Chapter Text
Over a year and a half since Leon, Ashley, and Luis had returned safely from Spain, and Leon had offered to share his dingy apartment with Luis, they still lived together. Leon hadn't had a roommate since his time in training after Raccoon City, and he missed it more than he'd thought he would. Living alone, in a barren, lifeless apartment that felt too big for one person despite its comparatively small size was far more depressing than he'd realised, before Luis showed up. And Luis brought plenty of life and light to the humble living space, filling it with books and trinkets and posters over time that turned it from just a place that Leon inhabited into a home they shared.
Leon had a small, secluded room which he used as a study, as it connected to his bedroom. But he had easily converted that into Luis's room, figuring it would be better than taking the couch. Plus, he liked having the other man so close, though he'd never admit it.
Luis had taken a bit to adjust to life in America, stressed over working towards citisenship and keeping up with the job he'd taken as penance for his past with Umbrella. He now worked as a scientist for the BSAA, thanks to Chris agreeing to recruit him. Once he'd settled into that routine - even making good friends with Rebecca Chambers - he'd become more comfortable with it. Leon was happy to see him thriving in a safe environment, especially after he'd almost lost the man back in Spain.
Leon still dreamt of that blade sinking into Luis's back, the blood that pooled at his lips and the lifeless way he fell. Sometimes Leon woke up right after; other times he had to watch Luis die, unable to do anything to save him. Sometimes, when the latter occurred, he'd stand by Luis’s door, waiting to hear the man’s breathing in his sleep for reassurance. It was probably a strange thing to do for a friend, but it comforted Leon.
He knew Luis still remembered his near-death experience with the same vividness, as he now suffered chronic back pain as a result. Somedays, the man could go about his business, with the wound only stinging a bit. Other days, he couldn't get out of bed until Leon brought him some medication, sometimes even having to massage the stiff parts of Luis's upper back until he could at least move his neck. Leon always ached for him; he wished there was something he could've done to spare Luis the constant pain, but he'd only just had enough supplies to stabilise Luis. The surgery that followed almost 24 hours later when they finally returned to the states was far too late for his back to ever heal fully. Luis never blamed Leon for any of it, and he'd even expressed sadness that Leon felt guilt over it. But Leon couldn't help it.
Today was one of the good days for Luis's pain; he'd been able to get up and go to work with minimal wincing, and returned in high spirits, instantly gushing to Leon about the progress he and his new team were making on various cures and vaccines developed specifically for safeguarding against the bioterrorism that continued to plague the world in waves.
Luis paused in his rambling, accepting a cup of soothing herbal tea Leon prepared for him, and began tapping his fingers on the kitchen table, deep in thought.
"What's on your mind now?" Leon asked, raising a curious brow.
Luis shook his head slightly, snapping himself out of his trance.
“There is… something I want to ask of you,” Luis began, a mischievous smile growing on his face as he stared at the table. “But I don’t think you’ll want to do it.”
Leon furrowed his brow in thought, mind racing through ideas of what Luis could possibly have to ask him. He'd never said no to any of Luis's crazy schemes before, and he wasn't sure why Luis thought he'd start now.
"Well? Hit me," he encouraged.
Luis levelled his smirk at Leon, glancing up through his eyelashes.
"Have you ever been on a cruise?" Luis asked.
Leon squinted suspiciously.
"Can't say I have…" he trailed off, raising a brow as Luis's grin widened. "Why?"
Luis removed something from his jacket pocket and slapped it onto the table, sliding it towards Leon.
"I was given these by our lovely Dr. Chambers," Luis said.
Leon picked them up, realising they were boarding passes for a cruise line. Two of them, to be exact. The assigned names were empty, but the date was only a few days away, and the duration was for a week. It seemed legitimate, and the more Leon scanned them the more official details he noticed.
"How the hell did you get these?" Leon asked.
"Rebecca got them as a gift a few months ago, and never had any interest in going," Luis explained. "She said she hates ships, and doesn't have anyone to go with anyway. I didn't want to take the tickets, as I know they're expensive, but she insisted that we go instead." Luis extended a hand, gesturing at the tickets. "So? What do you think?"
Leon glanced down at the boarding passes, and then back up to Luis, his frown only deepening.
"These are for a cruise line on the West Coast, boarding from California," Leon began. "We're in Colorado. That's a 17 hour drive."
