The last few miles home were always the hardest. Nate had become accustomed to these excursions, foraging, scavenging, fighting raiders, mutants, wild animals, and the like, but this trip was different. He was nursing a few injuries from this last encounter for sure, he was tired, sore. But beyond the usual physical fatigue, he was mentally exhausted. He peered over his shoulder at his companion, Cait. She and he had just gone through some shit together, for real. And they both came out of it together, and the bond between them was real. Nate had gotten used to being the sole survivor, out on his own, but now things were different. He cared for this woman, this fiery red haired tempest of an Irish lass, and he had watched her come out of Vault 95 clean from her horrible addictions.
Cait, following just a few steps behind Nate, shotgun slung over her shoulder, was much quieter than her usual self. She was looking at the world through new eyes. The horrible wasteland they trudged through was suddenly much brighter, more colorful. She felt alive for the first time in a long time. She was also taking a new notice to the man that walked in front of her. Tall and muscular, in that wild blue jump suit with the number 111 on the back, the pieces of combat armor that he had scavenged off of a dead soldier strapped to his limbs. Cait had never met anyone like him, everyone she had ever met in her life had simply used and abused her, took advantage of her. But here in front of her was a different type of person, he had her back, he cared for her, he SAVED her. She felt safe with him, and damn, he was easy on the eyes too.
As they reached the home stretch in their journey, Nate did a quick check in at Abernathy Farm before cutting across to the Red Rocket for some much needed rest and relaxation. Yes, technically Nate resided at Sanctuary Hills, but when he just wanted peace and quiet, his go to was the Red Rocket. He'd made himself a nice little private abode there, though he had also been known to invite a few close acquaintances to crash there while he was gone, to keep an eye on the place and such. And so as they approached the old truck stop, imagine Cait's surprise when who comes running out to give Nate a big hug, but Piper.
"Oh Blue, I'm so glad you're here, I've missed you!" Piper exclaimed, in her typical enthusiastic manner.
"What the feck is she doing here?" Cait muttered under her breath. All Cait had wanted when they got home was to spend some quality time with Nate, so they could really get to know each other better, get closer, more intimate. She couldn't help herself. She was falling for this man, and now she was watching him embrace the cute and perky Piper, possibly the most annoying person on the planet. Cait's mood suddenly soured, though she tried to conceal it as much as she could. They all got settled, and shed their gear and the items they had scavenged from their quest. Nate had gotten most of what he had been looking for to make some weapons upgrades but he was lacking a few critical components. Then Nate dropped this bombshell;
"Hey Piper, I have to go to Diamond City in a couple days, are you down to go with me?" Cait was stunned. Piper was gleeful.
"Yes I'd love to!" It was sickening, and Cait couldn't help but interject,
"You two have fun together Piper, too bad we can't make it a threesome."
"Never gonna happen Cait."
"Your loss." Cait snarled back with a cheeky grin.
Later on that evening, they were all sitting around the garage, which Nate had furnished quite nicely, good boy Dogmeat was sitting at Nate's feet. They had munched on some squirrel bits and nipped on a bottle of whisky that Nate had picked up along the way.
