Chapter 39.
Sorry for the wait, I've been on a GoT binge but in other good news this story has now surpassed 200k words AND has reached 300 reviews which is crazy.
Enjoy!
Disclaimer: I do not own Shameless.
Daniela wasn't sure where to go first. After leaving her dorm, she had debated back and forth on whether to go straight to the hospital or to their house.
Ultimately, she picked the house considering the fact that she didn't think all of them would be still be at the hospital- especially Debbie and Carl and so, forty minutes later, she found herself standing outside of the Gallagher residence.
She stared up at it, taking in the sight. She hadn't been back ever since she'd left.
Taking a deep breath, Daniela swallowed her nerves and made her way up the stairs. She didn't waste time knocking and instead twisted the handle to see that it was open. Taking it as a sign that they must've been home, she continued inside.
Her eyes flicked around the living room, not seeing anyone. As she unwrapped her scarf, she peered up the stairs.
"Holy shit, look who it is," said a voice that caused Daniela to startle.
Her head spun to see Kevin standing in the archway of the kitchen. The man looked pretty worse for wear but also stunned at the sight of her. Veronica wasn't very far behind him and her eyes widened when she also caught sight of her.
"Hey, Kev." Daniela mustered up a small smile before directing it at his partner. "Hi, V."
Kev's grin widened. "Well don't just stand there, come here."
Daniela laughed under her breath and walked into his arms where she was soon enveloped in a bear hug. She smiled against his chest, her arms coming to wrap around him.
"Damn, D. I didn't know you were back."
Pulling away, Daniela turned her attention to Veronica who also pulled her in for a tight hug. The girl made a small sound of surprise when she felt Veronica's bulging bump get in the way. As they pulled away, she grinned down at it, noticing the woman's glow.
"Debbie left a voicemail last night," explained Daniela causing the pair's expressions to sober. Her grim eyes flicked between them. "How is he?"
"Doc said he had acute cocaine toxicity," answered Veronica as they moved to the table. Daniela swore under her breath and took a seat across from her.
"He was having seizures so they had to put restraints on him," continued Kev. He handed the Daniela a cup of coffee to which she thanked him.
"How did it even happen?"
Kev tapped the pads of his fingers on the tabletop. "We were just having a good time. None of us saw him go into the kitchen until we heard Debbie yelling."
Daniela felt a pang in her chest for all of them and cupped her hands around her mug for warmth. "And Fiona?"
"We won't know until she's placed."
Daniela nodded and took a sip. "And the kids?"
"Upstairs," answered Kev, pulling out a donut from the box in the middle of the table. He didn't take a bite straight away.
Instead, he sat staring at it like he wasn't sure he could stomach anything at the moment. Daniela got it. She wasn't sure she'd be able to eat either.
"Figured we'd let them sleep in. They didn't go to bed till two."
Daniela took another small sip; the coffee helping to warm her up. She watched the couple over the rim of her cup, seeing the two share a look.
"Lip's still at the hospital," said Veronica, her voice hinting at something else. Daniela's sipping slowed and she licked her lips. "He's been there all night."
Nodding, Daniela took extra care putting her cup back down. Her hands pressed down flat against the wooden table. "I'll probably stop by there later." With a sigh, she leaned back in her chair and gestured towards Veronica's growing tummy. "How've you been?"
The woman groaned at the question and rubbed a hand over it. "Bloated, and my feet are so swollen that if I went swimming they could probably keep me floating."
Daniela laughed quietly at that. Beside her, Kev pushed the box of donuts towards her. She took one out but, much like he had done, didn't bite into it right away. She took her time picking at it and eating the glazed donut in small increments.
The three of them settled into light-hearted chatter to help the time pass. Eventually, Kev stood from the table to say that he was going to try and find out where Fiona had been placed.
Daniela finished her coffee and moved to place it in the sink.
"I'm just going to go pop in at home and see if my brother's there. I'll be back later," she said causing them to wave goodbye.
Her brother's truck was still parked on the side of the road so she took it as a sign that he was home.
