Work Text:
As she finished driving in the last nail into the wooden wall of the shack, Scout failed to notice a certain reporter watching her intently. Her breathing was heavy as she bent down to grab another nail. Scout had pulled down the front of her vault jumpsuit, trying the arms around her waist and leaving her torso bare with the exception of the black sports bra she donned. The summer heat beat down on her relentlessly, causing her dark skin to glisten with sweat.
Piper took in the view intently from the doorway of one of Sanctuary’s many houses, watching the way the muscles in her shoulders moved as she picked up a water bottle off of the ground and took a long drink. A light blush settled itself on Piper’s face as she smiled to herself.
“You’ve got it bad for her, don’t you, kid?”
The sudden voice caused Piper to jump, whipping around to see the synthetic face of Nick Valentine, who was smirking with his arms folded. She sighed, playfully glaring at her friend.
“That’s none of your business, Nick.” She said.
The synth chuckled. “So, you going to talk to her about it?”
“What? No, I don’t think so.” Piper shook her head. “She just lost her son, and Charlie’s her husband, I can’t just barge in like that.”
“Charlie isn’t her husband.” Nick said offhandedly.
“Wait, what?” She deadpanned.
“Nope. Though, technically yes, for a while. He’s just her roommate. They legally got married so they could adopt Shaun easier. But they’re just friends. They got “divorced” before they entered the vault.”
“What in the…?” Piper frowned as she attempted to process this new information. “Why hasn’t she told any of us?”
“We all just assumed they were married, I think. Scout still wears her wedding ring, and sometimes Charlie does, too.”
“That’s just weird.”
Nick chuckled. “It is, but Scout really wanted a kid, and she’s infertile, so they had to go to adoption. Apparently back then, there was this big stigma against single parents adopting children, especially LGBT people for some odd reason. So Charlie offered to legally marry her, both for that and tax benefits I think, and then they adopted Shaun.”
“Huh… Cool.” Piper muttered, turning back to look at Scout. She had taken a break from building, opting instead to pet Dogmeat, who was rolling around on the sidewalk.
“What I’m getting at is that you have a chance, Piper. I say you go for it.” Nick smiled and clapped Piper lightly on the shoulder before walking through the doorway and down the street to the house he had claimed as his.
Piper sighed, focusing on Scout yet again and mulling over what Nick had said. Just friends, married only by law, just for Shaun… And she had mentioned she only liked women, so why had Piper been worried in the first place? Charlie was just a good friend. A great friend, for that matter. She guessed that’s why she was envious of the nonverbal man. He had such a close and intimate relationship with Scout, one that she desired above all else.
Speaking of Charlie, he walked down the sidewalk in front of Piper. Seeing him, Piper called his name and beckoned him over to her. The nonverbal man perked up and walked up to the doorway.
“What can I do for you?” He signed at her, a smile on his face.
“You know Scout best, right?” Piper asked, face lightly flushed.
Charlie nodded, prompting Piper to continue her thought.
“Do- do you think I’d have a shot with her…?” She rubbed the back of her neck awkwardly. “I mean, in a romantic sense… Do you think she’d want that after all that’s happened?”
Charlie adjusted his glasses and brought his fist to his chin, thinking hard for a moment. He smiled at Piper after a moment of thought.
“I think she would like to be with you. She thinks you are cute.” He signed, grinning. “I think you should ask her on a date.”
Piper sighed in relief, giving Charlie a quick hug. He was stunned for a moment before hugging her back. He stepped back and looked at her curiously.
“Does this mean you will ask her on a date?” He asked, head quirking to the side slightly.
“Yeah, yeah I think so.” She patted his shoulder and he smiled before continuing his walk down the street.
Piper took a deep breath as she tried to figure out how she wanted to approach Scout. She could write an article about it and slip it in her paper. Scout always read her work with a smile on her freckled face. No, no an article would be too public. Maybe say it’s a work in progress? “Shy Reporter Falls Head Over Heels for Cute Vault Dweller.” No, then Scout might think she’s talking about Charlie, which would be incredibly weird. And even if Piper did like Charlie, he’s already with Preston.
‘Damn, why is this so hard?’ She thought to herself.
She felt butterflies in her stomach, anxious at the very thought of approaching Scout. She was absolutely terrified of rejection, and she was mortified at the thought of this possibly ruining their friendship. But, both Charlie and Nick had said she should go for it…
Taking in a deep breath in an attempt to calm her nerves, Piper began to walk over to Scout. She was still giving Dogmeat her attention, laughing as the dog licked her face. Piper coughed, catching Scout’s attention. She scratched the German Shepherd’s ears before sending him off and standing to meet eyes with Piper.
“What’s up, Pipes?” She asked, looking down at the shorter woman.
Scout gave a small smile, still somewhat flushed from all of her hard work. Piper’s breath caught in her throat and her blush deepened.
“Uh-I- I just wanted to come see what you were up to, Blue.” Piper stuttered out.
Scout chuckled. “Still working on this shack. I should be close to finished by the end of the day if I keep this pace up.”
“Oh, that’s good.”
An awkward silence hung in the air between them. Piper’s gaze was on anything except Scout, and eventually she came upon Charlie in the distance. He held up a thumbs up, causing her to nod and meet Scout’s light brown eyes.
“Uh, Scout- I, uh…” She muttered, losing what little confidence she had in this. “I-uh, I was wondering if, ah, just maybe, you’d want to… go get some noodles?” She asked awkwardly, giving a sheepish grin at the end.
“What was that? Sorry, couldn’t hear you.” Scout said, folding her arms and smiling at Piper.
“I-uh, fuck this is hard…” Piper whispered before trying again in a louder tone. “Listen, Scout… I, well, I really… likeyouandwanttogoonadatewithyou…” She managed to get out, bowing her head and shutting her eyes. Her hands clutched at her coat.
Scout chuckled quietly, immediately making Piper feel rejected. Her hands relaxed and her shoulders slouched. The reporter was more than surprised when she felt Scout’s fingers tip her chin up and a soft pair of lips plant on her own. Her eyes snapped open to see Scout’s closed eyes right in front of her. She was too shocked to move. Scout pulled away after a moment, leaving the kiss very chaste.
“I was wondering when you’d ask, Pipes.” Scout whispered, still very close to Piper’s face.
Piper could only grin before pulling Scout in for another kiss, wrapping her arms around Scout’s shoulders while Scout rested her hands on the reporter’s waist.