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The pines swayed gently in the breeze, painting playful shadows on the patients’ faces who gathered beneath. They seemed oblivious to his arrival, engrossed as they were in a game he didn’t recognize. Nurses walked between them benevolent smiles plastered to their faces as they handed out drinks and snacks, or leaned in to listen to excited chatter, as if they were truly interested in what the patients had to say, even if some of it was pure gibberish.
The one Leon was looking for, though, was not amongst them, no matter how hard he looked. Perhaps the head nurse was mistaken and Jack wasn’t allowed out that day?
Jack. What were they to each other now? They used to be trainer and recruit, partners, lovers, enemies… But what were they now, what was the reason that still drove him to visit the hospital before a major mission to say goodbye, just in case?
One nurse at last noticed him hovering at the edge of the field and quickly excused himself from paper plane folding.
“Hello there. Visitation?” He was all smiles and lacked the strain in his eyes that most of the other employees of the hospital had; had to be a new hire.
Life will break him soon enough, he thought grimly. He did promise Sherry to cut back on pessimism, though, so he nodded, faking a smile of his own.
“Yes. I’m here to see Jack Krauser.”
The nurse’s smile faltered for a moment. So he had been here long enough to get acquainted with Jack. Which meant that much more time crawled by since his last visit than he thought it had.
Zero out of two. Nice job keeping your promises.
Not that he thought the staff minded; while most visits concluded issue-free, every once in a while he managed to say something or do something that sent barreling Jack over the edge. And although Jack was no longer the man he used to be—not after what the swansong of the plaga and the removal of the dying parasite did to him—it’d have been foolish to think that he was not dangerous. The hospital wasn’t ran by fools, though, which is why no fewer than four male nurses had to be in his vicinity at all times.
“You must be Mr. Kennedy,” the nurse said.
“Guilty as charged.”
The young man looked back, as if hoping that someone would take Leon off his hands, but the other nurses carefully avoided his gaze. He gave up with a small sigh. “This way, please.”
The man led him down a small path between the trees.
“He doesn’t like to be with the group,” the nurse explained. “But at least he tolerates this one. Goldstein had the idea to make a group with veterans. I wonder why no one had thought of it sooner…”
So did the Leon. Especially because he recommended the very same thing himself, on multiple occasions.
They nodded to Jack’s assigned guardian, and he joined them. Guilt pooled in Leon’s stomach as he caught sight of the man’s back, straight as ever.
“How is he?”
“Quite well, actually. He’s been clear for most of the day. We’re also trying a new treatment and it’s been working wonders with many of the patients.”
Perhaps he thought that’d make Leon happy, but it only filled him with a bristling dread. In someways, talking to Jack when he was not quite there was easier. He didn’t have to get punched in the gut when the man inevitably started getting confused, for one.
His hand goes to his breast pocket, feeling for the ring hidden inside it.
They made each other a promise—in sickness and in health. And he meant to keep it, even if it had been to a different man than the one sitting in front of him now. He failed Jack once already, when he gave him an ultimatum instead of reaching out, not recognizing the pits of despair the man found himself in. The man needed support; but in the heat of the moment, he told him to fuck off. When it became clear that Jack wasn’t coming back, he even threw the ring away, only to topple over the trashcan a day later, just as the garbage truck was making its way up the street, ripping open bags that looked vaguely familiar. His unimpressed neighbors called the cops, which of course set off alarm lights in high places, and he got suspended for two months without pay. Lying in a now too-big bed in an empty apartment was a thousand times more effective punishment than not receiving his checks. At least he got the ring back.
They stopped a few steps away from the bench and waited for the other nurse to announce their arrival
“Just call out if you need anything,” the younger man said before they melted away. Leon began to sweat as he crossed the last leg of the trip alone, his shirt sticking to his skin under the jacket. blue eyes watched his approach.
“Leon,” Jack said slowly, as if not quite sure whether the name fit. Satisfied that it did, though, his lips curved into a thin smile. “You came. And all prettied up, too. What’s the occasion?”
“Not all battles are fought with a gun.”
“Ah. Them.” Jack made an expression that was somewhere between disgust and anger. “Still, that look; it doesn’t suit you.” He shook his head. “Sit down already, my neck is cramping just from looking at you.”
“You know, you are not the first person to tell me that. About the suit, not the cramps.” He took the empty seat next to the man. “How have you been?”
“As well as a crazy person can be, I suppose. Waiting for all of it to end. Any news on when I might be released?”
“They’re telling me that you’ve been making good progress.” The lie rolled easily off his tongue. He’s told it so many times that he didn’t even have to think about it anymore. “You just have to be patient…”
“I’ve been nothing if not patient!”
