Chapter 7: Late Night

A/N: Hello everyone! Hope you're all doing well! Thought it would a great time to start one of the main plots to the series. Something wicked is about to happen but what it is, you'll just have to see.

Let's get on with the story!

Disclaimer: I don't own Resident Evil; I just own my characters.

Enjoy!

/

Rachel didn't see much of Leon for the next couple of weeks. It wasn't that big of a deal, just a simple observation. It seemed like after she met him at that bar, she kept running into him everywhere. Part of her kind of expected to see him while she was out since no matter where she went, he would be there. She took that back; she didn't expect to run into him all the time. If she did that, then that would mean she was becoming one of her classmates who always got lovestruck when they ran into their crush. She wasn't like that. She didn't have a crush on Leon. Just because he was handsome, charming and seemed to help her out of random situations didn't mean she had feelings for him.

She just found his presence interesting, that's all.

Besides, he was older than her and he probably had a girlfriend or wife already. No way would he pursue a college student.

She wouldn't think too much into it. If she ran into him again, great. But if she didn't then it wouldn't be the end of the world.

She had a goal that was more important than romance. Love wasn't going to get her degree nor was it going to save lives.

/

"I don't know what the hell Carlos was thinking by proposing to that bitch!" Isabella barked.

When Rachel went over to have dinner with Isabella's family, they found out one of her brother's proposed to his girlfriend. Everyone seemed to have mixed feelings about the news since not everyone was fond of the girl. But Carlos must have seen something in the girl if he asked her to marry him.

"He must have gotten her knocked up. That's the only reason why he would propose to her when they've barely dated for a year" Isabella said.

"Do you think that maybe he proposed because he's actually in love with her?" Rachel asked.

Isabella shook her head.

"No way! You've seen how she treats my brother. Always bossing him around and making him do stuff for her. There must be a reason for this."

Rachel sighed. She really didn't have room to talk. Her brother was dating someone that while they were on nice terms, they also didn't really get along. Then again, she didn't get along with her brother either.

Dropping her backpack on a nearby bench, she sat down. Today's classes weren't super eventful. Just the same old lectures with a dash of tests here and there.

"I'm so done with these exams. Is it winter break yet?" Isabella asked.

"It's only September, Issy" Rachel said.

Isabella scoffed in disgust.

"So have you run into Prince Charming recently?" she teased.

Rachel paused grabbing a textbook when she heard that. She was glad that she had her hair down otherwise her best friend would have seen her blush a little.

"Nope." she said.

She scolded herself for blushing. Crushes weren't important right now! She needed to take her mind off Leon. Opening her textbook, she focused on reading the pages. Isabella raised an eyebrow at her friend. She wanted to pry more but she knew it was a lost cause, knowing how stubborn Rachel was.

A commotion over by the student bulletin board caught their attention. Curious, the two girls went over to the crowd to see what was going on.

"What the hell is going on?" Isabella asked.

One of the female students nearby looked freaked out.

"The campus is going on a strict curfew starting next week" she said.

"Apparently a few female students went missing when they went to a party a few nights ago. Until they find the girls all night classes are suspended, and students must be in their dorms by 7. If you're out after that or throw a party, you'll be written up."

Rachel gulped when she heard the news. Who would kidnap a bunch of college students on campus?! Isn't that what security was for?!

"Looks like Jeremy won't be asking you to any more parties for a while" Isabella tried to joke.

Rachel gave her friend a dirty look.

This isn't what she needed right now. She knew the world was a dangerous place. She shouldn't have been surprised or worried, but she was. Who would be sick enough to kidnap students while on campus? There wasn't anywhere they could go.

She had a feeling this curfew wouldn't last long. They'll find the girls and things will go back to normal as if nothing had happened. That's just how life was now.

Luckily, she didn't have any evening classes, but she had to worry about work. Guess she would have to see if she could get her hours changed when she went in for her next shift.

/

Leon stared at the monitor that showcased the latest mission he got back from. He and his unit were able to subdue a terrorist attack before it could get out of hand. While no one got hurt and there were no zombies involved he still felt drained from it. It seemed like no matter what he did nothing was getting better. He could stop an attack from happening in one place one day and then it would start up somewhere else the next. It was like taking one step forward and three steps back.

Clicking off the file, he pushed away from the desk and grabbed his jacket. He was done for the night, and he needed to get some air.

He got on his bike and zoomed out of the parking lot and into the street. The cool night breeze felt good on his face as he zipped between cars. Riding his bike gave him a chance to ignore everything. He didn't need to think about work, bioterrorism, past loves-all he needed to think about was how fast and far he could go.

He reached a red light and stopped so the pedestrians could cross the crosswalk. He sighed as he rubbed his tired eyes. He really didn't want to go back to that empty apartment of his. When he was alone all he could think about was everything that happened to him. Racoon City, Brazil, Spain; every time he closed his eyes, he would relive those nightmarish moments.

