Stupid, Love • shameless uk

004. Kev and Veronica Foster

KODI, NESTLED COMFORTABLY OM LIP'S LAP, DRIFTED INTO A DEEM SLUMBER... .Frank stumbled into the room, the party whistle still clutched in his hand. ''Let the merriment commence!'' he proclaimed,

Kodi got up and  snatched the whistle from his mouth. "Wait, come back here,'' Lip called out as Kodi rose from his lap.

''Hey, party pooper, give me that back,'' Frank protested. The group erupted in laughter.

''Where've you appeared from?'' Kevin asked, his eyes scanning the room.

''I thought you'd gone ages back.''
With a mix of amusement and exasperation, Fiona exclaimed,

''I went looking for him. Upstairs, downstairs, nowhere to be seen. Put my head down for five minutes, woke up, birds are twittering. You welded to that or what? You know what that is? Exhaustion. Two screaming kids, all night, up down. Never get a wink.''

Lip waking up a little hearing the commotion, he smiles he moves his arm protectively around her as she drifting back to sleep. As the conversations lulled, a faint but unmistakable voice reached them.

'M-M-M-M-Marissa!' Frank uttered.

Veronica jumped to her feet. 'Marissa Platting? The social worker? You could have mentioned it, Frank!'

'Bleedin' hell! What did she say? Was it for Kodi? No, yes? What were her exact words?' Kevin asked, his gaze fixed on Kodi.

Veronica took a deep gulp of her drink. ''She said something about Um um something about coming round in the morning... She said something about — a kiddie.''

A stunned silence fell upon the group. Kevin turned to Veronica, his eyes wide with alarm. ''Jesus Christ! What're gonna tell Kodi?'' He looked at the sleeping girl in Lip's arms, her future hanging precariously in the balance.

••

Pacing around In the kitchen "why did you never mention it?" Kodi asks her father

"There was nothing to mention"

"Nothing to mention, a child is coming into this house, dad.. that's something worth mentioning" Kodi says to Kevin

"It was a long time, I thought I wasn't able to have kids..." He says Kodi tilts her head "a few months before you moved in we had signed up.. my-- y'know thought was working because I could get Veronica pregnant, so we thought why not.." he says now him been the one pancing  "I then found out I could.." he says pointing to Kodi  "so I didn't bother me much, cos I knew maybe it could, in the end we did have a child, you"

"Sweet, cool.. that's great dad.. but now there is a damn child coming here" Kodi says making Kevin sigh

"I'll be at Lips or something" she says walking away

"You're leaving?" Kevin asks her

"No, yes... Ugh I don't know" she says banging her hands on the kitchen bench

Kevin watches his daughter walk away and signs with frustration.

••

THE MORNING OF THE DAY THAT CHANGED EVERYTHING... "Woah, I hardly recognise it" Kev says to Kodi leaning against the door

"That's the point..."

"Can't you get access to it and change it?" Kevin asks his daughter

"Forging the schools system was hard enough, but to hack into a government file and I do one thing wrong, I'm fucked" Kodi says walking down the stairs, hearing the commotion downstairs of Veronica mother yelling and throwing a hissy fit... "My own daughter, throwing me out"

Kodi and Kev in the background signalling her to hurry up and get them out...

"As if it's not bad enough I lose my home, now this What have I done to deserve it? Tell me and I'll put it right."

"Mum, it's against the rules, you haven't been vetted." Veronica says to her mother

"I'm that child's grandmother. Well, as good as."

"Yeah, well you can't stay"

"Blanks. Shooting blanks." Marty Veronica's brother says coming down the stairs

"Once more, and you'll get a twatting." Kevin says grabbing him by the shirt

"and he definitely can't stay.
Fuckin' arsonist."

"We've nowhere to go."
"Well, ring our Barry."
"You're joking."

The doorbel rings, Kodi turns to her a father and says "good luck"

Walking out the door seeing Malakai waiting for her leaning against a car... Wait... Car.. who's car is that ?

"Who'd you nick this off?"
"It's a rental, you muppet.. i had a few deals i needed to do" Malakai says opening the door for Kodi, she smiles...

"Is that risky?"

"Very... But we don't ever use our real name, sunshine" Malakai says leaning in with a tease, walking to the other side of the car and hoping in.

"Gary McKenna, my darling at service" he says showing her the ID, Kodi laughing.. "comeon mums made your favourite" he says placing his hand on the gear shift and staring the engine, driving off.

He grabs her hand and intertwines and kissing it, making Kodi smile.

••