I updated a lot faster than I thought. This chapter's a lot longer now and I'm sorry if there are any errors.
The subways are normally extremely crowded but Winry said I could just borrow her car so it would be faster instead of waiting and stopping every 10 minutes which she was completely right about. Once again.
'Resembool to Central… That sure is a really long drive.' I ponder and think about why I'm doing this again. 'Winry, right.' My mind wonders onto other things like how my interview with Mr. Mustang will go. I then think about other things like… Alphonse. Thinking about him always makes me happy. It also makes me happy that he could be seeing so much amazing things whilst travelling around Amestris along with other companions. I doze off slightly then snap right back into reality when I suddenly go over a speed hump then I take a quick glance at the clock. 10:37 AM. Which is fine since I'm not needed until 2 PM.
The road to my destination is bumpy then smooth at times but at least the weather isn't too bad. Just a bit of wind.
After a few hours of flicking through the radio and driving over roads, freeways and passing by several signs, I finally see a huge building made up of mainly glass that's at least 20 stories high. It makes me feel a little overwhelmed and I start to sweat a bit. I park my car that I loaned from Winry in the parking lot and step out gathering my stuff and walking through the fancy glass doors and finally making it inside.
The whole place feels extremely… fancy. I sorta feel out of place so I look down and see my faint reflection in the black marble. I then start walking towards the sandy coloured office desk seeing a blond woman with her hair in a bun scribbling and jotting down notes. She doesn't notice me so I clear my throat slightly. She instantly looks up and smiles and me, looking me up and down which makes me shift uncomfortably. I can see she's dressed extremely well with expensive looking attire which looks like an ash coloured blazer with a matching pencil skirt.
"Uh hi… um." I stammer not knowing what to say. "I'm here to see Mr. Mustang. My name is Edward Elric. I'm taking place for Winry Rockbell" I waver a little bit then mentally punch myself several times for making a really good first impression in the building already.
"Sure thing, let me just get some things checked. Wait one minute, Mr. Elric." The woman said then began tapping away at her computer.
Mr. Elric? That was probably one of the strangest things I've heard. While I'm waiting for my assigned area, I look at the woman's name tag pinned of her chest.
Riza Hawkeye, huh? It's got a nice ring to it.
Me looking at her name tag for a long while might've been took the wrong way as from the corner of my eye, I could see her hand reaching for her drawer ready to grab something so I quickly averted my eyes to somewhere else not wanting to know what would happen next if I continued staring. (The paintings here are indeed, rather nice). She narrowed her eyes a bit then began to speak.
"Mr. Elric, just sign right here, please. If you just go to the last elevator, that will take you to the 20th floor where you will meet these other people that will escort you to Mr. Mustang." The blond woman or should I say 'Riza' spoke in a stern, yet kind voice.
I nodded and muttered a thank you in an inaudible voice while making my way to the last elevator suddenly feeling a little queasy.
Relax Ed, you're never usually like this. Plus, it's just an interview.
Yeah, and screw it up, you'll screw it up for Winry…
I shake my head and try to keep still in the elevator.
The elevators arrive at a fast speed with a 'ding' noise and I feel even more nervous. As I step out, another young lady with shoulder-length brown hair and thick rimmed glasses who is also very well dressed with a rather short skirt (dress code…?) greets me with a warm smile.
"Hello there Mr. Elric, you're arrival has been expected. Would you take a seat there, please?" she asks while indicating to a comfortable looking leather chair against the window. I walk towards it then I sit and wait again just looking around in awe of how beautifully presented this whole building is. I then shift my body around and look down below all 20 floors seeing how high up I was. Seeing that I might've been in a weird positon, I turned my body back to a normal sitting posture. Bringing my bag to my lap, I fish out the papers and flick through them.
Mr. Mustang… I don't know a single thing about him and it would've been nice if Winry filled me in a bit more about this guy rather than telling me he's 'good looking' and 'single'. Who knows what he's like though? He could be 50. Hell, even 80! I wouldn't know until I find out. Judging from how this building is designed, he's at least 40. A sweet voice interrupts my thoughts and makes me look up instantly to see another blonde woman.
