Chapter 49.

Happy 2018! This was supposed to be out a lot sooner (like New Year's Day sooner) but I got caught up in the holidays but thanks for all the comments on the last chapter.

Disclaimer: I do not own Shameless.


The new college year was fast approaching and with freshman orientation week coming around, many university students - both new and established - converged onto campus to begin settling into their dorms. While she still had another week before classes would start up, Daniela was one of the many that returned.

Her roommate, Megan had also made it back from her vacation and was more than happy to fill Daniela in on it all while they unpacked their things. She was currently dishing on the cute guy staying at the nearby lakehouse when the sound of her phone filled the room.

Tucking in her bed cover, Daniela crossed the room to check the caller ID. Seeing that it was Mickey, she answered it quickly.

"Hey, did you get around to asking him?"

It had taken another day and a half before Ian eventually turned up and when he had, Mickey had called Daniela right away to let her know. She had breathed a sigh of relief but could tell that there was some new tension between the couple. After reassuring her that he would bring up the idea of going to see a doctor, Mickey had left her in the dark for almost another two days and she had been anxiously awaiting his next update.

"He's fucking gone," said Mickey in a hurry.

Daniela's brow shot up. "What?"

"He took off!"

"Where?" She demanded; eyes narrowing.

"How the fuck should I know?" Griped Mickey, pacing on the other end of the phone. "Just get over here."

He hung up before she could get another word in.

"Everything alright?" Asked Megan as she placed her clothes in her drawers.

Daniela sighed and shook her head. "I have no idea." Fussing, she grabbed her small messenger bag and pulled it over her head. "I gotta go," she said, already halfway out the door.

/

Daniela made it to his house in record time. After racing up the steps, she wasted no time knocking and instead walked right in only to be greeted by the sound of Mickey arguing with his furious wife.

She came to a stop right next to them and watched as Mickey tried, and failed, at getting Svetlana to calm down.

"Hey!" Yelled Daniela, effectively managing to grab both of their attentions.

Mickey's shoulders slumped in relief as he headed towards her.

"What did you say to him?" She asked, her brow furrowed seriously.

"Exactly what we fucking agreed on saying! That he was out of control and needed to go to the hospital."

"And then what?"

"And then he said he was going for a shower and took off," finished Mickey, his posture deflating.

"With baby!" Added Svetlana angrily.

"Yes, yes, with the fucking baby," replied Mickey, clearly tired of her. "My God."

Daniela shook her head in an attempt to clear her mind. "Okay, how long ago was this?"

"Last night."

Her eyes bulged."And you didn't call until now?" She criticised. It was getting on to be almost three in the afternoon.

Mickey shrugged defensively. "I thought he might change his mind, you know? Realize that he's gone batshit crazy and come back."

"It doesn't work that way, Mickey." Sighing, Daniela turned and moved to the sofa. She pinched the bridge of her nose as she sat there. "It's too late to track him down anywhere specific. If he left last night, he could be anywhere."

"Oh, that's great," nodded Mickey sarcastically. From her position, she observed as he paced the room. "I shouldn't have said anything to him."

"He's just scared and acting out. We'll find him," she tried to reassure him but it seemed to be doing little to help.

"Quickly, or I call police," threatened Svetlana causing her husband to arc up again.

"Enough with the fucking police," he warned, stepping right into her personal space. "I told you I'd get the baby back and I will. Until then, you don't say or do anything you'll regret."

Daniela watched the tense staredown being had between the two for what felt like forever. Eventually, Svetlana's glare pulled away as she spat a curse at him in Russian before walking out of the room.

Mickey watched her retreating back and shook his head. He heaved a sigh before dropping down into the sofa opposite Daniela.

"Where's Mandy?" She frowned after a minute of silence. Her eyes glanced around the house.

"Out with her boyfriend."

"Well, did you call her and tell her what happened?"

"Of course I fucking called her," answered Mickey; his face screwing up. "They're coming over now."

Daniela slumped into the sofa with a sigh. Reaching into her pocket, she found her phone and called Ian. Her teeth found the inside of her cheek as the line dialed before going through to voicemail.

Shortly after, Fiona and Lip burst through the door looking just as panicked.

