How it all began

Chapter 8

Riza sat on her bench staring out the window over looking the backyard. She hadn't been able to get him out of her head. She watched as her father ruffled his hair, Roy smiling happily as the eight targets around them were lit with fire. She stared into his face, the gleeful look of a child who had just concurred the monkey bars on his face. She couldn't help but smile.

She shook her head violently from side to side trying to shake him from her mind to no avail. With a sigh she turned as her door opened. Joe stood in the doorway looking at her threw narrowed eyes.

"I heard you had a rough night," He muttered. She sighed and turned back to the window. "I figured dad would freak out," She mumbled. He sighed.

"No, not your father," He replied. She turned back to him, her arm resting on the windowsill holding her up. "Then…" She began and he interrupted her with a smile.

"I wish I were so lucky as to have such an adorable boy fawning over me!" He pouted. Riza glanced out the window watching Roy snap his gloved fingers and smile triumphantly as the new targets caught fire twenty feet away.

"He told you about that?" She asked not turning from the window. He laid down on the bed and set his arms behind his head." He asked me to check up on you while he was training. You lucky girl" He muttered closing his eyes and making himself comfortable.

"I'm fine I don't need a baby sitter," She said. "If you didn't need a baby sitter then why did your father ask Roy to take the job?" He asked. Riza fell silent.

"Do you think I'm just a job to him?" She asked sadly. Joe opened his eyes and looked at her from the corner of them. A smile apparent on his face. "I knew it, you like him"

She quickly turned to glare at him. "It's not like that!" She snapped. He looked back at the white ceiling. "Of course not" he said teasingly.

"I don't want to be a job to anyone that's all that I meant" She said her nose high in the air. "I understand," he answered immediately in a still knowing voice. She turned and glared at him, only to look back at Roy and her father. Them smiling at each other and joking around in the yard as they trained.

"Ohh, I also heard that he surprised everyone at the banquette." He said.

"Now that you must have gotten from father," She murmured. "On the contrary, I was suiting up some other high class snot and they were gabbing about the dance. Apparently everyone's talking about it. Specially how you ran from him at the end, wanna tell me what that was about?" He asked.

Riza sat silent for several minutes, them staring at each other, Joe waiting for an answer. But Riza was off in a daydream.

"How?" She asked in a deep exhale. Roy glanced to her from the corner of his eyes. "I stayed up last night practicing so I could dance with you tonight." He muttered.

"Why?" she asked gently. He blinked blankly. "Because you worked hard to teach me these steps, and because I wanted you to know you can have faith in me" he muttered. Their steps slowed as the song began to end.

"You can trust me Riza, I want you to know you can lean on my shoulder, speak freely, let your worries out; cry" as he said that she pulled back slightly.

"And know, that everything will be alright" he finished just as the song had ended. Riza pulled back far enough to see his face. He looked completely serious as he stared down at her. "What makes you think I'm holding anything back?" she asked. He didn't break the connection he had on her hazel orbs.

"Your eyes." He muttered. She stepped back. "I can see there are things you've held back. You can't keep everything locked up forever Riza," he muttered. "I don't have anything locked up," She growled

Riza let out a sigh. "I don't know, all of a sudden he was holding me close, we were dancing, and he was saying all these things…" She muttered as she hugged her knees to her chest.

Joe sighed. "Yup that's how it all starts." He grumbled.

"It's like he sees threw me, threw my poker face and can read me like a book. No one's ever done that before. They usually just leave me alone" she sighed.

"And let me guess, Roy doesn't just let it be does he?" He sighed. "Anything but" she replied. "He cares for you Riz, He doesn't want your life to be controlled by what happened. He wants you to be happy again, to not wake up in the middle of the night screaming."

Riza turned back to the window. Half listening to Joe as she watched Roy and her father bond. They were talking as Roy snapped and set chopped wood standing up on fire. As the flames lifted higher and higher into the air Roy turned to her father and listened to him as he explained the circle on his gloves. Rain began to fall gently, setting out most of the targets. They glanced up and headed for the house.

