Well after an hour of holding his phone in his hand, with the number prepared in the window, Meekins brought himself to hitting the 'SEND' button. He held the phone to his ear, hand shaking and heart beating so loud he almost thought she would hear it over the phone.

After the forth ring, he heard the other line answering.

"Hello?" Carol's voice echoed into the receiver.

"...Uh...y-yes, hello, m-miss Ling?" Meekins muttered into his end.

"Yes and who might this be?" She asked in a serious tone.

"Th-This..." Meekins started, then realized how nervous he had sounded already. He cleared his throat and inhaled deeply, trying to calm his nerves. "This is Officer Mike Meekins...miss..."

"Heh...How could I have forgotten your voice." Carol replied, a smile could be heard on her voice. "I was actually waiting for your call."

"Y-You were, miss?" Meekins asked, surprised but beginning to feel at ease.

"Yeah, I was hoping I'd hear from you. These past few days, it almost felt like you disappeared. Were you on cases or just trying to avoid me?" She asked, sounding deadly serious.

"A-Avoid you? W-Why would I do something like that, miss?" Meekins shouted, sweating a bit. He heard a slight chuckle on the other line.

"Relax, I'm just kidding. We've both been busy, I know that." Carol laughed, easing Meekins once again. "But you called so I'd assume you're...asking me on a date?"

Meekins eyes widened. His mind raced from the comment. How could she have been this straight forward over the phone? He thought. W-What does she expect me to say?

"Uh...miss...I-I must say, you were quite fast on coming to that conclusion..." He stammered, heart racing once again.

"But am I wrong?"

"..."

"..."

"N-...No, miss..." Meekins finally brought himself to answer.

"Atta boy." Carol said almost playfully, making Meekins blush harshly. "I know something like this is always hard to do for most people. But let me make it a little easier for you." Carol took a moment to pause before continuing. "I live in the Redwood Oaks complex about 7 miles from the Police Department. It's very easy to find, even for you." She said with a smile. "I live in building number 117. I'll be standing outside. I am 100% open tomorrow night, so at 7:00 is when I'll wait for you. I'll let you decide on where to go." Before Meekins could get a single word in edgewise, she hung up on her line.

"W-...W-...?"

Present Day

"117...117...Where is it..." Meekins spoke to himself, scanning the numbers on the front of each building. He was feeling a blend of several emotions at once, but the most overpowering was anxiety. She made it almost seem like she had planned everything far before even meeting him. And he was like her missing piece in this whole plan of her's. He came close to turning around and forgetting the night, when he pulled up to her building, with her standing just by her front door.

He swallowed hard with the sight of her and slowed the car to a stop. Heart racing once again, he turned his car off and stepped out of the driver's side door. He looked over to her standing a ways away and called out to her.

"M-Miss Ling?" Meekins asked, shutting the door, trying to make sure nothing got caught in it.

Carol smiled and began to approach the car, but paused once she got close enough to see him better.

"Why are you still in your uniform?" Carol asked, arms crossed, her hand seeming to grip high up on her left arm.

"Oh...w-well, miss, I've just come from work a-and didn't exactly have time to change into regular clothes, miss..." Meekins said, looking down, embarrassed to be so forgetful already. He then tried to change the subject back to her. "Y-You, however...y-you look...quite nice..."

Carol was dressed in a navy blue suit and slacks, looking as professional as she could. Her face was hardly made up, but just enough to enhance her looks. A little green eye shadow with black liner and lipstick that was just a hue darker than her natural lip color. And her red hair was short enough to be perfect on its own. She only wore a thin silver chain around her neck. And her shoes were brown flats that didn't seem neither new nor old.

"Why, thank you, Mike." Carol tilted her head with a smile. "Although now, I feel like I'm on an assignment with a police escort than a date."

There it was again. Meekins didn't know whether to feel embarrassed or just brush off the comment. She grinned slightly and began closer to the car.

"But you do look nice as well. Though I was hoping to know you in something else. Maybe you'll remember next time?" She said, standing next to the car and pausing, looking to Meekins.

"...O-OH! S-Sorry, miss!" Meekins realized and ran around the other side of the car. But not knowing the area at all, he didn't see the high rise curb that lead to the sidewalk towards the front door. He stepped down onto the curb, his foot sliding down off of it. Quickly losing his balance, Meekins fell onto the sidewalk with a thud. Carol watched and jumped back as he fell, but hurried to his aid.

"Are you alright, Mike?" She bent down to help him back up.

Meekins blushed wildly in humiliation as he allowed Carol to help him back up. As he brushed himself off, he remained completely silent, keeping his eyes shut to avoid looking at her.

He turned to the passenger door and opened it without a word, when he heard an odd sound from behind him. It was like a repressed bark or stutter. He turned to the direction of it, when he saw Carol bent over slightly, eyes closed tightly and hand to mouth. Her shoulders were shaking and her other arm was wrapped around her stomach. She held herself this way for a moment, but upon opening her eyes wide enough to see him looking to her, she grasped at her sides with both hands, laughing herself breathless.

"Heeeyahahahahahaha! Miiihihihihiiihikeeheeehehe! I-I-I-I'm so...sooohohoohohoooorryyy~! Y-...Y-You..." Carol spoke between heavy bursts of laughter. Meekins looked to her for a long while as she continued to try and suppress her laughter.

"Are you ok, miss?" He asked, worried she might wind up hurting herself, but blushing more at her laughing at him.

"Y-Yeeeheheheeheheeheesssssss...I-...I'm ok...I'm ok..." Carol slowed her breathing, still gripping at her sides. She looked to him, tears spotting the corners of her eyes and cheeks a tinge of exhausted red. "I'm sorry...I've just...I haven't laughed like that in a long while...I'm sorry, it wasn't you at all, I don't...I didn't mean to laugh at you at all...a-are you ok though?"

"Well, yes, I'm alright, miss...not my first fall, miss." Meekins muttered, looking down and still blushing from humiliation. "Sorry it had to start off like this."

"Don't be, Mike. I'm already begun to like this night." Carol grinned sweetly, finally getting into the passenger seat of his car. Meekins sighed and nodded politely, shutting the door for her. As he started to walk away, he felt a painfully familiar tug around his throat, gagging and bumping back into the car door. He opened the door quickly, freed his tie and shut it. As quickly as he did it, though, he still was able to hear Carol begin to laugh heavily once again.

But even with Meekins' extreme embarrassment to start the night off, he couldn't help but smile in spite of himself. He too began to enjoy it.