Mid afternoon crept through the small window frame in her room. Though the light was small, it was assertive. And the gleaming headache that gathered in the back of her brain was beginning to pulse. The night prior was a bit of a blur. She felt as though she had a good time, and was painfully aware of how much she drank. Nora pulled herself out of bed and strapped on her Pip-Boy, she admired the tan line she had acquired from its prolonged use. Nora checked the time and felt slightly relived that most of the day was gone, and she could easily lose herself in another night of forgetting about Shaun.
She drank an entire carton of clean water; happy with the way it eased her headache. In her bag she saw another inhaler of Jet that had been hanging around for quite some time. She remembered taking Jet last night, and how quickly the decision had some to her. Again, she put the new inhaler to her lips and let the chem take control.
With the Jet, she felt like she could live days without thinking about Shaun. It took her mind away from the things that made her sad and she could find a little happiness in the way it made her feel.
Nora came to understand a valid sense of time after a few moments. With this little kick of Jet she found it easier to get dressed and walk outside her room. The Jet made her a bit fuzzy, like poor reception to a television after it's effects had subsided, but she could still feel the Jet lingering in her system.
Kent Connolly was standing in the middle of the courtyard,
"Hey there Shroud." Said Kent.
"Hi." Said Nora, still adjusting to her dulled senses.
"You okay? I just wanted to make sure you got to sleep okay. You know. Cause well I mean…"
"What do you mean?" Nora asked.
"Well cause you were pretty out of it. I didn't know if Hancock left or if er…"
Nora remembered now. Hancock had taken her back to her room. He had been with them through most of the night. He had been very forward about his intrest in her. And she could see now Kent was concerned for her.
"Did you wait out here for me all morning?" Nora asked.
"Well there was a Rad Storm this morning, and I thought I'd soak some up. Figured I'd run into you eventually. I just uh, didn't know, you know cause you were just out of it, I wanted to make sure you were okay n' all." Said Kent.
"I'm just fine, Kent. I got there safe and sound, nothing to be concerned about." Nora said. She reached in her back pocket and pulled out a cigarette. She lit it with her lucky gold lighter and took her first drag in over two hundred years. It reminded her of college, and how she quit because she was pregnant with Shaun. Somehow the cigarette reminded of her a simpler time, without Shaun. She liked it. And even though the tobacco was stale, the smoke and aroma was there and she found another thing that made her a littler happier.
Kent explained how last night had got him so excited he had scheduled a visit to the memory den, and he had to leave her, but would happily obliged meeting her later for another drink if she wanted. And as Kent left and Nora sat in the middle of the town square, finally thinking of her present and what she could do about it. Nora's Pip-Boy was softly playing Easy Living by Billie Holliday. It was the same song that had come on last night when Hancock was standing in her doorway, the same song in which she felt compelled to wrap her arms around him. His advances were flattering, but not something Nora could even comprehend responding to. Not when she's lost so much.
But for some reason she couldn't shake the memory. As the song played she smiled.
"Beautiful girls should be a crime." Hancock said.
"So I'm guessing it didn't go as planned?" Fahrenheit asked.
"Got to the door. I'm a Ghoul. I get to the door all the time, but usually it gets shut in my face." Hancock said.
"So what. If the girl was rocking liquor with jet, she probably would've been a bad lay any way."
"Hey, she was just fine. She didn't even need me to walk her to the door, I just wanted to." Hancock said. "Hoping my being a gentlemen would get me somewhere, ya feel me?"
Fahrenheit laughed at the word gentleman. And Hancock grew tired of talking to F, and walked outside to get some air, while Fahrenheit composed herself.
He lit up a cigarette and tossed the match aside. Taking a drag he walked around the corner and there she was sitting on a bench outside the Third Rail.
"Hey dame." He said. "Mind if I sit? I know I ain't easy on the eyes or nothin."
"The seat's yours." Nora said. Taking and another drag.
"How'd the rest of your night treat ya?" Hancock asked. "I hope it was as good as it could be without me there to keep you company." Hancock winked at her, still just as flirtatious as ever.
"I slept better than I have in a while." Nora said. "Even without you." She teased.
"Yeah why's that?" Hancock asked. "I know we Ghoul's ain't easy to look at…"
"It's not that, It's... I'm not very good company right now. I find myself trying to figure too much out lately. I just can't... seem to find the right way to move on." she said. "The Commonwealth is just hard on some more than others. And maybe I've finally given up on fighting it, and for the first time in a long time I felt like I could sleep."
"I can understand that. You seem to know a lot about Kent's past. The old days interest you?" Hancock asked.
"Interest me? They haunt me." Nora said. "They're a reminder of everything that was taken from me."
"Come on doll. Give me the your story. I ain't gonna judge you turning me away or nothing, it's all personal to you, but I can't help but wanna know your story." Hancock said.
"I'm a vault dweller from up north, near Sanctuary. I've been on ice since the bombs fell. Just woke up a few months ago." She said.
"Damn Girl, you're a vault dweller, and an original one at that? Never heard of such a thing. I bet this place was tough to wake up to."
"Baptism by fire I suppose. I know my way around a weapon, and I've gotten good at killing. That part wasn't hard. It was the people… the people I wanted to trust and the people I betrayed. Everything just hit me so fast; I let a few people down. Now that part of my life is behind me I'm trying to find a way to move foreword, but I'm not used to it like most people are."
