The manic laughing of the Irish rat himself filled the air as he swung at the boxing bag, while King Hippo held the bag up for him to hit. Don Flamenco leant against the nearby wall and watched as he twirled the rose in between his fingers. Aran laughed in delight as he threw more hard hitting punches at the bag, “Aye, Twinkletoes!” he called, “Ya see that!?”

No reply. “Donnie?” Aran asked, turning around to his friend. The Spaniard still didn’t respond. He was deep in thought. “Oi!” Aran called, finally snapping Don out of his own world. The Spaniard jolted in surprise at his friend's voice and chuckled nervously as he turned to him. “O-oh!, Lo siento Aran” Don said, “Si, si, yes your punches were…were great!” he lied. Aran wasn’t having it. “Oh bollocks that” he yelled, “I know you weren’t watching! What’s up with’cha?” 

“Oh…well…” Don trailed off, scratching the back of his neck. “Well?” Aran asked, impatient. Don sighed, “...I’ve been thinking about this whole, Kid Quick situation and-”

“Ugh, dude, not you too,” Aran groaned, “Don’t worry about it, it’s long gone and done with”

Don gave a half-hearted nod, “Si…but this whole thing with the guys…” he trailed off, flinging his hands around in annoyance, “Don’t you think it’s pretty annoying that whenever they mention him, or more so whenever WE mention him they flip their lid?”

Aran went to argue, but ultimately found himself recalling the events of Monday. How most of the guys, with the exception of Hugger, were berating Mac for something akin to that of something from 10 years ago. How every time he and Don were to mention his name the guys would yell at them to shut their gobs. How tense Doc would get if they asked ANYTHING about him. Suddenly Aran stopped arguing and looked at Don with wide eyes.

“Hey…hey yeah!” Aran said, “Yeah! It is! Isn’t it Hippo?”, “Hmrgh-hmm” Hippo replied.

“It isn’t fair how we aren’t allowed to even say his name and how WE are the ones in the wrong for everyone throwing a tizzy!”

“How Mac was at the receiving end of verbal assault for something he had no intention of doing and was MAGICALLY supposed to know that was bad!”

“Yeah! And how secretive they act around it! It’s a whole Mr Dream situation all over again-”

Suddenly, an ominous thundering noise and flicker of the lights occurred. Aran bit his lip as Don shot him a look. “Sorry, THAT one…we don’t bring up” Aran apologized. Don rolled his eyes and scoffed, “Honestly what’s the big deal with it anyways? Was it SOOOO Tragic that we’re forbidden to EVER bring it up?”

“Well there’s obviously a reason, maybe we ask the fellas about it?” Aran suggested. Don gave him a look of disbelief, stammering in confusion at the ridiculous idea his friend has proposed. “Are you NUTS!?” he asked, grabbing Aran by his hair, the latter wincing in pain. “We can’t ask them! Do you not recall what happened to Mac!?” Don whisper-yelled. Aran only growled as he snatched his hair from Don’s grasp, “Well it was JUST a suggestion!” he spat, “No need to get huffy, but how else do you want us to find out?”

“There has to be a better way BESIDES having our asses torn to shreds!”

“We can either get our asses torn or not know at all! Your pick Donny boy”

“Oh, Dios mío, eres un PUTO imbécil.”

“Oi ya fecking eejit, I’m trying! At least I suggested something! Dinnae see yerself givin' anything useful!”

Suddenly, Hippo grunted a mixture of words. Of course since this was Hippo, what they were saying was incomprehensible. So naturally, Don and Aran were left gobsmacked. “What the feck are you saying?” Aran asked, cocking an eyebrow. Hippo groaned and rolled their eyes before gesturing to Don. Both men shook their heads, “Lo siento amigo todavia no lo se” Don replied.

Hippo groaned again. They pointed at Don and using his right hand, brought his thumb to his forehead and dragged it away from their face, making 2 small arches. It took a second before the realization hit.

“Ohhh, Abuelo Mariano” Don and Aran said in unison. Don brought a hand to his hip, “I forgot he was in town this week”

“Well he probably didn’t want to miss the matches!” Aran said, “he’s the perfect bloke to ask! I know the craic had plenty a’ stories to share about the boy last time ‘e was ‘ere”

“Si, I suppose, but he’s probably not gonna want to be sad a few days before the match, that’s not fair on him!”

