Sinclaire had retrieved his orders; he was to be stationed on the other side of the rip. And that meant there was one thing he had to do before he left. He pulled out his phone, and made a call.

"Isabella, if you've got an opening, I need a date," was all he'd said. With her, that's all he needed to say. He'd gotten his favorite suit, a solid black number with a silken red shirt and a black tie, and he'd made reservations at the nice Italian restaurant in town. Dates with Isabella were expensive, but he didn't mind. After all, she was who he had.

He'd been seeing her for five years, so she never knew his days before SUPER, but there were times when he wasn't all about work. In fact, there was a side of him that only she saw. The side of him that liked to talk, the side of him that liked fancy food and dressing nice. The side of him that....was a person. She never saw the side of him that took pleasure in the killing, in the rush of battle, and if he had his way, she never would.

Tonight, Sinclaire wasn't a shoulder. He stood right outside the restaurant, against a light-post, like he always did when they went here. Though it kind of pained him that this would be the last time.

A phone call, just ten simple words. Ten words that she hadn't been expecting to hear again so soon. Normally, he wouldn't be calling her for another couple weeks asking for a date.

Despite that, Isabella was smiling slightly as she responded to the request. Did she have an opening? She didn't even need to look at her schedule to know that she was busy for the next 5 nights. "For you, of course I do," Isabella said, her smile widening slightly as she thought about how the night ahead of her had suddenly changed. "Our usual time tonight?" After getting confirmation on the time and the place, she hung up the phone; she had work to do, the first of which was cancelling the date she had on the books for that night.

For anyone else, the answer would have been 'next week'. For anyone else, she would have said 'sorry, no'. But when Blaine called, Isabella fit him in however she could. There was no single reason for it, either, but a culmination of all the little things, things that set him apart from any other man she'd met. Which was also the reason why she was still seeing him five years later. Still seeing him even after getting set up with Haven.

Once she had that night's date rescheduled, Isabella made her way to start getting ready. The change in plans also meant a change in attire. The majority of her clients preferred her in shorter dresses, at the least a hair above the knee. Tonight, instead, Isabella slipped into a long red dress, pinning her hair up so it was off her neck.

It didn't take long for dinner time to come around, one of the many reasons that she liked seeing him; the date always started out with a damn nice dinner. Slipping out of cab she had taken to restaurant, Isabella smiled seeing him leaning against a nearby lamp post. "Hey there, Big Guy," she said as she came up in front of him, stretching up to give him a quick kiss on the cheek. "Did you miss me that much?"

By this time, Sinclair knew what she went through to get him a date like this; he didn't do it often, but the mutant was full aware that he had special...privileges as one of her long-time clients. She showed up in his favorite dress, as usual, and it made him grin, though he felt the slightest tug at his emotions. Those, he hated, but it was something he'd deal with; after all, he'd grown accustomed to seeing her once a month, sometimes more if he was given a particularly long assignment. For him, it wasn't about the sex; sure, every now and then they would, but most of the time he just took her out on a nice dinner, then they went back to a hotel somewhere and talked or something like that. She was sort of his window into another life. He could never 'be' normal, but about once a month, he got pretty damn close.

She leaned up and kissed him on the cheek, and even though it did nothing for him, he smiled. "Hey. You can say that. I've got something to talk to you about," he said simply before taking her arm and leading her inside. They were seated fairly quickly; this was a nice Italian restaurant, and one of a few places where they came regularly. As he glanced at his menu, he looked over at her.

"You know I don't give too much information about my job, but...I'm being reassigned. This is likely going to be our last date for a little while," he said sadly.

Though she knew that Blaine couldn't actually feel the kiss she had placed on his cheek, he still smiled every time she greeted him that way. But then, he was saying that he had something to talk to her about, and Isabella could only tilt her head at the man beside her as she took his offered arm. They always talked when they went on dates. Always. But he had never said anything like this to her before.

Despite that, the short walk in to the restaurant and over to their table was quiet. Shortly they were seated, and looking over the menus. They had been to this particular restaurant often enough that Isabella had already tried everything on the menu that she was interested in; more often than not, their evenings together started off here..

Then Blaine started speaking, and Isabella's eyes jumped up to look at him, a slight frown on her face before she was able to replace it with a smile. ”We'll just have to ensure that tonight is especially enjoyable, won't we?” she said, giving him a quick wink.

Though the smile hid it, she was saddened by the ideas that they wouldn't be having these monthly dates anymore. With how they talked, going for dinner every time before heading to the hotel, how with him it wasn't all just about the sex, that it didn't even happen every time that they saw each other… Even Zoe was able to pretend that they were a normal couple out for a night on the town, not simply her Isabella persona feeling that. And because that's exactly what it seemed Blaine needed from her, she actually allowed herself to think that. While they were together. Actual feelings were dangerous and not wanted.

