Solace nibbled on garlic bread, hoping the loud crunching of the toast would drown out the awkwardness.

"There was this one occasion where I was invited to dinner," Kane spoke as he twisted the pasta on his fork, "but turns out, they were invading my workplace and planning to re-kidnap our prisoner and kill our boss." He paused and inspected the spaghetti and shrugged as he took a bite. "Everything worked out, but they never took me to dinner." A frown took over his face, and it was clear he still wasn't over the oh so traumatic experience.

Emi put her eating to a halt and swallowed roughly. "Where do you work, dude?"

"Target."

Solace slurped on her water loudly. He said it so seriously and so emotionless, it was hard to argue with him. Imagining Kane working at a retail store was almost laughable with his blank face and murderous hobbies. Just the thought of him dealing with rowdy customers that would definitely go missing mysteriously if they cluttered the clothing racks or demanded non-caffeinated coffee when it really was just called decaf.

Sage laughed loudly – a bit too loudly in her opinion – as he tried to regain control of the situation. "You're hilarious, Kane." He smacked him in the shoulder to get his point across. "Joker, this guy."

Kane's brows furrowed in both confusion and surprise as if the word 'joker' was an adjective that was never used to describe the enchanting man sitting across from Solace. "Right, right. I was joking," he agreed, chuckling, but it sounded more like dry heaving than the sound of pure joy.

Emi chewed on a mouthful of pasta, a suspicious look never leaving her face. She wasn't buying any of this, and Solace couldn't blame her. They were doing a terrible job. Why couldn't Kane look less like a contract killer and more like a man that collected lame things like gnomes or stamps?

"What do you like to do for fun, Kane?" Emi wondered, trying to get to know their questionable and unexpected guest.

"Murder puppies and dismantle governments," muttered Solace under her breath. She took another sip of her water when she almost spilled it as a sudden kick to her shin jolted her. Her gaze immediately went over to Sage, who must have heard her comment, as he was glaring at her and mouthing her to shut up.

She rubbed her shin annoyedly, aware that as a soccer player, the kick didn't even carry half of the power he could muster. And because she was petty and vengeful when it came to Sage, she readied her kick and swung, but before it made hard contact with his leg, he caught her ankle. He raised a brow, challenging her and almost saying, Is that all you got? He looked boastful and cocky as she glared at him, attempting to free her ankle.

"Let go," she mouthed, struggling under his grip.

Sage tilted his head tauntingly. His hand trailed up her bare leg, leaving goosebumps in his trail. What is he doing? She wanted to pull her leg back, but her mind didn't listen to her as she sat idly and eyed him carefully. Mischief glistened in his gaze, the tip of his mouth slightly curved up. He was enjoying this.

The palm of his hand was calloused but soft as he rubbed circles with his thumb, almost mindlessly like he wasn't realizing he was doing it. But Solace was all too aware as the beating of her heart sped. And suddenly, he tightened his grip around her mid-shin and yanked her forward. A startled noise left her mouth as her entire chair moved forward, her front touching the edge of the table now.

Breathy laughs left Sage's mouth, letting go of her leg. She quickly moved it back, the skin of her leg still warm from his touch. Solace wanted to touch her leg to where his hand was mere moments ago, but she settled for an icy look his way. She wanted to try to kick him again, but he would catch her once again. Instead, she flipped him the middle finger under the side of the table where only he could see. His laugh only deepened.

"Hey, you two, stop playing footsie and give our guest your full attention," chided Emi with a knowing look directed at Solace. "What were you saying, Kane? Something about New York?"

Kane scratched the side of his scruffy beard and nodded. "Several months ago, I assisted with the dismantling of a gang. A shootout ensued that two kids started, and it was quite fun."

See, I was right, Solace said through her facial expressions to Sage. And what type of kids got themselves involved with a shootout? She thought Sage was trouble but kicking off a whole gang war was another level of talent.

"So, you're a cop," Emi stated.

And this was when Kane loudly, happily, and freely laughed. He threw his head back, his hands on his abdomen as it moved sporadically from the movement. His glee of being associated with law enforcement overtook the apartment, going as far as to wipe tears from his eyes. Solace awkwardly let out a few chuckles, sharing glances with Sage and Emi. "Right, of course," he sighed contently, another round of giggles escaping his mouth as he took a sip of his soda. "A cop. That is me."

"So, you're not a cop?" Emi asked hesitantly. She looked unsure and startled by his response to the first comment.

"A cop has a gun, and they kill whomever they please, so yes, I am a cop," Kane assured with a grin breaking on his face.

Solace snorted in amusement. He wasn't wrong.

