Disclaimer!
I do not own Fallout, Fallout 3 or any associated characters or icons, Fallout is the intellectual property of Bethesda.
Chapter One Barriers
Jade sat patiently on the exam table in her father's clinic in Vault 101, waiting to hear the results of her medical exam. Jade was like her father in some ways, she had his deep reddish tan skin tone signifying a Brazilian and African-American heritage. She had his brilliant green eyes, jet black hair and his natural curiosity of the world and thirst for knowledge. But thats where their similarities ended, when she was younger her father tried to teach her everything he knew about medical practice, as she got older her interests changed.
At her tenth birthday she had been given a sweet-roll by an older vault resident, and a boy named Butch had tried to bully her into giving it to him, she did but seeing a chance to get back at him for all the mean pranks he'd pulled on her, and spit on the sweet-roll before placing it on his paper plate "Enjoy, Butch." she said with a smirk.
Now she was 16 and thought differently of Butch. She had developed some kind of interest in him, she couldn't explain it or even understand it. Jade would never admit it to Amata she denied herself that she thought like this at all. She unconsciously began acting like Butch, gained a defiant edge in her attitude and had taken up smoking cigarettes like him, 7 months went by that she was able to hide it from her father but he found out eventually.
He'd told her he didn't like that she was smoking and said that there were potential health risks from smoking. Jade didn't give a shit, she'd found a medical text 2 months after she had taken up smoking that shortly before the Nuclear Wars, medical sciences had discovered an easy painless way that all the tar build-up in a persons lungs that resulted from years of smoking could be broken down and their lungs cleansed by a new chem called Rad-Away. This was a great find for Jade, she had known that Rad-Away was primarily used to treat radiation sickness but she learned it had other uses too. So once a month Jade would load an inhaler with a mist-form of Rad-Away and treat herself like the text had said to do.
Thinking back to her childhood she realized that it had been after her tenth birthday when she'd stood her ground against Butch in defiance, that he'd slowly turned his attention to Jade's friend Amata and over the years Jade had wondered why he'd done this. Her father suddenly spoke in his calm voice, snapping her back to the present. "As far as I can tell you're a perfectly healthy 16 year old girl so yes you will have to take your G.O.A.T. Test today." Jade sighed lightly knowing it was useless to argue and started for the door.
Butch Deloria was a fairly tall young man and muscular. He was known in the vault for his good looks, cocky attitude, greaser inspired pompador hairstyle and a talent for smooth talking his way out of tight situations. He wore a pair of dark sunglasses and a black leather jacket emblazoned with an acid green snake curled into an 'S'.
He swaggered down the vault corridors with his Tunnel Snakes, Paul Hannon and Wally Mack. Butch spotted over in a corner at the end of the corridor, a dark skinned teenage girl with long black hair that was drapped down her back reaching halfway to her waist. Butch thought Jade had a nice figure she'd grown into an athletic trim and was well endowed. At the moment however it wasnt her body that took Butch's attention as he did a double take, he saw that she was smoking a cigarette. The pose she was in, perfectly replicated the Tunnel Snake Swagger. Arms held loosely at her sides, one leg straight the other crossed over it. Leaning casually against the lockers and just a touch of smugness in her facial expression.
"Since when did little miss goody two shoes smoke?" Butch shook his head slightly at the thought. Then seeing Amata walk out of the girls bathroom and step into the corridor he gave his Tunnel Snakes a discreet gesture indicating Amata, and they swaggered up to her. Jade stood in her corner and watched as Butch, Paul, and Wally began antagonizing Amata, Jade's expression hardened as she stubbed her cigarette out against a locker door next to her and made her way over to them.
Walking cooly up to Butch she stared levelly into his pale blue eyes. "Whats going on here?" Butch smirked at her "Beat it lunch money, me and the boys are just makin' conversation with miss prissy over here." "As I was sayin', its not safe for a liddle mouse to be wanderin' the hallways alone, now is it boys?" Paul grinned and Wally snickered. Jade was suprised, instead of being irritated at Butch like she expected, she felt herself jealous of Amata for some reason, though she couldn't fathom why.
