Hey everyone! I don't know about you, but I've noticed that this fandom seems to be a little... dead, lately, and it breaks my heart. :( B!U!T! I did have this idea for a story, so I wrote it up for all of you. Some good ole' Mark/Maureen, because as much as I love the canon pairings, M/M always gives me that warm, fuzzy feeling inside! XD
Definitely pre-Rent.
Hope you all enjoy, and don't forget to leave a review! They really do make my day a little bit brighter. :J
-EB91
Jonathan Larson owns all.
"Hey Maureen, have you seen my lens cap?" Mark shouted, digging through the pile of dirty laundry that resided by the door of his room. He had been searching his room for about five minutes and still couldn't find it. In hopes that two sets of eyes would make it easier to find, he called his girlfriend again.
"Mo!" He shouted through the door that stood slightly ajar. After a few seconds of silence, he returned back to the heap of laundry. "Have you seen my – " He turned to the door and almost bumped into Maureen, who was holding a small, circular cap.
"Aha! Thanks, Maureen." He kissed her sweetly on the lips and went over to the cheap wicker shelf in the corner by their bed. They had gotten it really inexpensive at the local Salvation Army. Mark crouched down to grab his camera. When he tried snapping the cap into place, it wouldn't click. Furrowing his brow, he tried again, but had no luck. Looking closely at it, he realized it belonged to a camera that had gone missing long ago. Putting down his Bolex, he reached in back, now in search of his old camera.
"Hey Mark?" Maureen asked, bending slightly to watch Mark dig in the bottommost shelf.
"What?" He answered, not stopping his hunt.
"Can I, uh…" Maureen began to say, but was distracted by Mark digging even deeper.
"Uh huh?" Mark said, still not looking at her.
"Well. Can I – I mean, I need to, uh… tell you something." Maureen furrowed her brows as Mark kept ignoring her. Louder than before she continued, "I said I need to – "
"Yeah, sure. Do whatever you want. Have fun!" Mark interrupted, speaking quickly. He brushed her off, obviously not listening to her. Aggravated, Maureen stomped her foot.
"Mark!" She shouted, causing him to jump and whack his head on the thin wooden shelf. Rubbing the back of his head, he looked up at Maureen.
"I'm trying to get your attention so I can tell you something very important! The least you can do is pay attention and listen to me!"
Mark nodded his head and momentarily abandoned his search for the camera.
"I need to talk to you." Maureen repeated and slowly began pacing back and forth by their bed.
Mark was silent for a moment, confused my Maureen's change in attitude. Something felt wrong. Looking at her, her eyes showed she was worrying about something. Whatever it was, it was really bothering her.
"Okay." Mark got up and sat on the edge of the bed closest to Maureen, who was now wringing her hands along with pacing the room.
As Maureen took a deep breath to speak, Mark braced himself for the four words he'd heard by previous girlfriends throughout his life. Mark, I'm dumping you…But the four words that he heard were anything but that.
"I think I'm pregnant."
Mark breathed out a sigh of relief. He ran a hand through his spiky, blond hair.
"Oh thank god you're not dumping me!" He sighed, "I thought you were – wait, what?!" He shouted, just registering what four words she had actually said. It felt as if he was punched in the chest and all the wind was knocked out of his lungs.
"I think I might be pregnant, Mark." She said softly. Averting her eyes to the dark wooden floor of their room, she hugged her body.
Thankfully he was already sitting on the bed, or else his legs would've given out. His heart started to quicken its pace as he tried to come up with a reason to debunk her suspicions.
"Are you sure?" Mark looked up into Maureen's eyes, unable to come up with a good reason. There was no use for it. There was hardly a reason why it couldn't be true – they were never particularly safe after all. Their form of protection mostly consisted of pulling out, if they did in time. In fact, they rarely used protection at all.
Maureen nodded her head, still avoiding his gaze. "I'm almost two months late." She said, pointing to the milk crate that served as their night stand. Atop it was the mini calendar Maureen kept in her purse. He had somehow skimmed over it during his search for the lens cap.
"Shit." Mark whispered, not bothering to ask her about her ability to count her menstrual cycle. "Have you, uh," Mark gulped, a lump forming in his throat suddenly, "uh… taken any tests yet?"
Maureen shook her head, still appearing stoic. "I was going to call and make an appointment with the doctor, just to be safe."
'You wouldn't have to make the appointment if we were safe to begin with.' Mark thought angrily, pinching the bridge of his nose.
"Alright." Mark agreed. Maureen nodded her head and began to head out the door.
