Never Forget Me
---
Rebecca settled her gaze on the old mansion Enrico had been talking about. She mentally mapped out a route to the mansion, and realized that she would have to make her way back down the small mountain and wander through the forest. In any normal conditions, she would have been too exhausted to deal with another problem after just barely escaping the facility's explosion, but right now, she needed to know the full truth behind Umbrella's experimentations. She had learned far too much in the training facility to let Umbrella get away with their crimes, and she had her dead comrades to avenge.
The young medic felt Billy Coen walk up beside her only to tiredly plop down on the soft patches of grass. There were many things she wanted to tell him, but deep down, she knew they would be better off if she kept her thoughts to herself. It would make things so much easier. From the corner of her eyes, she glanced down at him, and momentarily watched him look beyond the mansion.
The sunrise had never looked as beautiful as it did now. It was a new dawn, a new day, and for Billy Coen, Rebecca was going to make sure today was going to be the start of his new life. The jingling sound of his handcuffs being torn away from his wrist and being tossed into the air still reverberated softly in her ears. She would never have to see them on him again, but more importantly, he would never have to see them on him again.
Bending over, she hastily wrapped her fingers over the chain around his neck. With a gentle pull, she managed to free the dog tags from his possession. "I guess it's time to say good-bye," she whispered, examining the necklace in her palms, admiring how comforting the metal surface felt against her skin.
Startled, Billy jumped up from the ground and gave her a questioning look. "Hm?" He watched as she connected the chain around her neck, fastening the clasp in a swift motion. He had not seen that coming at all.
Rebecca held the tags firmly in her palms. If she were ever to be confronted by anyone searching for Billy, she now had the proof she needed to justify his death. However, she had a far bigger reason for keeping his necklace. It would now serve as a memento, and she would wear it against her chest so she could always feel that he would be near her in a spiritual sense. Their time to depart from each other was approaching, and she had no choice but to remind herself that keeping her thoughts regarding him to herself was the right thing to do no matter how much her heart tried to reason otherwise. "Officially, Lieutenant Billy Coen is dead."
The words seemed surreal to him as they left her mouth. He was clearly alive and breathing. It felt strange to live as a shadow of his former self. No, he didn't have to be a shadow anymore. Rebecca had just given him the chance to wipe the slate clean, to start over again. "Yeah, I'm just a zombie now," he chuckled to himself, attempting to ease some humor into the rather distressing conversation.
The young woman smiled at the comment, slightly amused by his joke. However, her heart was residing in a state that didn't understand the definition of content. She stared at the tribal design on his arm, her mind quickly jumping to memorize the intricate patterns as a way of trying to remember a part of him. She waited for him to speak, but when he had nothing else to add, her face became serious. Eyes wide and back ramrod straight, Rebecca stood tall and gave her partner the formal salute he deserved. She hoped that even though he had been shunned away by his unit, the genuine salute on her end was enough to make up for the damnation brought upon him by the bastards in his squad. Unbeknownst to her, even though she remained quiet, the expression in her eyes spoke volumes for Billy.
Such pure kindness he thought as he mirrored her gesture, which reflected all the respect and admiration he had for her. For a few brief moments, neither of them moved. No words were exchanged as their eyes wandered upon each other, their thoughts kept only to themselves. Rebecca was the first one to break out of the trance. She dropped her hand to her side and quickly turned around, fearing that her tears would betray her inner turmoil if she were to continue to watch him. With her head slightly bowed and shoulders slumped, she walked toward the pathway leading down the mountain, preparing to advance toward the mansion where more unfinished business was waiting for her.
At least that should keep my mind off of him. She was filled with the urge to break into a dash, but realized that would only make it obvious that she was having trouble coping with their parting. Instead, she calmly strolled away from the peak where Billy stood. The grass rustled softly beneath her footsteps, and in the midst of the shuffles, she heard him mutter, "Thank you, Rebecca."
He gave her a thumb-up even though he knew she couldn't see it. His hardened features relax as a sincere look of gratitude replaced his usual stoic expression. His eyes followed her petite frame until she was out of his sight, consumed by the mass of the forest. Billy cast one more glance at the horizon before settling for his own path. A road was waiting for him on his left—his new road to freedom.
When Rebecca was certain that she was not being followed, she blinked, granting her tears the escape they had been waiting for. She didn't mind saying good-bye, but she was never good at saying permanent good-byes. The chances of seeing Billy again were very slim, and perhaps even none. She gently brought his dog tags toward her lips and kissed them softly before safely tucking them beneath her shirt.
He would always live on within her and never be forgotten.
---
Nighttime.
Rebecca's head jerked up at the sound of a shot being fired in the forest. For a moment, she thought Billy had come back looking for her, but when she spotted the familiar chopper flying above the mansion, she instantly knew it was the S.T.A.R.S. Alpha team coming to her rescue.
-End
---
A/N: The ending of RE Zero made me really =( for some reason, probably because I wanted another adventure featuring Billy and Rebecca. I decided to write this fic not simply out of pure boredom, but because the ending scene was touching for me. There have been speculations that the sound of a gun being fired at the very end of the ending was Billy shooting himself, or being shot, which I don't believe to be true. If he wanted to kill himself, he could have done that a long time ago. Instead, I interpreted it as the arrival of the Alpha team (shooting at the Cerberus in the forest) since RE Zero is the prequel to the original game. Well, this is probably going to be my last Billy/Rebecca fic for awhile. I wanted to get RE Zero out of my system before playing REmake, which I am doing now. Thanks for reading, and please let me know your thoughts in a review!