Blowing it off, she locked eyes with Butch and stated in a no-nonsense tone. "Leave her alone Butch, she doesn't want your attention." Butch grinned wider, rolling his eyes "And what're you supposed to be, her girlfriend?" Paul and Wally cracked up laughing, Jade saw she was getting nowhere losing her patience, she spat, "Dammit Butch you and me right here, right now!"
Butch grinned "Come on boys this twerp needs another lesson" That was the furthest Butch got, as Jade fired off with a hard right hook that rattled the greaser's jaw. Wally Mack came in with a massive left hook, Jade ducked under the haymaker and viciously headbutted him in the stomach, Butch recovered and swung a wicked right cross that cracked hard against Jade's ribs, she shook it off, ignoring Amata's shouted pleas for them to stop. Paul swung a right cross of his own but Jade caught his arm mid swing and twisted to the side avoiding Butch's second punch and painfully wrenching Paul's arm in the process and then with her free arm jabbed her elbow into the joint of Paul's trapped arm, hauled him towards her and jabbed a knee into his stomach.
Wally recovered from the headbutt looking unsure of himself, Butch realized that somehow they were outmatched. Doing the only thing he could he flung his arms up in a gesture of surrender saying, "Ok, ok you win this time, but we'll get you back for this, one way or another. Come on Tunnel Snakes we're outta here."
Jade walked over to her friend, and asked if she was alright, Amata nodded, and in an exasperated tone, "I don't know why those assholes always target me, just because I am the Overseer's daughter I suppose." Jade shrugged before replying, "Come on we better follow them into the classroom, as we all have to take our G.O.A.T. Test today." Amata grinned at Jade, "I take it, your attempt to convince your dad that you were too sick to take the test didn't work then?" Jade ruefully shook her head.
As they entered the classroom, Mr. Brotch, an African-American man in his late thirties spoke to them, "I am glad you both made it here, the G.O.A.T. or Generalized Occupational Apptitude Test, is of utmost importance to your futures. We will begin when everyone is seated." Amata sat at the front of the column of desks along the rooms right wall and Jade slid into the desk behind her, and for some reason Butch slid into the desk behind her, while Susie Mack sat behind him.
Wally Mack and Paul Hannon took seats at the desks opposite of Butch and Freddy Gomez sat behind them. Mr. Brotch droned on, "The exam will last for one hour, then you will need to turn it in at my desk so I can give you your results. The test is multiple choice and there are no wrong answers; keep your eyes on your own work." Butch let out a sound between a laugh and a snort, and Mr. Brotch stated, "I'm talking to you Mr. Deloria."
An hour later the test concluded, Amata was the first to walk up to Mr. Brotch at his desk, he spent a few minutes going over it before exclaiming, "Well this is unexpected, according to your results, Amata you are the next in line to be Vault Overseer. I do believe you have it in you to be a natural leader." Jade turned in her test next, eagerly awaiting to hear her results. Mr. Brotch looked up from the test after a few minutes, "Well this is quite interesting your results say you are to be the Vault's new tattoo artist." Jade shouted in triumph, "Yes! All my life this is exactly what I've always wanted to do!"
Mr. Brotch smiled lightly "I appreciate the youthful enthusiasm being shown for once. I am glad to see the G.O.A.T. still gets some of them right." Jade smiled and as she made her way out of the classroom she heard an irate Butch shouting over the results of his exam, "I am no hairdresser, I'm a barber!" He proclaimed angrily before storming out of the classroom.
As Jade made her way to her father's clinic to relay the good news, she found herself thinking, she had known about Butch's secret desire to become a barber. There had been a few times in their early teen years that they had been friendly towards each other, but only when no-one else was around, but at the time she had thought he'd been joking with her about it. Butch was an enigma to her, and it only served to deepen her unexplainable fascination of him.
(Note)
I have a plan on how this story will go, however for the time being it will be on an indefinite Hiatus as I am currently working on another fanfic right now. I will eventually progress this story and it is intended to be an M-Rated Fanfic.