Part II

Stewie was sitting in a group with the other children, listening to the teacher as she explained which colors were which. In truth, this whole exercise was just agonizing for the child, being forced to participate in such simple-minded activities, watching the other children actually have to try and remember which color was fucking blue. He just did not belong here…at all, but since his idiotic family just couldn't comprehend the fact that the baby of the house was actually a lot smarter than they gave him credit for, this is what he had to put up with. The teacher was now pointing to a cherry, asking everyone what color it was. After a moment, Stewie had to just roll his eyes at the silence before shouting.

"Red! It's red you morons!"

The teacher looked in his direction and congratulated him in a sickeningly sweet voice.

"Very good, Stewie! Now, come get something out of the prize box."

The infant reluctantly got up to his feet to go and retrieve his "prize". The prize box was a joke. All it was was a box full of old candy and bouncy balls, so Stewie was far from excited when he reached his hand blindly into the box. After a second of digging around, he got a good grasp on what felt like a small cardboard box of some kind. He pulled the item out and was pretty surprised at what he saw.

"Sweethearts?"

Indeed, he had wound up with a box of the traditional Valentine's Day candy.

"Aww. Sweethearts for the sweetheart."

The boy wanted to strangle the woman for saying such a thing, but luckily for her, he was too focused on the candy to worry about it too much. How odd that out of all the things he could have gotten, he'd wound up with this. It was fitting, very fitting.

I wonder if Brian would share them with me.

All he could do was stand there staring at the candy, completely lost in his own thoughts.

"Alright, Stewie, you can go back and have a seat now."

The child was brought back to reality by the teacher's voice. He put the candy in his pocket before turning to go sit back down with the others. All the other children just looked at him jealously, and as soon as he sat down, a boy to his side addressed him in a whiny voice.

"It's not fair. You always get to get something from the prize box."

Stewie just scoffed at this and decided to just ignore the other child. The teacher was now pointing to a picture of grass, once again asking what color the object was. There was only silence. Stewie shook his head and looked at the clock on the wall. It almost seemed as if the seconds were ticking by a lot slower than usual. The child clenched his fists in frustration.

Come on! Damn you! Stop going so slow! I need to get out of her! I need to get back to Brian!

The clock ignored his demand and continued its agonizingly slow ticking. Defeated, Stewie turned his attention back to the lesson. Before long, the teacher moved on to story time, and Stewie looked at the clock again. Only a few minutes had gone by. He sighed.

Of course, today, of all days, had to be a slow day.

He took his candy out of his pocket with no intention of eating it. Instead, he just held it tightly, anxious to see how Brian would react when he finally got to share his prize with the dog. While everyone around him became engrossed in the story being told, Stewie's mind was completely absent from it, totally consumed with thoughts of his love.

I hope he likes them.

Brian ended up getting quite a lot of work done. He hadn't been so inspired in a very long time, and it felt great to be able to write almost nonstop like he had just done. He had recently put his laptop away, feeling that he had reached a decent enough stopping point for the time being, and gotten himself a bite to eat for lunch. Now, he was watching a program on TV to pass the time until he had to go pick up Stewie. It was just some mindless action movie that he had jumped into about midway through its runtime and knew he wasn't going to have time to finish in the half an hour it would take for Stewie to be released from preschool, the perfect thing to waste some time with. By the time the final act of the movie with the big showdown between the hero and the villain began, it was time for him to leave. He cut off the television, shot off the couch, and left the house. In a flash, he was in his Prius and pulling out onto the road. He was hoping that, by the time he got back home with the kid, the house would still be empty so they could have the place to themselves for a little while. He had no idea when Lois was going to return. Peter was at work and wouldn't be back until the evening. As for Chris and Meg, they wouldn't be arriving from school until another hour and a half or so. As long as Lois didn't show up, that would make plenty of time for them to enjoy themselves. He was so busy thinking about these things that he barely realized it when he had pulled up into the line intended for cars that were picking the kids from preschool. The line moved along fairly quickly, and soon, he was up front. One of the staff members smiled at him, recognizing him as the guy who always picked up Stewie, and opened the passenger side door for the child, ushering the boy in. Stewie climbed into his car seat and the staff member buckled him in.

"Have a good day, Stewie. We'll see you tomorrow."

Even if Stewie had felt like responding, he wouldn't have gotten the chance since the person immediately shut the door after bidding him farewell, prompting Brian to take off with his precious cargo. Stewie looked over at the dog who seemed like he was in a hurry to get back to the house.

