Dexter slept like a baby.
Some people, however, couldn't sleep at all.
In prison, a terrified Fiona lay in the darkness, her eyes wide and bloodshot, staring at nothing, praying this was just a nightmare.
In Juvie, Lip was also wide awake. His mind was racing—thinking about Karen, the baby in her belly, and how the hell to break out of this dump.
Back at the Gallagher house, Debbie was awake too, racking her brain over why Monica hadn't come back and where she could have gone.
And so.
Time slowly ticked by. The sun rose. Another day began.
---
Steve woke up and didn't waste any time. Taking the cash he owed Kevin, he headed out and drove straight to the Gallagher house.
When he arrived, Debbie and Carl were eating breakfast in the kitchen.
Seeing Steve...
A helpless Debbie immediately begged him to help find Monica.
Steve had no choice. He agreed.
Before long, Steve drove Debbie and Carl over to Sheila's house. It didn't take long to find out what had happened the night before. Naturally, they rushed to the police station to find Tony.
Monica wasn't at the station.
At Debbie's insistence, Steve had to keep searching. They drove around, shouting Monica's name out the window like they were calling for a lost dog.
Time flew. It was 11:00 AM.
"Debbie, I have to go to the prison to see Fiona. Monica is an adult; she'll turn up eventually," Steve said, checking the time. He didn't want to delay any longer.
"..." Debbie struggled with it, but decided to give up the search for now. "I'm coming with you!"
Hearing about the prison, Carl got curious. "I'm coming too."
Steve thought about it. Fiona was definitely worried sick about the kids. Seeing them would be good for her. "Tell you what. Let's grab Liam too. Let Fiona see him."
Debbie and Carl agreed.
About half an hour later.
With Liam strapped in and the money returned to Kevin, Steve drove the three Gallagher kids straight toward the prison.
The prison was far.
It was past 2:00 PM when the four of them arrived.
In the visitation area, they watched as a guard escorted Fiona in.
Fiona looked like a wreck. She was completely haggard, stripped of her usual vitality. She looked withered, like the life had been sucked out of her.
The moment she saw her, Debbie's nose stung, and her eyes welled up with tears.
Fiona saw them too. Her reaction was instant—bean-sized tears began to roll down her face uncontrollably.
By the time she sat down in front of them, Fiona was sobbing.
"Fiona, are you okay..." Debbie looked at her sister with a breaking heart, her voice trembling.
Fiona didn't want the kids to see her like this. She gritted her teeth and nodded, wiping her tears. Her lips quivered for a few seconds before she managed to squeeze out a voice. "I... I'm okay. Don't worry. How... how are you guys?"
The two Gallagher girls, big and small, chatted through their tears.
Debbie told her that Kevin had found a nanny and that Monica had disappeared.
Hearing about the nanny gave Fiona a small sense of relief. "Monica... she probably ran off again. Debbie, you guys just look out for yourselves..."
They talked for a while longer. After saying a few words to Carl and Liam, Fiona finally turned to Steve.
Fiona's feelings toward Steve were complicated.
On one hand, when everything went down over the last two days—when it really mattered—Steve had vanished. She couldn't find him anywhere.
On the other hand, he was here now. He was paying for the nanny. He was actually helping.
Because of these mixed emotions, Fiona didn't know what to say. It took a long time before she spoke.
Even then, the distance in her tone was obvious.
Their conversation only lasted a few minutes before it fizzled out.
Just then, visitation hours ended.
At the guard's order, Fiona stood up, crying, and kept apologizing to Debbie, Carl, and Liam. "I'm sorry. I'm so sorry..."
---
After seeing Fiona, Debbie wanted to see Lip and Ian. Steve had no choice but to drive them over to the Juvenile Detention Center.
In the visitation room, behind the glass.
Ian just looked uncomfortable and anxious.
Lip was a different story. His face was a mask of pure irritation.
Driven by that irritation, he impatiently listened to the update on the family before immediately telling Debbie about Karen's pregnancy.
Hearing the news, Debbie was dumbstruck.
Steve was speechless. He couldn't help but think, 'What the hell is wrong with these Gallaghers?'
Carl, however, grinned and shot Lip a thumbs-up. "Cool!"
"Debbie, I can't contact Karen from in here. When you get back, find her for me. Tell her to come back. I need to have a serious talk with her," Lip said urgently.
Debbie snapped out of her shock and nodded. "Okay."
Then, she couldn't hold it back. "Lip, what the hell are you doing? You and Karen are just kids! How could you get her pregnant?!"
Lip was arrogant. He thought highly of himself and believed he could handle anything. He couldn't stand being lectured. "Debbie, you're young. You don't understand, so don't ask. just get Karen to come here."
Debbie rolled her eyes. She hated that tone. She fired back, "Oh, only you understand, right? You know so much. So tell me, have you done a single right thing lately?"
"First you forced Fiona to quit that high-paying job. Then the burglary. Now you got Karen pregnant!"
"You have serious issues, you know that?"
Arrogant people don't believe they have problems.
Lip was pissed. "Everything I do is for this family! Debbie, what the hell do you mean by that?"
"For the family? Getting Karen knocked up was for the family?" Debbie couldn't stand Lip's attitude and raised her voice.
Ian hated the fighting and tried to intervene.
A few minutes later.
The visit ended, predictably, on bad terms.
Debbie stormed out of the detention center, fuming.
Carl didn't seem to care. He walked out excitedly looking around, thinking the place looked fun.
In the parking lot outside Juvie.
They got in the car.
Carl, who genuinely wanted to stay in Juvie a bit longer, sighed in disappointment. Then, he looked at Debbie and spoke.
"The Gallagher family is a giant sinkhole. You gotta look out for yourself."
Hearing this, Debbie froze. She looked at Carl in shock, unable to believe he would say something like that.
Steve had almost the exact same reaction.
Seeing their faces, Carl grinned smugly. "You all think I'm an idiot, but I'm actually smarter than all of you!"
Debbie: "..."
Steve: "..."
---
Evening.
Dexter had spent the day preparing for his business trip. He took a break from the busywork to drive his car over to Patrick's street.
He wanted to see what Patrick's house looked like now.
Mmh.
Nice.
Very nice.