Synopsis: What will life be like for Mariana and Jesus growing up Gallaghers at heart? In 2013, after Jesus gets suspended from school for the third time that year, the school makes a call to children's services. What will happen to Mariana and Jesus during the CPS investigation? Will they get taken away because of not being blood related to the Gallaghers? Or will Fiona be able to find Ana and get her to sign over her parental rights to Fiona so that Mariana and Jesus can stay in the home that they have grown up in for ten years?
Fiona Gallagher (b.1989) - 24 years
Philip 'Lip' Ronan Gallagher (b.1994) - 19 years
Ian Clayton Gallagher (b.1996) - 17 years
Mariana 'Mari' Gutierrez (b.1998) - 15 years
*She has a one year old daughter, Mabel Fiona Gutierrez (b. 2012)
Jesus 'Zeus' Gutierrez (b.1998) - 15 years
*gets in trouble at school constantly, because they can't afford treatment for his ADHD
Deborah 'Debbie' Gallagher (b.2001) - 12 years
Carl Francis Hashish Gallagher (b.2002) - 11 years
Liam Gallagher (b.2009) - 4 years
Ch. 1
2003
"Monica, what are you doing here?" Fourteen year old Fiona asked as she tried to block the woman from entering the house.
It was late. Seven year old Ian, two year old Debbie and one year old Carl were already asleep. Fiona was helping her nine year old brother Lip with the last of his homework so that he could go to bed too.
"Is that any way to talk to your mother?" Monica questioned.
From the way that Monica's speech was, Fiona could tell that the woman was in a manic state. Fiona sighed as she crossed her arms and stood more stubbornly in the doorframe. She wasn't about to let Monica drop another kid onto her. Debbie was only two and Carl was one. She loved her siblings, but she couldn't handle another kid.
"What do you want?"
Monica stepped aside to reveal a Latina woman with two little kids clinging to her, begging her not to leave them.
Fiona's heart broke as she saw the two little kids. She looked at Monica, "What the hell is this?"
"This woman is Ana, and these are her twins. She's afraid that CPS will take her kids away if she gets caught with me. They need to stay here."
"No. No. I can't take care of two more kids. I had to drop out of high school to get another job."
Ana looked at Fiona desperately. From her eyes, Fiona could tell that the woman was high. She sighed and looked at the two kids. There was no way that Fiona could let that woman leave with those kids.
"Alright. I'll take care of them. We'll be fine. Just get out of here." Fiona told the two women as she welcomed the children in, holding them protective against her sides.
The little girl revealed in the comfort and hid slightly behind Fiona, but her twin brother was crying and reaching out for his mother while she and Monica were running away.
Fiona squatted down, speaking to the kids on their level, "Okay. Let's see if we can find some clean pajamas for you two. Then I'll read you a story before bed. How does that sound?"
The little girl nodded. She liked that idea, but her brother didn't say anything. He just rubbed his eyes, both wiping the tears away and rubbing the sleep from his eyes.
"I'm Fiona." She gave a friendly smile
"I'm Mariana. And this is my brother Jesus. We're five." Mariana introduced.
Fiona nodded as she stood up, took the kids' hands and headed towards the stairs. She felt a little hand pull out of hers and then two little hands grabbing at her clothes. She looked down to see Jesus reaching to be picked up.
Fiona reached down and picked up the little boy, carrying him up the stairs with his sister walking behind the teen.
- Ten years later -
Fifteen year old Mariana Gutierrez laid in bed, thinking back to when her so called mother abandoned her and her twin brother ten years ago. Looking over at her one year old daughter through the bars of the crib, she couldn't imagine ever leaving her daughter.
There was a soft knock on the door of the bedroom that Mariana shared with twelve year old Debbie, who hated sharing a room with a baby in the beginning, but now that Mabel was sleeping through the night it wasn't so bad.
"Go to bed. You have school in the morning." Mariana heard Fiona's voice.
Mariana smiled. 'Fiona.' She thought. It was nice to have someone who cared about her. Fiona was more of a mother than her own mother. That's why she gave her daughter the middle name Fiona.
"I know. I'm going to bed now. I was just watching Mabel sleep." Mariana replied, loud enough for Fiona to hear, but quiet enough so that she didn't wake Debbie. She held her breath briefly and listened for Debbie's soft snores. She let out a breath when she heard those soft snores that she had gotten so used to.
"Goodnight."
Mariana smiled to herself, "Goodnight, Fi. Love you."
