Disclaimer: I do not own Fullmetal Alchemist
A couple weeks later, Al sat at the window of his small room of their apartment, staring out at the vacant street below. His thoughts wondered silently through him as the night droned on quietly.
Every now and then muffled sounds and mutterings were heard from the room next-door, as his brother slept fitfully just like every other night. Al's eyes never flickered toward the wall in worry; he knew it would be useless to wake his brother.
They both would live with nightmares for the rest of their lives, whether they occurred while they slept or while they were awake. Memories will continue to haunt them, good or bad.
The night-lights of New York City lit up the sky dimly, fogging the sight of the winking stars overhead and a tune whispered its way down the damp streets dancing into the soft breeze at the rooftops.
"Al? What are you doing up? Go to sleep…" Ed said after seeing him while walking past the open door.
Al jumped at the sudden surprise of a voice.
"What?! Oh, yeah, all right, brother…" He muttered but made no move toward his untouched bed.
"Come on, Al, you barley ever sleep or eat for that matter! Go to bed!" Ed grumbled rubbing his eyes wearily.
"All right, brother," Al mumbled and turned away from the window with a light sigh.
Ed stood there for a few more moments then said, "Do you smell anything?"
Al who had just sprawled out on the bed in a bored manner replied, "Yeah, a little….like burning paper…"
The two stared at each other for a moment before realizing the smell was getting stronger.
"Fire…" Ed said to himself then searched every place in the small apartment for the source of the fire.
"Brother, I think it's the floor below us!" Al exclaimed seeing smoke leaking in from the vents.
Completely forgetting the only thing he wore was boxers, Ed sped out of the apartment followed by Al.
As they stormed down the stairs, the smoke got heavier and heavier until it was like a huge black wall surrounding them.
Finally as they reached the hall ways of the fire ridden floor, screams pierced the smoky air behind one door.
Al's hand found a fire alarm on the wall then he and his brother tried opening the door which shook as a victim pounded on it from the other side.
"Step back! We coming in!" Ed yelled choking on smoke.
The pounding ceased and the brothers rushed at the door with all their strength.
The door burst open after the third try, and they landed face down on the floor beneath them.
A girl as young as they were, backed toward them with horrible fear masking her face.
The flames extended their tongues in hope that one of the three would become their meal to satisfy their hunger, but Ed grabbed the girl made his way to the stair well as his brother remained inside searching for others.
"Hey! Anybody down here? Hey!" Al yelled and continued to breathe in the awful smoke until he was sure no one remained on that floor.
Fire slithered closer and closer to him, blocking his only way to safety through the stair well.
Desperately trying to keep himself calm he entered the farthest room down the hall that hadn't been totally engulfed in flames as the others had. He made his way through flaming debris until he got to the wide window on the other side of what should have been the living room.
He shoved his foot hard at the glass causing pieces of it jab into his skin. He continued to kick and punch at the glass until the hole he had made was big enough to climb through.
Down on the street in a crowd Ed, waited anxiously for his brother to burst through the front door at any second.
Firemen shoved their way into the crowd asking all there, if anyone was still in the building. Men cursing and women crying along with children, assured the brave men than no one lay behind in the wicked flames.
Ed couldn't take it anymore.
Foot raised, ready to sprint into the beautiful building to find his brother; a man shouted from somewhere in the crowd, "Hey, who's that on the window seal up there?"
Ed's amber eyes lifted up to where many people were now pointing.
Al gave a little wave from his post as he held on desperately to the window panes.
"Eep! Man, it's a long way down there…" Al cried as the fire came closer than comfort.
The firemen lifted a ladder to him that he gladly welcomed.
Coughing as he made his way down, Al finally made it to the ground as the fire was extinguished.
Ed walked up to him looking quite odd, covered in soot and in nothing but singed boxers.
"You look funny, brother," Al coughed with a smile.
"Yeah, well you looked funny than me, stranded up on a window…I didn't think you tried seek that much attention!"
"Hey, I'm not the one who seeks any kind of attention!"
"Then what was that? Huh?"
"A desperate escape, that's what!"
"Hey, easy now boys-" a fireman that looked as old as wisdom and tales, told them.
"Uh, sir, is everybody all right? Anybody hurt?"
"Nope, thanks to who ever pulled the fire alarm. You, boys all right? Son, do you want me to go fetch you something to wear?" the man asked looking Ed up and down.
"Oh, uh-"
"Mr. Hillings! What happened? Is everybody all right?" Jess, the girl Ed and Al had met weeks before, appeared with the girl Ed had drug from the burning room.
"You two! You saved my life…" the girl beside Jess whispered then without any warning gave Ed an enormous hug.
"Well, Miss Dawn, I'm afraid a small fire was started, probably by an unattended lamp-"
"Oh, good, here's Tomas! I'll let you talk to him…" Jess said catching sight of her solemn friend who stared pitifully at his destroyed building and business.
Ed in the mean time, was not sure what to do. He was standing in the middle of a street wearing nothing but his underwear with a really pretty girl latched on to him.
Al just laughed between coughs at his confused face.
"Hey, Al, Ed, you probably need somewhere to stay tonight…Shea, too….well, ya'll can bunk at my place. And I'm sure I can find something for you to wear, Ed." Jess said as if they had all known each other for years.
"Okay," Al whispered with a sore throat then stumbled on his feet for a moment, as the world seemed to turn this way and that before him.
The brothers still on their feet slipped out of conscious.
Sorry, I havn't updated. I've been out of town. Okay, this chapter sucked but, I'm trying here.
Review!
I hope ya'll like the next ch. If ya didn't like this one!