16. Savin' Me (Nickelback)

Roy was no stranger to hot summers, but those at the Hawkeye residence were worse than the ones at his own home. Though the Hawkeye residence was in a more rural area, it got a little stuffier because there were no cars whizzing by at all hours of the night to at least move the air around. The only moving air the town got was from the river, which, though not much of a swimmer, Roy would go visit on the warmer nights.

There was a calm portion of the river frequented by most of the town, so Roy often chose to go around dusk, when everyone else was heading home for dinner and sleep.

Riza would occasionally accompany him, often with a book. She could swim, but never did with him around. It perplexed him a little bit, that all she would do would be to wade in to her knees.

This night, however, was incredibly warm. Roy was sure that Riza would jump in once and for all, but did not press the subject.

He was wrong. Riza settled on the bank with a book, a rather large cotton shirt over her bathing suit. This, Roy noted, was a step up from her usual blouse and skirt.

After just soaking for a little bit, Roy could not stand it. "Aren't you roasting, Riza?" he called.

Riza set her book down. "There's a breeze."

"Not much. It's not like I'm here to… I dunno, ogle you or anything." It was too dark to tell if Riza was blushing, but Roy could feel his face warming a little. "Come on, just jump in! It won't kill you!" He got out of the water, jumped on the rope swing some other kids had put up, and jumped in.

He surfaced to find Riza giving him a little smile. "Aren't you a bit big for that?"

Roy shrugged. "It was fun." He climbed out again and repeated the process, noticing that Riza was watching him and looking rather uneasy.

Mid-way through the arc of the swing, the rope broke. Roy did not have enough time to catch his breath before he landed in the water. Having hit his back, too, he was momentarily paralyzed. He struggled to push himself above the water, but knew that he would not be able to swim back. It was just too painful.

"Roy!" Though his hazy vision, Roy could make out Riza casting off the shirt and jumping into the water. She reached him in a matter of seconds, tugging him inch by inch to where he could stand. As soon as they were clear of the bank, the pair collapsed on the ground.

"Why… didn't you just… jump in?" Roy gasped.

He was close enough to tell that Riza was indeed blushing now, but her expression was not only embarrassed; it held more than a little fear, and possibly some anger. "I needed something dry to walk home in," she explained, sounding convincing, but Roy knew there was more to it than that. He had lent her his jacket when they had been caught in rainstorms before, and he had a shirt with him tonight.

Roy almost told her that, but if he knew there was something more to her explanation, so did she. "Oh… Thank you."

"You scared me," she whispered. "I just had this feeling that something was going to happen, and when you jumped on that swing… You're not the first to break it and fall."

"I know… should've listened." Roy grabbed a towel to prop up his head. "I could be a while… If you need to go—"

Riza shook her head. "And risk something else happening to you?"

"What could happen now?" Roy wanted to know.

"I don't ask—if I do, it's bound to happen," was Riza's response. She had a towel wrapped around her shoulders. She gave herself a quick, brisk drying, and pulled the shirt back on.

They sat in silence for a few minutes before Roy pushed himself up. "If you're not going to leave without me, I guess I might as well start moving. I'm getting the feeling that your father won't be happy with me for making you jump in and staying out late. Call me crazy, but I know when I'm in a bad situation just as much as you do."

As they walked into the Hawkeye house, Riza turned to Roy. "Thank you for not asking," she said simply.

Roy knew he should probably play innocent, but he chose not to. It was Riza, after all. "If I need to know, I'm sure I will," he told her.

"Thank you," she said again, more quietly this time, before ascending the stairs to her room.

Roy was nearly going crazy. What was going on with this family? He wanted so badly to know, and had blown his chance at making Riza tell him something back there.

And what would you do once you knew? a little voice in the back of his head asked. More to the point, would it really be worth it to take that information? Would it be worth losing her trust? She's far too important to you and you know it.

Trudging up the stairs, Roy sighed. More to add to the Hawkeye mystery. Someday, he promised himself, he would figure it out.

Someday.

A/N: Meh. I don't really know where this one came from. I was watching a program on the dangers of volcanoes, so I guess the section on lahars (volcanic mudslides) might have had something to do with it. Maybe.

Anyway, I know it's not very good, but I'll probably come back and make it better later. 'Til then, drop me a line! Maybe you guys can help me fix it!