"Love you too." Fiona said through the door
Fiona was doing the rounds, checking to see if all of her siblings were asleep. And yes, she considers Mariana and Jesus to be her siblings too. They weren't Gallaghers in name, but they were Gallaghers at heart.
When Fiona checked in on the older boys, she saw Lip and Ian in the room sleeping, but Jesus was nowhere to be seen. Fiona stepped into the room and gently shook Lip awake.
"Lip, Lip…" Fiona whispered as Lip blinked his eyes open, "Where's Jesus?"
Lip looked over at Jesus' bed and then back at Fiona, "I don't know."
Fiona nodded, "Alright. Goodnight Lip."
"Goodnight Fiona." Lip mumbled
Fiona headed to her bed. She laid down in bed, but she couldn't sleep. She was too worried about her fifteen year old brother Jesus, who could be a bit impulsive at times. Jesus had ADHD, but they couldn't afford the medication for him. They were treating it with exercise, but it wasn't always one hundred percent effective.
Eventually Fiona started dozing off from exhaustion even though she had never heard her brother come home. It was still dark out when Fiona was woken to a knock at the door, then came Mabel's crying, and the footsteps of her siblings scattering out into the hallway.
"If that's Frank tell him to fuck off." Lip uttered
"Same if it's Ana." Mariana added as Fiona was seen emerging from her room.
Fiona nodded, "Yeah. I got it. Just go back to bed." She was heading down the stairs to the front door when the knocking started again, "I'm coming!"
Fiona opened the door where Jesus stood in front of her accompanied by a cop. She gave him an 'I'm disappointed in you' look.
"I'm sorry, Fiona." Jesus apologized
"I found him at a rager." The police officer informed Fiona
Fiona pulled Jesus into the house, "Thank you for bringing him home."
The officer left as Fiona closed the door. She ushered Jesus towards the stairs, ordering him to bed.
"I know you're mad at me, Fi, and you have every right to be, but I am sorry."
"I know, bud, but you're still grounded and you have to go to bed. You have school in a few hours."
Jesus gave a nod, "Love you, Fiona."
Fiona couldn't help but smile as she shook her head. These kids were going to make her crazy, but man did she love them.
"I love you too. Now bed." Fiona added as she pointed up the stairs.
Ch. 2
A week later, Jesus was sitting at home by himself with Liam and Mabel. Jesus had been suspended a couple of days ago for the third time that year. Fiona was totally pissed at him, but on the plus side he got to spend more time with his baby brother and niece, and the family saved money on childcare.
Jesus was putting Mabel down for a nap when there was a knock on the front door. He rushed to answer the door where he found a woman standing holding a clipboard.
"Uh can I help you?" Jesus asked confused
Four year old Liam turned away from the tv to watch Jesus and the woman's interaction. He was curious to know what was going on.
"I'm looking for a Monica or Francis Gallagher?"
Jesus laughed, "Oh well if you find Monica I'll be sure to let my siblings know. As for Frank, you'll probably find him at The Alibi."
"Who is in charge around here?"
Jesus crossed his arms, "And just who are you?"
"I'm Lacey Peterson. I'm with DCFS."
"Oh." Jesus looked stunned, "Um...You need to talk to Fiona...Gallagher. She's my older sister. She's the one in charge. Now if that's all, I need to get back to my brother."
"I actually need to speak with Fiona." Lacey informed
Jesus nodded and stepped over to the couch. He told Liam to go into the kitchen and call Fiona. While Liam was calling Fiona, Jesus decided to keep Lacey occupied.
"So why are you here?"
"That's not relevant to you."
Jesus scoffed as he crossed his arms, "Actually since you might take my siblings and I away, I think it is."
Jesus heard scrambling coming in from the back door. He left Lacey standing in the entryway while he headed into the kitchen. He saw Ian and Mickey in the kitchen, with Mickey laying on his stomach on the table, a bullet wound to his buttocks.
Jesus instinctively covered Liam's eyes, "What the fuck, Ian? What happened?"
"Mickey was shot."
Jesus gave Ian an 'obviously' look, "I can see that. How did it happen?"
"My fucking father caught Ian and I in the act and shot me as we were running out the window." Mickey explained
"Shit. As if this day couldn't get any worse." Jesus cussed
Ian looked at Jesus, "What's going on?"
"There's a social worker here."
Neither of the brothers, nor Mickey had noticed that Lacey had walked into the living room and was watching them. They only became aware of her when she spoke up.
"Is...Is this normal?"
Jesus whipped around, "No. Well for Mickey it is. His father hates that he's gay, but he doesn't live here. He's my brother's boyfriend."
