Thicker than Water

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Alex Chambers stood on the helicopter landing pad his fingers pressed to his forehead to block out the morning sun. He was dancing from one foot to the other, unable to hide his excitement.
"I see them!" He shouted back to his mother, who was standing near the entrance with a medical team. None of them knew what kind of shape their heroes would return to them in but Alex didn't seem to care. Already he was hopping up and down waving at the chopper as it drew closer. He cheered when Chris Redfield waved to him and repeated the action when Jill Valentine did the same. But as the helicopter touched down his smile began to fade. Not everyone he'd hoped to see was stepping out.
"What happened?" Rebecca Chambers soon came to stand beside her son, her lips set in a thin line as she looked from Chris to Jill. "Where is Parker?" She'd done her best to keep herself from saying this man's name first but she couldn't seem to help herself. "Where's Jessica?" She added, hoping this would make for a decent cover up.

"I'm sorry." Chris groaned, knowing that not even that was enough right then. He returned to the medical bay and to Marie. Anything he could do to get his mind off Jill.

"That's an understatement." Rebecca muttered bitterly. "Forget I said anything."

Marie was lying down on one of the many vacant beds reading a magazine when Chris entered. Like any worker, she was of course going to slack off when her boss Rebecca wasn't around.
Jill had tucked Alex up in her own soft bed after calming him down and making him something to eat. That done, she slumped down onto her sofa and simply stared at the darkened tv set. It shouldn't bother her what Chris thought of her, and yet somehow... That was all she could think about.

Parker opened his eyes again, his large hand coming to rest over Rebecca's much smaller one, holding it lightly against his chest. "I am sorry he hurt you." He told her honestly. "Hut there must have been something you saw in him... Something that I, sadly, do not possess."

"It's almost eight." Chris breathed, tossing the magazine aside and making sure Marie's dress was already up to her hips. "Why should we have to wait?" Anything to get his mind off Jill, even though she was all he could think about?

"I was a little girl. I really thought I needed love." Rebecca shook her head. "It didn't take me long to learn how stupid that was." She added. "Now hold still and close your eyes. No more silly talk."

Marie was already unbuttoning her dress as she kissed Chris, not pausing to ask why he was so eager. The silly woman thought it was a hunger for her that drove Chris Redfield to seek her out.

"Love isn't stupid." Parker responded firmly. "Why do we fight, if not to keep that person we love safe?" He added. "Rebecca, I fight for you, and for Alex. I fight, so you don't have to." He continued, unknowingly echoing words Jill had said to Rebecca's son not too long ago.

It was late that night when Chris went knocking on Jill Valentine's door. He wasn't sure why he was here. He only knew that he was drunk and this place was safe. There were so few safe places any more.

"Parker, you're woozy." Rebecca muttered, gritting her teeth as she dug her long thin tweezers into his chest. "You don't even know what you're saying."

As Alex was asleep in her bed, Jill had been curled up on the sofa. The last person she had expected to come knocking was her partner, and so hadn't thought anything of it when she had pulled on a t shirt that had once belonged to him. Chris would be greeted by the sight of his old STARS t shirt, Jill's long, bare legs poking out the bottom of it. "What are you doing here?" She asked wearily as she ran her fingers through her dark hair.

Parker clenched his jaw tightly as he grunted in pain. "I know exactly what I say!" He insisted. "It embarrasses you, that is why you ignore it." He added, thinking he had perfect clarity in that moment. "I am not a man You see as worthy, as a husband of a father, that is why you ignore me!" He was indeed woozy, and once he was healed, Parker would be the one embarrassed by his words, not Rebecca.

"I'm really drunk." Chris admitted, hoping that this alone was enough to keep him from remembering Jill in his t-shirt. Right now it was only making matters worse. "I was hoping you let me sleep it off if I apologized for making an ass of myself today."

"Parker...don't do this." Rebecca warned him, trying to keep her hands steady. "There's no time for this. Just...lay still and talk about that Italian stuff you keep promising Alex."

"What's wrong with sleeping it off at your place?" Jill asked, leaning against the doorframe, not yet permitting Chris entry. She could smell the booze on him, but beyond that... There was the smell of a somewhat overpowering perfume. "Or are you hiding from your latest conquest?" She added, clearly not about to make this easy for him.

