A/N: Holy shit, I just realized that I actually didn't update this fic back when I wrote this part like I thought I did. I recently got inspired for this one again and, well, I'm human. I also was super stressed with school and night classes I was taking and I now work the night shift at my new job, so fanfiction has been the last thing on my mind. I only now have had the time to write stuff for Dragon Age and this poor fic got put on the back burner. I'm going to try to update this more regularly from now on. Poor Mav and Leyah. I need to get the tension building between them again.

Leyah didn't know how she mustered up the courage to do what she just did, but she couldn't think about it at the moment. Maverick got hurt because she was hesitant with her shot and she had to make it up to him somehow. And, her dad may finally be in reach. After weeks of searching, she almost didn't know what to think.

Maverick pointed toward a loading dock nearby. "Come on, to get into the city we need to go there." He winced in pain again and cursed as he started to lead her toward it.

Leyah marched forward so she was walking beside him and she kept glancing at his side. "Are you sure it just grazed you? I can take a look if—"

"Calm down, Vaultie."

Leyah rolled her eyes, asking herself if she really expected any other answer.

The old carrier was constantly creaking and Leyah didn't know whether she should be nervous about wanting to get inside the thing or not. A man sitting near the top of the dock looked up as they approached. "W-water…please. I need…" He started to hack and cough.

Leyah ignored Maverick's warning glance and dug into her pack for two of the many bottles of purified water Wadsworth was able to give her back at Megaton. She held it out to the sick man. "Here, it's not much, but it's not irradiated."

This man was just like Micky back at Megaton and she couldn't stop herself from helping him either.

"I can just have it? I don't have much…I can't really—"

"I insist," Leyah interrupted, stepping toward where Maverick was impatiently tapping his foot near the intercom.

She gave the man a little wave and looked up at Maverick expectantly.

He gave her a sarcastic grin. "I still don't understand you," he grumbled.

Leyah would have been offended, but she happened to notice the humorous gleam in his eye. "Likewise."

Maverick barked out a laugh before pressing the intercom button, resting his other hand above it. Leyah noticed that he was leaning heavily on his hand and a frown darkened her features. She knew it, the wound was worse than he was letting on. "Maverick, seriously can I look at it?"

He huffed. "Vaultie, we are almost to a clinic. Once we get there, you can play doctor all you want because I'm sure as hell not paying the bastard that works there."

"What's wrong with the doctor there?" she asked, leaning forward to inspect his side.

"He and I don't get along."

Leyah looked at him in fake bewilderment. "You? Not getting along with someone? Shocker."

Maverick gave her a hard look and it took every ounce of her willpower to keep from laughing. Now was not the time.

He looked away from her and glared at the intercom, pressing the button again. "What the hell, Harkness?"

"Hello?"

"Release the bridge you prick! I know you can see us you son of a-"

"Alright Maverick, don't get your panties in a twist."

Maverick started to grumble under his breath while Leyah gave him an exasperated look. Honestly, couldn't he be polite for once?

A heavy creaking sound and a deep rumble caused her to look toward the carrier again. A large bridge was now swinging its way around toward the loading dock they were on. It stopped in front of them with a deep groan. Leyah didn't trust it at all.

"People seriously think this is safe?"

"And living around a big ass bomb is?"

Dammit, he was right again. He stumbled a little as he stepped on the bridge and Leyah couldn't stop herself from reaching out and wrapping an arm around his waist carefully to help him. "I'm not that weak, Leyah."

"Just let me do this, you jerk. It's my fault you got hurt in the first place," she grumbled back.

His chest shook as he laughed a little before grunting in pain again. "I can definitely say that I wasn't shot. I know what that feels like and this isn't even close."

"I don't care."

He gently pushed her away as they approached the carrier.

"Who's with you, Maverick?" a sharp voice called out.

Leyah gulped when she saw three men pointing rifles at them. Before she could stop herself, she reached out and clutched her fist into the back of Maverick's shirt. Shit, she really had to stop doing that.

"Relax, Harkness. She's with me. Now, we just had a run in with the Talon Company and we need a place to stay so stop being a pain in the ass," Maverick snapped.

The lead man, Harkness, lowered his rifle. "Talon Company?! What did they want with you?"

"I piss people off all the time Harkness, don't you know that?" Maverick retorted, putting his hand on Leyah's shoulder and squeezing.

Leyah resisted the urge to look up at him. Why was he lying about the Talon Company? And why did he want her to stay quiet?

"Whatever, you can go in. The market just closed though so you won't be able to do business until tomorrow."

Maverick nodded toward the man and led Leyah toward one of the doors behind the men. He gestured toward the one on the left and Leyah opened it for them. They walked into the stairwell and Maverick gestured toward the one leading up. "Go get a room at the Weatherly Hotel. I'm going to get a stimpak and I'll meet you up there."

Leyah wasn't having it. "But I have stimpaks and-"

"Vaultie, please don't argue with me."

