Max inserted the small gas canister into the portable stove. Luckily for him, the stove had its own igniting mechanism, Saving him from needing a lighter. He put the pan on top of it and inserted the soup. The blonde-haired girl curiously observed the process and couldn't help but think.

'If that food Is as good as that water, I might have to consider my options'

and about 7 minutes later, when the smell of hot tomato soup was drifting thru the air, she was already pressed up against Max's back. Being as clingy as his sister usually is, Although unlike her sister, he could in fact get aroused by this girl.

"Is it ready?"

This was probably the tenth time she had asked this and surprisingly Max didn't feel annoyed. No. Instead, he slightly blushed because every time she asked this, she moved around impatiently, Her breasts wriggling against his back.

"It is... But I just realized I didn't bring any cups. Do you have some? "

The girl released him and spoke.

" I kicked a hole under the staircase and put my bag there, Can you get it? I honestly still feel a little weak. "

Max did as she asked and went to get her back, but not before responding.

" Keep your hands off the soup, It's hot. "

The girl nodded and Max went on his way to get her backpack, It took a bit but he found it. Once he did, he took it back with him to the soup. He gave the back to the girl, and after fumbling around in it, she took two metallic burned-out cups from it, to which Max slightly frowned. Noticing his frown, the girl gave her reasoning.

"Burning the filth away is cheaper than using other resources to clean it."

He gave her a nod and took it, although slightly reluctantly; he fiddled around with it, and after noticing nothing came loose, he filled it with soup. He then grabbed her cup and filled hers as well, Returning it filled. He could see the girl impatiently blowing on it all just to make it cool off a little faster, and he truly couldn't fathom why she was so impatient. She looked like a little girl that would get her favourite candy after finishing up her dish. Max had no haste with his soup and simply decided to make small talk.

" So, What's your name? "

The girl looked up from her soup and responded to the man who had in her eyes, So generously provided the food. Food, which by the smell alone, would make people kill for it. Not to forget the water which she desperately needed. She already saw him as a stupid, capable, and generous man, which in the Wasteland was pretty nonexistent. He didn't even rape her or take her when she started undressing in that manner. Although this most certainly didn't make her suddenly fall in love with him or anything ridiculous like that, It did make her consider her options.

It was pretty normal for a pretty female to give herself to a male if that male was capable of providing for her, which by wasteland standards didn't require much. But she had always rejected this out a matter of principle yet, With this man...

' Maybe I should. '

She wasn't sure about it yet.

"My name is Alice, What about you?"

" Max, Pleasure to meet you. "

The girl gave a genuine smile, Something she hadn't made for a serious while before responding.

" Likewise, It's rare to see people such as yourself in this cruel world. "

Max continued to make some idle chatter with the girl, and before he knew it, it started to become dark outside. To which the girl suddenly cursed.

"Fuck, The door. "

Max wasn't exactly sure what she meant and gave her a questionable look, to which she further elaborated.

"Those walkers are idle during the daytime but become active at night. We need to fortify the door."

She stood up and grabbed a hammer and some nails out of her backpack as well as a round object, which she threw at Max; Max caught it and, after having a closer look, realized it to be a silencer. The girl then chipped in, adding.

"More noise usually means more trouble, so put that on."

Max did as he was instructed and withdrew his handgun

[Withdrew: 1x 9mm handgun]

He put the silencer on and covered her, seeing her stumble around; still clearly weak, he decided to hand her the gun instead. He wasn't even trained to shoot a firearm, so he simply left the gun to her, Although he didn't trust her with his life. He did trust her enough not to shoot him in the back, Even if she did, What would it bring her?

Alice, on the other hand, saw him handing over the firearm as handing over the safeguard to his life. She saw it as a great sign of trust, which warmed her otherwise cold heart a little. She took it and holstered it, and they both quickly ripped more planks out of the staircase; it was hard to find some good ones amid the rotten ones, but they managed.

Together, they pushed the couch upwards and placed it against the doorway. They then further reinforced it with planks and nails to ensure the entrance was blocked. Once that was done, they finally took a calm seat. Luckily for them none of those death buggers bothered them, Yet Alice wasn't as happy as she once again made that " Tsk " sound.

"There goes our sleeping place."

Max couldn't help but be slightly surprised at the word " ours." the surprise was, however, quickly replaced with happiness.

"Luckily I got a 2 person bedroll, One of high quality at that. "

Seeing the situation, he couldn't help but boast a little, and within minutes, he had it spread over the floor together with his pillow. He sadly had only one, but this didn't bother Alice. She jumped on top of it as if she was a kitten and quickly made herself comfortable, It had been a serious while since she laid on anything so soft. After all, A decaying matres, A decaying couch or some animal hide/skin, A cloth blanket or other similar stuff simply weren't of equal quality. The better stuff was simply preserved for those that had the cash to pay for it, Which most definitely wasn't her.

Max couldn't help but be mesmerized by the sight to which the girl simply chuckled as she got rid of her hoodie and black combat-like jeans, Leaving her in only her black panties and the white T-shirt while she looked at him as if to ask, "Are you coming?".

Max turned slightly embarrassed before joining her and spoke.

"I... If I sleep in my underwear... You, You might feel Something poking against you."

The girl simply gave a laugh before responding.

"It'd feel insulted if I didn't."

He hadn't raped her, so she trusted him with Something as simple as sharing a sleeping bag. After all, The Wasteland wasn't always hot; at night, it could become quite cold, and since the majority of the people had bad-quality blankets, they found shelter and still had a cold night or slept together with others or even animals to keep warm.

"So your coming or what? "

Alice had already made herself comfortable when she suddenly remembered

" Oh, Yes your gun. "

To which Max simply shook his head.

"It was always yours from the start, I simply confiscated it for a while due to safety reasons. If a beautiful girl such as yourself can trust a man sleeping in the same sleeping bag as you, then surely I can trust you with a gun."

Alice most definitely wasn't able to understand his modern way of thinking and simply put it aside as a flirting attempt, which she couldn't help but think positively about. She wasn't sure how far she wanted to go with Max and for what reasons she, however, did think it was quite an interesting individual.