When they returned, Kisuke let Natalie and Edward go back to their room or do whatever their whim was as long as they stayed in the shop. Natalie knew that was only because he was meeting with the rest of the Soul Reapers and Natalie and Edward didn’t need to be there for that. That was fine though, Natalie had no interest in it and no intention of staying here much longer anyway. She was actually sad to say she was glad Edward had messed up his leg. It gave them a reason to leave sooner; she actually regretted coming here at all. At least being here had given her a chance to clear her head and figure things out.
Natalie had chosen to go back to the room but not Edward. He’d decided to go down to the underground training area. He couldn’t sit still right now. After about an hour, Natalie wondered down there to find him. It was boring sitting in the room alone anyway. When she did, he was sitting with his legs hanging over the edge of a cliff taking a break. She could see he’d been training, there were pieces of weapons he’d made and remains of stone pillars. He had his head down when she came up behind him and knelt down so she could put her hand on his shoulder. “Ed? Everything OK?”
He didn’t look up when she spoke to him; he didn’t even seem to flinch. “Yeah, I’m fine.”
Natalie moved so she could sit next to him. “You’re lying, I can hear it in your voice,” she said leaning over a bit to try and look at him. It was no use though; his bangs were blocking his eyes. She sighed heavily.
He reached over and put his hand on her leg, finally looking up but still not looking at her. She was right, there was something bugging him. It had been ever since Kisuke had brought it up this morning but it was only now that it really had a chance to sink in. Plus their conversation last night wasn’t making him feel any better. “You’re right,” he said softly, “but I don’t know… I’m not sure I can explain…”
He then got up and started to walk away from her. He couldn’t face her and he couldn’t figure out why. If he was really serious about this, it should have been no problem. He knew he loved her, he knew she loved him but he also knew Kisuke was right, if he didn’t do something more than just tell her he would lose her, just like he had Winry. So many things were going through his mind, everything that Endymion had told him, what it all would mean for him if he walked down this path, and most importantly what would it mean for them both. He thought about all the things Alphonse had said to him the night before he’d left about love at first sight. The more he thought about it, the more he knew his little brother had been right. It was crazy, but right.
Natalie wasn’t going to just let him walk away like that though. She got up quickly and caught up to him, putting her arms around his middle holding him tightly to stop him. She wouldn’t have to hold him that tightly though, he had no intention of pulling away from her. “Edward…” she said softly resting her head against him.
Edward took a deep breath and tapped on her arm so she would know she could relax. When she let up he turned around still in her arms and put his around her to hold her close. He didn’t want to let her go, he thought that if he did she might just vanish, but after a few moments he loosened his hold on her. When he did she looked up and finally was able to look into his eyes. There was something there that she hadn’t seen before. She couldn’t explain it but she thought she understood what it was he didn’t think he could explain.
A stray hair had fallen in front of Natalie’s face, gently he brushed it back behind her ear then he slightly lifted her chin. “Natalie, there’s something I think, no, that I know I need to say to you. I lied last night…”
Natalie looked at him confused. “Lied?”
Edward nodded. “Yeah, I told you that I was thinking about what Endymion said because you were worried about me getting hurt. I lied to you, that wasn’t why I was thinking about it at least not entirely.”
“I thought that might be the case,” she replied. Her mind had gone there too. There was no way she could deny it. She didn’t want to deny it either. That had been why she had told him that she had been thinking about it too.
Edward took a deep breath. “Look, there’s a lot I’ve been afraid of from the moment I saw you in Resembool, mostly what’s been going through my head since then. I should have just listened to Al from the beginning instead of being so stubborn. He told me you were special and he was right, as irrational as it is I should have told you a lot sooner than I did that I love you. I’m just an idiot and I just didn’t want to see it until that night at the ball. Everything that’s happened between you and I, it’s been going so fast but I don’t think it’s wrong, not anymore. Crazy, definitely but not wrong.”
“Do you remember what I said to you that last night in Resembool before we left Ed?”
“That love is irrational and it’s only when you stop trying to rationalize and control it that you can hold it in your hands?”
She smiled at him glad he did remember. “Exactly and you know what?”
“What?”
“You still need to quit worrying about it so much and let it do what it’s going to do and be what it’s going to be. I love you Edward Elric, that’s not going to change. Just follow what your heart is telling you to do and everything will be fine.”
He looked at her, smiling gently. “OK but I have a question for you.”
She looked at him curiously. “What’s that?”
“What does your heart tell you to do right now?”
Natalie couldn’t help but to laugh. She had a feeling he was going to ask her something like that.
“What’s so funny?”
“You’re such an idiot Ed, a wonderfully sweet perfect idiot…” she said grabbing a hold of his shirt and pulling him back to her, kissing him deeply. “My heart is telling me the same thing I think yours is telling you. I want you here Ed, if I didn’t I would have taken you home a long time ago. I don’t want to lose you, ever. I knew it even before we left Resembool but after Sebastian nearly killed you it just hit me even more. I want this, I want you and not just because it’ll mean I won’t have to worry about you so much but because it’ll mean that you’ll be with me a lot longer. Serenity told me to make sure it was something I really wanted before I let our relationship go there but I knew then it was something I wanted, I was just waiting for you.”
“I’m good at that huh?”
“Good at what?”
“Making you wait…”
She put her hand to his cheek and smiled. “You’re just lucky I’m patient.”
He smiled back at her. “Especially when it comes to what you really want right?”
“That’s right. Remember, I always get what I want when it’s something that means a lot to me.”
“How could I forget?” he said chuckling.
She slipped his jacket off of his shoulders. He let her go long enough for it to fall to the ground. Gently wrapping his arms around her, he drew her in kissing her softly, his hands moving up her back, under her shirt. Her skin was a lot softer than he’d thought it would be. She started to unbutton his shirt slowly, her own hands drifting over his chest once she’d undone them all. She could feel the scars on his skin, every single one. He really had been through hell and back again. She remembered where every single one had come from too, the eight small ones from Sebastian, the one on his left side from when he’d had the piece of steel beam go through him after he’d fallen into the mine shaft fighting Kimbley, and of course the one on his right shoulder from when he’d lost his arm and had the automail before Alphonse had managed to get that arm back from the gate. She lightly kissed every single one as she slid his shirt from his shoulders just as she had his jacket. Natalie took a step back from him and started unbuttoning her own shirt letting it drift to the ground as well once she had undone them all. Slowly she then started to remove her pants and panties. It wasn’t long before she was standing there before him completely naked.
Edward couldn’t help but to stare a bit. She really was beautiful, but then she was beautiful to him no matter what she was or wasn’t wearing. He followed her lead and removed his pants and shorts as well. Natalie took a deep breath, all of the sudden she was really nervous but she wasn’t alone, so was Edward. He went back over to her and pulled her close to him feeling her soft, warm skin against his. He just wanted to hold her for a moment. As he did, she reached up and pulled the tie from his hair, letting it fall around his face. Gently she ran her fingers through it letting each soft strand drift and fall back into place before wrapping her arms around his neck.
When she’d done that, he’d bent over, lifting her up with arm behind her back and the other under her knees. Gently, he laid her down on the ground, staring down into her crimson eyes, smiling softly at her, his hair falling around his face. Natalie couldn’t help but think it almost looked like a golden halo around his head. It made her giggle to herself that she would think that. She brought her hand up to his cheek and stroked it, looking back into his golden eyes.
“You’re sure about this?” he asked brushing a stray strand of hair from her face.
She nodded. “Just… just… go easy OK?” she replied, her voice shaking a bit from her nerves.
“Only if you promise to do the same…”
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