Futuristic Beyond the Dome

[Gobbo]

Daniel said his peace, so he just waited for her to say hers. However, when she mentioned the Scavver's name, he found himself growing irritated. He kept his mouth shut until she finished speaking, if only to keep from getting slapped again. The fact that she had already hit him twice was bad enough. She'd never hit him like that before, not out of anger at least.
"Are you surprised he has no one? He's just a Scavver. He's not supposed to have anyone." he said with a small sigh.

"I believe you, you know. I don't think he actually kidnapped you, otherwise he would have had demands when he brought you back. That still doesn't change the fact that you've changed." he said, folding his arms. "It doesn't surprise me that he killed whoever did that to you. He knew he'd be killed on sight if you weren't in that shitty truck of his when he got back." he said, looking over at Eli for a moment. Eli was glaring at him, and didn't break eye contact until Daniel looked back at Carly.

"I'm glad he did. I'm just glad you're safe. The wasteland is deadly, and being trapped inside a death machine with someone like him? That's insane... It's why I'm so concerned. You're much too friendly with him, even though he's basically sub-human." he said. His words were clear and honest, as if he were just stating facts. His father had drilled into his head from birth that Scavvers weren't to be trusted, that they were rabid and disposable and turning your back to one was suicide. Daniel had believed every word his father said.
"Look, I know of a really good therapist you can talk to about this. Having an obsession about one of his kind is dangerous. He could turn on you at any moment... I'm just worried about you, Carly."

 

[FaithWynters]

With every word that Daniel said, Carly could feel her face getting warmer. He wasn’t listening to her. At one point, her hands fell by her sides, balled into fists so tight that her knuckles were white. There was more than one time she had been tempted not to slap him—no. Instead, Carly was tempted to give him a shiner for the words he said—just like when she’d accidentally hit him with the baseball the day they’d decided to play catch in the hallway outside of her bedroom.

Sub-human. Therapist. Obsession. She couldn’t take it. He had found a way to turn everything she had said around in some crazy fucked up kind of way. It had hardly registered with Carly that once again he had said that he cared about her. She didn’t quite register either when she reached up and hit him again, her hand burning with the contact.

“For once in your life, why don’t you come up with your own opinions of people, Daniel?!” Her right foot came down hard on the concrete floor, and she no longer could contain her anger to the point of being quiet. “For once don’t just go off of what your dad tells you that you should believe.” She was so frustrated. Tears started welling up in her eyes. She reached out and pushed him, but the strength wasn’t there—he didn’t even move. “I don’t need a therapist! The only one turning on me right now is you!” The tears started to fall. She didn’t want to be torn like this. It shouldn’t have to be like this. He should be there for her instead of torturing her. “Maybe for once if you looked at the fucking Scavvs like human fucking beings you would see that they aren’t all just weird fucking monsters like everyone makes them out to be!” She pushed him again, but still, it had no effect.

“He didn’t have to fucking come back at all.” She was aiming for the heart now—Daniel had crossed some imaginary line in the sand. “When that raider leader grabbed me by the throat and choked me until my lips turned blue…and he hit me. Over and over he hit me…” Her breathing was picking up. “He gave Eli the choice to join them. Those raiders were going to rape me, tie me to the front of a fucking truck, and use me to take advantage of dad.” Her fingernails dug so hard into her palms that they stung. “Eli didn’t join them. He killed them.” The lie kept getting bigger little by little, but at this point, this is what Daniel needed to hear—Carly wanted to hurt him. She slung her hand up, pointing down the hallway.

“I don’t need a therapist, Daniel. I need a friend, and if you aren’t going to be that, then you can get to fucking walking.”

 

[Gobbo]

Daniel honestly didn't see what he was doing wrong. He was trying to help, he cared deeply for her, and everything he was saying only seemed to make her angrier. He didn't understand it. He worked so hard to keep her safe, to try and show her how much he cared... But nothing seemed to work. Before he could say anything else she suddenly slapped him again, pulling a hiss of pain from him as his hand moved up to his stinging cheek.

