"Either fate will be kind, or you'll have to be stubborn," Marty said. Smoke rolled off his cigar as he sat overlooking the pier. He was a thin man, bound together with vices like dried glue. You never hope to rely on a man like that, but when they're your only family in a big city, you make do.

"Hey," he snapped his fingers. "I'm still talking to you. Get your head out of your ass. These are things you need to know."

"What? I'm just starting a couple of classes at the community college. It's not a big deal,”Daniel said.

"Not a big deal? No one in our family has ever made it past the tenth grade. Now you're starting college, and it's 'not a big deal'? Don't hand me that bullshit."

"Can't you leave it alone?" The young man fidgeted on the cold bench. To the passers-by, he looked like the premium price version of Marty.

"Leave it alone? Kid, I'm proud of you. The brains our family's blessed with ain't so great for the pencils and textbooks. So for you to be standing in front of me now as a premier college student? It warms my fucking heart."

"You could have gone to college. Dad always said you were the smartest person in our family."

"Your dad doesn't know how the world works. That's why you're here with me, and why I never sat in a classroom past fifteen years old. He doesn't understand that when you sacrifice something, you ain't getting it back." Marty flicked the cigar. "Don't let this go. Community college or university, it's an opportunity. You've earned your shot, and now you gotta take it."

"Thanks, Marty." The morning fog rolled in off the lake. It swallowed the pair on the bench before greedily stretching towards the city.