Three Weeks Later

Riza

Riza paced in her living room, staring at her phone and willing it to ring.

It was almost midnight where Mia was, and she still hadn't called her today.

Riza had dropped her a friendly reminder, trying to hide her anxiety through text, asking her jokingly if she was having too much fun to call her mother. It had been light-hearted. Riza had even sent a winking emoji. Then, the hours dragged on and Riza phoned her.

It went straight to voicemail.

It did the same thing another two times.

Riza didn't know what to do.

Mia always called. She never missed a day. Even when she was drunk, she still called. It worried Riza sick, but her daughter was smart and sensible. She would never get herself into a situation where she was compromised or unsafe.

But where was she?

The phone buzzed loudly on the table. Riza's heart rate spiked with fright, and she whipped her head down to watch as Mia's smiling face lit up the screen. She scrambled for her phone so quickly she almost sent it careening across the table.

"Mia?" Her voice was desperate. She didn't care that she hadn't called earlier. All that mattered was she'd called now.

Someone was talking on the other side, but it was in a different language. Riza couldn't understand what they were saying.

She blinked in her stun, her stomach twisting painfully as dread settled deep within her bones.

Where was her daughter?

"Mia? Where is Mia?" Riza gripped her phone tighter. "Where is my daughter?"

The voice paused, then faded as it moved away from the phone. A strongly accented voice took its place, speaking so she could understand.

"Is this Mia Mustang's mother?"

"Yes." If Riza's mind wasn't racing with every bad outcome, she would be sure her phone was about the crack with the pressure she was gripping it with. Her heart was thundering within her chest, threatening to break free from its confines. Bile was rising in her throat, but it was quickly forced down as threatening panic prickled over her skin like tiny needles.

"I have some news regarding your daughter, Ms Mustang," the man replied solemnly.

"What?"

No…

No, no, no!

"Mia is with us here at the hospital in Xing. She's been in a car accident."

Maes

"Hey, Riza," Maes greeted cheerily. He'd been surprised when he saw her number pop up on his phone, but it was a pleasant one.

He hadn't heard from her in a while, Maes just realised, and instantly felt bad about how much time he'd let pass without checking in. They'd just been so busy with doctors appointments and getting the nursery ready it had slipped his mind, regrettably.

He vowed he would make an effort to call her more often.

"How are you doing?"

"Maes? I need… I need your help."

Something was wrong.

Maes was instantly alert. "What's wrong? What is it, what do you need?"

There was a deep, shaky breath from the other side of the phone. Maes leaned forward in his chair as he listened intently. His elbows came to rest on his knees, his eyes on the carpeted floor. His whole body was tense as he waited. His whole world paused as he waited for his oldest friend to speak.

She was upset. Her voice was thick, and she sniffed before she spoke.

Riza was never like this.

Something must have happened. Something bad.

Mia.

"I… I got a call from Mia's phone. It – it wasn't her. It was a doctor at a Xingese hospital." Riza's voice hitched and Maes felt his gut wrench.

No…

Her breath shuddered. "She's – she's been in a car accident over there and – and I don't know what to do."

"A car accident?"

The door to his office opened, but Maes barely heard it.

"Yeah. I – I don't know what to do. I – I need to go to her. I need to be with her but there's not a flight out there for another two days. There's some kind of strike going on and –" Riza sucked in a deep breath. Hysteria was threatening and it gutted Maes to hear it.

She was losing it.

"Riza, breathe," Maes soothed her. "Can you do that for me?"

"No," she whimpered. "No – I c-can't. Mia –"

"Riza." He felt his own panic rising. Within his mind flashed the face of his goddaughter. Her mischievous grin and twinkle in her eye. So bright and vibrant.

Now in a hospital somewhere, hurt, in a foreign country.

"Breathe, Riza."

Deep breaths sounded through the phone. Maes had half a mind to leave his office and grab his jacket to head over there now, but he was halted by her next request.

"I need to get to Xing," Riza gasped.

"Of course." Meas straightened immediately and without a second thought, pulled up his contact list for favours. "I can help you. I can get you there."

"You can?" Her voice sounded weak with relief.

A hand was placed on his shoulder. Glancing up, Maes saw his pregnant wife looking at him with concern. Maes shot Gracia a strained smile, placing his hand on top of hers and giving it a squeeze. It was a comfort to have her there, but it also made him realise that Riza had no one to comfort her right now.

Again, he wanted to head over to her house now, simply to be with his friend.

However, he was more useful right now, here with his contacts and his ability to pull strings to help her out. Being high up in the military certainly had its perks and Maes hoped it would pull through for him now.

