★

"I'M SO GLAD YOUR bitch of a mother let you keep Liam," Amara said, her eyes trained on the ground as she walked down the stairs, making sure she didn't slip on the ice. "Because she was about to catch my hands."

Ian chuckled as they stepped under the bus stop, shivering due to the cold. Amara subconsciously stuck her gloved hands into her coat pockets.

"I can't believe Ian isn't Frank's kid," Lip muttered, breathing into his hands, before rubbing them together to keep himself warm. "You're so lucky, man."

"So that's why you're forcing me to come visit your grandma with you?"

"Oh, what? You don't like spending all this time with us?"

Amara rolled her eyes. "No. I hate both of you with a burning passion and I want you to get hit by a car."

Ian patted her shoulder. "You're so kind."

"Thanks," she replied sarcastically. "I try."

"Aren't you a little bit curious to find out who he is?" Lip asked, lighting up a cigarette, and Amara waved the smoke out of her face with a scowl. The blonde grinned at her in response, clearly enjoying how much smoking annoyed her.

"No," Ian answered immediately.

"Come on," he pressed, gesturing to the people around them. "He could be any one of these guys."

"Ooh," Amara pointed to a homeless man with bright lipstick on, who was laying against a streetlight pole. "Like him."

"Look," Ian sighed. "He's gonna be a douche bag no matter who he is."

"True, men are assholes," Amara agreed.

"But he can't be any worse than Frank," the other boy persisted.

"He's a Gallagher."

"Maybe he'll take you to a game, or kick in some scratch for college. Give you a kidney, hell, give you a birthday card once a year. That's a win, right?"

"Do we know any cool dads? Ours is an asshole, Amara's is an abusive dick who did drugs and abandoned his family. Karen's dad called her a whore—"

"—Which isn't a total lie but I don't slut shame," she cut in. "Anyways, continue."

"Mickey and Mandy's dad has been in prison more times than I can count. Eighty percent sure he's an alcoholic, and an abuser too. Who am I missing?"

"Scotty Houston's father is cool," Lip answered as the bus pulled up. "...But he's on that sex offenders list for jacking off in Sherman Park."

★

"There she is," Lip announced, and Amara glanced up to see his grandmother being escorted out by guards. It had totally slipped her mind that she was in prison, the entire building gave Amara the heebie-jeebies. The boys rushed to go sit in front of the separator, and Amara stood awkwardly behind them, staring at their backs because she didn't know where else to look.

"Who the hell are you?" Their grandmother demanded.

"Grams, it's us. Lip and Ian. Frank's sons."

"Your grandsons," Ian added.

"Oh my Goodness," she smiled, quickly recognizing them. "Would you look at you two. And who's the pretty girl in the back?"

"Amara," she introduced. "They kidnapped me and forced me to come."

Ian smacked her leg. "She's joking. She has a weird sense of humor."

"How's it going in there?" Lip wondered, gesturing to the swarm of inmates behind her.

"Well," the older woman shook her head. "The foods not so great, but the pussy's pretty good. Never thought I'd be the type. But this dump ain't so bad." The trio shared a wide eyed glance, as she continued. "I can get blow anytime I like."

"Sounds alright," the blonde said with a nod.

"Yeah," Peggy agreed. "The only thing that sucks is they got me cleaning toilets."

"Gross," Amara told her. "Worse job to have."

Peggy nodded her head. "I like this one, how long you two plan keeping her around?"

"Oh, they couldn't get rid of me if they tried."

"Yeah," Ian muttered. "And believe me, we've tried."

"They bully me though, so sometimes I have to threaten to cut their balls off and they stop."

The woman laughed. "So what do you want?"

"Well, we're trying to find Dad's brothers," Lip explained. "There's uh, three, right?"

"Who wants to know?"

"Just us."

"One might be my dad," Ian informed her.

"How so?"

"Uh, Monica boned a brother," the other boy clarified.

"What?"

"Monica, she fucked a brother," Lip repeated, leaning in closer to the glass.

Peggy tsked. "I never liked that woman. So, if I give you the names, what're you gonna do for me?"

"What do you want?"

"Cigarettes. Carton a week."

"Done," Amara said before either of them could answer. "I've got some left over cash, that should be enough for a while."

"No, no," Ian protested, shaking his head. "That money is for you. And for emergencies."

"This is an emergency. I'm gonna die of curiosity if we don't figure out who the hell your dad is."

"Fine," Ian huffed. "You've got it, Grams."

"Clayton, Jerry, and my baby, Wyatt." She listed off. "They're in the book. But don't bother with Wyatt, he lost his testicles in the Navy."

"Alright, lets go," one of the guards ordered.

"And you tell Jerry," Peggy snapped, fighting against the guard. "That if he doesn't pay me back my five grand he stole, I'm gonna send my ex husband to gouge his eye out with a grapefruit spoon!"

"Jeez, your grandma is scary," Amara commented. "I like her. She's spunky."

★

"Mom!" Amara called, glancing around the empty living room. "Water and sewage is due!" When there was no answer, she frowned, and jogged up the stairs, passing her sister's room. She glanced in, smiling softly once she saw that Silvia was asleep.

Amara continued down the hall, stopping once she reached the door. Hesitantly, she knocked, and pushed it open. The room was dark, and she flicked on the light switch to see better. A lump under the covers moved, groaning at the sudden brightness, and she immediately knew that it was Margot.

She walked closer to the bed, going to wake her mother up, before she froze. Disappointment flooded through her. Surely, she knew her mother's sobriety streak wouldn't last long, but seeing the half-drunken bottle of vodka lying on the nightstand made her want to punch a wall.

"Seriously?"

★