Chapter Text
Grace was still busy with knotting her tie when stumbling through the door to her office.
She couldn't remember the last she time had been that late to work. For dying in the middle of the night and not waking her up in time her phone had to pay with a dip in the sink, joining the dirty dishes from last week she still didn't have a chance to clean yet. Her secretary had reminded her just yesterday, that she shouldn't miss that meeting with this important potential client at nine in the morning and now it was nearly ten.
She neither had time to shower, nor to eat or to enjoy her morning coffee, which was actually dangerous. It made her grumpy and her mind cloudy. Just like the weather. Rainy.
Lovely.
She had managed to grab a sandwich on her way, probably offended more than one person with her bad mood, ignored speed limits, complained about the most annoying participants of the morning traffic highly colourful and insulting, may ran over something (hopefully not someone) while maneuvering in a parking spot and her quick breakfast had left horrible stains on her white shirt.
The lawyer let out a disgusted noise, something between a grunt and a snort and everyone who would care to pay enough attention would be able to see the blood dangerously pulse through the vein on her temple. She just shot her young secretary a quick glance when she rushed past her, shook her head to get the water out of her hair like a wet dog, her thoughts already with her client.
“Mrs. Galloway!”, she tried to hold her up and Grace stopped in the middle of the hallway to at least wish her a good morning, even if hers had been everything but good so far.
Amanda hustled to get to her muddleheaded boss and snatched a cream white tissue out of the pocket of her jeans to clean up the stain on her button-down shirt. Her boss tilted her head to give her better access. Water dropped from several strands of hair on her shoulders and left small as well as big stains.
“Long night?”, she tried to cheer her up while rubbing on her collar, but the mustard colored mark was annoyingly resistant.
“Nothing that would have been worth this mess”, Grace sighed and ran with her fingers through her short blonde hair, hoped instantly that she didn't look as bad as she had the feeling she did. She'd give everything for a mirror, but didn't want to know at the same time.
She commented the clock turning to ten with a quiet groan.
“He's already in your office, I brewed him some coffee”, her secretary changed the subject when she noticed she wasn't up for small talk, “I guess you want some too?”
“A really strong one, please.”
Amanda didn't take her eyes off Graces shirt, stuffed the dirty tissue back in her pocket and with a last quick movement she adjusted the tie she had so desperately tried to get right since morning and nearly choked her with it.
“Coming right up. Good luck.”
She was the best. She should think about giving her a raise.
Grace cleared her throat and pushed open the door to her office. The sight unfolding before her was nothing what she had expected. She hadn't talked to her potential client just yet, Amanda arranged all the appointments for her, she just had seen the little exclamation mark in her diary next to his name which had made all her alarm bells ring.
He was sitting in the chair he had pushed as close to her desk as possible. Apparently he had been pretty bored while waiting for her to arrive, since he had seemed to spend all his time with rearranging her belongings. Her pictures, files, papers, pencils and books were used to form an half circle around his empty coffee cup, which he knocked over in surprise when she opened the door.
“Oh, I'm .. so sorry!”, was the first thing he said to her, suddenly busy keeping an eye on her and at the same time putting the coffee cup and her other stuff back where it belonged – not without knocking the cup over again, “I didn't know when you'd show up.”
He was dressed in a military uniform yet didn't really act like he was actually part of the military.
“Yes, I'm .. sorry for the wait.” Grace had a hard time finding the right words while she moved around his chair and her desk, not without shooting a quick glance left and right, just to see if all her books and files in the shelfs along the walls where still where she had left them.
He used the time to adjust his hair and uniform and to bring some space between chair and desk again. It was hard to say if he had actually tried to mess with her or if he was just being naturally awkward.
Grace made herself comfortable, cleared her throat again and tried her best to wipe that incredulous expression off her face. She had this strange feeling rushing through this morning the way she did wouldn't exactly pay off.
She wouldn't even comment on him going through her stuff, she rather thought about it, but wouldn't voice these thoughts. He was still a potential client and being rude wasn't an option, but he sure left a bad first impression. Bad? No, she wouldn't call it bad. But definitely unique.
For some strange reason her stress level went down. Her shoulders became less tense and she took a deep breath.
“What can I do for you, Mr. Marrow?”
Graces client had sat down in the chair again, held onto his coffee cup like he had forgotten it was empty, eyed her with curiosity, a slight smile curling his lips.
“You can call me Nate, if you want.”
That became even more weird real quick. Grace furrowed her brows. She felt this strange craving to smack the grin of his face with his own (still empty) file.
“I don't think that's a good idea. Why won't you tell me the reason for your visit instead?”
In just the right moment the door opened and the smell of fresh brewed coffee found it's way to her nose and that was the only thing she needed to calm down and to collect her senses. Like an answered prayer.
Amanda quietly put down the cup right in front of her and immediately Graces fingers started trailing up and down the handle. Like a tigress protecting her prey.
“Thank you.”
The next second she was out the door again and the lawyer had to put her attention back to the military man in front of her. His curious smile was back and he leaned forward in his chair.
