Since the Resident Evil 2 remake just came out, I have been doing my research on Resident Evil. I haven't played any of the games (I know, I'm a poser) but from what I saw in the remake, I became obsessed with Leon and Ada's complicated relationship. This fic might not be completely true to character, but I had to get something out to keep myself from going crazy. Please read and review! Thank you.
A bar wasn't exactly Leon Kennedy's favorite place to be, but he was feeling a bit adventurous, so he and a couple friends from the academy decided to go out that night and have a few drinks. He didn't even like alcohol that much, but he thought that it couldn't hurt. However, when he and a few friends got to their bar of choice, he couldn't help but feel like there was a sort of damper on this particular night. The smiles on his friends' faces were subdued and there was little conversation among them as they drank.
Leon himself had gotten through a few beers when suddenly, the bar went silent for a moment. He looked up from his mug to see a woman walking up to the bar. She wore a red blouse and black jeans that hugged shapely legs tightly. She sauntered up to the bar and sat down casually, the loud clacking of her black stilettos like daggers in the curtain of quiet. Suddenly, the moment was gone, and the chatter of the other patrons resumed.
He was surprised that a woman would come to a bar alone, let alone a woman as beautiful as her. Didn't girls always come to bars in groups? Instantly, he knew there was something special about this new arrival.
He did want to do something about the fact that she was sitting alone. His friend sitting to his right, Albert, seemed to notice his fixation on the lady in red. He tapped him on the shoulder, causing Leon to look at him with a confused expression. With a sideways grin, Albert asked, "You wanna do something about that chick at the bar?"
Leon felt the tips of his ears heat up, but he tried to brush it off by letting out a nervous laugh. "Maybe," he replied simply. Albert clapped him on the back.
His friend's expression suddenly became serious, and his tone less playful, but instead honest. "Go for it, buddy. 'You miss 100 percent of the shots you don't take,' right? It won't hurt." Leon smiled. Albert had always been good at boosting his confidence, in situations just like these, and many others.
"Thanks," Leon breathed. He slid to the edge of the booth and stood, but as Leon looked at the lady in red once more, he doubted himself for a moment. Are you really the kind of guy to approach someone you don't know?
Leon knew he couldn't let the opportunity just pass him by since it was likely she would be approached by many other men tonight. However, instead of walking to the bar to talk to the beautiful woman, he found his legs propelling him towards the bathroom, and fast. He pushed open the door to the bathroom and walked up to the sink and the mirror that hung above it. He looked himself in the eye and said to his mirror image, "You can do this, Leon."
You're ridiculous, Leon's subconscious announced to him. He turned the faucet on, cupping his hands to hold some of the water, and splashed a little on his face. He didn't want to look like he'd just dunked his head in a pool, so he took it easy, but enough to look normal. Every time he went out, he resolved to take it easy on the liquor, and he was glad he did, because he didn't want to sound like a total idiot when he went up to this woman.
Leon opened the door and left the bathroom, finally ready to take his chance. When he turned the corner from the hallway that led to the bathroom, he looked at the bar to find the woman being talked to by a tall man. He was smiling as if the two were all buddy-buddy while talking to her, but she seemed uninterested in his small talk. She simply sat there sipping away at her cocktail, eyes glued to the bar, while he tried relentlessly to get her interested. Leon decided to slowly make his way over to the bar, expecting the situation to go south quickly.
Now that he was closer, he could hear some of the things the man was saying to her. He spoke louder and louder for every second she ignored him, and only grew more and more irritated. "Come on, baby, let me buy you a drink, huh? One won't hurt." As Leon came around the bar, he watched her finally acknowledge the man's presence. She turned away from Leon, and he could only imagine the irritation on her face and in her voice until he heard her speak.
"I'm not interested, hotshot," she said confidently, her voice dripping with honey. Leon was impressed. She didn't seem intimidated in the slightest.
"She speaks!" Announced the drunkard, but after he spoke, all pleasantries evaporated from his demeanor. "Now come on, let me buy you a drink," he repeated, trying to make a pass at her by putting his hand on her shoulder. She smacked it off quickly, showing the first signs of irritation.
Leon began to stride towards the man, ready to come to the woman's defense. "What's wrong with you?" Whined the drunk. "Can't accept a friendly offer? What a bitch."
Leon finally stepped between the two, ready to take care of him, but before he could do anything, the man simply ambled off, mumbling under his breath. He made a show of kicking the door open and leaving, earning a shout of anger from the barkeep. Once again, people had been watching in silence, and seconds after his departure, they continued talking as if nothing had happened.