Stepping inside, Daniela pulled her coat off and hung it up by the door. Craning her neck, she looked around the place.
"Jake?" She walked past the living room and smiled when she saw her diploma proudly displayed on the wall alongside an old picture of her mother.
Hearing footsteps, she turned back around to see her brother coming down the stairs. He paused when he saw her, obviously not expecting her visit.
"Hey," smiled Daniela.
"Dani?" He rushed forward to hug her like Kev did and even picked her up off of her feet. Placing her back down, Jakob gripped her shoulders. "Why didn't you tell me you were coming?"
"It was a last minute thing."
Catching on, Jakob nodded grimly. "Yeah, I heard about that. Well, it's good to see you."
"You too," agreed Daniela as she followed him into the kitchen. She leaned against the archway as her brother poured himself a coffee. "No work today?"
"Late shift," he replied, not looking back at her. "I was going to head out with Katherine to do some shopping. Her parents are flying in for the weekend and we're having dinner at her place."
"Oh, meeting the in-laws?" Daniela teased before moving to pour herself a glass of juice. "That's a big step. I'm surprised you haven't managed to scare her away yet."
She could feel her brother's deadpanned look behind her, causing her to smirk.
"Anyway, she wants to make sure things go off without a hitch."
"And how're you feeling about it?"
"If I'm being honest," he said digging his palms into his eyes. "Shit-scared."
Daniela waved his insecurities off. "You'll be fine."
"Yeah, thanks." Jakob leaned against the counter, his mug in hand. "So what are you going to do today?"
Daniela shrugged in response. "I'm not sure. Kev is trying to figure out where Fiona's been placed so I'll probably just hang around and see how everyone's doing. I wanted to check on Debbie. She called me last night and seemed pretty torn up."
"Yeah. I can't imagine what they're going through." Her brother frowned to himself. "How's Liam doing?"
Daniela twisted her mouth. "From what I've heard, he's pushing through but it seems pretty bumpy. I was going to stop by the hospital later on and see Lip, he's sort of set up camp there."
At the mention of her ex, Jakob's expression shifted causing her to sigh internally. She had never gone into depth about what caused them to break-up but the fact that it had happened around the same time as their mother's death had soured his opinion of the boy.
Still, he didn't press the issue which Daniela was glad for.
"I actually might head back over to the house," she announced, dropping her empty cup into the sink. "I think the kids will be awake by now."
Jakob nodded and placed his mug to the side to give her another quick hug. "Okay, give them my best."
"Will do." She promised, winding her scarf around her neck. Pulling her coat on, Daniela made her way back to the Gallagher's.
Kev noticed her as soon as she stepped into the kitchen. He raised his mug to her, a smile on his face. "Hey, we found out where Fiona is. Her hearing's in a few hours if you want to come?"
Daniela nodded. "Yeah, sure I should be able to make it." She would have to leave straight after though in order to make it back to campus for class. That was one thing she certainly appreciated about college; the flexible hours.
A second later, a voice rang out from upstairs followed by the sound of feet hurrying down to the kitchen.
"Oh my god, El!"
Daniela looked to her left, seeing Debbie running towards her. A smile lit up her face as the girl ran into her arms.
"Debs." She sighed, hugging her back with enthusiasm. Kissing her cheek, she pulled back and instantly noted the lessened height difference. "Holy crap! You've grown so much."
Debbie grinned back at her, highlighting her developing looks.
"Carl!" She yelled over her shoulder. "Look who's here!"
Her call was soon responded to with a loud groan followed by heavy footsteps making their way down the stairs.
"The hell is going on?" Carl's confusion died as soon as his eyes stopped to rest on Daniela who was standing there smiling back at him. His eyes widened slightly. "Holy shit."
"Hey," she greeted warmly, gesturing for him to come to her. He did so without hesitation and Daniela gave him the same treatment as Debbie.
"When did you get here?"
"A few hours ago," answered Daniela as they all took a seat at the table. "I didn't get your message until this morning when I woke up."
