Al's P.O.V.
I hug Jade back and Brother is still wiping away tears.
If I was human, I'd cry too. If I was human, I'd feel the deep pain Brother does. If I was human, Jade's hug would bring warmth to my cold body.
The sadness in her voice as she says my name only makes me shake harder, the tears I can never cry imaginatively falling down my face. I look down to see that she's crying too. We pull apart and she wipes away her tears.
"Why are you crying?" I ask her, my voice shaking.
"I'm crying for you." She replies quietly. She puts her hand on my metal one again. "I'm sorry Al…"
I do my best to make my voice cheerful. "Don't be sorry, it wasn't your fault." She nods and looks out the window again.
"I wonder what my life would've been like with real parents…" She mumbles and I get the feeling she didn't mean for us to hear that.
The train ride seems quiet short before we reach our hometown. We exit the train station and I smile at Jade's reaction. "Whoa guys, it's beautiful." She whispers.
Brother chuckles and we walk down the dirt road to the Rockbell residence. "Granny! Winry!" Brother shouts as we near the house.
The front door opens and Granny Pinanko steps out, surprised to see us. "Edward, Alphonse." Brother grins as we walk up the steps. Jade pauses at the bottom. I turn to her, to see her uncomfortable expression.
"Don't worry Jade, they're like family. Come on." I offer my hand to her as Brother and Granny argue about how short they are. Jade smiles gratefully and takes my hand.
"Ah, who's this?" Granny asks, ending her argument with Ed. "Is this your girlfriend Alphonse?" She asks further, and I blush.
Well, you know, if I could, I would be.
"N-n-no G-granny! Y-y-you g-got it a-all wrong!" I stutter, and I see Brother dying of laughter at my embarrassment. I also see Jade blushing shyly too.
"Then, is she your girlfriend Edward?" Granny asks, and brother stops laughing. A faint blush shows on his face now.
"Nah, she's our student. This is Jade. We're teaching her alchemy." Granny frowns and is about to say something when a wrench comes flying out of nowhere and smacks Brother in the head. He falls backward off the porch and onto the ground.
"Ed!" Jade exclaims, jumping down to kneel beside him. Winry appears from her balcony on the second floor, her arms crossed in anger. Jade looks up at Winry, and she looks down at Jade.
It's like everything freezes, as they glare at each other. "I'm assuming you're the mechanic?" Jade asks, trying to keep her voice kind.
"Yeah, that's right. Who are you?" Winry asks, not even trying. Jade helps Brother up, and he dusts himself off.
"Thanks." He says, and Jade smiles. "One, what the heck was that for?! And two, this is Jade. We're teaching her alchemy." Brother says, turning his attention to Winry.
"Well, you leave for years, not sending so much as a letter, and then you just show up!" Winry shifts to the side, her arms still crossed. "And as for her, where did you pick her up?"
"Winry!" Granny exclaims at Winry's rude tone. Jade flinches and looks down at the dirt.
"Anyway, why did you come here?" Granny asks us.
"Brother needs his automail repaired." I reply to her. She nods and motions the three of us inside. I notice Jade leaning in the doorway as Winry and Ed talk about his arm. She's still looking down, but glances up at them every now and then. I get up and walk over to her.
"Something wrong Jade?" I ask quietly as Brother bursts into laughter.
"No, it just, your mechanic doesn't seem to like me." She says softly.
"She just doesn't know you yet. "I reassure her and she smiles.
"Thanks, Alphonse."
My P.O.V.
I sit by Al for the rest of the day as Winry fixes Ed's arm. It starts to get late when the older lady, Pinanko, makes some dinner. "Would you like any, Miss?" She asks me and I shake my head no.
"Thanks, but I'm not hungry." I smile politely, and Ed gives me a strange look. "I'll be out on the lawn." I say to Al before I walk out the front door with my alchemy book. I lay down in the soft grass as I flip through the pages in my book. I hear the cheerful sounds from the house as they catch up.
Is this what family is supposed to look like? I ask myself, but I have no answer.
It soon becomes too dark to read, so I just lie on the grass and think. I barely hear the footsteps approach me. "Jade?" I turn on my side and look up to see Ed.
"Don't mind me. I wouldn't want to keep you from your family." I say softly, lying back on the grass again. I hear him sigh, then he's sitting on the ground beside me.
"There's something bugging you, I can tell. What's wrong?" He asks, his voice low and soft.
"It's nothing I can handle." I say softly; I don't want to mess up what family he has left.
"You can trust me Jade." Ed turns to face me. "What's wrong?" I'm about to tell him that I think Winry hates me when, speak of the devil, she appears at the front door.
