Spare Me | Fallout 4 John Hancock x FSS

Topographical Map of the Mojave

I regained consciousness moments later and felt like my organs were being jostled around in a salad tosser. I opened my eyes to see Hancock's face. Hancocks glorious, strong face. I hummed and closed my eyes again.

"Hey, Sister, stay with me," he sounded panicked, "I'm gonna need you to keep your eyes open for me, huh?" I frowned, but reluctantly opened my eyes again. I looked around a little and noticed I was moving. That's odd, I don't feel like I'm running. I looked back up at Hancock's face, Hancock's fucked up, pretty face. I laughed a little at my own thought. "That's it, laugh at nothing. That feels like a good sign," His tone was thick with sarcasm.

Is he... Carrying me? I looked up at him again. He was moving with me. I looked down at my body and, Yep, he's carrying me.

I felt a sharp pain in my side and noticed the doors to the Memory Den open. I had never been inside, but it was gorgeous in there. This may have been the best preserved above-ground building in the Commonwealth. The room has wooden floors and walls that looked only slightly run-down. Almost everything was draped in red and-

"AMARI!" Hancock shouted directly in my ear. I winced and glared at him.

"I'm right here," my voice sounded groggy, "Could ya maybe keep it down a little, Mr. Mayor?"

The ghoul chuckled nervously and apologized half-heartedly. "Oh my God, John," the second voice startled me. It was an angelic voice, full-bodied yet breathy. I looked over to see a blonde woman dressed in a red robe and boa. Yeah, that's definitely an angel. Humans aren't that pretty, not in real life. Not in the wasteland. "What happened? Is that the merc?"

I heard the double doors open opposite the angel woman. "Hancock, I didn't know it'd hit her! She was moving so goddamn fast, I-" Fahrenheit. I rolled my eyes, which subsequently made me dizzy.

I noticed Hancock's head whip around. "Just don't, Fahr."

"John, set her down." Hancock, John? set me on a lounging bench. "AMARI! WE NEED YOU, QUICK!" My vision started going black again. The Mayor's pretty-fucked-up face leaned down to me.

"Come on, Sunshine," Is he crying? "Don't black out now, Amari's coming." I think he's crying. He turned hi face from me to say something to, who I assumed was, Fahrenheit. I couldn't help but reach out and touch his face again. I didn't care what happened last time, I didn't even care that I barely knew him. I just wanted to touch him. I was so inexplicably drawn to him. When my skin touched his, he seemed to jump a little, just a little. When he turned back, his eyes were closed and his brow deeply furrowed. He cried harder, now; he looked like I was hurting him. I took my hand off his face only for my arm to drop. Just before it all faded to black, all I saw was an arm I couldn't move.

Fucking Christ! I groaned ever so softly, What, did I get hit by a goddamn truck? Everything in my body hurt. It felt like someone set me on fire and dumped ice water on me. I felt weak. But most of all, my torso felt like it was certainly run over. I opened my eyes to find myself in maybe the only place in the commonwealth lit by fucking halogens. The searing light hit my eyes and I immediately regretted my decision to open them. After closing them again for a moment, I figured it would be best to open them slowly this time. I did and found myself in an unfamiliar room. The walls were disheveled brick, the linoleum floor was a checkered red and white. It looked like some kind of basement, telling by the unfinished yet somehow full intact ceiling. No ceiling in the Commonwealth was that well preserved unless it was some kind of underground. It actually reminded me of the Memory Den...

The Memory Den. It hit me, I remembered. I shot up from my resting position and immediately regretted it. I screamed out in pain and was almost immediately met with what must've been 10 people in the room. A woman with farker olive skin, a brown messy bun and a narrow, no-nonsense face was the first to make my presence. She said something about laying still and not getting up, but the pain was too excruciating to listen properly. I huddled into a ball on my side and nearly tumbled out of whatever weird egg-shaped bed I was in. The only thing that kept me from falling was a very cold hand. My eyes shot back open at the sudden cold to find Nick at the end of it.

