Maes stopped and turned off the car. They were parked in front of the bar. They sat in silence for awhile and neither of them made an effort to move.

"Ed-"

"I know what you're thinking." Ed interrupted. He already knew what the man was going to say. Maes frowned and looked over to Ed. He was sitting with his hands to his side and looking straight.

Maes didn't say anything and allowed him to continue.

"I'll be fine. Really. There's no need to worry." He said turning to give Maes the best smile he could come up with. It wasn't too bad but it wasn't exactly natural either. Maes sighed and smiled politely back.

"Alright." He said enthusiastically as he could muster. Maes excitement was pretty contagious, and he wanted Ed to have the best time he could. These last couple months had been hard on him. "Ready?" he asked.

Ed looked a little uneasy. "Yep…" he sighed.

Ready as I'll ever be…

"Just have a good time." Maes said. They both exited the car and walked to front of the building.

Ed boots made faint splashing sounds as he walked across the wet pavement. It had rained earlier that day, and was soon to rain again, he guessed. He looked up to the sky. You could only barely see the moon through the dark clouds, and you could smell the scent of distant rain. Is was quite relaxing. Just not relaxing enough to make up for the extremely uncomfortable cold.

They walked up to a big red metal door on the side of a red brick building. Could it look any more like a bar?

Maes opened the door and walked right in. Ed followed and was surprised when the guy didn't even look for an I.D. In fact, he didn't notice them as they walked in. The inside was a lot nicer than the outside of the building. The hard wood floor was a cream color, and there was a long bar made of dark wood on the right side. It contrasted very well in the place, giving it a comfortable feeling. To the left there was a jukebox and a couple pool tables. Straight there were table booths. This was probably a bar and restaurant. No wonder the no I.D check thingy…

Maes led Ed to a table directly across the room. They all waved and motioned Maes and Ed over. Sitting in the booth were Havoc, Hawkeye, Breda, Falman, and a raven haired man. Said raven haired man had had his back turned. Well until the rest of the booth made an alarming scene. Dark raven hair and onyx eyes turned around and met the gaze of the golden eyed blonde.

Ed involuntarily felt a pang rip through his heart and he averted his eyes from the man as Havoc and Hawkeye smiled to him and motioned me to sit down. It still wasn't easy seeing him. Especially after what had happened that day. Ed sat next to Hawkeye in the booth and Maes sat next to him. Nearly the whole booth was taken but everyone fit easily.

Remember… breath, hold, repeat. If I could just make it through with it being minimally agonizing, I can crawl back into my hole and never come out. Wow, that sounded so pathetic…

"Hey!" Havoc said between the cigarette in his mouth patting Ed on the back. Hawkeye and Breda smiled to Ed before resuming conversation. Falman winked to Hawkeye and she rolled her eyes. Maes had long ago stricken up conversation with everybody and the bar was once again lively with conversation. Ed sat politely laughing at one thing or another, and answering simple questions. He was extremely nervous and not completely comfortable. Out of his peripheral vision he could see the man he was trying his best to ignore, not trying at all to ignore him. Roy sat at the end of the other side of the booth with a hand on the back of the seat. He eyed the alchemist with a corner of his mouth tugged up. Obviously very amused with how uncomfortable the blonde was.

Great…as if you weren't nervous enough. Now your perverted love affair is creepily staring at you. Great! Let's all make Edward slightly more uncomfortable until he has a nervous breakdown! Thank you very much…

Ed rolled his eyes and flipped the man off causing him to chuckle. He pretended as though he wasn't in the midst of internal breakdown, and diverted his attention once again to the pointless conversation around him. He felt those eyes on him for a while before the man slightly chuckled and then he also started in on the charming conversation.

Even though it was slightly uncomfortable, it actually felt nice to be around other people. It had been too long since he had anyone around. He found them mildly entertaining and was enjoying their company thoroughly.

Every once in a while he'd sneak a glance of the man across from him, and it made his stomach flutter. The man was just stunning. He was wearing a dark button up shirt, and a pair of black jeans. Casual wear, but still extremely sexy. He would flash that devilish grin of his and it just lit up the room.

Okay, so extremely cliché, but he couldn't help it. It actually happened! He didn't know if they purposely turned up the light in the room or if he was tripping but it really did seem to happen.

His dark hair fell over his face, a little more casual than it usually is. His black eyes would ever so often make contact with Ed's gold ones and it always made Ed's breath hitch.

"And I swear!" Havoc exclaimed throwing his hands up in the air. Hawkeye rolled her eyes and the others laughed.

