In Need of Assistance? (TF2)

Seventy-Six: Thankless Jobs

        The sun's already risen and set. What time even is it?

Despite what happened last night, it's a miracle everything's been quiet. No one trying to break in, trying to kill us. Quiet. Lawrence doesn't snore, I learned. He's up earlier than any of us would expect him to. Granted, the smallest shift makes him jump. Once he woke up at three, he just couldn't sleep again. Going on the list of things I'll never forget is waking up and seeing him standing in my doorway watching me. He taps his fingernails of varying lengths on the side of his mug. "What's today's date?"

"January twenty-ninth. Nineteen-seventy-two."

"Last I remember, it was the last days of September. Might've been October." He sniffs, staring into his coffee. "What's that? Five months, Freddie?"

"I don't go by Freddie," I meekly mention.

"Bloody hell, right. Forgot, sorry Accomplice." he sighs.

"I'm not Accomplice either anymore. I got fired. Kinda. It's a whole thing." He twists his face as I'm sure he doesn't want to call me Miss Fredrickson all over again. "But... If you want to call me, Freddie, you can? Or Mona... Either is fine."

"And Jeremy? How's the larrikin?"

"He's gone. Not- He's not dead, but he left with Cashew." A confused glance comes my way. "Oh, jeez..." Everything. He's missed everything. He deserves to know it all, but it's not exactly the most palatable thing to hear about the misadventures of someone who stole your face. "Do you remember how they got you?"

"Dropped off Pauling at 'er home. Some dickhead rear-ended me while I was going back to the fort. Pulled over to get the bloody bizzo. Told 'em to rack off, but I was the dummy and got the spit. It's Spy, but he's all in his blue get-up. You can guess the rest, Luv," he tells, backing off to avoid recounting the fine details. "I don't think I'd be able to help you as much as you hope, Sheila. They left me alone mostly if I wasn't gettin' my arse handed to me. I wasn't alone too often."

"Lawrence..."

"Truckie lives with you now?"

We're changing the topic. "He'll stay over sometimes. He still stays at the fort."

"Haven't gotten that far yet, huh?"

I shake my head. "It's still pretty early."

"Heard you mention it last night, but I hear everything's gone to the dingos."

"Everyone on the team thinks I'm a spy right now, and Soldier tried to outright kill me once, so Dell's not in the best place to go around telling people we're in a relationship. It's been since November before Thanksgiving, and we didn't actually start dating until Christmas Eve."

"Bold bugger, isn't he?" I shake my head, and he finds slight amusement in this. "Really? I've seen him talk to birds before, he's the straightforward type. But Engie's not one to show just any ol' Sheila how to handle a shotgun." His smile fades as he stands up. "Think I'll be on my way." My eyes widen. It hasn't even been a single day. He shrugs. "Work doesn't wait for ya."

"Could you at least wait until Neuro comes back? So she can make sure you're physically able to?"

"I'd be off to check on my folks first. Yanno, since no one's been by."

"But are you going to wait for Neuro?"

Hesitation on if he should directly answer. He's antsy, seeing as he's slowly but surely migrating to the balcony. Lawrence needs to get out. He feels trapped. "Sure, Luv." I don't trust leaving the house. Both hands run up and down my arms as I try to ease myself. So many things that could happen if we leave the house. Wouldn't it just be better if we stayed inside and talked some more?