AN: Hi ya'll! Thank ya for all them there reviews! They just make me feel so darn special. (I know, that sounded gay. But I'm tired of just saying 'thanks for the reviews' so I decided to say it like a redneck. Don't ask I dunno why I did it either. I'm just crazy like that!
Pil-Z: That would be awesome, if I could just turn on the radio and it gave me all the answers I needed on my zoology homework. But hey, that would make life too easy now, wouldn't it? That appears to be a crime now a days, nothing comes cheap, nothing comes easy, and there are no guarantees.
I'm sorry to those of you who aren't country fans! But I am one, and they seemed to fit, and I felt like putting them in, so… yeah. Hope you didn't mind it too much, and if you did, well... it's over for now... right?
don'tbreakme: What did I mean by 'Roy walking in on Riza'? Well… all I can say is read and find out. It's in this chapter, mwahahahahahhaha!
The Way to a Man's Heart Isn't by Crushing His Ego Chapter 18: The Horror of Early Beautiful Mornings
Riza had finally fallen asleep at 5:30 or so that morning. The signs of dawn were just beginning to show. The sun was creeping up slowly on the sleeping city and the birds were just beginning to chirp.
About an hour or so later she was sleeping soundly when she heard someone blowing their car horn outside. She thought it was just one of her neighbors trying to get the attention of their sleeping girlfriend. "Mmmmm…." she grumbled as she pulled the dark blue blanket over her head, trying to block out the oncoming sun and obnoxious noise.
A few minutes later a loud pounding was heard on her front door. "Hey, are you in there!" a male voice shouted as the pounding continued.
Riza's eyes popped open in a 'oh crap' manner as she scrambled to get out of bed.
"I'M GONNA BREAK THIS DOOR DOWN IN ABOUT TWO MINUTES!" the voice shouted, a hint of irritability was in the man's voice.
"JUST HOLD ON!" Riza snapped back as she reached for her military clothes, which were draped over the back of a nearby chair. She knew who it was, it was Roy.
"Lieutenant! We were supposed to have left half an hour ago!" Roy shouted as he glanced at his watch. He had no idea what Riza was doing in there. She didn't seem like the type of person to oversleep.
Beep!
Beep!
The solider who was driving them to the designated area was getting very tired of waiting. Inside the car sat a young man. He had short brown hair, dark blue eyes, and a bad attitude.
"Just hold on a minute!" Roy yelled to the car sitting in the street.
Beep!
The driver beeped again. He had a very impatient look on his face. It was more or less his day off. Once he dropped Roy and Riza off he was free to go, and he had a sweet honey at home waiting for him.
"Hmmm..." Roy gave him somewhat of an irritated look as he turned back to Riza's door and began pounding again.
"I SAID I'D BE OUT IN A MINUTE!" Riza yelled again as she struggled to get out of her pajamas and into her military clothes.
This isn't working. Roy thought to himself and put his hand on the doorknob. It's locked. That's just like her to lock a good man like me outside in the cold. I guess I'll just have to let myself in. Roy smirked.
It was as if the man in the car knew just what Roy was thinking. He rolled down the window, stuck his head out, then shouted, "Out in the cold is just where you belong!"
Roy pretended not to hear that remark and lefted his foot up, ready to kick the door in. He had no idea Riza was in the middle of changing, nor did Riza know Roy was about to break in.
Bam! The door flew open and hit the wall behind it hard, leaving an indentation where the knob hit and punctured the white wall.
Riza snapped upright, she was fighting with her bra at the moment. Her hair was a mess, tangled in knots all over; she hadn't had a chance to brush it yet. Please tell me he didn't do what I think he just did. A thought rushed through her mind as she lunged for her bedroom door, but it was too late. The door swung open and Roy's unsuspecting head popped in.
"Hey, we have to g-" he was cut off when he saw Riza standing right in front of him, dressed in nothing but her white bra and underwear, her navy blue pants hung around her ankles. Roy couldn't do anything but stare.
Riza snapped and grabbed the book that lay on the nearby desk, she threw it at him. It was a thick hardcover book. "GET OUT OF HERE!" she yelled.
Roy still stared, like he was hypnotized.
"Ouch," Roy said when the book hit him in the chest with a thud, then it fell to the floor in front of him. He was about to close the door when he popped his head in for one last look. Nice, very nice.
"YOU!" Riza sneered when she saw the expression on his face. She quickly grabbed her blanket off her bed, wrapping up in it.
Roy then smirked and closed the door. He sank to the floor and waited for Riza to become descent.
I can't believe that guy. He'd better be happy my hostler wasn't in reach. Riza grumbled as she put her clothes on. Barging in on a woman like that. He should be arrested. She clearly wasn't happy knowing she had just exposed herself to the Lieutenant Colonel.
After a few moments of listening to Riza grumble to herself, Roy decided he'd put her through enough torment. This just pushed it over the top. "I'm sorry, Second Lieutenant."
Riza stopped what she was doing for a moment and thought about this. He just apologized. Does he really mean it? The tone of his voice sounded true. Is he really sorry? Or just trying to get the better of me and sneak another peek.
"Are you alright in there?" Roy asked as he stood up and knocked on her door. All the noise inside had stopped and didn't start up again. He wondered if the words 'I'm sorry' caused her to faint. He'd heard women say they'd know they were dying if their husband apologized for something, because they never did unless it was something very serious.
"Yes, I'm aright," she replied quietly. Her voice sounded the same as it did the night before. It was so strange, she felt as if she was reverting back to that hopeless feeling she had the night before. She began pulling on her dark brown t-shirt, and then she grabbed her blue military top.
"Ok," Roy replied. He too became serious when he heard the tone in her voice. I guess she hasn't snapped out of it yet. He thought. "I just wanted to say. I'm sorry about everything that happened, and for what just happened. I didn't know you were half naked, I swear."
Riza thought about this, and about this strange feeling she had, and the song she heard last night. The one that made her wonder if she really loved Roy. Break my stride when I'm running from the truth. Am I really just trying to run away? Maybe this is really what I think it is, and I'm too stubborn to realize and except it.
"Do you forgive me?" Roy asked. This was truly a step out of character for Roy. He had just apologized instead of making a rude come back. That's a big step up. Roy thought to himself. I better not let this get out into the public. But I can say I saw 'more' of Riza then she lets on. He smirked as the image of Riza in her underwear passed through his mind. "Well, do you forgive me? Second Lieutenant, I demand an answer, yes or no?"
Riza thought about this for a moment. Time after time I've turned away from you; when all I had to do was surrender to your love. She came out of her train of thought and was about to say yes when the other song popped into her head. We ain't wrong, we ain't sorry, and it's probably gonna happen again. Her expression became somewhat angry as she pushed the black boots on her feet. 'That' won't happen again, I can tell you that.
Roy was still awaiting an answer when the door opened and Riza walked out, fully dressed in uniform and hair pulled back into a ponytail. "I'm sorry I overslept, sir," she said and walked to the front door.
"Uh, that's ok," Roy replied as he followed her. The expression on her face remained blank and calm. He couldn't read her emotions, so he didn't know what to say. So he wouldn't make another mistake he didn't say anything. They walked to the car in silence, got in the back seat, and the waited for the journey to begin.