"Oh hey! Over here!" Roy yelled to the waitress who was holding a tray with shots on it. The waitress caught eyes of Roy and she blushed slightly. He winked and gestured her over here and she quickly settled the drinks down. Ed rolled his eyes. He shouldn't be jealous of the waitress, it wasn't her fault. Roy had an evil power of just plain charisma. It wasn't her fault she trapped under the spell of the Roy's charm. He was…

She asked if anybody needed anything, still eyeing Roy. Everyone nodded no, barely noticing her and she trailed off giggling. Roy turned toward the tray and started dealing out shots.

"Yeaahh!" Havoc yelled picking up a shot and somehow downing it with his cigarette still in his mouth. Hawkeye rolled her eyes at her boyfriend but shrugged and took a shot anyway. A couple others either pulled a shot toward them for later, while still talking, or downed it and grimaced after words.

Ed didn't drink really, he still couldn't see how they could down vodka without a chaser. Roy placed a glass down by Ed with a thud, accomplishing getting Ed's attention. The liquid in the glass swayed a little back and forth and a small portion fell over the top and down the side of the small glass cup.

Oh...dear...god...

"Ac-Actually…" Ed stuttered throwing his hands up, "I don't really drink.." he said nervously. Roy rolled his eyes.

"Come on Edward, loosen up." Roy said flashing Ed a smile. Ed's stomach fluttered at the use of his real name and he looked down to the shot and frowned. How bad could it really be….

Oh no! Don't pick it up, Don't you pick that up!

He picked it up,dammit, and took a quick swig. The liquid slid down his throat and burned. Everyone stopped and stared at him smirking and he slammed the cup down and covered his mouth with his hand coughing. He looked around and smirked.

"Not so bad." He said still coughing a bit.

Everyone laughed and patted him on the back encouragingly.

"Way to go Edward. Owee!" Havoc yelled. Not even Hawkeye could stop from laughing. Roy cleared his throat and looked at Maes. Maes raised an eyebrow for a second and then understanding flashed over his face. Roy smirked at Ed and then looked back to Maes. Maes was frowning disapprovingly and had set his expression serious. Roy chuckled and downed another shot. He looked to Breda and winked and somehow Breda knew exactly what he meant, because next thing he knew, Breda whispered something to Falman, and Falman laughed and shook his hand.

Ed frowned to the men trying to figure out what the hell was going on.

Oh come on… I'm not THAT drunk…

He opened his mouth to speak but was silenced when he felt a glove hand on his shoulder. He turned to face Roy.

"Don't worry about it." Roy said softly silencing him. Ed frowned but didn't say anything. It was kind of hard to hear him because the bar was almost completely full now but the rough voice tuned down every other noise in the room. Roy signaled the attractive waitress again and another round of shots entered the table.

Roy quickly gave Ed another one and, reluctantly, he drank it. He started to feel a dizziness enter his head and suddenly he relaxed a bit. Now it wasn't so hard to deal with Roy there. After that he downed every drink handed to him. Which all seemed to be from Roy… Soon, he was laughing like a maniac and entering, of his own free will, his own conversation. The whole time Breda, Falman, and Havoc, exchanged glances every so often. These went un-noticed from the blonde dynamite. It had probably been about two hours and Ed was now sitting next to Roy and gibbering on with him.

Roy didn't seem as drunk as he was which was strange, but he just excused it. His hazy mind didn't find anything wrong with it at the moment. The bar was still extremely loud and the music was pumping loudly.

"Are you serious?" Ed yelled through the noisy bar to the man sitting next to him.

Roy chuckled. "Absolutely." He yelled back.

Ed seemed to think deeply on it and then smirked. "I totally get it!" he said pointing a finger. Roy raised an eyebrow.

"It was an illusion right?" he asked excitedly.

"Yep, you caught me!" he yelled laughing. Ed laughed too and grabbed another shot.

"Here's to…." He started creasing his eyebrows thinking and holding up the glass. "…to you!" he said smiling and downing it. He made a sound of distaste from the burn that snaked down the back of his throat.

Maes crossed his arms and sent a disapproving look to Roy and shook his head. Roy just chuckled and threw up his arms. Breda seemed to catch it and poked Falman in the chest. Falman then smiled madly and winked to Roy, before diverting his attention back to his conversation.

Ed looked from Maes back to Roy and pulled Roy's arm so he was closer to him. "What…what is all that about?" he asked slurring his words. Roy smirked.

