A/N: My only excuse for the time in between updates was that I was on holiday. A big thank you to all my reviewers…I know I only responded to a couple of you but I got very confused with it all but I do read them all and they cheer me up. Any problems with the chapter can be noted on the back of a postcard and posted to God.


Chapter Seven

Chris awoke slowly, his brain pulsating loudly in his head and his mouth as dry as the desert. His body ached all over however, the most pain came from his leg.

He swung his body around, wincing with every movement as he attempted to stand up, faltering heavily and falling back down onto the bed with a thump. He closed his eyes tightly, hissing loudly as he dived back under the blankets.

"What happened last night?" He asked himself, rubbing his face into his pillow.

He couldn't remember much. He remembered the smell of food. Had he eaten? He couldn't remember but his stomach insisted that he hadn't. He could distinctly recall that alcohol was involved and the smell of his breath mixed with his pounding headache confirmed this fact.

"Leon…" he muttered, rolling over and looking at the wall that he shared with his partner.

He instantly felt embarrassed. If he insulted Leon when he was sober, he didn't even want to imagine what Leon would have made of him when he was drunk.

If he had said or done anything, he certainly couldn't remember and either Leon would mention it in good humour, like any other normal human being would, or he wouldn't say anything. The latter was the most likely of the two and even though Chris was dying to find out what had happened the night before, he didn't fancy his chances with Leon.

-

It took over an hour for Chris to have a shower and put on clean clothes. He hadn't even attempted to have a shave in his state, fearing for his own life at the thought of himself with a razor blade. He didn't care if he had stubble, after all, he doubted he would be encountering any fine women and even if he did, he would have nowhere to take them to.

He carefully walked into the kitchen, a slight limp still apparent in his leg from an attack he remembered all too well. Despite the fact he had a limp, the pain wasn't as bad as it was a mere hour ago. He was starting to think that the majority of the pain was just in his head and he secretly hoped that Leon would tenderly care for him.

Leon was already awake, his back turned to Chris as he made a cup of coffee and placed several slices of toast in a holder before placing them on the table and turning back away from Chris, his coffee still in his hand.

Uncomfortable was an understatement for how Chris felt at that moment. He gingerly took a seat, picking up a slice of dry toast and nibbling it lightly, too nervous to ask for any butter or preserves.

"I take it you'll be needing some sort of aspirin…" Leon stated, gesturing to a glass of water on the table with a couple of tablets already set out next to it. "We'll be setting off soon. Need to speak to the boss."

Chris eyed up Leon nervously. He seemed overly stressed, even more so than he had come to expect from the man.

"I've already done the paperwork," he said, placing his cup down roughly onto the kitchen counter and quickly taking a seat next to his partner, the file in front of him neatly.

He watched Leon gently run his fingers down the edge of the folder, fingering the corners and leaning down as he flipped it open, scouring over his notes. His hair fell down and covered his eyes. Without thinking, Chris reached over and brushed the hair from Leon's eyes and pushed it behind his ear, the back of his hand caressing his cheek.

Leon didn't move his head but his eyes landed on Chris and stared into him. He glared at him for a moment before he flipped the file shut and stood up. "Don't try and kiss me again, Mr. Redfield."

Chris's hand lingered in the air as the memory of the previous night came flooding back. His face reddened immediately as his arm fell onto the table with a crash, narrowly avoiding all the crockery and utensils.

If things had been awkward before, he didn't want to even imagine how things would be from here on out.

-

After what had happened previously, both men were cautious when it came to taking a ride with a company vehicle but eventually, they piled into the back and set off to headquarters.

"How's the leg?" Leon asked, looking over at Chris.

"Well, it has been better but the pain has pretty much gone. I'm just limping really," he replied, grinning stupidly as he hit his own leg to prove a point.

"So there's no pain at all?"

"There was this morning, but I'm guessing that was just from me mounting you last night…" he said with a smirk, forcing Leon to turn away with much haste. "But after the initial pain and walking on it a little, I've decided to just man up and get over it. I was hoping that if I kept it up, some slutty little nurse would come and tend to my wound but that never happened so…"

"Are you aware that you're a complete moron?" Leon questioned hypothetically as he stared out of the window, catching his own reflection in the glass yet he found his eyes wandering onto Chris's.

Chris stroked his chin for a moment, secretly admiring the amount of stubble he had required after one night. "I have been made aware of this fact in the past, yeah."

"Just confirming. I would have hated for you to have been in denial or something."

"You know, I once fell into the Nile," Chris remarked but before he could continue, Leon snapped his hand over his mouth to cease all sound.

"You should really learn to shut up."

Chris regarded Leon for a moment as his partner's hand slipped away from his mouth. Bit by bit, memories of the previous night came back and all the blanks were slowly filled in. It was when he reflected on these that he couldn't help but wonder about his feelings for Leon.

