Ammunition
Chapter 1
The ping-pong ball soared across the table as Jill and Claire literally back flipped to hit it. "You think they could have trained us by making us play ping-pong said Jill as she did a split to hit the ball. " Nah, that doesn't involve guns" insisted Claire, jumping a few feet in the air and whacking the ball as hard as she could. Jill, dressed in her white T. shirt, violet plaid mini skirt, white visor, white tennis shoes, and violet charm necklace expected to play tennis with her best friend, but when she saw Chris enter the game room across the street, she insisted that she and Claire go there as well. When she hit the ball as hard as she possibly could, and it flew across the room for Claire to retrieve, she decided that it was her chance to talk to Chris. She laid the paddle down on the black ping-pong table and rushed across the room to the arcade games, where Chris was playing. She tightened her sloppy pony tail and noticed that Chris was looking confusedly over at where she had just left. She turned and saw that Claire was there, so Chris wasn't searching for her. Jill ducked behind an old pinball machine and watched Chris staring at where she had been standing. "Dude, you're messing up your game" said Leon, punching Chris playfully in the shoulder. "What?" he asked, turning around to talk to his gaming opponent. "The game?". "Oh right, sorry Leon". He glanced one last time at the ping-pong table and began to play again. "You're not paying attention" Jill heard Leon say. "What are you thinking about?". He waved his hand in front of Chris' face. Chris shook his head. "Sorry" he mumbled. "You've been staring at Jill all day, what's gotten in to you?". Chris blushed. Jill gaped at Leon. Had Chris really been staring at her? "Seriously, if I didn't know better, I'd think you were some kind of stalker or something". Stalker? Had Chris been following her as well? Now Jill was starting to blush. "Jill, what are you doing over here?" asked Claire from behind. Jill jumped. "Sorry, um, I dropped my quarter" said Jill awkwardly. "Listen Valentine, I need to talk to you". When did Claire start calling her by her last name? "Do you like Chris?" asked Claire, beating the paddle against her own hand. "No, he's just one of my best friends, that's all". Claire raised her eyebrows. "Well, don't you be messing around with my brother". "Why would I mess around with Chris, we're just friends, nothing special". "I've seen the way he looks at you Jill". Jill turned, surprised at this sudden comment. "He looks at me like what?". "Don't tell me you haven't caught him staring at you lately". "Well, actually, Claire, I haven't". Claire shook her head. "You don't understand, do you?". "Chris has "feelings" for you, obviously, ever since the day he first saw you, so I'm asking you to keep your mouth shut, and not to like him back" said Claire. Jill stared in to Claire's unforgiving eyes. They were hard and cold, the opposite of the way Chris' looked. "I hate people who go out with my brother" said Claire suddenly. "Things always get awkward, and I lose a great friend half the time when Chris and the girl break up". "You act like we're on a playground or something" said Jill. "We're not in grade school". Claire, in her oversized long-sleeve shirt, distressed skinny jeans, old baseball cap, and faded sneakers looked like she was about to throw down. "Just don't date him Jill, if you do, I'll never forgive you". "I'm going to ask him today if he likes you". "Don't Claire, he doesn't like me, trust me" insisted Jill. Claire rolled her eyes. "He has a picture of you in his wallet" she said. "How do you know?" asked Jill, blushing. "Aha!, you blushed!" cried Claire. Jill looked away. "So it's not true?". "No, he seriously took out his wallet the other day at the store and a picture of you fell out". "What picture, I never gave him one". She had caught Claire lying. She wished that her story were true though. "The one with you and Chris when you escaped the mansion, except he cut you out and put you in his wallet". Jill smiled. Chris had asked to take that picture with her in the helicopter. Now she knew why. "Don't worry Claire" said Jill. She wasn't sure she could keep this promise to never even like Chris, but she might try. "Wanna go swimming, you can relax that way, you seem steamed". Claire seemed slightly offended but agreed to the pool. Jill only hoped that Chris would follow her, maybe…. She walked out the door with Claire, glancing behind her as she did so. Sure enough, Chris and Leon were heading out as well. So he was stalking her after all. Jill flipped her ponytail and acted as if she were unaware of Chris and Leon trailing after them. Claire turned around and noticed them though. Crap. This wasn't going to pretty. She took her place beside Leon, who happened to be her boyfriend. He put his arm around her. "Where are you going?" she asked suspiciously. "Pool" he replied simply. "And you?". "Pool". "Cool, maybe we can meet up there". Claire glared at Chris. She quickly kissed Leon and tugged Jill to her car. "Come on, Valentine" she said roughly, driving to the pool. Jill could hear her saying "Nice way to relax" under her breath. "That was so not my fault" whispered Jill, turning to face Claire. "I know". Claire lowered her eyes. Her red hair shined in the sunshine, unlike Chris' brown spiky hair. "I need to talk