Fic: "Frustrated Persistence", (Fullmetal Alchemist, Havoc/Ed)
Title: Frustrated Persistence
Fandom - Pairing: Fullmetal Alchemist - Havoc/Ed (Although if you name pairings by dominance, I suppose it’s really more like Ed/Havoc.)
Author: Biscuit
Recipient: Pyren
Prompt: Angst, Fluff, Smut, or any combination thereof.
Rating: PG13
Summary: Even if he was going to have to lock the guy in a closet somewhere, today was going to be the day.
Apologies for shortness. Only 1665 words.
Every day since they'd finished their quest, Al had been teasing him to do something about his not so subtle crush on a certain coworker of theirs, despite his constant protest that he was not some blushing schoolgirl, dammit, and besides, it wasn't like he stood a snowball's shot in hell. But then, every day since the word had gone out that Second Lieutenant Jean Havoc had officially given up on any form of dating or romance, he'd also been waiting for his chance, after acknowledging that he actually had one now, and rehearsing what he was going to say. And every day since his eighteenth birthday and the change of his official status from 'jailbait' to 'legal', he'd tried every distraction and cunning plan he could possibly think of to get just five goddamned minutes alone with the guy so he could say it.
Chewing absently on a plastic straw and glaring into his soda, he grumbled under his breath uncharitable wishes towards the female population of Central. It really wasn't fair, after all. They'd had their fucking chances, and blown them. It was their fault the guy'd sworn off in the first place, right? Right. So they had no right to be getting all interested now and ruining his chances all the fucking time, right? Right.
He gave a frustrated sigh and spat the straw into his drink, suddenly not feeling very thirsty. He was running out of ideas, and this was driving him up the wall. There had to be something... Idly glancing up, he noticed a familiar combination of blond hair and blue uniform amongst the crowd on the street. Quickly putting down enough money to cover the soda and tip, he hopped the railing of the café's patio and headed out, following that glimpse of gold and blue. He'd had enough of these goddamned interruptions, and he was sick of having to back off to let some airhead flirt in his place. Even if he was going to have to lock the guy in a closet somewhere, today was going to be the day.
He lost sight of the older man in the crowd and swore, but managed to catch sight of him heading into a nearby bakery. Picking up his pace, he slipped past an elderly couple and into the shop, spotting Havoc over by the sandwich counter.
“Hey, Havoc.” Just stay calm, he’s alone, no chance of problems here…. The miniature pep talk didn’t much help in keeping his heart from trying to beat its way out of his chest when blue eyes flicked his way and the customary sleepy grin crossed the taller blond’s mouth.
“Hey, Boss. You picking up some lunch too?”
He took a deep breath. “Um, not really. Look…would it be okay if I talked to you about somethi-“
He didn’t even get the chance to finish the question before the redheaded girl behind the sandwich counter tapped Havoc on the shoulder. But as soon as the older man turned his head and she smiled that smile, he bristled. He wasn’t putting up with this flirting crap again, dammit, and he reacted on pure instinct, grabbing Havoc by the arm and dragging him out of the bakery. Probably not the best way to go about things, he admitted in the back of his mind as he hauled his companion through the street toward the base, but he’d been good and not done anything about all the interruptions for over a month. Even if it ended in rejection, he deserved at least this opening.
It ended up not being a broom closet that he pushed Havoc into, but an office that had been vacated for lunch, and, just to make damn sure no one interrupted them this time, he clapped his hands and melded both doors and windows into the wall.
It was only after he had completed the transmutation that he realized he was well and truly alone.
With Havoc.
With Havoc, who was currently staring at him like he had grown a second head and two more automail arms.
“Boss…what the hell’s going on?”
He opened his mouth to reply and… nothing came out. Suddenly, he couldn’t remember the words that he’d been mentally practicing over and over for God only knew how long. And the thought that he was completely winging this made him freeze, eyes wide. He could feel his face heat as hands fell on his shoulders, and all that came out in response to Havoc’s concerned voice asking him if he was alright was a choked, slightly squeaky “Not really.”
