Only You - [Lip Gallagher]

i'm always here

"Sade." I wake up to Carl shaking me gently, "What's going on?" I ask, half asleep. "I'm hungry." "Isn't there stuff downstairs?" I ask, sitting up. "Yeah but Fiona is being a bossy bitch and won't let me eat until I clean my room." Carl scoffs. "I'll go make you something, clean your room." I sigh, standing up and walking downstairs. "What's your deal today?" I ask Fiona as I see her pacing the kitchen, "Oh, now you speak to me?" She scoffs, "My PO is coming today and I'm losing my mind." She answers. "I need you to get rid of all things that can make me look like a bad parent in the boys room." She adds on as I put two waffles in the toaster for Carl. "I have other things I need to do today, sorry." I snark, "Really? So you're leaving this on me?" Fiona scoffs, "It's all on you to begin with." I mutter as I take the piping hot waffles out and toss them on a plate and drench them with syrup. "Where's Lip?" She changes the subject, "School." I answer back with an attitude as I hurry back upstairs to feed Carl.

"Here babe." I say, putting the plate on Ian's bed. "Okay so all the contraband, give it to me or else Fiona is throwing it away." I say, leaning against the bunk's bedpost. Carl points to his bed as he is scarfing down his waffles, "Jesus Christ, Carl." I mutter when I lift up his mattress revealing knives and nunchucks. "Where the hell do you get this shit?" I ask, putting it all into a bag, "I need them." He answers back with a mouthful of food. "Get ready for school." I roll my eyes and take his empty plate. "I love you, I'll see you later, behave. You know the speech." I say, kissing his forehead. "I love you too." Carl says, walking over to the bathroom. "Carl's room is clear." I say as I walk past Fiona, putting Carl's plate in the sink. "Thanks." Fiona mutters as I walk by her again putting on my converse and jacket. "Where you off to?" "Milkovich." I say, leaving through the backdoor.

I walk into an unusually quiet Milkovich house, "Mick?" I call out and immediately Svetlana comes around the corner, "What are you going to do about your ginger friend?" She asks in her thick Russian accent, "I'm trying to get him home." I explain, "Good because I have baby soon and I cannot work, cannot have any distractions for Mickey." Svet scoffs. "I get it." I sigh and glance into Mickey's room to see Ian passed out. "Get what?" Her tone softens, "Having the man you're with be distracted by other things." I explain, "That Lip boy?" Svet asks and I nod, "It's obvious?" "Not obvious he is distracted but obvious you love him so I just made assumption." Svet shrugs and waddles into Mickey's room, I follow her in and Ian jolts awake, "You need to get out, you stay in this house one more night I kill you." Svetlana holds a hammer in his face, "Jesus." I mutter as she pushes past me, leaving me alone with Ian. "You okay?" I ask, helping him stand up, "I guess, why are you here?" "To see if you were okay." "Don't." Ian says as he puts on his jacket and walks by me. "The fuck?" I ask, following him. "Sade, all I can do, all any Gallagher can do for you is hurt you. Stop caring about us so much." Ian says, continuing to walk away. "Ian, I fucking love you, you're my best friend!" I say, pulling him back towards me by his wrist. It's silent for a moment before he falls into me, embracing me tightly and letting out tears. "I'm sorry for doing this to you, I'm sorry for leaving you and I'm sorry for fucking up." He sobs, I rub his back gently, "It's okay, it's not your fault." I comfort silently, this is Monica.

++

"Lip!" I shout as I bang on his dorm door, "Where's your key?" Lip asks as he opens the door, "You have it on my keys, not the point. Ian, Ian's so fucked" I say, fear in my chest. "What happened?" "Monica, he's acting like Monica. Depressive episodes accompanied by spurts of energy. I don't like it, he needs help." I say in a slight panic. "Okay, okay. I can finish studying at home, let's go." Lip says, throwing his stuff in his backpack and picking up Liam.

"So what happened?" Lip asks as he drives us home, "I went to the Milkovichs this morning and Svet was pissed, understandably I suppose, and Ian literally kinda yelled at me and then two minutes later he was sobbing onto my shoulder and before he went to the Army I noticed signs but nobody listened and I think him being bipolar like Monica explains so much." I ramble and Lip nods, "Shit." He mutters, "Can we stop by any food place? I told Carl I'd get dinner." I divert from the conversation in hopes my anxiety calms down, "I got dinner tonight don't worry." Lip reassures me and places his hand on my thigh and I place my hand overtop his. I'm really fucking worried.

