Disclaimer: I don't own anything in the below piece of fiction, Capcom does.

Warning: Nothing

Authors Note: Once again, I gotta thank ALL of you who read this story. Last month (June) I had over 1,000 readers for this story alone, so I owe all of you who have taken the time to read it a great deal. You're all awesome, and I hope you are enjoying the story as much I enjoy writing it! In other news, I haven't had a lot of entires for the contest, so I hope that all of you who said you would join are working on your masterpieces! Can't wait to see what you guys come up with! And finally, I hope you enjoy this chapter!

Chapter 20- Advice

The only thing to do with good advice is pass it on. It is never any use to oneself. ~Oscar Wilde~

Chris stood outside the RPD, a smoke dangling from his lips as he stared down the double doors, hands stuffed in his pockets.

Footsteps were heard to his right before a familiar weight landed over his shoulder, accompanied with an amused chuckle. Without having to turn his head to look, Chris knew who it was.

"Are you ever going to go inside?" Forest asked, gently shaking Chris from side to side. Shrugging his arm off, Chris took another puff of his smoke and continued to stare at the door.

"I don't know… kinda enjoyed not working."

"Bet you don't enjoy having no money, though."

It was odd when Forest was the voice of reason.

"Yeah… hey, know if the Captain is still angry?" Although the two of them had slept together and come to an agreement as to their relationship, Chris had a feeling Wesker was still upset with him in regards to the whole work fiasco. Wesker knew how to hold grudges; that was something Chris had worked out about him right away.

"Dunno, he didn't say a lot to Bravo team after the incident and he's been out of town for the past week on a business trip. A business trip on Christmas- can you believe it?" Forest clicked his tongue and shook his head before going to stand in front of Chris, snapping him out of his staring contest with the door.

"Is he still out of town?" Chris asked, suddenly a little more interested in the conversation.

Forest nodded and grabbed the smoke out of Chris' mouth, throwing it down on the ground before stomping on it. "We don't know when he's coming back, but it better be in time for the New Year's Gala, which is in… two days. Awe, shit."

"Dreading it?" Chris asked, a laugh escaping from between his lips while the two of them went into the station.

"You have no idea. It's going to be a lot of dancing, eating crappy food, listening to speeches, and playing nice with the officials in the city who could probably pull some strings and get you executed if you piss them off," Forest said, dread dripping off of every syllable.

"You're just upset because you probably can't find a date to go with you," Chris shot back, bracing himself for the inevitable punch that would lay waste to his arm. Instead though, Forest laughed and shook his head.

"Nah, all the girls I know are too smart to fall into a trap like that! I date the intelligent ones."

"Well someone has got to have the brains in the relationship."

That was when the punch came.

**XX**

The playful banter between the two was carried throughout the hallways of the station until they arrived at their offices. Chris was about to say goodbye to Forest, who seemed to be heading to Bravo team's area, but instead he stopped to say something quickly.

"Jill has been eager to talk to you, so be prepared for some question and answer time with the lovely Valentine." Winking, Forest patted Chris on the back before continuing on his way, leaving Chris with a tight feeling in his chest.

With everything that had gone on during the holidays and with his uncle, Chris had forgotten that he hadn't spoken to Jill at all since the incident that almost got him fired and her killed.

Would she be angry that he jeopardized the mission, or would she feel like she owed Chris for what he did when all he wanted to do was help her out?

Either way the prospects weren't entirely pleasing, and Chris was considering going home- after all, he wasn't due back for another day. But the fact that he liked to think he had a nice set of balls prevented him from hightailing it out of there and back home to the comfort of his bed.

Swinging the office door open, Chris was greeted to an empty office save Jill, who was sitting reading the newspaper, elbows on her desk as she scanned the 'Local News' section.

The creak of the opened door seemed to have alerted her to Chris' presence, and as soon as she saw him she stood up quickly, her chair moving back violently against Chris'. The crash of their chairs together made both of them jump, and Chris shut the door a little more quietly than he normally would have.

"Hey… how are you?" Chris asked, going to stand in the middle of the room as Jill straightened out their chairs.

"Good- actually I'm really good now that I get to talk to you… you just kind of took off all of a sudden and I wanted to talk to you all holiday." Jill smiled awkwardly and went to stand in front of Chris,

"Sorry, I was put on leave for… well, I think you know why."

