Title: Impressions Written By: Emerald Padparadscha
- Jenny pulled at his tie, fussing like a mother trying to get their kid ready for Sunday church. Her brown eyes were scolding him with a glare should he dare move again God forbid he d be able to breath in a minute!
Nicholas Valentine! You so much as twitch one more time in the wrong direction and I ll- -
The new looks suits you, Nick. Ellie smiled, helping him put on his new tie. He d walked through the door only about an hour earlier looking like a mutant hound had used him as its new favorite chew toy which it had. Just about everything from his trench coat to his pants had been ripped to shreds. He d made it out mostly intact, though. He d had extra clothes at the agency to change into, thankfully. Also, thankfully, Ellie hadn t had to help him tighten any lose parts this time. Nora had been able to come across some Gen2 parts they d been able to replace some of the worst of the worn pieces of him with. He smiled, noticing not for the first time Ellie s eyes were brown, too, only a lighter shade.
Guess it was just about time for a change, anyway. He said. Before long, I was going to have to start patching the patches. You mean I was going to patch the patches. She teased, no heat to her words. Since when do you sew, Mr. Valentine? Once the tie was in place, she folded his collar down over it. While he worked on the wrist cuffs of his shirt, Ellie walked over to his desk, picking up his hat.
- Why do you love this old hat so much, anyway? Nick looked up from where he was reading the newspaper, his feet propped up on the desk in front of him. Jenny stood at the end of his desk, giving him that questioning look that could get better detectives than him talking. Ever thought about teaching class on how to pull off that look? You d make a killing. -
He couldn t remember if Nick had answered her or not. It s been a while since we ve been without a case. She remarked, her attention on a hole in his fedora where a bullet had gone straight through the rim. When or where, he had no clue. Nick moved to the small couch they d moved into the back of the office a short while back. Ellie d decided to renovate, saying they needed more places to relax in here. He reminded he that relaxing wasn t usually part of the job description, but she d won out in the end. Couch came in, protests went out.
The radio next to him was playing, although the volume was set pretty low. He didn t even know if Ellie could hear it. Way Back Home was playing. Not one of his favourites, but pretty good nonetheless. He let himself sink back into the old piece of furniture, resting one arm on the backrest and the other on his knee. It was odd sometimes, seeing his right hand fixed up like it was. Sturges had managed to replace the outer covering on it from Gen2 salvage. It d felt strangely like cannibalism at first. He tried not to think about it.
We ve got plenty of cases to keep us busy. He said. Don t forget the Mysterious Stranger. Habit had him reaching for a cigarette before he remembered Ellie didn t like him smoking inside. He dropped the retrieved cigarette by the radio. He s been sighted in the Commonwealth recently. It seems he s been stalking our favorite sole survivor. Nora? He smirked. How many vault dwellers do you know, Ellie? You got something going on I should know about? Ellie sure knew how to give one of the cutest pouts in the Commonwealth. I guess you ll be keeping close to her again, then.
- That young recruit came into your office again today. Nick had to blink a couple times before Jenny s nonsequeter statement filtered through. Come again? That new girl. What s her name? He frowned. I don t know? Jenny s smile was sad. Nick You d tell me if anything was wrong between us, right? -
Ellie. He frowned. I m a detective, not a mind reader. If there s something wrong, you ve gotta tell me. Ellie sighed. She likes to get, you know friendly. She frowned. With robots. Nick barked a laugh, and she didn t take too kindly to it. Are you going to tell me I m wrong, Nicky? I wouldn t worry about anything, Ellie. He explained. Nora and I had a talk a while back about how friendly I was willing to get. Besides, I d place my caps her eyes are on breaking Danse out of that metaphorical shell of his. She seemed to accept that. That s a relief. Besides that, it wouldn t work out. He continued, this time standing up. She was facing away from him, so she didn t see him walk up behind her. I ve had my eyes on someone for a while now. The sudden change of closeness startled her, as if his words weren t enough. She turned, finding them only a few inches apart. Thing is, I haven t brought it up to her yet. Been thinking maybe I should. Ellie s eyes were the widest he d seen them in quite a while. I think maybe you should, too. What s the worst that could happen? He shrugged. Well, there s always that aggravating no word. She smiled. Since when does Nick Valentine take no for an answer? Nick smiled, bringing up his hand to her cheek, feeling the warm, smooth skin against the newly replaced sensors there. Ellie leaned into the touch just a little. What do you think, Ellie? Wanna be my girl?
-FIN-