A/N: This fanfiction was written as a birthday fanfiction for a friend. As for me, I usually don't write that much fluff, and I tend to avoid hurt/comfort, but a birthday is a birthday and it's the same friend who drew the cover for Charity Event so I owed her.

Anyway, I hope you guys will enjoy this one!

(I promised a downpour of new fanfiction :P This is just the beginning Booya!)

"You can't beat me, Fullmetal Alchemist!"

"D'ya wanna bet on that?!" Ed found himself calling. He clapped his hands, the arrays shooting through his mind。He could transmute weapons out of a concrete wall, stone bars to from the floor to catch his opponent and force him to remain in place, a rising wall from behind him to act as a dead end where there was once a whole street, but he only had one second to make a decision. He separated his hands and crouched, attaching them to the floor. Immediately, a huge stone arm shot from the ground, reaching towards the other alchemist.

He dodged, letting out a loud snort of laughter. "Is that all you have?" he called, taunting. "The great Hero of People! Come on, I know you can do better!"

Ed watched his alchemy-produced hand missing its target, remaining to be standing as a useless monument for Ed's failure. He ignored it, launching with his already transmuted automail arm and smirked. "Fucker, don't underestimate me!" He shouted as he jumped. His feet left the ground and he was inches away from the other man. He could already feel the flesh tearing under the blade, could see the red stains of blood as the steel cut through tissues and veins and pressure built in his chest as he was positive he was going to win.

"Don't get so cocky, State Alchemist!"

A sharp blow to the side of his body made all the air escape from his lungs in a shocked gasp. The hit changed the course of his jump and lose his acceleration. He was pushed sideways, obviously about to miss his target, and was rapidly losing speed. If he won't find anything to hold on to he was going to start falling. He shouted, both because of the pain that filled his mind as he felt as if his ribs exploded inside his torso and as a way to keep himself alert and find something to hold on to. He tried even harder when he felt the wind changing its direction, now brushing his cheeks upwards as he started his fall. Panic nudged at the edge of his mind, but he fought it. He couldn't just lose like that!

Another flash of agony went through his body as he hit something hard – an open hand made from stone by alchemy, a leftover from an earlier stage of this fight – and he twisted, ignoring the throbbing of his nerves as he reached to grasp it and block his fall. His flesh fingers scraped the stone, and he pushed his automail hand to hold as well. A friction of a second before he could touch it the little piece of statue he was holding to broke. He felt himself falling again.

He shouted again, frantically searching for something to hold on to but it was in vain. Seconds later he felt the hard ground hitting his back, and he grunted in anguish as he felt as if every bone in his body broke. "Fuck," he muttered, and forced his eyes open, watching the world blurrily; everything spun around him, bright, colourful stars dancing before his eyes as he tried to focus. He had to get up. Had to keep fighting. But as much as he tried, he couldn't bring himself to get up on his feet and attack again.

"Now I got you!" He heard a yell and could see a figure dashing towards him, his hands brought together as if in a prayer as he rapidly got closer. Blue sparks flashed from between his hands as he started the transmutation, quickly sending one hand to the nearest wall. With a loud bang and bright blue light it exploded, and Ed did the only thing he could think about. He forced his own hands to come together, then attached one of them to the ground he was laying on, creating a shelter from the pieces that rained on him. Some still made it, hitting his stomach, arms and head, but they weren't large enough or strong enough to overcome the general anguish of his body. He heard a loud thud as a body hit his marble roof, and he immediately knew that it wasn't strong enough to survive the blow. Ed rolled on his side just in time to evade the structure from falling on him along with the person on top of it.

He lain on the ground, for a moment just panting and trying to remain alert enough not to faint. He coughed, and turned on his side as he felt bad taste in his mouth. He spat, but was too hurt and too blurry to be alarmed by the blood that stained the ground. He rolled to lie on his back again, trying to hear anything over the ringing in his ears. It was very quiet, considering all the bombing and shouting just a moment ago, and that, in itself, was very alarming.

He turned his head towards where he lay only a moment ago, trying to see what was going on there. At first there was nothing, and then, with no warning, the alchemist he was fighting reappeared with a stone spear in his hand – the same one Ed created with alchemy just moments later to stab him with. A huge, smug smirk spread on his face as he watched Ed and lifted his arm. "Say your goodbye, Edward Elric," he hissed, spitting Ed's name and letting his voice raise to a shout as he darted forward, too fast for the teen to realize what was happening. He was sure he heard something more, another voice calling his name, but it was drowned by that single motion like everything else. His eyes went wide as he felt the sharp object piercing his stomach, and with a last flash of red, the world went black.

