July 6th, 2297, a strange looking but beautiful woman continued sipping a Sunset Sarsaparilla while reading, as she sat alone at a dining booth in the hotel dining area of a former fallout shelter, that was turned into a Hotel and Casino; Vault 21, one of the most well-known establishments in New Vegas. A sharp dressed man comes over and tries to make small talk.

"Hello little lady, my those are some big eyes you have"

The sharp dressed man was referring to her blood red, almost ghoulish eyes that stood out to him.

"Yes, I get that a lot. I guess you could say I'm a…half ghoul"

The woman smiled back at the man.

"No worries. What's your name doll? Is this seat taken?"

"This seat is empty, but I prefer to have my space. My name is Carol Taylor Wright, and I'm married"

Carol reveals a scuffed up but beautiful bird cameo brooch around her neck.

"My husband gave me this gift several years ago, it belonged to an old friend of his. I keep it on me to remind myself of everything he has done for me, and how much I love him"

Casting the sharp dressed man away as he tips his hat in respect, she continues reading before heading back to her room. Carol enters her hotel room, Etta James At Last played over the radio, setting the mood for her as she addresses her husband, who is somewhat distracted as he watches something through a makeshift portable device.

"Stephen, are you watching them again?"

Dr. Wright pried himself away from what he was watching to answer his wife. He was watching Elizabeth and her companion Jack through the tear monitor he created that worked as a sort of television into other universes.

"Do you think I should have told her I had a makeshift bomb shelter in the facility before setting off the nukes? Things may not have played out the way they did, but…"

Stephen was quiet, Carol continued talking, she always understood how he felt.

"I suppose, but she made it didn't she? That's what you wanted in the end, right?"

"Yeah"

Carol took a hand to Dr. Wright's shoulder as she looked over at what he was watching.

"You should really find a way to let her know you're alive"

"I'm working on it, hang on let me skip to the best part"

Dr. Wright switches over to another tear. It appeared to be summer, Elizabeth, Jack, and Anna were in Paris. It wasn't exactly how she envisioned it, but as she gazed upon the Eiffel Tower with him, Elizabeth became so overwhelmed with happiness that she broke down crying. Dr. Wright and Carol smiled simultaneously when Jack wiped away Elizabeth's tears, as they shared a deep, passionate kiss. Elizabeth wiped her tears away and called out for Booker. A Maltese puppy ran up to the three of them, jumping up into Anna's arms as it showed her love and affection.

After everything Elizabeth had been through, her dream of seeing Paris finally came true, and she was able to share that dream with her husband Jack, her daughter Anna, and their new family member, named after Elizabeth's father; Booker.

Carol gently took the tear monitor from Dr. Wright, turning it off so he could give her his full attention as she took a seat next to him.

"You need to take your mind off of her for a while, she's fine, you made sure of that"

"I guess sometimes, I just…I miss her"

"I know, she misses you too. You were both good friends, great ones at that"

Dr. Wright pulled himself together as he turned his attention to his wife.

"So, what would you recommend I do to keep myself occupied?"

"You could continue trying to find a cure for your infliction, even a temporary one"

Dr. Wright gave Carol a jestful stern look.

"I have to find one for you too. Those eyes, the side effect of prolonged aging"

"Nothing a pair of sunglasses can't fix, you on the other hand. Besides you love my eyes, as do a few others. Earlier a man was flirting with me in the dining area"

"I'm sure you loved it"

Dr. Wright teased Carol as she laughed.

"All that matters, all that's ever matter, is that we're perfect for each other"

Carol held hands with Dr. Wright, expressing her love for her husband.

"Yeah, oh I got something to show you"

Dr. Wright reached into the drawer next to him, he pulled out plans drawn out on paper, it was architecture designs for a house.

"This is a project we were always talking about. I'm a bit rusty, haven't done carpentry since the bombs fell, but I'd like to give this a try. We can find a lake, and we'll have all the time in the world to grow some trees, use the wood to build the house we've always wanted; I've spent almost three decades perfecting botany. Well, four at this point"

Carol couldn't believe it, the design for the house was everything she imagined it would be.

"Stephen it's, this is beautiful"

Carol's red eyes began to water as she teared up and smiled.

"You are beautiful; you are just as beautiful as the day I met you. These are the moments we live for, two hundred years in the making. I love you, Carol.

"I love you, Stephen"

Dr. Wright, Stephen, shared a kiss with his wife Carol, Mrs. Wright. In the end, everything worked out; all was right in every world.

End

Authors Note: So what started as a sort of what if idea grew into an entire story that I decided to write. When I was writing this, one thing that was difficult to tackle was Elizabeth's dialogue. I felt the best direction to go was to make her a mix of the innocent kind personality she has when Booker first finds her in the beginning of Bioshock Infinite, as well as the cold almost broken demeanor in Burial at Sea.

As far as original characters go, I think Dr. Stephen Wright might be my personal preference out of some of the original characters I've come up with. I loved Dr. Wright so much that in the process of fleshing him out, I scrapped the original ending where he was dead dead, and opted for a more happier ending that fits with Elizabeth's conclusion in this story.

As for the ending, I never had any desire to ship Frank Williams and Elizabeth, so I thought it would be more appropriate for her to separate from Frank and start a family with a variation of Jack Ryan. This also gives Frank motivation to find his purpose in life, something that I fleshed out during the follow up story, The World Traveler. If you wish to read that, feel free to copy/paste this link next to the dot net of fanfiction dot net.

s/12615075/1/The-World-Traveler

I'd like to say thank you to everyone who read this, I know this kind of story is a little unorthodox but I hope you enjoyed it, feel free to send feedback.

- TheBloodInfinite20XX