CHAPTER 5
Understood Pain
Everyone was so thrilled to see her. The hugs were endless, as were the questions.
Everyone wanted to know what happened to her, but Claire didn't want to talk about it. She didn't dare to.
Flashes of the operation kept popping in her head as they drove to their new headquarters, a house that the F.B.I was renting out in the desert land of Egypt. The images that kept appearing in her head were so horrifying, mainly because she couldn't remember all of them, only bits and pieces. And that really scared her.
On top of the flashes Claire had also discovered a large scar across her stomach, which was patched up by stitches. She didn't tell anyone about it, she didn't want to worry the others anymore then they already were.
The worst, however, wasn't what was done directly to her. The files on Billy...and Steve. Out of everything that was what was hardest to bear.
Almost as soon as she got home Claire barricaded herself in one of the rooms. Throughout the day people would knock on her door, and try to get her to confine in them. The first and most frequent was Chris.
"Claire what did that bastard do to you?" Her brother demanded.
"Chris, please don't worry about it," Claire tried to tell him, but getting the message through Chris thick skull was a near impossible task.
"He didn't...violate you, did he?"
"No!" Claire yelled firmly to put away Chris' worries, but in all honestly she wasn't sure. For all she knew Alfred did.
After awhile Chris gave up and left her alone. Not long after Leon came barging in.
"You alright Claire?" He asked her gently.
Did she bloody look alright? She just been through hell and back, what did he think she was feeling? Claire, however, maintained her cool and didn't say any of that, she simply nodded.
"Do you want to talk about it?" Leon asked her, his voice was covered with worry.
"I'll be alright; I'm just tired that's all."
"Are you sure?"
No, Claire wanted to scream, but for some reason she didn't. Of all the people here Leon was the last person she could talk to about what she was going through.
"Yeah, I'm sure," Claire ended up telling him, forcing a weak smile.
Hesitantly Leon left, and Claire was really going to try to get some sleep, when Adam walked in.
Of all people Adam was the last person she expected to visit her. She had a few reasons for believing this. First she barely knew him; he had only recently entered her life. Another reason was a he was a F.B.I agent, she thought this would all be part of the job; actual life was for the rest of them. However, her main reason had to be that he was Leon's good friend, and the thought that they would be alone together in a room would just be awkward. Which it was.
"You look a bit like shit Claire," Adam told her bluntly, breaking the tension.
Despite herself Claire had to laugh. "Well that's sweet of you to say."
Adam gave her a playful shrug. "That's what I'm here for."
With both of them a bit more relaxed Adam asked her nervously. "So is everything okay?"
"No," Claire said the first time speaking honestly. "But it's really only something that I can figure myself with. It's a mental thing, physically I'm just tired."
Adam nodded. "Fair enough, I'll let you get some rest," Affectionately nudging her chin with his fist Adam got up to leave when Claire asked him.
"Hey Adam, will you ask Rebecca to come in here?"
"Sure thing," he told her before leaving the room.
If there was one person in the house that would understand what she was going through, it would be the young chemist. Besides all that, Rebecca had the right to know, the same way that Claire had.
When Rebecca entered the room she had a puzzled look on her face. The two of them may have been the same age, but in honestly they had nothing in common. They would talk often, but rarely about anything important.
That's why when Rebecca came in she could understand her confusion. She would have felt the same had the roles been reversed.
Hesitantly Rebecca took a seat next to her on the bed, and in a pleasant yet confused voice she asked her.
"What's up Claire?"
Her eyes were so kind, and her intentions were so pure. Claire almost didn't have the heart to tell her what she had seen in that file.
Knowing that no matter what, Rebecca would want to know the truth Claire let out a heavy sigh before she began to explain.
"When I was in Alfred Ashford's estate I ran into this room, there were shelves of files in the room," Claire stopped for a moment to see if Rebecca had yet picked up on what she was trying to get out. The girl only stared at her blankly. Claire went on "I searched through those files, and I came across some familiar names..."
As Claire's voice trailed off you could see things start to register inside the young chemist.
"Billy," she said breathlessly.
Claire could only nod.
"What did you find out?" Rebecca asked Claire, her own voice was shaky.
Desperately Claire wanted to lie to Rebecca, tell her everything that she wanted to hear. The knowledge was so heart wrenching, she knew this from first hand.
"He was caught," Claire forced herself to say at last. "Right outside of Raccoon, it was some of Umbrella's military forces that found him. From there he was taken back to their labs where..." Claire had to stop there; she could no longer fight against her own tears.
Rebecca, who knew exactly what the rest of Claire's sentence was, let her own tears start to gently slide down her cheek.
Taking Rebecca in her arms Claire held her like a sister, like a friend, like a person who understood the pain.
It was true that she and Rebecca didn't have much in common, but at that moment there was no one that Claire felt closer to.
* * *
It was relief that words simply couldn't describe. When Jill heard Chris and the others, with Claire, enter the house.
She hated Chris being in danger in any situation, but when she couldn't be there right next to him, it made it that much worst.
Not that she would be much help, her arm was literally shot. Still Jill's desire for Chris to always come home safely was unbearable.
