AN: Quick author's note before we begin. Story features fairly strong language. I know that's a weird thing to warn about. In movie terms, it would have to be rated r for the language alone, nothing else.

"Those with soulmates will always feel a pull towards them, like magnets, even before they turn eighteen. After they turn eighteen, however, the name of their soulmate appears in the first place they are touched by their soulmate."

"Mr. Brotch? What happens if you and your soulmate never actually touch?"

"Then unfortunately you'll never know who it is. The pull between soulmates, however, causes an inherent drive to find their match, even if the contact is on accident. Once contact is made, the soulmates will have an even stronger pull to stay together."

Conversation with Amata Almodovar and Edwin Brotch in class, 2273

1."It begins, for me, here on this road."

Marleene Brando didn't roll her eyes. She was the chamberlain and took her job fucking seriously, thank you very much. But if she had to listen to Christine one more time about her hopes of finding her soulmate (and how much she was hoping it was Freddy), she was going to tear her hair out.

Well, maybe just the one braid. Force the Overseer to let her shave the side of her head. Wouldn't that be something exciting in this piss ass boring Vault?

"I understand why you're worried," she said. And she did. Not personally, mind. She much preferred not having a soulmate or, since that was unlikely, never coming in to physical contact with hers. But Amata cared a lot and for her sake, Marleene had learned to at least sort of care about everyone else's soulmates.

"It's not so much that I'm worried. I just...I don't want to end up like Allan and Gloria Mack. You know?"

Out of all the couples in the Vault, the Macks were the cautionary tale. Even Wally and Susie admitted it. They weren't soulmates. Marleene suspected that Allan Mack had felt that pull once upon a time, maybe still did, and resented Gloria for not being whoever he was supposed to be matched with. Hence the beatings that she wasn't supposed to know about. Of course, official word in the Vault was that the Macks didn't have soulmates. Marleene didn't buy into that any more than she did the idea that there was nothing outside. If they were the only ones left, then it stood to reason that their soulmates would be in the Vault and they would definitely have them because it was the best way to make sure kids happened. And yet she knew for a fact that a handful of the older Vault residents, her father included, had their soul marks and most of those weren't their spouses.

Of course, her mom was dead and her dad had never remarried. Assuming her dad was telling the truth about her since there weren't any records of Catherine Brando in the vault.

She'd looked. Extensively.

"Yeah. I know." She sighed, thumb turning the pages up on the bible she kept on the desk in her office.

Christine was quiet for a moment, looking away. Marleene was left kind of hoping she'd leave so she could get back to her reading.

"Do you ever think about it?" Christine asked finally, almond shaped eyes meeting Marleene's. "About having a soulmate, I mean." That was a new question. Somehow Christine had never asked that before. No one but Amata had ever asked and it was only the once. Well, her dad had but he'd been worried about the answer.

Like it would have fucking changed anything. Live in the vault, die in the vault, right?

"I used to. And then I realized that it wouldn't matter if I had a soulmate anyway. I'll still be forced to have kids whether I like it or not for the future of the Vault."

"Oh."

Belatedly she realized that Christine had actually been looking for reassurance. Shit. Okay. She could fix this. Fucking worst chamberlain ever. "But that's me. And you actually want kids so it won't be that bad. Honestly, if I did have a soulmate in the Vault, I'd prefer it wasn't Stevie or Wally which you don't need to worry about. Me? I actually kind of have to worry about them. Though I'd probably stab either of them if they even thought they could touch me. And then the Overseer would get pissed at me because I fucked up his cute little breeding plans."

Christine smiled. "I feel bad but that does kind of make me feel better about the whole thing, actually."

"See? Bright sides." Marleene glanced at her Pip-boy. "And you have just enough time to go get lunch before your break is over."

"I should probably do that." Christine hopped up out of the chair and just before she left, she leaned back into the close enough to a closet Marleene worked in. "And Marleene? Thanks."

"That's what I'm here for."

After Christine left, Marleene stretched upwards, feeling vertebrae in her back pop and slide back into place. She didn't think she was hungry but she knew that if she didn't get anything to eat, she'd turn into a mutant rage monster before dinner time came around.

She eyed the not-Bible book she'd been reading. The protagonist had just made contact with the secret group she figured would give him the powers hinted at on the back cover but how that happened, she wasn't quite sure.

She sighed. No, she needed to eat. Avoiding contact with the Overseer, particularly another reprimand on how she needed to do her duty to the Vault, remained at the top of all of her very short dream lists.

Fed and happy meant that she wasn't going to snap at anyone, which meant no lectures about that.

Food it was, then.

She got up and walked out of her office, making sure to lock the door behind her. She and the Tunnel Snakes were on better terms these days (as it turned out, not being forced to be around each other every fucking hour of every fucking day made them not hate each other) but she still didn't trust them not to prank her at best or destroy something at worst. And if they touched her book, so help her...

"Hey, Nosebleed!" A leather clad arm slung over her shoulder.

Speak of the devil.

"What do you want, Butch?"

"Just wanted to come down, see how you were doin'. That's not a crime now, is it?"

She started walking and Butch kept his arm around her. "I'm not helping you break into anywhere again. Because I'm always the one who gets caught. Do you know how long Alphonse yelled at me last time? Two hours. Two hours, Butch. I'm not doing it."

"Aww, come on, Marleene. Don't be a square. All I'm asking is for you to go and see what movie will be playing tonight. That's it. Teeny tiny ask."

"Uh huh. And what's in it for me, if I did that?"