"Mr. Elric?" she asks.
"Yeah, that's me." I reply standing up and slinging the bag over my shoulder.
"Would you like me to take your coat?" she asks.
I shake my head. "I'm alright, thank you."
"Have you had any refreshments yet?" the woman asks me.
I raise my eyebrow and shake my head again.
Her attention is on the brunette who is working quietly then the blonde turns her head facing me again.
"What would you like to have? We've got tea, coffee and water." She states.
"Water, please. Thank you." I reply.
"Sheska, go get Mr. Elric a glass of water, please." She blonde woman ordered then told me to sit down and wait a little longer. Sheska then returned with a glass of iced water.
"Thank you." I mumble then I take the glass. She smiles at me then turns back and starts walking with her heels clacking on the marble returning to her normal seat.
I start wondering about all the employees if there are any men or does Mr. Mustang prefer women? I mean, is that even legal? But then I'm proved wrong as a well-dressed man who happens to be talking to another man walk out of the elevator.
They appear to be having a casual conversation about their weekend activities as Sheska then immediately jumps up and calls me over. Guess I'm not the only one feeling nervous… The blonde woman also comes up as well following me to the elevator.
I was standing awkwardly with the two other employees standing beside me when the brunette one starts talking.
"You know, I wish you luck with Mr. Mustang. He's really intimidating."
"Sheska!" The blonde exclaimed then she shut her mouth completely.
I laughed as I felt my sweat drop.
Great, now I feel more nervous than before.
-Ding-
"Mr. Mustang will see you now, Mr. Elric. Come through, please." The blonde woman says and I finally have the strength to stand up straight, let alone walk to the doors. I raise my hand in a knocking motion and the woman laughs.
"You can just come through the doors. No need to knock."
I push the doors open and as I'm walking, I didn't notice the extra stairs that go down to lead to his desk as my hands and knees are greeted with the rough carpet.
'Way to go Edward…' I think to myself as I'm on the ground in embarrassment. A hand comes close to my face as it appears to be Mr. Mustang's so I take it and stand up with his help.
"Are you alright?" He asks. "That really did look like a big fall."
I mumble something quietly hoping he wouldn't hear. He laughs as I looked up and I also didn't realize how much taller he was than me and how charming he was with his slightly tanned skin, black hair, dark eyes, a nicely shaped jaw along with a deep voice.
"I didn't quite catch that, care to repeat it for me?" He asks in amusement but I just ignore him so he says something else to keep the conversation going. "So you're in college?"
I nod feeling my side bangs slide away from behind my ears making them cover my face a little bit.
"I see… though you do look rather young from your lack of height." He chuckles.
God, the things I do for you, Winry…
I manage to bite back a snarky comment so instead I scowl and cross my arms and he laughs again. "Oh, how rude, take a seat." I walk straight past him and sit on the couch with him following me closely then he sits in his chair not too far away from me.
"So what was your name?" Mr. Mustang asks. Oh god, that voice…
"Edward. Edward Elric." I reply confidently as he nods then he looks at me with his dark eyes with a slight gleam in it. I turn my head away for a second and say "I'm taking place for Miss. Rockbell. She wasn't available at the moment, so if that's okay with you, Mr. Mustang." I mumble and I hear him take a deep breath as I say his name.
We stay silent for a few seconds as he catches me looking at one of his few paintings on the walls.
"A local artist painted them." He started. "Well, most of them."
"They look great. Raising the ordinary to the extraordinary" I say looking around me seeing more paintings.
He turns his head slightly and stares at me. "I couldn't agree more, Mr. Elric." He smirked and I could feel my face go red for some reason so I tried avoiding eye contact with him. Is it just or me or did the room get really hot all of a sudden? I started to sweat a little bit so I unbuttoned my coat and struggled out of it while Mr. Mustang was looking at me not tearing his gaze away.
