Chapter 6

"Winry, can you deliver this to the Smiths?" Pinako yelled, with a box of carrots in front of her. The Rockbells not only depended on their automail shop for their financial income, they also had a small vegetable garden. They grew carrots, peas and many other things. Winry wished they had a flower garden so they can open a flower shop. She may act like a tomboy most of the time, but she was after all, a girl. She loved flowers, especially lilies.

"Sure, granny!" Winry replied. The Smiths were really nice neighbors. Each time she delivered something to them, they would give her a little gift in return. Last time, Mr. Smith gave her a bluestone necklace.

"Have you checked the mail yet?" Pinako asked.

"No, not yet!"

"Okay then, I'll check the mail."

"NO!" Winry cried, blocked her way. "I'll go check it!"

"Has someone been writing to you a lot lately? You have been hanging around the mailbox very often lately. Tell me, is that pipsqueak writing you?"

"No…it's just…it's just…" Winry did not want to tell Pinako about Roy's letters. It would be too weird. She tried to make up something, something that is credible. Yet, Pinako, although a very small old lady, had a mind of a fox. It was not easy to fool her.

"It's alright, dear. Whatever it is, as long as it's not any threat, it's all right with me."

"Thanks granny! I'll be back after the delivery!" Winry skipped out of the house after gave her grandmother a peck on the cheek.

---x---x---

With a box of carrots in her arms, she walked down the road of Resembool. There was only one road in Resembool, and it was a dirt road. But Resembool was just simple like that. It was in the countryside, unlike Central City. And Winry was a country girl. She loved the way Resembool was. Maybe it was not as luxurious as Central City, but it had fresh air and beautiful surroundings. And most important of all it had the cleanest environment. Even Major Armstrong couldn't stop admiring the beautiful clear sky of the night.

As she strolled down the road, suddenly, a strong arm grabbed her and pulled her off the road. Winry shrieked, then she saw the face of the person who grabbed her. It was the man who wrote to her continuously, Roy Mustang. Her face relaxed a bit when she saw his face, but her uneasiness returned as she realized that he was still holding her arm. Although he was dressed in his military uniform, his hands were ungloved. She was wearing the black tube-top. His bear hand was touching her bear arm.

"What are you doing here?" After suppressed her uneasiness, Winry asked him, somewhat frustrated.

"I came to see you," Roy said, acted as if she was supposed to know.

"Look—" before she could finish, Roy took the box of carrot from her and threw it on the ground.

"I can't help it, I have to see you. Or else—"

"Or else what? Or else you'll die? You know, Colonel Mustang, you sound so lame. 'Without you, life means nothing to me', colonel, this is a line from the play 'Come What May'. You were there at the theater, you saw the play. And now you are trying to use some romantic lines from the play to convince me that you love me. Sorry, it does not work!"

"Fine, then. But listen to me, I am not trying to convince you that I love you. The thing is, I do love you. You should've seen it. It is crystal clear."

"No, I don't believe you have any feeling for me at all!"

"And why is that?"

Winry paused. "It's quite simple, it does not take a genius to figure it out. How many women have you slept with in the past? One hundred? One thousand?"

"Where in the world did you get such ideas? Did Fullmetal tell you that?"

"I wish it was Ed who told me that, but no. Everyone, if had been to Central City even for a second, should've known. You are quite popular, especially among women."

"So, you are judging me based on the rumors and gossips?"

"No, not just based on what I heard, but also on what I saw."

"And what have you seen?"

"Alright, let's start from the first time I went down to Central, four years ago when I went to congratulate Ed for passing the alchemist exam. I saw you chatting with a lady who had short, dark hair. Your eyes stared at her with passions. And the second time I went to Central, I saw you buying another woman at drink at the stand. You were kissing her. As for the last time I went to Central, I saw you with another woman at the side of the street. Then what, you just tell me that I'm the one whom you always waited for? I wasn't born yesterday you know!"

"Wow, you do pay close attention on me, don't you?" Roy teased. "But let me explain, sometimes, actually most of the time, what you see is not what it is. As for the woman you saw four years ago, it was a female military personnel. You know her, Lt. Maria Ross. She had a day off, I just happened to walk by. We just had a chat, quite formal, nothing more. As for the one I had a drink with, that was a friend of late Lt. Colonel Mae Hughes'. She came to visit him, Hughes was busy, and I gave her a tour of the Central City. I gave her a kiss as a gesture of politeness. And the woman you saw the last time, she was just asking me for direction, I cannot just leave her there lost," Roy couldn't help but laughed. "None of them were my romantic partners, I believe it's all a little misunderstanding."

"Then, what about…"

"About what?" Roy asked. Before Winry could reply, Roy went on. "I admit, there had been some women I had a fling with. But most of them were just nice ladies who invited me to dinner. I cannot turn down their nice offer. I did have the, the thing, with a few women. But I'm just a single man who was looking for the right person, that's all."

"That's all? That's all? That is a lot! For your information, the guy I'm looking for is a guy who believes in commitment. A guy who only loves one girl, which would be me. Not a guy who had a long history with millions of women."

"See? That's what I'm trying to do now."

"What do you mean?" Winry was confused.

"What I meant is that I'm trying to change. Ever since I fell in love with you, I'm trying to be a different person. I'm trying to be a better man."

"Really? Well, you know people says, 'men never change'".

"You really believe that? Come on, I deserve a chance to show you the good side of me."

"Look," Winry gave up, decided to reach straight to the point. "The point is, it is impossible for us to be together, at all. One, you are my best friend's commanding officer. Two, there is a huge age difference between us. Three, my heart is already belonged to another person."

"First, it does not matter if I'm your best friend's commanding officer," Roy responded to Winry's reasoning. "What does Fullmetal have anything to do with us? Second, what does have age to do with love?"

