CHAPTER 53

The next morning. Christmas Eve. A day that for many was one of the happiest of the year, where families met up and united to spend time together and celebrate the holiday. Well Marcos sure as hell wasn't going to be doing any of that, he thought, as his eyes slowly opened that morning. He hadn't slept a wink last night, as his mind had been whirring to quickly for him to even stand a chance at a few hours of shut-eye. He was trying to process everything that had happened in what felt like an emotional rollercoaster of a day, like it was three days rolled into one.

It had all started with the anniversary of his mom's death. 5 years since he had lost her, and it hurt just as much as the first week. This open wound inside him would never heal, not for as long as he lived. No amount of love, affection or anything from anyone else in the world would be able to make up for what he lost 5 years ago.

And if that didn't make yesterday shitty enough, what happened right after he got home rocked him to his very core. The entire night, Marcos' mind had replayed the events in slow-motion over and over again. He saw his father's fist ruthlessly swinging at his jaw. He saw the manic look in his father's eyes, like in that moment he had lost any kind of familial bond with his son and all his son had become was the person trying to take his drink from him. He didn't care that they were related. He didn't care that Marcos was only trying to help him. At that moment, Marcos was the enemy, and his father hadn't hesitated to get physical with him in retaliation.

Right after it had happened, while Marcos had been in shock about it all, he had tried to play it down for himself. He told himself that this was just another part of his father's tough situation. Or that he was having a tough day so Marcos should just let it go. But as the shock wore off, Marcos realized what it actually was: it was abuse. It was physical child abuse. There was no other way to put it. This wasn't just his father being tough with his words. Nor was this him and his father sparring in a consensual, controlled fight. This was a man taking advantage of his son and releasing his anger and his anguish on him. And Marcos had the lingering throbbing in his jaw where his father had connected to support that point.

That morning, as Marcos sat in his locked bedroom, he could feel his anxiety already through the roof. It was Christmas Eve, but he knew that he had morning training to get to at the dojo right now. However, Marcos couldn't bring himself to go, couldn't even bring himself to leave his room. In all honesty, he was terrified. He was terrified to unlock the bedroom door and walk out into the main living room and kitchen, where he could hear his father. How would his dad react to his presence? Was he still angry? Would he continue to try and hit Marcos? Would he apologize? Would he pretend it never even happened and expect Marcos to play along?

These fears rattled through Marcos' mind as he lay in bed, trying desperately to find the courage to stand up and leave his room. He felt pathetic. Like a 5 year old kid who was scared of the unknown monsters that could be lingering around any corner. Well, this person was sure as hell not unknown, and if anything that caused Marcos' fear to increase a hundredfold.

Eventually though, Marcos forced himself out of his bed, looking at his watch and seeing that he was already late for training, something he NEVER was. He needed to get out of the house now. He genuinely debated the possibility of trying to slip out through his bedroom window, but he couldn't as the window was broken and could only open a small amount. That was the only thing that prevented him from doing that. That's how scared he was of what was about to come. It was a situation Marcos never in a million years expected himself to be in, as his father had never made to hit him before, so he felt like a fish completely out of water. Glancing upwards and praying to whatever Deity could potentially be up there listening to him, Marcos grabbed his duffel bag and with already trembling hands, unlocked his bedroom door and walked out into the living room…

For a moment, everything felt… normal. There was nothing abnormal evident in the living room, nothing to suggest what had happened late last night. Their house was still immaculately spotless. Sun still streamed in through the blinds. The strong smell of coffee that his father had brewed still filled the air. That's when Marcos turned his attention to that very smell, and he saw that his father was indeed sitting at the table, drinking a cup of coffee, staring at him expectantly.

Marcos' hands, that he had slipped into his pockets, immediately curled into fists, preparing to defend himself in case of a potential fight. Not like he would stand much of a chance though. His father was a STRONG man. Much stronger than Marcos. He worked as a construction worker which provided him with almost herculean strength, and after decades of Martial Arts, was even more skilled a Martial Artist than his son. A combination that Marcos really didn't stand a chance on the receiving end of.

But his father didn't seem like he wanted to fight. Instead, he gestured to the kitchen table opposite him, where he had placed a second mug of coffee, presumably for his son.