++

"Hey." Fiona greets Lip, Liam, and I as we walk into the house in a hurry, I shoot her a soft smile while Lip is still ignoring her. "My first class is at 11:30 tomorrow so we're gonna stay here tonight and then Friday it's 8am so we're gonna stay in the dorms tomorrow night." Lip informs as he places the bag of food on the counter, "Got it, hi my big boy!" Fiona greets Liam and places him in his high chair, as she coos at him I help Lip heat up dinner, "Oh you guys got dinner? That's great! I can move tonight's mac and cheese to tomorrow which gives us an extra day of food before we panic." Fiona says, walking over to a calendar she put on the fridge, "Panic?" Lip and I ask in sync, "I gotta pay the heat and electric before I buy groceries." Fiona explains, sitting on the chairs by the counter, "I ca-" I begin to speak and Lip smacks my thigh gently, "Don't." He mutters and puts the aluminum pan in the oven. "You saved nothing from your job?" Lip scoffs, "I was trying to catch up on old bills." Fiona sighs, Lip rolls his eyes, "Stop." I mutter and grab his jacket off the counter to hang it up by the back door, "How did he do today?" Fiona asks, "Fine." Lip blurts out just as the kids storm in, "Carl got suspended." Debbie blurts out, "Shut up, ass-brain." Carl insults, "Mouth." I say, flicking the back of Carl's head, "What did you do?" I sigh, "Nothing, I need someone to come to school with me Friday morning or I'll be expelled." Carl explains, "I'll do it, no problem." I offer immediately, "Has to have the same last name. After Jimmy-Steve saved me last time they're checking." He explains, "Damnit." I mutter, "Well I can leave the house yet, they need to reschedule!" Fiona panics, "I'll go and explain that I live here and I am a responsible adult figure. I had mail sent here a few times, I'm sure that can suffice?" I offer and Lip groans, "Thank you." Fiona sighs, "Bullshit." Lip mutters as he takes the food out of the oven and places it on top of the stove just as Sammi walks in. "Hi new family." She greets which causes me to make the most rude expression I've ever made, "I won't stay long, I just wanted to let you all know dad is at Sheila's and we are living there." Sammi further explains, "Thanks for the update." Lip snarks and leans against the counter, pulling me into his embrace by my fingers, "I was wondering if any of you had any extra money? Dad needs it for his surgery." Sammi pathetically asks, "Fuck off." I laugh, "Why not get a job?" Fiona asks, "My career is taking care of Pops before he goes." Sammi answers, I roll my eyes with a smile, Lip buries his face into my neck, hiding his grin and muffling his soft chuckle, "Well, we're broke. Sorry." Fiona responds, "It doesn't hurt to ask. If any of you want to stop by, that'll be nice; give his morale a boost." Sammi says as she leaves through the front door.

As soon as the front door closes the back one opens, it's Mickey, "Hey Sade, Ian here?" He asks, I nod, "Ian's here?" Everyone but Fiona asks in sync, and goes upstairs, "Sade?" Lip asks me once they all walk away, "What?" "Why is Mickey calling you Sade?" He asks me, "Um, maybe because Ian does and that's Ian's boyfriend." I answer, confused. Lip nods slightly annoyed and grabs plates and starts putting food on each of them. "But you can fuck a Milkovich and everything is okay?" I mutter, roll my eyes and Lip storms off upstairs. After a few minutes of me making the rest of everyone's plates, Ian comes down with Carl and Debbie for dinner. "Hey, I'm glad you're down here eating." I say softly to Ian as I hand him his plate, "Thank you for always being here." Ian says, hugging me with one arm, "I'm always here." I say to him as he walks away to sit at the table. Mickey comes down right after the kids, "You staying, Mick?" I ask just as Lip is trailing behind, "Yeah, thanks." Mickey says, grabbing a plate. "Mick?" Lip mutters behind me as he grabs a plate for himself, "Oh my god." I scoff and sit down next to Carl and Liam.

++

After a very awkward dinner where Lip was death glaring at me and Fiona was trying to start conversation with him we finally all got to go to bed; except I have to share Lip's old bunk with him in the same room as Carl, Liam, Ian, and Mickey. This is going to be a long, smelly, night. "Do you like him?" Lip whispers to me as we are spooning, I turn around in his arms to face him and I look at him in disgust, "Are you nuts? Me and a Milkovich? I can barely handle a Gallagher!" I whisper slightly loud, making Lip chuckle, "I'm sorry for acting the way I did down there." Lip apologizes to me, "It's fine but Lip, we aren't together you can't have your wolfie claim over me and besides, you fucked his sister while we were together." "I can have whatever wolfie claim I want over you." Lip mutters, "Oh yeah?" I ask with a laugh in my voice, "Yup, forever." Lip says, closing his eyes, "Goodnight." He whispers with a huge grin on his face, "You're insane." I smile and cuddle a little closer to him, I wish we were more than friends with benefits but I can't get hurt like that again, I can't.