Saving Roger, Part 2
The end comes... what will happen?

"Steve? Joanne. The Garrett case." For the second day in a row, Joanne found herself
repeating history. Luckily, Steve was very good at his job, and Joanne had just hung up the
phone when Maureen came pounding down the stairs.
"Joanne. Upstairs. Now." There was no doubt in the lawyer's mind what was
happening. Together, they raced up the stairs.
As they entered the apartment, only Collins looked up. Roger, tears streaming, has all
his attention fixed on Mimi. Mark, according to plan, was standing behind Roger, hands on the
songwriter's shoulders. Joanne and Maureen stood at the opposite end of the couch from
Collins.
While the friends watched sadly, Mimi coughed terribly. She managed to catch her
breath long enough to look at Roger and whisper, "I love you." It was long after that.
Everyone stayed silent. Maureen buried her face in Joanne's shoulder as the lawyer
wrapped her arms around her. Collins wept openly. Mark and Roger froze as if statues.
Then, as if reality had just hit him, Roger lept, howling, to his feet. Mark and Joanne
glanced at each other, having anticipated something like this. Joanne nodded and Mark turned
to Roger.
"Roger, stop. There's someone else who loves you as much as Mimi did. Listen to me,
Roger."
But the songwriter wasn't listening. Joanne muttered, "Here goes nothing." Before
Maureen could ask what she was talking about, Mark went to Roger, took his face between his
hand, and kissed him soundly.
Silence returned. Collins' jaw dropped, Maureen lookd stunned. Mark looked at his
songwriter, afraid but not about to apologize. And Roger just blinked.
Finally, Mark couldn't take it anymore. "Roger, say something. Good, bad, indifferent,
just say something."
A few minutes longer Roger just stood there. Then, in a tiny voice, he said, "I - I - I
love you, too." The silence continued a few seconds, then Mark opened his arms and Roger
rushed into them.
With a small, sad smile, Joanne led Maureen into the kitchen, motioning for Collins to
follow.
"You were in on the whole thing, weren't you?" Maureen asked. Joanne just smiled.
Collins shook his head. "I'd always wondered about Mark, but not Roger." He tapped
his head. "Guess the gaydar still had a few glitches." That earned him a few giggles. "So what
exactly was the object of this little plan?"
Joanne shrugged. "We needed someone who could reach Roger the way Mimi did. If
we didn't find someone, he would've gone insane with grief."
"But Mark? How did he get chosen?" Marueen scratched her head quizzically.
Joanne refused to answer that question. She'd told Mark she wouldn't tell, and she
wasn't about to go back on that. Besides, how didn't matter. It worked. Roger had someone
he loved, who loved him back, and wasn't susceptible to every germ. Mark was finally happy.
He would eventually have to deal with Roger's inevitable decline and, ultimately, his death, but
they had some time to spare.
Saddened by Mimi's departure, the lawyer was still glad that they would all be okay for
awhile. At Maureen's questioning look, she smiled and said, "We're okay."