Serendipity; Places to lose and find yourself.

Two

Waking up half naked in Ian's room was the last thing I had expected my morning to start off with.

"Up and at 'em!" Fiona swung the bed room door open and shook the bunk bed, raising lip and carl from the dead.

"So you into girls now Ian?" She swiped her foot at his leg as he sat up groggily from the floor.

"I can't even begin to remember what happened last night, but I know. That I did not put my dick in any vagina." He picked a large bottle of tequila up and examined it.
The contents were thoroughly drained as he crumpled the cheap plastic and tossed it across the room.

Fiona smiled at me, shooting a wink before walking out of the room.

"Ian, where are my pants?" I tossed a blanket across my legs and looked around the room for my tattered sweat pants.

"Outside. You took your pants off when I started the fire and burned them."

I covered my face, kicking myself for choosing such a big bottle for the two of us.

"I must have been absolutely slammed, do you have a pair of sweats I can bum?"

He stood up from the floor, taking a long stretch before walking across the room and rooting through his dresser.

"Here, I gotta get to work." He tossed me a pair of basketball shorts and stripped out of his own for a nicer pair of jeans.

My dad would be furious that I had stayed out, if he hadn't assumed I was with Mandy. But with my luck he had checked and her dad had told the truth.

"Want some breakfast?" Fiona stopped me in the hallway, "You look like you could use it."

I shuffled my feet back and forth, not wanting to be a burden to her all ready heavy shoulders.

"C'mon, I know what it's like to have parents like yours." She smiled kindly at me, throwing an arm around my shoulder and guiding me down the stairs.

The younger kids plus Lip were all sitting at the table already, eating what smelled like bacon and French toast.

Liam cooed at me as I sat down next to him, waving his sippy cup in the air.

"Hey little man, here ya go." Fiona set a small plate in front of him and a sizably larger one in front of me, "I'll get ya a cup of coffee too, it'll clear up that nasty hang over."

The greasy bacon helped settle my stomach, the black coffee equally calming with the toast.

"So." Lip spoke around a mouthful of food, "if you and Ian are such great friends why haven't you ever come around here before?" Lip looked me directly in the eyes. His cool blue eyes almost too deep.

"Uh, our fathers don't get on that well." I looked down at my plate, unable to handle the way Lip was looking at me. "So that caused a bit of a clash, the first and last time Ian was ever at my house; my dad beat the shit out of him." I rubbed my side where my ribs never set right, remembering that night.

"Oh okay, well. I've gotta head out." He stood up and kissed Liam on the head, "See you guys later."

"Where are you going?" Fiona pointed a spatula at him with one had, the other on her hip.

"Out, Mandy wants to catch a movie later so I'll be back after that." He lit a cigarette and held it to his mouth as he slung a jacket over his shoulder.

"See you later Nikki." He looked at me, a smirk pulling up at the corner of his mouth before he turned and walked out the door.

"I smell trouble with you missy. The way he looked at you won't go over too well for Mandy in the end." Fiona waved her spatula at me before turning back to the stove.

I grimaced at the idea of anything bad
ever happening between Mandy and I. We had been friends since diapers.

"Uh, I'm gonna goo.." I picked up my plate and walked it to the sink, "Thank you so much for feeding me. I'm gonna get out of your hair for awhile."

In Ian's shorts and no shoes I walked the two blocks to my house, preparing for impending doom the second my feet hit the door frame.

Maybe just maybe he was passed out drunk, or already drinking again.

He was never like this around Claire. But when social services took her everything hit rock bottom. I couldn't count the amount of times my dad and I had gotten in to fist fights since then on my hands and toes.

"Dad....?" I pushed the door open tentatively "I'm home, I was with Mandy all night." A futile lie, but it still made walking in to this house easier.

"No, you were out hanging out with trash. In a trash can of a home." He was sitting at the kitchen table hunched over a beer and a bowl of cereal.
"I want your things packed and out by the end of the day, you're 18 now. And if you want to hang out with trash and be trashy. It won't be under my roof."

He stood up looking me dead in the eye for a split second before turning and putting his bowl in the sink and walking out the door.

Fuck.
Fuck.
Fuck.

I needed to call Mandy or someone and let them know I needed somewhere to go. I didn't want to be like the many homeless in this city wandering around with nothing to do with my life but beg.

"Mandy." I held my phone to my ear, "I need a place to stay for a while. My dad just kicked me out."

Mandy laughed quietly, "the apple never falls far from the tree does it?" She was referring to his father and the way he had been thrown out on his ass when he turned 18.

"You can come here, do you need Mickey to come get you?" Mickey always came to the rescue when my dad pulled any sort of stunt. He always put my dad right back in his place regardless of the situation.

"Yes, please."

I sat on the front porch steps for no less that 10 minuets before Mickey's car came squealing down the road.
Mickey jumped out of the car, grabbing ahold of my face and turning it side to side.

"Did that son of a bitch hurt you again? The boys are in the car if you want this taken care of."

I pushed his hand off my face , "I'm fine, I just need help getting my stuff out of the house."

Jamie and Joey climbed out of the car, Jamie brandishing a bat across his shoulders.

"Lead the way boss." Jamie winked at me and walked up the front porch steps .

"Quit being a fuckin' goon and let's get this shit done." Mickey threw his arm around my shoulder and pulled me in to the house.

"Jamie and Joey are gonna do some renovations while you and I pack your things up." Mickey turned and looked at his brothers, "get to it boys."

With a devilish smile Jamie took the bat off his shoulder and swung it in to the nearest window.

Joey was under the counter ripping out pipes. With one lose pop water sprayed out across the kitchen hitting Mickey in the back.

"God damn it Joey!" Mickey spun around flailing his arms in frustration.

"Come on, let the hot heads do their thing."