"What's the rush, Bry?"

The dog gave him a sideways glance and smirked.

"Lois isn't at the house right now. It's empty."

Upon hearing this news, Stewie immediately understood why the canine was in such a rush and he began to get excited. This was the first time, since they'd gotten together, that they'd had an opportunity to be home alone with each other, free to openly express their love and affection as they saw fit without having to worry about the people in other rooms.

"Oh, reeeaaaalllly now?"

Brian nodded his head and smiled. Stewie quirked his lip and looked at the canine seductively, thinking about all the things he'd been wanting to do with Brian ever since they'd first hooked up.

"And what exactly will we be getting up to while the family is away? Hmmm?"

The dog shook his head and laughed, quickly recognizing the wheels turning in his partner's head as the boy's mind ran wild with possibilities.

"Well, I mean, I didn't really have anything particular in mind. I'm just happy to have some quality time with you. I don't even know how much time we'll have, so whatever you're conjuring up in that demented little brain of yours, don't get too excited about it because I highly doubt we'll have a chance to take things too far."

He reached over and took the child's hand.

"Let's not push things. Ok, Stewie?"

Stewie was a little disappointed by Brian's reluctance to go too far, but at the same time, he understood that the dog had every right to be cautious about their relationship. Ever since he'd had his first taste of what it was like to be with Brian intimately, he couldn't help but want Brian like crazy and be eager to experience that again, but he could respect Brian's desire to protect what they had. Not that Stewie wanted anybody to find out or anything. He was a just a little less worried that anyone in his family was smart enough to put the pieces together and was sure that keeping this thing a secret would be child's play. After all, he'd kept much bigger secrets from them all his life. Maybe, in time, Stewie could help the dog not to be so worried about everything. If so, he hoped it would be soon. After considering these things, the infant dropped the seductive look and smiled warmly at his partner.

"Ok. I won't do anything you're not comfortable with."

Satisfied with the boy's response, the dog gave Stewie's hand an affectionate squeeze.

"Thanks, Kid."

The next couple of minutes were passed in a tender silence until Brian pulled into their driveway and they both got out of the vehicle to go inside. Once inside the house, Stewie went right for the couch to have a seat as he waited for Brian to shut the door and join him. The dog walked over and took a seat beside the boy before wrapping an arm around him and pulling the tyke into a warm hug. Stewie returned the hug, nuzzling the side of his face into the canine's fur covered torso. Brian leaned down and deeply inhaled the baby's scent. He moaned lowly and kissed the top of the child's head.

"Oh God, I missed you so much."

Stewie looked up at Brian and leaned his head upward for a kiss, which the dog accepted eagerly. Their lips connected and a fire was ignited within the dog that had remained dormant every since his first time being with Stewie. The canine's tongue pushed its way past the boy's lips, into his mouth, and began caressing every surface it could reach. Stewie just went completely limp, completely overcome by the sensation of Brian kissing him so fiercely, and allowed the dog to do whatever he wanted for the time being. Brian pulled the boy into his lap, bringing the child closer and deepening their kiss. He began running his paws up and down the child's back, massaging the infant as he continued to explore the baby's mouth, but after a while, he needed to come up for air. He pulled away and was extremely pleased by what he saw, a completely dazed Stewie. He chuckled deeply and gave the boy another peck on the lips. While the infant was still trying to pull himself together, Brian moved to lie down on the couch, making sure to keep his hold on Stewie so that the boy would end up on top of him. As he was moving, he felt something in the child's pocket poke into his side.

"Ouch! What the hell was that?"

Brian's sudden outburst brought Stewie back to his senses. He looked down at the dog in confusion before remembering what he had gotten at preschool.

"Oh! I had almost forgotten!"

He reached into his pocket and pulled out the box of Sweethearts. Brian tilted his head at them.

"How did you get those?"

Stewie rolled his eyes, more so at the answer than the question.

"I got them at preschool for knowing what color a fucking cherry is."

The dog laughed, beyond amused at the child's annoyance.

"Alright, then, so what color is a cherry?"

The boy just stared at him, mouth open and unsure how to respond to the dog's question.

"You can't be serious."

Brian just smirked at him.

"What? Did you forget already?"

Stewie crossed his arms, not sure whether to be offended or not.

"What the hell are you talking about!? I know what the color of a cherry is! I'm a fucking genius!"

