Chapter Seven:




"I think this dress compliments you best, Sherry." Carlotta said warmly, holding up a
velvet, dark blue off the shoulder dress up against Sherry's front side. 'Don't you think
so?" she asked, turning to Claire.
Claire forced a smile and nodded before turning to a shelf rack with sparkly bags and
accessories on it. Her hands shook as she picked examined each one carefully and the
vague trace of a hangover still the top most of her concerns.
"Oh! I knew it! Just perfect!" Carlotta exclaimed as Sherry came out wearing the
Vivienne Tam dress and modeled it confidently for all of them.
"This will be the first dress you'll wear," Carlotta said, looking thoughtful. "For when
you first meet the judges. Then the Dolce and Gabbana for the talent portion. There's
still plenty of time before the pageant, we can find more dresses that will vibrate out all
of the perfection that is you."
'Oh, spare me...' Claire thought, feeling she may throw up. She felt someone step up
beside her and tap her shoulder. She saw Chris smiling at her.
"Hey sis, you feeling okay?" he asked.
"I'm fine." She said curtly, turning on her heels and walking out the door to sit on one of
the benches.
Claire sighed as she crossed her arms under her breasts and sank deeply into her seat,
keeping her eyes downward. Seconds later, a pair of boots appeared in her sight and she
followed up to see Chris.
"What is up with you?" he demanded. "You've been completely distant all day. Not to
mention that you're treating Carlotta like crap. She's done all this nice stuff for you all,
plus, she's my fiancée. Could you simmer down?"
"Simmer down?" Claire repeated doubtfully. "Me? You're the one who's playing lap
dog to Grandma Moses. I never did understand your taste in women."
"Carlotta is young at heart." Chris said passionately, his tone biting and sharp. "And
we love each other very much."
"Oh please." Claire retorted disgustedly. "You've never been serious about any woman
before. Why is she any different? Is it her money? Is that it?"
"NO!" Chris detonated. "Is it so hard to believe that I can love someone? Because if you
think so, then you're sadly mistaken, little sister." He said the word 'little' in a harsh,
patronizing tone.
"How are you so sure she actually LOVES you Chris? She'll play with you for a little
while before she discards you like an old shoe. Face it, you'll never be anything but her
punk."
Chris' brow furrowed in anger and Claire saw him turn two shades of red. He closed
his eyes and she could tell he was counting to ten in his mind. Finally, he opened his
eyes and said softly, "You're just jealous because you're to scared to love a person.
You're jealous because I have somebody--- and you have nobody..."
Claire's throat tightened and tears welled up in her eyes. She wanted to make Chris mad
at her, but she hadn't expected him to say something so hurtful. She wasn't jealous of
Chris. Why should she be?
"If I'm scared to love somebody, it's YOUR fault Christopher Redfield." She said
indicted.
"MY fault?" Chris replied. "Why so?"
Claire thought back to all the girlfriends that Chris had had when he was in high
school. She was only ten-years-old when half the cheerleading squad at Houston High
came to their house, begging and pleading to see Chris. Seeing their devastated, heart-
broken faces shocked her. Chris wouldn't do THIS to them, right? Chris was a GOOD
person, wasn't he?
"I looked up to you Chris." Claire said. "If a person as great as you could break so many
hearts just for the fun of it then I really had no chance in finding someone who will love
me for me."
Chris' eyes widened and he sputtered. "What---?"
"And they were cheerleaders Chris!" Claire interjected. "You turned down the most
beautiful girls in school. How do you think an ordinary looking girl like me would feel?
Hopeless!"
Chris was silent before he smiled. "Did anyone ever tell you that you have an isolation
complex?" He paused. "That IS what it's called, isn't it? I didn't go to college like you
did."
"I don't care!" Claire shouted loud enough to make people stop and stare. "Don't tell me
what kind of problem I have. Just leave me alone!"
She tossed her hair and sped away from him. Barely looking where she was going, she
bumped and tripped her way through Chanel until she was outside and waiting for the
first bus or taxi to take her away from this place.
"Rough day?" a voice asked, touching her shoulder.
"I said leave me alone you moron!" she snapped.
"Hey, cool it. Is that anyway to talk to the guy who stayed up half the night to make sure
you didn't drink yourself to death?"
Claire turned to see Leon with his hands in his jacket pockets, rocking forward on the
balls of his feet.
"Oh, Leon, I didn't see you-- I mean I didn't--I didn't know it was you..."
Leon held up a hand to silence her and nodded. "I understand."
Claire pressed her lips together and clenched her fists. "I guess you're wondering what
that whole scenario was about, huh?"
"I didn't say that." Leon replied as he sat down on the nearby bench.
"Then I guess you're wondering why I said all those things when I'm supposed to be this
self-confident, cocky person?" she tried again.
