Chapter 133: 3-Day Rush. [Hyde POV] The next day, I went to grab breakfast with the Formans. Sarah wanted to sleep in, so I went there alone. I walked into the kitchen through the sliding door while the Formans were all eating at the kitchen table. "Well, well, well, look what the cat dragged in." Laurie was the first one to see me. She was wearing her Pricemart red smock with long jeans. She glanced at Red mischievously before asking me casually, "Did you not come home last night?" "Nope." I replied honestly. Red looked at me sternly, lowering his Saturday newspaper. "And why is that? Is this house a hotel you can just check in whenever you want—" "I was networking with an actress." I interjected and sat in between Laurie and Mrs. Forman casually. "For future projects." Eric scoffed and said, "Networking sure sounds better than screwing them—" He stopped himself as he saw Red was looking at him. "It—It must've been an important meeting." Eric stammered. Red gave him a disappointed look and turned to me again. But Mrs. Forman interjected before he could scold me. "You must be tired. I'm going to make you the coffee you like." Mrs. Forman stood up and rummaged through the kitchen cabinet for the Nescafe instant coffee packet. "Kitty. Stop coddling him." Red was astonished. "I'm trying to teach him a lesson." "Red, he's not like Eric. And he already told me he's not coming back yesterday." Mrs. Forman said casually, lying on my behalf to stop me from getting scolded. Red grimaced, but he was too unbothered to check the truth. "That's it? He gets away with it, just like that?" Laurie was annoyed and dropped her fork onto the plate, causing a clatter. "Ha. Ha. You have to go to work." I teased her. "So, are you?" Eric looked at me with confusion. "Aren't you going to Kenosha after this?" "Yeah." I replied with a tired voice. "Want to come?" "I can't. I'm going to visit Aunt Pearl with my mom." Eric replied with disappointment. Kitty looked at him and said sarcastically, "Well, don't be so excited about it." Eric was startled. "No, I mean. We're going to see Aunt Pearl." His tone was excited. He raised both of his arms up and celebrated weakly, "Yay…" Mrs. Forman came back with the coffee and said, "I'm also thinking of going to visit Jacklyn this evening." "Ah. His bastard baby." Laurie said tauntingly. "I don't think he cares, Mom. It's in his genes." Eric and Mrs. Forman looked at Laurie with slight anger. Even Red was quite disappointed. "What? Am I wrong? I don't think anyone in his family has stayed behind with their children." Laurie doubled down. "She's not wrong." I nodded slightly, unbothered. "Aw, she's definitely wrong. Your uncle is staying with the baby right now. I heard all good things about him. He went to work on time. He—I mean, he brought the baby with him to the grocery store… And! He even put a car seat in his car." "Wow, the standard level of being a good dad in this era is really low, huh." I blurted out my inner thoughts. "What's that supposed to mean?" Red looked at me with a stern expression. "Nothing. Red, can you check up on the projects on my behalf? They are putting streetlights on the road today." Eric interjected, "The ones leading to the basketball court?" "That's the one. I finally got the okay from the town government." "In exchange for what?" Red asked, skeptical. "They want me to record a town commercial at half price." I replied before finishing my coffee. "Don't get too comfortable with those people." Red said gruffly. "Or you'll get stabbed in the back." I grinned and said, "Red. If anyone's doing the stabbing, it'll be me." There were already officials trying to get bribes from me when I tried to do something for the town. Unfortunately for them, I recorded every conversation and sent it to the state investigators behind their backs. 