A/N: Sorry for another long update from me. It became so hard to construct stories nowadays with all the work and whatnot so I was just taking my time to ensure I deliver good quality to you guys :D Thanks for all those who stay tuned to this story!
Chapter 9 – Crescendo
Steam continued to rise from his murky-colored coffee, condensing warm droplets on the tip of his nose as he continued to stare blankly at the reflection of his eyes. Staring back at him were tired eyes with dark circles around them even after having just enough sleep.
Lifting his face from the lukewarm prison of his morning coffee, Edward gazed at the empty seat in front of him. And at the wall clock just a little above wall in front him that read 10:30. The lateness of the morning made him wonder about one thing all the more.
"If you're looking for Winry, she's down at the basement working on your automail." Pinako answered his unspoken question as she strutted her way on the chair in front of him and took a seat.
"She wouldn't even let me touch it anymore once I gave her the blueprints and measurements. Stubborn girl." The woman said with a shake of her head.
Edward let out a chortle. "You two are just as stubborn as the other that it's not even funny anymore. Of course, she wouldn't let you. After you haven't told her about it for more than four years."
The elder Rockbell sighed as she blew a cloud of smoke from her pipe. "I guess you're right. I didn't mean to hide from her. I was just…looking for the right time." Edward leaned on his chair, causing it to creak a little. He traced the ear of his cup as he contemplated on her words. Right time, eh?
"Life's too short to wait for the right time." He blurted out as he ran a hand over his already messy hair – he really should redo his braid soon – and gazed at the bright window beside them. The sun was already high up and the birds sounded like chimes blown by the wind. Such ambience he could only experience in that cherry blossom garden. There were a lot of things he hadn't experience if it weren't for her.
The loud, booming laugh startled Edward that it really took him by surprise that it actually came from small Auntie Pinako. "Too short? How would you know? You're seventeen." She only received a cold and distant look from the teenager. She stopped and looked at her left hand. Under hard scrutiny, it was shaking.
Edward took a sip from his coffee and observed the old woman with silent eyes. She wasn't moving, just staring at her hand in contemplation. "I should be the one asking. How would someone who had lived for so long know? For all I know, I could die from that automail attachment and never come back for class next week while you continue to seat in this very table, sipping your morning coffee." The words just came out as natural as the wind blowing the leaves outside.
Pinako let out a small smile. She proceeded to get down from her chair. "Well, speaking of time, we should-" The young Elric saw the hand she was holding something with accidently open when she maneuvered her way down. A small, white tablet fell to the ground under the table. Panic set on the old woman's features that Edward abruptly stood from his seat to help.
"Auntie, let me-"
"It's fine!" She hastily replied and quickly retrieved the tiny white medicine. She looked up and saw the recognition in the young man's face.
"That's-" Edward cut himself off, knowing that he will overstep something if he continued what he was about to say.
It's just some vitamins, sweetheart.
He shook the memory away.
"Come on, I want to show you something." Tearing away from his train of thoughts, Edward obliged the command and followed her towards the trail of rooms on the other side of the house.
The spare room he slept at was on the other side of the house, so it was his first time noticing that there was another set of rooms near the dining area.
He threw a glance at the cork board of pictures and papers placed on the wall between the living room and dining area. They were filled with receipts and grocery checklists, and pictures of Winry and Pinako smiling together under the sun or down at their basement working on automail. Some of their clients were featured in the pictures, like a victory trophy of successful automail operation.
The thought of not seeing a single picture with her parents in it was nagging his mind. Instead of saying anything, he dug his hands deep in his pockets and wordlessly followed the small woman.
The hallway looked dark and somewhat dusty, kind of like a basement of a regular house. Unlike a regular house, Rockbell's basement is more used and acknowledged than a regular hallway of rooms.
After passing three doors, Pinako finally stopped on the last one at the end of the hallway. Sighing tiredly, Pinako reached for the knob and twisted it open. She pushed it open with a loud resounding creak.
I wonder how long was this door last opened. Probably in years.
He followed behind, taking in the features of the small room as he went inside.
