AN: here comes the angst uwu
Hair tickled Roy's nose as he awoke. Taking a deep breath, he inhaled the scent of shea butter and buried his face deeper into the back of his guest's neck. His hand tightened around her waist as he shifted, pulling her unresisting body closer against his. The skin of her back was soft against his bare chest, his hands flush against her stomach. Riza twitched underneath his palm and Roy smiled. Apparently, she had a ticklish spot.
"Stop fidgeting," Roy murmured against the skin of her neck.
"I'm not," Riza replied instantly, hands stilling atop his.
"It's rude to lie," he smirked. "Plus, I can feel it." Riza sighed. "Hey," he whispered in concern, pulling away. Riza turned once she was free from his hold, facing his chest rather than looking up at his face. "Are you okay?"
"Yeah."
"Riza, talk to me." She never lifted her face to meet his eyes, opting to stare at his chest while her hands came to rest upon it while she spoke.
"I can't stop thinking about what happened."
Roy's jaw clenched. He would have made a joke about how he was just that good, like he would any other time, but things were different now. If things were to progress further in their relationship like he hoped, Riza would need him. Hopefully, not in situations such as this, but in general. There would be a different time for jokes.
He had never really been involved in too much of her personal life. He got bits here and there since they spent so much time together, but Riza was a private person by nature, so Roy never really got a glimpse into this other side of her.
Now that he had the opportunity, he wouldn't squander it.
"I know, I'm sorry." His hand lifted to her cheek, brushing the hair away from her face. There was something different about seeing her in this light. It was just pushing nine thirty and the morning sun was right outside his bedroom window. The curtains barely concealed it, the light pouring desperately through a crack in the material, catching her hair and turning it golden. "We'll sort this today. I promise."
"I hate this."
Roy gathered her in his arms, pulling her body against his. He kissed the top of her head, readjusting his hold so that she could get comfortable. "I do too. Why didn't you say anything?" he whispered. His worry grew exponentially with every passing minute, the more he thought about her current situation. The words in that text refused to leave him alone in the few hours they had spent together. As they had become even closer under his sheets, it was relegated to the back of his mind. Once they were spent, all it took was one look at Riza's face to remind himself of why exactly she had come here in the first place. Riza sharing his bed was just a happy consequence.
He hadn't intended it to escalate the way it had, but the air between them had become charged throughout their "date" last night. All night they had been flirting with danger during their fake date, so this morning was inevitable. Roy was thrilled, of course. When she had begun to tug his t-shirt over his head Roy was powerless to stop her.
"I could handle it –"
"I don't doubt it," he reassured her. "However, this isn't something that should be taken lightly."
"I'm not underestimating what he could do, Roy," she replied, tone holding a bite to it as she gently pulled away from his embrace.
"Well, what then?" Riza was silent. "You said this had happened before, that it had escalated. Why not tell anyone?"
"Because I was too scared," she hissed, the fire in her eyes burning into his own. The room was silent as he looked at her, watched her, felt his heart breaking for her. There was an overwhelming urge inside him, telling him to protect this woman at all costs and hold her dear, for she is a gem and he would never do better than Riza Hawkeye. Roy had known that for a while now, however it didn't begin to set in until he held her in this moment. "I've been terrified… for the last three weeks," she whispered.
Roy kissed her forehead. "Will you let me help?"
"I…"
"It's okay if you don't want to," he whispered quietly, mistaking her silence. "I understand."
"It's nothing like that," she replied, shaking her head.
"Then what is it then?" he asked gently.
"I never thought this would happen. After what he sent, I was too scared to tell anyone."
Roy swallowed, hating what he was about to ask. "May I see them? As a friend."
Riza paused, then nodded. As she sat up and reached for her phone Roy felt oddly honoured. This proved she trusted him enough, and while Roy trusted Riza wholeheartedly, it was nice to have it returned, especially in a situation such as this.
As Roy read through the texts Riza had received from Dickhead Dan (a new nickname which seemed wildly more appropriate and fitting than Stick Man Dan) his jaw clenched to the point of being painful. His vision swam as thoughts raged in his head; a select few detailing exactly how painful he would make Dickhead Dan's demise.
"Promise me you won't say anything," Riza begged him. Roy snapped out of his thoughts. There was a pressure and warmth on his hand, which had gone cold the more he read. "Roy, please, you can't."
"Riza –" he began, feeling his anger rise. Not at her, but at the whole situation. She didn't deserve this. Riza was a good person. She was kind, willing to help anyone, and an excellent, caring, friend "I can't just sit and let this happen –"
"No," she urged, crossing her legs and folding the duvet over her lap. The t-shirt she was wearing that Riza had borrowed from him was slightly too big, the neckline drooping forward a little bit. "You can't, because this will not only make this worse for me, but for you too and I won't have you dragged into it."
