As soon as I stepped inside, Ian shut the front door—presumably from saying goodnight to Trevor—and stepped back into the living room. Immediately, when he saw me, he looked concerned and came to my side, looking me over for a moment before looking behind him. It was then that he saw nothing but the expression on my face and his eyes locked to mine once again, as if searching for something.

"Oh, my god, what did Nicholas do now?!" he demanded, speaking through his teeth.

I shake my head. "Nothing," I replied.

"Stop covering for his ass!" Ian yelled, pulling away from me and dragging his hands through his hair in exasperation. "Jesus Christ, Murphy! Stop making excuses and fucking tell me what that fucker did to you!"

I sighed, attempting to blink the tears from my eyes, which only resulted in them spilling down my face. "He doesn't trust me..."

"What?"

I shook my head, leaning back against the door then and crossing my arms. "Nicholas doesn't trust me."

"Shit," Ian replied. "What did he say to you?"

"It's what he didn't say," I tell him. "He didn't tell me about Josh being the one who was driving the car in the accident... And I didn't tell you that Josh tried to kill me..."

Ian shook his head, turning away from me and looking as if he too would begin crying any moment now. "Fuck," he whispered. "That jackass has gone too far this time," he said, and walked back to the front door then, grabbing his jacket.

"Ian?" I said, running forward, tying to tear his jacket from his hands. "What the fuck do you think you're doing?!"

"That fuckhead hurt you one too many times, Murphy," he replied, attempting to pry his jacket from my hands to put it on. "I'm going to put a stop to it..."

"No!" I screamed. "You can't!"

"Why?" he demanded, staring down at me. "Give me one good reason, Murph. Give me one good reason why I shouldn't go to his overpriced condo and beat the shit out of him."

"Because you're too important to me, Ian..." I whispered, my voice broken.

"What does my importance have to do with any of this?"

"If you even do manage to best Nicholas, Ian, you could be brought up on charges of assault, and you'd be tried as an adult," I said, trying to keep my voice strong. "We're twenty-four, Ian—twenty-fucking-four. That's an adult if I've ever seen one."

Ian shook his head. "It'd be worth it," he replied.

"Yeah, for you, maybe," I say, shaking my head at him as I attempted again to yank the jacket from his grip. "Don't do this, please. I'm begging you."

"What about Nicholas?" he asked. "Plead his case. Why don't you want me to go over there and beat the shit out of him, Murphy? Come on. Give me a reason."

"Because, I..." I averted my eyes then, hating having to admit it to anyone—for I'd barely been able to admit it to Nicholas, and that was after he'd said it already—but also knowing that I had to make this good. "...I fucking love him, okay?" I whisper.

"Despite everything he's done to you, and what you've done to him?" Ian asked, and I turned back to face him. "You still fucking love him?"

I nodded. "Yeah," I replied, finally letting go of his jacket and stumbling backwards. "Life is fucking crazy, isn't it?"

Ian looked down at his jacket then, mulling over what I'd said. "So, what do you want me to do here, Murph? Want me to kick his ass?"

I sighed, leaning back against the staircase. "Your life, Ian."

"Fine," he said, opening the door.

I felt something hitch from inside me then, and as he attempted to move out into the night, I darted forward and slammed the door before he could move another inch.

"Fuck, Murphy!" Ian yelled. "You could've taken my nose off!"

"Better that than Nicholas calling the cops on your ass after you beat him senseless!" I screamed back, and he kept his back to me. "I ended things with him tonight, Ian, and I don't know how I'm gonna cope if you run out there and slam your fists repeatedly in his face just to get some momentary satisfaction! You say it's on my behalf, but you're only doing it for you! I can't lose both of you, Ian," I said, my voice trembling then as he turned around to look at me. "I can't. I'm literally begging you right now..."

"To what?" he asked, and I could tell he was reaching his breaking point.

"Don't," I whispered, my voice quavering in my throat. "Don't go out there and beat him up. Not just because I'm in love with the son of a bitch, but because I can't lose another piece of myself, Ian. Please..."