Like the hallway, it was dusty and dark, the single window inside the room blocked by a thick curtain. There were no tables or chairs, no bed either.
But at the center of the room was a set of-
Pinako pulled the curtains aside and let the pool of sunlight pour over the room. Dust particles flew everywhere but they didn't prevent Edward from staring in awe.
At least three different guitars - two acoustics and one electric in black marble stands, and a majestic baby grand piano were sitting idly at the center of the room.
The young Elric walked over to one of the acoustic guitars. It's dark-hued maroon surface was grayed with years of dirt. Just below its bridge was a big sticker of a sunflower.
"Winry's father used to play it for her." Pinako began to say. Edward glanced at her forlorn features gazing at the musical instrument - eyes covered with thick rimmed glasses and hands clasped behind her back.
"I've never sang before." He remembered Winry say when they were getting ready at Twinkle Town's backstage, her voice full of nervousness.
"She told me that she never sang before." He mentioned to Winry's grandma while traveling his fingertips along the neck of the guitar. The strings were still firm. It was like even time didn't touch it.
A long silence passed between the young Elric and the ancient Rockbell that Edward dared another glance down at her.
"Her parents were musical geniuses, so as a child, Winry learned how to play the guitar and piano before she could even walk. She has a sensational voice too." Pinako began and walked over to the black piano. Taking a moment to remember the times when she would sit every morning by the sofa and listen to Sarah Rockbell play it beautifully, she smiled and ran a hand over its dusty fall.
Edward contemplated her words, then decided that she needed to know. "She sang for one of our school musicals. She does have a wonderful voice." So he told her.
And with that, Pinako stopped dead from her current ministrations and gave him a look of surprise. "Winry? Singing?" Her grandmother, who has known her all her life, was surprised that she could sing. Now he understood why she was so thrown off by the mere thought of singing on stage.
He nodded, his golden eyes looking at her with heaviness.
Giving out a chuckle, old lady Pinako gazed at the piano before her, the sunlight reflecting against the black surface.
"It is no wonder that she could sing. It's such a shame that the loss of her parents made her want to forget all about it."
That would explain the missing pictures.
But she doesn't seem to hate music. Edward countered in his thoughts as he recalled yesterday, when she suggested about playing some Coldplay. Not to mention her pestering about his MP3 player.
"She devoted so much of her time on learning automail engineering instead. Something that doesn't link to her parents. Something that only links to me." Pinako continued to explain, and Edward wondered why she was letting him hear this.
He was no family to them.
"Coldplay." He blurted out of the blue. Pinako gazed up at him with confusion.
"Cold what?"
"Coldplay. It's a famous band that Winry likes. She uh, told me yesterday." He continued, scratching his neck awkwardly.
The small old woman glanced up at him, the hands behind her stil clasped tightly. A thankful smile stretched across her wrinkled face.
"I'm glad to hear that." She told him. Looking away shyly, the teenager dug his hands deeper into his shorts' pockets.
"Well," Pinako started to walk towards the door." if you want to borrow an instrument, go on ahead. Just put it back once you're done."
It was Edward's turn to be surprised. "What?"
Pinako stopped from her tracks then put the pipe back to her lips. "I know your parents from way back. I saw how well you played the guitar too. And the piano." He watched the white smoke emerged from her small stature.
"I'm dying, Edward." She confessed. She heard no response. She smiled at how receptive this boy is.
"And I don't have the heart to hurt her with this." He reflexively straightened his back at that statement. Something about it alarmed him.
"It's not that I'm waiting for the right time. It's that I can't tell her. I just can't. I was hoping Central would eventually distance her from here." She continued as she blew more smoke from her pipe.
"But here she is, being more stubborn as ever."
Then Edward realized something. "The Lightweight Model, you weren't planning to tell her about that at all, were you?"
Pinako looked down at her tiny feet as if in shame. "No."
"She works on an automail shop in Central, so it's impossible-"
"I know. I was hoping she would eventually make new inventions of her own, too. Without me." Edward frowned at how she saw things with Winry. At how she just wanted to completely disappear from her, leaving her alone.