"I didn't say that either." Leon said as he chewed on his thumbnail.
"Then why did you follow me out here?" she asked.
Leon shrugged, "It isn't for me to say."
Claire stared at him for a few moments before bursting into a fit of laughter.
Leon grinned enormously and patted the seat next to him. "Sit down you dork."
Claire sighed but obeyed and sat down. She pulled her jacket around her tightly as the
wind picked up. It was going to be a cold day.
"Look, Leon," she began ungenerously. "If you came because everyone wants me to
come back so they can chew my ear off, you can forget it. I'm not going back."
"What? Me? I didn't come to call you back." Leon said innocently, looking as if that
was the most astonishing proposal that anyone ever suggested. "I only wanted to know if
you wanted to do something other than shopping today. I don't recall you ever going
sight-seeing. I mean, you looked at all the sights, but you didn't really SEE them."
Claire raised an eyebrow. "Leon, I have no idea what you just said."
"I know." Leon said. "It was close to poetry, very deep. I don't expect you to
understand."
Claire scoffed and hit his shoulder playfully. "I know what you mean now. But what
good would it do? Neither of us has been to Paris before--not including that time when I
was looking for Chris." Claire said, almost without a thought. It wasn't that difficult not
to think of Rockford anymore.
Leon smiled mischievously. "When I was in ninth grade, I did a project on France. I
know all those must-see places thanks to that." He said. "Want to go to Versailles? Or
the Bastille? How about we go visit old Quasi at Notre Dame?" he asked, hunching over
and squinting one eye.
Claire shook her head and frowned as the tour bus arrived, ready to take a new stream of
passengers.
"Come on," Leon coaxed. "It's gotta be better that we get away from them instead of
you killing your brother."
Claire thought for a while before jumping up. "Let's go." She said.
"All RIGHT!" Leon exclaimed, following her up the steps and taking a seat in the bus.



"How about a picture of your mug on a mug?" Leon asked as they left the gift shop.
"Puh-leaze." Claire said, pretending to be disgusted with his lame humor, but laughed
anyway. "Some souvenir...Where's our next stop?"
"Let me see," Leon said as he put on a false French accent. "Ve ave visited zee Lourve,
zee Bastille, zee Eiffel Tower und many other tings..." he slipped back into his real
voice. "It's almost 5:30. Why don't we go see the river Seine?"
"Sure... or--- Qui." She said coyly.
Leon grinned and linked his arm through hers. They walked down the crowded streets
of Paris and Claire looked at all the scenes. She had to admit that she hadn't really had a
chance to see the true beauty of the place. She didn't regret having that squabble with
Chris. This was the most relaxing day she'd had in a month. She loved seeing the
paintings in the Lourve, the dark gloominess of the Bastille, the enormity and
exquisiteness of the Eiffel Tower...She hadn't had so much to see since Carlotta had
shown them her villa.
"So," Leon said as they passed beneath the Arc de Triumph. "What was that whole
thing in Chanel about?"
"Hmmm?" Claire asked, snapping out of her daze.
"That girl that nearly broke down and said all those crazy things." Leon said, refreshing
her memory. "Where did she come from?"
Claire blushed furiously and laughed uncomfortably. "I have no idea where she came
from."
"She's not like the girl I know." Leon said teasingly.
"And who IS the girl you know?" Claire asked, staring down at her feet.
"Oh, confident, sarcastic, weird..." Leon said, ticking the list off his fingers. "Witty?"
Claire laughed. "Well, there's a lot of stuff you wouldn't know about me."
"Like what? I'd like to know." Leon said.
"I just never want to end up like all those pathetic girls that need a man to be happy. I
didn't want to be like one of Chris' discarded girlfriends..." Claire trailed off. "I guess I
just tried to hide behind that façade for a long time."
"Why would you want to hide behind anything?" Leon asked, mystified. "You're
gorgeous."
Claire looked up at him, her eyes wide. "What?"
"Do you honestly think you're plain-looking?" Leon asked, without answering her. "It's
amazing that you don't know how pretty you are."
Claire felt her face grow pleasantly warm as Leon took her hand and they walked
down the Seine. Her heart pounded as Leon started to tell her all he knew about Paris but
all she could hear was what he said about her being gorgeous. She felt ashamed to say it,
but boys had told her that she was pretty when she was a girl and she'd been too shocked
to react. She was too much of a tomboy to be flattered and too distrusting to start
anything of importance. But this time was different.
She was a woman of 22, and the sweetest man she'd ever known had came THIS close
to saying 'I love you'. In so many words of course... For one mad instant, Claire wanted
to lean forward and press her lips to Leon's. Before she could gather her courage, Leon
stood and offered her his hand.
"We'd better get going." Leon said. "Chris will be wondering what I've done with you."