Debbie and Carl both fell silent, their faces dropping along with it. Pressing her lips together, Daniela grabbed each of their hands and squeezed them.
"He's going to be okay," she promised, trying her best to reassure them. "If there's anything I've learned from this family, it's that Gallaghers do not go easy."
Her words seemed to ease the children a little more which she was happy about.
"Okay, you two," interrupted Veronica from the fridge. "Both of you need to get your butts upstairs and ready for Fiona's hearing."
/
"What's college like?" Asked Debbie as they made their way to the courthouse. She was sat in the back of Kev's truck beside Carl and Daniela who sat to the left of the boy.
"It's way different from high school."
"Is it true that all people do is get high and party?" Piped up Carl, with a wide, excited grin.
Daniela smiled back at him and nodded. "There is a lot of that but people also work and study." Her response caused him to grimace in distaste at actually learning something.
"Where's the fun in that?"
Daniela laughed and shook her head. God, she had missed them.
Remembering Debbie's call from the day before about finding Ian, she leaned forward to look at the younger girl. "Hey, how did it go yesterday?"
"We managed to track him down."
Daniela's brow hiked in surprise. "No shit. Where?"
"The White Swallow," answered Debbie causing the other girl to frown. "It's a nightclub in Boystown."
Locking that bit of information away, Daniela nodded and returned her head to rest against the back of the seat.
Soon, they were pulling into the car park across the street from the courthouse. Everyone hopped out and walked across the street where they stood waiting.
"Does Lip know?" Daniela asked to which Kev nodded.
"Yeah, he said he'd be here."
True to his word, Lip showed up not too long after. Debbie and Carl were the first to spot him out crossing the street to meet them. For the first time in four months, Daniela's eyes clicked onto him.
She gulped and ducked her head after a long moment of taking him in. He hadn't noticed her yet and Daniela's heart raced as he came to stand with them.
"How's Liam?" Asked Debbie straightaway. Lip smoothed his hand over her hair before assuring her that he was doing better which caused everyone to sigh in relief.
His eye looked over his sister's head to where Kev was and did a double take when he saw Daniela standing beside him. As if she could tell he was staring at her, Daniela's eyes locked onto his.
"Hey," acknowledged Lip, his face softening.
She managed a half-smile in return. "Hey."
"We should head in," said Kev, pulling Lip's attention away. Snapping himself out of it, he nodded and was the first to make their way to the doors.
Daniela lingered behind the group for a moment. She let go of the breath she had been holding before following the others inside.
.
The court room was peppered with people who had shown out to support their loved ones. The Gallagher crew entered quietly with Daniela tagging behind as they made their way to the front of the seats where she chose to place herself beside Debbie.
It was a tense wait for them as they watched a couple of sentences be passed out. None managed to calm either of them down. To the left of her, Daniela spotted Debbie's fidgeting hands. Wordlessly, she placed her own around the girls before giving a tight and reassuring squeeze.
Three people passed before it came time for Fiona.
When she was escorted into the side room, the woman's eyes shot straight towards where they sat. She dragged her gaze along all of them, her mouth pinching in guilt. Daniela sucked in a low breath at the sight of her and more importantly how lost she seemed.
Debbie's grip on her hand tightened even more as the attorney read out the long and complicated titles for which she had been arrested for including child endangerment and drug possession. Even to Daniela, it looked bad.
"How does the defendant plead?" Asked the judge monotonously.
All eyes turned to Fiona who stood behind the caged room. She didn't seem to be following along or was simply too overwhelmed to say anything.
"Miss Gallagher?"
Fiona's attention snapped back to the judge. "Not guilty, Your Honor."
They all watched tensely as the attorneys debated amongst themselves
"Cocaine overdose in a toddler?" Criticized the other woman, clearly against letting Fiona out so easily. "The child is still in intensive care."
It was silent for a moment until the judge made his decision. "Bail is set at $100,000. Check with the clerk to get a preliminary hearing date. Next."
