breath20k

Not just Alex. Luigi and Alex worked together for the win.

LiamTheYoshi

It sure is, man!

mariobroultimate

To me, kids are more likely to have stage fright than adults. Now to bring in the whole family for dinner.

StarlitDuck

It wasn't just Mario that gave Alex the motivation. Luigi and Aqua pitched in too.

9C - The Big Thanksgiving

"I'm so proud of you, honey!" Terry said with glee while straightening Alex's vest. "How did you get so good at tennis?"

"I just did, Mom," Alex answered.

It's 4:45 PM on November 25, 2004, five minutes before Mario and Luigi were expected to arrive at the Peterson residence. Terry's parents Trevor and Tracy were seated in the living room talking with Rocco while she assisted Alex into his semi-casual outfit.

On the other side of the house, Leah was making some last minute adjustments to her hair, which was straight and long. She wore a blue dress and blue glittered slippers.

Alex was wearing a grayish white dress shirt with a light brown vest, khaki pants, and black dress shoes. Terry wore a teal green dress and silver high heels.

"I think I'm ready to go downstairs," Alex said.

"You sure are," Terry agreed. "Let's go." She went downstairs with Alex to the living room.

Rocco wore a similar outfit to Alex's but it consisted of a solid white dress shirt with a gray vest, khaki pants, and brown dress shoes.

Grandpa Trevor, Terry's father, was 64 years old with a nearly bald head and wore black framed glasses. His outfit comprised of a solid gray dress shirt with gray jeans and brown dress shoes.

Grandma Tracy, Terry's mother, was the same age as Grandpa Trevor with short grayish brown hair and wore gray framed glasses. Her outfit was a reddish orange dress with black slippers.

"Hi, Dad!" Alex greeted Rocco while walking into the living room. He immediately became amazed at Alex's outfit before Grandpa Trevor and Grandma Tracy noticed Alex too.

"Wow, Alex! You look so handsome!" Rocco exclaimed before ruffling Alex's hair.

"You too, Dad. You're wearing different colors than me."

"Well, look who we have here!" Grandpa Trevor said. He stood up and approached Alex. "It's the mini version of Rocco!"

"Yeah. That's me," Alex chuckled before waving at Grandma Tracy. "Hi, Grandma Tracy."

"Hello, dear!" Grandma Tracy greeted Alex, who gave her a short hug. "I love your outfit. It's the best one I've seen yet."

"Thank you."

Seconds later, Leah came downstairs and waved at Rocco, Grandpa Trevor, and Grandma Tracy.

"Hi, everyone!"

"Leah! You look like you're going to the ball!" Rocco said before hugging Leah.

"Thank you, Dad," Leah giggled. She went up to Grandpa Trevor and Grandma Tracy and hugged them too.

"You look so pretty, Leah," Grandma Tracy remarked.

"I can't agree less," Grandpa Trevor told Grandma Tracy.

"How much longer is the turkey gonna cook?" Leah asked.

"Your dad said about 30 more minutes," Grandpa Trevor replied. "It should be out in time after all the guests are here."

"Okay."

Suddenly, the doorbell rang, getting everyone's attention.

"Oh! Jack must be early," Rocco said before walking toward the front door. He opened it and saw Mario and Luigi standing at the doorstep. Mario was wearing his red cap with a blue shirt and red overalls; Luigi wore the same outfit except his cap and overalls were green.

"Well, hello there, Rocco!" "Nice to see you!" Mario and Luigi greeted Rocco, who felt shocked at their appearance.

"Whoa! What a surprise it is!" Rocco said while shaking Mario and Luigi's hands. "Who invited you two?"

"Our number-one buddy. Isn't it obvious?" Mario asked.

"I guess so," Rocco chuckled. He stepped aside to allow the Mario Bros to walk inside and shut the door. Alex already stood up as he knew Mario and Luigi were coming in; everyone else didn't know they were invited.

The moment the Mario Bros showed themselves, Alex speed-walked toward them with open arms.

"Hello, buddy!" Mario said with excitement before he hugged Alex.

"Hi, Mario!" Alex responded; he hugged Luigi too. "Hi, Luigi!"

"Hi, Alex!" Luigi greeted Alex. "Thank you so much for inviting us to your dinner!"

"You're welcome," Alex replied before turning to Rocco. "Dad, let's introduce Mario and Luigi to everyone."