“Ya don’t know that”

“Well you don’t know if he’s gonna want to chat!”

“I….Shaddup” Aran said.

Hippo growled and facepalmed, gesturing to Don’s pocket. Don cocked an eyebrow before his mind clicked. He pulled out his phone, pointing to it to double check that's what Hippo meant. After a confirming nod, Don flicked through the contacts on his phone and selected one under the name: Abuelo.

Once it was selected, he clicked a button, and brought the phone to his ear. It rang for a few seconds before a voice on the other end spoke. It was raspy, and deep, and heavily accented. 

"Hola! quien es este?"

"¡Hola abuelo! ¿cómo estás? ¿Estás bien?" Don asked, smiling a bit at the sound of his grandfather's voice. 

"¡Donato!  hola mi chico, si soy maravilloso, como estas?"

"Si, si, estoy bien, queria saber si estabas libre para charlar"

"Por supuesto que lo soy, pero ¿cómo es que?  ¿Paso algo?  ¿Esa rata te está molestando de nuevo?"

Don gave a sideways glance to Aran, who was only watching the call in confusion. The spaniard groaned under his breath, "Ay no, abuelo.  Solo... quería ponerme al día, eso es todo."

The voice on the other end paused in worry, "Mi nieto... ¿estás bien?"

"¿Eh?  ¡Ah, sí!  sí, por supuesto, yo sólo... tenía muchas ganas de hablar contigo... ha pasado un tiempo, ¿no?"

"Pues si, claro pero...ya sabes si hay algo mas de lo que te gustaria hablar-"

"No!...uh no…" Don grit his teeth, turning to his friends. Both Hippo and Aran gave him looks of reassurance. Well in Aran's case it was a look of 'Do it or I'll bite your knob'. Regardless, Don sighed and put on his best front as he spoke to his abuelo, "No, abuelo.  Yo solo... realmente quiero volver a verte…por favor?" He lied.

The voice sighed. Don probably should've known to sound less desperate to talk. Abuelo Mariano was someone who practically looked at him like he was the most precious thing in the world. Last thing he wanted was to send him into a panic. It was silent for a few seconds before Mariano spoke again, "Muy bien, muchacho, te veré más tarde hoy.  ¿Quizás podamos encontrarnos en el parque?"

Don sighed in relief and gave a soft smile. "OK Abuelo, hasta luego!"

"Hasta luego, mi niño"

Don clicked the button to hang up the phone, flicking his phone shut. He let out an exasperated sigh and brought his hands to his face, dragging them down in annoyance.

Aran leaned over in curiosity "So….is it happening?"

"Cállate and get your bag" Don growled. Aran chuckled as he went to go to his locker. Just then, out of the corner of his eye, he saw Mac appearing from the changing rooms, holding a file in his hands. The boy was hesitantly making his way over to Doc with the file. 

Mac held his breath as he gently tapped his trainer on the shoulder. He REALLY didn’t want to do this. He had JUST gotten on a good term with Doc, and now he was gonna have everything come crumbling back down on him AGAIN. But he had to show him. It wouldn’t be right to keep this from him. He had kept too much from him, he wasn’t gonna do it again. 

“Doc…uh” Mac started, Doc quickly turned around and noticed the worried look on the boys face. “Mac?” he said, raising an eyebrow, “You ok?”

“Not really…” the boy confessed, he took a deep breath and sighed, holding the file towards Doc. “This was….it was on the Locker room floor…I…I think…I think…” Mac stammered trying to find the best words to explain the situation. Doc looked at the folder and gently took it from Mac’s hands. He recognized the name on the label and felt his heart sink. “Who had this?” Doc asked. Mac shrugged.

“I’m not too sure…but I think it might’ve been Hugger…look” he said, pointing to a few small markers on the folder's surface, “Those have to be Chip’s…right?”

Doc didn’t answer, he simply flicked to a loose piece of paper. The paper in question had all the personal information of Kid Quick from back in the 70’s. This entire file had everything on Quick. Pictures, and Letters from fans and family. Things Doc thought he wouldn’t see again. 

“Doc?” Mac asked. No answer.

“Has anyone seen Hugger and Hondo?” someone called. The two looked to see Tiger floating around the room in confusion, “I can’t find them anywhere”

“They….they went off to Michigan” Doc said quietly. Tiger stared at Doc blankly. “What?” he asked. Doc showed the file to Tiger, gesturing to the messy markings on its surface. “Hugger obviously went off to find out something and knowing Hondo he…probably would’ve gone too…” Doc explained, Tiger’s eyes widened. He couldn’t muster any words. All Doc and Mac could see was his jewel flashing a bright red. 

