AN: our happy couple take some time to discuss things! not as an exciting chapter this time round, but a necessary conversation for the two of them

"What would you like to do this afternoon?" Roy asked Riza as they walked hand in hand back to the car park. Roy felt a thrill go through him every time he saw their hands swinging between them. He gripped her hand tightly, excited at what the future may hold from them both.

"I don't mind," she replied. "Whatever you'd like to do is fine with me."

"I don't want to sound too forward, and there are no hidden intentions behind it, but would you like to come back to my place?" he asked feeling slightly nervous again as he waited for her answer. "It's just, when places get busy that's when I can get recognised and I don't want it to ruin our day."

"Oh… I… I hadn't thought of that."

"Yeah," he replied sheepishly, feeling his stomach sink after hearing her tone. "It's a pain. I'm sorry."

"No, it's fine. Honestly, it is," she smiled up at him. "Wherever we go, I'll be happy."

Roy smiled at her, giving her hand a squeeze, hoping that she was being genuine, and she wouldn't realise that this relationship may be more hassle than it was worth. Not that Roy thought Riza was that kind of person, but this was a lot. He had to wear a hat and sunglasses out in public to disguise himself. How would he be able to take his girlfriend out on a date without having people swarm him for a picture or an autograph?

"Shall we take your car?" he asked Riza as they approached the familiar vehicle. "Then I can give you directions."

"What about your car?" she asked, looking rather confused.

"I'll call someone to come and pick it up. Maes loves driving that car."

"What kind of car do you have… It's that one, isn't it?" She stopped talking, even stopped walking, when she spotted the flashy sports car sitting in the space a couple across from hers. Roy felt his nerves bundling in his stomach again.

"Uh, yeah. I… I don't really have a conspicuous car. I never really needed on before. But I'll look into it."

"You would just… buy another car?" Riza asked slowly, incredulously, and Roy slowly felt dread overtake him, afraid he'd put his foot in it again. He wasn't trying to flaunt his money. Far from it. Roy wasn't that kind of person – he was the opposite. His clothes were expensive, sure, but he liked to dress nice and look smart, especially for events. He still bought brand toilet paper at one hundred and fifty cenz for a packet. Unlike some people he knew in the industry, whose toilet paper costed more than what most would make in a week.

"Uh… I… No…" Roy sighed in defeat, giving up. He noticed Riza nod then fall quiet and Roy felt like he'd ruined something. He was such an idiot. It wasn't his intention to make Riza feel inferior, and he'd gone ahead and done it anyway. Apparently, he'd spent too much time around other famous people.

When they were sitting in her car, he'd finally managed to formulate the right words into the sentences he wanted to say.

"I'm sorry," he apologised suddenly. "I didn't mean to make it seem like I was showboating or anything. I didn't mean to put my foot in it either. God, I sounded like an ass," he groaned. He heard Riza chuckle quietly beside him. He never gave her the chance to reply. "I just… I'm a hermit," he explained. "When I'm not at the bar, I'm at home, alone. When I do get dressed up and go out it's to make an appearance at events and the only other people I socialise with – aside from Maes and those who work for me at the bar – are other famous people. Apparently," he added bitterly. "I've spent too much time around them."

"Roy, it's okay," Riza began, pulling out the space.

"No, it's not. The last thing I want is to sound like a pompous, pretentious idiot, and I did just that –"

"Roy," she urged with a smile and kindness in her voice. "It's okay, she stressed. "I was just surprised, that's all. It must be nice to be able to do that for yourself," she smiled over at him, taking her eyes off the road for a second. "Although, to be honest, I don't blame you for the sports car," she added. "That was a beautiful car."

He glanced over at her. "Are you into cars?"

