Ada knew what she was doing, but at the same time she didn't. For months, she had promised herself that she'd quit tormenting herself with his personal affairs. He was gone from her life, he survived the troubles of raccoon city and the past viral outbreak and now, had started a new life of his own. Leon was truly happy and he found another, to feel the pit in his heart that Ada had left.
But everything I did, I did for you. Ada thought, as she stood outside in the snow, looking into the window of a small cafe. It was greatly decorated for Christmas. There were lights inside, there was even a green decorated tree sitting near the window, but that's not what caught her attention.
She stared at the family of two inside. Both eating with pure smiles on their faces. There was the beautiful redhead. Ada knew that she would never match the beauty of that woman. Her red curly hair fell on her shoulders as she stared lovingly into the eyes of the man before her. Her face was pale, with a bright red blush that ran across her cheeks.
She wore a wool coat, so Ada was unable to see what she wore. Across the table, her husband stared back at her. He smiled at her with a smile that Ada never knew he could manage.
"Leon..." She was unaware that she even said his name. After all, he couldn't hear her. He was behind glass, safe and protected from the cold.
Ada, on the other hand, sat on a frozen bench. She wore a white trench coat and a red scarf. Her head was bare, except for the white beret that was supposed to aid in keeping her warm. Her gloves and boots were white, allowing her to blend in perfectly with the snow.
She'd seen snow a lot, it had reminded her off a memory that she believed was long forgotten. Something that she knew was there, but could never remember. As she stared at the family before her, she began to wonder if she ever had one, if she ever belonged to one.
Happily, she would trade places with the wife of the man she loved. But that would never happened, Ada simply, could not live a life like that.
"A fresh snowfall, makes for a fresh spring." Ada remembered that from long ago as the snow fell from the sky and onto her.
She continued to stare, but this time her gaze rested on Leon. He laughed with his wife, occasionally as the two both ate. Every So often, she would place her hand on her stomach and stop for a while. Then, she would gaze into Leon's eyes with a smile on her lips. From where Ada sat, she could tell the woman was pregnant. She was showing enough for any bystander to notice.
"When mommy was pregnant with you, you made her so fat Ada!" Ada felt her heart skip a beat as she remembered. "You made it so hard for her to walk!"
"Shut up James!" And then like that, the memory had left her.
She hadn't noticed, but her eyes were opened wide and she wore an expression of pain and surprise. Her hand went to her throbbing heart as she tried her best to remember. She stared at the family of two, soon to be three, before her. She had a family, she knew it!
In her train of thought, she noticed that she the two had stopped conversing. Much to her dismay, she saw Leon looking right at her through the glass window. He rose and excused himself, kissing his wife lovingly on the cheek before he left. For a second, Ada prayed that he was just going to the bathroom. Sadly, he made his way out of the cafe, and began his walk across the street. Her heart pumped faster as he made his way toward her. What was he doing?
"Ada, remember no matter what happens, no matter where you are...you are not alone." That memory struck her more than any others had so far. She felt a presence of warmth in her freezing heart as she stared at the man presently standing above her.
"Leon." She smiled as she looked above. What a facade she wore. "Long time, no see."
"Ada. What are you doing here?" Leon didn't sound as pleased as Ada wanted him to sound, but who could blame him.
"Nothing." Ada replied as she crossed her legs. "I happened to be walking by and decided to sit down. I noticed you and your wife, congratulations." She smiled at him. "I can't really imagine you as a father."
Leon remained silent. He stared at Ada with something unreadable in his eyes.
"What?" Ada asked as she noticed that his wife was absent from her space. "What do you want Leon? Your wife is pregnant, you obviously have someplace to be."
"Why do you show up like this?" Leon asked as his wife's footsteps could be heard from behind him.
Ada rose, and stared into the eyes of the young redhead as she attached herself to Leon's arm.
"To protect you..." Ada's heart became heavy as she stared at the beautiful redhead, who appeared even more beautiful up close. It was obvious that she was oblivious to what was going on.
"What are you?" Leon asked, as the redhead looked up at him in shock then turned to Ada.
"Leon honey, who is this?"
"No one." Ada said before she turned on her heel and walked away. She heard the couple bicker quietly behind her.