“V?” Doc asked, “You ok?” 

No answer. The Jewel kept flashing. Quicker and Brighter flashes of Red began to appear. 

Mac carefully made his way alongside Doc. He could see Tiger’s fists were clenched and his eyebrows slowly began to furrow. 

"Vihaan?" Mac said, reaching out to the man, "You…you alright-"

"This…is your fault" Tiger said through grit teeth. Mac paused and looked at Tiger with wide eyes, "W-what? I…I didn't- What do you mea-"

"DON'T PLAY DUMB!! IF YOU HAD NOT KNOCKED ARAN INTO THE RING THIS WHOLE SITUATION COULD HAVE BEEN AVOIDED!!" Tiger screamed, his eyes glowing white. His gem was flashing multiple colors at once, and in an instant, Mac was lifted off the ground, restrained and contorted by Tiger's magic.

Doc stumbled back and glared at Tiger, "HEY! VIHAAN CUT IT OUT!"

"YOU WERE PROBABLY THE ONE THAT GOT DISCO CURIOUS!! MADE HIM ASK ALL THOSE QUESTIONS TO SAVE YOUR OWN ASS!"

"VIHAAN THAT'S ENOUGH!!"

"WAS A SIMPLE 'IT DOESN'T MATTER' NOT GOOD ENOUGH FOR YOU!? WAS IT NOT ENOUGH THAT WE HAVE SUFFERED AND NOW WE HAVE TO KEEP BEING REMINDED OF HIM!? ALL BECAUSE YOU WANTED TO BE STUPID IN THE RING!? NOW WE MUST ALL SUFFER THE CONSEQUENCES OF YOUR INCOMPETENCE!?"

"VIHAAN PLEASE!!"

"WHY MUST YOU RUIN EVERYTHING WE HAVE!?"

At those words, Mac felt his heart drop.

Tiger's eyes quickly flashed back to normal and in an instant he dropped the boy. Hands quickly brought over his mouth. The boy was hunched over, trying to breathe. He finally flung his head up and looked at Tiger with worried eyes,  "Mac…" He began, "I am so sorry, I-I don't know what happened I-"

"You were being a right lunatic! That's what happened, imbécil!" Joe yelled, grabbing the magic man by the arm and yanking him to eye level. "How DARE you parade with that attitude!" Joe said, pointing an accusing finger in the younger man's face.

"Guys! Stop!" Mac pleaded, "Look I'm sorry!"

"You come here, dangle him in the air and treat him like…like he's one of your little puppets!"

Tiger scoffed, "Oh PUH-LEASE! You were worse to him on Monday" He spat, "Saying he should know better! He knows better now and yet he STILL continues to make everything go wrong! I HAVE A VALID REASON TO BE ANGRY!"

"And I did not!? You were JUST as cruel as me! Don't play the innocent card!"

"SEE!? YOU GET SO WORKED UP OVER HIM! IT'S NOT LIKE HE NOTICED YOU ANYWAY!"

"You SHUT YOUR MOUTH! HE CARED ABOUT ME JUST AS MUCH AS HE CARED ABOUT ANYONE ELSE!"

"HE WAS BEING NICE!! LIKE HE WAS TO EVERYONE ELSE!! I CAN GUARANTEE YOU JOSEPH HE COULDN'T HAVE GIVEN TWO SHITS ABOUT YOU!!"

"AND HE GAVE A SHIT ABOUT YOU!? YOU BARELY EVEN KNEW HIM!!"

"THAT DOESN'T MEAN I WASN'T HURT BY HIS LOSS!! YOU WEREN'T THE ONLY ONE WHO CARED ABOUT HIM!!"

"What's going on?" 

The two turned to see Bull making his way towards the, Soda following close behind. Tiger flung his hands up and pointed at Mac, "This boy has caused NOTHING BUT PROBLEMS THIS WEEK! AND NOW HE'S GONE AND SENT HONDO AND HUGGER ON A WILD GOOSE CHASE FOR…FOR SOMETHING!!"

"Non, it's more that Tiger can't CONTROL HIMSELF! WANTS TO LASH OUT AT EVERYONE FOR NO REASON!!" Joe argued.

