Chapter 179: Ian Wants to Go to Military School
"I just want to check the admission requirements!" Ian shot back, meeting Lip's gaze without the slightest hesitation.
The truth was, after looking into it, he already knew—his grades weren't even close to the standard.
And honestly, even if they were, that still wouldn't guarantee him a spot at West Point.
Anyone who graduates from there doesn't just step into the upper layers of American society—they're practically already inside.
---
For someone like Ian—raised in the South Side, with parents who had a history of drug abuse—
aside from having a relatively clean record himself, he didn't meet a single one of the real criteria.
Even if he somehow scraped past the academic threshold, without a recommendation letter, his chances would still be slim to none.
---
Unless…
He followed the same path hinted at in the original storyline—
finding someone powerful on the inside.
Someone with enough influence.
And trading something in return.
That was the unspoken reality.
America loved to advertise fairness and opportunity on the surface—
but underneath, it was all tangled in military-industrial interests, academic elites, and entrenched networks.
For people like them—
changing their fate wasn't impossible.
But it was brutally difficult.
"West Point?" Lip repeated, frowning.
Compared to Ian, he actually understood that reality a bit more clearly.
In his mind, kids from the South Side like them simply weren't meant to have bright futures.
Of course, that way of thinking was overly pessimistic.
Worse—
he believed it too completely.
So completely that, later on, even when opportunities appeared right in front of him—
he still failed to seize them.
Difficult didn't mean impossible.
There were always ways.
Take marriage, for example.
It was one of the fastest ways to change your class.
In the original story, Amanda's father had actually thought highly of Lip.
If Lip had just maintained that relationship—
even married Amanda—
his entire life trajectory could have changed overnight.
But he didn't.
Because deep down, he was convinced—
people like them couldn't climb out.
And because of that belief, he had zero faith in Ian's dream.
"You've got to be kidding me," Lip scoffed. "You're actually taking this crap seriously?"
He looked at Ian like he couldn't believe what he was hearing.
To him, Ian just seemed naïve—
completely blind to how the world really worked.
Ian's temper flared instantly.
"I've been in ROTC for two years! What do you think that was for?!"
He shot back, his voice sharp with frustration.
Lip shrugged, utterly dismissive.
"I don't know. I figured it was just some teenage phase—doing dumb shit for fun."
---
The truth was—
Lip had never really taken anyone seriously except himself.
Not even Ian. Not Fiona. Not Debbie. Not anyone in the Gallagher family.
"I mean—do you really want to go get yourself shot in some '-stan' country?"
"'-stan'?" Ian frowned, clearly annoyed by Lip's tone.
"Yeah! Pakistan! Afghanistan! Iraq-stan!" Lip rattled off carelessly.
"I think I might actually love it. Do you get that, Lip?" Ian said, already tired of arguing.
The two of them were worlds apart in how they saw things. There was no point in continuing.
"Fuck…" Lip muttered.
And just like that, the room fell into silence.
After a while, Ian was the first to cool down. He let out a breath and said,
"Forget it. Don't worry about it. The admission requirements are insane anyway—I'm not getting in."
In Ian's mind, Lip was worried he'd die on the battlefield.
Not… whatever other reason Lip actually had.
If Lip knew that, he'd probably just sneer—
"You idiot little brother…"
"If I want to get in, I need at least a 4.2 GPA.
And a recommendation from someone like the President or whatever.
The only thing I'm sure I can pass is the physical test."
Lip hadn't expected the standards for West Point to be this high.
Then again, he had a habit of looking down on everything—so this wasn't surprising.
"What? So now the military only recruits straight-A students to go lose limbs in Kabul?" Lip scoffed.
To him, officers and soldiers were the same—
just different flavors of brute force.
Ian didn't even bother explaining anymore.
He knew exactly how arrogant Lip could be.
But then, unexpectedly, Lip's tone softened.
"You really want this?"
Seeing Ian's disappointed expression reminded him of something—
of himself, being shut down by Fiona when he wanted to drop out.
Back then…
he probably looked just like Ian did now.
---
Ian was confused by the sudden shift. He studied Lip for a moment, then answered seriously,
"Yeah."
"Fine. Screw it. Let's make this dumbass dream come true."
Truth be told, Lip wasn't really helping Ian.
He was helping himself.
A kind of twisted compensation.
Besides, he was convinced—
even with his tutoring, there was no way Ian could ever hit a 4.2 GPA.
So why not?
"Seriously?" Ian blinked, surprised.
Lip helping him? That felt… off.
"Of course! The President's from here, I'll tutor you—you've basically got this in the bag!"
Lip started spouting nonsense like it was fact.
Ian couldn't help but laugh.
Seeing that smile, Lip added,
"Still think it's fucking stupid, though."
But Ian just took it as a joke.
Right now, he was genuinely happy.
Deep down, he probably knew West Point was out of reach.
But the fact that Lip was willing to help—
that alone meant something.
---
After all, not everyone in this family was ungrateful—
like Lip… or Debbie.
The two brothers started roughhousing, shoving each other around.
For once, the atmosphere felt… light.
At the same time, on the other side of Chicago—
Sofia stood atop a utility pole, cloaked in the night.
The power of a vampire had given her an inhuman level of agility.
Even though she had only just gained these abilities—
her mastery over them was astonishing.
Whether it was absolute faith in William…
or something deeper—
she adapted faster than any so-called "genius" ever could.
At this point, even if Selene herself fought her one-on-one—
Sofia might not lose.
Because combat wasn't just about strength.
It was about will.
And will… was rooted in belief.
And when it came to belief—
Sofia's faith in William was absolute.
---
Not far away, Daisy's family stood beside a utility box.
A repair worker from the electric company was fixing their power.
For some reason—
ever since Bianca punched Daisy—
everything had gone wrong.
Her phone broke.
The house phone line went dead.
Even the electricity had cut out.
They'd had to borrow a neighbor's phone just to call for repairs.
And now—
under the cover of darkness—
Sofia watched them.