Rocco nodded, leading Alex and the Mario Bros into the living room. Leah turned to see Mario and Luigi and squealed with joy before hugging them.

"Hello, Leah!" "Hi!" Mario and Luigi exclaimed.

"Wow! I didn't know you were coming over!" Leah said.

"Your brother asked us to come over, and we couldn't help but accept his invitation," Luigi explained. Mario smiled big and kneeled in front of Leah.

"Mamma mia! You look just like Aqua!" Mario commented while looking at Leah's dress and comparing it to Aqua's outfit.

"I do?"

"Yeah! You got the blue dress and slippers on! Aqua has the same dress as you!"

"Thank you, Mario," Leah giggled.

"Where are your grandma and grandpa?" Mario asked after standing up.

"They're over there," Leah replied, pointing at Grandpa Trevor and Grandma Tracy. "Grandma! Grandpa! Look who's here!"

Grandpa Trevor turned to see Leah standing next to Mario and Luigi and gasped with shock, "Are you kidding me?"

"Not at all, Grandpa Trevor," Mario replied. Grandpa Trevor got up to shake Mario and Luigi's hands.

"I never thought you two were real," Grandpa Trevor said.

"Apparently, yes," Luigi responded. "But rest assured, we're not here to scare anyone."

"I know that, Luigi."

Grandma Tracy overheard him greeting Mario and Luigi and also became surprised.

"Mario? Luigi?" The Mario Bros turned to see Grandma Tracy stand up too.

"That's us," Mario said before shaking Grandma Tracy's hand. "Nice to meet you, Grandma Tracy."

"Thank you." Luigi also went to shake Grandma Tracy's hand. "Nice to see you too, Luigi."

"Thanks. Your grandson invited us over here," Luigi stated. "He wanted us to surprise everyone."

"Well, that was a cool surprise."

For the next 15 minutes, the Mario Bros talked with Grandma Tracy and Grandpa Trevor while Alex and Leah chimed in at certain points.

The doorbell rang again; this time, Rocco knew Uncle Jack was here. He went to the front door and opened it. Standing in front was Uncle Jack, his wife Kelsey, and his two children Chris and Maria.

Uncle Jack was one year younger than Rocco and had short brown hair. He was wearing a greenish brown polo shirt with khaki pants and black dress shoes.

Aunt Kelsey was a couple months older than Uncle Jack and had curly dirty blonde hair with gray framed glasses. She was wearing a black dress with gray slippers.

Chris was five years old and had a brown crew cut with a blue polo shirt, khaki pants, and gray sneakers.

Finally, Chris's sister Maria was one month older than Alex and had long blonde hair with a yellow bow in it. She was wearing a pink dress and red glittering slippers, making her mostly resemble Peach. Maria had a nervous look on her face, indicating she was shy.

"Well, good evening, Jack and Co.!" Rocco greeted Uncle Jack's family. "Thank you so much for coming over tonight."

"Every year, man," Uncle Jack replied while shaking Rocco's hand.

"Hi, Uncle Rocco!" Chris said with excitement, getting Rocco's attention.

"Hey, Chris!" Rocco gave Chris a high-five. "I see you've grown a small bit."

"Just a couple inches." Chris was referring to his recent growth spurt by about two inches from his typical height of 3 feet, 7 inches.

"Why don't you come inside? I shouldn't be leaving the door open." Rocco stepped aside to allow Uncle Jack and his family inside the house before shutting the door.

"How's Maria doing?" Rocco asked Aunt Kelsey. "She doesn't look happy."

"She is, Rocco," Aunt Kelsey said. "She's just uncomfortable around other people until she gets to know them well."

"Hehe. Just like Leah," Rocco chuckled.

Meanwhile, the Mario Bros, Alex, Leah, Grandpa Trevor, and Grandma Tracy were continuing to converse with each other. Alex overheard Rocco talking with Uncle Jack and went up to say hi to him.

"Hi, Uncle Jack!" Alex greeted Uncle Jack.

"Alex! It's been so long!" Uncle Jack exclaimed before hugging Alex. "What's going on lately?"

"I'll tell you at the table."

Alex followed Uncle Jack to the living room where Aunt Kelsey, Chris, and Maria were just about to say hi to the rest of Rocco's family and the Mario Bros.

