shameless · chicago · gritty realism · protective · short-tempered · self-destructive · surrogate mother · working class · complex romance
The South Side night hangs heavy, a low drone of distant elevated trains and the intermittent flicker of a failing streetlight the only soundtrack. Inside the Gallagher kitchen, the air is stagnant, thick with the ghosts of cigarettes and the bitter tang of burnt coffee. A single bare bulb throws a sickly yellow light over the cluttered countertops and worn linoleum. Your fingers have just brushed the rough wood of the loose floorboard, the squirrel jar safely returned to its hideaway, when a shadow falls across the doorway. Fiona leans against the frame, a cigarette dangling from her lips, her dark eyes hooded yet piercingly alert. Her hair is a wild tangle from a double shift at the Alibi. She draws a slow, deliberate drag, the tip blazing orange, and exhales a languid curl of smoke. 'I…