"Fine, whatever," she huffed, stomping up the stairs. She couldn't stop grumbling as she made her way up. "Stupid man, just wants to prove how tough he his and go by himself. I can't even-"

She paused when a thought suddenly crossed her mind. "Wait...Weatherly?"

A gasp escaped her lips before she basically sprinted up the steps.

All thoughts of Maverick being irritating were forgotten.

Maverick honestly didn't want her to see him having trouble to go up the stairs. He finally took that chance to take a peek at the damage to replace the clumsy inspection he did earlier. He gingerly lifted up his shirt and cursed. The graze was a little deeper than he anticipated. Leyah had every right to be worried now.

Deciding to get the torture over with, he slowly started to make his way up the stairs too. Every breath he took was starting to hurt a little. He finally made it to the next floor and he slowly stumbled toward the Weatherly Hotel. It had been about a year since Maverick last visited Rivet City and nothing changed, just like the rest of the wasteland.

Still, it wasn't a complete piece of shit and it was safer than the usual settlement.

He finally reached the hotel lobby and his eyes widened when he saw Leyah talking to Vera still. The vault dweller's back was turned to him, but he could tell that she was happy from the way her hands were moving as they talked. Oh shit, they're gossiping.

As he got closer, he realized that they weren't gossiping in any way whatsoever.

"I'm so glad that Bryan is okay! Thank you for going out of your way for him. I'll ask Harkness to send some men out to get him right away."

Leyah rubbed the back of her head. "It was no big deal. I was traveling nearby when he stopped me. I was more than happy to help."

Oh, they were talking about the Wilks kid she helped. Maverick suddenly realized what just happened. Leyah found a home for the poor kid. He remembered being incredulous when she told him about her little suicide mission into the metro. Teaches him to be incredulous about anything Leyah did.

No wonder Tenpenny and Burke hated her. She helped the people they despised.

A warm feeling started to fill his chest as he stared at the girl. Dammit, she really was just too damn nice, but that was one of the many things that made her stand out from the typical wastelander. That's what made her Leyah.

The warm feeling abruptly left when he came upon a realization. Someone who was as good as her would never consider a cranky, old loner like him. Leyah turned around, catching his eye. She smiled at him before turning back to Vera.

Maverick saw her hand over the caps and she got the key to a room.

"Thanks, Vera!"

Leyah walked around the desk, dangling the key in front of her. "We're in room four."

Maverick's heart hardened and irritation boiled in his gut when he saw Vera give them a wide eyed look. Shit. "You take the room, Vaultie. I'll get my own."

Leyah arched a brow at him. "Why? That's just extra caps wasted. Besides, we need to count the stuff we scaved and-"

"There's only one bed in these rooms, Leyah," he interrupted, shooting a hard look at Vera. Leyah didn't need that woman telling everyone that they were fucking or something. Leyah was better than that.

Leyah's eyes widened in an almost comical way. "Oh."

"Yeah, go get settled down. I'll-"

"You can still stay in my room. We don't have to share the bed you know. I can sleep on the floor or something."

The temptation to give into her offer was greater than he thought it would be. That and his side was starting to hurt like a fucking bitch and he didn't feel like arguing. He finally sighed and just walked out of the hotel, heading down to room four.

"Better tell your new best friend about our nonexistent relationship then, Vaultie."

Leyah huffed before following Maverick out of the lobby. She honestly didn't give a mole rat's ass about what people thought about her and Maverick. As far as she knew, sex wasn't a private thing in the wasteland anyway so it probably wouldn't matter even if she did deny it.

Her head was honestly starting to hurt from thinking about it too much.

This day felt like the longest in her life and she just wanted to lie in bed and sleep for 12 hours. But, she had to help Maverick first. Then, find Doctor Li. Leyah was honestly on the fence about meeting the scientist. She wanted to find her dad, but there was still a little part of her that told her that he abandoned her and didn't want her.

"A cap?"

Leyah realized that she had stopped in the middle of the hallway and Maverick was looking at her suspiciously. "Huh?"

"For your thoughts? I know you're not stupid but you just stopped in the middle of the hallway for no reason."

Leyah made the mistake of looking at his eyes and she immediately looked away when she felt her cheeks beginning to flush. "I'll tell you later. Let's get you fixed up."

Maverick opened his mouth to reply, but seemed to think against it because he shut it just as quickly. Gesturing toward the door, he gave her a sardonic, "After you."

Leyah rolled her eyes, playfully punching his shoulder before inserting the key.

"Hey, you're being abusive again."

Leyah snorted out a laugh. "Oh please, that's making up for all the times you told me I suck."

"In my defense, you did a lot of things shitty when I did say you suck," he mocked.

Before she could stop herself, she stuck her tongue out at him petulantly before opening the door.

"How grown up of you."

"Don't get me started Mr. 'I kick people out of the house for dumb reasons'."

Maverick sighed. "You're never going to let that go, are you?"

"No, because you could have easily told me why you didn't want to talk about it and you going to Megaton to find me could have been avoided," Leyah snarked, tossing her pack on the bed. She turned and planted her fists on her hips. "Shirt off."

Maverick stiffened and Leyah had to actually think to keep her face straight. It was funny to see him that surprised.

