A/N: Hey all! My fourth one-shot, YAAAAY! :D
Well, this one is revolved around the all grownup Bryan Wilks- a man of 18 years, so as you can see this story takes place ten years after the events of the Lone Wanderer saving him, taking care of the fire ants, and bringing him to his Aunt Vera in Rivet City. This short story is two chapters, unless you readers find it interesting and ask me to continue beyond these two chapters!
Summary: Bryan Wilks is all grown up, living the life as a young 18 year old adult in Rivet City- hanging out with friends C.J. and James, while helping around the Weatherly Hotel and trying to enlist into the boat's security program under Commander Harkness. But then, thoughts of her begin to plague his mind again- thoughts of the Lone Wanderer- and he realizes that he never properly thanked her for saving his town, saving his home, and - ultimately- saving him.
So I hope you guys enjoy this short story! Don't forget to drop a few reviews (just to tell me how good you thought it was, or if you'd like to leave some constructive criticism), and don't forget to tell me if you'd like a continuation past the two chapters I plan on posting for this :D If you ask for a continuation, rating and genre will most DEFINTELY change!
Happy reading, happy writing!
~Konfessionist out!~
Chapter One: The Troubles Weighing Heavily On My Soul
Bryan ran as fast as he could through the narrow metal hallways, stumbling in the dim, dark red light as he smashed into a wall and stumbled back, rubbing his sore head.
"God damnit…" He seethed through clenched teeth, shaking his head to clear his vision and looked back.
Where's James and C.J.?...
And as if on cue, the two young adults stumbled in after him, leaning into the doorframe and panting heavily with sweat dripping down their brows.
"Bry- Bryan you prick I could kill you!" James exclaimed angrily, sending an extremely wrathful glare his way.
"I didn't say you had to follow me in here," He replied with an arrogant grin, walking back towards the two. "Move out of the way, we gotta lock 'em out."
James and C.J. quickly jumped out of the way as Bryan shut the door with an irritable screech of agony, closing it tightly and twisting the valve on it so it locked.
"That should do it," He murmured, wiping his forehead dry from the perspiration that beaded from the effort, and looked back at his friends.
"Harkness is gonna kill us for wandering around the broken bow of the shiiiiiip," C.J. called in a singsong voice, tucking her dark bangs out of her big eyes.
"That's if the Mirelurks don't off us first," James snorted with a roll of his eyes.
The young woman simply giggled, hugging his arm and she didn't seem to notice the dark blush that illuminated his cheeks and the bridge of his nose.
Bryan watched them while holding his sides in laughter- looking back on it now, he couldn't believe that ten years of friendship had passed already. He came to Rivet City as an eight year old, rescued from the horrors of being alone after losing his father and was sent to live with his Aunt Vera who ran the Weatherly Hotel. He was eighteen now, a man who was old enough to know better but still too young to care. He was tall, thanks to his father, and his once lanky stature turned into one of lean muscle over the years, broadening his chest, biceps and abs, and squaring off his shoulders. His choppy light brown hair was a few inches short of his shoulders (he wasn't fond of haircuts, and Rivet City's only barber, Butch, was kind of a douche), so he frequently tied it back. He had wide blue eyes and a perfect nose with a slight upwards tilt at the end, "Just like your mother," Aunt Vera would say with a sad smile and a teary gleam in her eyes.
He looked onto his friends- C.J. was poking at the tickle spot on James' sides and causing him to hiccup with stifled laughter.
C.J.'s hair had gone past her shoulders, it was a bit darker than when they were kids but it was still just as unruly. She had a perky nose, and she just couldn't seem to lose her baby fat as it rounded out her face slightly, and kept her "womanly" figure a little chubby, but not too chubby to be seen as unattractive or not cute. She was still shy, and frequently fumbled over her words (as she had done when they were kids), but she was a lot more headstrong now. She wouldn't let James get away with a lot of the shit he tried to pull on the ship now, like fighting with Bannon or pulling childish pranks on the officers- that sort of thing. She changed emotionally, but Bryan noticed that there was not much change physically (despite some of the normal things a young adult would go through).
