A Wayward Groom

[gointothechapel]

 It'd happened in the blink of an eye, one moment he was on the trail of his darling bride to be, the next he'd stepped through a door and was faced not with the bitter winter cold of the Colorado mountains or the vision of concrete, wire fences and barbed wire. It was bright, there were people. And these people were not the same people he was used to seeing. No lab coats and cold stares. No mutilated Variants skittering around and attacking anything that moved out of some panicked sense of self-preservation. He hadn't seen anything quite so inviting in what felt like years. Even before the fall of Mt Massive to Billy Hope.  

Eddie could smell the coffee in the air. His stomach knotted. This wasn't right. No matter how his delusions tried to wrap it, there was a gap in logic that even it couldn't grasp at. He had nothing.

What had meant to come out as calling to his Bride to be through the crowd came out sounding somewhat strangled and muted.

"Darling? Where are you?" 

Comments

[chiron_survivor]

"Oh... I'm so sorry." Genuine sympathy fills her eyes. "That sounds like a nightmare. You... you certainly don't have to talk about it with me. But I promise that you're safe here. The people who live and work in the Nexus would never tolerate that sort of thing."

She wishes she could do more. No matter his past, no one deserves to be treated like that. "You might want to stay in the Plaza for now, then. The anti-violence field works best here." She pauses a moment before adding, "My name's Adia, by the way. I don't live here, but I try to visit as often as I can."

[gointothechapel]

He nodded slowly, his features softening somewhat as he found himself less concerned. There was every chance that this was just an act on her part, but he'd been let down too much to have the strength to keep doubting. He wanted to believe her and that things could be different here.

"My name is Eddie." He tried to smile, although the pull on his facial wounds was more painful than he wanted to admit. "Thank you, really. Perhaps when the wounds are less fresh."

Granted not talking was how he'd gotten into this situation all those years ago. But it wasn't her job to listen to his tragedy.
"I'm sorry that we didn't meet under better circumstances. I'm certainly not my best." And haven't been for years.

[chiron_survivor]

She seems sincere, for whatever that's worth. "Nice to meet you, Eddie." She doesn't know if he's referring to his physical or psychological wounds. Likely both. "I wish I could do more for you. Someone around here must have access to a first aid kit, or... one of the vending machines, maybe. You should get your cuts washed out and re-bandaged."

It's probably for the best that he doesn't share his story. Adia is a good listener, but some tales of woe are out of her league. "It's okay. Very few people are at their best when they first arrive here. Give yourself plenty of time to settle in and get used to it things. You can always look for me if you have any questions."