deanie1987

[deanie1987]

You think Lip sometimes looks at Ian and Mickey and just smiles a little to himself because who would’ve seen that coming?

Like, Lip’s always been good with odds and numbers and back in the day, back when they started out a fucking lifetime ago, absolutely nobody would have bet on those two making it in the end.

He had been around back then, on the side lines catching glimpses from time to time. From ‘Mickey’s gay and we’re doing it’ and ‘i know what he felt with me’ to ‘you think i should’ve?’ and ‘because i love him’.

And Lip hesitates in the doorway when he enters the living room for a moment and watches them lie on the couch in front of the TV, wrapped up in each other’s arms, sleepy and content, for once neither bickering nor on the verge of fucking and he thinks that he’s never seen Ian so happy and being himself this much at the same time before.

And maybe he shakes his head when he looks at the man in his brother’s arms because holy fucking shit that’s Mickey Milkovich right there.

That’s ‘someone’s gotta get a beat down’, it’s ‘oh shit is right’, it’s anger issues and russian prostitutes and attempted murder and escaping prison to fucking mexico.

But it’s also the guy who pours Ian his coffee in the morning and makes sure he doesn’t drink it before he’s had something to eat, who used to count his fucking pills, who once bought a bag full of B vitamins as if they could fix it all somehow.

It’s who Ian lost sleep over, it’s who he made his best bad decisions for.

It’s Franny’s Uncle Mickey, it’s Mandy’s older brother and holy shit, it’s Ian’s fucking husband.

And isn’t that so beautifully Ian, that he saw something in that dirty faced thug from ten years ago that no one else ever bothered to look for? that he found a love that proved itself to be stronger than whatever life or fate or Terry fucking Milkovich threw at them, that pulled them back to each other every time they fell apart?

Mickey has been a constant presence in Ian’s life in a way that nothing else but Lip himself ever had. Has been a witness, a catalyst, a victim of Ian’s epic highs and lows, has done insane things to and for and because of him. As fucked up as they always were, they seem to hold the balance, they somehow make it work.

Lip loves his brother with all his heart, has done so his entire life, he knows all the best and a lot of the worst of Ian and he knows that Mickey knows it too. Loves him, too. Signed up for it all, the whole package, good times and bad, sickness and health, Monica and Gay Jesus, mania and depression. Had probably signed up for it long before they stood in front of witnesses at the Polish Doll.

So Lip smiles sometimes when they bicker over breakfast cereal or when Ian can’t keep his hands to himself even when the rest of them is right there or when Mickey talks shit like he’s still big bad Milkovich, south side thug extraordinaire and not the boy who has been in love with Lip’s little brother for the last decade.

Because it’s nice to see they made it. Because if anyone deserves a happy ending and a gentle future, it’s them.

[deanie1987]

That hair part was Jesus telling us that he wanted no part of that mess. 😭

Ian's hairpart came from the very bowels of hell (along with his ss6 thru 8 storylines).

We need to cast that shit back from whence it came.

#just why? #let’s never speak of it again #ian gallagher #shameless

[deanie1987]

I feel the same. I am very ambivalent when it comes to Gallavich and kids, including Yev. I find many of the kid fics (not all but many) way too cutesy for my taste. Kids are cute, but they are hard work and they change your life and your relationship, mostly for the better, but not always and not completely.

I want Mickey and Ian to enjoy themselves. Grow the business, go on trips, do stuff that they never thought they would ever be able to do. And enjoy just being together and alone. That is huge for them. And since an accidental pregnancy isn’t going to happen, they both have to really want it and pursue it, and I just don’t know that Mickey is ever really going to want that. I don’t necessarily think they would be bad parents, but I also don’t think they would be as good as fic often makes them out to be. 🤷‍♀️

Grade the trope: Gallavich as parents.