The dog nodded his head and ran a finger along the infant's cheek. Despite his irritation with the mutt, Stewie couldn't help but shiver at the touch, and Brian was reveling in his ability to control the boy.

"Alright then, Mr. Genius, I'll ask again. What color is a cherry?"

The baby realized it was useless to fight the mutt and sighed in defeat before whispering through his teeth.

"Red."

Brian cuffed a paw to his ear and leaned in closer.

"Excuse me? I didn't quite catch that."

Stewie gave his partner a dirty before speaking again, this time in a normal tone of voice.

"Cherries are red."

The dog smiled warmly at him and patted his back.

"Good job."

Stewie pulled away from the dog's paw.

"You're a real jackass you know that."

Brian chuckled and pulled the boy down so that the child was lying on top of him, belly to belly.

"Oh, come on, I was just messing with you, Stewie. You're just so cute when you're upset."

The child didn't respond to this, instead choosing to ignore the canine and get back to the topic he had been on before the dog had went off on his random power trip.

"Anyway, I was going to ask you if you wanted to share my candy, but now, I'm not too sure I want to share them with you."

Brian knew Stewie wasn't being serious about that last part and reached over to take the box from the infant's hand. Without protest, Stewie handed the box to the dog who proceeded to open it up, reach in, and hand the boy a piece of candy. Stewie smiled at him and accepted the little candy heart. He looked at it to see what it said.

Cutie Pie

He blushed, quickly popping the candy into his mouth and hoping that Brian hadn't had time to read it. Next, Brian reached in for his own piece of candy. He pulled out the heart and looked to see what it said.

My Pet

He laughed to himself and then, ate the candy before Stewie could ask him what it said. This continued for the next several minutes. Stewie would take a piece, then Brian, and neither one of them ever made reference to the various sayings. Once the candy was gone, Stewie repocketed the box and laid his head on the dog's chest sighing happily and savoring the affectionate contact. He turned his head upwards to face the dog's.

"This is nice."

Brian ran his paw up and down the length of Stewie's back and nodded his head.

"Yeah."

He pushed his feet against the couch to scoot his head up against the arm rest and get in a more comfortable position. They stayed like that for a good while, and Brian began to feel his eyelids getting heavy. He fought to stay awake, but it seemed hopeless. Just when it seemed like he was about to drift off, he heard the sound of a car pulling up in a driveway. His eyes shot open, and he realized that Lois had probably just returned from shopping with Bonnie. He looked down at Stewie to warn the child but found that the boy was fast asleep in his arms.

Shit!

He wasn't sure what to do, but it ended up not mattering since Lois was opening the door within the next second. The dog closed his eyes. The door flew open, and he froze.

"Brian, there are groceries over in Bonnie's car. Could you…"

The voice stopped, and Brian waited to see what Lois's reaction would be to seeing him and Stewie in such an affectionate embrace.

"Aww! Well, aren't you two adorable!"

This was not the reaction Brian had been expecting. He slowly opened his eyes and let out a fake yawn, making it seem like he had been asleep, also. He looked over at Lois.

"Oh, hey, Lois. You just get back?"

The woman nodded, grinning from ear to ear.

"I was going to ask you to help with the groceries in Bonnie's car, but I'm not sure if I want to interrupt this beautiful Kodak moment."

The dog reached up and scratched behind his neck nervously.

"Yeah, about that, I guess Stewie was pretty tuckered out after preschool. We sat down on the couch, and he sort of just toppled over onto me. I didn't want to disturb him, so I, you know, just sort of laid back, and before long, I was out, too."

Brian thought he did an admirable job of explaining how he and Stewie had ended up in such a position, and judging by Lois's reaction, he was right.

"Aww. My poor little man is so tired. Here…"

She reached down to pick up the infant.

"I'll take him upstairs."

Brian reluctantly allowed Lois to retrieve Stewie. As the woman turned to head upstairs, he called out to her.

"I'll go ahead and get those groceries in for you."

He didn't get a response since Lois was too busy whispering baby talk at her sleeping son, and once she was all the way up the stairs, he exhaled a sigh of relief. When Lois had walked through that door, he had been terrified. He wasn't exactly sure what he had been terrified of since there was no reason for Lois to assume that there was something wrong with the way he had been lying with Stewie, but he was pretty sure that he had never been so worried in his life. Admittedly, it was kind of ridiculous if not just plain paranoid, but he figured it was better to be paranoid about things and keep them secret than too carefree and having someone find out. He was taking a huge risk being with Stewie, but he knew it was worth it. With these thoughts in mind, he got off the couch and went to retrieve the groceries Lois had purchased. He walked next door and saw Bonnie retrieving her own groceries from her vehicle. She waved at him. Brian waved back.