In the wake of the altercation, Leon simply stood a few feet in front of the woman, confused. "I was expecting him to throw a punch or something," Leon muttered under his breath. To be honest, he was a little disappointed he couldn't have defended her. That was a textbook method of impressing a woman, or so he had been taught.
Suddenly, the woman's voice cut through his thoughts, bringing him back to the real world. "You didn't need to step in like that, Mister Hero," she said, her voice still carrying the same calm, seductive tone.
He finally got a chance to look at her straight on. She was even more beautiful now that he had seen her face. She wore little makeup besides some mascara and blood-red lipstick. Her eyes were a striking green, her gaze impaling him and rooting him to the spot.
"Clearly," Leon began. " I mean, the situation basically took care of itse-"
"No," she interrupted. "I mean, I could have taken care of him myself." Leon studied her facial expression to see if there was any mirth in it, but he found none. He was surprised, but at the same time, he expected nothing less, based on her confident attitude.
"I don't doubt it," Leon conceded. "But I have a couple questions for you, if you don't mind." Leon almost balked at what he had just said. What was causing this sudden lack of respect for boundaries? However, she didn't seem bothered, which only confused him further.
"Ask away, cowboy," she said, brushing a strand of hair behind her ear.
Leon smiled slightly. "Mind if I, uh…" he faltered, gesturing towards the stool next to her at the bar. She nodded as means of response, turning back towards the wall of drinks behind the bar. He was growing more surprised by the second. Why was this working? Once again, he pushed the questions aside and hoisted himself onto the stool. He turned towards her slightly, resting one of his arms on the bar.
"So, I hate to sound cliché, but what's a woman like you doing at a dive like this?" Second after second, Leon was impressing himself with the confidence he was displaying. He watched her smile faintly, still looking into her almost-empty cocktail.
She stirred it with the small black straw as she replied. "I wanted something different. I usually go to nightclubs, that kind of thing, but lately, they've lost their charm for me."
Leon nodded. He signaled the barkeep for a drink of his own, and taking note of the emptiness of her glass, he asked, "Do you mind if I… buy you a drink? You're almost done with that one." He wanted to smack himself when he saw the expression on her face, a slight frown. Almost immediately, though, it became a flirtatious grin.
"I don't let a man buy me a drink until I know his name, handsome," she said, letting out a small giggle. Her laugh was a beautiful sound, he thought. Little by little, he realized, he was becoming more and more infatuated with this woman.
"Leon," he replied, finally getting his beer from the barkeep and taking a swig. He wiped his upper lip after putting the mug down, and asked, "And you are…?"
"Ada," she said, turning to look at him, rising from her leaning position to sit straight and turning towards him. She placed her left leg on the foot-stand on Leon's stool, which with any other person would have made him feel trapped, but with Ada, the gesture felt different.
"Well, Ada," he said, emphasizing her simple, yet elegant name, "May I buy you that drink now?"
She removed her leg from his stool and turned back towards the bar, nodding. "I'll take a mug of whatever you're having." Leon's eyebrows raised in surprise.
"Really?" Was all he could manage to ask her.
"Yeah, why not? Let's have some fun. Those colorful lady drinks don't do much in terms of giving a buzz anyway." She gave him a powerful sideways glance as if to emphasize her point. He leaned back, putting his hands up in mock surrender.
"All right. Let's have some fun, then," Leon said, parroting Ada. Once again, he signaled for the barkeep, and when he approached, he requested "A mug of this," gesturing towards his, "for the lady, please." She laughed again. This caused him to turn and look at her, shooting her an inquisitory glance.
"Are you always this suave, Leon?" Ada asked without hesitation, throwing him off-balance. He began to stutter, suddenly struggling to string a sentence together.
"Well… no," he was able to say after a few seconds. Her head tilted to the side slightly, and her short hair hung off of her head like a curtain.
"What's causing this change tonight, then?" This gave Leon pause. He had no idea, if he was being honest with himself. He decided to tell her the same thing that his heart was telling him. He took a deep breath before speaking.
"I guess it's because… I've never seen a woman like you before." He deliberately directed his gaze away from her as she processed what he had said. He noticed some patrons sitting at the tables eyeing him with what looked like jealousy, and when he turned to the booth where he had been sitting before, he noticed Albert and his other friends giving him the thumbs up and a wave.
"Now what's that supposed to mean?" She asked, propping her head up by an arm that rested on the bar.
He turned back towards Ada, a bit nervous now. He was turning back into normal, cheesy, awkward Leon, and he didn't want his good streak to end. "Well, I mean, you're… beautiful. Also, I'm surprised you haven't come here with any friends. Do you usually go to bars alone, or is this new?"