Daniela's eyes shut at the sound of the gavel. There was no way they'd be able to cough up that much cash. Opening her eyes, she glanced sideways to Lip. He was completely stone-faced.
Beside her, Debbie made a small sound of despair when her brother shot out of his seat and stormed out of the courtroom. The others followed behind but took their time.
As they exited the room, Veronica spotted Fiona's attorney and quickly pulled her aside to talk where they were soon informed that only 10 percent of the bail had to be paid. While it was much better than the initial $100,000, Daniela knew that even a tenth of that would be difficult to procure.
"Forget it, we don't have it," said Lip with a shrug.
"We can't just leave her in jail," argued Debbie strongly. Daniela agreed but was having a hard time figuring out how to do it.
"We don't have the money, Debs."
"Well we can raise it, we can sell stuff-"
"No, Christ. Just drop it, Debs!" Snapped Lip, causing them all to jump. Daniela glared down at him for handling the situation so poorly.
Debbie meanwhile, flipped her brother off before rushing outside causing the older girl to sigh.
"Shit," she cursed to herself before taking off after her. "Debbie!"
She pushed the doors of the building open and moved to stand by the side of the road. Turning her head back and forth, Daniela narrowed her eyes to see which direction she had gone in. They widened when she saw a flash of red hair.
"Debbie!" She chased after her, pushing past people that got in her way. Her eyes remained locked on the red hair until she saw it stop at a bus.
Daniela called her name out once again but stopped when the bus left, taking Debbie with it. Sighing, she pulled out her phone and called her. Unsurprisingly, there was no answer.
With a sigh, she turned and headed back to the others.
"She got on a bus before I could catch her," said Daniela as she came back into the building. She watched as both Kev and Veronica sent looks at Lip who remained unfazed.
"What you think that's the most traumatic thing she's gone through in the last 24 hours?"
"It could've been handled better," suggested Daniela causing his eyes to flick to hers. Her gaze dropped to her shoes before she addressed Veronica. "I'd stay and help but I have class in an hour."
"It's okay," assured Veronica with a small smile. "You go."
Nodding, Daniela gave the woman and her partner half-smiles before turning and heading out the door but not without one last look at Lip.
/
After class, Daniela didn't hesitate to check her phone; her disappointment growing when she saw that there were no new texts from Debbie. She had been worrying about it ever since she got back to school and had been hoping that Debbie would've gone back home by now.
Sighing, Daniela decided to call her for what felt like the tenth time.
"Pick up, Debbie," she muttered, biting on her fingernail. At the sound of the voicemail message, she sighed. "Hey Debs, it's me- again. Please, just come home or call us back. Nobody's mad. We're just worried about you."
Biting down on the inside of her cheek, Daniela ended the voicemail and released a long, tired breath. Her eyes closed as she raked a hand over her face.
"Everything okay?"
The unexpected voice caused Daniela to jump. Startled, she whirled around to face an apologetic-looking Chris. She let go of her breath when she saw him; her shoulders slumping as he observed her carefully.
"Sorry," he half-smiled.
Quickly recovering, Daniela shook her head. "It's fine, just some family stuff."
Chris nodded along while playing with the strap of his bag. "Anything I could help with?"
His only response was Daniela's tilt of her head and the flat look she gave him. He chuckled under his breath and bowed his head, realizing his mistake.
"Right. I forgot we're not making this a thing."
"Please," agreed Daniela with a small smile. Chris nodded to himself again before meeting her eyes, a serious frown etched onto his face.
"Well, if you change your mind," he offered hesitantly. "You know where to find me if you want to talk."
A genuine smile broke out on Daniela's face as she nodded back. "Thanks. I'll see you around."
With one last smile shared between the two, she slinked off to get to her next class, all the while toying with her phone impatiently.
/
Daniela stared down at her phone watching the screen light up with a new message in her group chat with Mandy and Simon.
M: So my dad's been arrested.
Daniela's brow hiked up in astonishment and she wondered why they even bothered letting the guy out considering how often he got himself into trouble.