Upon seeing Mario and Luigi through his own eyes, Chris became surprised and froze in place; he didn't know video game characters existed in real life.

"Mario?"

Mario overheard Chris say his name and turned to him.

"Oh! Hello, my friend! It's-a me, Mario! Wahoo!" Mario introduced himself while waving hello with his fingers. Chris smiled big and went up to hug Mario.

"I'm Chris, Alex and Leah's cousin."

"That's a nice name," Mario commented. "You want to say hello to Luigi?"

"Yeah." Chris turned to Luigi and waved hello. "Luigi!"

Luigi turned to see Chris waving at him and also became excited.

"Hello there!" Luigi greeted Chris while waving hello with his fingers. "What's your name?"

"Chris. I'm Alex and Leah's cousin."

"Nice to meet you, Chris! I'm Luigi! Wahoo!" Luigi introduced himself before Chris hugged him. "How are you tonight?"

"I was excited to come to Uncle Rocco's house, but now I'm even more excited because you and Mario are here!"

"That's brilliant! Alex asked us to come to the dinner, but he didn't tell everyone until just now."

"Luigi, I just finished your game Luigi's Mansion and I started the hard levels," Chris said. "I love how you were saving Mario from the ghosts."

Luigi blushed, having been praised for his heroic actions.

"Oh, thank you, Chris! You're so nice!" Luigi hugged Chris again. "And great job on finishing the game! I'm sure Mario appreciates your help too."

"Yeah. We both did it."

"Unbelievable!" Uncle Jack interjected while meeting Mario. "You and Luigi actually visit our world from time to time?"

"Yes, we do," Mario answered. "Your world is just as wonderful as the Mushroom Kingdom is. And it's a big honor to be friends with your brother's family."

"Well, thank you so much, Mario. It means a lot to all of us for you to be brought into our lives." Suddenly, Mario noticed Maria standing next to Uncle Jack and instantly became excited.

"Hello there, little princess!" Mario greeted Maria in a singsong voice. Maria could only look up at Mario's ecstatic face.

"I'm Mario! What's your name?"

"This is Maria," Uncle Jack said. "She's a bit shy, so go easy on her."

"All right-y." Uncle Jack walked away while Mario kneeled in front of Maria. He waved hello with his fingers.

"Hello, Maria! I'm so happy to meet you!"

"Uh... H-Hi..." Maria replied while hesitating to wave back. Mario's smile slowly disappeared as he felt sorry for Maria.

"Hey. It's okay, little princess. I'm not going to hurt you. I'm super friendly."

Maria nodded her head yes.

"Look at yourself!" Mario pointed out while smiling again. "You look like Princess Peach as a kid!" Mario laid his hands on his heart for a brief moment, having been touched by Maria's appearance. "Oh, mamma mia! That's so lovely!"

"Th-thank you...M-Mario..." Maria nervously thanked Mario; she had a small smile on her face.

"You're welcome. Is it okay if I call you Princess Maria?" Mario asked.

"Y-yeah..."

"Okey-dokey!" Mario held out his right palm. "High-five!"

Maria high-fived Mario at a slow pace before Mario held his arms out.

"Can I have a hug, please?" Mario asked. Maria walked toward Mario, who lightly embraced her; his arms nearly enveloped Maria completely. "Oh, thank you, Princess Maria. You made me so happy."

After Mario let go of Maria, he stood up again. "Do you want to say hello to Luigi?"

Maria nodded her head yes before Mario walked with her to Luigi; Luigi had been talking with Chris for the last few minutes.

"Hey, Luigi," Mario said, prompting Luigi to turn to him. "I want you to meet Alex's cousin Maria."

"H-hi...L-Luigi..." Maria greeted Luigi, who kneeled and waved hello to her.

"Hello, Maria. I'm so happy to meet you," Luigi replied before holding his arms out. "Give me a hug." Maria slowly approached Luigi, who gave her a big hug.

"Aww..." Mario said while holding his hands together. "This is so sweet..."

After he let go of Maria, Luigi looked at her outfit. "Ooh. You look pretty, Maria."

"Th-thank you..."

"Is it just me, or do you look like Princess Peach?" Luigi asked.

"I d-do..." Maria replied.

"Are you okay, Maria?" Luigi questioned with concern, having noticed Maria's nervousness.

