Last Stop New Vegas

[CortezHorse]

Missed him? She missed him?


He perked up at that, turning towards her as she spoke. Her hair, her eyes, her lips bringing back feelings he’d squashed down for the longest time.


She was beautiful.


“Eh, well, Ezra was none too happy with me. Kept me for a bit, was real rough with me, was gonna trade me off to Legion but his wife stopped ‘im. Lucky fer me him bein’ a bounty hunter was a sore spot fer her and me takin’ the girl was the last straw. She told ‘im you let him go and quite all this nonsense or I’m takin’ the kids and leavin’.”


He shrugged his shoulders, covered by the same heavy jacket that had been there three years ago.


“So he let me go, been wanderin’ around ever since, had a couple close calls with slavers but I managed my way out. Few new scars but nothin’ too exiting.”


His milky eyes focused on hers, bright, clear and full of kindness.


“Was off in a little town bout a week’s walk from here, got to talkin’ about ya at the bar there and this lady overheard me..said she was friends with yer parents..think her name was Molly er somethin.”

 

[Interstellar Bun]

Ezra had let him go. A weight that had been baring down on her lifted when she heard that and she lifted a hand, resting it on her chest as she let out a slow sigh of relief. Given everything that had happened, she didn't think anyone could blame her for assuming the worst like she had. Things had been nothing but a string of bad run-ins while they were together, and she had been so sure that pattern would continue.


But it hadn't. He was alive and he was safe.


"Looks like your luck got a lot better after you got rid of me." It was a joke, one spoken with warm eyes as she let her hand drop back into her lap.


"Molly?" There was a beat as her mind quickly filtered through who he could be taking about. "Oh, you mean Molly Jacobs. I'll have to thank her for sending you my way, then."


There was shifting somewhere upstairs and Darling realized she had been speaking a bit too loudly. Glancing up, she waited a spell before shifting closer so she could whisper. Waking everyone else wasn't exactly something she wanted to do, not when sleep was so precious in a home where you got up before the sun did and worked long after it had disappeared.


"I'm really glad you're alright." A pause. "Well, now that you're here, do you think you'll stay in town for long?"

 

[CortezHorse]

Better? How could she think things got better after she left?


He was alone when she left, back to endless hours of silence which seemed much heavier and harder to deal with after he’d traveled with her. He would have given anything to have her upbeat attitude alongside him, to have Freckles riding in his pocket, anything. After she was gone he retreated back inside, away from anyone who could hurt him and away from others in general. Ben had missed the joke, really thinking she was speaking negatively about herself; he wanted to correct her but she’d moved on asking him how long he’d stay.


Stay?


“Uh, I..I dunno. Just…wanted to see you again…missed you.”

 

[Interstellar Bun]

She gave a little nod. Just wanting so badly to see someone again, that was something she understood. He missed her. In a way, maybe she thought he wouldn't. She was quite glad to be wrong in that case. With what she thought to be a comfortable silence washing over them, she reached out and gently pat his leg, letting her hand rest there.


"Well, if you want to hang around for a bit we have a spare room."


In truth, she wanted him to stay for a bit. She wanted to show him all the little things she had mused about while they walked in the desert. More than that, however, Darling just wanted to talk to him again, wanted to spend time just existing in the same area.


"If you have to move on or...go do something i get it. I just, you know, thought I should offer."

 

[CortezHorse]

“No, no I ain’t got nowhere to be.”


He answered just a little too quickly and flinched at his own eagerness at the offer. This homely setting was uncomfortable for him, sure, but with Darling there it made him feel less out of his element. Maybe he even belonged in a place like this.


“Glad to stay for a bit..thanks.”


His eyes focused on her hand as it lay softly on top of his leg, it was the only thing he could look at, could think about. Something else, think of something else.


“You, uh, still got my rifle?”


When they’d parted he’d given her everything he owned except the clothes off his back. Ben truly expected to die that day or soon after, he wouldn’t need a gun or any scrap if he was a slave after all.

