Felix is only mildly surprised to learn that Lila made an appearance during Wolfgang's date with Kala. He nods as Wolfgang tells him Kala was in a coffee shop at the time; that Lila saw her but left without speaking to Kala.

Felix's eyes are sharp with vindication. "I knew she'd want to see it for herself, that you have a real girlfriend!" he says. "Lila just can't let things alone, especially where you're concerned. Plus," he adds, throwing a knowing look at Wolfgang, "she'd want to check out the competition."

Wolfgang turns his attention back to the invoices on his desk. "Maybe," he shrugs.

" 'Maybe' nothing!" Felix stops his restless pacing, eyes narrowed in thought. "You said Lila didn't stick around to chat, but what did Kala say? Did she see Lila?"

Wolfgang's eyes flicker. "Yeah."

"And?" presses Felix. "What did she say? What did she think?"

Wolfgang gives a long exhale, pushing aside the paperwork he handles every Monday; Felix clearly won't move on to business before he hears the whole story. "Kala thought Lila meant for her to see everything; that it would cause us to fight. I agreed, so that's what we did: We pretended to have a big fight, and then we made up. I think Lila's man was still there, watching. If he was, and he told her about it, then..." Wolfgang doesn't bother to finish, eyeing Felix expectantly.

Felix stares back in confusion. "I don't get it," he says bluntly, "What do you mean? Kala thought Lila would expect the two of you to fight just because Kala saw you talking to some woman? I mean, that sounds -, " Felix looks uncertain. "Not like Kala. But I guess, if she was the really jealous type -"

Wolfgang gives a humorless smirk. "No," he agrees. He pauses for the merest second before he adds: "Not talking to Lila; Lila kissed me."

Felix's eyebrows rise. "Kissed you?" he repeats. He visibly struggles to contain his alarm. " Lila kissed you?" he asks. "You didn't kiss her back? The two of you weren't mutually kissing each other?"

Wolfgang stares stonily at Felix. Felix nods in concession: "Okay, okay," he mumbles. "You can't blame me for asking. I mean … Well, that makes more sense, then, about a big fight." His eyes narrow. "Lila kissed you in front of Kala?"

"Not in front of Kala." Wolfgang gives a short exhale. "I didn't even know Kala saw anything until later. But she was leaving the coffee shop, and of course she saw. Then Lila left."

Felix makes a derogatory sound. He shakes his head. "I bet Lila made sure Kala saw," he says. Felix runs an impatient hand through his hair before he resumes pacing. "Clever of Kala to think about having a fight right there, in public. You hate drama; you'd run away before she would. I mean, you didn't even try to stop Lila from leaving with Fuchs after -" Felix flushes a little as he side-eyes Wolfgang. "Well," he finishes uncomfortably, "you're not one to do that."

"No."

"And Kala doesn't know you would never do that. But Lila does."

"Exactly." Wolfgang gives a self-deprecating huff. "You would have been proud. Kala walked away and I ran after her to apologize."

Felix's eyes widen. He gives a short laugh. "Can't picture it," he says. "But that makes it more convincing, how much Kala must mean to you that you'd do that ."

"Yes."

Felix nods. "I get it," he says, although he still seems to muse over the events.

Wolfgang shakes his head, stares back at his paperwork. But his focus wanders elsewhere, unsettled by the recollection of his actions yesterday.

He'd been the one to insist Kala leave, but he'd still been startled by her abrupt departure, at the stricken look she'd given him before she turned and walked quickly toward the train station. It was as if she had flipped a switch and become the other Kala.

Wolfgang frowns.

Her transformation had been so convincing he actually worried he'd done something to offend her. He'd called after Kala, his pace quickening as she deliberately weaved through the crowd. And when she seemed to ignore him, dropping her hard-earned mocha into a garbage bin, it was as if he'd flipped a switch and become that other Wolfgang, calling her name in earnest.

He was shaken when he reached her, and she had simply asked "how was that".

Wolfgang stares broodingly at his desk.

Felix doesn't notice, preoccupied by his own thoughts. He shuffles to sit down on the sofa, his frown pronounced. "If Lila's guy was still watching," he says, "then he would have told Lila, yeah?"

"No doubt." Wolfgang's mouth twists a little. "Lila worked hard to make sure Kala saw that kiss. I'm sure she'd want to know what happened after she left."

Felix gives a deep sigh. "So why was her guy here last night?"

Wolfgang looks up, eyes narrowed. "Lila's man?" he asks. "Mitaike was here?"

Felix nods. "Yeah. That's it. Mitaike." Felix stretches his legs out in front of him. "He showed up right around midnight: went straight to Yeruslan as if Yeruslan wasn't trying to manage our usual Sunday queue. He asked if you were there."

"Was Lila -"

"Yeruslan didn't see her." Felix tilts a look at Wolfgang. "But that doesn't mean she wasn't there."

Wolfgang frowns, expression grim. "Yeruslan told him I wasn't in?" he asks.

"Yeah, then Mitaike left." Felix stares thoughtfully back at his shoes. "Something's up," he says with conviction.