"It has everything to do with love. I mean, you are old enough to be my father!"

"I'm not that old, Winry. It will be two more years before I celebrate my 30th anniversary walking on earth. And plus, even if there is a huge age difference, it won't matter. My mother is my father's 15 years junior. They lived happily ever after."

"And your mother widowed early?" Winry asked, then realized what she said was very rude. She stopped and looked at Roy apologetically.

Roy had some anger or some coldness flared in his eyes. "No, they are still alive and very happy."

"Okay, it's good to know that."

"And three, who is it that you love?"

Winry did not answer the question. She simply replied, "It's none of your business."

"Does he love you?"

"I told you, it's none of your business." Roy really asked the wrong question. Actually, Roy asked her the right question. It was something that had bothered her a long time.

Winry said nothing more and picked up the box of carrots. "I had things to do. Good day."

"Wait," Roy blocked her way. "Can't you be a little kinder to me?"

"Look, the bottom line is, I have nothing to offer you, emotionally I mean. All I have for you is respect as a superior. If there is anything else I can offer you, then it's friendship."

"Does he ever write to you?" Roy asked. Obviously, he was talking about Ed.

"Like I said, that is none of your concern." Winry said, walking away from him.

"It is my concern. It's bothering you. Anything makes you unhappy makes me unhappy."

"Do you know what makes me happy? If you can stop bothering me."

"Well, then, that's little bit too much to ask. If I were able to do something like that, I would have done it a long ago. I tried, but I can't, which is why I'm here, to ask for your help."

"For my help?" Winry stopped. "How can I help you?"

"Let me write to you, and give some friendly reply."

"I don't understand…"

"See, if you let me write to you, I can let those feelings upheld inside of me right out. And with your reply, I can satisfy myself and move on with my life. As time go by, maybe, all these feelings would disappear. It's good for the both of us."

"Well…"

"And, through these writings, I can give you the information on the Fullmetal and Alphonse, like their whereabouts and how they are."

"Really?"

"Sure. Why not? It makes you happy, doesn't it?"

Winry thought about for a second. She looked at Roy in the eye, and she did found sincerity. Gracias told her that Roy is a good man. Well, is he? He does care about her, doesn't he? He wrote to her. Even after she refused to accept his feelings, he still concerned about her happiness.

"All right. You can write to me, and I'll give you replies. But they will only be amicable, not romantic."

"Thank you," Roy said, with a smile, reflecting his charm. He took her hand gently, and placed it against his lips. "Good day." He turned his heels and walked away.

"And Colonel Mustang!" Winry called after him. Roy turned around. "I lied when I said you are old enough to be my dad," she smiled. "You look 26."

Roy laughed and nodded. He headed his way to the train station. Winry went on her way to the Smiths. When she arrived to their house, she saw a man was arguing with Mrs. Smith. What they were arguing about, she had no idea. Then Mrs. Smith said something about too late. After that, the man said nothing more. He just left, quietly.

When the man was gone, Winry waved to Mrs. Smith.

"Hi Mrs. Smith. Here's your carrots!"

"Hi Winry! Thanks." Mrs. Smith said with a smile.

"Some rude man bringing you troubles?" Winry asked with curiosity.

"Oh no, that was some old lovers from the past," Mrs. Smith told her. Then she went on and told the whole story. "I used to love him, but he did not love me back. I wasn't sure if there is a future with him. He was always away, never wrote to me or even called. Then, I met my husband, who was madly in love with me. Over time, I learned to love him. It looks like I made the right choice! Now he comes back, asks for another chance. Too late mister!"

Mrs. Smith did not know Winry long. But she just loved to talk. She talked about everything. Winry only delivered her items three times. Three times was enough to hear the story of her entire life—from day of her birth to present.

"So, he did not tell you how he felt."

"Nope, he didn't. And that's why I gave up on him. You know dear, any man is better than a man who ignores you. If he does not talk to you, or gives you nothing but silence, then it means one thing—he does not care about you. And this type of guy is not worth it. When my husband first offered me his love, I kept on turning it down, because I was waiting for him. Then I thought, how could I be so stupid. Waiting for a man who was careless about me meanwhile there is a man (her husband) who loves me right there! Now he is only mad because he is jealous that I chose someone else over him."

Winry became silent. Her mind sank into the thoughts on Ed. Ed never wrote to her, and he never told her anything. It was Al who filled up the gaps. And there was Roy whose letters to her never stopped. He even came all the way from Central City to see her, despite the fact he had tons of works to do. She told him that she cannot offer her any affection. Could she be wrong? Perhaps.

---x---x---

When Winry came home, she went straight to her room. She took out a box, poured out everything inside—Roy's letters. She read them over and over again. And she took out the small note that Ed wrote her. Roy was so passionate, and Ed's words were plain simple. Then she opened her drawer and took out the first-class ticket to the musical play that she thought Ed had bought her. Ed gave this to her, or did he?

"The tickets are already sold out!" he told her.

If he said the tickets were sold out, then where did he get the ticket? And it was a first-class ticket. She looked at the creamy envelope, and the words scribed on it: To Miss Winry Rockbell. The script was nice and neat, very grownup. She remembered Ed's writing. Compared the handwriting on the note to the handwriting on the envelope, they were not the same. Then she glanced at Roy's letters. It was all clear. The ticket was from Roy. It was Roy who bought her the ticket. It was Roy who wrote to her. It was Roy who came all the way from Central City to see her. It was all Roy.

Mrs. Smith's words ran in her ears again. "If he does not talk to you, or gives you nothing but silence, then it means one thing, he does not care about you. And this type of guy is not worth it."

With that thought in mind, Winry sat in her desk, took out a paper, and began to write:

Dear Colonel Roy Mustang…