"Is it because you saved my life in a reckless but slightly heroic stunt?" Jill cocked her head to the side, an inquisitive look about her before she smiled once again.

"Heh… thanks for calling it heroic…"

Well at least someone appreciated his heroics…

"Don't get me wrong, I still think it was kind of stupid… but I appreciate that you would risk something like that to get me out of danger- it lets me know you've got my back," Jill said, sticking her hand out for Chris to shake it. "Thanks, Chris… I really… well, I appreciate it a lot."

Taking her smaller hand in his own, Chris shook it firmly and smiled as Jill applied the same amount of pressure.

"I'll always have your back, don't you worry about that," Chris said as their hands separated.

"And I'll have yours too… just don't expect me to get quite the same momentum tackling a guy like you did- that was pretty impressive how you got him to fly across the hallway like that." Brushing a piece of hair behind her ear, Jill patted Chris on the arm before Barry opened the door to the office, a grin on his features.

"Well look who's back! We were beginning to wonder if Captain Wesker had killed yah!" Barry said, his heavy voice carrying through the office- snapping the two of them out of their 'moment'.

"I thought he might after I punched him, but I ran away before he could retaliate."

"Wait, you punched him?" Jill said, her eyes wide as she looked at Chris, not believing what he had just said.

"Not… hard." With the way gossip spread between the two teams, Chris figured this would have been common news by now. Sometimes Chris felt more like he was working with a bunch of high school girls with the way news spread among the members.

But maybe the gossip train had since moved on…

**XX**

"So you were there when the crazy guy started spouting off everyone's dirty secrets, right?"

Leaning far in so he was crouching over the round table in the break room, Forest looked at Chris over his evening coffee. Kenneth and Edward, who were also sitting at the table, began chewing on their snacks slowly, eyes glancing over to Chris as if they knew where this was going.

The entire day was rather uneventful for everyone, with Chris getting caught up on the month's events and other assorted pieces of information- so he and a few members from Bravo team decided to enjoy some sludge-like coffee together before they left for the day.

"Uh… yeah, I did, but you have to take what he said with a grain of salt," Chris mumbled, taking a sip of his coffee.

"Well, I know, but… well, is it true he said Wesker was… well, you know…" Moving his hand in a circle, Forest looked at Chris carefully as Edward and Kenneth seemed a little more interested in the conversation.

"No, I don't," Chris stated, his voice going flat. So much for the gossip train leaving.

"Gay."

Taking another sip of his coffee, Chris took those precious seconds to decide on what to say- either way he wanted the conversation to end as quickly as possible. With the issue of his uncle still fresh in his mind, Chris didn't really feel like talking about homosexual topics.

"I don't know- that's what the guy said but like I told you, you can't believe what he stated. You yourself just called him crazy. Anyways, do you guys all have tuxes to wear to the gala?"

Edward made it seem like he was about to say something before Forest interrupted, effectively shutting the man up.

"Yeah, I know, but don't you think it fits? Like, Wesker seems… gay- don't you think?"

"What do you mean 'seems gay'?" Edward asked, playing with the straw of his juice box- he refused to drink coffee.

Forest seemed, for once, at a loss for how to properly go about saying what he was just about to state- filling Chris with some sort of dread. Forest was never known for his tact, and if he went on like Chris figured he would, he might say something he would regret later. "Well, you know how some guys just… give off those vibes. Like, he always dresses well, keeps himself put together all the time… and you never see him talking to any women on a personal level- it's strictly professional."

"Just because he's not always thinking about sex with the woman he's talking to doesn't mean he likes to sleep with guys," Edward said, the conversation soon turning into one between the two different men only.

Kenneth was staying quiet the entire time, but Chris caught him giving him quick, worried glances every so often.

"No, I don't mean that! He's just never nice to them- it's like he doesn't want to be on their good side."

"So that just makes him misogynistic."

"What, who said that? I'm just saying he doesn't seem interested in girls, okay?"

"I still don't see how that would make him gay," Edward mumbled, brushing crumbs off of the table. "Besides, why does it matter- you got an issue with gay guys?"

