Chapter 208 — A Drunk Fiona and William
Upstairs, Lip stood at the doorway for a while, staring at Monica.
Then it clicked.
"...She's having another episode, isn't she?" Ian muttered.
Lip didn't respond immediately.
"I don't know," he finally said. "But we need to find Frank."
When Monica spiraled like this, there was only one person who could deal with her—
Even if that person was useless.
Even if he'd never really helped at all.
Still, he was the only option.
Lip turned and headed downstairs, leaving Ian alone.
Ian lingered.
He looked at Monica.
His lips parted—he wanted to apologize for what happened earlier.
But the words never came.
In the end, he just stood there…
Then quietly shut the door and went back to his room.
Handling Monica?
He never thought that was his responsibility.
—
Downstairs, Fiona was chain-smoking.
Several cigarette butts had already piled up beside her.
Lip sat next to her and lit one for himself.
"So what are you gonna do?"
Fiona was silent for a long time.
Then she shook her head.
"I don't know."
"You can't just leave her like that."
Lip glanced upstairs.
That's when Fiona suddenly turned and looked at him—
Eyes red, voice tight.
"Why is it always me?"
"What?" Lip frowned.
"Every single time, I'm the one who has to deal with this."
Her voice cracked.
"I'm tired. Let it all go to hell. I'm not coming back tonight."
She crushed her cigarette out.
Then stood up and walked straight out of the house.
—
The door slammed shut.
Lip froze for a second—
then rushed after her.
By the time he got outside, Fiona was already heading toward the house next door.
"Fiona!"
"Are you just going to run away?!"
His voice was sharp, self-righteous.
That made her stop.
Then she turned—
and stormed back toward him.
Her eyes locked onto his.
"If I had run away—"
"You, Ian, Carl, Debbie, Liam—"
"YOU WOULD'VE STARVED TO DEATH ALREADY!"
Her voice exploded.
"You're the last person who gets to say that, Lip!"
"Fuck you!" Lip shot back, neck flushed red.
"We never asked you to take care of us!"
"So what now? You're just gonna ditch everyone?!"
Fiona laughed.
A hollow, bitter laugh.
"Yeah… yeah, sure."
"Think whatever you want."
"I'm done. I'm fucking done."
She stepped back.
"From now on—don't come looking for me."
Fiona didn't look back.
She simply turned and kept walking toward 2118.
What Lip didn't realize was—
his words had just become the final push that drove Fiona away from the family for good.
He stood there, staring at her back, wanting to say something—
but the words stuck in his throat.
In the end, all that came out was a frustrated:
"Fuck!"
—
Then, from down the street—
the low roar of an engine cut through the air.
A familiar sound.
Mercedes-AMG.
"Shit… damn it!"
Lip's expression darkened.
In his mind, everything that had gone wrong with their family—
traced back to one person.
William.
If it weren't for him, none of this would've happened.
That kind of thinking fit Lip perfectly.
—
The AMG rolled to a stop in front of 2118.
William stepped out—
and immediately spotted Fiona wandering along the roadside like a ghost.
"What happened?"
He walked toward her.
The moment Fiona saw him—
something broke.
"William…"
Her voice trembled.
Then she threw herself into his arms.
Tears poured out uncontrollably.
—
Not far away, Lip saw it.
Saw his sister—
run straight into the arms of the person he hated most.
A surge of anger exploded in his chest.
He kicked the metal fence outside 2119 hard—
CLANG! CLANG!
The noise echoed down the street.
—
William frowned slightly.
Fiona's hair carried a strong mix of alcohol and cigarette smoke.
"...What happened?"
Normally, she wouldn't be like this.
Even knowing her money had been stolen—
this still felt excessive.
The restaurant was doing well now.
Losing some cash shouldn't have broken her this badly.
Unless—
something else had pushed her over the edge.
But Fiona just clung to him.
No answer.
No explanation.
Seeing this, William sighed lightly and supported her.
"Come on."
—
Inside his house, he led her into the bathroom.
"Take a shower first."
The smell was… overwhelming.
Fiona nodded obediently—rarely this docile in front of him.
Once she agreed, William stepped out.
—
Fiona was already familiar with the place.
She undressed, turned on the water.
Warm water cascaded down her body.
Gradually—
the tension eased.
The alcohol, the smoke, the grime—
washed away.
—
After a while, she stepped out, wrapped in a towel.
The heat of the shower had cleaned her—
but it had also accelerated the alcohol in her system.
Her head felt light.
Unsteady.
She walked toward William, who was sitting on the couch.
Step by step—
until suddenly—
the world tilted.
A wave of dizziness hit her.
—
William reacted instantly.
He moved forward and caught her before she fell.
For a moment, he even thought something serious had happened—
checked her condition—
Nothing.
Just alcohol hitting her too hard.
"...What a letdown," he muttered inwardly.
—
Then—
Fiona, still in his arms—
suddenly reached up, wrapped her arms around his neck—
and pulled him closer.
Her lips pressed against his.
A desperate, messy kiss—
driven by exhaustion, anger, and the need to escape everything.