Chapter 53

Roger opened the door to the loft. He and Cass walked in, loaded with bags. Joellen turned around on the couch when she saw them. "Hey. Nice jacket Rog."

"Um, thanks." His eyes went to Mark, who was getting up from the couch. "Uh, Mark? Can I talk to you?"

"Yeah, I ah wanted to talk to you about, that ah, thing."

"Yeah, right. That's what I meant."

Joellen rolled her eyes. "Oh… cryptic." She laughed at how weird they were acting. "I don't know, I could be totally wrong Cass, but do you think they want to talk about something, like not in front of us?" She kept laughing at both of them as they both got a little red.

"You think?" Cass asked her, taking off Roger's old leather jacket and dropping it onto the other end of the couch.

"So what did you get?" Joellen motioned to the bags Roger was taking into their room.

"Oh, clothes. For Roger. I love the fact that you can find a place open to shop this late at night. What time is it anyway?"

Joellen picked up the remote and pointed it at the TV. "Eleven thirty. We were just starting a movie. You guys want to watch it? You only missed like fifteen minutes. I'll rewind it if you want."

"I don't know. Maybe. I should check my email too. I'm so tired though. And my feet are killing me." She told her as he undid her boots and took them off. "I don't know why I'm so tired."

"Because dragging me all over New York, forcing me to shop is exhausting." Roger teased her as he followed Mark into his office.

The office door closed behind him as Roger looked at Mark. "Well? What did she say? Are you going?" Mark knew what Roger wanted to talk about, but he tried to blow it off with the whole band tour issue.

"Don't give me that! What the hell was that? Before? With Maureen?" He asked him in a loud whisper.

"Nothing! Really."

"Nothing nothing, or nothing cause I walked in nothing?"

"Um…" Mark looked at the ground as he sat against the table.

"Jesus Mark! What, are you doing drugs now? Have you lost your mind?"

"Roger, keep your voice down." Mark whispered back at him.

"Sorry." He whispered. "But I mean, Maureen? Again? Are you nuts? And what about Joellen? You realize cheating on her, especially with Maureen, especially knowing perfectly well about Joanne, makes you no better than Maureen ever was." Roger stood there, with his hands on his hips, looking down at Mark.

"First of all, we didn't do anything."

"Yet. Give her time."

Mark ignored that and kept going. "Secondly, Joellen and I aren't really dating. More like hanging out a lot. We just happen to have a lot in common. Like movies and stuff."

"Don't forget sex." Roger said bluntly.

Mark got a small grin. "Okay, that too. But that's sort of all. We're really just friend. Who happen to have sex. It's not really a relationship." Roger just looked at him. "Well it's not like I never had anything like that before." He jerked a thumb towards the door, meaning Cass.

"That's not the point. And what about Joanne?" Roger wasn't sure who or what he was getting so defensive over. Mark sort of acting like Maureen, or Maureen acting like Maureen, yet again.

"Joanne and Mo are well, having issues. Me and Mo, well, we're me and Mo." He shrugged. "We're friends Roger. Like me and you." Mark was trying hard to stand his ground.

"No! Not like me and you! I never slept with you, then cheated on you, lied to you, took advantage of you, fucked with your mind, constantly let you down and just plain broke your fucking heart! Repeatedly."

As Roger watched the look on Mark's face form and he watched Mark's eyes slowly drop to the ground he regretted those words. All the words. Fuck Roger! You idiot! He stood there for a second, his hands shoved in his pockets, his eyes closed tight.

Still in a low whisper he spoke again. "Mark." He said slowly, opening his eyes. Mark still hadn't looked up. "Look, I'm sorry. Really. I just. I know how she is." Damn it Davis, can't you say anything right? Roger turned and sat against the table next to Mark. "I didn't mean it like that. I just meant, okay yeah, I did mean it like that. I now how she is. I know what she does. And how you are, and what she does to you. And I hate the way she treated you. I'm sorry, I love Mo, now, but I hated the way she treated you like crap, and I don't trust her not to do it again."

Mark slowly raised his eyes to Roger. "How do you even remember?" He said snidely. Mark was getting mad, but he wasn't sure at who. Roger? Maureen? Himself? He and Maureen were friends. But so were he and Roger. What right did Roger have to say all that? Back then, in a lot of way, Roger and Maureen weren't all that different.

Roger knew what Mark was thinking. He always knew what Mark was thinking at this point. He also knew Mark was right. Roger looked straight ahead at the wall. "Yeah I guess I had that coming."

"I'm sorry." Mark said, looking straight ahead as well.

"Don't be. You're right." Roger looked down at his new boots. A slight grin crossed his face. "Well, even if I did, sort of do all that other stuff, at lest I never slept with you."

Mark wasn't expecting that and started laughing. "That's true I guess."

"What do you mean you guess? You were the sober one all those years!" Roger joked with him. "I was pretty certain on that one Mark, but I was kinda hoping you'd be absolute on it!"

