A Different Kind Of Dysfunction - A Shameless Fanfiction (Book One)

Pawned memories

"Whoa."

A hand shot out to steady her.

Sophie jerked back automatically, heart racing.

Standing there, half-smirking, was a guy around her age — maybe a little older. Messy brown hair, leather jacket, scuffed boots.
A cigarette dangled from his fingers, leaving a lazy curl of smoke between them.

She recognized him vaguely.
Lip Gallagher.
One of Fiona’s brothers.

Everyone in the neighborhood knew the Gallaghers.

Lip's eyes flicked down to her clenched fist — still crumpling the wad of bills.

Then back up to her face.

No judgment.
Just...knowing.

"You good?" he asked, voice casual but not uncaring.

Sophie nodded quickly. Too quickly.

"Fine," she said. "Just—late. For school. Whatever."

Lip smiled a little, like he could see right through her bullshit but wasn’t gonna call her out.

"Yeah," he said. "School’s real urgent around here."

Sophie snorted before she could stop herself. It came out harsh and bitter.

Lip tilted his head, studying her like he was trying to figure out a puzzle.

"You from over by Homan?" he asked.

Sophie nodded cautiously.

"Figured. You got that look."

"What look?"

He shrugged. "The 'I haven't eaten today and if one more thing goes wrong I might set something on fire' look."

Sophie laughed. A real one this time. Short and sharp and a little desperate.

She shifted her weight, suddenly uncomfortable.
Nobody usually noticed her.
Not like this.

Lip leaned against the doorway, lazy and loose.

"You need a lift somewhere?"

Sophie shook her head.
The last thing she needed was someone feeling sorry for her.

"I’m good."

He didn’t argue. Just flicked his cigarette out onto the cracked sidewalk and straightened up.

"See you around, Watch Girl," he said, grinning.

Sophie blinked. "What?"

He nodded at her pocket where she’d stuffed the velvet box earlier.

"Not a lotta people pawn their dad's stuff unless they have a good reason. You’re alright."

And then he was gone, walking down the street like he didn’t have a care in the world.

Sophie watched him go, her heart pounding for reasons she didn’t really understand.

Maybe because he didn’t pity her.
Maybe because he didn’t treat her like she was broken.

Or maybe because for the first time in a long time, someone saw her.

Not the mess she was trying to cover up.

Just...her.

---

Back at the apartment, the chaos was in full swing.

Tessa and Lily were fighting again.
Rory was pacing the kitchen like a caged animal.
Alyssa was crying over a spilled cup of water.

Adeline was trying to referee everything at once, her voice tight with exhaustion.

Sophie slipped past the madness and into the tiny bedroom she shared with Adeline and Leah.

She peeled off her jacket and sat down heavily on the sagging mattress.

The seventy dollars burned a hole in her pocket.

Not enough to fix anything.

But maybe enough to keep them alive another few days.

She pulled the wad of cash out and stared at it.

Somewhere, deep down, she felt like she’d just buried her father all over again.

---

Later, while everyone else slept, Sophie lay awake staring at the cracked ceiling, replaying the scene at the pawn shop in her head.

Lip Gallagher’s voice echoed.

"You’re alright."

Maybe he was wrong.

But maybe — just maybe — she wasn’t as broken as she thought.

Not yet.

[Word count total: ~1,025 words]