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That Night - An Ada Wong and Leon Kennedy Story	By : BGShepard Category: +M through R > Resident Evil Views: 5841 -:- Recommendations : 0 -:- Currently Reading : 1
Disclaimer: Resident Evil, Ada Wong, and Leon Kennedy are property of CAPCOM. I make no money or any profit by this story.

Chapter List
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Chapter 3: A Past Confronted
Peyton, Iowa
53 Miles Northeast of the Raccoon City Containment Zone
November 1st 2007
09:13 CST
Leon had been sitting inside the rental car for the past twenty minutes as he stared down the lonely road that was Main Street. He wasn't exactly sure why he hadn't opened the door and gotten out yet. Maybe it was because the last time he had been here was over nine years ago when he'd left for his very first shift at the Raccoon Police Department. Ever since that fateful night, he had never returned – not once.
He still didn't know the reason why he'd decided to come back. Perhaps it had to do with what Ada had said to him when they had lain spooned together after their tender 'encore'. It had been extremely peaceful lying there with his arms around her as he listened to the tranquil sound of her breathing. It was then when she had said something that had stuck with him even as his mind had begun to drift off to sleep.
"You should go and see them, Leon."
"See who?" He had asked.
"Your parents," had been her reply. "You should go and see them – to say your good-byes and tell them what they meant to you."
That had caught him off guard. Even in his tired state, he had felt his eyes open with trepidation. "I… I don't know. I haven't been home in years."
"Take some time and think about it," she had insisted. "You don't want to deny yourself closure. Your past will only continue to eat away at you until you put it to rest. Trust me… I know."
Leon hadn't pondered those cryptic words from that night until now. Whatever demons continued to haunt her, Ada had given him some advice on how to deal with his own pain and regret. Now he was sitting here in his hometown, and he wasn't sure if he wanted to remain.
The streets weren't as busy as he'd remembered them as a boy, and given the dozens of "FOR SALE" signs he'd passed on his way here, he suspected that the purge of Raccoon City had been the cause of the town's decline. Still, some businesses were open – including the one he intended to visit.
Taking a deep breath, Leon pushed the bangs out of his face and opened the car door. When he exited, he buttoned up the overcoat he'd worn over his suit. The weather outside was getting colder. Walking down the sidewalk the wind began picking up, sending fallen leaves swirling past his feet. It seemed such a distant memory – a time when he was a young boy walking along these very streets with his parents. He could remember them on either side of him holding his hands as they went to the corner store near the court house to get ice cream every Sunday after church. When was it that he had stopped loving the cool kiss of fall and the leaves at his feet? Was it right after they had died? He sighed at the thought. It was so long ago…
He stopped in front of his destination – a little flower shop that still stood on Main Street. The owner, Judith Bentley, had been his eighth grade English teacher. Now she was operating her flower business full time in the wake of her retirement. Pushing open the door, a bell situated above the opening chimed at his presence. From the back came the portly woman in her sixties whom Leon could not help but recognize.
"Can I help you, sir?" She asked with a smile.
The woman hadn't recognized him – he'd been gone for too long. Leon contemplated just purchasing what he'd come here for and leave it at that, but for some reason he couldn't bring himself to remain that detached. He wanted some type of personal connection – anything at all – to his childhood town to aid in his homecoming.
"It's good to see you again, Mrs. Bentley," he said with a small smile. "It's… been a while since I was last here."
Her eyes registered confusion as she looked back at him. "Do I… know you, young man?"
"You should. My mother worked as a receptionist at Peyton High School – Mary Ann Kennedy."
The older woman squinted her eyes at the mention his mother's name as if she was trying to place him. "Mary Ann Kennedy…" She looked back at him; suddenly her eyes went wide. "Leon!? Leon Kennedy!? Oh my God! I almost didn't recognize you! Oh, come here!"
The woman came around the counter and enveloped him in a huge embrace. He'd initially been surprised by her response, but soon he felt himself smile as he put his arms around her.
"We thought you were dead, Leon!" She exclaimed. "You were in Raccoon City when… when it happened?"
"You have so many scars…"
The memories of that fateful night came flooding in. "No! Leon!" Claire screamed as he fell. The zombies… the monsters – all howling for his blood. A sting from a bullet wound. Ada was looking down at him. "Don't die, Leon. I owe you…"
"Yes," he replied, "but I managed to escape… with the help of some friends."
"But… where have you been?"
He quickly glanced down at his suit. "I've been working for the government since Raccoon. I… I can't say much more than that."
