It was early in the morning when Lucifer left the penthouse to go to the precinct. He was wearing one of his best three-piece suits, black and purple combined. His hair was perfectly styled and his face didn't show any signs of what he went through the last two nights.

The precinct was busy but the Detective was not at her desk. Lucifer went to all other possible places where she could be, but she was nowhere to be found. When he came back to her desk he saw Daniel standing close by.

"Hello, Daniel." There had been a lot of tension between them ever since Charlotte died, but Lucifer tried his best to be friendly. He wasn't in the mood for any unnecessary arguments.

"What do you want." Daniel didn't hide the fact that he was still angry at Lucifer.

"Well, I was wondering if you've seen the Detective," Lucifer said.

"Yeah, she was here but then went to a new crime scene."

"I see. So where is she now?"

"I don't know." Daniel shrugged and turned around to go back to his desk.

"Hey, hey. I thought you're also involved in this case. Shouldn't you know?" Lucifer followed Daniel and tried to hold him back at his shoulder.

Daniel turned around and pushed Lucifer's hand away. "She has enough help and doesn't need an ass like you being around her."

"Excuse me?"

Daniel looked at Lucifer with a grim face. "Look, I've seen how you treated her the last couple of days and that's not what she deserves."

"I know," Lucifer replied, "and I'm here to talk to her about it. So, can you please tell me now where she is?"

"I could, but it's better if you don't make a scene at the crime scene and wait for her here." Daniel turned around and walked away before Lucifer could think of a good reply.

Lucifer was waiting in the Detective's chair for her to come back to the precinct. His fingers kept playing with different objects he found on her desk while thinking about Daniel's words. Making a scene? Him? He would never do that. Probably. Maybe. He threw the pen in his hand back on the desk where it hit a pile of small paper notes, making a mess of them.

"Hey, what are you doing with my stuff?" The Detective stood in front of her desk, not looking happy.

"Detective…" Lucifer said. He was so surprised by her sudden appearance that he forgot what he wanted to say.

She rolled her eyes, took a file from her desk, and began to walk away. Lucifer immediately jumped up and followed her.

"Detective—"

"I don't have time for your childish games right now, Lucifer," she said without stopping or looking at him. "I have work to do."

"I heard you went to a new crime scene. Did—"

"Yes, and we got a new suspect I have to talk to now, so please let me work."

"I will help you," Lucifer offered. The Detective stopped walking and looked at him, her face looking displeased.

"That's not necessary," she said. "John will help me."

"Who's John?"

"He started working here two months ago. He's a good guy who takes his work seriously. Not like a certain someone here."

"That's not—"

"I really don't care at the moment." The Detective turned around and went into the interrogation room without looking back.

Lucifer considered following her but then decided to go to the observation room. The Detective was already angry enough at him, not the best situation for the conversation he wanted to have with her.

When he looked through the mirrored window he saw the Detective already talking to the suspect, a young man who was shifting around in his chair and refused to give detailed answers most of the time. Lucifer could have easily helped with his powers but the Detective kept sitting there, making it clear that she didn't want his help.

Another police officer was sitting next to the Detective but Lucifer could only see his back. He didn't say a lot and let her do most of the talking. When they were finally done and the suspect left the room, the police officer stopped the Detective at the door.

"Hey Chloe," he said. "Um… do you have a moment?"

He calls her Chloe, thought Lucifer and his eyes became narrow. John was a young man, probably in his late twenties or early thirties, with blond hair and blue eyes. Lucifer took out the bottle of alcohol he always carried around and started drinking while watching the scene in the other room.

"Sure, what's up John?"

John closed the door and pointed toward the inside of the room before he continued to talk.

"Thanks Chloe, I really learned a lot from you today." His face showed a bright smile.

"That's great," the Detective replied.

"I really want to thank you properly," John continued. "Can I invite you to dinner tonight?"

Lucifer choked on his alcohol.

"Oh… um…" The Detective looked to the ground. "I'm not sure."

"It will just be a nice dinner between friends," John said.

The Detective still hesitated for a moment, then she continued with a smile. "Sure, why not."

"Great! Then I'll come pick you up at seven? 'The Seven Swans' is an amazing restaurant, you're gonna love it."

"Yeah, sure!" She nodded and both of them left the room.

Lucifer stood behind the mirrored window and kept staring into the now empty interrogation room. What happened in there was something he didn't expect. He emptied the rest of his bottle and left the observation room in a hurry. He had to talk to the Detective—

"Ouch!" said a female voice and Lucifer could hear falling objects. When he realized what happened, he saw Ms. Lopez on the ground, with books and papers all around her.

