Resident Evil: The Beginning
9th June, 1998.
Rachelle Dawson walked into the Raccoon City police station. She had just transferred to the sleepy Mid-West American town from her police job in the city to take a vacant place in the resident elite taskforce called the Special Tactics and Rescue Service, or S.T.A.R.S., which she had been recommended by her cousin Jill Valentine, who worked in Rachelle's field, weapons, on the team. Rachelle was both nervous and excited.
She walked up to the office, but she found it empty. Jill knew she was coming and left a note telling Rachelle that the S.T.A.R.S. team was out on a training exercise, and where to put her things, and where her desk was, etc.
As she walked up to her designated desk and started unpacking her things, she could hear a strange sound, much like a tapping of keyboard keys. She turned around and saw a man in a corner, bent over a laptop.
She walked over to him.
'Excuse me, do you know when the S.T.A.R.S. team will be back?'
The man failed to answer.
'Excuse me, I happen to be talking to you.'
The man lifted his head and took out his earphones through which loud heavy metal music pumped.
'What?' The man continued working on his computer as Rachelle talked to him.
'Do you know when the S.T.A.R.S. team will be back?'
'No. Why do you want to know?'
'It's just I'm the new rookie, and I want to meet the new people I'll be working with.'
'Are you Jill's cousin?'
'Yeah, I'm Rachelle.'
'Well, I'm Brad. I work as a pilot and communications person for the Alpha Team. Which team are you assigned to?'
'I think Jill told me Alpha.'
'What do you do?'
'I work in weapons and computers.'
'Really? Good. Can you help me with this?'
Brad spun around his laptop. He was playing a computer game, Tomb Raider. Rachelle was extremely familiar with the game and knew the walkthroughs for the first section, but she had never played it on computer before.
'What are the controls?'
Brad pushed the manual before her and she found the page with the controls. She exited the main game and started the training level.
In the section with the gym platforms, Rachelle successfully completed the hardest jump. Instead of simply pulling up, she manipulated Lara so she would pull up in a handstand, then finish in a walkover. Brad stared open mouthed.
'How did you do that?'
'A damn good guide.'
She ran to the pool behind the gym and, instead of simply jumping in, she gracefully swan-dived into the pool.
She started the first level, picking up all items with all secrets in a new record time, 9:30. She was pretty pleased with herself, and so was Brad.
'You're amazing, how do you know that?'
'It's just a lot of practice, Brad. It's pretty easy when you've been playing it for a year and a half.'
Just then, the door to the office opened and the rest of the S.T.A.R.S. team came trundling in.
Rachelle's cousin, Jill Valentine came in, followed by her teammates Chris Redfield, Barry Burton, Joseph Frost and Albert Wesker from Alpha Team, plus Kenneth J. Sullivan, Richard Aitken, Forest Speyer, Enrico Marini, Edward Dewey, Danielle Lanza and Rebecca Chambers, herself a S.T.A.R.S. rookie.
Jill ran over to Rachelle and gave her a big hug.
'Hey, Shellie! How are you? Did you go okay?'
'Yeah, I found everything alright, and Brad has been very good at keeping me company,' she said with a hint of sarcasm in her voice. Alpha Team pilot Brad Vickers had not spoken a word to her in the last five minutes as she had been teaching him how to play Tomb Raider.
'Where have you been?' asked Rachelle.
'We've just been doing some training. C'mon, let me introduce you to the guys.'
Jill grabbed Rachelle by the hand and took her around the room, until she came to Chris.
Chris was an extremely attractive young man. He was tall, with short, dark brown and spiky hair. Although he was a qualified pilot, he was Alpha Team's resident marksman.
He shook Rachelle's hand. 'Hi, Rachelle. I hope you like it here with us. Jill has told us a lot about you. I think that we'll need someone like you.'
Rachelle smiled. 'Thanks, I think this'll be fun.'
Jill dragged Rachelle off to meet the other teammates. She came to Barry.
Barry was very tall and very solidly built. He looked very fierce and would be the perfect nightclub bouncer, Rachelle thought.
When Barry shook Rachelle's hand, his grip was so strong that Rachelle thought he had nearly broken her hand.
Although he looked very fierce, Barry was a gentle man, and Rachelle was fitting in well.
Jill took Rachelle to where the rest of the group was. Richard, Joseph, Kenneth, Forest, Edward, Enrico, Danielle and Rebecca were standing by the drink dispenser. Jill pushed her way through the throng.