"I see," she replied. "What brings you back to Peyton after all this time?"
He paused for a moment. "I'm here to see Mom and Dad," he replied. "Do you still have roses here?"
She looked up at him and smiled knowingly. "Pink. That was your mother's favorite color as I recall." The woman said as she turned and walked toward the back of the shop.
Leon felt himself choke up for a moment at her mention of his mother. It had been so long since he'd taken the time to think about her that he'd almost forgotten that. Suddenly a memory of him picking all of the flowers off of his mother's pink rose bush entered his mind. He couldn't have been more than five or six at the time – a child full of energy and the desire to do anything to make his mother smile.
"Mommy, look what I picked for you!" He had said as he ran inside the house with his make-shift bouquet. "Do you like them, Mommy?"
His mother had been shocked at first. He hadn't realized it then, but the bush had been a gift from his grandmother almost a week before she had passed away. Tears of sadness had begun to well in her blue eyes before she had knelt down and hugged him tightly. "I don't just like them, Sweetie," she had said. "I love them… as much as I love you."
"Yes… they were," he heard himself say in response. He quickly blinked away a tear that was forming in the corner of his eye. "I'd like to get a dozen of them as well as a dozen white roses, too."
As the older lady went about seeing to his order, he walked back to the window pane and looked out on the town square. He was looking for anything to distract his thoughts right now. Outside however, there were barely any signs of activity. He saw one person walking east on Blackburn Avenue, and a single car pass down Main, but for the most part, the town looked nearly deserted. Nine years… and this is what it has become.
It had been so full of life when he was younger. There'd been music festivals on Friday evenings on the court house lawn. That had been the main inspiration for him learning the guitar when he was a boy. It was a care-free, happy time in his life. Too bad no one ever told him that a smile one day could be turned on its head in another – that bad things could happen when you were least expecting them. That happiness… was just an illusion. Closing his eyes, he let out a sigh.
"Things have changed, Leon," he heard Mrs. Bentley say behind him. "Ever since the Raccoon City incident, our town has been slowly dying. It's broken my heart. We've gone from over three thousand people to less than five hundred now."
"You're still here," he replied as he turned to face her. "Why have you stayed all this time? Why not leave and start someplace else?"
"I've lived here my whole life, child. This was where I was born, where I was raised, and this is where I'll die when my time comes. I won't leave it."
"That's a lot of dedication to a dead town." He almost winced at his callous delivery. What in the hell was wrong with him? Was he intentionally trying to provoke her… or himself?
She stood there for a moment and stared at him sadly. "You used to love it here, too, Leon. You had such an air of kindness about you back then. My heart broke for you when your parents…"
"Don't…" he said as he held up a hand. His emotions were threatening to take him. "Don't… I… How much do I owe you?"
He paid her forty dollars and had her keep the change as she bagged his purchases. Before he left, he heard her call out to him.
"Leon… This town could sure use you back again. Don't be a stranger… please."
He had almost smiled at her simple words of kindness, but he knew that this place would never be his home. Not with his ghosts buried here. Not with his pain and regret still haunting him like a shadowy specter.
"This town doesn't need me, Mrs. Bentley, just like I don't need it. Thank you, for the flowers."
Getting back into his car, Leon began to drive through the center of town. On his way, he passed by more evidence of Peyton's decline. There were so many shops and businesses that were shuttered and closed. No doubt the townspeople that remained here had secured employment outside the city or were living on retirement. In a way it was sad, and he couldn't help but feel nostalgic on the drive. All of his childhood places were gone. The ice cream shop where he and his parents would go after church was out of business, the local cinema was boarded up, and even the town playground was overgrown with wild vegetation.
Ever since Umbrella had unleashed their biological disaster in Raccoon City everything had changed – the country, the world, his town… even him. What was it all for? Peyton had once been a thriving community built from the ground up by people like his father and grandfather. It was small and quaint – a town that welcomed visitors and was a place where everyone looked out for each other. Now it was a shell of its former self… just like him. Maybe it was a good thing that he had stayed away all these years. Mrs. Bentley had been right – it was heartbreaking to see.
Once he had driven toward the western edge of town, Leon turned off on an old road that led to his destination – New Life Baptist Cemetery. Soon the iron gates to the entrance loomed before him. They were large and ominous in their open position – as if inviting him inside the gates of a hell he'd been trying to avoid. Even after all of this time, he still remembered the way they had looked on the day he had buried his parents. Once he passed between them, his skin began to goose-prickle.