The stillness of the room lay like a heavy stone on Roy's being, hovering like a dark cloud that blurred his mind, making him uneasy and snarky. He spent the last forty eight hours in this hospital room, only leaving it to go to use the toilet, and even that he did only where he felt like he had no other options. His men, the doctors, and several others looked worriedly at him whenever they came to the room, gently telling that even though he was the commanding officer it was not his job to stay there all the time. That he had to eat, had to sleep, had work to do. But he listened to no one, insisting on staying and threatening to burn to crisp anyone who'd try to force him to do otherwise.

They couldn't understand why he was here. As far as they knew, all Fullmetal was to him was a subordinate. A kid everyone learned to love, but still, a coworker. They were worried, they visited a few times a day to check and see if maybe the young alchemist had woken up, but it was a friendly kind of worrying. They couldn't understand the guilt that possessed Roy's heart, knowing he was the one who sent the boy to this mission. They could never understand the utmost anger he felt at himself for doing that, anger that only grew as he watched Edward fighting for every breath.

He couldn't understand it either.

Of course, there was much more to his relationship with Fullmetal than a regular officer-subordinate one. Even since he first met him, the boy was more to him than just a kid. There was something about him, even back then when he was only eleven years old, that captured Roy. Of course, there was nothing sexual about it then; many may call him pervert, especially considering his relationship with Ed, but he would never see an eleven year old child as a dating option. No, that came later, when he grew and hit puberty and became a handsome young man. At sixteen, he still was a minor, and still way too young for Roy, but at some point in time he simply couldn't deny the attraction they shared anymore. Heated arguments started taking a more personal turn, leaving them both more and more frustrated until the tension between them exploded and they kissed. Roy couldn't remember anymore who it was that broke the barrier first, and it didn't matter.

It was the best sex he'd ever had, despite the fact that Ed was obviously inexperienced, and despite the uncomfortable conditions of his office and the necessity to keep it quiet, and the constant fear of someone opening the door and walking in on them because Roy didn't lock it; or maybe it was because all of that, Roy didn't know.

They didn't talk about it afterwards. Roy tried, but Edward always shushed him, threatening to kill him if he said another word, and eventually the older man gave up. It did not mean it never happened again. Only a few days later Fullmetal showed up late at night at Roy's threshold, a flame burning in his eyes and wordlessly he kissed Roy, making his intentions painfully clear and Roy let him in, closing the door behind him and taking him along with him to the bedroom. When he woke up the next morning, Fullmetal was no longer there. From then on this became a habit, either randomly at the office or visits at his house, Ed became a part of his life, but they never attempted to make it into something more than just sex, and they both were content with that.

At least, Roy thought they were, but right now, sitting next to the unconscious, barely breathing body he wasn't so sure anymore.

He knew it the moment he could see, through the windshield of his car, the blur of black, red and gold falling, and his heart jumped in his chest high enough to choke his throat, and he hit the gas pedal so hard the car practically shot forward. He remembered the fear that held him at that moment, the compulsion to get there as fast as he could and help him, the horror and the almost physical pain when he could see Ed hitting a hand made of concrete. He could remember frantically pushing the gas pedal even though there was no longer where to push it, could remember how he urged the car to move faster, how the only reason he forced himself to still pay attention to the road and not have an accident was so he could reach the battlefield and help Ed.

His body still remembered the absolute terror that filled him at the sight that was revealed to his eyes: Ed sprawled on his back, severely injured, and that monster of an alchemist standing just over him with a spear. He could remember the rage that joined the terror that drowned any other feeling in his body as he called Ed's name and clicked his fingers, sending well-directed blazing flames at the offender. He could smell the scent of burnt flesh when his attack found its target, but he could also hear the tearing scream of pain that indicated that he was a few seconds too late.

The image of Ed laying there, the spear piercing through his stomach and blood gushing out of his wounds, creating a pool of crimson that was rapidly getting larger with every forced breath, was still way too vivid in his mind. Even now, when the boy was safe in a hospital and his wounds dressed and despite the doctor promising that his vitals were stable, he couldn't help the paralyzing fear that he won't wake up.

