"Matt? You alright?"
Swallowing the lump in his throat, Mathew forced himself to smile. Turning to Luke, he saw the young boy's concerned expression. The camera in his hands was forgotten.
"Me? Yeah, I'm fine! I had to help Steven move that table several times because he couldn't make up his mind. I guess that took more out of me than I thought." Mathew grinned and leaned back on the kitchen counter.
Luke frowned for a split second before shrugging. "Yeah, Steven can be pretty wishy-washy. You guys need any help?"
"Nah, we got it handled. You can go back to recording the gala."
"Sweet. Will do."
Mathew watched Luke run off and sighed. With a push, he got off the counter and moved to grab the large blue cooler at the end of the kitchen island. As he bent down to grab it, he heard the front door open.
"Oh, I forgot the present in the car," Haley said as she stepped into the house with Kenny behind her.
"Oh. All right. I'm gonna go take a squirt while you grab it."
"Oh! Hey!"
"I know!"
"I love us!"
"It's crazy! Mwah!"
Hearing the very same unfamiliar voice from this morning, Mathew walked into the living room to see Phil and Claire staring at Haley and Kenny kissing.
Walking over to Phil's right, Mathew looked at Haley, who was kissing a much older man with a disgusted frown.
"What the hell..." Mathew whispered.
"I'm gonna fight him," Phil uttered in a dead tone. His expression was tight and furious.
"Phil," Claire said, trying to calm down her husband.
Although Mathew and Haley haven't known each other for very long, their conversation at the café sparked a connection. Since then, they have started chatting more frequently after Mathew and Alex have finished their study sessions. Through these quick exchanges, they learned more about each other and discovered that they got along well. After exchanging phone numbers, they began sending each other funny videos and pictures every few days.
Considering all this, Mathew genuinely cared for Haley as a good friend. Additionally, since she was his best friend's older sister, he found it particularly unsettling that a much older, shady man was touching and kissing her inappropriately.
"Want some help, Phil?"
"Yes... Let's mess him up real good."
"Okay, Mathew, no. Go help with the party. Phil, how about we start with a threat?" Claire said as she gently pushed Mathew back into the kitchen. "Please don't encourage him."
"Mrs. Dunphy. This isn't okay. He's old enough to be Haley's dad." Mathew said as they stepped into the kitchen. "It's disgusting."
"It's okay, Mathew. I got a plan."
"I hope so... otherwise, I'm knocking him out."
"Let's hope it doesn't come to that."
••o••o••o••
After Jay and Gloria got home with the cake, it didn't take long for Manny to arrive home. Quickly, everyone got into position and turned off the lights in order to surprise Manny. But what no one expected was for Manny to bring a girl with him and for her to kiss him.
Unfortunately, once she flicked the lights on, she left screaming, seeing a large number of people watching what should have been a private and intimate kiss. Leaving Manny to fume and run upstairs.
While Gloria and Jay tried to get Manny to come down to continue the festivities, everyone mingled and ate some snacks while they waited.
In the backyard, Mathew and Alex sat far off from the pool while eyeing Kenny and Haley, who were seated across from Phil and Claire at the outdoor table.
"You think he's on a list?"
"Which one?" Alex said in a disgusted tone.
Mathew watched as Phil walked behind Kenny with a large pair of shears, only to be stopped by Claire.
"What's Haley thinking? I knew she was more free with her relationships, but this is something else." Mathew said as he chewed on a cookie.
"I don't know. Then again, she's always been pretty promiscuous."
"What should we do?"
"Speaking from past experience, nothing. Haley doesn't exactly listen too well when someone criticizes her." Alex rolled her eyes and ate some popcorn. "All we can do is watch and hope things don't end too badly."
Mathew frowned and tried to remember if this had happened in the original show. No matter how hard he thought back, he couldn't recall anything. Maybe he shouldn't have watched the series out of order.
Then again, who knows if things will even continue to follow the show one-to-one. Heck, with The Rookie existing in the same universe, who knows if everything will be family-friendly? Mathew thought with a growing sense of unease.
••o••o••o••
Unfortunately, things only seemed to continue to go wrong. After Manny came downstairs, Gloria's water broke, and Jay rushed her to the hospital. Considering that the Dunphy's were his ride home, Mathew ended up tagging along as the entire family headed to the hospital.
Much to Mathew's annoyance and Phil's fury, Kenny ended up tagging along as well.
"Uuuaaghhh~" Jay screamed in a high-pitched whine as Gloria squeezed his hand in a vice grip.
"Ah, she's gettin' close. She's at, like, eight beautiful centimeters." Kenny grinned as he began to touch Haley's exposed thighs. This caused Phil to squeeze his coffee cup until the lid popped off.
Kenny turned to Alex and reached out for a handshake. "Hey. I think we saw each other this morning. I'm Kenny."