When he reached the back of the cemetery, Leon brought the car to a stop when he saw the two large oak trees nearly thirty yards away. Slowly, he turned the key and shut off the engine. I'm finally back here… after all this time. He felt his skin goose-prickle again as he sat there looking off toward the plot where he knew he would find them. The conflict was still there eating away at his resolve, though. Instinctively, his hand reached for the ignition – he didn't want to be here; he wanted to run. With every ounce of his being, Leon wanted to just run away and leave this part of his life behind him forever. His hands were on the keys.
"You don't want to deny yourself closure. Your past will only continue to eat away at you until you put it to rest. Trust me… I know."
Ada's words ran through his mind causing him to stay his hand. Ever since the age of sixteen, he'd been continually running away from the brutal reality that had shaped his life. His parents were dead. Why had he refused to accept that? What good was he doing himself… or their memory by refusing to come back here and let them know that he loved them? Why had he stayed away all this time?
"Because I'm ashamed," he heard himself whisper. It was the answer to the unspoken question. He'd been ashamed of the angry, vengeful man he'd become in his youth – the cop who had been bent on selfish revenge. All the while, he had forgotten who he was and everything his parents ever taught him.
"Love is more powerful than hate, Leon. Remember that." His mother had told him once.
"Love won't bring you back to me," he whispered again. Soon new tears began to burn his eyes.
She had loved him so much as a child. His father, too, but Leon had always been especially close to his mother. She'd been the one to sacrifice her job to stay home and raise him until he was old enough to attend school. Everything good about him had come from her. She'd been so full of life and love despite the fact that his parents had him later in life. Her smile and embrace would always comfort him when he was sad. Why? Why had it happened to them? Why had the world taken them away from him!?
"Why!?" Out of anger, he punched the steering wheel. The shear injustice of their deaths began to enrage him further, and soon he couldn't stop himself. "Why!?" He punched it again. "WHY GODDAMN IT!?"
What was he doing? Leon quickly grabbed the wheel with trembling fingers. A tear ran down his cheek as he gasped for breath. Suddenly he remembered Ada's words.
"Leon. Breathe, handsome. Slowly…"
He closed his eyes and took a couple of deep breaths. My God…Leon thought to himself. How had he managed to make it this far in life without letting his rage consume him? The unfortunate truth was staring at him as he turned toward the plot that held his parents' graves. He'd made it because he had forgotten about them. That had been the only way he'd known to try and remain the honorable and caring man he had rediscovered in himself back in Raccoon City. But the wound was still there – a scar upon his heart. How deep had he allowed it to get? The answer was as obvious as it was frightening. The wound had festered to a point where even thinking about his parents' death would send him over an emotional cliff that held no bottom. How had Ada managed to coax him into talking about it with her that night?
Ada…
His thoughts brought him back to her. Would she be ashamed of him now if she saw what he'd truly become? She had been right about him, though. He did need closure over this… or else he feared he'd do something that there would be no coming back from. Vengeance was an act that left no winners or losers – only blood… and death. He began to fear that if he went back down that road again he'd find the blood he'd been looking for all those years ago. He had to do this.
Wiping his eyes, Leon took a deep breath and opened the car door. He reached over and pulled out both bouquets of flowers from the bag on the passenger seat and exited the vehicle. As he walked across the car path, he turned and headed for the oak trees. His heart was pounding hard – almost as hard as when he'd been with Ada. He took another breath. There would be no turning back – he had to see this through.
There at the edge of a hill beneath the tall oaks stood two grave stones. Even though he had only seen them once on the day his parents were buried, Leon could still remember each word. Walking through the leaf-strewn grass, he came to a stop in front of his destination. The two stones stood side-by-side and were of the same design and color. They seemed to match an unspoken desire for his parents to remain together as husband and wife even in death. Gazing at the stone on the left, he silently read the words.
MICHAEL SCOTT KENNEDY – DEC 26 1932 – MAY 16 1993 – "Beloved Husband and Father"
To the right sat his mother's.
MARY ANN J. KENNEDY – AUG 3 1937 – MAY 16 1993 – "Beloved Wife and Mother"
He stood there and stared silently as the wind blew around him. As of now, the two of them had been dead almost as long as he'd known them. In all that time, this was his first visit to their graves since their burial. Fourteen years… He felt his eyes tear up once more.
"Mom… Dad…" his voice was soft and broken – much like that of a child.
Taking the roses in his hands, he carefully placed the pink bouquet on the grass before his mother's headstone and did the same for the white bouquet for his father's. When he stood up, he placed his hands inside the pockets of his overcoat. What was he going to say? He'd been trying to think of the right words on the drive here, but nothing seemed to do. Now he was silently standing there looking down at the grave stones.