"You can't do that with her. It's not fair, for the both of you." He told her in a sour tone. "You should tell her, I am in no place to-"
Pinako turned to face him and he could almost see the sickness in her - sagged eyes, pale dry skin.
"You know, huh? With Tricia dying all of a sudden and leaving you and Al without ever knowing about her illness until it was the end." Edward remained silent and glared at the wall opposite to them.
Pinako let out a tired sigh. She was already too old, and she honestly wanted to rest already.
"I'm glad you and Winry met again." She said and proceeded to exit the room. It was all she needed to say for Edward to regard the guitar with the sunflower sticker with determined eyes.
O-o-o-o-o-o
Strutting up the stairs, Winry stretched her arms above her head and let out a long groan of pleasure. That sure hits the spot. She was massaging the muscle on her nape when she finally reached the dining area, all the while sniffing the incoming stew coming from the kitchen.
"Oh, that smells good." It has probably been a whole day since she last saw some sun and ate real food. Maybe more. She had always lost track of time when working with automail. It is a surprise that she felt hunger and fatigue at all.
"Lunch?" She heard her granny ask from the kitchen.
Winry smiled in delight. "Yeah, I'm famished." Looking around, she observed the empty cushion and dining area, and the late time of 12:34 P.M.
"Edward hasn't come down yet?" The girl inquired about her classmate-slash-client-slash locker mate. She yawned and scratched her bare tummy exposed by her black tube top.
"He had. I saw him go outside by the porch." Pinako informed.
"Alright, I'll go call him for lunch." She announced with a nod then proceeded towards the back door near the kitchen. Maybe a little walk outside before she goes inside with Edward again can do some freshening up for her.
And a shower too.
o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o
Giving his unmoving hand on the guitar's neck an indecisive stare, Edward's mind mauled over as to why he had still taken the guitar with him in the first place. First, he thought about just tuning it, which didn't require much effort since it was placed in a stable stand and wasn't used for years, but as he cradled it in his arms and strummed the strings more, he dawdled about returning it. He was even thinking about playing a song on it first.
Why?
That, he couldn't answer.
How about Magic?
Nina's words continued to play in his mind again and again, especially when he sees the sunflower sticker beside the bridge strings.
It was already getting ridiculous that he had been debating with himself over a very trivial matter. So what if he played it? Winry wouldn't see him do it anyway. She had been locked up in the basement being her machine junkie self.
Edward sighed. And why was he being constantly reminded of Nina all of a sudden?
Maybe I just need to get over it.
With that final thought, he placed his fingers to a D then strummed.
Reaching the front side of the house, Winry saw Edward's back facing her. He was sitting in the porch steps again and was in a red hoodie – it was quite chilly outside despite her current clothing – the end of his neatly braided blond hair caught inside his hood.
She was about to call after him when she saw a guitar's neck poking on his side. The color and the scratches on the back of the neck were all too familiar.
What made her stop and watch speechlessly was Edward's strumming.
And singing.
"Call it magic. Call it true." He sang, his left hand sliding adeptly between chords, strumming in an up-down-up pattern.
"I call it magic, when I'm with you." She heard her continue, his voice husky and beautiful.
She then remembered how she told him to play some Coldplay. It was kind of scary how he chose the accurate song she wanted.
And the guitar, it's-
"Where did you get that?" Edward almost jumped out from his skin when he heard Winry's booming voice behind him. Standing up from his seat, he held the guitar by the neck and turned around to face her. She was in her black tube top with a red bandana tied on her forehead, fresh out from her workroom.
"It's-"
Winry didn't hear the rest of his sentence when she saw the maroon guitar in his hands. And sunflower decorating its base.
Look, Winry, it's your guitar! Someday you'll play it!
It's a sunflower. It reminds Daddy of Winry!
What's a sunflower, mommy?
It's a happy flower that always follows the bright sun. It's just like you, sweetheart.
Someday I'll be good like daddy!
Mommy, can I play the piano, too?
Mommy?! Daddy?!
What happened to my Mommy and Daddy?!