'I think they are getting investigated soon.' Hopefully, the next town government would be less corrupt. Maybe then I would pay my taxes properly… A large muscle car convoy drove through the street as the cars from Point Place's workshop were being delivered to Kenosha for the shooting. The cars caught everyone's eyes. Most of the cars were customized. People were taking pictures of them. As we arrived at the studio lot in Kenosha, a few gearheads came by to take a look at the cars, as if this was an auto show. I allowed it after the security there told me about the guests. "Half of it will go to Chicago, right?" Sarah asked as she grabbed my hand. "Yeah. For the race." I pulled her in close and wrapped my arm around her waist. I had only two days left with Sarah as she would be going to Ohio to visit her friend's hometown next. "Too bad you're not here next weekend." I said, brushing her hair behind her ear. She blushed immediately. Then, she got confused. "Huh? Why?" "You didn't see the signs all over town?" "Ah! You mean the concert?" The second summer concert in Point Place. Today, there would be a concert in Kenosha too. Bruce rented the stage on behalf of the town. However, they couldn't get well-known singers to come to the event. This was the peak touring time for the famous artists and bands. The last-minute planning was really hurting the town's event. "Yeah. And the best part is, it's also going to be a water gun event." I grinned. Sarah grimaced and said, "That's basically a wet T-shirt event, right?" "You got me." I snickered. "I planned to shoot water into your shirt, but you won't be around." She suddenly asked, "What does that make you feel? Sad?" "Of course I'm sad. I won't be able to see your boobs through your shirt." "That's not what I'm asking—never mind." She sulked immediately. I wasn't dumb. I knew she was hinting at something more. But she was going to go back to college anyway. Long-distance relationships never work, so I wouldn't even try. "So, are you going to do it later?" She asked. "Do you later? I'm going to do you right now." I flirted. She was bewildered and said, "In your office?" "Oh. I was joking, but you want to do it too, huh?" "Shut up. You just lost your chance." She sulked. I pulled her in close, made intense eye contact, and said, "Really?" She blushed hard and said, "Maybe just a little. Answer me first. Are you going to sing today?" "Hmm…" I thought about it and said, "It's very last-minute. Bruce isn't even around. Surely he doesn't care much about it." "I don't think so. Come on, I've never heard you sing. So I want to see it." She tried to convince me. Then, she pulled me in and whispered in my ear. "I have to confess that rock stars turn me on. They made me feel really slutty." I burst out laughing and said, "So I guess I have to sing today." Although I planned to sneak out with Sarah for a quickie, the staff there were calling me inside the studio. I was going to meet the cinematographer and screenwriter for the racing movie. But before I could get inside, one staff member called me urgently. "A homeless guy in the car?" I asked the staff with slight surprise. "How can this be? We just dropped the cars here." "We don't know." They shrugged. I walked to the compromised car with Sarah and the other staff members. Then, I saw the homeless guy they were talking about. "Leo?" "Oh. Hey, it's Hyde, man." Leo smiled brightly as he saw me. "You're captured by the aliens too?" "Aliens?" "Yeah, man." Leo said anxiously. "I was taking a nap, and then I suddenly woke up in this place. How can I do that if I wasn't abducted by the aliens?" Everyone looked at Leo with confusion. I snickered and said, "Did you come to the shop to look for me?" I had an idea of how he managed to sneak into the car. The auto shop staff in Point Place knew Leo and I were business partners in the Fotohut business. "Oh. Yeah. I think so." Leo was taken aback. Then, he remembered something. "Oh, I took a nap in the car while waiting for you. I don't think I was abducted by aliens, man. I don't think they need to abduct me twice." "There's so much to unload there. But come inside first. It's too hot out here." Leo lounged around the studio while I met up with the others. J. Michael Straczynski, the writer I met before, also worked with me on this project. "Hey. The writing program is really revolutionary." He was elated. "I no longer have to struggle with whiting out the mistakes anymore." After talking with him, I met with the cinematographer—Donald Peterman. He was the future Director of Photography for the movie 'Flashdance' and many more popular movies in the future. Men in Black, Point Break, and even Star Trek. "Hey, I heard about you from Patty." He shook my hand firmly. "Great. Nice to meet you, Peterman." We talked while I showed him my camera rig. His eyes glittered as he saw the Arriflex 416 professional film camera and the Panavision Panaflex—a dream camera for the filmmakers in this era. However, when he saw the video assist, he almost lost his mind. "Everyone has their