to Chris after training". Jill felt sorry for Chris. What if it got ugly? When they arrived at the community pool, Jill quickly darted out of the car. She wanted to be far away if Claire brought up Chris' "crush". She quickly slipped on a bikini that tied around the neck and walked to a picnic table. Claire, Chris, and Leon were just starting to arrive. Jill decided to wait for them while they changed. She suddenly felt exposed when she saw Claire wearing a full piece bathing suit. Jill guessed that it was a good thing. If she wanted to flirt with Chris, wasn't the bikini the best choice? She let her brown hair down and dived in to the icy water. It surrounded her and made her feel like it was winter outside. As she floated to the top, she saw another shape near her. "Chris" she gasped as she took in air. She turned around quickly and splashed him. Chris laughed and splashed her back. "Ice, ice, baby" he sang as the cold water splashed on to his face. Jill laughed. "I could beat you holding my breath" said Jill daringly. "Alright, you ready?" asked Chris. Jill nodded. He took her hand in his and they both went underwater. It seemed like the world was in slow motion. Jill and Chris held hands and stared at each other, each truly thinking about the other very fondly. Chris took in Jill's brown hair surrounding her pale skin, and her gray eyes, standing out against the clear blue water. Jill stared at Chris' brown eyes and brown hair, barely moving in the water. It felt as if Jill could hold her breathe forever staring in to those eyes. Chris took her other hand and pulled her closer, and Jill laid her head against his muscular chest. He wrapped his arms around her waist and closed his eyes. She wrapped her arms around his neck and did the same. Did best friends do this when they had breath holding competitions? Jill wasn't sure but she knew that she felt perfect in the arms of Chris Redfield. Suddenly, they seem to come to the surface. They each gasped for breath. It was hard considering that their mouths were only a few centimeters away. "Wanna go to the deep end?" asked Jill, still short on air. Chris nodded, still trying to catch his breath. They both swam at the same pace to the eight foot section. The water was dark and you couldn't see the bottom. Chris made Jill float anyway, so it didn't matter. "Why were you looking over at the ping-pong table today?" asked Jill. "You seemed mesmerized with it.". Jill knew the answer perfectly well, but she wanted to hear it from Chris' lips. "I was, um, looking for you" he said. He blushed. "I was startled when I didn't see you there". "How did you know I was there?" asked Jill. She knew that she was walking on thin ice now. Chris smiled and squinted his eyes. "I think you already know the answer to that, Jill". Jill lowered her eyes. "Yeah, I guess I just wanted to hear you say it, like knowing it wasn't enough, or something". "Your sister thought that I was "messing around" with you". "She's the one who told me". Jill turned to look in to Chris' eyes. He stared back in to hers. "We're only best friends, and that's what I told her". Chris laughed. "Only?". Jill smiled shyly. "Yeah, I guess". "Um, Redfield?". "Yes, Valentine?". "Can you help me with my top, it kinda, um, came undone". She turned, showing her back and the two loose strings that were supposed to tie around her neck. "I would happy to tie it for you, but wouldn't you feel more comfortable with Claire tying it for you"?. Jill shook her head. "Why?". "Because she's a girl.". "So what?". Jill noticed that Chris smiled as he took the two strings in his hands and tied them, lightly touching her back and sending prickles up her spine. "There" he said softly. Jill turned to look in to Chris' eyes. "Thanks". Suddenly, Jill felt something wrap around her ankle. "Chris, help!" she cried, but it was muffled as the thing pulled her underwater. She couldn't kick it off. It kept pulling her deeper and deeper to the bottom of the pool. She couldn't float back up, and she was drowning. She screamed but nobody heard her. "Chris!". Still, the noise was muffled. She was breathing in too much water. Jill felt like she was about to faint. Suddenly, she felt something muscular wrap around her body. She was only semi-conscious, so she didn't realize anything had happened. Jill could actually breathe air again. What was going on? She wasn't really positive about anything, but she could hear people talking in the background. "Is she alive?". "What happened?". "She needs mouth-to-mouth". "There's no lifeguard on duty". "Jill!". Jill could only identify one voice, and that was Chris'. "I'll do it" he was saying. Do what? Suddenly, Jill felt lips against her own. They were soft and warm. What was happening? Somebody was pressing on her chest, and blowing in to her mouth. What the heck! Jill finally found the strength to sit up, and instantly she spat out water. She began coughing, and finally spoke. "What happened!" she asked. She could make out the blurry form of Chris, holding a towel and wrapping it around her. "This is someone's idea of a sick joke" she heard Leon say. Jill turned and saw somebody holding a greenish shape. "What?" she asked. She felt Chris pull her close. "Eels in the pool" Claire said, walking to the person holding the horrific creatures. "How original". "What happened though?" Jill asked once again. She heard Chris speak up. "The eels wrapped around your ankle and pulled you underwater". "I pulled it off and got you out of the water". "Then who did CPR?" asked Jill. "Me" she heard Chris say. Jill finally noticed that Chris had her in a tight embrace. Wow. How come she hadn't noticed that before? The towel was wrapped around both of them, making them even more close. So Chris had technically kissed her, in a life saving sort of way. That made Jill blush. He had volunteered to do it as well. 