"Like you did?" Soda mumbled under his breath. Bull nudged him sternly. 

"Everyone settle down" Doc said firmly, "I thought we had moved past this! This is getting childish now"

"Well CLEARLY we haven't moved on if Mac continue to create problems!" Bull said, pointing an accusing finger at the boy, "WHAT HAPPEN ON MONDAY NOT CLEAR ENOUGH TO YOU BOY!? YOU CAUSE PROBLEMS ON PURPOSE NOW!?"

"No!! Of course I wouldn't!" Mac protested, "Please I-"

"YOU WANT EVERYONE TO SUFFER!? YOU WANT US TO BE MISERABLE!? CAUSE IT'S WORKING!!"

"OH DON'T YOU START EITHER!" Joe yelled, getting between Bull and Mac. 

"WHAT!? I AM NOT ALLOWED TO BE UPSET!?"

"I DIDN'T SAY THAT!! DID I SAY THAT, OKAN?! NO I DID NOT!! ARRÊTEZ DE METTRE DES MOTS DANS MA BOUCHE IDIOT"

"HELLO!? DOES MY PROBLEM NOT MATTER!? JUST BECAUSE I DIDN'T KNOW HIM AS WELL MY FEELINGS ARE INVALID!? IS THAT IT!?" Tiger yelled, his gem flashing violently. 

Bull let out a frustrated roar "OH SHUT THE FUCK UP, VIHAAN, KAHRETSIN" 

What followed was a chorus of yells and insults. All three men threw around words Mac had never heard from them before. The boy turned and looked to Soda, just off to the side. He was slowly backing away, his eyes glued on the chaos while his hands were coming up over his ears.

Soon the noise began to fade out, a faint ringing sound filled Mac's ears. In an instant Mac felt himself grow weak, and he almost fell to the ground. He steadied himself and tried to slow his fall. He ended up with both knees on the ground, panting heavily as tears began to well up in his eyes. He brought his hands to his head, shaking. He gripped at his hair and his eyes were glued to the ground.

The muffled sound of screams and yelling soon became silent. His vision became blurred by the tears.

He couldn't hear.

He couldn't see.

He couldn't think.

It was just him and the silence for those few seconds.

And then, a gentle hand came to his shoulder.

The noise returned, and his vision became clear. He turned behind him to see Don, with Aran standing just behind. "Vamos, Mac," he said, gesturing to the exit. Mac's eyes widened and shook his head frantically. He turned to look at his coach. Doc bit his lip before sighing, he too gestured for the exit and nodded at Don and Aran to take him. "We'll do some training later…" He said, "Just…need to sort this out" he turned back to the angry trio. By now they had gotten attention from some of the other boxers.

Mac sighed shakily as he was lifted up by Don and Aran. Hippo was following close behind, grabbing Mac's bag and jersey. It was only then that he was noticed by the older men. 

"Mac? Mac!" Joe called, reaching towards the young boy, but his hand was firmly grasped by Doc. "Don't you fucking go near him" he growled. Joe looked at Doc with wide eyes. The other boxers only stared as Doc straightened himself and his voice became a low whisper. 

"You lot berate my boy…and then try and play nicey-nicey? Fuck off with that!" He said, "How goddamn dare you"

"You act as though you weren't hard on him!" Joe retaliated, "Like you haven't been mean to him and then acted like everything is cupcakes and Rainbows!"

"I know I am! But you all act like you aren't any better! And ESPECIALLY over this!" Doc said, "I thought we had moved past this! All of this arguing over who knew him better, who deserves to be in grief. We all KNOW who deserves to feel the most grief AND I KNOW FOR GOD IT AIN'T ANY OF YOU"

The three men all looked at the elder with astonished faces, soon turning their gazes to the ground in embarrassment and disappointment. Around the situation, but almost definitely in themselves.

Doc held his breath and grit his teeth. A shaky sigh escaped him as he looked at the two men with nothing but disappointment. “That boy has been through nothing but grief…” he began, “...and we are standing here…arguing over who gets to be sad? If anyone deserves to be it’s him…”

“But he’s not here…” Bull said bluntly, Doc shook his head, ‘Regardless of if he’s here, he has felt the loss of a father…someone who is meant to protect him…and it clearly seems we have forgotten that”

Joe sighed and wiped at his eyes, “It is beyond shameful”, “But that doesn’t change Mac’s actions either! It rectifies nothing!”