At the sound of the door opening Roy looked up, unaware that he was staring at the floor at all. Torn from his gloomy thoughts he could now hear the cracking sound of metal against metal as the younger Elric stepped into the room, a boiling plastic cup held in his hands. He walked towards Roy, sitting on the chair next to him and handing over the tumbler.

"Here, colonel, I think you should drink this. It won't do to dehydrate or starve yourself. I know it's not much, but it's better than nothing."

Roy looked at the suit of armor sitting next to him. Alphonse couldn't be much better than himself, he was probably even more worried. It was awful for Roy, to watch his subordinate and lover fighting on the edge of life; but Ed was Alphonse's older brother, more than that – he was the boy's only family, the one he spent most of his time with. The fact that his body couldn't show or feel fatigue didn't mean his soul didn't feel the same.

He took the cup from Alphonse, glancing inside and swirling it for a moment. He wasn't sure he wanted to drink or eat anything, his every thought occupied by the sleeping body laying on the bed. However, the warm, inviting smell of the coffee was making his mouth water despite himself, and he took a long sniff before letting the air out as a sigh. "Thank you, Alphonse."

"No problem. I'm used to taking care of my brother… and I see how much you care. This is not your fault, I know you wouldn't have sent him there if you knew something like this would happen."

Roy looked up at the younger Elric brother, something in his tone catching his ear. His confusion must have been visible on his too tired features, because Alphonse gave a small sigh.

"I'm not blind, you know. Even though brother never said anything, I could see what was happening, even if neither of you would actually admit it. I know you'd never do anything to hurt him. I don't blame you or anything. I'm sure he won't, either," with that, the metallic helmet turned from Roy to look again at the sleeping body of Ed. "When he wakes up, I'm sure he'll understand. A job is a job."

Roy couldn't believe the words he heard. It was strange enough to realize that Alphonse wasn't as naïve as he always portrayed himself; it was even more awkward to have this conversation with him when Ed was laying there. Alphonse seemed so confident as he spoke, like he knew for a fact that he'd wake up. Roy wanted to believe that too, wanted to be sure enough that Ed was going to be okay to be able to speak about it like Alphonse – when he'll wake up, rather than if.

He was probably quiet for too long because he soon felt cold metal touching his hand, and he glanced at it before looking up at Alphonse again. "He's going to be alright," the boy's echoing voice promised, and Roy couldn't help but wish he could honestly, whole-heartedly believe him. "You look exhausted. How about you try to catch some sleep? I'm going to stay here too and my body doesn't require food or sleep, so you can rest and be sure that when something'll change I'll be here."

Roy knew he was right. Despite the coffee held in his hands, and despite his concern and immense guilt, his body was exhausted and his mind longed for a break. He had no doubt that even if, by some kind of miracle, he'll manage to fall asleep, his brain won't really rest and will probably keep working and thinking and worrying.

"I'll wake you up if anything happens, I promise," Alphonse said, but now that his mind grasped sleep as an option it stuck like a parasite to Roy's brain, and the words became rapidly blurry, and so did the world around him as he felt himself drifting off. He was vaguely aware of the cup of coffee slipping from his hand, and he was pretty sure he heard Alphonse say something more, but he was already too far gone to be able to comprehend what was happening around him.

Roy woke up to the feeling of something moving against his palm, tickling him. His eyelids parted lazily, slowly allowing some of the light in the room to penetrate his eyesight and tear him out of his slumbered state. He could now feel the pain in his back – he was hunched over, his head resting in a really uncomfortable position. He blinked a few times, trying to figure out why he fell asleep like this before his mind stirred into work and he remembered where he was and what happened. His eyes flew open and he blinked again and straightened up, the faint memory of fluttering over his palm still lingering in his nerves.

He looked at the figure laying on the bed, happy that he was this close but not really recalling falling asleep, or holding his hand – or even being this close. Hope filled his chest and he watched closely, waiting for the eyelids to flutter, the lips to part and speak – any indication that he was awake. He waited, holding his breath in anticipation, but there was nothing.

His heart sunk in his chest, and he closed his eyes in disappointment. Will he ever get to see those gorgeous, golden eyes open again? Will he never get to witness this mouth open again, speaking in its always foul language, mocking him, or emitting those incredibly beautiful sounds when they were sharing something that was beyond just sex?

