Addicted

Young & Beautiful

After leaving Lila in his quarters, Arthur walked the deck of the Prydwen. This allowed him some time to calm down and let himself think. In addition he decided to take care of some business. He approached Proctor Teagan in his caged quarters.

"Hello Proctor, I would appreciate if you refrain from selling Chems of any sort, outside of stimpaks, Rad-X, and RadAway, to Paladin Lila Smith."

Arthur really didn't give the Proctor a chance to question his commands as he turned on his heel and went back to the med bay.

"Cade?" He called when he rounded the corner.

The doctor picked his head up from his paper work strewn across his desk.

"Yes, Elder?"

"Where is Paladin Smith's bag? I would like to go through it to ensure all her remaining Chems are disposed of. She should have no access to them what-so-ever while on the Prydwen."

Cade pointed from his seat to the bed where Lila had been residing before moving to Maxson's personal quarters.

"Knock yourself out. I think it's a good idea. If she is going to continue an alliance between us and the Minutemen then I think we should make sure that she stay sober, lest it compromise our tactics." Cade spoke firmly before turning his attention back to his paperwork.

Arthur picked the bag up and placed it on the bed before unzipping all the pockets. The first thing he found was the Jet she had been looking for that first day she was awake. He shook his head while he turned the inhaler in his hands before setting it aside. He unrolled every bit of clothing, ensuring she wasn't hiding anything. About half way through he had found two inhalers of Jet and a syringe of Psycho before he stumbled upon a small black, leather bound book.

After taking a quick glance over his shoulder, just to ensure that Cade was occupied, Arthur opened the book. His eyes widened slightly as his heart skipped a beat.

The pages within this book were filled with pre-war pictures. Not family pictures, as one would expect, but pictures of Lila herself. Even more peculiar they weren't normal pictures.

Arthur stared at the pages for a long time, observing a pre-war Lila in her younger glory, decked out in soft white, lacy lingerie that hugged the curves of her body. In one image she was posed on a bed, her lids half closed as her auburn hair hung off the edge and tumbled toward the floor. One of her small hands was tangled in her hair while the other was placed softly at the top of her laced underwear.

In another, she was glancing coyly over her shoulder as she stared into the camera with her innocent, baby blue eyes, soft light filtering in through half open curtains in the background. Her succulent lips were parted slightly, as her arms were placed gently at her sides; one hand was placed on the roundest portion of her butt.

He continued through the pages glancing at every picture, hoping to hold them in his memories for years to come.

As he got to the last page, he smiled softly to himself. In the last photo Lila had removed the lacy lingerie she had adorned in the past pictures and was covered in what appeared to be a silk sheet. The lighting allowed him to see the outline of her nipples through the thin sheet as she gave a sexy smile as she was kneeled on a disheveled bed. Her hair was covering one of her eyes slightly, leaving an air of mystery to her.

He couldn't help but smile as he kept looking down at the face captured in the pictures. This Lila seemed like a completely different person from the Lila that he had even met initially, let alone the one that was harboured in his room just now. It also made his heart ache slightly as he wondered what would have happened if he had been alive pre-war and knew her. With a gentle shake of his head he didn't let that thought get any further.

He quickly put the book in one of his inner coat pockets before returning to his search for Chems in her bag.

By the end of the search he had come up with about a dozen Jet inhalers, three syringes of Psycho, two packs of Mentats, and a bottle of Day Tripper.

After placing the bag back in its original spot he made his way to Teagan. He placed all the Chems on the counter.

"Dispose of these when you can." Arthur sighed heavily as he turned away. He headed to his makeshift quarters and flopped onto the bed, allowing sleep to envelope him easily.