 

[Interstellar Bun]

When Darling noticed the way his eyes lingered on her hand, she slipped it away. She was still a touchy person, someone who liked physical contact, who spoke with her body language as much as her words, and she had to remind herself that Ben wasn't like that. IT had taken her a while, a long while to get him to warm up to her in the first place and she assumed that, by now, he'd have to get accustomed to it again.


His rifle.


"I do, actually. I, ah, kept all that." She looked a little sheepish as she opted to use her hand to rub the back of her hand instead. Darling was a sentimental person, items held meaning to her, memories, and that was why she had kept his pack and gun for as long as she had. Deep down she knew it was silly, but that didn't stop her.


"I could go grab it for you if you'd like, it's up in my room."


She nodded her head to the archway on the other side of the room that lead to a small hall and connected to the stairs.

 

[CortezHorse]

“Yea, yea sure. Work on it tonight.”


He needed something to do, something to ease his nerves. She made him so anxious but so calm at the same time. Was that even possible or was he just being a socially inept weirdo? Well, having his gun back in his hands would make it better.


Ben pet Freckles, focusing on the dog, on the familiar, while Darling went to retrieve his weapon. The fact that’d she’d kept his things was..well..he didn’t know what to think of it. Did that mean anything?


When she entered the living room again, gun in hand, he looked back to her, Freckles now sprawled in his lap.


“Yer..family won’t mind me here?”

 

[Interstellar Bun]

Darling moved quietly through the house, wary of stepping on any of the floorboards that were known for squeaking. No one there was a particularly light sleeper, but she still felt the need to sneak about. Retrieving the gun from where it had been propped up against her wardrobe, she eased her way back down stairs. Being careful not to hit the gun against any of the door-frames, she tiptoed back into the living room and gave Ben a smile.


Freckles looked far too happy in his lap, perfectly content to let Ben pet on her.


Setting the gun down near him, she perched herself on the couch once more.


"My family? No. If anything I think they might be happy to meet the man who kept me alive while I was off making a fool of myself." Another airy chuckle escaped her and she mussed up the hair that had become too fluffy once she had quickly removed the curlers when she was upstairs.. Of course she had told everyone about Ben, why wouldn't she? Even when they were traveling together she had mentioned him in her letters to her family.

 

[CortezHorse]

Ben huffed a laugh as well at her comment, picking up his gun and settling it in his lap after shooing Freckles away. It was just as he'd left it, maybe even better looking. Had she cleaned it up?


“Happy ta meet me? Never heard that before.”


Her hair was down now, soft curls bouncing around her face. He remembered how soft it was to the touch.


“You done somethin’ different with yer hair?”


A shot of boldness ran through him and he set his rifle back down then reached up, tucking a curl behind her ear.


“Looks different than I remember.”


He’d never admit how many times he thought about her, dreamt about her, talked about her.

 

[Interstellar Bun]

He tucked a curl behind her ear and Darling didn't even feel herself lean forward a little. She had missed that little quirk, that small almost ticklish sensation of his uneven fingers brushing against her hair.


"That's because you only got to see it after I had walked endlessly through a desert."


Running about the Mojave with Ben didn't exactly leave time for personal grooming. She hadn't had the luxury of bathing regularly, of being able to actually look decent, not like she did at home. Maybe that made her vain, but Darling liked looking nice, liked the way her hair felt when it was fluffy and styled rather than bogged down with blood, sweat, and dirt.


But he had still said she was pretty.


"Apparently hair looks much nicer once you get the dirt out of it. Who would have thought?" Her smile turned to a rather teasing one.

 

[CortezHorse]

Ben smirked and nodded at her joke, the smile she wore made him flush with warmth, thankfully he was lacking skin or she might be able to tell that he was blushing.


"Yea, looks nice either way."


It was also nice to see Darling in her element, in the desert she was unsure and scared; she blossomed of course but here she looked relaxed, her smile wasn't as tight and her voice didn't have an edge of fear to it. She was lovely, a master of both worlds.


