girl crush, Carl Gallagher

prologue

-CHICAGO, WINTER 2003

a 10 year old, dark haired, dirty little boy walked down the streets of the southside. he had on a coat that was entirely too big on him, a pair of black boots, jeans, and carried a stick his size.

it was cold, that winter. chicago had dropped to an all time low, but right now it was mid-day and as warm as it was gonna get that day.

this boy was known on the southside, as he carried a heavy family name. Milkovich. he was none other than Mickey Milkovich. he came from a upbringing of criminals, drug dealers, and wife beaters.

as Mickey strolled down the street he spotted a young child. unattended.

this little girl was around 2. a little blonde. she wore a ratty jacket that was too small, black pants, and slide on sneakers.

"hi?" Mickey said, getting down on the little girl's level, "where are your parents?" the young girl pointed towards a house. it was old and run down, much like most of the houses on the southside.

Mickey dropped the stick, got up and walked to the fence. locked. he jumped the short fence and strolled up to the door.

he knocked a few times. no answer. he knocked again. no answer. so finally he yelled out, "yo, your kids out here." no answer.

he left the porch and went back out to the sidewalk, where he left the little girl. "you cold?" Mickey asked her, to which she nodded. he promptly took off his coat and wrapped her in it. he picked her up and made his way down the street with her.

-CHICAGO, SUMMER 2007

a loud bang on the door woke up a teenage Mickey. he rolled out of bed and walked to the front door. he opened the door as a young girl walked into the living room, holding a stuffed animal. "hello?" Mickey said, to the man that was on the other side.

"is Terry Milkovich here?" the man asked. he was tall. he wore a suit and held a clipboard, that should have been Mickey's first hint. "nope." Mickey said, trying to close the door in the man's face.

at this point the young blonde girl stood at Mickeys side. "is there anyone else here? any adults?" the man questioned. "no, i don't think so." Mickey answered looking around the house.

"who might you be?" the man bent down and asked the blonde girl. she just hid behind Mickey's leg, as he rubbed her head. "she's mute." Mickey said, bluntly. "who the fuck are you, any way?"

"i'm Charles Bartley, i'm with DCFS. i'm gonna need you kids to come with me." he finally admitted. "we're good." Mickey said once again trying to close the door, but he was stopped.

"it wasn't a question." Charles said, opening the door all the way and standing behind the two. "out." he command, coaxing them out the door. "fuck." Mickey muttered, grabbing the young girls hand, as she carried the stuffed animal in the other one.

after a ride down to the the DCFS building the two we're brought into Charles' office. "you must be Mikhailo Aleksandr Milkovich." he spoke looking at Mickey. "and you are Tessa Jane Allen." he said looking at the young blonde girl, who was sitting in Mickey's lap.

"is that her full name?" Mickey asked looking at Charles. "yes, it is. i would like to know how and when you found Tessa."

"on the side of the road, 4 years ago. she was like 2. it was fucking freezing, i knocked on the door of the house she said was her's, no one was home. so i took her. obviously no one cared, because no one has come looking for her." Mickey told him the story, as Tess played with her stuffed animal.

"who's been taking care of her?" Charles asked passing Mickey two bags of chips. "me." he said grabbing them and opening one of the bags.

"TJ, here." Mickey spoke softly, as he handed Tess the open bag. "thank you." the blonde muttered, putting down the stuffed animal Mickey opened his bag and started to eat. the two sat and ate as Charles made some calls.

- CHICAGO, FALL 2010

"Tess, someone's here for you." her mom yelled from downstairs. Tess jumped out of bed and made her way downstairs.

it had been 3 years since DCFS showed up on the Milkovich's doorstep. soon after Tess got adopted by a rich family on the north side, and Mickey was released back into the care of Terry.

after that Tessa's new family welcomed Mickey with open arms, seeing as the girl was attached to him. he had a room in the house that he kept extra clothes in for when he would stay the night. although he would usually end up crashing in Tess's bed.

"Mickey." Tess yelled, jumping into the boy's arms. "TJ." Mickey said, before kissing the girls head. he set her down and looked down at her. "how are you? how's school so far?" Mickey asked, as Tess lead them to the living room.

"good." Tess answered, flopping onto the couch. "yeah, any new friends?" Mickey questioned the girl, who he called his sister. "yeah." Tess answered, as her face lit up.

"oh yeah, who?" Mickey asked. "he's my best friend, actually. he lives on the southside by you. his name is Carl Gallagher." Tess said with a huge smile.

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