~Epilogue~

Fifteen years later...

Moira Burton followed Claire down the steps, carrying a neatly-folded towel along with some clothes.

"So what's down here, exactly?" she asked. "Is it actually a person?"

"Yeah," Claire responded, reaching the bottom of the staircase and opening a heavy door by using a passcode. "He's been asleep for fifteen years."

"Damn," Moira reacted. "I don't think I could ever sleep for as long as that."

Claire chuckled quietly as she walked with Moira following close behind. "You sound a lot like him," she pointed out. "He didn't think he could sleep for this long, either. But it looks like he's made it."

Moira stopped walking and turned her head away. "And he's naked," she added. "Very, very naked."

"He wouldn't have frozen properly if he was wearing clothes," Claire stated. "And he was gonna grow out of them, anyway. I just hope these clothes fit him."

Claire approached a metallic panel beside the machine and once again pressed a few buttons before taking a step back and staring at the unconscious Steve through the glass, waiting to see what would happen.

At first nothing happened at all, but suddenly Steve's eyes snapped open. He took in a large breath through his oxygen mask and wore a look of terror.

The liquid around him drained quickly and the glass opened, causing Steve to stumble out. Claire was quick to catch him despite the fact he was quite heavy, and she removed the wires along with the oxygen mask. The pair fell to their knees, with Steve trying to catch his breath.

Claire turned to look back at Moira. "Hand me the towel," she commanded. Moira nodded and rushed over, doing everything she could to avoid looking at Steve. Claire whipped the towel out of Moira's grasp and wrapped Steve up, briefly using the towel to dry his soaked hair . The woman wrapped her arms around him tightly as he huddledinto the towel, teeth chattering as he trembled.

Steve slowly lifted his head, his eyes glazed over as if he were unwell. He had barely any idea of what was going on. The man opened his mouth to speak, struggling for a long few moments before finally he was able to get the words out. "Who... Who... are you...?" he asked breathlessly. "Where's... Where's Claire...? Is... Is she... okay...?"

His words struck Claire in the heart. He didn't recognise her.

"Steve..." she replied, holding her hand against his cheek. She stared into his yellow eyes and he gazed back with empty confusion, but the woman could see his eyes coming back to life once he was hit with realisation.

"C...Claire...?" he stuttered, his voice deeper than it used to be. She looked so different now. She looked so much older. He lifted up one hand, using the other to keep the towel wrapped around himself, and placed it against Claire's hand.

"It's me..." Claire assured. Steve's hand was so cold and still damp from being submerged in liquid for fifteen years. "You're awake now, Steve... You're okay..."

Steve could only stare at her as if he were staring at a ghost. "Fifteen years..." he muttered. "Have I really made it...?" Claire smiled and him and nodded his head, holding him close.

"You've made it..." she answered.

"Okay, okay, I'm confused," Moira cut in. "Just who is this guy, Claire?"

Steve looked up at Moira with confusion. In his head he thought that she was older than him, but he had to remind himself that he was now... thirty-two years old.

Claire helped Steve stand, turning to face Moira. "He's an old friend," she responded. "I met him not too long after the Raccoon City incident."

"Yeah, you're forgetting the part where you tell me why he was frozen," Moira retorted, handing the clothes she was holding to Steve before passively saying to him: "Please, put these on."

As Steve went into the corner of the room to change, Claire quietly answered Moira. "He was infected with the t-Veronica virus. In order to save him from being infected, we had to freeze him for fifteen years."

"Wait, was he the guy that...?" Moira finished her question by clawing her hands and baring her teeth, letting out a few monster-like growls.

"Yeah," Claire replied sadly.

"I swear he died," Moira pointed out.

"He did," Claire clarified, "but the virus brought him back to life. After that he was constantly being pursued by Wesker while trying to fight the virus in his system, and believe me, Wesker and his associates were doing everything they could to make him submit to the virus' effects. Eventually it came to a point where he had to be frozen so that his body could adapt to the Veronica virus, and to keep him safe from capture we had to label him as dead. Wesker believed that we had incinerated his body."

"Wow, another person's story which proves that Wesker was a dick," Moira reacted as Steve walked back over, dressed in jeans, a button-up black shirt and a dark brown blazer. These clothes made him look quite mature, and the fuzz on his face definitely made him look older.

Claire turned to look at him, smiling. "Well, look at you," she responded. "You look like quite the man now, Steve."

"You think?" Steve asked, almost as if needing to be reassured that he looked like his current age. Claire chuckled at his response, taking him by the hand and pulling him close to her side.

"You look amazing," she told him before turning her attention back to Moira. "Oh, and by the way, this is my friend, Moira."

Steve awkwardly lifted his free hand as a casual wave. "Hey," he muttered. Moira returned the awkward wave, and after that Steve once again had his eyes on Claire.

"So, what have I missed?" he asked.

"Well, after we froze you there were a few more instances involving the t-Veronica virus," Claire explained. "Leon told me about a girl named Manuela who was infected from a sample taken directly from you."

"What happened to her?" Steve queried, intrigued.

"She was fine," Claire answered. "She was taken into government custody and she has remained a human since."

"But how did she manage to remain as a human?" Steve pressed.

"Leon said something about her having her organs replaced regularly," Claire recalled.

"Huh," Steve reacted thoughtfully. "...So, where is Leon these days?"

"I don't see him much," Claire admitted. "He gets all the action with these virus outbreaks now. I don't get as involved anymore."

"Except for one incident three years ago," Moira reminded, seeing Claire nod in agreement. Neither woman chose to speak further regarding that incident.

