Hel could tell Burke was furious. He didn't speak to her as they made their way back up to the saloon. He hadn't offered his arm or reached for her hand either. He did at least get the door for her and when she moved towards the stairs, he tugged on her elbow.

"I need a drink," he gestured towards his table, "What would you like?"

"Beer," she went to the table as he went to the bar. Taking his jacket off, she laid it over the back of her chair. Burke brought her beer and his usual scotch. She noticed the knuckles of his left hand were red, one cut open. Taking a swig of her beer, she waited until he'd downed a shot before she opened her mouth to speak. He beat her to it.

"Don't ever try to stop me again."

"Excuse me?"

"You heard me."

"Oh I heard you just fine," she scoffed, "What I can't believe is that you'd try to pull something like this. What the fuck are you trying to prove?"

"Jericho's exactly what's wrong with this world. He needed to be corrected."

"He's in his sixties! A beating from you isn't going to make him a new man."

"Old dogs can learn new tricks." He took another shot. "I would have fixed the problem either way."

"And you're mad that I tried to stop you?"

He didn't answer.

"Is your ego that weak? That you needed me to play damsel in distress? What was all that bullshit about me being 'a force of nature'? If you want someone who'll come running to you every time she's inconvenienced, then trust me, ya got the wrong girl."

"I didn't like how he spoke to you."

"I get that," she reached across the table and touched his wrist, "And as much as I appreciate you being willing to defend me, it's not needed. I can take care of myself."

He shook his head, "You just don't get it. I know you can handle it. You probably could have knocked him cold before Simms got there if you had wanted to. But I don't want you to have to handle it. I want you to count on me, even if it's superficial. Like getting the door for you. You've got arms that work. You can do it yourself. But I want to do it for you."

She sighed, "Burke, you don't have to prove anything to me. I'm not pursuing a relationship with you because of your ability to beat up someone."

"I know," he sighed and took her hand in his, "But I'm not the type of guy to just sit back and let some asshole talk bad about my girl."

Hel smiled, "I will admit seeing you fight was a little bit of a turn on."

He gave a small smile in return. "Glad I could amuse you."

"Jericho's lucky Simms showed up."

Burke shrugged, "Maybe. Back in the day he wouldn't have been standing after two hits. I've lost my touch."

Hel raised an eyebrow, "Back in the day?"

"Don't," he held up a finger, "I've already told you I don't talk about home."

"Alright," she held up her hand and reached for her beer, her other hand still holding his. He rubbed his thumb against her fingers as he stared at the table. They sat there for a while in silence, nursing their drinks. The saloon's radio was quietly playing and Hel began to hum along with it.

Burke lifted her hand and kissed it, "Will you dance with me?"

"W-hat?" She gave an embarrassed laugh.

He stood and pulled her to her feet, "Please?"

Hel hadn't ever danced with anyone before. She used to pretend when she was little, alone in her room, that she was a princess and a handsome prince asked her to dance at a ball like in the storybooks. Burke raised her hands up to his neck and set his hands on her hips. Slowly he moved her back and forth as 'I Don't Want to Set the World on Fire' played. It wasn't a ball and he wasn't a prince, but Hel felt like a princess just then.

"You make it easy to forget everything," he said softly, "If I'd met you before-" He cut off.

"Well, I'm only nineteen, so-"

"You know what I mean," he interrupted, "And don't remind me I'm old enough to be your father."

She realized she'd never asked and leaned back to look up at him, "How old are you?"

"Love," he chuckled, "Does it matter?"

"You brought it up."

"Yes." He sighed. "I can't be one hundred percent sure, but I know I'm at least forty-five."

"How can you not be sure?"

"Unlike someone else, I didn't have birthday parties as a child," his tone was teasing, but the same dark look came into his eyes when he had mentioned his past before.

"Sorry."

"No, my dear, it's alright."

Hel tried to hold in her next comment, but she couldn't help it, "You really are old enough to be my dad," and giggled.

"Yes, thank you," he said flatly.

"Am I… Is-"

"Just ask, love."

"Am I the youngest person you've ever been with?"

"You're the biggest age gap."

"Oh," she told herself not to ask, that if she pried into his past he'd just shut down again.

"I can practically see the questions running round in your head," he sighed. The radio switched to Three Dog speaking and they pulled apart. Burke set her down first and retook his seat. Rubbing at the back of his neck, he said, "Please don't ask me about this again, alright?"

