Screaming. Chaos. Blood.

"Eden."

Gunshots. Pain. More blood.

"Eden."

Heartache. Cold. Numbness.

"Thea!"

Thea jolted awake, her grip on her gun tightening as her green eyes frantically searched her surroundings. Unfortunately, all of this wasn't the worst nightmare she ever had, because she was still sitting on the cold concrete floor, her neck throbbing with pain as she moved her head too fast.

Then her eyes met with a familiar blue pair.

"You didn't die," Thea breathed out, her eyes scanning the boy's face, taking in his features. Her fingers twitched as the urge to touch him grew suddenly, but she caught it just in time to stop herself.

"You sound disappointed," Leon scoffed, the corner of his mouth lifting into a small smile. "Are you hurt?"

"No," Thea cleared her throat, averting her gaze from his face. Suddenly it felt so difficult to think while looking at him. She needed to put some space between them. She couldn't seem to get enough air in her lungs.

Hurriedly, Thea pushed herself onto her feet, running a hand through her hair and softening down the flyaway strands. She had to calm her fast heart. Was she having a heart attack? A panic attack? A stroke?

"Where's Ada?" Leon asked, furrowing his eyebrows as he looked down at the coat laid over him.

"Went after Annette."

"And you let her go alone?" he looked up at her in disbelief, Thea throwing her arms in the air.

"The fuck was I supposed to do? Cuff her to the pipes? Leave you to bleed out? I think the fuck not," Thea put her hands on her hips, ready to scold his ass. Leon opened his mouth to answer but she cut him off. "What the fuck were you thinking anyway? Throwing yourself in front of me?"

"I saved you."

"That's where you fucked up the most," the girl let out a dry chuckle, averting her gaze from him. His eyebrows furrowed as he studied the girl, but it was impossible to know what was she thinking. You could never know with Thea Keller.

"What do you mean?" his voice came out softer, causing her jaw to tense. She would've preferred if he would match her energy and maybe even yell.

Because when he forgot to hate her, he was actually decent. And when he was decent, it made her heart skip a beat.

"You're the biggest idiot I had the disgrace to ever meet," Thea said, finally turning to face him. When her eyes met him, she felt like she could burn the whole world down. "An absolute asshole. I don't need you catching a bullet for me. I don't need you saving my life."

Leon tilted his head to the side, his bright eyes studying her features. She looked pissed like she could shoot someone. But he noticed the way her teeth caught her bottom lip, a thing she always did when she was anxious. Her stance was tense as hell, her breathing heavy.

She looked the same the first time he ever helped her out. It was in their first year at the academy, their first time being at the shooting range. She looked like a pretty princess, with the meanest scowl on her face. A princess who got pissed off by everybody else. She struggled to reload her weapon as fast as the others did, which only seemed to piss her off even more.

So Leon took it upon himself to step next to her and take the gun, showing her an easier way to reload faster than anybody else there. It was a trick he learned from an older cadet and he wanted to put it to use.

"What's your name?" the girl asked once he was done, her eyes trained on the Glock in his hands.

A lazy smile appeared on his face, noting how her eyes shone bright in the daylight. There were some light freckles dotted on her cheeks, her long lashes fluttering as she blinked. She looked like she could be a model, not a future cop.

"Leon Kennedy," he replied, straightening his back. The girl nodded in acknowledgement.

"Fuck you, Leon Kennedy," she looked up to look him in the eyes, her jaw clenched so hard a muscle ticked on the side. His mouth fell agape at the sudden rudeness, taken aback. "Oh, and for future reference: stop manhandling women. You'll die a virgin."

But throughout the years he got to know her, he noticed how she always lashed out whenever she felt weak. And whenever she needed help, she felt weak. She just didn't know how to process when somebody helped her or did something nice without a reason. She always thought that those things meant people viewed her as weak. But it was the complete opposite.

Leon has never met a stronger woman than her. And she definitely was the most headstrong out of all of them, too.

"You're welcome," a small smile appeared on his lips, but it vanished in an instant as he struggled to pull himself on his legs, accidentally putting more pressure on his injured arm. Thea didn't try to help him.

"I didn't thank you, fuckface," the girl sneered, her eyes narrowing at him.

"That's your way of thanking it," he gestured towards her, picking up his gun from the ground. He checked the magazine before looking back at her. She looked even more pissed. Livid, even. "Would you like me to let you die next time?"

"Yes."

