HCF: Through hate and love
Chapter 7: Missing you
by Marie B.
"Where the hell is she?" groaned Steve to himself. He had passed almost thirty minutes looking throughout the whole facility for his superior. She was nowhere in sight. He had checked in her room which was locked. He also went back to his own room to find it empty. He had asked the other agents, but as stupid as they were, they only looked at him with the strangest expression. Did they know? Was it so evident? Did he have the words "I HAVE SLEPT WITH LEA ANDERSON THIS MORNING" on his forehead?
The young man let out a long frustrated sigh. He was walking in circles now. If Lea wasn't in the base, she could be hiding somewhere. But Steve was far from being in the mood of playing at "hide and seek" with her. He just wanted to talk to her. He needed to settle things with her about what had happened during the morning. It was hard to do so when she had suddenly disappeared.
Steve was about to retreat to his room when he bumped into Mark.
"Mark, you're in my way," growled Steve, pushing aside his friend. He wasn't happy and had no will to talk to the other man.
"What's wrong with ya, Steve?" yelled back Mark, putting his hand on Steve's shoulder. The copper-red haired man immediately turned his head, glaring at him, his eyes orange and feral-like. Mark stepped back, fearing to get hurt. When Steve's eyes were turning into that state, it was better to be far from him. It meant one thing: danger. During a mission, Mark had seen him turning berserk, bearing those eyes. He had slain dozens of trained men so easily. He was more powerful than what he was inspiring.
Mark exhaled the gulp of air that he had kept inside of him. Beside his eyes, Steve didn't show more of his Tyrant self. He still had his human mind and that reassured the man. Steve was still glaring at him, but he seemed to wait for Mark to tell him what he had to say.
"Err…Steve…sorry if I annoyed you, but there's something important that I want to tell you…" started Mark.
Steve seemed to relax as his eyes regained their original color. He then stepped towards the other man, wanting to listen to him more closely. Mark was about to open his mouth when he saw behind Steve a tall blond man with several guards.
Steve saw that Mark's expression had changed and quickly turned to meet his superior Albert Wesker. His heart suddenly leaped. Did he know? The young man felt suddenly in danger, his blood boiling with rage. Wesker was really strong, but he was sure that he could hurt him quite badly if he was fast enough. But he then saw that the older man didn't attempt any attack. He seemed quite uninterested. Steve was about to take the opportunity to tackle the man, but he hesitated when he heard him speaking.
"Now, now, Steve. Is something wrong? Did I scare you?" mocked the blond man, the guards not far behind him. Steve grunted in response and that only grew the smile on his face. "I've heard that you've been a pretty bad boy this morning…is it true, son?"
"Don't you call me like that!" roared Steve, his hands balling into fists, long fangs suddenly appearing inside his mouth. "What I do is none of your fucking business!"
Wesker just smirked at that, his arms crossing over his chest. "Since when what you do isn't any of my business? I've always looked after you, Steve. You're not as free as you would like to think. You're my property, my tool…"
Something inside Steve's mind broke. He felt as if his entire body was on fire as he ran towards the man, large claws erupting from his right arm. He wanted to kill him, to cut him in tiny pieces, to eat him, to drink his dirty blood. As he was about to reach his handsome face with his mutated arm, he felt something jabbing his neck. A millisecond later, he was on the ground, jolting and trembling unimaginably. A loud cry of pain escaped from his lips as he was trying to stand up while clawing the tiled floor.
Mark saw the entire scene speechless. He didn't find the strength to move when he saw his friend convulsing in agony in front of him. What was going on?
"What…what did you do to him?" he finally said, his voice strangled by fear.
Wesker looked back at him without much interest. They didn't know each other much.
"Oh, that?" he replied, pointing a small gun that one of his men was holding. "It's an anti-B.O.W. weapon. It shoots darts containing a liquid substance that neutralizes people infected with the T and T-Veronica virus. It was created to control those who would rebel….like Steve. I knew that he would someday…" he explained, looking down on the unconscious form of the young man. "Don't worry, he won't die. He just won't be able to use his powers for a couple of days."