"Oh yeah," she grinned. "My grandfather and I used to work on them all summer back when I was in school. He had this old beat up thing that we stripped right down and rebuilt. He taught me everything I know," she smiled, tone taking on a wistful tone, but there was a hint of sadness there. For a second, Roy feared the man had passed away. "Because I live in Central now, I don't see him as much, but whenever I go around, we sit for hours in his garage, drinking beer and tinkering on something or other. He's just recently moved onto motorbikes…"

Roy stared at her as she chatted, reminiscing about time spent with her grandfather. There was a twinkle in her eye as she spoke, obviously passionate about her hobby. Eventually, she asked her question about his car which just sounded like gibberish to him. He'd sat there, mouth opening and closing like a fish because he had no answer to give. He had no idea about cars. He just liked the look of his one. Roy had told Riza that and she burst out laughing. The sound was magical, and he was glad that he had told her.

"This left," Roy directed her, pointing out the entrance to the parking garage underneath his apartment complex. She turned in, the car coming to a stop before the barrier. "Hey, Denny," Roy called from the passenger side window. He flashed the guard his pass and the young blonde man smiled and waved in greeting, raising the barrier and allowing him through. Once more, Riza went quiet as she was directed by Roy to his reserved parking spot.

"Park next to it," he stated. "Maes will bring mine in there. He'll probably come up too, just to warn you. He likes to meddle, especially in my life." Riza laughed and Roy was relieved to hear there was no hint of nervousness in it.

"I can imagine he does," Riza laughed.

"He's like a grandmother, constantly wanting to know how my love life is going and if I've found anyone "nice"," he explained, using air quotes to demonstrate his point.

"And have you?" Riza asked quietly, her cheeks turning a light shade of pink, but her gaze meeting his unafraid.

Roy smiled softly at her, gripping his hand in hers. "Oh yes. Definitely."

The bright smile she gave him after it almost melted his heart.

Jesus, he was falling for her hard.

Riza stepped into the lift in the parking garage, suddenly feeling very nervous. She didn't know what to expect, going up to Roy's apartment. This suddenly seemed like a very bad idea, but the smile he gave her was almost enough to soothe her fears and anxiety. Almost.

However, that was all blown completely out of the water when the lift doors opened. Her mouth fell open slightly in shock as she looked straight ahead, Central City stretching out before her, seeing right to the Briggs Mountains in the north. Roy stepped out, leaving her to exit in a daze, looking around the room in wonder.

"Come in," he ushered like a good host. "Make yourself at home." He glanced up after gesturing for Riza to sit on the couch, only to find her still standing far away from him. It certainly felt like far away. The distance between the lift doors and the couch was about ten feet, but to Riza it felt like miles. He lived here, in this apartment. This living room alone was bigger than her whole home. Riza supposed this single room cost a hell of a lot more too. She looked around, eye catching photo frames filled with smiling faces, the platinum records on the wall, and the large projector screen that probably served as his television.

"This… This is… Wow."

"Yeah, it's a little excessive." Riza looked at him and opened her mouth to reply, but she stopped. She couldn't pinpoint what it was exactly until she took a closer look at his face. Roy looked sheepish… His gaze was cast to the side and his hands fidgeted on the couch cushions he was standing next to. He didn't look ashamed… The memory of their conversation in the car came back to Riza. "The last thing I want is to sound like a pompous, pretentious idiot, and I did just that." He looked uncomfortable with something. Was he uncomfortable with her being here? That ball in her stomach came back again with a vengeance. But why would he invite her here, if he was uncomfortable with it?

Gah, this is such a mess. They needed to talk, and soon. The thought made her anxiety known, but it was necessary if they were to move forward.

"It's a beautiful home," she stated truthfully. It was hi-tech, the furniture looked exquisite, and she was very impressed with the large screen he had as a television. Riza could only dream of having an entertainment system like that. "I never expected anything like this." How the other half live, huh? Riza shrugged her bag off her shoulder and placed it carefully down by the door. Politely, she took her trainers off by the door and padded into his home. It truly was stunning.

Hayate, oblivious to the awkward air that had settled in the room, sniffed his way around Roy's home, trying to find anything interesting.

"Uh, yeah." She watched as the tension fizzled somewhat from his body, his shoulders relaxing.

