Envy Between Rivals (A Fullmetal Alchemist Fanfiction)

Chapter Thirty-One - Confrontation

Arya whipped around, both her and Edward startled by the sudden, soft interruption. At the first glance of bright blonde hair, Arya immediately realized how badly she had screwed up. However, when the person came through the threshold, she visibly relaxed, recognizing the kind brown eyes.

"Lieutenant Hawkeye!" she exclaimed, immensely glad that it was her, of all people, and at the perfect time. If Riza had helped out Arya with her relationship struggles, maybe she could aid Edward!

"Hello, Arya. Hello, Edward," she said, nodding to each of them in turn. "I happened to be walking past and heard some yelling. You two all right?"

Edward looked like he was trying to laser holes in his boots with his eyes. "Yes, Lieutenant, we are perfectly fine."

"Actually . . ." Arya began. She momentarily hesitated when Edward gave her a harsh look, but decided it was best to get this solved as soon as possible. "We need your input on something."

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"Hm," was the Lieutenant's first response. She had a concentrated expression on her face, obviously trying to think of the proper thing to say to the steaming boy and partially flustered girl.

She turned to Edward. "I know that this is an awkward topic for you," Riza chose her words carefully. "If you want, come to my office for some privacy when you're done here and I can help you out."

By the grimace on Ed's face, Arya could tell that that was the last thing he wanted to do, but he forced himself to look the Lieutenant in the eye and say, "All right. I'll do that." He shot Arya a particularly angry look.

Riza nodded. "Okay, I'll see you soon, then." She looked at Arya as well. "Thank you for bringing this up. I know Ed would have struggled with this on his own otherwise."

Arya inclined her head with a small smile, even as Edward's face grew red, along with his scowl. Riza rose from the chair she had situated herself in and smiled back, turning to go.

"Have a good day, you two."

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Edward whipped towards Arya. "Are you kidding me??"

Arya rolled her eyes. "No, Ed, I'm not. I know that that was embarrassing for you, and I'm sorry, but I couldn't just let you suffer through this without finding someone who could help. Lieutenant Hawkeye assisted me in my similar struggles, so I think it was perfect that she walked in."

Edward seethed for a moment, then paused, appearing to be thinking. "Wait . . . your similar struggles? What do you mean, do you have two . . . lover candidates?"

Her face beginning to heat, Arya suddenly seemed to struggle for words. "I - I mean—" She was saved by the door to the room opening yet again.

"Finally!! I'm sorry, you two, that took forever!" Winry pranced into the room, arms full of supplies. "At first I couldn't find my wrench, and when I went looking for it, I uncovered all these old bolts I've been looking for for months, and then—" She paused, seeming to sense the tension in the room. "What happened while I was gone? You guys look like you murdered someone and tried to hide the body. And failed."

Edward resumed inspecting his shoes, the color of his face matching the cloak he usually wore, and Arya scratched the back of her neck awkwardly. "Nothing really happened. We're all right. No dead people here. Or in a closet." She attempted to laugh, but a weird snort was the only thing forced out of her throat. She cleared it.

"Umm . . . all right, then." Winry gave them an odd look as she shut the door behind her with her foot and set her arms' contents down on the table. Arya knew she didn't buy it, but was relieved that she didn't push for more.

"Okay, so Arya, we have a lot to do today, but hopefully we'll get it all done. First, I need you to lay on this cot over here . . . ."

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By eight o' clock, Edward had discreetly left to pay a visit to Riza and Winry was tightening the final bolt in Arya's new automail. Sighing heavily, Winry sat down her wrench and leaned back in her chair, swiping at her damp brow.

"That took just a bit longer than I expected. Ah, well, job's done!"

Arya grunted as she propped herself up on her elbow, examining her brilliant new hand and flexing her gleaming foot. "They're wonderful, thank you so much."

"No problem, I'm glad to help." Winry sat forward in her chair, her expression suddenly changing to something of concern. "What . . . were you and Ed talking about while I was gone? I know something is off, you guys were acting strange when I got back."

Arya instantly started sweating profusely, the glint of light off of her automail suddenly blinding. "Um . . . I mean . . . I'm not sure if that's something I'm supposed to sh—"

"Was it about his crush on me?"

Arya halted mid-sentence.

"You don't have to be secretive about it. I'm not stupid, y'know; he makes it pretty obvious. And anyway, there's nothing wrong with it, I don't mind. I know exactly what's going on when he gets that blush all over his face — the same shade he had on when I walked back in."

Arya simply looked at Winry for a moment, not sure what to say. Would it be wise to let her know about his . . . conflict, or leave it be? Weighing the risks of both options, she spoke.

"Well, I'm . . . glad that I don't have to beat around that bush anymore." She took a steadying breath. "However, there's one more piece of shrubbery in the way. See, Ed . . . he's . . . not sure how he feels right now. He does have a crush on you, but he also . . . has one on me? I don't think I like him back, though," she added quickly.

It was Winry's turn to look at Arya for a few moments. Then she started chuckling before tipping her head back and howling with laughter.

"Ha! Imagine that!" Winry shook her head, a grin still curling her lips. "I can't say I'm surprised, honestly. He's so good with alchemy and math and fighting and such, but when it comes to emotions, he's like a four-year-old."

Arya let a giggle slip past her lips. "Yeah, I've noticed. He's either throwing a tantrum or blushing and blubbering, it's actually pretty funny."

Winry's laughter bounced around the room again. "Totally! I'm really glad we agree on this, now I can complain to someone who understands when he's being an idiot."

"Isn't that most of the time?" Arya replied with a snort. A fresh wave of laughter burst out of Winry at the remark.

"Yeah!"

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The two girls giggled and chatted and traded stories for hours in that room. She had just met her, but Arya already felt like she had known Winry for years.

Arya wondered if Moria would get along with her just as well. She didn't doubt it.