"Nothing Fullmetal." Roy purred back, which caused the hairs on Ed's body to stand up. He then realized how close their faces were. Ed's hand was still on Roy's arm and he could feel the heat off his body.

"I'm drunk." Ed said staring at Roy's lips and creasing his eyebrows. Roy just laughed and nodded. "Yes, yes you are." He replied taking another drink of his beer.

"Do… do you wanna go play?" Ed asked looking to the pool tables. Roy raised an eyebrow. "Well, Fullmetal, I thought you were a little old for that but if you insist…" he trailed off.

Ed growled and playfully punched his arm. "No colonel bastard. I meant pool." He explained pointing to the tables. Now that he had finally realized he was a little bit intoxicated….

Okay, so a lot a bit...

It was a little easier for him to control himself. A little easier…

Roy looked over to the tables and smiled. Ed just stared at him. That smile always took his breath away. He began to feel a little more nervous and his stomach lurched forward. His mind went tingly when Roy took a swig of his beer, never taking his eyes off of Ed.

"Havoc." Roy said smirking. "I'm going to go play some pool with Fullmetal. Don't spike my beer." He said eyes continually glued to the blonde.

Ed had to swallow hard. The look he was giving him was making it hard for him to breath. His heart beat was going a mile a minute and his whole world was narrowed down to one particularly smug looking, raven haired man. Add to that to the ridiculous amount of alcohol he'd consumed and you have a particularly bad feeling.

Havoc snickered and elbowed Falman. Hawkeye and Maes both looked over Roy at the same time and shot him fierce glares. Maes a little less intense, more of just anticipation, and worry in his expression. Hawkeye, however, had 'Don't make me take out my gun on you' stare and her she crossed her arms and eyed the older man deadly.

Roy stood up grabbing one of Ed's arms, and pulled him out of the booth with him. Ed shot up his eyebrows but got up anyway.

"Edward…?" Maes said grabbing Ed's other arm. Roy stood patiently eyeing the blonde as Ed looked back to Maes and smiled.

"I'm fine." He answered reassuringly. He stared at him, encouraging him he could take care of himself and Maes frowned but reluctantly let go of his arm, letting Roy pull him away.

Once they were away from the booth and chalking their pool sticks Maes stopped glaring at them. Settling on giving them short glances every few minutes.

Ed was leaning on the long side of the pool table and Roy was standing facing it, just a foot away. Roy leaned close to Ed's ear and whispered.

"I think he's worried about what I'll do to you." He said chuckling before pulling away. Ed's voice was somewhere caught in his throat. Tingles were sent down his spine and he felt like the colonels voice was echoing in his ear. Somehow he found a voice to speak from.

"I don't see why.." he answered slyly. Roy smirked and nodded his head in agreement.

"By the way," Ed added, "What the hell is going on between you and Maes. I may be drunk but I noticed the way he kept looking at you. Come on. Tell me the truth." He said eyeing the colonel.

Roy laughed and set down his chalk. He looked over at Ed and licked his lips.

Breath hitched.

Heartbeat skipped.

Face flushed.

Embarrassingly staring.

All check.

"Well," Roy said glancing over to the table for a split second. "That's for me to know, and you….to find out." He answered before looking away.

"Hey!" Ed yelled. Roy laughed and picked his chalk back up.

"I want an answer before the end of tonight." He said sticking out his chin.

"How about equivalent exchange Edward…" Roy said slyly. Ed raised an eyebrow and smirked.

Equivalent exchange huh….

"What's it to ya?" he asked. Roy smirked and walked over to stand in front of Ed. He put his hands on either side of Ed's hips, gripping the pool table. He slinked down until his hair was hanging over his face and his lips were hovering dangerously close.

Oh my god…oh my god…oh my god. Breath! Breath!

Even so, he couldn't find the will. His heart was hammering out of his chest, and his cheeks flushed a dark red color.

"Uh…wh-what did you have in mind…?" Ed asked shakily. He was leaning back into the table as far as he would go.

Roy chuckled and bite his bottom lip seductively before stealing a quick glance at the table and smirking. He took a deep breath and wiped away the smirk.

Ed raised an eyebrow.

Uhh… okay? Come on Me. I know your hazy but something ain't right.

Roy's breath tickled and he found himself involuntarily shutter. He tried to get himself to think through all the alcohol in his system, but all his body wanted to do was say, 'forget it', and kiss him. He was so close. All he had to do was move. But his mind wouldn't let him.

Well, fuck you mind!