Mark was really laughing now. "No, I mean yes definitely, that is true. No question about it."

"Well that's good to know." He grinned.

They both laughed. After a minute Mark spoke again. "She's different now you know."

"Yeah I guess."

"We're different now too you know."

"Yeah I know. You're right."

"People change Roger. We changed."

"Just be careful. Okay. Please. I just don't want to see her do all that stuff all over again."

"I know. I'd rather she not do all that stuff all over again either. But like I said, right now, we're just friends."

"Okay." Roger looked at him seriously. "Are you going to be okay if I leave for two weeks? I mean with everything?"

"She's making you go isn't she?" He grinned. "Good. I can't believe you ever considered not doing it. But I knew she would make you go. She'd never let you turn it down."

"She's not making me. I mean, she's right, it is like the first step in what I had always said I wanted."

"Why does that sound so past tense? I mean that is what you want, isn't it?"

"Yeah, I guess. I mean at least it was."

"And now?"

"Now?" Roger looked down at his boots again and then back at the door. "I'm glad I'm getting the chance to at least do it. I mean I spent so many years figuring nothing like this would ever happen. That I'd ever get much farther than playing for free beer. And getting a chance to do this meant, at least somebody other than you and our friends, thought I was good enough to maybe someday get there."

"But?"

Roger laughed at Mark. He realized Mark knew him as well as he knew Mark. "But I guess it's not as important as it used to be. I guess my priorities sort of changed."

Mark grinned. "Yeah, I guess they did."

"So are you going to be okay here? With Cass? And Maureen?"

"I think I can handle it Roger." He laughed. "I mean I did manage to take care of your sorry ass all these years." He gave him a crooked grin.

"Uh huh." He looked at him. "Just promise me you'll take care of her."

Mark just looked at him. "Like I ever wouldn't?"

"I know. It just makes me feel better leaving her if I hear you say it."

"Of course. I'd never let anything happen to her. You do remember she was my friend and sort of girlfriend first. Like way before you ever met her."

Roger grinned as he bumped his shoulder into Mark's. "Yeah, I remember. It's kind of funny. I always figured if one of us was ever gonna date the other's old girlfriends, it would be you dating mine, never the other way around."

"Actually, I never figured it would happen at all."

"Really?" He looked at him somewhat surprised.

"Yep. Honestly, with the exception of Mimi, most of your girlfriends scared me."

Roger laughed at him. "You're kidding."

"Nope. Actually, thinking back on it, I think Mimi scared me a little the first few days too. You know, trying to be that super touch chick and all." He watched Roger start laughing. "And sleeping on the floor of your various band mates apartments wasn't helping. Some of those people scared me too. I was never so happy to be back in this dump as I was then."

"What about Cass?"

"Never before, but with the hormonal Jekel and Hyde thing, yeah, a little." He grinned at Roger, knowing he knew he was really kidding. "Sorry buddy, you date freaky, scary women."

"First of all, Cass knows we both fear her at times lately. Secondly, all women are freaky and scary at least to some extent. But it's okay, because at times Maureen still to this day still scares the hell out of me."

They sat there laughing for another minute both knowing everything was okay between them. "Hey." Joellen knocked on the door as she opened it. "Are you guys almost done? Are we gonna watch this movie?"

"Yeah, we're coming." Mark told her, standing up from the table. They walked into the living room. Cass had changed into an ancient pair of old flannel pajamas of Mark's and an old long sleeve tee shirt of Roger's. She was sitting in the chair with a blanket over her. Mark watched her get up, let Roger sit down and then sit on his lap. "How is it, with all the shopping you've done, you're still wearing our old clothes?"

"I don't know." She shrugged, getting settled. "I like them, they are comfy." She leaned against Roger's chest.

"Who wants a beer?" Joellen asked, walking back into the living room carrying a six pack. She held it out for Roger, who reached up and pulled one off, as did Cass. Roger watched her, handed his back to Joellen and took the one from Cass' hands, opening it.

Mark restarted the movie, back at the beginning. He watched Cass get comfy on Roger' lap, pulling the blanket up over them both.

Roger wrapped his arms around hr waist, still holding his beer. Under the blanket his left hand fell onto her stomach, absently rubbing it lightly. He handed her the beer, letting her have a couple of sips. She rested her head again his chest and started watching the movie.

"Cass." Roger moved his shoulder to gently shake her awake. "Baby wake up."

"I feel asleep." She said groggily. "What did I miss?"

Roger smiled at her as she stood up, wrapping the blanket around herself. "Remember when they got into the car? About ten minutes into the movie?"

"Uh huh."

"All you missed was everything after that." He laughed.

"Oh." She was confused. "Did I miss the whole movie?"


"Yeah Babe." He grinned. "You missed the whole movie. You want to go to bed?" He laughed as he watched her nod her head. She was so funny and cute when she was half-asleep. "Let's go to bed Baby." He led her into the bedroom, thinking again how much he was going to miss her while he was gone.