AN: O.o! I can't BELIEVE I FORGOT TO PUT THE QUOTE IN FOR CHAPTER 6!!!! Noooooo! I hope everyone got caught up on chapter 6 cuz' now I'm posting chapter SEVEN!!! Squee! Sorry if there are some minor grammar errors-- I didn't really edit it v.v

Disclaimer: I don't own FMA and I don't own a postcard from the south of France!

Ch 7: Behind Me?

I HATE ED!!!

Okay... maybe I don't hate him, but he's really starting to bug me. He won't talk to me much when school starts because that Lyra girl is STALKING HIM everywhere, and Rose is always up in his face... So I guess I'm cast to the side—he always seems to have one girl in the front and one girl in the back: Whoopdedoo!

Speaking of Rose—what's her problem? I try to act sympathetic (well, I was feeling nice and I gave her a kind look... so that counts, right?) and she thanks me by MAKING OUT WITH MY BEST FRIEND? What the hell? Is this world seriously messed up or what?

Anyways... this is getting too confusing... I guess I'm not MAD at Edward, but he should at least TELL ME he's going to be sucking Rose's face off before I go in to help them and he's freaking STRADDLING her!

Ugh... like I said... too confusing.

By the way, some blonde freshman guy asked me out today. What was with that? I don't know what to do, I should probably turn him down since I think he's in the senior sci. classes with Ed and that would make things awkward, but Ed apparently has ROSE so, I guess he wouldn't care!

I'll have to think about this...

-Winry, Rampage on paper during Falman's poetry readings

xoxox Ed's POV xoxox

"Ed, I need to talk to you"

Okay, whatever that meant. We were walking to school as usual when she said it. Talk about what?

Okay, okay, so maybe, just maybe Rose had taken advantage of me in the storage room, but that wasn't my fault, right?

"Yeah sure. Later though, okay?" I gave her a drowsy look so she knew I was too tired to talk about that kinda stuff right now and she just sighed (heavily mind you) and, hey, it wasn't my fault that lungs are in the chest area...

So, maybe I might have looked. It was hard not to with the deafening silence and the talk Al and I had had yesterday.

"Ed?"

My gaze snapped up to a frowning Winry who looked behind her a couple of times before continuing.

"Is there something behind me?" she asked.

"Uh, no, just a, um, a squirrel."

"Oh"

The quiet of our walk resumed until Al nudged me in the side.

"You didn't have to stare, you know."

"First of all, stop saying 'you know', and second of all I wasn't!"

This was going to be a long day...

xoxox

The three teenagers finally got up to the school and it was an odd thing because they were 20 minutes early (since for some reason Ed had gotten up early... or in this case not gotten up at all). The front of the school was covered with socializing students which was weird because when they got there it was usually, well, empty.

"Winry!"

The blonde girl turned to meet a shouting blonde boy. Ed looked peeved for no apparent reason.

"Brother... are you, uh, okay?"

"That's the guy from my science class...Russell..." Ed mumbled. Al looked slightly worried as his brother gave the taller boy a death glare.

"Hey, Ed!"

The boy, Russell, smiled and waved over at the obviously irritated Ed who in turn proceeded to stomp away in the other direction, pulling on Al's arm. Bustling students closed them into the crowd, and when Winry looked around to find them, she, well, couldn't, and instead followed Russell into another group.

"So...Brother... how's, uh, Rose?"

In this case Al was nowhere near comforting.

xoxox

"What did you want to talk to me about, uhm..."

"Russell."

"Right. So, what was it you wanted to talk to me about then? "

Winry was still looking around for her two companions as she stood, clutching a couple of stray books in her hand and mindlessly making idle chat with the boy opposite her. That boy looked the picture of anxiety as he flashed an awkward smile which was promptly ignored by the girl.

"So, you and Edward are just friends, right?"

"What?" Winry discontinued her search to glance over at him, "Of course, why?"

"Well, I just wanted to know if, er..."

"Yes?"

"Would you mind, going on a date with me?"

The question hung in the air... awkwardly to say the least. She looked towards him in bewilderment at the realization of what had just been said.

Then the bell rang.

"I, er, have to go! Well, see you later, bye!" And with that she sprinted off towards the school praying to god that this day couldn't get an more complicated.

xoxox

Her stern countenance was exchanged for his smirk; all in the midst of the quiet office.

"Well, going to say anything Riza?"

Exasperated, she tried to avoid slapping him by seating herself across from him instead just to tightly grip the arm rest.

"You know why I'm here."

Her tone was even but her expression made the effort worthless.

"Oh? No 'Sir'?"

"If you wanted to get me to leave, you could have just told me to."

"Hmm, were you fired?"

"No, but that isn't important. Please stop with that attitude and listen. What you did was serious. Nobody else was there, nobody else knew, and even if they saw they wouldn't blow a little paint incident out of proportion like that."

The 'attitude' stayed there and he grinned wider still.

"You almost sound like an angry mother. But the point is: I didn't"

xoxox

"You're late."

A girl appeared in the doorway, long bangs carefully brushed out of her face as she gracefully positioned herself the seat opposite the other.

"That's beside the point," snapped the girl fervently, "You and me have the same thing in sight. With your help, we can get it, or at least get closer to it."

"First of all, it's 'You and I ', and secondly why should I help you. The only reason I'm after it is pure personal interest, not to boost my own popularity." The speaker swished black bangs out of her own eyes and pushed back her chair as if to leave. Smiling, the other girl let pushed her seat away and stood up so she could lean over the table. Their faces were inches away; just staring each other down.

"You really are stupid."

"Why? Because I won't let you take him like some trophy for your 'tragedies'? Give me a break."

The other girl just shook her head and almost laughed.

"No. Because you fail to realize we both want the same thing. We both want her gone because with her gone the field is open and then we both have an equal chance."

"And how do you propose to do that?" asked the dark-haired girl, skeptical but increasingly intrigued.

"I knew that you were dim-witted. With the play over, the dance is coming up soon. What better way than a public stunt? So are you going to help?"

"When's this dance, exactly?"

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

AN: Gah! So sorry for the short chapter ( or is it longer than usual? I think it's longer... O.o) and long updating time! There has been a lot going on these last couple of weeks (science projects and the like X.X).

He he, suspense is my new best friend! L.O.V.E to everyone who reviewed! I appreciate it so, so much. I hope everyone had a great week!!!

Take care,

Phyco girl