Chapter 135 – Lip's Neck Turned Red with Rage
At the mention of it, Fiona's eyes immediately reddened.
But she didn't stay to argue with Frank any longer.
She picked up Liam and walked out.
William followed without hesitation—he had zero interest in staying behind with Frank.
"Wait! You can't do this!" Frank shouted after them.
He tried to rush forward—
—but the Black guy grabbed him by the collar with one hand and yanked him back.
"Frank," he said coldly,
"looks like you and I need to have a proper talk."
"Wait—wait! I've got money!" Frank panicked.
"I still have eight hundred bucks on me! Just give me time! Give me time—I will come up with the rest!"
Frank really didn't want to experience another lineup of a dozen men.
But this guy?
This guy would actually kill him.
So what if he had to grit his teeth, close his eyes, and pop a few painkillers?
At least he'd live.
With that thought, Frank hurriedly pulled the cash from his pockets and handed over more than eight hundred dollars.
He'd already burned a good chunk on booze at the Alibi and some rock candy off the street earlier.
The sudden sight of that much money caught the Black guy off guard.
This wasn't quite how he'd imagined things going.
He carefully counted the bills, one by one.
When he finished, he looked up at Frank, visibly unimpressed—and more than a little speechless.
---
Back at 2119, Fiona gently placed Liam into his stroller and kissed his forehead.
William stood by the window behind her, gazing out at the empty lot next to 2120.
That land had never been sold.
Which meant the Gallagher family setting up a kiddie pool there was technically an illegal occupation.
But in the South Side?
Stuff like that happened every day.
No one really cared.
As long as no one bought that piece of land, no one would bother making an issue of it.
Which raised an interesting question.
If he arranged for someone to buy the lot—and had the swimming pool removed—would the Gallaghers still be able to scrape together enough money to survive the winter?
William rubbed his chin thoughtfully.
Just then, Fiona wrapped her arms around him from behind.
She had no idea that this man was quietly calculating against her family.
To her, he was her soulmate.
"Are you staying tonight?" Fiona asked softly, a hint of anticipation in her voice.
William didn't refuse.
And so, that night passed amid the creaking and groaning of Fiona's wooden bed.
---
The next morning, William left 2119 refreshed and clear-headed.
After a few steps, he arrived at 2118.
Upstairs in 2119, Lip stood by the window with a cigarette between his lips, his eyes locked onto William's back without blinking.
"So what exactly did he do to make you this obsessed?"
Ian couldn't help asking again—Lip's behavior had made him genuinely curious.
He leaned against the windowsill too, casually plucking the cigarette from Lip's mouth and taking a drag.
Truth be told, Lip knew it himself.
From his perspective, William hadn't actually done anything wrong.
In the South Side, having a few casual hookups was nothing unusual.
And William had never officially defined his relationship with Fiona.
Lip's anger wasn't really about morals.
He just couldn't stand the guy.
"Nothing," Lip muttered.
"I just don't like him."
---
Downstairs, William had just opened the door to 2118 when his phone rang.
"Karen?"
A glance at the screen confirmed it—his so-called white-moonlight.
"I heard you're back," Karen said.
"Your intel's impressive," William replied as he closed the door behind him.
The room was completely empty, so he sat down on a clean patch of floor.
"The South Side isn't that big. Anyway—can we meet and talk?"
Her voice was as soft and sweet as ever.
William had no reason to refuse.
He'd already missed half a year of school—one more day wouldn't matter.
What really gave him a headache was how to explain things to his parents.
The school had probably already contacted them.
"Sure. Come to 2118 North Wallace. I'm here now."
"Cool. I'll be right there."
Karen hung up.
It was summer vacation—no classes to worry about.
After the call, William thought for a moment, then dialed Amanda.
"William? You're back?" Amanda's voice lit up instantly.
"Yeah, just got back to Chicago. How's everything at school? Any trouble?"
"Oh my God, you're finally back. I've been bored to death lately.
School's fine—I handled everything for you.
I even had someone sit your finals."
William let out a breath of relief.
Amanda really was reliable.
"Thank you, sweetheart. You seriously saved me," he said sincerely.
Hearing that made everything she'd done feel worth it.
She laughed softly through the phone.
"So how did things go on your end? Smooth?"
"More or less. Took longer than I expected. I probably won't be going away that often anymore."
Amanda felt a quiet surge of happiness.
She'd been unbearably bored these past months.
After chatting a bit longer and agreeing to have dinner together that evening, William hung up.
---
Up on the second floor of 2119, Lip flicked his cigarette into the street and was about to leave—
when a pink BMW slowly rolled into view.
"What the hell…?" Lip muttered.
"Why is Karen here?"
A bad feeling settled in his gut.
Sure enough, the car stopped right in front of 2118.
Karen stepped out—blonde hair, light summer clothes—hips swaying as she walked up and knocked on the door.
"Fuck!"
Lip slammed his fist into the windowsill upstairs.
"Goddamn it—so he went after Karen too?!
I knew that car looked familiar!
That bastard—same damn car as William's!
Fuck! Fuck!"
Lip seethed silently, barely containing himself so he wouldn't draw attention.
The door to 2118 opened.
"That was fast," William said, surprised.
"I barely finished a phone call."
"It's close. I was already out," Karen shrugged.
"Come in."
William stepped aside.
The door closed.
---
From the second-floor window of 2119, Lip's neck had turned red.
The moment that door shut, it felt like his heart shattered—
like glass hitting the pavement, then getting crushed underfoot.
Crack. Crack.
Just like his chest.
"Karen Jackson…"
Lip held his breath, nowhere to vent it.
"Fuck!"
He slammed the windowsill again.
Downstairs, Fiona was in the kitchen making breakfast.
She glanced up as Lip stormed past.
"Lip, where are you going so early?"