Nicky? What's he doing here? I never thought I'd be so happy to see his deteriorating, artificial face. That's not true, I've been happier to see it. Like when he saved me from that fucking psycho doctor in Diamond City. There really wasn't much he could do for me in that moment so I was really more in pain than I was happy to see him, but it was a close second. Nick helped me flatted back out in, what he called, the memory lounger. I didn't cooperate much, honestly. I wanted to continue being huddled around my own legs. But something about "opening my stitches back up" was said by the doctor. Valentine called her Amari. Amari stepped out of the room for, what I gathered, some kind of advanced Med-X. Maybe it'll be as good as Morphine. Nick soothed and shushed me until I was as relaxed as I could've been. What an ordeal this has become, I thought, closing my eyes tight again.

"Is she gonna be alright, Nick?" a voice, further away, asked my partner in justice. A familiar voice, I couldn't quite place it. I furrowed my brow as they continued talking. I could've opened my eyes, but I had enough going on internally without straining my neck to peer at whoever it was.

"Amari said she'll be fine, just in a lot of pain."

"Yeah," the voice scoffed, "I can see that."

"I know you're scared, John, but-" John.

"I ain't scared, Valentine. Just worried the Great Savior of the Commonwealth's gonna die in my town. Then I got some kinda riot on my hands." Where do I know that name? It was on the tip of my tongue, but came from a blurry thought.

A female voice chimed in, "John, Darling, we're not stupid." Hmm, that angelic voice. The boa lady... JOHN!

My eyes shot open and the expression on Nick's face told me that last part may not have been in my head. I heard the pleasant sound of combat boots on linoleum and a soft smile spread across my face. "John?"

"I'm gonna go get some food, Doll. Just scream in agony if ya need me," Nick stood up. Nick doesn't eat, I knew this. He knew I knew this.

"Come on Fahr, let's go get something to eat," the angelic voice stated.

"I need to stay with-"

The mayor's voice chimed in, much closer to me now, "Fahr. Get out." He sounded so mean, for just a single second. I didn't know he had that in him. I looked over to where I heard his voice right as he sat in the chair on my left. He offered to help me sit up which I graciously accepted. I didn't move much, but I scooted up the lounger enough to at least be able to see the door right as Fahrenheit gave me a genuinely sympathetic look. I grinned and nodded back to her before she turned to leave. You can't stay mad at someone that talented in gun combat.

"You don't have to forgive her. I may not," John started.

I cut him off before he could finish, "Stop it. She clearly didn't mean for any of this. Besides, I'm a big girl. I knew what I signed up for. We went in with firearms, not brass knuckles." Hancock turned his head, but not before I watched him roll his eyes and nearly snarl. "What is your issue?" I asked.

"You are," he snapped back. I was startled by that. He seemed so care-free and easy going before. Did I miss something? As if he read my mind, he answered my question. "Ya come into my settlement, actin' like ya don't even care that I look like a topographical map of the Mojave-" Did he get that from a comic book? That sounds familiar. "And then ya go out to try to fucking kill yourself. What the fuck is wrong with you?" Tears sprung to my eyes. He stood, clearly enraged. "How do ya go about makin' someone care about you, touching some ugly mutt like it's a human and then just run off to find death, huh?" That was it, that's when I got mad.

I took the sternest voice I could muster, "Hancock, there's not way I could've known you cared about me until suddenly you decided to cry over my broken body! Need I remind you, you're the one that ran from me." That stopped him in his tracks. "Get out." As soon as the words were out, I regretted them. I didn't want him to leave. I didn't think I wanted him to leave ever again, actually. He stiffened and he turned to me, his face made of stone; no expression discernible. Without another word, he started toward the door. He turned once more, mouth parted like he was going to say something, only to shut it again and walk out. I just want to fucking die. I don't want to be here anymore. I can't do this anymore.

I wept silently for several minutes before I heard a commotion upstairs and then the calm, deliberate steps of Valentine. If he hadn't already heard, he was gonna get a kick out of the mess I'd just made.