Edward had unpacked most of the boxes in his new, large room upstairs, and had most of his clothes thrown around his bedroom floor. Alphonse was infuriated that Edward had managed to get the room despite his pleading with Trisha. But in order to keep his room, Edward had to agree to do a few more chores than Alphonse had to. He agreed. It would be worth it to have a large room all to himself instead of sharing a small one with his brother, even if he did love him.

The entire house had the smell of warm dinner and sweet cookies flooding it gently. With a sigh, Edward felt his stomach rumble and couldn't help to place his right hand over it. A confident smile crossed his face as he left a few DVDs over his bed. "After dinner I'll bring the old TV and I'll watch all the movies I got before moving…," he told himself, walking off his new bedroom back to the kitchen.

"Edward! Alphonse! Dinner's ready!" Trisha called just when Ed began walking down the stairs.

"I'm coming!"

He bounded down the stairs two at a time, trying to rush to get to the dinner table. He sat down across from his brother, his mother on his right and his father on his left. He and Alphonse gave each other a smile and began eating the delicious food Trisha had made. Edward noticed his father had been silent for the last two hours that he had been unpacking. With uneasiness knotting in his stomach, he put on a soft smile and addressed Hohenheim.

"You've been quite for awhile, dad," he said. "Is something bothering you?"

The man raised his sight slowly and looked right toward his oldest son, analyzing every movement Edward did or every word he said slowly. "I was just thinking, Edward," he finally said, but his eyes showed that this man was hiding something. "Just keep eating your dinner."

Edward raised an eyebrow feeling suspicious, but he saved his words when Trisha talked. "Ed's right, honey." She said. "Is everything alright?"

"Maybe he's stressed," Alphonse added and Edward just shrugged looking away.

Hohenheim looked at Edward sternly, making the young blonde nervous. His hands shook as Hohenheim's sight seemed to burn into him. He placed his fork down and looked up to his father.

"Why do you keep staring at me?" he asked. Hohenheim looked at him for a long moment before turning to his food.

"So, Edward, tell me about this 'Envy' boy," he started dryly. "Alphonse mentioned him a few times to your mother. He said you met him first. What's he like?" Edward looked at him in surprise, exchanged glances with Alphonse, and turned back to his father.

"S-Sir?" he asked. Hoehenheim looked up.

"I believe you heard me perfectly clear. What is Envy like?"

"Why are you so interested…?" he asked, trying to control his nervousness and hide any sign of his trembling shoulders. Clearing his throat and looking right toward his father, Ed managed to answer. "He's ok, I guess. I mean, he's tall and… nice, I don't know."

"Van?" Trisha could feel her husband getting tense with every word Edward said and, with worriedeyes, she began feeling that maybe this dinner was going to end up wrong.

Hohenheim looked at his son for a few moments before pulling a dry smile. "How nice," he commented, taking a bite of his meal. "And tell me, Edward, do you happen to like this boy?" Edward stopped eating mid-bite and looked at his father with a hurt expression.

"And just what do you mean by that?" he asked. Hohenheim shrugged.

"I just want to know if you like him is all. That way, I know who to keep you away from." At this remark, Edward glowered and slammed his hands against the table.

"What the hell is your problem, old man?"

"Brother, please calm down," Alphonse asked with a concerned look in his face, but everyone at the table knew that Van's last words were just what started the battle in that table.

"No! I won't calm down!" Edward growled, feeling the anger biting his stomach. "I wanted to have at least one peaceful dinner and this bastard already ruined for me!"

"Don't you dare to call me "bastard" again, you damn freak!" Hohenheim yelled back, and Edward felt his skin turn paler as he felt hurt, but he hid it quickly in his anger. "You stained our last name in our last home! I won't let you ruin it again!"