Her tirade was a shock to him. His eyes were wide as she shoved him, yelling at him to think for himself for once. Daniel never had a reason to question his father on anything, and he also had not spent much time at all around Scavvers. Any time he did, his view on them was tainted by the horror stories that his father would tell him.

Her explanation of what could have happened made his skin go pale. Dying wasn't the worst thing that could have happened out there, and Eli stopped it? If that were the case, she was lucky to walk away with just a few bruises and a mild sunburn. He sighed quietly, rubbing at his cheek for a moment, staying quiet for a long while after she told him to leave.
"I'm not leaving, Carly... I'm sorry. Maybe he's not as bad as I thought..." he said quietly. It was a hard thing for him to admit, and a part of him wasn't being honest about it. It would be difficult for him to see Scavvers as anything other than barely-tamed animals.

"I'm just glad you're safe." he added after a short pause.

 

[FaithWynters]

It certainly wasn’t how she had wanted this conversation to go. If she had known when she walked out of the room that this was the kind of conversation they would be having, Carly would have refused to speak with him. She was steaming—No. She was more than steaming; she was furious. She had found her resolve again, and while tears streaked wet trenches across her cheeks, no more fell. She was done having this conversation with him if he wasn’t going to listen to her and try to formulate his own opinions. She saw the widening of his eyes as everything slowly sunk in. Yes, the damage that had happened was not the worst that could have been.

In all honestly, Carly expected for Daniel to turn again and leave. Like a sad puppy, Carly had thought the slap would be enough to get him to go away. As mad as she was, every time the young woman had to resort to that, it hurt her heart too. Part of her just wanted him to leave. That wasn’t the case this time; she had given him a choice, not an order. When he didn’t move for a moment, she just stood her ground, but the silence allowed the anger to soften even more. He was hurt, she could tell that by the way he thoughtfully rubbed his cheek. The slap hadn’t been that hard—at least she hadn’t thought it had been—but Carly could see the pink settling into his skin. It was more of a pride thing than anything else. That much, she knew. It was the shock that she would do something like that when he was just trying to help her. He just wanted her to know he cared, and she knew. If Carly hadn’t known that, there would be no chance in hell for this conversation to be happening.

He was sorry. She knew that just by the dejected look on his face but hearing him say it this time somehow made it more meaningful. Daniel wouldn’t leave, and the words made her glare break, and a small smile form on her lips. It wasn’t much, but it was progress. That was right. She was safe. Those were the words she had told herself over and over again as she fought with everyone over the last twenty-four hours.

“I’m glad I’m safe too.” The words were soft as she cleared the small gap between them to give him a hug. His height made it where her head pressed into her chest. She was trying—so hard was she trying. If he could just see it her way and try, there would be one less problem to deal with. Carly trusted Daniel and knew he would never just tell her something just to get her to stop being angry.

“Now…” Unlike with Eli, Carly didn’t hold the hug as long as Daniel would let her. She pulled away after she felt the quiet sigh release from his chest. She had felt the slight pull on her waist as she did, but ignored it—Daniel still wasn’t in the clear yet. They were on the road to being better now, but they weren’t quite there. “I will think about accepting that apology if you go in there right now and apologize to Eli for trying to kill him.” Her arms were folded in front of her and once again she was resolute. She wasn’t glaring anymore—in fact, most of the anger she had over this encounter was gone. Instead, a soft frown replaced it and she waited for him. Most of her certainly expected him to apologize, but Carly also held it out to him as a test. His response would tell her how committed he was to trying to think of Eli as ‘not as bad’ as he thought.

