A/N: Loads of love and thanx to all of u reviewing! Ok I know I'm kinda
updating later than I said but my computer crashed and I didn't have
internet access for the last week. Anyhoo's I'm back now but I don't think
I'll be updating as frequently since school work is just TOO much at the
moment and for the rest of the year so I advise u all NOT to take art!! Art
is taking up all my time_ Ok, I hope u guys enjoy this chapter, and keep
checking for the other story Joanne since I'm gonna work on that next
chapter. Hopefully it'll be up in 2-3 days^_^
DISCLAIMER: All RE characters belong to CAPCOM
CHAPTER 7- WANDERING MINDS
AT THE BALL:
Claire linked arms with Mark Thornton as they walked into the beautifully lit ballroom. Claire could not believe her eyes. It was so dreamlike, with all the elegant women standing in sparkling dresses holding fancy glasses of wine and Champaign, engaged in conversations full of gossip and scandal. The men looking equally aristocratic in their formal tuxes, and acting as 'gentlemanly' as you can get. This was definitely something new for her.
"Come on, let me introduce you to my parents!" Said Mark as he guided Claire through the endless crowds of people. They finally reached a very old couple dressed in obviously expensive clothes and chatting to a large group of people.
"Mom! Dad! I'd like you to meet someone!" He shouted over to them, while waving his arms about. They instantly excused themselves and walked over.
"Oh hello darling!" greeted his mother theatrically in a very posh British accent, as she gave him a kiss on both cheeks. She then turned to Claire and squealed, "Oh, that must be Claire! Darling it's so nice to see you!" she then continued giving Claire a kiss on both cheeks as well.
Claire smiled politely. "Hi... uh....hello..I must compliment you on your expensive taste. The place looks gorgeous," she said not knowing at all how to act with such prestigious, rich people. She almost laughed at the way she was speaking.
His father approached her and also gave her a kiss on both cheeks. "Why, this is the beautiful Claire we have heard so much about. Such a coincidence that you would end up living in the same city as us after all these years."
"Yeah, it is isn't it." Claire answered ever so politely.
She stood there for a while talking to Mark and his parents but could only think of how extremely bored she was. They were very nice people, but the jokes they found amusing were just horrible. Claire stood there like an idiot most of the time wondering about what could possibly be so funny about the fertility of alcoholic Irish people. The music was also something a person couldn't exactly dance happily to. Way too classical for her taste. She instantly knew this was not her type of society and life-style, but Mark's parents were treating her like some potential daughter in law.
'I wonder what Leon's doin right now...probably screwing Ada like there's no tomorrow.' She thought bitterly. She couldn't help the way all these suspicions kept flying through her mind. Ada did mention a 'date' with Leon after all, and she didn't trust Ada one bit. 'Knowing HER she'd probably seduce Leon on the first date, and Leon being the idiot and jerk he is will fall for her. And then they'll get married and have 5 kids and I'll be the loser living next door as a spinster and virgin for the rest of my life!'
"Claire? How about a dance?" Asked Mark pleadingly, as he stood close in front of Claire interrupting her miserable thoughts.
"Uh..yeah, sure. That'll be nice." She said smiling as she took his hand and he led her to the enormous dance floor, were many couples stood dancing with eyes closed.
AT AN ITALIAN RESTAURANT:
"Leon? Hello, earth to Leon!" Said Ada as she clicked her fingers in front of Leon's face, disrupting his distant stare.
"Huh? Sorry, what were you saying?" he asked quickly as he went back to playing with the spaghetti on his plate.
"You weren't listening to me again. What the hell are you thinking about?"
"Nothing, just thinking of how I don't wanna go back to work tomorrow." He lied, but could see that Ada wasn't very convinced.
"Are you sure it's nothing about Claire?" she asking, frowning bitterly.
Leon was surprised by that. "Why would I think about Claire? She's having loads of fun probably; I don't have to worry about her or anything. Mark is a harmless guy..a loser-but harmless none the less."
"That's not what I meant Leon, but yeah, I bet she is having a great time. She really likes that Mark anyway," said Ada, taking another bite of spaghetti and looking over at the people sitting across the room.
"She does?" Asked Leon a little too quickly.