D: Jesus.
S: How many times is that now?
M: 7. He failed one of his piss tests.
S: Do you want me to come over?
M: No it's okay. You have that test tomorrow.
M: So what are you losers doing tonight?
S: Studying for that test
M: Lame.
M: Daniela?
Said girl hesitated as she debated whether or not to tell them where she was going. Deciding that she had a good enough reason, she typed a response.
D: I'm going to the hospital to visit Liam. He got into some of Fiona's coke the other night and he's been in intensive care ever since.
M: Oh shit.
S: Is he gonna be okay?
D: I think so but Fiona's been arrested.
S: Fuck.
D: Yeah.
M: You're going there alone?
D: I won't be alone.
D: Lip's here too.
There was a long pause after her last message that had her gnawing on the inside of her cheek in suspense of their reactions.
M: I'm sorry what?
S: Was that a typo? Because I hope that was a typo.
Daniela sighed, having expected this. Truthfully, she had wondered whether it would be a good idea for her to do this but then there was the part of her that said she should disregard whatever happened between them. Bigger things were happening.
D: No, he's been camping out at the hospital ever since.
Glancing up from her phone, Daniela saw that she had finally arrived.
The sight of the building caused a cold shiver to run down her spine. The place was full of bad memories that she didn't want to revisit, especially not now.
Heading inside, she expertly made her way around the hospital and took the elevator up to the pediatric ward where the waiting room was. As she stood in the elevator, she took a deep breath to calm her anxiousness.
The doors opened to reveal a guy waiting outside the doors. He smiled kindly at her as they exchanged places.
Stepping out, Daniela saw him wave at someone sitting down and once she was in full view of the floor, she realized that it was Lip.
He was too busy flipping through what looked to be an essay to notice her. Daniela watched as he smiled down at his work. It was a small smile but full of pride. Unconsciously, she felt her own mouth tug up and her eyes soften as she took an experimental step forward.
"Hey," she said, announcing herself. At the sound of her voice, Lip's eyes flicked up to rest on her and his spine straightened slightly. Clearly, he hadn't been expecting to see her again so soon.
Flipping the folder closed, he put it to the side to settle his full attention on her.
"Hey," he finally replied, still surprised. Daniela pressed her lips together, a part of her beginning to second guess her decision to come to the hospital.
"V told me you had been holed up here so I thought I'd stop by," she explained. Lip nodded in understanding as her hands fidgeted. "How's he doing?"
Lip blew out a long breath, his chest deflating as he slumped into his chair. "A lot better. They think he should be able to go home tomorrow."
Daniela's mouth quirked up at that. "That's great."
He nodded in agreement. "Yeah. We just need to find Frank to discharge him."
Snorting, she moved to take a seat against the adjacent wall. "Do you know where he is?"
"He's back at the house with Carl and our new sister."
Daniela's eyes widened and Lip nods, smirking slightly. "I know. I only found out today. Apparently Frank tracked her down after all these years to see if she could donate a part of her liver to him."
Vaguely, Daniela recalled Debbie telling her about how Frank had discovered that he was sick and dying unless he managed to find a new liver to replace his trashed one.
"Sounds like Frank."
Stuffing her hands into her pockets, she leaned her head back against the wall. A few moments passed where she felt Lip's eyes on her, watching. She ignored how it made her stomach swirl.
"We managed to track down Ian," he told her after a while.
Daniela raised her head to look back at him and nodded knowingly. "Debbie told me. He's working at some nightclub?"
"Yeah."
"How was he?" She asked carefully, her mind slipping off elsewhere.
Lip just shrugged. "He seemed a little off. He didn't really want to get into what happened."
A part of her was unsurprised. It sounded like the Ian she knew the last time she had talked to him.
"Does he know about Liam?"
He shook his head and wiped a hand over his face. "I've been so fucking busy I never got the time." Dropping his hands into his lap, Lip glanced sideways at her. "You think maybe you could talk to him and let him know?"