"Fine," Leon couldn't hold back an eye-roll, getting fed up with her attitude. He tried to act normal with her, but she had to make things hard, like always. "Let's just find Ada and get out of here."

━━━━⊱⋆⊰━━━━

Even though Thea was tempted to just send Leon on his own way to find Ada, something inside her didn't let it. Both of them were injured, Thea's vision still went blurry sometimes when she moved too quickly, and Leon's shoulder limited his mobility to fight. So they had to stick together in order to survive.

Or that was what she told herself. She just didn't want to die in the sewers after all this.

It's not like she cared about Leon. He was just here to serve his purpose. But still, Thea couldn't stop herself from stealing glances at him from time to time, or whip her head around whenever she heard a grunt from him, gun ready in her hand.

She didn't care about him. He was nobody. They just had to get out of there.

"How's your leg?" Leon spoke up suddenly, breaking her out of her thoughts. Her eyebrows furrowed at his question. But his question served as a reminder that her ankle was still a little messed up from the tyrant's attack. Thea circled her ankle around, slightly wincing at the discomfort.

"I'll live, Kennedy," she brushed him off, her voice a little colder than intended. She glanced at him, seeing that his face was almost emotionless if not for the cold look in his eyes. She chewed on her bottom lip, trying to shake off the small guilt taking over her. "How's your shoulder?"

"Don't worry about me," he replied, his voice a little softer this time. He turned his head to look at the girl next to him, his eyes studying her face for a second. "Do you think we will make it out of here?"

"Of course," Thea replied in a heartbeat, ignoring the way there was a small twinge in her heart. They had to. "Don't go all pessimistic on me now, Scotty. Or I'll kick your ass."

He let out a small chuckle, shaking his head at the girl. Even with a possible concussion and broken ribs, he was sure she could still kick his ass.

"So," Leon cleared his throat, directing his gaze forward. He should stay focused, watch out for any threats and not get distracted by her. "Do you really work for Umbrella?"

A frown made its way to her face at his question. She sort of hoped he would forget about that, but he was smart. Sometimes too smart for his own good, and if not for the things out there, his own brain would cause his demise.

"Yes. Both of my parents work there, actually," Thea admitted, some underlying venom thickening her voice. She still couldn't comprehend that potentially her mother caused all this, and her father knew about it. It blew her mind and made her heart hurt whenever she thought about it.

There was a minute of heavy silence falling around them, silently choking Thea as she felt the distrust growing inside him. She wouldn't be surprised if he would just tell her to part ways. She didn't take part in this personally, but she still felt like she was a part of it somehow.

And there was that silent question hanging above their heads that Leon didn't quite dare to ask, afraid of the answer. And Thea didn't know how to answer it either.

So they just silently made their way through the sewers, searching for Ada or Annette, the tension growing between them. Because as time passed, she felt Leon drift farther away from her and she didn't know why that made her chest hurt. So she clenched her jaw shut, stopping herself from trying to explain herself and held her head high, ready to take upon anything.

And that was when she made it her personal mission to find her mother and make her pay for everything she did.

━━━━⊱⋆⊰━━━━

Rescuing Ada wasn't that of a smooth ride, but eventually, all three of them made it. Bruised, bloodied, and injured, but all three of them reunited. Thea just hoped she looked a little better than Ada did at the moment, her thigh pierced through with a metal piece. It looked nasty, but Leon tried his best to dress it so at least she could walk.

"That looks like shit," Thea commented involuntarily, earning a sharp look from the boy. The girl shrugged her shoulder and sent a look to Ada that said, I am right, though. There was an amused glint in Ada's eyes as she looked back at the girl.

Thea took another glance at the other woman's injury, a small frown on her face. Ada took the pain like a queen and Thea admired her for it. She was pretty sure she would be screaming her head off after that.

"So, Annette did this?" Thea asked, looking back to meet Ada's eyes. She didn't miss the softer look she gave to Leon, watching as he wrapped her thigh up. "Any idea where she went?"

"Probably to the NEST," Ada took the hand Leon offered to her, helping her up with a small groan.

"NEST?" Leon furrowed his eyebrows at the term, noticing how Thea's face paled. He wanted to ask about it but decided against it. She probably knew about it a long time ago, she just didn't want them to know.

"Umbrella's lab. Right beneath us," Ada threw her hands in the air, looking at Thea. She was currently chewing on her bottom lip, a nervous tick she always did. "Annette let it slip. That's where the virus samples are. But I guess you already knew that, Thea."

