Recruited

"Two tacos, por favor."

His weak attempt at a joke earned him a stare. The first attempt at a secret date was going about as well as his jokes.

She had chosen the location, date, and time in typical Riza fashion. All Roy had had to do was show up and look handsome—two arts he'd perfected over his career in the military. The Flame Alchemist had even been early. No, there was no fault in the plan or the enacting of it. But something was definitely off.

Neither was speaking.

It wasn't an angry silence. It wasn't an awkward silence.

Just silence.

Roy started fidgeting, mentally checking everything he'd done. On time? Early. Right place? Duh, she's here. Handsome? Why, yes, if I may say so. Fresh breath? I think I ate all my tic-tacs. Flowers? Roses.

He'd done everything by the book. Why was she staring at him like he was gum on the bottom of her boot?

The quiet lingered as the waiter served their orders. She quietly placed hers before reverting to watching Roy, now eating his tacos uneasily.

Roy was used to women observing him with rapture. Riza was staring, no look evident in her features. That, combined with the fact that she looked positively gorgeous was more than enough to make Mustang squirm uncomfortably.

She daintily ate her chicken enchiladas, only toying with her salad. Her even gaze continued through dinner.

"Would you like more water?"

"Yes, thank you," she replied, nodding gratefully at the waiter.

"So what are you—" Roy's umpteenth feebly try at conversation was abruptly interrupted as the apron-wearing, skinny teenage bus-boy spilled his pitcher of ice water.

All. Over. Roy and Riza.

The poor boy—he tried to wipe the ice off the table, apologizing over and over with the knowledge that he was fired for sure.

Roy and Riza's eyes met; something clicked in the minds of each. Their reactions mirrored one another's as they both burst out with laughter.

The rest of the evening rolled by quite enjoyably, save for the wetness. As they left the quaint restaurant, they paused by a familiar figure, moping in the semi-darkness of the street lamp.

As Roy and Riza approached, the figure stood and began apologizing once more. Roy interrupted the teen. "You were fired, right?"

"Yes, sir…" the boy sadly replied, hastily readjusting his thick glasses that were clouded with tears.

"Stop moping!" Roy suddenly yelled. Riza was shocked at his rude behavior. However, the boy obeyed, immediately standing at attention. Roy surveyed him curiously.

"Are you with anything?"

"Yes, sir…" he hesitated, "I have a knack for electric wiring and such, but there's no future in it…"

"Are you interested in the military?"

The ex-waiter's eyes shot open, with a speed rivaling Riza's reload time. "S-sir?"

"My name is Lieutenant Colonel Roy Mustang. If you ever want to join, call my office; this lovely lady will walk you through the procedure." Riza blushed scarlet. The boy was elated. "But you'd better get used to calling me 'sir'," Roy concluded, smirking.

"Yes, sir!!"

And that is how Kain Fuery joined the military outfit.

A/N: this may seem random, but it really isn't. I wrote it in a Mexican restaurant and that had a lot of influence on it.

disclaimer: this story was based partly off a true story.