Many children bring happiness, a shameless start

As soon as the Lip family left the school, they saw Jimmy running toward the school gate in a hurry.

"Fiona, what is Jimmy doing?" asked Lip.

"What can he be doing? He's busy working as a supervisor in the house next to ours all day long!" Fiona smiled happily.

"Guarding the decoration?"

"Uh-huh." Fiona nodded.

Seeing Fiona and Lip, Jimmy ran excitedly and rushed to Fiona, taking two quick steps.

The two kissed.

"How about it?" asked Jimmy.

"With this guy here, everything is easy and simple," Fiona proudly pointed at Lip.

"I should've thought of it sooner."

Jimmy's face showed realization.

"Let's go, let's go home, it's freezing outside!" Fiona shivered and dragged Jimmy to his car.

Lip carried Carl and got into the Hummer with the three girls.

As soon as they got in, the three girls couldn't stop fussing over the handsome and cute Carl. They took turns touching his head and pinching his face.

They bombarded him with questions and kept talking nonstop.

After returning home, Fiona and Jimmy started preparing dinner, while Lip and the three girls were surrounded by Ian, Carl, and Debbie, all vying for his attention.

The three of them seemed to have endless questions for Lip, Karen, Mandy, and Jessica.

Of course, Ian's biggest concern was when Mickey would be released. After learning that there were still two days left, Ian's sour expression lifted, and he even began to smile.

Carl was more concerned about how to pick up girls like Karen, Mandy, and Jessica, the ones with hot bodies.

When Lip told him that there would be no shortage of girls when he grew up, Carl looked happy and excited.

Debbie had a more exciting question.

She asked Lip when he planned to get married and have kids.

She even offered to help take care of the child.

Lip, of course, answered directly when he could, but played it coy with the questions he couldn't answer. Lip was no fool when it came to playing with brains.

While the family laughed and chatted, Lip realized there was an immediate issue.

Through the system, he learned that Karen, Mandy, and Jessica were actually pregnant.

But there were no early pregnancy symptoms yet.

Once they appeared, he would be very busy.

The time commitments of the three girls worried him.

Jessica's situation was manageable; with her family's favorable conditions, it would be easy to find an experienced nanny.

Karen didn't need to worry too much either, especially with Sheila around to support her.

Lip was most concerned about Mandy. Her family's situation was much worse than even the Gallagher family's.

After thinking about it, Lip decided to give Mandy extra love and care.

Since this was still the early stage of pregnancy, ensuring a smooth, safe pregnancy became Lip's top priority.

He decided to hold a small meeting with his three girlfriends after dinner to discuss the matter.

Meanwhile, Fiona and Jimmy had become increasingly like a couple. They chatted while chopping vegetables, mixing meat, and dressing food, kissing each other frequently.

Lip once bumped into them and silently chose to retreat.

Half an hour later, Fiona and Jimmy called out together, "Dinner's ready!"

Everyone gathered around the dining table.

The dinner was delicious.

Looking at the steaming barbecue and smelling the mix of onions and jalapeños, everyone's appetite was piqued.

As Fiona and Jimmy sat down, everyone began eating, enjoying the meal.

"Let's go to the open space to warm up by the fire after dinner!" Karl suggested, biting into half a sausage.

"I agree, we haven't grilled yet today!" Debbie also chimed in, her eyes sparkling.

"I'll get the wood," Ian volunteered.

"Okay, we'll warm up by the fire later!" Fiona approved.

"Oh, oh, oh~"

Carl and Debbie cheered excitedly, and Liam raised his meat slices, shouting, "Eaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa."

"Is that a fire?" Lip looked at Jessica in surprise, feeling incredulous. This little girl had never even roasted marshmallows?

But then he understood. Jessica had grown up in a rich family and been pampered. She had probably never seen an open flame, not even a fire at home.

"Jessica, warming up by the fire is a common way to spend winter in the South," Lip patiently explained. "The South doesn't have the steady cold of the North."

"Sometimes the gas gets cut off, too."

"On days without gas heating, we usually light a big bonfire in the yard as a family and burn it for hours."

"We all gathered around, drank beer, and chatted happily."

"Once we were warm, we'd go home and go to bed."

"Wow, that sounds fun!" Jessica seemed intrigued.

"You're just curious about things you've never seen before," Lip gently teased, scratching Jessica's nose.

After dinner, the family gathered in the open space next to the house.

Lip found the iron frame from previous years.

Ian, Carl, and Jimmy brought loads of wood.

After a while, Lip lit the bonfire.

The fire blazed brightly, radiating warmth and bringing comfort to everyone.

The flames flickered, rising and falling, while the smoke billowed up and down, sometimes thick, sometimes light.

A gust of wind blew, shrinking the flames, and the smoke twisted like unruly hair, filling the air.

"Snap, snap, snap..." The crackling sound of burning wood echoed, and sparks flew upward, lighting up the dark night.

"Lip, this flame is so beautiful!" Jessica exclaimed.

"Yeah!" Lip echoed her sentiment.

The flames danced, their red glow fading into yellow outlines on the edges. Even an artist couldn't replicate such a beautiful color.

Kevin, carrying a retro square tape player on his shoulder and holding Veronica's hand, joined the fun.

Fiona and Debbie also came out with beers in hand.

As Kevin pressed play, everyone started drinking and dancing around the fire.

Lip sat on a shabby sofa closest to the fire with the three girls, soaking in the warmth.

"How do you feel, Jessica?" Mandy asked, smiling.

"Very cool!" Jessica replied excitedly. "I used to hide inside in the winter and never thought it could be this fun outdoors!"

"Then enjoy it more!" Karen said, pulling Mandy and Jessica into a dance, wiggling their hips.

Lip smiled contentedly, watching everything unfold.

In this moment, the cold winter and the dark night seemed to vanish.