Inside a Restaurant.
For Bianca, this dinner was pure torture. Thankfully, it was finally over.
"Mom, Dad, it's getting late. You should head home. I'll come visit on my next day off," Bianca said, desperate to escape.
Faced with Bianca's reaction, Ted and Marianne were out of options.
During dinner, they had tried to pry information out of her with every subtle (and not-so-subtle) question they could think of. But Bianca's lips were sealed tight. She either didn't answer or played dumb.
They were helpless.
What could they say?
The daughter was grown up; they couldn't control her anymore.
"Alright, alright, don't rush us. We're going," Marianne shook her head resignedly. Then she added, "Bianca, sooner or later you have to introduce your boyfriend to us. Also..."
Marianne leaned in close to Bianca's ear. "Be safe. Try to wait until after marriage to get pregnant."
Hearing this, Bianca turned beet red instantly. "Mom!"
"Haha, okay, we're off. Bye-bye!" Marianne laughed happily.
A few minutes later.
Bianca watched Ted and Marianne's car drive away and let out a long sigh of relief. She felt instantly lighter.
A short while later, after confirming Dexter was at the Alibi, Bianca hailed a taxi.
By the time she reached the Alibi, Bianca was back to her usual self. She sat down cheerfully on the stool next to Dexter. "Good evening."
The change in her mood was obvious. Dexter noticed it immediately and smiled. "Good evening. How was dinner?"
Bianca giggled and shook her head. "Not great. The food was average. Not as good as yours."
"Is that so? Then when we get back, I'll make you a midnight snack," Dexter said.
"Deal!" Bianca was genuinely happy.
Looking at Bianca in this state, Dexter thought for a moment and decided to tease her a little. He smiled. "You know, some mothers and daughters look exactly alike."
Bianca blinked, not immediately catching his drift. "? Huh?"
"That couple who came to my restaurant for lunch today... those were your parents, right?" Dexter winked, grinning mischievously.
Bianca was stunned. The word "dumbfounded" was written all over her face. She was speechless for a moment. "..."
Dexter watched her reaction with glee. "Looks like I guessed right."
Bianca blinked rapidly, then nodded, looking a mix of flustered and embarrassed. "Yeah... I'm sorry. I didn't know they were going there beforehand."
"You dummy, what's there to be sorry about?" Dexter chuckled. "So, Ms. Greene, come on, explain what happened last night."
Bianca: "..."
There was no way out now.
Bianca resorted to the skill almost all women possessed: she gave Dexter a cute, pleading smile and briefly explained the situation.
Listening to her, Dexter had an idea. He decided to mess with her. "I see. So, Ms. Greene, you think I'm too ugly to meet your parents. I get it."
"????" Bianca panicked instantly, shaking her head frantically. "No, no, that's not it..."
"Then it's because you think I'm not good enough, and your parents wouldn't approve?" Dexter kept the bit going, asking immediately.
Bianca: "No! Really not..."
Dexter : "Then it's because I'm uneducated?"
Bianca's head was shaking like a rattle drum.
Behind the bar, Kevin couldn't hold it in anymore. Pfft. He burst out laughing. "Bianca, Dexter is messing with you."
Thump.
Bianca froze. Then, her eyes went wide as she glared at Dexter, who had dropped the act and was shaking with laughter.
Seeing Dexter like this, Bianca realized she'd been played. She was furious. "Dexter ! That was too far!"
"Haha, sorry, sorry. Just let me laugh for a minute," Dexter couldn't stop.
"!!!!" Bianca glared at him.
Not far away.
Peg and Carl, who had stayed behind to wait for Dexter , watched the scene with smiles on their faces.
Peg smiled because it was nice to be young.
Carl smiled because these two looked so happy. It was nice to watch.
Before tonight, Carl had never really witnessed the kind of love where "you tease, she laughs."
Now, Carl was seeing something beyond his understanding, something he couldn't describe, but it felt good.