Wolfgang shakes his head slowly. "Nah," he says. "This is a game. Lila wants to win. She wants to prove I can't say no to her. Simple as that."

Felix gives an exhale, brows drawn. "If all Lila wants to do is show she can have you whenever she wants - that your girlfriend doesn't really mean shit - then your zoo stunt should have been the end," he says. "If she's only here on a whim, she should have just shrugged and packed her ass back to Fuchs." Felix's frown deepens. "Instead, she sends her guy to check if you're here because she obviously wants to see you. Even though she now has proof that this relationship is real, and the two of you are over for good."

Wolfgang says nothing for a moment. "Lila will leave," he finally says. "She's not jeopardizing her position with Fuchs for me."

"Maybe." Felix looks at him with eyes that reflect his uncertainty. "But I'll worry about her being here the entire time I'm at my Mum's."

And you're left alone with her. Wolfgang can practically hear Felix say it.

"Don't." Wolfgang sighs. "I promise you she's leaving. She'll be gone before you come back; she'll be gone before the week is even over."

"God I hope so." Felix stretches his arms, lacing his fingers to crack his knuckles. "I don't trust her. Not after Steiner."

"Yeah." Wolfgang rubs his eyes wearily. "How about we go over work stuff before you leave?"

"Yeah, sure," agrees Felix. He pauses, choosing his words carefully. "You'd tell me if there's anything else going on with Lila, right?" he asks.

Wolfgang's face tenses. "Felix."

"If there's more to Lila staying, you'd tell me."

Wolfgang's expression is cool. "Of course," he says.

Felix nods slowly, visibly relaxing. "The sooner she goes," he says, "the sooner all of us can get on with our lives." He shoots a furtive glance at Wolfgang. "Especially Kala."

Wolfgang's face shutters. Felix is right.

Felix is always right.

…

It's later in the evening when Wolfgang arrives at the restaurant. He moves to let a group of people exit, scans the room as he slips inside. He finds Kala in the spot Felix normally occupies, her head tilted away from him as she messages on her cell phone. His eyebrow tics up when his phone vibrates almost immediately. A quick check confirms his new message is from her: Are you almost here? Should I order you something?

He smirks a little. Look up, he writes, walking toward her small table.

Kala's head ducks down to read the new message on her phone before abruptly lifting, eyes darting immediately to him. She breaks into a wide smile, her expression unguarded, and Wolfgang's breath catches, fiercely pleased that she directs that look at him. His eyes flash, brows draw together.

Kala's smile falters beneath the gruff look he gives her. "Hallo," she says, uncertainty creeping into her voice as he takes the seat beside her. "What's wrong?"

Wolfgang's hand steals along her waist. He leans forward, kisses her softly, her mouth relaxing beneath his, parting in a wordless invitation. He lingers, kissing more intimately than he'd intended before he draws away. "Hallo."

Kala's heavy-lidded gaze grows steadily clearer. "Is someone following you?" she asks quietly, not lifting her eyes from his.

He gives a soft huff, a self-deprecating smirk curling his lip. Of course she would presume his movements are always calculated. "If anyone is watching, they should have something to report," he says, settling back into his seat. He reaches into the pocket of his black jacket, drawing out her keys and placing them on the table. "Before I forget."

Kala hesitates, staring before she reaches to cover the keys with her hand. "Thank you," she says, dragging them toward her, thumbing the jagged teeth.

"I fixed your door," he adds. "Should lock properly now when you leave."

"Oh?" She gives him a grateful look. "I've asked the landlord about it twice, but he hasn't done anything. What did you do?"

He gives a shrug, his expression cryptic. "Just adjusted the lock," he says. There's a flash of amusement in his eyes. "I used to work with locks, before the club."

"Oh." Kala smiles fleetingly. "Thank you. Again." She catches her lip, suddenly self-conscious as she looks around and notices the server approaching their table. "Are you hungry?" she asks, throwing Wolfgang a faintly embarrassed look. "I've eaten already. I thought you'd be much later. Maybe a beer?"

Wolfgang catches her glance and shakes his head at the server. "I'm good," he says, waving him back. "Sorry to make you wait so long. I thought you said you'd be done later."

"Me too." Kala gives a small shrug. "The person in charge of the research said we'd be leaving earlier than we're used to. Something about the data going elsewhere at the end of the day. I'm not quite sure what she means, but I'm not complaining."

"That reminds me about Fischer." Wolfgang's eyes narrow. "Did you see him?"

Kala nods. "Yes, I did." She frowns thoughtfully. "It was the oddest thing. He seemed almost nervous around me. Of course we had to interact throughout the day, and he eventually relaxed, but he was so obviously uncomfortable that one of my new colleagues remarked on it." She looks directly at Wolfgang. "We've seen each other a few times since the party, and Lukas has never acted that way before. Do you think he knows about the zoo? Do you think that's what could have made him so nervous?"

Wolfgang's expression stills. "Sounds like it," he says guardedly.

Kala sighs. She shakes her head slightly, her eyes large and troubled. "I've never bothered to ask why he is so afraid of you, because it's not my business and it suits my needs that he just is ," she says. "But why does a simple act of showing your commitment to our 'relationship' have such a profound effect, Wolfgang? Why is it that that is what makes Lukas nervous?"