Edward glared at his father. He stood up from his chair so quickly that it fell over. He stared his father down before kicking the chair harshly and turning away from the table. "I need some damn air," he snarled towards his dad. Without another word, he stalked quickly to the door and threw it open, making sure to slam it harshly. Once he was outside, he jumped down the porch and took off down the street, away from the road that led to the city where he had been just awhile ago. He ran until his lungs burned and he couldn't feel his fingers. Once he had done that, he stopped and bent over, massaging his hands to get the blood flowing to them. He was still angry and wanted to slam his fist into something.

"Damn it!" Edward cursed as his right bare fist slammed against the concrete floor under him, closing his eyes tightly, he hit the floor again and again. His heart and body was starting to shake that he barely felt the pain in his hand. "God damn you!"

His breathing became irregular as he remembered one of the most reasons why his father took the chance to leave their hometown. With a harsh growl, Edward took his injured hand to cover his face as he continued walking through the lonely streets. "It's… not my fault!" His eyes began to get flooded; images of a black haired man appeared on his mind, a man he used to love… a man who never looked right into Edward's heart.

The man in his mind had started out as a kind, respectful man who was just younger than his father. The two were very close friends, and the dark-haired man always made sure he greeted Edward when he came over, telling him funny stories about his father's work and what they did. But that had changed when Edward made that one mistake. It caused them to move to where they were now.
Edward shivered, now feeling the cold biting through his sweater and jeans. He should have thought to bring a jacket. That was a mistake he would have to remember to learn from.

"Ed, is that you?" a voice asked. Edward jumped and looked up. He met confused, violet eyes. He realized that a dark umbrella was being held over his head, blocking the snow from his hair.

"E-Envy…?" Edward whispered, feeling the tears slide down his pink cheeks. Who would think this little blond boy could see the bright side of luck under such a circumstance? He trembled, the low temperatures playing with his frozen skin. Edward looked quickly away and brushed those cold tears from his face, but they were quickly replaced more.

"What a-are you doing here?" the young blond asked as a sob tried to leave his red lips.

Envy stared at him. He felt a small twang of pity for him. "I could ask you the same thing, Ed," he said with a smile and a laugh. "You look horrible. Are you crying?" He grabbed Edward's wrist and pulled it away from his face, tilting his head to get a better look at the blonde's face. Edward just ducked his head.

"N-No, I'm fine," he mumbled. "What are you doing out here anyway?"

"It seems that Pride stole an ID back in the store and I went to hand it back to its owner," Envy said as he searched inside his pocket. After a second, he took out a napkin and offered it to the crying blond. "Here, clean your face."

Hesitating, Edward grabbed the napkin and cleaned his burning cheeks with it without looking back at Envy. "Thanks." He muttered. "I… think I should get going."

Edward looked around and realized that he had blindly run in a random direction and had no idea where he was. He rubbed the back of his head and Envy chuckled, realizing the situation he was in. He held out his hand.

"Come with me," he said. "You can warm up at my place, and I can take you home later. As long as you don't mind hearing me scold Pride for a few minutes." He grinned. Edward shrugged.

"Fine. I might as well." He took Envy's hand, glad that it was warm.

Edward allowed himself to be pulled to Envy's home, which wasn't very far from where he had ended up. And he mentally thanked God when he walked inside and was immediately greeted by heating.

"You can leave your shoes by the door if you want," Envy said. "And don't worry about intruding; the whole family's out and left me to babysit." He looked towards the stairs. Pride was hiding against the railing, looking down sheepishly as Envy gave him a stern look.

"It wasn't on purpose...," Pride said sadly as he shrugged looking away from his brother. "I just wanted to play."

Edward took off his boots and placed them beside the door while he looked around Envy's warm house. It was bigger than his, and, looking at the decoration it had, it seemed like this family had a high status.

"Woah…," Edward whispered in surprise.

"Robbing is not a game, Pride." Envy went to get his little brother and grabbed his arm so the child looked right to his purple orbs. "You could get me into trouble next time, and that won't be funny. Especially if mom finds out."

