Charon wasn't sure how it happened, how he ended up with a nice employer that didn't bite the dust within weeks. What really surprised him was that she was a Vault dweller. Back when his contract was within Ahzrukhal's hands, he was miserable and counted the days until he went feral. If she hadn't come along, he would probably end up chained to the wall for eternity for Ahzrukhal's entertainment. Thank whatever gods out there for Ahzrukhal's greed. The materialistic rotting bastard gave his contract away for just 1,000 caps. Not that he was complaining now that he was traveling with her. The first thing that she did when she gained his contract was give him as much freedom as she could.

Roxanne was a peculiar woman, but beautiful. Her copper-toned skin shined perfectly when the sun was raised high above the sky mid-day, exposing light freckles that adorned her cheeks. Not a single day would go by that he wouldn't appreciate her black, thick curls.

Some things she did had him questioning, especially her random stealing things. The two of them could be in a house of fucking Lucas Simms and she would still take something. The usual things would be brown colored items, especially potatoes, for some strange reason. Occasionally, Roxanne would talk about losing weight because she claimed she was on the chubby side. Charon sometimes wondered why she wanted to lose weight but ate so much and made no effort to actually do something. He didn't dare ask her. He didn't want to insult her. To him, she was perfect either way.

Charon likes to think that he's something significant in Roxanne's life. When he had met her, she was a mess. At some point between leaving Vault 101 and ending up in Underworld, she gained a Med-X addiction. It sometimes interfered with her combat, causing her reaction time to be slowed. One night when they were taking shelter in a locked room of a metro, Charon caught her sneaking more than the safe amount of doses when she thought he was asleep.

"Roxanne, that shit is going to kill you."

Roxanne jumped at his voice. "But it takes the pain away," she cried, her hand holding the syringe getting shaky.

"Does it take it away for good?" Charon asked. He patiently waited for a response.

"...No."

His hands reached out, taking the syringe from her gently and setting it beside him. "Then stop it. We can get you flushed out when we get to Rivet City."

Roxanne cried out and latched onto Charon, causing him to flinch. She buried her face into the crook of his neck. He felt the fabric of his shirt get wet. He hesitantly wrapped one arm around her. Roxanne pulled tighter on the back of his shirt, still crying. Charon closed his eyes and exhaled heavily. He wrapped his other arm around her. They stayed that way for awhile. Roxanne's quiet snores signified her finally getting some sleep. Charon carefully unwrapped her arms from his chest and laid her down on top of her sleeping bag.

Eventually. Eventually she'll get better, Charon told himself.

And she did.

Roxanne finally kicked her Med-X addiction. Her smiles seemed more genuine and appeared more often. Whatever stressful situation came her way, she kicked its ass into orbit. Charon was glad that she was more stable. Her emotional breakdowns still occasionally happened, but they were more spaced out. She was still somewhat fresh from the vault, so it was expected that she would react rather emotionally.

The last few weeks have been downright weird for Charon, he realized. He was feeling things he'd never felt before: strong emotions. Most things he felt were anger and pride. These days, those emotions were replaced with something he didn't have a name for yet. What was fucked up was that he hoped she would have a breakdown just so they can hold each other again.

They were spending the next few days in Megaton. Their first stop was the saloon. Roxanne bee-lined to Gob with a content smile. She sat at the bar as she grabbed a Nuka-Cola from Gob. While Roxanne talked about her adventures since she was last in Megaton, Gob listened attentively. When Roxanne told him of finally getting off of Med-X, a bright grin grew on Gob's face. Charon felt a spike of jealousy.

Wait, jealousy? 'What the fuck is wrong with me.' Charon was having an internal conflict with himself the rest of the night until they got back to Roxanne's house.

As soon as the door shut, Roxanne turned to Charon. "The hell was up with you tonight? You were acting like a mole rat crawled up your ass."

Charon stared at her with a blank look. He wasn't sure if he should come out and say what was bothering him or just let it go. He chose the latter. "I'm fine."

Roxanne obviously wasn't having it. "'I'm fine' my ass, sir. There's something wrong." She took a seat on the couch and looked at the ceiling. "Please tell me what's going on so I can try to help."

Charon shifted his feet before walking over to sit next to her. "I don't know what's wrong."

Roxanne brought her legs up to her chest and turned towards him. "Well, let's start with the small things. Can you describe that much?"

Both of them were silent. Roxanne figured he was trying to come up with what to say. She knew he was acting a bit strange for a while, but she never asked until tonight.

He finally spoke. "I'm having really weird feelings and I don't know what to do with them."

She giggled. "Don't we all? Okay, so what do those feelings feel like?"

Charon growled in frustration, grabbing at his chest. "They just hurt. I don't know where they came from, but I don't want them. They're fucking with me."

Roxanne let her legs back onto the ground. "Well, can you show me or explain to me what kind of things those feelings make you want to do?"

