Part Seventy-Four: Brother's Milkovich

Ian is acting normal. He's acting like old Ian. I don't know what to do with my time now that I don't have to be cautious of his actions. I am hanging out with my brothers. We're drinking and smoking and committing fucking crimes together again. It's weird.

"Did you hear a pair of lesbos want to buy up the South Side?" Colin asks passing Iggy a joint. I lean against the hood of Colin's friend's car and sip my beer.

"I heard we're getting a fucking renovation or some shit," says Iggy.

"When is this supposed to start?" asks my brother Jamie. He's been recently released from prison.

"Sometime in May, I think. Who the fuck knows, but I don't want no dykes fucking up our territory. Fucking queers think they run the place," says Colin. We look at each other. I flick my ashes in his direction. "You ain't like normal queers, Mick. You don't have a limp wrist or wear fucking pink or talk with a lisp. You don't even act gay. That Gallagher though. I knew he was a fucking fairy from the moment I saw the kid." I could fucking kill him. I feel my blood starting to boil. I need to end this before I fucking snap.

"Watch what you fucking say about Ian."

"Mickey's fucking him," Iggy says.

"Oh shit. That's who you're fucking?" Jamie asks.

"Yeah, I am. If you even fucking think about fag bashing him, you'll need to leave the fucking country," I threaten putting my cigarette out.

"I can't promise that," says Colin, "The little faggot fucking turned my brother into a homo. I can put up with you, because you're fucking family, but not that little queer." Fuck you, Colin. Drop fucking dead. Go rot in a fucking hole in the ground.

"Hey, so what are we going to do about the Lesbos?" Iggy asks to take some of the tension out of the equation.

"Run them the fuck out of town along with the other fucking homos," says Colin looking right at me. I won't run away. I won't give him the fucking satisfaction. I am going to sit there and fucking stare him down. I'm not scared of him. I grew up with him. "Never would have thought my baby brother would be a fucking faggot."

"He just needs some good pussy," says Jamie.

"Like that wife of his. I bet he ain't even hitting that," says Colin.

"Fuck off," I say.

"You only stick it in Gallagher?" Colin asks taking a beer from the cooler. I don't answer. "Don't fucking tell me he puts it in you?"

I slide off the car. The situation seems to be heating up. My brothers are no longer playing around or being neutral about this and I think I should leave. Colin pins me against the car. "You better tell that fucking red head to watch his back."

"I'll kill you," I warn.

"We'll see."

Colin shoves me. I need some time away from my brothers while they're in town. I leave. Colin and Jamie start to laugh. Iggy shoots me an apologetic look and joins them in their jokes. I kick a beer can in their direction before I head to the Gallagher house.

Ian isn't home according to Fiona. He's out running an errand for her with Carl and Liam. I sit at the bar and she hands me a glass of generic orange soda and a sandwich.

"Penny for your thoughts, Mickey," Fiona says.

"My brothers are assholes," I say. I take a drink. This take like shit. Fiona is being nice to me. She's trying for Ian's sake. I hate talking about my brothers, but I am really worried about what they might do to Ian.

"What's going on?"

"They know about me and Ian," I bite into the sandwich. Could use some mustard. Fiona reads my mind and hands me the mustard. "I'm afraid of what they might do."

"What do you mean?"

"What the fuck do you think I mean? Don't worry though."

"Don't worry. Your fucking brothers are on a man hunt for Ian to beat him for being gay. I shouldn't have allowed this to continue. I should have made Ian stay in the closet until he was older and out of this fucking place. This is my fault," Fiona says. She panics.

"Calm your tits. Look, they aren't going to touch Ian with me around. Milkovich's don't hurt their own."

I spoke too soon. Carl comes in without Ian. He puts Liam down and Liam goes right for his toys. Fiona immediately notices the bruise forming under Carl's eye. "We were ambushed. Ian sent me on a head."

"Where the fuck is he?" I ask. My heart is pounding in my head and my legs are moving as fast as they can. As much as I don't want her to Fiona is following me with a bat. She doesn't need the fucking bat.

Ian is doubled over, but he doesn't stop fighting. I jump in and pummel Colin. I hear Fiona shout and hear the sound of a wooden bat hit the back of someone's knee. Jamie lets out a blood curdling scream.

"Get the fuck off me," Colin says fighting back. Fiona hits him in the head with the bat hard enough to knock him out. She helps me up. Jamie is writhing in pain on the ground. I spit on him.

"Don't you ever touch either of them again," Fiona threatens.

"Crazy bitch," Jamie mutters.

"I'm a Mama Bear, bitch," Fiona says taking Ian by the arm and walking away. I stare at both my brothers and shake my head. The betrayal does sting a little, but it's expected. It's the family I come from. They have too much of my father in them. I then look at Iggy who stood by and did nothing. He didn't even help Ian. I'm disappointed.

Ian is being doctored up by Fiona. I stand right beside him and rub his back. He winces in pain. Fiona forces Ian's shirt off. It's an all out drag out war to get him to cooperate, but between the two of us we get Ian's shirt off.

"Oh shit, Ian. You might have a few broken ribs and internal bleeding. This looks bad," Fiona says.

"I'm fine," Ian lies. He winces in pain.

"Get the fuck up," I tell him.

"What?"

"You're going to the hospital."

"No money," Ian says.

"Fuck you, I have money and I can get money. Don't ever fucking worry about it."

"Carl, watch Liam," Fiona says. Fiona and I have to force Ian to go to the hospital. This time we enlist Kev to help. He helps me physically force Ian to go, by picking him up and putting him in Kev's truck. I slide in next to Ian and Fiona is so tiny she fits in there too. Kev drives.

"Milkovich brothers?" Kev asks.

"Don't ask," Ian says.

