*NOTICE* I ONLY DIDN'T UPDATE FOR AWHILE BECAUSE I HAVE HAD A, PRETTY MUCH, EVER-CONSTANT HEADACHE SINCE THE LAST TIME I UPDATED TILL NOW.

SORRY!

Why can't I hear anything?

Edward started to panic; his hands moved to his face. He winced from the effort it took to lift his automail and from the pain it took to lift his flesh arm. Edward's flesh hand brushed up against the oxygen mask on his face. He ripped it off and made a frightened noise that he himself couldn't hear.

"Al? H-hughes? Mu-mustang? What-what happened t-to my- Why c-can't I- My-my ears?" Edward stuttered, letting his hands gravitate towards his ears.

The looks his friends gave him worried Edward. He looked to his brother. He may not be able to see his brother's facial expression, but he could tell that, by the way Al's armour shoulders slumped, Al was upset and worried.

Edward tried to sit up only to be met with a horrible searing, burning pain in his ribs and back. Again he saw the lips of his friends moving without the companion of words.

Edward wanted so badly for the pain and confusion to go away and leave him alone. The pain spread down to the injury in his side where the pipe had impaled him.

Please, it hurts and I just want it to stop! I don't want to be confused anymore! What happened?!

Maes starred at Edward as he panicked and ripped away the oxygen mask. A noise he had never heard from the boy was absolute fear, but there it was.

"Ed, are you okay?" Maes asked, his brows furrowing in worry.

"Al? H-hughes? Mu-mustang? What-what happened t-to my- Why c-can't I- My-My ears?" Edward's voice was high pitched as he stuttered through his words.

Maes's worry deepened along with everyone else's.

"Fullmetal? Is everything okay?" There was obvious worry in Mustang's question.

"Brother, what's wrong?" Alphonse squeaked, his shoulders slumping.

Edward tried to sit up, pain showing clearly in his face. He fell onto his back again, probably in even more pain because of the burns on his back.

"Ed, take a deep breath, calm down, and tell us what's wrong."

Edward didn't take a deep breath, he didn't calm down, and he didn't tell them what was wrong; he panicked. His breaths came quick and short. All any of them could know was that something wasn't right. No. Something was seriously wrong.

"Fullmet- Ed, calm down and breath normally!" Mustang ordered the boy. "You're going to hyperventilate."

Edward showed no signs that he had acknowledged or even heard his superior's voice.

Everything began to fall together. Maes, whose job was piecing together facts, began to realise the horrible truth. Something was seriously wrong, Edward had already confirmed that. He had also said that he couldn't do something, and he wasn't acknowledging or acting like he had heard anything that they said. Then another thing came to mind. Edward, he had said something about his ears.

No! That couldn't...

"Ed, can you hear me?" Maes asked, scared for the answer.

"Of course, Brother can..." Alphonse started trailing off. "You don't think he's..." Alphonse couldn't quite finish the question.

"Guys? W-what's happening? I can't h-hear anything." Edward released a hiccup.

There it was.

Everyone stopped.

Maes felt sick. He'd been right, but he didn't feel good about it. He would rather have been wrong and embarrassed than the truth be, well, true.

"What does he mean? Fullmetal, what do you mean?" Mustang demanded.

Maes let himself become somber. He found it hard to bring out the words in anything more than a whisper.

"I think- Roy, I think he might be deaf."

Roy was shocked. Those words felt heavy.

"He..." Mustang trailed off. "He can't be! I just saw him less then a week ago and he was fine! He can't b-"

"Roy!" Hughes interrupted. "You know as well as I do that things can change fast! There was as explosion! We don't have control over the past or the future. Ed said that He couldn't hear so denying the truth is idiotic. You can't just say that the way you want the world is the only way that is possible, so-"

"SO STOP FIGHTING! It's useless! And it won't solve anything!" Neither Maes nor Mustang had ever witnessed Alphonse snap like that. "If Brother really is... Then I want to help him, not fight!"

Everyone looked at Edward, staring up at them from the bed, unable to hear anything they had just said.

It was torture for Edward to just sit there in silence. Never in his life did Edward even consider the suffocating feeling of complete silence. He had never been in complete silence. Yes, there were times when it had been quiet, but Alphonse was there so it wasn't completely silent. And even when Al wasn't around Edward could hear his own breathing. Now he could hear nothing, not even his own breathing. It was truly terrifying to say the least, and Edward wasn't one to be scared about just anything.

All Edward had was, ever constant, faint white noise in the back of his head, and the growing panic he was feeling as he stared at his friends.

The inaudiblity of the room was getting to Edward. He just wanted the cloud of confusion to go away. That, of course, wasn't happening. When did anything happen exactly the way Edward wanted it to?

Edward was still taking in short and quick breaths. He was frantic. It was almost as if he could see the worry oozing off of his brother and friends. That was one reason for the panic he felt.

Of course, seeing his friends worried only proved what he already knew.

Something was terribly wrong. And they didn't know how to fix it.

A/N: I have a very bad headache so I'm stopping there for now. I want to apologize for the long delay. I was really trying to work on this story. Thanks for the reviews and loves and follows.

Oh, and sorry this chapter isn't great. More like down right awful, or that's what I think.

Love you all!

-UNAU/IME