"Winry! Hey snap out of it!" She heard a voice from a distance and in a second she was back to the world again, with Edward's worried face hovering above her. After a few moments of regaining herself, she realized that she was still standing, her shoulders held by Edward's hands.
Edward watched as her dilated eyes came back to normal, her breathing slowing to a calm speed. "Hey." He checked if she could already hear him since her eyes were already darting around.
Wiggling out of his hold, Winry searched around and finally found her father's guitar sitting idly on the grass, leaning on their house's wall.
It was so long since she last laid eyes on it that she had convinced herself that it all of it might just be a dream. But upon seeing such a tangible evidence that it was not, it all came back to her again.
All the memories came back again like it was yesterday.
"Where did you get my father's guitar?" She asked angrily at him, taking Edward by surprise. Why was she so angry?
"Your grandmother lent it to me-" She ignored his explanation and went around him to retrieve the guitar. He was about to let her do what she wanted with it until she braced herself and held the guitar back like a baseball bat.
She was one move away from smashing the damned instrument on the hard wall when Edward stopped her arm in one swift motion.
"What the hell are you doing?!" He asked with confused eyes trying to make contact with hers. But she refused. She refused to get trapped in these memories again. She resisted but his grip on her good arm only tightened.
"Hey, stop it! Calm down!" He rebuked and successfully took the guitar off of her hand. She tried to jump and grab it from him again but he held it away from her reach.
"Just let me destroy it! You don't understand!" She shouted at him with fuming blue eyes as she scratched on his arm holding the maroon guitar.
"What I do understand is you're not thinking straight right now." He gritted through his teeth as he tried to block her attempts to steal the guitar again and smash it into pieces for some unfathomable reason. But Edward knew it all too well.
Throwing the guitar on the soft grass behind him, he grabbed Winry by her shoulders and pinned her to the wall.
She saw his face obscuring her vision, his golden eyes searching her face. "Look at me. Just look at me." He told her with a quick shake on her shoulders. Where else would she look at? With toes barely touching the ground, she suddenly felt more imprisoned. Vulnerable.
But ironically safe. For a second she forgot what she was remembering.
"Just take a deep breath and calm the fuck down." His soft breath blew on her cheeks, and it made her nerves do as he said.
Relieved that she was finally listening to him, he slowly loosened his grip on her shoulders.
"Let go of me." She muttered, and hearing her much composed voice, he put her back down on the grassy ground. Winry then shoved through him and ran to the back of the house.
"Winry!" He called, hoping…to what actually? Hell, he doesn't even know.
o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o
Pinako was setting up the table when the loud crash of the back door opening startled her. She went back to see who it was when Winry stormed pass her wordlessly.
"Did you find Edward?" She asked, but her granddaughter went straight back down the basement without a word. A moment later she heard the door to her workroom slam shut.
"I guess she did." The old woman told to herself.
o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o
After bolting the door shut behind her, Winry started to pace back and forth, her hands gripping her head as if to hold her scattering thoughts together.
Why was she remembering all of these again? Coming and running in her mind fresh and clear like it was yesterday. It was like a loud noise ringing her ears, preventing her to think straight. To think of anything else.
It was like a crescendo. An unwavering crescendo that gets louder and louder before her ears could cope up.
Messing her bangs with a run of her hand and removing her bandana in the process, Winry stopped in her tracks and gazed at the unfinished automail leg sitting on her table.
Why can't I see mommy and daddy anymore?
"I need to work. I just need to work." She convinced herself with that solution.
I miss daddy and mommy! Why can't I see them, grandma?!
"I just need to work." She repeated as if to reaffirm herself. She had always gotten lost in her work, no matter what she was thinking.
What that final thought, Winry picked her fallen bandana from the ground then sat on the chair in front of her workbench. Pulling the stray hair away from her face with her bandana, she tied it tight behind her head and picked up her wrench.
Is it my fault mommy and daddy died?
A tear fell down her cheek after that passing memory.
Wiping it away with frustration, Winry focused her thoughts on the tools in front of her, determined to do anything that will lock away these flood of memories.
She was just beginning her first attempt to drown herself in when a demanding knock came to her door. "Winry!"
