One drunk night// Gallavich

14

IAN
The days after Monica's death were weird. Fiona was barely in the house, meaning Carl, Liam and Debbie weren't either. Lip spent more time with whatever friends he had, and I didn't have the energy to go anywhere, so I laid in bed for the majority of the time.

I did get up occasionally, but there was one time that I wanted to get up. When I headed downstairs, I noticed that my meds were sitting above the refrigerator. I knew I shouldn't have. I knew that I should have left them alone, but I didn't. Instead, I took the bottles and put them on the counter. Opening each of them up, I scooped up the countless pills that rested inside each bottle and walked over to the bathroom, opening up my hands which released the pills into the toilet. Without any hesitation, I flushed every last one of my pills down the toilet, feeling slightly more satisfied with myself.

With that, I went upstairs, going back to bed.

FIONA
I had noticed that Ian wasn't getting out of bed. I thought that it was either the grief hitting him harder than everyone else, or it was his meds. If it was his meds, then he was in deep shit.

Entering the kitchen, my first thought was making sure that Ian had his meds. Heading upstairs, I looked at Ian, who laid in bed, his head covered by his sheets.

"Ian, you taken your meds yet?" I asked, smiling. I didn't hear any noises that indicated that he had, so I just assumed that he had. Walking back downstairs, I looked up at the refrigerator, seeing Ian's medicine bottles. Lifting them up, they were lighter than usual, which confused me. I started to panic when I noticed that all three bottles were empty. Running up to Ian, I pushed his door open, holding the bottles.

"What happened to the pills, Ian?!" I looked at him, watching as he moved the sheet further over his head.

"Toilet." My eyes widened. Ian had flushed his pills down the toilet. My mind started racing, until I realised that maybe there was someone Ian really cared about. Mickey. Grabbing my phone from my back pocket, I dialled Mickey's number, desperately hoping that he'd pick up.

MICKEY
Seeing that Fiona was calling me, I looked at my phone confused.

"What the fuck do you want?" I asked as I put my phone up to my ear.

"I- It's Ian..." I could hear the fear in her voice.

"Whoa, what's wrong with Ian? Is he okay?" I started to panic. I may not act and look like I care about him, but deep down, I did.

"M- Monica, our mother, she died recently and I- I think Ian did something stupid." Fiona started to cry.

"Hey, what did he do? Did he hurt himself?" I worried.

"He- He flushed his meds, Mickey." Fiona revealed. That was bad. If Ian had flushed his meds, that meant that his behaviour would be all over the place, and getting more meds for him would be difficult.

"What do you need me to do?" I asked, concerned.

"He's been in bed for the past 4 days. He seems to be in a state of depression following Monica's death and flushing his meds. As his husband, I request that you come and see him." Fiona asked.

"I'm sorry Fiona, but he's your family, not mine." I rejected her request.

"Well I'm sorry, Mickey, but the moment you got married to Ian, you became his family, and in turn, you became a part of the Gallagher family, so suck it up and get your dumbass here." Fiona got angry.

"Fuck you. I ain't getting involved in whatever shit Ian's done. He's made his feelings about me clear." I explained, unable to believe that Fiona really thought she could tell me what to do.

"Are you fucking serious, Mickey? Ian is your goddamn husband! He cares about you! He may not express that, but he does. I know that seeing someone he cares about might give him the strength to face the day." I could hear Fiona's condescending tone.

"What would happen if I didn't come over?" I was now curious.

"You're the only person that Ian has deeply cared about. He loves you, Mickey. Imagine the love of your life not caring or giving a shit when you end up depressed. He could end up suicidal." Fiona begged.

"Then hide the knives until he perks up." I scoffed.

"He may have to be hospitalized. It- It can be weeks. It's mood swings, okay? It's almost impossible to handle." Fiona warned me. I could hear the concern in her voice.

"Fuckin' hell. I'll be there in 20." I exhaled, hanging up the phone.

The trip to the Gallagher house was nerve-wracking. One moment I was fine with going to see how Ian was doing, but the next moment, I was thinking about turning back and going home.

———

Eventually, I made it to the Gallagher house. I got inside and made my way up to Ian's room, seeing Fiona waiting for me.

"Glad you could make it." Fiona rolled her eyes, smirking.

"Hey, Ian. It's me. Mickey." I wasn't sure how he would handle me showing up. I didn't get a response at all. I walked downstairs, Fiona following me.

"What? That's it?" Fiona scoffed.

"What the fuck am I supposed to do, Fiona? Ian made his feelings about me clear. How the fuck am I supposed to help him if he hates my guts? I fucked up, I know, but I don't see how me being here is any help to Ian." I asked, genuinely confused as to Fiona's logic.

"You're his family, Mickey. Whether you like it or not. Family don't abandon each other. Family doesn't let family suffer. I know that there is shit going on between you and Ian, but please, just forget it. Forget whatever issues Ian has with you and be the loving husband that I know you can be. You might not think you can be loving, but I've seen how your love for Ian has changed his life. So stop being a self-absorbed prick and be a fucking husband!" Fiona yelled, now on the verge of tears.

"I'll stay here for a few days, and make sure that Ian is okay." I gave in to Fiona's begging.