'Thank you for missing work today life guard' thought Jill. The only bad part was, everyone had seen it, which meant Claire knew that they had touched lips. Crap. Jill knew she was going to get it on the way home. Then she realized it didn't matter that much now. She stood on her tip-toes and whispered "Thank you" in to Chris' ear. She felt Chris put his hand on her back and pull her so close that if she were Chris' height, they would have been kissing. "Welcome" he said in to her ear. The feel of his breath on her neck gave her goose bumps. "I would kiss you in we weren't in public" Chris said lightly, so that only Jill could hear. "Maybe later". Jill's eyes grew wide. Did he seriously say that! "I'm so glad your safe". Jill closed her eyes. She wanted this moment to last forever. She would have been cold had it not been for Chris' body heat. "Chris" she said for no reason. Chris mumbled something that wasn't a word and pulled the towel away. Jill walked away in to the restrooms and looked in the mirror. She looked like Wesker. Her eyes were red and irritated from the pool water. Her hair was messy and her cheeks were sunburned. She had a large hand print on her chest. It was Chris' hand print, where he had given her CPR. She put her own hand in to the shape and smiled when she saw how big Chris' hand was compared to her own. When Claire entered the rest room, Jill quickly ran in to a changing stall and pulled her tennis outfit over her bikini. She put her hair back up and opened the door slowly. She found Claire waiting for her. "I saw you" she said angrily. Jill looked at the floor. "I couldn't help that" said Jill. "Chris was just being nice". "They are a lot of things you can't help Valentine". Claire and Jill rode to Jill's house in silence. When they arrived, Jill thanked Claire for the drive and entered her house. She slipped her bikini off and smiled at the handprint still there. So what if she broke that promise? Jill stepped in to the shower and bathed, allowing the bubbles to slide down her back. She felt clean at last, and was disappointed at the fact that the handprint had disappeared in the shower. She walked to her dresser and pulled on a pink, short, lacy nightgown. It was sleeveless and showed a lot of skin, but Jill knew that she probably wouldn't have any guests. It was above the knees, and ended at her thighs. Jill braided her hair, and brushed her teeth until she thought that she was ultra clean. She soon found herself sitting in the living room, watching television but not really paying attention. Her mind whirled with thoughts of Chris. Was he really going to kiss her? If so, when? Had he been following her? Was he thinking of her like she was of him? Finally, Jill remembered the day of the mansion incident. She had been sitting in that cell for hours, imprisoned by electronic keypads on the doors. She was cussing out Umbrella Corporation aloud since nobody could hear. She was stuck on that bed, nothing to do. All she could think of was Chris. She kept seeing his face race across her mind. At last, the door opened. She figured that it would be a worker with Umbrella, but found that she came face to face with Chris. They locked eyes and she could hear Chris breathing. "Jill!" he had exclaimed when he had entered the room. He had been happy to see her. She had been happy to see him. Was she in love? Jill couldn't quite figure that out. She had been partnered up with Chris since the start of S.T.A.R.S., and he had risked his life for her many times. She wished that he had kissed her in that room, maybe he could have done a little more than that. Jill was so lost in thought that she could barely hear the phone. "Hello?" she answered it. "Jill?". "Chris!". "I was just thinking about you". "Same here". YES! "Um, I was wondering, do you want to meet somewhere?" asked Chris. "I already have my pajamas on, but you can come over here if you want" she said. Oops! That sounded wrong. She heard Chris laugh on the other end of the line. "Sure, now let me see if I can sneak past Claire's apartment". Jill laughed, and became taken aback in shock. So he was coming to see her for another purpose than friendship! Why else would he say 'Sneak past Claire's apartment?'