She was right. If he took matters into his own hands it would just make things worse in the long run. Roy wasn't sure if he would be able to keep his cool the next time he saw Dickhead Dan. He didn't need to be charged for assault and divert the attention away from Dan's stalking.
But he couldn't sit idly by and let this happen to Riza.
"All right." He wasn't happy, but in reality there was nothing he could do. If he couldn't stop Dickhead Dan himself then he would do the next best thing, which was looking out and being there for Riza when she needed it most.
She released a long breath, obviously relieved he wasn't fighting her on this. "Thank you."
"Do you want me to go to the station with you?"
Her eyes flicked away from his, then returned shortly afterwards. "Would you mind? I just – I don't want to be alone. Just in case."
"Of course," he smiled, taking her hand in his. This was not the way he pictured the "morning after" their first time together to go, however this was his reality right now. All he could do was wait patiently and be understanding while Riza sorted through this mess – with Roy by her side, of course – and be there for her in case anything happened.
"Just for the record, the next time I see Dickhead Dan, I will picture every way in which I can make his death as painful as possible."
Her lips quirked up at his new nickname for the bastard. "Dickhead Dan?"
"It's more appropriate."
The police took all the details they could from Riza regarding Dickhead Dan and his stalking escapades. At the mention of his name the two officers shared a look. Something told Roy this was not the first time Dan's name had been mentioned to the police. Apparently, they had had issues with Dan before from his previous girlfriends.
They reassured them both that they would deal with it and advised Riza not to reply to any messages she receives from him. One gave Riza a phone number to call should Dickhead Dan contact her again.
They walked in contemplative silence back to Roy's car. Riza ran through everything the officers said and Roy tried to plan the rest of the day for them so that it would take Riza's mind off everything that was happening.
"Are you busy for the rest of the day?" he asked, hopeful her answer would be no.
His wish was granted.
Riza shook her head. "No."
"What would you say to bowling?"
"Bowling?" Riza asked doubtfully, strapping herself into the passenger seat.
"Yeah. Come on, it will be a laugh."
"I don't see why –"
"Are you a chicken?" he asked, eyes dancing with amusement as he tried to rile her up.
"Not at all, quite the opposite. I would beat your ass at bowling."
"Is that a challenge?"
"You're on, Mustang."
Riza won, of course, however Roy achieved another victory. Riza laughed and joked with him easily, the events of last night and their trip to the station forgotten momentarily. It was like old times, for which he was grateful. One added bonus was when Riza won the last game. With an innocent look on her face as she bowled her third turkey of the day. Roy had jokingly scowled, but that quickly disappeared as she kissed his cheek, the barest hint of a smug smile on her face.
So yeah, just like old times, but now it was even better.
Roy cheerily whistled as he prepared dinner for himself and Riza. It had been a hectic week with work, so he had barely seen her. He had offered to cook dinner and he was currently trying his best not to burn what was in the frying pan while giving Riza a quick text to say dinner would be ready in about ten minutes.
Ten minutes came and went, and Roy frowned to himself. There had been no reply to his text. Shrugging his shoulders, he turned the heat down to the lowest setting to keep it warm. She was probably getting organised. The toes on one of Roy's feet began to tap the wooden floor mildly impatiently as he sat on a chair at his kitchen table. A fleeting thought crossed his mind, reminding him that Riza was never late for anything, but it was gone as his phone buzzed, a text from Maes Hughes making him lunge for his phone eagerly.
Another fifteen minutes passed, and Roy turned the heat off completely. Removing his apron – a joke gift from Riza which read "being such a good cook even the fire alarm cheers you on" – he crossed his living room and pocketed his phone. An uncomfortable knot had appeared in his stomach and given his girlfriend's more recent situation he had begun to fear the worst.
They had only been seeing each other for a little over a month, but Roy felt comfortable calling Riza that. After that first day together, they had both discovered that this joining felt like it had been a long time coming. Roy had wondered why they hadn't done it sooner. The chemistry and draw to Riza had always been there, but he hadn't acted on it to respect their friendship. Now, his life felt like there was a touch more colour to it, and it was because of Riza. Their friendship beforehand just amplified his feelings for her.
There had been no more mention of or interaction with Dickhead Dan and while that was concerning itself, he had shrugged and brushed it off, chalking it up to the police putting a stop to it. Riza had not mentioned them getting in touch with her regarding the status of her case, but Roy thought they maybe just hadn't had the time yet.
How wrong he was.
Roy froze outside the door, hearing voices through the apartment door. His eyes widened in recognition, hands flying to his pocket as he quickly dialled the number the police officer had given Riza.
