Luigi is not in this game.

Chapter Eight

"I just can't-" He coughed as tears choked the back of his throat. "I can't deal with these levels. They hurt. They're scary."
Andres watched Lacey as she reached for the star on the ship. No! That's going to hurt! "Wait!" Lacey stumbled and lost grip of the star that was already shocking her hand. It crashed onto the deck of the ship, the pieces scattering around. She scrambled to pick up the pieces despite them tearing away at her skin. Andres was already on the way over to the ship to help. He watched as Lacey struggled to keep a grip on the star chunks while chasing after one last piece that was headed straight for the edge. Without thinking, he leaped off the platform he was on and to the ship. He folded like a pretzel against the side of the ship, slipping down. He caught the edge and hauled himself up.
Andres hurdled himself across the ship and past Lacey to the star chunk. It slid overboard, but he dove down to grab it, and just barely pinched it with his fingers. He tried to pull himself up, but a burning sensation on his side hit him like a truck. A small black ball was unknowingly sitting in the corner of the ship. The pain spread over his body as he lost his grip completely.
"Andres!" Lacey called. It was too late, he was already falling down into nothingness, screaming on the way down. The fire and air tore away at his clothes and skin as if the sky was disintegrating him into nothing.

Andres awoke on the castle floor, his body no longer burning. His muscles felt sore and his throat was torn. The air around him was still and silent. He remembered Lacey and the pieces of the star she tried to save. Is she ok? He wondered. He wanted to stand, but he couldn't. No energy ran through him, no motivation, nothing. Just a rock holding him down in his chest. Mom would know what to do. He thought. Did Lacey survive? The thought gave him a slight jolt of panic to stand him up. He trudged up the stairs as fast as he could go, his muscles still screaming.
What he thought to be endless stairs finally came to an end. He found the opening high up in the wall and kicked himself up. He gazed down the tunnel once more. He began to resent hopping in, it too closely resembled falling to his death. Death... did I lose a life? He checked the pocket with the green mushrooms. Only three. He was surprised at how far he got without dying to begin with. He slid into the tunnel.
Landing on the starting platform, Andres looked at where the ship was. He saw Lacey standing near a corner as if she was waiting for Andres to come back. He slowly made his way to the ship, hoping on safely this time. He saw the pieces of star piled in a corner behind Lacey.
"Andres, thank god you're ok!" She called when she noticed his arrival. "You... you died? Did you lose a life?"
Andres shuddered. "Yes, but I still have three. What are you on?"
"Well, I've been finding extra lives. I thought that would be a good idea. I'm alright."
Stupid! Why didn't you think of that? He thought to himself. "Good, let's just get this star back." He walked over to it, Lacey stepping out of the way. He merged the pieces together, then remembered the one he had in his hand while falling.
"How did you get this? I had it." He asked.
"I don't think you can die with a fifth of a star. It might have just spawned back. I don't know, it's a game." Lacey shrugged. "Weird things have been happening to me this entire time."
Andres said no more. He squeezed the star in his hand, desperate to go back. He closed his eyes and let the darkness take over. The castle walls were suddenly surrounding him, a new star tucked in his pocket.
Lacey sat next to him and put her hand on his shoulder. She stared into his eyes. "Come on. Let's finish this."

Andres and Lacey stood over the brick tunnel that led into darkness. Bowser's portrait stood over them on the wall in front. Andres grabbed onto Lacey's hand and squeezed. He dreaded going down to defeat Bowser for the third time. He remembered the fire searing through his legs.
"This will all be over soon," Lacey whispered.
"How do you know that we'll end up at home and not just back outside the castle?" Andres asked.
Lacey turned her head and held his gaze. "I don't." Without warning, she jumped through the tunnel, yanking Andres with her. The two landed on a platform that floated in the air. The air was heavy with static and heat. Andres felt a spark of determination. The last level awaited him, then it would all be over. Even if they didn't go back, he would never have to fight again.
The two maneuvered the level easily. They had gotten much better in difficult situations and knew exactly what to do. Andres nearly got the last red coin before hearing a yelp of surprise. Lacey was hanging on to the ledge of a bridge after being hit by a goomba. It was rapidly approaching her once again, but Andres punted it off into the void. He helped Lacey back to safety.
"We're almost done with the red coins, then we can defeat Bowser and it'll all be over!" Andres said. His stomach flipped with  Lacey had a look of despair in her eyes. He could tell she was scared, but they had worked well enough together for the time they were stuck in the game. How different could it be now?
"It's over here," Lacey said, her voice in a whisper. She turned before Andres could say anything and led him to the last coin. They climbed up the concrete bridges and onto the final platform. Heavy winds nearly blew them over, but they held their ground. "It's under the bridge!" She called over the howling wind.
Andres carefully picked his way past the gusts and dropped down below the bridge. He collected the last coin and the star appeared. He nervously hopped onto the wooden block to hop over to the platform that the star sat on. He safely made it over and collected the star. That's it... one more star and it's over. He picked his way back to Lacey, who was staring at something cupped in her hands.
"What's wrong?" He asked, his hair whipping around in the wind. Lacey closed her eyes and grabbed onto Andres's hands.
"I can't go on." She choked out. "You have to do this on your own."
"No! It's okay, we respawn just outside the pipe if we die. There's an extra life there too so we can't die." Andres reassured her.
"No, no, that's not what I mean." Lacey shook her head, her eyes beginning to glaze over. "I'm-"
"What? Scared? So am I!"
"Listen! I'm broken! If we defeat Bowser, you're the only one able to go home."
"I don't understand..."
"You've seen it. Weird things have been happening to me. You're Mario. You're the main character. Do you know who I am?"
"Luigi. You're my brother, technically." Andres was confused.
"I can't collect stars, or coins, or defeat Bowser... I'm not supposed to be here! Luigi is not in this game! He can't complete it, do you understand? This world can't comprehend another person being here." Lacey opened her hands to reveal an extra-life mushroom.
"No-" He realized what Lacey was saying.
"You have to."
"NO! Stop that! You eat it!"
"I can't! This game has been trying to kill me this entire time! What's good for you is bad for me, what you can do I can't! What you can win... I can't." She choked on her breath and looked away. "I am a mistake. An error in the code."
"No! We can find a way to figure this out!" He yelled desperately.
"I die regardless of what happens! I want to die with you knowing the truth and in peace, not fighting for my life."
The two stood there in silence for what seemed like years, frozen in place.
"How long have you known?" Andres finally spoke up, his anger trickling into despair.
"The moment we got in this mess. I knew from the beginning, I just wanted to have a good time with you." Tears finally began to stream down her face.
"I can't... I can't lose another mom!" The desperation in his voice grew. A sharp look of pain twisted into Lacey's face.
"I'm sorry..."
"I can't lose another mom." Sobs broke his sentence apart. He pulled her tightly into a hug, tears staining her shirt. "Not like this." Pain and agony tore away at his chest. His breath seemed impossible to catch.
"Andres."
"What?"
"I love you. I always have, I'm so glad you invited me into your world."
"I love you too-" Without a second thought, Lacey shoved Andres backward, falling into the pipe. Just before darkness consumed him, he watched as Lacey slipped off the edge of the map and disappeared. She was dead.