“It's actually .. uh, it's a little bit embarrassing.”
“Nothing we're discussing here is leaving this room, I assure you.” She put her cup on her lips and took a sip. It was so hot it nearly burned the flesh off her tongue, but it send a warm shiver down her spine as well and woke and cleared her mind more than anything else. Behind her the rain pattered against the window.
“I was .. robbed.”
That wasn't that embarrassing yet. But it was probably just the start of it.
Grace quietly started taking notes. She already had scribbled “Marrow” on top of the paper and underlined it a few times.
“You have to give me a bit more than that.”
Nate was nervously shifting in his chair and eyed her coffee like he was ready to snatch it out of her hands. Instinctively she pulled the cup closer to her.
Oh no, sir.
“Yeah, well, In short: I was out with a lady and we rented a hotel room and spend the night there.”
This was getting rather interesting. Now it was on Grace to curl her lips into a grin, but she tried to hide it as good as possible with setting the coffee cup back on her lips and taking another sip.
His smile slowly vanished and he was getting more uncomfortable. It was weird seeing a man in a military uniform cringe like that. Was he wearing it because he wanted to appear as 'important' as he obviously claimed on the phone?
This guy was weird. But interesting in his own way.
“Apparently she drugged me .. somehow.” He started rambling a little while trying to find the right words. “And the next morning .. well, everything was kind of gone. My money was gone. And my phone. And my car keys. My car. I came here on foot.”
A moment of silence.
“And my pants.”
Grace choked on her coffee, nearly spit it back into the cup and barely managed to avoid it from dripping down her chin. She started coughing and grabbed a tissue to wipe it off.
It was the best disguise to hide her laugh too.
“Haha, yes, very funny.” Nate made a face, but didn't seemed too offended. “I knew a One Night stand could go horribly wrong, but well, do you know this feeling when you just don't care anymore?”
Suddenly his voice had found a different tone.
In a way, but she wouldn't admit it. He wasn't her friend, he was her client. There was no need to share too much personal feelings.
“I was at this point. And that's what I got.”
The puzzle pieces in her head started to fit together, slowly and she actually felt a bit bad for prejudging him like that. She was getting a little too cocky there. Just because he wasn't a rich businessman didn't mean him losing his money and phone and his car wasn't making him and him as a client less 'important'.
And his pants.
That could explain seeing him in his uniform. Maybe that had been the only pair of pants he had owned. You could never know.
This was just as sad as it was hilarious.
Grace pulled her business face. She had to appear professional at least.
“So I guess the police is already investigating?”, she wanted to know and took some more notes. 'One Night stand, Lost money, phone and pants (doubled underlined). Police Investigation progress?'.
“Yes, but they told me I'd need a lawyer when they find her, so I came here as soon as possible to get that off the table”, Nate answered, tried to sip from his empty coffee cup before he remembered the same fact and put it finally back on the table.
“True. Don't worry, I'll help you get your things back, that's what I do”, Grace promised, opened up a drawer and poked through the papers for her dictating machine to record the personal details, “Or at least try to get you the money to replace it. I mean, the pants too?”
For some reason she suddenly started rambling just like him earlier. She as a lawyer should be good with words. She dropped her dictating machine when she found it and cursed quietly while picking it from the floor.
When she came back up Nate was on his feet, an awkward smile on his lips, his hand reached out.
“The pants too, if possible, yes”, he laughed and there was this spark in his eyes which cheered her up, made her day a little bit brighter and caused a blush to creep up her cheeks.
“I guess we have a deal then.”
She shook his hand and it was the first time she felt his skin on hers.
For a moment the scene froze, in her mind, in time. In the next it disappeared, faded away and melted and Grace was staring at a rotting desk that was barely still standing, weirdly mesmerized by random black stains on the wood. The papers burned, the pens gone, the dictation machine scrapped for parts, her secretarys chair empty. Dim sunlight shone through the broken windows.
Slowly she ran with her fingers over the surface as she stood on the same spot she did 200 years ago, could still smell the fresh brewed coffee, could feel how the water dripped on her shoulders, could see Nates
awkward smile.
“Blue? Hello? Earth to Blue!”
She didn't even notice Piper calling her at first, her touch snapped her out of it and brought her back into reality.
She was right by her side, gently nudging her shoulder, her expression worried.
“You alright, doll? You're acting strange.”
Without answering Grace reached out and took Pipers hand, laced their fingers together. It felt right and strange at the same time. Back then it was Nate who had stumbled in her office because some woman stole his pants. Now she was here with Piper by accident as they tried to get away from a Deathclaw. They used this abandoned office as a hiding spot and the war had put it into such a bad shape the former lawyer didn't even recognize it.
How should she call it? Destiny? Or just a funny or maybe not so funny coincidence?
Unexpectedly some of her old filing cabinets seemed to have survived the nuclear fallout. Maybe now she could properly explain to Piper who she was and what she did. Show her another part of her world so many people in the Commonwealth were so curious about. It still took some time to get used to.
“Let me show you.”