Claire was speeding down the road on her Harley, her heart racing and adrenaline pumping. She had been sitting at a coffee place downtown waiting for Chris when he called asking her to meet him there, but he never showed. When she'd been about to leave, there was screaming outside, and she rushed out only to find her nightmares come to life; another outbreak, only this time it was happening in a city way bigger than Raccoon. It was happening in her hometown of New York. If she hadn't seen it happen before, she would've thought it to be impossible. Of course, everybody in the city was panicking, and it was hard to tell which ones were infected or not. She wanted to help, but she was unarmed and probably the only one thinking straight amidst the chaos. She did what she could, and hopped on her motorcycle, leaving the madness behind, and headed home as fast as she could.
She turned onto the main street that lead to her crescent, and as she turned a car headed straight for her. She reacted quickly and swerved the bike out of the car's way, but couldn't keep her balance and dropped to the ground. She heard the bike scraping on the pavement, and felt her arm do the same thing. She looked up and saw the car drive right by her, and crashed into a street sign. She could see the driver inside; infected. The window on the driver's side was broken, and the creature was starting to climb out, apparently unaffected by the crash.
"Shit!" Claire said. She gathered her thoughts and got up quickly, running over to the Harley. She brought it up and tried the ignition. "Come on, baby, work!" she said. The motorcycle roared, and Claire felt slight hope. She hopped on and drove off at full speed. She turned the bike on her crescent and finally pulled into her driveway. She wished she could take out the tools and fix the Harley, but there was no time. She shut off the engine and ran to the door. It wasn't locked. "Stupid!" she said.
She opened the door, ran inside, and closed it fast. This time, she locked it, along with the dead bolts and the chain. She turned and took in a deep breath, her thoughts racing about what to do now. Of course, her first thought was to call Chris.
She took a step forward, but suddenly realised something...there was a random draft coming in, and she wasn't one to leave windows open. She looked around, and froze entirely when she saw the patio door wide open. She looked outside but couldn't really see anything from her angle. She looked around again, and her gaze stopped at the kitchen. The only gun she owned, a present from Chris a few years back, was kept in her bedroom, and she didn't know if anything had gotten inside so it was a big risk to take. Instead, she slowly made her way to the kitchen. All of the past events had taught her to walk around very quietly, so her feet weren't making a sound. She paused, looking at the counter, suddenly feeling another presence. Shit, shit, shit! She thought. She reached over and grabbed the biggest kitchen knife, and took another slow step forward. She took in a deep breath, and jumped around the corner of the counter, and her heart skipped a beat.
"Jesus Christ, Chris!" she yelled out, and leaned back against the pantry.
Chris looked at his sister and would've said a paranoia joke, but instantly caught the panic in her eyes. "Claire, what's wrong? What happened?" he asked, getting up and running to her.
She looked at him, and shook her head. "It's...happening again..." she said.
"What's happening?" he asked.
Claire looked right at him. "A spill, a virus, a freaking apocalypse, I don't know!"
Chris's eyes went wide. "What exactly did you see?" he asked her.
"I was at the shop, and there was screaming. I went outside to see, and there were people, but they weren't normal...like in Raccoon. I wanted to help, really I did!" she said.
Chris frowned. She was shaking, and seemed on the verge of tears. He reached down and took the knife from her hand, noticing a bleeding gash on her arm. At that moment, it seemed like the entire world stopped moving; like time froze, and nothing was important anymore. He grabbed her shoulders and looked right into her eyes. "Claire...you weren't..."
She looked back to him. "What?"
He grabbed her arm and brought it up. "This. Please tell me you weren't-"
Claire shook her head. "God, no, I fell off my bike," she said.
Chris grabbed her and pulled her in his arms, hugging her tightly. He had never been as scared in his entire life.
"What're we supposed to do now?" Claire asked.
Chris pulled back and looked at her arm again. "Wait here," he said, and he turned to head for the patio door. He stuck his head out and looked towards the bushes. "Rebecca, I need you in here right away!" he called out.
Claire was surprised to see Chris' friend Rebecca jump out from the bushes and run towards the house. "What is it?" she asked, seeing Chris's serious expressions. He walked back inside, and she followed him. When she saw Claire, she looked confused. "Chris, I don't think you understand the concept of 'surprise'," she said.
Chris looked at her seriously. "She's hurt, so can you check it out please? I'll get the others...the party's over," he said, and headed back outside.
Rebecca noticed he was worried about something, and saw the same look on his sister. She walked over to Claire and smiled, hoping to lighten up the moment. "So what happened?" she asked.
Claire sighed, holding up her arm. "It's nothing, just wiped out on the bike," she said.
Rebecca took the arm and examined it a bit. "It's not deep enough for stitches, but there's gravel in it, so it'll need to be disinfected," she said.
"Under the sink in the bathroom," Claire said.
"Are you feeling dizzy or nauseated at all?" Rebecca asked.