He made the mistake of meeting the older man’s eyes, and his nerves tied in knots, leaving him even more hopelessly lost as to what he was supposed to do than he had been seconds earlier. Shit. Shitshitshitshit. This wasn’t going at all the way he’d hoped, and the longer they stared at each other, the more terrified he became. He’d screwed this up, and Havoc was going to laugh at him or worse-
He couldn’t say for sure what the hell had possessed him to do it. One second, he was staring the object of his nervous obsession in the eye, and the next, he had used all of his weight to bodily push the older man back against the wall, and the sudden taste of smoke and some sort of candy Havoc had probably eaten earlier was flooding his mouth. Even as a small part of him was practically gleeful at the thought that he was actually kissing Havoc, the rest of him was in a panicked haze of desperation as he clutched at the taller blond’s uniform collar.
He had no idea how to do this.
Well, he knew the mechanics of it. But he had no clue how to actually do it, and it was so obvious he was inexperienced; it was messy, and wrong, and he thought he would die of embarrassment when Havoc caught him by the upper arms and pushed him back.
Oh, God, he’d just ruined everything, he thought as he squeezed his eyes shut and willed back the tears that threatened to spill. He couldn’t even make himself look Havoc in the eye, because he’d probably completely fucked over whatever shred of a chance he’d had left after freezing up, and-
And his inner ranting went quiet when he somehow realized that the older man wasn’t yelling at him or demanding to be let out of the room, nor had the hands moved from his arms. Screwing up what tiny bit of nerve he had left, he forced himself to look up, then inwardly winced. Maybe Havoc wasn’t acting enraged or scandalized, but that expression was clearly an order to explain himself.
“Ed?”
It was probably the use of his name, rather than the customary title the older man had always called him by, but before he could stop them or try to collect himself, the words just came spilling out of him like a dam broken.
“Don’t be mad,” he pleaded as he continued to fight back the urge to cry. “I know I did this all wrong and it’s not anything as good as other people, an’ I’m a lot younger than you, but I liked you for a long time, but I was too young then an’ I had to wait, but you’d already given up by the time I was old enough, and I didn’t mean to mess this up, and I was just trying to make you understand, and I’m really sorry I made it into a whole wreck an-“
A hand over the mouth cut him off before he could really get going, and he looked up at Havoc’s unreadable expression hopelessly. Then older man sighed, and his insides sank even further. He’s gonna say ‘no’, he’s-
“Look… I’m not gonna deny that the whole age difference thing… it kinda creeps me out.”
Oh, God.
“But-“ he couldn’t help perking up just an eensy bit at that, “-I’m also not gonna deny that, well, this is probably the most effort anyone’s ever gone to for me, good or bad. And, whether or not this went the way you’d planned it, that’s still kinda touching.”
He shouldn’t have been getting his hopes up, really, but he couldn’t help the small swell rising in his chest. “So...what are you saying?”
He held his breath as there was a pause, then Havoc raked a hand through his hair. “I guess what I’m saying is… This isn’t going to be easy, mainly, but… If you could wait all this time and go to all this trouble, I see no reason why I can’t give it a chance and make the same effort.”
He stared. More like gaped, really. This had to have been a joke. Havoc hadn’t really said yes… had he? “Are… are you serious?”
“Why wouldn’t I be?”
And at that precise second, he felt as though his heart could just explode out of his chest. Short of the day he’d succeeded in restoring Al, he couldn’t remember ever feeling as lightheadedly giddy as he did when he flung himself at the taller blond and buried his face against Havoc’s shoulder. He was grinning like an idiot, but he didn’t care. He might have done something stupid, like giggling like a lovestruck schoolgirl, but he didn’t care about that either.
He’d said yes.
Havoc had said yes, and he would have been content to never move from that spot again, especially when the older man chuckled and a hand settled affectionately on his head.
Even Havoc quietly coughing and reminding him that there were going to be some people who would be very unhappy to come back from their lunch break and find the door to their office missing couldn’t break through his cloud of bliss. He was humming absently as he transmuted the room back to normal, and he latched onto Havoc’s arm as soon as they were out the door.