"Hold on," Maes announced, a plan beginning to form in his mind. He placed his phone down on his desk as he spun to face his computer. His fingers flew over the keyboard as Gracia picked up his phone, greeting Riza to keep her company while he worked.

After a few minutes, his plan had formed and there was something in place.

"Riza? I can have a flight on standby for you within the hour."

"What?" Her disbelief was audible.

"I can swing by your house and pick you up in about thirty minutes?"

"Really?" A half gasp, half sob left her.

"Definitely. The flight is going to Xing anyway. It will be a bumpy ride in a military cargo plane, but it will be transport for you. I can arrange transfers for when you arrive as well. Where is Mia being treated?"

He noted down the name of hospital, scribbling it on a scrap piece of paper beside him. Maes had never even heard of the town before. A quick search online showed it in the middle of nowhere in Xing.

Gracia's hands returned to his shoulders, rubbing them soothingly.

"Are you sure?"

"Of course. I run these things. I can get you on there, no problem, and work out the logistics for you. You will probably be by her side by tonight."

"Maes." She sounded as though she were about to burst into tears. "Thank you."

"Of course, Riza. I'd do anything for you guys. Don't mention it," he replied gently. "Just bring her home safe, all right?"

Riza sniffed. "I will."

Maes swallowed. He wasn't sure whether to ask this next question. He didn't want to put further strain on Riza, however he would want to know. If Riza was stuck travelling and out of range of service, someone had to tell him.

"Does Roy know?"

Silence greeted him for a brief moment.

"He's working on site for another week and a half."

Maes' eyelids fluttered shut. "Shit."

"Can… Can you get him to phone me as soon as he's home and able? I'll need to tell him."

"Do you want me to do it?"

Riza sucked in a breath. "No… No, I want to do it. I'll hopefully know more by then."

Roy

It was good to be home.

Roy placed his suitcase down by the door to his house. The air inside his home was stale and stuffy after being closed up for so long. The first thing he'd do after a long shower was open every window in this place to try and clear it out. It already felt like it was choking him.

Like always, his thoughts turned towards Mia. He wondered how she was getting on in her adventures. Turning his phone on, Roy couldn't wait to see what emails she'd sent him, telling him all about it.

After being flown back from the work site, they were required to wait for an hour after landing before any personal phones or electronic devices were turned back on. Some bullshit about no one being able to track them to the site. Roy worked with that technology every day, and he knew it was possible, but it was still bullshit. It was so unfair. He was dying to speak to his daughter – it had been weeks since he'd last done so – and the military made him wait even longer.

As soon as it was on, his phone buzzed with notifications. He dropped it to the couch cushions and let it catch up with itself as he slowly meandered to the kitchen to grab a glass of water.

His phone rang a few minutes later. Glass in hand, Roy made his way back to find Maes was phoning him.

"Hey, Maes," he greeted his old friend. "That was good timing. I just turned my phone on."

"Hey, Roy."

He paused. Maes sounded subdued. Worried. Roy placed the glass down and was instantly on edge. "What's wrong?"

"Riza asked me to give you a call as soon as you were home. She needs to talk to you about something."

"What is it?" Dread climbed its way up Roy's spine as a sweat broke out. What had happened? Was Mia okay? Was Riza? "Maes?"

"Just… Give Riza a call, okay?"

Roy felt like he might be sick. This couldn't be good, whatever it was. He didn't even say goodbye to his friend, just hung up and scrolled through his phone to find Riza.

His hands were shaking.

The call rang out.

Roy tried a second time, his impatience and dread creating a powerful concoction inside of him.

A third time, and Riza picked up after the first ring.

"Roy," she greeted.

"Hey," he swallowed thickly. "I'm home. Maes called me two minutes ago. He said you needed to talk to me?"

He was really trying to reign in his increasing anxiety, but it was becoming incredibly difficult. If he didn't find out what this was about soon, he feared he may vomit from the uncertainty of it all.

Riza took a deep breath and let it out. It wavered.

When she greeted him, her voice had sounded tired… Had she been asleep? It was mid-afternoon. If she was asleep, where was she? Was she at home? Was she unwell? Did she need help?

There was some shifting on the other side of the phone. "Yeah, I did," she sighed. "Sorry, I'm… I was asleep."

"Riza?" He was desperate now. He needed to know.

"Um, Mia… Mia's been in a car accident," she whispered, but the words were a clear echo through Roy's entire world. "She's in a hospital in Xing."

Her voice cracked as she spoke, and Roy's world came to a standstill. Sound filtered out and his vision blurred before him. His legs could no longer hold him up and Roy fell backwards – the couch caught him.