"I just don't KNOW how!" he bellowed, startling Roxanne. He put his head into his hands, looking down. "Every time you flip your shit and cry all over me, I get those weird feelings. Every time you talk to someone, like that pathetic bartender, I get jealous." He paused for a moment. "Just. Fuck it." Charon suddenly pressed his rough lips to her softer and more plump ones. His eyes were shut tight, not wanting to see her reaction, dreading it. To his dismay, she pulled away, pushing him with hands on his chest.

"What the hell, Charon!" she exclaimed with a scowl that would make super mutants shit themselves.

Charon panicked as he went back to his old ways. "I'm sorry, miss. You may choose any punishment that you-"

Roxanne's hand connected to his face. "Oh, don't go guilting me like that!"

"Violence on your part invalidates the contract."

"Fuck off." He didn't move. Roxanne sighed. "Why aren't you leaving."

"Because I'm fucking off right here."

Roxanne pinched the bridge of her nose, feeling a mighty headache coming. "Charon, have you ever been with someone romantically."

"No."

'Oh. Ohhhh. Damn, big bitchy Roxanne, you screwed up.' She looked back up at him. "I'm going to be blunt with you and it's probably going to hurt. I know you probably want to be with me like that, but I don't feel the same. You can't just go up and kiss people unless you have that kind of relationship with them."

"What are we, then?"

"Friends, Charon. Just friends. Let's just go to sleep. We can continue this conversation in the morning." Roxanne got up and made her way upstairs before stopping. "I'm sorry that I slapped you."

Eventually. Eventually she'll come around, Charon told himself.

And she never did.

Roxanne never brought that incident up, and neither did Charon. The tension was so high between them at one point that she sent him off away from her. She actually gave an order. He was relieved when she came back for him the next day.

They still held each other when Roxanne had her moments. Charon's hold on her was much more loose than it used to be. He didn't want to have a repeat of that night in Megaton. Being rejected and seeing the same person every day felt like getting a knife shoved deep into his chest, and each day having the wound reopen, never to heal. Being rejected a second time will just screw him up some more.

Thirty-four years. That's how long it took for shit to hit the fan. Roxanne was getting sloppy in combat and eating less. Her Vault suit that she wore for so long was showing less of her curves, meaning that she was losing weight. Charon could tell just by looking at her face. Her neck seemed more slim and her cheeks weren't as puffy as they used to be. He almost thought she was turning back to Med-X. Could she? He did do inventory of their medical supplies, but she could have the shit hidden anywhere. It was a possibility.

Growing worried, Charon finally brought it up after she returned to their room from an errand in Rivet City that she did alone.

"Roxanne, something isn't right."

"What isn't right anymore, Charon?" she smiled at him. Roxanne began to chuckle until it turned into a loud laugh with tears streaming down her face, her stressed face still smiling.

Charon became alarmed. "Who hurt you."

"Nobody hurt me, I-I'm just dying. I'll be o-okay! Don't worry so much. You worry a lot. Worrying is bad. It'll give you wrinkles or something. Wait, I don't think you can get wrinkles."

"I worry because you're my empl- friend. Now slow down and give me some answers. Why the fuck are you dying? How can you be dying if nobody hurt you?" The questions were flying from his mouth as fast as he was thinking them.

Roxanne walked over to him and gave him a loose hug. "I'm sick. Preston doesn't know what it is yet, but I don't really have many years left. He thinks I have a few months if I'm lucky."

That explained what's been happening to her. She wasn't relapsing at all. Something inside of her was still killing her. Charon began to blame himself and apologizing for letting it happen before Roxanne reassured him that it wasn't his fault. He couldn't have prevented it. The way Charon sees it, he failed her.

Roxanne let go of him to pull a raw potato out of her Vault suit pocket. "Can I borrow your knife for a minute? I promise I'll wash it off when I'm done."

Not wanting an accident to happen, Charon volunteered to peel it for her. Happiness graced onto her face. 'Anything to make her smile'

Eventually. Eventually she'll get better, Charon told himself.

She never did.

Only a week after the visit to Rivet City, shit really hit the fan. Roxanne had woken up suddenly, gasping for air. Her legs kicked at the wall causing Charon to jump awake. He saw her struggling, and he rushed to her side.

"Roxanne, what's wrong?" He only got a pained moan in response.

Protect the employer, protect the employer, protecttheemployer, PROTECTTHEEMPLOYERPROTECTTHEEMPLOYER. Charon drowned the contract's demands from his head as he let her hold his hand with a firm grip. He couldn't stop this. He knew he couldn't. There was nothing he could do, even in the past, to prevent this. That contract can go to Hell for right now. The important thing at the moment was her.

An eternity seemed to pass before her breathing became shallow and her hold on his hand loosened. Charon outlived yet another employer. Emotions began to overwhelm him as the realization hit him that the damn best employer, one that he actually cared about, was gone.

After finishing his mourning, he found his contract in her bag.

Charon wanted to stay, but he couldn't. He left to find a new employer just as he was programmed to do.

Eventually. Eventually they'll meet each other again, Charon told himself.

And they did.