Broken↩️🪭 ✔

Chapter 10

Screaming.

So much screaming.

It was as if a banshee had escaped Hell and pierced his ears with screams.

The screaming was also broken up with cries of a name. Not really a name but a word. It meant something to Edward, although he didn't want to open his eyes. It was too scary. The word suddenly turned into a coded message but Edward was so scared that he couldn't figure it out. He cowered in the corner, holding himself and wishing someone would come and save him. Suddenly, the screaming stopped and he finally opened his eyes. He looked around for a little bit, cold air blowing through wherever he was when he spotted a pile in the corner on the ground. After staring at it for a few moments, Edward crawled over to it and looked inside.

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"Edward! Edward! Wake up!"

Edward woke up, finding himself sweating and breathing hard. Riza was looking at him with worry.

"Edward?"

He turned to her and launched into her arms, burying his face into her chest.

"What happened?" She asked softly.

He shuddered, trying to catch his bearings. The nice blonde lady was here. Roy's jacket was about him... He was safe..."

"Scary dream..." He mumbled.

Riza smiled and touched his head softly.

"Will you be alright?"

He nodded, not wanting to leave from the comfort of having her so near.

Riza smiled and pushed him from her to look at him.

"You need to get some sleep, Edward, you have a big day tomorrow. You'll need to be good and rested."

He lifted his head a little.

"What does edward mean?"

"What do you mean? It's your name." Riza said with a bit of concern. "Why do you ask?"

"The people have been calling me that but I didn't know what it was... I didn't know I had a name."

"Everyone has names... What did they call you in that place?"

"Jin Wawa... Mr. Tang said it meant 'golden child'."

"I see... If you didn't know what Edward was then why did you act like you did?" She asked, genuinely curious about the decision to take on a name he mentally seemed to not understand.

"I... I just... I didn't wanna make him mad! The black haired man that came to the place. He... He kept calling me that and when I acted like l knew what he was saying, he didn't yell at me." He looked away. "I just didn't want you to hurt me..."

The explanation seemed clear enough, given the circumstances. He'd been conditioned to seek the path of least pain, doing whatever it took to keep himself alive and away from affliction. If answering to a name he'd didn't know got favorable results and no pain, why wouldn't he go along with it?

"Are you mad at me?" He asked tears in his eyes and a pleading look. "I won't ask again. Honest. Please don't hurt me..."

Riza sighed and reached to pull him to her. He flinched but she gathered him in her arms and pulled him into her lap. He looked up as she moved a hair out of her face.

"I could never be mad and I would never hurt you. None of us would hurt you."

"Even... Even the black haired man?"