"She's in a coma right now. She…" Riza sniffed again. "She's really hurt so she won't wake up for a bit. They're letting her body rest."

"I… I…" His brain had stopped working. He was rooted to the spot on his old couch, but at the same time could feel adrenaline beginning to course through him. He needed action, wanted to run to his daughter right now, but was still absorbing what Riza had said.

"She's in a hospital in Xing," Riza continued. Her voice was stronger this time. "So am I. I got here last week."

Last week? His daughter had been in a coma for a week, and he'd had no idea.

"She's doing okay. She's healing, and that's the most important thing. She's doing better and has improved over the course of the last week. They think she could wake up at any minute, but… It's a small hospital. They're not equipped with everything that could help her so we're waiting on a transfer to the nearest city."

"I'm on my way." Roy stood from the couch and strode over to his personal laptop. He opened it roughly, pressing the power button.

If he were able to pay attention to anything other than the thought, "get to Mia and Riza, now!", he might have wondered how he didn't smash the button in his haste.

"I'll… I'll need to double check the name of the hospital," she replied, her tone apologetic. "I don't even remember what it is. Since its so small there isn't a lot translated. There's some kind of airport strike going on here too, so I don't know when, or if, you'll get a flight –"

"I'll be there," Roy interrupted. There was no way he would leave Riza to deal with this alone, and there was absolutely no way he wouldn't go and see his daughter. "I'll get a military flight out there as soon as possible."

"Maes… Maes will probably remember the name of the hospital," Riza added. Her voice was distracted for a moment. "I can't see it up anywhere and don't want to leave her. I… I can't."

Riza had flown to Xing to be with Mia. That was a comfort at least. Mia wasn't alone. But Riza was alone, watching over their daughter by herself with no one beside her. Damn the weather, damn the sellers, and damn the military for making them both go through this. Mia had been in hospital for a week, and he was only now finding out. Anger was beginning to fester, and Roy knew this would be the straw that broke the camel's back. As soon as his contract was up, this time he would be gone from the military.

He'd renewed his contract time and time again as Mia grew older because they'd had a system that worked. Having a good job meant he could provide for his daughter. He always sent money and was more than happy to do so. It always hurt to walk away and leave them both, but he was making a difference in the world. He was doing something he believed in. Right now, it was hard to justify him returning. Not when life was so short and his daughter could have been taken away from him forever, only for him to find out a week later.

What if she'd died, and he'd only found out a week later?

"I'm… I'm sorry to just drop this on you like this –" Riza began, dragging Roy out of his spiralling thoughts.

"Please don't apologise about telling me about what happened." The last thing… She should never have to apologise for that.

"I was always going to tell you, of course. I just… It's not exactly the news you were expecting. And I wish I had better news for you. I hoped that I would." Her admittance was quiet. Dejected.

Roy squeezed his eyes closed.

She'd done this all alone. Found out about it, dealt with it, and travelled to watch over their daughter, all on her own. Without him by her side.

"I'll be on the next flight out."

Roy typed 'flights to Xing' into the search bar on his web browser, and Riza was right. There wasn't one for another two days. "I'll call Maes and get myself on one somehow."

"Okay." Riza let out a breath. She sounded relieved.

"How are you doing?" He hadn't even asked yet.

There was silence, then another sniff. "As well as can be expected."

A diplomatic answer. So, knowing Riza, not well at all, but pretending she was okay. That was Riza's speciality. She could always hold herself together much better than he could. Especially for Mia's sake.

"I'm on my way, all right? I'll be there as soon as I can."

"I know, Roy," she replied softly.

"I'll see you soon," he promised. "Get some rest. I'll be there before you know it." She was in Xing… Roy mentally calculated the time difference in his head and realised it was the middle of the night for her.

"See you soon," she whispered.

Roy hung up, acknowledging the way his stomach tightened at the sound of her voice.

He scrolled down briefly, finding Maes' name.

"Flight to Xing?" He didn't even bother with a greeting.

"Please," Roy replied, his voice strained. He was already moving around his house, closing all the windows he'd just opened.

"I have one on standby, ready to go in an hour."

"Can you get me on it?"

"Already saved you a seat."

"Thank you, Maes," Roy breathed. His hands were still shaking as he picked up the suitcase he'd left at the door. It had everything he needed, and Roy was glad he'd had the foresight to wash things so he could relax when he arrived home. He grimaced at the thought, wishing that were still the plan. He would give anything for that to be the case because that meant Mia would be all right. They would have video called… He would have caught up on the emails and pictures she'd sent…

Roy blinked away the tears and took a deep breath as he stepped out the door and strode to his car.