Louie is quite pleased with himself. Really, things turned out not only better than he'd expected, but less costly, too. That's a win-win for Louie Inc right there. It's hard to tell, of course, if Rei's having a good time. He wishes he could read her better, but he's pretty sure no level of attention to detail will ever help with that. Maybe it'll just take time, or maybe this is just how it is.

Either way, she's his best friend. (Even if he's still not sure when or how that happened.) And it's her first-ever birthday party! So if he can't tell how she's enjoying it by observing, then you know what? He's going to ask.

"Hey," he keeps it casual as he leans toward her a bit, resting one hand on the picnic table. "So? What do you think?"