Frank, still at the Alibi, watched Dexter and Bianca's antics and just found it ridiculous.
Before they knew it, it was past nine.
Dexter and Bianca stood up, signaling Peg and Carl to leave.
Peg and Carl moved immediately, walking straight out without even glancing at Frank.
Moments later, the four of them got in the car and headed back to North Wallace.
---
On the empty lot next to the Gallagher house.
Because Fiona had called before her shift to explain the situation, Lip and Ian had come back a bit early. Under the moonlight, they were sweating profusely as they dismantled the pool.
Debbie sat nearby, eating a popsicle and watching Lip and Ian work. She felt miserable. Her freckled little face was clearly etched with sadness.
Just then.
Dexter drove past and saw the scene. The corners of his mouth turned up in a silent smile.
The house to be built on this lot was essentially for Carl.
He was looking forward to the Gallaghers' reaction when they realized Carl would have a new house all to himself.
He believed it would be spectacular.
Dexter didn't stop. He hit the gas, pulled up to his own driveway, and went inside with Bianca.
Lip and Ian both noticed Dexter return.
Pah.
Lip's hatred for Dexter was practically instinctual by now. He spat viciously on the ground and said to Ian, "Once the foundation is laid, we're coming over here to wreck it!"
Ian didn't hate Dexter , though he didn't exactly like him either. Hearing this, he shook his head. "What's the point? He might not even live in this house."
"At least make him waste some money," Lip said immediately.
Ian shook his head again. "First, he's not short on cash. Wasting that little bit of money means nothing to him. Second, Lip, don't mess with this stuff. He's rich. If you cause trouble and really piss him off, he might actually kill you."
America is a capitalist country. Unless absolutely necessary, ordinary people know better than to provoke the truly wealthy. That's common knowledge.
After all, provoke a rich person, and forget illegal means—they can torture you to death using perfectly legal methods!
Besides, Ian had a vague idea that even someone like Mickey was afraid of Dexter. Dexter was definitely not as simple as he appeared.
"Listen to me. Don't provoke him," Ian added.
Unfortunately.
Who was Lip?
Lip, who thought he was smarter than everyone in this shithole, wasn't going to listen.
Lip sneered. "Money isn't everything. I'd like to see what he can do to me!"
Ian felt helpless, but he didn't try to persuade him further. He just changed the subject. "It's getting late. Let's speed this up. I'm getting sleepy."
In this regard, Ian really had a "respect others' fate" attitude.
He tried to warn him. Lip didn't listen. So be it.
Ian couldn't be bothered to waste his breath on the same topic.
Lip was smart; he naturally knew Ian was changing the subject. He thought about it and didn't push it further.
The two continued dismantling the pool.
It took them about two hours to finish moving and reassembling the pool in the Gallagher backyard.
Once it was done, Lip took off his shirt, wiped the sweat from his face and body, and smiled at Debbie. "Debbie, you can play in the water tomorrow."
Debbie nodded with a smile.
"Let's go. Time for bed," Lip called out.
The three of them went back inside the Gallagher house.
---
At the Club.
After working for several hours, Fiona was a bit tired. She leaned against the bar, resting while silently calculating how much more money she needed to pay back the parents.
After a quick calculation, she figured it out.
She was still short about three hundred dollars. Not much. A few more days of work should cover it.
Thinking of this, Fiona breathed a sigh of relief.
As for the twenty-something thousand dollars she owed Dexter...
Heh.
How could she pay back that much money?
Fiona honestly didn't know, so she decided not to think about it for now. After all, worrying about things you can't control is useless.
After resting for a few minutes, Fiona took out her phone and texted Steve: [What are you doing?]
Steve was currently doing Estefania. Or, putting it the other way works too.
Estefania, the little Brazilian beauty, was also a sex addict. If she didn't ride a man for a day, she wasn't happy.
Steve saw the text and replied immediately: [Working. How's your night?]
[Not bad. Made over fifty bucks in tips,] Fiona replied.
[Nice!] Steve replied.