"You, uh, you mind if I get on to bed? Walked couple days without sleep."


Because I was so excited to see you.


"Can show me about tomorrow if ya like."


He wanted to know everything about her, truthfully he did. Ben wanted to see how she lived, what she did with her tie, everything because although they'd been apart for three years she never stopped being the most important person in his life.

 

[Interstellar Bun]

Sleep, right. He looked tired and some part of her almost felt a little bad for keeping him up when she should have tried to talk him into getting some rest. But she had been so excited so see him, so profoundly glad to be able to talk to him once more.


But that could wait because he wasn't going anywhere and this time they weren't on the run from anything.


She stood and grabbed her book before she offered him a hand to help him up.


"I might even get around to showing you that river I was talking about." She did want to show him everything, wanted him to see a piece of life that was calm compared to the Mojave one that might have seemed almost normal by pre-war standards. If nothing else, maybe it'd be a nice vacation from the harsh reality of everything else. He deserved a vacation.


But sleep was more important.


Freckles lifted her head to watch as Darling lead the way upstairs. She was quiet as she eased down the hall. Reaching a door, she pushed it open to reveal a very clean but bare room. Despite not having been used in some time, the bed was still made up with fresh linens and a quilt.


Darling looked back to him, her eyes almost black with how wide her pupils had become in the darkness. When she spoke her words were hardly audible. "You can sleep here tonight. I'll be two doors down on the left if you need anything."

 

[CortezHorse]

He nodded his thanks to her and sat down heavily on the mattress as she closed the door. It was a bed, an actual bed, the last time he'd been in a bed was with Darling and...well...it was a nice sleep. Ben laid back, lifting up his false leg which was far too loud on the old wooden floors of the house. It was almost like a dream, he was sleeping in a bed with Darling only two doors down. How lucky could he be? He sighed, sitting back up after his moment's rest and stripped his clothes off, except for his pants of course, he didn't want to be nude should Darling's parents wander in here for some reason. It was easy to get comfortable and he quickly fell asleep.


The dreams came later that night. Nightmares had always plagued him, the life he'd lived was a breeding ground for demons to come haunt him in the dark. The memories of slavery, death and everything in between often attacked when he was at his most vulnerable, his most comfortable. It was like the memories knew and wouldn't allow him peace for even a moment. If he wasn't suffering then they weren't happy.


Ben bolted up, panting for breath and sweat slicked. This one had been particularly nasty, a made up nightmare of Darling and Ben in enslaved together, the Legionnaires took her and did awful things to her, made him watch and listen to her pain and terror. He swallowed thickly, trying to wash away the nasty taste the images had left in his mouth. His fists clenched and unclenched spastically as if his hands needed something to hold, to touch but they weren't sure what it was. His dreams were never bad when Darling was around. When they traveled together, although they slept little, when they did it was often peaceful for him. He never questioned it, didn't want to for fear of breaking the calm in his head. That's what he needed. Her.


His leg was loud against the wood as he did his best to creep down the hall. Thunk, thunk, thunk. It pounded against the floor and he winced at the loud sound. Once at her door he pressed an ear to the surface, trying to see if she was still awake. Nothing though, no sounds of life. He hesitated, fiddling with the front of his shirt before deciding he'd come to far, a weeks journey, to let his nerves get to him now. Slowly he creaked the door open, closed it behind him and made his way to the side of her bed. It was too dark to see the details of her room right now but he could see the lump on the bed and hear soft breaths.


"Darling?"


He whispered, gently nudging her shoulder.

 

[Interstellar Bun]

Once Ben had disappeared into the spare room, Darling quickly crept back to her own. She didn't think about it anymore, about how familiar it was to her or how much she had missed it those years ago when she was gone.


She opened the window near her bed just a crack to let in the fresh air and remembered being afraid that she'd never get to see it all again, and it was that pang of fear that made everything all the better.


