The city street was speckled with people, a common occurrence in the downtown area. A large amount of them were running around on their errands with shopping bags in hand. Although some were delayed in their progress, as they looked through stores' clean windows. Browsing without the pressure of the store clerks. Then there were others who were just passing through. Regardless of the reason, it was busy, and Jacob and his companion did their best to weave around everyone.

Jacob's hands sat in the pockets of his jacket, hiding from the cool winds of April. The wind lightly sprayed his face and blew his dark brown hair out of line. Barley an inconvenience.

After a few blocks it quieted down, and he felt a tap on his shoulder. A silent greeting that requested his attention. He looked over and focused on his friend who started to happily sign at him. A giant smile plastered on his face as he exclaimed how excited he was that the two of them were finally going to a speed dating event together. It made Jacob visibly cringe as it was one of the last things he wanted to be doing. But after so many years avoiding it, Sonny finally broke him. Or rather, since he wasn't on the job, he didn't have an excuse to say no.

Sonny was one of the more down to party agents on his team, even though he would not be able to listen to music without his hearing aids. Something he didn't get the joy of doing until his early teens, which made verbal speech difficult for him when he tried to learn. But that did not get him to quit. He tried time and time again, even with the ridicule that came as kids laughed at his grunts and breathy gasps. He wouldn't tell you that it didn't hurt; that would be a lie. But that did not stop him from getting a fair grasp on how to do it.

What amazed Jacob was him becoming an Agent in the first place. Because many people - himself included - didn't think he had what it took. But where many capable people failed, he was able to succeed. Gaining a spot in their organization and becoming one of the bravest people Jacob had ever met. It was truly astonishing.

Jacob nodded along to what he was saying, making sure to look around every once and awhile to make sure they didn't accidentally walk into traffic. That would be an embarrassing way for an Agent to go. Suddenly Sonny stopped and pointed to a building across the street. 'Cliché Cafe' was sprawled out in curvy letters off the top of the building. A flower decorated canopy sat over the front door, and a couple of people were happily talking to each other in the outside sitting area. An a-frame board stood at the entrance, exclaiming about the 'speed dating' event that was about to take place in giant bubble letters. "This can't be happening." Jacob muttered under his breath, still walking with his friend over to the sickeningly colorful building.

Sonny opened the front door to the building, a giggling bell going off above them. A beautiful young woman looked over at the two of them from behind the service counter, a white apron strapped around her tiny frame. She smiled. "Are you two here for our speed dating event?" She asked.

Sonny looked over at her and smiled, promptly pointing over at his hearing aid. The woman's face started to turn a light shade of pink as she signed, 'sorry.' Her smile never faltering.

Jacob wanting to avoid any awkwardness was the one to speak up. "Yes, we are." He said, his voice monotone and ridged; he was not impressed, and it did not help that he wasn't interested in the event whatsoever.

She nodded, unfazed by his attitude. "That's great." She pointed over to a table where a bunch of blank name tags were. "Over there are some markers and tags, please write your name and find an empty chair." She said happily.

Jacob and Sonny nodded and they both headed over to the table. Spying the small white stickers and the bright florescent markers. Sonny grabbed an orange marker while Jacob grabbed blue, and they both pasted the stickers onto their clothes.

Jacob tapped Sonny's arm who looked over at him. "So, where should we sit?" He asked. Sonny didn't answer and instead just smiled, pulling away from him in a goofy manner. "Great, you're a huge help." He said straight face. He looked around and spotted two empty chairs by a great big window.

He sat down and leaned back in the chair. The sunshine was beaming beautifully through the window. Brightening up the building with its natural rays. Its warmth immediately hugging him with its warm embrace. He looked around and spotted Sunny already talking with a girl who had arrived prior to them coming. Even with the language barrier the two of them were laughing and enjoying themselves, the same couldn't be said for him. He sighed and pulled a piece of paper out of his jacket, looking the limited notes over. Sonny may have taken his notebook, but that didn't mean it would hinder his progress.

Even with the weeks he had to himself to investigate the case, he still wasn't any closer to figuring anything out. All he had was still just the possible relationship between Uriah and cloud nine. He looked the page over and over again, but he still wasn't getting closer to any conclusion or any lead.

"Is anyone sitting here." A feminine voice asked. He looked over and a woman with freckles as numerous as the desert sand stood over him. "No." He shook his head dismissively and put the paper back into his jacket. The girl nodded and then sat down, her skirt flowing just above the ground.

"What were you looking at?" She asked curiously.

"Just my grocery list." He lied.

"So, why are you here?" She asked with a smile. Her question seemed innocent enough.

He brushed his hair back with his free hand and looked down at her name tag: Kathrine. "Because I was dragged here." He told her, nodding his attention over to Sonny. She looked over at his friend and smiled. "He seems nice." She said with a giggle. He nodded in agreement. "He is."