"What the hell?" Demanded Fiona as they come to stand in the lounge.

Mickey and Daniela shared a look before proceeding to get the siblings up to date. They watched as the pairs' expressions shifted at the news that this wasn't the first time Ian had been acting out.

"Why didn't one of you say something earlier?" Questioned Fiona, glancing between the two.

Daniela pursed her lips, her eyes falling to her feet in shame while Mickey similarly said nothing, knowing that it would just cause more bickering.

"Well, we're not getting anywhere here," said Lip with resignation. His eyes fell on Daniela. "I mean, he could be in a whole other city by now."

"So what we're just supposed to sit here with our ass in our hands waiting for him to answer the fucking phone?" Fumed Mickey.

"Pretty much, yeah," answered Fiona with a laugh bereft of any humor. The others shared a look as the woman sighed and ran a hand through her hair.

/

A few hours, and many unanswered phone calls later, Daniela and Lip found themselves sitting in a pizza shop. She had proposed the idea on the way back to the house seeing as there was a chance there would be no food at home for the kids and he had decided to tag along to help.

"How're you settling back into college?" Asked Daniela conversationally; her head resting against the wall.

"Good, yeah," nodded Lip from the seat beside her. "I'm an RA this year so, you know, having my own room plus stipend is a pretty sweet deal."

Her mouth quirked upwards. "I'll bet. Amanda should be heading back soon then, huh?"

"Uh, yeah." Lip ran a thumb over his nose. "Yeah, I think she gets in tomorrow."

"You two have any plans when she does?"

Lip shook his head. "No, not really," he answered somewhat evasively causing Daniela to frown. "Hey, I'm gonna dip across the street to the store to get some smokes. You want anything?"

"Uh, no thanks," she replied, offering him a small smile.

Nodding, Lip got up and walked out leaving her by herself. She blew out a breath and slumped into her chair in exhaustion. To pass the time, her eyes skimmed over the signs above the counter as her foot began tapping impatiently.

As a last resort, she whipped out her phone to try and see if she could get through to Ian. Her eyes fell shut in disappointment when it went through to voicemail yet again.

Heaving a sigh, she left him a message.

"Hey, Ian. We're not mad at you, we're just worried - especially Mickey," she laughed slightly. "Please just come home or at least answer our calls so that we can come and get you wherever the hell you are."

Sliding her phone back into her jacket, she closed her eyes and rested her head back against the wall.

"This seat taken?"

Her eyes snapped open at the foreign voice to see a guy smiling down at her. She frowned, not sure what he had said.

"Sorry?"

"Do you mind?" He asked, gesturing to the empty seat beside her.

"Oh." Daniela shook her head and listened to him sit down. Her head returned to the wall where she allowed her mind to just go blank. She released a long and tired sigh that caught the attention of her neighbour.

"Long day?" He asked causing her to meet his eye once again.

Her brow raised. "You have no idea."

The man huffed a laugh and rubbed his hands together. "Yeah, I've been there." Offering her an easy grin, he jutted his chin towards the list of pizzas. "What's your poison?"

"Pepperoni is usually my go-to," answered Daniela.

He nodded slowly. "Ah, a fan of the classics."

"You can't really go wrong there."

"Agreed," he laughed, making a small smile appear on Daniela's face. "I'm more of a BBQ chicken man myself but I can respect the pepperoni." Not letting up on his grin, he held out a hand. "I'm Mike."

"Daniela," she replied, shaking it.

"So that guy that was in here before," began Mike after a brief silence. Daniela turned to quirk an eyebrow at him. "He wasn't your boyfriend or anything was he?"

Her brow furrowed in surprise. "Uh, no."

"Right," nodded Mike. "It's just that it would've made things a little awkward if I were to ask for your number."

Despite herself, Daniela let out a laugh. "And here I was thinking you just wanted to have a nice conversation about pizza."

Her neighbor chuckled and shook his head. "Sorry, was that too strong?"

She tilted her head as an indication, the smile never leaving her face. "Do you usually hit on girls in pizza shops?"

"No, this is a first actually."

"Oh," Daniela nodded, feigning intrigue. "And what exactly was your backup plan if I had have said yes?"

