Episode 3 of "Government Cheese" delves into the past, where Hampton and Astoria share dreams of a bright future, intertwined in a bond that seemed unbreakable before Hampton's descent into criminality. Back then, he pledged the world to Astoria, and their relationship flourished amidst shared aspirations. Alas, those golden days have crumbled into dust. It transpires that Hampton's initial arrest stemmed from cheque fraud, but his sentence was subsequently extended due to "other indulgences" that likely paved his path to isolation.
Switching to the present narrative, a furious Hampton storms into the martini bar, where he finds Roland engaging in a dance with Astoria, only to find the doors locked. Undeterred, he ventures through adjacent passages, leading him to a vast auditorium… and a woman, Edith, wedged in the ventilation shafts. She reveals she was attempting to retrieve her bracelet and inadvertently got trapped.
Hampton lends a helping hand, freeing Edith who, adorned with the same hand tattoo as Rudy, invites him for a drink as a token of gratitude. Drawing parallels from Aesop's Fables, she insists it's the least she can do for his kindness. Edith promises to mend the fractures within him and guides him to an archery range, believing it will channel his emotions constructively. For each bullseye he misses, Hampton unearths another layer of his past. True to his word, he begins by acknowledging his fatherless upbringing and his stepfather's abusive nature, which culminated in his exile to a "Gladiator school," a euphemism for a juvenile detention center masquerading as a work camp. It was there he crossed paths with Bootsy, while his mother drowned in alcohol, leaving him with a life devoid of control, hence his desperate grip on everything now.
This revelation prompts introspection in Hampton. Upon finally hitting the target, he is led through the vents to an overhead vantage point of Astoria and Ronald's dance. It dawns on him that he hasn't heard Astoria's laughter for years. Astoria stands at a pivotal juncture, but so too does Hampton. Edith urges him to embrace the notion that events unfold as fate intends, freeing him from his shackles. However, her abrupt disappearance stirs doubts in Hampton about confronting Astoria.
That evening, haunted by a sinister dream featuring the Prevost brothers, Hampton retreats back into the confines of his house and resolves to accept Bootsy's earlier proposition.
