A/N: I know the 'reconciliation' scene between Jill and lover-boy is a little rushed, but I was getting sick of writing and wanted to get it over with. ^_^ So sorry about that. Moving on…
Chapter 6
"Hurry up," Carlos called to Sherry, who was still upstairs getting ready.
"I said, wait up! I'll be down in a minute!"
Seconds later, Sherry flew down the stairs and ran out the door.
"Carlos! Come on!" Rolling his eyes, he followed her. Women – he'd never understand them. Even this little girl had him stupefied. He slammed the door shut and walked through the snowdrifts to the truck nearby.
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Jill waited until the roar of the motor died away before she left her room. Rebecca, Carlos, Claire and Sherry had all decided to go shopping for a few last minute gifts. She wasn't sure if Chris had accompanied them, but she could hear someone in the kitchen downstairs. Probably Leon. She'd already wrapped and bought her gifts. Jill crept down the hall and into the drawing room, where the piano waited for her. She'd nearly perfected the "Moonlight Sonata".
Shutting the door softly behind her, Jill walked on padded towards the piano bench and sat down. But she didn't feel like playing just yet. She sat there for a few minutes before standing up and moving towards the door. Maybe she'd play later, she decided. Jill stood, and walked over to the window. The sun was starting to melt a few of the icicles hanging from the rafters, sending tiny rivulets of water down the side of the house. Within a few hours, it would probably be snowing again, and so she decided to take a walk in the woods while it was still nice outside.
The door to the guys' bedroom was closed, and Jill hesitated for a moment, thinking of how nice it would be for Chris to join her out in the snow…shaking her head, she went down the stairs and into the washing room, where most of her stuff was at the moment. (The washer had decided to work late the previous night, and Jill had taken full advantage of this.) As she was slipping on some gloves, Leon stuck his head into the room.
"Jill? Where you going?"
She smiled at him and slipped off the top of the dryer onto the floor. "A walk. I'll be back in a little while." Leon frowned at her.
"By yourself? It might not be safe. Maybe I should go with you…"
"No," she replied, shaking her head. "It's fine. I'll be alright."
"I'm sure Chris would like to go with you." The innocent suggestion brought a scarlet blush to Jill's cheeks, and Leon hastily added, "He said earlier he wanted some fresh air."
"I'll be fine," Jill muttered and headed for the door. "See you later."
Outside, the air fairly snapped with cold and vapor poured from her mouth and nose as she let out a deep breath. The door creaked shut behind her, and Jill started towards the woods. The snow was deep, an inch or two below her knee, and it took her a while to get to the shelter of the trees. The snow there wasn't so deep; most of it had caught on the trees above, sending clumps of snow down at unpredictable intervals.
Her boots crunching on hardened snow, Jill started to follow the dirt path leading into the woods. It was an easy walk, leading to the base of a hill where a large pond sat, frozen over. She sat on a rock near the edge of the forest and leaned back, looking into the clear blue sky. If it got cold again, the pond could probably be skated on. If they could find skates.
A cloud of smooth, silvery gray drifted across the sky. Gray, the same color as Chris's eyes…Jill frowned and slid her eyes shut to block out the sky. She no longer held doubts about him. She loved Chris, but what was she going to do about Carlos? It was only his pride that kept him after her, and she didn't particularly care if she wounded his ego, but what if it really hurt him? No, it couldn't – Jill had seen the way Carlos looked at Becca. And she'd seen the way Becca looked back, shy but obviously flattered by the attention.
Jill sat up, opening her eyes. Her forehead impacted sharply with another, and with a repressed yelp of surprise, Jill recognized Chris. She rubbed her forehead, and looked up at him. He was staring down at her, smiling sheepishly.
"Sorry about that," he started, "but you were lying down, and I thought something was wrong, so I leaned over to check…" Jill smiled back, and Chris's grin grew wider.
"It's alright. I was thinking about Carlos and Becca." Not entirely a lie. Chris laughed a little.
"She's a nice girl, not at all like Carlos. But you know what they say – opposites attract."
"Yeah…" Jill scooted over on the rock so Chris could sit down, and looked at the spot. He didn't even hesitate before sitting. It wasn't a large rock, and there wasn't really enough room for both of them. His arm brushed her own, and the sensation sent a delicious tingling sensation up and down her spine. "He's been acting really strange, though. After we got out of Raccoon, he was really nice, but now…I don't know. Something's different."
"Jealousy." The word popped out of Chris's mouth before he could stop himself. Jill looked up at him, surprised, and suddenly, something between them changed. They weren't friends sitting on a rock, playing matchmaker for two other friends, but a guy and a girl alone in the woods, waiting for the other to make the first move.
"Of what?" Quiet, and soft, almost like a breathy whisper…Chris leaned forward, his throat dry. This, he decided, was the moment he'd been waiting for. Jill tilted her head to meet him, and their lips met.
Later reflection brought Jill to the conclusion that it was the singularly best kiss she'd ever received. There was no tongue involved, but it was the best anyway. Soft and sweet, and Jill had to suppress a shiver of pure, ecstatic delight that raced through her body as Chris pulled away. He smiled a little.
"Of that, Jill." And then they sat in silence for a minute or two, staring at the lake. Then Chris stood up and pulled Jill off the rock.
"Why'd you come out here, anyway?" Chris looked at her sidelong.
"Saw you leaving the house and asked Leon where you were going. Then I followed the trail." Jill smiled. So he really did care. She looked over at the lake, with its thick icy covering.