Kenneth seemed more and more fascinated with Chris, and Chris started to grow more and more agitated with every passing second. The conversation was making him bite his tongue a few times, and Kenneth's quick glances weren't helping matters. What was his problem anyways?

"I don't have an issue with them as long as, you know… they don't hit on me. Like, it's alright if they butt fuck each other, but I don't want to know about it and I don't want them coming on to me."

"You flatter yourself too much," Edward said, rolling his eyes. "Just because a guy is gay doesn't mean he's going to try and fuck you- most of them have standards."

Forest leaned back in his chair, shaking his head. "I'm just saying how I feel."

Meanwhile Kenneth was looking at Chris more and more, making him want to just ask him what the hell was his problem. That was until Chris remembered the Halloween party when he had accidentally 'come out' to Kenneth. Never mind the fact that Chris wasn't really gay (just bi-curious) he had said the gay word and Kenneth pretty much took it for face value (who wouldn't, really?).

"Hey Kenneth, you look finished with your coffee, wanna go?" Chris asked hopefully while Edward and Forest continued to debate. Chris didn't care to hear what other ignorant things one of his best friends had to say- he'd had enough of that bullshit to last him a lifetime.

As the saying went- it never rained but it poured.

Kenneth nodded and the two men packed up their snacks before leaving the room as quickly as possible. They walked a fair distance from the break room before Chris pulled Kenneth into a deserted briefing room, desperate to explain himself after months of letting Kenneth think he was gay.

"Uh…" Well that was a great start of explaining himself.

"I know what you're going to say, Chris, and you don't need to worry. I don't care that you're gay, I was just wondering if anyone else knew… what Forest was saying was pretty ignorant and I know you two are close, so I was wondering if you were okay with what he was saying..."

"N-no, I'm not gay, Kenneth," Chris said, trying to put on the brakes. "I'm not gay. When I said I was, I just got distracted by something. But I'm not gay… I just like women."

And some men.

"O-oh… well okay, if that's what you mean..." Kenneth seemed skeptical still, and gave Chris a wary look. "But if you are… it's still okay. And I won't tell anyone if you don't want to come out."

Chris could have hugged the man but refrained, especially given the current conversation. "No, I'm not… well, not fully. I'm… well I like some guys, but just… some."

"O-oh…well, uh, good luck with that?" Scratching the back of his head, Kenneth seemed just as lost as Chris was as to how the conversation was supposed to go.

"T-thanks… and don't tell anyone, please?"

"I promise."

The two stood awkwardly in front of each other before they both took a deep breath.

"Well I'm glad we had this chat," Chris blurted out as the two men hurried to the door.

"Yeah, me too… let's not have to do this again sometime."

"Sounds good to-" Chris was about to agree when he again saw a familiar face walking past the open door. The tight knot that had been in Chris' chest the entire time he had been at the RPD lifted as soon as he saw the familiar shades catch the light.

"Wesker, you're back," Kenneth said as Chris stared at his Captain, noticing the man was less composed than usual. His hair was still slicked back, glasses resting neatly on his nose, and he was dressed as pre-usual, but something about his stance made Chris worry.

Wesker looked exhausted.

"Oh, yes… I just returned a little while ago. I would have arrived sooner but the taxi I took from the airport got stuck in traffic," Wesker explained, his attention momentarily going to Chris.

"Well I hope it was a good trip… A-anyways, I best be off." Kenneth quickly excused himself, and Chris couldn't blame the man. After hearing about Chris going against orders, hitting Wesker, and then leaving for a month, Chris didn't really feel like sticking around either.

But of course, Wesker had this comfort surrounding him that kept Chris from trying to excuse himself as well- he had missed simply being in his presence.

"Christopher… you're back." When talking to Kenneth, Wesker sounded like he always did- assured and fully aware of what he was saying. But now Chris could hear weariness leaking into his voice.

"Yeah, I got back today and… I came to see you but you were out… You look tired."

"I'm fine, don't worry… but I believe we should talk soon. I have something I need to drop off to Chief Irons' office but then I will be free to speak for a short moment. Would you care to walk with me?"