"I'm terribly sorry for bumping into you, Ms. Lopez. Are you okay?"

"I'm fine, I'm fine," she replied. "But wow, that was intense."

She quickly gathered all the books and papers around her and got up, being as cheerful as ever. Lucifer was so shocked by the fact that he didn't see her coming that he only stared at the scene in front of him, unable to do anything.

"Hey, Lucifer… are you okay?"

"Sorry?" Lucifer was still so in thoughts that he hadn't listened to her.

"You look… shocked," Ms. Lopez said while taking a closer look at him.

"Well…" Lucifer didn't know what to say. He was not okay but that wasn't something he wanted to announce to everyone in the precinct. Especially not to the doucheface who was close by.

"Hey, can you help me carry this stuff to my lab?"

"Um… alright," Lucifer replied and took some of the books from her.

The lab was empty when they arrived. Ms. Lopez put the papers on the table and closed the door behind Lucifer.

"No one else can hear you now, so you can tell me what happened."

Very clever of you, thought Lucifer.

"Did you have a fight with Chloe?"

Lucifer didn't reply. Was he that easy to read today?

"Hey, I've been wondering… where have you been in the last few months?"

"I went back to hell to deal with some things," Lucifer said without really thinking.

"Dude, you're still acting? It's getting old, you know. Or hey, is this like a metaphor? I get it, I also find going back home sometimes like going to hell. Ugh, family can be so annoying sometimes!"

Lucifer sighed at hearing her innocent chatter. Of course she wouldn't understand him. Whatever happened, she always thought he was just acting.

"It had nothing to do with my family, this time at least."

"But it must have been pretty serious, huh? You were gone for such a long time… Chloe felt terrible after you left. And since you're back you've been acting pretty weird… No wonder you just had a fight."

Bloody hell, this woman was persistent. But for some reason she didn't make Lucifer feel uncomfortable. Maybe it was her naivety or her honesty—or both.

"Well, to tell the truth," Lucifer said, "this was all about the Detective. She is the reason that I went to hell. She's also the reason that I came back. All to protect her."

"Wow," Ms. Lopez replied, stretching the word long. "This feels like a déjà vu."

"What do you mean, Ms. Lopez?"

"Oh… nothing, nothing!" She waved her hand at Lucifer. "It's just that you and Chloe… You're sometimes very similar. And you know, you always seem to walk around in circles."

"I see," Lucifer said. It's not that he didn't know that already. It had always been a back and forth between them, and every time one of them took one step closer, something happened and they were both back several steps. It was like a curse. As if they just shouldn't be together. Maybe he should just forget it and—

"Wha—" Lucifer looked in surprise when Ms. Lopez suddenly hugged him. He tried to avoid her hugs whenever he could but today he didn't see it coming.

"I'm really happy that you're back, Lucifer," she said, still hugging him. "We all missed you a lot."

"Um, ah…" Lucifer didn't know what to reply. The situation felt awkward but at the same time it calmed down the panic that was slowly rising inside him. After some seconds that felt like an eternity, she stepped back, smiling at him.

"Don't leave us again without saying anything, okay?"

"Um…"

"Also, you should really talk to Chloe. Look, she's just going back to her desk." She pointed to the outside of the window of the lab where the Detective was. "The earlier the better."

Lucifer nodded after regaining his determination. "Thank you, Ms. Lopez."

"Anytime!" Ms. Lopez's smile was angelic.

"Detective?"

She looked up from her desk and had that annoyed look in her eyes that he knew too well.

"I would like to talk to you," Lucifer said in a tone that he hoped was neutral and friendly.

"Okay?" The look in her eyes started to soften.

"Well, not now and here… How about this evening? We could eat something and talk."

Lucifer noticed the positive reaction in her eyes and hoped it was enough to make her say yes. She kept thinking about his proposal for a while before she spoke.

"Actually… I already have plans tonight. But how about tomorrow?"

"Tomorrow sounds good too."

Tomorrow didn't sound good. Lucifer couldn't believe that she preferred this John guy over him. And even worse, she was going out with a guy who he didn't check yet.

"Good." The Detective went back to the documents in front of her.

Lucifer started getting nervous. Was she scared after what happened in the observation room the other day? Was she annoyed about his behavior when he came back? He couldn't tell and the feeling of uneasiness kept growing stronger. He had to say something, just anything to make her look at him again.

