Fallout 4: AR

67. Planning for the Future

"So let's make a plan, together." As soon as the words left my lips our stomachs growled in unison. MacCready laughed out loud, flopping back into the soft cushions, echoed by my own giggles. "First things first! We need breakfa—err, lunch!"

-0-

Food was the first of several obstacles we needed to hurdle. MacCready was still painfully thin and desperately needed feeding up in order to rebuild his strength. Wrapping myself in my disguise again, I ordered half a dozen bowls of noodles, as many as I could carry on a scrounged-up tray. When Vadim spotted me entering the Dugout Inn with outside food, he frowned fiercely until I grunted, "Doctor's orders" at him, matching his glare with one of my own. "If you have nourishing cooked food, I'll gladly buy it," I added in a roughened voice, "but my partner needs something better than stale bar snacks." An idea sprouted. "You got purified water at all?" I asked, as if I didn't already know.

"Some," he replied. "Have a customer who asks for it."

"Well, if they're not here, I'll buy it from you. Just tell me how much."

MacCready opened the door to my foot tap, eyeing the bounty of noodles and water. "I don't think I'm that hungry, angel," he commented wryly, trying to stifle a grin.

"Ha ha," I quirked a smile at him. "Not now, but you will be later, I'm sure." While MacCready dug in to the first hot bowl with gusto, I dug out several strips of our remaining radstag "jerky". Nibbling on a bite, I diced the rest of it into a reasonable pile of protein, adding it to the remaining bowls to soften and add flavor. I handed Mac a second bowl, taking one for myself.

"Not bad," he commented around a mouthful. "I bet smoked brahmin would be even better."

"I think you're on to something there," I agreed. "Wonder if Takahashi takes requests?"

"Mmm," was the answer. Draining the last of the broth, my partner was visibly struggling to stay awake. He still had a lot of healing to do, and made only a token resistance when I guided him back to the bed to lay down.

-0-

"You want to what?" was the incredulous panted query from MacCready the next day. We were lightly sparring, practicing hand-to-hand combat moves, building up my skill and Mac's endurance when I broached the topic of our future.

"Settle down somewhere and set up shop," I repeated, unsuccessfully fending off a lightning-quick jab to my ribs. "Oof! After all, we're a couple of free agents, right?" The daydream of having an actual "Guns for Hire" stand briefly flitted across my mind.

MacCready shook his head, easily ducking my return swing. "Not quite, angel." He signaled for us to take a break, grabbing a couple of purified waters to drink while we talked. "You may technically be my boss," and he grinned mischievously at my feigned sinister chuckle, "but Hancock still holds my contract."

"The contract to 'escort me home,' huh?" I fell silent, pondering the implications. "There's a lot of wiggle room in that phrasing, isn't there? I mean, since I've decided to stay, does that mean you're obligated to make me try and get home, or...?"

"I'm not sure. I don't think so. It could be interpreted as a permanent assignment to keep you safe," he hazarded, "but I don't like having this kind of thing hanging over my head. I need to complete this job somehow and clear my obligation to Hancock. Since he's still the contract holder, he can call on my services in the spirit of the deal we made. Hancock's pretty lenient as far as the freedom to perform a job as I see fit, but I don't know what he'll think of your change of heart, especially with the additional negotiations like a free room at the Rexford while we're together."