“It doesn’t HAVE to, Vihaan!” Doc said sternly, moving closer towards the younger man until their faces were right next to each other, “...Listen, this whole thing…is not ideal for any of us. I’mma let you all off with a warning, but if any of you go near him like this again, I will hurt you” he hissed, pointing at all three men. Each of them all gave each other glares and snarls.

The trainer sighed and brought a hand to his head, “I’m gonna go grab a coffee, you guys sort your attitudes out and when you’re ready you can go apologize to Mac, got it?”

A murmur of agreement was heard. Doc rolled his eyes and proceeded to make his way out of the training room. What was meant to be a simple session had turned to chaos much sooner than he wanted. He just prayed that Mac was alright.

-------
“Are you excited to be going back?” Giovanni asked, smiling as he watched the happy, teenage boy bounding down the path towards the WVBA. Dean laughed and smiled behind the mask. “Yeah…I am!” he said happily, “I honestly am!” 

"Good, I'm glad" The older man said, "I was worried about it before, after yesterday, but now? I don't-a think I am"

"I don't think I am either….I mean today wasn't STELLAR dear god, but you know what? Getting what time I had with Bull and Joe actually felt…right…"

"...You miss them don't you?"

Dean shot a look at the older man. "Of course I do…" He said softly, "...but…"

"But?"

"...G, I couldn't ever go back, if they found out I've been hiding from them this whole time then-"

"-Mio Bambino, if they are mad at you for taking time for yourself then that is on them…" Giovanni said, grabbing the boy's hand gently., "...but maybe it would be time to…tell them the truth?"

Dean looked at Giovanni with worried eyes. He had been thinking about it more after his interaction with Joe. Having that comforting touch again after so many years? It felt good. He was happy. In those few seconds, he was happy.

He knew it wasn't right to hide, and he knew how much it would be pounding on his own mind. On his own friend's mind. It wasn't right to put all of his own burden on Mac. He was going through his own troubles and this was how he was treating him?

He was going to have to come clean eventually. With the boys knowing of his existence as Parker, he would have to come clean.

He took a deep breath and nodded, "You're right…" He said, "...You're right…I need to tell them, sooner rather than later"

"That's my boy" Giovanni said, smiling and patting Dean on the shoulder. Dean laughed and smiled back. They approached the entrance of the WVBA. All of a sudden it didn't feel as brooding or frightening as it did the other day.

It felt more familiar. Warm. Inviting.

But seeing his friend leaving the building in a fit of tears wasn't any of that.

Dean and Giovanni both watched as Mac was being ushered out, panting heavily as he was comforted by both Don and Aran on both sides with Hippo close behind. Aran was doing the brunt of it, holding Mac's shoulders and giving him small hugs and pats of reassurance. Dean quickly brought his mask up over his mouth, and dashed towards his friend. 

"Mac! Mac you ok?" He called. The group stopped and allowed Mac to give a quick glance to his friend. Don and Aran shared a look, before the spaniard nodded and continued to usher Mac away while Aran broke away and approached the taller boy.

"Sorry…um, what's yer name?" 

"Uhh Parker?"

"Oh, well" Aran clicked his tongue, "Yet um…friend has had a bit of a rough morning…a bunch of the guys just finished berating the poor lad"

"What? What on-a earth for?" Giovanni asked. Aran simply shrugged, "Something stupid…All I saw was the poor boy getting laid into…anyways 'e just needs 'is space now, I think tha' lot of 'em do…we'll bring 'im back, I promise"

"Aran! Come!" Don called, "I don't know how to start the car!"

"Bloody hell" Aran groaned  rolling his eyes. A bit of a chuckle escaped Dean. "I'll see you lot later, 'Kay?" 

Both nodded and watched as the Irish man walked off towards the group. Aran screaming some Irish curses that neither could decipher. 

Dean sighed in annoyance, "Well there goes spending time with Mac…maybe we should go back-"

"Oh don't be nonsensical!" Giovanni said, "We can still explore! Besides, I know a few places that we can check out while we are here"

"Yeah? Like what?"

"Did your father ever tell you about the V.I.P lounge?"

"....The what?" Dean's face soon turned into a smile.

Giovanni laughed as he and Dean rushed inside, both giggling like madmen.

--------

Mac sat with his arms crossed in the back of Aran's car. Hippo put a reassuring hand on his shoulder which was quickly thrown off in shock.