She let out a nervous laugh and wiped a stray strawberry hair behind her ear. "Well, I'm here because I'm trying to get back out there." She said.

He nodded. "Well you're certainly succeeding." He said with a small forced smile.

"What do you mean?" She asked, her demeanor changing. What was once hopeful became uncertain. Her fingers started to fidget on the table and her foot started to tap against the ground.

"You seem to have a very sweet personality, and one of the most beautiful smiles I have ever seen." He nodded, trying to calm her. He really wasn't looking for someone to date, but he was there, and he was going to try and be nice.

She nodded with a bright smile. "Okay." She laughed. "You really had me worried for a second."

He laughed back. More to ease the tension than anything else. "You shouldn't be." He said, his heart pinging. It felt too close to home for him. But he kept up the friendly chat for the next half-hour. Smiling when he should. Laughing when it was appropriate and sharing as little as he could about himself. After the bell rang, he got up and moved on to another table; a friendly wave following him.

He sat down and began the process all over again. Starting with a friendly introduction and getting use to the personality on the other side of the table. This went on for a couple of hours with different women. Until his brain was finally in need of a break.

"Listen, Rebecca." A long-haired brunette looked at him intently, her eyes glittering. "I'm getting pretty thirsty; can I grab you something to drink?" He asked.

Rebecca squinted her eyes and her smile widened. "I'll take whatever you're having." She said confidently.

He nodded and turned around. Happy that he was going to take a moment for himself. He weaved his way around the tables before getting to the head of the counter. A waitress with short sun-touched hair smiled at him. "What can I get for you today Jacob?" She asked, briefly glimpsing at his nametag.

He looked down at her own nametag, printed in black ink was 'Hope.' He looked back up at the menu, craving something sour. "I'll take two medium lemonades." He said looking back up at her. Her hazel eyes looked at him humorously. She folded her arms. "Anything else?" She asked, chuckling a little.

He cocked his head at her. "Is something funny?" He asked.

She shook her head. "No, it's not that. It's just that I didn't peg you as the 'lemonade' kind of guy."

He forced on a smile. "What kind of guy do you think I am?"

Her eyes looked up at the ceiling in thought. "More of a straight coffee kind of guy, if I'm being honest." She laughed.

He narrowed his eyes at her slightly. On a typical day, that was usually what he got. It was quick, efficient and the order never came out wrong. He eased up and nodded. "That's accurate actually."

Her smile got bigger. "So, can I get you anything else?"

"No that's it." He said reaching for his back pocket and pulling out a brown leather wallet.

"Okay great." She pressed a few buttons before speaking again. "That'll be $7.89, and will that be cash or card?" She asked, grabbing a couple of cups from the side.

"Cash." He said pulling out a 10-dollar bill and handing it over to her. She took it and gave him his change before turning around and getting started on his order. He looked back over at the speed dating taking place, all the tables filled; his 'date' looking at her phone. Sonny still appeared to be having a good time, laughing and flirting with the woman on the other end of the table. Jacob snorted. He did not know how Sonny did it.

After a few minutes Hope came back with his order, his receipt curled around her fingers. "Two lemonades." She said placing it all down in front of him. He nodded his head in gratitude and took the ice-cold drinks. "So, do you use that party trick on everyone?"

She cocked her head to the side before looking over at everyone at the dating tables; trying to find an unknowing participant. "Your date over there," she nodded in her direction. "She's not going to be happy with your order. She seems to be more of a cappuccino with a dash of cinnamon kind of person." She looked over at another table. "And the man over there with the green hat and shorts. He seems to be having a health kick right now so a kale smoothie would be his drink of choice, when he's not cheating with a chocolate shake." She looked back at him with a smile and he couldn't tell if she was being serious or not.

He nodded before getting ready to walk away. "Jacob." Hope called, bringing his attention back to her. "Did you want your receipt?" She asked picking it up off the counter.

"No." He said, his sour tone slipping out.

She didn't seem to care and shrugged it off. The thin paper crumpling in her fist. Displaying her wrist out for all to see. A tattoo covering a small portion of it: an arrow with two wings splaying out of it.

His eyes widened as he watched her walk away, serving the next customer. It was exactly the same, his mind was shouting. But he fought against the urge to go back and instead turned around. As he wandered back to his table, he thought about what he was going to do with this new information.

Excitement started to build within him, causing him to smile as he placed the drinks down onto the table before sitting down. His 'date' looked up from her phone and then looked at the order. Her lips lifted, but her eyes did not. She wasn't impressed. "Thanks." She said taking the drink and holding it between her fingers.

"No, thank you." He said looking over her shoulder inconspicuously and getting a quick glimpse at Hope.