blue ; gallavich

4

MICKEY

I wait patiently, fiddling around with my fingers anxiously as I hear Debbie yell, "I'll get it!"

"No you won't! I'm expecting someone!" Fiona calls back, and I hear her run down the stairs and approach the door. Damn, their walls are thin. They must've heard me and Ian more than once when we-

"Oh. Hey, Mickey. Not who I was expecting, but- wait. Mickey?!" Fiona gasps and embraces me in a big hug. "Oh my- Mickey Milkovich? Is this real?" She exclaims. She cups my head in her hands and smiles big, squeezing me tightly one more time.

Lip walks down the stairs and passes by, backing up slowly and giving me a second look. "Holy shit. Mick? What's up, man?" Lip says as he embraces me in a side hug. "Thought you had, like, 10 more years or somethin'."

"You sound like fuckin' Kev. Again, I got out early for good behavior."

"Good behavior?" Lip and Fiona ask at the same time, sharing a confused look.

"Did I fuckin' stutter? Yes, good behavior. Don't worry, I was shocked, too." I inform them as they laugh in sync with each other. That's fuckin' creepy.

"Well, we're glad to have you back, Mick." Fiona says with a warm, welcoming smile that expands cheek to cheek.

"Lie if you have to." I reply sarcastically as Lip rolls his eyes. And Ian did lie.

"I'm serious. We've missed you." Fiona says as she looks up at the staircase, and I sigh a very disappointed sigh. "Even him."

Lip opens his mouth to say something but closes it, due to the sound of footsteps coming down the stairs and a joyful humming sound. I gulp, a hard lump forming in my throat and my heart beating like a drum. Please don't be Ian.

"Fiona, you want me to make-" Ian reaches the bottom of the staircase and I hold my breath as he looks over at me. "Pizza bagels." He trails off quietly, practically whispering.

And awkward silence fills the room, and it's as if everyone has disappeared as Ian and I stare at each other. He looks at me, his blue-green eyes getting bigger by the second. I finally let my air out and open my mouth to speak, not being able to say anything. My lips go dry and my throat swells up, tears stinging the corner of my eyes but I forbid them from escaping. "Hey, Ian," I finally bring myself to say.

"Hey, Mick." He replies, his chest caving in deeply and expanding outwards as he takes deep, shaky breaths. "It's been-" Ian begins, but gets cut off by a tall man who enters the room and stands behind Ian.

"Jesus Christ, what's with this family and being cut off in the middle of fuckin' sentences." I complain rhetorically. I eye the man on the stair case who walks up next to Ian and puts his arm around him.

"This is, um, Caleb. I told you about him." Lip says awkwardly, looking over at me sympathetically as he can see the pain in my eyes. I feel like just breaking down and crying right there, but I can't. I can't let Caleb win Ian over. And Ian... He looks so good. His hair a darkened red and his skin the same pale color that I remember it to be, maybe even whiter than before- if that's even possible. His freckles are gone but he has those big, forgiving eyes that I recall.

"Yeah, I remember that." I tell Lip harshly, acting as if this doesn't hurt me and fooling no one. I decide to run my devastated eyes over Caleb one more time. Tall, muscular- make that very muscular- with the perfect jawline. No wonder Ian would rather have him opposed to a scrubbed-up piece of South Side trash like me.

"Um, I actually came to ask if you've seen Mandy lately." Changing the topic quickly as I turn to Fiona, putting all of my energy in not thinking about Ian.