Mike's brow raised in thought before he released a breath.

"I have no idea," he revealed honestly causing them both to laugh.

At the sound of her number being called, Daniela's attention was pulled away to the register. She stood to get her order, not noticing Mike come up behind her to help out with the pizzas while she carried the drinks.

"Thank you," she said genuinely.

"It's no problem," shrugged Mike as he followed her outside.

Across the street, Lip emerged from the store with his packet of cigarettes in hand. Looking over to the pizza shop, he frowned at seeing Daniela smiling while she talked to some guy. He watched in confusion as the guy wrote something on the pizza box.

His jaw clenched before quickly jogging across the street to join them. When he did, Daniela was laughing at something the guy was telling her.

"Hey," said Lip, announcing his presence.

"Hey!" Daniela turned her smile to him. "What took you so long?"

"Yeah, sorry about that. There was a long line." His eyes shifted to rest on the stranger and narrowed slightly as if to size him up. "I'll take those." He nodded to the pizzas.

"Right," nodded Mike, handing them over.

Once he had them comfortably in hand, Lip stepped back so close that his shoulder was almost overlapping Daniela's. Behind him, she eyed him oddly for a second.

"We better get going before the pizza gets cold."

Lip's chin raised slightly, waiting to see what the other guy would do next. Mike glanced between the two before settling his attention on Daniela who was just frowning at Lip's sudden shift in behaviour.

"Right. Well, you've got my number," he gestured to the napkin in her hand. "Don't be afraid to use it."

Lip watched the interaction and rolled his eyes as Daniela gave him a bashful smile.

"Okay. It was nice meeting you."

"You too, Daniela."

Turning, she walked away leaving Lip to hang back for a second. His eyes connected with Mike's and a silent conversation was shared before he rushed to catch up with Daniela who was oblivious to whatever had just happened.

/

"Ian took Yevgeny last night?" Asked Debbie as the others got the kids up to date on what had happened. They had just finished their dinner and were now crowded around the counter.

Fiona nodded with a sigh. "Yeah, late."

"Did you try calling his phone?"

"Obviously," answered Daniela, her elbows resting on the kitchen counter. "He hasn't been picking up."

"Maybe he's in Colorado," said Carl causing them all to frown.

"Colorado?"

"They have free weed there."

"Not free you idiot." Debbie rolled her eyes. "Legalized."

"Shouldn't somebody call the police?" Asked Sammi causing them all to straighten.

"No!" They shouted just before they heard a knock at the door.

As Fiona went to check it, the others dispersed. Daniela began packing up the leftover pieces of pizza and throwing away the extra boxes. Lip hung back, wanting to get some answers on the mystery guy from earlier on.

"Hey, who was that guy at the pizza place?" He asked as she stacked and wrapped the leftovers in cellophane.

"Some guy named Mike," shrugged Daniela.

"Did you know him?"

She shook her head, frowning slightly. "No, he just came and introduced himself."

"Right." Lip leaned his elbows on the counter and jutted his chin. "What did he want?"

Daniela glanced over her shoulder to eye him weirdly. "What's with the never-ending questions?"

"Just curious. That's all."

She gave him a look that said she believed otherwise and shut the fridge. Crossing the kitchen, she leaned across the counter from him.

"We talked about pizza and then he tried to hit on me and gave me his number," she explained, not seeing what the big deal was. Lip's eyes narrowed slightly.

"Are you gonna call him?"

Daniela shrugged, not having thought about it. "I haven't decided yet."

Lip didn't seem entirely happy with her answer, causing her to frown. She wasn't given much time to think about it, however, due to the sound of raised voices in the lounge. The pair shared a look before heading out only to stop dead in their tracks at what they found.

Her brow raised in shock at the sight of Jimmy standing there.

"Holy shit."

"What the fuck is he doing here?" Asked Lip, already angry.

Jimmy, noticing the two of them, craned his neck around Fiona and waved. Instead of returning his warm greeting, Daniela just crossed her arms over her chest and stared him down.

Awkwardly, Jimmy's hand dropped as he pursed his lips.

"Okie-dokie."

"I thought you were married." accused Lip, shocking the rest of them.

