Junior attends Saturday Mass at his family's Catholic church, dressed respectably to hide his tattoos. His goal is reconnaissance: he knows Lauren regularly escorts her grandmother, Mrs. Bianchi, to this service. Inside, his mother spots him before he can scan the crowd, and she steers him to the family's prestigious front pew, where his brother Alec is unexpectedly already seated, apparently angling to make connections with a retired don.

While the brothers exchange their usual antagonistic banter and weather a series of nosy parishioners, Junior watches the entrance. Lauren arrives in a pink sundress, helping her grandmother to the pew directly across from his. Junior notices nearby congregants whispering and casting judgmental looks at Lauren, clearly gossiping about her online content. Enraged by the hypocrisy, he silences the gossipers with hard stares.

Alec deliberately calls Lauren's name, forcing her to turn and notice Junior. Their eyes lock, and Junior witnesses the spark of recognition and attraction he came for. Lauren appears flustered, then later glares at him after he winks, signaling anger rather than fear, which Junior considers workable. Throughout Mass, he fantasizes about her while going through the motions of liturgy.

Afterward, Alec confronts Junior, accusing him of having already done enough harm to Lauren and pressing him to leave her alone. Junior deflects by threatening to interfere with Alec's own dealings with the older mafia figures. He spots Lauren heading to the restrooms, orders Alec to run interference with their mother, and follows her, intent on cornering her for a private conversation.