He grabbed one of her braids and used the end to tickle her nose until she jerked away. "Free haircut?

She wrinkled her nose. "You're not touching my hair, Butch."

"I'm touching it right now. You do realize how fried your ends are right?"

"You realize you put gum in my hair when we were nine and I had to have it all cut off, right?"

"That was how many years ago?"

"'That was how many years ago?' Oblivious as always, Butch. That's not the point."

"And you're a fucking square. We're even."

She grinned, shaking her head. "Oh, please. I'm more of a rebel than you'll ever be and I don't even need the jacket."

Butch stopped briefly, jaw dropped. "Hey, hey, hey. Ease off the jacket, Mar."

"That jacket is all you care about. Actually, is it your jacket or your hair?"

He had to jog a couple of seconds to catch back up to her. "And now you go for my hair? Damn, Marleene, what's got your panties in a knot?"

"Why do you care so much about my panties again? Susie not putting out anymore?"

When Butch tried to drape his arm over her again, looking to make her bear the most of his fat ass, Marleene elbowed his ribs. She didn't really think about it. It wasn't hard, compared to the full-blown fights they had before they graduated. Just a playful jab.

Except he staggered away from her, hands going to the spot on his ribs, eyes wide.

She stopped and stared at him, one eyebrow raised. If she didn't know better, she'd almost think the blood was legit draining from his face. "Shit, Butch, I didn't get you that hard. What, you got broken ribs from fighting with Wally again?"

Butch just stared at her. Her entire life, she'd never seen the expression on his face. It almost scared her because she didn't know that one. It would have scared her if she hadn't long grown out of being afraid of him.

"Butch?" And now she was using what Amata called her "chaplain voice". Shit.

"I...I gotta go."

Before she could say a word, Butch bolted.

Marleene stared after him, half ready to call after him. Then she shook her head, staying put. "Boys are just weird."

She couldn't stop herself from thinking about that weird ass expression on his face though as she headed to the diner. Had to be more than just broken ribs. She'd given him broken ribs once and he'd managed to laugh while punching her in the face in return. And swearing up a storm, which had delighted her because for once she'd been able to match him word for word without any of the adults getting involved. Him-broken ribs. Her-broken nose.

"Marleene!"

Amata's voice yanked her out of her thoughts. She was seated at one of the booths with Susie and Janice, waving a fry in the air. Somehow Marleene had managed to walk to the diner without realizing it. "How's that book coming?"

Marleene plopped down next to Janice, stealing one of Amata's fries and shoving it in her mouth. On the walk over, she'd gone from sort of hungry to no appetite at all but even though it tasted like ass, she wasn't going to say no to fries. The day she did was the day she died. Or the day she convinced Butch to take her out of her misery because fries.

"Mmm. Keep being interrupted. I'm pretty sure he's gonna learn the big secret here soon. Janice, have you decided on any names?"

One of Janice's hands went, predictably, to her still as yet flat stomach. Flatish.

"No, we're...we're waiting until we know what we're having."

"A dinosaur," Marleene said, nodding decisively. She could have put a bet down, and won, on Janice's confused expression and Amata's eye roll. "A dinosaur? Because you made it sound like you didn't know what it was?"

"Mar, I haven't laughed at that joke since the third grade," Amata snipped back, delicately eating a couple more of her fries and slapping Marleene's hand when the other girl went to steal another.

Marleene grinned. "Fuck you, I'm hilarious."

Amata opened her mouth to say something when loud, male, raucous chatter entered the diner. She twisted around to see Wally, Freddie, and Paul come in. Paul, laughing, nudged Freddie until he stumbled.

No Butch.

The worry she was trying to ignore popped back up.

"Ugh. The Tunnel Snakes. Why are they here?" Janice grimaced.

"Because unfortunately they have to eat lunch too." Marleene took advantage of Amata's distraction to steal another fry. It literally tasted like ashes now and she forced herself to swallow it down. "Sorry, Janice. I know you like Wally."

Her hand dropped to her belly, again.

Like it was a secret. There were no secrets in Vault 101.

"Where's Butch?" Amata asked.

"Dunno. He pounced on me when I was on my way here. I think he's got broken ribs because I elbowed him and he wigged out."

Amata and Janice exchanged a look that Marleene missed, attention suddenly caught by a stain on her sleeve. Where'd that come from? Her Pip-boy beeped softly and she twisted her wrist to peer at the screen.

"Shit," she hissed, standing up, stealing a glance at Pepper Gomez. Sure enough, the woman was wiping her hands and was clearly preparing to leave. "Shit fuck shit."

"What's wrong?" Amata casually placed a hand over the rest of her fries.

"Forgot Pepper had a scheduled meeting with me. Shit, I'll see you guys later."

Marleene bolted out of the diner like she had mole rats on her tail.

Amata turned to Janice, sighing. "I love her but she's the single most oblivious person I've ever met. Not that that's saying anything although she somehow managed to beat Butch out for that spot."

"At least her soulmate is actually in the vault. Mine isn't...who I'd like it to be."

"I know. But we have something to look forward to when she turns eighteen."

"I'll make sure we have popcorn."

Amata linked her pinky with Janice's. "Deal."

AN: There will be five chapters of this. It's already written out. Please let me know what y'all think. I started this because most of the soulmate!AU's (did I do that correctly?) make me a little uncomfortable given the whole lack of choice thing that comes inherently with this sort of story. So I tried to address the parts that make me go "Ummm…"

Story title and chapter titles come from The Wild One (1953).