A/N: so uh I lied. I might do smut if I feel like it. just don't req it plsss. but still. I'm baby. also I hate this chapter and it took way too long to write so I'm sorry if you hate it but tbf I do too. anyways ignore me sjdks
Word Count: 1469
WARNINGS: none
Miss Grimshaw said I was to sleep with the other girls on the outer edges of camp.
"Now, I know that you're not frilly and clearly don't prefer dresses like the other girls," she said, "but you're going to need to participate in chores around here. I think starting off by helping the girls with their chores would be a good idea."
Now, I didn't want this woman to hate me, but I had to speak up. "Pardon me, ma'am, but I've been roughin' it on my own close on eight years now. I think I can run with the men."
"Now, girly, you'll do as you're told. If you wanna take it up with Dutch or Arthur, that's fine. I ain't in charge of who goes out robbing."
I threw my hands up in the air and went to go find Sean. When I finally located the redhead, I beelined towards him.
"Jesus, Sean, who knew Grimshaw could be so insane. It's only my first day and she's already goin' off on me for not working myself to death."
"Ah, yeah. She's like that most of the time," Sean cackled.
I slapped his arm. "Sean, seriously. It ain't that funny." However, I suppressed a smile. "I'm guessin' the only real issue I got with her is that she wants me to do laundry and mending, of all things. I been on my own for forever now; I could come robbin' with y'all!"
"I'm sure ya could hold your own. Grimshaw's a traditionalist, through and through. Dutch might be against the idea. After all, he's never had a woman become a regular gun. I mean there's Karen, but she only does a little bit of cons and guarding." His eyes went a little soft at the mention of Karen.
"Oh, you're sweet on her, ain't ya?"
"Adelia, shuddup. For all I know, ya got a man somewhere, and I'm not teasing ya about it."
"For the last time, I don't. And if I did, there's no way in hell I'm tellin' you, of all people. You run your mouth just about everywhere. Half the camp would know by now and I ain't even been here five minutes."
"Ya know," Sean said, changing the subject, "if you wanna prove yourself to Grimshaw, you could start by getting us more water from that lake over there. Arthur usually does that. It's also a good way to get 'im on your side."
"Right." I smiled. "Grimshaw mentioned he's one of the head honchos 'round here. He'd be a hell of an ally to have."
"Off you go then." Sean nudged me over to the camp cook's wagon.
I tied my hair back with a red ribbon to match my plaid shirt and strode over to Pearson's wagon, eyes searching for a bucket. As my eyes locked onto the bucket, a tanned hand picked the bucket up.
"Looking for this?" a man smirked.
It was the man from earlier.
"I—hello," I stammered, fighting the heat creeping to my cheeks. "Yes, I was. Thanks."
"I don't believe we've officially met yet," he said, a smile rising to his scarred face. "Javier Escuella."
"Addie Deiter." I stuck my hand out for him to shake it and he took it firmly in his grasp. "Well, Adelia. That's what Sean calls me, anyways."
"Huh." He cocked his head. "I like that."
"Uh, well, I'd better get to work."
"Of course." He handed the bucket over to me, and I immediately rushed away from the situation.
Addie. God damn, how could you make such a fool of yourself in a one-minute conversation? I bet he's talked to fish with more composure than you.
Whatever. I brushed the incident off and walked over to the lake. As I walked back to camp, the bucket sloshing water every step, my eyes found Javier again. To my shock, he began to walk over.
"Need help, señorita?"
"No, I've got it. Thanks, though." I forced a smile. While I wouldn't admit it, my arms were beginning to burn.
"Of course." He began to meander along next to me. "So where did Sean even pick you up?"
"I was looking for work. I found him in a saloon and he offered some work. End of story. I don't really feel like talking about that."
"Ah. I'm guessing some assassinations, then?"
Damn, he was good. I wondered how he'd gotten that from the few words I'd uttered about it.
"Sure," I said tersely.
"What else did you do? Sean mentioned bounty work."
"Look, pretty boy, I'm trying to work here. If you actually want me around to talk to, you can wait until later. If I don't get something done, Grimshaw might actually kill me."
"Of course. See you later, then." He gave me a little salute, and damnit, I smiled.
When I dumped the water into the washbin, Pearson finally commented.
"Doesn't Arthur do that?"
"Yes. He does. But I refuse to do laundry all damn day! I been on my own for years now."
"If you've been fending for yourself, you wouldn't know a thing or two about cooking, would you?"
"I would. But just because I'm a woman doesn't mean I'm obligated to spend my whole day cooking with you. Maybe if Grimshaw makes me..." I huffed the last bit under my breath. "Now if you'll excuse me." As I walked away, I searched for Sean. I finally spotted him by the main campfire, drinking a bottle of whiskey. He had an arm slung around a blonde who also had a bottle in her hand. I assumed it was Karen and backed off to give him some space. Sean when drunk was...something else. I could only imagine what he was like when he was around a woman he was interested in.
I didn't have any other friends here besides Sean. Well, there was Javier, the only other person I'd spoken to besides Dutch and Grimshaw, but I didn't want to even deal with that situation right now. I supposed I could get to know the other girls. Karen was a little...preoccupied, being drunk at three in the afternoon, so I glanced around to find someone else. I finally caught sight of the other two girls I'd seen earlier by our tent, standing on the edge of camp chatting.
"Hey." I lifted a hand in greeting. "I don't think I've met either of you yet."
"Adelia, right? I'm Mary-Beth, and that's Tilly," she said, gesturing to the woman next to her.
"Yeah. Well, Addie, anyways. Only Sean calls me Adelia at this point."
Both girls giggled. I could tell we were already going to get along.
"Who's the other redhead over there with Dutch?"
"Oh, that's Molly. She's Dutch's latest lover. She's completely infatuated with him, and it seemed mutual at first, but it seems like he's losing interest," Mary-Beth commented. "She came from Ireland lookin' for adventure and met Dutch. She never does any work, and it drives Grimshaw insane. I swear, the only reason she hasn't killed that girl yet is because of Dutch."
"Oh, Lord, not another Irish person. One's already way too much for me."
Tilly smiled. "Yeah, Sean's a character, and Molly is too, in her own way. Anyways, if he's so annoying, why'd ya stick by him for as long as you did?"
"Well, I didn't really camp with him all the time. Sometimes he was gone for months, and I'd assume that means he was with y'all. He'd send a message through the post or through the bartender in Blackwater. I would also check his camp location from time to time to see if he had work. He's a fairly decent guy, too. Just talks my ear off half the time. I'm sure y'all know all about that."
"We sure do," Tilly laughed. "At parties, he always ends up making these drunken speeches. He brags non-stop about his latest take or whatever job he's been on. Arthur usually shuts him down pretty fast. Says that 'a loud-mouthed braggart like you is gonna get killed someday' or whatever his usual spiel is."
"Whatchu ladies talkin' about," a voice drawled.
"Speak of the devil," Tilly muttered. She turned around and gave the man a sweet smile. "Nothin', Arthur. What are you doin' around here anyways; don't you got work to do?"
"Yes," he said, scratching the back of his neck. "But someone already did something for me, and Pearson mentioned one of you ladies helped me out. Just wanted to say thanks. Anyways, I'll leave you to it."
As Arthur left, I decided it was also time for me to take my leave.
"Damn. Speaking of work, I'd better get back to it."
"Bye, Addie!" both girls chimed.
Who knew first days could be so exhausting.
Another A/N: I'M SO SORRY I HATE THIS ONE A LOT I PROMISE THE NEXT ONE WILL BE LESS SHITTY.