"I'm not going to ignore the fact that you just called me beautiful, Leon," she said, smirking. Leon couldn't help but turn a bit red at how she called him out. At this point, she had to know she was teasing him. He could feel his leg beginning to shake from nerves. "You're sweet, you know that?" She continued. "I feel like you don't let a lot of people see that side of you, if I'm right."
"Well," Leon began, trying to assert himself, "That's a conversation for another time." One of her eyebrows rose in surprise, and he realized what he had implied when he said that. "Anyway, you didn't answer my question." He was satisfied with how he hadn't faltered for once, and waited for her response, taking another generous swig from his tall mug.
"I've never exactly been the one for friends," Ada admitted somewhat quietly. Leon leaned in slightly to hear her better. Her gaze fell to her hands, which she had begun to wring under the bar, he noticed.
"Why's that?" Leon was drawn in by her cryptic response, and he wanted to know as much as he possibly could about this mysterious woman before the night was over.
"Well," she began, developing a small grin, contrasting her slight discomfort of just seconds ago, "that's a conversation for another time, isn't it?"
"I suppose I deserved that," Leon said, grinning. He leaned back and for a moment studied Ada, giving her a quick up-and-down glance. His eyes rested on her legs once more. They were long and toned, and he was struck with a desire to -
He glanced away. Now was not the time to be having creepy thoughts. Suddenly, his phone, which had sat in his jeans pocket, buzzed. He said, "Just a second, Ada," and fished it out of his pocket. The notification he received was a text from Albert.
we're heading out, u leaving w us or u gonna keep talking 2 the hottie in red?
Leon smiled, typed out a quick "catch you later" and stuffed his phone back in his pocket. He looked back up at Ada, who had been alternating glances between Leon's reaction and the phone in his hand. She spoke with her jaw resting on a closed fist. "Was that a hot date?"
Leon shook his head vehemently. "No, not at all. It's just my buddies who came here with me." She nodded, then proceeded to finish the remainder of her beer in one gulp. Leon looked on in amazement.
"Well," Ada announced, "I think it's about time I got going." She hopped down from her stool and Leon followed suit, slapping a few bills on the bar. He didn't know how much he had put down, but it was probably enough for the drinks he had bought.
"Let me walk you out," Leon offered. He now noticed that he wasn't much taller than Ada, at least at her height in heels. She smiled and walked away from him towards the door, looking at him while making a "come hither" gesture with her hand. He chuckled and followed. He looked one last time at the other bargoers before he left, and he could have sworn he noticed a few guys give him a nod of approval as he walked. Ada pushed the door open and Leon caught it, following her out into the warm night.
She stood in front of the bar with her arms crossed, the neon signs on the wall illuminating her face so beautifully that she looked like a technicolor daydream. Leon approached her so that he stood about two feet away, just to be safe. However, he noticed her inching closer to him where he stood. Alarm bells were beginning to quietly whine in his head.
"It was really nice meeting you, Ada," Leon said. He smiled and she reflected him. Suddenly, Leon felt hot. He now noticed that the proximity between him and the beautiful, mysterious Ada had decreased slowly and he hadn't noticed. Her face was inches away from his own, and his next words got caught in his throat. The alarm bells were screaming now, blood rushing in his ears, but he somehow kept it under control.
"The real pleasure was meeting you, Leon," Ada whispered seductively. Leon's eyes widened. God, she's beautiful. Leon nodded, half in response to his own thought, and half in response to Ada's statement. He closed his eyes and tried to regain his composure, but during the moment that he shut them, he felt a feather-soft pressure on his cheek, and a hand on his chest.
His eyes shot open, and he watched Ada's face slowly inch away from his. He also felt her take his hand in her own and place something in it. She took a few steps back, giving him a small wave, and saying, "Bye now." She turned away from him, and her hips swayed seductively as she walked into the night.
"Bye, Ada," Leon called after her. He watched her go until he could no longer make out her figure, and the shadows swallowed her. He had still not examined the item Ada had placed in his hand, so he decided to do that now that she was gone. He opened his fist and found that it was a slightly ruffled scrap of paper. He held it up closer to his eyes so that he could make out the small writing on it.
"For another time," it read in looping, delicate script, and below it a set of digits. Leon's jaw almost dropped from astonishment and elation. He read the note over and over, engraining the image into his mind to convince him that what he held in his hand was real. He stuffed it into his pocket and turned in the opposite direction she had walked, with a smile that stretched ear to ear.
To: ALBERT
Attachment: 1 Image
the lady in red is dancing with me, cheek to cheek…
Thanks so much for reading this. I hope you enjoyed! I think I intend for this fic to be a oneshot, but if you have any ideas for a future chapter, please let me know in the reviews! Until next time.