"Yeah. Leon why else would she go OUT with him? And She made a big effort at looking good too. When girls do that it means they really like the guy they're going with." She answered knowingly.
"I..didn't know that," he said looking down at his plate with a look of hurt and rejection put together.
"Why Leon, you look almost disappointed. Is something wrong?"
"No, nothings wrong. I'm just happy for her you know. It's been a long time since Steve's death and, well...I'm glad she's finally moving on."
"Steve? Is that her old boyfriend?" She asked, suddenly getting interested in the conversation.
"No..yes..ugh, I don't know! He's some guy she met while she was in prison 3 years back. His death was traumatic for her. A little too traumatic I guess. I mean I'll never forget how devastated she was when we met up in Paris."
"I see. It's quite strange how she took 3 years to get over him, right? It's like she was madly in love with him." Said Ada as she ran a hand through her raven black/red streaked hair.
"I guess she was," answered Leon, his voice breaking slightly.
"I can't criticize. I know how that feels like, Leon." She said in a soft whisper looking deep into Leon's eyes.
THE BALL- 1:24AM:
Claire was just about done with dancing and conversing with all of Marks friends, and now felt exhausted and seriously needed to get back home and sleep. She walked around looking for Mark in order to ask him to take her back home and spotted him laughing uncontrollably with a bunch of his friends.
"Excuse me," she said as she pushed herself through the crowd, "Mark, come here I need to talk to you for a second." She said motioning for Mark to follow. He did as he was told and they went off into a corner away from the orchestral band that was playing.
"Hey Claire, what is it?" He asked smiling like a goof.
"Umm, I kinda need to be getting home now. Do you think you can arrange for the limo to take me home or something?" She asked smiling sweetly.
"Aww, you wanna leave now??" He groaned.
"Well yeah. I mean I had an awesome time Mark, I'm just really tired and I start my summer course after tomorrow so I wanna get a good night's sleep." She answered, brushing some strands of hair from her eyes. She needed to do summer courses since she missed a year of University because of the Umbrella incident. She now had one more year left and she would be done with her criminal psychology bachelor's degree.
"Ok, ok. I'll go with you, just a second, let me go and tell everyone I'm going." He said then disappeared in the crowd. Claire only waited for five minutes then saw him approaching her again.
"Well, shall we go my dear?" He asked imitating his mother. Claire giggled and nodded.
She sat in silence during the entire ride home. For one thing she was too tired to talk to Mark. The other thing was that she was also busy thinking of Leon. It's as though she couldn't get him out of her mind even when trying to have fun! Mark was a great guy, but there was no way she could ever put him in the same league as Leon, even if she wished she could.
'Love sucks. It's just a stupid thing that breaks strong people and makes them too vulnerable.' She thought, crossing her arms and staring out the window. Her house was now at view. 'Finally.'
Mark got out of the car and quickly ran over to Claire's side to open the door for her. She smiled at him thankfully, and got out while taking off her high-heeled shoes.
"You know, heels really suck. I don't even know how I survived this whole night wearing them!" she said jokingly as Mark laughed.
"Yeah well, you sure were the life of the party," he said, staring at her admiringly.
"Pshh. Please, I like didn't even know what I was doing half the time." She answered, trying to be as humble as possible.
"Well you were. You were the most beautiful girl there." He said slightly blushing. They had now reached the door of her house.
"Thanks..Umm, I had a great time Mark, it was really nice of you to take me along. Goodnight." She said as she turned to open her door, but just then Mark slid a hand behind her neck and brought her face to him quickly for a kiss. This surprised Claire tremendously, and she stood there stiffened, not kissing him back.
"Can we go through please?" Came the cold voice of Ada, which made Claire almost jump to the roof in alarm.
"Oh, I'm sorry. Yeah, you may go through." Said Mark, a little embarrassed at being caught. Claire nervously bit her lip as she glanced at the betrayed face of Leon. The feeling of guilt overwhelmed her.
Ada walked through the door giving a small smile to Claire before entering, and Leon pushed pass Mark making him almost fall, as he stared ahead of him, not acknowledging Claire's presence.
"Good night Claire. I'll call you!" shouted Mark as he ran back to his limo happily, leaving Claire standing all alone in the night.