When he was a kid, he never imagined his life would be like this.

He lowered his hand just in time to see a familiar head of strawberry blonde hair walk across the street. He had to do a double take to make sure he wasn't seeing things but sure enough it was Rachel who was passing by. He could tell she looked tired by how she walked. Looking at his watch he saw that it was almost 9 at night.

Growing curious he quickly changed lanes and turned the corner when the light turned green. For the fourth time, he found himself wondering what was going on with little Miss Sunshine.

Rachel stifled a yawn as she readjusted her bag. It was a crazy day at the clinic, but it made her shift go by fast. She was lucky enough to change her shifts due to the curfew because one of the receptionists was going on maternity leave in a few days so she could cover her position until the curfew was lifted.

Looking at her phone, she checked the time and texted Isabella that she was off work. She was starving and decided she didn't want to make dinner when she got home. There was a food truck on her route home that sold gyros. One of the perks of living in a busy city was that it never really slept.

She saw said food truck up ahead and got excited. There wasn't a line which meant she wouldn't have to wait for her food.

A motorcycle pulled up next to her as she was walking and slowed down.

"Isn't it passed your bedtime, little missy?" Leon asked.

Rachel looked at him in surprise.

"Leon? What are you doing out here?"

"I could be asking you the same thing" Leon said.

Rachel opened her hoodie to show her scrubs.

"Just got off work. You taking a little joyride?" she asked.

"I actually just got off work too" Leon explained.

Rachel could see the tired look in his eyes. He had a similar look back at the grocery store that one time. It seemed whatever he did for the government was no walk in the park.

Looking at the food truck, she suddenly had an idea.

"You eat yet?" she asked.

Leon raised an eyebrow and shook his head. Rachel started walking away and pulled out her wallet.

"Go park your pretty bike. I'll be right back."

She made it to the food truck and ordered a couple of gyros as well as some fries and beers. With her food in hand, she returned to Leon who surprisingly actually parked his bike and waited for her. She handed him a bag of food.

"Enjoy."

Going over to a bench, she plopped down and unwrapped her sandwich. Her tastebuds were singing as she took a bite out of her sandwich. Leon sat next to her and followed her example. He was surprised by how good it was but then again, he hadn't really eaten anything all day. As Rachel ate her food, she screamed in her head. Now that she was eating with Leon, she realized how ballsy she was. She told herself she was just trying to be nice, but she didn't expect Leon to eat with her. She needed to get ahold of herself before she made herself look like an idiot. Grabbing her beer, she popped it open and took a swig.

Leon made a face when he saw the can.

"Again with the cheap beer" he deadpanned.

Rachel glared at him as she lowered her drink.

"Hey, you're not taking this away from me again. And for the record this was a five-dollar beer instead of two"

"Oh, so it's just ok beer instead of crappy. Got it" Leon teased.

Rachel flipped him off in retaliation.

"Just shut up and eat your food" she grumbled.

Leon chuckled and did as he was told. The two ate in silence and just listened as the cars passed by them. Rachel looked at Leon out of the corner of her eye. Now that she was close to him, she could see how tired he was. It looked like he hadn't had a good night's sleep in days. A face that handsome shouldn't look like that. Swallowing her food, she plucked up the courage to be a little bold.

"So, I take it you had a long day at work?"

Leon paused from eating and closed his mouth. Rachel freaked out thinking she went too far and quickly waved her hand.

"Y-you don't have to tell! Since you work for the government, I'm sure you can't tell me anyway."

She busied herself by eating her fries and starting ahead. Leon gripped his drink hard. He forgot about his personal problems until just now. Everything he was thinking before came crashing back into his head. He looked at Rachel to see she was trying to avoid eye contact. He must have looked annoyed when she asked that question. His gaze softened a bit. He knew she didn't mean anything bad by it. She was just curious and wondering if he was doing alright. Typical doctor thinking.

"You ever have moments in life where you wonder how 'did my life turn out like this?'" he suddenly asked.

Rachel jumped at the sudden response and looked at him in confusion. Leon didn't look at her and continued talking.

"Lately I've been thinking this isn't how I pictured my life to be. I never expected to have a job like mine. I've seen a lot of things and lately I've just felt like what's the point of continuing this because nothing is going to change."

Rachel looked at him as he appeared lost in thought. It seemed whatever he did for work, he saw things that a lot of people didn't get to see-perhaps even shouldn't. Looking at the beer in her hands, she tried to figure out the best way to answer him.

"Well…I wasn't always planning on becoming a doctor. My goal was to follow in my dad's footsteps" she began.

"But something happened that changed the outcome of my life. I've always wanted to help others so being a doctor wouldn't be that far off from my goal. Then when I started studying to become one, I realized right away how crazy and stressful it could be. I would have the fate of a person's life in my very hands and if I messed up it would cost someone their life. I have to study extensively how the human body works and know that a cure for one person can be deadly for another. There are days where I tell myself 'This is not what you signed up for, why bother stressing yourself over this? Just quit'. Part of me was tempted to listen to that voice and quit school."