Mark didn't know what to think. What did Steve do so bad that would put him in that situation?
"Now…mister…hum…" Wesker bent down so he could hear the guard on his right. "Mister Thompson?" he asked. He was satisfied when he saw the other man react. "Now, Mister Thompson, why don't you go back to the boring job you were doing before all of this? I'll also advice you to forget everything you've seen. Don't worry; you'll probably never see Burnside again…"
Claire was still sitting uncomfortably on the cold floor of her cell. She didn't really move from her spot since the cell keeper left her alone. However, she had eaten the food that he had offered her hours ago. It was cold and far from being tasty, but it did satisfy her appetite. After her meal, she didn't do much. She just sat there, staring blankly through the cell bars. Too many things were flowing inside of her brain. She felt like knocking herself out so she could just stop thinking.
So, Steve was alive? Could it even be possible? Maybe she was just hearing what she wanted to hear. The cell keeper could have lied to her. It seemed that the place was filled with liars anyway. She didn't know if she was going to stay alive, but if she did, she would find that horrible woman Lea and kill her with her own hands.
She didn't need that shit. She didn't deserve it. After her escapade in the Antarctic, she had spent one depressing year mourning over Steve's death. She didn't even remember if something good had happened during that year. But then, the year after, Leon had reappeared and had decided to hang with the gang to take down Umbrella.
It was then that she started to take control of herself again. She went on dates with Leon and she even thought that she had fallen in love with him. When they decided to move out together, things started to get ugly again. She soon found out that Leon had the tendency to drink too much. During that year, he had learned that his mother had died from cancer and that his father hung himself not long after his wife's death.
It didn't take much time for Claire to realize how mentally unstable he was. He was often going into bars with his friends and was coming back completely wasted. Each time, Claire felt like shit as she was the one cleaning up his mess. She couldn't even count the times that he had tried to abuse her. But she was more strong-minded than he was. He had never touched her body when he was in that state. Otherwise, Leon could be someone caring and fun to hang out with. But Claire knew better. Living with him each day made her realize how unhappy she was. She once dared to talk about it to her brother, but he didn't believe her. He just told her that Leon was having a hard time and that she needed to be there for him.
"…but no one has ever been there for me when I was in pain…" whispered Claire to herself.
She suddenly felt tears stinging her eyes. Oh no. She wasn't going to cry again. She had spent too much time crying during the last two years. She was tired of those tears. What had she become? She used to be so strong back then. She didn't even shed a tear when she spent that night in Raccoon City. She had no reason and no time for it. But her trip on Rockfort Island and in the Antarctic had been harsher on her. Why had she been weaker that time? It was surely because of a red-headed young man…
Claire closed her eyes, wanting that face to disappear from her mind. A loud noise then made her jump. It was only the gate at the entrance of the confinement area…She suspected to hear the heavy footsteps of her cell keeper, but she heard many more. Four people…or maybe more. She also heard a shuffling sound as if someone was carrying something heavy. As the seconds were passing, she became more and more curious. The footsteps were echoing towards her cell.
Her heart stopped beating when she saw Wesker appearing in front of her cage. He was looking down on her, grinning like he always did. With her still sitting on the floor, he looked so much bigger and invincible. He didn't say a word as he stepped back, allowing one of his men to open her cell's door. Claire didn't understand his intention until she saw two other men entering the cell. They were both holding a man by his arms. They then carelessly threw him inside, not far beside Claire. They then quickly returned back to Wesker's side.
"Here's some company for you, my dear Claire. I guess you didn't expect me to give you such a wonderful gift. That boy's too dangerous. He might ruin my plan if I keep him free. By the way, your brother received my message. I wonder how he took the news…" said the blond man who then started to laugh.