Eagerly agreeing, Chris followed Wesker in silence as they headed to the office a short distance away. Waiting in the empty waiting room (it seemed like Mindy had gone home for the day) Chris watched the minutes roll by until a good fifteen minutes had passed when Wesker finally emerged from the illusive office of Chief Irons.

"Let us go somewhere more private," Wesker said, hand brushing Chris' gently for a moment as he strode past, not betraying how tired he was. Again, the two walked in silence until they had reached the STARS office, which was now deserted, everyone having gone home for the day or still arguing in the break room.

As soon as the door to the office was securely shut, Chris found himself in a kiss, Wesker's body pressing against his while one hand tugged their waists close together. The other hand came up to cup Chris' cheek, thumb gently caressing. Kissing him back, Chris found himself relaxing completely- the stress of the holidays and all it entailed leaving him for a short time.

The kiss itself wasn't passionate nor was it heated. It was simply a greeting between the two men- a way for Wesker, without saying it out loud, to express that he was eager for Chris just as much as Chris was eager for him.

Chris also liked to think it was because Wesker missed him, but he knew that was wishful thinking on his part. Wesker was probably only capable of missing his sunglasses.

When they pulled away from the kiss, Chris moved his head back slightly and raised a hand to take Wesker's sunglasses off, wanting to see his stormy grey eyes. But there were visible bags under his eyes when he pulled them off, and he tried to take the sunglasses back, only to have Chris pocket them.

"You're exhausted…" Chris mumbled, kissing Wesker slowly once again.

"I will admit it's been a frustrating week…that is why I would prefer if we forgot about the incident a month ago- it is in the past and I do not want to talk about it," Wesker said, pulling away from Chris to go to his desk where his jacket and a small suitcase with wheels were placed.

Well, Chris wasn't going to complain.

"You didn't go home before you came over here?" Chris asked, looking at the suitcase.

"No, I took the taxi straight here so I could drop of those files," Wesker said, putting his jacket on while Chris went to get his.

"Did you… did you want a ride home? I don't want you to have to pay for another taxi ride," Chris suggested, really just wanting to spend a little more time with Wesker.

"Your generosity may get you into trouble one day," Wesker said, although there was a hint of amusement in his tone- just a hint though. "But I will accept your offer… Thank you."

Moving over to Wesker's desk, Chris kissed him again before wheeling the suitcase behind him as they headed to the parking lot. He figured he'd have to catch Wesker exhausted more often on account of how easy it was to sneak in little kisses.

"I can take my suitcase, Christopher."

"I've already got a firm grip on it- besides, the suitcase and I are starting to create a bond here and I don't want to ruin it just as it's beginning."

Chris could feel Wesker's confusion at the offhanded joke, and he couldn't help but laugh at how Wesker never seemed to understand his more quirky jokes.

"Well… give me my sunglasses back," Wesker said, making Chris stop to pull them out of his pocket. While Wesker seemed more comfortable taking his sunglasses off when he was in the office or with Chris, he was still never seen in general public without them on. As much as Chris liked to push Wesker's buttons, he thought it best to just give Wesker that comfort back.

When they got to his car, Chris threw the suitcase in the back before hopping in quickly, slamming his door shut with great force. Wesker got in with more grace, closing the door with less of a bang than Chris before putting his seatbelt on, the only sound in the jeep being that of the click of the lock keeping the belt in place.

The drive to Wesker's apartment was spent in silence, with Wesker looking out the window the entire time, seemingly deep in thought. The city street lights were already on, the sun already down due to the shorter days during the winter which made it look like it was late in the evening rather than only six o'clock. But the orange glow from the lights reflected off of Wesker's hair as they passed under them, catching Chris' eye every so often, giving him an excuse to examine his Captain.

His legs were slightly spread rather than their usual crossed, and his chin was resting on the palm of his hand, arm placed against the armrest. Wesker looked so exhausted, and Chris hoped the man would get some sleep when he got home instead of doing more paperwork (which Chris suspected he would anyways).

When they arrived at the apartment, Chris parked the car on the other side of the street and turned the car off. It took Wesker a moment before he finally lifted his head from his hand and turned to look at him, making him wonder if he had perhaps dozed off during the drive.

"Well thank you, Christopher… once again I seem to owe you for your kindness."

"Don't worry about it… you would have done the same. Or at least I hope you would have." Chris smiled as he moved over slightly, wanting to kiss Wesker again.

