The sound of a spoon tapping gently against a glass interupted out chatter.
Mark pushed his glasses back up on the bridge of his nose and prepared to speak.
Mark, Roger, Mimi, Maureen, Joanne, and Collins had decided to binge and have dinner at the Life Café. It had been a week since they almost lost Mimi, who was contently pressed against Roger's shoulder.
They all waited for Mark to speak.
"Ahem, well, I'm not really good at thinking of things off the top of my head unless I'm taping something-"
"NO!" everyone shouted, as he reached for the camera.
He jumped back, a hurt look on his face.
"Not now, Pookie," Maureen whispered, lightly. Joanne shot her a look.
"Well um, okay then. Anyway, I wanted to make a toast. To Roger and Mimi, for reuniting together!"
The two looked at each other. Roger winked and Mimi giggled. Mark continued.
"To Maureen and Joanne, for making up for well, probably about the hundredth time. Let's hope they stay together this time."
Maureen beamed and Joanne clapped politely.
"Amen," Roger muttered, and Maureen smacked him on the arm, furiously.
"To Collins, for his new tutoring job down at NYU."
Collins chuckled, and leaned back in his chair.
"And well, to me. To US." He rose his glass. "Cheers."
"Cheers!" the group chorused.
"You're such a sap, Mark," Mimi teased.
"Hey, I'm better when I have my camera."
The glasses tinkled as they clicked together, and they drank.
"Are you still going to show us your footage later tonight?" Maureen asked, eagerly.
Over the past year, Mark had gathered footage from previous events. Maureen's performance, the riot in the empty lot. Angel's funeral.
"Yup. I've just gotta get it all set up."
"Well, we're done NOW!" Maureen said, standing up. "And I'm dying to see the video of my performance. Did you know, that people are STILL talking about it?"
"They're talking about it, alright," Joanne mumbled.
"You guys done?" Maureen turned to the rest of the group, pleading with her eyes.
Roger sighed. "Let's go. I'm not done, but I wanna see the video too."
He stood up and retrieved both his and Mimi's coats, and the two left hand in hand, preparing to wait outside for everyone else.
"Let's go!" Maureen chirped, tossing Joanne and Collins their coats before grabbing her own.
Mark picked up his camera, put it back in its case, and followed closely behind them.
****
"Only thing to do is jump ovvvvvver the mooooon! Over the-MOOOOOO."
Maureen stared at the projector screen with her mouth wide open in horror. Mark tried to stifle a giggle as he let the footage continue.
"Oh my God. I thought it was a really good idea at the time, but JESUS, what was I thinking?!"
"Glad to see some light's been shed on you. Alright, onward."
The screen changed, and showed a bunch of hectic protestors in the lot, mooing loudly at the camera, dodging the police.
"Well, THEY liked it," Maureen said, satisfied.
"Mo, most of those people were already drunk," Roger said, ducking to avoid the pillow that came hurling at his head.
Maureen and Joanne were huddled together on the sofa, Collins was perched in an old rocking chair that Mark's mom had given him, thinking it was still of good use. Roger and Mimi were huddled on the floor together.
The screen went blank again and then the scene changed to Angel's funeral. Everyone glanced at Collins nervously. He sighed, and rested his head on his hands, smiling slightly when he saw everyone staring at him.
Then there was some more random footage, Roger running around the apartment with Mimi on his back, both apparently drunk. That one got a lot of laughs. There were about fifty of Mark's 'nosedives' and then there was some footage of the horizon, taped from the fire escape of Mark and Roger's apartment.
"Hey, Mark, have you got the tape of Collins's birthday anywhere?" Maureen piped up.
They'd recently thrown Collins a surprise birthday at the life café. It'd required much vodka, and many threats by the manager that they'd never be let back in again.
"It's somewhere in here- hold on." Mark pulled out a cardboard box from behind the sofa, and rummaged through hundreds of tape reels.
"I think this is it," he said, plucking one of them from the box and sliding it in.
An image appeared on the screen, but it wasn't from Collins's birthday. It was of Central Park. The camera panned to the right, focusing on the skyline, and then on a group of pigeons feasting on some breadcrumbs that someone had thrown for them.
"Oh um, this isn't it," Mark said quickly, trying to switch it off.
Again, the scene changed, and it showed Mark and a with a young, blonde woman. Her long hair was windblown, and she wore a white sundress over her slender frame. Right before Mark pulled the plug, the two of them turned towards each other, and kissed.
The room was silent for a moments.
"Wow, Mark's actually got a love life," Mimi joked, glancing at the others.
They were unusually quiet. Collins was fidgeting uncomfortably in his chair, and Maureen and Joanne looked nervously over at Roger.
Mimi turned to look over at Roger. His eyes were still on the screen. His mouth was slightly open in shock.
"Who is that?" she said, confused.
Shakily, he turned to Mark. "What was that?" he asked quietly.
Mark didn't answer. Instead, he gathered the equipment into the box, and slid it back behind the sofa. He refused to meet Roger's gaze.
For a moment, an enraged look came across Roger's face, but then is changed, and he was left with a sad look in his eyes. Silently, he lifted Mimi off his lap, stood up, and walked out of the living room.
The group heard his bedroom door slam loudly, and winced.
"Who was that?" Mimi repeated, trying to get someone to say something.
Mark sat down in an unoccupied armchair, looking down at his camera, cradling it in his hands.
"What's the matter?" she tried again, looking to Maureen for help.