own screen?" His fingers shook. "So you don't have to guess… We can fix the shoot in real time… How?" He turned to me, with eyes full of awe. "Do you have a NASA connection, perhaps? Like those people making the Superman film?" I chuckled and replied ambiguously. "I do have a lot of connections." "This project… It will be the highlight of my career." Peterman was excited. "Great. You can mess around with the camera for now. I'm going to meet the actors." …It took me a full five hours to discuss the script and the movie with everyone involved. We even did an initial script reading with the actors there using the script I wrote by myself. The first draft of the movie. Everyone managed to pull their character off, except for the main character, who's struggling a bit. "Alright, the shoots are going to start this Wednesday." I told the entire crew. Donnie, the actor I worked with before, asked, "Why Wednesday? I thought it was going to start tomorrow?" I drank from a mineral water bottle before replying. "I wanted to do that too, but as per Mr. Peterman's request, he wanted to study the cameras a little bit more, so we're postponing it. Mr. Straczynski also requested some time to make edits." The actors nodded along. "Also, if you're free tonight, go to the public park here. I'm going to sing at the concert." I said jokingly, which made everyone laugh. Once the cast members dispersed, the main actor approached me. Pierce Brosnan had grown his beard a little and looked quite scrappy in preparation for the role. "You want to become a mechanic in my shop?" I asked with disbelief after hearing his request. "I want to shadow the actual mechanic in your shop. It could help me in grounding my character." I listened to his thick English accent and asked, "I don't mind. But what are you going to do about your voice?" He changed it to an American accent and said, "To do an American accent is pretty easy, actually." I laughed in amusement and said, "Alright. I'll talk to Tyrell. Make sure not to push yourself or do anything dangerous. I can't afford to delay the shoot any longer." That evening, I went to the concert to sing. Leslie was there as she helped with the actual concert logistics. My performance was as the closer. I sang Beggin' and This Love again, which made the crowd go wild. Sweaty and tired, I went backstage and saw a member of the previous band who headlined the show hitting on Sarah. "So, do you want to come back to my room? I can show you my equipment." He asked, pinning her against the wall. I got annoyed and walked behind him. "Don't do that. She's going to laugh when she sees your small microphone." "What?" He turned to me with an angry expression. I smirked and said confrontationally, "What are you doing to my girl there, hotshot?" The security there—all my people—were standing behind me. They were staring at him menacingly. "Your girl?" His eyes shook fearfully. "Get lost." I chased him away. Even though he was pretty famous, I didn't really care about offending him. Sarah gazed into my face with glitter in her eyes. "Steven, that's so hot." "I know." I wiped my sweat and said, "Let's go back to the hotel. I need to cool off." "Okay! Let's go!" She grabbed my arm and pulled me away happily. I saw the band members bringing some girls back to their waiting room as I walked down the hall. "No wonder guys are so anxious about their girls getting a backstage invitation." The girls were basically one-night toys for the band members. In the hotel room, Sarah poured champagne into a glass and said teasingly, "So. Your girl? Am I your girl now?" I pulled her towards me, wrapping my arms around her waist. "You sure are." I kissed her neck and bit her earlobes. "You don't like it?" "No. I love it." She moaned slightly before grabbing my face and pulling me in for a kiss. … "Damn. 800 copies?" I was stunned after talking with Jonathan on the phone. It was Monday, and I finally returned home to Point Place after spending the weekend in Kenosha. The first thing I did was go to my office. There was a tall stack of paper on my desk as I entered. Cafe orders, auto shop orders, the printing orders. "It's really tiring to go through it one by one." An idea came to mind. To sell one of my businesses. "If I'm going to sell anything… It will be the cafe chain." I read the papers on my desk. Jonathan decided to use the company's best ability to distribute the movie—Boy Versus World. It meant I had