"Mo?" Mark lightly grasped her elbow to stop her from leaving. "When you call and make the appointment, let me know. I want to go with you." Mark looked up into the scared face of his girlfriend. He was sure it mirrored his own.
"'Kay." She mumbled, and exited their room quietly.
Two days later, Mark found himself waiting in the stuffy waiting room at Maureen's gynecologist's office, tightly grasping onto her hand. Looking around, all of the Parenting magazines splayed about on the randomly placed white-painted wooden tables nearly make him sick to his stomach.
He should've known this would happen to them. All of the times they'd done it, they hardly used protection. Except, every other time, Maureen had gotten her monthly visitor no problem. They just kept on doing it that way, stupidly thinking they were invincible or immune even, to getting pregnant.
What if Maureen was pregnant? They couldn't raise a child. Not now, at least. Hell, he and Maureen were still young enough to be children! Babies raising babies... He couldn't see any possible way for the two of them raising children. Maureen barely got work, going from audition to audition and picking up little gigs here and there. Mark wasn't even thinking about a job at the moment. And kids? He was terrible with kids. Every time he babysat his nieces and nephew, they ended up crying, hiding from him, or claiming that he had been mean to them, causing Cindy to scold him. They would just giggle from their spot on the stairs and run up when they heard him going to the door to leave, temporarily shunned from his sister's household. If that's how he was around kids, he didn't even want to guess how Maureen would be. They definitely were not fit enough to become parents.
The sound of the door to the back examination rooms opening shook Mark from his reverie. Looking up, he saw a young Hispanic girl exiting, her face puffy and red as if she had been crying. A blonde nurse gave her a white slip of paper. "Make sure you get these filled and take your vitamins. We'll see you in one month for your next check up." The bleary-eyed girl wiped her nose and nodded, taking the slip. She couldn't have been more than nineteen years old. Mark felt the grip on his hand tighten as Maureen squeezed it. Mark looked over at her. Her mouth was tight with anticipation, her complexion pale. He seemed to read her mind: Would that be us?
Mark squeezed her hand back. "You alright?" He asked quietly.
Maureen shrugged her shoulder slowly. "I guess." She answered back, just above a whisper. Mark nodded, unable to think of anything else to say in order to keep the conservation going.
He went back to scoping the bland room, avoiding the magazines and baby-advice posters on the walls, focusing instead on a diagram of the insides of a woman. Frowning a little at the bluntness of the poster, he heard the door open again, the same blonde nurse popping her head out.
"Maureen Johnson?" She called out. With a deep breath, Maureen grabbed her bag and stood up to follow the nurse. Mark shuddered, standing up and following her into her room. They were going to find out their future right then and there in that little room.
"Here are some robes you can change into. If you take a seat, the doctor will be with you in a moment." The nurse put Maureen's file in the plastic box outside the door and closed it, leaving them alone in the quiet room.
Maureen frowned at the stiff johnny in her hands and looked at Mark. Mark frowned and shrugged his shoulders, settling into a chair beside the examination table. Maureen changed into the thin gown and sat on the table, the thin paper crunching underneath her. Her hand instantly shot out to Mark, grasping his tightly. He looked up at her, her head bent. Her eyes were shadowed by her hair, but he couldn't miss the tears that escaped her doe-like hazel eyes. Bringing her hand to his lips, he kissed the back and rubbed her knuckles.
"It's going to be fine. We'll be okay." He tried comforting her. They stayed in silence like that for what seemed like hours. Finally, a light knock came
"Good afternoon, Maureen!" Maureen's doctor greeted cheerfully as he opened the door. His white coat swayed with the motion. Maureen nodded in acknowledgement.
Mark looked up at him – the man who would pretty much be playing God with their futures. He studied his appearance, from his short, close-cropped dark brown hair, his smooth skin and thin, wire-framed glasses to his brown and green plaid tie that laid askew on his chest. He swallowed and stood up to greet him.
"Hello, I'm Doctor Malone." The doctor reached his hand out to Mark. "I'm assuming your Maureen's husband?"
"Boyfriend. Mark." Mark corrected and shook his hand, trying his hardest to put a friendly smile on his face but failing miserably.
"It's nice to meet you. So, what can I do for you today, Maureen?" Dr. Malone looked at her file on the clipboard, checking her records.
Maureen bit her lip and sighed heavily.
"I um…. We, want a pregnancy test." She looked down at Mark, instantly reaching out for his hand again. Mark took it and squeezed it, just as nervous as she was. His leg shook up and down furiously.
"Sure. Let me just get everything set up and we'll have a look-see." Dr. Malone said, placing his pen in the breast pocket of his shirt before he left the room. As Mark watched him leave he let out a long, low sigh. He couldn't believe this was happening.
