May 30, 12:24 am
"I left a bit after that so I could get to work on that microbiology text sensei brought for me, and when dinner time came around I attempted to make beef stew for sensei and myself. We both missed Miss Riza's usual skill in the kitchen. Even if sensei forgets to eat half the time, the man knows decent cooking when he tastes it, and I'm a poor substitute for his daughter.
I took Miss Riza some, too, but she'd fallen back asleep by then, so I don't know what she thought of it or whether she even ate it…but I mean to check on her again before I go to bed to see if she needs anything else. She must hate being stuck up in her room all day like this. The sooner she's back on her feet the better. (And not just because I can only make about three dishes that are even remotely edible!)"
Massaging the muscle cramps in his hand, Roy tiptoed down the hall to check on Miss Hawkeye one last time. Finding her asleep, he gently tugged the novel out of her slack hands and set it on the nightstand, careful to mark her place with the bookmark. Before turning off her lamp, he studied her thoughtfully, struck by what a pretty picture she made.
At some point she'd changed into a lacey pink nightgown, a feminine frivolity which amused Roy because he hadn't expected it from such a serious girl. Even with her short hair disarranged from sleep, Riza bore more than a passing resemblance to a porcelain doll with her pink nightie, rosy lips, and ivory skin. She really was awfully cute like this, Roy thought with a smile.
He started to reach for the light again, stealing one last glance at the sleeping girl. But it occurred to him that as cute as she was, Miss Hawkeye's flushed cheeks were just a little too pink to be altogether healthy.
Without stopping to think, Roy gently brushed Miss Riza's hair away from her forehead and laid his hand on the exposed skin. Rather warm, he mused, but not exactly burning up, either. A low grade fever, then, but since she wasn't shivering or sweating, it was probably all right. Just as he removed his hand and straightened up again, Riza stirred.
"Papa?" she murmured. Her eyes fluttered open and focused on the boy standing over her. "Oh, it's Mr. Mustang," she amended, blinking sleepily up at him.
"Ah, I'm sorry. Did I wake you? I was just going to turn out your light," he explained a little anxiously. Had she felt his hand on her forehead? He really shouldn't have done that; suppose she'd taken offence?
"No, it's all right," she said, stifling a yawn. "I feel like I've been asleep most of the day, anyway. What time is it?" Roy consulted his pocket watch.
"Half past twelve," he announced. Her face fell. "What's wrong?"
"No, it's nothing," she mumbled, looking away. She couldn't be feeling well, he thought. Aside from the two bright pink cheeks, the rest of her face was several shades paler than usual, and her eyes looked glassy.
"So, how's your shoulder feeling?" he asked.
"It's still sore, but better than it was," she replied, shifting a little against her pillows with a little half-grimace. "My ankle hurts the most, at the moment."
"Ah, maybe you should have taken those pills, after all," Roy suggested.
"Maybe. If only they didn't make my head feel so funny," she sighed. "I don't like feeling all …floaty like that." Roy hid a smile.
"Hey, I was gonna head down to make some tea; d'you want anything? Hot cocoa or water or something?"
"Tea sounds nice; if you're sure you don't mind?"
"Not at all. Be right back," he said brightly.
He returned ten minutes later bearing a hastily thrown together tray laden with teapot, cups, sugar bowl and a plate of buttered toast, each golden piece liberally sprinkled with cinnamon and sugar.
"Just in case you're hungry," he grinned when he saw her notice the triangles of cinnamon toast. She hesitated for just a moment, and then took one while Roy poured out the tea. "Sugar?"
"Please," she said, watching him add a heaping spoonful to her cup. She accepted it with a murmur of thanks, and Roy took a moment to drag an armchair from the corner of her room so that he could sit beside her while they shared the midnight snack.
"This is…odd," Riza said suddenly.
"What, you never had a midnight tea party in bed before?" Roy quipped, licking a crumb off his lip.
"Well…no," she answered, smiling a little.
"You've been missing out, then," he said cheekily. They munched their toast in silence for a moment, and then Roy set his cup in its saucer with a little clink and cleared his throat. "So…I've been meaning to ask you something. Promise you'll answer honestly, okay?"