"Hey, Bonnie."

He looked in the car and saw about five bags worth of groceries.

"So, which of these are Lois's?"

Bonnie shut the door and motioned towards the bags she was carrying.

"Oh, these are all the things I bought. Just grab everything else."

Brian listened to the woman and retrieved the other bags before shutting the door and allowing Bonnie to lock the car.

"Alright, then. Thanks, Bonnie. See you around."

The woman smiled at him before turning around to enter her house. Brian walked back over to his own house and brought all the groceries into the kitchen. By this time, Lois was already downstairs again, and Brian couldn't help but notice that she now had a piece of paper in her hands. He set the bags onto the table and pointed toward the paper.

"What's that?"

Lois smiled at him and handed him the paper.

"I found it in Stewie's pocket when I was putting him in his crib."

Brian took the paper and saw that it was a picture from a coloring book. It was a picture of a boy playing with his dog that Stewie had obviously colored while he was away. Brian smiled.

"This is really good."

Lois nodded her head.

"I think it was meant for you."

Brian had a feeling that Lois was right, and decided he was going to have to go upstairs and put this picture with his things later. All of a sudden, he felt Lois reaching down to pet him on the head, and that awkward feeling from earlier came back in full force. This time Brian just pulled away.

"I'm, uh, gonna go upstairs. Let me know when the others start coming back."

Without waiting for a response, Brian turned to exit the kitchen and head for Stewie's room, eager to get out of that room alone with Lois. He wasn't sure what was going on, but she had been acting extra affectionate around him all day. He was hoping that she was just in a weird mood and that things would go back to normal really soon because if Lois was going to start acting like that all the time, then he wasn't sure he wanted to be alone with her at all anymore.

You've come a long way from pining at her feet, Brian

Breaking away from that train of thought, the dog entered the baby's room and walked over to a cardboard box sitting in the corner to put the picture away. After that, he walked over to the crib and curled up beside it. He had no intention of going to sleep, but Stewie's mere presence was too much of a comfort to pass up. Everything just felt right in this room, and the dog found himself thinking that this was a feeling that he would never get tired of.

By the time dinner had rolled around, Stewie had awakened and joined the rest of the family downstairs. Brian had left the baby's room a couple of hours ago, after having first lied down by the boy's crib, after Lois had done as she was asked and informed him about Chris and Meg's arrival. Peter had come home soon afterwards, and now, the entire family was together at the dinner table, engaging in everyday conversation. Brian and Stewie didn't pay them much mind, too lost in their own little world to care about the others too much. It wasn't until Lois spoke up and addressed the table that someone else got their attention.

"So, everyone, Aunt Carol called me this morning and told me that, since her birthday is coming up, Mayor Adam West is going to be throwing her a big party, and naturally, she invited me and Peter, so your father and I are going to be going out this Friday night."

Peter looked surprised by this news.

"I don't remember ever agreein' to go with you to some lame party."

The woman shot the man a look that could kill but quickly covered it up with a plastic smile as she replied.

"Well, I didn't figure I'd have to ask my adoring husband to attend my sister's birthday party with me."

Peter just shrugged.

"Eh, what the hell. I ain't got nothin' planned for Friday. Joe's going out of town, and Quagmire's got a date with some broad. All I got to say is that there better be some good food over there."

While it was obvious that Lois wasn't pleased with Peter's couldn't-care-less attitude, she did seem to accept that it was probably the best response she was going to get out of him. Just when it seemed like the adults were done talking, Meg spoke up.

"Mom, can I go to Aunt Carol's party? I don't want to be stuck here on Friday night."

Chris finished chewing the food that was in his mouth before retorting.

"Well, maybe if you weren't such a loser, you'd have places to go on Friday instead of staying home all the time."

The girl turned towards her brother, raising her voice as she spoke.

"Oh! I don't see you with any plans for the weekend, so you don't have any right to judge! In fact, do you have any friends Chris!?"

Chris folded his arms.

"Of course I have friends. You just never see them because they don't want to be anywhere near your fat ass."

Meg gasped.

"M-My fat ass! Look who's talking, Lardo!"