"I am," argued Fiona causing everyone's eyes to widen.

"You got married?" Chorused the rest of the room.

"To who?" Frowned Daniela, curiously.

"To Gus," answered Lip managing to confuse her even more.

"Is that Gus?" Asked Sammi.

"No, that's Jimmy," said Debbie, her glare never leaving the man.

"Who's Jimmy?"

"Her old boyfriend."

"Who disappeared off the face of the earth for two years," added Daniela, clearly unimpressed. Jimmy tilted his head, upset that she was also ganging up on him.

Sammi waved her hands around to try and make sense of things. "Hold on, when did you get married?"

Fiona sighed, not wanting this to be how she told her family. "A few days ago."

"And you've been keeping it a secret? Why?"

"That is a brilliant question," said Jimmy with a shit-eating grin. "Why have you been keeping it a secret?"

Fiona, meanwhile, was staring at him like she was seriously contemplating knocking him out. "Out. Now." Her finger pointed to the door. Jimmy wasted no time doing as she said and headed outside with Fiona trailing behind.

As soon as the door was closed, the rest of them rushed to the window.

Daniela stood at the corner of the window and watched as Fiona kept shoving Jimmy towards the gate. At the feeling of hands falling onto her hips, she jumped and glanced behind her to see Lip trying to crane his neck around for a better view. She wasn't sure if he noticed what he was doing or simply didn't want to.

Telling herself to ignore it, she refocused on what was going on outside. Although they couldn't hear anything, they could tell from the pair's body language that things were calming down.

Fiona spun around to avoid looking at Jimmy who took this opportunity to slide up behind her.

"Don't do it," muttered Lip. Around him, the others shared his same thoughts.

They waited with baited breath as Jimmy's arms snaked themselves around Fiona's waist, pulling her deeper into him. His lips could be seen moving until, finally, Fiona turned around to kiss him.

They all groaned in disappointment before quickly dispersing from the window. Heading upstairs, Daniela knocked on the door frame of Debbie's room. The girl's eyes raised to meet hers.

"You got your outfit all picked out?" She asked, amused. It had become a tradition between them now.

Debbie smiled, her head nodding. "Yeah, Sammi said I should cover up so I don't get assaulted by anyone."

Snorting, the older girl moved to sit beside her. Daniela tucked a strand a hair behind Debbie's ear, silently in awe at how old she was now.

"How're you doing, Debs? I feel like we haven't talked in a while."

"I'm okay," assured Debbie, showing signs of her new maturity.

"Yeah?"

The girl nodded once again.

"You nervous at all?"

"Not really," she shrugged, nonchalant. "It's just another day."

Daniela smiled and bobbed her head. "Okay, well you get some rest."

Leaning forward, she pressed a kiss to Debbie's forehead before heading down the hallway. She came to a stop outside Lip's room and peered in to see him hanging out with Liam. Smiling, she leaned against the doorframe just watching him.

"Is Fiona in there with Jimmy?" She asked, jutting her head in the direction of her room and gaining his attention.

Lip nodded, not pleased as Daniela's phone vibrated in her hand. Opening the message from Jakob, she huffed in annoyance.

"Everything alright?" Frowned Lip, picking up on it.

"I left my house key in my dorm and Jake's at his girlfriend's," she replied tiredly.

"Right. Well, you can always stay here." Daniela quirked a brow at his offer. "I can sleep with Liam and you can have my bed."

Hesitant, she fidgeted with her phone. "You sure? I was just gonna go back to my dorm."

"Yeah," nodded Lip getting off the bed and picking up Liam. "It's already late and we've all had a long day."

Daniela thought about it for a little before finally nodding. "Yeah, okay. Thanks."

"No worries." Rising from the bed, Lip scooped up Liam into his arms. "Let's go brush your teeth bud."

Daniela moved so that they could get past before walking towards the bed. She sat on the edge and began to take off her shoes. She then began preparing the bed to make it more comfortable. She pulled back the covers half-way and fluffed up the pillows before standing back and just looking at it.

Daniela chewed on her lip as she contemplated a random thought. At that moment, Lip came back in still holding Liam. She turned when she heard him.

"Sorry, I just needed to grab his toy," said Lip, gesturing to the soft animal.