"Oh." I started while taking the papers with questions on them. "Sorry, if you could just give me some time to get ready."
"No, no. It's fine." He says leaning back in his chair slightly.
"Okay, Mr. Mustang." I say and he's staring at me again but I chose to ignore his gaze. "I have some questions that I'd like to ask you."
"Of course, I knew you might." He laughed and I blushed knowing that he was laughing at me.
I sit up more straight and smooth out my clothes getting ready with the questions.
"At such a young age, you have amassed such an empire. To what do you think is the cause of your success?" I look up at him and he's has a faint smirk but he looks rather confused.
"Business is all about knowing everyone around you, Mr Elric. I'm also very good at judging people. I know how they work, how they make ideas, what does, what doesn't inspire them and how to encourage them. I have great employees and I reward them well." He stops then looks at me jotting notes down then starts again. "I want to achieve success in any way one has an idea to master it, know it inside out, and know every detail. I work very hard just to do that. I also do have a natural instinct that can spot a good solid idea and good people. In other ways meaning, it's always down to good people.
I snort but keep quiet making sure not to comment anything on his arrogance.
"I'm saying it because it's true, Mr. Elric." He mused. "I don't believe in 'luck' or 'chance'. It's just about how hard you work. It's also about directing the right people to their strengths accordingly. If I can remember, there was a quote that said 'the growth and development of people is the highest calling of leadership.'"
"What are you, a control freak?" I sneer not caring about the words coming out of my mouth at the moment but immediately regretting it the minute after.
"Oh, Mr. Elric, I exercise control in all things." Mr. Mustang admitted with no sense of humour in his tone. I take a quick glance at him seeing that he was looking at me, not breaking his gaze while I could feel my heart beat a bit faster which made me frown a little bit.
"Is something the matter?" He questions with a smirk then I start to blush but I reply with "No… nothing is wrong."
Goddamn it, why am I blushing so much even though he pisses me off with his arrogance and pride? Sure, he's awfully attractive with a lot of charisma and when he smirks at me? I really wish he would stop doing that. It almost seems… unprofessional. Men aren't exactly my type either.
"Do you feel like you have immense power and authority?" I ask continuing on with the questions on the sheet holding back the urge to call him a control freak again.
"I have over 40,000 thousand employees. That means I have to have responsibility- power. If I just suddenly decided to be no longer interested in the telecommunications and sell up, over twenty thousand people would have trouble paying off their bills."
Jesus Christ, this guy is the biggest dickhead I've ever met.
"You must have a board to answer to then, I assume?" I ask, scrunching my nose in annoyance.
"I have my own company. I don't need that." He replies giving me a look that said I should've already known this stuff.
God, I would never work under a guy like this…
"Moving along then…" I mumble flicking through the pages. "What are your interests?"
"I have a large variety of interests other than work." He said in almost a…purr? His eyes also had a wicked glint in them.
"Well then… what activities do you partake in as a way to chill out?" I ask.
He laughs showing a perfect set of teeth. "Chill out?" He questions. How is it legal for a man to be so damn sexy?
"For starters, I like to travel a lot. I fly, I sail and I do other physical activities. I'm very wealthy; I enjoy expensive hobbies."
"That sounds like your heart talking rather than logic and facts." I say confused.
He looks up and gives me a long stare.
"Perhaps you're right. Many people say I don't have a heart though."
Maybe because you're an arrogant prick…
"…and why would they say something like that?"
"Possibly because they know me rather well." He smiles.
I frown but then he continues talking.
"I like to keep my private life away from media. I'll go a long way to protect it. I also don't give out interviews very often." Mr. Mustang says not breaking a sweat.
"Why would you accept this one?" I ask wondering what the possibilities could be.
"Miss. Rockwell wouldn't stop calling my PR people constantly asking if I had time. I do admire her dedication, though." He replied.
I chuckled thinking that was so what Winry would do.
"Are you interested in charities?" I question.
