The sun blazed down on Cass unforgivingly. Chris had wandered off to get them some water, so Cass waited by the lion enclosure for him to return. The male lion yawned before lying on the cool cement with a sigh.
"Me too, buddy," Cass whispered with a sigh of her own before wiping her forehead.
Briefly wondering where they should go next, she wandered over to the map. If they stayed on this path, they'd see the elephants next, but if they went back, they could check out the lakeside area with alligators which would lead to a terrarium. They had enough time to go everywhere, but Cass wasn't sure she had the stamina.
She looked back over to the lion enclosure to see what appeared to be a handyman looking at the lions with a small smile. She'd seen him working on the water fountains nearby with a gloomy look on his face. No wonder. She'd hate to be working out in this heat. He noticed her looking at him, and she gave him a little friendly wave. He scowled before getting back to work.
"Hey, Cass!" Chris shouted, and Cass turned to see him walking toward her with a drink in each hand.
She met him halfway taking one of the drinks and asked, "What do you want to see next?"
"Honestly, an air-conditioned room," Chris admitted with a smirk. "But I do want to see the gators before we go."
"Sounds good," Cass replied with relief and led the way back. She would have braved the rest of the zoo if Chris had wanted, but she was happy to leave. Eyeing Chris with suspicion, she wondered if he was leaving early because of her. He didn't look that winded.
"We could go to the Elephant Restaurant afterwards," Chris piped up. "But... the entrance to that is the other way… There should be another entrance we could drive to."
"Well, if even if there isn't, I'm sure we can find something." Cass slowed as they neared the bridge over the lake towards the terrarium.
The sunlight glittered off the water, hiding the danger lurking under the surface. Cass felt a chill as she noticed reptilian eyes slowly disappear under the surface. Chris excitedly jogged over to the railing. He pointed out an alligator basking on some nearby rocks, and Cass gave him a half-hearted smile. Despite his excitement, he noticed something was off.
"What's wrong? I thought the animal whisperer loved all animals," Chris said jokingly. "Or are you not feeling well?"
"No… it's just… I had a bad experience with an alligator before."
Chris looked pensively at the lake before asking in a low voice, "Do you want to talk about it?"
"No… not really," Cass said and brushed her hair out of her face.
A hand wrapped around hers, and she looked up to see Chris giving her a small smile.
"That's okay," Chris said gently. "Let's go. I'm hungry anyways. Could eat a whole elephant."
Cass gave him a side look but chuckled soon after. "Okay, let's go then."
Chris led the way with a vibrant energy. Cass smiled with relief; he seemed to want to leave just as much as she did. He led the way to the exit while chatting animatedly about what Joseph, Forest, and he had been up to since she'd been gone. Cass listened intently as they walked to the car.
"Oh, hey there, friends!" a familiar voice shouted, and Chris dropped his story and Cass' hand.
Kevin sauntered up to them with a kid on his shoulders, and noticing Cass' confused expression, he explained, "My nephew wanted to see the elephants. Just waiting for my sis to pick up the squirt."
The boy shouted excitedly, "I got to see the elephants and the lions and the hyenas!"
Cass chuckled and replied with a smile, "Sounds like a good day."
"It was!" the boy answered happily with a weary smile.
A car pulled up, and Kevin gestured for them to wait a moment. After putting the boy into the car, Kevin said something to his sister and glanced over to Cass and Chris. He looked slightly embarrassed as his sister gave Cass a super friendly look. He tapped the car and said goodbye as his sister waved at them.
With a goofy grin, Kevin walked back to them and said, "Older siblings, right?"
Cass smiled as Chris rolled his eyes.
"You guys going anywhere after this?" Kevin asked cheerfully. "I know a great bar, and the owner's a cool guy."
"We were thinking about trying the Elephant Restaurant," Cass replied with a glance at Chris. "Would you like to meet us there?"
"Oh! Uh, sure! I'll just pull around the side and meet you guys there!" Kevin said excitedly with a flushed face.
Cass turned to Chris as Kevin ran for his car. Chris quickly tried to hide a pout, but she'd already caught him.
"What's wrong, Chris? You don't want to go there anymore?"
"No… no. It's just… nothing," Chris said with a sigh.
"That doesn't sound like nothing," Cass said, crossing her arms. "What's wrong? Are you not feeling well?"
Chris looked embarrassed as he led her to the car. After they got inside the car, Cass noticed a slight blush on Chris' face. He hid it behind his hands before looking at her sheepishly.
"It was a… stupid thought. It's just… I kind of wanted today to be like old times. Just you and me… but that's a bit… dumb."
"Yeah… after all, it can't be like old times. Claire isn't here… Hey, maybe he can be our replacement Claire for a while."
Chris laughed and replied jokingly, "Claire's been working out."
"Clearly," Cass replied with a smirk. "Hey, it'll only be for a little bit, and we were going there anyway. I promise, after we leave the restaurant, we can go rent a couple movies, and then it'll be just you and me. Is that good for you?"
Chris smiled at her before putting the car in drive and said, "Sounds great to me."
Cass buckled her seatbelt as Chris started driving behind Kevin's car. They followed his car to a separate parking lot for the restaurant. Cass noticed a sign of an elephant over the restaurant and knew they were in the right place.
Kevin was waiting inside when they got into the restaurant. He waved nervously as they approached, but soon Chris and Kevin were discussing baseball as they waited for a table. A waitress appeared with a smile and showed them to a booth. Cass watched them with interest as they continued discussing different games that would be on tv soon. They noticed Cass quietly watching and looked embarrassed.
"Sorry, this probably isn't that interesting to you," Kevin said apologetically.
"Quite the contrary," Cass replied with a wink. "I played softball for three years in high school. And besides… I really like listening to people talk about things they're passionate about. Don't be afraid to discuss something because you think I'll find it 'boring'."
"Softball, huh? Played for Raccoon City?"
"For three long years."
"You never told me about that," Chris said with a slight pout.
"Because I didn't really have much fun. I just did it because my dad wanted me to… I was decent at it. Not great but I could at least keep up with the team. I prefer watching the games to be honest."
Kevin laughed and said, "That's great. Hey, I got a buddy who sometimes gets free tickets for our city's team. If I get some tickets, I'll let you guys know."
"That'd be great," Cass replied as Chris nodded happily.
Kevin grinned and went back to talking about different players with Chris as Cass took a look at the menu. After placing their orders, the restaurant owner changed the tv station to a racing channel. Cars whizzed past on the screen, and Kevin and Chris became engrossed in watching until the food arrived.
Kevin and Chris continued talking about different sports as Cass listened in. Chris was much more relaxed now, and even Kevin seemed more comfortable. Cass briefly wondered why they hadn't gotten along before now.
"Ah, Cass, I just remembered something. One of my buddies from the police academy wants to come to Raccoon City. He's still got some time before he graduates, but I was hoping you'd like to meet him. He's not as charming as yours truly, but I think he's pretty great. Anyway, he's not really from around here, so I was hoping to introduce him to some people."
"I'd love to meet him. It'd be great to get some tips on how to deal with you," Cass said with a smirk. "What's his name?"
"Leon Kennedy. He's a nice guy. He won't be done for a few more months, but I'm sure he'll be happy to know he won't be alone when he gets here."
Kevin gave her a beaming smile before continuing his conversation with Chris. Cass took a sip of water and allowed herself to relax. With a small smile she listened to the conversation, and for the first time in a while, she felt completely safe.