Ian scoffed. "You lived two decades without me—without all of us," he replied. "What's one night of me in jail?"

I grabbed him by the shoulders then and slammed him up against the door. "If you take a fucking step out of this house, I am calling the cops myself!" I said, my voice beyond angry. "Then I'll call Fiona and Lip to stand as your fucking jailers with me if I have to! And hey, while I'm at it, why don't I call up Trevor, huh? He probably wouldn't like it if you tried pulling this shit either!" I said, finding my voice rising. "And then I'll call up Allie and Hugo, tell them that I broke up with their son tonight and that my fucking twin brother is fucking pissed at him for not trusting me, so I have to keep an eye on him so he doesn't slip out at night and fucking beat their son's ass! Should I do all that, Ian, because I need that job, and I sure as shit gotta hang onto it because I'm pregnant with fucking twins, and I've got Iana to support..."

Ian stared at me then, looking as if he'd seen a ghost for a moment before he placed his hand on mine. "I'm sorry," he said, his voice quavering this time. "Why don't I just head upstairs to bed and see you in the morning?"

I hesitated there for a moment, watching him round the corner and go up the stairs before I sighed, knowing that I couldn't trust him completely. I followed him then, just a few steps behind him and hoping he wouldn't somehow escape out a window. I grabbed the baby monitor from my bedroom and trudged into his room behind him, where he had nearly changed for bed and looked at me strangely.

"What are you doing?" he asked.

I sighed. "I'm bunking with you tonight," I replied, setting down the monitor on his bedside table before I took off my sweater and jeans, which left me in a tank top and a pair of panties, and left on my socks for good measure. "I'd say don't get any ideas," I said, waiting for him to get into bed, but he was so shocked that he didn't move, "but you're fucking gay, so..."

Ian sighed. "Fine, you can stay," he replied. "Get into bed."

"Nu-uh," I replied, crossing my arms, "you first."

He raised an eyebrow. "Why?"

I scoffed. "Because a pregnant woman's bladder is a ticking time bomb at all hours of the day and I refuse to climb over your sorry ass in the dark just to get to the bathroom. And I am not about to piss on you—that's Lip's job to do to Frank."

Ian smirked, rolling his eyes and climbing into bed. "Fine," he grumbled.

"Good," I replied, getting in after him. I lay there for a moment, and was surprised when he just draped his arm around my shoulders. "Ian?"

"Yeah?"

I sighed, scooting back so as I was closer to him. "Sorry about all the yelling," I replied.

He shrugged. "Hey, we're Gallagher's," he replied. "We're a weird bunch."

. . .

I had successfully managed to avoid Nicholas on a one-on-one basis at work; after I'd briefly explained the situation to Allie, Allie agreed that Nicholas should adhere to keeping away from me solo for a while. I knew that she wanted us to work things out and get back together—hell, I'd even heard Hugo yelling at Nicholas a few times—but I just couldn't imagine me being with someone who didn't and wouldn't trust me. When all was said and done, even though it hurt beyond belief, I was tired of living that way.

I took off work early on Wednesday and went down to the diner, knowing that I needed to see my sister before I lost it completely. Nicholas had cornered me in the staff longue earlier that day—because my office was off-limits—for an important conversation. I had done my best to ignore him, considering what he'd put me through recently, but the sound of his voice really didn't help matters. Of course, I figured to myself, if he wanted a joint custody arrangement, there would officially be hell to pay.

"Fine, I'll talk," I said, turning around to face him. "Now, what the fuck do you want?!" I demanded then, my voice harsh.

Nicholas looked surprised at my tone, but not much should've surprised him these days. "Look, I just wanted to give you an update on Josh..."

"Oh, now you want to give me updates on my bat-shit crazy ex-boyfriend who tried to fucking kill me! How nice!" I said, bustling past him to get a water bottle out of the fridge. "It only took me fucking dumping your ass for you to grow a pair and tell me..."

Nicholas sighed. "There was a manhunt," he said quietly, and I turned around to face him. "They got him earlier this morning—just got off the phone with them."