. Jill smiled sweetly. "Okay, and try to get over here as soon as possible" she said. Even if she sounded a little desperate, she was being flirty. Chris hung up and Jill knew that she needed to get her place a little more romantic. She turned off her bedroom lights, and all of the other lights. She also placed lit red candles every where and closed the curtains. She didn't want any nosy neighbors peeking at her and Chris. She turned a lamp or two on, only having a little bit of light. She set up red place mats on the table and put out some chocolate fondue and some cherries, along with iced glasses of water. Jill turned her stereo to the jazz station and began to make some decaffeinated coffee. She quickly lit a fire in the fireplace and selected a water fountain screen saver on her computer. It even made noise. Jill vacuumed and swept the floors, plugged in air fresheners, sprayed herself with perfume, folded a blanket and threw it over the back of the couch, tied bows in her hair, put in earrings, slipped on sassy slippers, put on a robe that hung low and exposed her shoulders, slipped on a locket with Chris' picture in it (heart shaped), cleaned the whole house, made her bed so that the sheets pulled out for two (just in case), sprinkled flower petals on the window sills, filled the candy trays with mints and sweethearts, and put on white lacy leggings. This was sure to get Chris' attention. She even put some pictures of Chris on the counter, put a romance book on the table, and put some picture frames with pictures of her and Chris or just Chris on shelves. Just in time, she heard the knock on her door. She opened it and smiled. "Hey Chris" she said. Chris stared at her apartment. "What did you do, clean your whole house before I came?" he asked. It was supposed to be a joke, but Jill decided to say something "suggesting". "Maybe". Chris looked her up and down and finally smiled. "Well that's okay with me". He followed her in to the living room. "It smells good in here, like flowers or something" said Chris at last. Jill smiled. "It's my perfume". She showed him the bottle from the coffee table. Chris seemed a little embarrassed but soon went back to normal. "You look nice" he said. Jill scooted closer to Chris. "I'm not even wearing makeup" she said. "You don't need it". Chris looked completely honest about this. Soon, he noticed the pictures of him on the fireplace. "Where did you get those?". "You know, from all of our missions and stuff". "We are partners". Chris seemed pleased with this statement. He put his arm around Jill and she laid her head on his shoulder. "Thank you for saving my life" she whispered. Chris nodded. "Any time". He seemed to be recalling the mouth-to-mouth thing. Jill dropped the robe off of her shoulders. Chris stared, wide-eyed. Jill carefully reached over to the candy dish and pulled out a sweetheart that said 'Kiss me'. "Did you know these things have little messages?" asked Jill. Chris nodded. "Yeah, what does that one say?" he asked, pointing to the one in Jill's hand. Jill looked in to Chris' eyes and spoke the words "Kiss me". She put the candy in to Chris' mouth and Chris leaned in her direction, the candy still un-chewed in his mouth. Jill leaned forward as well. She now had the robe completely off. Her shoulders were bare. Chris seemed to notice this, but closed his eyes. So did Jill. She soon felt his lips against hers, and could taste the sweet heart in his mouth. It was such a wonderful feeling, his arms around her lower back, her arms around his neck. They just kept kissing and kissing, turning their heads at the right times. He was such a good kisser. Finally, Jill decided she wanted more. She started pulling at his shirt, and he got the idea. Chris pulled his shirt off, only separating their lips for a split second before they re-joined. The sweet heart was being passed back and fourth from each other's mouths. Jill wished there was a sweet heart that said "Sex me". She would certainly give that one to Chris. The question was, would he actually do it? He might, considering he had just taken his shirt off. Jill moved her arms from his neck to his chest. She touched his abs, feeling each one as he kissed her. He had a six-pack. Jill leaned against the back of the couch and put her hands above her head. Chris pushed her against the couch kissing her even more forcefully. 'Wow, I love sweethearts' thought Jill. Chris had moved on from her lips to her chest and neck. Jill began to worry if it would live a mark like his handprint did. Soon, he had moved on to her hip. Where was this going? Finally, Chris had to stop to catch his breath. Both he and Jill were panting. "I told you I would kiss you" said Chris. Jill smiled. "If it weren't for Claire earlier, I probably would have done that to you in the changing rooms" he said. "I wouldn't have minded". "I needed to get that out of my system" said Chris. Jill put her hand on his chest. "I never realized how muscular you were" said Jill. Chris grinned. "I hope we can do that again, soon" said Chris. Jill looked away. "Claire is going to kill you when she finds out" said Jill. Chris winked. "Who says she is?". Jill rubbed Chris' abs again. They locked eyes. Do you want to watch T.V.?" Jill asked. Chris nodded. He went to pick up the remote. "No, that T.V. doesn't work, I meant the one in the bedroom". Chris smiled. Jill looked at Chris dirtily. "We can watch it in bed if you want, Redfield". "Sure, Valentine". They both blew out the candles and turned off the lights before they went in to the bedroom. Chris closed the door. Jill turned the T.V. on. She patted the pillow next to her and Chris sat down. He put his arm around her again, and bit the sweet heart still in his mouth in half. He gave a piece to Jill. "Redfield?". Chris looked at Jill. "What?". "You're my first kiss". Chris smiled. "Same here.". "Yeah right" said Jill. "No really.". Jill laid her head on Chris' chest and became tired. "Feel free to sleep" said Jill. "It's a sleepover". Chris smiled and threw his shirt on the floor. "Alright Valentine".