Deacon
"It is confirmed miss Avery you are in fact pregnant." The doctor said softly as Avery ran to the bathroom to throw up some more. I walked after her kneeling next to her to run a gentle hand down her back. "We will figure this out." I murmur to her softly.
"Please get out…. "She says and I stare at her confused as she pushes me out of the bathroom slamming the door in my face. I look over as Nate laughs, his shoulders are shaking and he's covering his mouth.
"Quite the mistake you've made. You should have just let it be me." I glare at him grabbing him by the collar of his shirt.
"What do you mean?" He smirks as he stares at the door behind me.
"Avery always wanted a child. But she can't have kids. That baby in her stomach is going to die. She knows that and so do I." I shake my head confused.
"What? How did she have Shaun then?" Nate laughed again.
"Shaun isn't hers, he belongs to me and Avery's younger sister. After her sister died Avery pretended the affair didn't happen. She took Shaun as her own after years of us not being able to conceive. Though she would get pregnant she would always have a miscarriage before the baby could be born." Nate looked at me and that asshole had the nerve to look smug about this.
"She's going to hate you for making her go through this all over again, she won't abort it now. She doesn't have the heart to do it, even though she knows it won't survive." I fall to my knees staring at the ground, everything I had done was destined to fail from the beginning. The love of my life will hate me and our child will die. I feel the tears burning in my eyes as I think about it. The life we could have had slipping through my fingertips once more.
"When I told you that you would never truly have her I meant it. She's going to run from you and crawl back to me. Because I'm her anchor her husband and the only man she's ever truly loved." He says before walking past me towards the bathroom door.
"You are only an imitation." I say through gritted teeth as I look back at him. He only smiles softly as he knocks on the door hiding Avery from me, I watch because there isn't much else I can do.
"Go away! I don't want to see you right now." She screams through the door.
"It's me… Nate." There's a sound of shuffling in the other side of the door before a soft click of the lock being opened is heard. Nate opens the door stepping into the bathroom closing the door behind him shutting out Avery's sobs. I blink the tears from my eyes, I step out of the hospital room. Doctor Li comes up to me staring at me confused.
"Deacon, are you alright?" I nod smiling at her trying to fake the emotion as best I can.
"Feeling great. Never better." I whispered before walking past her outside. X6 was waiting for me at the glass doors of the hospital.
"You got what you always wanted, what could possibly make you look so upset?" I look up at X6 and try not to break down.
"She doesn't want me; in the end I'm going to lose her." X6 places a hand on my shoulder.
"There's a reason Nate is trying so hard to convince her that you aren't her lover. That you aren't the one she's in love with, that its him and not you. He doesn't love Avery, he's afraid of what father will do if he fails. You can get her back just be there and understand her, she needs you not him. Don't let him ruin what you have." X6 murmurs softly before lighting up a cigarette.
"Go back to her." He says one more time and that's the last push I need." I head back to her room only to see that Nate had convinced her to leave the bathroom. They are seated on her hospital bed together; his arm is around her waist as he leans his forehead against the side of hers. His eyes dart in my direction as I take a deep breath trying my hardest not to let it get to me.
"Avery, we should talk. Nate, would you please leave us." I say it calmly but I am anything but. She looks at me with absolute disdain, but I won't let her go… I can't.
"He…he should stay." When she says that I feel my heart ache. I watch as he whispers something into her ear before looking up at me with a smirk.
"Who are you?" If I tell her the truth I will get her killed, if I lie… I will lose her.
"I am Deacon Trevor; I was a part of Nates squad back when I was in the military." Her eyes water as she places a hand over her mouth. X6 warned me about going along with this lie and I know I don't have a choice.
"So then you aren't him… of course you aren't. Deacon wouldn't jump into bed with me that quickly. I don't even really think he saw me that way… You can't be him." She says softly as a lone tear rolls down her cheek, Nate leans closer kissing the tear away. This is what happens when you begin to question your own being, she won't be able to remember what my face looks like, she will dismiss the marks on my body.
"I'm sorry for all of this. I thought you were someone else." She muttered sounding tired and for the first time in her life defeated.
"You don't have to worry about the baby… It won't survive longer than 6 months." She says looking at the ground.
"Doctor Li can save that baby if we tell her." Nates eyes become that of ice. While Avery looks up at me confused.
"There's no way to fix what I have." I shake my head kneeling down in front of her.
"Ultimately the decision is yours but I guarantee that Doctor Li is competent enough to save our baby. We have to save our baby Avery." I whisper placing a hand over her still completely flat stomach. She was trembling as she placed a hand over mine while Nate looked away in annoyance.
"O-our baby?" She repeats looking down at her stomach as the tears finally come.
"Yes Avery, our baby. You don't love Nate, that much is obvious why stay? You can be with me and we can find a way to help our child survive." She's looking at me now, those beautiful steel colored eyes are blood shot and puffy but she still looks as beautiful as ever.
"You are wrong. She is still in love with me." Nate hisses standing forcing me to stand and face him.
"She's in love with the memory of you," I growl dodging as he throws a punch at me. I dodge it catching his arm, I twist it behind his back until a grunt of discomfort leaves his lips.