Ian holds my hand on the drive. I feel like shit. I should have stopped it before it started. He's all busted up and it's my fucking fault. Ian lays his head against mine. I want to make this better for him.

There are a lot of people in the fucking hospital today. Fiona fills out the paperwork for Ian while we wait. When he gets called back I'm not allowed to go in with him. Fiona finishes his paperwork and is taken back to be with Ian.

Kev and I sit side by side. I can't keep still. My legs are bounding and my arms are folded across my chest. "Why did your brothers attack Ian? I thought the Milkovich's had a code about attacking one of their own or someone in the inner circle, or whatever."

"My family doesn't take to kindly to people like Ian," I say.

"You're like Ian," Kev reminds me. "Colin won't touch me. I'm family."

"Terry did, what's stopping your brother?"

"I don't want to talk about this. I'm mad enough as it is. They could have killed Ian."

"And Carl and Liam. Those two might not matter to you, but they do to me."

I can't sit still. I want to bash my brother's fucking face in for doing this to Ian. I want to give Fiona a fucking hand, because she is tougher than she looks. Fiona Gallagher in Mama Bear is scarier than Colin could ever be.

Ian comes back out after a couple of hours all patched up. He only had two broken ribs, and luckily nothing else was broken. Fiona doesn't look happy. The four of us leave. Fiona makes hamburgers for lunch. Ian is trying to hold Liam on his lap, but it isn't working out. Liam crawls into my lap instead.

"You alright?" I ask rubbing the back of his head. He does this sort of thing to me all the time, so I am returning the gesture. Ian's hair is really fucking soft. Ian presses his head against mine and I melt a little inside. Fuck, I am gay.

"Yeah," Ian says, "Nothing I can't handle."

"Fuck, Ian. I don't want you to have to handle anything. I don't want you to live in fear that you're going to be killed. I'm sorry," I tell him. A tear escapes my eyes before I can stop it. I kiss Ian on the side of his head. "I'm so sorry."

"Please don't break up with me," Ian says.

"I want you to be safe," I tell him.

"We're safer together," Ian argues. I kiss him again and again.

"Not with my family."

"Please don't break up with me, Mickey. I'm fine. I'm safe now."

"You're safe for now. I'm going to deal with my brothers."

I love you. This is hurting me. I force myself to leave the Gallagher house. Ian chases after me. My heart fucking breaks. I don't look back at him. If I do, I won't be able to leave. Ian just lingers.

"This isn't what I want," Ian hollers.

I walk away before he pulls me back in. I want to turn around and run into his arms. I want to have him. I want to be his everything. He's my fucking life. I do turn around. I pivot on my heel and turn around. Ian's right there waiting with open arms and a kiss. I accept them both.

"Fuck."

"We'll be fine, Mick," Ian says wincing under the embrace. I let him go.

"No. This isn't good enough. Fuck that. Stay here. I'm kicking my brothers' asses," I tell him.

"But you're coming back," Ian says.

"Yeah, I'm coming back."

My brothers are still sitting under the fucking L. Have they been here all fucking day? They greet me like nothing happened. Jamie is limping. I guess Fiona didn't bust his knee caps after all. Maybe I should fucking tell her. She can come back here to finish him off. Colin is smiling. But then I spot Mandy among them. She has a black eye herself and her left arm in a sling. I'm going to fucking kill Kenyatta.

"How's Ian?" Mandy asks.

"He's fine no thanks to these assholes."

"Be queer get hit," Colin says. Mandy smacks him hard. "It was a joke, Mands, fuck."

"Ian is my best friend. Stay the fuck away from him."

"Sorry, Mick," says Colin, "Look, man, no hard feelings. I know Dad doesn't like it. He wants to kill Gallagher, and I'm pretty sure he'll try when he gets out. I just needed to get the fag bashing out of my system."

"Mickey put Kenyatta in a body cast for hitting Ian," Mandy says.

"That was you," Jamie and Colin say at the same time.

"The moral of the story, assholes, is that you don't fucking touch Ian," Mandy says.

"Why didn't you kill him?" Jamie asks.

"What?"

"Why didn't you kill Kenyatta?"

"Ian pulled me off him or I probably would have."

"Holy shit, Mick. I'm sorry. Gallagher is off limits. I'm never going to be okay with my little brother being a homo, but I can respect boundaries. As I said, at least you're not a faggot with a limp wrist."

"Did you get these from Kenyatta?" I ask Mandy in front of Colin and Jamie.

"I deserved it," Mandy says.

I look at my brothers. I know what they're thinking. I walk away while they head back to the house. Mandy is chasing after them. Hopefully, they'll kill him. I go back to Ian.

He's sitting on the porch like a puppy waiting for me. I rub his head.

"You came back," Ian says.

"I said I would, come on," I go inside and Ian follows me. I press him against the wall in the kitchen and kiss the fuck out of him. I don't care if people are watching. I rub my leg against Ian's during the kiss. He puts his hands on my head and deepens the kiss.

"Damn," says Veronica.

"I know. When was the last time we were kissed like that?" Fiona asks.

But we don't stop. I shove my tongue farther in Ian's mouth and claim him in the name of Milkovich. Mine. Ian seems surprised but he kisses back just as fiercely. We fight for domination and I win.

"They haven't to come up for oxygen at some point," says Debbie.

"No they don't," says Fiona and V at the same time. They burst out laughing. Ian stops kissing me and wipes his mouth. He's wearing the sappiest fucking smile. I am sure mine matches his.

"Ugh, how come no one loves me like that," Debbie asks, "It's not fair."

"You two are so fucking cute," says Veronica. "Damn, Mickey. You were about to swallow his head."

"You're a great kisser," Ian whispers.

"I learned from you, man," I say touching his back.