As some else who has kids, I’d like to here your thoughts…

Ok probably like a C-/D+ sorta situation lol

I typically do not like kid fics. I have kids and I don’t want to read about them, for the most part. Mostly because that’s my reality lol but also the people who write about kids usually have no idea what it actually entails or how they behave, milestones, etc. So, unless it’s by an author who I know is awesome, I’ll give it a miss. I have read a lot of them but I wouldn’t say I necessarily enjoyed them 😬

#my honest feelings #sorry Ian #gallavich

[deanie1987]

Why'd he have to make the noises tho 😭

#can u imagine the amount of shit Mickey gets for being in love with this dumbass? #what would nana think? #honestly it’s the friends’ glances that get me #they will laugh about this for years to come #thank god he’s cute #ian gallager #mickey milkovich #prison Gallavich

[deanie1987]

I don’t really think it’s been overhyped. The show offers reminders of it pretty consistently, and that is rare, especially in the later years when the writers seemed happy to forget all kinds of character history.

At the end of season 7 the writers weren’t sure if the show was coming back for s8 and the last shot of Ian, possibly ever, was him in EMT mode. The job was definitely a symbol of his stability but there are other ways to show that too, and they chose this.

He lost himself in s8 and s9, but I can’t imagine that he wasn’t completely disappointed and embarrassed in himself for having lost his EMT position. There are lots of hints in s10-11 that it was important to him. Like you said, his dismay at being forced to pretend to be an EMT but not really being able to help anyone. We see him using his skills to clean up Mickey’s cuts (as I’ve said it’s canon if I like it) and in checking Frank over once he’d overdosed. Just little reminders that Ian still has these skills and wants to use them, even if he can’t professionally. It’s not much, but for a show that forgets huge portions of characterization, it’s important.

And, of course, there is Ian’s glee at being able to be behind the wheel of an ambulance again. He missed it and said so. Fic writers definitely take a small detail and run with it, and god bless them for doing so, but I think in this case, it’s pretty backed up by canon.

I’m happy that their business is a success and I think that Ian enjoys certain aspects of it, but I also hope that at some point he is able to indulge is hero complex somehow, even if it isn’t professionally.

Do you think people overhype Ians passion for being an EMT. Like I think Ian enjoyed the job and wouldn’t say no to having it back but I also don’t think he’s dwells and wishes he still had that part of his life. It’s always intertwined in fic or future headcanons. I know he was manic in 8 and all but he didn’t seem to care he lost the job after the fact.

Hmm, idk, I think people are just attracted to the fact that being an EMT gave him a purpose and made him feel like himself again and that was all sort of disrupted by his manic episode in s8. So, with it being yanked away from him and the unlikelihood that he could return to it for real when he's healthy again I definitely see why that period is romanticized for his character. I also think it's just really fitting for him. That's probably why people focus on it for fics and head canons, and having a job is something that more closely tied to Ian's self-worth than Mickey's so we allow him to have the one that got away, so to speak.

I think Ian's also a pretty stoic guy in general and so much of his mental state isn't blatantly explained or even shown so it's hard to say how much he cared about it. Certainly while he was still manic through s9 it wasn't exactly his priority, but when he gets out and he has to do the insurance scam with Paula, you can tell it's kinda crushing his soul a little bit because he just wants to help people and he can't for fear of retribution.

But, I think most of it is just fandom. Like, we take a mention of a certain food once or twice and run away with it. So, it's understandable people would take a career he seemed to love and find ways to bring that back to him.

#EMT Ian #Ian Gallagher #so happy to be chatting about these boys again #gallavich #shameless

[deanie1987]

✨2021 Favorites✨

Hi guys :) It’s almost 2022, so we decided to repeat last year and make a list of our personal favorites (which will vary from mod to mod) that started and completed in 2021 💝 There’s no way we could include everything we loved or even liked from our favorite authors, but hopefully you find something to jump into! ❄️ (This is a long list, but blame the writers for being so talented!)

Multi chapters:

Old Rules For New Side Pieces - Ian thinks he’s got his life together – good job, stable boyfriend – until he meets Mickey and his life is turned upside down. 

Enemy Lines - Enemies to lovers, a social justice warrior vs a lawyer.

