@galp4lentine
The two months since her graduation had been a whirlwind. Her grad school apartment had quickly been packed up and moved to her new one, close to the BSAA's headquarters. Rebecca had accepted Jill and Chris' offer to join the forming organization without hesitation. After all, this was why she had made the decision to apply to grad school once the dust of Raccoon City had settled. It had been grueling, just not in the same ways her previous academic pursuits had been. Classes were easy enough, challenging and academically stimulating. But the constant reminder she had to be quiet about Raccoon City and S.T.A.R.S- about Umbrella- always lingered. One wrong statement, trusting the wrong classmate or professor, and she could have found herself removed from the university in a blink of an eye. Umbrella had power, or at least it had. But the worst had been the separation from Jill and Chris. They'd done their best to remain in contact, Jill and her developing a cipher that allowed for such between the two. The summer had ticked on, filling of paperwork and starting training for the BSAA distracting Rebecca of the anniversary that ticked closer.
She'd woken that morning with the sinking realization that it was July 23rd, that tonight would mark six years since Bravo deployed. Six years since most of them died. She was older than Richard was now, and with a hand pressed against her memorial tattoo between her shoulder blades, a sinking sensation hit that she would continue to grow older than all of them. They were frozen in those two nights, but she was not. Twenty-four and signing up to fight against bioterrorism, she'd continue- for them. For her. As the day ticked on, she'd busied herself with continuing to work on packing the last of her boxes. Periodically, her phone would vibrate as texts came through, all of which Rebecca ignored, except for Jill's. Despite the distance, they had continued to grow closer during Rebecca's schooling. At times, the tone had shifted to something Rebecca wasn't quite sure if something more lingered there than a simple close friendship that blossomed from being S.T.A.R.S. survivors.
Sliding a few medical texts into her new bookshelf, a knock on her door grasped her attention. Instantly, Rebecca had rose, already knowing who was at that door. Jill always tried to come on this date, or at least contact her in some fashion. They'd discussed her spending the night to try and take one another's minds off the horror they had endured. It was a plan Rebecca found relief in, as well as a twist of nervousness in the pit of her stomach. She turned the lock, opening the door for the other.
"Hey." Rebecca starts, a small smile pressed against her lips. "Come on in. I'm sorry about the mess, I still have a few boxes to unpack."
