Abrasive Fool

As Grant walked away, Frank and Jerrod both stood rooted to the spot in stunned silence.

A few seconds later, Frank suddenly burst out in hearty laughter.

"I like that kid! Jerrod, who is that?! If he needs a job, I'll gladly put him to work! He seems strong enough to handle any task I could throw at him!"

Jerrod stood there like a statue for a few more seconds before he registered what Frank had just said.

"Who is that 'kid'?! That's the leader of this entire dungeon you fool!! Just be happy that he seems to be in a good mood or your head could have been laying at your feet before you even knew what had happened!

I can't believe you told him you didn't have time to fondle his balls... what the fuck is wrong with you?! Couldn't you just say you were busy and didn't have time to talk?!"

Rather than be scared or intimidated, Frank simply laughed yet again.

"Aw come on Jerrod! What's life without a little fun? I bet he's used to people sucking up to him! I'm probably a breathe of fresh air for him!"

Jerrod didn't respond and simply shook his head back and forth before walking away while praying to every god he could think of that Grant didn't take the old fools words personally.

Frank may have been an abrasive old man, but he was phenomenal at his job and the dungeon couldn't afford to lose him.

After jogging to catch up to Grant; Jerrod quietly observed Grant's attitude and demeanor before realizing the 'kid' had a wide grin on his face.

Eventually, Grant broke the silence between the two of them.

"I like that guy Jerrod. Where did he come from? I don't recognize him from any of the groups I rescued."

Realizing that Grant had not taken Frank's words to heart, he finally allowed himself to breathe for the first time since he had caught up with their de-facto leader.

"His name is Frank Urey. According to the report I received from the team that found him, he had been holed up in a bunker found beneath the rubble of a destroyed home.

Apparently the team that found him entered the bunker after clearing out the rubble looking for survivors but that abrasive old fool actually drew a shotgun and started firing at them before they could make their presence known!

Thankfully the team had used their previous experience and had been prepared for an ambush, though they had expected it to come from a monster and not a shotgun, which allowed them to avoid any serious or life threatening injuries.

The moment that he realized he had made a mistake, he started to laugh like he had when he was talking to you, and then invited our team in for a drink!

After interviewing him upon his return to the camp we learned that he had immediately gone down to the bunker and isolated himself when he realized something was happening to the world.

A large portion of the non perishable foods that you saw earlier actually came from the storage of his bunker actually."

Grant was impressed by the selflessness of the old man. If it had been him and he didn't have access to Sherlock, he would not have left a bunker stocked with food no matter what anyone said. Unless they forced him too, of course.

Which was the very next question Grant asked Jerrod.

"We did not force him to join us or leave his bunker. After we explained the situation in our dungeon, the old man suddenly seemed energetic about the idea of rebuilding society.

I tried to ask him for more details on why he made his decision after I got to know him a bit, but he just laughed and brushed off the question before saying something about how it was all so fantasy and exciting.

If you ask me, the old mans got a screw loose."

Something about what Jerrod said made Grant pause for a second before realization suddenly struck him.

Without even saying anything, Grant planted his foot into the ground and blasted towards the entrance of the dungeon.

Watching Grant quickly disappear towards the entrance of the dungeon, Jerrod didn't know how to react for a moment before he suddenly threw his arms up into the air in exasperation. Eventually he simply walked off in a different direction mumbling to himself.

If someone listened hard enough, they could hear Jerrod mumbling about how muscle brains were a pain in the ass to deal with and he should have never agreed to work for one.

Meanwhile, Grant quickly made his way through the entrance before coming to an abrupt stop directly next to Hailey.

Hailey, who had been happily chatting up Skit and Springtree was caught off guard by the massive gust of wind that Grant's abrupt stop had caused.

Out of pure reflex she let out a small scream and tried to jump back. Before she could even move though, she felt a hand grasp her wrist before she was dragged off at inhuman speed into the dungeon.

Hailey quickly adjusted herself and took in the situation. When she realized that it was Grant that was dragging her deeper into the dungeon, she simply relaxed and let him take her wherever they were going.

She trusted him and knew that he wouldn't do anything to harm her, so she just enjoyed the cool breeze on her face while taking in the sights around her.

Of course, to everyone else that could perceive the two's movements, the sight of Hailey being pulled behind Grant like a flag in the wind was quite comical.

However, only a small fraction of the people managed to catch a glimpse before the two of them disappeared from view.

As Grant and his passenger approached the construction sight, Grant rapidly scanned the area and found Frank who was still standing at the podium where he had been when they first met.

In anticipation of the upcoming stop, Grant pulled Hailey up into his arms before slinging her over his shoulder so that he was carrying her like a sack of potatoes.

Hailey, as usual didn't seem to have any particular reaction. She simply observed her surroundings with curiosity despite the odd way she was being held.

Meanwhile, Frank, who was busy barking orders at everyone in sight suddenly felt like he had been thrown into a wind tunnel.

He ended up being thrown a dozen feet from where he had been standing while papers and supplies were flung in every which direction.

A pin-drop silence descended on the area as everyone tried to figure out what was going on. Of course, the moment they saw Grant standing at the epicenter of the disturbance, no one even thought about raising a ruckus; except for one man.

Frank, who despite being a completely normal human quickly recovered from being thrown away and jumped to his feet in a rage.

"What the fuck are you doing kid?! And how the hell did you just do that?!"

Before he could continue his rage filled rant however, he heard a voice that made him freeze.

"Grandpa?!"