A/N: I am grateful to my readers who are still reading this story and much more thankful to Shirahane Aikawa, Tealz and Mercenary Nemesis for their valuable reviews.

Disclaimer: I don't own Resident Evil or any of its characters appearing in the story, they all belong to Capcom.

Chapter 24

(Kate's POV)

I knocked on Saunders' cabin and then entered and asked, "You called me?" I was still his acting assistant.
He looked up from his file and looked mad, "You have an escort mission", he said literally throwing a file at me. I picked that up and read, "I don't know why it's you every time", he muttered and everything made sense when I read who I was supposed to escort. It was the President daughter Ashley Graham, "How many times I have requested to the upper authorities that they shouldn't give you missions with Kennedy since you two hate each other."
"They give us missions because we are best put together", I stated the fact, everyone in the Agency knew that both me and Leon when assigned a mission together not only complete it faster than usual but without getting in too much trouble not to mention with minimum Damage to Agency's resources.

"Did I ask your view on that", Saunders kinda yelled at me.
"No", I replied.
"Then stay quiet", he said, "get out now", this was all I wanted to hear as I hurried out. This escort mission saved me from a lot of pending work from Saunders plus I get to see what exactly Leon did with Ashley. Well its nothing that I cared about just curious one might say.

(Kate's POV)

"What are you doing here?", Leon asked seeing me.
"They told me to escort Ms. Graham to her friend's birthday party", I told him.
"Didn't they have anyone else", he said reading the order which I handed him.
"No, all the Agent didn't had a pretty face like you that goes with the President's daughter", I countered his comment.
"So why they sent you, you don't have a pretty face to compliment her", he said frowning.
"I am not a fashion model, to care about my looks", I said irritated.
"Yet spend your time on make-up", he said tilting his head to one side purposely trying to tick me off.
"I don't do make-up", I told him keeping my calm.

(Leon's POV)

"Yeah you do", I said even though I knew all she did for make-up was put on lipstick.
"There is no point in arguing with an idiot", she said crossing her arms.
"Who are you calling an idiot", I asked offended.
"See you're none the wiser", she said and walking away.
"Hey wait you… you can't just insult me like this", I yelled after her but I was smiling, I was for some unexplainable reason happy that she is with me.

(Leon's POV)

"Happy Birthday!", Ashley yelled hugging her friend.
"Won't you wish me Leon", her friend said grazing her curve that was showing off her bikini, since it was pool birthday party.
"Happy Birthday Tracy", I wished her.
"Who' s she?", she asked pointing at Kate.
"She's my other bodyguard's replacement for a while. He's on vacation", Ashley said and Tracy examined Kate from head to toe, "hey tell me where I can change into my swimwear?"
"There", Tracy told her, and she hurried off to the place and Kate followed, "C'mon Leon, I know you're on duty but you can enjoy."
"That I will", I said and moved away from her and went to the bar asking for a drink and glanced the place for anything suspicious.

"Found anything suspicious", Kate asked joining me a bit later.
"Nothing yet; where's Ashley?", I asked her.
"There in the Pink Bikini", she pointed at Ashley who was sitting by the pool trying to look beautiful. She looked around and then came running to me but tripped and she fell on Kate and her drink ruined her clothes.
"I am so sorry", She said sadly.
"It's okay, it was work clothes anyways", Kate said cleaning her shirt with a tissue, "Excuse me but I need to clean myself", she got up and headed for washroom.

Ashley stared after her a bit, "Have you ever noticed she has a good body", Ashley said thinking, "I wonder what she looks like in a swimsuit…", she went on with her babbling while I thought about what she said. There was no doubt Kate had an awesome figure but I never got to see it.

Kate always wore Denim jeans and Shirt to work that covered herself fully, occasionally she wore skirts but they were knee length so nothing is shown there either. At home she wore dresses reaching a little above her knee and more feminine but I was always in a hurry to notice anything. Plus it wasn't like I spend an aweful amount of time at home. Most of the times we are home then either both of us are sleeping or one of us sleeping and if it so happens to that we are then, we are in a rush to get somewhere, half of the time to get to work.

"What are you thinking", Ashley asked me.
"It's nothing", I told her taking my mind off the thoughts about Kate. She looked good in whatever she wear, which meant one of the two things that either she has a good sense of fashion or she knows what I'd like to see on her.

(Kate's POV)

I set the dinner on the table, "Dinner's ready", I called glancing over to Leon but found him lying on the couch eyes closed and I looked at the time; it was 10:00 PM. I was running late with my house work today since I had to replace an Agent that worked for the President's security today since he was ill. And Leon got home with me today earlier than his usual time. For past couple of days actually a month, he was getting home early than usual, I wondered what made him get home early and almost every day stopped myself from asking that.

I walked to him and bent down to him checking his temperature, with his sort of work, he could fall ill anytime, without him knowing about it. He smiled and I shook him lightly, "Leon", I called softly, "wake up."
"What happened?", he asked me opening his eyes.
"Dinner's ready", I spoke softly.
"Okay", he replied but his eyes were at my cleavage.

(Leon's POV)

"You're a sick pervert", Kate said standing straight.
"You were the one holding a free show, why the hell I stop myself", I did speak like a pervert sitting up.
"I thought you were flirt but now I came know that you are a pervert", she said turning and walking to the dinner table.
"That's called charm, I guess", I said following her.
"Yeah right", she said sarcastically tilting her head to one side.
"No really", I said arguing as I took a seat, I knew it would get her frustrated.
"Look why don't you push this dinner down your throat instead of arguing with me", she said definitely irritated.

"I was not arguing, you were", I said smiling as I watched her fill her plate.
"You started it", she said setting her plate down, now angry.
"You did", I argued more.
"You love to argue but I don't, okay, so… just… so just don't talk to me if you're gonna start up an argument", she said pushing the plate away and then she stormed up the stairs.