"Uh, okay, then," she said meekly, glancing over at Solace with the utmost confusion. "But didn't Sage say he works with you?" Emi moved her attention to Sage. "Are you training to become a cop?"

The entire table shifted their focus onto him as he sat there, mid-bite and uncertain. Sage stretched out the silence as he slowly chewed on the spaghetti, buying time for his excuse. Solace's mind went blank with any possible lies that may lay down Emi's suspicions, but she had nothing. She had maxed out her lies from yesterday, and the creative part of her brain that was usually lit up was now urging her to tell the table a story of the time she purposely stepped on her untied shoelaces because her brain couldn't comprehend how she could fall. She understood when she almost face-planted on the concrete.

Maybe this is what Sage means when he says I don't have common sense.

When no one spoke, Emi tried again. "Because that wouldn't make sense with you being missing for months. Now that I think about it, the fact that you still haven't gone back home and told people you're alive is weird. And now this guy shows up, looking like the hotter but blander version of Nick Fury."

"That was both a compliment and insult wrapped in one," Kane muttered. "I do not know how I feel about that."

Solace's heart dropped. She wanted to keep Emi out of this as much as possible, but she just had to be so intuitive. She wasn't going to say anything until Sage spoke. This was all him. She would follow his lead.

"I'm... I'm just in some trouble right now," Sage ultimately confessed. "Solace is helping me."

Emi swirled her heard to her, but before she said anything, Solace spoke. "I barely know anything." That was somewhat the truth. She didn't know who these people were. "I'm just helping, so he can leave us alone."

"You make me feel so invited," Sage remarked sarcastically.

"Helping with what?" Emi questioned with narrowed eyes.

Solace sighed tiredly. "Look, I don't want you getting involved. The only reason I'm stuck in this is because Sage and I have history. Just trust me on this."

Emi didn't look convinced. "I just want to go home," Sage professed, and Solace saw how exhausted he was. "I need this to be done with, so I can do that."

Solace watched as Emi sat with his words. Eventually, she nodded. "Yeah, okay. I understand." She stood up with her empty plate and seized the fork in her hand, pointing it at Sage. "But, if Solace gets hurt, I will rip out your pretty eyes and feed them to your buddy, Kane."

"Aw, that is so sweet," cooed Solace, placing her hand on her heart.

"And now I understand why you two are friends. Psicópatas," Sage grumbled, and she narrowed her eyes when the word sounded a lot like psychopath. "But don't worry, Solace won't get hurt. I'll make sure of it."

She snorted. "Shut up, Reyes."

"What?" he exclaimed, leaning back in his seat and flinging his arms to the side. "I'm promising Emi that I'll make sure you come back in one piece. Is that a problem?"

Solace lowered her voice, and did her best impression of Sage. "Solace won't get hurt. I'll make sure of it. Who do you think you are? Some kind of hero? Bitch, please."

Sage opened his mouth to speak, an expression of disbelief and bafflement clear on his face. "You know what? You can come back in as many pieces as you like. I withdraw my promise."

She rolled her eyes. Having Sage genuinely vow to keep her safe was bizarre. The two of them were always getting each other into trouble. This wasn't a part of their relationship. It shouldn't be. Solace can keep herself safe. All she had to do was outrun him, which all things considered, might be tough, but she wasn't above playing dirty. Nothing like a swift trip to the ankles would do.

Emi was in the kitchen, cleaning up, and Solace quickly finished eating so she could help. She gathered Kane's plate, purposely leaving Sage's. He could clean up after himself. As a matter of fact, he could do the dishes.

"I will be on my way, then," Kane announced, standing up. "Thank you for the lovely dinner. I hope we can do this again."

Please, no. "Yes, of course," Solace smiled.

Kane turned to Sage. "You have until midnight on New Years' Eve," he said quietly. "Complete the job, or otherwise, your contract will stay."

Sage nodded with solemnity. "Boss will let me leave once it's complete, right?"

"Boss always sticks to his words. Besides, it's been part of the code for decades. He'll have no choice but to let you leave."

"Thanks, Kane," Sage said sincerely and shook his hand.

Solace watched him swiftly put on his boots, walking out the door with the quiet thud of the door closing behind him. She walked over speedily and turned the locks. Her stress wasn't quite gone, because if he really was going to be keeping up with Sage's process like an overbearing patrol officer, she'll be seeing him a lot more often.

"See, that wasn't so bad," remarked Sage with a grin.

"Go wash the dishes."

***

Author's Note:

Hey everyone!

So fun fact, I purposefully stepped on my shoelaces in elementary school to see if I would fall. I almost did lol.

Do you all like Kane? We will be seeing more of him!

Until next time – m.k.t