Someone To Hold Me Up - Canon divergent from s7 - Ian and Mickey getting back together with their lives a little bit more put together. 

Under Lock and Key - Ian and Mickey man the desk of the missing keys office together and end up falling for each other week after week. 

weaver of fate (to your will I won’t fold) - Soulmates AU. Mickey is a seer who gets paid to track down people’s soulmates. Ian pays for the reading but doesn’t want to know the result.

you’ll never see us again - Ian and Mickey grow up in a boarding school without a clue about what their future holds.

The Mask of Insanity - Ian’s a detective with a complicated past with Mickey, who ends up being a suspect in a murder case he’s working. 

Mickey Milkovich’s Guide to Flirting - How Mickey Milkovich learned to stop worrying (so much) and flirt with his crush

There Are Places You Belong - Ian and Mickey adjust to the West Side and grow closer in their second year of marriage.

WIPs:

Dancing After Death - Ian moves to California and meets Mickey, a member of a motorcycle club. Friends with benefits to lovers. 

That ‘Redhead Babyface/FUCK U-UP’ Duality - AU. Ian sees Mickey in a bar and decides that he’s the perfect candidate for shooting porn together.

Intro to Quantum Dating - College AU. Friends with benefits to lovers. Ian moves to campus and meets Mickey, the RA and the weed guy of the college. 

Paragraphs - Ian has an opportunity to be a reading tutor for ex-convicts. He meets one in particular that catches his eye.

since we’re alone - College AU. Enemies to lovers. Mickey is only going to college to play hockey. When he’s at risk of losing his full ride scholarship because of his slipping grades, he gets assigned a tutor.

let the bodies do the talkin’ - Mickey’s on a quest to find a good fuck and he doesn’t think Ian could do anything for him, but boy is he wrong…

You Can Bite Me - Ian’s a vampire and is drawn to the mysterious Mickey, of course things get complicated. 

Ristretto - Coffeeshop AU. Ian works the late shift at the coffee shop with Mandy Milkovich. He might or might not have the hots for her boyfriend.

elevator music - Ian makes a terrible first impression on his neighbor Mickey, but gets to redeem himself little by little.

Apartment 4A - When the chaos of the Gallagher home gets to be too much, Ian decides to move out. He answers a roommate ad, and gets more than he bargained for.

kings of the southside - S11 canon divergent fic in which Ian and Mickey stay on the southside and take over the Alibi.

We Are Made of Star Stuff - S1 gap-filler, Ian POV. Exploration of how the boys reach the level of closeness that has Ian running to Mickey’s when Monica shows up.

One shots:

Stages - Post S11. It’s nice for married couples to share interests and experiences. But they didn’t really need their dads to die one after the other like this.

Bad for Business - Magic AU. Mickey works at a magic shop and Ian happens to be a frequent customer. 

Thicker than Forget -  Fantasy AU. Ian is a poet. Mickey is his recently-corporal muse. They eat an absurd amount of stupidly named ice cream, try to find beauty in things, and fall hopelessly in love.

the moment when a memory aches - A rewrite of the HOS episode filled with feelings, angst, and growth. 

Gotta Get You Into My Life - 2x04 fill in. Where exactly was Ian when Fiona came home to find Holly Herkimer storming out of the slumber party

Sweet Lips On My Lips - 3x05 fill-in/fix-it. mickey experiences new things after kissing ian for the first time.

Nobody makes me crazy like you (ambivalent) - Post S11.Mickey puts their neighbor in her place and won’t apologize for it and Ian learns a valuable lesson about compromising.

Risks Not Worth Taking - 11x06 fill-in. Ian worries over Mickey’s involvement in the Born Free robbery.

put my faith in this hole in the ground - Ian experiences his first manic episode after being married to Mickey. 

golden hour - 5 times Mickey admires Ian’s freckles, +1 time Ian admires his

submission sonata - Ian and Mickey spend some time together after the Alibi serenade. 

Muse - Ian slowly, but surely working his way into interior designer Mickey’s heart. 

