On the day Samar was released from the hospital, Liz was there to drive her home. Once Samar was settled on her couch with easy access to a book and the TV remote, Liz's face broke into an easy smile. "It's so good to see you back at home."

Samar mirrored her smile, leaning her head back into the cushions, with a relaxed sigh. "Agreed."

Liz remained standing in front of Samar, bringing her hands together as if she meant business. "Alright, are you hungry? Are you feeling okay enough to eat real food?"

Samar nodded emphatically. "Real food sounds amazing."

Liz grinned, practically giddy to tell Samar about the surprise she and Red had planned. "Good, because Red's been cooking for hours, and he's going to drop it off any minute!"

Samar's eyes widened in disbelief, her expression quickly morphing into a look of grateful appreciation. "Liz, what-"

Liz cut her off. "It was his idea, not mine. Softie, remember? I can't cook anything edible so my idea was Chinese takeout, but he insisted you needed healthy, nutritious food. He's probably right." She shrugged, a sudden smirk creasing the corners of her mouth. "But I did convince him to bring some ice cream too."

Samar let out an only-half-kidding sigh of relief. "Thank god. Real ice cream. That stuff at the hospital is practically inedible."

"Trust me, I know. Which is why Red's bringing us Ben & Jerry's. I told him to get something chocolatey."

"Elizabeth Keen, you are officially the best."

Liz chuckled, but was quickly interrupted by her phone dinging in her pocket. "That'll be Red. I'll go help him bring the food up. Be right back, okay?"

Samar nodded, burrowing down deeper into her pillows.

Before she knew it, her cozy, usually-silent apartment was filled with the happy voices of her friends and the smell of freshly-cooked food. As Liz put the ice cream in the freezer, Red set the food on the counter and then turned to Samar. "How are you feeling, Agent Navabi?"

"Much better. Thank you so much for making all this food. It smells delicious. And please, call me Samar."

"You're welcome, Samar. I hope you enjoy your first night back at home." Red turned to the door, preparing to leave.

"Where are you going?" Samar asked, confused.

"This is girls' night, I don't want to intrude."

"Please stay for dinner," Samar requested. "You went to all this trouble."

"It was no trouble at all," Red assured her. "And I want you to have leftovers during your recovery."

Samar smiled at him, thankful for his thoughtfulness. "If you insist. Thank you, Reddington."

"Feel free to shorten that to Red if you'd like," he offered. "I apologize, but only Lizzie has Raymond privileges as of now." He grinned at Liz, tilting his chin up proudly. Liz strode over to him, leaning in for a quick kiss, and then Red was off, tossing a pleased "Have a lovely evening, ladies" over his shoulder as he left.

Liz quickly fixed up two heaping plates of food – chipotle-glazed chicken breast, rice, green beans, squash – and brought them to the couch, handing one to Samar. "Dig in! Red's a great cook."

"I don't doubt it." Samar's stomach grumbled. She was hungrier than she'd realized. Getting shot in the abdomen and spending a week eating hospital food would do that to you, she supposed.

After the first several bites had sated the worst of her hunger, Samar spoke again. "So, I've been meaning to bring this up – Reddington has a cat?" she asked in utter disbelief, her brows raised, fork suspended in mid-air above her plate.

Liz burst out laughing, practically choking on the bite of chicken she had just begun to swallow. "That was my reaction! It's so unexpected, right?"

Samar nodded fervently in agreement.

"Only on the surface though. Not once you get to know him beyond the fancy suits and the criminal activity." Samar's snort interrupted her and Liz rolled her eyes lightheartedly at the implication. "I know, I know. I'm FBI agent of the year. But seriously, it's all an act. Underneath, he's just a lonely guy with a feline companion."

Samar chuckled and took a bite of squash, looking thoughtful as she swallowed. "I may need to get a cat."

Liz smirked. "To keep you company until you're ready for an Aram?"

Samar sighed, playfully glaring at Liz, but she couldn't contain her smile. "I suppose you could say that."

"Don't worry, the next girls' night will involve alcohol. Once you're off those pain meds."

Samar laughed, one eyebrow raised, suspicious. "Are you trying to get me to drunkenly text Aram? Is that your goal here?"

Liz shrugged, a sly grin on her face. "Drunken confessions have worked out pretty well for me."