Gwen lowered her head, placed the lunch boxes on the kitchen table, and quietly walked over to the sofa in the living room.
She sat down, hugging one of the cushions close to her chest.
"Look, Alan… I don't like fighting with Dad either," she said softly. "But he keeps disappointing us. He spends more time at the police station than at home."
Alan walked over and sat down across from her. "Gwen, it's not easy for Uncle George either. He has to keep the city safe and solve a lot of cases."
Before he could finish, Gwen cut him off. Her voice cracked a little as she spoke. "Today's my birthday… and he still didn't come. He didn't even call me."
Alan leaned forward, trying to cheer her up. "Maybe he was busy, that's why he forgot. Just call him, and he'll remember. Okay? Now don't make that crying face."
Gwen wiped the tears from her eyes after hearing Alan's words, brushing them away quickly as if she didn't want him to notice.
"Come on now," Alan said gently. "Let's go out and get something to eat."
He stood up from the sofa and walked to the kitchen, placing the lunch boxes from the table into the fridge.
"Okay," Gwen replied, her voice a little steadier. "Let me grab some money from Mom."
Before she could move, Alan reached out and lightly caught her hand. "No need," he said. "I've got some savings of my own."
Gwen paused, then smiled faintly. "Alright. I'll go change my clothes. Just wait for me downstairs."
"Okay," Alan said with a small grin. "But don't make me wait too long, or we're not going."
She gave him a playful look before heading toward the door to change.
Alan also got up and changed into some simple clothes before going out.
Before leaving, he looked at Four Arms and gave a mental command.
"Go outside and stay near me, but don't attract too much attention."
Four Arms silently obeyed.
Alan then went downstairs and waited near the entrance of the apartment building. He stood a little distance away from the door.
A few minutes later, Four Arms also came down from the building. Alan mentally ordered him to stay farther away and follow from a distance.
After waiting for some time, Gwen finally came downstairs.
She had changed into a fresh set of clothes.
For a moment, Alan was stunned.
Gwen looked like an angel who had come down from heaven.
The words slipped out of his mouth before he could stop himself.
"Wow... you look like an angel."
Gwen immediately blushed.
"Oh? Then why don't you take this angel out to see the earthly world?" she said with a smile.
Alan grinned and suddenly knelt on one knee in front of her.
"Then the honor is mine, Angel of Beauty," he said while stretching out his hand.
Gwen giggled and placed her hand in his.
Alan took her hand and stood back up.
Thank God nobody is around to see this, Alan thought. Otherwise this would be really embarrassing.
The two of them then walked side by side toward their destination, a Chinese restaurant that was quite famous in their neighborhood.
As they walked, Gwen kept talking about her new internship at Oscorp.
"And then Mr. Connors said we need to organize all the reports before next week," Gwen said excitedly.
"Really?" Alan replied.
"Yeah! And there are so many interesting projects there. You wouldn't believe it."
Alan honestly understood almost nothing she was talking about.
Still, he nodded along.
"Yeah."
"And then?"
"That sounds important."
His simple replies were enough to keep the conversation going, and Gwen happily continued talking while Alan listened.
Finally, they reached their destination. The restaurant was quiet, with not many people inside.
From the outside, Alan and Gwen could already see that only two or three tables were occupied.
Alan and Gwen walked inside and chose a corner seat to sit down.
After they sat down, a familiar waiter came over.
Alan and Gwen were regular customers here, so the waiter smiled and greeted them.
"Hey, you two again," the waiter said. "Same as usual?"
Gwen smiled and nodded. "Yes, please."
Gwen's family often came to this restaurant because it was close to their home and the food was good.
After a little small talk, the waiter left to take their order, leaving the two of them alone.
Gwen turned to Alan first.
"Thank you for this. For my birthday," she said softly.
Alan shook his head. "You're the birthday girl. You should be treated. As your friend, I had to do it."
Hearing this, Gwen smiled brightly. Alan could clearly see happiness on her face.
After a few minutes, their food arrived.
They started eating while continuing their conversation.
Even though they were only there for a short time, both of them knew they couldn't stay too long and had to go home soon.