"Road trips can be fun, too," Luis argued.
"And what will we do on this cruise?" Leon continued. He threw an arm over the back of his chair as he interrogated Luis. "Swim? Get sunburnt? We can do all of that here."
"See the sights, cowboy!" Luis exclaimed, lightly shoving at Leon's arm. "Visit other parts of the states, maybe even see a whale. You can't do any of that from here."
"You could if you open a picture book about whales."
"I mean it, Leon," Luis replied, glaring. "This will be fun. You have to go."
"Luis," Leon sighed, dropping the passes back onto the table. "You know me better than anyone else."
Luis tilted his head, agreeing.
"So why do you think I'd ever wanna go on a cruise?" Leon added.
Luis pouted at him.
"Why wouldn't you?"
"It's a waste of money, for starters," Leon answered, crossing his arms. "Overly expensive food, overly expensive alcohol, overly expensive souvenirs at every shop. And I don't exactly find getting tossed back and forth constantly to be an enjoyable form of transportation."
"Well," Luis raised his hands placatingly, "those things are all true. But-" he picked up the tickets and waved them for emphasis, "we wouldn't want to waste these, especially after such a kind friend so generously offered them." Luis smiled triumphantly, as if he'd already won the argument, and set the tickets back on the table. "And I want to go, which means you have to."
Leon set his jaw, sighing. Luis's confident look faltered a bit once he finished his sales pitch, and his eyes roved over Leon's face anxiously.
Leon considered his options carefully. In truth, going on a cruise as an adult sounded about as appealing as shooting himself in the foot. He could think of a hundred different things he'd rather do with Luis than spend a week in the ocean. But Luis looked more excited for this than Leon had ever seen him, and it surprised him; the man had been in high spirits all afternoon because of it. He'd been cooped up in Leon's apartment for way too long, with no complaint, and he never asked for anything. How could Leon deny him this?
"Fine," Leon found himself saying.
It was suddenly worth it for the beautiful smile that spread over Luis's face.
"Really?" Luis asked.
"Really."
Luis pumped his fist, scrunching his face excitedly. It was incredibly endearing, and squeezed at Leon's chest.
Leon had realised he was falling for Luis pretty quickly into having Luis live with him. It had been too easy to adjust to having the other man in his house all the time, to sharing meals with him and sitting too close on the couch as they watched TV. He enjoyed having Luis lean against him as he read a book, grasp his shoulder when Leon made him laugh, or hold him around the waist when Leon drove them somewhere on his motorcycle more than he was ready to admit. He'd do anything to keep Luis happy. It was the least he could do.
“Just… behave,” Leon added, already wary of the different ways Luis could get them both into trouble aboard the ship. “I don’t wanna get kicked off at some port several thousand miles from home because you decided to break the rules or do something dumb.”
Luis gave a mock salute.
“You’ve got it,” he promised cheerfully. “I won’t get caught.”
“Christ,” Leon muttered.
He ducked his head to hide his grin as Luis laughed at his expense.
“Lighten up, Sancho,” Luis teased, pushing Leon’s shoulder playfully. “I’m sure you’ll have fun, too. Who knows, there might be plenty of lovely ladies just looking for a big strong man to sweep them off their feet.”
Leon let out a forced laugh that devolved into a dry cough.
“Right,” he replied blandly.
“I mean it,” Luis insisted, lowering his voice and wiggling his eyebrows. “You’re quite the catch, you know.”
“Okay.” Leon wiped a hand over his face, hoping it took his blush with it. “Well, what about you, Mr. ‘Ladies' man’?”
Luis leaned back in his chair, stretching his arms behind his head with a smug grin.
“Oh, I don’t force love, I let it find me,” Luis explained. “Wouldn’t want to go making the ladies jealous.”
Leon shook his head, pointedly avoiding looking at Luis.
“Whatever,” Leon mumbled. “Just make sure you’re packed and ready to go in two days.” He sighed anxiously, already dreading the car ride. “I wanna leave with plenty of time before the ship departs, just in case. We’ll get a motel room if we arrive early.”
“Got it,” Luis nodded. “You won’t regret this, cowboy!” he added excitedly, dashing away to his room.
“Already do!” Leon called back.
He smiled as he heard Luis’s laughter trailing away.