The Photograph

A/N: It’s been a while since I updated chapters. It’s just been so hard, I moved to this new school and…ugh. It’s a weak chapter, this one, try and enjoy.

The Photograph

It was time to go. Riza had been training with the rest of the army in an all day combat course at their personnel facility outside of Central. She sighed, the end of the day was so close, and yet so far away. Already in her full military uniform, all Riza had to do was take her keys and wallet from the locker… and then wait half an hour for the train! The thought of waiting forever daunted her, but she knew in her heart that when she finally did get home, Sciezska would be waiting for her with a hot meal and a passionate kiss.

As she opened the locker, Riza smiled. In the heat of the day, she’d forgotten all about the photograph residing on the inside of her locker’s door. She didn’t even know why she’d brought it. Then again, Sciezska did seem so adorably insistent the other night. Riza remembered it well:

“C’mon, take a picture.” Sciezska begged with a slightly sly smile on her face.

“Why?” Riza asked with the camera sitting in her lap.

“I already told you,” the brunette said as she rolled across the bed, “when you’re away at work you might get lonely, so I can give you this to comfort you.”

“Wouldn’t a normal photo be more appropriate?”

“You wouldn’t get much “comfort” out of a photo with me fully clothed, would you?”

“You’re disgusting!”

“Are you saying I’m dirty?” Sciezska giggled.

“Stop twisting my words!”

“Then take the photo.”

“I don’t want to.”

“So…so…are you saying I don’t look hot?” whimpered Sciezska, feigning rejection.

“Stop being so childish!” Riza retorted hastily.

“Then take my picture!”

“Fine” the blonde sighed as she positioned the lens to face her underwear clad lover. Inside, she smiled. Though Riza hated herself for doing so, she did find Sciezska quite attractive in those black, lacey garments with the blood red love hearts in all the right places…

“What’s that?” asked a voice from behind, breaking through Riza’s thoughts. Riza, quickly realizing that she was staring at Sciezska’s racy image, slammed the locker’s door and twirled around to face her inquisitor.

“What?” she asked with a forced smile on her face.

“What’s that in your hand?” repeated Jean Havoc.

“What?” lied Riza, panicking, “I haven’t got anything in my hands.” The lieutenant raised her clenched fists and opened them, showing that they were empty. “See,” she laughed nervously, “nothing.”

“I’m sure I saw something…” the Major said, rubbing his stubble.

“No…no, no…” said the blonde, backing towards the locker block.

“Actually, Riza, I’m sure I saw some of that picture.” Havoc smirked.

Riza’s stomach dropped, she could feel all the blood drain from her face. Her eyes widened in fear…then she saw the smirk on Jean’s face. He couldn’t resist, could he? Anything to strike up a conversation with her. Riza suppressed a giggle as she sidled along the metal complex. With her hands behind her back, she passed the photograph from her left hand to her right. Holding the picture with three fingers, she searched for a gap in the metal, a slot to push the image through, to hide the evidence. With her free hand, she reached out and clutched the Second Lieutenant’s collar.

“Lieutenant Havoc…Jean…” she said with a sultry look in her eye, “You just want to get my attention, didn’t you?”

“Uhhh… L-l-l- Hawkeye what are you-?”

“Shhh…” Riza motioned as she raised a finger to the smoker’s lips and, finally slotting the flimsy image into the locker, placed her right hand playfully on his chest. Suddenly, Riza let all of her façade fall away and her eyes turned to a cold stare.

“I said quiet, Jean! Attend to your possessions and depart to Central. That’s an order.”

“But Riza…” the man muttered as Riza turned away, giggling.

Out of the corner of her eye, the blonde watched as Havoc erased the last few seconds of his life from memory and opened the locker in front of him, letting what looked like a photograph fall slowly to the ground.

“What is this?” Riza queried, sounding completely genuine; not even allowing the tiniest smile to cross her face when she walked over, crouched, and scrutinized what was obviously the incriminating photograph which she had held only a few moments before.

“What is this?” she said again, this time with a tone of accusation, and a broad, almost mocking, smile.

“What’s what?” Havoc asked, now extremely confused, as Riza brought the picture of a certain, lingerie clad, Private. His eyes bulged; now it was his turn for the nervous laugh.

“I swear… I’ve never seen that before I…I…I” he stammered.

“Jean.” Riza said in her most girly voice, “I never knew…you and Sciezska were a-“

“We’re not!” he screamed in an act of embarrassed defiance.

”Don’t worry, Jean. Actually, I think you two would make a good couple.” she said, smiling sweetly.

“We are not a couple! I swear to you on my allegiance to the military, Lieutenant Hawkeye, Private Sciezska and I are not in any sort of romantic affair!

“Oh Jean, don’t lie to me. We’re friends; it’s perfectly okay if you want to date Sciezska. Just be serious with me for a minute.”

“For the last time! I’m telling the truth! I am not dating Sciezska! Why won’t you believe me!?”

With that, Second Lieutenant Jean Havoc slammed his locker shut and bolted out the door. In his wake, Riza stifled a laugh. Part of her felt bad for doing that to Jean, but she knew it was for the greater good. Slowly she picked up the crumpled photograph off the ground and put it in her breast pocket. As she placed it, she felt something brush her hand. Something she’d completely forgotten about. Wrapping her fingers around the foreign object, she pulled the other photograph from her pocket.

There Sciezska was: naked, with her hair tussled across her brow and a suggestive look on her face. Her glasses long since tossed aside, her back was arched and her breasts accentuated. With her legs parted and her hands playfully placed between them, Riza could think of only one word to describe the image: hot.

I’m glad he didn’t find this one, she thought with a smirk.