CINCINNATI – If this story was a Facebook post, you'd have to "like" it.
Twelve-year-old Malik Robertson saved his 7-year-old friend from being hit by a car, but Malik couldn't get out of the way fast enough.
The young hero suffered a broken leg and a concussion. His mother says he could face a lifetime of physical therapy, but the Price Hill boy can't go home because he can't manage the steep steps to his house, and his family can't afford a step climber.
So Malik was staying at his aunt's house, in a cast up to his hip, when he told WCPO something remarkable.
He was thinking about disappointing his mother, knowing he wouldn't be able to make signups for football.
"I really wanted to play football and make my mom proud of me," Malik said.
What parent couldn't be proud of a child like him?
Malik was shoveling snow off a friend's driveway when an out-of-control car came at them. Malik said his first instinct was to save his younger friend.
"It was about to come and hit him. I pushed him out of the way before it even got a chance to hit him, but it hit me, though," Malik said.
At that, Malik's mom, Sara, made sure her son knew how she felt.
"Hey, be strong, baby. I'm always proud of you, no matter what, OK?" she said.
That was just want Malik wanted to hear, because he started crying.
"It makes me proud knowing that my son actually thinks more about other people than apparently his own safety," Sara said.
Malik will be in the cast for at least six months, and he wants to go home. But that's not possible because he can't make it up those steep steps.
Sara said insurance is willing to pay for a stair lift and a proper hospital bed, but the family can't afford the $200 installation cost. So they're trying to raise it on a GoFundMe page.
Sara says there's nothing she wants more than to take Malik home.
"I'm sitting here seeing my son being in so much pain, and there's nothing I can do to help him," she said.
Sara said she doesn't know who that driver is or if they're facing any charges.