Her hesitance must have been obvious because it didn't take him long to pick up on.
"I could try but I can't exactly guarantee he'll talk back."
"What do you mean?" Frowned Lip in confusion.
Daniela tilted her head and licked her lips. "Just some stupid shit," she answered, her fingers beginning to fidget. She felt Lip watching her inquisitively and sighed under her breath. "But I can ask Mandy to stop by."
Lip regarded her for a moment before nodding. "Yeah, that'd be good, thanks."
A silence ensued that was equal parts comfortable and uncomfortable. Rubbing his hands together, Lip saw out of the corner of his eye as Daniela adjusted in her seat, pulling one leg over the other.
She sighed and leaned her head back against the wall.
"You don't have to stay," said Lip.
"I want to," she responded easily, lifting her head long enough to glance at him shortly. "Besides, I don't have anything else on tomorrow so it's not like I'm missing out."
Nodding to himself, Lip relaxed in his chair as they both waited for any news on Liam.
"How've you been?"
The question was something Daniela hadn't been expecting from him. A part of her also hated that their relationship had now been reduced to idle chit chat.
Lifting her head again, she smiled briefly. "Good. And you?"
"Disregarding the last 48 hours? I'm coping," he shrugged lazily.
Daniela managed a small laugh at that which caused his mouth to tug upwards. Quiet descended on them once again before she decided to ask one of the many things that had been weighing on her mind since the last time she had seen him.
"How's Karen?" There was no malice in her voice, just pure wonder.
Against the other wall, Lip pressed his mouth and lifted his shoulders again. "I wouldn't know."
Daniela scoffed lightly and rolled her eyes. "I find that hard to believe."
He shook his head again with a sigh. "I haven't spoken to her at all."
Daniela knew that there was more to the sentence than just that and it caused her to fall silent. Twisting her mouth, she stood abruptly from her chair; her sudden movements causing Lip's eyes to follow her.
"I'm gonna head down to the cafeteria to get a coffee, you want one?"
Slightly dumbfounded, Lip nodded back up at her. "Yeah, sure."
Nodding, Daniela turned on her foot and headed towards the elevator.
She returned twenty minutes later with a tray of coffees and two muffins. Lip, who had been reading one of his textbooks, looked up at her arrival.
"Their muffins are pretty great. Probably the only silver lining about this place," she told him causing Lip to crack a smile.
Without thinking, Daniela dropped down into the seat right beside him, ridding themselves of the space they had before. The realization had come too late for her to change her mind. It would look strange if she were to suddenly get up and move back to the other wall.
Lip didn't seem to notice or simply didn't mind enough to comment on it. Her shoulder brushed against his as she crossed her leg over the other and handed him his muffin.
"Thanks," he muttered before resting the open book on his lap and taking the food.
Minutes passed where neither said a word. They each took their time picking at the muffins and sipping their hot coffees.
"Any word from Debbie?" Daniela finally asked, breaking off a piece of the baked good and popping it into her mouth.
Lip shook his head, a worried frown creasing his features. "She won't answer my calls."
His eyes fell to the muffin sitting pitifully in his hand. Suddenly his appetite was gone and filled with the dread and guilt of where his little sister had run off to. To the right of him, Daniela watched silently as he fell into his own thoughts.
She knew he was struggling under all of the pressure and that his outburst against his sister had been a result of that. Seeing him now gave her an idea as to how her own brother felt when she had taken off without a word.
Biting her lip, Daniela shifted her unoccupied hand to cover his own that was resting on the arm of the plastic chair between them. Suddenly self-conscious, Daniela didn't dare to meet his eyes but she didn't have to because they were also glued to their interconnected hands.
Swallowing, she gave it a comforting squeeze and, after a moment that seemed to stretch on, his fingers curled around hers.
"She'll be okay, Lip," said Daniela with quiet conviction. Her voice was barely above a whisper as she didn't want to disturb whatever was happening between them.
Experimentally, her thumb brushed over his knuckles much like how she used to do back when they were together and he was in a particularly bad mood. The memory caused an ache in her chest and a warm knot to tighten in her stomach.
