Blind Obsession | By : ZaKai Category: Fullmetal Alchemist > Yaoi - Male/Male Views: 24543 -:- Recommendations : 0 -:- Currently Reading : 0 |
Disclaimer: I do not own Full Metal Alchemist, nor any of the characters from it. I do not make any money from the writing of this story. |
A/N:
As a reminder, Richard Kendel is the sex shop
owner from earlier in the story.
Also,
this epilogue really wasn’t necessary for the story, but it’s what I had in
mind for the ending since the beginning.
It’s short and there’s no sex, but I hope you’ll enjoy it nevertheless
:)
—
Blind Obsession
Epilogue
Habitual Continuation
—
Three Years Later
Richard Kendel, known by all as ‘Dickie’, glanced up from the
ledger book when the bell on the door jingled, then smiled pleasantly when he
saw who it was. Tall, dark-haired, and
quite handsome for a man in his early thirties, Roy Mustang was wearing casual
khaki pants and a dark blue button-up shirt—the shirt only now visible as he
unzipped his coat.
Dickie
watched him stamp the remaining sludge off his shoes and onto the thick winter
mat, then start brushing the snow off his coat and out of his hair before
glancing at the clock. Seven o’ clock. Pretty standard for him, seeing as how he’d have had to go home,
shower, and put something on that wasn’t military attire.
Not that
Roy had ever told him he was in the military, but Dickie—having been in the
military himself for many years—was able to tell, at least ninety-nine percent
of the time, if someone was enlisted.
He’d worked in intelligence as a spy and interrogator at the time, and
it had been his job to understand people.
He needed to know people by the way they moved, or how they spoke.
He still
had his connections and he still paid close attention to what happened in the
military; which was another reason why he knew exactly who the Flame Alchemist
was and what he looked like—many people knew the name, but wouldn’t be able to
put that with a face.
But this
was information he kept to himself. If Roy didn’t want him to
know he was in the military, then Dickie didn’t want to make him uncomfortable
by letting him know that he knew. Being
able to read people and making them comfortable was part of what made Dickie
such a successful business man—especially given that he ran a sex shop. Discretion was a must in his line of work.
“How you doin’, kid?” Dickie asked easily. He’d known Roy for a number of years and
while the man was far past the age of being called ‘kid’, Dickie was old enough
to be the man’s father or maybe even grandfather, and at his age he used the
term freely with those younger than himself that he was familiar with.
Roy’s head lifted and he glanced at
him briefly before looking quickly around the shop. A tiny look of disappointment filled his
eyes, but it was only visible to those who knew what to look for. Dickie smiled, knowing what—or rather ‘who’—Roy was looking for.
“I’m
fine, thank you,” he finally answered. “And yourself?” Polite as always.
“Well,
you know, I’m getting old. I can feel
the cold in my bones even when I’m not out there,” Dickie answered. Yes, he was old, and he was feeling it, but
he was also in pretty good health for someone his age. “Something I can do for you?” Probably not, but it was part of his job to
ask.
“Is Ed
around?” Roy
asked, again looking around the store as if the young man was hiding behind a
shelf.
Dickie
smiled. Roy rarely came into the shop just to buy
anymore. Most of the time it was to
visit his young—and only—employee.
Granted it had been Roy who had recommended him in the first place, but
over the past two and a half years, Edward Elric had become almost like a son
to him.
When
they’d been introduced, Ed had mentioned that he’d been in an accident six
months previous and had lost his sight.
No one would hire him despite the fact that he was very capable—he’d
adjusted well to being blind. But,
Dickie had been complaining for some time that he was getting on in years and
that he really should hire someone to help, so Roy had suggested Ed.
It had
turned out to be a great fit. The shop
was small and Dickie was meticulous about keeping the place in order so it was
easy for Ed to get around. It had only
taken Ed a day to memorize where everything was kept and another day to
memorize the prices. Within a week, Ed
was walking freely about the shop with little hesitation, and within a month,
Dickie was letting him work directly with the customers instead of just doing
grunt labor.
When Ed
had been with him three months, his brother had announced his plans to get
married—much to Ed’s shock. After a
couple of days listening to Ed talk about nothing else, Dickie realized that it
was the fact that he’d have to live alone now that was most bothering him and
had offered to rent him one of the small rooms behind the shop.
And so,
the two Elric brothers had become a permanent place in his life—for one did not
have one without having to deal with the other on a regular basis, as Dickie
soon found out. Roy Mustang had also
become another more permanent addition to his life. Dickie wasn’t stupid. It had been obvious the first day he met Ed
that the clothing he’d ordered for Roy
almost a year before would fit that young man perfectly.
