He's back, he's finally fucking back. Fuck you Zinyak, fuck you aliens, fuck you simulation, fuck all of you. Johnny Gat is finally home.

That simulation bullshit was hell, to say the least, but I felt like it was asking basically nothing of me to go through. Not for Johnny anyway. There isn't anything I wouldn't do for him. I pretty much just fought through a shitty 16-bit video game that illustrated the tragedy of his and Aisha's relationship, and plowed through a bunch of fucking aliens in a power armor suit (ok, that bit was fun), and risked my life for Johnny. That's how badly I wanted to see him again. I NEEDED to see him again. No questions about it.

Once he was busted out, and back on the ship, he told us about what had happened to him while he was stuck in the goo. Long and short of it was, Zinyak thought Johnny was so good, that Johnny would take him out single handedly. So, he kidnapped him years before he set out to destroy the world, just in case. "Earth's most puissant warrior" was the exact wording. What a pretentious fuck…

"That's so fucking awesome!" I said, after hearing the story.

"You realize that means Zinyak is more afraid of him than you, right?" Asha said. There she goes again…

"Shit."

Pierce chimed in, wanting to hear more about the story, again. Johnny basically said to fucking drop it, in a very, very nice way. Kinzie was on about Ben King's plan for this whole clusterfuck. Meanwhile, I got lost in thought for a minute. I wasn't the baddest bitch on the block anymore, but I was ok with being second to Johnny Gat. He was the toughest mother fucker I knew. It was pretty much an honor.

My thoughts wandered even further. Johnny…

No doubt, Johnny and I had always been close. While everyone babbled on about meat shields and aliens, I was just thinking about how much my best friend actually meant to me. Johnny had been my whole world for years know; us kicking ass and taking names together. And after I lost him, the hole I felt inside was far too real. It felt like a whole piece of me was missing.

I kept my distance for a day or 2 after that, wanting to honestly think about this. I wasn't going to do anything stupid. Acting on all the tension that had been building up with Shaundi was liberating. Keeping it casual with Pierce was one thing, while oddly satisfying crazy kink sessions with Kinzie was another, but Johnny? I didn't want things to be…weird…

And then there's the whole thing with Aisha.

No, no, don't let me say it like that. Aisha and Johnny had really been something great. I had always liked her. She made Johnny happy, and that was enough for me. But Johnny being gone made me see what my feelings had really been for him. It scared me. I'd never allowed myself to feel like that. For anyone. Ever. I'd come close, sure. I'd dated. Serious relationships. What, you think I'm a heartless bastard? Ok…maybe you're right, but seriously, I'm not some frigid bitch either. I've been with people. And I enjoyed it while it lasted. Having feelings for a person wasn't new to me. They just never felt like this.

Kinzie let me know a few days later Johnny wanted to talk. He had some scores to settle with the Zin. Just like all of us. There was some shit to work out in the simulation or…whatever fuckery they're talking now.

I walked around the spaceship, and saw him leaning against a row of lockers, dicking around with a bowie knife (when is the man not armed with something?). I stopped in my tracks for a second. I can't be a little bitch now…

Whatever, I can talk to him.

"Hey, Johnny!" I said, breaking his train of thought. He smiled, and stretched a bit.

"Dammit man, I've been cooped up too long. I need to stretch my legs and kill some things," he said. I laughed. That was definitely Johnny.

"Hell yeah! You got it, Johnny!" I answered. I'm always ready to kill some alien mother fuckers.

Johnny outlined what he wanted me to do in the simulation. Same shit everyone else on this flying pop can had in mind. Figured I could get to it, sooner rather than later.

I guess I got quiet for a minute. Instead of just leaving, I looked down, and was thinking. Definitely not a normal thing for me. I had to tell him. If I learned anything over the last few years, it was that you really don't know how much time you've got. I guess Johnny noticed my actions, and spoke up.

"Hey boss, how-" his voice snapped me back to reality.

"Just…shut up, I have to tell you something," I said, deciding to throw any caution I had to the wind. Fuck caution, anyway. "For years I thought you were dead, and I blamed myself for it. When you were gone, there was a hole in my life that I tried to fill with anything I could…partying, sex, revenge…sometimes a weird combination of the three."

Johnny smirked when I said that, leaning against the lockers again, his arms crossed, and that fucking bowie knife still out and a-fucking-bout. Wonder what Freud would say right about now. I had no fucking clue, but I did know seeing him like that made me weak in the knees. Now THAT was a new sensation.

"But," I continued, "nothing worked…nothing ever made me feel alive like you did. And I always thought it was because I was depressed, but seeing you now has made me realize how much I need you. I know I'm not Aisha, and I'm not trying to be, but if—"

Somewhere in the middle of my spiel, Johnny's face relaxed, and he moved in closer to me. I guess I was too involved in babbling like an idiot to realize what he was doing. I didn't figure it out until his arms were around me and he was kissing me, passionately.

Oh shit! Was the only thing I could think at that moment. I'd never been kissed like that before. Not by anyone. I kissed him back, and pressed my body up against his.

I don't even know what room we made it to, or how, most of it is such a damn blur. We hurried to get each other out of these damn suits, and into bed together. Or up against the wall. Or Kinzie's beanbag chair. Or over Pierce's pool table (yes the balls were cleared off, and yes, we made sure Pierce was elsewhere). Wherever we could manage, we got to it. And god…damn…words don't even do it justice. I mean, I never doubted he was any good, but it's not like I had REALLY thought much about it, until recently. Johnny most definitely lived up to his reputation of…well…obliterating anything that crossed his path. I was pretty sure I was going to be walking funny for a week. But that was fine with me. I needed it. Hell we both did.

Laying next to him afterwards was…nice. I never considered myself much of a romantic, but it felt good in his arms. I rested against him, enjoying how it felt, when he was the one to break the silence.

"I missed you in there, ya know?" he said. I looked up at him, and smiled.

"Did you really?" I asked.

"I did. It had always been you and me. And stuck in there, I was on my own. It wasn't that I couldn't handle myself, I just realized how much I depended on you."

"We've always been quite the team," I answered. I wasn't used to hearing things like that from anyone, but I wasn't going to get all awkward and whatever about it. It was nice to hear something like this for once.

"We have been. Going out and fucking shit up together." We laughed a bit at that, before Johnny kissed my forehead.

"There's not anyone else I'd rather be kicking ass with," I answered. He smiled as he reached up to stroke my cheek.

"I know."

It was pretty anti climatic after that. Hell, it was even romantic. We kissed, we cuddled, we made pillow talk, you name it. I couldn't think of any one time that was as sappy as this, but I couldn't fight it either. Truth is, I liked it. I liked being close to Johnny for a change.

We fell asleep like that, and woke up to the hoots and hollers of the rest of the crew. That was met with a very gruff "fuck off" as I tried to cover myself up. Not that it mattered, we had all fucked at some point or another during this insanity, but for some reason, this seemed to be the fucking cherry on top for everyone. Normally, I'd brag. Today, I just wanted to be left alone to enjoy Johnny. But, that wouldn't happen. So, suit up, and get to it. We had a simulation to destroy.