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The air-conditioning blasted through the hotel room as Claire sat on one of three beds, pulling a bundle of clothes from a plastic bag.
She savoured the comfort of a real mattress. The days since her escape from Raccoon City with Leon and Sherry had been spent lying low in one dingy motel after another.
Thankfully, Leon had grown just as tired of stale cigarette smoke and scratchy paper-thin sheets as she had and finally decided to spring for a nicer place.
Behind her, the door clicked open. Claire jumped to her feet, hand on the gun at her belt, but froze when she saw it was only Leon and Sherry coming in.
“Easy, Claire. It's just us.” Leon lifted his hands in mock surrender, flashing her a quick smile.
Claire felt her face flush as she quickly holstered her gun. Her nerves were still on edge, her mind constantly alert to every sound and movement. She wasn’t sure she’d ever feel normal or safe again.
“Claire! Look what Leon got me!” Sherry ran up in her new clothes, a blue shirt and red shorts, clutching something small in her hands.
“What is it, kiddo?” she asked, feeling a real smile tug at her lips.
She had worried Leon and Sherry wouldn’t connect, especially with Sherry’s mother being the one who had shot him. And Claire knew she didn’t have the strength to care for the girl alone.
To her relief, Leon was great with her. Hell, if she didn’t know better, she could have mistaken Sherry for his daughter.
Sherry held up a small, colourful pebble, grinning. “It changes colour depending on the temperature!” she said, beaming.
Claire laughed. “Lucky girl! That’s cool. Why don’t you run it under the sink and see what happens when you switch from hot to cold water?”
Sherry’s eyes widened at the suggestion, and she hurried off into the small room.
Claire let out a sigh, part relief, part tension. She bit her lip and slowly sank back onto the bed as Leon stepped closer.
“Jeez, Leon. I’m so sorry about–”
“Hey, don’t apologise. I get it, and honestly, I’m glad to see you’re ready to defend yourself. We might not be out of this yet,” Leon said, standing beside her.
Claire nodded, feeling a little better. A few nights ago, they had discussed their next moves and determined that if Umbrella knew they had been at the lab and were travelling with a child who carried the antibodies to their virus, they would likely be hunted down.
Hence the hotel hopping. By keeping on the move, even just a little, they were harder to track.
“So, how much did that pebble set ya back?” she asked, smiling at the absurdity and trying to shift her thoughts.
“Not much,” Leon shrugged, sitting down beside her on the mattress. “I couldn’t deny it to her. She was so fascinated by it – maybe it’ll be another good distraction.”
Claire smiled with a gentle sigh. “Yeah, she needs one, that’s for sure.”
“Speaking of distractions…” Leon rubbed the back of his neck with a nervous laugh. “The lobby had an ad for a three-course meal at one of the restaurants. Pretty good price, too. I was thinking we could feed Sherry and then… maybe pop down for a bit? If you want?”
Claire felt her heart flutter at the faint flush on his cheeks, though she couldn’t quite place why. They were good friends, even if they’d only just met – and under anything but normal circumstances. Now, in the aftermath of the disaster, she could feel just how much they were beginning to rely on each other.
“Yes!” she blurted a little too quickly, feeling her own cheeks warm. “I mean… I’d love that. But we can’t leave Sherry–”
“We’ll check on her,” Leon cut in, his tone just as eager as it was nervous. “Every fifteen minutes. We can even take turns, if you want.”
She smiled at him, her expression softening as their blue eyes met. With the same warmth she felt in his gaze, she laid her hand gently over his.
“How are you so wonderful?” she asked with a laugh, watching his face turn even redder.
“Dunno.” He shrugged, a sheepish smile tugging at his lips. “I’m just glad you think so… because you make all of this feel manageable.”
Before Claire’s mind could register what was happening, they leaned closer, her eyes instinctively locking on his lips.
Suddenly, Sherry came bounding out of the bathroom with her pebble in hand, only to find the two adults on separate beds, each pretending to be fascinated by random objects in the room while carefully avoiding each other’s eyes.
Claire had no idea how they’d pulled it off; one second she was about to kiss him, and the next they were both instinctively pretending nothing had happened the moment they heard the bathroom door open.
She wasn’t sure what would happen next as she watched Sherry dash over to Leon, the pebble glowing a bright red. Suddenly, she felt a flicker of excitement – not just for dinner, but for exploring those strange feelings she was starting to have for him, together.