That night, the boxers had all retreated to their accommodated apartment complex to rest for the night. The WVBA provided free rooms for the boxers during the boxing season. Each and their own room, and a shared kitchen space. At the moment, the latter area was being inhabited by the two strongest champions.

Macho and Sandy sat, quietly chatting over a nice cup of coffee. Except it was mostly Sandman talking as Macho, for once, shut his mouth. Unable to muster any words. The Cali man simply sat on the barstool that stood by the kitchen island and stared at his hands. They were slightly trembling. He tried to make them stop, but an unconscious feeling in his head wouldn't let him. Sandman knew why he was quiet, this sudden change of behavior didn't come out of nowhere. In fact, he was partially responsible for starting it.

----Earlier That Day----

"Come on you two! Crack on!" Doc cried, timing the two giants as they went at it on the bags. Sandman, as to be expected, was in the lead, and by a mile too. Aran and Don both cheered him on from the side. Macho was trying his best to keep up with his friend's pace. However, as he kept going at it, he felt himself beginning to lose his breath and stumble. Often missing the bag. Frustration grew on his face. "COME ON, CARLOS! YOU AREN'T EVEN TRYING!" Doc teased. Sandman gave a small chuckle and shot his friend a cheeky look. "What's wrong? Are you not feeling Macho enough today?" He asked. "SHUT UP!" Macho screamed back, his punches growing faster, but still missing the bag. His face was growing red and flustered and the corner of his eyes began to sting.

Finally, he gave a scream of defeat and yanked the bag down from the hook in a huff before storming off to the locker rooms. Sandman rolled his eyes with a chuckle, "Aw come on now, Carly" he joked, following after him. He pushed open the locker room doors with a laugh, "Really now, you gonna be that bad of a sp-" Sandman started, his smile dropping when he saw Macho in the corner of the Locker room. His head rested on his right hand, and gripped tightly around his eyes. Quiet, choked sobbing could be heard from the man, he brought his hand down from his eyes and over his mouth as he gripped his necklace tightly in his other hand. He sniffled before wiping away any excess tears, catching Sandman in the corner of his eye. “Sandy! I-I…I was just…I got some cologne in my eye and-” he said, fumbling around with an excuse. Sandy shook his head and sat next to him, “What’s wrong? Surely this wasn’t because of what I said, right?” he asked. The other man shook his head, wiping at his nose. 

The other man had to ponder for a reason as to why this was happening, when suddenly, it clicked. “This is because of Aran yesterday, isn’t it?” he asked, Macho didn’t respond for a bit, instead staring at the floor of the locker room. “It…it reminded you…” Sandman had to pause, and really think about the next words out of his mouth, “...reminded you of…of him…didn’t it?” Clearly the wrong choice as Macho suddenly began to cry again. It was such a rare sight to see. Macho’s…well Macho personality shielded any outward emotional bursts like this. Sandman could only recall one other time that this happened…the day he retired his dad after winning a match. Admittedly, it was a happy moment for both of them. He got to box his dad in one of the grandest matches of that time, and his dad got to go out of the ring with a bang. But it didn’t take away from the hurt. Being the reason someone has to stop doing what they love? It sucked. Albeit, his dad was getting old anyways but even then…

Sandman sighed and brought a hand to Macho’s shoulder and gave a reassuring pat. He wasn’t good with comforting others. That was usually Disco’s job. He tried to give the other man a smile to let him know it was alright. “It’s ok, Carlos,” he said, quietly, “It’s not gonna happen again…we won’t let it happen again, alright? I promise”, “You can’t promise that” Macho growled through gritted teeth, “No one in this damn building can promise that!”, “Yeah, well I-” Sandman went to speak, but he cut himself off. He really couldn’t guarantee his claim, and he knew saying anything more might make it worse. “Just…go…” Macho said quietly, turning away from the other man, “...I-I’ll come out in a bit”

Sandy didn’t really believe that, but still he obeyed his friend’s request and made his way out of the locker room. 

-------------------

They hadn’t spoken to each other since then. Sandman had tried to get a word in to him, but always found himself occupied trying to help one of the other guys. It was frustrating. He finally managed to convince Macho to come out and talk tonight, when everyone else had gone off to sleep. A brief bit of silence lingered between them before Sandman finally spoke again, "Hey, look…I-I'm sorry for making you cry-", "I WASN'T-'' Macho went to protest, but caught himself when he remembered how late it was. Taking a deep breath and sigh, he looked the other man dead in the eyes and whispered in a low tone, "What happened in there…just forget it…it was unprofessional a-and its not gonna happen again…"

"Carlos-"

"No, Davis…I-I'm not going to let myself be vulnerable like that…not again…"

“You don’t have to be…I promise it won’t happen again…”

Macho shot a look at Sandman before sighing and resuming to look down at the countertop. Occasionally fiddling with his necklace. “This whole situation is…” Macho started, Sandy perked up and gave a cheeky smile, “...it’s just so stupid!” Damnit. Sandman regained himself and looked off to the clock on the wall, “Look, how about we go see Pops tomorrow, yeah?” he said. The Cali man had to pause before looking up at the other with curious eyes, “Wha- Why?”, “Maybe they can just…well they…” 

To be honest, Sandman didn’t really have a reason, he just thought seeing his old man might be nice, especially given what had happened, it might be good for them. “...Maybe it would…be nice to go and see them…?” He finally said. The two men sat quietly before Macho gave a resounding nod and smile, “Sure, why not. I think it’d be pretty sick” he said.