'Hey guys! This is the new member, Rachelle. And please, no initiation ceremonies, this is my cousin, so go easy on her.' Jill pointed her finger to the man beside Rachelle who had a can poised over Rachelle's head.
'Richard, put that beer down. Okay, Shellie, starting to your left, this is Richard, Joseph, Edward, Forest, Kenneth, Enrico, Rebecca and Danielle.'
The group shouted a unanimous 'Hey!' and Richard gave Rachelle a small glass of Coke.
All of the group, except Joseph, were Bravo Team. Richard was communications person, Edward was the pilot, Kenneth was vehicle technician, Enrico was team leader, Rebecca was trainee medical officer, Forest was the weapons expert, and Danielle had been recently transferred from the Special Forces Unit as marksperson. Rachelle noticed Danielle on the end.
'Well, Dani, I'm finally here.'
'I noticed that, Shellie. And will you please keep your cat inside at night? He keeps peeing on my plants.'
'Do you guys know each other?' asked Forest.
'We live across the road from each other,' said Danielle.
'Hey, you didn't tell me. What happened to the SFU?' Rachelle asked.
'Chief Irons fired them all,' Danielle said with a smirk. 'Just sat there drinking coffee and eating donuts so they got fired and I got put here. Cool, huh?'
'Hey, how come you got home so late? Your car woke me up. I think you need to get a new one.'
'We've been busy training. I've heard through the grapevine that we've got a mission coming up in about three weeks time.'
'Cool. Do you think I'll be able to come?'
'Yeah. I heard it's high priority. All hands on deck.'
'Sounds pretty cool.'
'So, remind me - what are you here for again?'
Rachelle stuck her tongue out at Danielle and said, 'In case you don't remember, weapons, hand-to-hand combat, electronics and communications expertise.'
'Are you sure? To me, your talents seem to be singing dirty songs very loudly and badly, hogging the hot water in the shower, flirting outrageously and being a smartass in general.'
'No, Danielle, they're your talents. Besides, my songs are cool. And who said I hog the hot water?'
'A little birdie told me. Where's your uniform?'
'Do we have a uniform? Anyway, do you wear a uniform?'
'No, but I guess Wesker hasn't sent yours yet.'
Joseph cut in. 'You mean Wanker?'
Rachelle laughed. 'Oh God, is he that bad?'
'Yep,' Kenneth said. 'I'm sure glad I'm in Bravo Team. Enrico is way cooler than Wanker.'
Enrico pretended to revel in the compliment. 'Oh, thanks,' he answered.
Although Rachelle only got a glimpse of Albert Wesker, she could tell from the way he moved and his appearance that he thought highly of himself. He was obviously proud of his achievements and looks, but everyone agreed that he looked like a goose.
He was aging, but don't tell him that. He was in his late forties, and he had bleached blonde hair that was spiked up. He also wore huge aviator-style sunglasses all the time, even indoors and at night time.
'Would you like some hair to go with that gel?' Rachelle wanted to say to him.
She found out that he was quite aloof, and quite condescending to people he thought to be below his self-proclaimed superior intellectual and physical capabilities. No one liked him, and he was sleazy to girls he met in places like bars and nightclubs. Rachelle also thought he was quite shifty and something suspicious was going on.
11th June.
Bravo Team was great and worked well with their Alpha Team counterparts. Rebecca was a rookie like Rachelle and they immediately bonded and became fast friends. Kenneth, Joseph, Forest and Richard worked as a team and were the practical jokers of S.T.A.R.S. and often picked on Brad, which Danielle thought was a little unfair. They immediately adopted Rachelle because of her wicked sense of humour and the dirty little songs she sang, pure comedic genius that they had never heard before, and that Rachelle brought back from her trip to Australia. She and Richard were the perfect partners in crime, doing outrageous pranks like covering Chris' car in shaving cream. Edward was quiet and kept to himself and Enrico was seldom seen because of the massive responsibilities he held within the police force like Wesker. But maybe it was a good thing that Wesker was rarely seen within the S.T.A.R.S. team, from what Rachelle had heard.
Alpha Team was like one big family and they were all connected with one another in some way. Jill, Barry and Chris stuck together like glue. But, however, one person was left out - Brad.
Brad usually kept to himself, away from the joking barbs of Joseph, Richard, Forest and Kenneth. Rachelle felt a little sorry for him but she had also noticed that Danielle had taken a liking to Brad, and she thought something else might be going on, but she didn't dare tell Danielle that, if she wanted to live.