The said girl pulled away from her workbench then took a deep breath. "I'm fine! Go away!" She wasn't particularly mad at him. She was just furious at what he made her remember. It wasn't necessarily his fault. For now, she just couldn't handle anyone.
"No, you're not!" Edward disagreed, veins lining his neck in frustration as he twirled the knob open yet again. It was bolted shut. This was all too familiar with him that it was bothering him enough to take down the door down right here, right now, and knock some sense on her little hard head.
"I'm not asking you to tell me anything. Just don't lock yourself in like this." He requested in a steady voice. A few moments of silence came from the door until Winry spoke again.
"Just leave me alone, Edward." Said her muffled voice. He had an inkling of an idea as to why she was acting like this. She reminded him of Nina more and more.
"Leave her be for now." Pinako's voice said from behind and Edward twirled around to see her waiting on top of the stairs, blowing smoke from her pipe.
"She's not okay. We can't just leave her alone like that!" He outraged with a stretch of his arm towards the bolted door. Why was he suddenly caring about her?
Because you know exactly what she's going through. You know how this ends.
"Winry is a smart girl. She just needs time to think." Pinako reassured him, and it actually calmed his nerves a bit. He hadn't even realized that he was breathing too hard himself. Giving the door one more look, he considered the grandmother's words. Maybe he was just overreacting himself.
o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o
After returning the accursed maroon guitar to the dusty room with an accusing look, Edward spent the next day as a lumberjack – taking out some of his vexation on the innocent blocks of wood – and even stocking some food supplies from the wet market across the town. He kept a close watch on the narrow staircase leading down to the basement. The whole morning, Winry shown no sign of ever leaving her workroom.
Noon came by with the sound of electric saw cutting metal. Holding himself from doing anything, Edward ate his lunch quickly, helped Pinako with the dishes and proceeded to read some of the medical books that somehow made their way to the Rockbell's living room area.
Afternoon went a lot more slowly for Edward as his patience and endurance to sit there and do nothing started to run out faster with every minute passing by.
One more minute. Just one more minute and I swear-
When he saw the wall clock ticked four o' clock in the afternoon, he stood up from his seat on the dining table then stalked towards the back door leading to the yard without a word, leaving Pinako to gape at him until he disappeared to the back.
The old woman sipped her tea and watched the door where the young man went through and a few minutes later, he came back with an axe in hand.
"Don't try to stop me." He said as he walked pass her with hard determined eyes.
"Oh I won't" She answered with a smile and sipped some more of her Chamomile tea as she listened to the young Elric descending the stairs to the basement.
He stopped for a moment in front of the workroom's door, his right hand gripping the axe's handle as the head lay still on the ground. For now.
"Winry? Are you standing by the door right now?" Winry poked her head up from her the scattered blueprints she had been trying to decipher despite the other thoughts swimming her mind. She hadn't checked how many hours have passed already, but she was sure now that it would take more than work to get her mind on track again.
She raised a brow at the question, barely understanding.
"No?" She finally answered. Throwing the door a look, she watched it with silence for a good few seconds before Edward replied again.
"Alright." She heard him say from behind the door, which she found disturbingly odd considering his actions hours prior.
Winry was about to shrug it off as nothing and just go back to her work when she heard a very big bang and crack on her bolted door. She twirled around and there she saw an axe sliced through the door. She gaped in awe as it disappeared then went slamming back again with greater force.
"What the fuck?!" She screamed and pushed her back further against her workbench as if to get away from whatever monster was attacking her door right now.
She heard a low grunt before a third blow created a large crack on her door, splitting it in half.
"Stop it!" Winry cried in anger as she realized that the door separating her from everything else was being demolished right in front of her fucking eyes.
A loud clang came from the outside, Edward must've thrown the axe to the floor, then without a second to spare, his flesh foot began to kick the door apart.
"You're fucking crazy!" As if to confirm her outrage, the door submitted to the attacker's assaults and fell down to pieces, together with the metal bolt she had fixed there not a year ago.
Dusting his black sweatshirt, he trotted inside, straight towards her without a word.