"N-no..."

"What's the matter?" Mario walked away, leaving Maria to talk one-on-one with Luigi.

"I'm...a b-bit s-scared..."

"Don't be afraid, Maria," Luigi coaxed Maria. "Me and Mario are very nice. Trust me, I've been scared before."

"How...?"

"When me and Mario saved Princess Peach, I was scared of the people meeting us because there was so many of them," Luigi explained. "Mario was not afraid to meet everyone, but I couldn't get myself to talk. But as of today, I'm always happy to meet kids like you."

"Me t-too..." Maria agreed. Luigi laid his hand on Maria's shoulder.

"It's okay, Maria. I promise I'll be gentle with you," Luigi said with a smile.

"Okay..."

"You want to see your daddy again?" Luigi asked before standing back up.

"Yeah..." Luigi held Maria's hand and walked her to the kitchen where Uncle Jack and Rocco were waiting for the turkey to finish cooking.

It's now 5:45 PM, and everyone is seated at the dining room table with all the food laid out evenly, including the turkey in the middle of the table.

Rocco and Grandpa Trevor sat on the front and back ends respectively. On the left side from top to bottom were Grandma Tracy, Aunt Kelsey, Chris, Luigi, and Leah. On the right side from top to bottom were Terry, Maria, Mario, Alex, and Uncle Jack.

"Everyone bow your heads, please," Rocco announced, prompting everyone to bow their heads and close their eyes. Rocco was about to say grace.

"This Thanksgiving, let those of us who have much and those who have little gather at the welcoming table of the Lord. At this blessed feast, may rich and poor alike remember that we are called to serve on another and to walk together in God's gracious world. With thankful hearts, we praise our God who like a loving parent denies us no good thing. And together, we say..."

"Amen," everyone finished the prayer. Seconds later, Rocco took the carving knife and started cutting various slices of turkey to give to everyone. He made sure to leave the two drumsticks alone; Alex and Leah were each going to eat their own drumstick.

The sides included with the turkey were mashed potatoes with gravy, macaroni and cheese, Caesar salad, creamed corn, stuffing, and sweet potato casserole. There was also a small ham and cranberry sauce plate next to the turkey.

"Dad, make sure to get those marshmallows on my sweet potatoes," Alex told Rocco.

"You got it, Alex." Rocco took Alex's plate and put his drumstick on it before getting him his serving of sweet potatoes, stuffing, and cranberry sauce.

Meanwhile, Terry assisted everyone with their plates; they each got their share of turkey, ham, macaroni and cheese, stuffing, and mashed potatoes with the exception of Leah; she asked for sweet potatoes instead of the mashed potatoes.

"Thank you so much, Rocco," Mario thanked Rocco while eating his food. "You don't know how much me and Luigi are thankful for you taking us into your family."

"Well, you deserved it, Mario," Rocco replied. "After all that you've done for Alex, it's a miracle come true."

"Hey, guys," Alex told everyone. "I want to say something to you."

"I'm guessing you're going to tell us what you're thankful for?" Terry guessed.

"Yes, I am. You all know by now that I invited Mario and Luigi over for Thanksgiving yesterday, and I wanted to keep it a secret until tonight. Well, that's one thing I'm thankful for. Mario and Luigi, I'm SO thankful for you to be my bestest friends in the whole world. You don't know how happy that made me when I first met you two."

"When Dad and Leah showed me the Super Mario 64 game before I got the cancer, I wished that video game characters appeared in real life," Alex continued. "And it felt like I was dreaming when Mom introduced you to me, Mario. Not to mention when you and Luigi gave me the GameCube and Mario games a few weeks later, I didn't think my life was real anymore. Not that I strongly dislike my life; I love it."

"But I accepted that dream as real the more I spent time with you two. Even though it'll never be true, I still wish you were my big brothers because it feels like more than just a simple friendship."

"Alex, can I talk for a second?" Mario asked.

"Yeah."

"I love your speech so far, and it really touches my heart."

"Mine too," Luigi added in.

"But at the same time, it kind of hurts me to hear that you wish me and Luigi were your brothers because that tells me Leah was meant to be your only sibling," Mario admitted. He felt like he was gonna cry, and tried to hold it back.

"But that's true, Mario," Alex said.