"Oh." Getting it, Daniela handed it over to him.

"Thanks. Goodnight."

"Hey, Lip?" She called just as he went to leave.

Lip paused and swiveled on foot to look at her.

"Yeah?"

"You don't have to go," she said, hesitantly. "I mean, I feel kind of bad for kicking you out of your own bed."

Not sure if she was being entirely serious, Lip continued to watch her with a slight frown.

"Liam can join us, you know," offered Daniela. "If you don't want it to be weird. If I'm being honest I just don't want to be alone right now."

After a brief silence, Lip nodded and glanced at his brother. "Yeah, okay."

Daniela nodded too, her heart racing, as he brought Liam over to sit down beside her.

"Can you watch him for a sec? I'm just gonna use the bathroom real quick."

Once he was gone, she fixed her smile on Liam.

"You ready for bed?" She asked excitedly causing the little boy to shake his head. "You're not? Oh no. We'll then I'm just gonna have to make you."

Quickly, she scooped him up into her arms making him squeal in surprise. Laughing, Daniela blew raspberries on his cheeks. "Bedtime mister."

"No! No! No!" Said Liam, despite not putting up a fight as she laid him down in the middle of the bed.

Daniela just grinned and climbed over so that she could recline beside him. She shook his toy which quickly began to occupy his mind and relax him. Pinching his cheek softly, she pulled the covers up and over their torsos.

When she noticed Liam beginning to tire, she began running her hands through his hair soothingly and watched his eyes slowly begin to drift shut.

/

An hour or so had passed with Daniela unable to fall asleep despite her mental exhaustion. Instead, she just laid there staring up at the ceiling.

Carefully, so as to not disturb Liam, she peered across the bed at Lip.

"Hey," she called quietly. "You still awake?"

Lip let out a soft groan that was followed up by his foggy reply. "I am now."

Daniela grimaced. "Sorry."

"S'okay." Turning, he perched up on his side to face her. The moonlight falling through the window above her made it easier for him to see the outline of her face as well as her saddened expression. "You thinking about Ian?"

Daniela nodded and mirrored his movements so that she was also on her side. "I just don't want him to do anything that'll end up with him or Yevgeny getting hurt."

"He isn't in control," said Lip. "Right now his brain will be in the pilot's seat choosing for him. It'll make him think or do things that he believes are right when really they're just all kinds of fucked up." His voice trailed to the point where it seemed like he was talking to the air in general than to her. Daniela regarded the resigned expression on his face with sadness as he met her eye again. "We just have to wait it out like a bad storm."

"I hate that," she muttered after a brief silence.

"What?"

"The fact that you know so much about all of this."

At her answer, Lip's mouth pursed in thought before he shrugged. "It's not all bad."

Daniela blew out a breath. "I don't know anything about what's going on with him. I guess that's why I was so quick to help Mickey whenever Ian would start acting out. Of course, I knew we couldn't keep it up for long but…"

"You were trying to protect him," finished Lip in an effort to validate her actions.

Her jaw clenched. "Yeah," she whispered to herself before falling silent.

She bathed in her guilt of not having better hindsight. There had been so many occasions where she could've spoken up and pushed for Ian to get help. Instead, she had chosen to be silent leading to even more of a downward spiral with much higher risks.

"Hey," whispered Lip to gain her attention. Sensing her guilt, he reached across to tuck some hair behind her ear, making sure to leave it there as he stared into her eyes. "He'll turn up eventually. Just try and get some sleep."

Daniela nodded; her own hand coming to cover his. Slowly, she felt his shift so that his fingers were curled around hers. She held on tight as he brought it down to where they laid beside a sleeping Liam.

She settled into her pillow with a sigh and closed her eyes; a calm peace falling over her. Across from her, Lip watched and waited for her breath to steady before going back to sleep as their hands remained intertwined.


That last bit might be a teeny bit inspired by Black Mirror. Also, a lot to disect in this chapter.

Special thanks to xenocanaan, angelicedg, SweetRiceball20, RHatch89, RomanticBlondie, Naruhina1519, 13teen, AsToldByNi, Isabeaux3, Guest, and mchurch1992 for reviewing!

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