In the office, Joseph, Richard, Kenneth and Forest were having a debate about something, Rachelle couldn't quite figure out what it was about. Obviously, the topic was a personal point for Brad and he joined in the argument.
As he and Joseph fought, the topic became clear. The debate had moved on from genetic science and onto something else - Brad had a bone to pick with Joseph.
'I've never liked you!' Brad spat.
'Me? You're schizophrenic!' Joseph retorted.
'I'm schizophrenic! What about you? What is it with you? Why do you always have to have the last word?'
'I don't have to have the last word.'
Brad responded with silence, slightly grinning at the fact that he was proving to Joseph that he was right. Joseph realised the corner Brad had backed him into and tried to get out of the awkward silence.
Realising he had got him, Joseph yelled back, 'No, you always have to have the last word.'
Brad went to open his mouth to defend himself but then he realised if he spoke Joseph would be right.
'No, you do.'
'No, you do!'
Brad thought for a second, trying to find a way to end the argument.
'You do, and that's the last word on it!'
Joseph shook his head. 'This is stupid,' he muttered.
'Ha! See?' Brad said excitedly.
Joseph had never liked Brad and the feeling was mutual. The aggression between them had simmered for years but the fight brought it to the boil. Joseph was getting frustrated at Brad's stupidity and the fact that Brad had outsmarted him.
'You know what your trouble is? You're an idiot!' Joseph held his arm up to Brad's face, hoping to punch him when Brad answered his question. By now, the entire team was gathered around, including Rachelle, who was trying not to laugh at Brad in front of Danielle, who obviously had a crush on Brad.
'How many fists am I holding up?' Joseph asked. Unfortunately, Brad knew the trick.
'One!' Before Joseph could punch him, Brad kicked Joseph hard in the shin.
Joseph hopped up and down on one leg, rubbing his injured one.
'Ow! You bastard!' he exclaimed, before trying to beat Brad up. Barry had to break the fight up.
'Okay, boys, break it up,' Barry said, holding both by the scruff of the neck. 'What would Wesker do if he saw you guys fighting, hey? You would both be out on your sorry asses faster than you could blink! Just calm down, and try to act professional. Who knows, maybe one of you has to save the others life one day. Just grow up!'
With that, he let both of them go and they both sulked back to their desks after simultaneous whines of 'He started it!'
One day, as they were all hanging out at the cafeteria, Rachelle sat down across from Danielle.
'Hey, Dani, can I ask you something?'
'Yeah.'
'I'm just wondering, why do you hang out with Brad so much? It's nothing personal to him, it's just that he seems a little anti-social.'
'It's just he's lonely, that's all. I feel sorry for him, that's all, nothing else.'
Rachelle noticed something wrong with Danielle's voice and her facial expressions. She had gone from being the serious, sarcastic, person she usually was to being distracted. Her voice was dreamy, as if she had her head in the clouds. Rachelle remembered the last time she was like that.
It was when she had her heart set on Rachelle's then-boyfriend in high school, Steven Phillips. Danielle eventually got him, and she had a huge fight with Rachelle, until Danielle found out he had been cheating on her with two other girls at the same time. Could it be that Danielle was in love? Rachelle couldn't ask her; she'd have her head.
'Okay, then.'
Danielle was dreaming. 'What?'
Rachelle shook her head. 'Nothing,' she said, smiling.
'Why are you smiling like that?'
'Smiling like what?'
'Smiling like you've just spotted a lifetime supply of chocolate.'
'Oh, nothing,' Rachelle smirked. 'I know a lot more about you than you think, Danielle Aladene Lanza.'
'What? Do you think I like Brad or something?'
Rachelle tried to hide her confirming grin.
'Look, he's a nice guy, but he's not my type.'
'Crap.'
Danielle opened her mouth to argue when Brad came over and sat down next to her.
'Hi, how are you guys?'
'We're good,' Rachelle said. She tried to hide her smile. She looked at her watch. 'Oh, sorry, my lunch break's up. I'll see you guys later.'
She walked away and watched them engrossed in conversation from afar. Kenneth scared Rachelle by walking up behind her.
'Sorry, Shellie, did I scare you?'
'Well, yes you did, Kenneth. Jeez!' Rachelle's eyes flickered excitedly.