A/N: Done! Please please don't kill me people! I mean Darth I know you're threatening me and all but don't kill me until u read the ending! Review and tell me what u think ppl! (without death threats to me that is..if u can) *sweatdrops*
DISCLAIMER: All RE characters belong to CAPCOM
CHAPTER 7- WANDERING MINDS
AT THE BALL:
Claire linked arms with Mark Thornton as they walked into the beautifully lit ballroom. Claire could not believe her eyes. It was so dreamlike, with all the elegant women standing in sparkling dresses holding fancy glasses of wine and Champaign, engaged in conversations full of gossip and scandal. The men looking equally aristocratic in their formal tuxes, and acting as 'gentlemanly' as you can get. This was definitely something new for her.
"Come on, let me introduce you to my parents!" Said Mark as he guided Claire through the endless crowds of people. They finally reached a very old couple dressed in obviously expensive clothes and chatting to a large group of people.
"Mom! Dad! I'd like you to meet someone!" He shouted over to them, while waving his arms about. They instantly excused themselves and walked over.
"Oh hello darling!" greeted his mother theatrically in a very posh British accent, as she gave him a kiss on both cheeks. She then turned to Claire and squealed, "Oh, that must be Claire! Darling it's so nice to see you!" she then continued giving Claire a kiss on both cheeks as well.
Claire smiled politely. "Hi... uh....hello..I must compliment you on your expensive taste. The place looks gorgeous," she said not knowing at all how to act with such prestigious, rich people. She almost laughed at the way she was speaking.
His father approached her and also gave her a kiss on both cheeks. "Why, this is the beautiful Claire we have heard so much about. Such a coincidence that you would end up living in the same city as us after all these years."
"Yeah, it is isn't it." Claire answered ever so politely.
She stood there for a while talking to Mark and his parents but could only think of how extremely bored she was. They were very nice people, but the jokes they found amusing were just horrible. Claire stood there like an idiot most of the time wondering about what could possibly be so funny about the fertility of alcoholic Irish people. The music was also something a person couldn't exactly dance happily to. Way too classical for her taste. She instantly knew this was not her type of society and life-style, but Mark's parents were treating her like some potential daughter in law.
'I wonder what Leon's doin right now...probably screwing Ada like there's no tomorrow.' She thought bitterly. She couldn't help the way all these suspicions kept flying through her mind. Ada did mention a 'date' with Leon after all, and she didn't trust Ada one bit. 'Knowing HER she'd probably seduce Leon on the first date, and Leon being the idiot and jerk he is will fall for her. And then they'll get married and have 5 kids and I'll be the loser living next door as a spinster and virgin for the rest of my life!'
"Claire? How about a dance?" Asked Mark pleadingly, as he stood close in front of Claire interrupting her miserable thoughts.
"Uh..yeah, sure. That'll be nice." She said smiling as she took his hand and he led her to the enormous dance floor, were many couples stood dancing with eyes closed.
AT AN ITALIAN RESTAURANT:
"Leon? Hello, earth to Leon!" Said Ada as she clicked her fingers in front of Leon's face, disrupting his distant stare.
"Huh? Sorry, what were you saying?" he asked quickly as he went back to playing with the spaghetti on his plate.
"You weren't listening to me again. What the hell are you thinking about?"
"Nothing, just thinking of how I don't wanna go back to work tomorrow." He lied, but could see that Ada wasn't very convinced.
"Are you sure it's nothing about Claire?" she asking, frowning bitterly.
Leon was surprised by that. "Why would I think about Claire? She's having loads of fun probably; I don't have to worry about her or anything. Mark is a harmless guy..a loser-but harmless none the less."
"That's not what I meant Leon, but yeah, I bet she is having a great time. She really likes that Mark anyway," said Ada, taking another bite of spaghetti and looking over at the people sitting across the room.
"She does?" Asked Leon a little too quickly.
"Yeah. Leon why else would she go OUT with him? And She made a big effort at looking good too. When girls do that it means they really like the guy they're going with." She answered knowingly.
"I..didn't know that," he said looking down at his plate with a look of hurt and rejection put together.
