Steve watched Claire move around the kitchen as she cooked breakfast. He wanted to ask her to teach him too, but for now enjoyed watching her careful, calculated movements. He loved the way her pinky finger stuck out while she mixed the batter for pancakes. He liked the way she would pause and shift her weight from one leg to another as she took a gulp of her coffee followed by a satisfied exhale.

If he were being honest, he liked everything about her. Claire Redfield was perfect in his eyes. He was so glad he got a second chance – a second chance to prove to her they were meant to be, a second chance to be a normal teenager. It was like everything he prayed for while he was fading back on Rockfort. He felt incredibly lucky.

"Claire?"

"Hm?" She glanced over to him, carefully flipping a pancake and giving a small celebratory wiggle when the uncooked batter didn't ooze all over the pan.

"Do you wish y'woulda had a normal life? I mean, before."

Claire sipped her coffee again, mulling the question over in her head for a few moments. Of course she wondered what it was like had she not gone looking for her brother in Raccoon, or even what it would've been had he not left the Air Force.

"I dunno. Sometimes, sure." She didn't like the way now healed injuries still ached in the morning and she could've done without the nightmares, of course, but a 'normal life' would've meant she hadn't met the people in her life she cared about the most. "But… I'm glad I met you."

Steve couldn't hide a grin. It made his heart skip a beat, the way she cast a glance to him over her shoulder as she finished her sentence.

"I'm glad I met you, too, Claire."

The two took their time enjoying breakfast. It was nice – talking, joking. It felt surprisingly normal – maybe for the first time in a long time. It was like things were finally starting to fall into place and she was thankful. Thankful for the safe house, for her brother and Rebecca and for Steve too.

Claire took advantage of having Steve out of bed for a while and changed the sheets on his mattress. She threw them in the hamper with the rest of their dirty clothes and put new sheets she'd found in the closet to replace them. Steve didn't want to admit how excited he was for clean sheets.

He watched from the couch, both satisfied for the change in scenery and the view of Claire as she bent over the bed to put the fitted sheet on the mattress. It was like he couldn't keep his eyes off of her, especially after their dry humping session that morning. He wanted to touch her all over, taste every inch of her. He found his mind wandering and shook the thoughts from his head. He placed a totally inconspicuous throw pillow over his lap.

Claire straightened her back, wiping the sweat off of her brow with the back of her hand and admiring her work. The bottom sheet was always the hardest but she'd managed to get it right on her second try. She finished with the top sheet and the fresh comforter, turning to Steve.

"All ready for you." She smiled.

Steve cleared his throat, trying desperately to think of an excuse to keep him seated for the moment. He jerked his thumb to the tv set in front of him.

"Does this have cable?" He smiled weakly.

Steve flipped through the channels only half paying attention, listening to the water run in the bathroom. Honestly, he hadn't thought much about TV since the early days of being in the Prison on Rockfort. He paused for a moment on a zombie movie and shook his head, quickly flipping a few channels to find something else. It would be a lot time before he would be able to handle those again.

The front door opened and he frowned, turning his upper body as much as he could to see who was here. He half-expected Rebecca, assuming it was time for her to check in, but wasn't particularly surprised as Chris walked in with a small plastic bag with a pharmacy logo on it. Steve hoped it wasn't more medication for him.

"Hey."

"Oh, hey. Didn't expect you to be up and about," Chris smiled softly but tried to avoid looking him in the eyes. "What are you watching?" He gestured to the TV.

"Oh, I dunno." Steve shrugged, flipping another channel. "Kinda just channel surfing."

Chris nodded, standing to the side of the couch and feeling a bit awkward as he watched Steve scroll though channels. "Claire in the shower?"

"Yeah."

"I'm gonna put this away and grab a beer and I'll be back."

Steve felt the color drain from his face. He knew what was coming; a lecture. Chris had caught them together in the bedroom and now he was going to get reprimanded for it. The elder Redfield disappeared into the back of the house for several minutes and resurfaced with a couple of beers.

He took the spot on the couch beside Steve, handing him one of the opened bottles. The redhead took it from him, blinking. He wasn't old enough to drink, not even in Canada.

"Thanks?"

"Cheers, man." Chris clinked the bottom of his bottle against the one in Steve's hand before taking a drink.

Steve hesitated but did the same, wrinkling his nose. It was bitter and it burned his throat more than he expected. "Ah…. Good."

The brunette chuckled. "Yeah. It's an acquired taste. This stuff is pretty cheap too." He admitted, taking another swallow. "Gets the job done, though."

Steve nodded in agreement, taking another small swallow. He'd always thought his first beer would be with his Dad. He felt a wave of sadness when he realized he would never get the chance again. It still hadn't really sunk all the way in – he had no family. He didn't know what he would do after he was better.