She fiddled with the tab on her can. She remembered those stressful nights when classes got too much for her and wondered if she made a mistake in wanting to become a doctor.

"But I realized something during that mindset" she quietly added.

"If I had given up and just walked away, things could always get worse. I could have always said what's the point of healing people because they're just going to continue to get sick or injury themselves doing crazy things so why bother? But if I or any other doctor did that it could end up worse. People will always get sick but if I give them medicine and vaccines it'll keep them healthy which means not as many will get sick. If I prevent a small issue from becoming an even bigger issue, then maybe there's a point in what I'm doing."

She gave Leon a small smile.

"I don't know what it is that you actually do for work but if you ever wonder if there's a point to it then remember that it does. If you think things aren't getting better just know that you're preventing things from going bad to worse. It sucks not having things change right away but it pays off later down the road. You just gotta look at the bigger picture from time to time."

Leon looked at her in silence. While she didn't know what he did for a living, what she said struck a chord in his heart. He had seen the dark, ugly side of life. He wondered if there was a point in even fighting this war anymore because it would never end. But what she said was true. Even if none of this would end, if he kept fighting then that would prevent things from getting worse.

When Leon didn't say anything for a while, Rachel started to think that what she said didn't help.

'God, I suck at explaining things to people' she thought.

She looked at her phone and saw that it was almost 10.

"Crap I didn't realize how late it was getting" she muttered.

She threw out her trash and slung her bag over her shoulder.

"I'll let you go. You obviously had a long day. Drive home safely!"

She walked away with a quick sprint in her step. Leon watched her and grew slightly alarmed.

"You're going to walk home this late?" he called out.

Rachel turned around and shrugged as she walked backwards.

"I live in a safe neighborhood, I'll be fine" she said.

Leon sighed when he saw how stubborn she was and pulled out his keys.

"Come back here. I'll give you a ride home" he said.

Rachel stopped in her tracks. She turned around and shook her head.

"You don't have to do that, I'll be fine!" she said.

Leon ignored her and turned on his bike.

"Wasn't offering, Sunshine. Now hop on."

Rachel was tempted to just keep walking, but she had a feeling Leon would just zip up with his bike and throw her on. Sighing in defeat, she walked back to him and looked at his bike nervously.

"You sure both of us will fit on that?" she asked.

Leon smirked when he saw her face.

"Don't worry, with your small size, it'll be fine" he joked.

Rachel grumbled and climbed on the back of the bike. When Leon reeved up the engine, she gripped his jacket on instinct.

"Easy on the claws" Leon said.

"I don't want to fly off when you start riding" Rachel argued.

Leon just laughed and took off. Rachel buried her face in the back of his jacket so she wouldn't see how fast they were going. While they were driving, Leon gripped one of her hands and gave it a squeeze to calm her down.

His hand continued to stay that way as they drove.

/

"This is it right here."

Leon pulled to a stop in front of an apartment complex. While it wasn't one of the dorms the building was still considered campus property.

Rachel hopped off the bike and fixed her messed up hair.

"Did you have to go that fast?" she asked.

Leon shrugged. He tried to fight off the smirk on his face when he saw how messed up her hair had gotten.

"Figured you wanted to get home sooner" he said.

Rachel gave up on fixing her hair and decided to do it when she got inside. When she looked at Leon, she bit her lip to stop herself from blushing.

"Thank you for driving me home. I can pay you for your gas if you want" she offered.

"You got me dinner, we're good" Leon said.

Rachel nodded and fiddled with the strap of her bag.

"Well then, good night"

She turned around and started walking away.

"Hey, Rachel"

Rachel stopped and looked back at Leon. The smile was gone from the agent's face, showing how tired he was.

"I'm sorry for unloading that on you. Just had a rough couple of weeks and it got to me" he said quietly.

Rachel gave him a small smile to show it was ok.

"You listened to me back at the park a few weeks ago, so we're even" she said.

"But you should follow your own advice and remember there are worse things out there."

Leon smiled weakly. Oh, if only she knew.

Waving goodbye, Rachel headed back to her apartment complex. When Leon saw her get inside safely, he drove off to head home as well.

Rachel paused at the stairs. Seeing the sad, tired look in Leon's eyes gripped at her heart. She barely knew the guy, but she knew she didn't like seeing him sad. Whatever it was that he did for work she hoped that it wouldn't get to him. She didn't know if her words helped but at least she tried.

They would though. This little random act of kindness would stick with Leon forever. That even in the darkest times, a little ray of sunshine could lighten up this bleak, horrible world.

/

A/N: Finally, Leon has dinner with a girl! Well, it wasn't at a restaurant but it's better than nothing.

Please review and tell me what you think!

Take care!