The Gallagher House
Fiona was in a terrible mood—completely exhausted. She forced herself to hold it together long enough to walk Lip and the others out the door. The mont they were gone, she felt like a deflated balloon, drained of every ounce of energy. She didn't even want to move.
She barely rembered how she made it back to her room or how she ended up on the bed.
Once she lay down, Fiona closed her eyes, wishing she could just fall asleep and never wake up.
Unfortunately—
Steve woke up.
And then, naturally, he started getting handsy.
Steve wasn't stupid. He could tell sothing was seriously off with Fiona. After thinking for a mont, he lit a cigarette and asked, "What's wrong? Is it because of Monica?"
Fiona stared at him without blinking.
Normally, because of her stubborn pride, she would never open up to Steve.
But now… her only best friend was basically no longer her best friend anymore…
Fiona had no one to talk to. Everything she'd been dealing with lately had been bottled up inside, and she felt like she was about to explode.
A few seconds later—
She decided to talk.
"I've got a lot I need to get off my chest," Fiona said. "Will you listen?"
Steve grinned. "Of course. That's kind of my job—well, besides the fxxking part."
Fiona forced a weak smile. "Give a cigarette."
Steve handed one over.
She lit it, took a deep drag, and once she started talking, the floodgates burst open.
Everything she'd been holding inside poured out like a dam breaking. She couldn't stop.
By the ti Fiona finally stopped talking, her mouth felt numb.
Steve, on the other hand, was completely overwheld. He hadn't expected that much.
"That's… a lot. Give a minute to process," he said.
After a few minutes, Steve exhaled smoke and thought it over. "If I'm honest with you… will you get mad?"
"Say it," Fiona replied. She already had a bad feeling.
Steve played it smart. "Promise you won't get mad first. I don't feel like making my life harder."
Fiona frowned slightly. "I promise."
Steve smiled faintly. "I think Dexter really was trying to help you before. And honestly… you made the wrong choice."
Why did Steve say that?
Simple.
He was getting tired of the Gallaghers too—tired of the chaos, the ss, all of it. In a way, the choice Dexter had wanted Fiona to make was the sa one Steve secretly wanted.
Think about it: if Fiona drew a clearer line between herself and the family—between herself and the kids—how much easier would his life be?
Fiona heard this and, unsurprisingly, frowned even deeper. Anger started bubbling up.
What?
She'd just promised not to get mad?
Yeah… right.
"So what, you're saying I shouldn't have quit that job? That I should've let Dexter keep dragging Lip into that ss? Lip could've gotten hurt!" Fiona shot back, her words fast and sharp, anger obvious in her tone.
Steve noticed it and sighed inwardly, but he still tried to push on.
What if—just maybe—she'd think it through?
"After what Lip did to Dexter, he deserved so consequences," Steve said. "He's still a minor. It's better he learns a lesson now than when he's an adult and does sothing he can't take back."
"You care about him. You want to protect him—that's good. But caring and protecting doesn't an enabling."
"Can you honestly say Lip won't do sothing worse when he's older?"
"Because next ti, he won't just get hurt. He'll go to prison."
Since he'd already started, Steve didn't hold back. "Like breaking into Loberta's place at night."
"I know that kind of thing feels normal to you guys."
"But it's not. The risk is huge. If soone caught you, that's felony burglary."
"Fiona, you've done an amazing job keeping them alive. But if you want them to actually have good lives soday, teaching them right from wrong matters way more than just keeping them fed."
Steve hadn't even finished—
But he stopped.
Because Fiona's expression had turned terrifying. Her face was dark, twisted with rage.
Seeing that, Steve imdiately knew—this fight was completely lost. What was coming next was pure fury.
And sure enough—
The next second, Fiona shot upright in bed, eyes blazing, screaming at him,
"What the hell are you saying?! Are you blaming ?!"
"..."
The shout was explosive.
"You don't get to stand on so moral high ground and judge us!"
"GET OUT!"
With one furious wave of her arm, Fiona scread the word.
The mont he heard it, Steve couldn't stop the thought that flashed through his mind:
This whole family is beyond saving.
Between that realization and getting scread at, Steve was done. Without saying a word, he got up, grabbed his clothes and shoes, and walked straight out.
Fiona sat on the bed, shaking with anger, eyes locked on Steve's back until he disappeared.
Then—
Tears poured out.
She cried silently.
Steve finished getting dressed as he went downstairs. By the ti he reached the living room, he was fully clothed.
On the couch—
Frank had been woken up by the noise and had heard most of the argunt upstairs.
"Big mistake!" Frank laughed when he saw Steve. "Everyone says I'm shaless and hard to deal with. Now you see it, huh? My daughter's even worse than ."
Honestly?
Steve kind of agreed. He gave a bitter smile in response.
Frank wasn't just making small talk—he had an agenda.
"Do a small favor," Frank said, getting straight to the point, "and I'll tell you how to fix this so you can keep sleeping with her. Sound good?"
Steve blinked and instinctively glanced upstairs.
No matter what, being with Fiona was… enjoyable.
He didn't want to give that up—or the relationship.
"Go on," Steve said quietly after a mont's thought.
Frank grinned. "Simple. Once Monica's discharged, drive and her to City Hall to sign so paperwork. Tiny favor. In exchange, you get Fiona back. Totally worth it."
The favor really wasn't a big deal and wouldn't affect Fiona much.
Steve thought for a second, then nodded. "Alright."