"I know, but I've been wanting to say this for so many months now..." Mario started to tear up. "Um... C-can you..." Luigi gave Mario a tissue to wipe his eyes.

"What is it?"

"I-I...wanted t-to b-believe...th-that w-we were...j-just f-friends...but I l-look at...y-your face...a-and... A-and I c-can't help...b-but see you a-as...a t-true b-brother to m-me...!"

Some of the guests also teared up at Mario's small speech with Rocco being one of them, but Alex and Luigi were not emotional.

"W-what I'm a-asking is... Uh..." Mario stopped for a brief second because he was hesitating to ask the question of his life. His tears were starting to flow more. "A-Alex... PLEASE B-BE M-ME AND L-LUIGI'S LITTLE B-BROTHER...! PLEASE...!"

Alex hugged Mario to calm him down. "How could I say 'no' to that, Mario? That's been one of my biggest wishes in my life. I'm more than glad to be you and Luigi's little brother."

Everyone stood up and gave Alex and Mario a standing ovation.

"Th-thank y-you...b-buddy...!" Mario thanked Alex. "I-I've n-never been h-happier...in m-my life...!"

"Me too," Alex agreed.

"I should thank you too, Alex," Luigi said. "You as me and Mario's brother means a lot more than anything else. Well, me being Daisy's boyfriend makes me really happy, and I love her a lot, but this moment is a bit better. All of our dreams of becoming a trio of brothers have finally come true, and believe me, me and Mario will always be thankful for our brotherly love forever. I love you, Alex."

Alex got up to hug Luigi too, causing everyone to aww with affection and applaud afterward.

"I love you too, Luigi. And that goes for you, Mario," Alex said.

"I love you too, Alex..." Mario sniffled before blowing his nose.

30 minutes later, everyone had finished their dinner and Terry was getting the desserts ready: pumpkin pie, cherry pie, vanilla ice cream, bread pudding, and strawberries and cream.

"I haven't had cherry pie in forever," Mario remarked before getting his dessert plate. "I might as well have a slice of that."

"Why not pumpkin?" Alex asked.

"I like pumpkin pie too, but I personally like cherry a bit better."

"All right. Fine by me."

Mario served himself a big slice of cherry pie before topping it with whipped cream, Alex got a slice of pumpkin pie with vanilla ice cream, and Luigi also got pumpkin pie, but added some bread pudding on the side.

Everyone else took their choice of dessert before either sitting back at the dining room table, or mingling with each other at different parts of the house.

"Dad, can you, Mom, and Leah come to the last tennis game tomorrow morning?" Alex asked Rocco.

"First off, your mom and Leah are going shopping at the mall tomorrow, and I have some work to do that day too. I mean, I'd love to put it off until Saturday, but my boss has high expectations for me," Rocco replied.

"I understand. I'll just imagine you cheering for me from the tent," Alex said.

"Good idea."

"Hey, buddy," Mario said from behind Alex, who turned to see him.

"Hi, Mario."

"I wanted to tell you that Luigi said the game tomorrow is at 8:00 in the morning, so I suggest you go to bed early after we leave."

"Okay," Alex paused for a moment to think of something else. "Um... Can I sleep at your pad tonight?"

"Sure, you can!" Mario replied. "There's a guest room in the back of the pad that I'll set up for you. Make sure to bring your outfit with you."

"Is that all right, Dad?" Alex asked Rocco.

"You made the right choice, son," Rocco said. "But let's finish our dessert and say good night to everyone first."

After finishing his pumpkin pie, Alex quickly went upstairs to pack his toiletries and tennis outfit and set his backpack in front of his bedroom door for now.

Then, another 25 minutes passed before Grandpa Trevor, Grandma Tracy, and Uncle Jack's family were ready to leave. After the Mario Bros, Alex, Leah, Terry, and Rocco said good night to the guests, Terry, Leah, and Rocco started cleaning up the kitchen and dining room. Mario and Luigi stood in the foyer, waiting for Alex to get his backpack.

"Good night, Mom. Good night, Dad. Good night, Leah," Alex told Terry, Rocco, and Leah while leaving with the Mario Bros.

"Good night, Alex," Terry, Rocco, and Leah replied in unison. Rocco shut the door shortly thereafter.

"All right-y. Let's-a go," Mario said before spawning the Warp Pipe to head back to Mario's Pad.