Lacey nodded, "Right."
"Hey Li." Jesus squatted down to Liam, "Did you get a hold of Fiona?"
Liam shook his head, "No."
Jesus glanced up at Ian, "Where's Fiona?"
"I don't know. At work."
"Can you try to get a hold of her?"
Ian gestured to Mickey, "Kind of busy here."
Jesus gave a nod as he turned his attention back to Liam, "You don't need to see the mess in this kitchen. Go upstairs and keep trying to get a hold of Fiona. Let me know if Mabel wakes up."
"Okay Zeus." Liam replied before running up the stairs.
Jesus glanced over and saw that Lacey was jotting down notes on the paper attached to her clipboard. He sighed. That wasn't a good sign. He and his siblings were probably getting taken away. He would never see them again.
"Hey Ian, can you manage things here? Watch Liam and Mabel?"
Ian furrowed his eyebrows as he gave Jesus a look, "Yeah of course. What are you going to do?"
"I'm gonna go try to find Frank. Time for him to play father of the year."
"You know he's not your father." Ian whispered
Jesus nodded, "Yeah, but he's as close as I'm going to get. Also the social worker doesn't know that, and most of the time neither does Frank."
"True." Ian agreed
Jesus didn't know who his biological father was, and even though Frank wasn't really any kind of father most of the time, he had his moments. Frank has been the only father figure that Jesus has known since he was five years old when his mother left him and his sister with the Gallaghers. That was the last time that he saw his mother.
At The Alibi, Kevin was unpacking a new shipment and Veronica was serving drinks to the three regulars that they have when Jesus walked in. Veronica looked over when she heard the jingle of the door. She smiled at the fifteen year old.
"Hey. No minors allowed." Veronica teased
"I'm not here to drink, V. I'm just looking for Frank. Have you seen him?"
Veronica shook her head, "No. Can't say that I have, baby. Why you looking for him?"
"DCFS is at the house." Jesus replied, "If he shows up, tell him it's time to make another father of the year appearance."
Veronica nodded, "I will."
"And tell Fiona to come home. She's not answering her phone, and the social worker wants to talk to her."
"I will." Veronica agreed, "Now out before I lose my license for letting you in here."
Jesus laughed, "Yes Ma'am."
Meanwhile at work with Fiona, she had finally gotten a break and was able to sit down. She checked her phone and saw that she has twenty-seven missed calls from home. She called the phone back and Liam answered.
"Liam, where's Jesus?"
"I don't know."
Fiona sighed, "Okay. Is there anyone home with you and Mabel?"
"Ian and Mickey are in the kitchen."
"Can you take the phone to Ian?"
Fiona heard Liam's footsteps heading down the stairs. She heard his voice saying something to Ian and then Ian came on the phone.
"What's going on, Ian?" Fiona wondered
"Oh um….Jesus went looking for Frank. There's a social worker here. She wants to speak with you."
Fiona sighed again, "Alright. I'm on my way home."
Ch. 3
Mariana, Debbie and Carl arrive home to find Fiona sitting on the couch with her hands on her head, and a woman standing holding a clipboard. Debbie looks up at Mariana worried, while Carl just stands beside Debbie.
Mariana studies Fiona and then glances into the kitchen where Lip, Ian and Jesus are hanging out with Liam and Mabel. She looks back at Fiona, biting her bottom lip before speaking.
"Fi?"
Fiona wipes her eyes as she stands up, "Mari, I need you to be really brave."
"What's going on, Fi? What's with the lady with the clipboard?"
Before Fiona could say anything, Jesus rushed into the room and hugged his twin sister before pulling back to look her in the eyes.
"Mari, we're getting taken away and it's all my fault."
"They're taking us away again?!" Debbie cried
Fiona pulled both Debbie and Jesus in for a hug, "Zeus, it's not your fault. And Debs, it's going to be okay. I'll get you guys back." She looked at Mariana, "You're not to worry."
"Alright. It's time to go." Lacey interupted
Fiona glared at the woman, "Five minutes."
"Okay. Five minutes."
"Mari, take Debbie and Carl upstairs. Each of you pack a bag." Fiona said, "I want you to help Carl. Make sure he packs underwear."
Mariana nodded, "I will." She ushers Debbie and Carl towards the stairs, "Come on. Let's go."
After all the Gallagher kids were ready to go and situated into the social worker's van, Fiona was waving goodbye as the van drove away. Once the van was no longer visible, Fiona stepped back inside the house and finally broke down in tears. Her babies were gone.