And yet, as she crawled into the large bed and drew the blankets over her to keep out the chill of the night, she couldn't help but feel as though she were more content than usual. She was content because she hadn't gotten her friend killed, content because that quick choice hadn't lead to a fate worse than death itself for him. All those worries that usually ate at her mind in the dark were finally silent. She could breathe easy, could let herself shut her eyes with the knowledge that things were okay.


She drifted to sleep in no time at all, the angry thoughts that had kept her awake vanishing with ease.


Unlike Ben, Darling didn't dream, not anymore. The memories of raiding the Legion camp, of being held by her arm as electricity was forced through her, of being shot and cut down in every way, her mind didn't linger on them. Besides that she was focusing too much on the good to have nightmares like that. Instead, her own rest was peaceful and silent, a blissful nonexistence.


She was all but dead in her sleep until she felt something touch her shoulder. Curled up on her side, Darling's brows furrowed when she heard her name through the sleep that blocked everything else out. Confused, she opened her eyes, taking a few moments to blink before her vision became clear. The dark figure gained a shape and in the pale light coming through her window, she could make out Ben's face. She moved slowly, her limbs heavy with sleep as she pushed down on the bed to halfway sit up, propping herself up on her elbow.


"What's wrong?"

 

[CortezHorse]

"Nothin' I just...I couldn't sleep."


He felt silly saying it and hearing the words come out of his mouth just made him feel more foolish. It was like he was a kid coming to their guardian after being scared during the night. In all honesty that wasn't far from the truth. He'd been disturbed, couldn't go back to sleep and now sought comfort from the only person he'd ever been comfortable with.


"Is it alright if I just...stay on he floor?"


An even more foolish sentence, he felt ridiculous, embarrassed and ashamed all a once. If it were possible he would have disappeared into the dark without another word but as it were he was forced to awkwardly tower over her, hunched up timidly as he waited for her answer.

 

[Interstellar Bun]

It took a moment for Darling to actually register what he was saying. Her mind was still trying to catch up, trying to quickly piece everything together. The blonde gave a squealing yawn before shaking her head. Had he really asked that?


"The floor? You're silly." She posed the question as she shifted, moving to the far side of her bed. Making him sit on the floor for any reason was just silly. The floor wasn't comfortable and it tended to be rather chilly. Making sure there was no error in communication, she patted the spot beside her before snuggling down against the pile of pillows that rested against the headboard. "Sit down, get comfortable."


They'd been closer to one another, after all, and sharing a bed with him wasn't really anything new.


Surely Ben remembered that she hadn't shied away from letting him rest beside her in the past.

 

[CortezHorse]

He hesitated, as he always did with anything concerning Darling, then gently sat down. For a few moments he sat rigidly, trying to remember the ease that had with one another before laying back onto the mattress. There was enough space between them that he wasn't anxious that she'd be uncomfortable so he settled in and got comfortable.


They lay facing face to face and Ben's expression turned guilty.


"Sorry to wake ya."


The blankets on her bed were soft and they smelled like her, that gentle flowery scent she seemed to always have around her. Even in the desert after days of sweating, bleeding and getting dirty he could always catch that faint scent.


Her hair was mussed and the sight made him smirk. He'd never seen her look so comfortable and relaxed.


"Night."

 

[Interstellar Bun]

"Don't worry about it." Darling was decently easy to wake up and went back to sleep with no trouble at all. The only problem she could foresee was waking Ben up when she tried to get around in the morning. However, she could ignore that and settle for just smiling at him in the dark until her eyes became too heavy to keep open.


She snuggled deeper into the bed, halfway shoving her face into her pillow. Once he looked content, once he said goodnight, Darling felt herself to start drivting off once more into another dreamless sleep.


"Goodnight dear."


The words slipped without thought as she didn't have the cognitive ability to stop the small bit of affection. She doubted it mattered, Ben probably wouldn't even notice.


