Mickey - The View From Here PART TWO - Gallavich

Intentional Accidents

Ian had wanted to sit in the waiting room during my session, but I had managed to bargain him down to waiting for me in the ambulance.

He wasted no time. The moment I opened the passenger door to climb in, Ian greeted me with a cautious yet optimistic “how'd it go?”

I climbed in and shut the door, providing some privacy from others in the parking lot. Doing my best to keep my cool, I scratched my brow and ignored his question, far too concerned with my own. “You wanted me to go, so I did. Can we move on now?”

“W-well, what did he say?”

I hitched my shoulders in a shrug. After talking to Andy the Shrink for an hour, I was left with only questions that made my head hurt. It was so much easier to ignore this kind of stuff.

Ian waited for me to reply for a few seconds before he lost patience. “Did you even go in?”

I flipped him off. “Yeah. And it was fuckin' pointless. Congrats, you wasted my time and a chunk of our savings.”

“What'd you guys talk about?” my husband pressed.

“Mostly how you worry too fuckin' much.”

“What'd he say about your anxiety?”

I pulled a folded piece of paper from my pocket and opened it up to show him. “Gave me fuckin' homework!”

Ian took the piece of paper from me to examine it. “This seems reasonable. You just gotta keep track of your moods and anxiety for a week.”

“Why?” I groaned.

“They need to know what's wrong, Mick.”

“I told them what was wrong. I did my part. I'm done.” I snatched my homework from his grasp, ripped it up, and sprinkled the remnants out the window onto the pavement.

“You know, when I asked you to talk to someone, I didn’t mean just one session,” Ian said, concerned that my therapy had ended before it had truly begun.

I flashed him a grin before ruffling his short, orange hair. “Yeah…but that’s not what you said.” I reached out the car window and banged on my own door. “Drive. Franny's school lets out soon.”

Though Ian wanted to know more, he agreed and started the engine, revving the ambulance to life. I flipped on the FM radio and cranked a heavy metal song as we headed to Franny's school on the South Side.

Despite the discomfort that came with sailing into this uncharted therapy journey, the spring air rustling my hair as we drove had me in good spirits. I didn’t feel as nervous as I had been since I was jumped. Franny was back home with Ian and I, business was steady, and all was right in the world.

“Holy shit,” Ian growled when he noticed someone walking along the sidewalk. I barely had time to realize who this person was before they made an attempt to cross the street, spurring Ian to speed up.

My brother, Joey, flew a few feet, landing on his stomach before Ian drove over his still body, never slowing down until we were a couple of blocks away.

Did we just kill Joey? I wondered, stilled by shock as I stared at my husband.

After a few moments of feeling my gaze on him, Ian broke my trance with a playful smack to my arm.

“What the fuck?!”

Ian gave his head the slightest shake. “He's a big guy, he'll be fine. Probably.”

Still in awe, I could only mutter and curse to myself before I inquired, “why the fuck…? We're goin' back to prison!”

“No, we're not. Carl's been looking into your brother, and his word to the cops is worth shit. No one cares if he gets fucked up,” he said. “I’m sorry, alright? But the opportunity was there. Like a sign. I had to do something. I had to."

Somewhat horrified, I was confused by my sudden arousal. “I'm not gonna lie,” I stated. “That was fucked up, but I am rock fuckin' hard.”

We were still early to pick up Franny, so Ian pulled into an empty lot behind a department store before I shoved him into the back of the ambulance.

My breath was heavy as I kissed my husband, holding onto his face with rough, loving hands. “You’re fuckin’ crazy,” I informed him with affection.

A half-grin emerged as he pet my hair. “So are you.”

A smile so wide it hurt my face spread across my lips. “Fuck, I love you.”

“Back atcha, Milkovich,” Ian beamed before kissing me once more.

I had to pull away with a chuckle. “I didn’t think you had it in ya,” I confessed. “Like, you know Joey could be dead, right?”

Ian’s beautiful face fell stern. “Good.”

I chuckled again. “Wow, look at you. Tough guy. I like it.”

Though I was playfully aroused, Ian’s intensity didn’t wane. “I should have been there,” he said about the night I was attacked. “We made vows. It’s my responsibility to keep you safe. So, yeah. Maybe I just did something really fucking stupid. But, maybe I gave that asshole exactly what he deserves.”