Beside her, Lip nodded and his eyes raised to her face. For a while, she didn't respond to it, choosing instead to keep watching their hands and the slow calming movement of her thumb brushing over his knuckles.
The hair on the back of her neck became static as she finally worked up the courage to meet his gaze. When she did, her lips parted at what she saw.
Lip's brow was creased as he observed her carefully. She watched as his blue eyes flicked down to her mouth and the resulting thought that passed over his features. Nerves coursed through her before ultimately deciding to take control of the situation.
Clearing her throat, Daniela turned away from him effectively snapping Lip out of his deep daze. As a result, their hands came apart, with Lip's falling into his lap.
Using this time to distract herself, Daniela reached into her pocket for her phone to check if she had any new messages.
S: So… how are things going?
S: Do you want me to stop by? Because I can. No biggie.
M: Subtle.
S: I'm just saying! I don't want El to feel uncomfortable hanging around her cheating ex.
D: Thanks for the reminder, Si. But don't worry. I'm fine.
M: Any news about Liam?
D: The doc said that he should be discharged tomorrow so I'm just gonna wait it out here with Lip
M:?
S: I don't know how to feel about this…
D: Oh go study. I already told you I'd be fine.
M: You're too nice for your own good.
Daniela smiled down at the message, the back of her mind echoing that maybe she was right about that. Locking the phone, she slid it back into her pocket before looking sideways at Lip who seemed about ready to drift off despite his attempts to fight it.
"If you want," she began, catching his attention. His tired eyes blinked at her. "You can have a nap."
Lip's frown indicated that he was planning to turn her down when Daniela settled him with a single knowing look.
"Sleep," she urged gently but strictly. "You look like you need it. I'll wake you up if anyone comes by or if Debbie tries to call."
He thought on it for a moment before ultimately nodding, trusting her enough to do as she said she would. Slowly, Lip placed his books on the seat beside him before trying to make himself comfortable; a feat Daniela knew was difficult in the plastic chairs.
After a minute, Lip seemed to find the position he was looking for. His elbow leaned against the arm of the chair, allowing him to hold his head up. It didn't take long for him to drift off.
Daniela's eyes roamed over his face, watching as it relaxed now that he was sleeping. Still, he wore a small frown, no doubt the product of his busy thoughts. A small warmth ignited in the pit of her belly as she recalled similar times when she had done the very same thing.
She fought the urge to rake a hand through his hair as she was given a better opportunity to really take him in. If it was even possible, he had become even more handsome since the last she had seen of him.
Rising from her seat, Daniela hurriedly pushed away any lingering thoughts about him and instead focused on calling Debbie again in the hopes that she would finally pick up.
/
Somewhere in between, Daniela had also managed to fall asleep due to the weight of exhaustion she had currently been feeling. She vaguely remembered flipping through a health magazine when her eyes had slowly dropped closed.
Throughout the night, her head shifted to rest against Lip's shoulder with his own head tilted back against the wall. Daniela's legs were tucked underneath her body as she unconsciously curled her body around the warm one beside her. Soft breaths fell from her parted lips as the two slept.
It was certainly a sight, especially for those who stumbled across them the next morning.
"Shut up," hissed one of them- a female- to another as Daniela slowly began to lift from her sleep. She definitely knew that voice. "Don't wake them."
"Daddy, let's just keep your head up, okay?" The next voice was unfamiliar and carried a strange accent. The comment was soon followed by a quiet, strained groan that caused Daniela's eyes to slowly open.
She blinked, waiting for her vision to focus. When it did, she registered the faces of Kev, Veronica, and Carl as well as two strangers lingering beside Frank. The man looked practically catatonic in his wheelchair.
Frowning, Daniela shifted in her seat, unknowingly causing the person beside her to stir. She lifted her head up from the shoulder she was leaning against to see Kev who noticed them waking up.
"Morning sleepy heads," he grinned at the two of them.