"You're a psychopath! Don't come near me!" Winry warned with a wrench on her hand. Edward halted a few feet in front of her, speculating her with unreadable golden eyes. It was unnerving that she couldn't tell if he was pissed or not. Not to mention how he seemed to look down at her from high up as he stood there, as intimidating as he intended to be. Just when did he get so freaking taller than her anyway?
That's why he needed the replacement leg, duh. Her common sense said, if she had anything at all at the moment.
She stood steady on her ground – it was the only action she could possibly think of right now, with her trusty wrench braced for an attack directly to his head.
"You are getting out of this room whether you like it or not. Your only choice is if you want to do so by your own feet or to be carried like a potato sack." Edward presented her options with a straight face. The mechanic bit her lip in resentment.
"I'm working so leave me the fuck alone." He studied her pale lips, dark circled eyes and the fatigue clearly drawn on her features. It made him not regret breaking the damned door all the more.
He shrugged. "You made your choice." With that said, and a swift dodge from her weak wrench attack, he effortlessly plucked the tool out of her hand – which made her face contort in bafflement - threw it aside then bent down to her waist.
"Elric, I swear-" Before she could say another word, her world turned upside down, waist held tightly against Edward's shoulder.
"LET GO OF ME! .GO!" The girl kicked and punched on his back as he started to carry her towards the broken door.
"Just like a potato sack." Edward Elric commented tiredly to himself and proceeded to the staircase. A potato sack even hurt more than this.
"I'll fucking kill you, Edward Elric! LET ME GO! LET ME GOO!"
o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o
As expected, Winry gradually went silent by the time they reached the top of the stairs. Her persistent attack on his back subsided as well.
"Still alive?" He asked as they reached the dining area.
"Fuck you." She muttered loud enough to answer his question.
Pulling a chair over, he placed her down on the ground. She stood there with a deathly glare slicing through his head.
Edward gave his best condescending look and gestured towards the chair with his nose. "Sit." Seeing that he really meant business, Winry decided to condone him this time and sat herself in front of the table.
"Don't move." Edward ordered with a serious look. Winry stabbed him about ten times with another glare.
Satisfied with that, the Elric disappeared to the kitchen. Leaning on the table by her elbows, her back slowly slumped and became suddenly sore. Was she already this burnout already?
Hearing footsteps near her, she looked up from her scrunched position only to greet her grandmother with a glare meant for a certain blond jerk named Edward Elric.
"Granddaughter. Glad you finally decided to take a break."
Winry snorted."Very funny, granny." Talk about adding insult to injury.
A bowl of preheated rice topped with chicken curry that appeared in front her courtesy of Edward gave out a smell that reminded Winry that she had a stomach . A very hungry one at that.
"Eat." Edward dictated with a tone that left no room for argument. Rolling her eyes as a form of stubborn retort, she lousily picked up her spoon and began to scoop some rice.
"After that, take a shower and put some warm clothes on. We're going for a walk." Another stream of orders came from his mouth and it made every ounce of blood inside Winry boil with rage.
"Says who?" She dared him with her arms crossed over her chest.
Edward crossed his arms as well and leveled her with a serious gaze. "Says the one who would break your fucking door if you try to bolt yourself inside again like a spoiled brat."
Opening her mouth to shout back at his offensive remark, she clamped it shut herself upon realizing her own actions.
"I'll wait by the porch. If you're not outside in twenty minutes, I'm coming in." He warned then gave her a look of finality before going outside by the front door.
Once the door clicked closed, Winry sighed in defeat. She heard her grandmother chuckling by the sofa as she exhaled clouds of smoke into the air. "The fact that he managed to drag you out of that raccoon hole of yours is something else."
"Psh. He did it with a freaking axe, granny." Winry disagreed as she devoured a spoonful of curry rice.
"Exactly."
O-o-o-o-o-o-o-o
It was exactly twenty-five minutes later when Winry opened the front door and came out in a simple knitted sweatshirt and skinny jeans, paired with her beaten up Converse shoes she bought with her a year's worth of excess lunch money a couple of years ago. She decided to let her hair down just because the band tying it up snapped off when she tried to retie it.