[Come over after my shift?] Fiona asked.
[Probably can't. Busy night. Car shipment going out,] Steve lied without hesitation.
[Okay. See you tomorrow then. Back to work,] Fiona felt a twinge of disappointment.
[Go get 'em,] Steve tossed the phone aside and continued his vigorous exercise.
Fiona put away her phone and prepared to get back to work, only to find Jasmine standing behind her. She jumped. "Jesus! Trying to give me a heart attack?"
Jasmine smirked triumphantly. "You've got guts. I can't scare you. Who were you chatting with? New man?"
Fiona actually looked down on Jasmine, but given the fat tips Jasmine's boyfriend provided, she couldn't reject her. She forced a smile. "Peeking at other people's texts is illegal, you know."
"You're my sister. I'm just looking out for you," Jasmine brushed it off. "Spill. What's this new guy like?"
Fiona shook her head. "Not a new guy. An old guy."
"Oh? Rekindling an old flame. Exciting," Jasmine said dramatically. "Got a photo? Let me see."
Fiona shook her head and laughed. "What's there to see? I have to get back to work."
"No way. Let me see. I'm curious. If you don't show me, I won't be able to sleep, and then I'll just pester you all night," Jasmine insisted.
Fiona found her annoying, but she had no choice. She took out her phone, found a photo of Steve, and showed it to Jasmine.
"He's hot! We should grab dinner sometime," Jasmine praised.
"Fine. Can I go back to work now?" Fiona asked helplessly.
"Go ahead, gorgeous," Jasmine said, slapping Fiona on the ass.
Fiona didn't know what to say to that, so she said nothing and walked away quickly.
---
Daybreak.
The sun rose.
Debbie got up early, went downstairs to make herself breakfast, and ate it. Full of energy, she went to the cupboard under the stairs, pulled out the stroller she had prepared yesterday afternoon, and headed out.
Walking down the street, Debbie suddenly realized Frank wasn't home.
She still cared about her dad.
But, she had more important things to do this morning...
After a brief hesitation, Debbie decided to ignore Frank for now and kept walking.
Time ticked by.
Around 9:00 AM.
Debbie, who truly had a gift for this kind of thing, pushed the stroller back to the Gallagher house with a grin on her face. She swiftly took the kidnapped little boy into her room, changed him into some of her old clothes, and then tossed the cartoon outfit he had been wearing into the washing machine downstairs.
Mission accomplished.
Debbie returned to her room with a beaming smile. She sat down in front of the clueless, innocent-looking boy and said, "From today on, you are Carl Gallagher."
" The original Carl was a retard. I hope you aren't."
"What do you like to play? I'll get you some toys, okay?"
"..."
Debbie started playing with the boy in high spirits.
While they were playing.
Suddenly, sirens wailed outside.
Police were looking for the boy!
[Attention all units. Just moments ago, three-year-old Davis Brown went missing from his front yard. Suspected kidnapping. Anyone with any leads, please contact the police department immediately. The following is a description of Davis Brown...]
Hearing the announcement from the loudspeaker, the smile vanished from Debbie's face.
Panic set in. She hurriedly picked up Davis Brown, put him on her bed, then sprinted downstairs. She locked all the doors and windows tight and drew every curtain in the house.
After doing all this, Debbie let out a long sigh of relief. Feeling a bit safer, she went back upstairs to her room and peeked out the window.
The loudspeaker was still blaring, but the police car was driving away.
Watching the police car disappear into the distance, a smile returned to Debbie's face.
---
At a Mall.
Estefania, who essentially only knew how to fk and shop, had just changed into a new dress. She twirled in front of Steve. "Beautiful, yeah?"
Steve nodded with a perfunctory smile. "Yes."
Estefania was happy.
Time flew.
Steve, reduced to a human coat rack carrying bags upon bags, got into the car with Estefania and headed back to their place.
Once he got Estefania settled, Steve immediately found an excuse to slip away and headed straight for the Gallagher house.