Avery had headed off to The Rexford; Goodneighbor's little janked hotel for people who came and went.
She headed up the stairs and went to Danse's room before heading to hers.
She knocked on his door. But considering that he watch read 11:50 P.M. she didn't expect an answer.
But, to her surprise, she heard the feeling sound of bedsprings reduce the silence. This followed with footsteps that lead to the door and then the door slowly opening.
"What the hell do you want?" Danse asked in annoyance as he rubbed his eyes.
"Well, I figured you were asleep at first with what time it is… Still, figured if you were awake we could talk for a minute?" She answered, trying to keep her voice low in consideration of others who may be sleeping.
"Well… I'd be lying if I said I was asleep." He answered, leaning up against the door frame. "Been struggling for the past your and thought I almost did pass out, til ya knocked."
"Sorry." She responded. She began to turn away as she continued to speak. "I'll let you get back to that. It can wait til morning."
"I'm already away. You might as well tell me now." He responded. His tone had a sense of annoyance, but mostly tiredness.
"You sure?" She asked, stopping in her tracks and turning to look at him.
He stepped out of the way and jesters his arm in a 'come in' motion. Avery smirked a little and walked back in his direction and entered the room. Danse closed the door behind him and then walked back to the bed. He took a seat there and she sat down on the couch.
"So, what is so important that you need to talk to me about?" He asked, pulling a pack of cigarettes from his pocket and lighting one up.
"Be honest with me." She started with, resting her arms on her knees, hands clasped together and leaning forward as she looked at him. "What are all the reasons you dislike me so much? Like, I can understand keeping your guard up, but you've been at this for quite awhile."
Danse took a puff of his cigarette and looked over at Avery.
"You're hiding more than you're letting everyone know. You're even hiding shit from Maxson and I find that a dangerous threat to our group." He answered, followed by taking another puff. "Everyone may be buying this act of yours. But I'm not. I'm not that fucking stupid."
Avery looked at him puzzled. For the most part, she had been upfront about everything. The only thing she had been hiding were things of her past. Yeah, some of it was a danger if she had let the others in on it. But, for the most part, the rest was stuff about her that nobody would get.
Avery wasn't from this place… she wasn't from this Universe. The only ones who knew of some of that history were the Elders of BoS. And even then, they were sworn to secrecy on that information. They were not allowed to ask of things of her world or the differences between their universe and her. They simply let things be and allowed her to continue her work in turning things around. And that was until certain things had happened that sent her to protect Brotherhood and others for a while.
She sarcastically chuckled a bit and lowered her head in between her arms.
"You know, you're not the first to assume it's an act" She said. She then slowly lifted her head up to look at Danse again; their eyes locked with each other. "You won't be the last either." Her crooked smiled turned to a blank expression. She then bit her lip and looked away from him for a moment.
Danse stood up, throwing his cigarette butt on the floor and using his foot to put it out. He then looked down at her and spoke again.
"But I wasn't wrong that you're hiding shit, huh?" Danse asked. A smile now spread across his face with the thought of finally finding a weak spot in her. "And you can't find the fucking balls to tell us shit, can you?"
"Last I checked, I had balls." She said while pointing to her chest. "They're just in a different spot and they're obviously bigger than yours since I have guts to be a sarcastic ass hole to ya at times."
Danse shook his head displeased. "See, that's the other issue. You don't fucking take shit seriously. You treat everything like it's a fucking joke."
"You have that big of an issue of someone trying to make a bad situation seem better somehow?" She asked him.
"You're damn right I do." He answered while giving her a stern look. "I see that as someone who really doesn't gives a shit and to me that seems like a fired ads way to get you or someone else killed."
"You really think I don't care?" She asked him. "You really think that I don't care that I took 5 days on foot to get here. And instead of killing Maxson with the pocket knife I had hidden in my cast, that I treated it with responsibility as another leader to give him a chance to make it right with me and turn us into each others allies."
Danse chuckled with a smirk. "I checked your entire bag when I found you. All of your weapons were confiscated."
Avery rolled her eyes at him. She then proceeded to lift her leg with the boot containing the hidden apartment and opened it to reveal the knife hidden inside it. She took it in her hand and showed it to Danse.
