Part of her was angry that her parents kept her away like that, keeping her from knowing her own grandparents. It was unfair to her, and put her in the position she was in now, forced to go live with people she barely knew.
But part of her was also afraid. What if the reason her parents kept her away was because her grandparents were not very nice people? She never really heard her parents say anything bad about them, but they rarely talked about them at all, so Sherry had no way to know. For all she knew, her grandparents were violent or cruel or even abusive.
The last time she saw them was almost two years before, at Christmas time, and she barely remembered their visit. It was short and awkward, and they didn’t stay long. She got the impression that her father insisted they leave early, but Sherry didn’t remember why. She spoke with them on the phone once or twice since then, on her birthday or some other special occasion, but she’d never really had a long conversation with them.
Both of her sets of grandparents were contacted by Umbrella, but it was her maternal side that came to pick her up. Her father’s parents lived in a retirement village in Florida and could not have Sherry live with them. Her mother’s parents lived in Ohio and instantly agreed to take Sherry in, because if they did not take custody, Sherry would have become a ward of the state and put into a foster home. Living with family, even a family that she barely knew, was still preferable to that.
Leon came in from outside and walked over to them. “Hey,” he said, kneeling beside Sherry, “Still nervous?”
“Yeah,” Sherry said.
“Don’t worry. If you ever want to talk to me and Claire, we’re just a phone call away.”
“Here,” Claire said, handing her a small index card. “I put my phone number and my parent’s phone number too. I’m not going to be home very much, so in case you can’t reach me, you can call my parents and they’ll put you in touch with me. I also put my email address so you can use that if you want.”
“My family’s number is on there too,” Leon said.
“Don’t you have your own phone number?” Sherry asked.
“I’m homeless right now, remember?” Leon chuckled. “Once I get settled somewhere and get my own phone number, I’ll make sure you get it.”
“Okay.”
“You’ll be alright,” Leon said. “You were strong enough to fight your way out of the city, you’re strong enough to do this. I know it’s going to be hard to get used to this new life, but I promise that you’ll do just fine.”
Sherry held onto the index card and studied the numbers, as if trying to memorize them instantly. She carefully tucked the card into her jeans pocket.
She tried to remember the last time she saw her parents, and attempted to create a solid mental image of them in her mind. She had nothing to remember them by, no pictures or messages or anything else to keep their memory alive. It hurt her to realize that in a few years, she might not even remember what they looked like, the sound of their voices, the way they acted. Years from now, when she was an adult, she might not be able to remember them at all.
That was the worst thing. Knowing that she might forget about them.
The last time she saw her mother was the day of the outbreak, when she was dropped off at school that morning. Annette had been preoccupied with something all morning and was acting very strangely, and the last memory Sherry had of her mother was her saying “Have a good day at school, honey” as Sherry got out of the car. She had looked very tired and nervous, as if she’d been awake all night. Sherry’s last words to her mother were “Sure, mom.”
She wished she had said something else, anything else. Of course, she could never have known that it was the last time they would be together, but it still hurt to know that her mother’s last memory of her own daughter was a sarcastic remark. Sherry had no idea what happened to Annette after that. She just drove away and was never seen again.
Sherry’s last memory of her father was a much better one, but tragic in its own way. The last time she saw him was the night that her parents told her that they were moving away. William tucked her into bed and kissed her goodnight and told her that he loved her. The memory almost made Sherry tear up. Her father was away from home so often, he was almost never home when she went to bed, and having him tuck her in and wish her goodnight was a rare treat that Sherry savored. Her last words to her father were “I love you too, dad.”
And then she never saw him again after that. The next day, Annette came home crying and told Sherry that their plans were on hold. Sherry suspected that her father had been arrested, but now she wondered if it was something worse.
Sherry tried to keep those memories intact, tried to remember every last moment. The first thing she was going to do when she arrived at her grandparents house was get herself a new diary, and she was going to write down everything she could think of. She would fill a hundred diaries with memories of her parents. She didn’t want to forget anything.
“I think a car just pulled up outside,” Leon said, looking out the front windows.
Sherry tensed up and looked anxiously at Claire, who smiled and gave her shoulder a reassuring squeeze. “You’ll be fine, honey. I’m sure they’ll understand if you’re a little bit nervous. They’re probably just as nervous as you are.”
“You think so?”
Claire knelt down beside her. “Don’t forget that your mother was their daughter, so they lost someone too. And even though they don’t know you very well, they were still willing to come all this way to get you and let you live with them. They don’t know what to expect either. They’re putting a lot of faith in you, so you should put some faith in them as well, don’t you think?”
Sherry was about to answer when the lobby doors opened and a older couple came inside, looking around expectantly. The man was taller than his wife and wore a floral print shirt and khaki shorts, and he was bald on top. His wife carried a huge beige purse hanging from her hands and was dressed in white pants and a pink shirt. Her hair, once blond, had turned a silvery gray, and she had a thick pair of glasses on. She glanced around for just a moment before her eyes settled on Sherry and she gasped in relief.
“Oh, honey!” she cried out, rushing forward. Sherry hopped off the bench and came forward nervously, and her grandmother knelt down to embrace her in an emotional hug. She kissed Sherry on the cheek and pulled her close.
“Oh, I’m so sorry, honey! It’s so terrible! But I’m so happy that you’re okay!” she said, half sobbing. Sherry hugged her back and sighed, the tension draining away. She let herself be swept up in her grandmother’s embrace.
