5:19 AM. Pauline was still asleep beside him. Mario ain't feel like going back to sleep though. He could probably get up without waking her. Through the window, Mario saw the snowy, rainy slush on the street.

Screw it. He silently started to crawl out of bed. Pauline had swung by the apartment and gotten him some clothes. A red shirt and brown overalls with one of his company's signature red hats with an M on it. He put a jacket over them and added some boots.

Walking to the living room, Mario tapped the heads of Hiro and Kiyo. "Come on you two. Let's go for a walk. Keep it down."

Quietly grabbing an umbrella, the trio snuck out of the apartment and Mario locked the door as silently as possible.

"Kimishima Hospital ain't too far from here," Mario said, putting leashes on the duo before going down the steps. "How about we go pay Luigi a little visit? You two would like that, wouldn't you?"

"Arf!" "Quack!" They said at hearing Luigi's name, eager to see him.

"Let's move, then."

There weren't too many people on the street at this hour and in this weather. A woman sitting at a bus station, lighting up a cigarette. Two dudes walked past Mario without so much as making eye contact. A guy was shivering in an alley. A couple of cats searched through trash cans for food. A couple of people were standing on the corner on the other side of the street. One of them might have said something to Mario, but he just ignored it and kept walking.

Drops of cold rain slapped Mario's face. It didn't matter. His umbrella was keeping most of it away. He noticed Hiro and Kiyo were staying under the umbrella's protection too.

"Don't worry about this cold, we're almost there."

Walking into the hospital, Mario closed his umbrella. Hiro and Kiyo shook off the stray rain.

"We don't allow animals in the hospital," the woman at the desk told him.

"I heard that the policy was different for terminal and ICU patients. I can verify they both got their shots, but they should already be in the computer as safe, verified pets."

"Who are you here for?" She turned to the computer.

"Luigi Martinet. I'm Mario Martinet, his brother. The pets' names are Hiro and Kiyo."

After a few seconds of typing, she nodded her head. "Alright. You're free to pass. I trust you already know the room number?"

"Yeah, I do. Thanks." Mario and the duo proceeded to move through the hospital. Someone was shouting in the distance. In one of the rooms left open, a family was praying with an old lady on a hospital bed. Nurses moved around him.

193. Luigi's room. He knocked on the door.

"Come in."

Mario was surprised Luigi was up at this hour, but Hiro and Kiyo didn't seem to mind. Hiro pawed at the door, trying to push through it, and Kiyo's wings flapped in excitement.

Mario opened the door to see his brother lying in a hospital bed. Luigi was still rather pale but he had a little more color to him than before.

"Thought you'd be asleep." Mario said.

"Arf! Arf!"

"Quack!"

Hiro and Kiyo jumped up in Luigi's bed, snuggling in with him and licking his face.

"Nice to see you two, too," Luigi said, running his hands through their fur and feathers. "But yeah, I was asleep until half an hour ago. Damn phantom pains. God, they hurt."

"Phantom pains?" Mario repeated. "Ain't that when you-"

"I know what it is, I don't need to be reminded." Luigi snapped.

There was a silence between the two of them. Feeling the tension, Hiro and Kiyo quieted down. Hiro let out a little whimper.

"What'd you come all the way here for at this hour anyways?" Luigi asked.

"I just came here to talk, man," Mario replied. "I wanted to say I'm sorry."

"Sorry for what?"

"Sorry that I'm the reason you're in here."

"You weren't the one holding the guns," Luigi said. "I don't know what you're feeling guilty for, man."

"You wouldn't have been there to get shot if you weren't running behind my shit, going around being a plumber."

"And what? It's Mom and Dad's fault for giving birth to me?" Luigi responded. "Man, you're blaming yourself for no reason. People get shot every day. It happens. Look," Luigi pushed his body so that he was sitting up, "when you're sitting on a bed, and you can't move at all, and all you got are these four walls, that ceiling, that floor, and a window, and you got nothing else left, all you do is think. It puts everything in perspective. And you realize what matters."

He took a deep breath. "Mario, I'm suffering enough for the both of us. Just make sure you take care of Mom and Dad. They still need you."

"You need me, too." Mario said.

"Mario, it's too late for me." Luigi said. 'I've-"

"Don't say that." Mario cut him off. "Whatever you do, don't say that. You are still alive. And you are still my brother. I am never leaving you."

"Mario, get real for a second!" Luigi shouted. "What, you think I want to be in this hospital bed with more bullets in my ass than I can count?! Just yesterday, I looked out of the door and I saw a guy being rolled around on a wheelchair, and I could think to myself was: that's going to be my life from now on, until the day I die. Listen, the operation may or may not work, but what you should be doing right now is focusing on staying out of prison, because somebody needs to take care of our parents and, spoilers Mario, it ain't gonna be me!"

"Man, I am..." Mario paused. "Wait a sec, what operation?"

"Doctors wanted to try and operate, maybe give me my legs back." Luigi made a face. "Mom and Dad didn't tell you?"

"No. No, they didn't."

"Sorry, I just assumed that Dad told you."

"I think I'll have a talk with Dad. Hiro, Kiyo, come on! We gotta go." Mario waved his arms, signaling them to come over, and the pets hopped off the bed.

"Wait, what are you going to do?" Luigi asked nervously.

"I'm just gonna ask why they didn't tell me."

"I'm sure it's nothing. Don't start a fight with our parents," Luigi said. "Please."

"I'm not. I just wanna get the details, is all." Mario opened the door. Hiro and Kiyo walked by him.

"Before you go, promise me something," Luigi said. "Pauline said that you'll probably beat the charge, and if that happens, if you don't go to prison, no matter what else happens, just promise me that you'll take care of Mom and Dad. Promise me that, Mario."

