8AM, the next day.
Seeing as they had all been put on leave until their psyche evaluations, none of them bothered to dress up in uniform. Each of the five members of the STARS team was sitting at their respective places.
Barry was wearing a pair of blue denim jeans and a grey sweater with the Gunshop Kendo logo on it. Being a good friend of Robert Kendo, the man who ran the gunshop, he wore his logo around the station as a walking endorsement. It brought him plenty of business.
Chickenheart was wearing a pair of green camo cargo pants, a white t-shirt, and a grey Hawaiian shirt with palm trees. He got teased usually because of it, but seeing as more than half the people who did so were dead, it didn't really matter anymore.
Rebecca was wearing her green basketball tanktop over a light green T- shirt. Green seemed to be her favorite color, being the fact that more than half her normal wardrobe, her uniform, even her swimwear, was green. She wore a pair of beige cargo pants also.
Jill was probably wearing the least of anyone. She wore a blue halter top, which most likely 1) Was intentionally that tight, and 2) to drive Chris nuts. She also wore a rather short black skirt. Covering her legs was a pair of brown zip-up leather boots. She had her university sweatshirt tied around her waist, in the event that she got chilly. But in the middle of the summer?…Well maybe it could rain.
Chris was passing around the coffee. Chris was all about being professional, and so was his attire. Blue suit, metallic red tie. Once he handed each person their respective mug, he sat down at his office, performing the same coffee drinking ritual, trying to wake up.
Irons hadn't been bluffing. They indeed, had psyche evaluations, to be held later that day and possibly the next day as well. The note posted on the STARS office door had indicated that.
Once everyone was settled in and had at least two sips of their coffee, Jill spoke up…"So…who's going first?"
Everyone was silent for a few seconds…then Brad spoke up…"Alright, I'll go first…"
Chris shook his head…"Oh no, you're not going first."
Brad was confused…"Why not?"
Chris decided to back up his statement, as he had just confused everyone else as well…"See, you had the least to do with this whole mess, right?"
Brad nodded…
Rebecca spoke up, seemingly getting the hang of it…"So if he goes first, he'll make the rest of us look bad, right?"
Chris nodded to Rebecca…"Yeah, that's the idea. I think he ought to go last…"
"Umm…okay…" Brad was still confused. Usually he'd be the first one to have to do something. Ah well, maybe they were starting to respect him…or just use him. Usually the two were the same thing.
"What the heck, I'll go first…"
All eyes rested on Barry.
"I'm an old man, I'm crazy enough without some doc telling me I am. Besides, it'll let you kids enjoy yourselves a bit longer…"
Jill took another sip of her coffee, then shook his head…"You don't have to do us any favors, Barry."
Barry shrugged…"Well, I'm going first anyway, just to get it over with. Unless anyone disagrees?"
You could have heard a pin drop. Evidently, the silence agreed with Barry.
"I'll go to the chief's office and wait. If this takes as long as I figure, the next person'll have to go at twoish…are we gonna decide that now, or later?"
Chris shrugged as well…"We'll figure that out later. See you later Barry."
Barry got up from his chair, taking his coffee along with him…"Wish me luck, guys."
Jill nodded, Chris waved, and Rebecca and Brad gave him thumbs up. He then exited the office, leaving the four alone.
"So…" Rebecca broke the silence…"What are we gonna do?"
"Well…" Chris started. "I left my gun back at the mansion, and I've been meaning to go buy a new one anyway, so I'll go to Kendo's. Anyone want to come with?"
Rebecca shook her head, while Jill remained silent. Brad spoke up though…"I'll come, Chris. I'm tired of my pistol."
"Alright then…" The two of them got up from their seats…"Well, I guess we'll be at the café for lunch then, we'll see you two later."
Chris and Brad exited the office, one after the other, and proceeded towards the parking lot to take Chris's car to the shop. Which left Rebecca and Jill in the office.
Jill didn't really want to do something with Rebecca. She'd probably want to go see a movie, or go to a playground, or something childish. She just sat there, sipping her coffee.
Rebecca spoke up…"Wanna go buy some clothes, Jill?"
Jill looked up to her. Hey…that didn't sound like such a bad idea, at least from her anyway. She set down her coffee, and stood up…"Why not? I could stand to get some more clothes anyway."
Rebecca smiled, and jumped for joy. She picked up her purse, while Jill snagged her wallet. They exited the office as well…
The two of them stepped into Kendo's shop. Rob looked up from a copy of Soldier of Fortune, and saw the two walk in. He recognized Chris immediately…"Redfield! What can I do for you?"