"So… Can I help with the case now?" Talking about work was probably the best way to start. "Who was our suspect just now? I saw him briefly, he looked extremely nervous as if he wanted to hide something."

The Detective looked up from her documents. "He was the victim's younger lover. Seems like they started having an affair just recently."

"Well, if you ask me, it's not always a good idea to have a younger lover. They can be quite demanding and get in your way."

The look in the Detective's eyes changed and she glared at him.

"I didn't ask you. Why don't you do something useful, Lucifer? Here, you can bring these documents to the lab and have Ella have a look at them."

She handed him a pile of documents in a way that Lucifer couldn't refuse.

"Consider it done, Detective." Lucifer put on his charming smile, then turned around and walked to the lab.

He wasn't happy that she sent him away. It was obvious that she didn't want to talk to him or even have him around. Maybe he should have asked her to talk immediately. But the office wasn't the right place for it. He needed her full attention without distractions.

Lucifer walked into the lab but the only person in there was the new intern.

"Hello, Ms. Palmer." Lucifer put the documents on the table. "These documents are for Ms. Lopez. If you were so kind to tell her about them when she's back."

"Sure!"

Lucifer was about to leave when he suddenly had an idea.

"Ms. Palmer," he said in a charming tone. "Actually, I was surprised to hear about your wish yesterday. You know, your own forensics lab. And I think I can help you…"

"Really?" Her eyes got bigger.

"I have a lot of connections and can certainly do something."

"This would be amazing!"

Lucifer smirked when he saw that he got her attention. Offering favors and fulfilling people's desires was what he was best at, after all.

"Let's discuss this over dinner, okay? It's my treat."

"Sure! I'd love to."

"Great. I'll pick you up at 6:30."

That was easy. Now there was only one thing left to do. Lucifer left the lab and went into one of the empty meeting rooms. He took out his phone and searched for "The Seven Swans restaurant Los Angeles". The first hit brought him to the website of the restaurant and he started calling the listed phone number.

"Hello, this is Mr. Morningstar. I'd like to make a reservation tonight at 7 p.m. For two people. Yes. Thank you."

Lucifer put away his phone and smiled. He definitely wouldn't risk leaving the Detective alone with a possible demon.

"Please, choose whatever you want," Lucifer said when he and Ms. Palmer sat down at their table in "The Seven Swans". He had made sure with some extra money to get a table in an isolated corner with a good overview of the rest of the restaurant.

Some minutes later he could see the Detective and the John guy at the entrance. A waiter guided them to a table not too far away, but also not too close. The Detective wasn't dressed fancy but the John guy looked like he would try everything tonight to impress her. Lucifer sipped his wine and continued his conversation with his companion while observing the other couple carefully.

He had tried to do a background search on the John guy, but it wasn't very fruitful. He was 28, not married, and as a previous teacher only recently decided to switch careers and join the police. Overall he seemed like a boring guy with a boring life. But this didn't mean he couldn't be possessed by a demon.

"... and that's how I decided to become a forensics specialist."

"I see," Lucifer said, only partly listening to Ms. Palmer's words. "What a fascinating story."

Lucifer wasn't interested in her story at all. In the past he would have loved to spend time with a woman like her—beautiful, intelligent, and she knew what she wanted. But now it only felt bland and superficial. She was only here with him because he could help her fulfill her wish. In the end, everyone only used him for their own desires.

"Why did you decide to become a civilian consultant for the LAPD?"

The question caught him off guard. He didn't expect her to be interested in anything about him. Maybe she wasn't as shallow as he thought.

"Well… I happened to work together with Detective Decker on a case. And after that I decided to provide my skills to the LAPD."

"Detective Decker is an amazing person from what I've seen so far."

Lucifer smiled. "She is indeed."

His eyes wandered back to the Detective and Lucifer had to force himself not to stare at her. She was more than an amazing person. She was the most special person he had ever met in his lifetime.

He was still thinking about the Detective when Ms. Palmer got up from her chair.

"Please excuse me for a moment, I need to go to the restroom."

"Sure."

Lucifer leaned back on his chair and watched the other table. The Detective seemed to have a good time with the John guy. Lucifer sighed. It should have been him sitting there with the Detective now. He would have ordered the best wine from the card, and recommended her the best dish. And then, he would have talked to her about the entire situation and—

The John guy suddenly got up and left toward the restroom area. Lucifer reacted immediately and followed him. This was the perfect chance to catch the John guy alone and find out his true intentions before he and the Detective left the restaurant.

