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The sharp, devilish sound of the alarm marked the beginning of another dull, repetitive day that he couldn't see what his future beheld. Again, Daniel Heinrich had to spare himself from the cozy blanket, swiped right so the devil could stop screaming.

Standing in front of the cracked, stained mirror which crookedly hanging on the bathroom wall, left behind by the last tenant of this old apartment, he stretched his arms and looked closely at his distorted reflection. He could see the tiny blood vessels in his eyes and had no recollection when was the last time that he had enough sleep. He sneered and started brushing his teeth, from time to time, he thought of how he had become someone who he had never imagined to be, not even in his wildest dreams. Somehow, he did ask for it, he couldn't deny this fact.

A bartender in a small, filthy bar that barely anyone knew its existence was what he did for a living. Back in the days, he wouldn't set his foot in there even he was paid, now he had no choice but to serve the lowest class in the city and listened to all kinds of inappropriate conversations day after day, endlessly. At one lowest point, he began to think what he had before was his pure delusion. He questioned his mental stability and had considered seeing a professional but eventually shrugged it off.

Two years, probably a little longer than that. It had been two long years since Daniel Heinrich was once again, a lost child in this cruel world. The only difference was, he wasn't a child anymore, he just turned 29 last month.

No stable income, no family, this was the worst life a 29-year-old could have, he thought bitterly when he put on his last clean shirt. No one could ever believe Daniel Heinrich turned into a vagrant, well, almost a vagrant. Again, he sneered when he saw his image reflected by the tinted glass on the apartment door.

He doubted if there would ever be a place he could belong to, for the past two years or so, he lived in San Francisco Bay area, hoped for a new start in a new city, under slightly variable Northern California weather. But that didn't turn out to be what he anticipated, and that was when he decided to move back to Los Angeles.

Daniel Heinrich was exceptionally handsome; he knew and grateful for it. As a German descent, with moderately accented English, he had his charms. He was tall and slim, not the athletic type. He had brown hair and a remarkably beautiful face, especially his subtle green eyes.

"An advantage of captivating, prepossessing people", he forced himself to believe so.

He cursed when the bright sunlight blinded him, he wasn't expecting such delightful weather. The forecast said it would be a gloomy, cloudy day, and potential would rain. And that was why he didn't get up early enough to be on time. Everyone blamed the traffic whenever it rained in Los Angeles, and he was no exception. It was warm, the breeze was gentle, he felt he was melting, resolving and he was blending into the weather. His thought flashed back to about fourteen years ago, the very first time he stepped out of the airport and set foot on this land, embracing the warmth of this what he thought to be a very special city and believed he'd have a bright future.

Naive. He shook his head as he thought of his younger self, but also impressed with his bold beliefs and ambitions. As a young German who hardly speak the language, he moved his way to where no ordinary people could ever have dreamed of. Still, he curled his lips as he thought about it, nothing but naive.

He wasn't quite sure if returning to the chaotic life in Southern California was a good call, but since this was where it all started, he wished this to be the place where he could get everything back in order again.

###

He was trying to get rid of a stubborn clot on the glass goblet when he saw her came through the door and he stopped what he was doing.

She was of Asian descent, average height. She had short, straight hair with silver highlights. Both of her upper arms were covered in tattoos. There was nothing special about her, she was average looking, quite skinny but had a great figure. Most importantly, she undoubtedly resembled someone he used to know of. Someone who-as he claimed-ruined his life, someone he didn't know whether to hate or admire. After two years, that woman's image was already blurred in his memory, the only thing he remembered was her contemptuous smile, the smile led him into a life which he had never pictured for himself.

'Heinrich, you can't get away and you know it.' he remembered she said with that disdainful, patronizing smile when she watched him running in the heavy rain, 'You know better than I do.'

'Better not to say anything until she did', he told himself, started wiping the goblets again like he didn't notice her at all.

She sat down in front of him, asked for tequila but didn't even touch it when he handed her the glass, he noticed that even her hand was tattooed. There was a snake wrapped around her right wrist and up to her thumb. Her pale, slim fingers seemed even slimmer as she had rings on her fingers. She looked up into his green eyes with a tantalizing expression, he lifted one side of his lips, waiting for her to speak.

They both waited, neither of them wanted to break the delicate balance in the atmosphere.

Finally, she laughed quietly.

"It has been a while since we last met," Her voice sounded casual, "Isn't it, Daniel Heinrich?"

"I think you got the wrong person." He shook his head, "My name is------"

"Sam." She smiled, reaching out her finger trying to touch his name tag, but he stepped back, so she curled her lips and took her goblet instead, "Please, you know who I am."

"Yes, your accent just gave you away," Said Daniel Heinrich dismissively, "Tell me, Velika O'Sullivan, how come you have an Irish last name?"

"Why can't I?" The Asian woman named Velika O'Sullivan seemed offended though she tried to act unperturbed.

He didn't answer. This woman was a mystery, he did numerous researches on her but could reach nothing like she never existed until two years ago when she started interfering with his business.

All he knew about her was she worked for an assassination agency named Natural.

"What do you want from me, other than to ruin my life again?" He asked coldly in a sarcastic tone without any expression.

"I never ruined your life, my dear, I gave you a chance," She took a sip of her tequila and sneered. In a very low voice that he could scarcely hear her, she continued, "Well, I think it's time for you to end this miserable life. We need your collaboration."

"What?" He rose his eyebrow, scanning the customers in the room, trying to figure out whether she had any company, "Why would Natural want my help?"

"Relax, it's just me here." She laughed gently, then she became patronizing, "Do I need to remind you about the deal we made? Plus, working for us is not going to cost your life. You know there are people out there who devastatingly want you gone, right?"

"Tell me, how can I trust you?" He crossed his arms and said dubiously.

"No, I can't." She took another sip, "But think about it, Heinrich, you have nothing to lose."

He squinted and stared at her like he was going to carve the truth out of her face. She didn't look anxious at all. Perhaps she was telling the truth, or perhaps she was well trained to lie.

Daniel Heinrich didn't trust her. After all, they had an unpleasant past. But she was damn right, he had nothing to lose and he missed his old days, so he decided to gamble.

"Fair enough." He bit his lips, "Tell me the details."

She smiled again as if she knew he would accept the offer before she even came here. Then she took out a piece of paper, placed in front of him: "Come to this address after your shift."

He quickly shoved the address in his pocket and scanned around cautiously again just to be safe. He took a deep breath and for some unknown reason, he felt more relieved than ever.