'Can you keep a secret?'
9th June, 1998.
Rachelle Dawson walked into the Raccoon City police station. She had just transferred to the sleepy Mid-West American town from her police job in the city to take a vacant place in the resident elite taskforce called the Special Tactics and Rescue Service, or S.T.A.R.S., which she had been recommended by her cousin Jill Valentine, who worked in Rachelle's field, weapons, on the team. Rachelle was both nervous and excited.
She walked up to the office, but she found it empty. Jill knew she was coming and left a note telling Rachelle that the S.T.A.R.S. team was out on a training exercise, and where to put her things, and where her desk was, etc.
As she walked up to her designated desk and started unpacking her things, she could hear a strange sound, much like a tapping of keyboard keys. She turned around and saw a man in a corner, bent over a laptop.
She walked over to him.
'Excuse me, do you know when the S.T.A.R.S. team will be back?'
The man failed to answer.
'Excuse me, I happen to be talking to you.'
The man lifted his head and took out his earphones through which loud heavy metal music pumped.
'What?' The man continued working on his computer as Rachelle talked to him.
'Do you know when the S.T.A.R.S. team will be back?'
'No. Why do you want to know?'
'It's just I'm the new rookie, and I want to meet the new people I'll be working with.'
'Are you Jill's cousin?'
'Yeah, I'm Rachelle.'
'Well, I'm Brad. I work as a pilot and communications person for the Alpha Team. Which team are you assigned to?'
'I think Jill told me Alpha.'
'What do you do?'
'I work in weapons and computers.'
'Really? Good. Can you help me with this?'
Brad spun around his laptop. He was playing a computer game, Tomb Raider. Rachelle was extremely familiar with the game and knew the walkthroughs for the first section, but she had never played it on computer before.
'What are the controls?'
Brad pushed the manual before her and she found the page with the controls. She exited the main game and started the training level.
In the section with the gym platforms, Rachelle successfully completed the hardest jump. Instead of simply pulling up, she manipulated Lara so she would pull up in a handstand, then finish in a walkover. Brad stared open mouthed.
'How did you do that?'
'A damn good guide.'
She ran to the pool behind the gym and, instead of simply jumping in, she gracefully swan-dived into the pool.
She started the first level, picking up all items with all secrets in a new record time, 9:30. She was pretty pleased with herself, and so was Brad.
'You're amazing, how do you know that?'
'It's just a lot of practice, Brad. It's pretty easy when you've been playing it for a year and a half.'
Just then, the door to the office opened and the rest of the S.T.A.R.S. team came trundling in.
Rachelle's cousin, Jill Valentine came in, followed by her teammates Chris Redfield, Barry Burton, Joseph Frost and Albert Wesker from Alpha Team, plus Kenneth J. Sullivan, Richard Aitken, Forest Speyer, Enrico Marini, Edward Dewey, Danielle Lanza and Rebecca Chambers, herself a S.T.A.R.S. rookie.
Jill ran over to Rachelle and gave her a big hug.
'Hey, Shellie! How are you? Did you go okay?'
'Yeah, I found everything alright, and Brad has been very good at keeping me company,' she said with a hint of sarcasm in her voice. Alpha Team pilot Brad Vickers had not spoken a word to her in the last five minutes as she had been teaching him how to play Tomb Raider.
'Where have you been?' asked Rachelle.
'We've just been doing some training. C'mon, let me introduce you to the guys.'
Jill grabbed Rachelle by the hand and took her around the room, until she came to Chris.
Chris was an extremely attractive young man. He was tall, with short, dark brown and spiky hair. Although he was a qualified pilot, he was Alpha Team's resident marksman.
He shook Rachelle's hand. 'Hi, Rachelle. I hope you like it here with us. Jill has told us a lot about you. I think that we'll need someone like you.'
Rachelle smiled. 'Thanks, I think this'll be fun.'
Jill dragged Rachelle off to meet the other teammates. She came to Barry.
Barry was very tall and very solidly built. He looked very fierce and would be the perfect nightclub bouncer, Rachelle thought.
When Barry shook Rachelle's hand, his grip was so strong that Rachelle thought he had nearly broken her hand.
Although he looked very fierce, Barry was a gentle man, and Rachelle was fitting in well.
Jill took Rachelle to where the rest of the group was. Richard, Joseph, Kenneth, Forest, Edward, Enrico, Danielle and Rebecca were standing by the drink dispenser. Jill pushed her way through the throng.