"I work here, Ada," Thea steeled her voice, straightening her posture as she spoke up. She won't take shit from anyone, especially not from a woman she didn't even trust. It was just mutual interest that kept her from abandoning her ass. "Got a problem with that?"

"Eden," Leon warned, but she decided to ignore him.

"You already knew that. The real question is how did the FBI get to know about it?" Thea arched an eyebrow, looking dead in the other woman's eyes. Silent seconds were passing them, Leon growing uncomfortable with each one, shifting his weight on his legs.

"We have sources," Ada replied calmly, her tone calm and calculated. Thea narrowed her eyes at her as the woman in the red dress stumbled over some trash, limping away from them. "Come on, we got work to do."

Thea didn't wait for an answer from Leon, knowing that he would probably side with the other woman, considering the tone he spoke to her. With a scowl on her face, she took after Ada, tightening her grip on her pistol. Something was off with her, she just didn't know what yet. But Thea was determined to find it out.

Heading towards the cable car that could take them to the NEST, Thea didn't bother to say another word. She felt like a stranger among them, Leon and Ada quietly passing a few words here and there. With Thea's knowledge of its whereabouts and the wristband Ada probably stole off from a corpse, they were seated in the cable car in no time.

Thea slumped down on the cold metal bench, leaning her back against the wall. It certainly wasn't the most comfortable seat ever, but she just felt grateful for a breather. It felt like it was a lifetime ago since she could just sit down and let things settle down. The girl let her head fall back and shut her eyes, mindlessly fiddling with the silver chain on her neck. It was a graduation gift from her father, and she wore it every day ever since she got it. He never really knew how to show affection for his daughter, but he knew that much that she liked jewelry.

"This may be a one-way ride. So be prepared, you two," Ada said as she lowered herself on another bench, parallel to Thea.

"Let's just get the fuck out of here," Thea croaked out, opening her eyes and taking a glance at Leon, who stood at the control panel. It took him a minute to figure the controls out but he soon got the cable car moving, a robotic female voice speaking from the speakers above.

"This tram is bound for NEST. Do not exit until the final destination."

Thea remembered the first time she heard this voice and the way her body cringed at the sound. She still hated it just as much. But the only thing she hated more was the way she felt Leon's eyes burn a hole in the side of her head, but she refused to look at him.

"You know what I was thinking?" Leon broke the cold silence around them, which was oddly calming. But of course, he had to disturb the little peace she could get.

"Enlighten us, Scott," Thea gave him a bittersweet smile, the edge of her voice cutting in him. He gave her another look that clearly said he wasn't impressed by her attitude, but she was way too tired to even give a fuck about it. He should've gotten used to it by now.

"I can't wait for the FBI to raid Umbrella headquarters and take those bastards to justice."

Technically, I'm Umbrella, too, Thea thought to herself, a bitter taste appearing in her mouth. She averted her gaze from him, not wanting to see the hateful look in his eyes. Her guilt was enough, she didn't need his hate to fire it, too. Thea shut her eyes, shifting in her seat to try and find a more comfortable position. Maybe she could get a few minutes of sleep till they reach the NEST.

"I agree... but to be clear, you're not working in official capacity. This is a federal case," Ada said with her usual coldness. "Once we get the G-Virus, I'm back on my own."

Thank fuck, Thea thought. But then she mentally slapped herself. She didn't do anything wrong to them. Passive aggressiveness or some pointed looks didn't justify hating Ada.

"Hey, Leon... Trust me?" Ada's voice grew softer, one Thea never heard before. She refused to open her eyes when she heard Leon's steps come closer, eventually stopping in front of Ada, judging by the noise.

"You trust me?"

"Honestly... If I didn't you'd probably be dead."

Right...

"Right..." Leon scoffed, walking away.

Take that, bitch! 

Ada let out a small sigh before continuing.

"Look, I thought I might need your help... and I was right. If you can secure the G-Virus, I can make sure what happened in Raccoon City never happens again." Ada's confident voice caused Thea's chest to feel heavy. She wanted to believe her so badly. Thea wanted a stable thing, something that could pose as a promise. She needed someone to put an end to this.

"Ada... You said it yourself – it's a federal case."

"Leon, look at me. I'm a liability now," Ada's voice sounded almost vulnerable, which was a first. "If I'm gonna finish this case, you and Thea are the last hope I've got."