The two
seemed to have a good friendship, and when he’d first met Ed, Dickie would have
said that was really all there was to what they had. The two of them were discreet in whatever
other activities they did. But over the
years whatever they felt for each other began to creep into their lives and
into their outward behavior toward each other.
“He’s in
the back going through a shipment we just got in, but he should be done in—”
“Hey, Roy!” a voice said,
interrupting him. They both turned to
see Ed coming in through the back door.
He was holding a large box with a folder on top, so he kicked backward
to shut the door behind him.
Dickie
glanced at Roy,
whose face immediately lit up in a smile before walking over and taking the
box. Ed reached out and grabbed the
folder, then adjusted the thick glasses resting on the bridge of his nose with
a finger.
It was
about a year and a half ago that Ed had started to regain some of his
sight. There had been a lot of commotion
over it—excitement by all and some frustration on the part of Ed and those who
were closest to him. Ed had become
rather cranky for a time as he adjusted to the ever shifting vision
changes. He’d also been plagued with
headaches for a time, which had only added to Ed’s aggravation. And since no one liked to be around Ed when
he was grouchy, life had gotten pretty miserable for a while.
“Thanks. If you want to just set that over there...” Ed pointed to a spot next near a display of
dildos, then walked over and set the folder on the counter. “Their invoice is off by a few cens.”
Dickie
opened the folder and took a look at the invoice. Ed had circled three different places that
were off by such a small amount that Dickie would have never noticed. But Ed
noticed. He always noticed. It was part of being a mathematical genius,
Dickie supposed.
It didn’t
take long after hiring Ed for Dickie to see how brilliant he was, or to find
out that he used to be the famed ‘Fullmetal Alchemist’. As time had passed, and they formed a bond
with each other, Dickie began to push Ed to branch out and use his skills in a
more professional manner. A store keeper
was too low of a life for someone as brilliant as Ed, Dickie had said. Not that he’d wanted to lose his help, but he
would have been a selfish fool not to try pushing Ed to excel.
Ed, on
the other hand, said he was perfectly happy with what he did. It gave him plenty of time to do his own
research, he’d said. In the end, Ed had
stubbornly refused to quit and had said that if Dickie thought he was so
talented, then he should give him a raise. He did, but he also prevailed upon Ed to do
something with his talents in his spare time.
Now
Edward Elric wasn’t just known as the former Fullmetal Alchemist, but he was
also known as the author of a popular series of alchemy books for
children. He’d also co-authored some
more complex texts with his brother; which were now being used in the most
advanced alchemy classes at many universities around Amestris.
He’d been
offered jobs that paid far better than what Dickie could offer, but Ed had
turned them all down, saying that he liked having a low key job. He liked the flexibility and the laid back
nature... not to mention the steep discounts he got on all of Dickie’s products.
Turning
back to Roy, Ed
said, his voice tinged with sarcasm, “I know you’re going to be shocked by
this, but Al’s getting divorced.”
Roy walked over to the counter,
folded his arms, and shook his head. “Again? This is...
what? His third one?”
“Yeah, I
told him not to marry her. It’s only
been a month and a half, but he says he wants out.”
“Too
bad,” Roy said,
then changed the subject. “How was your date with that redhead you told
me about?”
“It was
good.”
“Did you
do her?” Roy
asked in a lecherous tone. Ed’s answer
came in the form of a wide grin. Roy returned the grin and
asked, “Was she good?”
Ed
shrugged as if it was of little consequence.
“I’ve had better.”
Dickie
smiled to himself. A year ago it might
have been true that Ed had slept with someone, but these days he rarely brought
anyone home except for Roy. He’d also found out, through some reliable
sources, that Roy’s dating had dropped significantly and he spent most of his
free time with Ed.
Now it
was almost as if this sharing of fake conquests had become a game to them. As if they needed to keep up the pretense
despite the fact that it was likely neither of them had been with anyone else besides
each other in almost a year.
“Do I get
details?” Roy
asked eagerly.
“Sure. Buy me lunch tomorrow and I’ll tell you all
about it.”
“Deal,” Roy said, then moved on
closer and said in a quieter voice, “So what are you doing tonight?”
“Sleeping,”
Ed said flippantly, giving a smirk.
“That’s what I usually do.”
“What a
coincidence,” Roy
said with a smile. “I also like to
sleep. You want to come over and sleep
with me?”
“Will it
involve actual sleeping?” Ed threw back.
“Anything
is possible.”
They stood
there staring at each other until Dickie decided it was time to break in. “You going to buy something, or just
fraternize with my help?” he asked.
Without breaking eye contact, Roy
reached over and grabbed the first thing that his fingers touched and laid it
on the counter.
