It was a brand new day.
The alarm clock went off just as the sky was getting light. Fiona woke up, rubbed her eyes, and after a few seconds of sluggishness, she wasted no time. She quickly got out of bed and returned to the Gallagher house. Just like every morning for the past few years, she started waking up Debbie and the others.
Fiona didn't wake up Lip; she really didn't want to talk to him anymore, so she left that to Ian.
Once everyone was up, Fiona rushed to the kitchen to deal with breakfast. After she was done, made sure Ian and the others were ready, and quickly checked Carl's body and backpack for any hidden knives or similar items, Fiona saw the four of them out the door.
Exhausted, she then thoroughly cleaned the kitchen and dining room. Finally, Fiona took Liam and headed out to Veronica's house.
Veronica and Kevin were already up, eating breakfast leisurely—no morning workout today. Seeing Fiona and Liam, Veronica immediately invited Fiona to eat with them. Fiona had already eaten, but after settling Liam on the sofa, she sat down at the table anyway.
Veronica knew Fiona wanted to talk, so she didn't delay. "So, how are you doing? Did a night's sleep help you calm down?"
Fiona nodded. "Much better. Thanks, guys."
Veronica laughed heartily. "We didn't even do anything to help, so don't thank us... So, what's the plan? Do you have any ideas about what you're going to do next?"
Fiona was torn and shook her head. "To be honest, I have no clue."
"Do you want my advice?" Veronica asked. "I have to warn you first—you probably won't be happy to hear it."
Fiona had come looking for advice, so she wanted to hear it. "It's fine. Lay it on me."
"I'm gonna be straight with you, then," Veronica said. "Honestly, your problem isn't that hard to solve. You just need to draw a clear line between yourself and Lip and the other four."
"It's great that you care about them and want to take care of them, but you do way too much. Forget that you're not their mom; even if you were, it's too much."
"What other mother does as much as you do for her kids?"
"Just do what you have to do, and that's it. Use the rest of your time to take care of yourself, and start thinking about your own life."
Veronica said all this in one go.
Kevin nodded in agreement. "Fiona, it really isn't that complicated. You get that job at Dexter's restaurant, and you'll get your first paycheck in a week, tops."
"Once you have money, a lot of your family's problems just won't be problems anymore."
Fiona remained silent. She understood everything Veronica and Kevin were saying.
But... the thought of drawing a line between herself and Ian and the others—it just hurt her relentlessly. That's what a co-dependent personality is like.
In a way, this personality trait was the main reason Fiona's life was so miserable. Fiona needed to take care of the five kids, and even Frank, to feel like she had value...
If she didn't take care of the five kids, even if she just did a little less, Fiona would feel empty and lost.
It was a tragic situation. Veronica and Kevin didn't see this, or they would have known that advising Fiona was pointless. If Fiona wanted her own life, she had to actively seek change herself; otherwise, no one could help.
###
Fiona stayed silent for a long time. Kevin and Veronica didn't say anything else, just quietly ate their breakfast and waited for Fiona to speak.
After a few more minutes, Fiona offered a bitter smile, skipping over Veronica's advice. "I want that job. How should I go about getting it?"
Veronica didn't mind Fiona ignoring her advice. "Go ask Dexter. Ask him what you need to do for him to give you the job, and then promise him you can do it."
Fiona gave another painful smile. "That's it?"
"That's it," Veronica nodded. "The decision is ultimately his. Our talking about it here is totally pointless."
Fiona knew that was true, too. The problem was...
"He probably doesn't want to deal with Lip again. He'll probably ask me to keep Lip away from him," Fiona said, sounding defeated.
"Can you blame him?" Kevin interjected, his voice a little annoyed.
Fiona had no answer.
###
Fiona didn't stick around much longer. After entrusting Liam to Veronica's care, she left Kevin's house and took a deep breath outside.
She really wanted that job at Restaurant. She wasn't an idiot who didn't know a good thing when she saw it. She knew exactly how rare and valuable the money and other benefits that job would bring her were.
She didn't want to lose it.
So, after taking one more deep breath, Fiona pulled out her phone and called Dexter.
The call was answered quickly.
"It's me, Fiona. I wanted to talk about the job. Is that okay?" Fiona started, her tone sounding very submissive.
---
Sensing the humility in her voice, Dexter sighed silently. He didn't have much ill will toward Fiona, and he wasn't happy about putting her through this much trouble.
"Yes, I'm at the restaurant. I'll wait for you here," Dexter replied.
"Thank you," Fiona said immediately, feeling a little rush of excitement. She knew his saying that meant the job was still a possibility.
Dexter didn't say anything else and hung up.
Fiona put away her phone and, without hesitation, resolutely walked toward Restaurant.
Even though it was still early, there were already plenty of attractive women packed together outside the restaurant, trying to stuff their resumes inside. And because Dexter was actually sitting inside the restaurant, some of the more forward women were even shouting things at him.
They were desperate. They really wanted this job.
It just went to show that America wasn't so different from other countries—only the wealthy truly enjoyed the benefits of this country; the poor had no right to them. Dexter sighed a little, feeling a touch of emotion.
He just felt kind of sorry for the women shouting outside.
So, he stood up, moved a few steps, picked up the resumes that had just been pushed inside, and announced, "Ladies, please head home for now. I'll call the people who qualify starting tomorrow."
Hearing this, some of the shouting women finally started to leave.
As the crowd thinned, Fiona, who had just arrived behind them, came into Dexter's view. Seeing her, Dexter gave a slight smile and waved her over.
Soon, the two were sitting face-to-face inside the restaurant.
Fiona immediately apologized for the night before. "I'm so sorry. I truly never expected Lip to do something like that..."
Dexter didn't interrupt and listened quietly. He didn't speak, just waited for Fiona to continue.
Fiona understood what he meant, so she swallowed her nerves and went on. "I can understand if, after something like that happened, you wouldn't want me to work here anymore."
"But I really, really want this job."
"Look, is there anything I can do to fix this?"
At that, Dexter finally spoke. "Will something like last night, or something similar, happen again?"
"Is Lip going to suddenly pop out of some alley tomorrow, or the day after, and try to jump me? Maybe even hire some thugs to do it?"
"I figure he's capable of that."
Fiona actually believed Lip was capable of it, and she gave a bitter smile that looked worse than crying. "I want to promise you that Lip won't do anything to you again, but I really can't promise that... I can't control him..."
Dexter smiled faintly. "You are honest."
"Let me ask you in a different way."
"If he does something like that again, and I teach him a lesson, what will you do?"
Fiona was stunned. She had never considered that angle. "???"
Dexter wasn't surprised and clarified. "Fiona, you might have me all wrong. You might think I'm a pretty easy-going guy who doesn't have a violent side."
"But I'm not."
"Last night, I chose to resolve the situation the way I did out of respect for Kevin, Veronica, and you."
"I could have easily handled that situation in a completely different way last night."
"Do you understand what I'm getting at?"
Fiona understood, and she was instantly shocked, her face full of surprise.
"So, I'll repeat my question: If something similar happens again, and Lip gets the lesson he deserves, what will you do?" Dexter asked again.
Fiona started to panic. Lip getting hurt? No way...
In her panic, Fiona became distressed and anxious. "Dexter, I promise nothing like that will ever happen again. I'll go back and talk to Lip seriously."
Dexter immediately shook his head. "You didn't answer my question."
Fiona genuinely didn't know how to respond. "..."
Dexter waited for a short moment. "If that's the case, let's stop here for today. When you've made up your mind, we can talk again."
Fiona: "..."