 

[Gobbo]

Daniel wasn't expecting the hug, but he welcomed it with open arms. It was a step in the right direction, and he certainly didn't mind having her in his arms. He glanced over at Eli, who looked irritated, and flashed him a shit-eating grin as if to say 'I win'. The hug was much shorter than he wanted, and he tried to keep her close, but she stepped away before he had the chance. It was alright though, she may have run off with a Scavv but there was no possible way she could fall in love with one. He was going to make her his wife one day, he was sure of it.

His thoughts were suddenly cut short when she spoke, her arms folded in front of her. His eyes widened, and he was unsure if he'd heard her correctly. She wanted him to apologize? To a Scavver? He opened his mouth to speak, only to shut it again, stammering under his breath. His face reddened, though whether it was from anger or embarrassment it was impossible to tell.
"You... Wait, I'm supposed to..." he muttered, looking over at Eli. It was as if the Scavver had heard them, because there was a slight smirk on Eli's face.

"Carls, I..." he said, about to tell her that there was no way in hell he could apologize. In his mind, he'd done nothing wrong. It wasn't like Scavvers couldn't be replaced easily or anything, and they died all the time. He knew, however, that if he didn't do what she asked, she would hate him even more. His pride had taken enough hits over the last few days, and this one was going to be a huge one.
"Okay." he finally said, looking over at Eli. He couldn't find it in himself to move just yet, working through his mind how he'd even apologize. It was like apologizing to a piece of trash that missed the trash can. It didn't make sense.

 

[FaithWynters]

She caught the tell. His eyes widened slightly as Carly’s words registered in his mind. Her head tilted slightly and a disappointed look washed over her face. For the moments that he struggled with the idea, she just let it soak in, nodding quietly—verifying that he had indeed heard her correctly. She wasn’t sure if he was trying to come to terms with the fact that it was going to kill him to walk in there and apologize or the fact that it was Eli he would be apologizing to.

A slow breath filled her lungs. Carly was only a few seconds away from telling him that she would talk to him later when he thought about what he had done and actually regretted trying to kill someone. It was then that the quiet word escaped in a huff. He was defeated, and she knew that, but it was important that he started to realize that treating Eli like any other wasteland trash he may come across was not acceptable. Hell, treating anyone the way he was treating Eli was unacceptable—she just had a little bit more weight in this one.

“Hey, look at me…” Reaching over she lifted his chin a little until he met her eyes. She gave him a soft smile. “I’m not asking you to be his Mr. Darcy.” A quiet giggle escaped her lips at the thought. “I write without any intention of paining you, or humbling myself, by dwelling on wishes which, for the happiness of both, cannot be too soon forgotten…” She trailed off with another giggle, giving his nose a light flick. The book was one of her favorites. Brought back from a trip into the wastes, the young woman had read it more times than she cared to admit—enough that she had parts of it memorized. Really, she was trying to make him feel a little bit better about everything. “Just say you’re sorry…” She trailed off for a moment, pulling her hand away from where it still tilted his chin up. “Killing people is bad…Daniel.” The words sent a tightness through her gut, but she ignored it for now.

“I can stay out here if you’d prefer.” It took her no time clearing the distance back to the door. With her hand on the cool metal knob, she turned it, and let the door swing open. She would stay outside until she knew whether or not he even wanted her there when he spoke to Eli.

 

[Gobbo]

This was horrible. This was exactly the opposite of how he was wanting his day to go... Having to apologize to a Scavv? It was one of the most embarrassing things that he could think of. He was in the middle of inner turmoil when she spoke and tilted his head so he could look at her, quoting her favorite book. The quote pulled a small smile from him, he was just as familiar with it as she was. He had read it to her a few times when she was too sick to leave her bed. Good memories were tied to that quote, and he couldn't help but smile softly.

It would be difficult, but he could do it. Just say 'sorry' and that was it. He raised an eyebrow when she had to reiterate that killing people was bad. Of course killing people was bad... Scavvs weren't people. He sighed quietly and nodded, staring at the open door as if it was a trap.
"I'll be right back." he said, stepping into the room. The guard in the corner watched him curiously for a moment, wondering what the hell was going on. He knew that the two of them were out there talking, and he'd heard that Carly was furious that he'd tried to kill the Scavver... But that was about all he knew.

