Not an hour after Beyond Birthday's mother has given him Shinigami eyes, a ten-year-old boy with dusty blond hair waits down the hall outside his mother's room. Starting today, he's going to be a big brother, and his mum and dad are in there right now, getting his new baby brother out and ready to face the world. Marcus Andrews grins happily, tapping a foot against the wall. His parents had gone out early that morning, and Mrs. Jenkins from next door had come to watch him until it was closer to the baby's arrival time. Marcus had tried to get his parents to agree to name his brother Tardis, but they just smiled and said they'd been thinking something more along the lines of Arthur. Oh, well. As long as his parents will let Arthur watch TV with him, he'll be happy.
A sudden noise comes from the room, and Marcus turns to the door. The door swings open and his father comes out, looking absolutely distraught. Mrs. Jenkins rushes over, speaking quietly with him. Marcus peers through the door that was left slightly ajar, and sees the doctor who'd gotten his brother. He can see a nurse holding a wailing blue blanket, and his mum in the bed across the room. A loud, constant beeping noise is coming from her bed, and the doctor has those funny metal panels that Marcus has seen on TV. There's a loud crackling and the beeping stops for a moment before resuming just as loud and frightening as it had been before. The doctor shocks Marcus's mum again, and Marcus turns to his dad for assurance that his mum will be okay.
His dad is crying silently, and Marcus doesn't think his mum will be okay. Mrs. Jenkins realizes the door is open, and pulls the boy away, hiding his face in her side.