"I… I'm sorry that I've been away so long," he began. "After the accident I…"
Leon heard his voice trail off. He'd been filled with regret – ashamed to admit that after they had died he'd turned into a completely different person; a person they would not have recognized as their son. He then turned toward his mother's grave.
"Mom… you were always there to comfort me when I needed you," he said. "I had wanted so much to feel your arms around me after that night. I wanted to hear you tell me that everything would be alright… but you were gone. I… I just couldn't accept that I'd never see you again."
A tear rolled down his cheek. Leon made no effort to wipe it away. This is where he needed to be right now – completely focused on them.
"Dad… you always taught me to look out for others… but I failed you. I failed you both…"
His hand came up and brushed the bangs from his face.
"When you died… a part of me died with you – the part that both of you had wanted to grow into a good man. I was so lost – getting into fights at school; thinking about finding those responsible for what happened. I threw away all that you both had tried to teach me and succumbed to anger and despair. When I was old enough, I joined the Raccoon Police Department… not out of a desire to help people, but out of a desire to find the person who killed you both. I… I'm so sorry… Mom… Dad…"
The tears were flowing freely now, as if somewhere permission had been given to him to let loose the poison that had been corrupting him down to his very soul. Guilt, shame, hatred – all of it began to pour out of him as he confessed himself to the two people whom had been the dearest to him.
"I failed you… even after I found my true self in Raccoon City; even after I saved Claire, Sherry, and…" He paused for a moment as he thought of her. "… Ada; even after I saved Ashley… I failed you. Everything you ever taught me I discarded like trash. I even discarded you… and my town with my absence.
"Please…" he whispered as his voice broke. "… forgive me."
He stood there in the silence of the cemetery as he wiped the tears from his eyes. For fourteen years he had held onto this pain while it festered in his heart like a cancer. Had Ada seen this when she had been with him in Paris? Is that why she had nudged him in this direction – to seek the closure he desperately needed before it was too late? He wasn't sure. All he did know was that as painful as this was, he needed to be here. His parents deserved that much… He deserved that much.
All of a sudden, he felt warmth on the top of his head. As he looked up into the autumn sky, he noticed that the sun had begun to peak through the grey overcast.
"Do you see that, Leon," his mother had said to him as a boy.
He'd had to squint. "The sun, Mommy?"
"Yes," she had replied. "That is one of God's many miracles. No matter how hard our lives get, we can look up to the heavens and know that a divine creator loves us very much."
"Does God answer prayers, Mommy?"
"Of course He does." She had then pulled him close for a hug. "We may not know when it will happen or if it is within His will, but know this my beautiful boy – He loves you very much, and He has a plan for you."
Leon put his hand up to shield himself from the sun's glare, but he felt his lips turn into a smile for the first time since he had arrived back in Peyton. The sun had retreated behind another cloud, but still he continued looking up. He'd wanted a sign that his parents could forgive him for how he had led his life. Perhaps this had been their answer? His mother and father had always believed in God, but when they had died his own faith had been shattered like broken glass.
Turning back, he looked down at the headstones. Then something occurred to him. As he reached into the inside pocket of his suit, he pulled out what he'd brought along with him. It was a picture; worn and faded with age, but on it contained an image of the three of them. He had been eight at the time. They had gone for a walk in the park one day to photograph birds when his father had asked a passerby to take their picture. The smile on his face had been one full of a child's innocence to the ways of the world. His mother was kneeling next to him with her arms around him as his father stood behind them with a hand on his shoulder. It was the only photograph he'd taken with him when he had left for his first shift that night in September. It had been in his pants pocket the entire time, and he'd kept it with him ever since. Whether he believed in God or not, they had been with him all that time when he had faced the horrors in Raccoon. He had never been truly alone.
With that realization, Leon quickly felt the sting of his tears. Not bitter tears of regret and shame, but genuine tears of grief… the grief he had denied himself all these years.
"I miss you both…" he whispered quietly as he gently pressed the picture against his forehead.
His face contorted with growing sadness as he tried to hide his eyes behind the worn photograph. The tears were running down both sides of his face. He wouldn't allow himself to stop them. He needed closure. He needed… them.
Letting the picture fall from his fingers, Leon collapsed to his knees before his parents' graves.
"I miss you both so much!"
Leon knelt there with only the large oak trees bearing witness to his sorrow… and wept.
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That Night - An Ada Wong and Leon Kennedy Story