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One of the perks of Alice's position at Umbrella is the pay. Not that she does all that much with it. She and Spence are allowed to put whatever they want in the Looking Glass House, but the furniture and decorations are minimal. The majority of it was already there when they moved in. Plastic sheets still cover the big stone statues. Sans the far ends, the large dining table is covered in a layer of dust.
That's not to say Alice never splurges, though. The three long coats she cycles between drowning in are the designer kind. She drives a BMW, parks it next to Spence's convertible, which is so pristine that it makes hers look like a beater. He tells her she's too crazy behind the wheel. Intense is what he calls her. She says he's the overly cautious type. He won't even spar with her.
"Are you afraid I'm going to kick your ass?" she asked.
"I just don't get it. You can get a workout without us swinging at each other. There's equipment in the gym, Ali."
"That's a yes."
He scoffed.
"You're gonna get rusty."
Rain isn't afraid to hit the mats with her, at least. "You better give me the best you've got," she'd demanded the first time around, "'cause I'm sure as hell not goin' easy on you."
It's late. Alice shoves her hands into her pockets as she steps outside. She quickly descends the stone steps, strides past both cars, through the graveyard, and all the way over to the dirt path that leads into the city.
About halfway down, she finally spots Rain's white pickup. She stands there as it slows to a stop beside her. It's a sturdy little thing that might have more dings than hers. She'd have to count to be certain. Rain told her once that it used to be her dad's. "When Umbrella said they wanted me, he gave it to me so I could drive down here from California."
"Really? You came a long way for this."
"Who wouldn't?"
Alice wondered what they told people like Rain. Whatever it was, it certainly wasn't the truth. Or at least not the whole truth. Alice didn't even have that, and the secrets she could spill would already get a gun trained on her head. "What'd you do before?"
"I was a cop."
"What was that like?"
"If I didn't leave, probably would've been fired anyway... It was gettin' real hard not to shove most of those dude's badges up their asses."
Alice pulls open the passenger door. Instead of her usual combo of a painted-on shirt and pants that would be at her ankles without a belt, Rain is dressed in a U.S.S. sweatshirt and faded sweats. Gym clothes. I-wanna-be-comfortable clothes. Her damp hair is pulled into a low ponytail. "Hope you don't think we're goin' out." She eyes the simple asymmetrical blue dress beneath Alice's trenchcoat as she climbs in. Her gaze lingers on her legs.
"I had to attend a dinner event and didn't feel like changing." Alice decides to lean over the center and press a kiss against Rain's temple. The crisp scent of her shampoo mingles with the cigarette smoke clinging to the vehicle's interior. She's caught by surprise for a split second—her shoulders tense before dropping right back down. She huffs through her nose, but her lips are upturned when their eyes meet.
"Yeah? Sounds like an excuse to steal my clothes." She turns around to start heading back the way she came, and Alice doesn't deny it. "Was it a load of lame corporate crap?"
"It's hardly ever anything else."
"Fuck, man. I grabbed food with J.D. at Grill 13 and I got you somethin' while I was there."
"Aw. You're so sweet." It takes effort not to laugh at the disgusted grimace that instantly contorts Rain's features in response. "Thanks. I can always eat it tomorrow."
"If you keep sayin' stuff like that, I'm gonna stop doin' nice things."
"Sure you will."
The dirt fades into pavement. Rain suddenly says, "I finally told him I was seein' somebody."
Even before Alice had spoken a single word to Rain, she'd often notice her and J.D. together at Umbrella's training facilities. When they weren't roughhousing like high school boys, they were hanging off of each other like a couple. That was what Alice thought, anyway. She had been watching Rain dump a half-finished can of cola J.D. left behind down the sink when she decided to ask, "Do you two have a thing going on?"
Rain snorted. "No." She crushed the can between her palms and lobbed it into the trash.
"I've seen you both flirt," Alice pointed out, idly twisting her fake wedding band on her finger. She wasn't required to do anything more than wear it and act like Spence was her husband in public, but she didn't turn him down when he wanted to have sex with her a few days ago. It wasn't the first time. He was handsome in a tired-looking kind of way, and sometimes when they hung out, they ended up fucking.
That was the kind of relationship she had with Rain, too. Rain had big brown eyes that Alice liked, had watched Alice from beneath her brows as she approached her at Black Jack's, trying to figure out what was going on because Alice didn't talk to anybody, she just stared like she was silently calculating the best way to take the whole room out. Rain's front teeth were kinda crooked when she eventually let herself smile and Alice thought again that she was pretty.
They started sleeping together that night.
Maybe the other day, Alice wished that Spence was Rain halfway through. So. It didn't mean anything. None of it did.
"None of it's serious. He's known from day one that I don't get with dudes. You should see how thick he lays it on when he thinks he's got an actual chance."
Alice couldn't help but be a little relieved by the answer, though.
"Why're you askin'? You jealous?" It was hard to tell if it was a genuine question or if Rain was simply screwing with her.
Regardless, Alice had no reason to be. No right. "I'm not jealous," she lied. "Just curious."
"I didn't say it was you." Rain stops at a signal and flexes her hands on the steering wheel. It's a nervous habit, Alice thinks. One she's rarely seen because Rain likes to start doing things at least a few seconds before she starts thinking, and that doesn't leave much room for nerves to take over.
"How'd he react?" Alice finds it hard to imagine he reacted badly. Maybe not like that, but J.D. and Rain do love each other. There's no doubt they'd take a bullet for each other.
Alice used to not really get that. The whole being willing to die for somebody else thing. However, she used to not question throwing herself away for Umbrella if need be, and that sounds insane to her now. She's not the same person she was when she started her job. Maybe even before. It's hard for her to remember things from back then, and that should be more concerning to her than it is.
