Sweet Mischief’s Rollercoaster Romance

"Molly, where'd you stash my face wash this morning?"

"I tossed it in my makeup bag, go fish."

Chad wandered over, rummaging through a pile of Molly's girly stuff, eventually finding it. "Chatting with Mia?"

Molly nodded, leaning against the headboard, venting openly, "Can you believe how unromantic men can be? There's this gorgeous flower valley nearby, and he won't let me go. Instead, it's all about this wilderness survival camp, either for team building or some father- son bonding gig. And there he is, dragging his wife to go shoot. Ever heard of anyone doing that?"

Officer Chad, washing his face at the sink, couldn't help but overhear Molly's rant. "Can't say I have, but there's a first time for everything."

"My brother thinks now that we're married, any ol' date spot will do. If a guy took his girlfriend to a training camp, I'm telling you, he'd be single in no time."

After washing up, Officer Chad reminded his ranting wife, "Molly, your face mask's been on for nearly twenty minutes."

Molly, slightly startled, peeled off the mask and slapped it onto her neck, then continued her chat with Mia, "What's up, Mia?"

Mia almost forgot, "Oh, right, almost slipped my mind about Leo."

She shared with Molly the dilemma about Leo they had discussed earlier, "Molly, I think Leo's pretty lost. Should we listen to your Andre and guide Leo on a path, or encourage him to be bold and rebellious?"

Neither Molly nor Mia knew what was best for Leo.

Then, the ever-bold Jade chimed in. "Chad?"

Chad didn't respond.

Brazenly walking past Molly, she knew how to get his attention, "Chad~"

"Hmm?" Officer Chad finally reacted, a slight smirk on his face.

Molly sought advice, "Babe, what do you think we should do for Leo?"

Chad slipped under the covers, Molly peering down at him, her feet nudging him, "Come on, Chad, give me something."

Chad, through the covers, grabbed Molly's nudging ankle, "Leo's life should be left for Leo to decide."

Molly pressed on, "But if Andre and I try to persuade Leo, would you help?"

Chad replied, "Sure. As parents and elders, we're all just doing what we think is best for Leo. It might not be what Leo wants, but we're trying our best within our means. Seeing the world from the shoulders of giants can spare him many detours compared to becoming a giant on his own."

Mia, on the video call, caught Chad's words too. Both women fell silent.

Molly was inclined to agree with Chad; anything he said seemed right to her, "Mia, maybe you should talk to Leo tomorrow? I think what my Chad said makes sense. He's seen more, thought further, he can't be wrong."

Mia pondered, "How about you come back, and we three go out for a meal, get Leo's thoughts first? I feel bad for our Leo, always under pressure. If he wants to take control now, I don't want to hold him back." Molly agreed, "Yeah, we both have our families now. It's been ages since we three had a meal like old times."

After more chatting, Andre, with his wailing son in tow, knocked on doors looking for his wife, "Mia, come on, he's crying for you again."

"Molly, gotta go, my little crybaby's at it again. He'll tear the house down if I'm not there, and your Andre can't handle it."

Mia hung up and stepped out to scoop up her tearful son. At the sight of mommy, he flailed his arms, wanting her embrace. The little guy, all teary and pitiful, found solace in his mother's arms.

"Oh, my little man's crying again? Come to mommy."

The son's babbling to his mother, "Mummy mwa, ah ah."

Mia held her son, showering his cheeks with kisses, each one tender and loving. The more she kissed, the more the little one felt wronged, as if daddy had just mistreated him, a bundle of grievances he couldn't voice. The little one pouted, clinging to his mother, refusing to let go.

"How did it go?" Andre asked.

Mia, cuddling her son, replied, "No conclusion yet."

Back at the hotel, Molly trashed the face mask and headed to the bathroom to rinse off the residue. "Chad, you heard everything Mia and I discussed, just don't meddle when we get back."

Officer Chad retorted, "If not you, who do I meddle with?"

Recalling the day's events, Chad added, "Next time I'm off, I'm dragging you with me to work out. You can't even keep up with Henry."

Jade shot back, "If you can't make a proper comparison, then don't!"

Chad glanced at the group chat, where Mia had posted a video of the little one energetically splashing in the water.

Molly, sulking a bit, laid down, "My stamina's terrible, keep your distance."

Chad, undeterred, "That's exactly why you need more exercise."

In the Cedillo household, Leo had too much coffee during the day and couldn't sleep at night. Checking his phone, he saw the group chat buzzing, "Leo, what's been up with you? I was rooting for you, and then you just self-sabotaged. Our whole team was baffled, 'Great God' killing himself in-game. What's going on? Even if you played blindfolded, you wouldn't self-destruct like this. Rough patch with the girlfriend, or just in a bad mood and tanking your rank?"

Leo scrolled through the chat history, watching his character dizzyingly spin in circles before charging into the enemy camp. Then, a teammate's voice, "Come on, Great God, this way, to our camp!"

Momentarily confused, his character then dashed towards his teammates. Followed by, "Great God, unleash your ultimate move!"

Anya, utterly baffled, sent a message: How do I do the ultimate move?

A stream of question marks followed Anya's query in the chat. And then, in what can only be described as a bizarre twist of fate, she managed to take herself out. Not once, but three times, right in front of everyone's eyes. The first attempt didn't do it, but, confused and determined, she went for it again, and then once more, until she was out for the count.

Leo couldn't help but find amusement in the whole spectacle. He mused, watching Anya's expressions shift from deep frowns to utter bewilderment, and then to scratching her head in confusion, wondering what on earth was going on with her today.

He thought she was just getting the hang of it, enjoying herself even. But little did he know...

From the bedroom, Leo watched as Anya, now out of the game with no clue how she ended up that way, asked her teammates, "How did I get logged off?"