Don and Aran gave each other a look, and Aran sighed. "Look, Macky" he began, "Ya just…ya just gotta give them time"

"I think we've given them enough time" Don mumbled under his breath, "They need to get over themselves"

"Agreed," Mac said, wiping his eyes. "I just hope Doc is ok…I didn't mean to do any of this…"

"We know ya didn't," Aran said, looking at Mac through the front mirror (or whatever it's called), "They're just…they're too precious about it, we don't know why, they just are"

"I just want to know why they feel they have to hide…everything…"

"We do too, 'is why we're going to meet with Mariano"

"Mariano?"

"My Abuelo" Don said, "You know, Flamenco Flores?"

Mac nodded in realization. Mariano was a very common name to hear in the WVBA. He was one of the great fighters of the 70s, alongside Doc. He was who inspired Don to become a boxer in the first place. Mac had great respect for the man and his ethics, considering he was one of the cleanest fighters in the WVBA. Now he was going to meet the man?

He should've been more excited for this, but he couldn't pull himself to be. Not today at least.

A few minutes passed before the group arrived at a small park. Several families were spending their time together this afternoon, either on the swings or running around kicking a ball.

Just a few meters away, was a park bench. On it sat a tall, elderly man. His hair was a gorgeous silver and ran down his back. A scar was drawn across his right eye. He wore a simple red top and sapphire jeans. His face lit up as he turned his head to see the group approach.

"HOLA, MI NIÑOS!" He called, standing up from the seat. Don smiled and gave a laugh as he dashed into his abuelo's arms. "Hola, Abuelo!" He said, "It's so good to see you!"

"Same to you!" Mariano said, holding his grandson's face and examining it. Don tried to pull away but failed. He sighed and smiled, gesturing to his friends. "Abuelo, you obviously know Aran," he said. Aran gave a salute to the older man. Mariano gave a nod in return. 

"But you haven't met my other friends," Don said, "This is King Hippo, and Little Mac. Hippo is the champion of the Minor Circuit, while Mac is-"

"Doc's boy!" Mariano interjected, "I've heard of you! Your trainer talks nonstop about your career!"

Mac's eyes widened in shock. "You…you know about me?"

"Of course! The amount of rambling he does about you, talks like you're his own son!"

Mac had to smile at that. 

Mariano then pat the bench, “Come, come, sit down and talk to me” he said. Each of the guys quickly took a seat on the bench, except Hippo, who stood over the bench instead. “So my boy, tell me about your week! Training hard I presume?” Mariano asked, Don gave a half-hearted nod, “I mean…it’s been up and down, we’ve had a few…interruptions, but yeah it’s been going alright,” he said, turning to the others, “Right, guys?”

Aran hummed, “Yea, I guess,”

Mac shook his head, “Well if you can count getting your head torn off by the others as ‘alright’ then yeah, sure”

The elder’s eyes widened in surprise, “¿Qué? ¿Quién gritó?” he asked, “What is he talking about?” He turned to his grandson in concern. Don winced and tried to avert his gaze from his Abuelo’s, “So…there was an…an incident on Monday-”

“Macky knocked me into the ropes,” Aran interjected, rather bluntly, “All the guys got mad, presumably because it reminded ‘em o’ Quickie”

“Yeah, uh, I’d rather NOT talk about this, please?” Mac asked, “I already got hounded for it twice this week, I don’t need it again”

“Hang on, you knocked him into the ropes?” Mariano asked, cocking an eyebrow. Mac felt his body freeze. He knew what was coming. He prepared himself for the earful of his life. He turned slowly to look at Mariano and gave a scared nod. Mariano simply hummed to himself, “Well,” he began, “That’s new.” Mac’s eyes widened in confusion. “Wait, you…you aren’t mad?” he asked.

Mariano simply shrugged, “Not my place to be mad” he said, “As tragic as it was, I see no point in being mad over it. It doesn’t change the fact he’s gone, all it does is make you angry at those who are here”, “Too bloody true” Aran said. Don nodded as he turned to his Abuelo, “The earful he got earlier was horrible,” he explained, “Poor thing hadn’t even started training before he got it from the older boys, minus Soda and Hugger”

“You poor thing,” Mariano said, looking at Mac. Mac just turned his gaze back to the table and exhaled through his nose.