"Do you know how to ice skate?" Chris shook his head.
"Claire does, though. She took some lessons in sixth grade, I think. Maybe it was seventh. Do you?"
"No, but…you wanna try?" Jill looked up at him slyly. "There are probably some ice skates up in the attic, or the basement. The house is filled from top to bottom with useless crap." Chris shrugged.
"Sounds good enough to me."
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Upon arriving in town, the whole group scattered. Claire followed Sherry at a discreet distance, Carlos headed for the wealthy side of town and Rebecca found the nearest bookstore. Carlos was the one to suggest they buy lunch at a restaurant and take it home, but as Sherry set a bag of chicken strips on one of the seats, she spotted a fir tree in the window of a nearby shop.
"Can't we get a Christmas tree, too?" At first Carlos had been adamant, saying they didn't need a tree, but when Rebecca and Claire backed Sherry up, he didn't have much choice. The only one they could find was a little over five feet tall. It branches drooped, looking scraggly, but all three girls were delighted and they sat in the back of the truck to make sure it didn't fall out the back.
Carlos, who was driving the truck with only a few bags full of local specialties for company, was a little peeved, but when he arrived home, his pleasant mood returned. He'd bought Jill's gift that day, and it was absolutely exquisite. The house was quiet, until Leon appeared from the kitchen and made a few well-chosen remarks about the tree's condition. Claire made an equally snide remark about Leon's own condition, and disappeared up the stairs, following Carlos into the parlor.
Chris and Jill were nowhere to be found, a fact that didn't elude Carlos. The tree wouldn't stand up properly, and finally they had to prop it against the corner to keep it from falling. Becca, Sherry and Claire, instantly forgetting their lunch, went scampering into the attic to look for ornaments to adorn their tree with as the back door opened and two smiling figures made their way into the parlor.
Carlos noticed the new way that Jill regarded Chris, and he felt something inside of him snap. He was losing her, and he was not going to give her up to Chris Redfield! Standing, he walked over to Jill and tapped her shoulder, smiling. She smiled back, a little uneasily, and asked,
"What is it, Carlos? The tree looks…great."
"I'd like to talk to you, Jill. Alone." She nodded and let him lead her into the drawing room. He shut the door as Jill sat down on a sagging chair near the huge window. Then he turned and advanced on her.
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Up in the attic, the three younger girls sat in a loose circle, rummaging through an old trunk. A small pile of chests that had already been searched sat to one side. The rest of the attic was filled up with more antiqued items. Sherry was wearing an old hat with several ostrich feathers as she dug through the bottom. A moment later her face re-appeared, and she held out her spoils – an old black-and-white photograph, a thin book with a French title and some coins, rusted and bronzed with time.
Becca stood and examined a box near a coat rack, sweeping off the thick layer of dust. Inside, a Christmas card covered in glitter winked playfully at her.
"I think I found something!"
Sherry was instantly by her side, the ostrich plume tickling the tip of Rebecca's nose. She wrinkled her nose and pulled a thick sheaf of Christmas cards off the top, revealing another, smaller box. Silver and gold glass balls twinkled as Sherry pulled the box out. Beneath it, another box of ornaments – these ones dainty white snowflakes coated with iridescent sparkles – sat in quiet repose. Claire appeared, and picked up the snowflakes as Becca picked up a medium-sized package carefully wrapped in scraps of muslin that had been carefully placed to one side of the ornament boxes.
After it had been unwrapped, it revealed the figurine of an angel, made of blown glass and little strips of gold here and there. They all took an involuntary breath after the cloths protecting it fell away.
"It's so pretty…does it go on top of the tree?"
Becca nodded at Sherry. "I think so. There's a notch here for it." Claire started over towards the door leading back to the third floor.
"C'mon," she called, "let's go put 'em on the tree!"
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Jill got a mite nervous when Carlos shut the door, but didn't show it. He approached her and sat on the floor at her feet. It made her more than a little uncomfortable. The feeling deepened when Carlos snatched her hand and held it to his heart. She was getting weirded out.
"Jill, Jill…!"
"…Yes?" It was difficult to keep the revulsion out of her voice. Carlos's antics made her want to slap him. Jill drew the line when he started covering the hand he clutched with fervent kisses and she snatched her hand back, fighting the impulse to wipe it off on her pants leg.
"Oh, Jill, I love you so much! You're everything to me, everything…!" He stared up at her. She shifted uncomfortably. What an unpleasant task she had…
"Um, Carlos…I have to tell you something…"
"What!? Anything, Jill, anything for you…"
"I don't…like you…like that." There was a shocked silence following her words. Carlos stared at her, all the passion drained from his face.
"But…Jill…" He didn't sound crushed, just…irritated? Not exactly, but close enough.
"No, Carlos. I love Chris." She leaned forward, and looked him in the eyes. "I think I know what was going on, Carlos. You don't have to prove anything." He continued to gape, and Jill hurried on, afraid that she would lose her nerve. "Rebecca likes you, and you like her, and I think you should give it a try. You're a great friend, Carlos. And I'd love to still be friends, but…not like that. Never."
She stood, feeling better than she had in days. Jill's mind was clear and clean. Carlos stood as well, and looked her in the eye.
"Guess you saw right through me, Jill." He sounded sad, and she cast her eyes down for a moment.
"Yeah."
"So I guess we'll be friends, still?"
"Yeah. You think you might try Becca?"
"She seems nice. And cute. Not as cute as you, maybe…but still cute." He looked at her, and his old smile was back. It seemed that things were going to be fine after all.