Underneath it All Chp 6: Depth of Perception

[lynx212]

Title: Underneath It All
Chapter 6: Depth of Perception Part One
Genres: Angst/Romance
Beta: ehxhfdl14
Rating: PG13.
Pairing: Ed/Havoc eventual Ed/Roy
Warnings: Some language
Length: 3,473 words
Spoilers: None, that I see as of now, maybe some in later chapters
Chapter Summary: Roy grabbed Ed around the waist and pulled him against his body. Ed didn’t fight it or seem shocked in the least, rather seeming to be savoring the moment. He hooked one arm around Roy’s neck, leather clad hips pushed forward and he let Roy take the lead.

 

Chapter 06: Depth of Perception

Wherever Roy was, it was warm and sunny. He could hear peals of laughter and sounds of happiness all around.

He was rushing about like a kid and every time he stopped someone pulled on his arm and they were moving once again. ‘Where am I?’ Roy thought. ‘Nothing’s making any sense.’ Just as that thought went through his mind, a Ferris wheel came into sight.

"Oh, I’m back at the fair in Hayden."

When he got close to it he noticed that all the carts were labeled with the number five. He stopped and stared at this knowing something wasn’t right but his arm was tugged on once again and he followed the person in front of him into the cart. One glimpse of blond hair and he knew who had been tugging on him.

"It’s Ed! I’m back at the fair with Ed."

They were singing and laughing as the ride took them in circles for what seemed like forever, but Roy didn’t care how long the ride took, he was having a great time and so was Ed.

When they finally got off the ride they headed to the car and started back to Central. When they pulled into a neighborhood that Roy assumed to be the one Havoc lived in, something seemed off; he just couldn’t place his fingers on it. They stopped in front of a house and when the porch light flipped on Edward said, "Goodnight, Jean. Thanks for the ride." and hopped out of the car, headed for the house.

Confused as to why Ed called him by the wrong name he looked out the window at the house only to see none but his own face staring back at him. He watched confusedly as he saw himself open the door for the Lieutenant Colonel and with a grin, once Ed stepped over the threshold, he shut the door.

Roy Mustang woke with a start.

That was the forth time in as many weeks he had dreamed of Ed. He was starting to worry himself. Between the dreams and the events of last night, he was starting to think that he might be slightly attracted to the blond. He shook that thought from his head and reasoned that he was only dreaming about Ed because he spent so much time with the younger alchemist. At the same time, a small voice in the back of his mind said, ‘You spend so much time with him because of the attraction.’ Roy’s brow furrowed at this. He refused to seriously consider, let alone outright admit, being attracted to Ed.

"I need to get out of this house." Roy said to no one, as he got out of bed and headed for the shower.

* * *

It was still fairly early on the same morning and the Major General figured he would do some shopping downtown at the local farmers’ market. His mind was a lot clearer once he got out of the shower and he was still feeling a bit energetic from the good time he had with the others last night at Fidel’s, so he decided to leave the car and walk. As Roy moved down Dale Avenue he thought about how thankful he was that none of them had really questioned his actions last night. Everyone just seemed to laugh it off and roll with it, and for that he was grateful. Even after a night’s sleep he still had no clue as to why he did that. No clue as to why Ed did, either. It really seemed like one of those weird moments that just ‘happened.’

Twenty minutes into his walk he neared the street that led to the south side of town, and he was tempted to swing by Ed’s to see if the younger man wanted to join him. Roy sighed to himself as he realized that his mind was once again on the subject of Edward. Frustrated at this he turned his back on the south side of town and marched purposefully in the direction of the market.

He was in sight of his destination when a familiar voice called his name. He turned around to see Maes Hughes walking in his direction. "What brings you out so early on a Saturday?" Maes asked.

"Just out to do a little shopping." Roy replied as he waited for the man to catch up to him. When he did, the family man started looking all around as if he was missing something. Before Roy could ask him what he was looking for Maes asked, "Where’s Ed?"

Roy glared at his friend and in a curt tone replied, "And exactly how would I know?"