Chris waved lightly, elbowing Brad lightly…"I'm just gonna browse. Brad here wants a new pistol, and I figured you could help him out."
"No problem!" Kendo turned his chair, and set his magazine down on the counter. Chris began wandering, as Brad stepped up to the desk. "So you're one of Chris's pals? Show me your gun."
Brad reached into his Hawaiian shirt, and produced a compact pistol. He removed the magazine, and handed it to Kendo…"This."
Kendo examined the gun…"Geez…H-and-K VP70…Can't say I've seen one of these outside of a used gun shop. I don't know how you can stand to use it, it's pathetic by today's standards…"
Brad scratched the back of his head…"Yeah, I guess it is. What would you recommend a cop get?"
"Well…" Kendo thought for a moment, placing his fingers on his chin. "I got just the thing for you."
He bent over under the counter, and pulled a new pistol out of a recently unopened box…"I just got a shipment of these. SIG Sig Pro. Nine mil. These are pretty nifty. Kinda like 'Speak softly and carry a big gun'."
Brad accepted the gun, and held it for a moment. He pulled back on the slide, and checked out the sights…"Hmm…this is actually kinda cool…"
While Brad ogled the gun, Chris was peeking at a container of Berettas. He felt like either buying the same one he already had, or perhaps getting a two-tone variant he saw. But Kendo got his attention. "Hey Chris? Catch!"
Chris quickly looked to Kendo, and caught a pistol that he had tossed. Chris examined it…"Glock Seventeen?"
Kendo nodded…"Yeah. I heard the RPD was thinking about issuing those."
"Well…" Chris nodded…"It's no surprise. Heck, the Glock's on TV all the time nowadays. Cheap, effective…sure, I'll take it."
Kendo looked to Brad…"You gonna take that one too?"
Brad pulled himself out of a trance, and looked to Kendo…"Sure!"
Kendo pulled out a notepad…"I still charge it to the RPD, right?"
"Hold up…" Chris tossed Kendo his credit card and a dual-tone Beretta M92. "Put that one on my card. I just found a new off-duty pistol."
Kendo did as he was told, then laid the pistols on the counter…"I'll go fetch you a couple of free mags and the cases that go with those guns." He then ran out back.
Chris looked at the guns…"I wonder what Jill and Becky are up to right now?"
Brad nodded…"If they're like any women I know, they're out shopping for clothes."
Chris looked at the M92…"God, I hope she doesn't drive Jill nuts."
Brad shook his head…"Naah, Jill wouldn't do that. I think she's too concerned about what you'll think of what she's gonna buy than killing Becky."
Chris raised a brow at that. Well, it's not like Chris couldn't have made that assumption. But he looked to Brad…"What do you mean?"
Brad shrugged…"You'd be surprised what she dreams about when we're doing the night shift. She talks all the time in her sleep. And well, let's just say there was this one time where she couldn't stop screaming your name…"
Chris pretended to act disgusted, even though he was flattered…"Aww, man! That's more than I needed to know!"
"What do you think, Jill?" Rebecca asked as she pulled a top out of a section of clothes on sale. It matched Jill's halter top, only green.
Jill chuckled lightly, touching the fabric lightly with her right hand. It matched hers…"It's just like mine."
"I know!" Rebecca smiled, hugging the top. "It just looks so cool, I wanted to buy one!"
Jill smiled, looking at a couple of tops as well. There was only one factor on whether or not she'd buy a particular one – would Chris stare at her while she was in it? She looked up as Rebecca ran off. She was an energetic girl; she'd give her that. Jill pulled out a light blue baby tee, which was a few centimeters shorter than normal. Well, Chris would like that. She slung it over her left arm, and kept searching.
Rebecca came running back, and tapped Jill on the shoulder. Jill looked – she was holding the same make of skirt that she was wearing. Jill put her hands on her hips, looking at Rebecca funny…"Now I know you didn't find that by accident…"
Rebecca nodded, hugging the skirt as well. "I know! I just wanted an outfit like yours! It looks so cool!"
Jill raised a brow, a little curious…"Since when have I been some kind of idol?"
Rebecca responded cheerfully…"Always! You're a cool girl! You don't take any crap from no one! And you wear the coolest clothes!"
Jill smiled, blushing lightly…"Aww…I don't think I've ever had a fan before…except maybe Chris…"
Rebecca looked through the rack while she said that, trying to find a sweatshirt that would be remotely like hers. She then looked at her…"Chris likes you, ya know that?"