Now James on the other hand- he hadn't changed much in the personality department. His mouth was as dirty as a garbage barge, always swearing like a sailor, and he wasn't afraid to lip off to people- he wasn't afraid to tell them where to stuff it. He'd sometimes pickpocket the new arrivals, and had gotten better at lying and stealing, but C.J. managed to keep him under a manageable line. Physically? James had straight dark hair that hung around his thin face carelessly, and he was just as tall as Bryan, grazing a little less than six-foot straight and his build was almost identical to Bryan's. His shoulders had squared off, but his chest and biceps weren't as muscled. James had a broad jaw, though, and C.J. teased him sometimes and said it was because he talked a lot, and the reason why he had chicken legs was because he didn't "walk the walk".
Obviously, James didn't like that comment, and he told C.J. where to stuff it. She no sooner threw a hissy-fit and punched him in the face, causing him to see stars and wheel about in a daze. She gave him a shiner, and he never told her off again.
"Speaking of Harkness," Bryan finally spoke, causing the two to stop their tickle fight. "We should get back- before he knows that we're down here."
The two looked at each other, eyes darting back to him and they nodded in agreement. Harkness was way scarier than a Mirelurk Hunter- they knew, they encountered one only moments ago. It was why they were running.
But when the locked door groaned, the three adults froze where they stood and slowly turned on their heels to stare at it.
"Heh," James chuckled nervously. "Mu- Must be the wind…" He murmured.
"In a ship?" C.J. commented dubiously.
"Ye- Yeah…" He swallowed hard, looking at her. "Like a screen door on a battleship?"
"Like a screen door on a submarine you dork!" She exclaimed with a broad grin and a roll of her eyes.
"Just be thankful that Mirelurks dunno how to unlock doors," Bryan sighed with relief, looking back at his friends.
Then a steady screech resounded behind him, and he watched as the horrified faces of James and C.J. turned as white as the froth of the waves splashing the rocky debris of the shore, and they clung to each other in fear. He slowly turned around, coming face to face with a Mirelurk Hunter.
"Ru- Run!" He cried, bolting past them. "Run like your fucking life depends on it!"
"It does!" James and C.J. cried as they sprinted after him with the Mirelurk struggling to scuttle with chase after them.
Bryan suddenly went to a place that he hadn't visited in a long time- the day he was chased out of his once humble town of Grayditch by a small horde of fire ants that began burning up the place, and threatened to turn him into a roasted kiddie-meal. That was when he came upon her- his savior- out front of the Super Duper Mart killing a small group of raiders single-handedly. Only when the last body dropped did he come out from his hiding spot behind a small cluster of burned out cars and begged for her help. He was surprised by her reaction- instead of ignoring his ramblings, writing him off as crazy and turning him away to do something better, she listened quietly; nodding with a contemplative look in her eyes. She tapped her chin as he spoke, and once he was done did she begin asking questions. After he gave all the information she wanted, she crouched down and directed him to jump onto her back- she was going to carry him back to Grayditch where she could take care of the problem.
He was so stunned and relieved that he hugged her right then and there, quivering and crying and all she did was hug him back, brushing his hair with her fingers and soothing him with kind words- telling him that it was alright to cry, and promised that she wasn't going to tell anyone.
Once returning to Grayditch, he hid in the safety of the radiation shelter out front of the ravaged diner as she disappeared into the town, looking for clues. He didn't know how long he was in there for, packed in tighter than a T.V. dinner, but she came back at nightfall with a somber look in her eyes. She didn't need to tell him anything- he knew his dad was gone, but what surprised him more was when she explained the reason why it took her so long to return to him with the news. She gave his father a proper burial, headstone and all. She then took him home, fed him, tucked him into bed and read him a story.
The last thing he remembered before he drifted off to sleep was the sound of her voice, as soft and lush as silk as she whispered to him that she was going to stop whatever caused him all this trouble and pain, and she kissed him on the forehead. When he woke up the next morning, she was sitting at his bedside with a giant smile on her face. She said that she had stopped the fire ants, and that they wouldn't bother him ever again.
She said she stumbled upon Doctor Lesko, but mentioned nothing more of the matter- like where or when she saw the egghead.