Shakily, Maureen took a breath and said quietly, "That was April."
Mark pushed his glasses back up on the bridge of his nose and prepared to speak.
Mark, Roger, Mimi, Maureen, Joanne, and Collins had decided to binge and have dinner at the Life Café. It had been a week since they almost lost Mimi, who was contently pressed against Roger's shoulder.
They all waited for Mark to speak.
"Ahem, well, I'm not really good at thinking of things off the top of my head unless I'm taping something-"
"NO!" everyone shouted, as he reached for the camera.
He jumped back, a hurt look on his face.
"Not now, Pookie," Maureen whispered, lightly. Joanne shot her a look.
"Well um, okay then. Anyway, I wanted to make a toast. To Roger and Mimi, for reuniting together!"
The two looked at each other. Roger winked and Mimi giggled. Mark continued.
"To Maureen and Joanne, for making up for well, probably about the hundredth time. Let's hope they stay together this time."
Maureen beamed and Joanne clapped politely.
"Amen," Roger muttered, and Maureen smacked him on the arm, furiously.
"To Collins, for his new tutoring job down at NYU."
Collins chuckled, and leaned back in his chair.
"And well, to me. To US." He rose his glass. "Cheers."
"Cheers!" the group chorused.
"You're such a sap, Mark," Mimi teased.
"Hey, I'm better when I have my camera."
The glasses tinkled as they clicked together, and they drank.
"Are you still going to show us your footage later tonight?" Maureen asked, eagerly.
Over the past year, Mark had gathered footage from previous events. Maureen's performance, the riot in the empty lot. Angel's funeral.
"Yup. I've just gotta get it all set up."
"Well, we're done NOW!" Maureen said, standing up. "And I'm dying to see the video of my performance. Did you know, that people are STILL talking about it?"
"They're talking about it, alright," Joanne mumbled.
"You guys done?" Maureen turned to the rest of the group, pleading with her eyes.
Roger sighed. "Let's go. I'm not done, but I wanna see the video too."
He stood up and retrieved both his and Mimi's coats, and the two left hand in hand, preparing to wait outside for everyone else.
"Let's go!" Maureen chirped, tossing Joanne and Collins their coats before grabbing her own.
Mark picked up his camera, put it back in its case, and followed closely behind them.
****
"Only thing to do is jump ovvvvvver the mooooon! Over the-MOOOOOO."
Maureen stared at the projector screen with her mouth wide open in horror. Mark tried to stifle a giggle as he let the footage continue.
"Oh my God. I thought it was a really good idea at the time, but JESUS, what was I thinking?!"
"Glad to see some light's been shed on you. Alright, onward."
The screen changed, and showed a bunch of hectic protestors in the lot, mooing loudly at the camera, dodging the police.
"Well, THEY liked it," Maureen said, satisfied.
"Mo, most of those people were already drunk," Roger said, ducking to avoid the pillow that came hurling at his head.
Maureen and Joanne were huddled together on the sofa, Collins was perched in an old rocking chair that Mark's mom had given him, thinking it was still of good use. Roger and Mimi were huddled on the floor together.
The screen went blank again and then the scene changed to Angel's funeral. Everyone glanced at Collins nervously. He sighed, and rested his head on his hands, smiling slightly when he saw everyone staring at him.
Then there was some more random footage, Roger running around the apartment with Mimi on his back, both apparently drunk. That one got a lot of laughs. There were about fifty of Mark's 'nosedives' and then there was some footage of the horizon, taped from the fire escape of Mark and Roger's apartment.
"Hey, Mark, have you got the tape of Collins's birthday anywhere?" Maureen piped up.
They'd recently thrown Collins a surprise birthday at the life café. It'd required much vodka, and many threats by the manager that they'd never be let back in again.
"It's somewhere in here- hold on." Mark pulled out a cardboard box from behind the sofa, and rummaged through hundreds of tape reels.
"I think this is it," he said, plucking one of them from the box and sliding it in.
An image appeared on the screen, but it wasn't from Collins's birthday. It was of Central Park. The camera panned to the right, focusing on the skyline, and then on a group of pigeons feasting on some breadcrumbs that someone had thrown for them.
"Oh um, this isn't it," Mark said quickly, trying to switch it off.
Again, the scene changed, and it showed Mark and a with a young, blonde woman. Her long hair was windblown, and she wore a white sundress over her slender frame. Right before Mark pulled the plug, the two of them turned towards each other, and kissed.
The room was silent for a moments.
"Wow, Mark's actually got a love life," Mimi joked, glancing at the others.
They were unusually quiet. Collins was fidgeting uncomfortably in his chair, and Maureen and Joanne looked nervously over at Roger.
Mimi turned to look over at Roger. His eyes were still on the screen. His mouth was slightly open in shock.
"Who is that?" she said, confused.
Shakily, he turned to Mark. "What was that?" he asked quietly.
Mark didn't answer. Instead, he gathered the equipment into the box, and slid it back behind the sofa. He refused to meet Roger's gaze.
For a moment, an enraged look came across Roger's face, but then is changed, and he was left with a sad look in his eyes. Silently, he lifted Mimi off his lap, stood up, and walked out of the living room.
The group heard his bedroom door slam loudly, and winced.
"Who was that?" Mimi repeated, trying to get someone to say something.
Mark sat down in an unoccupied armchair, looking down at his camera, cradling it in his hands.
"What's the matter?" she tried again, looking to Maureen for help.
Shakily, Maureen took a breath and said quietly, "That was April."