"Deacon please, stop. Hurting Nate won't fix anything… But I want to give it a try. Give us a try." Victory in its utmost absolute form. I wrap my arms around her as Nate grits his teeth before thinking everything through.
"I'll send the divorce papers to him then. I will set you free." He whispers softly before slipping the real Nates ring off of his finger and placing it in her palm. He leaves slamming the door hard on his way out and Avery lets out a breath I assumed she had been holding.
"I'm scared." She murmurs running her hand over her stomach.
"I won't let you be alone through this. I love you Avery." She blinks away the tears looking into my eyes. Hers narrow almost as if she were staring at something nostalgic, it's almost like she wasn't really seeing me.
"Love you too Deac." She says standing as Doctor Li enters the room once more.
"I saw Nate leave… I can only assume the child isn't his…" She says it not even seeming bothered by the fact that Avery could have cheated on her husband with me.
"No, my child belongs to Deacon." Doctor Li nods as she goes over to check Avery's vitals once more.
"Doctor Li, may I speak to you in private?" I question as she pulls away from Avery.
"Of course Mr. Trevor." She says leading me out of the office leaving Avery by herself on the bed.
"Madison, Avery confided in me that something went wrong after she had Shaun with her body, she is unable to have children." Madison stared at me like I was out of my mind. I won't lie, it's how I feel at this moment.
"I need to have her examined immediately. If the child dies, father will have no use for her." I place a hand on her shoulder stopping her from going to Avery.
"She isn't a lab rat Madison; she is the love of my life. That child inside her is mine, for the sake of our friendship… save them." Her eyes widen sympathetically as she nods.
"I will to the best of my abilities try to help her and the baby." We walk back in together to see Avery laying on her side, her hair sprawled around her.
"Avery… love, Doctor Li is here to examine you." She turns to face us before forcing herself to sit back up.
"Can you save my baby Doctor?" Madison smiles softly.
"I will do what I can." Avery nods seeming satisfied with the answer, she stands as Madison takes her hand ready to lead her to the examination room. "Don't disappear on me again," Avery whispers before passing me and I swear her words almost bring tears to my eyes.
"I wouldn't dream of it, I love you sweetheart." She smiles leaning forward to press a kiss to my lips. I wrap my arms around her as I press my lips back against hers.
"love you Deac." She mutters against my lips. She then pulls away nodding for a flustered Madison to lead the way. I seat myself on the bed watching as the head back towards the labs. Just when I'm about to relax X6 runs into the room panting as he looks around the room until his eyes land on me.
"We have a problem; you have to handle it right now!" He says as he takes me by the wrist and drags me outside.
"Wait! Wait! I can't just leave I promised Avery that I would be there when she gets out. X wait!" I hiss as he pushes me into the passenger seat of the car.
"Fuck X! This can wait! I need to be there for Avery!" He gets in and immediately starts speeding until the hospital is being left behind us.
"No it can't. Miss Avery's other companions stumbled upon us. Father doesn't know yet. I am giving you a chance to handle it." I freeze at his words looking over at him in the driver's seat.
MacCready
There is a man who looks like my twin blocking our way, he's staring at me confused.
"What the hell is this place?!" Danse questions the man who only seems to frown.
"This is Sanctuary, didn't father send you…?" He says looking between us, we can only stare at each other before nodding.
"B93, A78. It's about time you got here." A familiar voice says drawing all of our attention to Deacon who is standing next to a guy in a courser uniform.
"Er, yeah, sorry it took us so long. It's a bit of a hassle finding this place." I say nudging Danse in the side causing him to nod.
"Come on we are setting you up in the abandoned house down towards the bridge to Concord." He says ushering us towards a car behind him.
"Father didn't tell me about this." My double says glaring at Deacon.
"Why should he tell you anything anymore? You failed remember? I won't be surprised if he strips you for parts Nate." Deacon says and I feel my heart race in my chest. This man… he is Nate… Avery's husband. I feel the air being sucked from my lungs as I look back at him. He does look almost exactly like me… that's why Avery often looked at me with eyes that were meant for him.
"Nathan Moore?" I said his name softly catching everyone's attention.
"What?" He says a bit more hostile than he needs to be.
"Ignore him MacCready. We have more important things to do." Deacons voice brings me back to reality once more. I shut my mouth walking towards Deacon who is looking at us like we have inconveniently arrived. He's not in danger nor does he look like he's been hurt.
"Get in the car." I swallow hard looking towards Danse who also seems at a loss for words. We do as he asks and get in the back seat and drives us to a house at the end of a street.
"This will be your home, stay here. Do not move until I come for you. If father finds out you are here, he will kill you." He says placing a hand on Danses shoulder.
"Deacon, we have a lot of questions." He murmurs looking at Deacon with a sympathetic gaze.
"I need to be somewhere but I promise you I will be back. I will explain everything when I get the chance…. Please… trust me." Deacon is a liar, he always has been but these words don't seem like a lie. If he wanted us dead or wanted to sell us out to the synths he would have taken us to father directly.