With that, she dozed back off, breathing slowly as her body went limp and her mind went silent. She'd have to be awake in less than a few hours anyway and knew she'd have to be ready to go not only get work done, but find a way to tell everyone that they had a house guest for a bit. No one would mind, she was sure of that, but it was always just a little bit awkward.

 

[CortezHorse]

Ben was struck by her words. Dear? She probably didn’t mean it, it was just the sleep talking, and that’s all. That thought still didn’t keep the warm feeling away, the warmth that spread when she said those words. He closed his eyes and was asleep in no time, peaceful and dreamless.


At some point during the night he’d wormed his way closer to her in his sleep. Apparently he wasn’t shy at all while he slept. One of his arms was flung over her torso, his body pressed flush against hers and his face was buried in the crook of her neck. Nope, not shy at all in his sleep.

 

[Interstellar Bun]

Usually it was her internal clock that got her up at an ungodly hour of the morning, and yet, that day she didn't wake up so painfully early. Instead she snuggled up to Ben and put her own arm around him, keeping him close to her. He was warm, familiar, and she didn't want to leave that. Not again.


She could hear the shuffling of other people getting up and starting to move around, could hear the bang on doors and calling from her younger sister to whomever was in the bathroom to hurry up. Footsteps pounded in the hall and Darling felt herself being pulled back to the surface and out of sleep. Blinking, she made a quiet grumbling noise in the back of her throat before sighing.


She hugged Ben just a little closer, turning her head to whisper.


"I gotta get up."


That said, she carefully untangled herself from him before rolling out of bed. She shut the window that had been cracked open and, that done, yawned as she got dressed. The room was still dark, but she didn't bother turning on the light. Ben could sleep if he wanted, he deserved a few more hours of rest.

 

[CortezHorse]

“Hmm.”


He grumbled a non-coherent reply to Darling as she untangled herself and got up to dress. Ben rolled over; taking up the warm spot she left and continued to sleep. Freckles entered the room when Darling left and hopped up beside Ben, snuggling against her long lost friend to watch over him.


Ben woke a couple hours later, feeling more rested than he had in a long time. He stretched his muscles and cringed at Freckles began licking his face, urging him to wake up.


“Aight, aight, I’m up.”


Gently he pushed her face away and sat up in bed, immediately noticing that Darling was already up and gone. He could hear the sound of voices, not just hers, but many. Her family. He was snapped out of his sleepy bliss by the realization that he’d be meeting her family today and that, for some reason, filled him with nerves. Ben wasn’t looking for approval, he never was, but what Darling’s family thought of him mattered more. She was his best friend.


He took a few moments to compose himself, trying to remember how to behave in a group of people that weren’t use to the hard edged life of the desert before walking out the door and, almost timidly, walking down the stairs.

 

[Interstellar Bun]

With six people living under one roof, it was hard to be quiet for long. There was always noise in the Harlow home, talking, moving, the place buzzed with energy as everyone tried to get things done in the most efficient way possible. Darling was standing in the kitchen, leaning against one of the counters as her mother washed the dishes from breakfast that morning. She had already been out working with the brahmin, working to haul food and water out to them and was wiping away a fine sheen of sweat with a damp cloth as she spoke idly with her mother and two other siblings.


Darling was straightening up, getting ready to head back out when she heard the dull thunk of Ben's leg on wood. The conversation came to a stop when Ben reached the bottom of the stairs and four sets of eyes all turned to look at him.


"So he's why you didn't get up on time, Darlin'. Oh I get it now." Daniel, a tall and lanky guy, grinned at her.


Darling swatted her younger brother's with her cloth, making him laugh as he quickly stepped away from her and to the other side of the table so she couldn't reach him. "You hush your mouth before I tell mom about what you did to-."


Daniel cut her off with an almost worried: "You wouldn't."


"Try me."