Sadness filled him, heavy and sickening. At least, until he felt something moving against his palm again, and he blinked and stared closer. He frowned in disbelief when he thought he saw his eyelashes fluttering, but his heart wouldn't let him give up the chance that it wasn't just his imagination- not on the second time he felt it.

"Ed?" he whispered hopefully.

His breath hitched and his heart jumped all the way to his throat when he heard a voice answering him – the familiar, irreplaceable voice of his lover. His hand closed on the smaller hand he held. "Ed… you're… you're awake?"

"Your hand's fucking cold…" the voice was weak, barely over a pained whisper – but it was Ed's snarky voice alright. There were no words to describe the relief he felt and the happiness that filled his entire being, and not even the coughing that followed this sentence could bring him down – but he still watched with worry as Ed's body curled and vibrated with the coughs, holding tighter on his hand and trying to figure out what to do to help him feel better.

"Do you want water? I can call a nurse – "

"No, shut up, I'm fine – fuck this hurts…" Ed started, his words broken by little coughs and fights for air, ending with something that was almost a whine but he had every right to whine, considering what he'd been through.

"You're not fine, Ed, it's okay to ask for help, I'm going to bring something that'd ease your pain – " Roy started to get up on his feet, worriedly looking at the door of the room. It was close, and he and Ed were alone in the room. Didn't Alphonse say he'd be there, watching to make sure Ed was fine and waking him up in case anything changed? He was sure he remembered something along these lines. "I'll be right back – "

"No."

A weak grip on his hand made him stop and look down again. Ed seemed to be past his coughing fit, and now amber orbs were staring at him, a silent request adorning them. "Don't leave me alone," the words were quiet, almost too much so for him to hear them but he did, and his heart almost broke at the sight, and he sat down again, placing his second hand over Ed's wrist.

"Alright," he said, moving his thumb over Ed's skin. "I won't." He let out a soft sigh, and watched as Ed gave a small nod before closing his eyes again. "How do you feel, Ed? Does anything hurt? Is there anything I can do to help you?"

"No, just… just stay there," was the answer, and the hold on his hand tightened just a fraction more, but it was enough to convey to Roy what he needed to know – even if he wouldn't say it out loud, Ed was still in much pain. He wished there was anything he could do to ease it, and he leaned in to place a soft kiss on the younger alchemist's forehead. He felt his eyelashes fluttering over his skin when Ed opened his eyes again. "We're in a hospital, right? You shouldn't do that. What if someone walks in?"

"Then they can come in and watch, I don't care. You scared me, Ed. Scared me so much I had no idea what to do, I thought… I thought I might lose you…"

He felt Ed tensing under him, and for a second regretted what he'd just said – the last thing he wanted was to make Ed worry or uneasy now. "But you didn't. I'm here," Roy felt the words brushing against his neck, and he lifted his face so he could look at the boy underneath him. He saw his opened eyes, and his forehead was wrinkled in a light frown. "What… uh… what happened? All I remember is fighting that asshole piece of alchemist and then he collapsed the wall on me… and there was a flash of light, I'm sure of that."

Roy let out a sigh and straightened up. "I… I don't really know all the details, I was too late. Otherwise… otherwise that fucker would've been dead before he could lay a finger on you…"

"Since when do you swear like this? And it was your mission, and I'm strong enough, no need to get so protective – "

"You could've died, Ed. You could've been dead now, and all of that because of me… because I sent you to take care of him… because I was a minute too late to help you…"

"It's not your fucking fault. I was supposed to take care of him but he surprised me… I didn't know he had two types of arrays on his hands. I should've been more careful. What happened with him eventually?"

Roy swallowed thickly, and looked away from Ed's prying eyes. He wasn't sure how the next piece of information would be perceived – but during these three days he was sitting here and biting his nails in worry he realized that he wanted a relationship with Ed, and if he was planning on having a serious relationship with him he couldn't start lying to him. "I killed him," he said.

Thick silence lay between them for a moment, all that could be heard were Roy's anxious breathing and Ed's forced ones. Roy waited, with fear, for Ed's answer – disapproval, hate, anything. He almost gave up when the grip on his hand tightened more, and the blonde's quiet voice cut through the air. "Did you have any other choice?"