The guardian’s face appeared between two lush branches; then, perhaps deciding that danger was not imminent, it disappeared again.
Jack went on, his face flushing a faint red. “I’ve given my arm for this goddamn country! I saved the President’s daughter!”
Not technically true. After their breakup, he did make his way Spain—but as Saddler’s lackey, not as Ashley’s savior. He did, however, change his mind about the whole thing in the last minute, when Leon, hanging over the edge, dare him to finish it once and for all if the Jack he once knew and loved was truly dead. Or else stand aside and let him do his job.
Jack had done that, and more. He cleared the way to the underground docks where he, too, collapsed like the ganados when his plaga noticed Saddler’s demise. But he survived; whether it was because of the different species of plaga or the way he stubbornly clung to life, Leon didn’t know. He didn’t escape unscathed, however. By the time they got him to a hospital, the frenzied plaga had done irreparable (but crucially, survivable) damage to his body, including his mind. Of course, the courts couldn’t sentence him to jail on account of his madness; but they happily ordered him to be permanently confined in a mental hospital.
“I know.” He grabbed the man’s good hand with his own, moving between Jack and the curious eyes he felt on his back. “But it’s for your own good.”
Jack scoffed, then glanced at his fingers. “You are not wearing your ring.”
Leon tapped his pocket. “I have it right here. It just no longer fits.”
“Put some meat on, did you? Perhaps you could show me one of these days. I was always curious what you’d look like with something extra to hold onto.”
“I don’t think the nurses would like that,” the agent said with a forced smile. It wasn’t enough to convince Jack though, who now had a cheeky grin on his face, his previous ire forgotten.
“Who gives a crap? I heard them doing it, so they can’t mind it that much. What do you say? For old times’ sake?”
“Perhaps next time. I didn’t exactly come prepared.”
“Prepared! Still playing the chaste schoolgirl, doing everything the proper way.” His jaw moved soundlessly, as if cursing, then he said, “How is the girl?”
“Which one?”
Jack frowned, his trembling hand tightening around Leon’s. “Manuela.”
“She is doing fine. She’s a teacher now.”
“So they let her out at least,” he said quietly. “That’s something I suppose.”
“There was no reason to hold her once they managed to stabilize the virus.” That was mainly the gist of it; no need to bother him with the details.
They sat in silence, listening to the creaking branches above them. A bird chattered indignantly then took off into the skies. Taking it for a sign it probably wasn’t, Leon took a deep breath.
“They are sending me to Raccoon City, Jack.”
The man’s gaze sharpened, then turned to him from the tiny figure flitting across the blue canvas.
“Whatever the Hell for? The place was bombed to bits.”
“Apparently a little bird fell out of her nest and couldn’t find the way home.”
That was all he dared say, even here, even to Jack.
“A bird, huh?” Jack grunted. “Well, they always had a sense of humor, didn’t they? The fucking bastards.”
“Guess they did.”
The man’s lame arm twitched as he struggled to wrap his hand around Leon’s arm. “You do what you have to do and then you come back. You understand me?”
“Only if you promise to wait for me.”
“You know where to find me.” He huffed, then closed his eyes and leaned back. “How is the girl?”
Leon’s throat constricted.
“Manuela?”
“What other girl is there?”
“Fine.” He could feel the tears threatening. He would not cry; he couldn’t. Jack would start worrying.
The man who broke so many rules so they could be together. Who followed him into the jungle and lost his arm; who came back to him from the darkest shadows in Leon’s time of need and lost his mind for it.
“She is doing fine,” Leon said again, his voice clearer. “She’s working as a teacher now.”
“A teacher? Good. That’s good.”
Leon squeezed the papery hand under his, then leaned against the bony shoulder, no words spoken. Jack watched the birds; Leon watched him. He waited for the eyes to cloud over, before he kissed the temple of the man and rose. Jack looked up with confusion written all over his face.
“Leon? Is that you?”
“Yes, Jack,” he said, fighting to keep his voice from wobbling. It’s me.”
The nurse descended on them.
“Mr. Kennedy? Visitation is over.”
“But he just got here.”
“I must ask you to leave.”
“But he just got here,” Jack snapped.
“I’ll come again soon,” Leon said, unsure whether Jack heard him, doubting whether he made a promise he can keep. But before he could say anything else a hand got hold of him, and steered him towards the exit.
As the great gates slammed shut behind him, his phone began vibrating.
“Leon?” Hunnigan’s cool, professional voice was like a breath of fresh air. “Are you ready to go?”
Back to the place where his nightmares were born? No, he didn’t think he was; but it was just another hurdle he had to jump in order to keep his promise.
“Ready as I’ll ever be.”