"I think we should talk," Riza blurted out suddenly, throwing caution to the wind and speaking before she could overthink it too much for once in her life.

"About what?" Roy asked, curious.

"About… us."

"Didn't we do that earlier?" He seemed puzzled.

Riza swallowed her nerves. "We did." She clasped her hands together to try and hide the shaking. "I just… I think we should see what page the other is on, in regard to a relationship. After all, this would be a major adjustment for me personally."

His face fell. Roy nodded. "I get that. I really do. And I'm not going to pressure you into anything. The last thing I want is for you to be unhappy. I do like you Riza, a lot, you're beautiful, witty, and make me so at ease. I'm willing and wanting to give us a shot, however I do understand this won't be a conventional relationship." He huffed out a laugh but didn't seem to find anything funny. "I mean, how am I supposed to take you out on a normal date? It would be chaos."

"Then we make a compromise," she offered kindly. "We go out to your bar. We go somewhere quiet and take a picnic with us." She smiled, trying to soothe his worries. If anything, he seemed to be the more anxious and worried out of the two of them regarding his job and lifestyle.

Riza felt that way because she feared that once he realised just how poor she was, he would go running. Her mind rationalised that Roy wasn't like that, he was a good person, but her own insecurities and worries played on it a lot.

Roy seemed to be worried that she would think this would be too much of an effort for her. However, like Roy, she really liked him and was more than willing to put that effort in. She thoroughly enjoyed any time they spent together and, although she wasn't one to socialise very often, after a few days apart or not talking she found herself excited for the next time they would meet.

"What are you worried about, Roy?" she asked softly. She grasped one of his hands in her. He'd sat on the couch beside her, gaze finding the floor instead of her.

He took a deep breath and sighed loudly. "I don't know. I just… I don't want to mess it up." His eyes met hers then. She felt trapped, but Riza was loath to look away.

"You won't," she reassured him. She gave his hand a squeeze.

"How do you know that?" he asked. He almost sounded desperate for her answer.

"Roy, I'm the most laid back, low maintenance person you'll ever meet. At least, that's what Rebecca tells me. All this," she gestured to his home. "It doesn't bother me. I'm happy you've been successful. I'm happy for you, that you've put the hard work into your passion and have reaped the benefits. It was just a shock, that's all." Her lips quirked upwards. "I've only seen houses like this on TV." Well, that was a white lie. Her father's home, where she'd grown up, was massive, but she was no longer welcome there. But she'd never been inside a penthouse suite. This was completely different, and probably just as expensive as her father's country mansion out east.

"Please, tell me if I'm being a pompous ass?" he requested. "I don't want to be that guy."

Riza chuckled. "Roy, in the weeks I've known you, you've never come across that way to me. Hell, I thought you had money because of your style, but I would never have dreamed it would be on this scale." She smiled. "I didn't even know who you were, and I feel kind of embarrassed by that."

"Don't be," he begged, turning and gripping both her hands tightly in his. "It was the best few weeks of my life, honestly."

"So, I've ruined it now?" she teased.

In a surprising move, he lifted their hands to his lips, kissing the back of her hand. Riza felt her cheeks heat up. "Never. You still treat me like a human being. It's the most refreshing thing."

"I'm glad."

"Is that everything you wanted to ask?" he asked.

Riza nodded. "I think so. I knew there was something bothering you and I'm glad we got to the bottom of it."

"You must be able to read me like an open book because even up until I admitted it, I couldn't put it into words or identify what the feeling was," he chuckled.

"Don't ever be afraid to talk to me, okay? I'll be there for you, no matter what. Even if things don't work out – touch wood." She leaned over and touched his black wooden coffee table, and Roy grinned at her antics. "You'll never lose my friendship. We get on too well for us to lose it."

"I agree. May I?" he asked, opening his arms for a hug. Riza scooted over and sighed happily as his arms circled around her body, giving her a squeeze. "Thank you," he whispered.

"It was my pleasure," she spoke into his bicep, feeling safe and happy. Oh, what a nice feeling it was.