Absence made the heart grow fonder- or at least absence made the dick grow harder.

Wesker clued in quickly to what Chris was hinting at, and undid his seatbelt before moving forward, capturing Chris' lips in a kiss. Opening his mouth quickly, Chris could feel Wesker's tongue easily slip into his mouth, sweeping across all of his little weak spots which always made him let out a soft moan. It felt so good to kiss him again…

He didn't know what was so wrong about this- about two people of the same sex wanting to be together. For Chris this felt right and it wasn't anything disgusting. But what his uncle had said to him, combined with Forest's ideas on Wesker, made Chris start to think about it all over again.

It must have shown through, because Wesker pulled away after a moment, a frown on his features.

"You've stilled…" Wesker said, exasperated.

"Sorry, I was just thinking about something… Hey, can I ask you something?" Chris asked, sitting back comfortably in his chair. Wesker nodded, although his eyebrows were furrowed and the lethargic air around him had disappeared- replaced by something else.

"I was just… well I was wondering about how you came out as gay to your family." Staring at his hands, Chris took a moment to brace himself before looking up at Wesker.

Wesker appeared shocked for a moment, and suddenly yawned before answering. "I never came out to them- my love life has never been a topic of discussion with my family. We worry about career choices, not who I sleep with."

"O-oh… well then…"

"Why are you asking me this?" Wesker asked.

That was a good question, one Chris had wondered himself. He thought that maybe if he talked to someone who knew everything and could understand, then he could forget about what his uncle said.

"I was just wondering if your experience was a good one. I… well Forest was going on about gay guys and he… was saying bad things."

"Well that is his problem. You should not care about what other people think, Christopher. There are only a few people in your life who you should listen to when they tell you something- the one writing your paychecks, and the ones who will get you somewhere in this world. Everyone else is irrelevant."

"That's not exactly what I wanted to hear," Chris mumbled, a little shocked at how cold Wesker could be.

"Did you want me to lie? I know Forest is your best friend, but by the sound of it, he's an utter buffoon who does not know what he is talking about. If you're going to let him dictate how you should think, then I suggest you only listen to him, not face the real world."

Chris hoped Wesker would never have children.

But what Wesker said did hold a certain amount of truth. And while Chris wished Wesker had been more kind about it, the message still carried through to him well enough.

Don't care what other people think- if it makes you happy and it doesn't hurt anyone else, then go ahead and do it.

"I guess… I just keep thinking about it and it's pissing me off. But… can I ask you something else?" When Wesker nodded, Chris continued. "How do you deal with people talking bullshit about your sexuality and being gay?"

"I don't deal with them- I simply walk away from people such as those and hope they suffer in their blind ignorance."

Again, not the answer he was looking for, but it worked nonetheless. Letting what Wesker said sink in, Chris found he had already gotten out of the car and was opening the back door to grab his suitcase by the time he had snapped out of his daze.

Shutting the door, Wesker opened the passenger door a crack and gave Chris a level stare through his lowered sunglasses.

"Don't worry about trivial matters such as those. You have enough things to think about that are more worthy of your time, dear heart." And with that, he had slammed the door closed and was headed to his apartment, keys already out.

Chris watched him until he had safely made it into the apartment building before driving home- deep in thought. He was happy to see Wesker again, and while he wished he could have gone inside with Wesker and had mind-blowing sex, he understood Wesker would probably fall asleep on top of him in the process.

With these thoughts in his mind, it wasn't until he had taken a shower and was getting ready for bed back at his apartment that Chris realized Wesker had called him 'dear heart'.

Wesker may be a dick, but at least he has good advice... sometimes. Anyways, this chapter was both fun to write, as well as annoying. Mostly because I hate writing homophobes, especially when they happen to be a character like Forest who is all around awesome except for his, uh... ignorance. But we have more Wesker and Chris interaction in this chapter (Dear Heart has finally made an apperance), and there will be more next chapter because... IT'S NEW YEARS! Guys, I am super excited for the next chapter, just because it's my favorite chapter so far in the story! Once again I want to thank all of you who read/review/favorite this story! I know a lot of you guys just got out of school, so I hope you enjoy your summer holidays~!