(300 CHAPTERS!!!)
Chapter 300: Coughing Up Blood
"Mickey got sent to juvenile detention," Terry said when Frank asked about him.
Mickey wasn't eighteen yet. Since he'd been arrested as a minor, he wouldn't be sent to prison—just juvenile detention for correction.
"What did he do? How long is he in for?" Frank asked, not sounding surprised at all.
Kidnapping, extortion, collecting protection money—Mickey did it all. Honestly, it'd be more surprising if he hadn't ended up in juvie.
"It's nothing serious. He'll be out in a couple of months," Terry replied.
For an ordinary family, having their kid sent to juvenile detention would feel like the sky was falling.
But for the Milkoviches—where jail was practically a second home—juvenile detention was just part of growing up. In fact, not going in a few times as a teenager would've been the abnormal thing.
Hell, Terry himself had only been released from prison not long ago and was still on parole. Just last winter, he'd been locked up on kidnapping charges. He'd only gotten out during the half-year when Frank—under the influence of "old Frank"—had been off wandering and screwing around.
"So," Terry said, getting back to business, "how do you plan to deal with your kid not being able to keep it in his pants?"
They'd chatted a bit and eased the tension, but this was the real issue.
"I've talked to my boys carefully," Frank said calmly. "Mandy's pregnancy most likely has nothing to do with us."
"What the hell did you just say?" Terry's eyebrows shot up, anger flaring instantly.
"Calm down," Frank said quickly. "We're not trying to dodge responsibility. This just came out of nowhere."
"I think the best course of action is to find Mandy first and get her checked. We need to confirm whether she's actually pregnant, and if she is, whose child it is. If she is pregnant, we should also make sure the baby's healthy."
"Of course," Frank continued, "if the child really is a Gallagher's, we won't run from it. Whether Mandy wants to keep the baby or terminate the pregnancy—we'll take full responsibility."
"As for Ian and Mandy getting married…" Frank paused, glancing at Lip and Ian. "That's probably not realistic. They're still kids themselves."
On the way over, Frank had suggested telling Terry the truth about Ian's sexual orientation. If everything were laid out clearly, the misunderstanding could be resolved once and for all.
Ian flat-out refused, so in the end, there was no choice but to let Ian take the fall for Lip.
"Of course," Frank continued calmly, "if you decide to keep the baby, we'll cover child support and everything else. You know my situation—I'm not short on money."
"…"
Frank had made his position very clear, and his attitude was sincere.
In many cases, money really does represent a person's stance. Otherwise, there wouldn't be outrageously high bride prices at weddings, justified with lines like If you won't pay, it means you don't love me. The money proves your attitude.
Terry had been around the block. He knew exactly how hot Blue Angel was selling.
What's more, Heisenberg's business had originally been introduced through him. Even though they no longer needed his connections, he still knew perfectly well how strong Frank's financial position was.
"Then we'll talk again when Mandy comes back," Terry said at last, his tone noticeably softer.
"But I'll be keeping an eye on you, kid," he added, shooting Ian a warning glare.
"Alright, alright—enough with the scare tactics," Frank waved it off. "Let's drink. If Mandy really is carrying a Gallagher kid, we might end up being family someday."
Frank stayed at the Milkovich house drinking until well into the afternoon.
"Nothing serious for now. Tomorrow, you go back to school like normal. I'll handle Mandy's situation," Frank said drunkenly as they left, his whole body reeking of alcohol.
"Thanks, Dad," Lip and Ian said awkwardly—clearly not used to saying it.
"What are you thanking me for? You're my precious boys," Frank said with a grin.
"Wait—stop the car. I can't hold it in," Frank suddenly clapped a hand over his mouth, banging on the window.
"Didn't you say Gallaghers never puke, especially after drinking?" Lip joked.
He'd just thrown up himself at the Milkovich house earlier, and Frank had teased him mercilessly for it.
"Blegh—!"
The car pulled over. Frank yanked the door open and vomited violently.
"Dad—!?" Lip and Ian froze when they saw it.
What Frank spat out wasn't vomit.
It was blood.
A massive mouthful of fresh blood splashed onto the ground, staining it red.
After coughing it up, Frank's vision went black—and he collapsed.
"Call an ambulance!" Ian shouted.
The family received Lip and Ian's calls almost immediately, dropping everything and rushing to the hospital.
"It has to be the cancer—he lied to us, said he didn't have it!" Sammi and the others were frantic.
After checking with the front desk and finding Frank's room, they rushed down the hallway, where Lip and Ian were standing outside the ward.
"Where's Dad?" Sammi asked urgently.
"He's inside. The doctor's talking to him," Lip replied.
Through the glass in the door, they could see a balding doctor in a white coat speaking to Frank, who lay on the hospital bed.
"Dad!"
Knowing it wasn't appropriate to interrupt the doctor, Sammi and Fiona had tried to hold the others back—but the younger kids had no such restraint and charged straight in.
"Debbie! Carl!" Fiona shouted, reaching out too late to grab the two little monkeys.
"You're here already?" Frank asked, pulling the kids into his arms as they barreled up to the bed.
"How do you feel, Dad? Lip said you threw up blood—so it really is cancer…" With things already like this, Sammi and the others followed them into the room.
The once-spacious hospital room instantly felt cramped.
"We've completed a full examination of Mr. Gallagher's condition," the doctor said.
"While Mr. Gallagher was unconscious, we conducted comprehensive tests. We discovered abnormal tissue in the testicles and performed a biopsy."
Since Frank had collapsed after vomiting blood, Lip and Ian had panicked and dared not move him, calling an ambulance immediately and then notifying the rest of the family.
Fiona had insisted the doctors give Frank the most thorough tests possible and arrange a private room.
"No wonder it felt chilly down there… and kind of strange," Frank muttered, instinctively covering his groin.
Testicular cancer.
From the name alone, it was obvious where the cancer was located. And to perform a biopsy, the diseased tissue had to be extracted—
as for how exactly that was done…