No matter how slowly he walked, the distance was short. Kevin eventually shuffled his way to the door.
Dexter stood there with both hands in her pockets, clearly not planning to knock. She smiled at Kevin, waiting for him to do it.
Kevin got the hint. Wearing a pained expression, he grit his teeth and raised his hand.
Knock knock knock—
A moment later, the door opened.
The "crazy woman," Cheryl, appeared in front of Dexter and Kevin.
Dexter quickly sized her up.
Objectively speaking, Cheryl was fairly attractive.
When Cheryl suddenly saw Kevin, she jumped in surprise. "Little Kev?"
Kevin forced himself to muster some courage and gave an extremely stiff smile. "Hey, Cheryl. Long time no see."
Cheryl didn't respond right away. She quietly looked Kevin up and down and seemed quite pleased with how he looked now. The corners of her mouth lifted slightly, something stirring in her mind.
Smiling, she said, "It has been a long time. Come on, come in."
After ushering Kevin inside, Cheryl turned to Dexter. "You're Kevin's friend, right? Please, come in too."
Dexter grinned. "Sure, thanks."
Once inside, Dexter casually kicked the door shut behind them.
Cheryl paid her no attention. Her focus was entirely on Kevin now. She grabbed his arm, overflowing with enthusiasm. "Kev, sit down. What would you like to drink? I'll pour you something."
Kevin was panicking. He didn't dare pull away, so he shot Dexter a desperate look for help.
Dexter smiled and nodded at him, signaling him to relax. Then she slowly looked around the apartment.
Cheryl's sister's son, Kyle, didn't seem to be home. That made things easier.
"Cheryl, no need to go through all that trouble," Dexter finally spoke up. "Kevin and I just need a small favor from you. Once it's done, we'll leave."
"Oh?" Cheryl asked, confused. "What kind of favor?"
Dexter smiled. "Kevin and I are getting married. But you two aren't divorced yet, so we're hoping you'll sign the divorce papers."
The words hung in the air.
Instantly—
Cheryl: "????"
Kevin snapped his head toward Dexter, staring at her in total shock. "????"
Seeing their reactions—especially Kevin's—
Dexter had to work really hard not to burst out laughing.
"Kevin, take out the papers," she said calmly.
Kevin snapped out of it. He immediately realized that Dexter's made-up excuse was actually perfect. He relaxed a lot.
"Okay, honey," Kevin replied without missing a beat. He quickly pulled the divorce papers and a pen from his pocket, forced a more natural smile, and said to Cheryl, "Cheryl… I'm gay. I figured it out a few years ago. Please help me out and sign the papers."
Cheryl was still completely stunned. When she heard that, she shook her head over and over. "That's impossible! There's no way you're gay!"
She might be crazy, but she wasn't stupid. Suspicion immediately crept in. "Kev, are you trying to trick me into signing divorce papers?"
The lie had been exposed way too fast. Kevin panicked again, his expression turning awkward. "No, really. I am gay."
Cheryl knew Kevin too well. One glance told her he was lying. She gave a cold smile, an idea forming. "Oh yeah? Prove it."
"!!!"
Kevin panicked even more, a light sheen of sweat forming on his forehead. "H-how am I supposed to prove that?"
"Easy," Cheryl said, sticking out her tongue slightly and licking her lips in an extremely suggestive way. "Come to the bedroom with me. I'll check whether you've really turned gay."
From a certain perspective, Kevin was practically half a sex addict. Faced with that scene, his mouth went dry instantly, and his body reacted against his will.
Cheryl noticed—and felt smug. The smile on her face grew even wider.
Watching this from the side, Dexter subconsciously checked the time.
If this dragged on any longer, the restaurant wouldn't even need to open tonight.
It wasn't a huge problem, but still—there was no reason to stay here.
So—
"Cheryl, stop dreaming," Dexter cut in decisively, smiling. "Kevin is mine. Just sign the divorce papers."
"Heh," Cheryl sneered coldly. "Now I get it. Kev, you want to marry another woman and you're trying to scam me into divorcing you, right? Forget it. I'm not signing anything."
Kevin tried one last time. "Cheryl—"
Before he could finish—
Swish.
Dexter pulled out a gun and pointed the dark muzzle straight at Cheryl's forehead.
—
In an instant, the air in the room froze, like someone had hit the pause button.
The scene itself felt locked in place.
Staring down the black barrel of the gun, Cheryl's face filled with terror. Her body started trembling.
Kevin never, in his wildest dreams, imagined that Dexter's "help" would involve bringing a gun. His mind went completely blank. He froze in place, like a mannequin.
Honestly?
This was way too entertaining.
Seeing their reactions, Dexter was having the time of her life.
"I don't get it," she said after chuckling for a few seconds. "Why is it so hard to talk to you? I tell you to sign, you sign. Otherwise, I'll blow your head off."
Cheryl trembled even harder.
But crazy was still crazy.
"You wouldn't dare kill me!" she yelled, her voice shaking. "If you kill me, you'll go to prison!"
At that moment, Kevin finally snapped back to reality a little.
As spineless as Kevin was, this was way beyond what he could handle. He hurriedly tried to stop Dexter. "Put the gun away! There's no need for this. Cheryl will sign."
"I won't sign! Don't even dream about it!" Cheryl screamed even louder.
"…," Kevin had no choice but to try calming her instead. "Cheryl, please, calm down—"
Dexter didn't waste any words.
She stepped forward, picked up a couch pillow, pressed it against the muzzle of the gun, angled it slightly to Cheryl's side, and pulled the trigger.
Biu—
The bullet tore through the pillow and whizzed past Cheryl's side.
"Are you sure?" Dexter finally spoke again, smiling as she asked.
Seeing that Dexter had actually fired the gun—
Kevin nearly lost his mind. Terrified, he instinctively shrank back, putting some distance between himself and Dexter.
At the same time, reality proved one thing:
Even crazy women can feel fear.
Cheryl started shaking violently, like a leaf in the wind. Her once-decent-looking face turned deathly pale.
"Be good and sign the papers," Dexter said again after a few seconds, deciding the timing was just right.
"O-okay… okay… okay," Cheryl stammered, completely broken. She moved to comply.
A short while later—
Signed.
"Excellent," Dexter said, nodding as she put the gun away. Then she turned to Kevin. "All set. Let's go."
Kevin was now genuinely afraid of Dexter. He didn't dare waste a second. Nodding repeatedly, he grabbed the papers and pen from the table and stood up.
Dexter wasn't idle either. She picked up the spent casing and bullet, along with the pillow she'd used. Before leaving, she looked at Cheryl and said, "Just a reminder—don't call the cops, and we'll never see each other again. If you do… I'll come back. And next time—well."
Cheryl, her face pale as paper, nodded frantically like a bobblehead. "I know, I know…"
Dexter didn't say anything else. She led the shell-shocked Kevin out of the apartment.