Despite her current atrocity towards him, taking a shower and eating a full meal like he ordered did clear her mind a bit.
Winry was hoping he would be furious at her for being late, but he just stood there with his back on her, ready to go for a walk in his black sweatshirt and denim pants.
Sighing and wondering why the hell she was following his order to take a walk anyway, she strutted lazily to his side and glanced over his face.
It was void of any anger she was expecting, just a peaceful look as he gazed at the still grassy fields.
"I was beginning to think you didn't care about your doors at all." He began and turned his head slightly to regard her with a pointed look with that molten golden eyes of his.
So he was actually waiting and counting the minutes. This guy.
She was rummaging her mind for a smart-ass retort when he started to go down the porch steps.
"Let's go before the sun gets down." He said with a quick check on his wristwatch.
She followed suit with a defiant roll of her eyes. Just what does he plan to get out of this? "I have to work." She told his back, a deep frown curling her lips.
"My leg can wait."
"We don't have all week." She argued back.
Stopping in his tracks, he turned with his face contorted in irritation. "I said it can wait." He repeated, annoyed.
"What about the door that you mercilessly smashed into pieces?" Winry reminded as he turned towards the road again, his strides getting longer as she tried to keep up.
"It can fucking wait, too." He grounded. She just has to make everything so hard.
The possibility that he may just want to cheer her up crossed her mind, but she refused to think that way right now.
He doesn't even know anything.
They made their way on the dirt road down to wherever Edward was planning to go, since he was leading the way.
A good ten minutes of her just tailing behind him and watching his broad back had passed before Winry decided to talk.
"Do you even know where we're going?" Judging by the direction he was leading them, they were heading towards the town proper. But with the sun already starting to go down, they would only be greeted with an empty street of closed stands by the time they get there.
"Yes. Just follow me." She was about to doubt again when he suddenly halted in his tracks in front of a steep hill. Before Winry could even ask, her classmate already started climbing up. It wasn't very high, but it was steep enough to need to climb on all fours.
Feeling the empty space beside him, Edward looked down at Winry who has her arms crossed over her chest in doubt.
"Do I have to carry you up here again like a potato sack?" He suggested down at her.
Stubbornly holding her ground, she stuck her tongue out to him. Just when did he get so fucking assertive?
If he chose to play that card, then she'll play her own and tick him off till he drops dead and leave her the fuck alone.
Just who does he think he is?
When he looked up the hill again, she thought he already gave up on her and decided to leave her be.
He has already done enough, thank you very much.
The smirk that was forming in her lips hanged open in bewilderment as her eyes followed Edward's form sliding down the hill. Once on leveled ground again, he began to walk back to the road she refused to leave, his golden mirthless eyes pinned on her.
Holy fuck, he's serious.
The idea that he might still be joking left her mind when he stretched one strong arm behind her waist.
"Alright! I'll go with you! Jeez, can't you take a joke?" She quickly told him with a snort before he was able to grab and throw her over his shoulder again, slapping his arm away like a fly.
Crossing his arms over his broad chest - since when did everything about him became so broad and big and sturdy? - he regarded her wordlessly with a raised brow.
Sighing in defeat, she raised both of hands in front of her in a sign of submission. "I said I'll go. Let's just get this over with. Whatever this is." Observing for a few moments as she reached the bottom of the hill, Edward followed behind and climbed in beside her.
Five grunts and three curses from Winry later, their grass-covered selves finally reached the top. When they sat facing the same direction, Winry confirmed the reason why they're here.
"Sunset, huh?" She was quite curious as to how he knew this place. Leaning with her palms placed on the grass behind her, she took one sharp inhale of Riseembool's fresh autumn breeze. The sun was one big orange sphere hovering a little above the horizon, the perfect time to appreciate its beauty without getting blind.
It was as beautiful and breathtaking as usual.
"I saw it from here two days ago. It was...mesmerizing. It still is." He trailed, and she had never heard him say something so sincere before. Sneaking a look over him, she took the opportunity to study his features.
