The sounds of hammers pounding and saws buzzing did not make Marinette's return to the police station any easier.

She let out a hesitant breath before pulling open the first set of doors and heading straight towards the break room. She slipped off her black coat and hung it up on the hook.

Her mind kept replaying the events of what had conspired just a mere few weeks ago. She still hadn't gotten over it. Who was that mysterious killer?

She felt it was her obligation to her former superior to crack the case for him. After all, she practically watched him die. If only she had something to work off of! Everyone is saying all the evidence was cleverly destroyed...

"Hey stranger," Alya scooted in, her left shoulder resting against the wall.

"Oh, hey Detective Cesaire," Marinette half smiled, the greeting pulling her away from her thoughts.

"Remember what I told you about the name," Alya smirked. "Don't have to be so formal."

Marinette nodded. "Oh, right. Sorry."

Alya's friendly eyes turned into those of worry. She pinched Marinette's shoulder. "You ok? Remember what I said, if work is too much for you-"

"I'm fine," Marinette lied. "I just need some work to get my mind off of things."

"Alright," Alya replied after a brief pause. "Hey, uh, later Alix and I were gonna go somewhere to grab lunch if you wanted to join?"

Marinette looked down. Was she really hungry? Not really. But would the time with friends get her mind off of everything? Probably.

"Ok, I will," Marinette responded.

Alya's face lit up. "Awesome! I'll text you in an hour and we'll go to this BOMB burrito place down the street. See you then!"

Marinette grinned, "Can't wait."

*

The day inched on, with Marinette doing the usual, unimportant intern things; however, if you asked any officer working they'd say the flavor of the coffee was the most important thing to them. Before she knew it, lunch time had arrived.

Marinette was happily on her way to the lunch destination, where her work friends waited. She walked down the sidewalk, following the directions to the burrito place on her phone.

Her phone buzzed, and it was a text from Alya. It read, "You coming or what? We're STARVINGGG."

Marinette smiled, her fingers dancing across the keyboard to type out a reassuring response, as now she was only a mere 2 minute walk from the destination. She went to press send when all of a sudden, she bumped into a stranger walking past.

"Sorry!" Marinette quickly spoke, her eyes lifting from her phone to catch a glimpse of blonde hair. Her balance teetered back, but luckily her clumsiness didn't curse her this time and she regained her footing.

"My fault!" the stranger spoke back, a deep voice truly sincere and apologetic.

Marinette turned her head to acknowledge the stranger when she noticed a black object laying on the sidewalk. As she peered closer, she realized it was the strangers wallet!

"Wait!" she yelled, bending over. She picked it up and waved it in the air at the receding figure. "Your wallet!"

The stranger suddenly stopped, blonde shaggy hair shining under the sunlight. His toned, slightly muscular arms lifted from the sides of his white shirt and patted his pockets before turning around and facing the girl.

Woah, Marinette thought as she examined his facial features. Round, strong jaw. Gorgeous, emerald green eyes hidden by circular black frames. Tall, athletic build. He had a radiant glow around him. He was no doubt created by angels from above. Marinette's heart skipped a beat as he started a slow jog towards her.

"Thank you," the stranger said, his voice sounding even more kind than it did before.

"N-no problem," Marinette stuttered, her throat dry. No way such an ethereal being was speaking to her right now.

He smiled, his green eyes so... mesmerizing. She could fall asleep in them. All the anguish she was feeling that day suddenly melted into a warm fuzzy sensation.

She almost sighed in sadness when he began to turn on his heel to leave; but he whipped around to face her again.

"I actually had a question," the stranger spoke, propping his glasses up on his perfectly shaped nose. "I'm kinda new in town, I was wondering if you knew where this one burrito place was-"

Marinette felt like she was gonna pass out. No way. What are the odds! Was he talking about the burrito place that she was going to?!? She got a little too excited with her response. "Oh, yeah! What, er place?"

"El Burrito?" he asked, his golden brow arched.

"Yes!" Marinette responded, a toothy grin. "It's right over here!" She fought the urge to grab the mans bicep, and instead waved him to follow her. She continued her happy ramble.

"I was actually on my way there to meet with friends." Her cheeks flushed. "So it's funny you mentioned it!" She would curse herself later on when she remembered how flustered and ridiculous she was acting.

"Oh," he laughed nervously. "My fath- dad, ordered me to pick up some dinner after we got done moving in. He loves Mexican!"

"I don't blame him," Marinette answered, approaching the entryway to the restaurant. She stopped outside and twiddled her fingers nervously. "I could eat burritos for breakfast, lunch, and dinner!"

She mentally facepalmed herself. Yep. Totally embarrassing.

The blonde laughed, shoving his hands into his jean pockets. "That's funny. I'm sorry, I should've told you my name. I'm Alex."

Marinette blinked in surprise. She hadn't imagined such an ordinary name to fit this gorgeous specimen. However, she still felt better knowing she had a name to attribute to his face.

"I'm Marinette," she smiled shyly, her cheeks once again turning a shade of red. She suddenly remembered the time and knew her friends were probably frustrated waiting for her! She jabbed a thumb at the front entrance of the establishment. "Sorry, uh, I gotta go. My friends are waiting for me."

"No problem," Adrien, under the guise of Alex, winked. "It was nice to meet you, Marinette. I hope we bump into each other again."

"Me too!" she grinned, waving. "Bye!"

The boy chuckled before turning around and heading down the sidewalk, his hand still shoved in his jean pockets.

For a moment, the thought occurred to her as to why he hadn't gone in to retrieve his food. But instead of pondering this thought, she melted, completely smitten with the kind stranger she'd met on the street. She definitely hoped she saw him again. Plus, she'd have to explain to her friends why she was so late- and why her face was so red.

*

Marinette's change in mood was a surprise to everyone around her. For the rest of the shift, she'd been humming happily to herself. Even though it was a small victory, it still brightened her day to bump into that kind boy; Alex.

She wondered all day about him; what his favorite color was, what he liked to do in his free time, where he lived- Okay, maybe that last question was a little too personal.

It was a great relief to think about something else besides the tragedy that had been plaguing her mind for weeks.

She was cleaning out a coffee pot when a knock sounded on the doorframe to the kitchen.

"Hey you," Luka grinned, his blue hair shining in the artificially lit space.

"Oh, hey Luka," Marinette nodded, turning the faucet off. "Got another coffee request for me to brew? Or another detail about the accident to try and recover?" She was still a little off put by how he acted around her when she was in the hospital. The way he cornered her. She wasn't forgetting so easily.

Luka shook his head, fully stepping into the room and revealing a manila folder in his right hand. "No. I'm sorry about that by the way."

Marinette couldn't meet his gaze, instead looking at the folder in his hand. "What's that?"

"This-" Luke smiled, waving the paper folder in the air. "Is what I wanted to talk to you about."

"Oh, really," Marinette raised her eyebrow.

He nudged his head towards the hallway. "Let's go talk in my office."

Marinette hesitated, before her curiosity got the better of her. She followed the detective out of the break room and into his cluttered office. She panned over the files and papers strewn about it. Surely he had been at work gathering a case about Detective Kim's murder.

Luka sat in his chair and scooted up to his desk. He opened the folder and poured out a few papers. "I'm sure you're tired of brewing coffee."

"Eh, I think I'm getting the hang of it now," Marinette shrugged playfully.

"Well, put down the coffee pot," Luka smiled. "I think I've found a start to this case. To finding out the identity of the killer."

Marinette's heartbeat quickened, her breath catching in her throat. Oh my god. As if her prayers had been answered, finally someone had picked up the murder case.

"And I want you to help me."