"Joy," I replied, acting like I didn't really care.

"Listen, he was in Texas—Houston," he went on, his voice going rapid-fire, as he knew he likely didn't have a lot of time to spill it. "According to reports, he was hiding out at Chrissy Andrew's mother's house..."

"Shit, the bitch he cheated on me with—nice!"

"Yeah, I guess," Nicholas said awkwardly. "They're driving him back up here, and he should be in town by tomorrow."

"Great," I said, gripping my bottle of water so tightly that it might explode. "That's fan-fucking-tastic, Nicholas. I really appreciate the information—thank you!" I said, clapping him on the shoulder before I got the hell out of there.

Blinking through my veil of tears as I attempted to see through my windshield—even though the day was sunny and bright, for once not matching my thoughts—I pulled up in front of the diner in my usual way. I grabbed my purse and got out of the car, slamming the door behind me and walking up to the main doors, pulling them open and attempting to compose myself. Wiping the tears from my eyes, I stepped inside, looking for Fiona, and seeing Lip first.

"Lip?" I asked, stepping forward.

"Murph?" came his reply, as he stepped forward, looking me over. "Shit. What happened? Are you okay?"

"No," I replied, trying and failing to get a handle on things as I threw myself into his arms and hugged him for all it was worth. "No, I'm not okay..."

"Looking for Fiona?" he asked.

I sighed. "Well, I was, but..."

"She took off early today—wasn't feeling too well," Lip said, holding me back for a minute to stare at me. "You are not okay right now, are you?"

I shook my head. "No," I said, "I'm not."

"Okay," Lip said, turning to a member of the staff. "Gotta cut out early!" he said, untying his apron quickly and throwing it onto the counter.

"Why?" one of the women demanded.

"My fucking sister needs me, for Christ's sake!" Lip said, glaring at her. "Hey, I've gotta grab my jacket, and we can get outta here, okay?"

I nodded. "Sure. I'll be outside."

"Great," Lip said. He hesitated for a moment before kissing my forehead, before slipping into the back to grab his jacket.

I sighed, thinking that this day could possibly afford to be better as I stepped outside.

The sun was still shining as I moved one way down the sidewalk, then back up again, not at all sure how long Lip would take. When he emerged from the restaurant, he saw the look on my face and put his arm around my shoulders, while I found myself automatically leaning down and putting my head on his shoulder. We just walked like that—away from the diner, away from my car—in silence for several minutes until Lip spoke.

"Okay. I haven't heard from you or Ian in days—what the fuck is going on at the house?" he asked, brotherly concern in every word.

"Lotta shit," I replied.

"Yeah?" he asked, turning his head slightly to catch my expression. "Tell me about it."

I took my free hand and ran it over my face before clearing my throat. "Ian mention that Nicholas stopped by late almost two weeks ago?"

"Almost two weeks ago...? I thought he was crashing at the house most nights, because of the babies and all, and that you were thinking of buying the house across the street..."

"I'm still thinking of buying the house across the street," I replied, "because Nicholas is no longer part of the equation."

Lip stopped walking then, and pulled me around so that I was standing opposite him. "Okay, tell me what the fuck Nicholas did."

I rolled my eyes. "Ian pretty much said the same thing, and that turned out swimmingly..." I muttered, rolling my shoulders.

"Yeah? How's that?"

I looked away from him. "Slammed him up against the wall to prevent him from leaving the house to go to Nicholas's condo," I replied.

"What the fuck?!" Lip demanded.

"Hey!" I said, turning back to him. "Ian was going to fucking beat Nicholas's ass! I had to stop him because I couldn't let our own brother go to fucking jail!"

Lip sighed. "Murphy."

"What?"

"What. Did. Nicholas. Do?"

I bit my lip and rolled my eyes again. "What are you thinking?"