It wasn't long before the two siblings were yelling incomprehensibly at one another, exchanging various insults and going on and on about how terrible of a person the other was. Their fight didn't last long, though, because Lois quickly interjected with her own shout that put the two teenagers to shame.

"ENOUGH!"

Everyone looked over at Lois, and everything went quite as they waited to see what she would do. After drawing in a breath, she continued.

"I am not in the mood for this right now! If you two want to fight like that, leave the table!"

Though it seemed like their fight had been forgotten, both Chris and Meg, quickly scarfed down what was left of their dinner and left to go upstairs to their respective rooms, fearing the wrath of their mother. After that outburst, the tension in the air became unbearable, so Brian and Stewie decided the best course of action was to follow Chris and Meg's example and get the hell out of there as quickly as possible. They finished what little food they had left and pushed their plates away. Brian stood up and picked up Stewie from his highchair.

"Oh, boy. That dinner was really good, Lois. I'm stuffed, and it looks like Stewie is finished, too, so I'll just go ahead and take him with me if that's alright."

The woman didn't say anything, but the look she was giving the dog made it seem like she was ok with his request. Feeling it was safe to do so, Brian turned around and walked out of the kitchen at a brisk pace. He decided to just go ahead and head up to Stewie's room, possibly just end the day there by getting the kid ready and going to bed. Stewie probably wasn't that tired since he'd gotten up from a nap not too terribly long ago, but Brian figured the child wouldn't mind settling down for the night with him. As the canine was making his way up the stairs, he heard a sound of disgust come from the infant in his arms.

"Good Lord, these people become more and more unbearable every day, I swear."

Brian didn't look down at the boy, instead deciding it was best to keep his focus on where he was going, but he did sigh before responding.

"I care about this family, but sometimes…I wouldn't mind if they just decided to take off for a day or two."

He felt the boy's fingers beginning to run through his fur, obviously trying to coerce him into something.

"Well, Peter and Lois are going to be gone this Friday. Maybe, we could take advantage of that."

The dog shook his head.

"I don't know, Kid. Chris and Meg are still going to be here, and while we might be able to avoid any suspicion from Chris, I doubt Meg would just ignore it if she found us doing something intimate together."

At this, the baby sighed in frustration.

"Well, then, let's just take off somewhere! I have those robots of us! They'd never find out!"

The child had a point. They'd been gone before without the family realizing it. Maybe, the two of them just needed to take off for the day sometime for their first proper outing together. The thought was nice, but still, Brian wanted to be the one to plan out their first actual date. After all, he was the one who had a lot to make up for, not Stewie. Brian wanted it to be something special, something he'd planned for his partner, a surprise even. That couldn't happen if he needed to use Stewie's technology to make it possible. Maybe the child was right about this Friday night being a good opportunity for them. Sure, Chris and Meg would be there, but if he could talk to them, convince them to find someplace to go that night, there would be nothing to stop him and Stewie from having a night to themselves. The dog pulled himself away from his thoughts and stopped at the door to Stewie's room. Before entering, he looked down at the tyke and smiled.

"Just be patient, Kid. I promise it'll be worth the wait."

With that, he opened the door, entered the room, and the two of them got ready for bed.

Later that night, while Stewie was sleeping beside him, Brian decided that he was going to try and see if he could arrange for Friday to be their date night, too. As soon as Chris and Meg got in from school, he was going to have a talk with each of them to see what could be worked out. With any luck, by Friday night, he'd have everything all set up to surprise the kid. He smiled, imagining the look Stewie would probably have on his face at the realization that he was finally going to get to go out with the dog of his dreams. The idea of bringing that kind of joy to his partner filled his heart with an intense feeling of pride. He knew how much Stewie wanted this, how frustrated the boy got with his cautious attitude when it came to their relationship, but he was determined to make it all worth it for the child. He yawned. His mind was still a buzz with ideas, but he knew he needed to get some sleep. He could think about his plan more tomorrow. He nuzzled his nose against the boy's neck before giving it an affectionate lick. The child moaned in his sleep and pushed himself in closer to the dog. Brian chuckled at this and gave the infant one last kiss on the top of his head before snuggling into Stewie, closing his eyes, and going to sleep.

It was the middle of the day. Chris and Meg had gotten in from school not too long ago, Lois was downstairs folding laundry, and Brian had just left Stewie alone in his room, playing a game with Rupert and some action figures. The dog walked down the hall to the door that led into Chris's room and knocked. Immediately, he heard the male teenager's voice.

"Come in."