Sandman smiled. Some of the Macho he knew was beginning to come back. That was good. 

“Alright then…I’ll see you tomorrow, we go 10 o’clock, sharp”

“Sounds like a done deal”

“Night, Carlos”

“Goodnight, Davis” 

Soon, both men went down the halls to their respective rooms and tucked in for the night. As Sandman settled into his bed, he couldn’t help but think about another member who was on edge today. He wondered when Disco Kid would be coming back…

---------

Disco pulled up outside the large mansion home. Its huge towering walls reached to the nightsky. The house was a special bonus he got after his mom married millionaire music producer Donovan 'EDM' Miller. They had been living here comfortably for most of their lives. Donovan was a wonderful man…he was a great father…but after seeing what he saw... 

Disco sat in the car, his hands tightly gripped on the wheel. Was he really going to do this? Was he really going to ruin this for his family? His heart hurt from this decision…but he needed answers.

He opened the car door and slammed it shut. In an instant, the front door opened and a portly man dressed in very casual evening wear appeared. “Master Devon” he spoke, “Reginald” Disco replied.

“What are you doing out at this hour? Should you not be back at the apartments?” Reginald asked.

Disco shook his head, “I…I should but…there’s something I gotta talk to Mom about…”

“Would you like me to take your coat?”

“No, Thank you, this won’t take long…hopefully”

Disco made his way up the stairs leading to the door and into the warm embrace of the mansion. It had a rustic interior. Dazzled with warm colors and floorboards. Suppose it made it seem friendlier. There was a staircase just off to the side of the entrance room, leading up to the second floor. Footsteps could be heard coming down, and soon, two figures were seen making their way down. One was Denise, Disco’s mother. Her frizzy hair was held up by a small headband, and dressed in a lavender top and long striped, purple pants. The other was Donovan who was dressed in a normal white shirt and red boxers. “Devon, honey”, Denise said softly, “What on earth is your matter?” she asked. Disco looked his mother dead in the eyes, he paused before giving a sigh and giving his mother a stern look, “What’s your connection to Jordan?” 

Denise froze, she hadn’t heard that name in years. Donovan placed a hand on Denise’s shoulder, “Devon, you don’t need to get yoursel-”, “I WASN’T TALKING TO YOU!” Disco screamed, “Devon please, I don’t want to talk about this' ' Denise said, her voice sounding choked, like she would cry at any minute.

“I need to know, and don’t say you can’t tell me cause I am SICK to DEATH of hearing that! That's all I heard today!” Disco continued, pointing an accusing finger in his mother's face, “I just want to know what you know about him! Why is there a picture of him and you together at the WVBA? WHY is there a picture of HIM holding TILLIE!? WHAT ARE YOU SO AFRAID OF TELLING ME!?”

“Devon, that’s enough!” Donovan demanded, “You’re upsetting your mother!”

“SHE’S UPSETTING ME! I’VE JUST FOUND OUT SOMETHING THAT COULD CHANGE HOW I VIEW EVERYTHING, EVERYONE AND SHE ISN’T TELLING ME WHAT I WANT TO HEAR!”

“Mom? Dad? What’s going on?” A tired voice called from the staircase, all three turned to see Disco’s older sister, Tillie, standing at the top, holding a very tired and disgruntled 8 year old in her arms. Their younger sister, Sylvia. “I-It’s nothing, honey” Denise said, trying to reassure the girls, Disco screwed up his face in anger, “NO IT’S NOT NOTHING!” he screamed, “MOM’S LYING!”, “What!?” Tillie gasped.  “I’m not lying! I-” Denise tried to speak, but was cut off sharply by Disco once again, “YES YOU ARE! YOU’VE BEEN LYING ABOUT THIS FOR YEARS, CLEARLY! SO WHAT ARE YOU SO SCARED OF!?”

“Devon! Stop it!”

“Mom, what's he on about?” Tilli asked, Denise barely had a chance to answer before Disco cut her off once again.

“WHAT ARE YOU KEEPING FROM ME!? WHY IS IT SO BAD THAT YOU CAN’T TELL ME ANYTHING!? WHAT ARE YOU FUCKING HIDING!?”