Pride stuck his lip out and began sniffling. Envy didn't falter. "Don't give me those crocodile tears, Pride. I know you're faking it to get out of trouble. Now, go to your room and don't come out until Mom gets home. I'm going to make sure she punishes you for this." Envy let go of his brother as the boy started crying and ran down the hall. Edward felt sorry for the kid.

"You could have been a little nicer to him," he said when Envy returned from the stairs. Envy shook his head.

"No, I can't. If he doesn't shape up and stop stealing everything he sees, he's going to get into trouble with others, and I don't want that to happen," Envy explained. Edward couldn't argue with that. Envy decided to change the subject. "So, want something hot to drink? Your lips are purple." Edward felt himself blush and covered his mouth.

"That'd be nice," he said through his fingers. Envy chuckled and started towards the kitchen, turning to beckon Edward to follow him. Edward did, marveling at the elegance of the kitchen. Envy didn't seem to notice his gawking.

"Are you, by any chance, rich or something?" Edward asked as he stopped, standing right beside a luxurious wooden table, placing his injured hand over it and began tracing it with his delicate finger tips.

"Rich? No," Envy started as he looked back at Edward. "Something?" He smirked and then chuckled. "Yeah, I might be 'something'?"

"W-what is that supposed to mean?" Edward asked blushing. When Envy smirked, he noticed that guy's charm and had to turn away.

"Just kidding, shorty.", Envy said as he took out two cups and placed them on the table.

"Is there anything specific you'd like to drink?" he asked. "We're not much of a coffee family; Greed's the only one who drinks it." Envy grimaced. Edward smiled.

"Well, whatever you have, I guess," he said.

"Hot chocolate it is." Envy began preparing it as Edward sat down. The two began talking about all sorts of things. Edward asked Envy what it was like growing up in a tundra like Canada, and Envy asked Edward what the place he grew up in was like. Edward told him as much as he could, avoiding the topic of the older, dark-haired man he had fallen for. Envy accidentally scared him by yelping when he splashed hot water onto his hand.

"My bad," he said when Edward stood up from the table to help him. "So, why did you come up North to where everything freezes, Ed?" He began mixing the power into the mugs of hot water. Edward looked to his feet.

"Money problems," he lied.

"It takes money to move into a new city, Ed," Envy replied as Edward gulped and laughed nervously.

"Dad got a new job right here, that's what I meant," the blond corrected while Envy finished with the mixture and slid the yellow mug toward Edward hands. "Thanks."

"No problem. So, your dad got a new job, huh?" Envy asked, giving a small sip to his chocolate and loving every drop from it. "That must be sad, leaving all your friends behind."

"Yeah…," Edward whispered, staring at his reflection inside the mug.

Envy frowned at his depressed state and took a cautious sip of the scalding liquid. Edward took a sip and sighed happily as he felt it slide down his throat. "Thanks," he said. "This feels really good..." He grinned. Envy smiled.

"So, what had you out there in the cold, Ed?" he asked. "And what had you crying?" Edward's smile was wiped off clean in an instant and he looked back to his reflection in the light brown drink. He bit his lip.

"It's sort of embarrassing," he said in a low voice. Envy had to strain to hear him.

"I promise I won't tell anyone, Ed. If that's what you're worried about." He tilted his head slightly. Edward didn't look up. Envy took the seat in front of him, trying to get the blonde's attention. Edward looked up and felt himself blushing. Envy seemed trustworthy. But he wasn't sure how he would take to the truth of his argument.

"I got into a fight with my dad," he admitted. "About why we moved."

Envy nodded lightly as he placed his mug on the table as he kept his eyes on him. "Your dad's work, right?" he asked and Edward bit his lower lip in apprehension.

"There were other circumstances that made my father take that decision," he whispered, like he was ashamed of his real self and wanted to hide it deep inside his heart. Yet, something told him he should trust Envy and let it all out before his chest started aching again. "Like... my sexuality."