Brian walked into Chris's room to find the young man sitting on his computer. What he also found completely blew him away. One of the walls was covered in photos and newspaper clippings with strings connecting all the items together. It didn't take Brian long to figure out that the wall had something to do with Peter and Chris's crazy investigation into who busted up the car. The dog shook himself out of his daze and proceeded to walk over to stand beside Chris.

"Hey, Chris. What you up to?"

The teenager turned around in his computer chair to face the canine.

"Oh, hey, Brian. Nothin' much. I was just playin' a game. I needed a break from all the research Dad was making me do. Me and him are really close to figuring out who broke into the garage!"

Brian just stared at him, amazed that things had gone this far, but just as he was about to get distracted with all the questions running through his brain, Chris brought the subject back to what he had originally come to discuss.

So, anyway, what do you need?"

After a little consideration, Brian decided that his best bet was to just tell Chris the truth, well, some of the truth.

"Look, I need a huge favor Chris."

Brian paused for a moment to see if the young man was going to say anything. When he didn't, the dog continued.

"You know how Peter and Lois are going to be gone all Friday night?"

Chris nodded his head, indicating that he knew what Brian was talking about and prompting Brian to continue.

"Well, you see, I was hoping to be able to arrange a little date for me and this new person I'm with, and I'd like to be able to bring them back here at some point. The only problem is I'm not sure if I could do that with you and Meg here, so I was wondering, is there any place at all you could go Friday night so me and my date could have the house to ourselves?"

Chris appeared to be listening to Brian carefully, and once the canine was finished explaining, the teenager took a moment to think about Brian's request. After a moment, he just shrugged.

"I'd love to help you out, Brian, but I can't think of any place for me to go. I mean, Mr. Herbert says that his house is always open, but that would probably just be weird if I were to just all of a sudden ask to spend the night there."

At the next second, Brian cut Chris off with an offer.

"I'll give you twenty-five dollars to stay at Herbert's place Friday night."

Chris's eyes went wide.

"Se-Seriously!"

The dog nodded his head, and Chris's face just lit up at the prospect of getting paid.

"Alright then! You've got yourself a deal, Brian!"

The two shook on it, and Brian made sure to get one more point across before the deal was sealed.

"But I'll only pay you the day after. Got it?"

Chris shook his head.

"Yeah! Yeah! Yeah! That's cool. I'll make sure to go over tomorrow and ask Mr. Herbert if I can stay over."

Satisfied, Brian let go of Chris's hand and turned to leave the room. Before he left, though, he turned back one finale time to address the young man.

"Oh, one more thing, let's keep this between us. There's no reason that Peter and Lois need to know about our arrangement."

Without waiting for Chris to respond, Brian exited the room and closed the door behind him. Next, he walked across the hall to Meg's door. He knocked and waited for a response.

"Who is it?"

The dog cleared his throat before speaking up loud enough to be heard through the door.

"It's Brian. Can I come in?"

The dog heard the sound of footsteps approaching the door before seeing it open a crack and Meg looking at him suspiciously.

"Why do you need to come in?"

Brian smiled at her warmly, hoping to show that he had nothing but good intentions.

"I just need to talk to you about something. It's…important."

Meg continued staring him down for a few more seconds before her expression softened and she opened the door the rest of the way.

"Alright. Come in."

The dog sighed under his breath in relief. For a moment, it seemed like Meg wasn't going to give him the opportunity to explain what he wanted, and he really wanted everything to work out. With the green light given, Brian walked into the girl's room and took a seat on her bed. Deciding not to waste any time, he just jumped right into it.

"Look Meg, I have a huge favor to ask of you. Peter and Lois are going to be gone all Friday night, and I was hoping that I could bring a date over here that night. The thing is it would be really nice if we could have the house to ourselves, so I was wondering, is there anywhere, anywhere at all you could go Friday night, so me and my date can be alone?"

Meg was silent for a moment, thinking about what she had just been told, but before long, a look of anger spread across her face and she responded.

"Wait a second! You're trying to kick me out of my own house just so you and one of your dumbass girlfriends can have the place to yourselves!? That's what's so important!?"

Brian couldn't help but get a little irritated by Meg's reaction, but he kept his cool as he replied.

"Look. Me and this person we don't get much alone time as it is, and I was wanting to do something really special for them Friday."

He sighed.

"It's not like it has been in the past. I really do care about this person. They're…special to me. They make me happy for a change, and I'm sorry if what I said offended you, but I wasn't trying to kick you out. I was just asking for a favor, nothing more."

