Author's Note: This is written for Didou27 for the Lizzington Shippers gift exchange. It's not exactly what she asked for, but my muse took me a different direction. Hopefully it doesn't disappoint!

Warning: This is AU

Liz rubbed the small of her back tiredly as she waited for the last customer of the night to leave. As soon as he left, she would be able to count down the till and go home. Although "home" these days was nothing more than a run down apartment with a lumpy bed. Her only goal in life at the moment was to stay unnoticed. To fade into the background and blend in ever since she had learned that her life had been a lie. That Tom Keen wasn't actually real. That she was his "assignment" and nothing more.

She glanced at the man in the corner once more and sighed quietly. He had been sitting there for hours, wanting nothing more than tea and to be left alone. He was well dressed, considering the usual folk that walked in the old diner. He reminded her of one of those mobster characters from the old movies she used to watch with her dad, with a tight fitting vest and a hat set on the table. She wondered who or what he was waiting for. He didn't have any electronics to keep him occupied that she could see, and he'd read through his newspaper hours ago.

Liz finished wiping everything down, then waved to the cook in the back as he bid her goodbye. She hated closing because the part of town the diner was in was dangerous, but it was the only way she could get the amount of hours she needed in order to survive.

She was loathe to approach the strange man in the corner once again, but it was nearing midnight and she had another long shift the next day. Her tips had been measly that day, and her feet were really starting to ache. A combination that left her becoming increasingly angry that he was making her wait.

Finally, after another ten minutes, she walked up to him with a fake smile plastered on her face. "Excuse me, Sir, but it's closing time."

He looked up at her with a raised eyebrow and a small smirk on his face. She wanted to punch him.

"Oh, of course. I apologize for making you stay late."

When he offered nothing else, she glanced around the diner then back at him. "Were you waiting for someone?"

He began to gather his belongings and didn't look up as he said, "No, no one in particular."

Confused, but not caring enough to question him further, Liz stepped back and started towards the door to let him out.

She heard him stand as he spoke once more, "I was wondering if I could get an application."

She turned around in surprise and couldn't seem to form words. He had sat there all day so he could ask for an application? Why? He was definitely strange.

He had put his hat on and had a genuine smile on his face, all teeth and charm. When she didn't say anything, he stepped forward with his hand held out. "I'm Raymond. I just moved here and don't have a source of income, so I desperately need a job. Are you hiring?"

She reached forward and shook his hand briefly, still wary of him, but his smile did something to her insides that she wasn't used to feeling. Using her alias name, she said, "I'm Jen, and you're in luck, we actually need a night cook for the weekdays."

His smile brightened briefly before it faded, like he wasn't used to smiling for that long. He leaned towards her slightly and raised his eyebrow again. "May I have an application please?"

She shook her head, breaking her trance like stare at his face and nodded; unsettled by her reaction to his close proximity. Clearing her throat, she thumbed behind her and said, "Let me go get one. I'll just be a second."

He nodded and fixed his hat as she turned and hurried to where to applications were kept. She returned a few moments later to find that he hadn't moved, much to her relief. He took the proffered application with a small nod, then followed her as she opened the door for him. He passed through the doorway, then turned, his eyes hidden in the dark under the brim of his hat. "Who do I need to speak to tomorrow about working here?"

She opened the door a little wider and glanced behind him, wary of the dark shadows and noises coming from outside. "Joe will be here in the morning, he's the manager."

He touched the brim of his hat in thanks, then turned and walked into the dark without another word.

Liz closed the door quickly and locked it, unsettled by not only the dark, but the strange encounter with "Raymond". He was intriguing, but there was something about him that was setting off her warning bells and she couldn't figure out why.

She didn't know him from anywhere...right?

OOOOOO

The next day, Liz walked in for her shift with heavy eyes and an aching back. She hadn't managed much sleep that night because she had kept imagining "Tom" bursting into her apartment and taking her away or killing her on the spot. Then when she had finally managed to think about something else, Raymond wormed his way into her thoughts. What was it about him that kept her thoughts returning to him?

She clocked in, greeting her co-workers with a small smile and nothing more. As she reached for her apron hanging from a hook next to the time clock, she heard a voice that froze her in her place. It was "his" voice. Raymond's.
He was talking about the menu, apparently being trained by the cook who usually just worked the weekends. She grabbed the apron off the hook and spun around to see that his back was to her. He was wearing a thin, white shirt and well-fitting, black pants with a white apron tied loosely at his back. As soon as she recovered, she plastered the fake smile back on her face and said loudly, "Looks like you got the job. Congrats."

He stopped talking mid-sentence and turned towards her. Giving her a thin-lipped smile as he nodded. "Thank you. I think this will be perfect for my needs." With that, he turned back around and pointed at something, asking the cook a question she couldn't hear.