"What?"

"Uh, do I have to remind you that you got grazed by a bullet earlier? Shirt off. You need a stimpak."

Maverick shook his head. "No, we are not wasting a stimpak on this. Just give me some Med-X and some bandages and-"

"Maverick Barrington, I literally have 20 some stimpaks on me and I know you know that so stop making excuses and let me treat you," Leyah barked impatiently. Why did he have to be so difficult?!

He stared at her, deadpan, for many moments before he finally dropped his pack. He unclipped his armor and carefully set it nearby before slowly pulling his shirt over his head.

Well, Leyah was right about what she thought this morning. He was in very good shape for his age. Shaking the thought from her head, she focused on the task at hand. The wound wasn't even a quarter of an inch deep, but it was enough. The only reason he wasn't bleeding profusely was because the bullet cauterized the wound.

"Sit on the bed," she quietly instructed, digging into her pack.

Right after Maverick kicked her out, Leyah made it a small mission to get as many stimpaks as she could, which led her to do the crazy things Moira needed for her book. She pulled a stimpak and Med-X out of the little bag she kept them in and stepped in front of Maverick.

Now that Moira was on her mind… "Remind me to ask the people here about the history of this place after we talk to Doctor Li," she said, tapping his right arm.

He lifted it and sighed in boredom, looking away. "Sure thing, Vaultie. I'm not going to even ask why."

The doctor in her was fascinated with his musculature. The closest thing she had seen compared to this was the anatomy models in the books her dad taught her with. His chest and shoulders were wide and muscle corded every part of his torso. There was a splash of wiry dark hair on his chest that led a small trail down toward his navel. His hips were narrow compared to everything else. Light scars littered his skin as well and Leyah found herself wondering how he got them.

She immediately looked away; face burning as she reached for the syringe of Med-X she pulled out.

"Don't bother. Just stick the stimpak in," Maverick ordered, waving the Med-X away.

Leyah sighed in exasperation, readying the stimpak. "Fine, but I better not hear you whine afterward."

Maverick arched a brow at her. "Oh please," he snorted.

Taking a deep breath, she tentatively reached out and rested her left hand gently on his skin. It almost seemed too warm and it felt like a shock was traveling up her arm. She forced herself to focus and she pressed the needle of the stimpak in just above the wound. She emptied the contents and set the empty stimpak aside.

The way his flesh and skin started to knit together before her eyes forced her to stare. They never had an injury that needed stimpaks in the vault, so she never saw them in action. "Wow," she breathed, the scientist in her taking over.

"I wonder what proteins and chemicals they use to make these. The enzymes themselves must be powerful. And to have the ribosomes read your mRNA right away…" She trailed off, peering at Maverick's now-healed side. She suddenly realized that she was probably way closer than she needed to be and she backed away. "Sorry, I didn't mean to-"

"It's alright, Leyah," Maverick chuckled, standing up as he grabbed his shirt. He turned away from her as he got his shirt situated.

If Leyah thought his front was impressive, his back was even more so. More light scars covered his tan skin and Leyah found herself intrigued again. His muscles bunched and rippled as he pulled his shirt on.

"Alright, let's talk to Dr. Li," he said, grabbing his shotgun.

The doubt from before came back full throttle. "Mav?"

"What have I told you about calling me-"

"What if my dad doesn't want to be found? He obviously abandoned me and he's making it hard for anyone to find him apparently. What if he's here and he doesn't want to see me?" It felt good to say how she felt aloud, but she knew she probably wasn't going to get the answer she wanted from Maverick.

He surprised her when he rested a hand on her shoulder. "Leyah, you were hell-bent on finding him when we met. Why are you changing your mind?"

Leyah looked up and was forced to look him in the eye. "I-I don't know. I just don't think he wants to see me anymore and I just found myself wondering why I was putting myself through all of this if he doesn't and-"

"Okay, can I tell you a little secret? Most people would have literally given everything they had to have what you and your dad had in the vault. I don't know how your dad pulled it off, but he did. Now why do you think he would do something that is considered damn near impossible?"

Leyah stiffened and her lips hardened into a straight line. Yeah, it explained that her dad might actually care for her, but it didn't explain why her dad left. "Yeah, but why did he leave me if he found such a perfect place for me, huh? Why would he leave if he loved me so much? What is more important than his own daughter?!" she snapped.

Maverick's face was expressionless as he stared at her for a moment and it took everything Leyah had to not start crying from frustration. These thoughts were creeping into her head more and more and it was hard to feel optimistic when they were there.

"Do you really think he doesn't care about you? Because I know what that's like and its worse than shit," he finally stated, staring at her intensely.

Leyah suddenly realized what she must have sounded like to him, considering what she knew about his dad. "I…I'm sorry. I sound like a brat and-"

"Don't even. You're the last person I would call a brat," he interrupted, slinging his shotgun over his shoulder.

He squeezed her shoulder and gestured toward the door. "Now, let's go talk to Doctor Li and see if your dad has been hiding in this old tub this whole time."