to fire up the poster printing at full speed, edit multiple trailers for the TV spots, and also contact multiple printing companies at once. "50 more prints for Empire of the Ants. That's unexpected. And 100 more for Tentacles." The demand for the movies was growing. It was great for the distribution company. "But it's really messing with me." I had to change the country locations a couple of times to submit an order for the theatrical prints. I stayed with Indonesia for a while, contacting over 8 printing companies, but only 4 took the orders. Then, I moved on to China, since they had over 90,900 theatrical screens there. Their printing job was quite fast, but it was backed up with orders. "Maybe I can buy the machines and create a printing company over here?" The method for theatrical printing wasn't a common method. It was an industry secret. There was no way I could copy the future printing quality with just the machines—assuming I could even buy the machines online. "Hmm… I'd better order the prints first." There was another problem I had to deal with. Dubbing for international movies. "I'd better build a recording studio in town. I can also do music recording there." Leslie came by with Aunt Lucia. They didn't want to wait till Tuesday since Aunt Lucia was anxious about the pitch. "So, did you think of a way to make up for the cost of the rebuilding?" I asked, interlocking my fingers and leaning forward slightly. Lucia was nervous. She glanced at Leslie secretly before saying, "I do." She pulled out a thick stack of paper from her purse. Then, she gave it to me. "It's a proposal for a TV show." I flipped the pages and said, "Wow me." "O-Okay. So, we talked to the TV station. They want a pilot episode before summer ends." "You're starting with that?" I raised an eyebrow. Leslie interjected and said, "We want to show you there's a demand for this type of program." "A home renovation program." Lucia added. "About turning broken, dirty things into something better." I nodded and said, "I'm listening." Lucia brightened up and said, "The program budget could offset the price of the house rebuilding. We can save costs on the other houses and use that money to renovate Mrs. Miller's house." I listened attentively to the pitch. "So, what do you think?" Lucia asked, her eyes glued to my face as she tried to study my expression. I nodded again and said, "That's actually quite good." Both of them brightened up. "But, there's a major problem with doing a renovation series in this era." "Huh?" Lucia was taken aback. I paused since I was discussing with ChatGPT about the show. "So—So what's the verdict?" Lucia asked urgently, breaking the awkward silence. "Are you going to—to do it or?" "I am still thinking about it." I crossed my arms and leaned backward in the chair. "Obviously, I couldn't be the one to host the show. In a few weeks, I'm going back to school." Leslie interjected, "We can find an actor or a TV host to helm the program." "That's another thing. The money from the TV station is mostly going to go toward the salary and the production cost, not the renovation cost, unless the TV station is the one that hired us to create the program for them." Leslie's eyes lit up. "Oh. It seems we made a mistake in the foundation of the show." "Yeah." Lucia finally understood it. "If we do it like this, all of the burden will fall on us. But if we pitch the show to a TV station, and they hire us to make the episodes for them, then they're the ones who have to cover all the costs." "That's right." I nodded with satisfaction. "So, create a pitch for the TV station." I thought about it and said, "It's going to be hard to get approval. So, for Mrs. Miller, I'm going to cover the renovation cost myself to create the pilot episode." The two women brightened up immediately. "Really? You're going to do that?" Lucia was excited. I nodded and said, "Yeah. But I'm not going to be able to plan everything. We're going to need a good architect, a project manager, a building team, and some writers, and also a good host." We continued the discussion for hours. Since building the house itself would take months, I decided to record every step of the restoration and upload it on YouTube to cover the cost for a bit. "It might take 2–3 months to rebuild her house. They are in dire shape after all. So I'll give you a budget of 50,000 dollars." "Find some people in need and use another building company for them. We need at least 3… or 4 projects to be in progress at once if we want to make the show a weekly thing." I listed recurring segments that keep viewers engaged. Basically, the episode's format.