"Fine, just answer one question. Is Avery alive and well?" Deacon's smile is bittersweet as he looks up at Danse.
"Yeah, she is. I promise I will arrange a meeting when I can." I feel relief flood through my veins, I bite my lip to keep my emotions in check.
"Thank you, don't let us keep you any longer. We will stay here and wait for your return." Danse says and I nod agreeing with him while Deacon looks to the man behind me.
"Now get me back to the fucking hospital X." He sounds beyond angry and I am happy its not directed towards us. We watch as they leave before looking at our new home for the time being. It looks so clean! Every single thing in the house has no sign of having been through nuclear fallout.
"MacCready! Come here!" Danse calls me from what I assume is the kitchen. I make my way over there to see him standing in front of the fridge that is filled with prewar food. We both stare at each other in shock.
"What fuc-freaking gold mine have we stumbled into?" I say as Danse nods confused. I walk into the bathroom and turn the handle of the shower to see its fully working.
"Let's enjoy this place while we have it!" I call out to Danse as I strip off my clothes. I don't hear his reply as I step underneath the warm spray of water. I feel myself shiver as the temperature burns my skin for only a moment before returning to normal. I look down to see all the dirt and grime being washed away from my body. I heard the door to the bathroom open for a moment followed by some shuffling before it closed again.
I ignored it, it was probably Danse taking a look at the bathroom. I sat in the shower until my skin began to prune and finally I had enough. I stepped out looking at myself in the clear mirror, I ran my hands over the stubble on my chin. I opened the mirror to find a razor, I used it to shave away the beard I had growing for the past couple months. When I looked in the mirror I really did look like him. I can't shake the thought of her affection coming from the fact that we look so much alike. I look down to see a towel that Danse had most likely left for me followed by some clothes. They were just regular clothes, something I hadn't worn in a long time.
I pulled the t-shirt over my head and slipped on the jeans before heading back out to the living room where Danse was. I see him lying on his back on the floor just staring up at the ceiling.
"You okay?" I question as I sit down next to him on the floor. "I'm confused, so confused by all of this. The brotherhood of steel doesn't have nearly much technology even after all the years we've strived to get it. I feel like we are just being used to take over the commonwealth one city at a time. Technology isn't what is destroying the commonwealth…. It's us." Danse says covering his face with his hands.
"Try not to think about it. Our sole focus is Avery right now. Once we get her we can worry about Father and the brotherhood of steel." Danse nods sticking his hand in my direction. I sigh taking it and using it to pull him off of the floor and onto his feet.
"Go shower." He doesn't say anything as he heads for the door I had just come out of. I sit against the foot of the couch. I could see the sky darkening which was strange because I could swear we were under ground. I hear a knock on the door and look back towards the direction Danse went with a sigh. I open the door to see him again, Avery's husband. I suck in a deep breath before opening the door wider so he could enter.
"So this is where Deacon plans to keep you." He says softly looking around the house for a moment.
"Could I ask what you are doing here?" I say leaning against the door.
"Just shear curiosity, it seems like you know me and yet I have no memories of you? So how is it that you know me?" I looked up at him narrowing my eyes.
"How could I not know about the man who looks just like me? You are Avery's husband." His eyes widen then fill with disgust.
"So it wasn't just Deacon… You too? How many others has she been with?" I glare at him.
"Don't you dare disrespect her, She's better than you and all of us!" I growl grabbing him by the collar of his shirt.
"I don't see anything good about her, she can't even stay faithful to her own husband. Tell me was she with you before she went and fucked Deacon?" I swallowed hard, so she had been with Deacon while she was here.
"She doesn't belong to anyone, If she wants to be with all of us then we would be happy to oblige her. She's kind and beautiful, she's the best damn thing that's ever happened to me and I will be damned if I let a worthless asshole like you bad mouth her." I don't even bother to refrain from swearing, this guy is a real jerk I'm surprised that Avery was able to put up with him.
"What's going on?" Danse questions as he walks out of the bathroom.
"Nothing, Nate was just leaving." I say walking to the door and opening it wide for him to step out.
"She won't ever love any of you, not while she's too busy mourning me." I slam the door hard in his face and try not to grit my teeth.
"What?" Danse questions looking over at me.
"That fucking asshole is Avery's husband." Danse laughs a bit uncomfortably.
"Avery told me her husband was dead." I nod running a hand through my hair.
"I think he's a synth, after all Avery's son happens to be the director of the institute. I wouldn't put it past him to have created this place. Especially if Deacon and Avery are here with him." Danse sat down looking at his hands.
"That man is… the man she chose to share her forever?" I place a hand on his shoulder.
"What the hell are we doing here? Why are we looking for her. She must be perfectly content here, I feel so stupid. I was here falling so hard all by myself. I was willing to look past Hancock, past Deacon… Even you. But her husband? I can't compare with him." I understood where he was coming from and I felt it in the core of my soul. The feeling of being undeserving but still willing to try as hard as I can for her.
"We all love her Danse! We cant give her up because that man doesn't deserve her! The things he said about her… we cant let him win…" I whisper feeling my heart aching in my chest. Danse doesn't say word but then again I don't expect him to.