Middle Child Syndrome- Ian Gallagher

under the bleachers

I got mixed reactions from my friends. Mandy immediately said she wasn't surprised and then asked if my real dad was hot, Ian tried to comfort me, and Lip said, "Oh, so you and Ian are both bastard children? Nice!"

On top of that, Frank was back in the house. After months of going missing. I slept over at the Gallagher's that night and so did Persephone. Debbie let a drunk Frank inside the house the next morning, despite us all begging her not to. We ran upstairs, shocking Fiona who'd just gotten out of the shower with a towel wrapped around her body.

"What's going on?!"

"Frank drunk looking for a bed!" Lip said.

"Who the hell let him?!"

"Debbie!" I said.

"We begged her not to!" Ian added.

We pushed the drawers in front of the door so Frank would keep out of the boys and Lip's room.

"He's not hot-bunking my bed!" 

"Why can't he sleep out on the porch? It's warm enough!" Carl protested.

"I want my old bed back," I heard Frank say.

"OH HELLL NOOOO!" Fiona said, running to her room. 

Debbie helped Frank up the stairs and into her room. He smelled so bad, almost like he got pissed on and thrown into the dumpster.

"Frank smells like dog piss!" Carl said.

"Not dog piss!" Frank said, "Gary the homeless guy."

We slowly moved the drawer out of the way and walked out.

"Debs, don't let Frank in here anymore," Lip said.

"This is his house too."

I raised an eyebrow.

"He disappeared for months!" Ian said.

"And now he's back. Excuse!" Debbie said, pushing Ian out of the way.

I saw how annoyed Lip and Ian were, but I shook my head.

"Just drop it. She'll figure it out sooner or later," I said, "I hope."

We went downstairs for breakfast, and I brewed the coffee.

"Breakfast," Jimmy said, handing her a plate.

"You wash up after you poop?"

"We're supposed to wash up after we poop?" Carl said, making Persephone laugh, and I shook my head at her.

Mandy came out of the bathroom with her skanky new pajama set and no underwear. It was really gross and honestly in my opinion disrespectful. 

"Tell your girlfriend to wear clothes, Lip."

"Not her keeper."

"Don't look if you don't like what you see," Mandy said. 

"Shut up, Mandy," I said, disgusted. She bent over, and Carl got a nice view of it.

"Pants! Now!" Fiona said, throwing jeans at her.

"Jesus," Mandy said, walking upstairs. 

The family was two weeks late on the property tax, and when Fiona told Lip that she spent her last paycheck on a club night promotion, it started an argument. I just blocked it all out because it wasn't my business. 

I honestly saw both sides of the argument. Yes, it's her money, and she should spend it on that if she thinks it'll get her a lot of money, but they were already two weeks late.

During our free period, Ian and I had sex under the bleachers. I gripped onto the metal as he hit from behind, and I had to bite down as hard as I could on my lip to keep from screaming. It was either that or we get caught.

When we finished, we put our clothes back on and sat down, opening a pack of cigarettes. 

"You're still on birth control, right?" 

"Yes," I said, "And no, we're not stopping using condoms."

"Why not?" he said.

"Ian, are you seriously asking me that?" 

"I just don't see why you don't want to. You've been on birth control for years."

"So was Karen Jackson," I said, "Look what happened there."

After her baby was born, the baby that was not Lip's, Karen vanished. I didn't know where nor did I care. I was just glad the bitch was gone. 

"Besides it's not just about pregnancy. It's about STDs too," I said. 

"I'm clean," he said.

"You've gotten tested?" 

"No, but I know I'm clean."

I didn't say anything. I just shook my head, "Tell you what. Whenever you're ready, tell me you want to go to the clinic, and we'll get tested together. Then we can stop using condoms. Take it or leave it."

Ian hesitated, but he nodded, "OK."

I kissed him on the cheek and we just sat there.

"Are you doing ok? With everything going on at home, I mean?" he asked. 

I shrugged my shoulders, "I can't deal with her anymore. She's mad at me for being upset that she just sprung this information on me. And she wants me to just be ok with it and try to start a relationship with this guy. And I don't want to. I mean, you understand, right?"

"When I met my dad," Ian said, "I freaked out. He looked exactly like me, and Lip kept on talking to me about how I could live a great life there. Frank's brother is a lot better off than he is, and he lived in a nice neighborhood, but I didn't want it. No matter what, Frank's still my father, and Fiona, Lip, Debbie, Carl, and Liam are my siblings."

"That's exactly what I told my mom," I said before abruptly changing the subject, "Do you think Lip and Mandy are good together?"

He shrugged. 

"I don't know," I said, "I love them both, but not together. I feel like something bad's bound to happen."