Weeks passed as Joshua and Carrie made their way through the narrow passageways until they finally reached the end of the canyon, opening up into a cave where the Happy Trails Caravan expedition had started many months ago.
Poor Jed and Stella... never stood a chance and, of course, there was the idiot with the Pip-Boy... and also Ricky too.
By the time they had gotten out of the cave, Carrie was almost heaving from exhaustion after all that walking and climbing. Joshua, however, stood and watched with barely a sweat broken... if he even could sweat anymore. The Lucky 38 Tower loomed over New Vegas in the distance, residence of the former megalomaniac despot of the city, Mr House until a certain courier, and I again quote, "tripped on a cable and killed a shrivelled human sized mole-rat accidentally."
Joshua had wondered at many, MANY points how Carrie had even made it through the wasteland at all, let alone killing 3 powerful faction leaders with her lack of intelligence, her ineptitude and overall questionable decision making.
At the same time though, she could sell a "Deathjaw" their own egg and had managed to survive 2 bullets to the brain so she must be smarter than she lets on...right?
Putting aside the endless mistakes she's made over the course of a year, she was a good person at heart. Sweet, kind, caring to those she loved but still ruthless in battle. Under different circumstances, if it weren't for his burns, maybe Graham and her could've been...more than friends. Alas, it is useless to think of realities impossible to obtain, any dreams of romance and lust burned along with the Malpais Legate years ago.
These thoughts saddened him deeply but he repressed them deeper into his mind. "Stay strong", he thought, "for her." Carrie, meanwhile, was desperately searching for water, purified or otherwise; she didn't care what. Anything to quench her dry throat. Suddenly, a water bottle appeared in front of her, held by a bandaged hand. She snatched it and gulped it down, leaving not even a drop.
"T...thanks..." She breathes heavily as her cracked lips slowly became smooth and red again.
"Did you forget to pack water before we left?"
"Yeah...must've..."
"You..." He sighs, wondering how on earth she's survived this long. "Come on, let us rest later. It's getting dark. Is there any place nearby we can stay?"
"Nah, nothing out here 'sides those bastard cazadores and raiders. You know how to make a campfire, right?"
"I do. Would you like me to show you?"
Her face brightens up as he says this.
"R...really?! You'd teach me how to make a fire?!"
"Of course, a fire is key to survival and staves off the co-" Carrie buries her head into his chest, the sudden contact surprising him and slightly causing his burns to sting.
"Thanks soooo much Joshie! You're the best."
"It is... no trouble. I am glad to... help." For the first time in what felt like eons, a burning fire flared in his cheeks that felt nothing like his bandaged burns he had to sterilise and wrap every week. It felt...good. He couldn't describe what it was but slowly, hesitantly, he wrapped his arms around her too. It was the most contact he'd ever had with someone since his baptism in flames.
Looking down at her, he could see her long, blonde hair covered by her torn, brown leather hat. The brim hiding her face until she looked up at him with her piercing, green eyes and smiled. She then finally seperated from him and skipped down the slope towards a clearing, a good spot for a campfire.
"So, what we doing first, huh? Where we getting the wood? How do we light the fire?"
"All in good time. First, we must look around for any dead bushes and trees. They prove the most effective at burning."
"You mean this?" She holds a small stick in her hand, barely enough for cinders.
"Bigger than that." Joshua gets to work, tearing off huge chunks of rotten wood from nearby trees for firewood. After a few solid minutes of work, he returns with a pile of wood, capable of burning for the whole night. He then realises that Carrie is gone...somewhere. He slightly worries as she might've been attacked by whatever's out there. Graham hears rustling behind him and, thinking quickly, draws his pistol and aims behind him, preparing to fire, only to find...