Gold Dust Woman- Lip Gallagher

who did what to mandy milkovich?!

Ever since I outed Diana, she refused to acknowledge my existence. The only reason she didn't try to fight me was because she knew how tough I was. Regardless, I double-checked my shampoo every time I showered to ensure it wasn't laundry detergent or Nar instead. 

My dad and Jenna weren't happy with Diana, but my dad was furious with me. He'd given up on punishing me because he knew I constantly felt like I had nothing to lose, so it wouldn't make a difference. 

I sat in bed that night. Cory and I had been texting for a while, and I'd typed, "Wanna hang out?"

As my thumb hovered over the send button, my phone rang.

Incoming call, Mandy.

"Hey, what's up, Mand?"

"Guess where I am?"

I rolled my eyes, not wanting to play a guessing game, "I give up. Where?"

"Outside of Ian's workplace," she said, "I'm gonna make a move tonight. Right now, I'm waiting for him to get off his shift so I can walk him home."

"Mandy, I think-

"I know, I know. You don't have to wish me luck. I already know I got this one," she said, "I'll come over after. Bye. Love ya."

"Mandy-

Too late. She hung up. The only thing left to do now was to get to the Gallagher's before anything happened. Mandy was a forward person, and Ian very much wasn't, and I didn't want her to end up doing something to him that he didn't consent to or like.

I threw my boots and coat on and biked there, trying not to get hit by traffic and ignoring the usual catcalls. 

Long story short, one of the perv history teachers at our school brushed his hard-on up against Mandy's desk, and Ian, who sits behind her, stuck his backpack out so he'd fall over. That got Mandy convinced that he liked her. 

When I arrived, I saw Fiona and Tony outside, talking. If it weren't for the circumstances, I would've asked what that was about, considering it looked like they came back from a date. 

"Mayo! What's going on?" Fi said, "You look stressed."

"Yea, about that, I-

Before I could finish, Mandy swung the door open.

"Mayo, your friend is a shithead, and I hope he drops fucking dead!" she sobbed, running away. 

"Why is Mandy Milkovich crying?" Fiona yelled before turning around, "I'll see you, Tony. Who did what to Mandy Milkovich?!"

I ran inside, found Ian immediately, and placed my hands on his shoulders, Carl and Blake watching from the kitchen.

"Dude, what did you do?!"

"I didn't do anything!" he whisper yelled, "She jumped on me and tried to take my pants off, so I pushed her off and said no!"

I put my hand over my mouth, "Fuck. Look, I'm not saying anything's certain, but if I were you, I'd sleep with one eye open for a while. Don't forget Mandy has three killer brothers who won't hesitate to beat your ass."

Ian's eyes widened as he nodded. 

_______________________________________________________________

I slept over that night and woke up on the couch. I ran upstairs to get ready and took one of Fiona's tops. Not that she minded at all. As I brushed my teeth with my finger, Lip came in.

"How'd you sleep?" he said.

"Good," I said, "How was your date?"

"Eh," he said, "Karen's not looking for an exclusive thing. Ernie Morrissey allegedly gave her a hickey yesterday."

"I'm sorry," I said, "I still can't believe she came to my house to apologize. I'm glad she apologized, but I couldn't do it. I couldn't forgive her. I'm sorry, Lip."

He didn't say anything, but he pushed my hair to the side and kissed my cheek.

"It's ok," he finally said before heading downstairs.

Ian and I headed downstairs where everyone else was, and Steve. Kev was at the kitchen table too, so I sat across from him.

"Yo! Got my tickets?" Ian said. 

"Yeah, what game? Philly on the 12th or Edmonton on the 27th?"

"Uh, the oilers."

"Good choice. The flyers are a bunch of fags!" Kev said, making Lip and I look up at Ian. 

"Goddamnit," Fiona said, "The gas bill's late. No wonder it's freezing in here."

Steve picked up something off the ground, "Fiona, thanks for a night I'll never forget. Tony!"

Ian and I looked at each other and gasped.

"I KNEW IT!" I yelled, laughing. 

"Who the fuck's Tony?!"

"You hooked up with Tony?" Kev said, "How charitable of you."

"Wait, Tony the cop? That Tony?" Steve said.

"No, Tony the pizza delivery guy," I said sarcastically, making Lip snort. 

"He's sweet, and he has a real job," Fiona said.

Kev started snoring, "I'm sorry. I fell asleep while you were talking about him. How long was I out for?"

Lip and I smiled.

"Lip, phone," Fiona said.

"And what exactly does hooked up mean?"

"Last time I checked. Penis goes into the vagina," Kev said.

"Wow! You sure didn't waste any time, did you?"

__________________________________________________________

"I think I can see my breath," Ian said. 

I was wearing my winter coat, gloves, and scarf, and I was still cold as hell in that kitchen.

"We need 587 dollars or they won't turn the gas back on."

I opened my mouth when Fiona stopped me, "No, Mayo."

"Dude, do you want to freeze to death?!"

"I'm taking the PSATS for some Polish kid over in Ridgedale. He's gonna give me like a hundred bucks."

Although I was convinced he'd eventually get caught, it was a good way to make money. These kids had money money. 

"I saw online that we can get an extra 200 a month from the state if we say Carl's retarded," Debbie said.

"I get paid Friday," Ian said.

"Ok. I'll figure out the rest," Fiona said, looking at the clock, "School! Let's go. Everyone out."

"I can loan you the money," Steve said, "Unless you want to get it from Tony the cop."

As Fiona and Steve continued conversing, we all left to go to school.

"Are you sure I can't kick in a hundred?" I said to Lip, "I get paid on Thursday."

He shrugged, "If we don't get it turned on soon, give me the money and I'll tell Fi I helped the Filipino in Halstead."

We arrived at school, and Lip caught up with Karen, walking her to class with his arm around her shoulder.

I sighed and walked to class, knowing where I stood.