Lip rushed over and hugged his older sister, "It's okay. It's okay. We'll get them back, but until then they'll have each other. Ian and Jesus will be placed together, Mariana and Mabel will be together and Debbie will be with Carl and Liam. They'll be fine, Fiona."
Meanwhile back with Lacey and the Gallagher kids, the first stop was for Ian and Jesus. It was a group home. The one that Ian had stayed at with Lip two years ago.
As Ian and Jesus got out of the van, Mariana was looking at her older brothers with doe eyes. She didn't want to say goodbye to them, especially her twin.
Ian sighed as he kissed the top of Mariana's head, before looking in her eyes, "Everything will be fine. Fiona will get us back in no time. Take care of Debbie."
"I know. I will. I love you." Mariana replied as she grabbed her little sister's hand
"Love you too." Both Ian and Jesus added
Ian closed the van door and after watching the teens walk into their group home 'Gunderson Home', Lacey drove off. The next stop was to drop off Carl and Liam. Mariana was worried about Carl being alone having to take care of Liam, but there wasn't anything she could do about that.
Debbie was getting Liam out of his carseat, while Carl was grabbing his bag and Mariana was trying to talk to him, but in typical Carl fashion he wasn't listening.
"Carl, this is important." Mariana spoke sternly, "Liam is only four years old. You're his big brother. You have to take care of him. And don't forget to brush your teeth and change your underwear."
Carl just waved her off, "Yeah, yeah, yeah."
"I'm serious, Carl. This isn't a joke. Take care of Liam. And I love you."
Carl hugged Mariana, "I know, Mari. I love you too." He carried his and Liam's bags as he helped Liam out of the van.
"Just the three of you now." Lacey said as she pulled away from the curb, driving off again.
A few minutes later, Mariana, Debbie and Mabel were dropped off at an old, rickety looking house. The house looked very much like the Gallagher house, but this house was probably older. Mariana held her breath as she thought, 'well, this looks promising.'. She felt Debbie squeeze her hand.
"It'll be okay, Debs. I won't let anyone hurt you." Mariana assured as she walked towards the house holding her baby on her hip and her little sister's hand.
Ch. 4
At the Gallagher house, after Fiona managed to pull herself together, she rushed down to Child Protective Services to find out where her siblings had been placed, while Lip headed out into the city to find Frank.
Jesus told Lip that he had already checked the Alibi for Frank and he wasn't there. Lip called around to all the hospitals and even called the morgue to find out if Frank was dead, but still had no luck locating Frank. Sometimes fnding Frank felt like trying to find Waldo, but when he was around he was like a cockroach. Impossible to get rid of.
Meanwhile with Mariana, Debbie and Mabel. It had been about twenty minutes since they were dropped off. They were still standing outside the house, afraid to go in. Then a whole family of people rushed out to greet them. It came as a big surprise, but everyone was really nice. It was a nice warm welcome that they hadn't been expecting. However, Mariana couldn't help but worry about her twin brother and her two younger brothers.
The Newman family. That was the family that Mariana, Debbie and Mabel were staying with. A mom (Stevie), dad (Jay), and four kids: eleven year old twins Marilla and Dashiell, eight year old Elizabella and four year old Rockwell. They were really lucky. Carl and Liam however were not so lucky.
It hadn't even been an hour and Carl was already in trouble. He didn't even really know what he had done wrong. All he knew was that the family he was staying with were religious zealots.
The Bramford-Hinsley family. A blended family with twelve kids. It was kind of a yours, mine, and ours type situation. Except without the ours, and a few of the kids were adopted. The 'mom' (Leigh Charlotte Hinsley) and the 'dad'. The kids ranged in age from fourteen to six.
Both of the parents were really strict. Carl wasn't even sleeping in the same room as Liam, so he couldn't keep his promise to Mariana to take care of Liam. So not only was Carl breaking a promise, but he also found himself sitting in a room, alone, waiting for either his foster mom or foster dad to walk in.
Carl didn't really know what to expect, all he knew was what he was told, which was that he was in big trouble and he was going to get it. When he heard the door opening, he got scared, which was ridiculous, because he wasn't scared of anything. At least that used to be the case, because right now, he is terrified. However it wasn't either or his foster parents coming in the room. It was one of his many foster siblings. One that he hadn't had the chance to meet yet.
"You in trouble already?" The kid asked
Carl nodded, "I don't even know what I did."
"Welcome to the club. I'm Caelen." He introduced. His name was Caelen Seth Hinsley and he was fourteen years old.
"I'm Carl. I won't be staying here long. My sister is going to get me and my brother Liam out of here."