"I see..." Steve murmured, then hesitating for a moment. "...W... What about Wesker?"

"Dead," Claire confirmed. Steve was silent for a moment.

"...Dead?" he repeated.

"Dead," Claire said again. "My brother killed him five years ago. He had infected himself with his own new virus, but Chris blew him up. There's no way he's ever coming back." Steve looked down slightly with a confused expression. Claire tilted her head, appearing concerned. "Steve...?"

"It should've been me," Steve growled to himself. "I should've killed him. He should've seen my face before he died."

Claire squeezed his hand. "Wesker hurt a lot of people," she reminded him. "My brother was one of those people. Wesker had lied to him and his team and tried to kill him."

"He hurt me, too," Moira added, shrugging her shoulders. "Just saying."

"Exactly," Claire said. "So many people suffered because of that man, Steve... Chris avenged them all."

Steve thought about Claire's words but still couldn't help but feel irritated that he didn't watch Wesker die, but he nodded his head silently.

"Come on," Claire said to him. "There's a lot you need to catch up on, but first I've gotta show you something." Still holding his hand, Claire led Steve up the stairs with Moira following the pair.

Claire led Steve to a room but quickly halted him, lifting his hands and making him cover his face. "Close your eyes," she instructed, then slowly luring Steve into the room. She stopped him once again before saying: "Now, sit down." Again, Steve did as he was told and sat on the ground. It was silent for a moment before suddenly there was a pattering sound on the floor, as if something was running towards him. He then felt something small jump into his lap, pressing what may have been its hands against his chest while trying to sniff and lick his face. Instinctively Steve opened his eyes and saw that a little Doberman puppy was excitedly wagging its tail while trying to climb up him. Steve gasped softly, lifting the small dog up so that it could happily lick his face. The man laughed with tears already in his eyes.

"Hey there, little guy!" he greeted with joy.

"TerraSave doesn't just rescue people," Claire stated. "We also rescue animals which are used for creating Bio Organic Weapons. These puppies had been bred so that they could be turned into Cerberuses, and we even rescued some of the adults. It's been harder to find homes for them, though..."

Steve, still holding the puppy, looked up at her with sadness in his eyes. "Wait, you mean they're stuck here...?" he questioned.

"Most of them have a deformities from their infection," Claire explained. "Nobody wants a dog that looks like a zombie..."

"We take care of them here, though," Moira assured proudly. "I like feeding them. They're super sweet; I'd take some home myself but... I doubt my family would be as accepting."

"They shouldn't be left to rot in a facility..." Steve commented, still occupying himself with the pup. "I wish I could take them all; I know how it feels to be seen as a monster. I just... I don't have a home, and if I do get one it'll probably be some apartment somewhere."

Claire tilted her head. "You'd take them?" she asked him.

"Of course I would," Steve replied, now tapping his hand on the floor and letting the puppy chase it playfully.

"If you take them, you've gotta let me see 'em every once in a while!" Moira pointed out. Steve looked up at her.

"I can't take them," he reminded her. "I don't have a place for them, let alone myself."

Moira smiled, nudging Claire's arm. "Tell him," she said quietly. Steve overheard her and looked intrigued.

Claire was quiet for a few seconds before figuring out how to announce the news to Steve. "We saved your house," she revealed.

Steve was just staring at her, almost as if he hadn't heard her right. "...My house?" he recapped.

"Yes, Steve," Claire nodded. "The authorities were gonna empty it out, but Mason and I bought it. We were gonna clear it out ourselves, but then we found you alive. We wanted to surprise you with it, but... well, a lot of things happened."

His house. The house he thought would be long gone by now. Was this a dream? Was he dead?

Claire smiled a little. "So... you can go and do what you want with the house," she concluded. "You can move back in, clear it out or keep everything as it was... and if you really think you can handle it, you can take the mutated dogs there, too."

Steve stood up, holding the puppy in one arm and wrapping the other arm around Claire. Tears of happiness leaked from his eyes. "Thank you..." he thanked softly. Claire rubbed his back, a smile on her own face.

"Anything for you, sweetie," she responded.

Sweetie. It was so strange to hear her say it, but it felt so right.

"So, what are you going to call this little guy?" Claire asked, using her other hand to tickle the puppy's chin. Steve glanced down at the small dog and smiled.

"Luger," he replied. Claire chuckled slightly.

"Luger?" she repeated.

"Yeah," Steve smiled. "I think it suits him."

"Little Luger," Claire said, still petting the excitable puppy. She then leaned up and kissed Steve on the cheek. "You really are a great guy, Steve. Remember that."

Steve almost blushed but smiled at Claire. "I can never forget your words, Claire," he told her.

"Okay, you two are definitely more than just friends" Moira confirmed. Steve and Claire looked at her before laughing together.

...

Leon had asked Claire how Steve was doing some weeks after he was first awakened. He had been talking to her using online messages but hadn't been able to see either her or Steve in person.

"How is he?" his message said.

Claire had responded by sending a picture of Steve sitting in the living room of his old house, a bright smile on his face as he held Luger the puppy while other adult dogs surrounded him, looking content despite their various mutations.

"He's doing just fine," Claire's following message assured.

Leon couldn't help but smile when seeing the picture. Steve was a troubled boy fifteen years ago, with so many psychological and physical problems. And now, as a grown man, he looked so happy and free.

Something told him that Steve was finally going to be alright.

~End of Story~

Thank you to everyone who has been reading this story! It was fun to write and I loved reading everyone's reviews! I might write a sequel or a one-shot showing Steve living his new life, but overall I'm happy with this conclusion. Thank you once again, everybody!