Keeping
his eyes fixed on Roy’s,
Ed reached over and touched the item, examining it by feel, then
said, “You already have one of those.”
Roy pressed his lips as if resisting
the urge to look, then gave in and glanced down at what he’d grabbed. “Damn... you’re right.”
“I’m
always right,” Ed said in triumph, putting the item back.
Roy shook his head, then looked up at the clock.
“What time do you get off?”
“I have
another hour,” Ed said.
Dickie
shook his head, and said, “We’re slow tonight.
You can go now if you want.”
“You sure?” Ed asked in surprise.
Dickie
nodded. Ed’s productivity went from one
hundred percent to three percent—and that was being generous—when Roy was around.
“Okay,
well, I’m going to go change and grab a few things and I’ll be right back,” Ed
said, hurrying back through the door he’d come through only minutes before.
After he
was gone, Roy
turned to Dickie and whispered, “Is it in yet?”
Nodding,
Dickie pulled out a small box and put it on the counter. “It’s getting harder and harder to special
order anything without Ed finding out,” he said. “He does most of the ordering now and he
looks over the books for any errors.”
Roy nodded, pulled out his wallet,
and handed over a few bills. “Does it
work as well as they say?” he asked.
Dickie
raised an eyebrow as he gave Roy
the box. “I haven’t used one. If you’re not satisfied I’ll refund you.” He studied Roy for a moment, then said, “You know, it
would really be in my best interest if you and Ed simply decided to live
together. He’s much more productive after spending time with you—though far
less productive when you come in and visit him while he’s working.” It wasn’t his business, and he wasn’t one to
pry, but as an old man—and as someone who viewed Ed almost
like a son—Dickie thought it was his right to put in a little push.
“Hah! Live with Ed?
You can’t be serious!” Roy
said, but Dickie saw through the pretense.
It wouldn’t happen tomorrow or next month, but he wouldn’t be surprised
if the two were living together by this time next year. They moved slowly, easing around whatever
barriers they’d set up around themselves for whatever reasons they had. He had a feeling that they’d already admitted
their feelings to themselves, so the next logical step was to admit them to
each other.
Ed flew
through the door; clothes changed and bag over one shoulder. “See ya, Dickie,”
he said, then lightly placed his hand on Roy’s
arm and asked, “Ready?”
Roy nodded and slid his hand to Ed’s
back and pushed him forward, then looked at Dickie and said,
voice serious but with a small smile on his face, “We’ll see. Anything is possible.”
“See
about what?” Ed asked suspiciously, looking back over his shoulder at
Dickie. Instead of answering, Dickie
simply smiled and waved. Ed glanced at Roy as he opened the
door, making the bell jingle. “See about
what?” he repeated.
“I don’t
know what you’re—” Roy
said, but the door shut, prevented Dickie from hearing the rest over the
jingling of the bell. He stared at the
door for a while, thinking about how quiet it would be once Ed moved out, but
knowing that enough years had passed that it was time. Shaking his head, Dickie turned his gaze away
from the door and gave the ledger his attention again.
-end-
Author’s Note
Well, I’m
definitely thrilled to have this one completed.
Not only that, but I’m so very happy that it worked out how I wanted it
to. It was very interesting to write
this story because not all of the kinks presented here within are ones that I
particularly like or enjoy. There were
also some scenes that I eventually had to alter or cut out because they just
didn’t work, or actually writing out the details would have been too
mundane. Nevertheless, I did enjoy this
story very much.
I really
hate to leave this Roy and Ed behind.
They’ve definitely provided me (and you) with some very interesting
situations. There is a possibility that
I may, sometime in the future, write some oneshots in
this little universe of theirs. I do
have some ideas that I just couldn’t fit into the story itself because it would
have dragged the story out unnecessarily or they just didn’t need to be in
there.
But,
we’ll see what happens. I already have
so many other stories that I’m working on...
I’d like
to give big thanks to my beta, Masamune Reforged. He picked
the story up about chapter 4 and he’s done a wonderful job betaing
it since. I’d also like to thank all of
you for reading and for your wonderful comments. They were very nice to read and also quite
motivating. I wish I could answer you
all, but since I can’t, please know that they’ve meant a lot to me and that I
do appreciate them all very much.
Also, for
anyone looking for more of my work, I don’t post very much on this site
(sorry), but I have a lot of works posted on LiveJournal and fanfiction(dot)net
(though LiveJournal does have more of my higher rated stories than ff.n). Please feel
free to check either or both of those out.
I have links in my profile to my profiles for both of those sites for
those who are interested.
Thanks
for reading.
- Z
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