"We are born in the vault, we live in the vault, and we die in the vault"; the mantra had been drilled into the minds of every 101 resident since birth. It was an unfortunate reality, being stuck in the same walls with the same faces until everyone started dying off and the possibility of having to have children with one of those same people… a shiver shot up Max's spine as she tried to shake the thought away. Maybe a miracle would happen and the Overseer would decide to open the vault door, they could all leave the vacuum-sealed coffin they called home and see what life was really like. Someone out there could probably use her programming experience, especially in a bigger town. Maybe all those nights helping her dad in the medical lab had rubbed some real medical knowledge off on her and she could find work as some doctor's assistant. Hell, maybe she'd get up the courage to tell Amata how she'd felt all these years and they could escape the vault together and run off into the night.
She sighed as her foot absently kicked the desk she was sitting at, jarring the ancient Pip-Boy sitting in front of her in all its partially disassembled glory. It was just begging for the young woman to operate on it, make it work long enough to impress… anyone who would be interested. Probably only Stanley, if she was being honest but as her coworker his approval was pretty important. She got back to work removing screws and resetting pins where she knew she could; if there was one good thing about vault life it was the fact that the G.O.A.T. had pegged her right. If she was being really honest with herself she'd admit that she was mostly grateful for where she was. Life probably won't be too bad in the vault as long as she just kept her head down and did good work; eventually something had to give. Maybe Amata could stir things up when she became Overseer and open them up to the outside, make it beneficial for everyone, residents and visitors alike. She continued to tinker with the machinery in front of her for the rest of the day, wrapped up with the task and her fantasies of the future; just another day in the vault.
-
Days later Max found herself staring at the back of the very door she'd always hoped would open, bloody baseball bat in hand. Her stomach was in knots as the sirens blared around her in warning. This wasn't how she wanted to leave, she didn't want to leave at all, as it turned out. This was her home, these people were her family… Metal ground against metal as the door was pulled, painfully slow, from its resting place and rolled to one side. "Oh my god… you actually opened it…" she felt her head nod at the sound of Amata's voice before turning to look at her friend. She looked much more confident than Max felt, and for a second she thought her heart would explode out of fear.
"You actually did it! My god, I almost didn't believe it was possible." Her friends expression calmed her somewhat and she gave Amata a mostly genuine grin in return.
"I told you I'd find a way to do it…" she looked back towards the door, eyes surveying the rocks huddled around the entrance; she could almost make out light peeking through wood as the other girls chuckle filled her ears.
"I should've known better than to doubt you." She took a step forward, hand on the railing before she stopped and turned to face her friend of 19 years. She tried to make her face as neutral as possible but the way Amata's expression softened and lips turned down she knew she was failing miserably.
"Come with me. We've talked about this kind of thing since we were kids." Her voice came out as a strange mixture of calm and desperate. Please don't make me go out there alone. I need you with me. Her shoulders sagged just a bit when Amata looked down, her own hand clutching the end of the railing, their knuckles grazing against each other.
"I… I can't Max. It's tempting, but… my place is here. The vault needs me more than you do. I'm the only one who has a chance to talk some sense into my father." Max nods as she speaks. Of course she's needed here, it was stupid to think she'd abandon her father at a time like this. She finds herself looking at their hands and something stupid, but important, dawns on her. This could be the last time we see each other… It takes only a second for the Pip-Boy programmer to come to a decision as she swallows past the lump in her throat and in one fluid motion steps back up the stairs while placing her clammy hand over Amata's. Without thinking she closes the distance between them, pressing her quivering lips over the other girls; the bloody bat clatters down the stairs as her now free hand finds the jumpsuit cloth over her friends hip and grips it and for a brief moment everything is just… still. She feels the other girls hand grip her arm before pulling back and looking at her; another stupid, but important realization dawns on both of them and the sudden urge to cry is almost overwhelming.
Before either of them can say a word muffled shouting and the sounds of heavy boots fills the air and a look passes between them. If this had been any other day or any other circumstance this feeling would've been welcome, but in the moment it just hurts. Amata swallows hard and her grip on Max's arm tightens just a bit. "Go, if they catch you…" the programmer nods quickly and her hand squeezes the other girls in what she hopes is a sign of reassurance before she turns and practically falls down the stairs, grabbing the baseball bat and sprinting towards the exit just as the door behind Amata opens and the security officers burst through, shouting curses at her back. She spots a yellow panel sitting just past the entrance and slams her fist into the big red button on it, sirens blare again in warning as metal grinds against metal. Her feet skid to a halt as she turns to look back, watching the security officers argue amongst themselves at the bottom of the stairs. Amata stands rooted to her spot and their eyes lock a final time; Max lifts her hand and gives a little wave as the door slides shut before her, leaving her in deafening silence.