"You're going to feel a slight pressure, but just relax, okay Maureen?" Dr. Malone said from somewhere between Maureen's legs, which were now propped up in the metal stirrups attached to the examination table. Not trusting her voice at this point, Maureen merely nodded her head, leaning her head back and closing her eyes.
Mark's seat was turned to face Maureen, and he was holding her hand tightly. He quickly closed his eyes when he saw Maureen wince, her forehead scrunching up. With one sense gone, his other senses magnified – as he bowed his head to her hand he heard her suck in a quiet breath mixed with the pounding of his own heart in his chest. How long was this going to take?
"Well," Dr. Malone sighed. Mark looked up quickly. Well? Well what?! What the hell does that mean? The doctor removed the equipment from the area, removed his rubber gloves and instructed Maureen to put her legs down.
"I'm sorry kids," He paused, noting something down on the clipboard. Mark's heart plummeted and about stopped at that moment. He looked at him, his eyes wide with disbelief.
"Looks like you're not going to have a baby." He said, looking up at them sadly with an all-too-fake frown.
In an instant, a wave of relief washed over Mark. Sighing loudly, he dropped his head to Maureen's hand again. He swallowed and let out a guttural moan, hearing Maureen cry out in relief and felt her body shake with tears. Maureen pulled her hands to her face, dragging Mark into a tight hug. He leaned over and clutched her close, letting her cry on his shoulder.
"I'll just be… um… Just stop by the front desk to make your next appointment." Dr. Malone said awkwardly, thrown off by their reactions. He left the room and shut the door to give them privacy.
"Oh my god." Maureen cried into Mark's sweater, clutching fistfuls of material. "I thought he was going to say I was... ! My god, I was so scared!"
Mark placed his head on top of hers and held her closely. Rocking her gently back and forth, he sighed. The doctor had certainly scared him as well. What the hell was his problem, dragging out the results so long like that?
"Me too. Trust me, I thought so, too." He rolled his eyes at the doctor's stupidity.
They sat there for a minute longer, taking in what the doctor had told them. Maureen wasn't pregnant. They weren't going to be parents. There was no baby! He kissed her lightly on the forehead, and detached himself from Maureen's grip.
"What do you say we get out of here and grab something to eat? How's that sound?" He said softly, wiping the tears from her face. Through her tears, Maureen let out a laugh and nodded.
"As long as we stop by the drug store before we go home. I don't want this shit to happen again." Maureen sniffled. "That really scared me." She laughed again, grabbing a tissue from the side counter and dabbing her eyes.
Mark smiled bitterly and nodded his head. "Yeah. Me neither."
As he helped Maureen down from the examination table, Mark couldn't help but grin at her johnny, which had come slightly untied in the back.
"Lookin' good, Mo!" He joked, pulling at the strings keeping the gown in place, trying to lighten the mood in the dreary, cold room.
"Hey, keep it in your pants. That's why we're here in the first place!" Maureen swatted his hands away and continued to get dressed before they gathered their stuff and left the office.
"You got it, dear." Mark grinned as they exited the building, holding the door open for an African-American woman with long braids, holding a baby carrier.
"Thanks." She said as she passed. Mark just nodded politely and continued on his way.
"So... where do you want to eat?" Mark grasped Maureen's hand, bringing her close to his body.
"Let's just get the Life. I'm not feeling anything extravagant tonight. Plus, I could really use a nice cold beer." Maureen rested her head on his shoulder and wrapped her arms around his waist as they walked.
"Sure." Mark grinned and pulled her closer. "Sounds good to me." He kissed the top of her head, and continued their walk to the Life Cafe.
Hope you all liked it. :) I do have another one I'm currently writing, but I don't know where it's going to go, hopefully somewhere interesting!
Oh, and I thought I'd update with some stuff... Finally saw Spring Awakening back in February. One word: AMAZING! Absolutely amazing, and breath-taking, and beautiful, and tragic... Awh. I can't get enough of it, I wish I could see it again. And I got to meet almost everyone afterwords (except for the gal who played Wendla and Steffi D... They just kind of.. walked off. Whatever. Meeting Jake Epstein totally made up for that! Haha) If the tour isn't done yet and there's a stop near you - see it! It was utterly amazing. The harmonies were right on cue, the coreography was just top, and I finally got what the heck was going on. I think it might've even topped seeing Rent... O_O
Anyways, enough of my gushing. Just hope you enjoyed the story, and don't forget to review, my lovelies! :D
-EB91