In a nasty, messy bathroom.
"I'm on the pill," Karen whispered to Lip.
That was all the green light Lip needed.
They fooled around for a bit.
After they were done, they left the bathroom together to meet a high school senior.
It was SAT season.
Lip had started his business of taking the test for cash, and the student they were meeting, introduced by Karen, was a Black, illiterate basketball player.
The meeting went smoothly.
It didn't take long to agree on a price and the details, and then Lip and Karen turned to leave.
"Wanna head back to my place? We got some stuff last night we could sell for a quick buck," Lip suggested.
"Stolen?" Karen asked.
Lip grinned. "Borrowed. From a dead person."
A little over a dozen hours had passed, and all Lip felt about Roberta's death now was relief.
Karen shook her head. "Can't tonight. I've got something I need to do."
Lip's eyebrows twitched at that. He turned and looked at Karen for a couple of seconds, his tone shifting. "Got a new guy?"
The jealousy in his voice wasn't obvious, but it was definitely there.
Karen noticed it, smiled, and thought about it. "Something like that."
When Lip heard this, he instinctively took a deep drag on his cigarette. "Does he fk better than me?"
Karen just smiled without saying a word.
That reaction could definitely be taken as a "yes."
Immediately, Lip felt a sourness well up inside him, and he fell silent.
After a long moment of quiet, Lip just couldn't help himself and spoke again. "Hit me up when you're done. I'll show you what I'm really capable of."
"Okay," Karen agreed without hesitation.
That made Lip feel a little better.
Before long, they got into the car. Karen dropped Lip off at the Gallagher house and then sped off to execute her money-making scheme—finding a guy.
Lip went inside.
Fiona had just finished up her own hustle not long ago. She was chilling on the couch, smoking, drinking, and watching TV. She greeted Lip and mentioned that she had sold a few things to buy some groceries and essentials.
"What'd you sell? How much did you get?" Lip threw his backpack down, flopped onto the couch, and asked.
Fiona told him honestly.
When he heard the total, Lip was ticked off. "Those few things you sold? They were worth at least a grand, and you sold them for a hundred and twenty bucks?"
His attitude and tone were basically calling Fiona stupid.
Fiona's face darkened slightly. Her first instinct was to snap back, but she bit her tongue. With a stony face, she threw back, "You deal with the rest of it, then."
"I'm going to deal with it right now," Lip was already annoyed, knowing that Fiona had undersold the stuff and basically thrown away a lot of money. He ignored her mood, stood up, grabbed his backpack, and headed straight for the basement stairs.
He dumped out his schoolbooks and supplies, loaded in the stolen trinkets, and without a word, put the bag on his back and quickly left the Gallagher house.
On the couch, Fiona watched this and let out a laugh, but as she kept laughing, tears started to well up in her eyes.
Frank, sitting nearby in his wheelchair, noticed it and smirked. "What a jerk, huh? Let me guess, why did you quit that job at Dexter's restaurant again?"
Ha.
See? Frank always knows just what to say.
Clang.
Fiona's body stiffened, the pain point stabbed hard. The next second, she whirled around and glared at Frank, spitting out a vicious, "Fk you!"
Frank didn't care at all. He just kept smiling, happy, and went back to watching TV.
Fiona was hurting and too agitated to enjoy her rest.
---
After school, Debbie walked silently, backpack on her shoulders, toward the hospital. She wanted to check on Monica.
Right as she reached the hospital entrance.
Suddenly.
Monica, using a crutch, appeared in Debbie's sight.
Debbie gasped when she saw her and immediately scrambled over, full of concern. "Mom, why are you out here?"
Seeing Debbie, Monica instantly smiled. "My sweet Debbie, you came to see me! Quick, we need to go, or they'll catch me and make me pay the bill."
Debbie understood.
Ditching the bill—a Gallagher family tradition.
"Okay," Debbie nodded without a moment's hesitation. She reached out to help Monica but realized trying to support her just made it harder for Monica to move, so she pulled her hand back. After a thought, she said, "Mom, I'll go call a cab first."
"Oh, do you have any cash?" Monica sounded a little worried.
"Nope," Debbie shook her head. "But it's fine. Fiona's home. Once we get there, she can come out and pay."
"Alright," Monica relaxed.
Debbie didn't waste any time and hustled toward the street.
Her little figure ran so fast.
Monica watched for a couple of seconds and then also picked up her pace.
At the very same moment, behind the hospital doors, Monica's attending physician turned and smiled at the nurse next to him. "Success. She ran off."
The young nurse still looked bewildered. "What kind of mess is this?"
The doctor's smile was bright. "You haven't dealt with the Gallaghers enough. Once you have, you'll know this is exactly how you have to handle them."
The nurse was speechless. "..."
"Alright, back to work," the doctor said cheerfully and walked off.
Outside the hospital.
It didn't take much effort.
Debbie and Monica got into a taxi and headed toward the Gallagher house.
About twenty minutes later.
The taxi pulled up right outside the Gallagher home.
As soon as the car stopped, Debbie immediately jumped out and yelled toward the house, "Fiona, hurry up and come out!"
Fiona was in the kitchen making dinner. Hearing the panicked sound, she assumed something was wrong with Debbie. She dropped everything and bolted outside. "Coming! What is it?"
In a flash.
Fiona rushed out the front door and immediately saw Debbie helping Monica out of the taxi. She instantly understood, froze, and didn't know what to say.
"Fiona, help pay the cab fare, we don't have any money," Debbie said when she saw Fiona.
Fiona: "..."
Money, again!
Where was she supposed to get any more money?!
Fiona felt helpless, but she still walked over to the car and asked the driver, "How much?"
The fare wasn't cheap—over a dozen bucks.
Fiona had no choice. She emptied her pockets and paid the full amount.
Once the driver got his cash, he slammed the gas and sped away.
Fiona stood on the curb, looking at Debbie and Monica, her emotions a complete and utter mess. She didn't move for a moment.
"Fiona..." Monica looked at her, her face miserable, and spoke up. "I'm back. I won't leave this time."
Hearing those words.
Fiona instantly felt like laughing—it was so ridiculous.
Just yesterday, she was trying to take Liam with Roberta to start a new life.
Now Roberta was dead, so suddenly she wasn't leaving?
The gall of it all.
Fiona smiled, didn't say a single word, and turned to walk back inside.