"Please. Sit. Drink this." Marcos' father said, almost kindly, however Marcos could instantly tell based on the man's tone that he was very hungover. The way he almost struggled through his sentence, the way he was hunched over the table, the way his head drooped slightly, the way his eyes squinted away from the light… he clearly had had WAY too much to drink the night before.

Marcos's eyes narrowed as he stared at the man, not daring to sit down and lower his guard in that way. Instead, he shook his head.

"I don't drink caffeine and coffee." Marcos replied quietly. His dad shrugged.

"There's juice in the fridge. And water. Pour yourself something and come sit down. We need to talk about what happened last night." His father said. Marcos shook his head as he prepared to walk past his father and out the door.

"We have nothing to talk about. And I need to get to training now. I'll see you later, dad." Marcos said, before trying to walk past his father. However, before he could get very far, he suddenly felt his father grab hold of him by the wrist extremely tightly, constricting his wrist like a serpent, preventing him from being able to walk away.

"Look, Marcos, I'm sorry for last night. But we need to make sure we're clear about what happens next…"

"Ow! Dad! You're hurting me!" Marcos exclaimed, trying to wrest his arm out of his father's clutches but proving unsuccessful.

"You don't tell anyone about what happened, you hear me?" His father asked in a cold, deathly calm voice. His son on the other hand was seriously panicking as he thrashed in his father's grip.

"Dad! Let me fucking go!" Marcos shouted at him, but his father wouldn't relent. He was sure that his was turning blue right now. With the force that his father was squeezing his arm with, he was sure that he had lost circulation to his hand.

"Let me hear you say it… you won't tell anyone about what happened." His father growled. Marcos' hand was shaking so violently by this point that he was surprised his hand didn't fully vibrate out of his dad's grip.

"I won't! I won't, okay?! I won't tell anyone!" He exclaimed, and sure enough, his father finally let go of his arm. Not even taking a moment to massage the pain from his wrist, Marcos took his opportunity and ran out of the house to the dojo as fast as he could…

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If what Marcos was going through was hell, across town what the Miyagi-Dos were going through was pure heaven. It was Christmas Eve and they were enjoying it to the fullest. Now that Johnny, Robby and Miguel had gotten them a massive tree for the dojo, the Miyagi-Dos were able to truly turn their training location into a winter wonderland. A fully decorated tree, fake snow and christmas hangings were just a few of the things in sight. They were truly going all-out on this Christmas Eve morning.

Truth be told, they needed this. They all desperately needed it. Things had been so tough, training had been so hard for the past few months that they really could use this break, as a morale boost if nothing else. But to be fair, morale at the dojo was higher than it had ever been. The new training method that Daniel, Johnny and Chozen had decided to incorporate had clearly been working extremely well, and so they were all not only better fighters than ever, but were also happier than ever. At least, most of them were.

As Daniel and Johnny watched the teenagers joyfully decorate the dojo together, they stood together in the back corner of the Miyagi-Do yard. Their eyes were both on the same person, and they were concerned as they watched the person carefully.

"Shannon told me what's happening. How's he doing?" Daniel asked as he and Johnny looked at Robby. Johnny sighed, worry evident on his face.

"Not great." Johnny admitted. "I tried to take him and Miguel to get a tree with me. We went to the forest and cut it down ourselves. Thought that would be a fun way to take his mind off what was happening. Didn't really work to be honest. He barely said a word to any of us. He's clearly not right."

"You mean he doesn't want his mom to go?" Daniel asked. Johnny shrugged.

"I don't know for sure, to be honest. He claims he's happy and cool with it, but I can tell he isn't." Johnny said. Daniel nodded understandingly.

"Can't blame him. After everything, everyone who's abandoned him in the past, to now have his mom leaving too… it can't be easy." Daniel said. He was absolutely right. Robby had been abandoned at one point or another by pretty much everyone around him. One of the only constants, however unconstant she might have been, was Robby's mom. And now to have to face the fact that she's leaving too… it was completely understandable that Robby might have some resentment or abandonment issues because of it.

"Yeah." Johnny agreed quietly. "Keep an eye out for me, would you? I know he spends more time at your dojo than mine, so if you notice anything…"

"I will. Don't worry, Johnny." Daniel replied. "He's going to be fine. Kids are strong like that."

With that, Johnny and Daniel decided to call the entire group over and address them all together…