Lip scoffed, trying to make sense of what he was supposed to say. "Gee, Murphy, I really don't know. The fucking son of a bitch has a fucking assault charge on his rap sheet!" he said, turning back to me and gripping me by the arms. "The last thing I want is someone beating up my little sister and her not allowing comeuppance to happen! Now what the fuck did Nicholas do to you, or so help me, I'll be the one beating his ass!"

I smiled then, my eyes filling with tears. "Oh, my god..."

"What?!" Lip demanded. "What's wrong?!"

"Nothing—just these damned hormones," I said, dashing the tears from my eyes. "I'm sorry, but you just called me your little sister... I don't know. It meant a lot to me..."

Lip sighed. "Look, Murph, I know things were tense for a while there—you know, with us falling for each other and all before we knew... Anyway," he said, and we immediately found ourselves looking away from each other in mutual discomfort, "you are my little sister, and I'd do anything to help you, and I don't want to see you hurt..."

I smiled, stepping up to him then and kissing his forehead. "I promise you, Nicholas has never put his hands on me... Well," I said, putting my hand on my stomach, "not in the way you're thinking of, anyway."

"So, you ended things with him, but he didn't hurt you?"

"Oh, no, he hurt me," I replied, running my hands through my hair, "but not with his fists. With his fucking actions..."

"Yeah? Did that fucker fuck somebody else?!"

"Hey," I said, smacking him on the arm, "I know we swore never to discuss this again, but can you honestly say that you'll forget our one night together?!" I hissed under my breath.

Lip looked away. "No."

"Now, do you really think that Nicholas would leave me?"

"Christ, Murph," Lip said, growing uncomfortable, "no!"

"Well, there you go—he didn't cheat on me," I replied.

Lip sighed, dragging a free hand through his hair. "Okay... So, he didn't hit you, or cheat on you, so why'd you break up with him?"

"Honestly?"

"Well, I'm your older brother," he said, spreading his hands. "So, yeah. Honestly."

"He doesn't trust me," I said quietly.

Lip blinked. "He doesn't...?"

"Trust me. Yeah," I said, finding that I was laughing and crying at the same time. "Josh was the one behind the wheel that night, before I packed off Iana and me to Florida..."

"Wait. Are you serious?" Lip demanded.

I nodded. "Completely," I replied, crossing my arms. "This is the second time he hasn't told me the identity of someone who tried to kill me..."

Lip looked up. "You didn't know?"

I sighed. "I remembered, as soon as we got on the subject," I replied. "I remembered yelling at him and demanding to know why he'd do that..."

"Run Nicholas over?"

"That, I guess, or attempt to run me over—I don't remember that," I said, feeling my hands gripping the insides of my arms. "All I can tell you is, Lip, that all the fucked up shit that happened to me over the years, is locked away somewhere in my brain. Even I don't want to be there when it comes out."

"You think it'll come out?" he asked.

I sighed. "It almost did," I replied.

"When you had the breakdown?"

I looked away from him. "Look, Lip, I don't blame you for it, really..."

"What?" he asked. "Wait. Blame me?"

I just stared at him for a moment before I spoke. "It started right after you told me that you wished I wasn't your sister, and that you wanted Iana to be yours," I replied, my voice shaking with sobs as the tears came back. "I don't blame you—not for any of it. I was reaching the breaking point for a long time..."

"Murphy..."

"No, please, don't," I said, when I saw he was trying to walk away. "Don't go, Lip," I said, and put my arms around him then, and I felt immediate relief when his arms came around me and just held me, too.

"I'm not going, Murphy," he replied.

I sighed. "Thanks, Lip."

"You're my sister," he replied, and I looked up at him, "and I'm glad you're my sister, and I'm glad that Iana isn't mine..."

I nodded. "But?"

"But I wish she wasn't Mickey's either," he said. "For Ian's sake."

I laughed aloud then. "I know—I'm with you," I replied. "If there was one thing I'd take back, it's Mickey being Iana's father."

"You could take back so many things—your adopted family, them lying to you for so many years, what Dr. Normal did to you... Why would you want to take back that?"

I smiled. "Because, no matter what he says, it hurt Ian," I replied. "If there's one thing I never want to do in my life, it's hurt Ian."