Envy stood silent for some seconds as he analyzed Edward's word. He truly didn't expect it and it was shown on his facial expression. "You're gay?"

Edward's head shot up so quickly that he thought he had snapped his neck. Envy had asked the question so casually. Edward blushed and looked away so that he didn't have to meet Envy's eyes. "Um..." He gripped the handle of the mug.

"Hey, it's okay if you are," Envy said enthusiastically. "I know a lot of gay guys in our school. It's kind of obvious with them, but you... You don't peg me as gay. No offense, of course!" Edward looked up at him, surprised.

"Really? You're not, like, grossed out or anything?" he asked. Envy shook his head.

"I won't tell your secret if you don't tell mine," he whispered with a wink. Edward blushed and took a large sip of his hot chocolate, which was cooled down some since their conversation started. When he pulled the mug from his lips, Envy started laughing.

"W-what?" Edward asked as the green haired sin kept laughing. That made Ed frown. "What's so funny?"

"You got a nice mustache right there." He pointed right over Edward lips where there was, indeed, a hot chocolate mustache decorating his face. Edward blinked taking his hand quickly over his lips and noticed it blushing madly.

"Oh, damn," he whispered, cleaning his lips quickly with his palm and looking shyly back to Envy, and there's where he noticed that he was really a handsome person. Maybe Van Hohenheim made a mistake taking his family to that place. "How…? I mean, does anybody else know about your secret?"

"My brother, Greed, does," Envy said. "Mom figured it out, but she doesn't mention it often, and Dad's completely oblivious. But he and Mom are separated, so it doesn't matter anyways." He shrugged. "So, those two only know. And now you." Envy smirked. His eyes looked over the blonde, taking in every little detail of his face and hands. Edward felt himself blush.

"So, you're not going to tell anyone about my, uh, preference are you?" Edward asked worriedly. "If it got out around the school, I think my dad would literally have a heart attack and die."

"Ha!" Envy smirked. "I wish Greed would. He annoys me to hell." Envy took a large sip of his drink. Edward laughed. "By the way, is Alphonse the same as you?"

Edward looked at him and shook his head. "No, Alphonse is... he likes girls." Edward played with his fingers nervously. He felt slightly better, though, after having told Envy about his sexuality. No one outside his family knew about it, so telling someone he was unrelated to about it was like taking a brick off his chest.

"Well I recommend you to take care of your little brother's innocence, because there are tons of perverts at high school that love to bother the new guys," Envy said as he got closer to Edward, grabbing his chin and making those golden orbs stare at his violet eyes. "Perverts like me, of course."

Edward gulped, blushing madly, and brushed Envy's hand away from himself, stepping backwards and laughing nervously. "A-are you serious? Don't you dare to touch my brother!"

But then Envy chuckled at Ed's reaction and shook his head, raising both hands in the air demonstrating his innocence. "There are perverts at high school but I swear I am a good guy." He walked toward Edward and continued. "Besides, Alphonse is really not my type."

"Then…? Which type of… um… guys do you like?"

At this, Envy smirked. "The cute type," he said in a sultry tone, letting the words drip off his tongue. "The kind with big eyes and who think that they can protect themselves from someone stronger than them, but can't. Blondes are my favorite." He chewed on a fingernail. Edward felt himself blushing. There was something about Envy that drew him dangerously towards the strange boy. He couldn't help but want to lean over and see what he tasted like...

Edward squinted his eyes shut and shook his head firmly, trying to shake away the thoughts that had just occurred in his head.

Envy noticed Edward reactions and smiled to himself knowing that maybe he could take his chance. "Why are you blushing so randomly?" he asked, and Edward felt his shoulders getting tense at his question. "Feeling attracted to me already?"

The blonde's heart pounded hard against his chest and he couldn't help to hold his hand against it.

"W-what is wrong with you?" he asked quickly, trying to hide his blush by looking away and letting his bangs cover the evidence. "We just met today; don't play with me."