Old Wounds - The time between Mickey finding out Ian’s going to prison and their reunion.

What Became of the Likely Lads? - 11x06 fill-in. How did Lip ask Mickey to help him steal bikes, why did Mickey bring donuts in the morning, and other questions answered.

nothing to worry about - Ian gets jealous and they settle it in familiar ways.

lit up - Ian and Mickey spending some quality time together in their very own place. 

The Ghosts of 218 - The journey to Mickey getting ready to be a dad. 

he wants to fucking tear you apart (series) - Ian discovers reddit porn, in particular user going by u/aleksandr.

soft, sensitive - Some short, soft one-shots ranging in topics.

Happy reading! 📖💕

#I love to find new fic #thanks for this #fanfiction #gallavich #shameless

[deanie1987]

#I wanna hate the shoes #but I just don’t really hate the shoes #I remember the 80s and 90s when things were so much worse #but the s8 hair? #death to the s8 hair #lifetime prison sentence for that unspeakable hair part #ian gallagher #s8 #shameless

[deanie1987]

attachment and gallavich

i've thought so much over the years about gallagher/gallavich attachment styles, someone like Debbie is so easy to pinpoint as reactive attachment, but gallavich changes so much through the years.

ian - anxious attachment - ian seeks closeness, but due to unpredictable parenting, he also shies away from closeness. he has this constant push-and-pull with monica, which just confuses him even more. and yet he desires a relationship but struggles with feeling lovable. it's not just due to bipolar disorder that he pushes mickey away, it's due to this unpredictable relationship with monica that causes him to hold people at arm's length. he's waiting for the inevitable rejection due to his constant rejection from his parents. he self-sabotages because of this instability.

mickey - avoidant attachment - of course, he has avoidant attachment as we see in s3 after being abused and neglected his whole life. how can you trust anyone when you can't trust your own caregiver? he never learns to express himself, he is independant, self-sufficient (because he has to be). he avoids closeness, classic early seasons mickey.

but this is the amazing thing about gallavich, which is that they have the power to change each other and they do!!! ian learns in this slow journey to be loved by others, and maybe it's not all mickey, it's also his family & (don't hate me) people he dates along the way. people want him! he is desirable! but maybe not truly lovable, until the moment in S9 when gallavich are reunited, i think it is this moment that makes him realize how much he is loved by someone, the holy fuck that comes out of his mouth is also saying wow, someone loves me this much they'd sacrifice themselves for me. he's not done his journey as we see in s10 but maybe he will always struggle with this, and that's okay because mickey will always remind him how lovable and amazing he is.

and mickey? what the fuck tho? he changes so wildly and i would argue his attachment style does too, to even dare i say an almost-secure attachment? he realizes he is lovable too, and not only is he lovable, but that he doesn't have to worry about being unlovable anymore, because he is so loved by ian and it is s7 that solidifies this for him. but the same applies for ian, too! he doesn't have to worry anymore, he realizes mickey is never going anywhere, because mickey has come back again and again and he doesn't leave or abandon - unlike monica.

they are just so everything to each other and i want to die for them, but mostly write a thesis about them

#they have grown so much 😭 #and overcome so much #they will probably always struggle with their various insecurities to some degree #but they have each other #and that’s beautiful #gallavich #ian gallagher #mickey milkovich #shameless

[deanie1987]

help, why is thinking about mickey's whole body shaking when he sneezes and ian holding him when he sees his "sneeze face" making me so soft 🥺

ian sees mickey waving his hand around his face like a sneeze is incoming and just leaps into action. husband looks uncomfortable? oh, husband is about to sneeze. husband’s sneezes make him basically fall down? that’s annoying and possibly embarrassing for husband? time to throw myself over this coffee table to support husband 😌 that’s neither annoying nor embarrassing for anyone involved 😌

mickey’s like 😩🤨🙄🥰

#snot and spit is romantic now #Gallavich makes everything better #even allergies #mickey milkovich #ian gallager

[deanie1987]

#I am not ok #but also I love it #my angst ship #she brought so much to the show #ian gallager #monica geller

[deanie1987]

The last TV show you watched is now your life story for the next six weeks

What is it?

