**Long Island, New York.**
*Ding!*
Adam rang the doorbell of the Green family's villa.
"Who is it?"
"Hello, Mrs. Green. This is Adam Duncan."
"Oh, Adam!"
The door opened, and a middle-aged woman, who was well-maintained and smiling warmly, greeted him. "Come on in."
In America, showing up unannounced is considered rude.
Adam wouldn't make that mistake.
The night before, he had called both Leonard and Leonard's father from Hartford to confirm his visit.
"Mrs. Green—"
"Just call me Sandra."
Rachel's mother was very friendly.
"Sandra, I went hunting during spring break, and this is some fresh venison I got just today. I thought I'd bring some over for you to try."
As Adam spoke, he glanced around the house.
It was a proper, elegant villa, with lavish decor.
No wonder Green's second daughter, Amy, later scoffed when she visited Ross's apartment: *"No second floor? Only two bedrooms? How do you even have private conversations on the phone?"*
"That's so thoughtful of you."
Sandra accepted the neatly packaged box and placed it in the freezer. She studied Adam carefully before praising him, "Leonard and Rachel talk about you all the time. Now I finally get to meet you. Why don't you stay for dinner tonight?"
"No, thank you."
Adam politely declined. "I already have plans with someone else. But next time, I'd love to stop by—I'm really looking forward to your cooking."
"You must be Adam!"
At that moment, a girl around fourteen or fifteen appeared at the top of the stairs, looking down arrogantly.
"Hi, that's me. You must be Jill?"
Adam looked up and greeted her with a smile.
"Hi~"
As soon as Green's youngest daughter, Jill, saw Adam's face—handsome and full of integrity—her arrogance vanished. She rushed down the stairs and stood in front of him, staring at him in delight.
"Jill!"
Sandra scolded, "Don't be rude."
"What?!"
Jill wasn't intimidated by her mother at all and asked boldly, "Adam, do you have a girlfriend?"
"Sort of."
Adam quickly shut that conversation down, afraid that Jill might try to volunteer herself.
"Either you do or you don't. What do you mean, *sort of*?"
Jill huffed in dissatisfaction. "Ha! I get it. You must have an Italian *comrade*, right?"
"…"
The corner of Adam's mouth twitched. He was at a loss for words.
Girls in America sure matured early.
They knew *everything*!
"Fine, I'll just assume you don't have one! I can be your girlfriend!"
Jill grinned. "How about that? Exciting, right?"
Adam was speechless.
Exciting?
Not in the slightest!
*I already turned down your sister Rachel, who's the most beautiful in your family—what makes you think I'd say yes to you?*
"Jill!"
Sandra was starting to get angry.
Her arrogant youngest daughter was being way too rude.
"Okay, okay, I was just kidding."
As the youngest and most spoiled child, Jill knew how to read the room. Seeing that her mother was genuinely upset, she immediately changed her tune. "I'm naturally gorgeous—*not* just anyone is worthy of me."
With that, she scampered off.
"I'm so sorry, Adam. Jill was being very rude."
Sandra apologized sincerely.
"No worries."
Adam smiled. "That's just how young girls are. I bet Rachel was the same way when she was little, wasn't she?"
"Oh, absolutely."
Hearing her favorite and most prideful daughter's name, Sandra immediately brightened up. "Rachel was such a handful when she was younger. Leonard and I were at our wit's end with her…"
Adam listened with a smile as Sandra recounted Rachel's childhood antics. He nodded at all the right moments and responded appropriately, making Sandra talk endlessly.
She had been spoiled by her father as a young girl, spent her college years in a sorority, and moved straight into her husband's home after graduation—a textbook case of an affluent housewife.
After more than twenty years, she had grown tired of this lifestyle. Now that her daughters were all grown, she longed to explore the outside world.
Having such a handsome young man genuinely listen to her was an entirely new experience for her, and it left her with a great impression of Adam.
Because of this, she insisted multiple times that Adam stay for dinner.
But Adam declined again.
He had already achieved his goal of strengthening his relationship with Leonard, so there was no need to stay longer.
Besides, he still had to visit Leonard's father's house next.
Compared to the Green family—where only Leonard was truly beneficial to Adam—he was far more excited to visit the Hofstadter family, where *everyone* was an elite genius.
---
**New Jersey – Hofstadter Residence**
"Adam! Adam!"
Following the address Leonard had given him, Adam arrived at the Hofstadter house. As soon as his car pulled up, Leonard, who had been waiting at the door, ran over excitedly, waving and calling his name.
"Hey, buddy!"
Adam stepped out of the car, patted Leonard's shoulder, and greeted him warmly.
This past spring break hunting trip had given Adam a deeper understanding of friendship. When he later reviewed his system's records of how much Leonard and the others had contributed to him, his appreciation grew even stronger.
Compared to how much Leonard valued their friendship, Adam realized that he had been lacking in his response.
That's why he had made a point to distribute venison and personally visit his friends' homes this time.
"Buddy?"
Leonard was stunned for a moment before his smile stretched so wide it nearly reached his ears.
That word—*buddy*—wasn't something casually thrown around. People only used it for those they were really close to.
In the original timeline, the only time Leonard had called someone *buddy* like this was when he first saw Sheldon's sister, Missy. Stunned by her beauty and figure, he instinctively blurted out a ridiculously eager:
"Bu~~ddy~"
It was the American equivalent of a famous Eastern saying: *The moment I laid eyes on your girlfriend (or wife, or sister), I knew we'd be best friends for life.*
"How've you been?"
Adam retrieved the box of venison from his trunk while chatting with Leonard, heading toward the house.
"Not bad."
Leonard's smile faltered briefly before he grinned again.
He was an *endgame optimist*—there were always going to be troubles in life, and even having a famous friend like Adam couldn't eliminate all of them.
For example—
He *still* couldn't swap out his mom.
His mother was his *biggest* source of stress.
Compared to her, all other problems seemed trivial.
"I originally wanted to have my brother and sister come home, but the timing didn't work out. It's Sunday, and they're still at Harvard."
Leonard, thrilled by Adam's visit, spoke rapidly. "But my dad and mom are both home. My dad said he can't wait to meet my best friend! Heh heh."
"I'm looking forward to it, too."
Adam grinned.
Leonard's father was an anthropologist and one of his biggest emotional supports.
Even though he competed with Leonard for the *hugging machine*, he had still been a major positive influence in Leonard's life.
Otherwise, Leonard wouldn't have been able to achieve *endgame optimist status*.
This was a man who had spent half his life with *female Sheldon Cooper*.
A true legend.
**(End of Chapter)**