”Where are they sending you? Do you know how long you'll be gone?” Isabella asked. She knew that Blaine wasn't able to tell her much about what he did in the military, but these questions were different, right? They had to be.

”What do you say about having a bottle or two of wine with dinner? If this is going to be our last date for a while, we may as well have fun, right?” she asked with another smile across the table.

He couldn't help but smile at the kiss; it was her greeting for him, and since he couldn't even feel it, it somewhat meant more that way. He saw the frown, which only confirmed that she was at least as fond of these dates as he was. He knew this was her job, but after five years, he noticed certain things she did that others probably didn't get. Such as her canceling a date last minute to make room for him. And the frown, though it was quickly covered by a smile...he was going to miss these dates. Not that he had feelings for her; this was just his way to unwind. His way to feel remotely human.

"I'm not at liberty to discuss it, and I'm not sure. Maybe several months or so. Maybe I'll be able to come back from time to time and visit," he said. He'd never disclosed his actual job to her, but that was for the best. Though, she did know more about his overall life than any other living being on the planet.

"I'd say two," he answered with a smirk. "Like you said, we might as well have fun. Make it something worth remembering. Or not remembering, whatever the case may be."

Isabella nodded when he told her that he wasn't at liberty to discuss this new assignment. Though, as she sat there and looked at him across the table, she realized that she shouldn't be surprised. Blaine never really talked about anything about his job with her. About the most he did was tell her that he was about to go on a mission, or had just come back from one. But never any details about what the mission had been.

But when Blaine said that maybe, just maybe, he'd be able to visit from time to time, Isabella smiled wider. "I'd like that," she told him. "I'm not sure I'd know what to do with myself after all this time without these dates."

Then Isabella tilted her head to look at Blaine, a thoughtful look on her face. "Maybe later," she told him quietly. "When we're alone. You can tell me what little you can say."

And he was up for two bottles of wine that night. Isabella smiled even wider at that. She didn't normally drink that much on dates, it was important for her to remain in control of herself. But tonight was different. This situation was different than others. "Either way, I'm sure that we're bound to have fun tonight," Isabella said. "I mean, we always do, don't we?"

Sinclaire gave a simple nod at her words; he knew that their relationship wasn't really. Sure, it was obvious she had some connection to him, which was why he got the special treatment that he did. But he knew that neither of them really showed emotion; feelings were dangerous in both of their lines of work. But, their professional relationship, if one would call it that, did work. And that was enough for him.

"Yeah; I've grown quite fond of these," he said matter-of-factly. Then, he nodded at the other part of her statement; he couldn't tell her much, but he did at least let her know the basics, like when he thought he'd be back, how dangerous he thought it'd be, and the like.

He smiled, nodding again. "That we do," he murmured with a slight wink.

Isabella nodded when Blaine said he'd grown fond of these dates as well. That was obvious to her; if he hadn't, he wouldn't still be calling her for a date each month, almost like clockwork, after five years. But being fond of something didn't mean that you had real feelings for a person. Though he was far more open and forthcoming than when they'd first started seeing each other, Blaine was still quite closed off to her, be that because of his job or just who he was.

Still, the dates they shared were fun, and Isabella enjoyed them a fair bit.

Turning her eyes back down to the menu, she was now at a loss as to what to order. She liked a number of dishes, but she had never really considered the idea of never coming back here. None of her other clients had ever brought her to this restaurant, few actually took her out to dinner as part of their dates, though the fact that a number of them were married did explain that. But Isabella wasn't about to come here on her own.

"I'm going to go freshen up," she said, turning her eyes back up to the man across the table from her. "If the waiter ever shows up, surprise me?"

As she entered the lady's room, Isabella felt a couple tears prickling her eyes, and she blinked in annoyance and confusion. Stepping up to the mirror, Isabella saw a couple more tears sitting in her eyes. What the hell is this? She silently asked herself. She didn't have feelings for clients, well, other than possibly a fondness. Anything more than that was bad, could be dangerous. She kept her distance emotionally, that's why she had started going by the name Isabella instead of using her real name.

It was the sex, she decided as she dabbed the few tears away. It had to be that. The Big Guy couldn't actually feel it, and so he put far more effort than most men did into making sure that she was enjoying herself. That had to be the reason she was upset like this about the end of dates with him. She didn't, wouldn't, have actual feelings for the man, so that had to be it. This was just business, after all, even if it was quite enjoyable.

Once she had regained her composure, Isabella turned and made her way back to the table.

He watched her leave, and he couldn't help but let his eyes linger as she walked away. He was fond of her, but as far as he was concerned, it stopped there. In all honesty, it had to. The waiter had brought their wine and was ready for their orders while she was gone, so Sinclaire did get to surprise her, anyway.