She nodded as he poured another shot and downed it. She watched him attempt to start speaking several times before he gave a frustrated grunt and tore his hat off his head. Slapping it down on the table, he took another shot and scrubbed a hand through his hair. She didn't dare say anything, she didn't even want to move. He looked up and opened his mouth.

…

"You might not have liked growing up in that Vault, but from what you told me so far, you were pretty lucky. Where I grew up," Burke tried to block out the flood of memories and only half succeeded, "Kids were put to work as soon as they could walk and string a sentence together. My father eventually gave me the job of helping him keep people in line," he didn't elaborate on what people. She can only overlook so much.

He had to look away from her so he stared down at his hands, noticing the scrapes of his fight on his knuckles for the first time. "I was good at what I did," he said bitterly, "Dad was so proud. Said I was a man. I think I was probably ten. Old enough to notice girls, not old enough to know what to do with them. I was told I deserved a reward. It was the first and only time he ever acted like I wasn't a disappointment." He straightened and looked at her, "What do you reward a kid with? Toys? A special treat?" He smiled sadly, "A sweetroll?"

She didn't answer, just continued to listen.

"He decided I was ready to bed someone. That would be my reward," he felt his jaw tighten. He could remember the smell of the cat house, thick with smoke and the stink of sex, the emaciated bodies of the prostitutes. "They lead me into a room where a whore was already waiting. She was older than me, but not by much." He felt bile rise in his throat and swallowed several times before going on. "He said he paid good money. That he wasn't going to let me leave until- I…" he cleared his throat and shook his head, "He watched. Wanted to make sure he got his money's worth." Pouring a large shot, he slung it down and clacked the shot glass against the table.

He couldn't meet her eyes. "She knew what she was doing. Laughed at me for being nervous. I didn't want-" he shook his head, "It's not how I had imagined my first time. A sickly whore fucking me while my dad watched… Afterwards I left and he stayed. Never let me live it down. Said it was a shame he had to show her what a real man was like. Always said how I was tough around boys but a limp dick around girls. He looked for excuses to beat me, humiliate me. If I were a real man I'd find a way to stop him, he told me. So I did.

"It was just before I came here, to the Capital. He'd had me tied up and beat me, kicked me in the ribs and broke one. Pissed on me while he laughed. I got loose, fought back." He clenched his fists, "I managed to catch him off guard, grabbed a cinder block and smashed his face in until I couldn't recognize him."

Burke chanced a look at her. "So…now you know why I'm not eager to relive such a happy past. I don't have fun little anecdotes about a loving father or best friend." Another shot, he noticed the bottle was already halfway gone. "You're the purest thing I've ever had in my life. So if I seem overprotective of you…" he shrugged, "I'm not sorry."

She sat there watching him, barely breathing, not moving a muscle. He couldn't imagine what she was thinking. He didn't imagine it was very good.

She got to her feet and came round the table. Wrapping her arms around him, she pulled him against her in a tight hug. One hand caressed his neck as she whispered, "I'm so sorry, love. I won't ask, ever again."

His arms held her tight. He breathed in her scent. He was never letting her go. He wouldn't survive it.

…

Hel's heart broke for him. She couldn't imagine living the life he had. What kind of person would he have been with a better childhood? She cut off that line of thinking. Whatever had happened had made him the man he was, the man she'd fallen for. She kissed the top of his head, "I love you."

His arms tightened, "I really don't deserve you," he twisted his head to look up at her, "You deserve more than this world can give you."

She shook her head, "I have you, this world can go fuck itself," she took a deep breath, "You want to protect me, but you have to understand I can protect you too. You don't have to fight against this existence alone, not anymore. We'll make this world better, together."

He pulled her down into his lap. His lips found hers gently, "Together," he whispered as they pulled apart.

"Hey, you two," Moriarty yelled from across the room, "Take that shit upstairs! That's what the fucking rooms are for!"

Rolling her eyes, Hel slid from Burke's lap, "I fucking hate that man."

Burke grunted agreement, "We could always start with him."

Hel didn't admit it was a tempting idea.

Hello everyone! We're getting closer and closer to the spot where my original short story merges in with this one. Brace yourselves. I don't know how many of my readers have actually played with the Black Widow perk and know about what happens between the Female Lone Wanderer and Burke, so I haven't assumed anything in my writing. I hope everyone continues to enjoy my little AU timeline. It's certainly been therapeutic for me to write it. XD

Thank you for all the views and any comments, they mean the world to me!

Much love! Stay safe, stay amazing!

Meg