"Ada, wait!" Apparently Leon's wife had allowed him to stray from her for just a moment.
"What is it Leon? I have someplace to be."
"Why Ada!?" Leon asked. "How could you do this to me?" At that moment, Ada felt confused. "Are you trying to confuse me?
"Leon," And surprisingly, Ada wore a smile on her face. "It was your choice to leave the cafe and see me, not mine."
"But..." Leon stopped for a while and put his head down. Ada couldn't help but feel sorry for the man.
"There's nothing you can say, Leon. You've found a new life, you're happy. Don't let me ruin that." Leon looked like he wanted to reply, but if he did, he had lost his chance. Ada had already turned around, and began walking away.
"You are not alone." Ada thought as she walked down the snowy streets, shoving by people. "Yeah right." She said, causing some unwanted attention.
If ever Ada had a family, they had abandoned her...they didn't care about her whatsoever. If they really did, then she wouldn't be stuck in the situation she was in now.
A broken heart, and no family on Christmas Eve. The more she thought about it, the more angrier she became. If Leon could have a happy life then why couldn't she? Better yet, why didn't Leon go out and search for her like she had for him? Every day of her life after raccoon city was spent protecting him and making sure that her enemies (and his occasionally) stayed away from him.
"It's fine Ada, it's fine to love someone, just make sure they deserve your love. If you spend your life protecting them, then you sure as hell better make sure they chose you in the end. If that's not the case, then don't you dare waste your life waiting for their love." She remembered that one well enough to know who the speaker was. John, her John.
The only person she felt actually understood her. The two were polar opposites but still, felt genuine love towards one another. Sadly he was gone and that made Ada feel more lonely than ever. As she walked with her head down, avoiding the gazes of those around her, she felt a freezing tear trickle down her cheek.
"You're not going to cry!" She told herself as she continued on. "Not because of him!"
Suddenly, at that moment, her phone rang. Without even looking at the caller ID, she answered it.
"Hello!" She spoke, attempting to hide her cracking voice.
"Oh, hey Ada! I'm surprised you picked up. You know, I was wondering, since it was Christmas Eve, if you wanted to come over to my house. I know it's such a short notice but I think you'd like it. After all, I've already bought you a few presents. Don't worry, you don't have to worry about me." The joy in the woman's voice made Ada's heart melt. Now, she allowed herself to cry. Worried, the caller on the other line began to talk more.
"Ada? Ada are you alright?"
"Yeah..." Ada slowly pulled herself together. "Thank you Claire, I'm fine! Y...you're so kind to me..."
"Oh Ada! I'm only kind to you because you earned it. If it weren't for you, well let's say my brother would've eventually killed himself, and I would've been depressed. It'll just be the two of us, but you should come on over! You can stay a few nights, maybe we can spend New Years together. I know it sounds silly telling you this, but I looked up that it's popular in Chinese culture! Maybe we can do something that makes you feel closer to home."
"Yeah. You know, give me a couple of hours!" Ada pulled herself together. "I'll be there soon."
"Okay, that gives me time to clean up the house. Oh, and Ada...please remember that you are not alone." And with that, the young Redfield hung up the phone.
"I'm not alone..." Ada repeated as she held the phone.
How could she be so blind? She was so blinded by the love of a man that would never be hers that she couldn't see the family before her. Ada shamed herself for her stupid actions. She needed to learn to cherish what she had rather than long for something she didn't. She never knew when the last time she saw someone, would actually be the last time she would ever see them.
Her biological family, was an excellent example of that.
Now she had to focus on what she had laid out before her.
A family, a friend, and a whole new life.
You are not alone.
Once said by her father, her brother, her mother and strangely enough Claire, whom she viewed as a sister more than anything.
I know at some parts, this story could have gotten a bit confusing, and honeslty I wanted it to be that way. I didn't want it to be a straight forward story, at all. But, nevertheless I hope you liked it. The last section of the story, was written with the Conneticut shooting fresh in my mind. Basically, cherish those you have folks. You never know when the last time you see someone, may actually be the last time you see them. I know, we get into arguments with the ones we love...but try not to let a hurtful word, sentence, or anything be the last thing you say to someone. And lastly, I don't own any of these characters. Only Leon's wife!