Beside her, Lip groaned in response clearly unsatisfied at being woken up after so long without sleep. His head righted itself and he took in Daniela's body angled towards him, a strange look falling on his face.
Avoiding his eyes, she moved her legs out from under her and cringed at the buzzing feeling of pins and needles. Lip wiped a tired hand over his face as Daniela wiped at the small amount of drool in the corner of her mouth. None were unaware of the eyes watching their every move.
"We found dad," announced Carl happily to his brother. Lip turned his attention to his father sitting in the wheelchair and frowned at the sight of him.
"Is he alive?"
Daniela silently seconded his thought. When Debbie had told her about Frank dying she hadn't believed it. But now, as she saw him sitting in front of her, she was forced to accept it. It was almost scary.
"He's fine," answered the woman standing over him. Rubbing Frank's shoulders reassuringly, she turned her attention to Lip. The blonde made a small noise of emotion as she moved to stand in front of him.
Meanwhile, Lip just stared back more confused than anything.
"I'm Sammi, your big sister," she announced before laughing quietly at that. Lip nodded back, suddenly aware.
He raised a hand in greeting. "Right. Nice to meet you."
"I've always wanted siblings and now I have so many," gushed Sammi before remembering. "Oh! Chucky, come over here sweetie." In a second, a rotund little boy came to stand in front of her. "Chuckie, this is your other uncle, Lip."
Lip jutted his chin, still trying to get used to it all. "Hey."
The boy nodded once causing Daniela's brows to hike a little. Clearly, he was not the brightest or more most articulate. The conversation then turned to Frank as Carl took a seat beside his brother.
"Is he going to be okay?" Questioned Lip, his confused eyes sticking to Frank.
"Too many downers."
Daniela's attempt at flicking through a magazine to avoid the attention of Lip and Kev-who had been passing knowing looks between the two-slowed when she heard the ding of the elevator followed by footsteps heading their way. Her eyes widened when she saw Debbie.
"Still no Liam?" Asked the girl as if she hadn't taken off without a word to anybody. Then again, Daniela wasn't one to judge.
Instead of answering her question, Lip responded with his own. "Where were you last night?"
"Matt's."
"Who's Matt?" Interjected Veronica, her eyes narrowing slightly. Beside her, Daniela observed the tall boy standing to the left of Debbie.
Her brow hiked at the sight of the two of them. Matt waved shortly at them, clearly feeling a little awkward around them. Daniela's eyes narrowed wondering how old he was. It seemed that she wasn't the only one.
"You're Matt? The Matt?" Lip rose from his seat, a new edge to his voice as he advanced on the pair. "How fucking old are you?"
Much like her brother had done before, Debbie turned her attention to Sammi and Chucky who were sat beside Frank.
"Who's this?"
"Our new big sister and nephew," answered Carl lazily, pointing at each of them. After being introduced, Sammi rose from her seat to hug the younger girl; a sight which caused Daniela to smirk in humor at how uncomfortable Debbie looked.
However, everyone's attention soon shifted to the doctor wheeling Liam towards them. It didn't take them long to crowd around the little boy as each of them cooed over him. Daniela moved to stand by the handle of the chair, a wide smile on her face as she crouched down to see him better.
Her hand ran through his curly hair as Liam smiled up at all of the attention he was getting. Lip moved closer to tickle his brother's sides sending him into loud squeals of laughter that had the others following suit and as Daniela stayed crouched beside him, she felt a large weight lift off of her chest at the sight of the happy, smiling boy.
Lots of stuff in this chapter; Daniela seeing everyone again, talking to her brother and, of course, interacting with Lip after all these months away. Let me know what you thought about everything. The Ian stuff will slowly be explained as we progress through the next few chapters.
Once again, thank you for the milestone achievement, I truly appreciate all of you!
Special thanks to xenocanaan, 13teen, Laurafxox, SweetRiceball20, RHatch89, Guest, Raging Raven, and Spark10111 for reviewing; the 15 who followed, and the 16 who favorited!
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