Just Friends || Lip Gallagher

"The American Dream"

Based on episode of Shameless - season 3 episode 2 - "The American Dream"

I collapsed into my school chair dumping my many books I have on the table cause my bag broke. I took out my geometry book and begins going over the worksheet the teacher wants me to do.

Normally, Lip is in my mathematics class as we are the highest class but he's skipping first three periods for his community service. So this asshole left me alone in a room full of eggheads.

"Hey Alissa." Charlie said trying to make eye contact with me. I smile and slowly turn my head "Hey Charlie." I go back to my worksheet.

Charlie has really curly, black hair and is very lanky and skinny. He has these big buck teeth that stick out every time he talks.

"You still dating Jamal Maleek?" Charlie asks tapping his pencil on the table. I glance over at him "I am. Why?" Now I'm curious.

"Oh no reason. I just see him at our fun weekly card games." Charlie whispers I look at him like he's crazy. "No it's true. Come for yourself tonight. It's at the abandoned witch house at the end of the road."

The bell rings and I stand up. I'm definitely going tonight to see if Jamal actually plays cards with the egg heads. If he does I will bully him about it none stop.

I walk out of the class carrying all the books and my broken bag. It ripped in half at the bottom.

"Lissa." Lips walking down the hallway to me. I stop to let him catch up "Hey. Have you got any recommendations from teachers yet I got my physics teacher and he wrote me his own message with his number." I tell him almost dropping some of my books.

"Perv. And no I haven't. Don't care." Lip answered taking some books from me.

"Lip," I tut "that's not the right attitude you could go somewhere great. Have a little faith." I advise making it to my locker and dumping all the book in it.

"Oh you know Charlie Webster in our maths class?" I ask he nods his head and leans back on the locker giving his full attention to me "well he said Jamal goes to these card games with him. I wanna see for myself cause Jamal hasn't mentioned these to me. Wanna come with?" I smiled closing my locker door.

Lip moves his head up from the locker "Sure can I bring Mandy?" He asked making me drop my smile "Yeah of course I'll invite Ian as well." I said as we started walking again.

"You sure this is the place?" Mandy asked as we stood outside the weird abandoned house down our street. "Yes I'm pretty sure. Now come on I'm ready to play some cards." I pull Ian by the arm to go in.

We walk in it's actually really loud and all the egg heads are here doing coke. What the fuck. "Yeah this doesn't look like card games." Ian says looking around with me. "Agreed." Lip says holding onto Mandy.

Charlie spots me and runs over "Hey sexy Alissa. You made it." He slap my ass making me gasp at him, Ian goes over to him "fuck off dweeb before I knock you out." He scrambled off.

I go into the main room and see Jamal playing a card game and the prize is coke. Jamal is a stoner. What the fuck. Lip and Mandy go off in the corner somewhere.

I'm still holding Ian's arm "Jamal!" I shout he looks over at and smiles then that smile turns into a scared one. He runs over saying he out of the game.

"Alissa. Ian." He speaks very scared that he's been caught. "What are you, what are you doing?" I ask letting go of Ian's arm.

"Just. Ok I can't sugarcoat it I'm selling coke to nerds for money." Jamal says putting his hand out for a high five for his excellent job. Me and Ian just look at his hand. I'm not mad just annoyed that he didn't tell me.

If I'm gonna be honest I'm just gonna pretend I didn't see anything. If he wants to do this then he wants to do this.

Ian grabs my arm "let's just go let him carry on with this." I nod and walk out with Ian we gather Lip and Mandy and walk out. We inform them what I learned and Mandy laughs making me laugh.

"You know he seemed so innocent." Mandy said now linking her arm with mine as we walk on the road in the dark.

"You still gonna go out with him?" Lip asked sounding more intrigued than even myself. "Yeah probably. He's not bothering me with it. So I don't care." I reply shrugging Ian is not happy with that answer.

"You know when you date someone and like them you do care what they do." Ian said. I laugh to hide the fact that I know I don't love him but we have been together for nearly a year. Can't break it off now.

The next few days Jamal was trying to make it up to me buying me gifts and we were having sex lots.

I'm in the guidance counsellors office. "What do you plan on doing?" He asks me I look to the floor and mention "accounting. Or chemical engineering."

He widen his eyes "wow. That's a very big dream huh. Let's see." He took papers and started looking through them "so you would need to get full A's you are doing good in maths and science. However English is your failing. D. D. C. C." He reads out I look at the floor.

"I thought I only needed maths and science to pass." He looks at me and gives a stern face "no you need maths, science and English you need to work hard if you want this job. If you want to get into university of Chicago. Work. Study. Work. Study. That's what you have to do." He advised I nodded and picked up my books walking out.

So I spent all night at the library. Studying hard I was going to pass with an A in English mark my words.

After I get home from the library I sit on the front porch and do my English practice paper. It's nice and quiet I even brought my lamp out to do it.

I hear sniffling making me stop and glance at the Gallaghers house. V is sitting on the stairs of their porch crying. "Hey V, you alright?" I ask.

She just nods but stops sniffling when Fiona walks up and she goes in the Gallaghers house. Lip and Fiona start arguing I watch as he says some horrible stuff to her.

She had used all the property tax money to plan an club event night. Which I thought was good for she was trying to find a better career for herself.

Mandy was snickering the whole. God she's so annoying sometimes. Don't get me wrong she's my friend but she's an asshole.

Fiona stood outside tears in her eyes looking at the money. "Fi!" I shouted she looked over at me and wiped her eyes.

"Sorry Lissa I didn't see you there." She says.

"Don't apologise I'm hiding in the shadows everywhere," she laughed at that making me smile "but seriously I think your doing really good Fiona."

She smiled "Thank you. You know why can't Lip date you instead of that," she whispers "asshole Mandy."

"You don't have to hide it she is an asshole." I laughed aww talking shit about my friend is fun.

I walk inside to an empty house once again. Where is my mother she's been gone for a few months now. I just hope she's alive.