Parker groaned, muttering something in his native tongue under his breath. "Why bother? You do everything you can to keep me away from the boy. What, you think I will hurt him?"

"I sort of...forgot to pay rent a month or so now and...I got locked out." Chris admitted sheepishly. "Please? I promise not to do anything or wake Alex. Please? I'll even sleep on the floor like the dog I am."

Rebecca's fingers slipped and it was her turn to curse. She scowled deeply as she renewed her search for the bullet. "You two seem to find a way to cross paths anyway. Don't you?"

Jill sighed heavily, knowing she'd never had any intention of turning Chris away. "Fine, but just for tonight." That was an empty warning, they both knew she'd let Chris stay as long as he wanted. "You'd better take a shower, you stink."

Parker grunted in pain again, then chuckled. "They boy is a marvel. I've even seen him pick a few locks, you should get on to Jill about that one."

"You're lucky you already did." Chris teased, giving her a wink as he passed her. He took the liberty to slap her on the butt once he was on the other side of her. He laughed to himself as he entered her bathroom. He'd begun to strip before he'd even made an attempt at closing the door.

"He learns things so quickly." Rebecca admitted. "He probably only saw her do it once. He scares me sometimes."

Jill couldn't help herself. As she passed by the bathroom, she paused a moment longer than she should have, her curious eyes dancing over Chris' exposed flesh. Her excuse had been that she was going to her bedroom to check up on Alex. Of course, the sudden burn in her cheeks when she realised she had actually leered at Chris made her wonder what had come over her.

"I'll bet the kid could remove a bullet blindfolded." Parker commented when he opened his eyes, knowing the bullet was still in his chest. "Rebecca... Don't ever fear your son. So what if he's a bright kid? He's yours, of course he's gonna be a genius."

Alex was seated at Jill's computer, typing in a series of numbers and letters that most kids his age shouldn't even have recognized. He was chewing on his bottom lip, deep in thought. Wesker had this when he was planning something.

"Damn it all, Parker!" Rebecca snapped, her short temper well over the edge. "Would you just stop talking and close your eyes?! I'm sorry I even asked you to say anything!"

"Alex?" Jill flicked the bedroom light on when she saw the glow from her computer out in the hall. "Sweetie, you shouldn't be out of bed. I'll bet your mom wouldn't like you looking..." He voice died away when she saw what the boy was typing. "What is that?"

Parker did indeed stay quiet this time. He kept his eyes closed, as he knew the look on Rebecca's face right then; it was the look she usually wore whenever he was around.

Alex's movements were quick as he saved what he was working on and turned off the monitor while the computer shut down. "Just that Cool Math website." He told her, the lie easily slipping past his lips. "I can't sleep anymore."

"Got it." Rebecca breathed, yanking the bullet out. She tossed the tools aside and put compression on the wound, leaning over him while she worked. "I can't believe you tried to give up." She hissed. "You were just going to die. All that shit you said about caring about us. If you had meant it you wouldn't have just let go." She whispered in his ear, her words filled with hurt.

"Cool math?" Jill asked sceptically. "Well, I'm sorry mister, but you don't have a choice about the sleeping. So your going to hop right back into bed, okay?" She added, though was already moving over to her linen closet to find extra blankets and a illow for Chris.

"Chris had to get back to you..." Parker wheezed. "Chris is the one you want... Just like every other woman that crosses his path." He added, though his voice was growing distant, as though he was merely talking in his sleep.

Alex narrowed his eyes at Jill, their dark depths glittering with unspoken challenge. More often than not he was a good boy. But for some reason tonight he was feeling his oats. "I am not tired." He said after a moment, articulating every word.

"Stupid fool." Rebecca muttered, now waving over others to help her lift Parker into the chopper. "You don't know me any better than he did."

"Fine. Then just lie there." Jill replied, clearly distracted. "But I can't make pancakes for boys who won't go to bed." She added, now balancing a pile of blankets and a pillow in her arms as she shut the cupboard door.

"I know you... Better than... You..." Parker was gone again. His blood loss hadn't been helped by just how fatigued he was.

"I see no reason why I cannot continue playing a computer game. I am not harming anyone." Alex said, his words even more curt than before. "My mother would let me."