He wasn't the kind of man to look at the world in black and white. He understood that between them, there were shades of grey. If he found a guy attractive, he acknowledged it. He wouldn't deny himself something good. Although he'd only ever wanted one guy before (and nothing had come of that), he couldn't be certain of exactly what was going on between them.

He couldn't help but feel that he was falling for Leon. He hadn't felt like this since he'd first met Jill and although their relationship had been great at first, it had eventually whittled away to nothing. He wasn't sure if he wanted to go through that again, especially not with a guy.

However, there was the fact that they lived far apart and he would be gone in a week or so. He wouldn't have to deal with any sort of backlash from pursuing any feelings he might harbour for him. If things went wrong, it couldn't get any worse and if they went right…

He sighed heavily. "I could end up falling in love and just getting hurt or maybe hurt him and then I would feel guilty and if he hurt me I'd just feel so dirty and used and…"

"What on earth are you talking about?" Leon muttered, not averting his eyes from the window.

Chris closed his eyes tightly and slammed his hand against his forehead; unable to believe he had spoken aloud. "Just…nothing."

-

"I don't give a damn. You two have a mission to do and I don't want to hear nothing else from you until it is complete!" The boss boomed, jumping out of his chair with a puffy red face.

Leon cautiously placed the report on the desk, leaping back as the boss snatched it up and flicked through it. "We compiled a report on the encounter…"

The boss frowned, taking his cigar from the ashtray and pushing it between his clenched teeth. "Unless it's complete then I don't give a fuck!" He screamed, hurling the report at Chris, sending the loose papers flying around the room. "Have you secured the facility? Have you brought back any samples of what this thing could be?"

"Well, no…" Leon mumbled, avoiding eye contact.

"Then unless one of you is dead and you need a replacement, I don't want to hear about it." He slumped down into his seat, clearly exhausted from raising his voice as he puffed hurriedly on his cigar. "Any more questions, ask my assistant."

"You have an assistant?" Leon asked, surprised as the desk outside his office was always empty and phone calls went straight through.

"Yes I have an assistant," he replied in a childish voice before glaring at the pair. "Now get out of my sight! I want this fucking done before this Christmas! I hired two of the 'best in the business' and I get this slapdash shit." He hissed at them both, watching as they skulked out of the office. "My toddler could have done this and wrote an entire book on it by now."

-

Neither of them had expected their mission to have gone like it had. They had been given little information and little cause for them to even prepare for trouble when investigating. However, it had gone wrong as far as they were concerned and now, through little fault of their own, they were stuck cleaning up a gigantic mess. To say they were stressed was an understatement.

Chris was obviously worked up, having gone for an angry swim as soon as they had entered the house. Leon, on the other hand, had remained composed on the outside. He kept his feelings to himself, watching intensely as his partner swam hard in his pool.

He watched Chris come up for air every few seconds, his face drenched in water and his mouth wide open. Not being able to help himself, his mind reverted back to the previous night.

He had had that man, the epitome of manliness, on top of him; wanting him. He could have taken advantage of his drunken state but he didn't and now the chance had come and gone. He wasn't one to do such a thing, although it was Chris who had initiated it.

He leant against the wall, his eyes still on Chris's distorted body under the water. "Unless…" he muttered aloud, still following his previous train of thought. "Maybe the moment hasn't completely gone."

Turning around, he ran inside to the kitchen and practically dove into the cupboard, pulling out several pots and pans as he frantically searched. By the time he had found what he was looking for, the kitchen looked like a travelling salesman's trunk.

"Gotcha," he whispered, dragging out a dusty bottle of old whiskey. He blew on it, rubbing his thumb over the label and smiling at the date. "Perfect," he said with a smirk, placing the bottle on the side as he took out two glasses.

Was what he thinking wrong? He was certain it was but judging by how Chris had acted this morning, he would either not remember it or just blush and brush it off. Even if they did end up having sex, it wouldn't mean anything and Chris's sexuality wouldn't be harmed as he wouldn't be the one getting penetrated. It was a flawless plan.

In his own mind, he was being logical. They both needed to blow off steam and to him, sex was the best way to do that and if the evening didn't pan out like that, a drunken splendour was just as good. Chris had wanted him the previous night; he can't have been that drunk or maybe he just wasn't as straight as he claimed to be. A person's true intentions tended to come out when they are paralytic.

He ran upstairs, grabbing essential supplies from his bedside drawer. He didn't want to be unprepared. If the opportunity presented itself to Leon again, he would take it.


A/N: You're all worried that I've made Leon an alcoholic, right? Well, he isn't and where I'm from, getting people drunk to take advantage of them is the norm. At least he isn't lacing Chris's drinks with GHB or anything. To all of you waiting for them to bone each other, I suggest you go sit in the corner with a yaoi manga or something. That should tide you over until I post again. Oh, and for those of you not familiar with male sicknesses, they come and go as they please and tend to only be severe when they can't be bothered doing anything...that solves the mystery of Chris's leg and lets me be happy with the next chapter I wrote.