Nothing's Changed, And We Don't Realize It.

Chapter 01:

There she was, sitting on her front porch, a cigarette between her fingers, a beer in her hand ,to her left was her cell phone and a box of beer, only two left in it.

She took a long drag, and puffed the smoke out with an almost inaudible sigh. Claire Redfield was just sitting there, thinking about anything and everything, as long as she doesn't think about what she went through in the past couple of months.

"You know, you shouldn't be smoking outside while there's a birthday party just for you in there."

It was a tall, fit silhouette, standing next to the bushes, hands in his jacket pockets, with a husky voice that's hard not to recognize and without giving it much thought, she knew who it was.

She couldn't help but smile, but she was quick to reply:

"And you shouldn't be…" she checked her phone to see what time it was and then she continued: "…2 hours late to a birthday party…Oh! And you showed up here without a present, you've got some nerve Kennedy."

Leon let out a small laugh and walked a few steps until he took a seat right next to Claire, she offered him a beer, which he gladly accepted by twisting the top off and taking a sip.

"Just for the record, I did bring a present, it just hasn't arrived yet."

"If it's taking that long to get here then it must be something fancy!" She replied, emphasizing on the 'must' with sarcasm in her tone.

"I like the new 'do, it looks good on you."

"Yeah, I figured it was time for a change…"

Claire sounded so bitter in that last sentence, but it was understandable considering everything she went through. Leon was done tiptoeing around the subject, the Agent asked her bluntly:

"So how've you been, Claire?"

"All things considered? Oh just peachy!" Claire was quick to reply, and again, the sarcasm dripping from her tone.

Leon simply scoffed before her responded:

"Always with the sarcasm."

"Well, it has always been my forte."

"I'm glad to see that hasn't changed."

Leon paused for a moment, it has been so long since they saw each other, it almost felt like they were strangers, the silence was somewhat awkward. He finally broke it:

"So I'm gonna be staying here for a couple of days, you know a good motel I could check into for the night?" he finished his sentence as he was standing up.

"Don't-" Claire replied so suddenly, the way she said the word, it was almost like she's pleading for him to stay, but she quickly fixed it by continuing:

"Don't check into a motel, they'll charge you twice the amount they should in this town…Besides, the party's not over yet." Then she turned her head towards her house, then towards Leon, he smiled and nodded.

"Alright."

"Plus I have a couch with your name on it."

That didn't sound very alluring to Leon, but Claire didn't stop there:

"It's three seats…with very thick cushions…and it's blue, I heard that was your favorite color."

"It is actually. I'll stay here if you want me to."

"I do."

"Well, alright then." Leon agreed smiling, "Now come on, let's get back inside, I bet everyone's wondering where the birthday girl is."

END, Chapter 01.

Chapter 02:

Claire came downstairs, a bunch of plastic bags in her hand, she looked at her living room, or at least what she could see from it, because of all the plastic cups and pizza boxes…

The blue couch was vacant, the blankets folded, bags were still in the living room, and coffee was already made, which meant Leon was still here but he was nowhere to be found, she went searching for her phone so she could dial his number but before she got the chance she heard the front door open quietly, too quietly for her tastes, her first instinct was to grab a knife and wait quietly so she could ambush whoever's entering her house, but instead she simply peeked from behind the wall, separating the living room and the entrance, and there he was, with a sleeveless, white hoodie unzipped, exposing his bare, sweaty chest and a pair of blue shorts.

Leon closed the door quietly and looked up to find her standing there with her arms crossed with something dangling from her arm.

Claire was wearing a small, white tank top that was just above her belly button, with a pair of black and grey short shorts.

She threw the plastic bag his way, thanks to his quick reflexes, he caught the bag without a problem.

"Come on, you're gonna help me clean up."

"Can I at least shower first?"

"Nope, you can shower after we're done, besides I have a bunch of paperwork to turn in, so I'll be out of your way." She replied while picking up whatever she could grab.

Leon did the same.

"You're not gonna take long right? To turn in your paperwork I mean?"

"No I won't, I'm still on my leave of absence technically."

"Alright good, maybe we could grab a bite afterwards? You know a good food joint?"

"Yeah, I know a small bakery that has the best donuts."

"Great"

After they were done cleaning, Claire did her morning routine and grabbed her papers while she headed to the door.

"So you know where everything is. Oh, I have a pack of cigs upstairs in my night stand, in case you run out, first door to the right."

"Alright, got it, Thanks."

Leon was done with his shower, he had his coffee and now he was sitting in front of the TV, when the doorbell rang, he made his way to the door and opened it.

"Hey, is this where Ms. Redfield lives?" asked the delivery man.

"Yeah, what have you got?"

"I'm sorry, sir but who are you?"

"Oh I'm a friend, but I can sign off on whatever you got here."

"Well alright then, I gotta say, she's a beauty. Whoever got her that as a present must rea~lly like her." The delivery man stated as he handed Leon the form while looking at what the truck was unloading.

Leon signed where he needed to and looked up to see what the man was talking about, and then he saw it:

A beautiful Harley Davidson, FXB Sturgis, with a red bow on it. Leon let out a small chuckle: "Well it sure took you guys long enough to get that here." "Oh, you're the guy who ordered the bike?" the poor guy asked nervously, Leon was taller and more muscular than him. "Don't worry about it, she's worth every penny I put into this, you were right." Leon assured him with a wink. Leon dragged the bike very carefully to the garage, where Claire wouldn't see it when she came back. He heard the door unlocking, and he couldn't help but smile. He folded up the news paper and laid it to rest on the coffee table. He made his way towards the door, grabbed her hand, led her to the porch and told her to stay still with her eyes closed. "What the hell is all this about? I feel like a twelve year old." Claire said while letting out small chuckles with her hands covering her eyes. She could hear the garage door opening but before she had a chance to ask she heard Leon saying: "Alright, you can look now." Claire slowly uncovered her eyes and as soon as her vision adjusted, her eyes were wide open as well as her jaw. "What the-? How'd you-?" Her expression simply made his day, Leon was practically smiling from ear to ear. "I told you your present's gonna be a little late, but better late than never right?" Leon gave her a few minutes to examine the vehicle before he said: "So, you wanna take it out for a spin?" "First of all, it's not an 'it' it's a 'she', second of all, three words: Hell…Fucking…Yes! I guess it's time to bring out my old biker suit." She said smiling like a five year old in candy land. It only took Claire a couple of minutes to put on her old biker suit, she came down stairs all geared up and ready, Leon smiled at the sight and threw her the keys: "Well, go ahead, enjoy it." "Oh, you're coming with." She smiled mischievously. Before he could reply Claire dragged him by the arm and put a helmet on his head. She put the keys in and gave it a twist, she heard the engine roar, she waited a bit with her eyes closed savoring the feeling of riding again, she missed it without realizing it, just like she missed him without even realizing it and just like he feels about her without realizing it, and then they were off. END.