Thanks for not forgetting about me completely...

"I'm not just gonna leave you here," Leon protested, almost sounding hurt. "What if you're attacked, what if you need help-"

His rambling cut off, which was odd because it was almost impossible to shut Leon up. Light rustling caused her eyes to snap open, just to be greeted by the weirdest scene: the two of them kissing.

The way Ada was leaning into him, a hand on his face and the way Leon relaxed into her touch was something that caused her chest to burn. It was a pain Thea wasn't familiar with, something that felt like a hot knife getting buried in her flesh, then getting twisted. She bit down so hard on her bottom lip that she drew blood, but she barely felt the pain.

Thea shut her eyes back, trying her hardest to tune the two of them out, only listening to the noises the cable car made. But still, the words 'I want to see you again' made it to her ears, the knife getting buried deeper in her chest. Why the fuck do I feel this way?

"Now arriving at NEST,"  the robotic voice called like it just listened to her prayers and broke the two lovers off. Thea practically jumped from her seat, both of their heads snapping towards her. She refused to look at them as she looked out the big window, watching as their cable call arrived at the station.

Thea's footsteps echoed through the car as she made her way to the metal door, reloading her pistol in the meantime, just to have something to occupy herself with. She tuned out as they said their goodbyes to each other and Ada passed him the wristband so he could walk freely around the lab. Thea had her own security card lying in her pocket, but she wanted to keep that away from them. She had her own business to do while they were here.

But they were taking their sweet fucking time.

"We don't have all day, Kennedy," Thea snapped, busting open the metal doors and stepping outside, having enough of waiting for him. She will go and explore on her own, she didn't need him.

Thea was sure he would handle himself just fine like he did before she met him at the station. And if not, Ada will rescue him like she always seemed to do. Thea, on the other hand, just seemed to be in their way. She hated feeling like a liability, like she was just pulling them back.

"Hey!" he called after her, but Thea didn't even slow down. He had to pick up the pace if he wanted to come with her. Maybe if he wouldn't eat Ada's face off he wouldn't be left behind. "What happened with sticking together, Eden?"

"Our deal was that you give me a gun and I help you get out of the station," Thea spoke aloud, her steps confident as ever, her tone stone cold. Leon had to jog to catch up with her long strides, his hand barely brushing hers. She stepped aside, putting some space between them. "You did your part and I did mine. We're done, Kennedy."

"You can't be serious," Leon burst out, not believing his ears. Thea clenched her jaw as she turned to face him, both of them stopping in the middle of the hallway.

Her dark hair that barely reached her shoulders flipped with the motion, her green eyes burning with their usual fire and suppressed rage, begging to get out and hurt somebody. A similar fire burned behind his eyes, too. And when flames meet with more fire, they threatened to burn the whole world down.

"We're in this together," Leon sneered between his teeth, jabbing a finger in her face. "You're with me and I'm with you. We can go back to hating each other when we get out of this but until then... It's us against the world. Got it?"

For a second, her facade faded. She stared up at him, her eyes searching his burning ones. His usually calm blue eyes now burned like blue fire, his jaw tense as he tried to convince her. He was so confusing. Here he was, only just kissed another woman – a very dangerous and sexy one at that –, and now he tried to convince her to stick by his side.

Like he gives a damn. You know it's just a trick. He'll just use you like they always do.

But maybe he won't. I could help him.

He looked at you like you're a monster. He'll abandon you the moment he'll get the chance.

And Thea believed the negative voice. Because that was all she knew in her life: people using her for the time being, and after they got everything they wanted, they ditched her. But for once, Thea wanted to be that person. To just let down somebody after she got what she wanted.

And Thea formed the perfect plan in her mind as she stared at his face, the face she hated so much and the face that made her chest hurt.

"Fine. Follow me, I know where we can find the samples."

Leon studied her face a little more before nodding and stepping back, giving her space. Meanwhile,Thea knew she wouldn't do that. She didn't quite know where the sample was, but she knew where her mother would be, and she just needed Leon to get her there. After that, she could just ditch him to escape with her family like her original plan was.

If he already assumed the worst, there wasn't much she could do. She was tired of proving herself. It was time to view her own good.

Even if that meant sacrificing Leon Kennedy.

____________________________

i'm trying to get back to this book after abandoning it. so if you're still reading, hey!

don't forget to vote and comment, i'd love to hear your thoughts!