After hearing Brian's words and how serious he sounded, the anger faded from Meg's face. She walked over and sat beside the dog on the bed.

"I've never seen you this way before."

There was an awkward silence that lasted for about a minute before Meg sighed in defeat.

"Alright, listen, I shouldn't have snapped at you. Out of all the people in this house, you're the only one who actually treats me decently most of the time, so I guess, if this is really that important to you, I can text Ruth and see if I can stay over at her place Friday night. I don't exactly like going over there anymore, though. Ever since she got her tongue ripped out in Paris, interacting with her has just been awkward, but she's still my friend and it's the best place I can think of. Just know that you owe me big time after this."

She smiled at the dog, and Brian smiled back.

"Thanks, Meg. You have no idea how much this means to me."

The girl leaned over and gave him a hug, and Brian accepted it awkwardly. With that done, he hopped off of the bed and left the room. Once the door was shut he did a little fist pump in the air in an expression of victory. He couldn't believe it. Everything was actually coming together. Stewie was going to be so happy. With that thought, he remembered that he had left Stewie in his room playing and figured that, since he was done, it was time for him to rejoin his love. He walked back down the hall and into Stewie's room. Upon hearing him enter, the boy turned around and smiled at him. The dog smiled back and took a seat beside the infant on the floor.

"So, what are we playing?"

The next day, when Peter got home, he called a family meeting. Everyone knew that it was probably about the investigation, but they all shuffled into the living room anyway to hear what it was that Peter had to say. They all took a seat with Lois, Chris, and Meg taking the couch and Brian and Stewie taking a spot over on the floor. Once Peter was sure he had everyone's attention, he began.

"Family, it's been a long past several days, but mine and Chris's work has finally paid off. We've found the person who broke into our garage and messed up our car."

He paused, possibly expecting some sort of congratulations, but he was only greeted by silence. After an awkward couple of seconds, he began again.

"After some hard investigating, me and Chris have discovered that the person we're after lives in Cincinnati, Ohio. Her name is May Jayroe, and she used to live in Providence."

Another pause. More Silence. Peter cleared his throat.

"I know what you're thinking. 'Why would some woman who is currently living so far away come all the way back to Rhode Island just to vandalize our car?' Well, the answer is simple. Revenge! It turns out that I've met this May Jayroe before onetime while I was in a grocery store. She got angry at me for running into her shopping cart and spilling all of her items on the ground. She was pissed then, and I'm willing to bet that she's been pissed ever since, and one day, that anger just took over, so she tracked me down, broke into my garage, and smashed out the front windshield of my car, thinking that no one would ever suspect her of the crime. Well, as many do, she underestimated me, and I've decided that I'm leaving Friday to go confront her and settle this feud once and for all!"

Everyone but Chris practically had their jaws on the floor, but it was Brian and Lois who spoke up at the same time.

"WHAT!?"

Lois stood up from the couch.

"Peter, you can't just go out of state to harass someone you stupidly think vandalized your property! And, what about Carol!? I thought we were going to her party on Friday! Now, you're telling me this!?"

Peter folded his arms across his chest.

"Lois, this is more important than some stupid birthday party. This woman needs to be confronted about what she's done."

Lois growled in frustration.

"She didn't do anything, Peter! You're just pulling these conclusions out of your ass!"

It was at this point that Chris spoke up.

"Trust me, Mom. Me and dad covered every angle on this, and this woman is the culprit. I'm with Dad. She needs to be taught a lesson."

Lois sighed, exasperated.

"You know what? Fine. I'll go to Carol's party by myself, but you are not leaving to go to Cincinnati Friday. I will not allow you to take off just so you can harass some innocent woman about something as stupid as this. You can either stay here or go with me, but honestly, I could really care less at this point."

With that she turned to march up the stairs. Brian couldn't believe this. This was all wrong. His plan was ruined. There was no way he could risk taking out Stewie with Peter at the house. Peter may be a moron, but that didn't mean the guy wouldn't catch on to what was going on if he or Stewie were to slip up while the man was still in the house. No, this ruined everything, and it frustrated him to no end. Stewie had waited long enough, and if Brian had anything to say about it, he wasn't going to have to wait any longer.

I have to fix this!

Without another thought, he stood up and followed after Lois, leaving Stewie to wonder what he was doing. The dog walked up to the door to Peter and Lois's room and knocked. After a second, he heard Lois call out.