For himself he ordered tagliatelle bolognese, and for her, carne de vitello. He knew that was one of her favorites, so he was sure he made the right choice. Though....he had to wonder if he could find something like they had without having to pay for it. At the same time...he wasn't sure he could open himself up to that level of trust. And, he liked that she was the only one he opened up to, for some reason. She was his safe place, and the fact that money changed hands made him feel more secure in this.

He shook any thoughts out of his head as he saw her coming back to the table, and he smiled softly, genuinely...

As Isabella approached the table, she saw that not only were the menus gone, but that there were two glasses of red wine, the rest of the bottle sitting off to the side on the table. And a smile on Blaine's face. Taking her seat once again, Isabella returned the smile, then picked up her glass. "If this is going to be our last date," she said softly. "At least for a while, here's to having a good time, and not necessarily remembering it." Then she raised the glass in a toast before taking a sip.

She had never actually been drunk with a client before. A little buzzed, perhaps, but she'd never allowed herself to get drunk. And she wasn't going to be trying for that tonight. But if, with getting that second bottle of wine she had suggested, it did happen, Isabella reasoned that Blaine was one of the few clients she would be comfortable doing so with.

Then she tilted her head as she set her glass back on the table. "So Big Guy, what did you get for me?"

"That, I can get behind. To one hell of a last date, though hopefully not the very last," he said with a dry laugh as he clinked his glass against hers and took a sip. Sinclaire was no stranger to getting drunk, but he didn't necessarily do it with company. Though with Isabella, he'd likely be willing to make an exception.

Sure, he wasn't aiming for that, but if that was to happen, then so be it.

"Well, I know what dishes you gravitate towards, so I got you the Carne de Vitello," he answered, taking another sip of wine as he looked over at her. He never told her this, but he did miss her when he was on an assignment. It wasn't a feeling, per se, but he'd grown rather accustomed to their monthly dates.

Isabella smiled as he shared her sentiment on the toast. Most definitely not the very last, she hoped as she sipped her wine. If for no other reason than he was damn good in bed.

Then Blaine told her what he had ordered for her dinner, and Isabella couldn't help but smile. That was one of her favourite dishes at this restaurant. And, he said, he knew which dishes she gravitated toward. "What, am I that predictable?" she asked, a teasing smile on her face even as she sipped her wine.

Then she tilted her head slightly as she regarded the man across the table from her. "I've been thinking about going back to school," she told him, her voice now more serious. And this was about as much of Zoe actually got let out, talking about real life stuff like school or beliefs. Something she and Blaine had done many times over the years.

"Possibly apply for re-admittance for September. Part-time, of course. I'd never get any sleep if I was in classes all day with work." As she finished speaking, a bit of the teasing inflection entered her voice again. Couldn't have everything be serious, right?

Sinclaire smirked, shaking his head. "Probably not. I have made a living of studying my surroundings and sometimes other people," he admitted with a smile. "And you? I've had five whole years to learn." Granted he was paying to learn this about her, but once again, that was quite okay by the big guy.

And then the conversation got more serious; it did that from time to time. They didn't just joke and have fun all of the time, and sex wasn't something they did every appointment. Sometimes, like now, they just bounced ideas off of each other, talked about what they were thinking. Deep stuff.

"If that's what you want to do, I say go for it. I mean, I never went to college, but I plan to do what I'm doing until I can't anymore, so I'm happy." Well, as happy as he could be, anyway. Granted, on night like this, he didn't feel so....empty. He knew he was just a tool to SUPER, and he was okay with that. But...sometimes he thought maybe there was more.

"If you think you can juggle, I think you can do it," he said as he took a sip of his wine. "It's good to have dreams, after all."

Isabella laughed slightly when he pointed out the fact that he'd had five years to learn her. That was very true, she couldn't help but think. And he definitely had learned her in...certain other ways. Normally it went the other way, she was normally the one who was learning about her dates. In large part that's what they payed her for. What they liked her do to, what they didn't like. But with Blaine unable to feel her touch, that didn't work so well.

He, however, had learned extremely well in that regard. So it really shouldn't have come as any surprise that he had learned her favourite dishes at the restaurant they most frequented.

As Blaine gave her his thoughts on the idea of going back to school, Isabella sat and sipped her wine. In a way, he probably knew her better than anyone. While she did have friends when she was being herself, as Zoe, she didn't exactly share about what she did for work. But these random moments of deepness, of real life outside of their dates, exposed a bit of Zoe even as she was speaking as Isabella.

But he thought that she could do it, if she thought that she could. Taking another sip, her glass now almost empty, Isabella nodded. "I always planned on going back," she said. Though Blaine knew that, they had talked about her and school before a couple times. "With you being reassigned, maybe this is the right time to start. At least it'd give me something to keep busy with if you're gone that long." She spoke that last sentence a little more teasingly before she turned serious again. "But dreams are good. Have you thought about what you'd do when you can no longer do your job?"