25
Contains spoilersOverview
Junior brings Lauren to cousin Aly and Josh’s backyard engagement party, where Lauren charms guests and bonds with Aly while Junior navigates tension with Josh’s ex-roommate Tyler. Junior updates Josh on tracking Patrick McKinney’s gambling debts and wrestles with fear of his father’s control. Inside, after Josh shares how he stood up to Nico Senior, Junior realizes family is his father’s weakness and proposes a risky plan; Josh agrees to help.
Summary
On the drive to Aly and Josh’s engagement party, Junior and Lauren flirt and joke, setting a playful tone despite running late. They arrive at Aly’s house, where Lauren gifts Aly an expensive bottle of white wine and is warmly received. Lauren delights in meeting Aly’s cats, Maud and Fred, and quickly integrates with the guests.
Junior has a terse interaction with Tyler, Josh’s former roommate, who makes crude remarks about Lauren and later proves volatile. Junior notes Aly’s wish to keep her mob ties secret from coworkers, and Lauren agrees to keep quiet. Josh summons Junior away from the grill area, as the smell makes Josh sick.
Lauren notices Josh’s tattoos and says “Oxen free,” prompting Aly to hurriedly pull Lauren aside; both women refuse to explain when Junior asks, leaving him suspicious. Over the next 45 minutes, Lauren socializes easily, excels at cornhole, and helps soften Junior’s rough edges among Aly’s coworkers and neighbors. Meanwhile, Tyler loses a cornhole game, erupts about rule-breaking, flips a board, and storms off.
Junior and Josh talk privately at the fence line about Patrick McKinney’s debts. Junior reports the debts are held by a newer, paranoid, cutthroat bookie who crosses territories and is hard to find; Junior has tasked his brother Stefan with tracking the man and warns Josh not to get involved. Josh offers money; Junior declines, noting he has significant investments.
Observing the party, Junior reflects on Aly and Josh’s tenderness and on the ease of spending a normal afternoon with Lauren, though he restrains himself out of fear of his father, Nico Senior. He recognizes that psychological pressure, not just violence, is a threat his father could use against Lauren. Anger rising, he retreats inside with Josh to think clearly.
Junior asks Josh how he escaped his own father’s control. Josh says he threatened to destroy his father’s life, even if it affected the family. This sparks Junior’s insight that family is Nico Senior’s greatest vulnerability, rooted in his fear of abandonment after being disowned by his parents. Junior outlines a plan leveraging that weakness; Josh, after acknowledging he can follow through on threats, calls the plan a “complete shit show” but agrees to join.
Who Appears
- Junior (Nico Jr.)
narrator; brings Lauren to Aly and Josh’s engagement party, updates Josh on McKinney’s debts, resolves to target Nico Senior’s weakness and proposes a plan.
- Lauren
attends the party, bonds with Aly, charms guests, notices Josh’s tattoos and says “Oxen free,” agrees to keep Aly’s mob ties private.
- Aly
ER nurse and bride-to-be; hosts the party, welcomes Lauren, keeps her mob ties secret from coworkers, reacts to Lauren’s “Oxen free” comment and pulls her aside.
- Josh
groom-to-be; uneasy around crowds, coordinates privately with Junior on McKinney’s debts, shares how he confronted his father, agrees to help with Junior’s plan.
- Tyler
Josh’s former roommate; makes crude comments about Lauren, argues over cornhole rules, flips a board, and leaves in anger.
- Nico Senior
discussed; Junior’s father whose control and threats constrain Junior; identified as caring most about family and thus vulnerable to targeted pressure.
- Stefan
mentioned; Junior’s brother assigned to track the new bookie holding McKinney’s debts.
- Patrick McKinney
mentioned; landlord with gambling debts central to the Velvet rent crisis.
- Maud and Fred
Aly and Josh’s cats; present at the house and noted during the party.