A/N- Thanks for all the wonderful reviews! This chapter was a little hard to write… kinda a lot of drama going down. But, you learn more about Maureen and everything! Here you go!

Chapter 2

When my mom wants to impress someone, boy does she go all out. The good china was used and the table was set for six. Together, the families were seven. Maybe Maureen was not coming! Did I spend hours getting dressed for nothing?

"Mom? We're seven aren't we?"

"Cindy's spending the night at her friend Belinda's house," Mom explained as she took the meatloaf from the oven. The doorbell rang and my stomach dropped.

"Markie, get that?"

I swallowed and answered the door. The Hawke's were very nice neighbors. They babysat for me and Cindy, but I never knew they had a niece. Maureen wore a simple black shirt with a red silk shirt. She looked beautiful.

"Hi," She smiled widely.

"Hello," I gave her a half-cocked smile. "Come in," I stepped to the side and let them through. I took Mr. Hawke's coat and hung it in the closet.

"It smells good," Maureen said softly, standing next to me.

"It's my mom's meatloaf," I replied, just as soft. "It's really delicious."

"Cool," She smiled. "You look nice."

I blushed deeply and looked down at my faint blue button-down shirt that was untucked over my khakis. "T-thanks, I guess."

Maureen just smiled again. I could tell that she loved to smile. Dinner was called shortly after, and Maureen was told to sit next to me. I behaved myself through dinner, ate all my food, even my peas. As dinner commenced, Maureen complimented my mother's cooking, causing Mom to fawn over Maureen. I smiled to myself, making Maureen elbow me, smiling herself.

"What are you smiling at?"

My smile grew bigger. "Nothing."

Dinner ended about an hour later. Mom and Mrs. Hawke were swapping recipes and cleaning secrets. Dad and Mr. Hawke moved to the living room to catch the ball game. I jumped as I felt something brush my leg. Maureen giggled and I looked down. It was her foot.

"D'you want to get out of here?" She asked quietly.

"Where do you want to go?" I replied in a whisper.

"Your room?"

My room? Where I slept? Where I changed? Where I… enjoyed my Playboy magazines?

"Okay."

We quietly snuck away and ascended the stairs.

"It's not much," I said meekly as I opened the door. "But it's home."

My room was filled with film and editing equipment. Maureen noticed this.

"You film?"

"Yea, if that's what you'd call it. I usually just call it crap."

"I'm sure it's not that bad," Maureen said.

"It is. Believe me."

"You were pretty quiet on the way home. Was something wrong?"

"No," I shook my head. "I'm just a quiet guy."

"Well, now I don't know much about you. We pretty much shared our life stories… well, they did. We didn't get to mine."

"I'm nothing special," I admitted quietly. "Just dorky, nerdy, AV geek, Mark Cohen. Roger and Collins are a lot more interesting than I am."

"Everyone's interesting. You just have to look deep enough," She said as though it was the simplest thing in the world. "How'd you get into film?"

"My grandpa. He owned a film store and he gave me my first camera. He… died a couple of years ago…"

"I'm sorry, Mark," She said sincerely. And by God, she looked like she was too.

"It's okay. That's why I film so much. So he can see what's going on."

"See? That's pretty interesting," She smiled widely. I couldn't help but smile back.

"Yea? So what about you? What's your story?"

Maureen's face fell dramatically. "M-my story? I-I don't have one…" She said, not meeting my gaze. I could tell she was hiding something from me, but I didn't pursue it.

"It's okay," I reassured her quickly. "You don't have to tell me anything you don't want to."

Maureen stared at her lap silently. I watched her intently. Her eyes glassed over and my breath hitched in my chest. A very pretty girl was sitting on my bed, almost in tears! I put a trembling hand on her back, rubbing gently.

"It's okay, Maureen. Forget I said anything. I'm just really stupid. Really, really stupid. I'm so sorry," But my words had no comfort for her. I was mentally kicking myself. How could I have been so tactless? I watched in horror as a tear dripped down her pale cheek. Instinctively, I reached out and wiped it away.

'Shit, shit, shit,' I had thought. 'What do I do now?!'

More tears fell and I tentatively wrapped my arms around her, whispering soothing words in her ear. The crying stopped after another minute or so. Any terror I had received from watching her cry, increased tenfold as she started to pull up her shirt. Any words of protest and shock died as I saw what she was trying to show me. It was a bruise; a large one.

"Maureen…" I said, utterly stunned.

She sighed deeply. "My dad… he… beat me. A lot."