Every day for over a year, he’d been waiting and watching and hoping and trying, and today, it had all paid off.
Fandom - Pairing: Fullmetal Alchemist - Havoc/Ed (Although if you name pairings by dominance, I suppose it’s really more like Ed/Havoc.)
Author: Biscuit
Recipient: Pyren
Prompt: Angst, Fluff, Smut, or any combination thereof.
Rating: PG13
Summary: Even if he was going to have to lock the guy in a closet somewhere, today was going to be the day.
Apologies for shortness. Only 1665 words.
Every day since they'd finished their quest, Al had been teasing him to do something about his not so subtle crush on a certain coworker of theirs, despite his constant protest that he was not some blushing schoolgirl, dammit, and besides, it wasn't like he stood a snowball's shot in hell. But then, every day since the word had gone out that Second Lieutenant Jean Havoc had officially given up on any form of dating or romance, he'd also been waiting for his chance, after acknowledging that he actually had one now, and rehearsing what he was going to say. And every day since his eighteenth birthday and the change of his official status from 'jailbait' to 'legal', he'd tried every distraction and cunning plan he could possibly think of to get just five goddamned minutes alone with the guy so he could say it.
Chewing absently on a plastic straw and glaring into his soda, he grumbled under his breath uncharitable wishes towards the female population of Central. It really wasn't fair, after all. They'd had their fucking chances, and blown them. It was their fault the guy'd sworn off in the first place, right? Right. So they had no right to be getting all interested now and ruining his chances all the fucking time, right? Right.
He gave a frustrated sigh and spat the straw into his drink, suddenly not feeling very thirsty. He was running out of ideas, and this was driving him up the wall. There had to be something... Idly glancing up, he noticed a familiar combination of blond hair and blue uniform amongst the crowd on the street. Quickly putting down enough money to cover the soda and tip, he hopped the railing of the café's patio and headed out, following that glimpse of gold and blue. He'd had enough of these goddamned interruptions, and he was sick of having to back off to let some airhead flirt in his place. Even if he was going to have to lock the guy in a closet somewhere, today was going to be the day.
He lost sight of the older man in the crowd and swore, but managed to catch sight of him heading into a nearby bakery. Picking up his pace, he slipped past an elderly couple and into the shop, spotting Havoc over by the sandwich counter.
“Hey, Havoc.” Just stay calm, he’s alone, no chance of problems here…. The miniature pep talk didn’t much help in keeping his heart from trying to beat its way out of his chest when blue eyes flicked his way and the customary sleepy grin crossed the taller blond’s mouth.
“Hey, Boss. You picking up some lunch too?”
He took a deep breath. “Um, not really. Look…would it be okay if I talked to you about somethi-“
He didn’t even get the chance to finish the question before the redheaded girl behind the sandwich counter tapped Havoc on the shoulder. But as soon as the older man turned his head and she smiled that smile, he bristled. He wasn’t putting up with this flirting crap again, dammit, and he reacted on pure instinct, grabbing Havoc by the arm and dragging him out of the bakery. Probably not the best way to go about things, he admitted in the back of his mind as he hauled his companion through the street toward the base, but he’d been good and not done anything about all the interruptions for over a month. Even if it ended in rejection, he deserved at least this opening.
It ended up not being a broom closet that he pushed Havoc into, but an office that had been vacated for lunch, and, just to make damn sure no one interrupted them this time, he clapped his hands and melded both doors and windows into the wall.
It was only after he had completed the transmutation that he realized he was well and truly alone.
With Havoc.
With Havoc, who was currently staring at him like he had grown a second head and two more automail arms.
“Boss…what the hell’s going on?”
He opened his mouth to reply and… nothing came out. Suddenly, he couldn’t remember the words that he’d been mentally practicing over and over for God only knew how long. And the thought that he was completely winging this made him freeze, eyes wide. He could feel his face heat as hands fell on his shoulders, and all that came out in response to Havoc’s concerned voice asking him if he was alright was a choked, slightly squeaky “Not really.”
