Chapter Three: Selective Oblivion
All written works displayed are (C) K.E. Wright.
Ed:
"What, exactly, do you mean by 'over'?" my best friend asked me. I was lucky she hadn't leaned over the table and grabbed me. She really did like being the first to know these things.
"Done. Finished. Fin. Owari. The End." I reiterated, rolling my eyes up and trying to think of more ways to say the same thing. "We broke up. Well, more accurately, I broke up with him, but still."
"I was kind of wondering when it would happen," Al remarked between bites of his lunch –the school favorite, cheeseburger and curly fries. "I knew he kept pushing on the PDA thing. And, well… other boundaries you don't abandon for no reason," he finished, side-stepping the whole issue of sex, which he knew had been a problem in my relationship.
I nodded to my brother. It didn't surprise me that Al had noticed, but it did surprise me that Winry hadn't. My baby brother did know me so very well –better than I wished, at times.
"I… Sorry. I hadn't realized," Winry told me softly.
"You can do better, anyway, Brother." Al offered me a smile.
I arched my brow at him. Mr. Alphonse Still-With-The-Same-Girlfriend-Since-Middle-School Elric, himself, was offering me relationship advice? Without referring to me as a 'player', which I was convinced was a polite term for 'man whore'?
He blushed and looked away awkwardly, perhaps recalling a similar past conversation that had ended badly because that word had been thrown in. "I… I've just noticed that you haven't exactly gone unnoticed by the guys of the student body."
Winry inclined her head in agreement. "The more attractive half of them, Alphonse and yourself excluded of course."
I shook my head. Trust me to remain oblivious to the fact I had a wider dating pool that I thought while they picked up on it. How like me to suffer from selective oblivion. "Thanks."
This time Winry did lean over the table, only without the killing intent. She kissed my cheek. "No problem, Ed. Now, find someone who will treat you better."
There was no point in telling her that I didn't deserve better than that. She'd just tell me 'Love isn't about what you think you deserve, Ed. Seriously, look at me and Al.' Besides, I wasn't interested in anyone that I deserved. An image of moon-pale skin, jet-black hair, and shimmering obsidian eyes popped into my head, but I shoved it away. It was no use being infatuated with one of my teachers. It wasn't like there was even an ice cube's chance in Hell that my feelings would be reciprocated, anyway.
Hurriedly, I finished the rest of my lunch and rushed to Havoc's room, knowing I needed to finish the project on time or the easy-going man wouldn't be quite so easy-going. Gritting my teeth, I hoped Russell wouldn't be in the classroom. Then I cheered myself up with the fact that Havoc wouldn't hesitate to scold him.
Then I tried to tell myself that my English teacher wasn't on my mind.
Hey, selective oblivion should work in my favor sometimes.
"What, exactly, do you mean by 'over'?" my best friend asked me. I was lucky she hadn't leaned over the table and grabbed me. She really did like being the first to know these things.
"Done. Finished. Fin. Owari. The End." I reiterated, rolling my eyes up and trying to think of more ways to say the same thing. "We broke up. Well, more accurately, I broke up with him, but still."
"I was kind of wondering when it would happen," Al remarked between bites of his lunch –the school favorite, cheeseburger and curly fries. "I knew he kept pushing on the PDA thing. And, well… other boundaries you don't abandon for no reason," he finished, side-stepping the whole issue of sex, which he knew had been a problem in my relationship.
I nodded to my brother. It didn't surprise me that Al had noticed, but it did surprise me that Winry hadn't. My baby brother did know me so very well –better than I wished, at times.
"I… Sorry. I hadn't realized," Winry told me softly.
"You can do better, anyway, Brother." Al offered me a smile.
I arched my brow at him. Mr. Alphonse Still-With-The-Same-Girlfriend-Since-Middle-School Elric, himself, was offering me relationship advice? Without referring to me as a 'player', which I was convinced was a polite term for 'man whore'?
He blushed and looked away awkwardly, perhaps recalling a similar past conversation that had ended badly because that word had been thrown in. "I… I've just noticed that you haven't exactly gone unnoticed by the guys of the student body."
Winry inclined her head in agreement. "The more attractive half of them, Alphonse and yourself excluded of course."
I shook my head. Trust me to remain oblivious to the fact I had a wider dating pool that I thought while they picked up on it. How like me to suffer from selective oblivion. "Thanks."
This time Winry did lean over the table, only without the killing intent. She kissed my cheek. "No problem, Ed. Now, find someone who will treat you better."
There was no point in telling her that I didn't deserve better than that. She'd just tell me 'Love isn't about what you think you deserve, Ed. Seriously, look at me and Al.' Besides, I wasn't interested in anyone that I deserved. An image of moon-pale skin, jet-black hair, and shimmering obsidian eyes popped into my head, but I shoved it away. It was no use being infatuated with one of my teachers. It wasn't like there was even an ice cube's chance in Hell that my feelings would be reciprocated, anyway.
Hurriedly, I finished the rest of my lunch and rushed to Havoc's room, knowing I needed to finish the project on time or the easy-going man wouldn't be quite so easy-going. Gritting my teeth, I hoped Russell wouldn't be in the classroom. Then I cheered myself up with the fact that Havoc wouldn't hesitate to scold him.
Then I tried to tell myself that my English teacher wasn't on my mind.
Hey, selective oblivion should work in my favor sometimes.