"You wanna just basically be straight forward and say I'm basically a fucking idiot of a fighter?" She said with a smirk.
Danse stood there in disbelief. He didn't want to admit that it was a smart strategy in case if combat or a sticky situation. He tried to find another approach to tear her down.
"Wow… knowing those intentions, you're an even bigger idiot than I imagined." he replied.
Avery continued to bite on her lip for the moment. She shook her head, trying to keep herself together instead of breaking down, and then looked back at Danse as she put the knife back.
"Let me ask you this, and then I can tell you a bit of something." She started with. Her expression was now cold as she looked at him. "What is the lowest thing that you had to do for your brothers and sisters here? And I'm not talking about just the idea of having to kill a fellow soldier because it was the humane thing to do."
"Probably." He answered. "Just don't remember. But, you can't really stop to remember something when you're trying to keep your own ass alive.
Avery huffed a breath with a sarcastic laugh. She shook her head again and looked down at the floor. After talking a moment to herself, she looked back up at Danse.
"If you can't even have a memory of hitting that low, then you never have." She tells him. She then began to put herself back onto her feet and looked him square in the eyes. "That shit burns into your brain and you can't get rid of it. It's the kind of shot that really changes a person. It makes you choose the option of making you something so much better or something that can make you so dark. And with whichever way you choose you don't ever turn back."
Danse chuckled. He began to reach for the cigarettes as he said, "Yeah, like you've experienced that kind of shit before. You're more full of shit than I thought."
Those words had finally made Avery snapped. Without second-guessing it, her hand raised and smacked Danse across his face. This made him stand there in shock for a moment. He had also dropped his packet of cigarettes in the process.
Avery's lips quivered as she stared at Danse with such anger and disgust. She finally spoke up; keeping her voice low, but enough tone showed that she was in such anger.
"You are such a disgusting piece of shit, you know that?" She started with. "You don't know shit about me buddy, but I know a shit ton about you that will make you second guess to fuck with me." She slowly started walking towards him, and Danse was slowly stepping back from her. But she continued her rant. You grew up as an orphan in the wasteland, with no fucking clue who your parents are. You grew up and tried running some rundown shop and ended up joining the Brotherhood along with a buddy of yours that you ended up having to put down because the institute used him as a test subject that turned him into a mutant."
Avery had backed Danse up so far to the bed. She pushed him down hard onto it and continued to stare him down.
"I know cuz I had people who were in that same spot." She confessed to him, but there was more. "I lost people just like you. But I've also done a lot more stupid and terrible things for those I cared and lost. I've slept with people for others safety. I've put myself in situations where I was tortured and raped. I have suffered MORE that you will EVER imagine. Especially with you being a man. The reason why I am the way I am is because I put others before me because I put myself first so they don't have to suffer what I've sadly grown use to!"
Danse laid there in silence. He was propped up with his arms as he listened to her.
"Even since being here, yeah I've teased you about your attitude and appearance. But other than times you tried jumping my ass first, when have I EVER treated you with such distrust and disrespect like you've treated me?"
Again, Danse laid there silent. He didn't know what to say in the moment; he was still trying to process it.
Avery had finally given up. She turned herself around and began to head out the room. But she stopped for a moment and looked back at him once more.
"Me and MacCready are going to take Pickman out tomorrow. Nate might come. But regardless of what you do after this discussion, I'm requesting that Maxson puts you out of my way cuz I'm extremely tired of your fucking bullshit buddy." And before even letting him have a word, Avery was gone; slamming the door behind her.
Danse continued to lay there in shock. The words she had said were slowly falling into place, and the guilt he was about to have followed.
He slowly sat back up on the edge of the bed. He rested his arms on his knees and his head in his hand.
"No one would lie about shit like that…" Danse thought to himself. He felt like a complete idiot for his actions and words. He hated that she was right again, but it hurt him cuz of how right she was.
It was mainly because of all the secrets her and Maxson were keeping from the others, it made Danse feel like he needed to be so hostile. He felt guilty never once giving her the benefit of the doubt and letting the anger go of feeling left out of Maxson's and Avery's secret. Even if they said it was for the safety of others, it wasn't enough for Danse. And now, he looked like nothing but an ass because of it.