though. Nothing serious. Not friends with benefits but not a relationship. It was casual, which suited them both, but recently Jean had realised that he didn't want to be casual anymore. Neither did she.

For a few months they'd had something resembling a relationship. It was budding but it had been beautiful. That was also when Jean Havoc realised he'd fallen for Rebecca Catalina years ago but had never admitted it to himself. Even after fooling around and she'd dozed off, Jean had been content just to watch Rebecca sleep for a while and marvel at her features. He'd stroke her face and press a kiss to her forehead, a ritual of his after every night together in each other's bed, then fall asleep.

And now, after finally coming together, they were being ripped apart.

"Jean?"

He blinked and returned to the present, finding Rebecca's face right in front of his. She looked wary and worried at why he wasn't moving, just staring into space in his bedroom. Shit!

"What's wrong?" she asked. Her voice was even and controlled as she tried to discover the root of his suffering.

The words froze in his throat. If he voiced them aloud then it would become a reality. And he really didn't want to leave her to go to Central.

"Come on," she urged gently. Rebecca's hands grasped his biceps and nudged him to stand from the bed. "Dinner's almost ready."

"Rebecca," he whispered as emotion clouded his voice. Damn it! Don't lose it now!

"Dinner is almost ready," she repeated. One corner of her mouth quirked up. "I'm known as a shit cook and I don't want to add any more fuel to that fire by burning our food."

"I – I have to tell you something –" Jean was standing now, turning to face her as she gently but firmly made him walk out of the room.

"Later," she promised. "Dinner first."

"I can't –" he started to argue. He couldn't sit there in an uncomfortable silence because the weight of what had happened to him that day was hanging over him.

"You're not the only one who works at Eastern Headquarters," she reminded him softly.

A pained look crossed her face and Jean froze. She already knew.

"When a young, up and coming officer like Mustang gets promoted to Central, news travels fast," she explained. Rebecca walked around Jean to re-enter his kitchen. She busied herself over the stove as she turned dials and began to dish up.

"So, you already know?"

Rebecca nodded. Jean could tell by the set of her shoulders that she wasn't happy about the news and that made things even worse. This was hurting her.

"We're going to sit down to dinner. Have you washed up?"

Jean stared at her, watching her move. Why wasn't she more upset about this? Or angry?

"Rebecca –"

"Have you washed up?" she asked, her tone more forceful than before.

Jean nodded. "Yes."

"Then come and help me dish up the food."

It smelled delicious and his stomach rumbled loudly, but it also twisted painfully, affecting his appetite.

"We are going to sit down to dinner," Rebecca stated as she lifted her own plate and gestured for him to sit at his table. "Because I put far too much time and effort into it for us not to. Then," she added, taking a deep breath. "We can talk about it. Although I don't really know what there is to talk about. It's going to happen and that's a fact. Regardless, you clearly want to." Her eyes lifted to meet his once she was seated. "So, we can," she smiled.

"I don't want to leave you," Jean whispered. His food was forgotten before him, which truly was a crime because like Rebecca said, she'd spent time on this for him. No, for them. She'd made them dinner and had it ready for him coming home from work. He'd never had a girlfriend who'd put such an effort in before. They mostly just wanted to order in or expected him to cook instead. Rebecca had gone out of her way to make them something from scratch, and he found it to be a lovely gesture.

"I know," she admitted quietly as she took a bite of her food.

"I tried…" he trailed off. "I tried to ask if you could come too but…"

"That would never happen," Rebecca finished.

"No," Jean conceded glumly.

"Well, we'll just have to make the most of the time we have left," she reasoned, her voice determined. Glancing up at him, she gestured towards him with her fork. "Eat," she prompted. "Please."

Jean picked up his fork and took a bite just to appease her, but found it was very tasty. He took another.

"Is that what you want?" Jean asked as he swallowed thickly.

"What I want?" Rebecca frowned.

"Well, I mean, you don't have to stay with me if you don't want to –"

"I'm not going to let you finish that thought," she interrupted, tone turning angry.

"Why?"

"Because of course I want to stick around!" Rebecca exclaimed. "How could you think I wouldn't?"

"Because…" Jean floundered. "I don't know," he admitted. He dropped his eyes to his plate. "I just wanted to give you an out," he mumbled. "In case you wanted it." His shoulders rounded in on themselves as he tried to hide from the painful feelings creeping in his chest. He had to give her that chance just in case she wanted it. He'd never ask her to wait around and wouldn't expect it either. She was smart, quick-witted, and absolutely gorgeous. Rebecca was way out of his league, so he had to give her a chance to move on. He was nothing special to pine over.

Rebecca stood from her chair. She knelt beside him and took his face gently in between her hands. His head was turned to face her. "Of course I want to stay. I love you, Jean. And I'm willing to see this through if that's what you want."

"See this through?" He felt something like hope creep up his chest, dousing the fire of some of the pain already residing there.

Rebecca nodded. "Absolutely. We have phones. We have letters. God, that would be so romantic," she winked, "and we have annual leave. Central isn't a million miles away from here," she reminded him gently. "There's trains. I will absolutely come visit."

Jean wrapped his arms around her tightly. "I love you," he whispered.

Rebecca gripped onto the back of his t-shirt tightly. "I love you too. I'm not going to give you up this easily, Jean Havoc!"

He pulled away, cupping her cheek lightly. "What did I ever do to deserve you?"

"Did you expect me to leave?"

He nodded, somewhat nervous. "It's a lot of effort, long distance."

"You're worth it," Rebecca promised.

Jean pulled her in tight again, but his face was a grimace. Despite having her on board and willing to try a long-distance relationship, it would still be hard. He didn't know when they'd be leaving yet, so Rebecca was right. He had to make sure every moment counted. He would ensure he cherished every little moment they had left together, because after the move he had no idea when he'd see her in person again.

i know he goes on to "date" lust but ehhhh let's call it undercover dating bc this is cute uwu (makes things even angstier tho bc he'd probably tell rebecca abt it to get the ok from her… oh boy, more relationship angst!)