It wasn't long before she heard him enter the house that Chris came into the room. The first thing that he did was smile at her brilliantly, till this day his smile drove her wild.
"Hey beautiful," he said joining her on the bed. "I like this place you guys picked out, it's cozy."
"What can I say; it pays to be friends with someone in the F.B.I. Adam's people took care of us right away."
"Well it's good to know that we have at least one ally."
Jill nodded, and then asked him. "So how did the mission go? Is Claire alright?"
As soon as the words left her mouth Chris expression immediately dropped.
"The mission was fine," he told her "its Claire that I'm worried about."
"What happened?" Jill asked worriedly.
"Physically, nothing that were aware of. Claire says she can't remember much. Still I can't help but to think there's something else."
"What do you mean?"
"There's something that she's not telling us. Something happened, but for whatever reason she wants to keep it to herself."
"Well she's been through quite an ordeal," Jill tried to reason "Maybe she just needs a little time."
"Maybe," Chris repeated softly, before shaking his head and changing the subject. "So, how are you feeling?"
Scooting over she let Chris slip underneath her, Jill then sat up and leaned against his chest.
"My arm's fine," she began to tell him, her voice was almost a whisper. "But I was worried...about you."
"I know," Chris whispered back, he took her hand and entangled it with his own.
Their eyes were now locked; Jill could actually feel her soul bleeding into his own. As if to prove he was feeling the same Chris asked her.
"Jill, you know I'll always be with you, right?"
"Just as well as you know that I'll always be with you," she answered.
A smile crept onto Chris' face, and he moved in to kiss her. Being careful of her arm Chris began to kiss her more and more passionately. To this Jill was more then happy to comply.
Without a thought things began to get heated, and before either of them knew it Chris was on top of Jill. They were both staring intently into each other's eyes.
"Do...do you want to?" Jill asked apprehensively.
It wasn't like Jill hadn't had sex before, but this was Chris. This was so much more then her current boyfriend.
"Are you sure you can?" Chris asked, indicating her arm.
"We can be careful," she told him, she was suddenly determined not to stop here.
For a moment Chris didn't say anything. He just stared at her like if he would look away she would be lost forever.
Out from the silence he finally said something to her. "I love you Jill, I love you more then I thought was physically possible to love another soul."
That was all Jill needed to hear.
That night began a night that Jill would always hold dear to her heart, and they were very careful of her arm.
AUTHORS NOTES: Umm...hope you guys liked the chapter.
A special thank you goes out to; ScoobySnax1, RESurvivor, tek, MrsBillyCoen, Shakahnna.
Take it easy,
Leah
Understood Pain
Everyone was so thrilled to see her. The hugs were endless, as were the questions.
Everyone wanted to know what happened to her, but Claire didn't want to talk about it. She didn't dare to.
Flashes of the operation kept popping in her head as they drove to their new headquarters, a house that the F.B.I was renting out in the desert land of Egypt. The images that kept appearing in her head were so horrifying, mainly because she couldn't remember all of them, only bits and pieces. And that really scared her.
On top of the flashes Claire had also discovered a large scar across her stomach, which was patched up by stitches. She didn't tell anyone about it, she didn't want to worry the others anymore then they already were.
The worst, however, wasn't what was done directly to her. The files on Billy...and Steve. Out of everything that was what was hardest to bear.
Almost as soon as she got home Claire barricaded herself in one of the rooms. Throughout the day people would knock on her door, and try to get her to confine in them. The first and most frequent was Chris.
"Claire what did that bastard do to you?" Her brother demanded.
"Chris, please don't worry about it," Claire tried to tell him, but getting the message through Chris thick skull was a near impossible task.
"He didn't...violate you, did he?"
"No!" Claire yelled firmly to put away Chris' worries, but in all honestly she wasn't sure. For all she knew Alfred did.
After awhile Chris gave up and left her alone. Not long after Leon came barging in.
"You alright Claire?" He asked her gently.
Did she bloody look alright? She just been through hell and back, what did he think she was feeling? Claire, however, maintained her cool and didn't say any of that, she simply nodded.
"Do you want to talk about it?" Leon asked her, his voice was covered with worry.
"I'll be alright; I'm just tired that's all."
"Are you sure?"
No, Claire wanted to scream, but for some reason she didn't. Of all the people here Leon was the last person she could talk to about what she was going through.
"Yeah, I'm sure," Claire ended up telling him, forcing a weak smile.
Hesitantly Leon left, and Claire was really going to try to get some sleep, when Adam walked in.
Of all people Adam was the last person she expected to visit her. She had a few reasons for believing this. First she barely knew him; he had only recently entered her life. Another reason was a he was a F.B.I agent, she thought this would all be part of the job; actual life was for the rest of them. However, her main reason had to be that he was Leon's good friend, and the thought that they would be alone together in a room would just be awkward. Which it was.
"You look a bit like shit Claire," Adam told her bluntly, breaking the tension.
Despite herself Claire had to laugh. "Well that's sweet of you to say."
Adam gave her a playful shrug. "That's what I'm here for."
With both of them a bit more relaxed Adam asked her nervously. "So is everything okay?"
