LOVESTRUCK ━ lip gallagher¹

05 | my crackwhore grandma is back

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WAKING UP TO THE sound of a spatula scraping against a frying pan was not a common occurrence in the Gilbert household. Most of the time they were either too busy to cook actual breakfast—so they'd go next door and steal some that Fiona had made—or Amara would be the one making eggs, while Silvia would be the one getting woken up because of it. So when Amara heard dishes clattering from downstairs, she shot up in her bed, and felt panic bubble up in her chest.

Whether it was her mother or her sister cooking something in the kitchen—it wasn't going to be good either way. She quickly pulled on a shirt, and bolted out of her room, her footsteps padding loudly against the hardwood floors, before she abruptly stopped once she reached the bottom of the steps. She was sure the look of confusion was painted across her face as she stared at a face she vaguely recognized from when she was younger.

The woman was much heavier now, and her hair had a lot more gray than brown in it, not to mention the shortness in length. Silvia blabbered on to the woman, completely oblivious to her older sister's presence as she shoved a piece of hash brown into her mouth.

Gloria Gilbert was the first to notice her standing in the stairway, and her face broke out into a welcoming smile, showing off her crooked teeth. "Well, good morning to you. My, my. You've grown up quite a bit."

"Yeah, well it's been twelve years since you've last been here," Amara replied, still frozen from her spot.

"You look ravishing, darling. How old are you now? Sixteen?"

"Eighteen."

"Eighteen? Wow, time really does fly."

"Grandma was just telling me about the time you peed in a cup and poured it on a boy at school," Silvia stated with a grin, and Amara immediately frowned.

"Don't tell her stuff like that. We already have bad parents as it is. She doesn't need to go around and follow my old bad habits. Also, go get ready. Daycare is staring today."

"It is?" Silvia perked up instantly, and quickly abandoned her meal to rush up the stairs, brushing past Amara before she was out of sight. The brunette turned back to her grandmother with her arms crossed over her chest.

"What are you doing here? And I want an answer. Not some bullshit like you pulled out of your ass the last time you came to stay with us."

Gloria sighed, and the scraping of the spatula stopped as she looked towards her. "You know I tried very hard with your father while he was growing up. He was always a pain, but eventually when your mom came into his life everything switched around. She really brought out the best in him. I don't know where it went wrong..."

"I asked what you're doing here, not for my parents' love story."

"I'm getting to it," she said a little sharply. "The first time your father left, he came to me all drugged up—spewing some shit about how your mother had done horrible things to him. Kicked him out of the house, forbade him from seeing you and Silvia. Of course, I believed it. He was my son, why wouldn't I? Honestly, I thought it had to do with your mother's recent pregnancy, he left only a few months after Silvia was born anyway."

"Still don't understand what this has to do with you being here," Amara stated dryly.

"All right, fine. I'll speed up the process for your impatient ass. Basically, I believed every word that came from his mouth, and I allowed him to live with me. But last year when he said he wanted to make amends, his story didn't exactly add up, and I started to question him on it. He didn't tell me the truth, but I figured it out regardless. Last summer when he came here, I knew that he hadn't been the victim. And now that he's gone again...Well I know your mother hasn't been the same since he left, and I know you're struggling with the bills. You're a teenage girl taking care of yourself and your sister in this house."