AN: Song: Tatu – 30 Minutes

Al was pissed. And when Al was pissed, he smoked. This unfortunately meant that he had returned to a habit he'd successfully avoided for two years. "For fucks sakes!" he cursed, glaring at the radio set as he teetered on the chair provided to him by Fritz. They were occupying the control tower since about five minutes after Ed's and General's takeoff. Al had beat Fritz and Dale to the station, unapologetically throwing out the staff assigned to the job. He ordered them out at Doctors orders, overheating or some shit like that, he'd said. And they were too happy to leave.

Now here they sat for the better part of the morning and not. one. fucking. word.

"I'm going to chew his heart out." Al smiled, inhaling deeply.

"Maybe they're busy?" Fritz threw in helpfully, he had one hand on the controls, scanning the radar and listening intently through one huge earpiece. "Naaah." Al inhaled again, "He's fucking around and does not give one shit that I'm worried… plus he made me start smoking."

"Oh, well.. he's fucked now." Dale rolled his eyes. "How could you let your brother force you into such a disgusting habit?" He asked scathingly, leaning over Fritz and picking out one cigarette from the wrinkled box that lay in front of Al.

Al glared at him. "Ha. Ha." His eyes roamed the board, trying to gleam any sort of clue where Ed was now. "They could be very well at the bottom of the fucking sea and the asshole doesn't give a shit that Im worried!"

"So you said, twice now." Fritz chuckled. "relax man, they'll be fine." He looked over to the pack and picked the last cig out of it. Al was about to growl in protest, stopped by the possessive gleam in his friends eye. "Don't even think about it Elric. This baby is mine!"

Al sighed and got up. "Im gonna dip downstairs and bring up another." He turned and almost collided with Stuart. He brought up his hands to steady himself. "Sorry." He smiled up at him. "feeling better?"

Stuart looked around and wrinkled his nose. "The stench here is unbelievable." He wheezed. "Have ya'll been smoking a pack at a time?!"

"Something of the sort." Fritz waved in greeting. "Ed's gonna get his ass kicked for it though, don't worry."

"Why Ed?" A sandy eyebrow shot up in surprise.

"Because I'm worried about him… about you too, actually, so that makes you just as responsible." Al growled, throwing himself back into the chair.

"Im sorry, still not with you…" Cain looked to Fritz for help, but the man was shrugging. "The doctor gets frustrated when people don't listen and as punishment, he smokes."

"This gives him additional energy to kick some well deserving ass." Dale threw in. "If you know what we're saying…"

Al was busy glaring at the screen. "What they said" he nodded at Dale and Fritz.

Cain leaned on the door and glared at Al. "What you're saying is that you start smoking when you're stressed, and Ed successfully does that. Point duly noted. And what have I done exactly, to deserve your wrath, Doc?"

"You Stuart…" Al sighed, looking up at him and crossing his arms. "Are too much like my brother for your own good."

"I'll take that as a compliment" Cain grinned.

"Don't." Al sighed. "Ed lies to me because he thinks he's protecting me, when all he's really doing is frying my brain cells."

"And smoking doesn't? and how am I anywhere close to that description?" Stuart was seriously surprised.

"You did the same thing yesterday. Why did you come to see me and then run like hell? Al was up now, glowering at Cain down the length of his nose. Though Cain was naturally bigger than him, he stepped back when faced with the full wrath of Alphonse Elric.

"That's different!" He defended, "I simply wasn't feeling sick!" He glared right back. "And you will not blame killing yourself on me." He growled, stepping up to Al's challenge and facing him straight.

"Yeah man, just blame Ed when he gets back, don't bother Stuart!" Fritz laughed.

"You're just as guilty!" Al snorted at Fritz. "I'll just tell Ed that you provided me with ciggies and we'll see who'll be dragging their bruised ass down the deck."

Dale and Fritz flared up at the same time. "Now now, is that any way to treat a friend?"

"Lets not get over ourselves here…"

"I'll tell Ed you forced me…"

"he'll believe that." Dale laughed.

They froze as the radio turned on.

"Amestris? This is Fullmetal, come in."

Al almost threw himself at Fritz in order to grab the speaker. "Tell him he's dead meat!" he hissed, trying to get past Fritz Arm which was holding him back.

"Fullmetal? Where the fuck are you? We're all shitting ourselves, thinking something happened. Green was almost crying!... over" Green had been in before, asking for Mustang well over five times in the past hour . With each negative, his voice jumped an octave higher as he sweated profusely, worried out of his mind.

"Shit, sorry man, there were… some problems with the radio on this piece of shit, Im gonna have to look into that later today. We're three quarters of the way to base. I'm tuning out but if anything, I'll give a shoutout, over."

"See?" Dale mouthed over to Al, who shrugged back, still seething.

"Allright Fullmetal, you do that; Al's still gonna kick your ass, he was scared shitless. Over." That gained him a hit upside the head. "You don't tell him that!" Al swooned back into his chair, grinning.

"Will you cease this disgusting smoking thing now?" Cain asked, bending over the overflowing ashtray and coughing slightly. " I can barely breathe here!"

"Yeah, you should probably leave then." Al noted. "Secondhand is bad for ya. Go."

He did a double take because he wasn't sure if what he registered on Cain's face was correct. There had flashed, he was almost certain, a shadow of hurt. This might have been imagined, but he couldn't be sure. He was only half kidding when he dismissed him too, he was well aware that it was toxic, and boiled down, he didn't want him there because of that, but he wasn't actually going to throw him out.