"So listen," Chris cleared his throat, staring directly at the TV and hoping this conversation would go as painlessly as possible. "My sister really cares about you."

"I really care about her too." He murmured without missing a beat. He didn't know if Claire had told him exactly what happened on the Antarctic Base.

"I just figure…. you guys are adults, right? Or close enough, anyways. With what you've been through… you both deserve to make your own decisions." He shrugged, hoping that his vague statement got the point across. "…I just want you two to be safe about it." He finally glanced to Steve to make sure the younger boy followed.

The redhead had a light blush creeping across his cheeks. This was not the conversation he'd been expecting. "Yeah."

Chris didn't know if t-virus infection could be transmitted sexually or not, and he wasn't too keen on finding out. Not to mention, as much as Claire loved kids, he was pretty sure she never wanted her own. Not with Sherry and Moira and Polly in her life, anyway. He remembered when she was a sophomore in high school she came home crying after babysitting for the Burtons and swore off kids of her own.

"So…y'know, you guys just… let me know if you need anything to stay safe. Okay?" He barely waited a second for a response before offering a second "Okay."

Steve took a large swallow of beer, the carbonation tickling his nose lightly. He said nothing but nodded.

Chris sighed with relief as Claire emerged from the bathroom. A large rush of steam from the shower rushed out of the bathroom behind her. She'd wrapped a dark towel around her otherwise naked body and had another on her head to help her hair dry.

"Oh, Hey, Chris, I didn't hear you come in." She smiled, noticing the two having a conversation over a beer. She felt a little bit of annoyance. She was pretty sure Steve shouldn't be drinking in his current condition, but let it go since he'd tapered off all of the harder medications. "I'm gonna go change and I'll join you." She disappeared into her room.

She pulled on clean clothes, savoring the quiet time getting dressed. It really felt like one of the first days without a heavy anxiety hanging over her – she could leave Steve alone for a little bit and she didn't worry about finding him turned.

She was genuinely happy and relaxed. She'd forgotten what it was like to not have to listen for every little noise, weapon at the ready. She hadn't thought about the shotgun under her bed since she'd woken up from her nightmare, hadn't worried about having to find a kitchen knife to defend herself.

She picked up her wet towels and threw them over her shoulder, spying something on her bedside table she hadn't seen before. It was a large blue box. She raised an eyebrow, picking it up.

Pleasure Variety Pack. 24 Lubricated Condoms. The box proclaimed in raised letters. She couldn't help but smile and shake her head. She flipped it over, skimming the back. Her big brother was always keeping an eye out for her.

After she was dressed (and she tucked the condoms out of sight to keep Steve from getting too excited), she joined the boys in the living room.

"What are you two talking about?" She smiled, sitting beside her brother. She gave him a little bit of a look. "I don't know if Steve should be drinking right now."

Chris waived his hand dismissively. "Kid deserves a beer after everything he's been through. Don't you think?"

"Alcohol impedes healing." She sighed. She didn't disagree with him, but wanted him back on his feet as quickly as possible.

"Ah, it's fine, Claire." He patted his sister on his back. "Let him live a little."

Claire enjoyed the time spent with Steve and her brother in the early evening. They laughed and watched TV. Told stories and jokes. Chris told his favorite stories of Claire as a child. When she was nine she received her first love letter, which she promptly corrected with red pen and handed back to the boy. When she was twelve and had her first bully and ended up in Detention for standing up for herself – Chris had always been so proud of her for that. His sister had always been capable of taking care of herself.

"Claire, do you remember your first boyfriend?" Chris asked with a grin. Claire rolled her eyes. She knew exactly where this story was going.
"Yes."

"And you remember how he tried to break up with you and you told him 'that isn't acceptable' and negotiated to stay together for another week before you decided it wasn't working and dumped him?"

She felt her face burn lightly, sinking into the couch. "Why don't you just break out the baby pictures?"

"That's a good idea. I'll bring one of the albums next time." Chris grinned and Claire couldn't tell if he was being serious or not.

Steve, however, got excited at the prospect of seeing Claire's baby pictures. He imagined her to be a tomboy, rough and tumble, always covered in bruises and cuts. He bet she wore her hair short and played sports with the boys.

"Oh, please. I've gotta see that." The redhead grinned.

-x-

It was dark out before Chris left. She'd been expecting Rebecca most of the day but assumed she'd been busy or didn't feel as pressed to check on the pair as they both seemed to be doing well. She didn't complain, joining Steve back on the couch after they were alone.

She snuggled against him without much though, enjoying the warmth radiating from him. She found his hand and laced their fingers together, watching whatever silly show was playing on the TV. He blinked a few times but smiled, nuzzling against her neck.

"Love you, Claire." He murmured quietly into her scalp. She said nothing back but leaned up and captured his mouth in a kiss.