"I just want to know something..."Roy said lowly. He was looking from Ed's eye's to his lips, almost as if he were scanning it for something.

"A-And W-Whats that?" he asked. He could barely breath and was stuttering. His body was tingling all the way to his finger tips.

Get a grip!

Roy smirked and again glanced toward the table before his smirk got bigger. Ed's mouth was slightly a gape and he all the sudden felt really hot.

"Well…" The colonel said pretending to be thinking. But both of them already knew he knew exactly what he wanted to know.

"I want you to tell me how you feel." He answered. Satisfied with that with he stared down at Ed with that intense gaze.

Missed heart beat.

Fluctuated temperature

Creased eyebrows

Understanding.

Oh shit…he knows? How the hell does he know? Well duh he knows… he's practically raping me against the pool table… And why am I complaining? This is all I ever wanted. Why…why does he keep looking to our table. It's obvious that if Maes wanted this to stop he would have already stopped it. Why the fuck is that colonel bastard keep smiling. What's so fucking funny?

Understanding…

Ed felt a crushing weight against his chest. But it wasn't the colonel, it was realization. Echo's of words he had blocked out from their pointless conversations rung in his ears.

'I bet….'

'fifty dollars!'

'No way…..he won't…'

'Get him to….'

'Say it…'

'it's obvious..'

Anger flashed in his eyes before he closed them and pushed it away. The small lump in his throat was threatening to expand and he felt his eyes involuntarily swell. Why did it feel like all the hope and love he had just felt were ripped away from him and murdered in some dirty alley. Literally, exactly like that. An unknown terrible, disgusting, pathetic alley. Just like him. Pathetic.

So that was what was going on? And I got too drunk to notice…

He cursed his subconscious. Why did it have to make him realize what was really going on. He could have been happy. For one second. But it's stupid nagging kept him from enjoying this. Even if it was a lie... Didn't he deserve one moment of ignorant bliss? No wonder Hughes had been so reluctant.

He knew? Why the hell wouldn't he tell me? Of course…because I thought I could take care of myself.

He found himself hating them. All of them. But mostly him. The beautiful, soft lipped, stunning, charismatic, colonel himself. Him the most.

"Oh yeah?" Ed asked eyes still closed. If he opened them now he risked all his emotions being flashed in front of the man. And he wouldn't give him that satisfaction.

"And what's it to ya huh?" he added playfully.

He heard the colonel chuckle and felt his breath brush across his face making him internally cringe and the pang that hit his heart hurt worse than anything.

God I still love you…

"I get I want, you get what you want." The bastard said slyly. Ed opened his eyes and glared at him.

His breaths were coming out uneven and anger seared through every part of his being. He turned away not willing to meet eye to eye with the man.

Roy grabbed the alchemists chin and turned his face toward him. "What do you say huh?" He asked tilting the boys chin up and brushing over his lips with his thumb.

"Get off…" Ed whispered closed eyes. He felt the lump in throat get bigger.

No Goddammit… Don't you dare cry!

"Actually…" Roy started.

"Get off!" Ed screamed, voice cracking. He shoved the colonel away making him fall on his ass. He stared up to Ed shock on his face.

"What am I just a game to you?" he screamed eyes full of pain and fists tightly clasped. The whole bar went silent. Everyone looking to the young alchemist and colonel, who still sat ass on the ground staring up confused.

He hadn't really meant to knock him down. He just wanted him off of him. He didn't mean to knock him down… He didn't… He stared slightly shocked at his own actions. His face turned red from not only embarrassment but regret and anger and hurt.

Everyone at their table sat eyes wide mouths open. Maes stood one hand clamp on the table uncertain whether to approach or not.

"What am I just a game?" he asked only above a whisper slamming his eyes shut again. No one dared to say anything. He tried to apologize or say something but he just couldn't. It was quiet for a few minutes and all anyone could ear was the sound of rain outside. Funny, he didn't notice it until now.

A tear escaped his eyes and his heart again fell deep into his stomach. He felt like he had had a punch to the stomach. He knew he should say something…anything. Everything was frozen, no one in the bar dared to move or say a thing. They all just stared mouths opened. The Fullmetal alchemist had just thrown his superior to the ground. He risked a glance and his body jolted an intense pain across his stomach and heart. He felt like throwing up.

He felt a cry escape his lips and tears rolled down his cheek. He didn't catch anyone's reaction because as fast as he could, he had turned around and ran out of the bar, wiping the tears away from his face as he stepped out into the cold, dark, raining night.

I never should have come…