'Hey guys! This is the new member, Rachelle. And please, no initiation ceremonies, this is my cousin, so go easy on her.' Jill pointed her finger to the man beside Rachelle who had a can poised over Rachelle's head.
'Richard, put that beer down. Okay, Shellie, starting to your left, this is Richard, Joseph, Edward, Forest, Kenneth, Enrico, Rebecca and Danielle.'
The group shouted a unanimous 'Hey!' and Richard gave Rachelle a small glass of Coke.
All of the group, except Joseph, were Bravo Team. Richard was communications person, Edward was the pilot, Kenneth was vehicle technician, Enrico was team leader, Rebecca was trainee medical officer, Forest was the weapons expert, and Danielle had been recently transferred from the Special Forces Unit as marksperson. Rachelle noticed Danielle on the end.
'Well, Dani, I'm finally here.'
'I noticed that, Shellie. And will you please keep your cat inside at night? He keeps peeing on my plants.'
'Do you guys know each other?' asked Forest.
'We live across the road from each other,' said Danielle.
'Hey, you didn't tell me. What happened to the SFU?' Rachelle asked.
'Chief Irons fired them all,' Danielle said with a smirk. 'Just sat there drinking coffee and eating donuts so they got fired and I got put here. Cool, huh?'
'Hey, how come you got home so late? Your car woke me up. I think you need to get a new one.'
'We've been busy training. I've heard through the grapevine that we've got a mission coming up in about three weeks time.'
'Cool. Do you think I'll be able to come?'
'Yeah. I heard it's high priority. All hands on deck.'
'Sounds pretty cool.'
'So, remind me - what are you here for again?'
Rachelle stuck her tongue out at Danielle and said, 'In case you don't remember, weapons, hand-to-hand combat, electronics and communications expertise.'
'Are you sure? To me, your talents seem to be singing dirty songs very loudly and badly, hogging the hot water in the shower, flirting outrageously and being a smartass in general.'
'No, Danielle, they're your talents. Besides, my songs are cool. And who said I hog the hot water?'
'A little birdie told me. Where's your uniform?'
'Do we have a uniform? Anyway, do you wear a uniform?'
'No, but I guess Wesker hasn't sent yours yet.'
Joseph cut in. 'You mean Wanker?'
Rachelle laughed. 'Oh God, is he that bad?'
'Yep,' Kenneth said. 'I'm sure glad I'm in Bravo Team. Enrico is way cooler than Wanker.'
Enrico pretended to revel in the compliment. 'Oh, thanks,' he answered.
Although Rachelle only got a glimpse of Albert Wesker, she could tell from the way he moved and his appearance that he thought highly of himself. He was obviously proud of his achievements and looks, but everyone agreed that he looked like a goose.
He was aging, but don't tell him that. He was in his late forties, and he had bleached blonde hair that was spiked up. He also wore huge aviator-style sunglasses all the time, even indoors and at night time.
'Would you like some hair to go with that gel?' Rachelle wanted to say to him.
She found out that he was quite aloof, and quite condescending to people he thought to be below his self-proclaimed superior intellectual and physical capabilities. No one liked him, and he was sleazy to girls he met in places like bars and nightclubs. Rachelle also thought he was quite shifty and something suspicious was going on.
11th June.
Bravo Team was great and worked well with their Alpha Team counterparts. Rebecca was a rookie like Rachelle and they immediately bonded and became fast friends. Kenneth, Joseph, Forest and Richard worked as a team and were the practical jokers of S.T.A.R.S. and often picked on Brad, which Danielle thought was a little unfair. They immediately adopted Rachelle because of her wicked sense of humour and the dirty little songs she sang, pure comedic genius that they had never heard before, and that Rachelle brought back from her trip to Australia. She and Richard were the perfect partners in crime, doing outrageous pranks like covering Chris' car in shaving cream. Edward was quiet and kept to himself and Enrico was seldom seen because of the massive responsibilities he held within the police force like Wesker. But maybe it was a good thing that Wesker was rarely seen within the S.T.A.R.S. team, from what Rachelle had heard.
Alpha Team was like one big family and they were all connected with one another in some way. Jill, Barry and Chris stuck together like glue. But, however, one person was left out - Brad.
Brad usually kept to himself, away from the joking barbs of Joseph, Richard, Forest and Kenneth. Rachelle felt a little sorry for him but she had also noticed that Danielle had taken a liking to Brad, and she thought something else might be going on, but she didn't dare tell Danielle that, if she wanted to live.