He grabbed so paper, wrote down his number, and handed it to Frank. "Call when the ti cos."
"Pleasure doing business," Frank said with a grin.
Steve didn't reply. He left the Gallagher house, got in his car, and drove away.
Upstairs, Fiona was still crying.
—
Dex Restaurant
Dexter showed up.
It wasn't quite lunchti yet, so Veronica, Vivian, and even Mickey were all just hanging around.
The mont Veronica saw Dexter, she walked over, wanting to talk about the Alibi bar.
The deal had basically been settled the night before.
Earlier that morning, Kevin and Veronica had talked it over and decided to start renovations as soon as possible—ideally, today.
And renovations ant money…
"Kevin's talking with Tommy right now," Veronica explained. "Tommy's gonna put together a budget, then Kevin's gonna ask my mom if she can help us out with so cash…"
After listening, Dexter smiled. "So how much do you need from ? Just give a number."
Veronica instantly relaxed. "Not sure yet. Once Tommy finishes the estimate, I'll let you know."
"Sounds good," Dexter nodded. "If this goes well, you might be buying a house in six months."
"I really hope so," Veronica said honestly. She desperately wanted a place of her own.
Dexter wasn't obsessed with money, but hey—he had ti. And considering how the neighborhood would develop later…
"How much do houses around here go for?" Dexter asked with a grin. "This area's kinda interesting. I might buy one too."
Veronica was a little surprised, then nodded. "You really should. Living in a hotel forever isn't exactly convenient."
She thought for a mont. "Around here, you're looking at about seventy grand for a house. Prices don't fluctuate much."
Dexter already knew, but he laughed. "Guess I'll have to work harder and sell more food, or I won't be able to afford one."
Veronica froze. "Boss… don't joke like that."
"I'm not joking," Dexter said cheerfully. "The restaurant pulls in six or seven thousand a day. After costs—which are basically nothing—I still need at least two weeks to buy a house."
"?????"
Veronica stared at him for several seconds, then her expression turned painfully complicated.
"Boss… I suddenly don't feel like talking to you anymore. Bye."
She turned and walked away imdiately.
"Haha," Dexter laughed, shaking his head as he headed for the kitchen.
Buying houses?
Totally doable.
Buy a bunch, just for fun. Beco a landlord.
He could even encourage Kevin and Veronica to buy more too.
Sure, Arica's housing boom had passed—but real estate was still real estate.
And in a few years, the South Side would inevitably be redeveloped.
If Kevin and Veronica bought more houses now, and if Dexter eventually left, as long as they didn't screw things up and just ran the Alibi honestly, they'd probably be set for life.
They could live comfortably forever.
He could even buy more houses himself and renovate the whole block, keeping the Shaless world going instead of letting it end.
Yeah.
Buying property was a solid plan.
Dexter thought it through.
---
Karen thought it through too—and realized an opportunity.
After getting pregnant with Lip's baby, Dexter would pay fifteen thousand dollars. Then there'd be the hospital…
If she just tweaked the plan a little—
She could make even more money.
Like finding a few more married guys, playing around a bit, and squeezing so cash out of those horny idiots.
Perfect plan.
The more Karen thought about it, the more excited she got. She couldn't wait to put it into action.
This ti, I'm getting rich, she thought.
Before long—
It was noon.
Karen had heard the restaurant had a new item—soup dumplings. Curious, she hopped in her car and drove straight over.
As for her grand money-making sche…
Lunchti was too short. That was for nights and weekends.
The restaurant was almost packed at noon.
Since Dexter was planning to buy houses, he'd increased the lunch limit to thirty orders.
Custors were thrilled.
Veronica and Vivian were thrilled.
The only unhappy one was Mickey—because there were way more dishes to wash.
Karen walked in, greeted Veronica, and just like last ti, headed straight for the kitchen.
Veronica found it weird. She couldn't figure out what was going on between Karen and Dexter. For a second, she even wondered if sothing had happened between them—but quickly dismissed it. Dexter was too smart to do sothing that stupid.
Karen walked into the kitchen and imdiately reported her "progress" with a smile.
"Lip and I have been doing it nonstop lately—no protection. Shouldn't be long now."
What could Dexter even say to that?
He just gave her a thumbs-up. "What do you want to eat?"
"Soup dumplings. I heard they're amazing," Karen said eagerly. "I'll eat here."
"Alright. Go wait outside for a bit," Dexter replied with a smile.
Karen glanced below his waist and licked her lips.
She was very interested in Dexter.
It had nothing to do with love.
She wanted to conquer him—and maybe get so benefits on the side.
"Okay, boss. Don't work too hard," Karen said sweetly as she left the kitchen and took a seat.
At that mont—
Svetlana arrived at the restaurant, walked straight past Veronica, and went over to Vivian.
"Vivian, the boss said I can eat here."
Vivian didn't care at all about Svetlana's line of work and smiled warmly. "Sure. Go ahead and sit."
The restaurant was nearly full. The only open seat was at Karen's table.
So Svetlana sat across from her.
"What would you like?" Vivian asked with a smile.
"Shredded pork fried rice," Svetlana said, having already checked the nu board. "Thanks."
"No problem. Want so fruit? It's free."
"Sure, I'll have a little."
Vivian quickly brought her a fruit plate.
Svetlana thanked her. She genuinely liked Vivian—she was interesting and kind.
A few minutes later—
Kevin walked into the restaurant with Veronica's mom, Carol.
This lunchti—
Dex Restaurant was absolutely buzzing.
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