I wake up in the bed from last night. Calvin is out of his power armor but has a combat helmet on with sunglasses. He is sleeping on a chair across from me. I slowly test getting up but feel no pain. He must have given me a stimpak.
"Geez." I say as I slowly get up, "what the hell happened?" I ask.
He jolts awake and looks at me with surprise and relief, "Ellie, you're awake!" He says and scoots closer to me.
"Yea, I am. What happened?" I ask again.
"You got shot." He says.
"Gee, thanks for the bedside manners forest gump." I say.
"What?" He asks with a chuckle.
That laugh...it seems familiar. I think to myself but then shake the thought away, nah, I'm sure there are plenty of people with a generic kind of laugh like Calvin's.
"Nothin'." I say.
We sit in silence for a moment before he suddenly stands and walks over to our things and searches through them until he finds a can of purified water and brings it to me.
"Here, drink up." He says.
"Thanks." I say and drink the water thirstily.
We sit in silence yet again, but Calvin just watches me as if at any second, I might explode.
"I'm fine now you know." I say.
"I know, I know. It's just...I want to make sure you're okay. You were nearly killed because of me." He says with sadness in his voice.
"But i'm fine now. Seriously, don't worry." I say.
He nods.
"You're still going to watch me like a hawk aren't you?" I ask him with a smirk on my face.
"Yup." He says.
I shake my head and continue to drink the water. Once I finish my water and then go gather my things. I see that my castor has been put beside my bag and look at him.
He shrugs, "couldn't leave it behind now could we?" He asks.
I shake my head and smile.
VVVVVVVVVVVV
We walk for the rest of the day. We walk past many different settlements that have either exploded with life or have been completely abandoned during my leave, reminding me of my influence on the wasteland.
But you abandoned them. I think to myself. I shake my head and try to clear those thoughts from my mind. It can't all be blamed on you. I tell myself.
Finally, after hours of walking in silence and having an internal battle with myself, we reach diamond city, where we have decided to rest, much to my displeasure.
Too many of my demons to face here.
"Why don't you just call a vertibird?" I ask Calvin.
"Because, someone's been dying to see you again." He says.
We walk inside the gates and down the stairs and I already know who he's talking about.
"Piper!" I holler at her in joy.
Okay, it's not all bad coming back here, I tell myself.
She's sitting at power noodles, enjoying a bowl of their world famous when she hears me call her name. When she turns around, her face shows complete disbelief.
"Blue?" She asks.
"The one and only." I say with a smirk.
She slowly gets up and walks towards me. I open my arms to accept the hug I know she'll give me, when instead, she slaps me hard across the face.
"What the hell?!" She yells.
I hold my now stinging cheek, "me what the hell? What about you what the hell?" I say.
"Where have you been?" She asks.
"Nowhere in particular." I say.
"Ladies." A guard says as he walks up to us, "I'm gonna have to ask you to calm down and take this conversation elsewhere. You're disturbing everyone else's peace." He tells us.
I look around and see that everyone hasn't noticed us at all. In fact, they are talking louder than us.
"Yea, wouldn't want to disturb their peace all right." I say sarcastically.
Piper shakes her head, "come on smartass. You too tinman." She says.
She drags me to home plate and shoves me inside and leaves Calvin to close the door.
"So," she says once we are alone, "explain yourself."
"I needed to get away." I told her.
"Oh get away huh?" She says.
"Yes, I couldn't stay here. Not with these ghosts haunting me. I couldn't bare it." I say.
She nods and looks to the ground, "well at least you're alive." She says.
I nod.
"Well," she says, "why don't you take a load off? I'll fix you guys something to eat." She says.
I nod, "that would be great." I say.
I walk into the living room and see that things have changed dramatically since I was last here. Papers are scattered across the table, toys strewn all over the floor, and news articles stacked as tall as me.
I hear Calvin enter the room with Piper.
"Here you guys go. It's just some salsbury steak, but I figured you'd eat anything right about now with the way you look." She says.
"Who lives here?" I ask ignoring her statement.
"Oh, well I didn't want your place to go to anyone else, so I started paying rent, but then me and Nat decided to move in until you got back if that's alright. It's just so cramped at the old place and Nat needed a real bed." She explains.
I nod my head, "no that's perfectly fine. I probably would have told you to do that anyways if I knew I was leaving sooner." I tell her.
She nods and we both sit at the table. Calvin, however, doesn't.
"Calvin, get out of your power armor and join us." I tell him.
"Uhh, no. Thanks anyways." He says.
"Get your ass over here and eat." I say.
He sighs in annoyance and begins to exit his power armor.
I turn back around and start eating, and he eventually joins us, wearing his sunglasses however.
"What are you wearing those for?" I ask him confused.
"I have a migraine. The light doesn't help." He explains.
I nod and we continue to eat.
We eat and talk for hours. We swap stories about our adventures we've had over the past year. We joke and laugh at each other. But all the while, Calvin is silent in his own little world. Every now and again, I catch him watching me with a smirk on his face, but once he realizes that I've noticed, he immediately looks away.
Finally, after spending the rest of the day with Piper, we decide to leave.
"Well blue, where are ya headed?" She asks.
"The predwyn. She has some explaining to do with Maxson." Calvin answers.
I look at him but he glares at me.
"Yea, we should probably get back." I say.
Piper chuckles and nods, "okay you two, be safe."
I nod and she comes over and hugs me and then Calvin before we leave home plate.
We walk up the stairs of the dugout and once we are outside of the gates, Calvin throws a signal grenade. We wait a few moments before a vertibird appears and lands in front of us. We both climb in and make our short trip to the Predwyn.
VVVVVVVVV
"I'm surprised it's still here." I say after me and knight Calvin exit the vertibird.
"Yeah well, they still aren't done here." He says.
"Yea, I don't think they'll be finished here for a while." I say.
We reach the door that leads inside when we are met with lancer captain kells.
"Knight." He says but then is surprised when he looks at me.
"Rogers." He says with a dumbfounded look on his face.
"I'm sorry for my disappearance sir." I tell him.
"Apology accepted. I'm just glad to see you after so long." He says smiling.
"You too. So, I expect Maxson wants to see me." I say.
"Why yes, he would. As well as you knight." He says to Calvin.
"Will do cap." He says saluting him with two fingers.
"What have I said about your attitude." He says scolding him.
"Basically that it sucks." Calvin answers.
I hear kells grumble something before gesturing for us to follow him. I laugh and look over at Calvin smiling and he just shakes his head chuckling as well.
We follow Kells over to the bridge where Maxson is looking out over the commonwealth like always.
"Elder Maxson," Kells says, "we found the sentinel."
Maxson turns slowly and I can almost see a smile on his face.
"Rogers, you've returned." He says.
"Yup, did ya miss me maxi?" I ask teasing him.
"Well, not as much as I thought I did, now." He says joking back subtley.
I chuckle and shake my head.
"So, I assume the Knight here has informed you of your promotion and the events that have followed?" Maxson asks.
"As much as he needed to." I answer.
"Good. And now that you're back, we have some pressing matters to discuss about the future of our chapter." He says.
"Sir if I may," Calvin interrupts.
"Proceed."
"Sir, we've been on a very long trip and she just got back after being on her own for a year. I think she needs some time to clear her head before getting into that." He says.
Maxson is silent for a moment while thinking it over before nodding, "Very well. But I want to hear from you in no longer than two days. I'll hunt you down myself if I must." He says.
I nod, "yes sir."
"Good. Dismissed." He says saluting us.
We both salute back and begin to walk away.
"Oh and good work Maccready." He says before we can make it to the latter.
I freeze in place and look to my side, "Robert?"