#What We Do in the Shadows #could be worse

[deanie1987]

ugh i love them

#come back #😭😭😭 #jeremy allen white #cameron monaghan #gallaghers #shameless

[deanie1987]

You lift me up 💕

“Hey Ian, how’re you holding up?” Mickey ventured. Ian had been down lately, but today, he got out of bed and showed up to the breakfast table.

“M’okay.” Ian shrugged and shuffled over to pour himself a bowl of dry cereal.

“Ya think you’re up to going out in the bus with me today? I could use the extra manpower if you’ve got it in you.”

“Yeah, I can do that,” Ian sighed. “Just wish I wasn’t so...tired all the time.”

Mickey put a reassuring arm around Ian’s waist. “Things���ll level out, man. They always do.”

💖 Read the rest, complete with fluff and praise, on AO3! 💖

@gallavichthings

[deanie1987]

some neighbor person says something horrible to mickey (for ex, maybe an insult about his looks) and it makes him feel insecure and quietish and ian is rlly overprotective and after he comforts mickey

“Think you’d be better at this by now,” Mickey mutters as he scoops soil over the new seeds Ian is so proud of. “But you’re still making me do all the dirty work.”

“Maybe I just like seeing you like this,” Ian flirts above him. “On your knees and filthy.”

Mickey snorts, giving the soil one last pat as he stands.

“Please,” he says dryly. “You just want an excuse to get me into a bath.”

Ian is grinning when Mickey looks at him, completely unabashed, and his carefree smile does something to Mickey’s heart, makes it warm and fucking tingly.

“Leave any dirt for the plants?” a voice comes from behind them, and the warmth goes away as fast as it came.

Mickey sighs, closes his eyes, then puts up a hand to stop Ian from interfering like he knows he’ll want to.

“You got a problem, big guy?” Mickey challenges, turning to face a man he vaguely recognizes from their apartment complex. “Tryin’ to insult me by sayin’ I’m dirty when you literally just saw me diggin’ over there?”

“Come on, like I don’t see you everyday,” the guy scoffs, eyes rolling like a toddler who thinks they’re in the right. “I swear you don’t even own a clean shirt.”

“What’s it to you?” Mickey asks, almost amused at the pathetic attempt at an insult even though Ian is tensed and focused behind him. “Little dirt never hurt nobody.”

“It’s not the dirt,” the man says, “it’s the trash that drags it in.”

Mickey has to laugh at that.

“Who you calling trash, man?” he asks. “You don’t know nothing about me.”

Thin lips twist into something resembling a sneer.

“Know your type,” he says, “know your family,” and all of Mickey’s amusement fades as the words wash over him.

“Bunch of no good filthy freaks,” the guy goes on, “and I don’t want you out here around my wife and kids.”

Fuck. Mickey looks around, sees a woman hanging out one plot over, two kids hanging off her arms as she gardens. They look happy, healthy. Clean. Like somebody gives a shit about them.

Not like him.

He swallows, and wipes his hands on his pants, but it just smears the dirt more. And he’s ready to back away, ready to leave that little family in peace just to keep from causing a scene that those kids won’t forget—God knew he never forgot the scenes that Terry caused—but Ian has another idea.

“The fuck did you just say?” Ian growls, stepping forward, putting himself between Mickey and their neighbor. Mickey grabs at him, catches the sleeve of his jacket, but Ian pulls it away without looking back.

“Come on, it’s not worth it man,” Mickey tries, reaching out again, but Ian doesn’t stop. His hard gaze is settled firm on the man who dared insult his husband, his hands clenching and unclenching at his sides as he breathes heavily through his nose.

“Listen to him,” the man says, nodding back to Mickey. “He knows what he’s worth.”

There was a time when that barb would have hit. A time before this new life of theirs, when Mickey wondered why anyone bothered. Why Ian bothered.

