Chapter 56: Hitched

The entire meager city of ghouls stared Freddie down and he had gotten so close to me that he was stepping on the back of my boots. We ascended the chipped and rustic stairs and headed through the doors of Carol's place. She immediately dropped everything she was doing and pulled me into a tight hug.

"Eleanor! My beautiful Eleanor," she whispered as she ran her hand over the back of my head.

Gretta snorted and turned on her heels. "Stupid smoothskin," she bit out.

Carol glared at her and then her eyes softened when they turned back to me. "How are you doing, sweetie? I was getting so worried about you. We haven's seen you in months."

I held her at arms-length and smiled warmly. "I'm doing just fine. Charon makes sure of that. Just a few more months and I get to see my baby."

Carol's smile grew wider as she ran her hand down my stomach. "Oh my. You might be expecting them a little sooner than later. You are getting pretty big. Are you eating? Are you getting enough sleep?"

The bombardment of motherly love made me feel warm and fuzzy. I always wanted a mother. Carol would the best one someone could ask for. "Yes ma'am. Charon takes good care of me."

She let go of me and hugged Charon tightly. He stiffened under her touch and looked at me for help. She let go of him as quickly as she hugged him. "She needs someone like you. So when are you two getting hitched?"

The entire room quieted and looked at the four of us. Freddie coughed and Charon froze entirely. Whatever "hitched" meant, it didn't seem to be all that great. Carol's smile faded as she realized how ling it took for him to answer.

I cleared my throat once. "How about some noodles, mom?"

She nodded quickly, ready to get rid of the awkwardness that had recently arisen. "Three bowls, coming up." She looked at Dogmeat at the door shaking his tail quietly. "And some mashed potatoes."

Freddie coughed again and withdrew a pack of cigarettes. "I'm going to step outside for a while. I need a smoke."

Whatever had just happened was awkward enough to make Freddie go into the wasteland willingly, completely freeze Charon for the past half minute, and make an entire room go silent. I had to figure out what "hitched" meant.

"Alright, young man. Lunch will be ready in about thirty minutes," Carol said as she started mixing stale noodles in a pot of water over the stove.

The room had slowly returned to its loud state within several minutes. Charon still hadn't spoken a word, or even looked at anyone. But he at least followed me to the room we rented out when we stayed here. He sat on the bed silently as I stripped my armor off and returned to my day clothes.

"Charon?" I asked quietly.

He grunted in response, but still hadn't looked away from outer space.

"What does it mean to 'get hitched'? Is it something bad?"

He had returned to his stick straight sitting position. He didn't look like he was going to answer. I held my breath, waiting for any sort of explanation. My shoulders slouched when he didn't acknowledge me and I moved to open the room divider.

"It means to get married," his hoarse voice called out behind me.

My fingers rested on the divider lightly. Was that all? How could marriage be something to make everyone so uncomfortable? "Why did everyone freak out about that?"

He sighed. "It's because of me. Who I am. What I am. The things I've done and will probably do again. And you often forget you are human and I am a ghoul."

My hand dropped from the divider and I turned around to face him. His face was slack and tired, giving up the state of his exhaustion that comes with taking care of me. "Why did you act like that though? Is it such a horrible thought?"

He shook his head and patted the bed. I sat down hesitantly and he wrapped an arm around me. He pulled the two of us towards the head of the bed and we laid down. I fought the urge to curl in on him and rest my head on his chest. He rolled onto his side to face me and threw an arm over my stomach.

"I didn't answer because it was coming from her," he kissed the scar that ran cross my temple from the slaver. "Had it been you asking, I would have answered honestly."

My stomach flipped. "Charon?"

"Yes, Eleanor?" His voice was low and husky.

I swallowed my anxiety for a short moment. "When are we getting hitched?"

His low chuckle drifted into my ear. "Whenever you want to, smoothskin. I am with you, for good or ill."