Rain doesn't ask much about Alice's past, thankfully, but she almost certainly has the impression that Alice doesn't want to talk about it, not that she has few answers to give.
For the last five months, Red Queen's voice has come crackling out of the single above-ground speaker she has when Alice is alone, advising her to set up an appointment with a medical professional. Alice is careful to stay away from cameras when she's doing things she's unauthorized to, so she isn't exactly positive what she did to get the AI's attention, but she's been putting off seeing anyone for as long as possible. She doesn't want a doctor with an Umbrella pin on their lapel touching her. She knows what those white coats actually get up to.
"...Once he gave up on tryin' to get details outta me, he said he didn't think I was the type to date."
Alice watches her profile for a moment. "You aren't, are you?"
"I wasn't. For a while."
"Guess that makes me special, huh?"
Rain's hands flex again, then squeeze the wheel hard enough to make her knuckles lighter. The light turns green. She briefly glances over at her and smirks. "Yeah, you're special alright, Lys."
Alice jabs an elbow into Rain's side. Rain just cackles and shoves her in return.
The streets are practically dead at this hour. Rain tells her about a training drill her team had today, and Alice doesn't place her hand on top of hers when she lets it sit on the gearshift, but she thinks about it until the opportunity is gone.
"—and I respect him more than anybody, but the way he's started holdin' his rifle with the launcher is drivin' me fuckin' crazy."
"You say that about the way I hold pistols too."
"Yeah, well, if you used both hands, your aim would be more consistent."
"Not all of us are looking to hit the broad side of a fly with our shots, Lara Croft."
"I'm Lara Croft? You're the one who's always in the air and wants to wield two guns at once."
The apartment complex Rain lives in is on the dumpy side. Umbrella boards most of RC's paramilitary in it. They don't get anything fancy unless it's weapons, but Alice believes they deserve it more than her, any of the big suits, or most of those who work in the labs.
There's an ancient elevator, but Rain prefers to climb the four flights of stairs. Although it's not a race, she does seem a little grumpy if Alice reaches the top before she does and maybe that makes Alice go faster, which in turn makes Rain pick up the pace too. "You're doin' this shit on purpose."
"I have no idea what you're talking about." Alice leans on the metal railing, watching Rain glare up at her as she finishes the climb.
"Next time, I'm sprintin' up these steps and leavin' your ass behind. I'm not waitin' to let you inside either." She fishes her keys out of her pocket and gets the door open.
"I'll believe it when I see it."
There isn't much furniture. Most of it is whatever she could cram into the truck, and the rest she's slowly been adding. The two-seater polyester couch is flanked by a set of cheap black folding chairs (just enough spots for her and her buddies to sit). A rug exists there only because it's easier to shake out on the balcony than vacuum every time they make a mess. On the coffee table is an ashtray, clusters of ring stains, and a small stack of firearm magazines. The paper kind, not the kind you load bullets into. Rain gets them mailed to her. They have her address on the back. Alice couldn't be surprised when she first grabbed one, but it was amusing to her nonetheless.
The stand supporting the box TV is being kept level with a VHS copy of Mortal Kombat. Alice has perused the bare-bones collections of tapes on it because Rain always lets her pick and can get exactly one channel to come in. Predator, Rocky, Top Gun, both Terminator films, High Plains Drifter recorded on a blank Sony tape, Escape From L.A., some episodes of Xena: Warrior Princess, Bound, and Lara Croft: Tomb Raider. She preemptively slots a film into the player that sits PlayStation—Alice only knows because it says it right on the disc lid. She can't recall ever having an interest in video games, but she's looked through the jewel cases too and thought about playing with Rain.
A corkboard hangs weirdly low in the hallway. It's covering a hole a shitfaced Warner accidentally put in the drywall with his head. Rain tacks notes on it because they'll stare her right in the face when she leaves the tiny bathroom in the morning. Beneath the grocery list, there's a cute photo of a teenaged Rain with blunt bangs and a bolt-action rifle, standing outside some shooting competition with her dad. They have the same eyes and his shaggy hair curls the way hers does when she doesn't straighten it. Half-obscured by a reminder about a meeting, there's a similar picture of her sitting with her mountain of a brother, who has on big round glasses and a Star Trek shirt. Next coupons for Moon's Donuts, a big brown dog laying on the same plain blue duvet Rain has in her barren bedroom. At the bottom, her half-geared up with J.D., Drew, and Warner. She doesn't exactly look like she wanted to be photographed in any of them, but they are pinned there regardless.
Alice wonders if she can ever end up on there, even if it has to be as a friend. Then for once, she thinks that she needs to slow down.
But she's not good at listening to herself.
Rain discards her sweatshirt on the couch and Alice promptly takes it so she can strip off her dress. She doesn't need anything more.
Rain only raises her eyebrows at her before pulling open the fridge. "You want a beer?"
"Sure." If Alice could get away with wearing Rain's clothes outside of here, Rain would have a hard time getting them back.
She comes over with two bottles in hand and takes the unoccupied spot on the sofa. Alice takes one and leans into her side.
If it wasn't for her duties, she'd spend a lot more time here than she already does.
She takes a long drink and nuzzles Rain's neck. She doesn't say I love you, but not for the first time, she thinks about it.
Then she reminds herself to relax.
(She's too relaxed. That's the problem.)
For now, this is enough. More than enough. More than she truly deserves.
Maybe things will change after she gets a real exit plan in place, after Umbrella is laid open to the bone for the world to see. Knowing about Rain's time in the force tells Alice she'll leave them too. Knowing Rain tells her that.
And that she'll probably be pissed Alice didn't say anything sooner. But this is the kind of thing Alice seriously doesn't want to fuck up. She wants to have everything prepared first. For once.