When Lucifer arrived at the restroom area he could hear loud voices, both of them sadly too familiar to ignore them.

"With Detective Decker? Are you serious, John?"

"Christine, we're not together anymore, I can do whatever I want."

"Sure, you just broke up with me because of her. At least admit it."

"I don't know what you're talking about?"

"John, I know you've had someone else for a while, stop pretending."

"No, I didn't!"

"Is something wrong here, Ms. Palmer?" asked Lucifer, appearing next to her. "If he's bothering you I can deal with it and we can go back to our table."

Lucifer didn't like the situation. He knew he had to stop it before it turned into some big drama.

"Oh, I see, so you're blaming me for going out with someone else, but look at what you're doing." The John guy got even more agitated than he was before.

"This is not a date," Ms. Palmer said. "It's purely professional."

The John guy looked at Lucifer with a displeased look. "He sure looks like a professional escort."

"Excuse me, but that's not exactly what I am."

"Oh, but it's similar? Is it fun pleasing women who are too crazy to have a normal relationship?"

"What the hell is wrong with you, John?" Ms. Palmer's voice sounded shrill, almost hysterical.

"Don't tell me what's wrong with me, when you should ask the question yourself!"

"What's the problem here?" It was the Detective's voice coming from behind them.

Lucifer instinctively turned around when he heard her voice and regretted it immediately. She wasn't supposed to see him here. And especially not with Ms. Palmer.

"Lucifer? Why are you here? What's going on here?"

"He's on a date with Ms. Crazy here." The John guy pointed with his finger toward Ms. Palmer.

"I am not." Lucifer felt like grabbing the John guy and making him shut up.

"You brought your date to the same restaurant?" The Detective lifted an eyebrow. "This can't be a coincidence. Were you following me?"

"I…" Lucifer stopped speaking. He didn't want to lie to the Detective. But what could he possibly tell her? He was following her after all.

"I can't believe you're doing this." The Detective shook her head.

"Detective, this is not what you think."

"Sure. You couldn't accept that I already had plans for tonight so you were following me. This is just…"

She didn't finish her sentence. Lucifer could hear the disappointment in her voice, could see the disappointment in her eyes. This was not what he wanted.

"Detective, I—"

"Chloe, should we go somewhere else?" The John guy stepped forward, cutting off Lucifer before he could say more. "I know some other great restaurants around here."

How dare you, thought Lucifer, struggling to hold himself back. But he had to be diplomatic to avoid more problems. Especially to avoid the worst case of the Detective leaving with the John guy before Lucifer could check him.

"Why don't we all have dinner together?" he proposed in a friendly tone.

"I don't want to have dinner with a person who insulted me." Ms. Palmer glared at the John guy.

"And I don't want to have dinner with a crazy chick."

"Okay, stop it, all of you!" The Detective raised her voice. "I'm sorry, but I really don't feel like eating out anymore. I'm going home."

"I'm sorry for this whole mess, Chloe," the John guy said. "Please let me bring you home."

Don't, thought Lucifer, tensing up.

"Thanks John, but I'll go home myself. Goodbye." The Detective turned around and left.

"Well, great job, John," Lucifer said and closed the distance between him and the guy, staring right into his eyes. "Not only did you insult me and my companion, but you also made the Detective angry. Is this what you truly desire?"

"No…" John crumbled under Lucifer's intense stare and started to cry. "But no matter what I do, I always end up alone. I only want to be loved by someone."

Lucifer sighed in relief and stepped back when he heard the harmless answer. This guy was not a demon.

"I'm sorry, Ms. Palmer but I think it's better if we continue our discussion another time." Lucifer had to get away from all this mess. "I'll bring you home."

Neither of them said anything when he drove her home and Lucifer was thankful for it. He didn't feel like making small talk after what happened at the restaurant. And even less he felt like talking about what happened. After a short drive they arrived at her apartment. He dropped her off without many words and drove away into the night without looking back.

Always end up alone… Want to be loved by someone…

John's words were haunting Lucifer the entire drive. The parallel to his own feelings was too obvious.

He had messed up massively. Instead of protecting the Detective he just gave her more reasons to be annoyed at him.

For a second he considered going to her apartment. But he realized that talking to her when she was still angry would do no good. With a sigh he drove back to Lux. Tomorrow. He would go to the precinct tomorrow and apologize. And this time he would make things right.