Jill turned her head quickly to Rebecca when she said that…"Huh?"
Rebecca smiled again, pulling out a white sweat shirt. "We talked, this one night when we had the night shift."
Jill leaned against the rack, listening…"What did he talk about?"
Rebecca held all three articles of clothing, ready to try them on, when she saw a display of boots. She started looking through them…"Well, there was this half hour where he kept trying to tell me why Clock was better than Brenda…"
Jill giggled lightly…"You mean Glock and Beretta…what else?"
Rebecca pulled out a pair of boots, identical to Jill's, and grinned. "Then he told me about growing up in some orphanage with his sister…I think her name was Claire, or something like that."
Jill looked at her, her expression blank…"You mean he doesn't have any parents?"
Rebecca shook her head…"I think he said something about them dying in a car crash or something."
"Oh…" Jill nodded. He didn't have any parents? Maybe that's why he kept avoiding that subject when she tried to talk to him…"Well I didn't know that. Anything else?"
"Well, I told him I thought Brad was cute, but he laughed."
"Aww…" Jill smiled. "Does our hyper little medic like our fraidy-cat pilot?"
Rebecca blushed, then nodded a bit later…"Yeah. I thought maybe if I dressed like you, he'd like me!"
Jill suddenly remembered why they were talking about this in the first place…"What did Chris say about me?"
Rebecca nodded. "Oh yeah! Silly me, I probably should've said that first. He said he thought you were very pretty."
Jill blushed lightly…"Aww…" Thoughts ran through her head…he really said that? Wow, I must be getting somewhere…
"I'm gonna go try these on, ok?" Rebecca then ran off to a change room. Jill didn't bother to try out the shirt she had picked out, because if it was too small, then it would probably be a good thing anyway. She followed, and waited outside for Rebecca.
Five minutes later, Rebecca re-emerged. She posed lightly, flashing the peace sign with her right hand, smiling at Jill. "How do I look?"
Jill smiled, patting her on the head…"You look just like me!"
*****
Well, aside from Barry and the shrink, it looks like the four of them are having a pretty good time. Rebecca with a crush on Brad? That might not bode well when all of them are re-united in the coming months. Drop me a review! I've got the next chapter ready, but I thought I'd wait until later to post it. Only YOU have the power to inspire me!…Well, that and Lulu ^_^.
Seeing as they had all been put on leave until their psyche evaluations, none of them bothered to dress up in uniform. Each of the five members of the STARS team was sitting at their respective places.
Barry was wearing a pair of blue denim jeans and a grey sweater with the Gunshop Kendo logo on it. Being a good friend of Robert Kendo, the man who ran the gunshop, he wore his logo around the station as a walking endorsement. It brought him plenty of business.
Chickenheart was wearing a pair of green camo cargo pants, a white t-shirt, and a grey Hawaiian shirt with palm trees. He got teased usually because of it, but seeing as more than half the people who did so were dead, it didn't really matter anymore.
Rebecca was wearing her green basketball tanktop over a light green T- shirt. Green seemed to be her favorite color, being the fact that more than half her normal wardrobe, her uniform, even her swimwear, was green. She wore a pair of beige cargo pants also.
Jill was probably wearing the least of anyone. She wore a blue halter top, which most likely 1) Was intentionally that tight, and 2) to drive Chris nuts. She also wore a rather short black skirt. Covering her legs was a pair of brown zip-up leather boots. She had her university sweatshirt tied around her waist, in the event that she got chilly. But in the middle of the summer?…Well maybe it could rain.
Chris was passing around the coffee. Chris was all about being professional, and so was his attire. Blue suit, metallic red tie. Once he handed each person their respective mug, he sat down at his office, performing the same coffee drinking ritual, trying to wake up.
Irons hadn't been bluffing. They indeed, had psyche evaluations, to be held later that day and possibly the next day as well. The note posted on the STARS office door had indicated that.
Once everyone was settled in and had at least two sips of their coffee, Jill spoke up…"So…who's going first?"
Everyone was silent for a few seconds…then Brad spoke up…"Alright, I'll go first…"
Chris shook his head…"Oh no, you're not going first."
Brad was confused…"Why not?"
Chris decided to back up his statement, as he had just confused everyone else as well…"See, you had the least to do with this whole mess, right?"
Brad nodded…
Rebecca spoke up, seemingly getting the hang of it…"So if he goes first, he'll make the rest of us look bad, right?"
Chris nodded to Rebecca…"Yeah, that's the idea. I think he ought to go last…"
"Umm…okay…" Brad was still confused. Usually he'd be the first one to have to do something. Ah well, maybe they were starting to respect him…or just use him. Usually the two were the same thing.
