Just Say It

AN: I love putting Ed in awkward situations. And I figure – Winry probably tends to feel guilty about just how much she bashes Ed up, especially after volume 12… so, I tweaked with situations past volume 15.

Disclaimer: I don't own Fullmetal Alchemist… everything and everyone belongs to Ms. Hiromu Arakawa.

It was just supposed to be a regular visit to Rush Valley.

His automail wasn't even in that bad shape – he was just anxious to go there and see her, to make sure that she was really all right. He needed to see the proof with his own two eyes, because that was just the way he worked.

Winry had welcomed both of them with open arms and a bright smile. Edward had been slightly unsettled by the absence of her wrench, but figured it was a good change. It was nice to take things easy once in a while, even though he didn't exactly do the entire 'laze around' thing very well.

He knew that they would have to get up and move on soon – he needed to find the silly little bean girl, the one who used rendanshu. Although he'd first thought of travelling to Xing to learn more about the art, he'd quickly dismissed the idea – with his metal arm and leg, he'd fry himself alive before reaching his destination. Maybe, if he had time, he could convince Alphonse to take the long way around, the sea route – but since Mei had been spotted heading north, he'd changed destinations to North Headquarters. Armed with a recommendation from Major Armstrong himself, Edward was fairly optimistic about their chances.

He hadn't told Winry where they were going. She hadn't asked, so he hadn't offered the information. There was no point in letting her know, especially not now that she might be watched by the Fuhrer's officers. Edward felt a knot form in his stomach as he recalled his conversation with King Bradley, and the homunculus' not-so-subtle threats regarding Winry.

"Don't you dare hurt her! Or the people she cares about!"

If he hadn't reacted so heatedly, Edward thought wryly, maybe Winry would be in a better position. Still, as long as she didn't know…

"Ed?" Edward lifted his head from the sofa armrest and stared quizzically at the blonde girl. Winry's hands were still occupied with bits and pieces of metal, but her eyes were trained on him. He briefly wondered how on earth she was being able to tinker without even looking at what she was fiddling with.

"Yeah?" he spoke, tilting his head to one side at her worried look. Winry's hands abandoned the scraps of metal and she got to her feet, walking across the room to settle down on the sofa Edward was reclining on. Her eyes searched his, and he felt his cheeks heat up under her scrutiny.

"You're in love with Winry, aren't you? Aren't you? Aren't you?"

Dammit, he cursed, what a time to remember perceptive Lieutenant Hawkeye's words!

His flush deepened, but Winry didn't seem to notice. She gently reached out to touch the white bandage around his head. Edward winced almost imperceptibly – the skin on his forehead was still tender from the injuries he'd sustained while fighting Father and his homunculi – but Winry noticed. Her hand shot backwards and her eyes widened.

"Sorry," she muttered, swallowing uncomfortably. "I'm sorry, I didn't know it still hurt."

"It doesn't, not really," Edward told her, mustering up his familiar false bravado. "It was just a scratch."

Winry leveled her gaze on him once more, and Edward squirmed.

"If you say so," she replied quietly. She stared down at her hands, currently residing in her lap, and curled them around an imaginary object. He wondered what she was thinking about.

"You got really hurt, didn't you." It was a statement, not a question. "You always get hurt."

"Ahh…" He hated it when Winry got all girly and emotional on him. He was never sure how to deal with her then. When she was angry and shouting, he could just shout right back – but when she was teary, he found it difficult to offer her words of comfort. "N-not really. It just looks a lot worse than it actually is."

Winry made a disbelieving sound from the back of her throat. "I'm not stupid, Ed," she spoke gently.

He didn't know how to answer. Luckily, he didn't have to.

"You suffer so much on the battlefield…" she continued quietly, a faraway look in her eyes, "and then you come to me, so that I can help you heal and recover… and I…" Her voice wobbled dangerously, and Edward sat up in alarm.

"Winry…" he began, contemplating reaching out to pat her head reassuringly. "It's not…"

"No!" Her voice rose. "No, no, no! Let me finish!"

Edward gulped. It was ridiculous, really, how much power Winry had over him.

"You come to me to fix yourself, and I beat you up even more!" she whispered, sounding truly tortured. "I… I… I just give you more injuries, more things to worry about! I never realized… I never realized… I'm so sorry, Ed!" Her head fell forward into her hands, and her shoulders shook.

Oh, shit. Edward had never dealt with crying girls well – what teenage boy did? He stared at Winry dumbly as she continued to tremble, obviously very upset with her actions. Finally, she lifted her face from her hands and wiped at her red cheeks.

"Sorry," she apologized, her voice slightly stuffy. "I just… I had to get that out…"

Edward bit his lower lip. How was he supposed to respond to something like this?

In truth, he'd never thought of Winry's assaults on him as violent, really. It was just how she showed she cared, and that she worried about the both of them. She definitely could have found a better outlet for her frustration and concern – like knitting or something – but each time her wrench or spanner connected with his head, he almost welcomed the pain. Because it hurt, it hurt like hell sometimes, but at least there was still someone there to scold him and scream at him and give him concussions.

(And hell, if he'd wanted to stop her, he could've done it ages ago.)

If Winry wasn't there…

"Winry, listen," he began hesitantly, unsure of how to comfort her. "It… it never bothered me that much… well, it did bother me sometimes, yeah, but I mean… it's not like that…"

Winry sniffled and looked up at him, her blue eyes uncomprehending. Edward groaned inwardly.

"I, ah," he stammered, hating the fact that his cockiness had deserted him. Normally, he would have come up with some annoying retort like Hell, yeah, about time you apologized! or I lose brain cells every time you clonk me with that thing!, but he couldn't bring himself to say something so insensitive to Winry, not when she was crying and pleading for his forgiveness.

She really is cute… no, no, banish the thought, Edward Elric!

Shaking his head furiously, Edward wished Alphonse was there with him. Alphonse had always been much better at cheering Winry up. While Edward was usually the one who made her cry, Alphonse could make a smile come to her face in the span of about five seconds.

"I'm sorry." Winry's voice was subdued, and Edward glanced down at her. "I'm really sorry, Ed. I promise, I won't do it again."

His throat tightened. "Yeah, okay," he replied gruffly. Then, feeling extremely awkward, he reached towards her and wrapped his arms around her for a heartbeat.

He felt Winry's spine stiffen underneath his hands, and he drew back quickly, his cheeks darkening again. He'd never offered anyone physical comfort before.

Winry's ears turned red, but she looked more composed after his brief hug. She offered him a faint smile and got to her feet. She returned to her work place and settled down on the stool, slipping on her gloves and continuing with her tinkering.

Edward stared at the back of her head and wondered how it was that Winry brought out the strangest instincts in him.

AN: Didn't come out how I wanted it to, but I kind of like it, anyway. Edward doesn't seem like the type to offer physical comfort, but a brief hug or something might be within his limits. And after seeing Edward in the middle of battle, I think Winry would probably appreciate how narrowly Edward escapes death, time and time again. In fact – I think the only time she hits Ed over the head with a tool after that is when she catches him in her room in chapter 84, right? Right? (My memory isn't the best, but yeah.)

No, I don't think Ed is a masochist, but only Winry's allowed to throw metal tools at him. ;)

1,306 words.