A/N: My first FMA ficlet.

Smile

When his brother smiled or laughed it broke the hearts of those who knew him well, or knew him well enough to see that most of his smiles and laughter was fake. Alphonse for one knew his brother well and knew that many of the smiles his brother smiled were forced.

And it always saddened the youngest Elric when he watched his brother put up that mask again. He wondered if it hurt his big brother to smile like that.

And the sound of his laugh hurt his ears. So fake, so hollow, so forced. Did it hurt his brother's throat to laugh like that?

But then Alphonse would remember that when they were little the oldest of the two would smile broadly to hide his true feelings and thoughts. Sadness filled his being as he realised that his brother hid so much behind his smiles and fake cheerful moods.

Edward hardly smiled genuine and when he did it always had a sad touch to it. His eyes always kept a haunted look in them. It was those moments Alphonse wished he still could cry because then he would have cried the tears the golden haired teen refused to cry.

His brother was in his eyes strong and confident yet weak and insecure, he could be mature and immature at the same time. His brother was contradiction wrapped in flesh, cotton and leather.

Sure he respected and adorned his brother but sometimes he just wanted to shake him and yell at him to just cry and let it all go instead of bottling it all up inside. He hated watching the elder suffer, he hated not being able to do something about it.

He hated it.

But he al so knew that his brother was more open around him then with anyone else. He secretly enjoyed this privilege, because no one else got to see the great hagane no renkinjutsushi the way he did.

Then again there were some sides to his brother he never got to see either, but didn't everyone have sides they never showed to anyone?

He glanced at his brother who sat next to him. "Niisan?" The distant look in the smaller boys eyes never bode well, he watched the older boys turn to him and smile, another forced smile, and a forced cheerful note was heard in his voice as he spoke. "Something wrong, Al?"

'There is something wrong! Wrong with you Niisan! Why don't cry? Why do you keep hiding you true thoughts and feelings?'! He wanted to say but the younger sibling shook his head instead. "Not really. But I wondered if you'd mind if we play some cards?"

That got a small genuine smile from the elder boy, and Al was delighted to see it. "Sure why not"

When his brother smiled or laughed it broke the hearts of those who knew him well, or knew him well enough to see that most of his smiles and laughter was fake. Alphonse for one knew his brother well and knew that many of the smiles his brother smiled were forced.

But his brother's true smiles where priceless and always made him happy.

And for those smiles he'd happily sacrifice himself for.