That night, Dylan bought pizza for Aaron, Fiona, and Iris, while for Lena, Amy, Maya, and Ellie, he bought mac and cheese with broccoli and bacon, which was healthy for their pregnancies. All the food was placed on the coffee table, and they ate together. Dylan sat on the floor, supporting himself with his hands behind him, and sighed from exhaustion. He watched the family in front of him eat heartily and smiled.
"Aren't you eating?" Ellie asked.
"Later, I'm not hungry yet," Dylan replied.
"But we're already eating first," Lena said.
"It's fine, just eat. Oh, I plan to buy this. What do you all think? I plan to buy four," Dylan replied, showing them a picture of a baby crib on his smartphone.
Amy immediately took Dylan's smartphone, and they looked at the picture together, immediately starting a discussion. Aaron, who saw this, immediately moved to sit next to Dylan.
"Bro, what you want to buy is expensive, right? Do you really have the money?" Aaron whispered.
"I do. Don't worry," Dylan replied.
"And what about school for all of us? Do we have enough money for next month?" Aaron asked.
"Yes, we do. Until you, Fiona, and Iris go to college, it's all there," Dylan answered casually.
"Huh... seriously, bro?" Aaron asked.
After the smartphone was returned and the girls went back to discussing the color, shape, and price of the baby crib, Dylan opened his banking app and showed his balance to Aaron. Aaron's eyes widened when he saw the amount of money in Dylan's account.
"T-that's a lot, bro! Where did you get it? It's not from robbing, selling drugs, or selling yourself, is it?" Aaron asked suspiciously.
"I have a secret job. You'd better not know about it, but please trust me," Dylan said.
"You... you're not like Grandpa, are you?" Aaron asked, still processing everything.
"Of course not," (yes I ammm... I'm just like Grandpa, trouble, huh) Dylan answered.
Aaron stared at Dylan while eating his pizza, his eyes unblinking, even though his mouth was slowly chewing, trying to read his older brother's face. Suddenly, Fiona and Iris, who were feeling better but still a bit weak, appeared from behind Dylan and saw the balance in Dylan's account.
"Wow, big brother, can I ask for a new doll?" Fiona asked.
"Me too. My doll is already torn, and its stuffing is coming out," Iris added.
"Okay, I'll buy them tomorrow," Dylan replied casually.
"Hey, Fiona, Iris, don't be wasteful! Big brother, don't spoil them either," Aaron warned.
"Do you want a PS5 or a PC too? You've always wanted that console and a PC, haven't you?" Dylan asked.
Aaron immediately fell silent, speechless. Fiona and Iris immediately looked at Aaron, who turned his face away.
"Okay, he wants it, bro, hehe," Fiona said.
"Yeah, just buy it for him, bro, hehe," Iris added.
"Okay, I'll buy it tomorrow, too," Dylan replied.
"Please don't tease me, but... if the money is enough, then it's fine... but this is a loan, okay? I'll pay you back when I have money after I start working... write it down," Aaron said sheepishly.
"Okay, it's up to you," Dylan replied.
They all laughed together, but suddenly, "sreeet," Ellie, Lena, Maya, and Amy sat down on the floor and huddled close to Dylan.
"Just buy those for them first, Dylan. We're easy," Ellie said.
"Yeah, the most important thing is that Aaron, Fiona, and Iris are happy first. We can wait," Maya added.
"I agree. Besides, instead of buying cribs, wouldn't it be better to save the money for check-ups and delivery costs later?" Lena asked.
"We can help you work too, as long as our bellies aren't too big and as long as it's not too tiring," Amy added.
"That's right! Then you can be home more often, too, spending time with Fiona, Iris, and us, hehe," Lena added.
"After graduation, I'm going to start looking for a job," Maya added enthusiastically.
"Me too. Actually, I've already found a job, hehe," Ellie added with a smile.
"See, bro? Just save it, but still lend it to me, hehe," Aaron said.
"Hehehe... Big Brother Aaron is always like that," Fiona teased.
"Hehehehe," Iris added.
Dylan, watching Aaron, Fiona, and Iris getting along with Ellie, Amy, Lena, and Maya, fell silent. They were all sitting on the floor now, surrounding him in front of the coffee table. For the first time, Dylan's shoulders felt comfortable, like a heavy burden that had been pressing on him was finally lifted, even though he still had doubts about himself because he was surrounded by the four popular girls in his school.
His heart felt a small sense of comfort, and he felt like he was breathing for the very first time. Without realizing it, tears welled up and fell.
"Hey... what's wrong?" Maya asked, holding Dylan's shoulder.
"Oh... sorry, hahaha... nothing," Dylan replied, wiping his tears.
"Gyuuut," Fiona and Iris immediately hugged Dylan tightly, and Aaron put his hand on his shoulder because they understood what Dylan was feeling and knew how much Dylan had struggled since their parents passed away.
"Hehe... that's enough... come on, eat again before it gets cold," Dylan said, wiping his tears.
"Okay," everyone replied.
They continued their dinner. Dylan grabbed a slice of pizza and ate, then he looked back at the smiles of Aaron, Fiona, Iris, Ellie, Maya, Lena, and Amy, who usually never smiled like this at school, right in front of him.
"Alright, I'll work even harder for all of them," Dylan said in his head.
[And I am ready to give you the quest.]
"Got it. Thanks, CATS," Dylan replied.
"Bwuuuung," a hologram screen appeared in front of Dylan, which, of course, no one else could see. Dylan immediately read the writing on the screen:
=================================================
Quest : Rescue a girl who was taken deep into the park to be raped.
Target : Three members of the Bald Skull gang.
Location : Park near the house.
Time limit : 20 minutes.
============================
Rec skill : Flash step, 1000 Face, invisibility.
============================
Reward :
- $5,000
- 150 skill xp
- New Skill Picklock level 1.
- New Skill Smoke bomb level 1.
- New passive skill Manipulation (max) =================================================
Auto quest mode ? [yes] [no]
=================================================
Dylan immediately stood up. Everyone turned to look at Dylan, who had suddenly risen. "Where are you going, big brother?" Aaron asked.
"To the convenience store to buy a drink," Dylan said.
"Can I come?" Amy asked.
"No, it's late. I'll go alone so it's fast. I want to buy drinks for all of us," Dylan replied.
"Oh, okay. Be careful," Maya said.
"It's close. See ya," Dylan replied.
Suddenly, Lena stood up and immediately whispered something to Dylan. "Huh," Dylan turned to look at Lena, surprised.
"D-did I hear that right?" Dylan asked.
"Yep... I just want to. The doctor said it's okay as long as it's not too intense, hehe," Lena replied..
"Oh my god... well, I have to go. I'll buy that too," Dylan said.
"Okay, thanks, babe," Lena replied cheerfully.
"What are you asking for?" Ellie asked.
"It's a secret," Lena replied.
Dylan walked out of the living room, then out of the house. He immediately pressed "yes" to use auto mode and smiled. "Bwuuung," a screen with a countdown opened.
[Countdown : 00:00:19.]
"Let's go, CATS," Dylan said.
[Ready, sir. I can help you buy the condoms.]
"Shut up! Don't say weird things," Dylan replied.