Chapter 4
"Burkin's Frustration, Wesker's Annoyance"
July 27th 1981
A loud shout woke Brian from his sleep. The door to the sleeping quarters was ajar and when he looked through it, he saw Burkin storm past. Brian sighed and laid back in his bunk when another loud yell sounded from the direction that Burkin had stormed off in.
When a third yell of anger erupted from the hall, Brian let out a small scream and yelled, "I'm UP!"
As he was angrily pulling on his shirt, Jay appeared in the doorway rubbing his eyes which were still partly sealed shut from sleep, "What's goin' on?"
"Fuck if I know!" Brian shouted, clearly showing that he was not a morning person.
"I think I know. That was Burkin, right?" Jay asked.
Brian nodded, yawned, and got out of his bunk.
"Yeah, I think it has something to do with that new girl…umm…Alexia?"
Brian headed out of the sleeping quarters, "I think I know who to ask."
"Who?" Jay asked as Brian brushed past him.
"Ol' Stone Face himself."
Albert Wesker sat at a table in the cafeteria drinking a cup of coffee in between bites of scrambled eggs, bacon, and toast. This was what he was doing when Brian and Jay sat on either side of him, both with their breakfast.
"So, Al," said Brian as he scooped some eggs onto his fork, "What bug crawled up Willie's ass?"
"I assume you are referring to Doctor Bukin?" Wesker asked, annoyed with Brian's casualness.
"Huh? Oh, that's right, you two 're still on a last name bases. Yeah, I'm talkin' 'bout Dr. Burkin."
"Yeah, Wesker, what's wrong with him? Three days of waking up to banshee screams tends to wear on one's nerves," Jay said and drank his milk.
The only reason Wesker had even bothered talking to Brian and Jay this long was because Burkin's rants were annoying him as well; "You know of the girl who had recently been appointed as a Chief Researcher?"
Brian thought for a second, "Yeah, the Ashford girl. Alexia, right?"
Wesker nodded; "Yes. She's 10 years old, and one of Burkin's greatest personal achievements was being the youngest Chief Researcher in this company's history. He was 16 when made it."
"He never said anything about that to us," Jay said.
"When was the last time Burkin ever said anything to either one of you two, much less something personal?" Wesker asked in a way that made both of them feel rather foolish.
Brian looked at Jay; "So that's it. Wounded pride."
"He tell you that, Wesker?" Jay asked.
"No, but its not hard to tell."
Brian got up and started out of the cafeteria, but not before patting Wesker's back; "Thanks Stone Face."
Wesker groaned in frustration and turned to Jay, "Why does he call me that?"
"Think about it," Jay said, "When was the last time you smiled?"
Without waiting for an answer, Jay got up and followed Brian, leaving Wesker alone to eat the rest of his breakfast.
Brian found Burkin in the lab, his attention so devoted to a microscope that his face might have well been glued to it; "Burkin, we need to talk."
"What about?" Burkin asked without looking away from the microscope.
"Alexia Ashford. You're waking us up at insane hours of the morning and running us ragged because of her. Everyone thinks you need to chill out."
"Really?" Burkin asked mockingly, "Tell me, big shot, what do you think is wrong with me?"
Brian wasn't about to let himself be mocked by someone who was half his age and had a third of his intelligence; "I think you need to come down off your high horse and face facts."
"Which is?" Burkin asked.
"You just suck," Brian said, and smiled as he left the lab to Burkin's angry growls.