"And Nicholas?"

I bit my lip. "No, I think that ship has sailed..."

"You're having kids with him," Lip said with a smile. "Something may happen."

I shook my head. "I don't know..."

"Hey, anything's possible... Look, why don't we give Fiona a call? Let's fix you up with a chocolate crème pie and give our older sister a ring?" he asked.

I laughed. "Sounds good to me."

"I'll heat up a slice," he said with a laugh then, putting his arm back around my shoulders before turning us around and walking us back to the diner.

. . .

When I got home later that night, despite her protests, I put Iana down for a nap before dinner, because, whether she liked it or not, she needed one. I found myself just lying on the couch, waiting for something to happen, not unlike the early days of me living in Chicago, in my apartment, waiting for Lip to call me for a date, or Kevin to call me to work. I smiled, and remembered the simpler times of me working nights at The Alibi, and just trying to make sense of the new life that I'd afforded myself. Once I'd cut off my old family and started just living for me—and for the family I was a part of all along, plus my clients, and my daughter—I found that I was happier on the whole...

"Long day?"

I opened my eyes then to a combination of the voice and the scent of something delicious. "I guess you could say that, yeah," I replied, getting to my feet. I hesitated for a moment before I crossed the space put between Ian and me, and just put my arms around him. "You don't know how good this feels..."

"Being in a real man's arms again?"

I let out a noise then—a combination of a scoff and a groan—and shoved him backwards. "A real man wouldn't say that!"

Ian laughed. "Well, I'm your brother, so I guess that would make me a real man..."

I crossed my arms, quickly growing impatient. "Please, I was probably kicking your ass day and night in the womb, mister..."

He grinned. "If you weren't pregnant, I'd ask for a rematch."

I tried my best not to laugh at him. "Oh, come the fuck on! When I was pregnant with Iana, I could still best you in a fight."

He shook his head. "Maybe I was tired that day, or maybe I didn't want to do my niece any permanent damage..."

I rolled my eyes. "You're such a fucking dick," I replied, peering around him to see a bag full of to-go food. "Ooh, what did you get tonight?" I asked.

"Philly cheesesteaks," he replied.

I scoffed then, turning around then and gently punching him in the chest. "Dammit, Ian. One minute you make me hate you, and then the next one you make me love you again." I stuck out my lower lip then in a pout. "Why do you do this to me?"

He sighed. "Talked to Lip today."

"Oh," I said, sighing a little then as I inched towards the bag of sandwiches, as the boys had suddenly become animated in their pursuit of dinner. "Yeah?"

"Yeah," Ian said. "He said you went by the diner."

I nodded. "Yeah. Took off early."

"Any particular reason why you did?"

I sighed, my shoulders deflating. "I was feeling overwhelmed..."

"Really? Why?"

I bit my lip before I permitted myself to turn around, hating myself that my pregnancies had officially allowed themselves to take over my emotions completely. "Because Nicholas told me there was a manhunt out for Josh," I replied.

"A manhunt?"

"Yeah," I said, looking away from him.

"Did they catch him yet?"

I nodded. "Yeah—caught him this morning. Bringing him back."

"Back? Where'd he go?"

"Texas. Houston," I said, crossing my arms again.

Ian stepped forward. "You know, Murph, you don't have to do that..."

I looked up at him. "Do what?"

"Close yourself off like this," he said, and gently pulled my arms from their crossed position, so that I was just standing normally in front of him. "Stop putting up barriers and get over here, Murph."

I shook my head at him. "How do you know?"

"How do I know what?"

"Me," I replied. "How do you know me so well?"

"Because I'm your brother—your twin brother," he replied. "And I don't care what any birth certificate says—I don't care if we have different fathers. You're my fucking twin sister—not a maternal half-sister or whatever the fuck they want to call it nowadays. You're my fucking twin full sister, for all I care, Murph. Nothing will ever change that."

I smiled up at him. "Nothing," I replied, allowing myself to step intohis arms.