"You don't have to tell me if you don't want to," I insisted quickly, pulling her shirt down. This was nuts! I had only known the girl for ten hours! I shouldn't be hearing this. This wasn't my business.

"No," She said firmly. "You should know." I didn't dare object. Maureen continued. "My mom found out. And sent me to live here with Aunt Sally. To get away from him." Tears began to shed again.

"Maureen," I repeated, holding her again. I was thoroughly impressed with myself, as well as extremely panicked. Never mind the fact that I didn't think I'd have a girl in my room until I was at least 35, the girl was beautiful… and she was crying! I was surprised that I wasn't passed out. Rubbing her back didn't seem to make anything worse, so I continued. She cried in my arms silently for another ten minutes. She finally broke the silence.

"You can't tell anyone. Not Roger or Collins. Or your parents."

"I promise," I swore to her.

"Thank you," She sat up and sniffled.

"No problem."

"I'm sorry… for putting you in this position. I shouldn't have bothered you with my problems."

"No, no. It's fine," I lied. "I'm always right next door. If you ever… you know, need someone."

"Thanks, Mark," She smiled weakly. "You're a nice guy."

"Thanks," I blushed. "Uh, listen. Maureen. In a couple of weeks I'll be thirteen. And it's a Jewish tradition for me to make a huge fool of myself and have a Bar Mitzvah."

Maureen gave a small giggle and I felt relatively proud of myself. Before I lost my nerve and realized what I was doing, I continued. "I was wondering… if you'd want to come. As my… guest."

"Sure," She smiled again. It was weak, but it still made my stomach flutter. The invite seemed to have cheered her up immensely. I gave myself a mental pat on the back.

We talked for another hour, laughing and enjoying ourselves. The memory of Maureen's breakdown was behind us. I wanted to know more about her. But I didn't want to provoke anymore tears.

"You an only child?" Maureen asked. She was lying on my bed, her head hanging off. It was slightly red due to the blood rushing down.

"No," I replied. I was sitting across the room on my chair. "I have a sixteen-year-old sister. Cindy."

"Ah," She nodded. "I'm an only child. Makes for great Christmas gifts."

"Where did you use to live?" I asked casually.

"Hicksville. Long Island," No tears. Thank God.

"Did you like it there?"

"Not really. Pure suburbia, you know? Yuppie clones."

I gave a little chuckle. "Scarsdale isn't that different. Give it time. You'll get sick of it soon. Me, Roger, and, Collins have. That's why as soon as we graduate we're moving to the city. Roger'll hit it big. Collins will teach at NYU."

"What'll you do?" Maureen asked as she turned over.

I sighed. "Capture it all on film."

Maureen brow furrowed and her lips pursed. She has such pretty lips… She studied me for a second before saying, "You need a confidence boost."

"What?" It was my turn to furrow my brow. "A confidence boost?"

"Mhmm," She nodded. "You have to realize that Mark Cohen is a pretty cool guy."

"He is? ... I mean, I am?" I said, in disbelief.

"You are. You have to come out of the shadows."

"How do I do that?"

"Get a girlfriend," She replied simply.

"A girlfriend?! Who would ever want to be my girlfriend?"

"I would."

"Wha-?"

"Maureen!?" Mrs. Hawke's called from the foot of the stairs. "C'mon, dear. Time to say goodbye."

'What?! No! She- she wanted to be my girlfriend! Give us five minutes!'

But, no. Maureen got off my bed.

"Thanks for listening to me," She smiled. "I'll see you tomorrow, mmkay?"

"Tomorrow? Oh yea… school," My brain was in a scramble. "Yea, okay."

"Talk to you later," To my utter amazement, she leaned down and gave me a small kiss on the cheek. "Bye!"

And with that, she ran out of my room. I heard her speak kindly to my parents, then a door close. I flew to my window and looked down at the street. Maureen and the Hawke's scurried across our lawn and onto their's and into their house. A couple of minutes later, the light in the window on the side of the house closet to my own window, turned on. It was Maureen's room, I quickly saw.

Yea, this was going to be the start of a beautiful friendship.

xxReDhEaDxx--- Thanks, Lily! Well, here you go!

x Step On Me x--- I know, right? I hate those kinds of stories. Seriously, follow the canon, would ya? And yes, Mark definitely is picked on by Roger and Collins. Hehe…

theatre-girl-86--- Thanks for the review! Yep, Mark's just a little horny boy!

majorly-musical-marlee--- Thank you ever so much!

iloveelphie--- Hahaha… well, I'm glad I may be able to change your outlook on M&Ms.