Envy smirked and stood from the table, leaning over it. "Why not?" he asked, gingerly touching Edward's face, causing him to darken the red hue and jerk away. "You're so cute."

"C-Cute?" Edward stuttered, biting his lip. He ducked his head. Envy liked cute guys. I can not be a cute guy!, Edward thought to himself.

"I-I'm not cute!" he tried to argue but backed into the counter. He winced as the granite top dug into his back. "I-I should get back home soon. My parents will start worrying about me if I don't get back."

"Really? But we were just starting to have fun," Envy complained as he gave him a fake pout, which Edward thought it made the man look rather… innocent.

Manipulative bastard, Edward thought as he scratched his neck and looked away trying to rearrange his priorities and focus on getting back home soon. "Maybe I hate my old man but still I don't want mom or Alphonse getting worried just because of me."

With a sigh, Envy nodded and looked for his keys inside his pockets. "Well then, if you insist, maybe it is time to take you home."

Edward sighed with relief as Envy's feral stare disappeared and was replaced with what he thought was a normal expression. Envy called up to Pride to let him know that he would be gone for a few minutes and held the door open as Edward walked outside and followed Envy to his car. Once they were inside the small, compact vehicle, Edward felt more exposed to the boy than he did in the house. The car was, by all means, smaller, and Envy was only centimeters away. If he wished, Envy could take him to some dark part of the woods and have his way with Ed.

After Edward convinced himself that he was just too paranoid, he tried to start a conversation away from the topic of his sexuality.

"So, he said, "do you have any other siblings besides Greed and Pride?"

"Nah, my family is way too short and I'm ok with that," Envy told him as he drove the car peacefully in the lonely streets. "I tend to feel uncomfortable when there's noisy people around me. It stress me sometimes."

"That sounds extremely familiar to me," Edward chuckled as he felt like Envy was talking about him instead of himself. "I was a bit antisocial at my old high school, had few friends beside Alphonse, and it was rare to make me talk in classes."

Envy looked at Ed by the corner of his eye as he listened to the blond speak. "I always took a book and read it on my free time so I could avoid strange people who start talking to me."

"Oh, so did I. It got annoying, though, when people came up to me and asked what I was reading, what it was about, what was going on... I nearly hit a guy in the face with the book," Edward said with a laugh. Envy smiled, and Edward felt his heart leap up in his chest. Envy was already playing with him.

"Well, if we're lucky, we should have some classes together." Envy brushed hair out of his eyes. "If you need any help getting around the school, don't hesitate to ask me. I'll be willing to help you." Edward nodded politely towards him, but made a mental note to only go to Envy if he was really desperate.

When the car stopped his way, they were right in front of Edward's house, and Envy let out a sigh as he looked back to his shorter companion. "Here we are," he said as Edward took the seatbelt off and nodded. "Guess I'll see you later or, if I'm lucky, tomorrow."

Edward nodded as he opened the door of the car and looked back at Envy. "Thank you for… bringing me all the way back home"

"Hey, no problem," Envy replied and then smirked. "Like I could leave someone as cute as you alone on the streets a day like this. I wouldn't forgive myself if you got robbed."

"Stop calling me cute, damn it!"

Envy laughed as Edward punched his arm and rubbed his skin. Edward grinned and got out of the car, shooting him a wave before closing the door and jogging up the steps. Trisha was at the door as soon as he was and threw it open, grabbing him in a tight hug. Edward missed the hot chocolate and felt himself shake as Trisha pulled him inside. He glanced back at the road to see if Envy was watching him get hugged, but there was no sigh of the black car that had recently been in his snow-covered driveway. With a sigh, he walked past the kitchen where his father still sat at the table and all the way up the stairs to his room. Once he was inside the warm sanctuary, he fell over onto the mattress on the floor and heaved a sigh. That dark look in Envy's eyes never seemed to get out of his head, like it was permanently burned into his head.