Work Text:
They should not have taken this job.
Frank starts to sweat when they hear the roar but they push forward, ignoring the alarm bells going off in their head. They try to control their breathing and hold their laser rifle close to their chest, knuckles white. They look over to Cait – she’s as confident as ever. Frank envies that. When the nest comes into view, Frank pauses. The deathclaw stirs, her gaze locking onto the pair. Cold dread washes over Frank, their knees weak, heartbeat pounding in their ears.
“Ready for some fun?” Cait asks.
Frank hears her, but she sounds miles away and they can’t get their mouth to work. Instead they take one step back and pause again.
Cait furrows her brows. This is new. They’ve been traveling together months now and Frank’s never looked so… scared. So far away. She leans in towards them, resting her hand on their shoulder. “Frank?”
Another roar. The deathclaw swipes the ground, kicking up dirt, before charging. Frank shakes their head, tries to tell their legs to move, but instead every muscle tenses and they freeze, eye wide. Cait looks at the deathclaw – she’s coming in fast and angry, and Frank doesn’t look like they’re going to move on their own any time soon.
Cait grits her teeth. She has two choices and no time to think about it so she just acts. She takes Frank’s rifle from them, slings it over her shoulder, grabs their arm and starts to run, pulling them with her. Frank moves, looking back over their shoulder at the deathclaw still on their tail, then forward again to Cait. They focus on her as they run.
Frank doesn’t know how they escaped. They don’t know when the deathclaw gave up, or when Cait let go of their arm, or how long they were running. But now they’re sitting under a tree and catching their breath, Cait standing in front of them with one hand on her hip, the other holding purified water.
“You okay?”
Frank looks up at Cait, eyebrow raised. “What, no snarky comments?”
Cait clicks her tongue. “Wow, didn’t know you thought so little of me.” She joins Frank under the tree, leaning against it rather than sitting on the ground. “No, no snarky comments.”
“Sorry,” Frank frowns, rubbing the back of their neck absently. “I’m not okay but I don’t want to talk about it. Not right now.”
Cait nods, sitting down next to Frank and offering them the water. They take it and take a long drink then hand it back, slumping down to rest their head on Cait’s shoulder.
“Thanks for saving my ass.”
“No need to thank me,” Cait says, taking a sip of water.
Frank shakes their head slightly. “You could’ve left me instead of risking your skin to save us both.”
Cait rests her hand on Frank’s leg above their armor and closes her eyes. “I wouldn’t leave ya to die.”
Frank just hums in response. They stay there for a while in silence, dozing on and off after the adrenaline rush that comes from running for your life from a deathclaw. Any further discussion can wait until they’re back home.