Meeting the family.
The design reveal.
Unexpected construction problems.
Budget updates.
Time-lapse of the renovation.
Final reveal. "We have to take the risk if we want to make the fall program lineup." I said seriously. "This won't be like my car show. That show is basically shot inside the garage. We're going to need at least 5 cameramen for this reality TV show." Leslie blinked slowly. "Reality TV show?" Chapter 134: Planned Episode. [Hyde POV] "Welcome back." Ophelia greeted me happily as I entered the kitchen. Wearing a frilly white apron, she carried a steaming pot to the table. Her hair was tied into a ponytail, with two long bangs framing her face. "You come at the perfect time too. Dinner's ready." I was mesmerized at the sight, and also by the aroma. In fact, the aroma quickly drowned out her cute appearance. "It smells good. What is it?" I said, peeking at the pot. "It's a chicken casserole. It's a family recipe. It's been a while, so I hope I didn't forget anything." I slightly tilted my head upward and said, "I also smell something sweet." "Ah! I'm baking an apple pie too." Ophelia brought everything to the formal dining room. Everyone in the house ate together. Adam, the 14-year-old brother, asked, "Are you going to film the next movie soon?" "Yes. Did your sister not tell you?" I said jokingly. Ophelia grinned and said, "He knows. He's just interested in the car race." "Oh, you can come if you want." "Really?" Adam's eyes lit up. "Can we go too?" Nina asked. Lily was also interested. "You can all come. The shoot will be much better if the seats are all filled." Ophelia grimaced and said, "Can't you word that better?" "Sorry. You guys should come. It'll be fun… I think. I can't guarantee that." Adam asked again, "Is there a car crash on the tracks?" "Yes. There is." Ophelia interjected. "At the final race." "And guess who's driving the car?" I smirked. Ophelia was alarmed. She leaned in close to me and asked, "You're not driving, are you? I don't want you to get hurt." I bopped her nose and said, "Calm down, Kitten. Papa can handle himself." "Yuck." Lily, the tween girl, shuddered with disgust. "Why don't you two get a room already?" "Lily. They are sharing a room." Adam teased. Ophelia blushed, but I was unaffected. "You sure are enjoying the privilege of being the only person in this house with your own space." All of the girls widened their eyes in realization. "That's right." Lily said with a murderous gaze. "I have to share the room with Nina. This is really unfair." Nina snapped at her older sister. "I don't want to be in the same room as you either! You read all the time! Even when I'm sleeping!" Ophelia scowled and said, "Maybe it's time to give it up, Adam. I'll move into the room. You can sleep in the basement." "What—" Adam was frazzled. He opened his mouth to argue, but he realized something and asked me a question instead. "Do you even have a basement here?" "I do. But it's not a place to hang out. It's pretty small down there." "I've been in the basement when I do laundry." Ophelia interjected. "It's a pretty nice place. Pull a sofa bed in, and Adam can live down there." "Then I'll take the room!" Adam was elated. I gave up and said, "Alright, fine. You can stay down there." The basement was underneath the new extension, so it was pretty small. The other basement was only 6 feet tall, so I placed the water heater and the furnace down there. The new basement has a 9-foot ceiling, an egress window, a bathroom, and also stairs leading to the outside. "You have a really great sister, Adam." I said casually. Ophelia smiled before she realized something. "Wait, what do you mean?" "I mean…" I put the fork down and wiped my mouth with a napkin. "…living in the basement, that's like the ultimate freedom. I really enjoy living in the Forman's basement. I can bring girls, beers, and everything else through the side door without them knowing." "Oh, COME ON!" Adam was startled and anxious. "NO! You're not living in the basement!" Ophelia said sternly, her face fully shocked. "I'm going to be a freshman in a couple of weeks! I need my own place!" Adam argued. Lily's voice cut into the conversation. "Maybe if Dad comes back, we can go back home." I turned to Lily with a slightly surprised