Bryan than begged her to find him a place to stay, as he was terrified of being alone and unprotected. He hoped she would offer him to come and stay with her, he felt so safe with her, but instead she asked him where she could start looking. He pointed her in the direction of Rivet City to look for his Aunt Vera and she left the next morning, returning exactly two weeks later with great news. He was still sad that he couldn't stay with his rescuer, but he supposed living with his aunt was best- the woman who helped him had a life of her own, of course.
But… She never came back after that day- the day she had brought him straight to Vera. He'd wait on the bridge with Harkness some days, watching the stillness of the bridge in the wind and the occasional traveler that wandered through, looking for some place to trade or spend the night, but he never saw her face again. After a few weeks, he stopped coming to sit with Harkness and wait for her. After a few months, he stopped hoping she'd come back. After a few years, he just assumed that she had died out there in the Wastes, along with Three Dog's broadcasts of her as the famed Lone wanderer.
Even though she had entered his life and left just as quickly as she came, he would never forget the goddess who saved him- and yes, she looked like a goddess, he wasn't making it up. Her name was a little fuzzy, but he could remember what she looked like quite clearly. She had an untamable mane of curls that looked like they were spun from gold, her eyes looked like they had captivated the luminosity of magnificent full moons, and her skin radiated a thousand suns. She had plump lips, and her cheekbones were pronounced, giving her a sophisticated look. She was beautiful.
Bryan was brought back to reality by James stumbling in front of him and falling to his knees, causing him to trip and the two boys were sent into a tangled tumble after C.J. She skidded to a halt, looking back with fearful eyes as the Mirelurk Hunter was gaining on them with the two boys desperately trying to untangle themselves.
"C.J.!" James exclaimed, causing her attention to dart to him. "Get out of here! We'll be fine- go get help!"
"No!" She exclaimed, running back to help the two up and immediately freezing when she saw the Hunter coming closer and closer. But before it could get close enough, it slammed into the doorframe behind them due to the fact that it was too large to fit through.
The three looked back and forth at one another in astonishment once Bryan and James got up from the floor. Knowing better than to just stand there, they darted off towards the exit, which was also the only entrance that was even worth mentioning. It would be difficult to make a quick escape, as their exit was underwater, and C.J. couldn't hold her breath as long as the boys could.
Before the trio could celebrate the fact that they were no longer being chased by a Hunter, another one came out of nowhere and began chasing them!
"Guys, what do we do?" C.J. cried fearfully, her wide eyes brimming with tears that streaked down the sides of her face. "What if they catch us?"
James shook his head, panting heavily as he ran and glanced to Bryan. C.J. did as well.
"Y- You expect me to come up with something?" He exclaimed with shock.
"You're the leader, Einstein!" James retorted, throwing his hands up in the air exasperatedly as he hurdled over some garbage lying in the middle of the floor. "Fucking figure something out!"
Wait a minute... Bryan thought as he halted to look back at the debris pile James jumped over. Several pipes jutted out from the bottom, and he quickly rushed over to inspect them. He found at least five that were about a foot long, and he handed the best looking ones to his friends, keeping whatever was left for himself in case they needed more later.
It wouldn't do a ton of good against Mirelurk Hunters, even the best hunters equipped with the best weaponry still had trouble taking the overgrown crabs down, but truth be told it made Bryan feel a little better knowing that he had at least something to use to defend himself.
"Here- it's not much, but it's something." He explained as they continued running, coming through another doorway at the end of the tunnel and they stopped to turn back and close the door, spinning the valve tightly shut.
"Shit load of good this is gonna fucking do us," James huffed as he shoved against the door one final time, making sure it was secure and looked back to his friends. "Considering last time. I thought Mirelurks didn't know how to open doors!"
Bryan and C.J. shrugged in unison, all three walking to the railing that overlooked the drowned corner of the bow- the part that was broken off from the rest of the ship. The kids hopped over the railing and dove into the water, waiting for their bodies to get used to the freezing temperatures before stroking in swooping gestures towards the exit. Bryan waited where the exit was, looking back at his friends to make sure they were able to go out first- no one could be in front of C.J., in case she needed to come up for air quickly.
