((Here's a nice longer chapter that hopefully makes up for the time away! Sorry for the delay))
I wake up with what feels like a hangover that could rival Patchwork's. My head is pounding and my ears are ringing, my eyes sting from the blinding bright lights of the vault. Once they adjust, I can see where I am. One of the storage closets on the lower levels of the Vault.
I look around for the rest of the Pride, for Sarah, but I'm alone with some toolboxes and tables, strapped to a chair in my skivvies with some duct tape. I hear the familiar sound of metal turning, the massive steel vault doors unlocking and being pushed open. I squeeze my eyes tightly, trying to clear my vision, and when I open them again I'm greeted by an Enclave soldier.
He stares at me with the big yellow eyes, his helmet tilting to the side as he looks me over. The soldier steps over to me, his huge metal boots clanking along the steel floor. I half expect it to be Sarah, or someone coming to rescue me, but when he shoves the end of his laser rifle under my chin my hope drifts away.
I'm dragged out by the scruff of the neck, the soldier takes me out into the hallway and throws me on the ground, I feel the right side of my forehead crack open as the skin scrapes along the grated floor. The guy kicks me hard in the stomach, forcing me to flip over onto my back.
"Are you him!?'' he yells, stamping down on my chest. "Who?!'' I ask and he swings the butt of his laser rifle at me like a baseball bat, clocking me right across the face. Blood spews out of my mouth and splatters onto the wall. He steps between my shoulder blades, crunching my ribcage into the vault floor again. I feel the barrel of his rifle pressing into the back of my head as he asks again.
"ARE YOU HIM!?''
More blood drips out of my split lip, I try to choke out an answer, but a combination of the blood in my throat and the force of his weight on my chest nothing comes out but a gargle. I hear him groan and slowly lift his foot, kicking me onto my back again with a little less force this time. He brings the rifle down to my face, pointing it between my eyes. I hear the faint noise of the laser charging up. If this guy wasn't wearing a mask I'd say he was smiling.
"You're him.'' He utters, "The one we need.''
"What?'' I say, raising my hands up in case he decides to swing at me again.
"There, on your arm.'' His rifle jumps to my Pip Boy for a second and then back to my head. "You got that here, you're him. The doctor's kid. The one that left.''
I hesitate and push myself up into a sitting position. There's no point in lying, if this guy knows I'm from here he knows I'm the one who killed Colonel Autumn, who wiped out the Enclave. So I tell him the truth.
"Yeah, I'm him.'' I reply, feeling my insides clench up at the thought of getting another smack with the rifle. He leans down and grabs me by the collar, pulling me onto my feet. I feel more blood leaking out from the corner of my mouth and I don't know why, but I press my luck and ask him a question.
"Why?''
There's a little chuckle, a snicker from inside the helmet, and then the yellow eyes come at me full force in a head butt, snapping my head back. If this guy wasn't holding me up I'd be on my ass again. My vision's all fuzzy again from the blow, but I feel him start dragging me towards the atrium.
My bare feet on the cold cement floor trying to help him pull me along, almost drunkenly trying to side step my way up the stairs. My ankle bones ricochet of the metal and my hands desperately cling to the guys wrists for support, before I get the mist out of my eyes or the sense back in my body I'm thrown into another chair in another room.
This time I'm not alone though, there's an Enclave officer there waiting. Through my blurry eyes I see him walking over to me with something in his hands.
"Fuckin' Vault relics…'' he mutters, kneeling in front of me. I try to ask him what he's doing but my mouth is too swelled up to form the words. I feel something cold close around one wrist, and then the other. I blink my vision back into focus now and I see it, Officer Gomez' old handcuffs.
The officer dangles the key in my face and smirks, dropping the key ring into his chest pocket. He turns back around, reaching into a metal box on the table. He turns back a moment later and tosses what he's pulled out at my face.
It falls to my lap and I see that it's a pair of pants, the same kind he's wearing. I guess my undershirt will have to suffice now since I have no way to get it on over the cuffs. I look at the officer and he's still smirking, arms folded over his chest as he stares at me.