Wolfgang breathes out, leans back against his seat. He thinks about how best to answer her, unsure of how much she needs to know, or should know. Does she really need to know his past? Or who Lila Facchini truly is? What would Kala think if she knew all he'd been, all he'd done, because he came from a family of bad men? That the legacy of those days trail him like shit stuck to the bottom of his shoes?

The muscle along Wolfgang's jaw ticks.

Fischer knows, of course; Fischer had been friends with Steiner. And Fischer, more than anyone else, maybe even Felix, is aware of what Wolfgang is capable of doing if any harm comes to someone he cares for.

Kala looks at him expectantly. He thinks of an answer close to the truth and gives a small shrug.

"If Fischer knows about the zoo, then he knows I chose you over Lila," he says carefully. "He doesn't want to risk offending you in case you complain to me."

Kala's eyes flash. "As if I am less deserving of courtesy without you," she says tersely.

Wolfgang smiles fleetingly at her justifiable outrage. "Men like Fischer," he begins before he shrugs again. "But you already know that."

"Yes," she says, her expression almost bitter. "Some things are universal."

He looks at her sharply, as if it suddenly occurs to him that Fisher may not have been the only asshat that Kala's encountered. "Not the first time?" he asks.

She shakes her head. "No." Her gaze slips from his, a slight flush to her cheeks. "But I was much younger, then. Just out of University. And I learned from that." She looks pensively at the keys she still clutches in her hand, unaware of the irrational anger that flashes through Wolfgang, his hands balling into fists.

"I'm sorry it happened," he says roughly.

She looks back at him and gives a huff of surprise at his forbidding expression. "It was a very long time ago," she says softly. "Things worked out."

He frowns. "Then you came to Berlin, and it happens again," he says.

She smiles a little at that. "Yes," she agrees. "But I am not just out of University. I hardly feel like the same person." Her smile softens. "Anyway, I wouldn't have met you otherwise. Or Felix."

He stares back, watches the tell-tale color creep back up her face.

He wants to kiss her again. He wants to make her forget about Fischer and the nameless person who made her feel weak when she is brilliant and fearless.

"I'll drive you home," he offers. "If you like."

The color rises across her face and Kala gives a short laugh. "We're only supposed to see each other a few times during the work week," she reminds him.

"So? We're seeing each other now already."

Kala shakes her head, amused. "Meeting me here to return my keys doesn't count as a date."

Wolfgang gives a crooked smile, leans in to make his point: "It will if you invite me back to your place."

Kala's eyes grow wide. She catches her bottom lip, somehow startled, and gives a soft exhale. "You're impossible," she tells him, although there is no real censure in her tone. "What about Felix's plan?"

Wolfgang's brows lift. "Felix's plan?" he repeats, giving a dismissive shrug. "That was before we started sleeping together."

There's a flicker in Kala's eyes at his statement, amused and wistful. "Didn't I already tell you we can't be in bed all day?" she reminds him. "We have to go on dates. No one can see how things are going if we're not out."

"I think they can guess," he says dryly. He leans back, oddly put off that she relates his desire for her to this act they perform. "Kala, I want you ," he tells her. "That has nothing to do with Lila or Fischer or anyone else. Just you."

She stares back at him, her amusement gone, her eyes dark. "I know," she says. She doesn't say anything for a moment, choosing her words before she asks:"If Fischer believes I mean something to you, do you think Lila does too?" She drops her gaze back to the keys that she clenches and unclenches. "Do you think she'll leave sooner than you expect?"

He frowns. "Maybe," he says. "I don't know." Kala nods, and his expression clears, the reason for her reticence suddenly becoming evident. "Are you thinking this is over when Lila leaves?" he asks. "All that means is that we don't need to be on any dates, acting on our best behavior." He gives her a reassuring look. "If you want me, call me. Or don't. You're free."

Kala's expression doesn't change. "Of course," she says. "We can just continue to sleep together."

"Yes." Wolfgang gives a slight huff.

She nods once more before she shifts in her seat. "Thanks again for making sure my door closes and fixing my lock," she says. "But I don't think you should stay with me. I barely made it to work on time today."

He smirks but doesn't tease her about the morning. "I'd like to drive you home, still," he says. "Ease my mind that you're safe."

Kala's amusement returns. "I've gone home alone later than this," she says. "There's no need to go out of your way."

"But I'm here already." Wolfgang looks around at the few remaining patrons, none of whom he recognizes. "If someone's still watching, it only makes sense that I drive you home." His gaze returns to hers, his expression self-deprecating. "I promise that's all I'll do."

Kala directs a suspicious gaze at him but smiles, shaking her head as she stands. "Ok," she agrees.

Wolfgang gets up after her, already holding his car keys in one hand while the other reaches for his cellphone.

Kala puts on her coat while he types a quick message to Yeruslan.

Watch her tonight.

They are walking to his car when Yeruslan's short response comes back: K.

A/N: I mentioned that this could get dark and there will be angst. But how it all unfolds seems to be taking its own sweet time. . . Thanks for hanging in there!