“ENOUGH!!” Denise cried. Disco shrunk down where he stood, realizing what he had done, he put a hand over his mouth and turned his gaze to the floor. Denise wiped at her eyes with her elbow and brought a gentle hand to Disco’s face, moving closer so as to place a kiss on his cheek. “M-my darling” she said through a sob, “...I have…I have wanted to tell you for so long but I…was scared because I didn’t want to overwhelm you…you’re still so young and I didn’t want you to question everything you knew and loved”, “I’m already questioning everything, mom, you might as well spill” He said sternly.

Donovan came to Denise’s side and held her tightly in a side hug. “Denise, you don’t have to do this” He said, quietly, turning his gaze to the two girls who were now standing behind the parents. Denise shook her head, “No, I NEED to do this…come sit down” she said, ushering the two eldest children to the sitting room and pulling up a seat for herself while Donovan took Sylvia into his own arms. “Mom…what’s going on?” Tillie asked. Denise sighed, gripping at her pants and turning her gaze to the floor. “...Jordan…was your father…your blood father” 

“I knew it” Disco said quietly, turning his gaze to the ground as well. Tillie only stared at her mother in disbelief, shaking her head “Wait…you mean dad isn’t OUR dad?”, “He’s your dad in a sense that he helped to raise you…but Jordan is your blood” Denise explained, “I met him after he won a match against Pete Zapasta”

“Weird name”

“Eh, it was a weird industry back then,” Denise continued, “Jordan went by the name, Kid Quick…he was one of the speediest boxers of the ring! And I…well I wanted to be there and support him…but we never even got married before BOOM! I ended up having three beautiful babies-”

“Three?” Donovan asked, piping in and leaning over to look at his wife. “Y-Yes…there was another kid…his name was-”

“Dean…” Disco said, looking up at his mom, “...his name was…Dean…right?”, “...How did you know?” Denise asked. “The guys at work told me about him…didn’t say much though…” Disco explained, Tillie gasped and covered her mouth in shock. “Our Dad…isn’t our dad? And we have a BROTHER!?” Tillie yelled, turning to her mother with angry eyes, “WHY ARE WE ONLY LEARNING THIS NOW!?”, “Because I didn’t want you chasing someone who…probably didn’t care about you…I thought he would just…well anyways, I’m sorry now…” Denise said quietly, “I didn’t want to hide it but I was scared…Jordan died in a boxing match…10 years ago, they broadcasted it everywhere…and I wept…knowing that I wouldn’t ever get a chance to…to make up with him…or even to…see or hold him…”

Donovan sighed and placed a kiss on Denise’s forehead, holding her in a gentle hug. Sylvia, still half asleep, cuddled into her mommy’s arms. “...What happened to Dean?” Donovan asked, “Yeah, where is he now?” Tillie piped in. Denise shrugged, “Well I suppose he went back to his mother, back in Michigan”, “Michigan!?” Tillie cried, startling Sylvia and causing her to stir. Disco brought a hand up and placed it on his sister’s shoulder, “Calm down, Sis” he said, “Oh, so you’re allowed to scream but I’m not!?” Tillie retorted.

“...Ok yeah I see how that’s hypocritical…”

“But…why did you two split?” Tillie asked, “You said you were so happy…and-”

“We were both so caught up in our own lives…I suppose we jumped in the deep end too early…” Denise said, “We thought we were happy but…I guess we weren’t really as ready for love as we thought”, “Well…what now?” Tillie asked, grabbing her mom’s hand, “What can we do?”, “I’m not sure what we will do” Denise said, wiping another tear away. Disco pondered for a moment before standing up, “I do…I’m gonna go find him”

“What?”

“I’m gonna go find Dean”

“Honey, you don’t nee-”

“No Mom…I need to see my brother”

"It'll take days for you to find him!" Tillie spoke, Disco only shrugged, "Then I better get started" he said, waving his family off and making his way towards the entrance. He stopped in the doorway and turned to look back at his mother. He sighed, "Thank you, Mom…for not holding out on me…” he said, making his way out the door. Once the door slammed shut, Disco gripped his elbows and gave a faint sob, wiping at his eyes and trying to calm himself down. Tears streamed down his cheeks and the cold breeze of the night stung his face. Just then he felt a gentle hand on his shoulder, he turned to see his sister, standing behind him. She gave a small smile before hugging her brother tightly, “Good luck, bub” she whispered, “Go and find him…bring him home”, “...I will” Disco replied softly, pulling away and placing a kiss on his sister’s forehead, before turning and making his way to his car. He got in, sat down and started the engine, before looking into his rear view mirror with a determined smile. 

