A Dance to Remember

Once again, the Central Ball has come again. Since it was held outside, the streets were decorated in beautifully colored lights that flashed and danced back and forth. Although it was in the evening, the air was rather warm, but very comfortable. The streetlights were on dimly, and music was playing softly in the background. The beat was rather lively and fast, yet beautiful and magical. Men were dressed in formal black tuxes, while the women wore long beautiful dresses, which swished around back and forth whenever they walked or whenever their partners turned and spun them around.

I sighed and sat at the side, next to one of the tables with punch. My dress was dark blue; that came below my knees. Whenever I stood under the light, it would glisten like stars in the night's sky. The earrings I had belonged to Hawkeye, but she had found no use to them so she let me use them for the night. They matched my dress and sparkled genuinely, dancing about my ears when I turned my head. So far, as usual, this Ball turned out to be a real drag. I don't even know why I bothered going. Oh, yeah, now I remember. It was all Winry's idea. She's the one who helped me pick out my dress and everything. Though I was thankful for her help, I didn't want to be here at all. I felt like I was left out of the group. The extra wheel…

"Hello, there, Embry!" Greeted a friendly, but familiar voice I recognized as Colonel Roy Mustang. Ugh, not him. I really didn't feel like dealing with his sarcastic comments. I was in no mood for that right now. Roy was that kind of person who always said something that was like adding oil to a fire. It just made things worse. When I looked up at him, I was sort of shocked at what I saw. The Colonel was dressed in a jet black tux with a matching bow tie. I've never seen him look so handsome.

"Hello, Colonel," I said dully, crossing my arms, watching the beautiful girls and their partners dance gracefully across the street. "Wait a sec, shouldn't Hawkeye be with you?" I asked randomly. Usually, Hawkeye was always with the Colonel. I mean, someone had to keep him in line.

"She's not here yet," Roy said with a cheesy grin. "She is coming shortly, however. She is my date after all!" He laughed as I rolled my eyes. Great. Even the Colonel managed to find someone. But everyone saw it coming. I knew he'd hook up with Hawkeye sooner or later. "You here with anyone special?" He asked with that smirk of his.

I rolled my eyes at him. Oh, please. Was he trying to make me feel bad?

"No, Roy," I said, feeling a little bit of pain in my heart. I never had a date to this Ball. Not once. I should be used to that by now.

He chuckled, obviously making fun of me. Stupid Roy. "Ask someone, then," He said nonchalantly, looking around at the various people. I huffed a sigh and looked around also. I recognized some people like Havoc, Hughes, and…

And him.

Edward Elric. My, god, he was so handsome. His golden blonde hair was pulled back in its usual braid, but he was dressed very formally. His jet black tux matched his tie, which was lose around his neck. He was chatting away with his younger brother, Alphonse. Roy must've caught my staring at Edward because then he began to laugh.

"What's so funny?" I asked, raising an eyebrow.

"You were looking at Fullmetal, weren't you?" He asked with a smirk.

"Huh?" I asked in surprise, blinking a few times, then turning my gaze away from Edward to look at Roy. "Ah, no, I was just-"

"Ah, there's Hawkeye," Roy said, looking at the far side of the dancing area. She wore a dark purple dress that fell to her knees. She looked beautiful, and I could tell by the look in Roy's eyes, he thought so too. He gave me a smile and nodded his head and scampered over to Hawkeye, who merely giggled at his attempt in being a gentleman. In my opinion, he wasn't half bad. Now if only he acted that way all the time.

Suddenly a slow, enchanting song began. The lights dimmed and the women put their arms around their partner's necks, as they brought them in closely, staring into their eyes. How I longed to be one of those girls. To have someone's arms around me, holding me tightly against them. Dancing the night away. Oh, but who was I kidding? It was all just a surreal dream. I could never…

"You look rather lonely. Mind if I join you?"

A soft, gentle voice interrupted my thoughts, making me jump a little. I raised my head up and met the most beautiful golden eyes I've ever seen. It was Edward! He blinked a little and tilted his head, obviously waiting for a response from me.