Claire could just glare at him. He was an awful man and she sure wished that her brother would rip his head off. She didn't even find the strength to reply back. It had no effect on him anyway.
Wesker looked at her for a few more seconds before leaving with his men.
With everything that just happened, the girl didn't even get the chance to look at the newcomer. She slowly turned her head and her eyes met the man's back. He was wearing black camo pants and a white t-shirt. Most of the shirt was shredded. It was as if he had struggled to take it off. He wasn't moving. Claire knew he wasn't dead as she continued to examine him. His hair was of a reddish-brown color and descended just before his shoulders.
"Could…it be…?"
The girl couldn't see his face from her position.
"Is it…him?"
Effortfully, she dragged herself closer to the man. She didn't fear him as he was still inert. She slowly put her hand on his arm. He was extremely warm and she could hear his harsh breathing. He was in pain. Swallowing her saliva, Claire managed to move him a little so she could take a glance at his face.
A strangled sound emitted from her lips when she recognized the face of…
"Steve…"
Claire couldn't believe it. She couldn't believe her freaking eyes. There he was. Inside her cell. Steve Burnside was in her cell. It was that simple. But her brain couldn't analyse such a simple thing.
He had stirred from his unconscious state when she had touched him, but he didn't open his eyes. His face was completely torn into a grimace. Claire could only guess that he was in great pain. She wanted to help him, but she had no idea of what to do. She could only watch him with her heart beating furiously and her eyes filled with tears.
Despite the dreadful situation, Claire found a smile on her lips. He hadn't changed much in those two years. His hair was longer, his face was more angular and his body showed more muscles that he had back then, but he still looked pretty much the same. She was sure that he had grown into a strong young man. However, he looked terribly fragile with that painful look on his features.
She then heard him groan. She saw his eyes fluttering. Was he finally waking up? She knew that she shouldn't do it, but she still placed her hand on his forehead, gently stroking his hair. If she could give him some sort of comfort, it was the least she could do. Her touch made his whole body tremor. Claire suddenly gasped when she felt strong hands grabbing her wrists. In less than a second, she was powerfully thrown back on the ground, completely pinned against it. She then realized that Steve was crushing her with his body. His eyes were wide open and were staring dangerously into hers. He was heavily breathing as he held her down.
"Who the fuck are you!" he roared, his mouth showing deadly fangs.
Claire was too shocked to do anything but staring back at him, her mouth wide open. She could feel drops of his sweat falling down her chest. His skin was so hot against her cold one. But what shocked her the most were his eyes. So primal, so abnormal. They were just like Wesker's: orange with a thin pupil. They went through her like bullets. She was scared. Her body was trembling under his. Steve kept staring at her, waiting for an answer. When she thought that she had found her voice, Claire could only stutter:
"St-Steve…calm down…I'm Cl-aire…Redfield…you remember, don't you?" she said, closing her eyes, only hoping that he didn't forget about her. Or else she could say her prayer.
She then felt his body lifting a little, allowing her to breathe more easily. She then dared to open her eyes and was taken aback when green eyes were looking down on her. The fangs also disappeared. She then saw his lips moving slowly.
"Claire…" he whispered so softly that she barely heard him. He was still sweating but his face was more relaxed. "It's…really you…Claire…" he whispered again, suddenly burying his face in the hollow of the girl's neck, his arms wrapping around her body. Claire gasped at the intimate embrace, but she was soon washed over with relief. She then found her arms wrapping around his head, holding him close to her.
"I've missed you…" both whispered.
To be continued.
A/N: I know that someone has been patiently waiting for this chapter Well, here it is. And it's a long chapter...so be happy people! I don't have much to say. Claire and Steve are finally together! And sorry if there's too much thinking (when claire thinks about her situation) I just felt like writing about what had happened to her during those two years...and yes I made Leon into a stupid asshole hehehehe...he deserves it anyway. Next chapter will mostly concern the reunion of Claire and Steve...so expect lots of talking...and maybe more physical interaction :P Stay tuned!