Cain however, chose to interpret this differently. He nodded, smiled slightly and excused himself before slipping out of the cabin and taking the stairs two at a time. Al was slightly taken aback. He looked to dale and Fritz who were both looking at him intently. "Well, what are you waiting for dumbass? Get over there and explain your lack of human emotion!"

Al didn't have to be told twice. He too, took leaping bounds and veered the turn, landing gracefully on the ground floor before hastily making his way downstairs. He had heard the door slam and had a gut feeling Cain made his way below deck.

Once downstairs, he made his way to the barracks, which were a few twisty turns beyond his office and in the opposite direction of the cafeteria. The soldiers slept in divisions, rows of bunk beds welcomed him as he stepped quietly into the large hall. Ed had his own room, but he was a Major, and his rank gave him some small privileges. This was standard military supply. He walked along two rows of grey flannel mattresses and as he neared the third, he saw a pair of boots poking out of a bottom bunk.

He made his way hesitantly, his white doctor's jacket fanning out behind him, quietly catching some of the beds he passed. Hands in pockets, he stopped before the pair of boots. Poking one with the toe of his own.

The small half-windows allowed a limited amount of sunshine into the room, and the small streaks of it banded through dust and smell of boot polish. Al liked those smells. This was faintly what Cain smelled like, he noticed, as he looked down and into the deep green eyes. Which regarded him easily, through hooded lids. He has unbelievably long eyelashes. Al thought, when the man shifted his position a bit, and one gold band hit across his cheek.

"hey." He voice was smooth. Encouraging again, a doctor's inquiring soft mumble.

Cain regarded him quietly, nodding in response.

"Im an ass." Al sighed. "for many things, though I honestly didn't expect you to listen to me and leave."

"You asked me to. You outrank me. I obeyed. Isnt that what the point is?" Cain shrugged. He scooted to the edge of his bed and Al stepped back a bit to allow him to grab for something beneath his bunk. He pulled out a metal box, flicked it open and pulled out boot polish and a cloth. Without looking at Al, he got out a spare pair of scuffed boots and making himself comfortable within the recesses of his bunk, got to work.

Al stood there, feeling a bit out of place, not sure what to do with himself. He wasn't asked to sit, and there was a tension between them that he had created. His eyes followed Cain's hands on the polish – they shook slightly, and Al had that feeling again, one that told him there was a secret being hidden from him.

"Listen, if its about the cigarettes, I'm sorry." He finally managed, crouching in front of the man. It was easier to see him like this, now they were almost eye level, and Al noted the small glimmer of eyes meeting his from behind the curtain of lashes.

"S'not about the damn cigarettes." The man picked up his boot brush and set to vigorously swiping at the boot in his hand.

"I know I can be a bastard. Neither Ed or I got much schooling in etiquette, though I like to think I outstrip him in it by a mile." Al grinned. "Sometimes I say things and they come out harsh without me wanting them to. And sometimes…" he looked at Cain intently. "Sometimes I pry too much, though that's what you get for wanting to be a doctor, though coming to one and bolting doesn't exactly help either."

He'd gotten the blonde's attention. The brush stopped, fell to the mattress and Cain lifted his frustrated and confused eyes to Al's surprised ones. "It's not that Doc, so drop it."

"Can't. Professional hazard. I may be a bastard, but I do care. I wouldn't be here if I didn't."

"Doc, I don't need your help, it's not medical so please forget that I came to see you." Al scooted closer to Cain. He was almost touching his knee. "Then I'll help as a friend, if you'll permit me."

The blonde groaned, covering his face with one hand, nodding his head as if in disbelief. "Why won't you just let me take care of it by myself Doc. Not much you can do, honest." He smiled at Al, and the Elric bristled. "I know a fake smile when I see one, Ed's a pro at them." He eyed Cain wearily. The man was clearly in distress, there were circles under his eyes, and he would not make eye contact.

"So it's not medical, allright. You're having trouble sleeping."

"I don't like sleeping." Cain grumbled. "And that's not the problem."

"Well whatever, it is actually, but I can skin you for that later. Now, about -"

"Doc, will you get off my case?! It's not what you think its like!" Cain exploded, trying to bolt for the exit only to be stopped by Al, who wasn't budging. Their eyes connected and Al became a little alarmed. Cain looked like an animal cornered. "Then what's it like for christsakes?!" Al growled in defeat.

"It's like this."

Al's shirt was grabbed and he was being pulled down. Cain met him half way, his lips gently settling over Al's, who was so utterly disoriented that he froze. Soft and warm. It was not at all how he imagined kissing another man. He'd have thought hard colder somehow than a woman's kiss. It wasn't it was anything but that. If anything, the man beneath him was growling softly as he gently nibbled along his bottom lip, planting a succession of small soft and quick kisses as he went. Al realized he had closed his eyes, he opened them and as he did so, Cain's advances stopped. Though he was on top of him, half on and half off the bed. He was supported by one knee, and Al froze as he felt the obvious outline of Cain's "problem" on his inner thigh.

"I see…" Al mumbled, sliding off and wiping his mouth, looking at his hand as if not his own. "I…" He looked at Cain, unsure of what to say. He was in a whirl of confusion and utter disbelief both at himself and at the frowning man before him.

"Just leave." Cain's voice was hoarse, he looked away, to the tiny window above him as if a clue was left there to show him what to do.

Al stepped back and quickly made his way out of the hall. His boots made booming noises that he winced at as he went. He thought maybe he should have stayed, explained... Al stopped at the door, hand on the latch and looked back – the hall seemed empty, Al felt hollow. He slipped out quietly, gently closing the door behind him before running to his room and locking the door. He paced feverently, hand on his lips as he replayed the scene over and over in his head.

It felt good… so damn good, he hadn't a clue it would be this good… But then there was Winry.