"I just couldn't listen to it. I refused to think that he could change me. When the song was over, I just turned and left. I spent the rest of the night avoiding people I knew. Before I knew it dad came to get me so we could leave. Roy looked like he was ready to chide me for taking off and avoiding him." She muttered.

"I was"

Riza turned her head as the painfully familiar voice came from the doorway. Roy stood leaning against the doorframe, his hair-dripping wet, and his clothes spotted from the water. As the drops slid down his face he stared at her with his dark eyes, making her shiver.

She turned so he couldn't see her face and blushed. Roy chuckled and pushed himself up. "Thanks Joe, I got it from here" he muttered.

"Great, Riza baby ill see you in two days for the meeting. Roy I need her to be able to sit so don't scold her to hard." He winked.

"Get Out!" Riza seethed. "There's a hair brush in her dresser" He quickly said as he made his way to the door. Roy gave him a look.

"I'm not here to punish her I want to talk to her." He grumbled. "You never know, one woman's pain can be another man's pleasure." He winked. This time they both yelled in unison "GET OUT!" He laughed at the blushing teenagers and skipped down the stairs.

They looked at each other then blushed. Roy sighed. He walked into her closet and pulled out a towel. He pulled off his shirt and set it in her hamper. She blushed even darker as her eyes gazed at his abs and couldn't help it as they settled on his hips clad only by his low rising pants. Roy set the towel over his head he rubbed his soaking hair harshly, hoping to remove all his embarrassment as well.

He left it over his head as he walked over to her on the bench and sat down next to her. "Like what you see?" He asked.

She immediately turned to him blushing. "What did you say!" She asked gapping at him. He blinked blankly at her and answered. "You were watching me train."

She glanced down and gently laughed. "Oh of course, no, no I wasn't." She replied still looking down.

"I could see you threw the window," he muttered. "Yes, yes I was, so what" She muttered. "Nothing," he muttered. "So…where'd you go at the party?" He asked.

"Around." She muttered suddenly finding something very interesting outside of the window.

"I went looking for you," He added. "I know" She replied simply.

"You knew I was looking for you," he echoed. She stayed silent.

He watched her as she stared outside the glass. "Riza, you know I'll always be here right?" He asked. She turned to look at him and nodded with a fake smile.

He rolled his eyes and let out an exhausted breath as he stood and walked out of her room and into his. She watched her door closed letting her own pent up breath escape her.

She turned her head as a maid shouted.

"Kids come to dinner!"

She sighed and stood, walking out of her room and down the stairs.

000

Dinner had of course been extravagant, and went silent besides her fathers and Roy's small talk. The maid cleared there plates and walked slowly back into the kitchen. Riza and Roy stood only for her father to snap, "SIT"

They glanced to her father, and then slowly sat back down.

"Lately you two have been very quiet, did something happen between you two?" He asked. "No" "No Sir"

He looked from one side of the table to the other, suspiciously at both of them. "This is your answer to me? Nothing? I can tell, one moment your in his arms and the next you can't even look at him." He muttered. Riza stared at her father. "You're beginning to remind me of me and your mother when we were your age," he muttered.

"Sir, there is nothing going on between us at the moment." Roy said. He turned to Roy. "At the moment?" he echoed raising an eyebrow. He then sighed. "Well, I want you two to know if in the future it ever escalates, your doors will be locked by twelve, you can see each other threw out the day. I don't care if this embarrasses you, because if my father hadn't said anything to us when your mother and I were together from the start… Well we wouldn't have had Riza" he muttered the last part.

Riza groaned and set her head in her hands. She couldn't believe this was happening. She then glanced up at Roy, who was smiling from ear to ear at the implication.

Maddie Brown

Hey! Thanks to all that reviewed! I love hearing from all of you and hope you continue to tell me what you think even if it is bad…but I really hope its not tear haha. Love you all! Be nice to me! Pout