Draped in Wires
by. Poisoned Scarlet

Theme 044: In The Moment

Edward dozed as the train sped down the tracks, his arm protectively wrapped around Winry's waist as the girl rested on his chest. The seats were as uncomfortable as ever and the rather cramped compartments were as ghastly as she remembered them to be, but somehow all of it was made liveable through the presence of Edward.

It had shocked her, that he had accepted the news so easily. He had been silent for a few agonizing minutes, staring at her with an astonishment she couldn't even begin to describe. The flicker of emotions, of choices, had been vivid in his butter gold eyes before they settled on one in particular: delight. His face had become so bright, so beaming; his grin stretching wider than she had ever seen it.

It was surprising but she supposed she shouldn't have been so surprised after all.

He's always surprising me, she thought to herself, closing her eyes. I hope that never goes away. She only manged a few minutes of sleep before a soft rap on the compartment door jarred her awake. Winry gently leaned off of Ed and slid open the door, gazing at the trolley that offered food. It was a new installment in the railroad business that Winry thought was wonderful, as her stomach growled and she picked out a few boxes of candy.

"Thank you!" Winry smiled, closing it and seating herself. She tore open the box, shoving a few pieces of chocolate covered cookies into her mouth.

She was two months long and she swore she smacked Ed so hard over his head he'd lost recollection of the past few minutes when he loudly stated, in the restaurant they had been dining in, that he remembered the day because he had been too lazy to slip on a condom but he had done it anyway – obviously wrong, she had dryly commented. Ed had been going about how she had become pregnant for hours - at least until she smacked him hard enough to jar his thoughts out of his ear...

"I didn't put it on wrong! I think I've had more than enough experience to put on a goddamn piece of rubber, Winry!"

"Then how come this happened, huh?"

"...It either slipped off or it tore. I'm guess it tore because I remember taking it off myself!"

"Sure..."

She had also taught Edward the wonders of mood swings in the way she had gone from furious to calm and happy to sad once more. Her hormones would take a while to regulate, and Winry was aware that her mood swings weren't the most modest, but she was positive Edward would be able to hold out the entire seven months. Even if she cursed at him, smacked him repeatedly, and most likely knocked him out at least once – because she was sure it was going to happen sometime.

She didn't know how but she was sure because they were both too equally hot-tempered to go a day without some sort of fight.

"Hey, what are you doing awake? Aren't you tired?" Edward's soft voice came from beside her. "You hardly got a wink of sleep last night..." He reached over and pulled her closer to him, his cheek resting against her shoulder as she munched on her treats.

"I'm more hungry right now," she said. "I'm not sleepy at all!"

"Hmm," Edward reached over to grab some but she snatched the box away, glaring down at him. Ed frowned. "C'mon, Win, don't be a pig! Share!"

She scoffed. "I bought them with my own money so unless you want to give me a few bucks, you get nothing!" She tossed another piece in her mouth.

He looked as if he were about to rebut to the statement when a curious expression crossed his face. It wasn't the usual scowling or frowning face, it was a more thoughtful and wondrous look; the look he got when he was suddenly struck with an idea. "Half my money, huh?" He muttered. "You know, you can have all of it; I don't really care."

Winry blinked, owlishly. "Huh?"

"Money," he repeated, still looking ponderous. "Money holds no real value. It's a piece of special fabric used for the consumption of goods. It holds no value unless it's being used for trade...so I don't really care if you take all of it – as long as you're happy, it doesn't matter to me."

"So..." Winry began, slowly. "...I can waste it on whatever I want?"

Ed shot her a warning glare. "Now, wait a minute! Just because I said money holds no real value to me doesn't mean you can go have a shopping spree and waste it on whatever you want! You also have to administer it in a way that won't interfere with our natural living expenses!"

"But I can waste it, right?" Her eyes glowed. "Right, Ed, right?"

Ed rolled his eyes. "Sometimes I think you just love me because I'm the only one willing to act as your personal bank..."

She pinched his cheeks. "You know that's not true! But it's a reason!"

"Winry!"

She laughed, kissing his forehead. "I was just kidding!"

Ed's cheeks became a pale pink and he lowered his eyes a fraction, once more thoughtful but looking rather nervous. She wondered what he was thinking about until she saw him stuff his hand into his pockets awkwardly.

"Hey, Win, you are aware that when we get to Resembool, everyone will know you're pregnant, right?"

"Yeah, but that's inevitable!" Winry said. "Nothing stays a secret in Resembool for long..."

"Yeah...and we aren't married yet..." He muttered, swallowing as her eyes clouded with worry. "We'll get hell for having a kid out of wedlock – if Pinako doesn't hand my ass to me first..."

"Oh, no, you're right..." She murmured, knowing very well how frowned-upon it was to have children out of wedlock in such a small town like Resembool. She recalled Edward's mother, Trisha, having gone her whole life as an unwed woman...though she had also heard her grandmother comment that Trisha wasn't well-liked by the older, and some of the younger, residents of the town because of it. It was partial reason the woman was hesitant to stroll down to town to pick up groceries and sent Ed and Al instead. "What are we...going to do...?"

"Uh," Ed coughed. She rose her eyes to him, puzzled by the extremely nervous expression on his face. She noticed the red ting that was steadily become darker as time passed and she wondered just what the heck he was thinking about until a small box was thrust into her face. "S-so...we technically promised to give one another half of our lives that day at the train station...this - this just makes it official!"

She stared at the velvet box. She slowly took it from his hand and popped it open quietly, gazing at the beautiful ring that was snugly fitted between velvet cushions. It was a simple ring but it was all she had ever wanted, as she took it out and held it between two fingers delicately. It was the perfect weight, the perfect design, and she felt a smile start to grow on her face just as her eyes misted over.

"Do you...like it?"

She rose her head, smiling warmly. "Of course I do! I love it, Ed! It's perfect!"

He released a breath he didn't even know he was holding. "Good...uh, ah, here, let me help you put it on..." He grabbed her hand and she watched as he slipped it onto her finger. But it was obvious the nerves had gotten to him.

"Its my other hand, Ed." She whispered, a giggle lacing her words.

Ed stared in confusion for a moment. "...Oh! My bad!" He hastily removed the ring and slipped it into the correct finger, her giggles doing nothing to make the embarrassed red on his face fade.

"It's okay." Winry beamed, holding his hand in her own. She was not surprised he hadn't planned something overly lavish or actually asked her to marry him; she had always known the words exchanged that day by the train station, before he left for the west, had sealed their future together. She rested her forehead against his own, opening warm sky blue eyes to stare into his own gold but anxiously subdued ones. "It wouldn't have been you if you hadn't screwed up somewhere."

He scowled suddenly, his anxiety dissolving into annoyance. "What's that supposed to mean?"

"Oh, nothing..." She replied, airily, gazing at the ring on her finger imploringly.

"No way, I think you meant something! What, are you implying I can't do something right without making a mistake somewhere? Have a little more confidence in me, would you!"

"Ed, don't ruin it!" She snapped, capturing his lips with her own and effectively quieting whatever other remark he had planned on saying.