"No," Claire said the first time speaking honestly. "But it's really only something that I can figure myself with. It's a mental thing, physically I'm just tired."
Adam nodded. "Fair enough, I'll let you get some rest," Affectionately nudging her chin with his fist Adam got up to leave when Claire asked him.
"Hey Adam, will you ask Rebecca to come in here?"
"Sure thing," he told her before leaving the room.
If there was one person in the house that would understand what she was going through, it would be the young chemist. Besides all that, Rebecca had the right to know, the same way that Claire had.
When Rebecca entered the room she had a puzzled look on her face. The two of them may have been the same age, but in honestly they had nothing in common. They would talk often, but rarely about anything important.
That's why when Rebecca came in she could understand her confusion. She would have felt the same had the roles been reversed.
Hesitantly Rebecca took a seat next to her on the bed, and in a pleasant yet confused voice she asked her.
"What's up Claire?"
Her eyes were so kind, and her intentions were so pure. Claire almost didn't have the heart to tell her what she had seen in that file.
Knowing that no matter what, Rebecca would want to know the truth Claire let out a heavy sigh before she began to explain.
"When I was in Alfred Ashford's estate I ran into this room, there were shelves of files in the room," Claire stopped for a moment to see if Rebecca had yet picked up on what she was trying to get out. The girl only stared at her blankly. Claire went on "I searched through those files, and I came across some familiar names..."
As Claire's voice trailed off you could see things start to register inside the young chemist.
"Billy," she said breathlessly.
Claire could only nod.
"What did you find out?" Rebecca asked Claire, her own voice was shaky.
Desperately Claire wanted to lie to Rebecca, tell her everything that she wanted to hear. The knowledge was so heart wrenching, she knew this from first hand.
"He was caught," Claire forced herself to say at last. "Right outside of Raccoon, it was some of Umbrella's military forces that found him. From there he was taken back to their labs where..." Claire had to stop there; she could no longer fight against her own tears.
Rebecca, who knew exactly what the rest of Claire's sentence was, let her own tears start to gently slide down her cheek.
Taking Rebecca in her arms Claire held her like a sister, like a friend, like a person who understood the pain.
It was true that she and Rebecca didn't have much in common, but at that moment there was no one that Claire felt closer to.
* * *
It was relief that words simply couldn't describe. When Jill heard Chris and the others, with Claire, enter the house.
She hated Chris being in danger in any situation, but when she couldn't be there right next to him, it made it that much worst.
Not that she would be much help, her arm was literally shot. Still Jill's desire for Chris to always come home safely was unbearable.
It wasn't long before she heard him enter the house that Chris came into the room. The first thing that he did was smile at her brilliantly, till this day his smile drove her wild.
"Hey beautiful," he said joining her on the bed. "I like this place you guys picked out, it's cozy."
"What can I say; it pays to be friends with someone in the F.B.I. Adam's people took care of us right away."
"Well it's good to know that we have at least one ally."
Jill nodded, and then asked him. "So how did the mission go? Is Claire alright?"
As soon as the words left her mouth Chris expression immediately dropped.
"The mission was fine," he told her "its Claire that I'm worried about."
"What happened?" Jill asked worriedly.
"Physically, nothing that were aware of. Claire says she can't remember much. Still I can't help but to think there's something else."
"What do you mean?"
"There's something that she's not telling us. Something happened, but for whatever reason she wants to keep it to herself."
"Well she's been through quite an ordeal," Jill tried to reason "Maybe she just needs a little time."
"Maybe," Chris repeated softly, before shaking his head and changing the subject. "So, how are you feeling?"
Scooting over she let Chris slip underneath her, Jill then sat up and leaned against his chest.
"My arm's fine," she began to tell him, her voice was almost a whisper. "But I was worried...about you."
"I know," Chris whispered back, he took her hand and entangled it with his own.
Their eyes were now locked; Jill could actually feel her soul bleeding into his own. As if to prove he was feeling the same Chris asked her.
"Jill, you know I'll always be with you, right?"
"Just as well as you know that I'll always be with you," she answered.
A smile crept onto Chris' face, and he moved in to kiss her. Being careful of her arm Chris began to kiss her more and more passionately. To this Jill was more then happy to comply.
Without a thought things began to get heated, and before either of them knew it Chris was on top of Jill. They were both staring intently into each other's eyes.
"Do...do you want to?" Jill asked apprehensively.
It wasn't like Jill hadn't had sex before, but this was Chris. This was so much more then her current boyfriend.
"Are you sure you can?" Chris asked, indicating her arm.
"We can be careful," she told him, she was suddenly determined not to stop here.
For a moment Chris didn't say anything. He just stared at her like if he would look away she would be lost forever.
Out from the silence he finally said something to her. "I love you Jill, I love you more then I thought was physically possible to love another soul."
That was all Jill needed to hear.
That night began a night that Jill would always hold dear to her heart, and they were very careful of her arm.
AUTHORS NOTES: Umm...hope you guys liked the chapter.
A special thank you goes out to; ScoobySnax1, RESurvivor, tek, MrsBillyCoen, Shakahnna.
Take it easy,
Leah