expression. Ophelia was bewildered. Then, she thought about it and sighed tiredly. "I wrote to him, but it might take a few months before the letter reaches him." "Oh, you're still in contact?" I asked, a bit taken aback. Ophelia nodded. "Yup. He would send money back every three months or so. Depends on how long he goes on the tuna fishing expedition." She noticed my expression and asked, "What? Do you think that he had abandoned us or something?" "A little bit." I nodded, smiling softly. "But that's more on me rather than him. I don't really have a good impression on… well, you know… family." Ophelia giggled and touched my hands softly. "Well, at the very least, you turned out really well." I stared into her eyes for a while. Adam coughed, and we finally stopped looking into each other's eyes. "Excuse me, but the creepiness has ruined my appetite. So I'm going to go now." Lily said as she picked up her plate and went away. "Make sure to wash your plate." Ophelia told her. I was confused and asked, "Why? Just put it in the dishwasher." "No. I think it's broken. I tried it, and it just sat there." Ophelia was embarrassed. She fiddled with her fingers and said, "I'll pay you the money for the dishwasher later—" I grimaced and said, "It's not broken. It's just silent. I'll teach you how to use it later." "Is it really silent? Does this make me seem like I came from the boonies? A country girl who doesn't know the city?" Ophelia giggled while being shy. I laughed and said, "It is. But it's quite charming. So you're fine." Later that night, inside my bedroom, Ophelia asked me to sit on the bed while she changed her clothes in the bathroom. "So, I thought about what you said. About my character needing a mysterious look. So I found this…" She came out of the bathroom wearing a black one-piece dress with a turtleneck. The sides were showing her bare belly skin, and it was quite short, revealing her long legs. "So, what do you think?" She asked. I sucked in air through my teeth and said, "It's not really meshing well with the story." "Oh." She was taken aback. "So, what do you have in mind for the character?" "It's actually quite simple." I took out a black hoodie from my closet and gave it to her. "Just this." "This, with jean shorts—" "No, only this." Ophelia blushed and exclaimed flatly, "Oh." "Anyway, I don't want to talk about the movie right now. I just want to get some rest." I laid down on the bed on the left side. While I was resting, she laid down sideways on the right side of the bed, already changed into a hoodie. "You have a day off tomorrow, right?" She asked, batting her eyes at me. "Do you want to go out with me—with my family? I don't think I brought my siblings anywhere during the summer." "So you want to go on a vacation?" "A day trip." She replied. "Or maybe the amusement park. Something that can be done in one day." I thought about it and sighed. "Sorry. I already have plans with my friends tomorrow." "Oh." She was quite disappointed. "But, I will be free this weekend. So, why don't we all go somewhere nice?" "Like where?" She pushed her torso up, fully excited. "Where do you want to go?" "Um… I think the Dells will be nice. We went there once with my dad." She replied after a deep thought. "What about Disney World?" I asked. "Florida?" She was shocked. "Yup. You guys have never been on a plane before, right? This is a good chance for everyone." Ophelia squealed and said, "I'll go tell everyone right now—" I grabbed her wrist and pulled her back to stop her. "I think it's better for us to plan everything first before telling them. I don't want to get their hopes up for nothing." Ophelia giggled shyly and asked, "How much longer are you going to hold my hand?" "Ah, sorry." I released her and said, "I'll go sleep in the basement tonight—" "No. I'm going to go to sleep with my sisters. That—" Her face was flustered. Suddenly, she said, "I mean, the bed's big enough for the both of us. And it's not like we never shared a room before." "It's different than before. We were on separate beds." I chuckled. Then, I grabbed her by the chin and pulled her face towards me. "And I don't think I can control myself well when there's a pretty girl on my bed. So, I'm going to sleep elsewhere tonight." "…Right." Ophelia's face turned tomato red. I slid off the bed and went out the door, stopping at the frame. "Goodnight." "Goo—Goodnight to you too." Ophelia covered herself with the