"Ooh, hit a nerve did I?"

Roy made a conscious effort to relax the expression on his face and said, "I don’t know what you’re going on about." Without giving the investigations officer a chance to reply, Roy resumed his march toward the market. When the other man walked up to the General he was quiet for a few awkward moments before he said, "You know Roy, it wouldn’t kill you to ask him out."

Roy stopped dead in his tracks and with fury that defied reason he all but screamed, "What the hell makes you think I’d want to do that?"

Maes took a step back out of the range of his best friend’s wrath. He was a little stunned by the unexpected ferocity of Roy’s reply, but it only took a moment before a wry grin spread across the photographer’s face. "I don’t know…let’s see…oh yes, it might have something to do with that little dance the two of you shared last night at Fidel’s, maybe."

Roy rolled his eyes at the grinning man beside him, but at the same time his mind began to flash back to the events of prior evening.

The place was packed before the band even started the second set, so an overjoyed Fidel started sending rounds of drinks to the band and their group during intermission. A couple of drinks in, Al leaned over to Roy, Maes and Fuery and whispered, "You know how Brother rarely dances?" When they all nodded yes he continued on to say, "Watch what happens now that he’s had a few drinks, all it will take is the right song on the jukebox and he’ll be on the floor, guaranteed."

A devious grin spread across Kain’s face and he said, "I’d pay to see that. Can you name a song Al?" as he got to his feet and jingled the coins in his pocket.

"I could name several." The guitarist said as he stood up as well and he and Fuery made their way over to the jukebox.

By the time they returned, the first song the crafty pair had played was midway through and a table away the four of them could see Ed steadily tapping his feet and swaying with the music. Al giggled at this and said, "See! I told you. He won’t be able to stand it much longer."

When the second song fired up Ed could be seen tugging on Jean’s arm and the taller blond was steadily shaking his head no. Several tugs later he said, "No dice, Ed. I’m sorry, but I’ve got two left feet and there’s no way in hell I’m going to embarrass myself in front of this many people."

Ed rolled his eyes theatrically and looked over at Riza. She smiled at him and stuck her hand out. "All right Edward, I’ll go with you. I’m dying to dance as well." Ed’s face lit up as he accepted her offered hand and off they went. Two songs later they were still out there dancing. Shortly after that, Al and most of the gang soon followed. They all looked like they were having such a good time Maes and Roy finally looked at each other, shrugged their shoulders said ‘what the hell, we might as well join them.’ Only Jean and Breda remained seated, shaking their heads in disbelief.

Roy couldn’t really remember how he managed to end up dancing right next to Ed and Zac, but he did and he was having a damn good time. Most of the music that Kain and Al had played had been innocent little dance tunes but the next song that played was trance inducing to Roy’s mind. The song had a hypnotic beat and not long after it got going, Roy looked at Ed and he looked at Roy- soon, before he even knew it, they were dancing.

The two of them dancing together was not a problem in and of itself. No, far from it. It was the way they ended up dancing before the song was over that created the problem. Roy could still hear some of the lyrics of the unknown song in his head now and that only made the memory more vivid than it had a right to be. 

Where you are seems to be, as far as an eternity +
Outstretched arms, open hearts, if it never ends, then when do we start?

I'll never leave you behind, or treat you unkind
I know you understand

At first Roy was moving along with the music behind Ed. Everything was going along just fine until Ed started backing up. He eventually bumped into Roy and when he spun around to see who he walked into, their eyes met and that was…that was just it. 

Dream away everyday, try so hard to disregard
The rhythm of the rain that drops
And coincides with the beating of my heart

Their eyes stayed locked together the entire time. As the song continued it was as if the rhythm possessed them. Because possession would be the only valid explanation for what happened next. Roy would like to blame the alcohol but neither one of them had had enough to use that as an excuse. As they drew closer and closer to each other they had failed to notice that quite a few people had stopped dancing to watch. 