"Well Goodneighbor is a good place to start. No one here's gonna judge, and if you can hold your own, there is no reason you can't call this place home. How about I buy you another drink? Charlie is always serving drinks."
"Yeah, drinking has been a good place to start." Nora said. "Helps me relax."
"Well girl, I'm the king of relax, you just make sure to hang around me and we'll get ya' taken care of."
Nora tossed her cigarette to her side and took Hancock's arm; together they walked down to the Third Rail where Charlie gave them two beers at no charge. Nora noticed a drifter and a Ghoul take in an eyeful of their Mayor. It seemed that they were jealous that Hancock was giving Nora his attention. Nora didn't appreciate the glare she got either of the drifter girls. But she finished her beer and realized she didn't care. She popped a Mentat she had in her back pocket, and sat back to enjoy her conversation with Hancock. She told him all about waking up and running into the Minutemen, the Raiders she had killed, the mutants she fought, and the friends she had acquired. She left out the time she had spent at the Institute. In fact she left it out of all her conversations. If she didn't have to tell her friends everything, she wouldn't. The hatred that came from everyone about the Institute made Nora feel uncomfortable because they didn't understand, and there was really no proper way to explain. Then Hancock asked the question she dreaded.
"You got any kids? You know being a Popsicle n' all?"
Nora had taken off her wedding ring and scrapped it long ago. Her husband was a distant memory except for the memory she had of him trying to keep Kellogg from taking Shaun.
She looked at Hancock and with a short answer she said, "No. No Kids."
Their conversation went on and she found that she enjoyed his company, and missed having someone to talk to like this.
"Hey if you're looking into some work, I've been curious about Pickman's Gallery. It's a little north of here. It's raider territory, but it's been quiet lately. Too quiet. If you check it out for me, there will be some caps in it for ya." Hancock told her.
"Sure no problem." Nora said, happy to have more busy work. Their conversation paused as Magnolia began to sing Train, Train. Hancock offered her a Buffout tablet. Time slowed and she found that Hancock was swinging her around the dance floor while she listened to Magnolia tell Nora's life story in a song.
It seemed that Nora and Kent has sparked some sort of new feel to the Third Rail, Hancock and Nora were no longer the only people dancing, it seemed that people weren't afraid to let loose, especially with their Mayor setting the example. Having her arms wrapped around Hancock reminded her of Belly Hutton song about the dangers of a charismatic man. She knew that the ease he made her feel was dangerous. She felt an even deeper hunger liven within her when Magnolia started singing her tribute to Goodneighbor. The song made her conscious of the drugs in her system, and very conscious of the hands around her hips.
How she had fallen into this dance twice boggled her mind. It brought her pleasure being wanted and needed by someone, but still, she dreaded the idea of losing anyone ever again. And of course, it seemed like living in the Commonwealth was a great way to get someone killed.
Before the song was over she pulled away and headed to a back room, filled with a couple chairs and tables, she wondered what sort of business usually occurred in such a place. Nora didn't know what she was doing. These chems made her feel so much more relaxed. Almost like she was letting her guard down, and she was venerable. She didn't like feeling venerable.
"You alright?" Hancock asked her.
"Yeah." Nora said. "Seems that I'm just a bit dizzy." She said. "I think I need to go lie down."
"My bed is always open." Hancock offered.
"Well aren't you a cheeky bastard. How do you get away with it?" Nora asked.
Hancock leaned into Nora, and she quickly found her back against a wall.
"Cause I'm good when I'm in bed. I know my way around, enough so that those girls you saw back at the bar were staring daggers at you because they would beg to be in your position. They've had me before and they want me again. I get away with being cheeky because I'm damn good at it." He said.
The hair on Nora's neck stood up at the feeling of his warm breath against her skin. She knew he was telling the truth. And that made her even dizzier. She pressed her hand against his chest and pushed him away. She felt his recoil, he stood back from her, and she could tell that behind those black eyes he was hurt.
"You know I like ya, you're a pretty thing. But I get it." Hancock said. "Don't worry, I won't bother you anymore."
"Hancock wait," Nora said, he had already turned away from her, but she didn't let his hand slip completely away from her. "You know I can't stand to lose anything. Anyone. My whole life was taken from me, and I'm determined not let that happen again."
"Come on darling, I'm not going anywhere." He said. "I'm a Ghoul. I'm gonna live forever."
Nora pulled him close and let herself kiss him. His words were something she wanted to be promised, she wanted someone who couldn't go anywhere. She kissed him the kind of feverish way you would kiss someone you may never see again. And just for a moment she let herself be happy.
She pulled away and relished in the stunned but happy look on Hancock's face.
"I'll see you tomorrow," she said. "keep an eye out."
Hancock's body danced dangerously close to Nora's. She was unsure if she could pull away from him. She bit her lip to keep herself from kissing him again.
"Tomorrow." She said again.
"Count on it." Hancock said.
Nora stepped away she took a couple steps down the hallway before she looked back at him, he was staring at her, either high on chems or that kiss. But the way he looked at her made her smile, with that smile, she bid him goodnight one more time. And then she left.