"I don't know. I saw him standing over you and he was about to kill you. I didn't think. I just burnt him. I wanted to save you," he knew it was a lousy excuse. As much as Ed valued life, he thought everyone else's were worth more than his own – even when the person who's life at question was threatening to take them away. "I didn't even manage to do that. I was a second too late, and he already pierced you by the time I did something. He was ashes when I got close enough to see."

Another moment of silence lay between them, and again Roy waited for Ed to break it. "So the red light that I saw before I passed out was your fire. That explains," he said, his voice rather cold. "You shouldn't have killed him."

"I know. But I did. I didn't know what else to do – I couldn't just let him kill you." He finally looked up, seeing Ed's amber eyes watching him. "I'm not sorry for doing that, Ed."

"I thought so. Didn't ask you to apologize. I just said that you didn't have to do that."

"Do you hate me now?" Roy could feel a sting behind his eyes, and he was ashamed of it – but the mere thought of Ed hating him, possibly leaving him, was devastating.

"Of course not. Just… I don't hate you, Roy, fuck, man up. He's dead. Nothing I can do about it now, and with the way my whole body hurts I can't even honestly say I'm not glad that fucker found his end that day. Not proud of it or anything, but I can't lie."

Roy was surprised at Ed's words, and he looked at him, his confusion probably visible on his face because Ed groaned in annoyance. "Don't look so shocked, I'm no saint. Sometimes I wish people were dead. I don't like that but it's a fact. And it's not like I don't know you've killed before. Every life counts, but I don't think any less of you because of it. Not that now you can go around and kill people but… this asshole killed dozens of innocent people. Can't say I'm not glad he's not going to threat the world anymore."

Roy watched as Ed spoke, could see how nervous he was with each sentence, and he couldn't help but feel touched. He knew how much all the saving lives thing mattered to him – and Roy wasn't a monster, he cared about that too. He'd simply been through enough, saw enough, to know that sometimes there was no other choice. A huge stone rolled off his heart when he realized Ed didn't hate him because of what he did, and he felt much lighter suddenly. "I love you, Ed," he blurted before he knew what he was saying; but by the time he understood what he'd just admitted he gasped, and looked at Ed with something close to fear. His heart was racing, and he was even more nervous now than when he admitted he killed that alchemist.

He watched as Ed just stared at him for a moment. He almost felt sorry for what he said, knowing it was neither the time nor the place but at the same time feeling better that he did. He needed to get it out, he needed Ed to know and he needed to see what would happen next. "What… What the fuck, Roy?" were the words that broke the tension between them, and Roy felt his heart sinking. He still didn't think it was a mistake to tell Ed how he felt, but he also didn't really want to face rejection. He opened his mouth to say something, but the other alchemist's hand slipped from under his and rose to be placed over his lips, shushing him. "Do you really think now's the time to say something like that? We were just talking about you fucking killing someone!" Roy stared with fear as Ed spoke, and terror clenched his heart when Ed raised his voice and was cut by another coughing fit.

"Ed! Ed, just breathe, try to take a deep breath – I didn't mean to upset you so much," he said, panicked, and reached behind Ed's head to help him. He held him for a moment until the younger man was finally able to calm down and breath normally, or as close to normally as he could, considering the situation.

"I'm fine, Roy," he said, annoyance clear in his voice. "It's just a little bit hard to breath from time to time, but I'm going to live. You're an idiot."

Roy removed his hand, kissing Ed's fist that was still placed at his mouth – he clenched it when he started coughing. "I know I am," he said. "I'm sorry for what I said. You were right, it wasn't the time."

He heard Ed letting out a sigh, and frowned, looking down at him in confusion. "But it's never really the time, isn't it?" he said, rather thoughtfully. "True, you could pick a better timing to tell me you love me, but I guess now is just as good as anytime. Did you mean it?"

"Of course I did," Roy was almost offended by the question. Did Ed really think so little of him, that he'd say something like this without meaning it? But at the same time there was something about Ed's tone that stirred his insides with excitement; there was no malice in that voice, just something close to curiosity, and maybe hope. "I realized that when I saw you falling. I realized… I don't want to lose you. And…" he paused, really not sure if he should be saying that now. But, hell, he already started. It'd be stupid to stop right now. "And I want more of you. I don't want you to just be my subordinate, and I don't want just casual sex whenever we feel like it. I want to have you, I want you to be mine, and only mine."