blanket and hid behind it as I left. There were no indoor stairs leading to the basement. I had to go out and use the stairs there. Passing through the steel security door with an intricate leaf-style design, I entered the basement room, which was as big as a small studio apartment. It was still empty, with only a track light on the ceiling and a bathroom with a bifold door inside. When I designed the basement, I was going to rent out the space to other people. It had a place for a kitchenette and a living room if the layout was planned well. It had herringbone-style flooring, wainscoting on the walls, and a small electric fireplace built into the wall. The washer and dryer were located near the door for easy access, with a different style of flooring underneath them, and a separator to separate them from the other part of the room. "Activate Build Mode." I bought a bed from Walmart and an OLED TV. As I laid down on the cheap foam bed, I muttered, "I wonder if I can find a manufacturer that still makes rear-projection TVs." I turned on Netflix on the TV and scrolled using the TV remote. The 100-inch screen was mesmerizing, and it definitely gave the experience a cinema vibe. "Damn, the last manufacturer of rear-projection TVs went out of business in 2012." I had an idea to contact a manufacturing company and order 100,000 rear-projection TVs, then resell them in this era. The technology, although advanced, was still feasible in this era, so it wouldn't arouse suspicion like a smart TV. "If I want to rebuild the manufacturing, it might take a couple million dollars. It's not worth it." The next morning, as I woke up, I contacted Tyrell and told him something. Then, I saw the lawn was a little overgrown. "I guess I'd tidy it up a bit before leaving." … [General POV] Ophelia sat at the kitchen dining table, peeking through the window. Her sister Lily walked behind her and startled her as she said, "Are you seriously peeking at him right now?" "What—" Flustered, Ophelia spilled her drink a little bit. "Peeping? I'm not peeping." Hyde was riding the mower shirtless. The morning sun made his skin glisten, which caught Ophelia's attention. She had been staring at him for over 20 minutes. "I said peeking." Lily flashed a look of disgust and said, "Just ask him out already." "No. I can't do that." Ophelia shook her head and said, "He's going out with someone else." Lily shrugged and said, "If that's the case, stop acting like an idiot every time you speak with him. It's really obvious that you have a crush on him." Ophelia chased Lily away and said, "I don't have a crush on him! Just go back to your books!" "I want to have breakfast first." Lily complained. Ophelia went back to watching Hyde by the window after giving Lily a bowl of cereal. She propped her head with her hands, humming slightly as she followed his figure around. Suddenly, the landline rang. She picked it up immediately and said, "Hyde's residence." "Benson? Is that you?" "Carter?" Ophelia recognized the voice. She was her colleague and also the one who stole Steven Hyde's heart. Her mood worsened, but as a professional actress, she kept her tone cheery and sincere. "How are you? It's been a while." "I'm doing great. Is Steven around?—You know what? It's better this way. I don't think I can hear his voice right now. So just tell him I'm going to Ohio—" "Wait, what happened with the two of you?" Ophelia interjected quickly. "Aren't you lovers?" "Lovers? Pft—" Sarah couldn't contain her laughter. "We're just casual doing-it friends. We already broke things off." "Really?" Ophelia couldn't hide the happiness in her voice. "I mean, oh no. That sucks." Sarah went silent for a while before saying, "Just tell him I'm saying goodbye. He was the best boyfriend I ever had, even if we were just dating for a little while." The call ended a few minutes later. Ophelia turned to Hyde again and saw he was done with the lawn. As Hyde entered the house, he asked, "Hey. Did someone call?" "What—No, no one called." Ophelia lied instinctively. Then, she was flabbergasted with herself. "No. I mean, Sarah called. She said goodbye. She's on her way to Ohio." "Oh, that's pretty early." Hyde was disappointed. "I wanted to speak to her for one last time." His face made Ophelia's heart ache a little. "Oh well." Hyde shrugged casually and said, "You guys better pack up now." "What, you're kicking us out?" Ophelia was startled. Hyde grinned and said, "Worse. You're