It had been a couple years since Skye had come to the tree. She used to come all the time, hoping to see her friend Lincoln. For a while, after he had given her the name Skye, she would come every week and they would meet at the tree and talk about their days. Then she ran away from St. Agnes and joined the Rising Tide. Hard to keep up with friends when your entire job depends on you staying in the shadows.

The only reason she was here now was to track down a lead on some top-secret government information. She jumped at the chance to come out here purely for the opportunity to visit the tree, and hopefully catch a glimpse of Lincoln. She knew she couldn't make contact, but it made her happy to think of seeing him, making sure he was doing okay.

She had parked her van and came running out to sit under the branches, which had grown since the last time she sat under them. She smiled as she looked through the leaves that had just started to sprout. Spring was just coming in as flowers were sprouting up through the grass that covered the park.

Skye sat there in her spot under the tree for a long time. She thought back to the last time she was here, the time she had spent with Lincoln. She thought back even farther, all the times she had come here as a little kid. As she thought about it, many of her memories reminded her of Lincoln. She wondered if he was her sky friend all those years ago....

"You've gotta come check out this tree. It's my favorite spot." Skye heard a guy's voice a few yards away. She sat up quick and peeked around the trunk of the tree. Her eyesight landed on a couple: a cute blond guy and a girl with long red curls.

"Lincoln," Skye whispered in shock as she hurried away from the tree and towards a nearby bench. She slipped on a pair of sunglasses and pulled out her phone, pretending to scroll through it as a way of laying low. Skye knew she should go back to her van and back to work, but she just wanted to see Lincoln for a little bit longer.

The couple sat down under the branches of the oak tree where Skye had sat with Lincoln not too long ago. She could pick up bits and pieces of their conversation as she listened from her spot on the bench.

"You brought me to a tree?" The girl had asked in a snotty voice. "What's so special about a tree?"

The look that crossed Lincoln's face made Skye's face scrunch up in frustration.

"It's my favorite place," Lincoln said calmly. "I like to look through the branches and find pictures in the clouds." He pointed toward the sky, "See? That one is a rabbit?"

"It's a cloud," the girl commented as she shook her head in disapproval. The girl got up from her spot next to Lincoln and dramatically brushed off her jeans. "I'm covered in dirt. I'll see you later, Linc."

The girl stalked off, leaving Lincoln alone under the branches. He leaned back against the trunk of the tree, closing his eyes. His blond hair had grown out quite a bit these past couple years, almost covering his eyes. Skye wanted to run over and sit next to him and brush the hair out of his face. She wanted to tell him that he could do better than that stupid girl.

Skye took her sunglasses off and slowly stood up, her heart deciding her actions for her. She had taken one step towards Lincoln when her phone started ringing.

"Hello?" She spun around, answering the phone in a hasty tone.

"Hey, are you in yet? These firewalls are no joke."

Skye closed her eyes and exhaled. Miles, another member of the Rising Tide, was her partner on this mission for information. He had picked the worst time to call.

"Yeah, yeah," Skye mumbled as she took one last look back at Lincoln. "I just found a Wi-Fi spot. Give me a second. I'll get us in."

And with that Skye hopped in her van, started her engine, and drove away.