He had his elbows rested on his knees, the side of his face firm despite the softness in his eyes as he watched the sun set down. His braided hair was caught in his shoulder, and she realized that this was the first time she wondered why he worn it long.
Not that it doesn't suit him.
Winry quickly averted her gaze. What the fuck am I thinking?
"Why?" She started. Edward fiddled with his thumbs as he thought about how much the sun was so much bigger here in Riseembool compared to Central.
"Why what?" He asked back and turned to look at her. A gush of wind blew over them, making Winry's long hair dance and twirl behind her. And with the orange rays of sun showering over them, it seemed like sunlight was flowing from her.
Sunflower.
"Why did you break the door? Why did you bring me here?" She asked straight out, her blue eyes making contact with his golden ones. They stared at each other for moments, with one searching the other for an answer.
It was Edward who broke it as he scratched his nape, unsure of what to say. "I…I just know that being out here watching the sun would help you forget better than being locked up in a room."
She gazed at his face, trying to take in what he just said.
"Whatever it is that you're trying to forget." He continued and met her eyes again, a soft expression drawn on his face. Her bangs were blown away from her face again, accentuating her bright blue eyes. Like what he saw when she gave him that massage.
"How would you know? Did you have...something that you tried to forget too?" She dared ask, trying to crack his wall a little and have a little peek inside. It was only fair, given the things that have already transpired. But she was convinced that he really didn't know anything about her past, as to why she almost lost her mind after just seeing her father's guitar.
"I had a friend before that-" He cut himself off, reanalyzing his train of thoughts. Was it really Nina that she reminded him of?
"A friend?" She inquired with questioning eyes, her lips tight in anticipation.
Or does she remind him of…him?
"It's…a story for another day." He continued his sentence with that then looked down at their hands pressed on the grass and dirt, little insects crawling near their fingers.
Winry nodded with clear understanding. He wouldn't let her in yet, and that was okay with her. Him breaking her out with an axe doesn't mean he had broken through her walls as well.
It was better to remain this way, with walls around them so nobody would get hurt.
"Come on, I'll treat you some ice cream." He announced as he pushed himself to stand. She gazed up at his form hovering over her as she thought about what he said.
Glancing up the sky, the sun was already dipped halfway down the horizon. "Stores are already closed by now." She informed as she stayed on her seat on the grass.
"It's Silver Week, remember? Everything's open until midnight."
Silver Week, she had completely forgotten all about it.
Offering a hand in front of her, Edward said, "I have to treat you ice cream for that massage, since you didn't like my Coldplay music one bit." Startled by his words, she gave him a look of confusion.
Then she remembered her words the other day, how she teased him about playing some Coldplay on his car.
And how he suddenly played 'Magic' in her father's guitar.
She giggled at the thought. He could be very perceptive sometimes. At the most unusual, unexpected times.
Taking his hand to help herself stand, Edward pulled her up too hard that she tripped too close towards him. Looking up from his chest, she met his eyes staring at her with worry. She was so close she could see the hint of blond stubble decorating his chin. Not to mention the smell of his soap enveloping her.
Was she making a weird face?
Stepping a few steps back, she gave him a small smile. "I did like it, despite how I hated the guitar." She saw his cheeks grew red in embarrassment. Little did she know that her own face was flamed as well.
"It was one of my favorite songs. You should finish playing it for me, someday." Winry requested, and it was enough for Edward to swim in memories he had locked away for a long time.
Magic by Coldplay, please play it for me!
Just a little more, and all of this would become too much for him.
But for now, he would just go with the flow. Like how a song flows with the instruments playing with it.
"But for now," he repeated his thoughts.
"I'll treat you ice cream."
Winry laughed, and it ignited a new warm feeling inside Edward.
"Only if you get their wasabi flavor."
Edward scrunched his nose in disgust at the mere existence of such flavor. "And I'm the psychopath here?"
Winry laughed again, and in that moment, she had forgotten about everything.
Her thoughts were only filled with an image of Edward's face eating Old Donald's wasabi-flavored ice cream.
Since it always takes me forever to upload, as some of you have pointed out, I made this one especially longer. I've put my heart and soul into this so I hope you guys like it!