"Who's there?"

Brian could tell the woman was crying, and he began to feel nervous about going in. Eventually, his determination won out, and he answered the question.

"It's Brian."

A couple seconds later, the door opened and Brian stepped inside the room. He heard Lois shut and lock the door, and the two of them took a seat on the bed. Lois didn't say anything, so Brian started.

"Lois, I know you're upset, but I'm sure, if you just talk to Peter, the two of you will be able to work this out."

Lois shook her head violently.

"No, there's no talking with that man. It doesn't matter what I do. He'll always be an inconsiderate jackass."

Brian slowly reached his hand over to pat Lois on the back.

"I don't think that's true. Peter just has these times where he gets really obsessed with one particular thing. It's stupid, yeah, but this whole Cincinnati business is important to him. If you just sit him down and discuss this whole situation. I'm sure you can make him see some sense. He cares about you. I'm sure if he saw you like this, he'd realize how upset he's made you and apologize. Just talk to him."

The woman looked over at him with a blank expression. Brian had no idea what she was thinking, but it all became clear in the next second when she practically threw herself at him and began kissing him.

"Hmmm!?"

The canine's eyes shot open and he fought to release himself from Lois's grip. After about a minute, he was able to pull away, and he shouted at her in a whisper.

"Lois! What the hell are you doing!?"

The woman smiled at him seductively, and Brian felt sick to his stomach.

"Come on, Brian. Isn't this what you've always wanted? I've been realizing over the past couple of days that you're the perfect guy for me. I made a mistake marrying Peter. He treats me like shit, but you, you actually care about me, and you listen to me and do everything you can to make me feel better when I'm upset. Not to mention, how good you are with Stewie. You're a better father figure for him than his own father."

Brian held up his paws for her to stop. This was too much.

"Lois, you're not thinking straight right now. You're upset. You're looking for a way to get back at Peter, and I'll have no part in it!"

The woman scowled at him.

"Hmph! Right, because you were such a good friend that time we went to Martha's Vineyard together!"

Brian sighed, remembering the incident Lois was referring to.

"I…was in a bad place back then. It was wrong then, and it's still wrong now, only this time I'm actually at a place in my life where I'm able to finally see things clearly."

He looked at the woman sternly, hoping she'd get the message.

"I was never in love with you, Lois. It was just, at the time, you represented everything I thought I wanted in a partner. I was abandoned by my mother when I was barely a puppy, and when you came along, you filled a void that I'd never had anyone else to fill, but I was just misconstruing how I saw you to make you fit something I thought I needed, and I was wrong for that. You and Peter were meant for each other. You're going through a rough patch now, but I know you'll work it out eventually. You've survived too much together to give up now. Just…talk to the guy."

Lois seemed shocked by this response. She lowered her head and shook it.

"Get out, Brian."

The dog didn't need to be told twice. In a flash, he ran to the door, unlocked it, and left the room. He was surprised to find Stewie waiting outside for him.

Oh, shit! I hope he didn't hear what happened in there!

Brian waited for the kid to say something but the boy just stared, confused. Brian cleared his throat.

"I just wanted to make sure she was ok."

Stewie tilted his head at this.

"Is she?"

The dog's jaw fell open at the question.

"D-Do you really care?"

The baby shrugged.

"Do you?"

Brian couldn't tell if this was an interrogation or if the child really was just concerned on some level.

"Well, yeah. Lois is my friend. I don't like seeing her upset."

The infant just kept looking at him, examining his face before smiling lightly.

"Then, yes, I do care. I don't like it when you're upset, and if her being upset makes you upset, I hope she gets her shit together so you can stop worrying about her."

The dog smiled and laughed. That was probably one of the nicest the things the boy had ever said about his mother. Now that he knew Stewie wasn't upset with him, he began to relax and try to ignore what just happened between him and Lois.

"Come on, Kid. Let's go to your room."

He took the child's hand and led him away from the door. As he walked away, he hoped that Lois would heed his advice and try to work things out with Peter.

I've done all I can do. It's up to them now.

He was upset about what just happened, but despite the weirdness of that situation, what really bothered him was the fact that his plan to get him and Stewie alone for a night had been destroyed. While with Stewie, he could get over the Lois thing, but the fact that he wasn't going to get to surprise the kid this Friday was something he just couldn't get past. He'd had his heart set on that, and now, there was no way it was going to work out.

Sorry, Kid. I let you down.