It was early the next morning when Parker would wake in a local hospital. A plump, pleasant looking nurse was running a cool sponge along one of his arms, humming to herself.
Rebecca was perched in a chair on the other side of the bed, sleeping somewhat fitfully. Curled in the chair the way she was, she looked like the vulnerable woman she hated to be.

"Well, you're mother isn't here." Jill replied thinly. She still hadn't slept since returning from her mission, and it was showing in just how thin her patience were becoming.

Parker groaned loudly when the hum of the artificial light assaulted his ears, made worse when he tried pening his eyes to find them flooded with harsh light. "Is this hell?' He groaned.

"Fine." Alex gave a dramatic sigh as he slid out of the chair and threw himself back down on the bed. "I will go to bed but I shall not like it." He announced, crossing his arms over his chest as Jill pulled the covers over him.

"Your wife asked the same question last night." The plump woman chuckled. "You are very lucky to have her. She was ready to go to battle over your smallest comfort."

"Then we have an agreement." Jill breathed, kissing the little boy's head lightly. As quietly as she could, Jill then crept back down the hallway, silently commanding her eyes not to even glance in the direction of the bathroom.

"Wife?" Parker suddenly sat up, his eyes instantly falling on Rebecca. "Rebecca..." Just breathing her name made him feel good. "How long has she been sleeping?" He whispered, not wishing to wake her.

She was so busy doing the very thing she willed herself not to that she ran headlong into him. Chris caught her by the shoulders, chuckling softly. "The bathroom's open if that's what you're worried about." He told her quietly. "I even wiped the tub out."

"A few hours." The nurse explained. "It's a good thing too. She'd gotten extremely bossy. I mean no offense by that but...your wife is really pushy....How are you? Ready to sit up? Can I get you anything?"

"I wasn't looking in the bathroom!" Jill blurted all too quickly. "I went to get you some blankets." She added, rather matter of factly. However, it didn't help that she had managed to leave the blankets back in the bedroom.

Parker shook his head. "Just give her my bed. I can sit up just fine." He told the nurse with a wince as he tried to sit up further.

Chris raised an eyebrow, unable to hide his grin. "You know we could give the kiddo the couch and share the bed." He purred, leaning close to her though he knew it would cost him greatly.

The moment he moved a machine began beeping loudly and Rebecca jerked and her eyes opened. "Parker...sit still." She groaned. "You can chase the pretty nurses later." She was on her feet in a moment, checking his leads and frowning at him.

Jill thought her heart may well leap right out her chest as Chris leaned dangerously close to her. How she wished he didn't smell so good. Gently she pressed a hand to his powerful chest and pushed him back slightly. "You're not sober yet, you don't know what you're saying." Jill was most likely the only woman to ever turn down an advance from Chris Redfield.

"Nah, gorgeous doctors are what catch my eye." Parker replied. "Especially the one who pretend I don't exist as a man." He added, his gaze fixing pointedly on Rebecca.

"Yeah." Chris' face fell and he stood up straight, pretending to yawn and stretch. "You're right. Way too drunk..." He turned his back on her as he headed into the living room, muttering to himself. No one ever turned him down. What made Jill so immune?

"You're a man?" Rebecca cried, placing a hand on her heart. "And here I thought all that facial hair was just early menopause." Though she tried her hardest not to, her lips curled into an impish grin.

Jill watched Chris back until he was out of sight, then pressed her back to the wall, sinking down it until she was sat on the floor. Her hear was still pounding, and a tiny voice was whispering that she was in love with her partner. Of course she wasn't. She couldn't be... Could she?

Parker smiled slightly, though it didn't quite reach his eyes. Rebecca saw him as male, yes, but not a man. Not a man she could rely on, one she could spend her nights with, curled up in bed, or on the couch.

"You forgot these." Alex stood looking down at Jill, holding out the pillow and blanket she had left on the edge of the bed. "Plus...can I have a nightlight? I don't like the dark."

Rebecca reached out and ran her fingers through Parker's hair before she had a chance to talk herself out of it. "You'll be disappointed to know you missed the sponge bath I gave you last night." She breathed.

Jill nodded her head, taking the blankets and getting to her feet. "I don't have a nightlight, but I could turn the computer monitor on, would that do?" Jill was so tired she didn't even realise she had just been manipulated by a seven year old.

"You did? Do they have video surveillance In This room?" Parker teased, smiling a little more as Rebecca's fingers continued to stroke through his hair.