"Hi. I'm disgusted." Alex monotonously said as she shook Kenny's hand. Standing up, she left the room to head to the bathroom to wash her hands.
Sitting in the chair behind Alex's, Mathew closed his eyes and tried to block out Kenny's chuckle. Leaning over to Phil, he whispered so only the angry man could hear.
"So... how's Mrs. Dunphy's plan going?"
"...great." Phil said through clenched teeth.
"I see." Mathew nodded and stood up. "I'm off to get some air."
Walking over to the stairwell, Mathew began making his way down to the ground floor. After three flights of stairs, he stepped out onto the hospital's main floor and spotted a vending machine. Grabbing his bottled water from the dispenser, he took several thirsty drinks and leaned against a nearby pillar.
To some, he seemed like a worried family member trying to find some peace from the oppressive hospital environment.
But deep inside, Mathew couldn't help but feel annoyed and angry at himself for his earlier slip. He thought he was past that moment of his life. His past life. He couldn't have been further from the truth.
"Yeah, man. This new girl is such a nice piece of ass. Listen to this: her parents are paying for our hotel room! Isn't that crazy?"
Mathew turned to see Kenny step out of the elevator, his phone next to his ear.
"Yeah, she works at one of my boutiques. Yup. After I'm done with Haley, I'll move on to Cassidy. Man, she's got a huge pair of tits. Here, I'll send you a nude she sent me!" Kenny chuckled as he began to type on his phone. "You get it? Aren't they just the best pair you've seen? I'm telling you, man, young girls are where it's at... Yeah, yeah. I'm just waiting for her right now. She forgot something with her folks. But after that, it's sex city!"
Mathew paused as he felt himself grow cold.
He always believed he had a strong grasp on his emotions.
Especially considering that he was a reincarnated individual with about 38 collected years of mental experience.
However, at that moment, hearing someone speak about one of his friends in such a disrespectful manner made Mathew feel his control start to slip.
His mind knew that he shouldn't act violently.
But his body, his hormone-driven, rage-fueled young body, didn't care.
"Kenny."
Hearing his name, Kenny turned to Mathew. His eyes grew wide with alarm for a split second before he chuckled. He was acting as if he wasn't just treating Haley like an object. An object to be used and then thrown away once used up.
"Mathew, right! Hey there, buddy! I didn't see you there! hows-"
"Leave. Don't talk to Haley ever again." Mathew muttered as he stepped into Kenny's personal space with practiced ease. "Otherwise, you'll regret it."
Kenny blinked at Mathew's brazen attitude, and a surge of annoyance rose within the older man.
He was ready to give Mathew a piece of his mind, but when he looked into Mathew's eyes, he froze.
An elevator ding behind them went unnoticed by either of them.
"What... are you talking about?" Kenny managed to force out, his heart beating madly.
"You think I didn't hear you? What? Do you think you can just use Haley like she was some cheap whore and throw her out so you can move on to the next misguided girl after she's used up? How dare you talk about her like that!" Mathew growled out. He had to force his arms to stay by his sides. Otherwise, he would have punched Kenny's teeth out then and there.
Kenny gulped before Mathew. The young man's eyes were sharp and cold.
It was as if Kenny was standing in front of a dangerous animal. He wasn't sure if it was a trick of the light, but to Kenny, it seemed as if Mathew's green eyes seemed to glow.
Even feeling all this, Kenny frowned and stepped closer to Mathew.
In the end, he was still a snot-nosed teenager while he was a grown man. He wouldn't let some kid talk to him like that.
"Litsen here you little brat. You don't tell me who-"
A burst of air swapped past Kenny's right ear as Mathews's right fist blurred past him. Suddenly, Kenny felt a sharp sting on his cheek where Mathew's fist brushed past him.
The older man wasn't sure when Mathew had suddenly gotten so close to him, but his human instincts were screaming at him that he was in danger!
"Last warning. Leave. Don't talk to Haley ever again." Mathew muttered, his cold green eyes staring through Kenny's own black eyes. His left hand was beside him and ready. A fact Kenny quickly noticed.
With a shaky nod, Kenny backed away slowly and walked out of the hospital.
Those who were nearby watched the man go with anxious stares before turning to a fuming Mathew. Quickly, they all went back to what they were doing. Not willing to get involved.
Shit... I lost control. Mathew thought as he lifted his fist. He eyed it with disappointment as a low sigh left him.
A pair of footsteps rushed him from behind him. Spinning around, Mathew was unprepared for the tight hug Haley gave him as she buried her head into his chest.
Despite having used Kenny herself for her own plan to get back at her father, Haley didn't expect that she had almost gotten involved with such a degenerate.
At this moment, she felt her heart clench as she held Mathew. Hearing such things be said about her by someone she recently held and kissed left her feeling filthy.
At this moment, she came to regret her actions even further.
"...thank you."
Mathew closed his eyes and nodded. Lifting his once tense arms, he hugged her back.
"No problem."