"You," Dickhead Dan hissed as Roy entered Riza's main room. Roy froze, his eyes instantly finding Riza's to see if she was okay. She was unharmed, but clutching the front of her hoodie tightly, arms over her chest as it to hide it.
Hide it from him.
Roy's world took on a reddish tint.
"What are you doing here?" he asked coldly. One of Dan's cheeks twitched in irritation.
"I could ask you the same thing."
"I'm her friend. Leave her alone."
"Why?"
"Because she doesn't want you, asshole. Why can't you take no for an answer?"
"She doesn't know what she wants," Dan scoffed, muttering to himself.
Roy took a step forward, eyes homing in on Dickhead Dan as he begun to turn away from him.
"Roy!" Riza cried desperately. "Stop, please. Go home, I'll –"
"Yes, Roy," Dan sneered. "Go home. She doesn't want you here."
"Don't speak for me," Riza barked, the fear disappearing from her face to be replaced by fury. That was when Roy realised, she was scared for him, not for herself. Fists clenched by his side, Roy resisted the urge to punch Dan square in the jaw. The satisfaction would be exquisite however Riza asked him not to get involved in that way. The restraint in which he held himself with was incredible. "Don't assume you know what I want. When we dated, you didn't listen to me once. Couple that with your exhausting need to speak to me every second of everyday and controlling behaviour, that's why I ended it. I want you to go, not Roy. He's my friend."
"More than that though, isn't he?" Dan spat, face contorting in rage.
Riza shot up from her seat, rising to meet her stalker head on. "What has that got to do with you?" The anger in her voice was palpable, coating the room and heating Roy's skin as he felt his own anger rise with hers.
"I won't allow it."
"You don't need to allow shit."
"Riza –"
"Dan," she growled, defiantly standing up to him. "In what world did you think it was acceptable to sneak into my apartment, huh? In what world did you think it was okay to bug my home and spy on me? Did you really think I would welcome you with open arms after all this shit?!"
Dickhead Dan grabbed Riza's wrist and twisted it painfully and Roy didn't really remember much after that. He stepped forward, striding towards Dan as his fist reared back, landing a punch across Dan's jaw. Riza kicked his knee and Dan stumbled forward with a pained cry.
How dare he touch Riza.
A loud banging on the door interrupted their altercation and Riza sprinted for the door. Two police officers took one look at Dan and removed their weapons from their holsters, training it on him.
"Dinner?" Roy asked quietly as he ushered Riza into his apartment. He placed her overnight bag by the door and locked it behind him, placing the chain across it.
"I'm not really hungry now," she replied quietly.
"You have to try and eat something," he urged gently. "How about a little bit? Not to brag, but I made it myself and it's really good."
That made her lips quirk up into a tired smile. "All right, a little bit." As they ate Riza ate more than she had originally planned. "This is actually really good."
"Did you ever doubt me?"
"Well, there was a reason I got you that apron for Christmas last year."
Roy chuckled. "I've matured since then. I think you'll find I'm cooking at an eighteen-year-old level."
"Wow," Riza replied sarcastically. "Look at you. Soon you'll be able to do your taxes all by yourself like a real boy." Roy snorted. No, there was a reason he kept Maes around, precisely for that. He was much better with taxes than Roy.
"You jest, but who will be laughing when you phone in a favour from out dear friend Maes Hughes because you've confused yourself," Roy grinned as he watched Riza's cheeks heat up.
"That was one time, thank you very much." She skewered her pasta. "At least I can do mine like a normal adult."
"If it were a normal practice, we would have no need to accountants in the world, and yet there are plenty."
"Shut up," she muttered sticking her tongue out at Roy, to which he grinned in response.
"You tell me to be quiet because you know I'm right."
"No, I tell you to be quiet because you're a pain in the ass."
"I'll take that as a compliment."
"Case and point."
Roy pointed his loaded fork in her direction. "Payback for that comment with be just and swift."
Riza snorted. "Don't ask for the truth if you can't handle it."
"Valid point. If I'm such a pain in the ass though, why are you still here?" he questioned, waggling his eyebrows as he swallowed what was on his fork, awaiting her answer.
Riza shrugged, a smirk on her face. "Even if you are, you're nice to look at." Roy puffed up his chest proudly. "Not the best," she added with a playful grin. "But you'll do."
Riza cackled and was out of her chair before Roy's fork hit his plate. He chased her into his bedroom as Riza paused at the doorway, a very inviting smile on her face as she disappeared into the dark room with an excited grin. She squealed as Roy's hands lay on her hips, spinning her around as his lips eagerly sought hers. The giggle was replaced with a moan and the outside world – along with their food – was forgotten as they fell onto his bed, searching hands pulling clothes off each other.