A/N: Monday night just didn't seem the same with Red :( It's going to be a LONG Summer!

Disclaimer: I own nothing :(

Special Agent Elizabeth Keen once again found herself sharing a late dinner with Raymond Reddington. In the beginning she had refused to speak to Red about anything other than work much less spend her personal time alone with him. However, over the past year Lizzie slowly found herself spending more and more time with the criminal.

He had effectively managed to wedge himself into her life. She couldn't pinpoint the exact moment since there wasn't one. Talking amongst themselves on a long car ride turned into sharing a bottle of wine while waiting on a contact to arrive. Red bringing her small gifts from his travels turned into her joining him for lunch a couple times a week. Her accepting his invitation to be his guest at a charity dinner turned into them meeting for dinner virtually every night.

Red did what he set out to do when he first turned himself over to the FBI. He had forced his way into Lizzie's life, becoming her companion, confidant, partner, and friend.

It was a rainy Tuesday night when she had arrived home to find a black four door Mercedes park outside her home. She used to feel dread seeing that car but now...nothing. It had become perfectly normal.

Red and Dembe were sitting inside the car when she tapped on the glass of the back door window. It rolled down quickly to show Red dressed in his typical three piece suit with matching fedora hat sitting on his knee.

Red had come to invite her to join him and Dembe for dinner at a Chinese restaurant uptown. The old Elizabeth would have told him where to go and marched away no matter how hungry she was. The new Elizabeth quickly agreed with a smile.

Lizzie expected a high end Chinese restaurant. Something that screamed style and money. Something that was typical Red. However, she was very surprised when Dembe pulled the car into the parking lot of a very casual little hole in the wall.

Making their way inside, Lizzie realized it was a seat yourself kind of place. Lizzie felt very comfortable with the way she was dressed upon seeing the other patrons. Some were dressed in jeans and sweatshirts, some in shorts and flip flops and some dressed more business formal which said they had come from work, just as Lizzie did.

"I must say I'm surprised you would come to a place like this," Lizzie said sliding into her side of the booth. "We usually eat at more upscale places."

Red laughed as he took off his overcoat and hat and took his spot across from her. "I prefer the more upscale places. There is a place about 15 minutes from here that is just divine."

"So why come here?"

Red shrugged and grinned. "Dembe likes their sweet and sour pork bacon and hunan beef."

Lizzie turned to glance at the man in question. Dembe had chosen to sit at a small two person table not far from their booth. He very rarely sat with them when they would go out for dinner. Having done this many times, Lizzie knew Dembe would spend the time making phone calls while eating.

Lizzie turned her attention back to Red when their waitress, an older woman, approached their table carrying a tray with a teapot, cups, saucers, and spoons as well as two glasses of ice water. She addressed Red by name and they spoke for several seconds in her native language before she walked away.

"Chrysanthemum tea?" Red asked as he picked up the small tea pot and began to pour.

"Umm, sure."

"You will love it. The tea is one of the things I do love about this place. Most Chinese restaurants don't serve it," Red said placing the cup and saucer in front of her.

Lizzie took a small sip and she had to admit, it was pretty good.

"Lan will be back shortly, Lizzie. Do you know what you want?" Red asked glancing at his menu.

"I always get the black pepper steak and shrimp lo mein," Lizzie responded, taking another sip of tea.

Red laughed and shook his head. "You and Dembe amaze me. Both of you never try anything new."

Lizzie knew from their past dining experiences that Red always ordered something different. Never the same thing twice. He always got a laugh out of Lizzie's habit of never trying anything new.

Their waitress, Lan, returned to take their order. Lizzie ordered her lo mein and pepper steak while Red decided to go with the kung pao scallops and fried rice. He also ordered an appetizer of pan fried dumplings for them to share. Lizzie noticed that after Lan left them she immediately went over to Dembe to take his order.

Throughout the rest of the dinner they talked about everything and nothing at all. Over the past year, whenever they would dine together Red would tell her stories of various things that had happened to him during his life. Some sad, depressing, and down right heartbreaking while others were absolutely hysterical.

She in turn would tell him things from her childhood which she found silly as he more than likely already knew about them but he still insisted she talk. She was always so amazed at how fascinated and engrossed he would become when she would speak of her life. He always seemed to enjoy learning about her and her past through her eyes.

The one thing that still frustrated Lizzie to no end was the fact that after nearly a year of knowing and spending countless hours with him, she was no closer to understanding Red then she was the day she met him. You would think a criminal profiler who has spent as much time one on one with someone as she has with Red, they would know every single thing about the person; habits, hobbies, likes, dislikes, interests. But if someone came to her and demanded she profile Red, she would come up with very little. A few simple facts, sure, but nothing major.

Whomever had created the phase, "You're an enigma, wrapped in a riddle, surrounded by mystery" must have done so after meeting Raymond Reddington.

One of the little tidbit she had learned was that he would never, under any circumstances, allow her to pay for anything when she was with him. Be it dinner, coffee, or a pastry from the little bakery he liked to frequent. He never let her pay for anything. Not even the tip.

In the beginning it irritated her to no end. She made a good living and she was perfectly capable of paying. Maybe not the bills at some of the more expensive restaurants he liked to dine at but she certainly afford the little pizza joint not far from the Post Office he sometimes took her to for lunch.

He once told her it was very "ungentlemanly like" to allow a lady to pay. Whether the lady happened to be the man's mother, sister, friend, coworker, or lover. Lizzie repeatedly argued this but to no avail. Now when the check came she didn't even bother to fight for it because she knew it would do no good. So when Lan returned to their table with their check and fortune cookies placed in a black plastic tip tray and Red immediately went to grab it, Lizzie said nothing.

"You know one of my favorite things about eating at a Chinese restaurant has always been the fortune cookies," Lizzie said picking up the two cookies on the tray.

"Did you know that fortune cookies aren't even Chinese?" Red asked. "They're made by Americans, based on a Japanese recipe."

"Oh?" Lizzie said.

"They are based on the traditional Japanese cracker which is different than the cookie in several ways. It's a bit larger, the dough is darker, and the batter contains sesame and miso rather than vanilla and butter," Red said with a nod. "A man by the name of Makoto Hagiwara from San Francisco is said to be the first person in the US to have served the modern version of the cookie. They became very popular in the 1920s."

Lizzie nodded as she listened to Red speak. She found it so fascinating how he knew so many facts that most people would have no clue about.

"They are not used at all in China believe it or not. They are used however in Canada, Mexico, the UK, Australia, Italy, France, and India but mostly in the United States." Red said. "Over three billion cookies are made each year around the world. Over 65% of them just for the US."

"Interesting. Do you believe the fortune inside the cookie?" Lizzie asked putting one of the cookies in front of him.

Red gave her a smile and said, "No, but I do like the cookie!" Red cracked open his cookie and popped one of the halves into his mouth.

"Read what yours says and then I'll read mine," Lizzie said.

Red sighed rather dramatically but did as she said.

You will live a long and happy life!

Red read out loud before tossing the strip of paper down onto the table.

"See? Nonsense." Red said.

"How is that nonsense?" Lizzie asked as she rolled her eyes.

"Lizzie, look at what I do for a living. The chances of me blowing out a hundred candles are slim to none," Red said, popping the other half of his cookie in his mouth.

Lizzie once again rolled her eyes as she began to crack open her own cookie. She unrolled the small piece of paper and read the message out loud.

Your smile is a treasure to all those who know and love you.

"Well now, I take back everything I said. There may be some truth to these things after all!" Red said with a smile.

Lizzie laughed and shook her head as she took a bite of her cookie.

The End!

A/N: Review :)