One glass after another.
Before she even realized it, Fiona had polished off more than half a bottle of red wine.
Kevin and Veronica were both pretty drunk too, loud and out of control.
Dexter wasn't really into drinking. He only had a little, making him—aside from Liam—the most clear-headed adult there.
Time flew by.
"Oh, shit!" Fiona glanced at the clock on the wall, startled. She quickly stood up. "I really have to go."
Swaying a bit as she spoke, Fiona moved to pick up Liam.
Seeing that, Dexter stood up without hesitation. "You've had too much to drink. I'll carry Liam."
They'd been drinking together for a while now…
Fiona had gotten somewhat familiar with Dexter. Hearing that, she looked at him, hesitated briefly, then smiled. "Okay. Thanks."
"No problem," Dexter said with a nod. He quickly picked up Liam, then said goodbye to Kevin and Veronica, who were already slumped on the floor. "Kevin, Veronica—see you guys another day."
Kevin and Veronica waved back groggily. "See you."
Dexter didn't say anything else. Holding Liam, he walked out with Fiona.
Once they stepped outside, the late-night cold wind hit them, and Fiona shivered immediately. "It's freezing."
Dexter heard her.
And felt conflicted.
He knew this show well. He knew that in a moment like this, if he reached out and pulled Fiona close, once they got to the Gallagher house, something would happen.
So…
To sleep with her or not—that was the question.
Man, this is rough.
As a young, healthy guy who'd crossed into this world, with a woman right next to him who had the looks and the body—and yet, for some reason, he felt like he shouldn't…
What a pain in the ass.
Dexter cursed silently, then handed Liam to Fiona. "Can you hold him for a second?"
Fiona looked a little confused but took him anyway.
Without wasting time, Dexter took off his jacket and handed it to her. Then he took Liam back. "Put this on. It'll help."
Fiona stopped wondering, smiled, and didn't refuse. "Thanks."
They walked slowly toward the Gallagher house, not saying much.
It wasn't far.
Before long, they reached the front door.
"Do you want to come in for a cup of coffee?" Fiona asked as she opened the door.
In America—
Inviting someone inside for coffee, no matter the gender, basically means something else.
It's kind of an unspoken rule.
"I'll take a rain check," Dexter said helplessly. "I'm tired. I should head back."
"Okay," Fiona said. She was a little surprised but quickly hid it and smiled. She took off Dexter's jacket and then took Liam from his arms. "Be careful on your way back."
"Yeah," Dexter replied. He took his jacket and headed toward the hotel.
Fiona went inside and immediately saw Frank, who had no idea when he'd come back and was now sprawled on the couch, snoring loudly.
She gave a bitter smile, said nothing, and carried Liam upstairs.
---
A new day.
Early in the morning, before Fiona left for work, Veronica rushed over to the Gallagher house and whispered gossipingly, "So? How was last night?"
Fiona shrugged. "Not great."
Veronica frowned. "Nothing happened?"
"Nope," Fiona nodded. "He walked me to the door. I invited him in for coffee. He turned me down. I think he might be gay."
Veronica: "Uh… what? No way. Absolutely not. I'm sure he's not gay."
Fiona grew curious. "How are you so sure?"
Veronica grinned slyly and gave her chest a little shake. "Last night, when I told him about doing that kind of livestream, he stared at me for a good while. And trust me—he reacted. So yeah, definitely not gay."
Fiona couldn't help laughing. "Wait—you noticed that? Seriously, woman."
After joking around, Fiona shrugged like she didn't care. "If he's not gay, then he's just not into me. Whatever. I'm not into him either."
Veronica felt regretful and sighed. "Damn."
After that, following Kevin's advice, Veronica didn't say much more. She chatted casually with Fiona for a bit, then headed home.
Back at the house—
Veronica couldn't help sharing the intel she'd just gathered with Kevin.
Kevin was eating breakfast. After listening, he thought for a moment. "Is it possible Dexter's Asian, and he doesn't have that 'just-met-you-let's-hook-up' kind of culture? Or maybe he didn't even catch what 'come in for coffee' really meant?"
Veronica hadn't considered that. Hearing it, she lit up. "Oh—yeah, that actually makes sense! His English is so smooth I completely forgot he's Asian."
"That would explain it. Asians tend to be less open, right?"
"Man, I really hope he just didn't understand the coffee thing. Otherwise, Fiona probably doesn't stand a chance."
Veronica said regretfully.
"I don't think those two are a good match anyway," Kevin said casually.
"You don't know shit," Veronica shot back.
Kevin wisely shut up.
—
As usual, Dexter slept until nearly noon.
After getting up and heading out for lunch, with nothing else to do, he went to check on the storefront he'd rented the day before.
Tommy already had people working inside. They were moving fast.
Dexter walked around. There really wasn't much to see, so he wandered off to kill some time.
Without realizing it, he ended up across the street from the convenience store where Ian worked.
After thinking for a moment, Dexter walked inside to buy a pack of cigarettes.
He didn't really crave them, but in a place like this, having cigarettes made it easier to connect with guys like Kevin, Tommy, and Mickey.
Ian was still laid up in the hospital. The store only had Kash working.
Kash greeted him when he saw him. "Hey. What can I get you?"
"A decent pack of smokes—and a lighter," Dexter said with a smile, quietly sizing Kash up.
This guy was no saint.
First messing around with underage Ian, then abandoning his wife and kids and running off…
Felt like there might be some karma points to farm here.
Dexter made a mental note, paid, and left.
---
Around 3 p.m.
At the Alibi.
Frank sat at the bar as usual, drinking and smoking, relaxed as hell.
Just then—
Eddie walked in and sat down next to him.
Frank already knew what had happened to Lip and Ian the day before. The moment he saw Eddie, a brilliant idea popped into his head.
Frank spun around dramatically, putting on an angry face. "Well, well, Eddie! I've been looking all over for you! You've got some nerve showing your face in front of me!"
"Let me ask you—beating my two sons up like that, how are you planning to compensate me?"
"And don't even think about offering less than a thousand bucks!"
Eddie sat there quietly, listened, then glanced at Frank and shook his head, bored. "I'll buy you a drink. Cut the act. If those two sons of yours were dead, you probably wouldn't even blink."
Hearing that—
Frank doubled down, furious. "What do you take me for?! If my sons were dead, I'd fight you to the death!"
"Two drinks," Eddie said calmly, ignoring the performance.
Frank: "..."
"Three drinks," Eddie added.
Frank hadn't really expected to get any money anyway—he just wanted some free booze. He wavered. "You're covering everything I drink today."
"Fine," Eddie agreed without bargaining.
Frank broke into a wide grin, instantly cheerful.