"Well come on, unless you'd prefer to keep running around in your boxers.''
After I'm dressed he leads me out, plasma pistol pressed into my back. We head up the stairs towards the residential section and he tells me to keep my mouth shut. I have to stop myself from blurting out some smart ass remark when I feel pain flare up in the gash above my left eyebrow.
He stops me outside the classroom, pushing my chest up against the wall, his fingers wrapped around the back of my collar.
"Not a word.'' He hisses in my ear, tugging me sideways into the doorway. I have to restrain myself from speaking when I see it. He's got the whole Pride in there, stripped of their armor and strapped to desks. There's Tesla soldiers guarding the door and officer at the front playing what looks like a promotional Enclave slideshow.
The officer that's playing teacher stops his speech when he notices us, shooting me this look of pure disdain. Like I have the audacity to invade his classroom, and I have to bite my tongue to stop from telling him to get out of Mr. Brotch's room.
"Yes?'' he asks, causing everyone to twist their neck to the door. My eyes are locked on Sarah, who's sitting right in the front of the class. Her eyes light up when she sees me and her mouth jerks open but she stops herself from yelling out to me.
"We're gonna need to see his medic, Jenkins split him open pretty badly.'' The officer calls out with his grip tightening on my collar. The teacher looks at me with narrowed eyes for a second, like he thinks my busted face is some kind of farce, but then he sighs and nods, waving his hand forward.
"Alright, take 'em.''
The guy holding me jerks me forward a little bit and I snap my head in his direction.
"Who's the medic?'' he asks, and my mind pieces it together. They figure we must have a medic in every squad, and in retrospect that'd be a great idea, but we don't. So I just stammer out my answer.
"She is.'' I say, nodding to Sarah. The man nods and beckons for one of the Tesla soldiers to grab her. The suits of armor that could have been mistaken for statues until now come away from the wall and stalk up to the front of the room. He undoes Sarah's restraints and lifts her up by the arm, pulling her towards the back of the room.
"Need me, Reynolds?'' The soldier asks.
"No, I got it. Thanks.'' The man behind me answers, and the Tesla soldier tosses Sarah into me. This guy, Officer Reynolds, gestures Sarah to walk ahead, he leads us both into the medical bay. I hop up on one of the beds and Sarah pulls open the First Aid Kid on the nearby cart.
"Looks like you're gonna need stitches…'' he mutters with a pained look on his face, eyeing what I'm sure is a bloody mess of my face. Sarah glances at him from over her shoulder, and I see that little devious smirk of hers appear.
"Yeah.'' She says, turning back to me and cupping my chin, looking studiously at my busted nose. "Looks like I'm gonna have to reset the cartilage.''
A little gagging sound emits from Reynolds, Sarah bites her lip to keep from laughing, and her back still turned to him.
"I'll leave you to it then, doc.'' Reynolds exclaims, scurrying towards the door. I feel the tense knot in my chest come undone, and judging by the smile on Sarah's face the feeling is mutual. Just before he's out the door he yells that he'll be back in half an hour to take me, sewed up or not.
Sarah and I just stare at each other until we hear the sound of the door closing, and then instantly our arms are wrapped around each other in an embrace.
"You're alive!'' she almost yells, grinning from ear to ear as she holds my face in her hands.
"Yeah.'' I wince, "Barely.'' Sarah jerks her hands away from my face and apologizes, but I smile and tell her it's alright.
"It's not too bad, is it?'' she queries, wiping the blood off my lip with a cloth from the kit.
"Not anymore.'' I say, tucking a stray piece of her hair behind her ear. "You're ok, right? They didn't hurt you?'' Sarah wraps her fingers around my wrist and gently shakes her head.
"No.'' she answers in a quiet voice, leaning her head closer, "We thought they must've killed you.''
I put my hands on either side of her face, looking into her green-blue eyes that seem to be welling up with tears that she's fighting. I pull her in, our lips crashing together in a kiss I worried I'd never experience again.