"You're lucky."
"No talking in the punishment room." The dad, Macsen Conor Hinsley yelled as he burst into the room.
Caelen stared at him. He bit his bottom lip, nervously. He hated getting punished, but to be fair, he shouldn't have cheated on that test. He just really needed to get a good grade.
Macsen motioned for his son to come. Caelen stood up and walked over to his father. He dropped his pants and then bent over, touching his socks with his fingertips.
"You're next, Carl." Macsen said as he took off his belt.
Carl's eyes widened as he thought, 'No fucking way.' There was no way that he was going to let himself get spanked. It was just not happening.
Carl couldn't watch, but he flinched when he heard the first 'thwap' sound of the belt. He practically jumped a foot in the air at the sound of the second 'thwap'. Carl didn't count how many times that Caelan got hit with the belt, but soon it was his turn and Macsen was motioning for him to come. Carl just sat on the bed with his arms crossed.
"Carl, come here." Macsen spoke sternly
"Don't make it any worse for yourself." Caelan said
Carl looked at his foster father, "Fuck you! You have no right to punish me. You have no authority over me. And I want my little brother in a room with me. I promised my sister that I would take care of him."
Macsen reached over and grabbed Carl's arm, pulling him over to him.
"When I tell you to come here, I expect you to listen." Macsen scolded, "Since this is your first time, you can keep your pants up. Now bend over."
Carl looked over at Caelan, who nodded, "Just do what he says. Don't make it worse on yourself."
Carl sighed as he gave in and bent over, touching his hands to his feet, waiting for the first 'thwap', which hurt more than Carl thought when the first one landed across his butt. And then another 'thwap' came, quicker than he had expected. Carl promised himself that he wouldn't cry, but by the fourth 'thwap' he yelped out in pain. After the sixth 'thwap' Carl was crying and couldn't keep track anymore. He didn't know how many more times the belt came in contact with his butt, but eventually it stopped.
"What do you boys have to say to me?"
Caelan hung his head, "I'm sorry, father."
"Sorry." Carl mumbled
"Speak up, boy. Sorry what?"
Carl looked over at Caelan, then back at Macsen, "Sorry, Sir."
"You're both forgiven. Now go to your rooms and stay there until dinner."
Back with Mariana, Mabel and Debbie at the Newman residence. Despite the looks of the house, the family was really nice. It was kind of frustrating for Mariana and Debbie not being allowed to eat in front of the tv, like they did at home, but they had sat down and ate dinner with the Newmans like a family. It was nice, but they missed their family. And Mariana couldn't help but worry about Carl and Liam, and her twin brother who she had never been separated from before.
Ch. 5
Fiona was at social services, trying to find out where her siblings were so that she could go and check on them, but this new social worker wasn't budging. She wouldn't give Fiona the addresses. Lacey wouldn't even tell Fiona if any of the siblings had been placed together.
Lip was checking all the usual places for Frank when he ran into Jesus at one of the hospitals. Jesus was leaving as Lip was walking here.
Lip looked gobsmacked, "Jesus? What are you doing here?"
"Looking for Frank. He's not here."
"How did you get here?"
Jesus shrugged, "It wasn't hard. The rock climbing I took at the Y really came in handy."
"Tell me you didn't scale the house or building."
"Group home." Jesus corrected, "And yes. I did."
Lip sighed, "You gotta stop doing that."
"Geez, Lip. Thanks for asking if I was okay."
"Sorry. Are you okay? What group home is it?"
Jesus nodded, "Yeah. I'm fine. It's the Gunderson home. Ian's with me, so...yeah."
"And our siblings and niece? What happened with them?"
"Debbie is with Mariana and Mabel. Liam's with Carl."
Lip rolled his eyes, "Liam with Carl? Oh great."
"Yeah. I'm worried about Liam too, but I'm sure he'll be fine. Carl will take care of him. He promised."
Lip gave a nod, "Alright. Well Fiona is trying to find out where you and the others are so she can check on you and bring anything that you or the others may need. Do you need anything?"
Jesus shook his head, "No. I'm fine. Ian too. Worry about the others. Mari might want some of Mabel's clothes from home. Mabel has a few outfits that she is about to outgrow that Mari wants her to wear a couple more times."
"Okay. I'll let Fiona know." Lip replied, "Anything else?"
"Not that I can think of."
Lip patted Jesus on the shoulder, "Okay. See you soon, bro."
Jesus flipped Lip off, "Fuck you."
"Yeah. Fuck you too."
Hope you enjoy. Comments are greatly appreciated.