"What the heck, I'll go first…"
All eyes rested on Barry.
"I'm an old man, I'm crazy enough without some doc telling me I am. Besides, it'll let you kids enjoy yourselves a bit longer…"
Jill took another sip of her coffee, then shook his head…"You don't have to do us any favors, Barry."
Barry shrugged…"Well, I'm going first anyway, just to get it over with. Unless anyone disagrees?"
You could have heard a pin drop. Evidently, the silence agreed with Barry.
"I'll go to the chief's office and wait. If this takes as long as I figure, the next person'll have to go at twoish…are we gonna decide that now, or later?"
Chris shrugged as well…"We'll figure that out later. See you later Barry."
Barry got up from his chair, taking his coffee along with him…"Wish me luck, guys."
Jill nodded, Chris waved, and Rebecca and Brad gave him thumbs up. He then exited the office, leaving the four alone.
"So…" Rebecca broke the silence…"What are we gonna do?"
"Well…" Chris started. "I left my gun back at the mansion, and I've been meaning to go buy a new one anyway, so I'll go to Kendo's. Anyone want to come with?"
Rebecca shook her head, while Jill remained silent. Brad spoke up though…"I'll come, Chris. I'm tired of my pistol."
"Alright then…" The two of them got up from their seats…"Well, I guess we'll be at the café for lunch then, we'll see you two later."
Chris and Brad exited the office, one after the other, and proceeded towards the parking lot to take Chris's car to the shop. Which left Rebecca and Jill in the office.
Jill didn't really want to do something with Rebecca. She'd probably want to go see a movie, or go to a playground, or something childish. She just sat there, sipping her coffee.
Rebecca spoke up…"Wanna go buy some clothes, Jill?"
Jill looked up to her. Hey…that didn't sound like such a bad idea, at least from her anyway. She set down her coffee, and stood up…"Why not? I could stand to get some more clothes anyway."
Rebecca smiled, and jumped for joy. She picked up her purse, while Jill snagged her wallet. They exited the office as well…
The two of them stepped into Kendo's shop. Rob looked up from a copy of Soldier of Fortune, and saw the two walk in. He recognized Chris immediately…"Redfield! What can I do for you?"
Chris waved lightly, elbowing Brad lightly…"I'm just gonna browse. Brad here wants a new pistol, and I figured you could help him out."
"No problem!" Kendo turned his chair, and set his magazine down on the counter. Chris began wandering, as Brad stepped up to the desk. "So you're one of Chris's pals? Show me your gun."
Brad reached into his Hawaiian shirt, and produced a compact pistol. He removed the magazine, and handed it to Kendo…"This."
Kendo examined the gun…"Geez…H-and-K VP70…Can't say I've seen one of these outside of a used gun shop. I don't know how you can stand to use it, it's pathetic by today's standards…"
Brad scratched the back of his head…"Yeah, I guess it is. What would you recommend a cop get?"
"Well…" Kendo thought for a moment, placing his fingers on his chin. "I got just the thing for you."
He bent over under the counter, and pulled a new pistol out of a recently unopened box…"I just got a shipment of these. SIG Sig Pro. Nine mil. These are pretty nifty. Kinda like 'Speak softly and carry a big gun'."
Brad accepted the gun, and held it for a moment. He pulled back on the slide, and checked out the sights…"Hmm…this is actually kinda cool…"
While Brad ogled the gun, Chris was peeking at a container of Berettas. He felt like either buying the same one he already had, or perhaps getting a two-tone variant he saw. But Kendo got his attention. "Hey Chris? Catch!"
Chris quickly looked to Kendo, and caught a pistol that he had tossed. Chris examined it…"Glock Seventeen?"
Kendo nodded…"Yeah. I heard the RPD was thinking about issuing those."
"Well…" Chris nodded…"It's no surprise. Heck, the Glock's on TV all the time nowadays. Cheap, effective…sure, I'll take it."
Kendo looked to Brad…"You gonna take that one too?"
Brad pulled himself out of a trance, and looked to Kendo…"Sure!"
Kendo pulled out a notepad…"I still charge it to the RPD, right?"
"Hold up…" Chris tossed Kendo his credit card and a dual-tone Beretta M92. "Put that one on my card. I just found a new off-duty pistol."
Kendo did as he was told, then laid the pistols on the counter…"I'll go fetch you a couple of free mags and the cases that go with those guns." He then ran out back.
