"Sheldon, are you sure you don't need our help?" Seeing Sheldon's unwillingness to let anyone else interfere, Mike finally confirmed, "If you don't need it, I'll go back and make lunch."
After this delay, it was indeed lunchtime.
"Mike, are you making lunch?" Missy, who was also watching the excitement, came to Mike excitedly and pleaded, "Can I join you? I want to eat your stir-fried tomatoes with scrambled eggs..."
Ever since Georgie went to Brenda's to help with the chicken coop, Cooper and Connie's had no shortage of eggs.
Mike also used eggs as an ingredient to recreate stir-fried tomatoes with scrambled eggs, a simple yet delicious homemade stir-fry.
Not to mention, the sweet and sour taste quickly won everyone's favor.
"Alright, let's go together." Mike patted Missy's head and then looked at Georgie, asking, "What about you, what do you say?"
"Actually, I also really like stir-fried tomatoes with scrambled eggs..." Georgie said familiarly.
Given Mike's relationship with Cooper, freeloading a meal was nothing.
As for Paige, when she called Mike over earlier, she most likely wanted to spend more time with him.
Now that she could go home and cook with Mike, she naturally had no objections.
Seeing them about to leave, Sheldon, standing alone in front of the refrigerator, suddenly called out, "Wait, Mike—"
"What's wrong, Sheldon?" Mike asked, amused by his anxious yet stubborn expression.
"If you insist, I can invite you to come and repair the refrigerator with me." Sheldon, with some fine beads of sweat already on his forehead, still maintained an arrogant expression and said, "Of course, the premise is that you don't charge me a repair fee."
Actually, with Georgie's hands-on ability and Sheldon's brilliant mind, if they had cooperated, they would have likely fixed the refrigerator long ago.
The main reason he didn't ask Georgie for help was probably because he charged a repair fee.
And Sheldon currently couldn't afford that money.
On the other side, Mike looked at Sheldon, who was arrogant with a hint of pleading, trying hard to hide his emotions, and smiled, saying, "We are friends, of course I won't charge you."
After hearing Mike's answer, Sheldon visibly relaxed and moved aside.
"Manual... repair tools..."
Mike, having taken on the task, immediately entered work mode.
With his and Paige's super brains, the refrigerator's manual was quickly thoroughly studied.
Afterward, Georgie, who was waiting nearby, also came over to lend a hand and help repair the refrigerator.
At the same time, Missy also helped by handing over repair tools.
For a moment, Sheldon, the person involved, became an outsider.
[Repair Experience +10]... [Repair Experience +10]...
Half an hour later, with everyone's concerted efforts, the Cooper family's small refrigerator was reassembled.
And in Mike's skill bar, there was an additional Level 2 Repair skill.
Sheldon, who hadn't been able to help much earlier, looked at the refrigerator, which restarted after being plugged in, listened for a while with his ear pressed against it, and then excitedly cheered, "I knew my feeling was right, I fixed the refrigerator at home—"
Eliminating the annoying sonic noise for his family filled him with a sense of accomplishment.
"Shut up. If it weren't for Mike, you'd still be playing with screws..." Seeing Sheldon take all the credit, Georgie sarcastically retorted, annoyed.
At the same time, Paige and Missy also looked at Sheldon with strange expressions.
It should be noted that, strictly speaking, Sheldon really didn't help at all during the repair, except for being noisy.
"Hmm— I admit Mike helped a little. But I believe, even without him, I could have handled it myself..." Sheldon, unafraid of embarrassment, still stubbornly defended himself.
And his appearance successfully stirred up the anger of the others.
"Alright, everyone, stop talking—" Mike soothed everyone's emotions and continued, "Since the refrigerator is fixed, I'll make lunch here."
"Great, I'll help—" Sure enough, upon hearing about food, Missy's attention was diverted.
"If possible, I'd like to have beef stew..." Sheldon, who had been tense all morning, felt hungry after relaxing.
Just as he was about to continue ordering dishes without formality, he was met with Missy's fierce gaze.
"Alright, I can eat anything." Sheldon, suppressed by his bloodline, retreated to the side weakly.
Then, with the help of Missy and Paige, Mike soon prepared everyone's lunch.
Stir-fried tomatoes with scrambled eggs, beef stew with potatoes, two plates of vegetable salad, plus soft roasted bread...
It wasn't a very lavish lunch, but for those who were hungry, it was a rare delicacy.
Afterward, Mike, who had finished lunch, also stayed at the Cooper family's to play with Paige.
It wasn't until evening, when George returned after a busy day, that Sheldon quickly went up to him.
"Dad— Can you feel any changes at home?" Sheldon looked as if he was asking for praise.
"Oh? Did you do a big clean-up at home today?" George guessed with a smile.
Anyone familiar with Sheldon's personality knew that when he was in a bad mood, he would do a thorough cleaning of his surroundings to relieve stress.
George also greatly appreciated this intermittent "quirk" of his youngest son.
"No—" Sheldon shook his head and prompted, "Listen carefully, hasn't the noise at home decreased?"
As he spoke, Sheldon's eyes kept signaling his father to look at the refrigerator.
"Really? I don't feel anything." George, who was thick-skinned, had never noticed the refrigerator's previous abnormalities, so he naturally couldn't distinguish the difference now.
"It's the refrigerator's noise, I told you about it before." Sheldon directly laid it out, "Now, it has been fixed by me."
Although he still didn't understand what had happened, seeing his youngest son's 'come praise me' look, George also put on a look of sudden realization and said, "Is that so, Shelly. You're truly amazing—"
As long as it wasn't a matter of principle, George was always generous with his praise for his children.
And Sheldon, on the other side, got the praise he desired from his father, and a satisfied smile appeared on his face.
Just as he was about to continue explaining to George how he had fixed the refrigerator, Missy, unable to bear it, exposed his "lie."
"Dad, Sheldon lied. If Mike hadn't helped, he wouldn't have been able to put the refrigerator back together at all." Missy came to her father, blinking her big eyes, and said, "Also, Paige, Georgie, and I all helped..."
After listening to his youngest daughter's explanation, George finally understood the whole story. However, having been busy all day, he didn't want to dwell on the matter.
"You all did great, and Mike and Paige, thank you for your help." George praised everyone equally.
After his youngest daughter was satisfied, he opened a beer and sat on the sofa to enjoy the rare leisure time of the day.
It was evident that George, after the New Year, was also under a lot of pressure.
It had been almost half a year since he officially lost his job as a football coach.
And in these past six months, George, having lost his respectable and formal job, had seen his quality of life and family status visibly decline.