"Why Leon, you look almost disappointed. Is something wrong?"
"No, nothings wrong. I'm just happy for her you know. It's been a long time since Steve's death and, well...I'm glad she's finally moving on."
"Steve? Is that her old boyfriend?" She asked, suddenly getting interested in the conversation.
"No..yes..ugh, I don't know! He's some guy she met while she was in prison 3 years back. His death was traumatic for her. A little too traumatic I guess. I mean I'll never forget how devastated she was when we met up in Paris."
"I see. It's quite strange how she took 3 years to get over him, right? It's like she was madly in love with him." Said Ada as she ran a hand through her raven black/red streaked hair.
"I guess she was," answered Leon, his voice breaking slightly.
"I can't criticize. I know how that feels like, Leon." She said in a soft whisper looking deep into Leon's eyes.
THE BALL- 1:24AM:
Claire was just about done with dancing and conversing with all of Marks friends, and now felt exhausted and seriously needed to get back home and sleep. She walked around looking for Mark in order to ask him to take her back home and spotted him laughing uncontrollably with a bunch of his friends.
"Excuse me," she said as she pushed herself through the crowd, "Mark, come here I need to talk to you for a second." She said motioning for Mark to follow. He did as he was told and they went off into a corner away from the orchestral band that was playing.
"Hey Claire, what is it?" He asked smiling like a goof.
"Umm, I kinda need to be getting home now. Do you think you can arrange for the limo to take me home or something?" She asked smiling sweetly.
"Aww, you wanna leave now??" He groaned.
"Well yeah. I mean I had an awesome time Mark, I'm just really tired and I start my summer course after tomorrow so I wanna get a good night's sleep." She answered, brushing some strands of hair from her eyes. She needed to do summer courses since she missed a year of University because of the Umbrella incident. She now had one more year left and she would be done with her criminal psychology bachelor's degree.
"Ok, ok. I'll go with you, just a second, let me go and tell everyone I'm going." He said then disappeared in the crowd. Claire only waited for five minutes then saw him approaching her again.
"Well, shall we go my dear?" He asked imitating his mother. Claire giggled and nodded.
She sat in silence during the entire ride home. For one thing she was too tired to talk to Mark. The other thing was that she was also busy thinking of Leon. It's as though she couldn't get him out of her mind even when trying to have fun! Mark was a great guy, but there was no way she could ever put him in the same league as Leon, even if she wished she could.
'Love sucks. It's just a stupid thing that breaks strong people and makes them too vulnerable.' She thought, crossing her arms and staring out the window. Her house was now at view. 'Finally.'
Mark got out of the car and quickly ran over to Claire's side to open the door for her. She smiled at him thankfully, and got out while taking off her high-heeled shoes.
"You know, heels really suck. I don't even know how I survived this whole night wearing them!" she said jokingly as Mark laughed.
"Yeah well, you sure were the life of the party," he said, staring at her admiringly.
"Pshh. Please, I like didn't even know what I was doing half the time." She answered, trying to be as humble as possible.
"Well you were. You were the most beautiful girl there." He said slightly blushing. They had now reached the door of her house.
"Thanks..Umm, I had a great time Mark, it was really nice of you to take me along. Goodnight." She said as she turned to open her door, but just then Mark slid a hand behind her neck and brought her face to him quickly for a kiss. This surprised Claire tremendously, and she stood there stiffened, not kissing him back.
"Can we go through please?" Came the cold voice of Ada, which made Claire almost jump to the roof in alarm.
"Oh, I'm sorry. Yeah, you may go through." Said Mark, a little embarrassed at being caught. Claire nervously bit her lip as she glanced at the betrayed face of Leon. The feeling of guilt overwhelmed her.
Ada walked through the door giving a small smile to Claire before entering, and Leon pushed pass Mark making him almost fall, as he stared ahead of him, not acknowledging Claire's presence.
"Good night Claire. I'll call you!" shouted Mark as he ran back to his limo happily, leaving Claire standing all alone in the night.
A/N: Done! Please please don't kill me people! I mean Darth I know you're threatening me and all but don't kill me until u read the ending! Review and tell me what u think ppl! (without death threats to me that is..if u can) *sweatdrops*