Her grandfather shuffled forward slowly, looking uncertainly down at Sherry and then up at Claire and Leon. He seemed at a loss for words, unsure how to proceed.
Claire decided to introduce them, feeling awkward at being involved in such a personal family moment. “My name is Claire. We met Sherry during the … the outbreak,” she said, deciding to use the media’s term for the events in Raccoon City. She was more inclined to use the word “infection” or maybe “epidemic,” but “outbreak” sounded safer.
“Oh, well, well thank you,” Sherry’s grandfather said, sticking his hand out, glad to have something to do.
“It’s nice to meet you,” Leon said. “I’m Leon. Sherry, Claire, and I all left the city together.”
Claire and Leon both shook hands with him, and then Claire stepped back, not wanting to interrupt further or get in anyone’s way. Sherry’s grandfather swallowed nervously, his prominent Adam’s apple bobbing up and down. He returned his attention to Sherry, but seemed at a loss for what to do. If anything, he seemed even more nervous than Sherry was.
Claire couldn’t blame him. How do you reunite with a family member you haven’t had contact with in so long, in the middle of such a tragedy? Claire reminded herself again that these people had just lost their daughter, but were finally gaining their grandchild. Such a mix
of opposing emotions would make anyone seem nervous and confused.
Sherry’s grandmother finally pulled away, tears on her cheeks. “Listen, honey,” she said, her voice trembling. “I know it’s going to be hard, but we’re going to do everything we can to make this better, okay? It’s okay to be scared. And I know it hurts that your mom is gone, but I promise that we’ll do our best to make you feel welcome in our home.”
“Thank you,” Sherry whispered.
Her grandmother got up and then surprisingly rushed over and wrapped Claire in a hug as well. “Thank you so much!” she cried. “Thank you for bringing my granddaughter back to me!”
Claire didn’t know what to say, so she simply hugged back and tried to remain composed. The woman’s passionate outpouring of emotion made Claire want to break down and cry as well, but she didn’t want Sherry to see her like that.
It took a few more minutes for Sherry’s grandmother to calm down enough to get things in order. She spoke to Sherry, asking her if she was okay and how she felt, while her grandfather went to the main office to sign Sherry’s release forms, since Sherry, as a minor, could not leave without being signed out by her legal guardian. Claire again noticed that he just seemed relieved to have some specific task to perform. He was clearly uncomfortable with the whole situation, making it clear which one of Sherry’s grandparents had decided to take custody of her.
Since Sherry was already packed, it didn’t take long for them to load the car with her two small bags. There was no real reason for them to stay, and Sherry seemed to relax and actually seemed eager to get going.
Her grandmother again profusely thanked both Claire and Leon for everything they had done, for saving Sherry’s life and bringing her safely out of the city. Leon tried not to take any credit for anything, but there was no way for them to really claim otherwise. Her grandfather was more formal in his thanks, shaking their hands once again and wishing them good luck. They both promised that Sherry would be free to call them or talk to them whenever she wished.
“Looks like it’s time to go,” Claire said when they were finished. “Have a safe trip, and I’ll talk to you soon, okay?”
Sherry gave her a hug and then ran over to Leon to hug him as well. “I’m going to miss you,” she said. “Do you think maybe you could even come and visit me sometimes?”
“Of course we will,” Leon said.
“It’s going to take some time for all of us to get settled,” Claire said. “But maybe in a few months we’ll visit. You’ll be really busy starting in your new school and making friends. How about we come and visit this summer?”
“Okay,” Sherry said, a little disappointed. “But I’ll call you as soon as we get to their house. I mean, as soon as we get home.”
“I’ll be waiting for the call,” Claire said with a smile.
Sherry’s grandparents thanked them once again and got into the car. Her grandfather got into the driver’s seat, and her grandmother got into the back seat so she could sit next to Sherry on the long drive home. Sherry opened the door to get in and waved one last time at Claire and Leon as they stood in the parking lot.
“Bye, Claire! Bye, Leon! I’ll talk to you soon!”
They stood side by side and waved back. Leon placed his hand on Claire’s shoulder and she leaned against him. As the car pulled out of the parking lot and onto the access road leading away from the compound, Sherry turned around in her seat and waved at them through the back window. Claire and Leon stood in the middle of the parking lot until the car was out of sight.
“I feel like I just said goodbye to my own daughter,” Claire said softly.
“I think she’s going to be okay,” Leon said supportively. “They seem like nice people, I think she’ll be happy living with them.”
“I hope so.”
Leon sighed. “I’m more worried that someone will figure out she was a survivor from Raccoon City. I don’t want their house to get bombarded with phone calls and reporters asking for interviews.”
“I don’t think that will happen,” Claire said. “They aren’t releasing the names of any children who were involved. You and me, on the other hand, will have to fight our way through a mob of reporters just to get home.”
“Yeah,” Leon said. “But we still have a day before we have to worry about it. Are you sure you don’t want to leave today?”
Claire nodded. “Let’s just leave tomorrow morning. I’d like one more night of peace and quiet before we go and face the world.”
Leon led her back to the building. “How about I take you out to dinner? One of the nurses told me they’re serving spaghetti in the cafeteria tonight.”
“Oh, that sounds wonderful. Can we get a bottle of wine? Maybe some candles?”
“Sure, I’ll ask them to dim the lights so we can have a nice, romantic meal.”
Claire laughed softly. “You’ve got yourself a date.”