I looked at my plate which had everything that was prepared for tonight's supper whereas Kate's plate only had a small bit of rice. I tried to push the food down my throat but it seemed harder than usual. Knowing that the one who made all this is hungry, made it really hard for me to eat any of the things, it was as if I wasn't hungry anymore. I pushed the plate away sighing out of distress.

(Kate's POV)

I looked at the moon and couldn't help but think things I couldn't escape from. Everything seemed to be closing on me, it really felt suffocating at times but this was the case when I was newly married to Leon. As years went by, I learnt how to breathe in the small space, learnt how to adjust in situations, learnt how to end arguments, learnt how not to start them, the thing I couldn't learn was him. He was a open book, written in a language which sometimes I understood without having to go through it whereas at other times no matter how many times I read him, I always got him wrong.

'Leon!', I sighed thinking about him, 'I am tired…', I closed my eyes trying hard not to shed even a drop of tear.
"Kate", I opened my eyes thinking I heard him call my name, "Let's have dinner, Okay?", he asked and I felt him moving closer, it felt like a dream, "I am sorry and I admit I love to argue and always start the argument but let's get downstairs and have dinner", he spoke really softly, "Don't take out your anger on food", he said and covered me with a shawl, "Or yourself", he whispered in my ear, "I am sorry, sweetheart."

(Leon's POV)

Kate turned to look at me and I held my ears, "You're really a flirt, you know that", she said holding back her tears.
"You forgive me?", I asked her and she nodded, which made me pulled her in tight hug, "thank you… thank you for forgiving me always."

The rain came down unexpectedly wetting the both of us and we had to get in to save us from the rain, more sadly I had to leave Kate, "Let's have dinner", she said smiling weakly.

We both headed downstairs and began eating our supper and just then the power went off and although I couldn't see but I knew Kate shot an angry glare at me, "I paid the bill", I said raising my hands in submission.
"So, why there's a power cut", she asked.
"I don't know maybe they forgot this time that I paid the bills", I said casually shrugging and no reply came. My head dropped down thinking I offended her somehow but the silence was broken as she began laughing out loud.

"Leon, you idiot", she said still laughing, my heart beats raised and I fumbled for the lighter I had in my pocket. I quickly tried to bring it to life and when it came to life, I felt like my whole life was illuminated from seeing her laugh. At that moment I thought, I could do anything, just about anything to see her laugh. After five years of making her cry and angry at me, I finally managed to see her laugh like this.

(Kate's POV)

"Wow you look beautiful", Leon said and I noticed he was staring at me and it made me stop, "You look tremendously beautiful when you laugh, more than when you're angry", now that made me blush.
"I'll get some candles from the kitchen", I said getting up.
"I'll help since I have the lighter", he said getting up following me smiling. I couldn't help but doubt if he was okay, he's been acting kinda odd since he started getting home early. Little, little things told me that he actually… "Ouch…", he screamed and dropped the lighter engulfing the both of us in complete darkness.

"What happened?", I asked him.
"I think I burned my finger", he replied.
"Be a little careful", I said lighting up a candle, setting it on a counter and then moving to look at his burn but there was nothing. I took his other hand and there was no burn on his other hand either and I looked at him.
"That fake burn let me hold your hand", he said smiling weakly; he bent down and kissed my hands the power came back.

(Leon's POV)

"You act weird sometimes", Kate said as I let go of her hand, "As if you are not you."
"Do you like it?", I asked her.
"It makes me wanna doubt your intentions", she replied seriously looking me in the eyes.
"You can always ask me", I said.
"But it hurts when you don't wanna answer", she told me as tears filled her eyes.
"You can always tell me when it hurts", I told her, "I am not good at getting those things, you know", I smiled at her.
"I know", she replied and smiled rolling her eyes, "let's have dinner, its already late."
"Yeah" , I said and followed her to the dinner table.

(Kate's POV)

"I am going shopping tomorrow", I told Leon setting the clean and dry pots and pan back at their places, "You want me to buy something?"
"The usual stuff", he replied busy with his PDA, really uninterested.
"I know about the usual stuff, anything else you want", I asked being precise.
"Some peace", he said smiling setting his PDA down looking at me.
"Something that I can get…", I specified.
"A beautiful smile", he said smiling even more.
"That can be bought in a supermarket", I said to him drying my hands on a kitchen towel moving past him. Leon grabbed me by my arm and pulled me, "Leon", I yelled out of irritation because of his sudden action.

"Smile for me sweetheart", Leon said smiling himself.
I faked a smile, "okay?", I said and moved away but he pulled me back again.
"I am not gonna let you go until you smile for me", he said wrapping his arms around my waist smiling.
'I won't smile because you are smiling. You really are weird', I thought to myself, 'What was more weird is that it seems as if you act weird when you try to be yourself. I missed you', this thought made me smile but my eyes were filled with tears.
"I told you to smile not cry", he said reaching to wipe my tears and just then his phone rang and we both looked at the phone, "Hello", he answered getting back in his serious mode, he listened to the other person while he simultaneously thought of something, "Do you have proof?", he waited, "Yeah, I see", he listened again, "Okay keep me informed", he said rubbing his forehead, "Yeah Goodnight."

I watched him stare blankly at the phone thinking something and I gathered up the courage to ask him, "Who was it, this late?", I tried to make it sound as casual as I could.
He looked up at me and weighed his options then said, "Chris", he got off the small kitchen chair by the counter and headed out silently saying he doesn't wanna answer anymore questions.

A/N: Thanks for reading! I hope you enjoyed. I apologize for any inconvenience due to any mistakes in the text.