Next one. Enjoy it.

I don't own RENT, 413 Hope Street, or the character names in Restaurant. Sad, but true. :(

Collins stared at the band-aid on his arm as his math teacher, Mr. Brown, lectured the class about not knowing the answer to the problem that was on the board. He couldn't think of anything except what happed at the diner and the cut on his arm was a constant reminder.

I tried to save someone's life and now I'm gonna die, he thought.

"Tom, tell me you know the answer to the equation," Mr. Brown said, snapping Collins out of his thoughts. Collins stared at the equation on the board for about three minutes.

"I don't know," he said. He was quite shocked he said those words. He was usually able to do equations in his head with ease.

"Why don't you take a stab at it?" Mr. Brown asked. All eyes were now on Collins as he stared at the board again.

I know it's a positive number, he thought. Positive . . . like in HIV positive.

"Three?" he guessed. The rest of the class looked to Mr. Brown, who shook his head.

"That's incorrect, Tom," he said. "The answer is two." Collins looked at his bandaged cut as the bell rang for lunch. "Don't forget about your homework, assignment. Class dismissed except for you, Tom. I'd like to speak with you." Once everyone else was gone, Mr. Brown approached Collins' desk. "What's going on?"

"What do you mean?" Collins replied.

"You've never gotten a question wrong in my class. Are you feeling alright?"

"I'm just . . . havin' a bad day."

"Would you like to talk about it?"

"Not really. I should get going." Collins gathered his things and stood up.

"Well, if you need someone to talk to, don't be afraid to stop by," Mr. Brown said.

"Thanks, but you wouldn't understand," Collins replied quickly. Before Mr. Brown could respond, Collins walked out of the classroom and headed for the cafeteria.

"Collins?" Roger said, waving his hand in front of his friend's face as he sat down with his lunch tray. "Are you okay?"

"No," Collins told him. "I can't keep saying 'I'm fine' to everybody. I'm not fine, I'm a wreck. I can't concentrate on anything and it's all because of this fucking cut!"

"Chill. You can just go get an HIV test. No big deal."

"'No big deal?' Roger, this is a huge deal!" Collins lowered his voice. "I could get AIDS and die."

"Todd has HIV, Collins, not AIDS."

"But HIV is the virus that causes AIDS."

"Well, whether you have it or not, I'll be there for you. And I'm sure Toby will too. Speaking of him, what'd he say when you told him what happened?" Collins looked down at his lunch tray. "Hello?"

"Nothing," Collins said quietly.

"You're kidding, right?" Collins shook his head. "Doesn't he care at all?"

"It's not that he doesn't care. It's . . . I . . . I didn't tell him."

"Why the hell not?"

"I couldn't do it."

"He deserves to know, Collins. You really need to tell him."

"How am I supposed to tell my boyfriend that I could possibly have a virus that has no cure?"

"Write it down, draw pictures, do something to get the message to him. He needs to know. And if all else fails, blurt it out."

"Roger, it ain't that simple."

"It may not be, but you're making it harder than it has to be." Collins glared at Roger.

"How the fuck can you say I'm making it harder than it has to be when you don't know how hard it actually is?" he asked angrily.

"Well, if I were you, I'd-" Roger started.

"If you were me, you'd do what, Roger?" Collins interrupted, raising his voice. "What the fuck would you do if you were me!?" A few people looked at him.

"Collins, calm down," Roger said just as Mr. Brown walked into the cafeteria.

"Don't tell me to fucking calm down, Roger! You're not the one who's goin' through hell with a best friend that's telling you having an incurable disease is 'no big deal!'" Collins suddenly felt a hand on his shoulder.

"Are you positive you don't need to talk to someone?" he heard Mr. Brown's voice ask. He shrugged his hand off, stood up, and started to walk away. Mr. Brown caught him by his arm.

"Get off me," Collins demanded.

"Tom, if you need help, let me-" Mr. Brown started.

"Leave me alone," Collins interrupted, snatching his arm away from Mr. Brown and hurrying from the cafeteria. Several teachers asked him where he thought he was going and tried to stop him from going there, but he simply pushed them away, left the school, and headed in the direction of Central Park.

This is insane, he thought. I need to clear my head . . . think about what I should do.

He thought about the possibility of having HIV a bit more as he walked. Tears stung his eyes as he thought about what his family, friends, and his boyfriend would go through if he died.

I have to know, he thought as he stopped walking. He turned around and started walking again, this time in the direction of a free clinic.

Hope you liked it.

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