He watched as Ed's face turned into a deep crimson shade. He looked so beautiful always, but now he was just adorable. He could hear him swallowing in nervousness, and waited in anticipation to see what he would say next.

"Idiot," he said eventually, letting out a sigh and staring at the ceiling. "You needed me to almost die to finally say that? If I knew I'd get almost killed months ago."

It took a moment for the meaning of Ed's words to sink in, but when it did, Roy couldn't help a broad smile from spreading on his lips, and he watched Ed with excitement. He could barely contain himself and all the feelings that swirled inside him. "Ed, I – "

"Shut up," Ed cut through his words, and he opened the fist that was still placed just over Roy's mouth. His hand slid over Roy's jaw until he reached his chin, where he held him and lightly pulled him down. Roy gladly followed that motion, meeting Ed's lips with gentle kiss that said it all. They kissed for a short moment before Ed broke away from him. For a moment, Roy thought he was about to cough again, but then he smiled weakly and talked. "I hope you know what you're getting yourself into, Roy. You know I'm not easy and I'm not going to change for you, and it's going to be a lot harder to hide if we're starting an actual relationship. Think about your career first. I don't want to mess that up for you."

"Fuck, Ed – I love you the way you are. I don't want you to change. And I couldn't care less about my career. I trust both of us to be able to keep it from the brass's eyes, but I'd also choose you over my military career anytime."

"Asshole, if you're going to say things like that I'm going to refer to you as 'her' and force you to be in the kitchen all day, cooking for me."

Roy chuckled. "You're going to make me cook you dinner anyway, and you know that I'll call you short if you try to refer to me as a female. There's nothing wrong with being willing to make sacrifices for someone you love, but I guess you'll learn that when you grow up."

"If it wouldn't cause me so much pain I'd punch you right now and you know it."

"Of course I do, that's why I feel free to say it," Roy leaned in to give Ed another small kiss before he straightened up. "I'm going to take you to a dinner once you're well enough to get out of here."

"You mean like a proper date or something?"

Roy smiled. "Yes, something like that."

"Hmm." Ed thought for a second, and then he smiled. "Fine. But I'm choosing the place and you're paying, and you'd better get me something nice."

"Deal."

Ed opened his mouth, probably to say something more when the door opened, and they both turned their heads towards it.

"Brother! You're finally awake!" Alphonse rushed towards them, and Roy could see him examining the blonde thoroughly. "How are you feeling? Are you okay? Do you – "

"No, Al, I'm fine. My side hurts like a bitch but I've been through worse. Where have you been?"

Roy frowned at the question. It stirred his curiosity as well, and now he looked at the giant armor suit with a demand for an answer. "I just thought… well, the doctor was here not too long ago and he said that there was a good chance you'd wake up soon… so I went to buy some food," he held up a plastic bag that Roy didn't even notice he was holding. "I thought you might be hungry. I brought some for you too, Colonel."

"Thank you, Alphonse, that's very thoughtful of you." Roy said, and couldn't help but wonder how come there was a doctor in there while he was sleeping without him feeling it or waking up. And he also realized, a second later, that it probably meant the doctor saw him sleeping on Ed's hand. Well, there was nothing he could do about it anyway.

"Thanks, Al, but I'm not really hungry… and I have no idea if I'm allowed to eat. Sorry I made you worry about me so much," Ed said, and then the younger Elric placed the plastic bag on the floor and grabbed the chair that stood, empty, not too far, dragging it to stand just near the bed and Roy before he sat on it.

"Don't apologize, brother! I'm just happy you're awake now. I'm sure a nurse or a doctor will come here soon and tell you if you can eat, I just hope it'd be before you're hungry. I know how much you hate feeling hungry – "

"It's fine, Al," Ed's voice said, irritated, and then Alphonse apologized again and the two brothers sunk into a conversation that was almost an argument, but not really. Roy watched them, feeling a little bit out but just as he was about to get up and leave them alone he felt Ed's hand dropping back to hold his hand, and a warm thumb moved over his skin, letting him know without words or looks that the blonde wanted him to stay there.

And how could he not comply with that?

A/N: Feel free to review, whether it's to chew me up or let me know what you liked:P I'm always looking to improve and there's no better way than criticism! ^-^