Nearly a day passes and Ashley is still in a state of unconsciousness. Thou she is severely dehydrated and emaciated she doesn't appear to have wounds internally or externally except for the bruising around her neck and palm. They put her in a neck brace and a wrist cast just to be safe. The rings around her eyes have turned from black to medium brown and her skin color regains some of it's pink tone. MacCready watches over her diligently, wishing for her to wake up and be okay.

Her eyes begin to twitch and slowly her vision focuses as she opens them to the brightly lit room. The blurry mesh of brown and green become MacCready's signature hat and jacket as he looks down at her like a guardian angel.

"MacCready?" She questions.

"Yes Ashley. I'm here." He takes her by the hand.

She takes a moment to collect herself. "W-what happened?"

"You don't remember? I rescued you from the Gunners."

"Oh, right. I'm sorry. I must still be tired."

"That's okay. You just think about resting. You're safe now. I have the Minutemen keeping watch all over this settlement.

"MacCready?" She cries.

"Yes? What is it?"

"Why... why did you come for me? Was it because of the money?"

Tears soak his cheeks as he laughs, finding her question ridiculous. "Of course I didn't do it for the money. I did it... because I care about you. We're partners and partners look out for each other."

She smiles so happy just to hear his voice. "I love you Robert," she whispers as her eyes become heavy.

His heart flutters. So many emotions conflict him as he thinks about the last time they were together. He thought he had broken her heart and yet here she is still just as much in love with him as before. 'How could I have been so cruel.' He has punished himself with that question every day since. Thou he has just saved her life, to him it is not enough. He has to do something to make it all up to her. He combs his fingers through her hair then leans down to give her a kiss on the forehead. A tear brushes her cheek.

"I'm sorry. I promised to protect you and I failed."

"No, you didn't," she whispers as she drifts back into unconsciousness.

His heart flutters again. "Get some sleep. We can talk more when your feeling better."

Over the next week Ashley is able to regain most of her strength and her body is able to fill out and begin to look more like her usual self. For the first time she is able to leave the medical shack and walk herself to the diner for breakfast where she hopes to meet up with MacCready and Duncan. Sure enough she finds them sitting and eating together at one of the booths. She approaches them with a big smile across her face.

"Good morning fellas," she greets.

They turn having not noticed her at first. They each give her a big smile in return, happy to see her on her own two feet.

"Wow, Ashley! You look great!" Says Duncan.

"Yeah, you do," MacCready adds.

"Aww, thanks guys. I figured I would come join you for breakfast."

"Yeah, of course." MacCready stands and presents her the seat next to his.

"Thank you."

She takes the seat then crosses her hands onto the table top.

"So what would you like for breakfast?"

"I don't know. What's good around here?"

"The breakfast burgers are pretty tasty," Duncan suggests.

"I think that might be a little much for her right now," MacCready protests, "How about a nice salad?"

"That sounds lovely." He moves to fetch it for her. "Oh and can you get me a big glass of water. Like a big glass." She gives him an example of how big with her palms forming a large circle.

He laughs at the impossible size, "Sure."

Now alone with Duncan the two of them are not sure what to talk about. Duncan breaks the silence.

"So dad told me you kept him from killing two of those Gunner creeps. How come?"

"That is something that is between me and your father. You don't need to hear about stuff like that."

"Oh come on. I'm officially an adult now. I am more then capable to handle such information."

"Duncan, I'm going to give you a little advice."

"Yeah?" He asks excitedly.

She leans into him as if she is about to tell him some big secrete. "If you want to make a decent husband some day, then you need to learn to respect a woman's wishes." She then backs away from him without any more to say.

MacCready returns with her salad and a pint glass of water. "Here you go." He sets it down in front of her.

"Thank you."

"No problem." He returns to his seat beside her.

The two of them watch her as she struggles to pick up her fork in her right hand. Her fingers wont quite close all the way making it difficult for her to get a grip. She sucks air through her teeth making it obvious she is still in pain.

"Do you need some help?" MacCready asks.

"Yes. Thank you."

"It's no problem."

Noticing the glint in their eyes, Duncan decides to give them some alone time. "Well, since I'm done I think I'll talk a walk. Maybe hit up the firing range."

Neither of them reply as they are already lost in each other's eyes. MacCready fills fork after fork with veggies into Ashley's mouth. With each bite she gives him a smile then downs a big gulp of water. He makes sure to keep her glass full from the pitcher wanting her to hydrate herself as much as possible.

"So about those guys from the base..." MacCready starts. "I don't want to bring up a sore subject but I have to know how big of a risk we're in by leaving those two alive."

"You don't have to worry about them. Joey is an ass but I don't think he's dangerous. Like me he was only locked up because he refused to follow commands." She downs another big gulp of water.

"And what about the other guy? David." She shakes her head unsure what to say. "I thought you hated him."

"I do hate him. It's just..." She struggles to find the right words. "The more I thought about it, the more I came to realize that maybe he did have genuine feelings for me." She laughs to herself having said the words out loud. "Sure he is a creep, sure he inevitably would have taken things too far... But I just can't help but think that if we were to kill him, he would have died for loving me too much. Killing someone who dared to love just feels wrong, no matter the context. Does that make sense?"

"I'm not sure I fully agree with what you're saying, but I guess I understand your side of it."

"Then look at it this way. Now I don't want you to take this the wrong way, but from what Nora has told me about your past, you've done some pretty horrible things just to make a few caps. Does that mean I should just take out a gun and shoot you right now?" She looks to him for an answer but he doesn't respond. She takes him by the hands. "No. Because you're not that guy anymore. I'm just hoping I will be able to say the same thing about him one day."

"I see your point. So what will you do if you ever see him again?"

She sighs, "I don't know. Depends on if he still acts the same way he always did or if maybe this who thing opened his eyes to the fact that he never had as much power over other people as he thought he did. Also I am hoping that the reason he was obsessed with me in the first place is no longer around to obsess over."

She looks up at him with big eyes that beg him to kiss her. She leans into him and to her surprise he also moves in to close the gap and they share a passionate kiss. A moan escapes her throat at the warm sensation of his lips against hers. MacCready hitches himself closer to her so that he can comfortably wrap his arms underneath hers and hold her close. It has been so long since he has felt the loving touch of a woman. In truth, he wasn't sure if he would ever get another chance to after his wife passed away. Yet she has chosen him over any other man in the whole world. She pulls back from the kiss but keeps her bottom lip pressed against his.

"I want to make love to you," she says sensually.

He kisses her again. "Okay. Any place you have in mind?"

She thinks about it for a moment. "I hear there is a lake just west of here. I have never managed to travel that way to see it. Might be nice."

"You mean Lake Cochituate? Yeah, I've been there. It's not bad, aside from some mirelurks," he jokes. "I know right where it is from here so if you want to head out we can."

"What about Duncan?"

"He'll be alright one night as long as he stays within the settlement. I'll be sure to let him know we won't be gone long."

She smiles. "I can't wait."