"Um, no, not at all," I said nervously. He laughed and leaned against the table behind us. He exhaled slowly and stretched his arms up over his head, looking at the beautiful full moon above us.

"Look at that moon," He said in awe. "Reminds me of when Al and I were kids. Me, him, and Winry loved to stargaze in the summertime," I sighed and smiled at him, then glanced up at the moon. It really was beautiful. The light shimmered around us and made the area a little brighter. "Hey…" he said after a long silence.

"What?" I asked curiously. He offered his hand out and smiled. That exact smile that always left me breathless.

"Do you want to dance with me?" He asked. I nodded and took his hand were he led me to an isolated area, where the music could still be heard, but we were directly under the moonlight. He placed his hands on my waist and I placed my arms around his neck. I felt like we were the only two people in the world at that moment. The pace we danced to was perfect, matching the tempo of the song. I moved closer to him, resting my head on his shoulder and closing my eyes. I felt his arms wrap around my waist as if he was hugging me. I felt the warmth from his body, making me smile a little, knowing I was so close to him. I was so lost in the moment, I didn't even know the song ended until I heard Edward's familiar laughter.

"The song's over," He whispered gently in my ear. I lifted my head up and found my face about an inch away from his. Embarrassed, I pulled away and rubbed my arm nervously. He smiled and walked over to a grassy area, motioning for me to follow him. I obeyed, and sat down on the grassy hill, away from the chatter of people. We were so far from Central; I couldn't even hear the music anymore. It was just the two of us. Just Edward and I. He sat on the side and I sat next to him, staring up at the sky and realizing we had a perfect view of the full moon.

"Wow, it's even more beautiful up close," I said, smiling warmly up at the sky.

"It is…" Edward said, sighing dreamily. I sighed also and then looked over at him, half frowning.

"Edward?"

"What is it?"

"You're leaving tomorrow…Aren't you?" I asked him solemnly. He sighed and turned away from me.

"I have to. Al and I want our bodies back and to do that, we need the Philosopher's stone," he said, sounding serious. "When I burned my house down, I knew I could never go back. The only way to go is forward." He tilted his head up to look at the sky. He was right, after all. I wanted him to keep moving forward and achieve his greatest dream. I couldn't hold him back from doing that.

"Hey," He said after awhile. "Why don't we continue our dance?"

"There's no music, so how-"I was cut off; Edward had stood up and grabbed both my hands, pulling me up with him. He smiled warmly at me as I stared into his golden eyes, nearly getting lost in them.

"It doesn't have to end, yet," He said as he spun me around. Even without the music, we managed to dance under the moonlight again, like we did before. I laid my head on his shoulder as we danced slowly in relaxing motions. I never thought my greatest dream would end up like this. It was absolutely perfect. Edward and I were so close, I could feel his warm, soothing breath on my bare neck. I shivered a little and shrugged my shoulders, causing Edward to remove his jacket and place it around my shoulders. I inhaled his scent and sighed as if I was in a dream. Opening my eyes, I noticed his automail arm. I ran my fingers across the cold metal, remembering the story of how he lost his arm. I felt so bad for the two bothers. They've both been through so much…

I felt Edward's touch against my hand as he held it; he used his other hand to tilt my chin up so I was looking into his eyes again. Without thinking, I leaned in toward his face, completely unsure if he'd do the same. He must've because I felt his lips against mine in an instant. Like a reaction, I closed my eyes and tilted my head. It was the most wonderful feeling in the world. Right then, like how I always felt when I was with Edward, I felt like we were the only two people in the world. Like we could take on anything together. I wrapped my arms around his neck slowly, running my fingers through his golden hair, letting the braid come lose. I pulled away, the amazing kiss leaving me breathless. I felt my cheeks get a little pink as I looked at him; his warm smile, his kind eyes…

"Shall we continue our dance?" He asked formally. I nodded and laughed as he pulled me close again. I felt his lips brush up against my ear.

"I love you," He said in a whisper.

"I love you, too," I whispered back, smiling. I gazed up at the sky, smiling and sighing happily. It was a dance to never be forgotten.