But Mickey is better now, and despite his hesitation, the new attack makes him bristle. He gives up trying to hold Ian back, and squares his shoulders instead. Steps up to Ian’s tensed back, brows drawn low, and cracks dirty knuckles.

Ian lets one hand slide back, brushing his. He takes some of the dirt with him when he lets go, like it belongs there, belongs to both of them.

And it does belong to both of them. The dirt of the southside, never really left behind. The dirt of fear, and mistakes, and fights fought to make things better. The dirt they both dug through to reach each other, to reach this place, this time, this happiness that no asshole with too-clean hands could ever take away from them again.

The dirt sticks to them, or they to the dirt, it doesn’t matter. What matters is Ian moving again, leaning in as close as he can get to the man that acts more like an enemy than their neighbor, and biting out his next words like bullets.

“I asked,” Ian says, voice low and tight, “what you said to my husband, you fucking worthless prick.”

His husband. Mickey. Chosen once and again and again, despite his past, despite his family, despite the filth that he brought with him. They washed that filth off together.

It’s that knowledge that has Mickey moving again. Putting a hand soft on Ian’s shoulder, squeezing once, letting go.

“Hey,” he murmurs, almost too quiet for any ears but Ian’s. “It’s okay, really.”

Ian looks at him this time, some part of him relaxing from that simple touch even as he holds onto his anger.

“But he said—”

“Yeah, I know,” Mickey agrees. “He said some really stupid shit, and you want to pound his face in.” Ian blinks.

“Shit, worse?” Mickey asks. “Break his jaw?” No response. “Rip his tongue out?” Ian tilts his head, considering. “Shoot him in the fucking head?”

Their neighbor balks, perhaps finally realizing what he’s gotten himself into. He steps back, once, twice, then takes off toward his own family’s garden plot like he’s afraid they’ll pull a gun out of their skinny jeans and tank tops.

It doesn’t matter. It doesn’t matter that he gathers his family up with hurried motions and scared glances, carts them away like Mickey’s presence is a danger. It doesn’t matter because Ian is looking at him, and starting to smile, and pulling him closer until his own white shirt is covered in the same dirt that’s spread over Mickey’s.

“You used to like it when I got protective,” Ian says. “Not that long ago, you would have been handing me a knife, and now you’re letting some asshole get off scot-free while you talk me down.”

“Never liked that shit,” Mickey argues, “can take care of myself, you just got anger issues.”

Ian raises an eyebrow, and Mickey relents.

“Alright, maybe I liked it a little,” he admits, folding himself into Ian’s arms, ignoring that they’ll probably both have to throw their clothes away if they ever want to be clean again. “But his kids were watching, and you’re not that guy.”

Ian frowns, looks over to the now-empty plot where the little family had once been.

“You’re not that guy either,” he says, “and he shouldn’t have said you were.” His eyes are soft when they land on Mickey again, soft and full of something that Mickey had only recently learned the name for.

“You’re so much better than that, Mick,” Ian says earnestly, cupping Mickey’s face with a dirty palm, and Mickey pushes into it. Turns his head to plant a kiss there, right over a smear of dirt that had come from his own skin.

“I know,” he says simply. “I love you too.”

Then he smiles.

“Now let’s go take that fucking bath.”

[deanie1987]

Yep I was pretty sick this past year and my son, who only ever said it in response, has been saying it to me all the time and it’s just so sweet 😭

When you’re saying “i love you” to your parents as a kid, you hardly realize how much it really feels to hear until your own kids tell them to you.

#and he’s a pre-teen #and known to be surly #but he has been the sweetest most helpful kid this year

[deanie1987]

baby :(

#no not the middle pic #do I detect a hidden tear? 🕵️ #I hate that Mickey hit him though I get it #but that bruise fits his mood perfectly #and makes him even sadder #as does that sad ass shirt that he was returning #he’s SO obvious #Byron knows what’s up though #gallavich #ian x mickey #10x10

[deanie1987]