The Punisher Needs to be Punished

Chapter 2: Not Everything Is As It Seems

Frank's POV:

When we got to his apartment, he immediately grabbed some blankets and pillows and put them on the couch. I noticed he was carrying himself like a soldier trying to hide a wound. With a closer look, I saw a growing patch of blood seeping through his suit from his stomach. He had yet to take his mask off. He was just standing there, seemingly spaced out. "Red, you're bleeding," I prompted, concerned. He jolted back to reality and moved, albeit unsteadily, to get his medkit. I had a few wounds myself, but I wasn't going to tell him that. I deserved them - I shot a gosh darn kid!

Matt's POV:

When I limped back with the medkit, I sat in front of Frank. At his confused look, I mumbled, "You have a cut on your right calf that needs to be stitched up. You also have one on your left arm. You were shot in the left sh-shoulder, but the bullet only grazed you. Everything n-needs to be disinfected and stitched." Despite my hopes he didn't notice the stutter and slur of a few of my words, he seemed to.

"Red-" he started, but I cut him off by grabbing the medkit and instructing him to take off his shirt so I could stitch him up. He finally allowed me to take care of all of his wounds, which I surprisingly did pretty good with, despite my concussion that I was sure he was beginning to notice. When I started walking to my room, Frank called after me saying, "You're still bleeding, and we both know you have a concussion. It's a miracle you were even able to stitch me up. Now take your suit off and sit your a** down so I can see how stupid you've been by hiding your injuries." I sighed and did as he said, knowing he wasn't going to be pleased with what he saw. His jaw dropped the moment I finished taking off my suit. I sat down as if I didn't notice, hissing in pain when the bullet stuck in my torso twisted. (I had gone out earlier in the night on my own patrol before teaming up with Frank, and I ended up getting shot.)

Frank's POV:

"You are so STUPID, Red! What made you think it was a good idea to hide this from me, huh? You currently have a BULLET stuck in your torso, bruises everywhere, a cut on your shoulder blade, and CRACKED F****NG RIBS!" I yelled. When I got no response, I looked at him to see that he had passed out. "S**t", I cursed under my breath, steadily trying to remove the bullet. Finally, I got it out and finished patching him up.

Once I was done, I was left alone with my thoughts again. You ruined that kid's life!! So much for killing only those who deserve it. You can do one final thing right. Kill the person who deserves it the most...yourself! the traitorous voice roared in my head. STOP!!! NO! the rational part of my brain yelled, but it was no use. The voices had already taken control. My fingers twitched to the pistol at my side, picking it up with a practiced easiness. Slowly, I brought it up to my skull. "Sorry, Red," I whispered, knowing he was still out cold from his injuries.

"One Batch, Two Batch, Penny and Dime, here I come," I whispered before pulling the trigger. It was finally over. Through the darkness, I saw my family waiting for me, smiling and waving. As I walked towards them, I couldn't help but feel complete.