He made the mistake of meeting the older man’s eyes, and his nerves tied in knots, leaving him even more hopelessly lost as to what he was supposed to do than he had been seconds earlier. Shit. Shitshitshitshit. This wasn’t going at all the way he’d hoped, and the longer they stared at each other, the more terrified he became. He’d screwed this up, and Havoc was going to laugh at him or worse-
He couldn’t say for sure what the hell had possessed him to do it. One second, he was staring the object of his nervous obsession in the eye, and the next, he had used all of his weight to bodily push the older man back against the wall, and the sudden taste of smoke and some sort of candy Havoc had probably eaten earlier was flooding his mouth. Even as a small part of him was practically gleeful at the thought that he was actually kissing Havoc, the rest of him was in a panicked haze of desperation as he clutched at the taller blond’s uniform collar.
He had no idea how to do this.
Well, he knew the mechanics of it. But he had no clue how to actually do it, and it was so obvious he was inexperienced; it was messy, and wrong, and he thought he would die of embarrassment when Havoc caught him by the upper arms and pushed him back.
Oh, God, he’d just ruined everything, he thought as he squeezed his eyes shut and willed back the tears that threatened to spill. He couldn’t even make himself look Havoc in the eye, because he’d probably completely fucked over whatever shred of a chance he’d had left after freezing up, and-
And his inner ranting went quiet when he somehow realized that the older man wasn’t yelling at him or demanding to be let out of the room, nor had the hands moved from his arms. Screwing up what tiny bit of nerve he had left, he forced himself to look up, then inwardly winced. Maybe Havoc wasn’t acting enraged or scandalized, but that expression was clearly an order to explain himself.
“Ed?”
It was probably the use of his name, rather than the customary title the older man had always called him by, but before he could stop them or try to collect himself, the words just came spilling out of him like a dam broken.
“Don’t be mad,” he pleaded as he continued to fight back the urge to cry. “I know I did this all wrong and it’s not anything as good as other people, an’ I’m a lot younger than you, but I liked you for a long time, but I was too young then an’ I had to wait, but you’d already given up by the time I was old enough, and I didn’t mean to mess this up, and I was just trying to make you understand, and I’m really sorry I made it into a whole wreck an-“
A hand over the mouth cut him off before he could really get going, and he looked up at Havoc’s unreadable expression hopelessly. Then older man sighed, and his insides sank even further. He’s gonna say ‘no’, he’s-
“Look… I’m not gonna deny that the whole age difference thing… it kinda creeps me out.”
Oh, God.
“But-“ he couldn’t help perking up just an eensy bit at that, “-I’m also not gonna deny that, well, this is probably the most effort anyone’s ever gone to for me, good or bad. And, whether or not this went the way you’d planned it, that’s still kinda touching.”
He shouldn’t have been getting his hopes up, really, but he couldn’t help the small swell rising in his chest. “So...what are you saying?”
He held his breath as there was a pause, then Havoc raked a hand through his hair. “I guess what I’m saying is… This isn’t going to be easy, mainly, but… If you could wait all this time and go to all this trouble, I see no reason why I can’t give it a chance and make the same effort.”
He stared. More like gaped, really. This had to have been a joke. Havoc hadn’t really said yes… had he? “Are… are you serious?”
“Why wouldn’t I be?”
And at that precise second, he felt as though his heart could just explode out of his chest. Short of the day he’d succeeded in restoring Al, he couldn’t remember ever feeling as lightheadedly giddy as he did when he flung himself at the taller blond and buried his face against Havoc’s shoulder. He was grinning like an idiot, but he didn’t care. He might have done something stupid, like giggling like a lovestruck schoolgirl, but he didn’t care about that either.
He’d said yes.
Havoc had said yes, and he would have been content to never move from that spot again, especially when the older man chuckled and a hand settled affectionately on his head.
Even Havoc quietly coughing and reminding him that there were going to be some people who would be very unhappy to come back from their lunch break and find the door to their office missing couldn’t break through his cloud of bliss. He was humming absently as he transmuted the room back to normal, and he latched onto Havoc’s arm as soon as they were out the door.
Every day for over a year, he’d been waiting and watching and hoping and trying, and today, it had all paid off.