Claire nodded. "A bit of both, but it might be for other reasons."
Rebecca looked at her in the eyes. She saw panic, confusion, fear, and she suddenly remembered seeing the same things in her own reflection a year ago. "What exactly happened?" she asked.
Claire looked over to the patio and saw Chris speaking with Barry, Leon and Jill outside. She looked back to Rebecca. "Another spill, right here in New York," she said.
Rebecca gasped. "No, way!" she said.
Claire nodded. "It never ends...Did I miss something?" she asked.
"What do you mean?" asked Rebecca, following Claire's gaze to the others. "Oh...well, it was supposed to be a surprise. Chris organized it, hoping you'd have a normal good time for once."
Claire grinned. "Oh the cruel irony that is my life..." she said.
Rebecca giggled. "Come on, let's get that arm patched up," she said.
Claire looked at the others outside, and started towards the bathroom followed by Rebecca. "It's really not that bad..." Claire said, walking in the bathroom.
Rebecca stopped and looked over to the others when they walked back inside the house. She walked over, sighing. "So, is there a plan?" she asked.
Chris shook his head. "Not yet, we're kind of hoping for your smarts on this one. How's Claire?" he asked.
Rebecca looked over to the washroom. "Just needs to be disinfected and patched up, she'll live."
"Oh my God, Claire's infected!" asked Leon.
Rebecca waved her hands in the air. "No, no! The cut might be infected, from the gravel. It's really nothing. As for the situation, I suggest we hold out here until we know exactly what to do. So far it seems safe," she said.
Jill nodded. "The whole backyard is fenced up, and if anything comes from there we'll be able to spot it right away," she said.
Barry grinned. "Does that mean we can still have a party?" he asked.
Chris glared at him. "I know you're just kidding, Barry, but now's not the time," he said.
"Lighten up, kid, we're perfectly safe here," said Barry.
"Not really, we don't have any guns or backup, or anything like that. How are we safe?" Chris asked.
Barry sighed. "You're right...Man, the one time I leave my gun at home..." he said.
Rebecca couldn't help but smile. "I know this is probably everyone's worst nightmare...but I'm glad we're all together for it. There's more experience in this house than anywhere else, and we can use that to our advantage," she said.
Jill nodded. "She's right. We've all had the proper training for any situations, especially this one."
Barry walked over to the patio door, and closed it. He made sure the lock was in place, and looked outside again. "Do we know how bad it is?" he asked.
"I don't think so," Chris said. He looked around, confused. "Hey, where'd Leon go?" he asked.
Claire stared at her reflection in the bathroom mirror, and sighed. Her head was hurting, she did feel very nauseous, and her arm felt like it was on fire. She had kept the door slightly open, and could hear their conversation in the other room.
"She's right. We've all had the proper training for any situations, especially this one," Jill said. Claire shook her head. Everyone but me...If one thing goes wrong I could get them all killed, she thought.
There was a quick knock, and the door opened up. Claire jumped and turned, seeing Leon standing there.
"Hey, you okay in here?" he asked.
"Yeah, hang on...okay good, I think my heart just started beating again," she said.
Leon grinned. "At least you still have your humour," he said as he walked in. He looked down at the gash on her arm, and sighed. "Need a hand?" he asked.
Claire shook her head. "I'm fine, it doesn't even hurt. Shouldn't you be with the other fully trained people, thinking up a plan?" she asked.
Leon frowned. "What's that supposed to mean?" he asked.
She looked over to him, and back down again. "It's nothing," she said.
Leon smiled. "Liar...well, I think I understand though. If you're thinking what I think you are, then just know that even without training, you kick ass and I can vouch for it," he said.
Claire shook her head. "You're just saying that to cheer me up, I know I'd end up being useless," she said.
"Hey, I'm alive because of our teamwork back in Raccoon, and you know it. And I'm sure you've saved a bunch of other people too, so there's nothing to feel useless about," he said.
Claire thought back to Raccoon City. She'd escaped hordes of zombies, giant monsters, and mutated bugs, and it was true that she hadn't gotten out alone. We all got out, she thought.
Her thoughts drifted to later that year, when she'd been captured by Umbrella and imprisoned on an island, which had been virally overrun. The thought brought a sudden sadness.
"Claire?" Leon snapped her out of her thoughts. She looked up at him, and forced a smile. "You're right," she said, "we survived Raccoon, with or without training. I mean, even YOU were just a rookie cop, right?"
Leon nodded, smiling. "That's the attitude! We really need your help in this, so please don't think of yourself as useless. You've saved more lives than you can think of. Come on, let's go get Rebecca to clean that wound, and lets think us up a plan!" he said, heading out of the bathroom.
"Yeah," Claire said, and her smile faded as soon as Leon was out the door. She looked into the mirror again. Wish I could've saved just one more, she thought. She then turned and left the bathroom, following Leon back to the rest of the group.