"I promise." Mario paused. "Try to get some sleep. See you later later, bro. I love you."

"I love you too. Peace."


Walking up to his parent's house, Mario knocked on the door.

"Coming." He heard his father's voice before Lou opened the door a few seconds later. "Hey Mario, what do you need?"

"Nothing, just wanted to talk." Mario turned his head down the street."What's going on over there?"

"Oh, they're filming some new show, think it's called Order and Law, Law and Justice, something like that."

"Luigi said you guys were doing an operation so he can walk again. That true?"

"Yeah. Doctors said they might have a chance to fix him if they do surgery. I'm not sure if I believed them, but your mother was willing to do it in a heartbeat."

"How are you going to pay for that? That kind of surgery ain't no joke."

"The cost don't matter. We can afford it. We took the money our family has saved over the years and using it for Luigi."

"Are you serious?"

"The whole point of that money was to use it for a rainy day. And right now, Luigi's in a monsoon." Lou raised his eyebrow. "You're acting like my son has a price."

"I just wish you would have told me! I would have chipped in with a little cash, since I'm closing down the plumbing business."

"You are?"

"I mean, I have to, don't I? Assuming I stay a free man, the apartment is still destroyed, thanks to the drive-by, and more importantly, Luigi is going to need all the care and help he can get. I'll just work for you in the pizza parlor."

"Well, I can't think of a better idea," Lou said. "Hate that you have to close down your business. Your mother told me how good you were doing. Kept that business up. If Luigi hadn't gotten shot, I'm sure you would have succeeded."

"It was a stupid idea anyway." Mario said. "I never should have opened up the plumbing business. You were right. I should have stayed with you. I'm sorry."

"No son, I owe you an... I might not say this enough but... I'm proud of you. I mean it. I'm proud that my sons started a business and worked their asses off to keep it going." Lou hugged his son. "I love you. And I love Luigi. You two mean more than the world to me. You're a successful businessman, Mario."

"A successful businessman?" Mario stared at the floor. "My brother gets shot and my store gets destroyed, and I'm a success? Funny; I don't feel like a success."

Lou gave Mario a pat on the back. "Well, hopefully the operation goes well, and your brother can walk again. Who knows? Maybe you two can start up the plumbing business again."

"Yeah." Mario looked away. "Sure."

"Anyways, is that all you came over here for?" Lou asked. "Come on in, get yourself some breakfast."

"Sorry, I gotta go. I have to finish up the rest of the booked appointments for the plumbing. I'll catch you later."

"Alright then. See you later, son."

I wonder what Mac's doing? Mario thought as he and Hiro and Kiyo walked down the street back to Pauline's place. Hope he's having a better day than I am.


"182." Granny Louis counted. "183."

Mac was gasping for air. His arms felt like they were about to snap off. His knees buckled.

"184. 185. 186. Control your breathing now. Almost there."

The sun's heat felt like someone placed an anvil on his back. The gravity of the earth pulled in like a rope.

"187. 188. 189. Faster you do them push-ups boy, faster its gon' be over."

Sweat stung his eyes and made a small little puddle under his face. He froze in the middle of his push-up. "Gah! It's in my eye!"

"Come on now Mac, it's just some sweat. You'll live. Keep going. 190. 191."

Mac closed his eyes. The sweat still stinging. He felt blind. This was awful.

Granny Louis noticed Mac was going slower. The heart he was putting into it was disappearing. Fast. "One ninetyy-two!" She started going slower. "I'm going as fast as you Mac, fast as you! Get this over with! Come one!" One ninteyyy-three! One ninteyyyy-four. Come on boy!" She shouted. "Do them push-ups! You right there! You right there! Keep going! Up! Down! Up! Down!"

Half of Mac's concentration was just trying to not hit the ground. He was going to fail. He just knew it.

"One ninteyyyyy-five! One ninteyyyyyy-six!" Granny Louis knelt to the ground and shouted in Mac's ear. "Get to two hundred boy! You can do this Mac! Keep that chest off the ground! Keep that chest off the ground! One ninteyyyyyyy-seven! I tell you what boy if you let that chest hit the ground we gon' start all the way over from 0! And I ain't playing around! You gon' do these push-ups boy! What's it gon' be Mac?! Now or later?! Now or later?! Come on come on! Raise that chest! Raise that chest!"

Mac felt the oxygen in his chest leak out like a gas pipe. There was no way he could do this. He arms shook ylike Jell-O. He could give out at any second

One ninteyyyyyyyy-eight! Just two more boy! Just two more before you can get some water! Don't touch the ground! That's all you gotta do! That's all you gotta do! Bend them arms! Bend them arms! One ninteyyyyyyyyy-nine! get them arms back straight Mac! Get them straight! One more! One more! All I need is one more! Do you got one more left in you?! I know you do! One more and it's over! One more and it's over! Get down, but don't touch that ground! Don't you touch it!"

Mac screamed as he raised his body in one last effort. He straightened his arms as much as they could go.

"Two hundred!"

Mac collapsed on the ground, still screaming in agony. Every muscle in his body was exhausted. He felt like he was about to puke.

"That's it boy! There we go!" Granny Louis clapped for him. "That's the effort you gon' need if you wanna win this fight!" She placed down three water bottles next to Mac's hand. "Drink up boy! You earned it! Doing several hundred push-ups in the Alabama sun at midday ain't no joke! I'm proud of you! You gotta be in some shape to do that. Along with all that running and punch-throwing, you did good today. Now tomorrow, Jerome gone help us with the rock throwing so you get ready now, but let's just head home and we can worry about that later.


You tell me it's alright, you don't mind a little pain.

You say you just want me to take you for a ride.