going to Funland." … [Hyde POV] Tyrell came to my house, bringing a van with him. Ophelia was confused when she saw Tyrell with his family. "What is this?" She asked. "You said you wanted to go to Funland. I asked him to bring you there. And keep an eye on you too since we don't know yet what might happen." "I see." Ophelia brushed her hair behind her ear, slightly blushing. "Are you worried about me?" "Of course I am worried." I replied with a smirk. Then I said seriously, "You have the tendency to get yourself into trouble. So I need someone to keep an eye on you while you're gone." Taken aback, Ophelia was frozen for a while. Then she retorted, "I'm not a moth. I don't fly into fire all the time. Besides, it's my dad—It's not even my fault!" I just laughed and patted her head. I also gave her family an allowance for them to buy anything they wanted at the amusement park. "I'll bring you back a souvenir." Ophelia said while waving at me from the van. I waved back and watched them leave. Then, I went to the Forman's house. "The plot is about to start." This was the day Mrs. Forman would realize I had left the house. It was also the reason why I took a day off from work. I drove my Chevelle to the Forman's house and headed to the basement. Kelso, Eric, and Fez were hanging out. Eric was putting on a song while the others were watching TV. "Hey." Kelso greeted me first. "Where were you?" "Out." I replied vaguely and asked, "Why are you two here?" "Because we have nothing better to do." Fez replied with a grin. "Tootsie Roll?" He offered me candy. I took it and said, "We should go out." "Where?" Kelso perked up immediately. "We can go to the quarry and throw some stuff there." "Or we can put a magnet on the end of a stick, throw it into the quarry, and see what we can find." I suggested. Kelso's eyes lit up. Fez was also excited by the idea. "We're in!" Fez mumbled. "Maybe we can find a murder weapon!" Kelso was excited. "Or panties!" Fez added. Kelso, Eric, and I looked at him weirdly. "Fez, I don't think you can fish out panties using a magnet." Forman said with a dumbfounded expression. "You're not a dreamer." Fez said, looking at Eric as if he was pitying him. I chuckled and said, "That's true, Forman. Stop killing his dream." Eric snickered and said, "Alright, Fez. I'm sure you can fish out panties from the quarry." "With a magnet? Don't be an idiot, Eric." Fez snorted at him. Frazzled, Eric said, "But—you said." "Yeah, Forman. Don't be an idiot." Kelso joined in to tease Eric. "Are we going to go now?" Fez asked me. "Kelso, you have your van?" I turned to Kelso. "No. Jackie borrowed it last night. She said she's giving it back this morning." Suddenly, Donna came into the basement. "Hey. Check it out. I got my first story in the school paper." Donna said excitedly and shared the newspaper with Eric. I was confused since it was summer and school wasn't open, yet since the episode was recording, I just left it alone. "Neat." Eric grinned childishly. "Oh. They spelled your name wrong. Apparently, you're 'Donna Pincipotti.'" Donna tilted her head with disbelief. Kelso laughed and said, "That's funny 'cause it's got the potty sound in it." "Hey, you know what else is a funny sound?" Donna walked to Kelso and slapped the back of his head. "Say. That is funny." I grinned and asked, "What did you write about?" "Something feminist, I'm sure." Kelso groaned, looking at Donna with dissatisfaction. "It could be an article about not shaving their armpits." "You want to hear that sound again?" Donna raised her hand and showed it to Kelso. I snickered and asked, "Where the hell is Jackie with your van, man? I want to get out of here." "Ah, she had to help her aunt move a couch." Kelso replied. Fez asked him seriously, "Why did you lend Jackie your van? She hates you, man." Kelso explained, "Well, I'm trying to get on her good side, Fez. I mean, this is a small town with a limited number of women. And I've already gone all the way through 'em once, and now I'm back to Jackie." "Oh. And I love her." He added dismissively. Jackie walked into the basement. "Hey." Kelso stood up and greeted her immediately. "Hey. So, how'd it go, baby?" "Smooth." I said sarcastically. "Oh. Great." Jackie gave him the key. "Cool." He bopped his head excitedly. "Yeah. Oh, except for when I crashed your van." Jackie said casually. "But other than that, cool." Kelso froze. The rest of us—our smiles slowly grew.