"Okay..." she said slowly, the tiny smile fading away. Roy looked earnestly and steadily into her eyes.
"I don't want to be a nuisance and I'm pretty sure your father would skin me alive if he thought I was doing anything to upset you. So I thought I should probably just ask you straight out: am I annoying you?"
"Oh!" she said, clearly caught off guard.
"Not just with this," he hastened on, gesturing at the cups and now empty plate of toast. "But in general, I mean. I'm not forcing you to endure my company or anything, am I?"
"No, not at all," Riza replied quietly. "You aren't annoying me at all."
"It's okay if I am, or if I do at some point. You just say the word and I'll leave you alone," Roy continued. And then he flashed his brilliant smile at her. "But now I'm making you uncomfortable by talking about it, and you're already feeling ill. Is the tea all right?"
"It's perfect, thank you," she said softly. "And, while we're on the subject…I didn't get a chance to thank you properly earlier, for helping me get to the doctor and everything." She toyed with her teacup, choosing her words carefully. "You were very kind, to go through all that trouble on my account. I appreciate it."
"It wasn't trouble at all," he insisted. "Anyone else would have done the same."
"No. They really wouldn't," Riza replied, with a little shake of her head. "Anyway…thank you." Roy shrugged, beginning to feel a bit embarrassed.
Really, what kind of jerk would he have to be, to find an injured, helpless girl lying on the ground at his feet, only to walk away and just leave her there? Oh, you're hurt and can't get up? Gee, that's too bad. Well, see ya around; I've got sigils to study!
"Um, you're welcome," he mumbled, sheepishly rubbing the back of his neck. "Honestly, I was glad to be able to do something for you for a change. You're always doing so much for my benefit." She blinked at him.
And then, to his surprise and mortification, she giggled. But she sobered quickly when she saw his expression.
"I'm sorry, I'm not laughing at you," she explained anxiously. "It's just that—no one has ever said that to me."
"Really?" he asked, incredulous. None of the other students noticed or appreciated that she made all the meals, and did all the laundry and the cleaning, and…just about everything else besides the actual teaching around here?
"Most of my father's students just ignore me entirely," she reminded him. "And...I never minded that before."
Roy had the feeling she'd just admitted something extremely personal.
"Would you rather that I ignore you, too?" he asked softly.
"Oh, no! I-I mean..." Riza stammered, confused.
Ah-ha! So she did care. At least a little bit.
"All right then," he smiled, encouraged. "Anyway, I appreciate all the stuff you do around here," he said quickly, looking down at his teacup. Although she hadn't really been laughing at him before, Roy's ego still stung a bit from the imagined blow. "I meant what I said before, about wanting us to be friends," he continued, as nonchalantly as he possibly could. "So…so just tell me if I do anything that bothers you, okay?"
He risked a glance at her face and found her watching him with something like tenderness in her expression. Her lips curved slowly upwards when he met her eyes.
"Okay," she answered softly.
Really, Roy should've known better. But it had been such an important and noteworthy event, disrupting their usual routine as it had…how could he not write about it in great detail? In the end, he had taken up nearly five full pages (front AND back) with his tiny, neat handwriting, telling them all about it in as much detail as he could recall.
He hadn't even thought about how his "sisters" would react; he was far too caught up in the story he was telling to be self-conscious about his role in it. If he'd read it over when he'd been a bit calmer, Roy would have realized, perhaps, what kind of scene he was offering up to their scrutiny: A young man literally sweeping an injured young girl into his arms and carrying her to help and safety…willing to risk the wrath of her formidable father in order to assist her…using duty as an excuse to check up on her…admitting that he was glad to have this opportunity to get a little closer to her.
Was it any wonder that Chris's girls were beside themselves when they'd read the letter?
Chris herself merely smiled her usual secretive smile as the girls giggled madly and gossiped and asked each other pointed questions.
This is getting more and more interesting by the day, she thought.
A.N. Something short and sweet to tide you over until I can get the kinks out of the next chapter :D Thank you for all the reviews and favorites and follows, everyone, and thank you all for your patience!
xoxo Janie