Daniel looked at the guard, giving him a warning glare before turning to look at the Scavver. He didn't want to get close to the bed, as if he'd catch something by being too close. "Hey, so... Uh..." he said, having trouble making eye contact.
"Sorry. For nearly killing you."

The guard choked on air, coughing quietly as he stared at Daniel with wide eyes. Did he just apologize? For failing to kill a piece of garbage? He held back a snicker, and Daniel snapped over to glare at him. "Watch it." he warned, before turning back to Eli.
"I hope your recovery goes well." Eli didn't seem convinced, but he certainly looked entertained.
The guard in the corner kept trying to hold back laughter, before imitating the sound of a whip cracking with his mouth.

"Watch. It." Daniel hissed, before turning and exiting the room as quickly as possible. As soon as he was gone, the guard started cracking up laughing. Oh, Daniel was going to get so much shit for this one.

 

[FaithWynters]

She was a little happy when Daniel didn’t try to fight her too much on what she said. There was certainly a disconnect for him between people and what he thought a Scavver was. Carly could certainly thank his father for that, but that was a conversation to continue with him on another day. Daniel was a good kid—Carly knew he just had a few bad influences in his life. It didn’t help that Daniel looked up to his father so much; anything that differed from his father’s views were oftentimes struck out as being false.

Carly tried not to listen when he went into the room but found it hard. Turning and walking a few feet away, she hoped that it would be enough distance to muffle the sound of the conversation, but it, unfortunately, wasn’t. Carly could tell it was like pulling teeth for him, but he managed. It was short and sweet—all she expected of him at first at least.

There was a quiet warning. Her jaw clenched. Was he really threatening Eli while he apologized? She turned on her heel, looking through the glass window at the scene in front of her. Daniel’s head was down, his face red, and he was continuing on with his apology. She saw what the source of the first disturbance had been. The guard in the corner fought the laughter as he watched what was unfolding in front of him. That sent her blood boiling more than anything else could have. How dare he…

Before she could walk in and cut the guard down, Daniel was back outside. Her anger was gone in a moment—she didn’t want Daniel to think that she was upset with him. What he just did took a lot of guts—even if it felt like the opposite at the moment.

“Thank you.” The words were soft and she cleared the distance again to pull him into a hug. This time, she felt a hand lace into the hair at the base of her neck. She heard another sigh, but she didn’t let go this time. She felt his other arm pull around her waist, warm fingers resting on the bare skin of her lower back. “It means a lot to me that you’d do that…” Her voice was a soft whisper. If she could avoid any more trouble with him and the men he worked with, she certainly wanted to. “I won’t ask you to do that again.” Still, he didn’t pull away, and for another long moment, she didn’t either.

The two were so close. It felt natural that they had that kind of intimacy with one another. He read to her in bed when she was sick. When he would come home drunk with a bloodied up nose, stumbling into her bedroom at 3AM—before she instructed the guards to keep him out, he was one of the only people trusted in her room at all times—she would clean up his nose and let him crash in her bed. The thing was big enough to fit two more people with them. Nothing ever happened. They were friends! Of course, they certainly didn’t tell either of their parents. They would spend some weekday nights locked in her room getting drunk as a skunk. Well…She would get drunk as a skunk and he would have to make sure she didn’t run off around the building and got to bed before too late so she could make it to lecture in the morning. She helped him with math when they were getting older and the numbers turned into letters that didn’t always quite exist, but they somehow did all at the same time. They were just really close friends.

“Does your dad have you on a shift later?” Carly pulled away and it was the first time she noticed that he was in his uniform. Daniel detested the thing, and she knew that he only wore it when he had to work.