Pushing forward and arching back. Bring me closer to heart attack
Say goodbye and just fly away
When you've come back, I have some things to say, yeah

Roy grabbed Ed around the waist and pulled him against his body. Ed didn’t fight it or seem shocked in the least, he seemed to be savoring the moment. He hooked one arm around Roy’s neck, leather clad hips pushed forward and he let Roy take the lead. Ed matched every dip and sway Roy made.

There must be someplace here that only you and I could go 
So I can show you how I feel.

At some point in time their foreheads ended up pressed together, and he then felt Ed’s fingers entwine in his hair and he wasn’t even sure where his hands were and, and- he didn’t care.

They were still blissfully lost in their own little world until the music stopped. When it did, hips stilled and they both blinked for what was probably the first time in minutes. After they finally took note of their proximity to each other they backed away only to have a round of applause from the bar patrons really snap them out of their trance.

Roy groaned aloud as the memory drew to a close. When chuckling reached his ears he shot a heated glare at the man responsible for the noise. "Can it Maes!" Roy hissed as he stuffed his hands in his pockets. This was the last thing he needed right now. Last night was bad enough without this morning’s dream added to it, and he certainly did not need Maes added to the mix.

"Hey, don’t get huffy with me. It’s not my fault you two all but molested each other on the dance floor last night." Hughes said as he failed to contain his amusement.

"I did not take advantage of him." Roy growled.
"I didn’t say you did, all could see that he was a more than willing participant. Which is why I think you should ask him out."
"In case you hadn’t noticed, Maes, he’s dating Jean."

* * *

A wide and mischievous grin spread across Maes’ face. He so loved it when he was right about things. Roy hadn’t said he didn’t want to ask Ed out, he simply gave a reason he felt he shouldn’t. He felt a little sorry for Roy at the moment, but damn if it wasn’t amusing to see Central’s foremost lover boy in the midst of his own infatuation.

"Yes, I know he’s been dating Jean. But, they haven’t made it official or announced any type of serious commitment as of yet." Maes pointed out as he dug around in his pockets.

"So!?"
"So, it’s still perfectly all right for you to ask him out."
"He’s happy Maes, and I’m not going to interfere with that. What makes you think I’d want to ask or he’d be interested anyway?"

Maes was disconcerted to hear confusion and insecurity in Roy’s voice. It wasn’t often that Roy Mustang’s confidence was shaken, and when it came to romance, Roy was probably the most self-assured person he knew in the field. He still had yet to hear his friend downright admit that he had a bit of a thing for the short blond alchemist.

"Oh come on Roy, the only way anyone could have gotten a greater chemical reaction out of the two of you last night would have been to draw an array on the dance floor."

Hughes watched as a variety of expressions crossed his friend’s face. He was not going to let Roy deny this. Last night had been the final piece of evidence he needed to convince Riza and Gracia of his suspicion. He hadn’t mentioned it to anyone else because he didn’t want to get rumors started, God forbid, and as much as he loved them all when it came to gossip they were like a bunch of bored housewives.

Feeling he needed to drop the subject for a while, Colonel Maes Hughes started telling Roy about how Elysia was doing in school. The proud father was going on and on about her last play and how she was going to grow up to be a great actress when he noticed that Roy had tuned him out and was staring over his shoulder. Curious as to what his friend could find so interesting at the local market he turned around, and what he found should not have surprised Maes at all. There, on the other side of the marketplace, stood the Elric brothers and the older one of the pair was watching Roy as intently as Roy was watching him.

* * *

When Saturday morning came, Edward Elric had already been awake since before dawn staring at the ceiling of his bedroom. He could hardly believe his own actions last night and had spent quite a while trying to figure them out. The strings of thoughts had kept him awake for most of the night. Sure, he and Roy had played the whole thing off rather well and no one had made too big a deal out of it, but he could tell that they were all stunned. Shit. Here it was the next day and he still felt off kilter.

He was hard-pressed to describe what he and Roy had done last night as a mere dance. Under normal circumstances he wouldn’t mind Elysia watching him dance. Would he have wanted her to see that spectacle last night? Hell no!

