»Part Eleven: Believe It «

"You're kidding," Linsey frowned in disbelief.

"I'm not!" I protested.

"Prove it."

"Alright, go ahead," I glanced quickly at Ed, "Kick him in the shin; you'll see."

Both of them had their eyes on me; Linsey to make sure that I was really serious, and Ed for a hint of what to do next. I shot him a 'just hold on a second, wouldja?' look and turned back to Linsey, nodding in approval.

"If you say so," she sighed, sliding over into my seat as I slid into Sarah's. Linsey bent back her leg and swung it under the table, landing a blow on Ed's—RIGHT shin?

I winced as Ed yelped out in pain.

"YEOW!" he grabbed his leg and hugged it up to his chest, "Whadja do that for?"

"I meant his left leg," I corrected Linsey.

"Whoops," she said apologetically, "Let's try that again."

"NO--!" I was able to stop her just as she swung back her leg in preparation for a second kick.

"How about I show you instead?" Ed asked nervously as Linsey returned her foot to the ground, sliding back into her own seat.

"Good idea," I added.

"Ta-dah!" Ed grinned like a jerk again as he pulled up his pantleg, just as he had done in Biology.

"Whoa!" Linsey stared at the metal limb that replaced his normal one from the knee down, "So you're really...?"

"Toldja," I turned to Linsey as Ed snickered and continued to bear his teeth. "It's really him."

"Okay, this is just weird," she folded her arms in disapproval.

"Weird?" Ed questioned defensively, the glory and recognition vanishing from his face. "How is it weird?"

"I dunno," Linsey still looked unconvinced, as if the auto-mail hadn't proved anything. "I just have to be absolutely sure before I can say if it's real or not."

"Like how?" Ed asked.

"You'll see," Linsey sported a huge grin as she blurted out, "Little Alchemist."

Ed's temple twitched. He clenched his teeth and growled through them, "Who are you calling little?"

"Calm down," she toyed with him, knowing exactly how to get Ed going about his height. "You're almost as short as your temper!"

Linsey and I only had a quick moment to exchange glances. Hers said, 'Here we go!' while mine said, 'Here we go again.' Ed shot up and slammed his hands onto the table.

"WANNA SAY THAT TO MY FACE, KID? GO AHEAD! IF YOU DON'T BELIEVE WHO I AM THEN I'LL PROVE IT! NEXT TIME YOU CALL ME THAT, I'LL KICK YOUR--"

POW! Linsey struck him in the stomach with her fist, hardly having to move the rest of her body for the punch to be forceful enough.

"I believe you."

Ed fell right onto the floor, clutching his gut. He looked as if the air had been knocked out of him, but I knew even Linsey wasn't that strong.

I just sat there in my seat, gaping back and forth at the two of them. Ed put one arm on the table and slowly began to lift himself up. He continued to rise as Linsey snickered to herself.

"Lucky.. shot." Ed said breathlessly.

"Whatever." Linsey smirked in his direction.

"At least you hadn't eaten anything," I suggested.

Ed frowned, his stomach growling. "Thanks for reminding me."

I rolled my eyes as Linsey asked routinely, "Ice Cream?"

"Yeah, I need something cold for this--"

"Quiet, you," she teased, facing me again, "Come on!"

I got up and followed her. Then Ed got up and followed me, rubbing his two-reasoned upset stomach as he walked. Once inside the food area, Linsey pushed open the freezer box that held her favorite Ice Cream. I didn't feel like having any, and I didn't know if Ed would want it after having no lunch—or being socked in the stomach.

"You don't want one, do you?" I checked.

"No," He muttered, letting go of his middle. "I'm fine."

So Linsey payed for her Twix Ice Cream and we went back to sit down, only a few minutes before last class. I leaned forward against the edge of the table as Ed rested his head in his arms on top of it, waiting for lunch to be over.

Folding the discarded ice cream wrapper and placing it into her velvet green purse, Linsey began undoing the latches on her flute case. Ed looked up.

"What are you doing?" I asked.

A mischievous smile was all I got in response from my friend as she expertly fixed up her instrument, fitting the pieces in order one by one until it was complete. Both Ed and I watched as she raised the mouthpiece to her lips and played an appalling, high and off-pitched note.

"Hey!" Ed cried, forcing his hands against his ears in an effort to block out the brazen screech. "Cut that out!"

I, too, had my hands pressed to my ears, but made no attempt to stop Linsey. She only blew harder. Fffweeeeeeet! A few people looked over at us from neighboring tables, checking out the commotion. Linsey put the flute down and snickered.

"What are you trying to do, deafen me?" Ed snarled and dropped his hands.

Linsey pretended not to hear as she disassembled the flute just as expertly as she had taken it out. Fitting the pieces into their places accordingly, she closed the black case and delicately folded her hands on top of it.

Ed sighed, letting his breath hit the roof of his mouth to make a rolling 'h' noise like he had something caught in his throat. He glanced up at the ceiling, then back down at the table, looking slightly discouraged. I was able to talk with Linsey a little bit before the bell rang for last class. Finally; the day was almost over.