Louise Belcher leapt from mid-way down the stairs of her loft bed, wincing slightly when her feet hit the floor just a little too hard. She pulled down her dress and adjusted her bunny ears. Before darting into the living room. It was Friday night and that meant the Belcher family's new tradition mom/kid movie night. Apparently, Grandpa Al used to play poker on Friday nights when her mom and Aunt Gayle were kids. On those nights Gloria and the girls would have mother daughter movie night. A couple weeks ago Linda had announced her plans to continue the tradition. The family would help Bob with the bulk of the restaurant clean up and then head upstairs, leaving Bob to finish up. The first two weeks had been duds. Linda went first and chose this God-Awful movie from the 90's "My Girl" it wasn't a horrible movie but too sappy for Louise's taste. Just her luck Tina was the next week and she liked it so much she just had to watch it again. At least this week was Gene's turn. He had picked "Burpio and Fartiet" this idiotic movie about farts and burps that had souls and apparently did not live in harmony. Until a burp fell in love with a fart. It was stupid and even though it claimed to be a parody of "Romeo and Juliet", but Louise was pretty sure it was originally made with a more racially insensitive intent. Still, it wasn't a sappy movie about a girl that just had to have tragedy. Because it was a rule for tween movies tragedies or star-crossed love. Come to think of it. She was going to hate that Gene movie but next week was her turn and she was going to pick a post-apocalyptic suspense movie.
"Movie night! Gene's weird fart movie this week but then next week is my turn!" Louise cried.
"We can't watch "Burpio and Fartiet" Gene sighed.
"Why not? Is Gene grounded? Is my turn early?" Louise asked.
"They didn't have it. At the video store." Tina explained. The Belcher's still couldn't afford a smart TV and had to rent DVDs from the sad and somehow still hanging on video store "Vidi No You Didn't."
"But the good news is I found an excellent replacement!" Gene cried.
"What? Please tell me it has sharks!" Louise cried.
"No, it's "My Girl!" Gene shouted.
"NO! NO! NOT AGAIN! I can't sit through that again!" Louise wailed.
"You know the rule Louise you watch the movie nicely or you go downstairs and help your dad in the restaurant." Linda reminded.
"Fine! I'm being punished either way but at least I don't have to watch people cry downstairs." Louise groaned.
Bob Belcher was washing dishes in the restaurant kitchen when the door swung open. "Crap" he had forgot to lock it again. The good news was it wasn't a criminal at least he hoped it wasn't a criminal. "Aghhhh!" his youngest daughter Louise cried, kicking the table.
"Louise? What's wrong? Isn't it movie night?" Bob inquired.
"They didn't have Gene's stupid movie! So, he picked "My Girl" AGAIN!" Louise screamed.
"Oh well you know it isn't that bad." Bob reasoned.
"Oh, it is!" Louise insisted.
"Alright well grab mop and get the dining room floor." Bob suggested. "Oh lock the door!" he called again.
"Alright" Louise sighed trudging back into the dining room. She hated restaurant chores, but she hated "My Girl" too. At least with the restaurant chores she may get to tag along with Bob for a quick pharmacy trip so he could stock up on Tina and his anti-nausea meds. A boring trip but maybe she could talk her way into a toy and watch her dad awkwardly chat with the eccentric clerk. She was lost in thought daydreaming that the mop was a super weapon, and she was fighting off cephalopod monsters alongside Hawk and Chick. Probably making more the floor dirtier than it had been before, but cleaning wasn't her goal. Avoiding "My Girl" and all it's sappy, mundaneness, doltish, time-wasting terribleness was her goal. When there was a heavy knocking on the door.
"Read the sign! We are closed you brain dead hot dog bucket!" Louise shouted waving the mop in the air.
"Louise don't talk to customers like that." Bob chastised exiting the kitchen. "I am sorry. We are closed. My daughter is just creative." Bob apologized before realizing who was at the door. "Mort?" Bob greeted unlocking the restaurant door.
"Hi Bob, Hi Louise. Uh Louise would you mind going upstairs. I need to talk to your father privately for a minute." Mort greeted.
"NO! Upstairs is where that movie is! I would rather be down here working." Louise whined.
"Louise goes upstairs. Just tell your mom we got done early and I granted you a movie night pardon." Bob ordered.
"OK" Louise hissed.
Louise ducked under Mort's arm and headed back up to the apartment. Bob closed and relocked the door. For the first time since his arrival, he really looked at Mort. The mortician stood before him ashen and downtrodden. It was clear to Bob that the older man had been crying and quite heavily. Bob had known Mort for a long time now and knew very little truly broke him anymore. Only when it was a child or somebody he knew well, a hazard of being the only mortician on a small town.
"Are you OK, Mort?" Bob asked.
"No Bob. So… Something's happened." Mort stammered. "I… I want you… you to know first. So, Louise… So, Louise doesn't find out the wrong way. Any of your kids but especially… especially Louise."