A little put off by his abrupt dismissal, she slid her apron over her head and walked out to the front, her thoughts once again on Raymond and her strange urge to want to know more about him.

The night passed quickly with it being busier than usual. She never had time to see how he was doing, but the food came out as fast as ever and there were no complaints about the food; which actually was a little unusual.

When it came time to close and all her work was done, she walked to the back to see him leaning against a table with his hands braced against the side. When she raised her eyebrows questioningly, he shrugged and said, "I thought I would walk you to your car. This part of town isn't exactly safe."

"You don't think I can take care of myself?" She teased, only half-serious as she slid her coat on.

He stood straight and walked over to the door. "Of that, I have no doubt. It just isn't in me to let you walk by yourself at night."

Not having the energy to argue, she just nodded and followed him out the back door and towards her car. The nights were beginning to get colder and she wrapped her thin, worn coat tightly around her. She would somehow have to come up with enough money to buy a heavier coat. Or maybe she could find one at the local Goodwill. She glanced out of the corner of her eye to see that he was removing his coat. She stopped and turned to him, "What are you doing?"

He quickly slipped his coat over her shoulders and continued walking. "Your coat isn't heavy enough for this weather, Jen."

She wanted to protest, but he was already too far away and she could feel the looming shadows of nighttime beginning to press in on her. She slipped her arms inside his coat, surprised that it was only a little bit too big, then hurried to catch up.

She knew he wouldn't take it back from her, so as soon as she caught up, she thanked him. "I've been meaning to buy a heavier coat, but haven't had the chance. So thank you."

He looked at her skeptically, but nodded in acknowledgment.

They reached her car soon after and she reached up to take his coat back off. It really was a nice coat. He stopped her with a shake of his head. "Keep it until you get yourself one that's actually warm enough."

She sighed, but nodded and opened her door. "Do you work tomorrow?"

He nodded. "I'll be training for the rest of the week. You?"

She nodded as well. "Of course. I only ever get Sundays off."

His lips turned up a little as he watched her get in the car and turn it on. "Have a good night, Jen."

He shut her door with a nod, then turned and walked away. She watched him go as she waited for her car to warm up a little. He didn't seem to have a car and she wondered if she should offer him a ride, but not seeing him anymore, she shrugged and pulled out of the little parking lot and headed towards her apartment. His scent surrounding her and thoughts of him consuming her.

OOOOOO

The next two weeks played out much the same. They greeted one another at the beginning of their shift and he walked her to her car at the end, and she still hadn't returned his coat, which she now wore every day to and from work. He never asked for it back, so that made her feel less guilty about basically taking hostage of it. It was warm and comfortable, and smelt like him, which was a mixture of Sandalwood and something else she couldn't identify.

Their conversations had finally become less stilted and awkward, getting to the point where she actually enjoyed talking to him. He was funny and extremely charming. She frequently forgot about her troubles when they talked, and she found that she was starting to miss him on Sundays when she didn't see him; but she tried her best not to think about that, because that made things complicated. And she didn't need any more complications in her life at the moment.

One month after he had begun working there, she walked in the back and found him cooking something on the grill. It didn't smell like anything they sold at the diner and she sidled up to him quickly. "What are you making?"

He nudged her with his shoulder and prodded the piece of meat with his prongs. "My dinner. It's just the steak we sell here, just a little more dressed up."

She inhaled and closed her eyes, the smell taking her back to her childhood when she would go with her dad to the local steakhouse. She loved steak.

Instead of telling him any of that, she said instead, "I don't think you're supposed to be doing that."

He shrugged and flipped the steak. "I'm cooking my dinner and I'll make sure and pay for it. Does that make you feel better?"

It did, but she wasn't going to tell him that.

"So how come you've never cooked here before."

She saw him smile and smiled herself. "I didn't want to show up my trainer," he stated seriously.

She punched him in the shoulder lightly, for once not over-analyzing her every move. "You're entirely too qualified to be working here."

"Because I know how to cook a steak?"

She shook her head. "I can just tell. I wish I knew how to cook. Boiling water is about all I can manage."

He said nothing further, and they both watched in comfortable silence as he finished cooking the steak.

As he put it in a to go box, he finally spoke. "I could teach you."

She had been zoning out, lost in thought but quickly recovered. "Oh, I don't think so. I don't want to be a bother."

He smiled in response and shook his head. "You could never bother me, Jen. Count on that."

A little taken back by the serious look in his eyes, she nodded. "I would love for you to teach me, Raymond."

AN2: I plan on posting chapter two soon. Hopefully by the end of the week. Please let me know what you think. :)