“It’s actually funny we’re talking about it” Don said, “We…we wanted to ask you about Quick, and what you knew about the night”

“Oh the night he died was probably the most hectic I had ever seen the WVBA,” Mariano said, “Everyone was rushing around in a panic, most of the older crew were losing it at the commissioner. Except Giovanni, he had gone off to comfort Quickie’s poor child, which everyone forgot to do…including myself.”

“How d’ya ferget to look after a child?” Aran asked. Mariano sighed “Well, we were all…caught up in the moment, too overcome with anger and…and grief to really acknowledge him…I presume anyways” 

“That’s a bit poor on yer end”

“Aran, please,” Don said, rolling his eyes.

“The night was hectic, everyone was freaking out…it was terrible, and I would be lying if I said that I don’t ever think of that night and…get a little choked up on it…it was horrible losing someone so…so violently…he had so much potential and then someone had to come along and fuck it up for him” Mariano gasped and covered his mouth at his profanity, “Pido disculpas por mi boca, eso estaba fuera de lugar…Anyways…after he was announced dead, me and several others walked out of the business, we didn’t want to be caught up in a company that couldn’t look after their equipment or boxers, and let it get to when they died to fix the issue”

“It took them…till someone DIED for them to fix this?” Mac asked, Mariano nodded, “It was pathetic.” “It’s irresponsible!” Don said, “I can’t believe they would let it get to that point”

“Well, they tried to get everything sorted…supposedly…but I’ve doubted their ability to really handle it. Quick’s death was the last straw in my books. I wouldn’t stand by and let this go on.” Mariano growled, “Let us watch one of our own die and then expect us to box!? Honestly…”

“Wait, I thought you said you left a few years after his death?” Don asked. 

Mariano fumbled with his hands a little bit, “Well, ok, I stayed a bit longer, but boys like Reyes and Quincy left almost immediately,” 

“Giovanni leave too?”

“Si, si, Giovanni did, and Mosi”

“Mosi?”
“Mr Dream”

“Oh”

“Mm, anyways, I didn’t end up leaving until 1992,” He said. Aran cocked an eyebrow, “Why did it take so long for you to go?” he asked. Mariano looked at Aran, letting his eyes scan the group. He took a deep breath and sighed, “I stayed…for your boys” he explained, “They were distraught, upset…no one moreso than Joseph…he idolized that man…they all did in a way. Even Tiger felt the impact of letting him go…I stayed to help them cope…to understand…to help them move on…I had plenty of fight left to give anyways…well until I nearly collapsed in a fight against Bull but that's a tale for another day…”

Mac lifted his gaze from the table. Hearing how long it took them to move on, it made more sense to him. Especially knowing what else happened, that the WVBA didn’t care to fix it until after the fact. That he could’ve been saved. Made him grateful that he had someone like Desire who looked after his staff. He couldn’t imagine having a commissioner who purely didn’t give a shit. It made everything a lot easier to swallow. How they have been acting, the preciousness around it. Didn’t exactly ease any nerves regarding it though.

Mariano noticed the boy's face and smiled gently, resting a hand on his. “Listen, Mac” he spoke softly, “Do not listen to their aggression, don’t let them bring you down…they are angry at themselves…the situation…they don’t mean to hurt you…would this excuse their actions? No not at all, but I hope it allows you to see reason with it…they just need time to control themselves…give them another chance”

Mac sighed, “I think I’m running out of chances to give” he said, “But…no harm in trying”

“Atta boy, Macky” Aran said, slapping him on the back. Hippo ruffled Mac’s hair as a form of reassurance, which the boy accepted happily. Mariano smiled as he leaned into Don’s ear, “Promise me you’ll look after him, miho” he whispered. Don gave a nod and smiled, turning back to his friends. 

“So boys, we have a bit of time” he said, “Why don’t we grab something to eat?”, “I’ll buy for all of you! My treat!” Mariano chimed in with a smile.

The other three all nodded and smiled in agreement. Mariano slammed the table in joy and gestured for all the boys to stand up and follow him. A nearby food cart was open, and it’s smell was lingering in the air. Mac was glad they didn’t have to walk too far, he was a bit too exhausted. 

As they made their way over, Aran thought of something and tapped Mariano on the shoulder.

“Oi, if yer shouting, can you buy me a pint of guine-”

“It’s a food cart, so no”

“But I-”

“Callete or you get nothing”

“Well, now I know where ye get it from, Donnie”

“Callate pendejo”