In the office, Joseph, Richard, Kenneth and Forest were having a debate about something, Rachelle couldn't quite figure out what it was about. Obviously, the topic was a personal point for Brad and he joined in the argument.
As he and Joseph fought, the topic became clear. The debate had moved on from genetic science and onto something else - Brad had a bone to pick with Joseph.
'I've never liked you!' Brad spat.
'Me? You're schizophrenic!' Joseph retorted.
'I'm schizophrenic! What about you? What is it with you? Why do you always have to have the last word?'
'I don't have to have the last word.'
Brad responded with silence, slightly grinning at the fact that he was proving to Joseph that he was right. Joseph realised the corner Brad had backed him into and tried to get out of the awkward silence.
Realising he had got him, Joseph yelled back, 'No, you always have to have the last word.'
Brad went to open his mouth to defend himself but then he realised if he spoke Joseph would be right.
'No, you do.'
'No, you do!'
Brad thought for a second, trying to find a way to end the argument.
'You do, and that's the last word on it!'
Joseph shook his head. 'This is stupid,' he muttered.
'Ha! See?' Brad said excitedly.
Joseph had never liked Brad and the feeling was mutual. The aggression between them had simmered for years but the fight brought it to the boil. Joseph was getting frustrated at Brad's stupidity and the fact that Brad had outsmarted him.
'You know what your trouble is? You're an idiot!' Joseph held his arm up to Brad's face, hoping to punch him when Brad answered his question. By now, the entire team was gathered around, including Rachelle, who was trying not to laugh at Brad in front of Danielle, who obviously had a crush on Brad.
'How many fists am I holding up?' Joseph asked. Unfortunately, Brad knew the trick.
'One!' Before Joseph could punch him, Brad kicked Joseph hard in the shin.
Joseph hopped up and down on one leg, rubbing his injured one.
'Ow! You bastard!' he exclaimed, before trying to beat Brad up. Barry had to break the fight up.
'Okay, boys, break it up,' Barry said, holding both by the scruff of the neck. 'What would Wesker do if he saw you guys fighting, hey? You would both be out on your sorry asses faster than you could blink! Just calm down, and try to act professional. Who knows, maybe one of you has to save the others life one day. Just grow up!'
With that, he let both of them go and they both sulked back to their desks after simultaneous whines of 'He started it!'
One day, as they were all hanging out at the cafeteria, Rachelle sat down across from Danielle.
'Hey, Dani, can I ask you something?'
'Yeah.'
'I'm just wondering, why do you hang out with Brad so much? It's nothing personal to him, it's just that he seems a little anti-social.'
'It's just he's lonely, that's all. I feel sorry for him, that's all, nothing else.'
Rachelle noticed something wrong with Danielle's voice and her facial expressions. She had gone from being the serious, sarcastic, person she usually was to being distracted. Her voice was dreamy, as if she had her head in the clouds. Rachelle remembered the last time she was like that.
It was when she had her heart set on Rachelle's then-boyfriend in high school, Steven Phillips. Danielle eventually got him, and she had a huge fight with Rachelle, until Danielle found out he had been cheating on her with two other girls at the same time. Could it be that Danielle was in love? Rachelle couldn't ask her; she'd have her head.
'Okay, then.'
Danielle was dreaming. 'What?'
Rachelle shook her head. 'Nothing,' she said, smiling.
'Why are you smiling like that?'
'Smiling like what?'
'Smiling like you've just spotted a lifetime supply of chocolate.'
'Oh, nothing,' Rachelle smirked. 'I know a lot more about you than you think, Danielle Aladene Lanza.'
'What? Do you think I like Brad or something?'
Rachelle tried to hide her confirming grin.
'Look, he's a nice guy, but he's not my type.'
'Crap.'
Danielle opened her mouth to argue when Brad came over and sat down next to her.
'Hi, how are you guys?'
'We're good,' Rachelle said. She tried to hide her smile. She looked at her watch. 'Oh, sorry, my lunch break's up. I'll see you guys later.'
She walked away and watched them engrossed in conversation from afar. Kenneth scared Rachelle by walking up behind her.
'Sorry, Shellie, did I scare you?'
'Well, yes you did, Kenneth. Jeez!' Rachelle's eyes flickered excitedly.
'Can you keep a secret?'