He frowns but then talks. "It's sagacious business… I also don't see how it would benefit my company. I like to control things and people my way."
"You want to be able to possess things?" I ask.
"Yes, I do."
I swallow hard wondering what he is thinking about at the moment.
"So you were adopted…" I state while reading the sheet.
"That is not a question, but yes. I was. By my auntie. That is all I'm telling you though." He says sternly.
I nearly choke when I read the next question but if it will benefit Winry, I might as well just say it.
"Are you gay, Mr. Mustang?"
I cringe at myself so hard to asking that question. That goddamn Winry…
He takes a deep breath.
"Edward." He spoke and I nearly flinch because that was the first time he said my name.
"I prefer both sexes if you wanted to know." He admitted.
I feel bad for intruding too much of his privacy rather than asking proper questions.
"I'm sorry. It's just written here on the sheet. That's all." I mumble while fiddling with the hem of my shirt.
He raises and eyebrow. "You mean to say you didn't write these questions?"
What have I done…
"No. Winry- I mean Miss. Rockbell, she wrote the questions." I replied sweating a little bit.
"You two work together for the student paper?" Mr. Mustang assumes.
What do I say…?
"We're roommates."
He looks confused for a minute.
"So you're helping her do this interview?"
"N-no. I mean, she's sick and couldn't go so I volunteered to help her." I stammered.
"I see… that explains a lot then."
There was a knock on the door and I saw a woman with very short, dark hair come in.
"Sir, sorry for interrupting all of a sudden but you have a meeting shortly after this interview." The woman said.
"Cancel it, Maria. Me and Mr. Elric haven't finished discussing business yet." Mr. Mustang ordered.
Maria furrowed her eyebrows giving him a confused look.
"Well?" Mr. Mustang asks tilting his face slightly.
"O-of course, sir." She stammered with a bright pink face then walks out.
Well, I'm not the only one then.
"So, Mr. Elric." Mr. Mustang starts. "It would be nice to get to know you now." His dark eyes are now glinted with amusement.
Where is he getting at? Goddamn it…
"There's nothing much to say." I note while shrugging.
"What do you plan to do after you graduate?" Mr. Mustang asks with curiosity.
I don't know… still continue living with Winry, maybe move to a big house. Maybe even get a better job relating with science?
"I haven't really given it much thought." I reply shrugging. "I've still got other things to worry about."
Mr. Mustang sits up straighter and puts both elbows on his desk.
"We've got an internship scholarship here…" He implied.
"Thanks. I'll remember that." I said with a faint smile. "I don't think I'll fit in too well with this place though."
"Why do you think that?" Mr. Mustang asks with an amused smile.
"It's pretty obvious, huh?" I'm really unorganised and untidy. Me working here? Pfft, yeah right. Oh, I also have a bad temper.
"No, not at all." Mr. Mustang states while looking at me.
I quickly look away completely ignoring him as I stand and pick up all my belongings trying to get rid of the strange feeling in my stomach.
"Thank you for having me here, Mr. Mustang." I said.
He got out of his seat and approached me.
"I can always show you around this building. I'm more than happy to." Mr. Mustang smirked.
"I can tell you're a busy guy so I'll leave you to it. I've also got a long drive home" I smiled. "Thank you for the offer though.
"Where are you driving back to?" Mr. Mustang asks.
"Resembool."
He looks shocked but tries to keep a calm face. "Have a safe drive then, Mr. Elric."
He cares?
I then stuck out my hand.
He shook it and said "Till' next time, Mr. Elric."
So, there will be a next time?
I turn and walk towards the doors with him walking beside me.
"Have you got everything you need?" Mr. Mustang asked.
"Yes, thank you." I assured.
I quickly walk towards the elevator replaying the whole interview in my head again and again. As the doors open, I step in facing him while they were still open studying him intently. He really is a charming man.
"Edward." He says smirking as a parting.
"Roy." I manage to say before the doors close.
To whoever to reading this, thank you. (I'll try and update as soon as possible).