“Hang on, bro…I’m coming…and I know just the guys to help me” 

-----------

The tea splashed against the sides of the cup and filled it up to just below the top, “We’re flattered you could make it, niños” Reyes spoke, gently setting the cup in front of his son, “Certainly surprised too” Quincy added, “Could’ve at least let me tidy up a wee bit” he nagged. Both boys laughed. Reyes and Quincy, Macho and Sandman’s dads respectively, were quietly living together in an apartment home in New York, so they were always close by to watch their sons matches, or just to talk, which both certainly needed at this time. “Well, we wanted to see you and Papa as soon as we could,” Macho said, “We’ve been…well-”, “-We need the talk, shit hasn’t been going right since Monday” Sandy piped in.

“Thought it would be nice to see you guys and…get some steam out…maybe just try and get our minds off of…well…” he continued, trailing off when he tried to describe the situation they were in. “...We had an accident yesterday at training…” Sandman explained, Quincy and Reyes both shared a concerned look, “What kind of accident?” Quincy asked. 

“One of the boys knocked the other into the ropes…nearly choked him,” Macho replied quietly. Both older men stared with wide eyes, Reyes felt himself about to collapse and used the table to steady himself. Quincy didn’t move, he simply stared in awe. “Was…was he…killed?” Reyes asked, Macho shook his head frantically, “WH- NO NO! He’s fine! It’s just that-”, “It gave everyone a scare…we weren’t wanting to have another ‘Kid Quick’ event” Sandman piped in, “Mac is a bit too young to really know anything about Quickie and so we shouldn’t be too mad at him, he didn’t deserve the earful he got”

“Psh, speak for yourself, I think it’s bogus he’s still allowed to Box” Macho snarled, Reyes shot a disapproving look. “Now, Now, Carlos, that’s not nice, The WVBA has been lenient with you and your SEVERAL incidents you’ve had, do you think it’s fair that after one with Mac that he should be given the boot, hijo?” Reyes asked, Macho groaned in response, “W-Well I didn’t kill anyone!”, “Mac didn’t kill anyone either, he just got someone hurt,” Sandman growled.

“And that’s better!?” Macho cried, wiping at his eyes. Quincy nudged his son gently and looked up to Reyes, the latter of which set the teapot in his hands down on the counter top, pulled up a chair and sat down next to Macho. He placed a hand on his sons shoulder and grasped it firmly, “Hijo, you mustn’t let the past bother you so much…we all miss him…and you are not the only one’s grieving“ he said softly, “It’s just…with what happened…I don’t know how we could handle losing someone that way again…it’d tear the entire facility apart” Sandman said quietly, prompting him to wipe at his own eyes, “I don’t want to lose anyone…”

“No one wants to lose anyone, but life is a cruel mistress…she takes away just as much as she gives…” Quincy said, “But the important thing is to not let her drown us in sorrow…it’s to be strong, and move forward…”, Macho banged his fist on the table and snarled, “...How can we be expected to be strong? Everytime I think of him there…I can’t just BE strong I…” he slowed down, and brought a hand to his face, pinching at his eyes trying to stop his tears. Reyes sighed and pulled his son into a small hug. “....I miss him…” Macho whimpered, Reyes pat his son on the back, “We all do” he whispered. 

“I wish I could’ve just…just done…I don’t know…why does it have to hurt so much?” Sandman said, sniffling. Quincy shook his head. “Being strong in times of hardship…it’s not easy… a-and sometimes small things can have a much bigger impact than we first think…but still…we have to stay strong…we don't think about what we COULD'VE done or SHOULD'VE done…" He explained.

Reyes nodded, "We focus on what we CAN do now…" He said softly, rubbing the back of his son's head. 

Both Macho and Sandy shared a look between each other. That wasn't EXACTLY what they wanted to hear, but it eased their minds. "Thank you…" Sandman spoke, "...Both of you…you've given us a bit to think about, right? Carly?" Sandy joked. Macho stuck his tongue out and laughed, causing a small chain of laughter at the table.

Another Hour or so went by before the joys bid their fathers farewell. The older men waved goodbye, promising to see them on Friday, during the big boxing bash. As soon as they shut the door and heard the car drive away, Reyes and Quincy sighed, making their way to the couch to watch some TV. "Well, I definitely didn't think I was gonna be thinking about THAT today," Quincy said, bluntly.

"Neither did I…oh I hope the others aren't too badly shaken up either…" Reyes sighed, "...just seeing Carlos like that has already gotten me worried"

"Don't be…they'll be fine…hopefully"

Just then, a light knock was heard on the door. Both Reyes and Quincy shared a look of concern before Quincy got up and made his way to the door. He opened it, expecting to see someone in front of him…or at least at his eye level. There was no one."

"Ahem"

Quincy looked down to see Little Mac in his pink hoodie, with a pen and paper in his hands. 

"Hi there, Quincy Davis? I'm Little Mac…Doc's boy…I was wondering what you could tell me about Kid Quick…."