As if that wasn’t enough, Jean kept looking at him funny and shooting daggers in Roy’s direction the rest of the night. When it was time for the band to get back on stage and do their thing Ed had found it almost impossible to keep his eyes off Roy. He finally gave up center stage and sat back down behind his upright and proceeded to add piano parts to the songs. If his band noticed they said nothing and rolled with it. For that he was extremely grateful. At least from behind the piano he was not expected to look straight out into the audience. He should probably thank his lucky stars it didn’t get any worse.

Frustrated, he kicked his blanket off and headed for the bathroom. He was hoping fervently that as early as it was, he could shower, dress and slip out of the house before Al got up.

Ten minutes later he was out the shower drying his wet hair. Five minutes after that he was fully clothed and headed down the steps and out the door. Just when he thought he was home free, a voice from his right stopped what he thought was his great escape.

"Wanna talk about it Brother?"

Ed’s shoulders slumped as he looked across the porch and spied Al sitting on a section of the railing with a glass of juice in his hand. "No coffee for you this morning?" Ed asked ignoring his brother’s question.

"No, I figured if you smelled coffee brewing you would have known I was up and hid in your room all day."

Ed scowled at his younger sibling and asked, "Why would I be hiding in my room?"
"For the same reasons you’re trying to slip out of the house unnoticed. I’ll ask again. You wanna talk about it?"

Ed sighed in defeat as he plopped down on the top step leading off the porch. He should have known Al would have noticed everything. He always did. Ed didn’t really know where to start this awkward conversation and he said as much.

"Well, how about you let me ask a couple of questions that came to mind last night?"
"Sure," Ed said as he put his back against the opposite railing so he could look at his brother, "ask away."
"Okay, one: Where did you learn to dance like that? And two: How long have you had the hots for the General?"

Ed’s face turned beet red as he shouted, "I DO NOT HAVE THE HOTS FOR ROY!"

Ed’s shouting didn’t faze his sibling in the slightest, and Al simply replied with, "You’d have a hard time convincing anyone at Fidel’s last night of that one brother, but look at the bright side; it’s obvious he has a thing for you too, so at least it’s not one-sided."
"Look Al, Roy and I are friends and whatever happened last night was just a fluke, end of story."
"That’s a hell of a fluke brother, I’ve seen people make out with more space in-between them than you and the General had between each other on that floor last night."

Ed threw his arms up in the air and shouted, "That’s it!" as he jumped to his feet and bounded down the steps. "This is exactly why I was trying to leave before you got up!"

Al was hot on his heels as Ed stomped through the yard and out onto the sidewalk. "Where are we going Brother?"

Ed didn’t bother to look at him when he replied, "I am going to the market downtown, and you can stay home."
"Don’t be so touchy Brother; I was only stating the obvious. Besides, aren’t you the least bit curious as to what the General’s thinking about all of this?"

Ed didn’t say it out loud but he was definitely curious about that. Why had Roy grabbed him and pulled him so close? And why hadn’t he cared in the slightest? What had Ed all bent out of shape right now was the fact that whatever it was that happened between them had happened in front of an entire bar full of people and it was something he had not seen coming at all, so he felt completely blindsided by it. He was happy with Jean, wasn’t he? If that was so, why did being that close to Roy not bother him in the least? Flustered by it all he repeated his earlier declaration in his head over and over. Just a fluke, just a fluke, just a fluke.

They walked in silence most of the way downtown but apparently his brother grew tired of this and started asking questions that Ed tuned out as he examined some of the fresh produce on display. He could tell Al was getting irritated with being ignored so he looked up at his brother, but when he did his eyes traveled across the marketplace and landed on Roy Mustang. Caught in the man’s nearly obsidian gaze he did the only thing he could do. He stared. With his mouth slightly open, and an apple in one hand, Edward Elric was glued to the spot.

 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

+ Song lyrics belong to Maroon 5 the song title is “Sweetest Good-bye” off of their album Songs About Jane.