Chris looked at the guns…"I wonder what Jill and Becky are up to right now?"
Brad nodded…"If they're like any women I know, they're out shopping for clothes."
Chris looked at the M92…"God, I hope she doesn't drive Jill nuts."
Brad shook his head…"Naah, Jill wouldn't do that. I think she's too concerned about what you'll think of what she's gonna buy than killing Becky."
Chris raised a brow at that. Well, it's not like Chris couldn't have made that assumption. But he looked to Brad…"What do you mean?"
Brad shrugged…"You'd be surprised what she dreams about when we're doing the night shift. She talks all the time in her sleep. And well, let's just say there was this one time where she couldn't stop screaming your name…"
Chris pretended to act disgusted, even though he was flattered…"Aww, man! That's more than I needed to know!"
"What do you think, Jill?" Rebecca asked as she pulled a top out of a section of clothes on sale. It matched Jill's halter top, only green.
Jill chuckled lightly, touching the fabric lightly with her right hand. It matched hers…"It's just like mine."
"I know!" Rebecca smiled, hugging the top. "It just looks so cool, I wanted to buy one!"
Jill smiled, looking at a couple of tops as well. There was only one factor on whether or not she'd buy a particular one – would Chris stare at her while she was in it? She looked up as Rebecca ran off. She was an energetic girl; she'd give her that. Jill pulled out a light blue baby tee, which was a few centimeters shorter than normal. Well, Chris would like that. She slung it over her left arm, and kept searching.
Rebecca came running back, and tapped Jill on the shoulder. Jill looked – she was holding the same make of skirt that she was wearing. Jill put her hands on her hips, looking at Rebecca funny…"Now I know you didn't find that by accident…"
Rebecca nodded, hugging the skirt as well. "I know! I just wanted an outfit like yours! It looks so cool!"
Jill raised a brow, a little curious…"Since when have I been some kind of idol?"
Rebecca responded cheerfully…"Always! You're a cool girl! You don't take any crap from no one! And you wear the coolest clothes!"
Jill smiled, blushing lightly…"Aww…I don't think I've ever had a fan before…except maybe Chris…"
Rebecca looked through the rack while she said that, trying to find a sweatshirt that would be remotely like hers. She then looked at her…"Chris likes you, ya know that?"
Jill turned her head quickly to Rebecca when she said that…"Huh?"
Rebecca smiled again, pulling out a white sweat shirt. "We talked, this one night when we had the night shift."
Jill leaned against the rack, listening…"What did he talk about?"
Rebecca held all three articles of clothing, ready to try them on, when she saw a display of boots. She started looking through them…"Well, there was this half hour where he kept trying to tell me why Clock was better than Brenda…"
Jill giggled lightly…"You mean Glock and Beretta…what else?"
Rebecca pulled out a pair of boots, identical to Jill's, and grinned. "Then he told me about growing up in some orphanage with his sister…I think her name was Claire, or something like that."
Jill looked at her, her expression blank…"You mean he doesn't have any parents?"
Rebecca shook her head…"I think he said something about them dying in a car crash or something."
"Oh…" Jill nodded. He didn't have any parents? Maybe that's why he kept avoiding that subject when she tried to talk to him…"Well I didn't know that. Anything else?"
"Well, I told him I thought Brad was cute, but he laughed."
"Aww…" Jill smiled. "Does our hyper little medic like our fraidy-cat pilot?"
Rebecca blushed, then nodded a bit later…"Yeah. I thought maybe if I dressed like you, he'd like me!"
Jill suddenly remembered why they were talking about this in the first place…"What did Chris say about me?"
Rebecca nodded. "Oh yeah! Silly me, I probably should've said that first. He said he thought you were very pretty."
Jill blushed lightly…"Aww…" Thoughts ran through her head…he really said that? Wow, I must be getting somewhere…
"I'm gonna go try these on, ok?" Rebecca then ran off to a change room. Jill didn't bother to try out the shirt she had picked out, because if it was too small, then it would probably be a good thing anyway. She followed, and waited outside for Rebecca.
Five minutes later, Rebecca re-emerged. She posed lightly, flashing the peace sign with her right hand, smiling at Jill. "How do I look?"
Jill smiled, patting her on the head…"You look just like me!"
*****
Well, aside from Barry and the shrink, it looks like the four of them are having a pretty good time. Rebecca with a crush on Brad? That might not bode well when all of them are re-united in the coming months. Drop me a review! I've got the next chapter ready, but I thought I'd wait until later to post it. Only YOU have the power to inspire me!…Well, that and Lulu ^_^.