"I want you to take a deep breath for me, okay C.J.?" James asked in a hushed tone, and it was an interesting voice that was only reserved for her, and no one else- Bryan suspected it was because he's had a crush on her since they were kids, but it seemed like she didn't know at all. James was good at lying, remember? It was easy enough to make it look like he was just being friendly because they had known each other for so long; never letting on that it was something more than that.
She nodded, brushing back her bangs which matted to her forehead and sucked in a breath as deeply as her lungs could handle without bursting. Her head disappeared under the surface of the water immediately, and with one last glance to Bryan, he ducked under the water as well.
But just as he was about to follow suit, the door slammed open to reveal a Mirelurk along with a Mirelurk Hunter making their way to the water.
"Shit!" Bryan exclaimed with wide eyes, taking in a quick gasp of air before diving under the water and kicking away from them towards the exit. He squeezed through the door on the other side, stroking to the surface where he took in greedy lungful after lungful of air and watched on as his friends began to swim to shore.
"James!" He cried, bobbing with the waves and the young man stopped to look back at him. He waved him over. "The 'Lurks got through, you gotta help me close up the door or they're gonna get out and chase us all the way to Rivet City!"
James groaned with irritation, rolling his eyes and quickly swam back after quickly telling C.J. to continue on to shore without him. He was back to Bryan in mere moments, and in a few minutes, they returned to the underwater entrance of the broken bow. Bryan swatted his floating hair out of his eyes so he could see better, and with all his strength, pushed against the door. The water around them numbed down the screeching as it closed. James joined in as well, digging his heels into the skeleton of a hallway that once encased the door and pushed against it with his back pressed to the door.
The two gasped in surprise, clamping their mouths shut just as quickly when they spotted bubbling jewels of oxygen escaping, as a blue claw darted out from the mouth of the doorway, between the frame and the door, and began snapping at them. It only urged the two boys to push into the door harder.
With a muffled shriek of agony, the water turned clouded and murky with the green-grey fluids of the Mirelurk as its arm was snapped off from its body, due to the door closing on it. The two immediately kicked back to the surface, and once their faces hit air they panted for breath, blinking out the water from their eyes and shaking out their soggy hair. They looked back at one another with broad smiles of triumph on their faces.
"We- We made it?" James asked dubiously. "We're alive?"
"Seems like it." Bryan nodded, allowing himself a chuckle and a sigh of relief that the ordeal was over.
"Hey!" C.J. called from the shore, waving at the boys wildly with one arm while the other was wrapped around her torso, her chattering teeth giving away the fact that she was probably quite cold. "Over here! Did you guys do it?"
The dismembered claw of the Mirelurk bobbed to the surface in front of the two boys like a lone fishing lure, and with the ends of his thin lips curling into mischief, James picked it up and took aim at C.J.
"Don't you even think about it," Bryan warned, staring at his friend seriously.
"Too late!" James laughed as he whipped the claw at C.J. "See for yourself, C.J.!" He called once the limb took to the air.
C.J. squealed out in terror, taking to running around in circles in hopes of avoiding the flying body part to only be hit in the back by it and hitched forward, landing in the dirt with a slight yelp of surprise mixed with pain.
James only laughed as he began kicking his way to shore, and with a gentle sigh and a roll of his eyes, Bryan followed after him.
"Look what you did!" C.J. cried angrily, sitting up on the ground to motion to the dirt that clung to the front of her outfit- a simple shirt and cargo pants-, and it looked like it was slowly being turned into mud because of her wet clothes.
"Oh, stop acting like such a girl!" He taunted, outstretching a hand to offer helping her up from the ground.
She wrinkled her nose at him, swatting his hand away with irritation as she got up and patted herself down while grumbling under her breath. She stomped off, still grumbling to herself, and James looked back to Bryan, crossing his eyes and sticking his tongue out of his mouth, swirling his fingers in circles on the left side of his temple- indicating that C.J. was crazy and being overdramatic.
Bryan simply smacked him on the arm as a warning and walked after C.J. James shrugged, shoving his clammy hands into his soaked pockets, and leisurely followed after his friends.