"Ed, you should come inside before it gets too cold out." She calls in a sweet voice. Ed glances at me but I shrug.
"Go on, I'll be in in a few." Of course she doesn't care if I'm left in the cold. I think silently, but I put a smile on my face for Ed's sake. He needs friends, especially going through what he and Al are. "Go on, get some rest Ed." I say quietly.
He nods and stands, stretching before he goes back inside. Winry gives me one last glare before following him. I wait for a few minutes before I rise off the ground and head inside.
"You can take the room upstairs on the left, the end of the hall." I turn to see Pinanko, sitting and puffing her pipe.
"Thanks." I smile and climb the stairs, which creak beneath me. I pass the other rooms, and when I'm only three doors away, Winry steps out of her room on the right, blocking my path. "Excuse me, but I need to rest for tomorrow." I say softly, in a forced kindness.
She pauses, as if thinking about letting me pass or not, but doesn't move. "Listen, Ed and Al and I have been best friends since we were little kids. I don't want you to ruin that. I don't know who you are or where you came from, and I don't care. But I want you to stay away from them."
I sigh, trying to stay calm. "Listen, I'm their friend now too. They're teaching me alchemy. I care about the two of them. I'm not going anywhere."
She crosses her arms and frowns. "Fine. But don't even think of loving Ed."
I look at her, confused. What right does she have to order around my feelings?
"We're betrothed." She says, a small smirk forming on her face. I feel like my heart has been crushed in two.
"I see." I whisper, not planning on giver her the satisfaction of seeing me cry. "Now if you'll excuse me." I walk past her and I flop on the bed after locking the door. "Damn… Why does the world insist on doing this to me?" I whisper to myself as tears run down my cheeks. "Guess this makes me weak." I murmur.
Ed's P.O.V.
In the morning, I stretch and dress myself in my usual outfit. "Morning Al." I yawn when I see him.
"Morning Brother." He replies in his cheery tone. We both go down stairs to see Winry and Granny. Winry seems to be happier this morning. I brush aside the thought as I eat some breakfast.
"Where's Jade?" Al asks, and Winry frowns.
"Probably sleeping." She adds something under her breath that I can't hear. At the creak of the stairs, I look to see Jade coming down the stairs. She's wearing blue jean capris and a dark purple tank-top. Her hair is down and slightly messy.
"Hey, morning sleepy-head." I grin to her, but she looks away and mumbles, "Morning…" The smile instantly leaves my face, and I notice her usually bright eyes are dimmer. She also has her bag already packed. "Jade?" I ask, rising from the table.
She pauses, her hand tightening around her bag. "Would you like anything to eat honey?" Granny asks, but jade shakes her head no.
"Thanks, but I'm not very hungry."
"But Jade, you didn't eat anything last night either!" Al protests seriously.
"Don't worry about me." Jade whispers. "I'm going back to Central." She straightens up and heads for the door.
"Wait Jade. We're all done here now. Just wait for a bit and we'll all go back together." I say quickly before she can leave.
"Fine." She sighs. "I'll be on the porch." And with that, she leaves.
"What's gotten into her?" I ask aloud, clearly expressing my concern. Winry shrugs, obviously not caring, but she's smiling again now.
What is going on between those two? I wonder, but then Al sets his bag against the wall and turns to me.
"I'm all packed. Let us know when you're done and ready." Then he follows Jade outside.
Okay, this is getting weird. What's up with them? Are they..? I gasp at my thought. No, they wouldn't be having a secret relationship, would they. Even if they were having a relationship, why would they keep it from me? I shake that thought away. It wouldn't happen like that.
So then, what is it?
Al's P.O.V.
I shut the front door behind me and look out on the lawn. Jade is lying in the grass, using her bag as a pillow. I walk down the front steps and I sit on the grass beside her. "Did something happen between you and Winry?" I ask flatly but quietly.
"No, don't worry about it." She says back, not opening her closed eyes.
"Please Jade, don't shut me out." I notice my voice sounds slightly panicked, but the thought of her leaving us hurts. And I can't feel pain. "Please."
Jade sighs and sits up. I see her body shake lightly. "I can't, Al. I don't want to involve you."
Now I notice she's crying. "Jade, I want to be involved. That's what friends are for." I pull her close to me, hoping my cold metal body can give her some comfort. "It's okay to hurt."
She cries harder and I hear the door open behind me. I turn my head to see Brother with our bags. A surprised look crosses his face, and Jade only cries harder.
"Wh… What… Al?" Brother stutters, still simply standing there with a shocked look on his face. I look down at Jade then back to Brother.
And it clicks.
She and Winry both like Ed.
And neither of them wants the other to win.