"Kids I will end this fight before it even starts don't you test me." Darling's mother, a pleasantly plump woman with copper hair and rosy cheeks, had finished drying the last plate and sat it aside. "I swear you all must have been raised in a barn while I wasn't looking." With the small smile that quirked at the corner of the lips, it was hard to take her chastising too seriously.


She approached Ben, that smile growing as she did so. "Now you must be Darlin's friend from the Mojave, right? It's a pleasure to finally meet you, I saved you some breakfast if you're feelin' hungry."

 

[CortezHorse]

Ben quirked a non-existent eyebrow at the banter between Darling and who he assumed was her brother. It was entertaining to see, to go from trying to survive raiders with her to watching her quarrel with her sibling.


Her mother came over and Ben stiffened looking down at the woman he towered above. She offered him breakfast and it seemed the nicety threw Ben off, like he was surprised by such a warm welcome.


“Yea, sounds fine…thanks.”


He was proud of himself for remembering to say thanks at the end of his sentence, now if he could just get through this day without offending someone then he’d chalk it up as a success. Ben followed Darling’s mother to a dining table and he could just picture nice family meals happening around it. He sat in one of the wooden, straight back chairs and fidgeted his fingers while her mother heated his food up then sat it in front of him. It was the most surreal thing. Usually people didn’t want him eating near them for fear some sort of disease would rub off on them or their food but here were people who didn’t seem aghast at his appearance or being near him. Did they see ghouls often or were they just unnaturally kind?


“Thanks, uh, Mrs. Harlow.”


Ben quietly grumbled his thanks before slowly eating; trying to remember his table manners as he awkwardly gripped the fork.


“It’s s’nice house.”

 

[Interstellar Bun]

"You are more than welcome, and thank you. Lawrence has done a real nice job fixing it up over the years. It was in shambles when we first bought it." She smiled, looking about the room as though she were appraising it, still impressed with the end result of all their heard work. A thought occurred to her at the mention of her husband. "Viola, dear."


The teen who had been quietly sitting on one of the counters drinking a glass of water nondescriptly looked away from Ben and to her mother. "Yes ma'am?"


"Go get your father and run that tool kit back to Bruce. Don't forget to thank them!" The last part was called out as the girl hopped down and headed out the back door.


Once she was gone, Daniel moved to sit across from Ben. He seemed interested in the ghoul, curious. "You know, Darling says you're the whole reason she got back here safe. Is it really that dangerous out there? I mean, Darling's a wimp so I'm not surprised she needed help, but I think I could manage it. I'm a big strong guy." The last bit came with a grin shot at his sister.


Darling scoffed and moved to stand behind Daniel, leaning her arms on his head. "Daniel here is convinced he should take a trip out east like I did. He's still in that adventurous stage." There was a certain darkness in her eyes, something almost sad. She'd told them about Ben, but she hadn't spoken about the Legion, hadn't told them about Ezra or the real, raw horror they had been forced to go through. How could she tell them?


How could she tell anyone? They wouldn't understand. They hadn't been there, hadn't felt it.

 

[CortezHorse]

Run a tool kit back to a neighbor? Was this even real? Ben wasn’t even aware that places like this still existed, still calm and peaceful with a lingering hint of one big family.


Darling’s brother came to sit down across from him, Daniel apparently his name was.


“Hm.”


Ben huffed out a grunt, as was his normal response after hearing the young boy claim he could survive the deserts. His sister turned out much stronger and determined than he ever thought but he wouldn’t dream of letting another member of Darling’s family go, they all seemed soft and relaxed. His eyes darted up to Darling’s noting the sad edge and he understood.


“Can ya shoot?”


He set his plate aside and stared at the boy, a serious tone to his voice.


“If ya can’t shoot then ya won’t make it. Don’t mean shootin’ still, stagnate targets neither. People and animals don’t stay still when they come after ya. Strength don’t mean nothin’ against teeth, claws and metal.”


Ben would admit he was trying to scare the boy, to get it out of his head to travel anywhere in the Mojave badlands. What they had here was good, none of them should want to leave or ever leave.