A/N: My dear friend Samantha helped me think of this idea. I hope no one has used this idea yet, because I am quite fond of it. -huggles fic- R&R please, and let me know if I should continue with this!

He missed her. He was the first to admit it—only to himself, that is. His friends insisted he move on from her, but it seemed morally impossible to do so.

Dammit, Maureen, you messed me up. Completely.

Of course, he saw her almost every day...He and everyone else were always hanging out for one reason or another. But it wasn't the same, because he hated seeing her with someone else. He remembered how they used to be and longed for those days to come back again. Joanne was his friend, but he couldn't help feeling just a little jealousy toward her.

He didn't want to admit to the fact that he wanted her back so much; that he couldn't move on without her. He wanted to be strong in front of his friends. He hated to be treated like a baby. She didn't love him anymore, and he only wished that he didn't even care. But oh, how he did. He wanted to just forget about it all, but, alas, he couldn't.

On the outside, he appeared to just be the semi-sarcastic, quiet guy everyone seemed to like.

But on the inside, Mark Cohen was broken. And no one could fix him.

"Mark, when are you gonna get a girlfriend?"

Almost choking on his burger that he'd ordered, Mark looked up to find Angel staring at him quizzically from across the table. Everyone had gathered, once again, to the Life Café for a lunch get-together. He blinked. "Um..."

"Angel, baby," Collins interjected, "Mark still hasn't moved on from...uh..." He shifted his eyes to Maureen who was babbling to Joanne in the corner. Mark stared at Collins resentfully.

Angel nodded. "Ooh, I get it." Mark cringed at the tone of sympathy in her voice.

Roger cackled loudly, taking a sip of his soda. "Mark's never gonna get another girlfriend." He dramatically held his hand over his heart. "The poor guy's heartbroken."

"Aww, Mark, I'm so sorry about that!" Mimi said, frowning. "You'll find someone!"

Collins nodded. "You need a girlfriend, man. You'll get one."

Mark felt like screaming. Pulling his hair out. Cursing at the top of his lungs. He couldn't believe how serious these people were taking the whole situation. He sure as hell wasn't asking for any sympathy.

He realized, out of the corner of his eye, Maureen was looking at him. She must think I'm loser...A weak, stupid loser---

"I already have a girlfriend!" he blurted. As soon as he realized what he'd said, he began to panic. Oh, shit, what did I just do? Oh, my God...Great...Just great...

Roger spit out his Diet Coke, taking to a fit of coughing. Maureen and Joanne's eyes widened. Collins let out a low whistle, and Angel and Mimi both squealed simultaneously.

"You're joking!" Mimi cried.

Mark was tempted to answer something along the lines of, "Yeah, I was joking; let's just all forget about it. I'm a loser and I can't even get a girlfriend", but refrained from doing so. His ego was getting the best of him. "Nope. I have a girlfriend," he said proudly. Oh, God, I need to stop this...Mark, what are you doing? Stop lying. Stop lying

"You...got a girlfriend, Marky? What's her name?" Maureen inquired, calling Mark by his pet name.

What else was he supposed to say? He tried to act confident. "Yeah, she's cool. And her name is...um...Stephanie. Stephanie...Morris."

Angel clapped her hands excitedly. "Ooh, how adorable! What does she look like?"

"How come we've never seen her?" Roger asked. It was obvious he didn't believe a word Mark was saying. He was wearing his 'I'm-not-buying-it' look.

Collins raised an eyebrow. "How long you two been going out?" He apparently wasn't convinced either. Mark wasn't all that surprised, considering Collins and Roger were his best friends and could tell when he was lying about something.

"When will we meet this 'Stephanie'?" Joanne asked suspiciously.

Maureen was quiet. She munched on a french fry and simply looked around the room.

Mark shrugged nonchalantly. He was getting better at this. "Someday. We try to keep things private. I talk about you guys all the time, though." What the hell, Cohen?

"How'd ya meet her?" Roger snapped.

Slightly taken aback at Roger's attitude, Mark blinked before answering his question. He wracked his brain for an answer. "...I was filming in Tompkins Square Park and I saw her there. We talked a little while and then I asked her out to dinner."

Roger and Collins exchanged a glance, while Mimi and Angel were just plain giddy regarding this whole situation. Joanne had an amused smirk on her face. Soon the table was hustling and bustling once again with Mark answering all of his friend's questions and trying not to be specific in the process.

"I didn't approve of her," said a small voice among them. Everyone turned to look at Maureen, who hadn't said much at all within the past few minutes. That was something rare, as Maureen always had to throw her two cents into every conversation.

Noticing that everyone was looking at her, she smiled. "I didn't approve of this girl, Marky." She laughed and, taking it as a joke, everyone else laughed as well.

Yet, there were two people at the table who were laughing but screaming inside—take a wild guess at who they were.

Please let me know if I should write some more chapters!! R&R!